Oz awoke. That meant he wasn't dead. With certainty he felt like he should be after that ordeal. The last thing he remembered was the feeling, like he were standing in a smelting furnace at full blaze.

	Dazed and half asleep, Oz glanced at the rest of the workers in the room. He looked at the piece of pie silently, stunned. Finally he snagged it from his companion and smiled weakly. "Thanks." As soon as he took a bite his stomach reminded him of how drained he was. He ached but it was deeper than that. Spiritually and emotionally he felt defeated. Sunken. Empty.

	"What happened?" He asked. "Did Zel find you? Did he get the book? Did he kill anyone?" Oz asked the questions almost too fast to be answered. Last of all was the one he cared most to know. "How are Josh and Angelica?"

	Feeling his appetite return, Oz consumed the pie and listened.