Chapter Text
PROLOGUE
Shadrai stared out the narrow window of her private chambers, her eyes scanning the western horizon greedily as the sun faded. She allowed herself a small smile as the shadows took over the lands, not noticing the chill wind sweeping through her rooms. With practiced ease she probed her own borders, chuckling as the earth acknowledged her possession of the darkened lands, trembling and resisting her touch. Deep below the foundations of her fortress in Morvan she could feel the heavy presence of the Goddess. That One did not wake, but dreamed on -- sleeping, resting, not waking but watching.
"Keep sleeping, Old One," Shadrai murmured. "Keep hoping your precious Kieri will keep you safe until you are healed. Keep on dreaming while I strip your world."
In response, the ground shivered. Shadrai laughed in delight, then cursed as the earth repelled her probe. She withdrew her presence, soothing the sleeping Goddess with murmured promises. It would not do to be over bold just yet, she thought, practicing patience. It was a trait she despised but had cultivated over centuries. No, it would not do to get overconfident.
She turned her attention to the latest addition to her plans laying slender hands on the bas-relief map occupying the center of the room. A large goblet stood in the center of the map. A small amount of thick brownish-red liquid covered the bottom of the cup. Carefully dipping her fingers into the mixture, she spread the thick stuff along a ridge on the right side of the map. The liquid was quickly absorbed, leaving behind a faint reddish glow.
"These borders are mine," she murmured, tracing one finger along the blood-red edge of her domain. It extended deep into the crescent formed by Arris graen and Itheron, western half of the enormous double arced mountain range called the graen Triemon. "And soon enough I will have all the rest as well." She looked up, eyeing her two companions sweetly. They had remained silent, respecting their mistress's mood. "What did your patrol discover, Mek'Ain?" She asked.
"It is as you thought, Lady," the younger of the two men said, his face hard-edged and stern. "There is a large Keep at the base of Itheron, in western Elerak. The inhabitants are said to be of your own people."
"How many?"
"Close to three hundred."
"Oh, I think your men can handle so few. Akis, I believe you have something for me?"
The older man nodded, handing her three carefully wrapped pouches and three additional goblets. "This is the last of the materials you requested, Shadrai, sands from the southern coast near Mekar, gravel from the river bed in Estanis and grasses from Irreshon."
"And my volunteers?" She asked accepting the packets.
Akis paled. "They are ready, Lady."
"Lovely. Bring them to me, Akis," she commanded, opening the packets and pouring the contents of each into its own wide-mouthed cup. "I know you dislike this, Mek'Ain, but I require you to stay."
"As you will, Lady," her captain said uneasily.
"Do you know Elerak means refuge, Mek'Ain? Refuge," she sighed. "I think not." Her smile was fiercely possessive. "Do you see these lovely plains?" She asked, tracing the area with her fingers. "I played there as a child; among ruins of empires no one remembers any more. I woke to the sun rising over Esterys graen and slept with my eyes on Itheron. Ever west, Mek'Ain, we always look west for our future -- we Kieri. Most of my servants think the Kieri are only a legend. To them we are like ghosts -- ghosts who talk without speaking, who can see without eyes," she laughed. Mek'Ain watched her warily as she circled her map.
"The traders say the Kieri in Elerak watch for fires and storms and warn each other when there is danger. They trade services with the Haian villages there," he said cautiously.
"Oh, the Kieri have certain skills, but they are unambitious," Shadrai said casually, touching the map representation of Itheron grae speculatively. "Their Oaths bind them to the will and service of an immortal who is only barely aware they exist. They endlessly go about their duty as if there were nothing else in the world to do but serve some half-dead hag buried beneath the earth. You cannot break an Oath made to an immortal. But I broke it, Mek'Ain, and Aessa is helpless to stop me from making what was hers, mine," she said and her eyes narrowed at the shock on his face. "Have I upset you, dear, talking about Aessa in such a way? Your folk call her Esk, don't you? The sea and the sky. How poetic. I can personally vouch for the fact she lays buried beneath the stone and rock of this place. But not for much longer," she said, her tone changing as suddenly as her expression. "This map took me a long time to build, my dear. Longer than you, with your short life, can possibly imagine," she continued and her voice was flat and hard. "Do you know how to find this Keep?"
"Aye, Lady," Mek'Ain said with a wolfish grin. "Are we going raiding, then?"
"I think so, my friend. But we must cultivate patience," she said snarling the word. "I want to know how many and where. And I think we will need some allies -- perhaps something four legged and a little cold blooded . . . from beyond your own lands, perhaps?"
Mek'Ain stiffened at her suggestion, not quite able to meet her glittering eyes.
Shadrai chuckled softly at his expression. "Don't worry, Mek'Ain. I won't turn you into a herdsman. I'll handle that aspect of our journey. Take what men and supplies you need. I'll join you before spring."
"You want us to leave during the snows, Lady?" he asked, wide mouthed.
She rested a slender hand along his jaw, holding it gently. "Oh, yes, my dear. But not to worry. You don't think I'll let a little weather threaten my favorite Captain, do you? The elements will not be your enemy, Mek'Ain." Her grip tightened on his face, fingernails digging into the flesh as she locked her cold eyes with his. "But time is, my dear. Don't be late -- and don't think to escape me." She relaxed her grip and he fell gasping to the stone floor. "Because you are my favorite, Mek'Ain, and I know how to find you. Dead or alive. Now," she added lightly. "I think Akis has things ready for me. When I am done, my dear, the path will be open for you to enter Elerak and none the wiser."
A knock on the door brought an anticipatory gleam to her eye. "Come in," she purred and Akis entered followed by three guarded prisoners, all bound and gagged. She gestured to three chairs. "Please, be seated and be comfortable," she said to the prisoners and gave Akis the three cups to hold. From her waist she drew a small thin blade and approached the first of her prisoners. "Now, you are Hured, from Mekar, yes?" she asked and smiled gently when the man nodded fearfully. She took the cup of sand from Akis and held it in her left hand, the blade in her right. "I know you wish I would say this won't hurt a bit, Hured, but I'm afraid it will -- a great deal." She smiled, silvery eyes widening in pleasure.
Mek'Ain, Akis and the guards remained silent, trying not to watch or listen. Deep below them the ground trembled. None of Shadrai's minions could ignore the fact that when Hured's body stopped twitching, the tremor passed as well.