Murphy smiled.
"Clever."
The dragon's eyelids drooped slightly, then lifted. "Three thousand years ago, how did you manage to wait for Him?"
Saladin recalled the white light from three thousand years ago. "It wasn't just courage, will, and faith, as you said. It was that *everyone* possessed courage, will, and faith."
He thought of that pair of shoes, the one with the wolf's fang tied to it.
"Even as a Legend, I have grown numb. But my numbness is not an indifference to death. It is a numbness I've embraced to defeat my enemies."
His voice began to tremble, but not from fear.
"The courage, will, and faith of the people at our backs—even in death—only grant me more strength. The courage, will, and faith of those who sacrifice themselves on the front lines likewise grant us all more strength."
As he spoke, the trembling in his voice vanished. Each word was resolute and resonant, filled with power.
