The Fourth Element Trilogy (The Fourth Element #1–3)

by Kat Ross

Best of all, he wouldn't have to spend one more night in this cursed city. Balthazar had not slept, but he didn't feel tired in the least. Unlike the torture of the three magi, which had been simply a task to execute in a brisk, workmanlike fashion, he had enjoyed collaring the Numerator. They both did things most others would not, but Balthazar felt he had little else in common with the man. Araxa struck him as cold and reptilian, a creature of deep insecurities who filled the void in himself by manipulating others. He cared only for power. The necromancer understood that, but found it shallow. Power for power's sake bored him. He sought knowledge above all things, for it could not be lost or taken away. You are a pilgrim at heart, Balthazar. He smiled. Yes, he was that. And other things besides. He was even capable of love, if an obsessive, all-consuming sort. As he passed the daēva barracks, a group of solemn children

This whole section is a repeat of the previous. I know occasional errors get past proof readers, but this is quite unbelievable.

“War is a stupid waste,” I said. “But we seem to like it enough to do it again and again.”

icicles above. Her stomach felt hollow. Their meager supplies had dwindled to almost nothing. Tijah didn't dare approach any of the distant villages they glimpsed across the plain, even those without a smudge of smoke hanging above their roofs. But at least Anu had found them water, a tiny spring hidden in the rocks. The trickle was enough to refill their skins, but not much else. None of them had bathed in more than a week. Anu's hair looked like a vermin-infested haystack. They were cold and they were hungry and they stank. The only ray of light, Tijah reflected, was that she couldn't smell much anymore. "You'll be safe enough in Tel Khalujah," she told Anu and Abid as they carefully counted out a handful of nuts into three pathetic piles. The kitten gave a weak cry and Abid slipped it a scrap of cheese from his pocket. "They have Water Dogs. I know them all well." Tijah knitted

Repeated passage, second in book.

"Are there no magics you can work?" Zarathustra asked. "The necromancers were feared above even the Undead Druj during the war." "If I had my chains, I could tear the cursed door off its hinges, but I left them in my chambers." He directed his words at the straw bedding where the Prophet huddled. "What if I removed your cuff? Would that release your power?" "It has to be broken, like all the others. Only the fourth element can shatter a talisman. You know that." Balthazar swore lustily. "And the holy fire is also in my chambers." Silence descended for a long minute. "What is Molon's intention, do you think?" the Prophet ventured. "To kill us both. That much is obvious. And if he returns with his chains, he'll have the strength of ten men. I will be

Repeated passage,the third one.