"The rules are simple. The people outside the shield inflict experiments upon us, most of them annoying. The shield cannot be broken. Death is not permanent, but if you die you come back a week later with a very unpleasant handicap, seeming at random. Power is curtailed, but one might deal with spirits for more. The best of those is a spirit called... Twila, I think it is. Is that right? Ah, I believe so. The books communicate with all the other books, but sometimes you must talk very loudly to make yourself understood. That is all of the pertinent things I can think of."

He shakes his head. "Questions?"