The Paper Sword

On the spell-crossed Phaer Isle, teen Xemion finds a blade-shaped stick and can't resist altering it to look like a real sword. Knowing that the laws of their cruel Pathan conquerors would require a death sentence for possession of such a "weapon," Saheli, a teenaged girl, demands he destroy it. He agrees but insists on performing one sword dance. When this is witnessed by Vallaine, the man with the red hand, they are invited to join a rebellion. At first they refuse, but a sadistic official discovers Xemion's use of the sword and they are forced to flee - toward the rebellion.

Armed with only the painted sword, they face Thralls, Triplicants, dragons, rage-wraiths, and a host of other spell-crossed and hybrid beings. As they approach the Great Kone, source of all spell-craft, Saheli's fear of magic and Xemion's attraction to it bind them in a crossed spell of their own.