The mountain passes of the Thak-Tharak mountain range was no safe place, and in winter even less so than usual. They were well known for being the last resting place of several unfortunate travellers and most people would shun the high altitude passes and travel along the low land rivers instead. That trip was much longer but almost safe. Nobody wanted to take a chance and risk their lives when they could reach their destination in a far more comfortable way. Up there you risked freezing to death first and foremost, then came the danger of avalanches and rock slides and the area was also well known for being the hunting grounds of less than friendly creatures like orcs and trolls and gnomes and the gods alone knew what else of evil beings.
The winds were howling, a shrill sound that were a harbinger of death to anyone being outdoors. It was already very cold and the wind made it even worse, it could freeze exposed tissue in a matter of a few minutes. This winter had been a hard one, snow had piled up everywhere and even the old could not remember having seen this much of it before. Some places the buildings were completely covered, and some feared that this was the end of the world, that their existence would be brought to an end by an unending winter. The pass leading down from the mountain known as Zhepultras peak was one nobody used, even in summer. Some years ago, a rockslide had damaged the road and so the travellers sought the other more easy routes instead.

Yet on this very day a lone figure could be seen struggling its way through the deep snow, a small hairy short legged horse carrying a lone rider. The animal was panting, the snow was packed and hard to move through and the animal was exhausted but the figure on its back was in an even worse state.

Snow was drifting through the air like a dense white veil and the winds were like cold claws, trying to tear away any sign of life. The horse had a thick winter coat and the breed was known to survive even the bitter cold of the mountains but the rider did not fare so well. He was wearing good winter clothes and a huge cloak was wrapped around him, yet he was close to fainting from the cold. He was shivering like a leaf in the wind and could barely hold on to the saddle. He had quit guiding the horse a long time ago, he trusted the animal’s keen instincts and knew that it would try to find a safe place, but he feared that it would be too late.

The horse was a faithful companion, he felt like the worst person in the world to push it like he had but there was no other way. They would both succumb to the cold soon if they didn’t find any shelter. He was leaning forward, the pain in his hands and feet was almost gone and that scared him more than anything else. He could not die, but he could most certainly loose fingers and toes to frostbite and perhaps even more vital body parts too and the idea scared him to the core. Intense cold or intense heat was among the very few things which could cause him real harm.

He had been an idiot, and he knew it. Crossing the mountains at this time of the year was sheer madness but he had no other choice the way he saw it. He had to get away from the bay area since there had been no more jobs and people often got aggressive when they started to understand how he made his living, and what he was. People with his profession rarely got to see the welcoming side of the small communities and he was a very unusual individual, even for those accustomed to elves. Some had begun to question his right to be there and then there were the small but significant group of people who did believe that those of elven blood gained their longevity and strength by robbing humans of theirs. He had decided to leave when the local priest had started to create rumours just to get him out of town, he knew where this was heading and he didn’t want to cause anyone to lose their lives unless he could help it. He could have slaughtered them all but what was the point in that? They were primitive superstitious beings and he had no reason to stay there, it was better to move on.

 It was several decades since he had crossed the mountains this way and he had forgotten a lot, too much even. He had lost his way and only blind luck had allowed him to find a safe way down toward the valley below, and now he was desperately searching for the one small village he knew lay there somewhere. But it too could have changed, it could have been moved or even been abandoned and he bit his teeth together and just prayed that there still were people there.
He had seen no lights so far, not even tracks that revealed activity and it seemed like the area was dead, not even wolves or other mountain dwellers had left any marks in the snow and he feared the worst. The horse needed rest and food and he feared that he would lose consciousness soon. He was so cold he felt like a piece of ice. Even his good clothes could not keep the bitter cold out and to the poor horse it had to be even worse, the animal was covered in snow and ice and it was breathing hard and desperately trying to find its way through the snowdrifts.

He had not anticipated anything like this, but like they said, pride comes before the fall. He thought he could cross using only one day but he was very wrong, this was the tenth day and neither of them had eaten anything for the last three days. He had been carrying a sack of food and some oats but it had been lost when the horse lost its footing and skidded down a slope with him on top of it. And so the problems had started.

At first he feared the creatures of the mountains but that fear was quickly dispelled, nothing moved outside in a winter storm, not even trolls. But the cold was an enemy even greater than any giant and he soon realized that he was in deep trouble.

It was going downhill, his eyes were almost frozen shut by the flying snow and ice and he could not feel his hands anymore but he could see that the landscape had somehow changed. The forest and open moor had changed into what had to be meadows and he could see that there had been cattle grazing there during the summer. His hope was rekindled, he tried desperately to stay awake and the horse seemed to sense it too and found its last reserves of strength. His eyes could see light, and it was not the light of distant stars but a flickering weak light that had to be fire.

The horse grunted and started to push forward toward the light, he promised himself that he would reward the little fellow with a very good meal as soon as possible, if they survived that was. The fatigue almost overwhelmed him, he felt dizzy and lightheaded and was glad he had tied himself to the saddle, just in case. He could go for weeks without food or water and his endurance was great even compared with that of a dwarf or an ordinary elf but the cold had been sucking the strength out of him like a bleeding wound. And he had been walking a lot too and tried to make a path the weary horse could use.

Some would perhaps have abandoned the animal and tried to find their way on foot but he was not like that, the small horse had no chance there, it would freeze to death or the wolves would find it and it had been a friend to him for a couple of months now. He could have bought himself a better horse of course, he had money but a huge expensive animal would draw attention toward him, and that he tried to avoid. For an ordinary mercenary the small gelding was more than enough and it made his stories more believable. He had not given the horse a name, but he did not feel like he had to, they had each other and that was all he needed.

The horse found something that had to be a road, it was covered by almost five feet of snow just like the surroundings but one could see that it was flat and going somewhere. He fought the drowsy feeling, it was a hard battle but he had to win, this time too. He did not want to suffer injuries from frostbite and the idea of losing limbs terrified him. He had to keep his body in good shape in order to get jobs or else he would get himself into deep trouble. His thoughts were slow, almost reluctant like his brain would prefer to shut down. He did not even shiver anymore and it felt so tempting to fall asleep. The snow looked so soft and inviting and he was so very tired. And he did not feel the cold anymore, it was weird. Alarm bells were ringing in his mind and he knew that this was dangerous but he no longer had the strength to fight the exhaustion. He tipped forwards and was hanging along the neck of the horse as it ploughed through the snow with determination within its gentle eyes.

The light got closer, it was small and weak but real. It came through a small window and there was a group of buildings there. This was a very small village consisting of farm buildings and small cabins and it could not house that many people. The horse pushed its way through the snowdrifts that had piled up within the gate, there was a low fence around the place but it was almost invisible now. The animal could smell people, it could smell smoke and other horses and it knew that people meant help. He was not dumb and carried his now unconscious rider toward the house where the light was shining. The door was almost covered by the snow too, nobody had left the house for hours and the horse was swaying now. It had drained the last of its strength and stood there with his head close to the ground, flanks heaving and legs wobbly and threatening to give in. The horse lifted its head and whinnied, a sound barely audible over the roar of the wind but he managed to repeat it a few times before his legs gave in and he collapsed on the snow.
There were silence for a few seconds, then the door started to shake and someone pushed it open. A lamp was held up and there was a shadow in the doorway. The horse neighed once more and the figure got busy. “Dhora, girls, by the gods, there is really someone out here. Come and give me a hand.”

The small gelding felt relieved, there were in deed people there and now everything would be fine. He just lay there and allowed the man and the three women to cut his rider free before they carried him inside. A younger man came and helped the animal onto its feet again and gently supported it while leading it into a small stable across the open yard. They were safe, at least for the time being.

Lady Shayrean of Thoracy was feeling rather peaceful this lovely evening, the sun was setting behind the beautiful towers of the fifth island and the air was filled with the pleasant fragrances of high summer. She turned her face toward the light and sighed to herself, she had to admit to herself that she should be very pleased with her work and what she had achieved. But she could not, she still felt a sort of irrational guilt she could not explain. The garden she was walking through was perfect, no other word could describe it. Flowers and trees were growing there in a seemingly random pattern but everything was in fact placed according to very skilled planning. Nothing was out of place, not even the vines that were growing between the branches had been allowed to follow their natural pattern. This was nature made more natural than it actually was and she did not know if she liked it or not.

 It was beautiful but she felt that it was stiff somehow. There was nothing of the free energy she sensed within a real forest. But it was as it always had, their house had been famous for their garden since the very start and she could not just go ahead and change what had been a trademark for their family for millennia.
She sighed, took a look around, tried to return to the peaceful state she had been in. It was hard to find peace these days, and she was feeling tired. Things had not been thus when her husband had been alive but he passed away because of a tragic accident two years earlier and suddenly she was left with the responsibility of ruling their house. And that job was not something anyone with a soft heart and weak condition should try, it was back breaking and she sometimes felt like she had put her hand into a nest of venomous snakes. Her husband had been strong, he had a lot of authority within their society and everybody respected him. She had lived within his shadow and had been happy that way but now she had been pushed into the light and had to do what he had done. 

Shayrean had been a high priestess of the Goddess Ahklariel for most of her life, it had indeed given her both a taste of power and a deep insight into the minds of others but she had never imagined that ruling a noble house would be this demanding. She felt trapped, no less than that. As a priestess she had often been involved in intrigues and petty fights between different groups within their herd of believers and also between followers of different deities but the constant battle for power that was fought among the seven ruling houses was down right insane.
Her race was a peaceful one, or at least that was the common belief but by every god she knew of, the noble houses were no less ferocious and bloodthirsty than a band of wild orcs. Murder was not the way of their people, after all they tried to be civilised but the gossip and the dirty tricks were often no less lethal than a dagger. Magic were commonly used to assure one owns power while destroying that of others and every house had at least five strong magicians. And a whole herd of priests and priestesses who sought their own form of power. By influencing their masters they could increase the wealth of their own temple and it had become a spider’s web of hidden treaties and alliances that could make anyone confused.
           Shayrean was in a way lucky, her house was the lowest of the seven noble ones and it had been so for ages. To some this was a sign of weakness and a lack of ambitions but the truth was that they knew how to survive. Being among the top houses was practically equal to being at war and while the others were spinning their plans and wasting their energy the seventh house was growing ever more powerful but doing so very slowly and discreetly. She had to smile to herself, the methods that were used! Lies and deceit was of course normal, everything well camouflaged as friendly advice and benign chit-chat. Getting someone of your own house married into one of the houses above you was just normal, it was to expect and nobody saw anything weird in it. Parents were desperately trying to catch the attention of that particular someone they thought could make a good son or daughter in law and the children themselves seldom had anything they could say.
It was terrible really, they were all the children of light and yet they were struggling to climb this rather rackety social ladder like they were worshipers of the dark gods. But time had forced this change upon them, they had removed themselves from their original state and she felt deep within her heart that it was the commoners who carried the true legacy of their people. Her class was no longer what they once had been, not in any way. They worshiped nature like all of their race but denied to see the true beauty of it and she knew of no one who would leave all this luxury and wealth behind and live like their ancestors, free within the shades of the mighty forests.
In fact they lived so far away from the rest of their people that some nobles never had seen a city or a natural forest. It was a shame, it truly was. The seven islands of the sacred star was the ultimate symbol of their power and in her eyes the ultimate symbol of their failure. When had power become more important than people, than happiness and fulfilment? The seven islands were artificial, some said that a very mighty magician had formed them during a stormy night with the help of a horde of demons. The lake which housed them was huge and not very deep and now it had become like a world of its own. All islands were shaped like a star with seven spikes, and they lay there with wide canals between them.

To travel from one island to the other one had to use some of the very lovely boats that lay moored at the designated piers and the water was literally sparkling with magical defences and some more sinister ones too. She knew that falling into the canal could be fatal, there were things living in the lake that could strip a body of flesh in a few seconds.
And this was the fate of her people, of this ruling class. To become so paranoid and mad they literally caged themselves in and forgot all about living. Of course the islands were beautiful, admired by everyone and many came from other countries just to behold them. The buildings on each island were representing the preferred style of the house that lived there and so were the rest of the island too. Her family had chosen natural shapes to their architecture and garden, it wasn’t too bad and seemed inviting even to Shayrean’s eyes but she had to admit that their island was rather anonymous compared with the grandness and glory of some of the stronger houses.

Towers of silver or gold, gardens made from magical plants and animals or gardens where everything was made from living crystal. It was such a waste because in her mind nothing could ever compare with the beauty of a real forest. But it all showed power and nothing showed power more than the island of the house of Hara’kree, the ruling house. They had the most influence and the ruler of the entire society was of that house now. On that island which was the biggest of them all everything was kept in an almost Spartan form. There were nothing extravagant or luxurious to be seen, the walkways and gardens almost bleak compared with those of the other houses and the buildings simple and almost boring to watch. No magic, no extra lighting at night and absolutely no show of strength. Because they did not have to, everybody knew what Hara’kree could achieve. One word and everyone could become  nobody over just one night. They had the most powerful wizards and the greatest wealth and everyone who had actually visited the island could tell that inside of the seemingly mundane buildings was a luxury that was both overwhelming and tasteful. And that was one of the very signatures of the Hara’kree family, taste!
The only reason why Shayrean liked them was that fact, their taste. They were known for elegance and style, not for being of those who thought that they could show power by over dressing and carrying enough jewels to almost break their own necks.
Yes, Shayrean liked some of the Hara’krees, since they did not have to fear being overthrown by some devious outsider they relaxed and sought other things than just worldly power. Some were great artists or very devoted priests while others spend their time doing charity and helping the less fortunate members of their people. Yes, in her eyes the upper house was the only one worthy of respect. The lake lay far from any city and the area was very secluded and peaceful, like a small world of its own and it was both a good thing and a nuisance. If their forefathers had placed this centre of power within a major city everybody would have been able to see reality every day but to most of the upper class the world outside of the sacred star was a mere word. It did not concern them and they knew very little of the realities of everyday life. Shayrean was privileged by the fact that she had served as a priestess in the temple of the country capital and had seen more of the world than many others. And thus it saddened her even more to see how unreal the lives of many were.
She walked through the garden, the sun was warm and she fanned herself and tried to keep a straight face as always. You never showed anyone your true emotions and she could never allow herself to seem weak or even distracted. There were eyes everywhere and even within her own house there were people who would have enjoyed to have her removed from her position. But she was too smart, too cunning. Shayrean had lived for more than three thousand seven hundred years and that gave her enough respect to secure her in at least some ways.

But on the other hand the future looked a bit bleak in deed. She had only one child and he was a weakly boy who didn’t seem to be interested in anything except books and sulking. He was her great sorrow and the source of many of her worries, a boy should be more energetic and show more initiative but Ushann was the opposite of their ideals. A silent and somewhat shy child who just celebrated his eight birthday and he was not at all the future leader they had wanted. He would never be able to lead their house because he would bend to the will of others and allow them to lead him in whatever direction they desired. Shayrean could see that very well, she was a master at reading peoples personality and she had little faith in Ushann, he would never change.

There were too much of his father’s family in him, their lack of a strong will and lack of self-confidence had struck again within this boy and she could only be grateful that it had skipped his father. She sighed and walked on, she would have to come up with a plan to save their position, a marriage with a good and wise woman was of course an option but treasures like that did not grow on trees. She would really have to think hard to find a solution.

 
She sat down on a bench and tried to relax, she could see a gardener working on a decorative fence close to where she sat. He was obviously trying to fix it and she saw that a young boy came running to him with some tools. It had to be an apprentice but so young? The upper class seldom noticed those who worked for them but Shayrean was different, she did not see her own class as any different from all others, they were just born by the right parents and luck had decided this fact. She cared about her servants and she cocked her head and stared at the man who tried to push two parts of the fence back together again.

He was a tall blond man with the smooth features of the elven race native for this land but the boy was dark. Shayrean got curious, the child was obviously trying to obey and learn but it was rather clear that he didn’t enjoy the work. His attention was elsewhere and Shayrean had to smile. Children were innocent and didn’t always understand that their parents only wanted what was best for them. She fanned herself again and allowed her inherited special power to get active. She had been born with the gift of chere-char, the eye that saw everything, it was a secret within her family that some women had this ability and she rarely used it because it gave her a terrible headache and could show her things she really didn’t want to see. But there was something about this child that made her forget about that.
To Shayrean the gardener and the child suddenly were surrounded by a strong light and its colour and shape told her a lot about the person. The gardener’s aura was normal, he was a strong healthy male who probably was a very good person, dedicated to his work and his family. But the boy… Shayrean felt how all colour faded from her face, she had to gasp for air and grasped on to the bench not to topple over. She had never seen anything like that, anything more horrifying or fascinating and she did not understand. She had to use all of her will power to pull her gaze away from the child, her heart was thundering in her chest and she felt her throat go dry. The aura of the boy had been unlike any aura she had ever seen, it carried within it every thinkable colour and yet none, and there had been things moving within it. It had reminded her of staring at a thundercloud, it carried with it an ominous warning of great danger, and power. More power than she could comprehend there and then. It was like staring at a giant nest of snakes, half of them white and half of them black and they were slithering and writhing, fighting for dominance. She gasped again and the gardener got aware of her and her obvious distress.
He walked over toward her and stared at her as politely as he could. “My lady, are you OK?”
She had to grasp a hold of herself, tried to smile and seem calm but her mind was racing. What was this? “I…I am fine, it’s just the heat.”
She straightened herself up and smiled at the man, fanned herself frantically to hide her emotional chaos. The boy walked over to the man, stood there and stared at her and she felt cold chills running down her spine. He was a beautiful boy, in fact one of the loveliest children she had ever seen in her life and she could see that he had to be of mixed heritage. His features were not entirely elven and she had a suspicion that one of his parents had been a half elf or at least someone with a bit of human blood. His face lacked the typical roundness of elven youths, it was all angles and made him look sharp somehow. The skin was also rather dark, most unusual among elves and he seemed to be a rather strong lad, even at this tender age.
She smiled at the two, tried to look like the powerful and yet benign lady she was known to be. She had become good at hiding her true feelings over the years and knew that they probably believed her. Everybody knew that the current fashion often caused the high ladies to faint, those darn dresses demanded the use of tight corsets and she hated it of all her heart. “You have brought an apprentice to work I see?”
She smiled at the two and the man ruffled the boys black hair with a loving gesture. “Yes my lady, he is my grandson actually.”
She raised a perfect brow in a questioning grimace and the man bowed slightly. “I am known as Aldhiin lady, he is my son’s child but my son and his wife died last summer. It was at sea, their boat sank and I have been taking care of him ever after.”
Shayrean smiled, could sense the man’s sorrow. “So your daughter in law must have been dark haired?”
Aldhiin shook his head. “No my lady, she was blond like my son. They could not get children on their own so they adopted him, he was found abandoned on the steps of the orphanage in Chualdy.”
Shayrean blushed, she feared that she had insulted the man somehow. “I…I am sorry, I really am. I have no business asking such questions, but he is such a beautiful child”
Aldhiin smiled lovingly. “Yes he is, and he is smart too. Much more bright than the other boys of his age. He should not have to become a gardener but what other options is there? We are poor, we cannot afford sending him to school.”
Shayrean sighed, it was a common problem. The children of the rich and powerful got to learn the things they needed to remain powerful and rich and the children of the poor remained poor. But she had to find out what it was she had seen in this boy’s aura. “I am sure he is very bright yes, how old are you young man?”
The boy bowed and swallowed, he was not shy or withdrawn like her son and it made her heart ache. He had such wonderful blue eyes, blue like nothing she had ever seen. They looked almost unreal and she wondered who his true parents were, that very unnatural eye colour set him apart from others. “I am seven years old my lady, and my name is Kyall.”
Shayrean was for a moment startled by what he said, just seven? He was tall like a boy of fifteen and the name? She knew why he had gotten it, it was his eyes of course. That colour was so intense and Kyall was the name used for a very special type of steel that was almost legendary. It was known for having an intense beautiful blue colour and as far as anyone knew only six items had ever been made from this metal.

 It had fallen from the sky itself within a falling star and a master smith had wrought six weapons from the heart of that star. Two daggers, two swords and two battle axes and all the six weapons were masterpieces unlike any other ever made. And they hid a terrible secret. All of the weapons forged by that dwarf smith were magical and they would feed upon the very life of those who were killed by them and give the one who wielded them an almost unending amount of power. They would draw magical powers too and so the weapons had been known as the dragon blades since some dragons also were able to feed upon the magic of others. They were lost somewhere within the oceans of time and nobody knew where they were now but the legends were still well known. But she did not like the idea, that such a beautiful boy was named after the most terrible weapons ever made.
“It is a very nice name young man, don’t you like helping your grandfather with the gardens?”
The boy shook his head and stared down at his shoes.” No, it is boring! But he says I have to, I want to be a knight or something!”
Shayrean forced herself to laugh. “Oh I am sure you would make a fine knight too, the very best!”
The boy blushed and stared down and she could see no evil in this child, he was innocent like all children are but she could sense the potential within him. By the gods, there had to be a way to… She shook her head, no, she would not think about that. She could not exploit a child that way, even if he somehow could strengthen her position. Kyall was staring at a bird that flew by and there was a strange grace within his moves that reminded the noble lady of the huge cats she had seen in the king’s zoo.
Aldhiin touched the boys shoulder. “Come now, we should not disturb the lady any further. The fence does not repair itself”
The boy turned his head and looked at her once more, there was a silent question within those incredible blue eyes and Shayrean had to swallow hard. By everything sacred, this child was indeed special. She had to do something, there was a mystery there somewhere and she needed to get to the bottom of it, and soon!
She hurried to her chambers and fetched the key to the huge library the family had gathered over the centuries. They had books of almost every thinkable kind and some were very ancient and valuable. She hurried down into the huge room and stopped at the entrance. She had to know what she was looking for and sighed. It would be tricky but she had a small trick up her sleeve. She pulled a small crystal hanging in a chain from her pocket and whispered a few silent words, the crystal began to shine and she followed the small streak of light. The light was leading her along the huge shelves and she threw nervous glances around her. The huge room was dark and dusty and it smelled of something stale and dead, it had to be the books that smelled that way.

After a while she stopped before a small shelf at the back of the room, she lit a lamp and stared at the books gathered there. “Show me which book I need”
The light turned toward a rather small and insignificantly looking book that had been pushed in between a rather monumental book about the herbs of inner Vhyliar and a book about rare and exotic dishes made from fowl. She pulled the book out from the shelf and hurried back toward her chambers. She did not want anyone to know what she was doing and so she ordered the servants to leave. She claimed that she was tired and needed to sleep, they believed her because she had been pushing herself hard lately. The newest achievement, a trading agreement with some well-known merchants had been made possible only through countless meetings and a lot of presents and some rather huge payments underneath the table. But she had pulled it through and the deal was done, right in front of the other houses. She was a little proud but also ashamed.
There had been a time when someone’s word had been enough, now there was no such thing as loyal attitudes or honest trade, money was everything that mattered and the deals and the wealth went to those who could pay the most. It was a shame, the world had changed a lot since she was a child and she feared the consequences. She got her tight yellow dress of and put on a soft robe. Here within the walls of her own chambers she could relax and just be herself and she got rid of her jewellery too. She was expected to show the family’s wealth by wearing expensive dresses and fine jewellery but she hated it. She had never really cared about fashion and had always thought that the body in itself was pretty enough without being adorned with such trinkets.
She placed herself in her bed and started looking at the book. It was a book of ancient magic and it told of many magicians that were forgotten by everyone these days. But they had been great names and she slowed down when she suddenly recognized what she was reading. It was a description from the days before the great disaster when dragons were common and the lands wild and uncharted. There had been magicians and warriors back then with powers nobody possessed any more, the power to rule the forces of nature and control the mightiest of beasts.
She knew of the history of their lands, everybody did that, even the commoners. Once upon a time there had been no countries, just one huge land where several minor kings tried to rule as best as they could and even though there had been freedom there had also been wars and many battles. And the magic had been more vibrant back then, almost everyone owned that special power that was given to them because of their heritage and there had been few cities and many tribes were roaming the lands like nomads. And the dragon guards had protected the goodly races from the evil forces of darkness that was always trying to gain control.
Shayrean closed the book, bit her lower lip. She thought she now at least had a suspicion of what it was that rested within that boy, a power that could turn both to good and bad. What should she do? Should she allow him to be just a gardener? He would probably spend his life peacefully and with a feeling of being incomplete but was that so bad? Was there any other choice? She sighed, hid the book within a secret room in her bed and tried to sleep but it was hard. She trusted few people but she knew of one person who maybe could help her decide what to do. Yes, that was the answer. She would go see that someone the next day and then she would know what to do. Relieved she fell asleep and dreamt of a pair of beautiful and yet terrifying blue eyes that carried within them the promise of both life and death.

The next day the lady ordered her carriage made ready and she hurried with her first meal of the day. Still she tried to appear as calm as possible because she would not reveal her plans and what she was so frantic about. She dressed in a rather plain dress and had her handmaidens braid her hair and tie it up in a simple style, she was good looking and she knew it and she also knew that her face was well known everywhere. Sometimes that could be a problem so she made sure to bring a few small items along with her. She gave the driver the order to set the course toward the capital as soon as the boat touched the pier and he drove the two horses with considerable skill. The road was wide and well maintained and they made good speed. The carriage was not particularly nice, in fact it was the same type of carriage people who made a living by transporting passengers and goods used and the horses were of the local breed that was plain but strong. She tried to remain as anonymous as possible.

They reached the gates to the capital that evening after a few shorts stops to rest the horses. She was unimpressed by the sight she had seen so many times before but others stopped and stared at the mighty walls and the impressive castles and temples within the city walls. The driver went straight to the address she had given him, he was very loyal to her and she had in secret made sure that he would keep his mouth shut too. She had put a small spell on him that made it impossible for him to remember where he had been for more than a day and a night.
The house was small and ancient, squeezed in between two warehouses and it looked like it was about to fall down. But it was a charade, the building was very solid and she left the carriage while squeezing one of her magical amulets between her fingers. To anyone watching her she would look like a wrinkled old human woman wearing nothing but rags and hardly worthy of any attention. She knocked on the door and went in. The room behind the door was empty and seemingly abandoned. Garbage lay everywhere together with bird droppings and spiders webs and the smell was terrible. She stood still for a moment, a cold feeling rushed through her and she closed her eyes. When she opened them the room had changed into a very inviting lounge with couches and soft chairs. There were lights everywhere and a soft sent of perfume hang in the air. The place looked a bit like a brothel but it was no such thing and the woman who came down the stairs to greet her was only known by a very few.
Shayrean bowed and the sorceress smiled at her and embraced her, she looked genuinely happy to see her. “My dear friend, I have not seen you for years, what brings you to my humble abode?”
Her voice was melodic and soft and told nothing of the fact that this woman was ancient even by the way elves regard time. She had gorgeous sparkling green eyes and a thick red hair and a body that made many a man forget his own name.
Shayrean smiled and returned the hug, this was one of her best friends and a person she knew she could trust. “Nhalaine, I have discovered something very strange and I need your help to decide what to do.”
The sorceress took her by the hand and led her into a room that was much smaller and very comfortable. A fire was lit in the fireplace and the smell of flowers was breath taking. She sat down and Shayrean sat down beside her. “Tell me more my friend, open your mind and let me see what it is that is bothering you!”
Shayrean sighed and cleared her mind, opened herself to the sorceress telepathy and allowed her to see her memories and her thoughts. Nhalaine was silent for a few minutes, searched through Shayrean’s memories and she froze and sat there in a strange position. She was panting and her eyes were wild.
“By the gods…”
She grasped Shayrean’s hand and stared her straight into the eyes. “It is as you fear, what you suspect. He is…”
She closed her eyes for a few seconds and there were fear in them when she opened them again. “There has not been anyone like that for millennia Shayrean, nobody knows what someone like him is capable of or whether he will be good or evil. But there is power within him to do both, and it cannot be denied nor erased. He is what he is no matter what happens to him and it is the core of his soul. “
Shayrean sighed, looked down. She felt sick, that poor innocent child. “Is there anything I can do, I wish to help…”
Nhalaine closed her eyes again. “His path will be one of blood, no matter what direction he chooses. I can see pain in his path, and death but also joy and maybe even love. Few souls are like this one, a beacon in the night destined to change the world for good or for worse.”
She placed her hands on Shayrean’s shoulders. “There are things you can do yes. This world will be hard on him, he is different and will always be. People will sense it and fear him or face him with hatred or even turn their backs on him. Teach him strength sister, allow him to grow to be more than he thinks that he can be. Clear the path towards greatness.“
Shayrean made a grimace. “And if he is a bringer of chaos and death?”
Nhalaine petted her on her cheek. “Then be it, it is destiny and we cannot make those Gods turn their plans into something else.”
Shayrean nodded. “I will help him, no matter what. His grandfather will be grateful if I pay for his education, and no mind should go to waste.”
The sorceress smiled gently. “Wise words my dear, see to it that he gets all the education he wants and desires. He will be of great importance one day, I can see that. And even if his destiny may be a harsh one he will face it with pride.”
Shayrean bit her lower lip. ” I would really have loved to know who he really is and who his parents were?”
The sorceress looked down, there was darkness in her eyes. “That is a question to which he should never find the answer, but the gods have played a very strange game with his existence. He was conceived with the help of ancient and forbidden magic and although he is mostly of elven blood there is also some small amount of a different type of blood in him, and that being was of the forgotten.”
Shayrean went pale.”By the goddess, a dark God?”
Nhalaine nodded, there was a hint of something wild within her face, something that told of disgust and even fear. “It is not possible yet it has been done. I think some of the brothers of darkness are behind this, I know there have been rumours of them interfering with nature in the most terrible ways and this would be just the kind of thing they would try to do. They tried to make darkness itself their slave.”
Shayrean gasped and for a second she hid her face in her hands. “The circle of magicians destroyed the last of the brotherhood six years ago.”
Nhalaine smiled and the smile was not a pretty one. “And the boy is seven? Just the right age, his mother was probably unaware of the nature of the child she carried and the gods of destiny saw a chance to let the ancient power come to life once more. When the brotherhood was destroyed there was no one left who knew of what they had done.“
Shayrean made a determined grin. “The mother must have abandoned him, or perhaps she died?”
Nhalaine closed her eyes, searched through the energy she had seen in Shayrean’s mind. “She is dead, nobody knows the truth any longer. And it is good.”
Shayrean nodded. “But what will it do with him?”
Nhalaine just shrugged. “The gods alone knows, his sire was after all one of the nameless, from beyond the void between the stars, a denizen of a dimension we cannot even imagine. He is a child of both life and death and so he is completely immortal.”
Shayrean closed her eyes. “I should expect that, after all he is of mostly elven origin, but totally immortal? Poor child.”
The sorceress smiled, caressed Shayrean’s hand. “We can only use what the gods have given us, to him they have given a gift that can be both a blessing and a curse, and it is up to him which way it will turn. He will be comfortable both with darkness and light, fear not for that. And he will possess strength like none other.”
Shayrean made a faint smile. “Still I pity him, I can’t help it”.
Nhalaine smiled. “You have a soft heart my friend, and it blesses you in every way. See to it that he is properly schooled and leave the rest to the Gods.”

The lady took a deep breath. “That I swear to you, I will do everything that is within my power to prepare him for his destiny.”
Nhalaine smiled and embraced her gently. “I know you will, and don’t forget to tell me everything that happens.”
Shayrean sighed and straightened her skirt, she knew what to do now but it would not be easy. She could not let anyone know she tried to help the boy. But she could surely do it, she had her tricks and knew how to use them too. She thanked the sorceress for her help and just prayed that nobody ever would know the truth.
They talked for a while about other things and when Shayrean left the sorceress it was night. She was tired but remained awake the whole way back to the island. She had to make careful plans and be sure that there were no holes in them. Her servants helped her to bed and she fell asleep knowing that she suddenly had a mission and one she feared to fail at. The power she had seen hidden within this child had to be a secret well hidden from everyone, perhaps even the boy himself. Only time would show what kind of man he would turn out to be.

The next day she got busy making arrangements, she had many people serving her and many more who owed her favours and she pulled every string she knew of. Before a week had passed by the gardener received a heritage from a distant relative he didn’t even know he had together with a scholarship at the best academy of the capital. And the lady offered him a new job at her palace in the city so he could bring the boy and let him use that offer. It sounded almost too good to be true but it was real and so the boy started at the ground level at the academy.
Many there sent their children to school when they were only six and to the boy it was a shock but a good one. Suddenly he could learn things and he was among the most eager of the young students. The first year went to basic things like reading and writing, math and such things but later the masters would determine what path would be best for the individuals and try to teach them enough for them to make a choice for themselves.
Kyall was no noble, he was a commoner and even though his grandfather now had money he was still a nobody. The other kids often made fun of him when he did not know things they were brought up to know but he quickly learned to ignore such things. There was a burning desire within him, a desire to learn and explore and the masters were very satisfied with this boy. He was best in his class and soon he excelled in every way. The boys were naturally trained also in different martial arts and Kyall was very strong for his age, and he had a body control that was just amazing. The teachers swore to themselves that they could create a warrior like no other out of this kid and they did not care who he was. To them talent was all that mattered and the fact that the teachers liked him made some of the other boys hate him, but he did not care.
And Shayrean was watching him carefully, she removed any obstacle in his way and made sure that his progress was without any thing that hindered him. He could soon read like he never had done anything else and the boy flourished, he enjoyed this life to the full.
He got to know Ushann, Shayrean’s son. He was also an outcast among the others and the two boys formed a very strange friendship. Ushann was older than Kyall and a noble but they looked upon each other as equals. They both had a strong need to learn and loved books but where Kyall was strong and agile and soon became a promising fencer, Ushann was weak and frail and feared weapons. But they protected each other and so the years passed. Training and learning, learning and training and the boy spent all of his time either reading or doing physical training. And it showed too. The school was the best in the country and the students were well fed, they never had to go hungry and the boys the teachers thought would be knights or warriors were given the best food. He grew, and he grew fast too. He soon outgrew his classmates and the masters agreed that he would be an extremely tall man one day, and strong too.

The other boys never tried to make friends with Kyall, it was as if they somehow sensed something within him that scared them and when training he would sometimes lose control of himself and become more violent than he should. He broke another boys arm once and dislocated the elbow of one of the teachers and that was a turning point. He was old enough now to realize that he had to remain in control of himself and he joined those who were meditating and sought to unravel the mysteries of the mind. And also there did he stand out among the others, the master saw his potential and made sure that he also got some training that involved magic and the use of magical items. It seemed as if he was naturally carrying the powers which others would need decades to learn, to him it all felt just as natural as breathing and he didn’t really need all that much training nor advice. His days were filled from sunrise to sunset and it felt good that way. He never had to think about the fact that he was of simple birth and he could feel that he was achieving his goals.
When the other boys were leaving the school at night to party or visit the taverns he would study and the masters were encouraging him. He learned that he had some special gifts that made the magic teacher beside himself with fascination and the masters of weapons allowed him to train with boys who were several years older than him. And he raced through the lessons with incredible speed. He was never satisfied with only a piece of information about a topic, he wanted the whole truth and he often spent long evenings in the school’s library with Ushann and they managed to read books not even the senior students were allowed near.
Kyall had a strange feeling sometimes, like there were voices within the shadows and they were calling to him but he did not know what they were saying, all he knew was that it scared him. Since he was a friend of Ushann Shayrean often saw him and she was surprised by his development.

At ten he was as tall as a boy almost fully grown and when he was fifteen he was more than six feet five heading towards seven feet and looked fully grown. And yet he continued to grow and the hard training gave him a body few of the masters had seen the likes of. He was finished with all the masters who taught things like history and religion could teach him when he was sixteen, there was nothing more anyone could teach him. He was just as learned as the masters themselves and they saw in him a jewel, a hope of achieving something grand. The only things that were left for him to learn were physical and he trained even more than before. When he finally stopped growing he was seven and a half foot and still as elegant as a good sword but with amazing body control and strength.

Ushann still had a long way to go and he spent his spare time helping his friend achieving his exams. The two were like brothers but things were changing now, Ushann was coming of age and he did notice some things that had been of no importance before but they bothered him now.
Ushann was by no means ugly, he was just frail and his frame delicate and almost feminine and he had his mother’s lovely brown eyes and nice skin too but compared with his best friend he was just bleak to look at. It was like comparing a small ragged pony with a huge beautiful steed. Kyall did not have time to bother with girls but Ushann quickly developed some healthy urges and he gradually grew jealous of Kyall and was terribly ashamed of this fact. And so he made the decision that would change their lives forever. He chose to become a magician. 

Thus he would gain the respect of others he though since he never would be able to compare with Kyall in other ways. Kyall of course supported him like he always had but he did somehow doubt Ushann’s motives. To be a magician was a very long and hard path to wander and it required an inner strength that few men did possess. Some of the things a magician dealt with on a daily basis would scare other men to death and the training would take the better part of a century. But Ushann was certain, it was his destiny to become a true magician and the masters too supported him because they could sense at least some talent within the boy.
And so the two boys wandered onto different paths and their friendship became more distant but yet real and true and they kept in touch and met whenever they could. Ushann seemed to thrive, at the special school for magic he was just like the others, a bookworm who never wanted to excel in battle and he got more open and flourished. He even went out and visited the taverns every now and then. He had money and influence because of his name and soon some started to gather around him, he got a small flock of followers and this small taste of power made Ushann hunger for even more. He lost his virginity at nineteen to a barmaid with a very nice bosom and lots of experience and that made him aware of pleasures he had denied himself until then. He still studied like before and he learned a lot but his goals became more and more distant.
Kyall on the other hand finished his education when he was twenty, by then he was the best fighter the school had ever created and the rumours said that nobody would be able to beat him no matter what weapon they used. He had lightning quick reflexes in spite of being the tallest male around and he had the elven elegance and slender frame but he was much more toned than a normal elven male and also wider across the shoulders and back.

He was skilled in magic too and although he was no magician he knew enough to use even difficult spells safely. He was in perfect control of himself and the masters had begun to bring him with them into the city to test him out. They knew that he needed to see reality and learn how to behave among others and for an entire year he travelled around the country side and learned about nature and its mysteries from an old ranger. Kyall learned also these things fast, he had this insatiable appetite for knowledge and the ranger also taught him of the different dangerous creatures one could encounter. Soon he felt like he had found his calling, he and the ranger tracked down and killed several monsters and Kyall discovered that this was a perfect way of living. He loved the forests and the moors and he started to shun the cities with their filth and crowds.
Soon he left school for good and started working as a ranger and the rangers took him inn with arms wide open. The rumour of his skills had spread wide and far and they were thrilled to have such a magnificent fighter among them. He was doing good work and felt happy and although he was somewhat shy he did make friends. And then one day Shayrean came to see him and he immediately knew that something was wrong, the lady seemed worried and in distress and she was pale. She told him that Ushann had started to gamble, he was drinking and sleeping with whores and he had already wasted a lot of money. She was deeply worried and asked if Kyall could try to talk some sense into him. His studies were suffering from all this and the masters were furious. If he did not make an effort they would banish him and as a half studied magician he would have no future to speak of.
Kyall promised to talk with his friend and left for the city that very evening and Shayrean could only wonder about the changes that had happened to the once innocent child. He was just half a foot short of being eight feet and had a physique that was nothing less than stunning, and yet he was slender and elegant like a giant cat and so handsome even men with no gay tendencies would turn and stare. But the biggest change was within his eyes, the innocent look had been replaced by one of bittersweet sadness. He had learned so much and seen so much and he knew that the world was a tough and dangerous place and far from just and righteous. His grandfather was well taken care of, he would live his life very well but that peaceful life was nothing for Kyall. His blood was too wild, there were still those voices within the darkness and he feared what they might reveal. But as long as he kept moving around and kept challenging himself he did not have to listen to them.

He found Ushann within a tavern in the more dangerous areas of the city. Here you would find cutthroats and scum everywhere and it really was no place for a young noble man. Ushann was not pleased to see him, in fact he was furious. The sight of his old friend reminded him of too many things and he wanted Kyall to leave. He did not want to stop this wonderful new life he had found and he saw nothing wrong in it. He should be allowed some fun before he put on the cloak and the hat and Kyall’s pleading words had no effect. Ushann got really angry and now Kyall saw the less than charming side of his former friend, he turned against not only Kyall but everybody within the tavern. In a drunken stupor Ushann did what no magicians apprentice should ever even think about, he started using spells. And things got from heated to hellish.
Suddenly the place was teeming with small demons and Kyall had a hard time protecting the rest of the guests from them, the beasts were quick and lethal and several got killed. Kyall tried desperately to fend off the terrible creatures, the building caught fire and people got trapped and something within him just snapped. The fear and the shock pushed him through the barriers of his own mind and allowed him to see things he never had seen before. He knew how to fight them, and he did without hesitation or even thinking. They fell dead before his feet. He got the people out of harm’s way but Ushann was still on the rampage and now he tried more spells and threw them at Kyall who just shook them off and desperately tried to talk Ushann into submission. It did not work, and suddenly Kyall heard those voices again and now he understood what they were saying and it made him more terrified than anything he had ever encountered. The shock made him freeze for a short second and Ushann threw one last spell at him.

It would have killed any ordinary man, elf or human but it only hurt Kyall. It hurt him so bad he screamed and dropped his sword to the ground and Ushann was beyond himself now. The rage had possessed him like a demon would and he saw red. To him everyone was an enemy and he started to conjure up something even experienced magicians with many centuries of studies would refuse to even think about. He was opening a gateway to another dimension and he was probably planning to bring something through from the other side. Some wizards from the school managed to get into the building just at the moment when that portal opened and a long sticky burning tentacle came through and swung around the screaming apprentice. He was pulled through before anyone could do anything and the portal closed with a terrible bang that almost brought the entire house down.
The wizards managed to pull Kyall to safety but he was heartbroken. He had not managed to save Ushann and even if they over and over again ensured him that there really had been nothing he could do he did not believe them, not entirely. He blamed himself and he was deeply scared by this strange glimpse of the powers within him. He had heard the voices and they had been pleading him to kill, to lose all control and become a tool of death itself and he refused to listen to that. Instead he had almost gotten himself killed.

Some said that this would have happened anyhow, Ushann had been a disaster waiting to happen from the first day he joined the academy and it was plain luck that not more people got killed. It could have gone far worse and Kyall was seen as a hero. But he felt nothing like it. Shayrean mourned her son but she did not blame Kyall at all and that made him feel even more terrible. Why had he not seen the flaws within Ushann’s character earlier? Why hadn’t he managed to turn things around? Those were pointless questions and they bothered him for a long time.

Shayrean gave him some of Ushann’s belongings. She said that they were tokens of gratitude, after all he had been her son’s only friend for years and it had brought her too great relief and joy. He felt ashamed by her gratitude and did not feel worthy of his things but he did keep them. She told him that he always would be welcome within her house and he could sense that she wanted him to come and visit but he felt like it would be wrong somehow. He had realized who it was that had helped him all this time and he was grateful but also confused. He had no idea why and Shayrean could only sigh and tell him that it was because of the innocent child he once had been. It was an answer but not the whole truth and he knew that she never would tell him the rest of it.
And so Kyall left the area, left the city and the country and tried to leave also his memories behind but they continued to haunt him. He had failed, but he would never fail again, not in such a way. And at the sacred star Shayrean could only hope that what she had did had been enough to strengthen him for the future that lay ahead. She sensed darkness approaching and knew that changes were coming, changes nobody could have anticipated.

It hurt, he tried to escape the pain but he couldn’t. It felt like a million little needles were poking at him everywhere and he groaned and tried to open his eyes. There was something wrapped around him and he could not move and panic started to kick in. He gathered his strength, his head was spinning and he felt nauseous and both warm and cold. Slowly he managed to force his eyelids open, there was some light around him and he was utterly confused. Where was he? The last he could remember was the howling wind and the constant onslaught of snow against his skin and clothes. He turned his head, the muscles were aching and he feared he would faint again. He couldn’t remember having been this weak ever!
He was in a bed in a small room with a fireplace, the walls were made from rocks and wood and it looked like an ordinary farm house. An elderly man sat by the fireplace and was working with some leather and it was very silent there. He tried to lift his head to see more, his body ached even worse than before and he gasped as a particularly bad wave of pain shot through his legs. The old man turned his head and saw that he was awake, he got up and walked over to the bed.
“Relax stranger, you are safe here.”
The voice was friendly and gentle and he felt a little better but he was still very confused and he had to struggle to remain conscious, his head spinning like a top. The man lifted the thick blankets that covered him a bit and looked at his feet for a second. “Good, my wife is very good with her herbs and lotions, you will be fine!”
It did not feel that way and he gasped again, the needles were there constantly and his fingers felt like they were about to explode. The old man smiled and touched his shoulder gently. “Your horse saved you, it collapsed just outside of our door but managed to alert us, or else you would both have frozen to death.”
He gasped, the horse, what had happened to it? “How…”

He could not speak, his throat felt raw and he had trouble breathing. The man smiled, he seemed to be a truly good person and there was no danger there he was sure of but his instincts were just that way. He could never trust anyone, his experience told him that.
The man sat down in a chair next to the bed. “Your horse is fine, he is in our stable and is getting better by the hour, tough little fellow. You were half dead, we never thought you would make it but I guess you elves are tougher than us mere mortals. And your fingers and toes were damaged but Dhora managed to get your circulation back in order. So they will hurt for a few more days but that is a small price to pay, you could have lost them you know.”
He felt relieved, his horse was fine and he was alive too, he should probably praise the gods had it not been that he had turned his back to every deity he knew of. But indeed his hands and feet hurt and he had to fight the urge to moan in pain. The old man smiled and looked a bit curious, he looked down.

“Not that it is any business of mine but what the hell were you doing here in the mountains now? Only the insane and those who are tired of life try to cross at this time of year and I hope for your sake that you are neither.”
He shook his head, felt that everything was spinning immediately. He had not been this humbled for decades. “Stupid”
His voice was barely audible and the old man chuckled. “Ah, at least you are honest, you should be really thankful because the gods must favour you, all other would have perished.”

He sighed and closed his eyes again, indeed. He had been too cocky, that was the truth. Things had been going well for a while and it had given him a bit too much confidence in his own abilities. Well, he had learned his lesson. If the horse had died he would have laid there in the snow until the thaw returned and by then his body would have been severely damaged, probably beyond even his ability to heal. The gifts he had been given could be a curse as much as a blessing. Being alive but losing limbs was not a very happy thought at all.  
“Rest now young man and regain your strength. Dhora is preparing some soup for you and I would give you the advice to eat it all. She will be very disappointed if you don’t and believe me, she is not a woman who takes insults lightly. Wonderful wife but tough as nails”

Young man? He would have laughed if he could, but he understood the old man. He looked rather young and that even by elven standards. Most thought he had to be less than a hundred years old and still a mere youth but in truth he was almost fifteen hundred years old. And he did not look entirely elven either, his features were a bit more rough than normal for elves and it made him look more masculine than most elven males. It gave him a bit more respect from some and he knew too darn well how he looked. Right now he looked like some wild elf, hair uncut and unkempt and his clothes were torn and dirty, and he was pretty sure that he smelled terribly too.
He sniffed discretely, his nose was so sensitive he could use it like a dog would and he felt nothing of the stench that had followed him for the last weeks. In fact he felt a weak scent of lavender and rosemary that had to be some kind of soap. He was naked underneath the blankets!! The thought hit him like a war hammer and he felt himself blush. They had washed him!

 The old man saw his expression and snickered discreetly. “So, easy there. Yes, the womenfolk did clean you up, you reeked like old garbage and they did not mind, I can tell you that. We rarely see something as pretty as you up here.”
He blushed once more, wanted to hide his face within his hands but he could not move. “For how long?”
He did not manage to say anything more and the man shook his head. “Save your voice mister, no point in adding to your discomfort. I can