Never is this more true that at the Festivals of the Equinox, when captives are promised their freedom, if only they can slay a Wardancer in single combat. None succeed, of course, for the Devotees of Loec are peerless duellists. The true contest is not for the victim’s freedom, but to see how many wounds the Wardancer can inflict before his foe expires. Any captive who dies to fewer than a hundred cuts is thought to be poor sport indeed.[1a]