When Dragons Rage by Michael A. Stackpole

Author:Michael A. Stackpole
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: Science Fiction, Fantasy
ISBN: 9780553578539
Publisher: Spectra
Published: 2002-11-26T05:00:00+00:00

Silide-tse Jynyn did introduce herself to Kerrigan, then introduced him to the various sisters and cousins of the female whose child he had saved. It actually struck him that saving the child was more important than saving Sulion-Corax. As was explained to him, she had had a dream a week previous and had headed out with her entourage to gather snowberries from a particular grove. The dream had indicated that these berries would be the first solid food the child would eat, so the dream took on the command of law. The blizzards from the north had caught them away from Bokagul, and the Au-rolani renegades had caught them on their return to Bokagul.

Getting the wagons down into the valley had proved less of a problem than Kerrigan would have imagined. With the urZrethi, Lombo, and lots of rope and horses, the descent went fairly easy. Peri did not remain in her cart for the trip down the hill, but instead was introduced to Silide-tse. The urZrethi warden gave her a message and directions on where to reach the entrance to the Girsce domain.

The journey northwest took four hours, and mountain shadows shrouded the valley as they made the trip. The bodies of the frostclaws had been tossed onto their sleighs as Lombo had not mangled them overmuch and they were reported to be good eating. Kerrigan had never tasted their meat before, but Crow gave him an encouraging nod, so he withheld comment.

At journey’s end they drew into a narrow valley that twisted back and forth several times before opening into a slightly larger valley capped by a sheer stone wall. The cul-de-sac was large enough to fit their entire company, but only just barely. When riding through the narrow confines, Kerrigan had looked up and noticed that a small number of archers could harry any troops trying to lay siege to the entrance, and he was pretty sure this was a point not lost on the urZrethi.

The entrance to Bokagul itself impressed him. The sheer wall rose a hundred yards and glistened with ice that formed from melting snow above. At the base stood four figures carved in bas-relief from the grey stone. The two in the middle were smallest, and represented urZrethi. They stood small and squat, their hands touching the rune-decorated circle defining the entrance. Above them, and much taller, were two shapeshifted urZrethi who had the birdlike legs many used for walking through the snow. Moreover, their upper arms had been transformed into wings, which touched wingtip to wingtip over the entrance’s circle.

Silide-tse paced beside him. “You know, Adept Reese, the urZrethi believe, someday, that the truly gifted among us will be able to shape wings and fly.”

He nodded. “I have heard the legend. It is a wonderful dream.”

“Yes, it is.” She smiled. “Perhaps the child you saved will be the one with a light enough spirit to reach that goal.”

“I should be delighted if it were so.”

Silide-tse bounded ahead, but before she could extend a hand to touch the keystone, the massive disk rolled aside.

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