She dropped his head, and leaned her full weight on her boot, holding her hand out in front of his face. He could see that the back of her gloved hand was armored, even the fingers. A blood red leather rod, about a foot long, hung loosely from her wrist by an elegant gold chain. It swung back and forth in front of his eyes. "This is the Agiel. This is part of what I will use to train you." She gave him a smooth smile, arching an eyebrow. "Curious? Want to see how it works?"

Denna pressed the Agiel against his side. The shock of the pain made him cry out, even though he had had no intention of giving her the satisfaction of seeing how much it hurt. Every muscle in his body locked rigid with the agony of the thing against his side. His mind was filled with the want of having it off him. Denna pushed the Slightest bit harder, making him scream louder. He heard a pop, and felt a rib crack.

She took the Agiel away; warm blood oozed down his side. Richard was covered in sweat as he lay in the dirt, panting, tears running from his eyes. He felt as if the pain were pulling every muscle in his body apart. There was dirt in his mouth, and blood.

Denna gave him a cruel sneer. "Now, my pet, say `Thank you, Mistress Denna, for teaching me. " Her face came closer. "Say it."

With all his mental strength, Richard focused his hunger to kill her, and envisioned the sword exploding through her head. "Die, bitch."

Denna shuddered and half closed her eyes, running her tongue over her lip in ecstasy. "Oh, that was a deliciously naughty vision, my pet. Of course, you will learn to be seriously sorry you did it. Training you is going to be exquisite fun. Too bad you don't know what a Mord-Sith is. If you did, you would be very afraid. I would enjoy that." Her smile showed her perfect teeth. "But I think I'm going to delight in surprising you even more."

Richard maintained the vision of killing her until he was unconscious