...Before them stood the body of Sette, still in the funeral robes used at his burial and with his sword in his hand. Behind him towered the figure of a warrior dressed in battle armor.

“Behold your leader, Sette,” the warrior said.

They dropped their heads to the bare boards, paying homage to him they thought must be the Lord of the Underworld—but why bring Sette back to life?

“I am not dead, my friends,” Sette said, his voice strong but calm. “I was rescued by Jason of Thurgan—not from death but from Tarn’s slave pens in Sarando.”

The councilors and pirate captains jumped to their feet, their anger clearly visible in their faces. A babble of voices filled the room as each sought answers to his own questions. Sette held up his hands, a smile on his face.

“I don’t know the answers to your questions. Let Jason answer them, it is he I have to thank for my rescue.”

“But who is Jason of Thurgan?” a councilor asked. “I have never heard of him.”

“Do you not recognize the mighty Sword of Thoran?” Sette asked, pointing to the sword in Jason’s left hand, the tip of the mighty blade resting on the ground.