The Archchancellor smiled curiously as he took the letter from Arum as his guests helped themselves to a seat. "It's not often you see a priests walking around with one of these," He read it, smiling shrewdly at himself. "Interesting. Very interesting indeed. The census will be no problem. Myrtle will-"

"Forgive me, sir," Tynan interrupted hesitantly. "Might we also speak with a theologan? We have something we must ask him, about the church's ancient figures."

"That will be no problem either," said the Archchancellor as he handed Arum the letter. His assistant appeared from a door way, bowing respectfully. "Follow Myrtle, he will direct you."

With another bow, the assistant gestured to the doorway. "My compliments to your parents, Tynan." the Archchancellor suddenly said, his gray eyes shrewd. "If you should ever go back, that is." Tynan nodded stiffly, and followed Myrtle and the others out the door.

They were more or less left alone that evening, their food brought up to them along with directions to the university. They were a subdued group that evening. Arum was still in shock about what he was able to do now, and he kept his hands to himself and his eyes on the floor. Uncalled for, Adam would climb into his lap and rest his head on the priest's shoulder, closing his eyes in dreamy contentment.

In the small adjoining balcony, Tynan leaned on the stone varenda. He looked out across the expanse of the Inner Sea, glittering under the light of the half moon. He could hear the birds that lived on the edges of the water, amidst the shallow mangroves. He had always loved the sound of birds, although knowing exactly what they were saying put a damper on it. It was initially hard to enjoy nature when all you heard all day was "My seeds! My seeds! Have sex with me, I can make my chest big and fluffy!".

From the dim waters of his memory, came the singing of exotic birds echoing against the glass, the brilliant shrills washing over him again and again as he let his mind soar with a hundred wings. Then, lancing through the ecstacy, was the sound of the aviary door opening, and the echo of a cry of alarm. He closed his eyes, letting the night ait wash the memory from his mind. Things were different in Vena. Prodigal son, indeed.

He straightened up and entered the room, lit by a small candle chandelier. Feather sat on one of the beds, combing her hair. She was, Tynan realized, very beautiful, even for an Araawan. "We'd better get to bed," he said. "We'll leave before sunrise and see what we can find." He looked at Arum. "We'll ask at the Faculty of Theology about what can be done to help you."

"Thank you." Arum simply said.

Tynan looked hard at the collar. "I think," he said slowly, raising his eyes to Arum. "You really are a Priest of Mezen."

"No, really?" Arum said, showing a surprising burst of spirit in sarcasm.

"A Priest with a capital P." Tynan said irritatedly. "Not like the syncophants we get these days, getting drunk off the offerings. Priests like the ones of old with bellies full of fire and bile, who had real Belief in Mezen. He was said to reward this kind of Belief with power. 'A sign unto the multitudes that thou art mine - I shalt give thee fire within thy heart , for it was I who doth shapeth the heart unto like a flame.' So the Lacuna of Mezen says, anyway."

They stared at him astonishment. "You don't have to look at me that way," Tynan muttered. "I wasn't born a druid, I know about the Lacuna, obviously."

"But how do you know what's in the Lacuna?" Adam asked. "The Lacuna are the missing letters, sacred scripture. Only priests are allowed to learn from them. Everyone else uses the Words of Mezen."

"Really? How clever of you. Anyway," Tynan went on, letting the matter drop. "Everyone had thought the fire was some kind of symbol or metaphor. But Araawan folk tales speak of Druidic battles with Mezen's Priests back in the old days - between forest and fire. Maybe... maybe this fire is real."

"Ransik died in an explosion," Feather said thoughtfully. "What was the room he was in?"

"The records store." Arum replied.

"I hardly think there would be anything that volatile in a room full of paper," she frowned. "I think he had this power too. He was your master, he must have taught you differently. That must be why you're not like the other priests - or anyone else for that matter."

Tynan bristled at that.

The low beamed interior of the inn was scrupulously neat and for good reason. Araawan slaves waited on the tables and cleaned as the guests came and went with businesslike expressions. "They seem so busy," Adam said softly, sticking close to Tynan and holding his hand.

"They serve s cruel master." Tynan said sagely.

"Who?"

"Money. The Dil Oil fields power much of the machines in Cor Leona and the South. These people are busy, that's all. There's always money to be made."

The innkeeper was by far more presentable than the blacksmith. His beard was coal black and shot with white and his paunch preceeded him everywhere he went. "Greetings, good masters," he said jovially. "Always a pleasure to serve the church."

"Mezen bless you," Arum said with a smile.

Tynan bowed to the innkeeper. "My master would like that we have a room, sir," he said, playing the role of servant. "And directions to the University of Vyraeus, we are unfamiliar with this region."

"Certainly," smiled the inkeeper. "My servants will take your snake to the pens." He saw the look on Arum's face. "Don't worry, good master, she'll be guarded by women, I don't abide in my guests slaves being raped."

Tynan took Arum's wrist, keeping his movements shielded. "Steady," he whispered warningly.

Arum pulled his hand free. "The pens?" he exclaimed. "The pens?! You imbecile!" He slammed his hand down on the inn's counter. "Are you blind? You don't keep slaves like this in pens - she's worth more than this whole damn inn!"

The bearded jowls of the inkeeper wobbled in fear as he glanced down. "Yes, good master, forgive me," he pleaded, bowing low. "I shall have a room prepared for her - close to yours! She is a prize, I'm sure you'd want her close. Please forgive me." Bowing again and again, he led them to the stairs to the upper rooms.

Tynan stared at the counter as Arum lifted his hand. Scorched in the wood was a burnt rosette, embers still smoking.

In the week that followed, the party gradually made their way north. There were no more mercenaries. The Eris, so single minded, had not expected that the four would stray from the path they believed was the right one. The night in the river was never mentioned. Feather acted like it never happened.

She was, Tynan noticed, strangely beguiling. There seemed to be two sides to her, and he never really knew which she'd be with each moment. There was goodness in her, goodness he'd seen. There was a whole lot of devious in her aswell. He hated the way she'd almost seem to toy with Arum and him. It wasn't so bad in the beginning, but it had been getting worse of late. And yet Tynan kept fighting for her attentions, and he really really wondered why.

Had he fought off one mistress only to replace her with another? Sometimes it felt that way. And when he'd get so fed up with the whole affair, she'd show the side of herself he loved most of all, the side that warmed his heart and made him want to hold her and never let go.

"Damn." he muttered under his breath, dismayed at his own weakness to her blasted mesmerizing charms. As the crested a hill, they saw the highway stretch through the valley like a ribbon. In the distance was the blue expanse of the inner sea. His thoughts distracted by the sight, Tynan closed his eyes, slipping into one of the many hawks that fed on the fish of the Inner Sea. "There's a Fornaxian hostel a few miles away." he said, opening his eyes as he slipped back. "We'll make for that, pick up some ceremonial chains and make our way to the university."

"Chains?" Feather asked sharply.

Tynan looked at her with wide eyed innocent surprise. "Oh, didn't you know?" he said. "Araawan are considered slaves in the boundaries of Fornax,"

"What?!" she snapped.

"Oh don't worry, the chain is just for show, in-case any slavers start getting curious," His expression of innocence didn't change, but inside, a small part of him crowed with delight.

Tynan raised his hand to hers as it rested on his shoulder. He could still feel her lips lingering on his cheek. "You're welcome, Feather," he said softly. He turned his face to her, a certainty in his eyes you could bend steel around. He smiled slightly. "But who said we're ever going to part for good?"

He turned around and stood infront of her, her legs resting on either side of his waist. He took her chin in his fingers and kissed her lightly, his lips lingering on hers. He smiled as he pulled back slowly. "I spent the last few weeks trying to keep you alive, and I'll probably be at it for a while yet. I'd hate to go through all that effort just to have you walk away from me. So I'm afriad you're going to have to get used to me being around for a long time to come."

"At least someone thinks I'm worth something," Tynan squeaked, immitating Feather's araawan accent. He scrubbed himself viciuosly in the waist deep water of the small river off a ways from the camp. Feather had gotten so cozy with Arum since the necklace, Tynan had to get away from the cloying sweetness. "HUH!" he snorted as he wrung the bath cloth. "It's just a stupid necklace - probably a damn fake too. I don't see that filthy priest hunting or cooking - lets just wait till Tynan does it!"

He heard footfalls behind him and he spun around with a startled snarl. He settled down, relaxing as if his hackles lowered. There was always something animalistic about Tynan. "You sound like an old maid," Adam said, walking up to the river bank.

"HUH!" Tynan snorted derisively as he turned his back on the boy. "Pass me the soap, since you're here." Adam picked up the bar from the grass and placed it in Tynan's outstretched hand. Tynan heard the boy sit down on the bank and take his shoes off. Soon, small splashes rang in the night as Adam dipped his feet in the water while Tynan soaped himself.

"It's just a necklace, you know." Adam said conversationally as he leaned back on his hands, looking up at the stars. Out here, far from the towns, the stars were brilliant and the crickets sang.

"Damn right."

"And you don't have to feel bad or jealous that it never occured to you to give her anything, either." Adam smiled sweetly at the man as Tynan turned around to glare at the boy. "You're different people," the boy went on, ignoring the glare. "It never occured to you because that's just not who you are. You have your ways of showing affection, he has his."

"This is stupid," Tynan said in frustration, tossing the soap to the bank. He submerged under the water and rose, pushing his hair from his face. "I'm being such a fool. And sometimes it seems like she enjoys this - seeing him and me bloody fighting over her-"

"But you can't help it, can you?" Adam interrupted.

"Ugh, sometimes you're so clever it makes me sick," Tynan snapped, though there wasn't as much bite in the remark as he had hoped.

"Of course I am!" Adam said loftily. "What do you think I am, some kid?"

Tynan rolled his eyes. "Just pass me the towel," he said in resignation.

Adam did as he asked. "Just be yourself, Ty," said the boy as he shook his feet dry and pulled his shoes on. Tynan walked out of the river, dripping wet.

"I can't believe I'm getting love advice from a seven year old kid." Tynan grumbled as he wiped his hair, the towel drapping lazily over his face.

"Yeah, you wouldn't have to if you weren't so hopeless," Adam quipped and ducked as Tynan took a half-hearted swipe at him. "Do you really want to be the crazy old grumps who keeps hundreds of cats?" Adam laughed and ran off as Tynan took a step towards the boy.

Tynan smiled then, watching Adam running back towards the light of the camp. He turned to get dressed and stared at the empty patch of grass that had been his clothes. "Adam!" he snarled. "Bring me back my clothes!!"

Tynan walked up from behind Feather, holding Adam's face against his shoulder. He looked at the charred circle of corn the up at the spire of stalks. His eyes narrowed. "There will be more," Tynan said, looking down at the fallen priest. He made s disgusted sound. "Dammit, he can be such a pain. He's out cold." Their horses trotted up sedately and Tynan put Adam on Feather's. Without a word, Tynan picked up the priest and slung the unconcious man over his saddle.

"Lets go, Feather." he said.

===

The young priest groaned, his chest throbbing with a faint dull pain. It was strangely warm and comfortable, with the gentle rocking motion of the horse at a sedate walk under him. "Comfy?" asked a voice right by his ear. Arum's eyes shot open and he looked into the face of Tynan, who looked mildly disgusted. They had ridden hard for the rest of the day through the woods, and riding at a trot and a canter with a man slung over your saddle like a sack of grain was hard, so Tynan was forced to seat Arum properly infront of him and lean the man against him. It was late in the night when Tynan felt Arum stirring.

"Oh my god!" Arum exclaimed, pulling away with a shudder and looking sick. "Ugh - that was gross!"

Adam laughed as he rode with Feather. "This is the thanks I get for riding with you passed out all day?" Tynan snapped as the reined in and Arum hastily got off his horse. He stood on the ground and was dusting himself. "Idiot." Tynan muttered.

Feather looked amused. "I think we've ridden hard enough." she said. "I think it's time we find a camp and have a hot meal." Adam cheered at this suggestion.

Tynan looked around at the clearing they were in. "Here's good enough," he said, dismounting.

They veered off the road, making a mad dash to the forest. There were shouts of surprise as their ambushers realized theyr prey was escaping. Those shouts turned to startled screams as the corn fields started to writhe around them, violoently rustling. Tynan's eyes were distant, his horse blindly following the others.

Feather glanced behind, she gasped sharply. The corn stalks were moving like an animal, weaving webs and impeeding their ambushers, rising like long tendrils streaked with blood. She stared at Tynan, his face blank and distant. After a few moments, the sounds behind them died off.

The horses soared over the low stone wall that marked the barrier between the cornfields and the trees and vanished into the shade of the forest. Their horses slowed down and came to a halt as life returned to Tynan's face. Tynan, Arum, Feather and Adam turned to look behind them, but saw no pursuit. Tynan winced and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Feather was staring at him in astonishment. "Did you do that?" she asked.

"Do what?" Tynan replied as he slumped in his saddle.

"What the hell happened?" Arum exclaimed, looking out through the gaps in the trees. In the distance behind them, cornstalks had grown to an abnormal height, weaving around eachother to form a bloody spire.

Tynan took the bottle, surprised. But before he could thank her, she had ridden back to Arum. He looked ahead, frowning in confusion. He sighed then. "My life was so much easier back at the camp," he said softly.

"Boring though." Adam grinned and kissed his guardian on the cheek then settled into Tynan's arms again. "I'm very proud of you."

Tynan grunted, at a loss for what to say. "Does it show?" he asked, opening the ointment as he juggled reins, bottle and boy.

"Looks like a whole hand around your neck." Adam replied sleepily.

Tynan sighed again, wiping the ointment on his neck.

===

They rode on their journey for a week, passing farmsteads and tiny villages where the inhabitants stared at them with mixed fear and hatred. They did not stop to chat, but rode on. "Is it just me or are people just really friendly?" Arum asked sourly as they rode past another farmstead.

"They're country bumpkins," Tynan said dismissively. "All strangers are enemies to a bumpkin."

"Didn't you live in a mining camp? Don't that make you a bumpkin too?"

"What ever gave you that idea?" Tynan replied distractedly. He suddenly looked up, his teeth pulled back in a snarl. The arrow whistled as it streaked through the air. Feather's horse reared with a terrified neigh, kicking the air with it's front legs as she held on, crying out in surprise. The arrow barely missed her. "Run!!" Tynan commanded.

The horses as if loosed from a dam burst into an instant run as arrows rained from the tall corn fields on the side of the road. Feather was hissing violently, swearing under her breath as she held Adam who clutched at her. "What was that?!" she demanded as they galloped on, startled and angry.

"I don't know." Tynan replied, slowing the horses. He looked back thoughtfully. The first arrow had been loosed at Feather, that only said one thing. "It's time for you to put your hood on again, Feather. Something tells me the war the Eris started has reached this far north."

They rode through the streets of Pyxis as ahead of them galloped more of Kiraha's agents, who rode off from the four of themwithout a word or backwards glance. Thorough professionals. Arum was in bright spirits. He was glad to get away from that house and the Atmosphere that was in it. Being exposed to such rivalry and animosity was scary and probably, he reasoned, bad for one's health. He stretched and sighed, relaxed. Tynan was more or less directing all the horses for them.

"By Mezen it feels incredible to be up and about again," he said, grinning brightly.

"At least we won't have to eat that horrible food again," quipped Adam.

"What are you talking about - you ate six servings." .

"So? It still tasted terrible."

Arum sighed, dismayed at the weirdness of some children. "So what's the route, Tynan?" he asked.

"We'll ride for a day north east on the highway, then strike north. We should pass a couple of villages before we reach the Northern highways. Finding Karnak should be easy then." Tynan replied confidently. He felt eyes on him and he turned around to see Adam smiling at him mysteriously as he rested in Feather's arms, his head against her chest.

"I want to ride with Ty today." he said suddenly.

"What?" Feather asked, surprised at the sudden outburst from the boy.

"I'm proud of him, he deserves hugs and I miss him." said the boy, holding his hands out to the man. Tynan had some suspicions then. He frowned and took the boy from Feather's arms, blushing slightly at the hidden compliment as Adam nestled against him, his arms around his guardian. Sometimes how Adam found things our mystified him.

"What was that all about?" Feather asked, she had been riding in thoughtful silence eversince they left Kiraha's mansion.

"I have no idea." Tynan lied.

The bedroom was dark, the candles blown out. Moonlight from the high arched window filled the room with a faint silvery gleam. Tynan lay in the large round bed in the middle of the room alone, looking up at the mural on the round corniced cieling above. It showed Kiraha's copulation with Shinistra and Mezen amidst clouds of gold. For some reason, that didn't surprise him, considering his teacher. He heard her come in as he kept his eyes fixed on the cieling. The bed moved slightly with her weight.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" the Kiraha of the Oaks purred as she lay next to him, resting her head on his shoulder and her hand on his chest. "It's been a while for you, hasn't it, Tynan?"

"Not as long as you think," Tynan said softly, hie eyes never meeting hers.

She chuckled. "With her?" she asked, mockery in her voice. "She's young and knows nothing." He felt her move, her lips drawing close to his ear. "You remember, do you not?" came her hungry whisper. "I made you reel with desire even as your vigor enflamed me..." Her hand moved on his chest, lowering to the leather thong that held his vest closed. He clenched his jaw. "...we drowned, you and I... lost ourselves in the fiery tempest of passion..." She didn't untie the knotted thong, but snapped it as she drew her finger down the parting of the vest, the tip of it caressing his bare abdomen. He lay still, and he could almost hear her lips curl back into a smile as her finger moved to the top of his pants.

Tynan's hand took her wrist gently but firmly, stopping her advance. "No." he said in his soft deep voice.

She raised herself onto her elbow as he held her other wrist still. "What did you say?" she replied, her voice ominously soft.

"I will not, Kiraha," he told her, turning to look at her as the moonlight glinted in his eyes. His face was sombre.

"You will not?" Kiraha scoffed as she sat up. He saw her garb for the first time, a flowing silken robe that luxuriously sheathed her body loosely, falling in a deep v at her chest. "You have no will, Tynan. Or have you forgotten?"

"I am not one of your Araawan, Kiraha." he said calmly to her, even as he curled up in fear inside. "I'm a human. You took me in and taught me, for that I am grateful. But I am not Araawan."

Her free hand moved like a whip, her fingers curling around his neck like the grip of a python. She snarled, her fangs unfolding from her mouth pallete as rage flared in her eyes. Tynan gasped and choked, his grip tightening on her wrist as the other helplessly tried to pull the hand around his neck away. "I sssshould kill you for your dissssresspect..." she hissed furiously.

"I was - am nothing but a thing to you," Tynan choked. Eventhough I loved you! The thought speared through his mind, crystalized in the fires of the pain of knowing he was nothing to her but a plaything despite the fact that he cared for her from the bottom of his heart.

Kiraha gasped, seeing the shape of the thought. Crystal clear, stark and glimmering in the light of Tynan's fire. In disbelief, she stared down at him, her grip lessening on his neck. She pulled her hand back, as if he was hot to the touch and he curled up coughing air back into his lungs. Her lustrous silver hair shadowed her face, veiling her eyes from him. "Get out." she said, her voice empty of emotion.

Without a word, Tynan rose from the bed, leaving her sitting still on the bed.

Tynan stood frozen, his cheek stinging, though not as much as her words. What did Feather understand? She had no idea what it ever meant to be under someone's power. Did she know what confusion meant? To be able to do something so bizarre everyone thought you were a freak or demonic, only to find someone who could give you peace and acceptance - had Feather any idea how much of a crutch that could be to someone? No, she was a Kiraha's daughter. And the way she was reacting, it was almost human.

What did she know about fighting for one's humanity in the onslaught of the beast inside and the mistress who owns it?

He looked at her with his distant eyes. "You know nothing of me, Feather." he said softly, regret in his voice.

She misinterpreted the meaning of those words. "I thought you were strong, I guess I've misjudged you," she said coldly.

"No," Tynan replied with a sad shake of his head. "You should not have judged me at all." He turned to walk back to the dining room.

Arum did not follow him, but stayed outside in the hallway. He looked at Feather with concern in his eyes and went to her.

Tynan frowned, watching her leave. He wiped his lips with the napkin and stood up. As he rose, Kiraha's hand touched his thigh under the table, stilling him. Something passed in their gazes for a moment, her eyes almost mocking with a hint of warning while Tynan's were hard and distant. He murmured some apology and followed after Feather.

"Hmmm..." Kiraha sighed as she smiled, leaning back in her chair nonchalantly. She chuckled mysteriously. Arum stared after Tynan. "How long has your party been together, Arumshade?" she asked conversationally.

He turned his gaze to her, startled back from whatever dismal plane of thought he was on before. "Ah - about a week I suppose. Probably a little more." he replied haltingly.

"So much seems to have heppened between you three," she laughed, she picked up her goblet, the sparkling Araawan wine sloshing seductively in the clear crystal. "Shall I tell you something about the Araawan, young priest?" she purred, her lush lips taking a sip from the goblet. "The Kiraha live for as long as their tasks demand of them. There are powers that come with the station, among which is the ability to read the thoughts of any of our tribe whose blood runs cold. Coldbloods thoughts are like crystal," She held up the goblet, the candlelight glinting off the rim and neck. "Sharp, defined and clear. But Warmbloods are different. There are passions in us that turn our thoughts fluid. You might aswell try to read the river."

She paused, sipping her wine as Arum looked at her in perplexity. The only sound came from Adam as he ate. "Humans, however, have minds like fire. Ever-changing, some burning hotter and stronger than others - totally unreadable, mysterious and yet so delightfully mesmerizing. I had once believed that I had tamed this fire, but all I've done is make it burn with cold."

===

Tynan strode through the hallway, trailing after Feather. "Feather! Will you wait?" he snapped, jogging to catch up with her. He took her hand to stop her. "Why are you so upset about this?" he asked her pointedly, his hand lingering on hers unconciously. "You're an Araawan, aren't you? This shouldn't surprise you."

She pulled her hand free of his, glaring at Tynan in the dim candlelit hall. Why was she angry? That was a good question. Because she hated that wench, of course.

I beg to differ.

Shut up.

"It sickens me to see you like this," she said haughtily. "All weak, pathetic, dominated -"

Tynan smiled at her. Her father probably sheltered her alot from the truth of Araawan life. "The Oaks did things differently from your tribe, I suppose." he said mildly. "She loves power and she isn't afraid to demand it, weild it, exploit it. She's a Kiraha of the ancient school of thought, you might say - dominating, beguiling, willful and devious. I was a naive sixteen year old. Domination was easy." He said the last few words with a hint of bitterness in his voice.

The Kiraha laughed once again at Feather's words as Tynan stared at her worriedly. "You're positively delightful, dear," she cooed. "Perhaps before you leave, I might have the chance to educate you a little. It must be nice to be so young. Ah, Igor," She turned to the servant who approached her, bearing drinks.

"What are you doing?" Tynan growled worriedly at Feather, taking her hand urgently as the Kiraha's attention was distracted. "Why are you aggravating her?"

"I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about," Feather replied archly.

Tynan's eyes narrowed. "I think you do." he said softly, understanding showing in his eyes. "We'll talk about it later."

She pulled her hand from his. "There's nothing to talk about."

"Later."

Arum glared at the exchange, unable to hear what exactly was said. Mezen set fire to Tynan's hair! Blast that guy - who does he think he is playing two women?! It was then that Adam squealed with delight as Igor and the butler brought in the trays of food. Candles were lit and the dining room was cast in a gentle glow as the food was unveiled. It was a wide spread of delicately seasoned dishes.

"What a healthy appetite," Kiraha noted after a while as she watched Adam have his third helping. "You must like Araawan cuisine."

"Is it Araawan?" Adam smiled, breaking open another soft shelled crab. "It taste's terrible - so bland." He stuffed his mouth.

Kiraha stared in astonishment at the boy, then laughed. "Such honesty in the young," she smiled. "I remember Tynan used to hate Araawan dishes. He could never understand why they were so delicately seasoned, why stop at a pinch of lemongrass when more would bring out the flavour?" She raised one eyebrow at Tynan. "He was always so demanding like that." The man had the decency to blush as he ate, pretending to ignore the Kiraha's banter.

"It is bland." Feather spoke, not looking up from picking at her meal. "Even for Araawan fare." The Kiraha's smile never wavered as she turned her violet eyes on Feather. Arum shuddered as the atmosphere thickened with animosity.

Adam yawned and sat up as Feather paced around the luxurious room, hissing angrily in araawan. "Are you alright?" Adam asked mildly.

Feather rounded on him, her eyes flashing as her long hair flared in a delicate arc. "Alright Adam!" she snapped. "Out with it! Tynan and Kiraha - what do you know!"

"Hmm?" murmured the boy blearily from sleep. "Eh... well... He found me when I was maybe four... I remember he was very very sad at the time. Um... He used to eat lots of chocolate, I remember - not that I minded since he'd share some with me and-"

"I meant Tynan and Kiraha! Not Tynan and chocolate."

"Oh. Well, I don't know really. He wasn't with her when he found me. All I remember was that he was very angry and sad at something, although when you're four and there's chocolates you don't really ask questions." He looked at her thoughtfully. "Why don't you go ask him? I'm sure he'd tell you."

Tynan cast Feather a helpless look as they carried on down the hallway into a large sitting room. The furniture was oppulent. An elderly butler stood by the empty fireplace, holding a tray of the rich Araawan drink. "Be seated, please," Kiraha gestured. They took their seats in the large soft chairs, with Tynan placing himself directly between Feather and Kiraha. He wasn't so captivated that he was beyond thought. The Kiraha chuckled barely audibly, watching him.

"Strange things afoot," she said conversationally, taking a crystal goblet from the butler's proffered tray. "I hear strange reports, old stories are walking the land once more. The Eris descimated the church of Ica, killing all the priests," She glanced at Arumshade. "They have reignited the tiresome age old war between Humans and the Araawan, and within a matter of days, their death count has reached four hundred." She sipped the wine.

"You sent those people?" Arum asked, surprised.

Feather's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "No wonder you know quite a bit," she noted, refusing a goblet as she held Adam in her lap.

"And you haven't changed a bit," Tynan said coldly.

Kiraha laughed like the trickle of water. "Tynan, love, we've been apart for three years," she said, patting him fondly on the arm. "I have been alive for nine hundred. You hardly expect me to change in the blink of an eye. And you don't live for nine hundred years without tasting the change in the air. Money has bought me quite alot of information, money appears to buy humans quite easily. It's amazing realy."

Tynan glared at her. She ignored it and went on, "My humans followed the Eris, whereupon they were last seen leaving Pyxis through the Crescent Gate, heading towards the capital of Cor Leona. There are unconfirmed reports of traps, though when my human got close enough to find out what these traps were, he died. Apparently some of the Eris are quite intelligent. They seem to be wary of you four, and are quite unhappy you're alive eventhough they cannot find you." She smiled at them, her gold earrings tinkling lightly. "So I ask that you stay a while, at least untill you have found out where you should go. Then I shall help you clear a path." She drained her goblet.

The butler touched her lightly on the arm. "Lord Verraine has arrived, my Lady," he informed her respectfully.

"Oh bother," Kiraha sighed. "I have guests to entertain, I hope you'll understand." She stood up, her smile almost wicked. "Make yourselves at home, I shall join you tonight for supper." There was a rustle of silk as she turned arond and left the sitting room, the elderly butler in tow.

Feather turned to Tynan with a glare that could have nailed him to the wall. "You two are quite close." she said coldly.

"Things have changed," Tynan replied, returning the glare.

"It doesn't seem so."

"Three years ago, I would not have made it three seconds past the front door with my clothes on." Tynan snapped. "Trust me, things have changed."

Pyxis was a city far larger than any Adam had ever seen before, and he gawked openly at the granite sheathed multi-storeyed buildings. The people here were far more diverse - Araawans were a common sight, shouldering their way through the thronged Star Gate that Feather, Tynan, Adam and Arum had rode in from. It was market day and it seemed all the city were out inthe streets.

The smells rose from the unusual spices, cattle pens and open air eateries. "It is so crowded." Adam said, gaping at the crowd that flowed around their horses.

"It's a city." Tynan murmured absently. He was looking around, scanning the faces of the people, searching for something as their horses walked sedately on down the straight Gate Street. The beasts turned in unison, still walking at their idle pace.

"Where are we going?" Arum asked Tynan.

"I have no idea."

"Wha...?"

Tynan was frowning. "I'm not doing this," he replied. "Someone else is leading the horses."

"What?" Arum exclaimed. He was definitely excitable.

"Lets go see what they want, shall we?" Tynan said, strangely calm. Feather frowned suspiciously.

Eventually, the horses led them to a well lavish house in a richer part of town, it's white columns flanking a gravel path and well tended garden. They dismounted in the inn's courtyard, where a groom bustled forth. "M'lady is waiting for you, M'Lord." he said, taking the reins.

"Yes." Tynan said plainly, a distant look on his face, the kind he got when he was troubled. "I'll bet she has."

"Tynan," camed a honeyed voice from the door of the mansion. Without any sign of surprise, Tynan turned to the Araawan woman who stood there, her large violet eyes, silvey hair and fine silks made radiant by the afternoon sunlight. Her lips were sensual and her curves accentuated by the flowing fabric.

"Hello, Kiraha." Tynan replied formally, placing a hand on his chest and bowing. A hand lifted his head by his chin and he looked into the beautiful face of his teacher. "It is a pleasure to see you again." he managed to choke out as memories flowed past.

"I'll make sure of that," she smiled flirtaciously. "Come inside, all of you, there is much we need to talk about." She slipped her hand into the crook of Tynan's arm as she led them into the mansion, her manner seeming far too familiar than teacher and student.

The afternoon sun shone on as they bypassed the village and came to the road north. It would take them a day and a half to reach the next village, and two more to get to Pyxis. From there, who knew where they'd go. Feather rode thoughtfully, her eyes looking at the three men who rode with her. The Kiraha had a point about their features.

She had spent most of the ride trying to prove that the Kiraha was wrong. There was Tynan, with his constantly untidy dark brown hair, and dark eyes. He looked the oldest amongst all of them, particularly now that he hadn't shaved in the morning. His cheek bones were high and his jaw prominent. He looked such an elemental man.

She let her gaze drift to Arumshade, who was engulfed in the book, making bits of notes on the sides and occasionally muttering to himself. He had ridden into trees a few times untill Tynan just had the man's horse follow his. Arum was blonde and blue-eyed, his chin a little more pointed and eyes a little wider than Tynan's. His face was boyish and youthful where Tynan's was matured and hardy. Hm.

Adam had the typical face of a child, all large green eyes, high cheekbones, round cheeks and small chin. But the similarities to Tynan and Arum were there. The boy had Tynan's hair color and facial features, no wonder people mistook them for father and son. But he had Arum's open personality and a strange way with people that was all his own. She frowned. It was too odd to be a coincidence. Why hadn't she noticed it before? Probably because they were all so different personality wise, that could have blinded her.

"Is something wrong?" Tynan asked after a while.

She blinked, pulled back from her thoughts. She nodded to Arum, who was reading, oblivious. "Is he going to be alright?" she asked.

Tynan chuckled. "I think he will be," he replied. "He must like books alot." He grimaced. "I hate to say this, but he's probably smarter than he looks. He's the only one who can point us in the right direction to the Stone."

She looked at him questioningly.

"I can read - stop looking at me like that. I just don't have the love of the chase of knowledge that he seems to posess. That's probably why I'm barely proficient at herbalism. I used to read to get by - I remember my Kiraha of the Oaks had a long talk with me about that."

A thick silence descended as both men tried to avoid her gaze. "You know technically, she's only been horseback riding for two days," Tynan pointed out, his voice sounding somewhat calmer after he had a moment to think.

"Shut up," Arum whined.

"Relax, Arum," Tynan said placatingly. "I'm pretty sure we aren't inclined to touch eachother, so it's safe to assume that no harm was done."

"Shutupshutupshutup!" Arum snapped, pointing an angry finger at Tynan. "How can you be so calm at a time like this?! Have you any idea what happened?"

"Weelll..." Tynan said, looking aside. "I lived in an Araawan village for six years, yes? And most of the time the ladies there had all sorts of interesting ideas - you learn to recover from shock quickly."

"Shutup! I don't want to hear about women pressing their suit with you!"

"You know, I don't think any of them had ironing in mind," Tynan murmured mildly.

"SHUTUP!" There was the sound of a bowl clattering to the floor. Arum froze in embarassment.

"Well look at it this way," Tynan went on, taking advantage of the man's temporaty fluster as Arum pulled the sheets to cover himself. "Last night was a fluke. It doesn't mean anything - ah! Hear me out." He lowered his hand and Arum shut his mouth, glaring angrily at Tynan. The dark haired man lowered his voice, a faint sneer on his face. "It was your first time, good, be glad it was with someone you have feelings for. Or if that's too hard, be glad you can barely remember any of it. Anything can happen at festivals like this, it means nothing. Get my drift?"

Arum's eyes hardened. The hidden message in those words were evident. Feather was bound to neither of them. "And besides," Tynan went on. "You're dealing with an Araawan druidess here. I hate to say this, but they can take you every night and still not give a rat's arse about you. It's their culture."

"I know what I want," Arum said firmly, a challenge in his blue eyes.

"As long as we both understand that, then." Tynan met his gaze cooly.

There came a whine from the other side of the door. "Are you going to let me in or not?" Adam whined to accompaniment of plaintive knocking.

Arum awoke to the glow of vurms. He could barely remember anything about last night, and his head felt like it was full of throbbing fog. He groaned and felt someone skin to skin beside him and panic fleeted across his face untill he realized it was Feather next to him. Then he seriously regretted not being able to remember much from the night before. Damn that drink had drove him nuts... He turned over to face her, smiling in contentment as he looked at her face.

"Hey Arum?" he heard from behind his ear. Adam was kneeling by the side of the bed, resting his chin on his folder arms infront of him. "Aren't you guys cold?"

Arum froze. There's a kid in here! There's a kid in here!

Then he heard the groan from behind Feather. Tynan sat up, stark naked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Arum sat up in shock, staring at Tynan in petrified disbelief as Adam was forgotten. Tynan made a startled sound what went "Gggh!" as his jaw dropped and he stared at Arum sitting naked on the otherside of Feather.

Locked in their shocked stare, Feather chose that moment to wake up too, sitting up and stretching her arms up in between them. They were all naked. Adam looked at them with innocence in his eyes. "You guys should have just taken my blanket," he said, nodding his head towards the jumble of Araawan toys, cushions and blankets he had fallen asleep in while playing. Their eyes turned towards the boy as if he were the onslaught of death itself. "Then you wouldn't have had to hug eachother all night to keep warm."

Tynan paled and went "GGGH!!" Then with a surprising presence of mind, he picked up the boy while saying very quickly, "IthinkyoushouldgooutandplaythismorningAdam! Theresagoodboy!" The door slammed behind Adam. It was at this point that Arum unfroze and screamed.

Tynan saw Arum looking confused and out of place by Feather's side. He grinned wickedly. "Try not to let go of Feather's hand," he advised. "Other females might get the wrong idea."

"What?" Arum snapped worriedly as Feather raised an amused eyebrow at Tynan.

"Men considered somewhat like property here," Tynan said. "A man wandering around alone - some of the ladies might get the wrong idea, and to refuse them is punishable, according to Araawan lore."

"What?!" Arum exclaimed, blushing.

"Trust me, okay? Don't panic when the festivities start," He winked at Arum. "It's not unusual that human males are considered a rare treat by the our reptilian cousins." Arum turned the color of a beetroot.

"You're quite aware of out culture," Feather remarked, amusement in her eyes.

"I did live with Araawans for six years in my training," Tynan said. "Although the Oaks were more stuffy compared to this clan."

She smiled archly. "So were you a rare treat in the Oak village?"

Tynan shrugged modestly. "So I've been told." he replied.

They walked down the shallow steps into the tunnel, the darkness increasing around them untill it was like a force in itself, pressing down on them. Tynan seemed at ease, carrying Adam. "I don't like this," the little boy said, burying his head in Tynan's shoulders as the echoes of their voices and footfalls sloshed around them.

"You and me both." Arum muttered. "It's darker than a... a very dark thing. I forget exactly."

"I'm sorry, it will soon be light, we're far too close to the surface for any vurms to survive," the guard said.

"What in Mezen's name are vurms?" Arum muttered, feeling agitated and quite helpless in the dark. "What was that? I just heard water!"

"Vurms are creatures that glow and live off anything, basically. From our breath to our waste. Very sanitary, your average vurm," Tynan replied as the sound of water sighing on gravel indeed started to get louder. "And this is a sluice boat." He said as they stopped at the water's edge. There was the sound of splashing and Arum swore.

"How nice." Arum grumbled as he shook his feet dry. They climbed into the small boat and there was a sudden sense of downward motion. "It - it moves? Like hydraulics - all water pressure... This is amazing!"

Feather smiled.

They reached the level of another gravel beach and disembarked. There was the sound of sliding stone, and then light. Tynan heard Adam and Arum gasp, his eyes closed to ease his transition from pitch darkness to this... the pale green white glow of the vurms. "It's like we're underground - but the whole sky is glowing!" Adam breathed in awe. Tynan opened his eyes and looked down at the cave before him. Unlike the village of Oak where he was trained, this cave was like a deep amphitheater full of homes. Each man's cieling was the street above, and so the village descended in wide terraces to an underground lake below in which glowed more vurms, illuminating the water from below. The whole cave was lit by the surreal glow, which brought out the color in the Araawan's skin. "Beautiful isn't it?" Tynan asked, feeling nostalgic for his village. Adam and Arum nodded silently.

They were led to a comfortable large cut out cave several terraces down. Small glass globes of vurms hung from the cieling, illuminating a single large round bed, cushions and soft carpets on the floor. There was a low table of Araawan food and a small amphora of the sweet Araawan drink. "The Festival of the Hunter's Moon will begin in an hour, at moon rise." said the guard as he escorted them into their cave. "Clothes have been laid out for you." He bowed and left.

"A merchant's soul!" Arum exclaimed suddenly, grinning happily at the others who looked at him perplexed. "That's what it's as dark as."

"That seems the only course of action available to us," Tynan said, frowning seriously. He reached into his saddle bag and pulled out a map. We should be able to strike north through the woods to a village and from there, we can take the road north, then southwest and enter the city of Pyxis from the northeast. That way if anyone's asking questions about the travellers from the southwest highway, no one will think of us. Besides," he winced in distaste. "I don't think I'd like to run into the Four on the road, do you?"

"Probably not." Arum agreed mildly.

"We'll ride as before, but you'll have to more or less steer the horses for us, Feather. Arum will be reading and I'll be scouting ahead." Tynan folded his map. It seemed strange to Feather that someone of such a take charge bearing was a mere druid in some godsforsaken mining camp. "We'll leave once Adam's eaten our breakfasts." He glanced at the boy. "Oh he's done. Silly me. Lets pack up then."

They scruffed out any traces that they had made camp there and headed off north through the woods with Tynan running ahead as a wolf once more.

"Y-yeah." Tynan said, swallowing hard. Too much leg showing, that was the problem. He took a deep breath and composed himself. "You should have borrowed one of my tunics instead," he told her. "Adam's is too short for you." She shrugged, unconcerned. Tynan turned to Arum, a gaze of longing undisguised in his eyes. Getting irritated, Tynan snapped his fingers in front of the priest's face, who turned to look at him as if surprised that Tynan existed. "Oi, where's the book?" he asked sharply.

"Oh." Arum said, setting his plate aside and digging into his pack and pulling it out. Adam was helping himself to some more breakfast, still stark naked untill Tynan took the boy's hand and pulled some clothes onto the protesting child. Arum opened the old book and frowned. "It's..." he began slowly. "It's the diary of a pig farmer."

"What?" Tynan and Feather asked in unison. Feather took the book and flipped through the pages. "What the hell?" she exclaimed angrily. "'I woke up tonight and got upset because the pigs were squealling all night long'? Did Ransik make a mistake?"

Arum took the book back from her. "No, he knows- knew, I mean, each of the books as if they were old friends. Tis the right book." He flipped the pages, running his eye over them almost idly. He paused and excitedly moved to Feather, showing her a page. "Look," he said, a strange scholarly ferver rising up in him. "This sentence breaks off from helping a pig give birth, suddenly starts on another tangent and then continues right back from where it left off. Either this pig farmer was writing things he wasn't aware of, or someone way back when went through alot of trouble to hide things in this book."

Tynan pointedly cleared his throat as Adam helped himself to Tynan's breakfast. "Oh sorry," Arum muttered. "Listen to this, 'The bone of a skylark traced the words of power into the glass, and with the infusion of the druidic will, did turn into-'. It breaks off then." He paused, flipping through the pages once more.

"You're... actually reading?" Tynan asked surprised, watching Arum almost idly flip the pages.

"Oh yes, it's quite easy actually." Arum said. Tynan glared and let that pass. "Here is it again! '-into stone. Black as night, yet the stone sparkled with a dark light'. Dark light?" Arum frowned, perplexed. Feather and Tynan were hushed as Arum continued his search, flipping the pages. There was a strange excitement in this search of words. "'The Will of Anyag was sealed, and the druids perished for the binding took all of their strength. The last will of the greats fled into the stone." He paused again, flipping. "This can't be right!"

"What can't be right?" Tynan asked in rapt attention.

"The stone doesn't exist!" Arum said, confused. "It says, 'So the Children of Mezen brought the stone into their guard, where it perched upon the brow of their God as a reminder to all. Then the stone didst fade, and returneth to the bosom of Kiraha Mother, where it was reborn.' Correct me if I'm wrong, but that means it's gone, right?"

"There has to be more - keep reading!" Feather said urgently. Obediently, Arum flipped through the book.

"There is a little... it's odd, though," he frowned. "'The Stone strideth the world, the spirit of Kiraha Mother flowing within it, and the spirit of the earth also'. " He stared ahead in disbelief. "So... so that means that-"

"It's a person." Tynan said softly.

Adam stood next to Tynan, looking down into the stream as the water flowed swiftly by with sunlight bejeweling it's surface. The little boy was naked and holding a towel, and he had a seriously hesitant look on his face. "But what if I drown?" he asked for the umteenth time.

"It's two feet deep, Adam. I can see the bottom from here" Tynan pointed out, sounding bored.

"What if a fish eats my feet?"

"Judging from how they smell, I really pity those fish."

"What if I get washed out to sea by a flash flood?"

Tynan sighed. Getting the boy to bathe was always so troublesome. He took the towel from the boy and pushed the boy forward by the shoulder. With a startled yelp, Adam fell into the clear stream. Adam rose from the water soaking wet and furious. "EVIL!!" he shouted angrily at Tynan as the boy stood waist deep in the water.

"Oh just bathe, Adam!" Tynan said wearily. He hung the towel on a low branch and turned back to the camp. The polstice had been cleaned off earlier, he was surprised at how well the medicine had worked. His nose wasn't even purple, and his bruises were already beginning to fade. He sat down by his pack, not looking at Arum who sat opposite, holding a plate of breakfast that Tynan had cooked. Tynan took out his cutthroat razor, shaving foam and with the aid of a small mirror propped up on a rock, he started to shave. He glanced around camp. "Have you seen Feather this morning?" he asked idly.

Arum replied hesitantly, as if he had something on his mind. "I think she's gone down to the stream to bathe."

"But Adam is-" Tynan began. He heard a surprised squeal followed by alot of laughter coming from the stream. Don't turn around to look, Tynan told himself firmly. Not that he had to, since mental pictures rose all on their own accord. He blushed despite himself and subsequently nicked his chin. He swore.

Tynan heard her footsteps on the forest floor which ended with some distant murmuring of conversation. He had wanted to fight back, but no matter what he said, he knew where that would leave him. With the foul smelling polstice on his nose, his torso aching from the strikes, he sat by the stream.

Beast mastery was a beguiling thing. Looking into the mind of animals, you begin to loose sight of yourself. You see things in animals that resonate frighteningly with the ugly side of humanity. Constant fear, wariness, the hot taste of rage that fueled the fight for survival and the hunt. They were all in him. The better you were at mastery, the more prone you were to loosing yourself as the animal inside you took hold of you.

If you weren't careful, beast mastery would leave you nothing more than... instincts on legs. Human shaped, but no longer human. The mental image of the Eris came to mind. His eyes narrowed in resolution. He would not loose himself.

It probably wasn't a good idea to go back to camp now. He wasn't sure how Arum would take it. The priest was probably still angry with him. He sat by the stream, hunched over and aching as the distant murmuring continued in the camp. He suddenly felt very alone. Which... was something animals hardly ever felt. When you're living from meal to meal, you rarely had time to be upset that you had no friends. Loneliness was human.

How nice, he thought bitterly.

Tynan stood up slowly, wiping the blood from his nose with the back of his hand, one hand clasped about his abdomen. There was rage in his eyes, his lips pulled back in a snarl. But there was Adam, looking at him with those wide green eyes full of reproach. He tottered back and leaned against a tree. He couldn't loose his head - he had to think. He wasn't an animal!

He looked at Arum, seeing through the man's rage to the grief inside. He had lost someone important to him, though the old priest had known he would die if he stayed. It occured to him then, what a great man Ransik was, and how deep Arum's sorrow was. He didn't move as the priest rushed at him again, snarling with rage with his fist pulled back.

The sound of fist against flesh was like hitting a sack of grain with a stick. Feather moved forward, but found herself held back by a small hand. Adam looked at her and shook his head. Tynan reeled with the punches, but never resisted. He tottered back, seeing the tears in Arum's eyes before the fist his his face again. In a strange way, Tynan knew Arum needed this.

Finally spent, Arum sank onto all fours, his shoulders shaking with sobs as Tynan lay on the ground, face bloodied and body bruised. "I did stop you from going back," he said then, spitting blood from his broken lip. "But you wouldn't be here if Ransik hadn't told you to leave. He was a brave man who gave you everything he could possibly give." His hair was a mess, hanging over his face and neck. "You were like a son to him, he wouldn't let his son die."

He looked Arum in the eyes, his gaze distant, resigned, and full of regret. "I couldn't let his son die."

They rode hard on the north-east highway to Pyxis untill the following morning, when they stopped to rest their winded horses. Though they had been travelling all night, they were no where near the town. They moved off the highway into the forests that blanketted the countryside a mile back from the road. They pitched camp behind some bushes, out of sight of the road, and kept their cooking fire well hidden.

As always, Tynan took on the chore of cooking. The others sat around the fire in a subdued silence. Tynan was making casserole of game, which was a thick heady dish that sat in the stomach like lead and warmed you from the inside. Adam's eyes were red from crying as he hugged his knees to his chest. Though he'd only known Ransik for a few days, Adam had grieved him nearly all night. Adam cared for people in a way Tynan could never comprehend, the boy's heart really could engulf the world.

Tynan was silent, a dull sullen anger ebbed inside him. Ransik didn't deserve to die like that. Already, Tynan was beginning to have every reason to hate One. There had to be a way, something he could use, that would make One very, very sorry. He entertained his grim thoughts as he stirred the meal. "We'll leave after nightfall," he said to the silent camp. "It will be safer that way."

Books and folios of hardened leather lined the shelves of the record room, shadows danced on the walls as Ransik walked through the aisles, his oil lamp held in a crabbed hand. He reached the shelf he was looking for and pulled out a slim volume. He held it up to the lamp to see, squinting at the cover. "This should be it," he said weakly as he led them back to his desk and sat down. He put the lamp down beside him and opened the folio. Yellow crackling paper with tiny writing came into view as the four gathered around him.

"The stone you're looking for was indeed here, but it was taken as tribute to the Araawans at Bastia Dominae about a hundred years ago," he read. "It was put on a ship for Melduseld to the east, and the ship docked at the port of Llew. But there was a disaster. Mount Aodh erupted, and I'm afraid the town of Llew was destroyed. We lost all traces of the shipment then. But it should be there." He pulled out a map, the still tongue of fire in the lamp seemed to glint off his weary eyes. "You'll need this."

"We thank you," said the small child. "We will leave in peace, we appreciate your help." One smirked and reached across to take the map, but with the speed of a snake, his hand whipped out to grab the old man by the neck.

He screamed as the lamp exploded right beside him in a violent burst of flame that spread over the old paper, filling the room with fiendish shadows. Ransik stood up, his eyes hard, seeming much younger, stronger than he had appeared before. "You must think I'm a daft old fool," he growled at them as the fire lanced across the room from shelf to shelf. With almost unearthly speed, every shelf was aflame. The old records burned fiercely, lighting them in an orange glow. "This is as far as you go!" He thrust his hands out before him, the fires streaming into a ball of flame that flared and shot towards the four.

===

The sound of the horses' hooves on cobbles of the cloister's cobbles echoed in the empty silence. The beasts were panicked and pulled at the reins as Tynan and Arum tried to drag them from the stables. "You're a bloody druid!" Arum snapped, trying to hold onto the frightened beast. "Bloody do something!"

"You're a damn priest - ask Mezen, why don't you!" Tynan retorted, annoyed to the teeth with Arum.

"They make me feel old." Adam sighed as he held Feather's hand. There was the sudden scent of smoke in the air. "What's that?"

The sound was not whoomph. The sensation was whoomph. The side of the cloister exploded outwards, spewing masonry and flaming shreds of paper that floated down like hellish snow. They saw something else thrown from the flaming room beyond the gaping hole in the three foot thick wall and it rolled horribly till it came to rest a few meters from them. It was Ransik. Adam burried his face in Feather's robes, tearing his eyes from the grisly sight. It was Ransik, only Ransik used to have more than half a skull.

Four figures emerged from the fire, screaming in pain and patting the flames from their clothes and hair. One's side was a mess of blood and soot and he was screaming in rage, his hand bloody and holding something up by a mass of hair.

Tynan's eyes were on Feather, and he wasn't surprised to see her gasp in surprise at Adam. "Aha, I thought so," the boy said brightly, seeming quite unconcerned. He looked at their perplexed faces. "Well, at least we know where one of them is."

"That is a weird thing to say!" Arum exclaimed worriedly, waving his hands. "So you're saying there's some kind of - of demon in Feather and that's okay?"

Tynan frowned, his hand still gripping his arm as the pain was slowly fading. "It is." he said, certainty in his voice.

"What?!" Arum growled, rounding on Tynan. He pointed at the man. "Have you any idea what you're talking about? We have to get it out of her."

Tynan lips curled up slightly in a barely perceptible sheer at the impulsive young priest. "Oh? How do you propose we do that?" he asked coldly. "It hasn't killed her and I don't think it will. It needs her. For some reason... it fears the other four." Feather was staring at him, her body still, though her eyes betrayed a tightly controlled panic.

"And how would you know?" Arum growled.

"Do you really believe you know everything there is to know about her?" Tynan drawled lazily, his dark eyes as hard as agates cut deep into Arum's furious sky blue. Their gazes locked, a recognition of motives. The atmosphere thickened noticably and for a moment, there was the fleeting feeling of flame and forest.

Adam was smiling awkwardly from the bed. "Okay, okay, lets all calm down now." he said with brittle brightness. "The fact is that we don't know how to get rid of Five, and it most likely won't hurt her. So we don't have to-" A sudden explosion rocked the stones of the cloister, motar raining in a fine dust from the cieling. "What was that?" Adam squeaked.

Ransik took out that foul smelling pipe of his and lit it, sitting down on the bed slowly to avoid aggravating his knees. "Funny you should ask that." he said, looking speculatively at Feather. "Not two hours ago some official looking folk from Pyxis City come and told me and Arum here that they'd heard strange reports about those Eris. Apparently some people seem to believe the Eris are up and about again." He took a puff. "The Eris are heralds who according to legend, sealed up in a cave a ways to the south west in the proxcimity of that miner's camp and the Araawan village, funnily enough. They're really creatures, more like spirits of will. Something wanted into this world so bad, His will manifested itself into six spirits. So while His body was trapped, His will roamed free, up untill the Araawan caught wind of it and Him and sealed the Eris, incapacitating him."

In the silence that fell as the old priest told this surreal tale, he took a long drag from his pipe, smoke curling from his lips as he exhaled. "Those were the Araawan of old, though - who still lived their lives of magic and nature. Things have changed for them now. Don't think they have enough in 'em to do it again."

Tynan was leaning against the wall, a frown on his face. He remembered the four people in the woods with unusual powers. His arm started to shake with the memory of pain. Silently, he gripped it with his other hand, staring ahead. "Anyway," the old priest went on. "The church here's been asking questions and saying the Araawan killed the miners. But like I said, there are those who believe otherwise, thinking old stories are up and about again and killing."

"What did these Eris want?" Tynan asked suddenly as the thought bubbled to the surface. "Why were the roaming the world to begin with? They had to be doing something."


"A Stone, so the stories say," Ransik replied. Feather's eyes narrowed. "Basically, story goes that if they find this stone, the Eris gain bodies of their own. Then they really become the Heralds."

"The Heralds of what?" Tynan breathed.

Ransik took a puff and exhaled, silvery smoke billowing around his gnarled old face as he looked Tynan in the eye. "Why, the end of the world, of course."

Tynan emerged some time later. "They'll give us a place to wait for Ransik and Arum," he told them as some grooms came to take their horses to the stables. "I spoke to the Father here and he agreed, after a while."

Adam's brow furrowed in confusion. "After a while?" he asked, taking Tynan and Feather's hand as they headed towards the church.

"Yes, I had to persuade him," Tynan replied. "He owes me some favours, since I helped cure him of a sickness no priest should have."

"Chicken pox?"

"Er. Something like that." Tynan replied evasively. Adam was probably still too young to know this stuff. "Oh, feel free to gawk when you're inside, Adam, you're supposed to gawk in church - that's how you know Mezen is great, apparently." Tynan went on as they stepped through the arches of the church. The interior of the church was dusty and dim, the once beautiful stained glass windows were grimy, although Adam stared as if they were the most wonderful things in the world. The altar that loomed over the rows and rows of benches had the likeness of Mezen in flowing marble, the god holding a sun in his hands.

They approached a priest who regarded Feather haughtily then stiffly lead them to the the back of the church into the near-deserted cloiter beyond. Evidently, Ica had little use for her church. Through the arched halls they were led, windows overlooking a delapidated garden and a turgid pond that was once probably quite serene to look upon, having contained water instead of sludge. Their waiting room was a sparsely furnished room with two beds, a table and chair and a single oil lamp that hung from the cieling. There was no window.

"Feels like a prison." Tynan remarked.

"HORSE!!!!" Adam shouted, going mad with excitement when they stepped out of the inn to find horses awaiting them in the courtyard, held by a pimple-faced groom. He ran up to the nearest, a placid brown mare, and tried to haul himself up. Tynan smiled and walked up to the boy, picking him up and placing him onthe saddle. The mare cast Tynan a reproachful look as the boy bounced on her back and making galloping noises.

"Yours is that one," Tynan said to Feather, pointing to a fine looking stallion as their packs were loaded on the saddles of the two horses. He had reasoned that somewhere along the line, Feather would have to run. Knowing she had a good horse under her comforted him for some reason. He winced inwardly, hating what he was going to say but said it anyway. "We'll stop by the temple in the next town for Arum and Ransik, so they can join us or yo- we can say goodbye. Or something."

There was the vague impression that Tynan was trying very hard to control himself, and keep himself neutral. The sound of cloth sliding against eachother as something came untied, two shadows in the dark, replayed in his head. He kept his face neutral as he helped Feather up onto her horse, and discovered that she lived up to her name.

"Arum isn't joining us?" Adam asked forlornly as Tynan mounted behind him, grunting with the effort. He looked tired, with dark circles under his eyes, but he seemed to be recovering.

"I don't know, Adam." he said simply as the horses turned and walked out of the courtyard without, the perplexed groom noticed, any kind of signal from the riders.

The town Ica was further down from the snowline than Trickle, and sat at the very spot where allthe tributaries joined into the River Tharn. Unlike Trickle, it was bustling with gem merchants, blacksmiths, tanners and furriers of all sorts. Ica was far more civilized than Trickle, and offered many of the luxuries that Trickle lacked - like cobbled streets and sanitation.

The temple there was a modest looking building with the typical curved spires tiled with small orange mosaic tiles at the north, south, east and west sides of the temple that resembled flames eternally reaching to the sky. The central dome had once been wreathed with the customary gold leaf, but now was merely painted yellow. Ica had not been kind to the Church of Fire. Their horses's hooves clopped on the cobbles as they approached the small courtyard of the church and dismounted. The townsmen ignored them, holding them in very obvious disdain as they passed. One came up to Feather as she dismounted her horse and tossed a penny at her feet.

"Don't take it." Tynan told her, a hardness in his voice as he helped Adam down. "That was an insult."

It was now evening. The sun had set and the room was lit merely by the hearth. The innkeeper had replaced the sheets after much complaint about disease. Money stilled his tongue, however, and now Adam slept there, hugging a pillow. The boy was so shaken he only had one serving of his dinner.

Tynan sat up, leaning against the wall at the foot of the bed, still feeling weak, but unable to sleep. He idly listened to Feather stir from her bed, where he had placed her to let her sleep. He had spent quite alot of the quiet solitary evening thinking about the incident. Firstly, those four people weren't human. Whatever they were, nothing stank of more death and malice than they had. Secondly, and this was the most worrying bit, when Feather had come to save him, he had two voices - her own, and something that seemed close to panic. So that little passenger in her head was definitely there...

She tossed in her bes, possibly dreaming. He stood up, holding the wall for support, and walked slowly over. He pulled the tossed aside blanket up to her chin, and looked down at her with gentle eyes as behind him the fire burned merrily.

Tynan felt himself pulled back over the distance. He felt the hot taste of blood in his mouth for a second time and coughed it out, the crimson stark against his ruddy skin. Weakly, he opened his eyes and looked into the face of Feather. There are worse things to wake up to, and he smiled slightly. He winced sharply then and grunted in pain, gripping his right arm as it shook.

"It's okay," he grunted, his face pale. "The wolf - I can still feel it. They're... they're killing it..." He suddenly looked furious, in agony, but furious nonetheless. "Those bastards!" Then he slumped back, breathing heavily. The wolf was dead. He opened his eyes again and peered into the sapphire blue of Feather's, mute thanks in his gaze.

It was then that a small hand clutched the front of his bloody shirt, Adam's face appearing. The boy was crying. He feebly brought his fists down on Tynan's chest, then collapsed in his guardian's arms in tears.

Adam gasped, staring down at the stain. He moved her aside roughly and placed his head on Tynan's barely moving chest. "He's alive," he breathed with some relief. "But... barely... Whatever his mind is in is hurt badly. It's like... a tunnel now. Tynan's feeling the injuries of his host, and his mind here believes it's real and like... recreating those injuries." The boy was pale as he looked up at Feather. "But that shouldn't've happened! He's carefull! He never takes the bodies of anything that's prey!" He clutched her hand, his eyes wild and wide with worry suddenly filled with tears. "If the animal he's in dies, he dies with it - his mind will be lost. Please, Feather... Saress, help him please..."

Feather stared helplessly as the boy as he whispered the Araawan word for 'sister', something she'd never have expected to hear from the lips of a human.

===

The wolf hit the tree with a dull thud, leaves shaking from the branches to rain placidly on the wounded body that Tynan posessed. He was fighting for control. The wolf wanted to do panicky things, animals things. It wanted to fight, to bite - anything to save itself. If he let the animal instincts of the wolf overwhelm his mind, he'd loose control and end up very very dead. He couldn't have that - he was too attached to his life to die.

The wolf lay still, tongue hanging out of it's panting maw, one forepaw twisted and broken. It's fur was matted with dirt and blood. The man approached, grinning manically as it raised one foot back and brought it forward hard.

The wolf suddenly sprang up and brought it's jaws around and the man screamed as the teeth dug into his leg deeply. The hot taste of blood filled his mouth as it hung on, tripping the man. Then it lunged as hard as it could with only three good legs and went for the throat.

It would have worked but for the sudden shock that sent him hurtling sideways, bouncing over the ground. The pain of the wolf was filling his head with a red mist. He saw the other four walking up to him, their faces amused, all except the child's at least. He couldn't leave the beast, he hadn't the energy after just trying to keep control and the pain was binding him to the mind. It was like drowning... drowning and being ripped apart at the same time.

When the three returned to the room they shared, the rain was still pattering down in a dull stoccato. The air was cool and damp, the scent of their small fire in the hearth filling the room with a gentle fragrance of sandalwood. Tynan was apparantly asleep on his bed, his hair falling carelessly over his closed eyes. He lay on his side, his body curled up with the blanket half kicked off. "It's a bit early in the day for a kip," Arum noted, despite the fact that Ransik was asleep too, though much more quietly than the thunderstorm the night before. "Is he ill?"

Adam padded up to the bed and touched Tynan's forehead. "He's just out." he told them nonchalantly. He caught Arum's confused look. "Like, his mind is out for a walk? I mean in an animal!" he added quickly when Arum snorted in laughter. "He's gone Borrowing. He does it sometimes when he needs to get away."

"Guess he really is a druid." Arum said, sitting down on his own bed.

"Yes," Adam replied, patting Tynan on the arm fondly as his eyes softened. "He is."

===

Tynan's mind jumped from creature to creature, from sparrow to dove to the fierce falcons of the sky, reveling in the sheer joy of flying untill he was miles away from the town. Up here above the clouds, above the rain, the sky shone a brilliant blue, clouds rising below him like whales at play. The sun warmed his feathers and with a fierce cry to the heavens, the falcon swooped and barrel rolled in the sheer delight of flying.

However, after a while, he started to feel the urge to swoop down and kill things. He descended to a hundred feet in the air and eyed the trees. Amidst the gaps of the leaves, ghosting through the undergrowth, was a wolf. His mind jumped again, from falcon to wolf. Wolves were his favourite. While there was a fierce joy in flight, few things rivaled the intelligence and stamina of a wolf. He bounded through the trees, contenting himself in chasing fawns and partridges from the bushes. His tongue lolling out of his mouth, he ran through the woods at play.

It came as a surprise to him when he caught the scent of blood. He paused and sniffed the wind before bounding off in the direction of the blood. The trail in the breeze led him to a clearing, through which five people walked. They looked like people, they sounded like people, but they didn't smell like people at all. They smelt of death. Keeping his distance, he ghosted by them, his initial curiosity crystalizing to intrigue.

He had taken the form of the wolf many times, and he knew the intricacies involved in stalking prey. Which was why he was quite stunned when one of the people turned and looked squarely at him as Tynan was concealed in the bushes. A vicious grin splitting the man's face. "Danger!" he growled with glee as he broke from the group and rushed in an animalistic run towards Tynan, hands extended low like claws.

It happened so fast that Tynan's growl barely got to his throat before it was cut off into a yelp of pain.

===

Back in the inn, Tynan's body stilled, a tiny almost unnoticable trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his lips onto the pillow.

When the three returned to the room they shared, the rain was still pattering down in a dull stoccato. The air was cool and damp, the scent of their small fire in the hearth filling the room with a gentle fragrance of sandalwood. Tynan was apparantly asleep on his bed, his hair falling carelessly over his closed eyes. He lay on his side, his body curled up with the blanket half kicked off. "It's a bit early in the day for a kip," Arum noted, despite the fact that Ransik was asleep too, though much more quietly than the thunderstorm the night before. "Is he ill?"

Adam padded up to the bed and touched Tynan's forehead. "He's just out." he told them nonchalantly. He caught Arum's confused look. "Like, his mind is out for a walk? I mean in an animal!" he added quickly when Arum snorted in laughter. "He's gone Borrowing. He does it sometimes when he needs to get away."

"Guess he really is a druid." Arum said, sitting down on his own bed.

"Yes," Adam replied, patting Tynan on the arm fondly as his eyes softened. "He is."

===

Tynan's mind jumped from creature to creature, from sparrow to dove to the fierce falcons of the sky, reveling in the sheer joy of flying untill he was miles away from the town. Up here above the clouds, above the rain, the sky shone a brilliant blue, clouds rising below him like whales at play. The sun warmed his feathers and with a fierce cry to the heavens, the falcon swooped and barrel rolled in the sheer delight of flying.

However, after a while, he started to feel the urge to swoop down and kill things. He descended to a hundred feet in the air and eyed the trees. Amidst the gaps of the leaves, ghosting through the undergrowth, was a wolf. His mind jumped again, from falcon to wolf. Wolves were his favourite. While there was a fierce joy in flight, few things rivaled the intelligence and stamina of a wolf. He bounded through the trees, contenting himself in chasing fawns and partridges from the bushes. His tongue lolling out of his mouth, he ran through the woods at play.

It came as a surprise to him when he caught the scent of blood. He paused and sniffed the wind before bounding off in the direction of the blood. The trail in the breeze led him to a clearing, through which five people walked. They looked like people, they sounded like people, but they didn't smell like people at all. They smelt of death. Keeping his distance, he ghosted by them, his initial curiosity crystalizing to intrigue.

He had taken the form of the wolf many times, and he knew the intricacies involved in stalking prey. Which was why he was quite stunned when one of the people turned and looked squarely at him as Tynan was concealed in the bushes. A vicious grin splitting the man's face. "Danger!" he growled with glee as he broke from the group and rushed in an animalistic run towards Tynan, hands extended low like claws.

It happened so fast that Tynan's growl barely got to his throat before it was cut off into a yelp of pain.

===

Back in the inn, Tynan's body stilled, a tiny almost unnoticable trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his lips onto the pillow.

The following morning dawned somewhat chilly with the oncroaching spring rains. The pattering raindrops drummed a stoccato on the roof of the inn, delaying the party's departure. Tynan sat at the window, his eyes distant, head resting on his arms as he hugged his knees, staring disconsolately at the rain as they bejeweled the grimy pane. The others were downstairs in the inn's common room, having lunch. Tynan wasn't feeling all that hungry.

He idly wondered if he should just leave the company of Feather and the priests, but he knew that Adam wouldn't let him. Something about that boy tended to control him far more than he was willing to admit. Feather came into the room, barely taking notice of him.

He heard her going to her pack, ruffling around in it for a moment as she looked for something, then turn to leave. "How far are you planning to follow us, Feather?" he asked suddenly as she was about to shut the door. He heard the floorboards creak as she paused, and he could feel her eyes on him. "I'm sorry if I came across as pushy, but once we leave here, you should be safe."

He turned to regard her with distant eyes, hard as agates. He smiled at her coldly. "Besides, I can tell you can't stand the sight of me," he went on. "I'm sure you'd enjoy the company of Arum far better."

"You're going to eat yourself sick," Tynan growled sternly at Adam who was beaming and eating chicken wings skewered on a stick with every sign of enjoyment.

"But they faste so goo'!" Adam replied brightly with his mouth full.

"That's besides the point-" Tynan began, then sighed as Adam squealed in delight and ran up to another food store and started excitedly ordering everything in sight. "If he doesn't eat himself sick, he's going to eat me into poverty." Tynan grumbled as he went to pay for the armfull of food Adam was now holding as he grinned broadly.

"He's a growing boy," Arum replied, taking one of the chicken wings from their rice paper wrappings and tucking in.

“Growing sideways.” Tynan muttered.

Arum laughed as they walked on, Tynan’s pack now full of supplies. Tynan, in his surly mood, noticed that neither Adam nor Arum had offered to help carry anything but the snacks. “So are you always this grumpy?” Arum asked conversationally.

“So people say,” Tynan replied shortly.

Arum looked at him, concern in his blue eyes. “Seriously, what’s bothering you? You sound like you’re an inch away from braining someone.”

“Because I’m carrying supplies for three people in one pack and no one seems to give a thought,” Tynan snapped.

“Oh, well why didn’t you just say – here give me some stuff.” Arum tried to reach for the pack, but Tynan brushed his hand away.

“Just forget it.” Tynan snapped and walked on. “No more snacks, Adam, we’re not made of money.” Adam pouted as Tynan walked on, leaving Arum and the boy standing surprised in the street. It wasn’t just the pack. He felt like a work-horse – having to plan and cook and pack and try to keep alive people who didn’t seem to give a damn. If she’d only just bloody say ‘thank you’ once in a while, he thought angrily. Okay, well not just her, the others are just as guilty, but mainly her.

He didn’t quite understand why it was her indifference that infuriated him the most, and he dwelt on it as he walked back to the tavern, Arum and Adam following behind him. “Is he alright?” he heard Arum ask Adam softly.

“Mmhm,” came Adam’s reply. “He’s just going through an emotional wossname thingy. He’ll sort it out.”

Huh, Tynan thought bitterly.

Tynan looked up from the fire where he was cooking, a little surprised at the sugary sweet and unusually polite side of Feather. He frowned slightly, confused. Which just went to show that Tynan knew next to nothing about the opposite sex. He felt the master's eyes on him, the old man eye-ing him speculatively as Feather sat down next to Arumshade, talking idly. He found that rather bizarre, not to mention incomprehensibly annoying.

"Fancy that, a strapping lad like you fussin' and cookin', that's a woman's job, you know," Ransik said, his voice like the snapping of tough old leather.

Tynan smiled. "That really depends on the woman in question," he replied blandly as he seasoned the stew with some wild parsley.

Ransik snorted. "It's the nature of women to submit," he pontificated.

"It's also the nature of man to try as hard as possible to live till the following morning," Tynan chuckled. "Have you finished with the Sendings, Master Ransik?"

"Mm," Ransik nodded, puffing his pipe. "Good thing you and the boy escaped."

Tynan glanced at the Master, who looked at him with shrewd eyes. 'You and the boy'. Tynan realized that the man suspected alot of things... but he didn't actually know. "Yes, we got out just in time to escape whatever it was that destroyed the Araawans and the camp." he lied easily. "Adam, get me the jar and the stopper and fill it with this stew, will you?" The boy nodded as Tynan turned back to the priest. "If it's alright with you, could we accompany you back to whichever town you came from? I wouldn't want to live out the rest of my life in this cave of wolves."

"Mm..." came another nod and puff from the Master. "Funny that, the wolves not biting our heads off and all."

"I've a way with animals." Tynan simply said.

====

The town was called Trickle, and sat nestled by the forest and the many mountain streams that trickled down into the shallow valley to later become part of the River Tharn. It was a somewhat rowdy town, where miners and goldhunters gathered once in a while for trade, provisions and socializing before returning to their secluded lives amidst the peaks. Socializing, in this case, involved the tavern which therefore also involved alot of alcohol.

The sounds from the taproom leaked up through the floorboards of the room in which the innkeeper had pressed on 'you and your poor family, good sir'. Tynan had insisted Feather keep her head hooded, and she had refused adamantly up untill Arum offered the opinion that it might not be a bad idea, at which point she simply agreed. Tynan stared distastefully at the bed. "I'll bet there's lice." Adam sighed.

"Look on the bright side," Tynan snapped, dropping their packs onto the dusty floor. "At least you don't have to pay for them." He was in a nasty humour, the travel from the den to the town, watchng Feather and Arum had gotten on his nerves.

"You did what?" Feather exploded at Tynan as the man made breakfast, the markings on her face mottling as her anger grew. Tynan sighed, he knew this was going to cause trouble. It was a blessing to have been able to have sneak them into the cave without waking her, but the inevitable explosion was at hand. Still, Tynan reflected, it could be worse. She could be killing them already. It didn't help that part of him fervently believed she was just saving up till she'd finished shouting.

"Uh-oh." Adam said mildly, watching the breakfast of fried bread cooking.

She rounded on the stunned younger priest, her eyes flashing. The older one still slept, snoring like a broken bellow. "You dare - you dare to-"

She was stopped short as Tynan took her arm and pointedly led her out of the den. "Alright," he sighed in resignation, once they were out of earshot of the den. "Lets begin."

"Begin what?" she asked him sharply.

"The yelling," Tynan replied. "I take it you were planning on doing that, weren't you?" She had the decency to blush in angry embarassment. Tynan smiled slightly. Strangely, here in the sunlight when she wasn't covered with blood, he realized she really was quite beautiful. "I don't mind if you'd like to vent, but they don't know about you and the camp," he went on reasonably. "They're just a couple of blameless priests sent up to do a dirty job, and I don't want to have gone through the trouble of saving them from whatever's out there just to have you kill them. Please? So if you intend on throwing a tantrum, feel free, only not so loud."

"Tantrum?!"

Tynan's smile broadened. "Oh I don't mind," he said, a hint of playfulness in his voice. "You're quite pretty when you're angry actually."

"Stubbornness has been going around lately." Tynan murmured. He looked at the old man, wondering how exactly Feather would react if he brought two human priests to the den when the Church of Fire clearly propogated hatred for the Snake People. Then again, the church had propogated hatret for druids aswell, and he wondered why he was even considering helping these priests. Because I'm not them, I hope, he added privately to himself. When he thought of her, the memory of her asleep in the den, he idly realized that she was very beautiful.

"I know of a place," he said slowly. "It would be best if-" He stopped, feeling a chill trickle down his spine. He was sure his hair was standing on end as the atmosphere subtly changed. There was a growling from the bushes as the two wolves sensed something. He put his hand on Arum's arm, his serious eyes staring out into the darkness. "Don't do anything hasty." he said quietly. "Those wolves are friends. Something's out there, they can feel it." His brown eyes met Arum's. "Pack up those things of yours, I'll take you and your master some place safe."

Tynan gave a slight smile at the man who had extended his hand, though even before he could take it, the hand was swatted away. As the old man pointed, Tynan turned to look at the pyre, twinkling in the distance. "I have no idea." he replied with every appearance of honesty. It ptobably wasn't going to be a good idea to let on about Feather. And what kind of a name was Arumshade anyway? "Why does it matter? It's just a pyre."

It was the middle of the night and the forest was exceptionally silent. No owls hooted, no snakes crawled, nothing disturbed the air of the night but the sound of claws digging into the springy undergrowth of the woods. The wolf bounded through the trees, a silver ghost in the blue moonlight. He could still smell the tang of the funeral pyre smoke in the air, mingled with the blood of the camp like a miasma. But there was something else, scents of the living ebbed in the night breezes.

There were people there. The wolf stopped suddenly, ears erect and head held high as it took in the night air. Two humans. One old and one young. Then, like a satelite slowly revolving to triangulate a new signal, the wolf's head turned and stared with golden eyes into the darkness of the forest. With a swift flick of it's tail, the creature bounded back to the den. They were coming.

Tynan opened his eyes as the wolf trotted back into the den. The wolf threw a reproachful look at the man as Tynan sat up, moving slowly so as to not disturb Feather or Adam. The alpha female stood up and followed behind Tynan and her mate as they walked out to the night.

It took them the better part of an hour to reach the place where the two living humans were camping by a stream. Their fire winked in the night, like a star in the darkness. Tynan stopped, hidden by the darkness of the trees. Now was was he going to do? Warn them? They looked like priests in those robes of theirs. Would they talk to a druid? Admittedly, he didn't look like a druid at all, having abandoned the customary green or white robes for some utilarian short robe, breeches and soft boots. Still, these teo probably came from some town, and it would be wise to get some information.

He warned the wolves to hold back and they obediently waited as he approached the camp. He held his hands up placatingly as he entered the light of the fire. The two priests stood up warily eyeing him. "Don't get excited." he said to them. "I was from the camp you were just at. I just need to talk to you."

Tynan hesitated, trying to put it delicately in the prsence of the boy. Everyone just assumed Adam was his son, and he had never bothered to explain otherwise up untill now. Adam came to the rescue though. "I'm not his son." said the boy, quite unconcerned as he dipped bread into his stew. "And I don't think I can take after my mother, because I don't know where she is, really."

"I found him," Tynan said simply, his voice clearly indicating that this subject of conversation was exhausted. "My name's Tynan." he continued. " And if I told you this any earlier, I think you'd be too angry to really care, am I right? We were hiding from the miners, actually. People needed me in the camp, but no one liked me very much-"

"Wonder why," came a muffled comment from Adam.

"-and after they tasted Araawan blood," Tynan went on, pointedly ignoring Adam. "It probably wasn't a good time to hang around, if they had started making enquiries about Adam, things would have gone hard for us. We came here to hide untill nightfall, untill one of the wolves saw you walking to the camp. And now I don't think we can go anywhere untill we find out what exactly's stalking these mountains."

Tynan smiled then, the first one she'd seen. It cast a gentle glow on his otherwise stern features. "Good enough for me." he said as he turned and led the way to the den.

"I told you you should be nicer to people, Tynan." Adam said as they walked through the dark trees, the pyre's flames though fading, still danced towards the stars.

===

The wolves were wary of the small cook fire Tynan had made in the low den. They lay around the three humans, close and friendly with Tynan and Adam, but distant from Feather, as if they had let her in on sufferance at the request of the druid. The small copper pot bubbled over the fire, as bits of wild carrots, onions and cut wild rabbit meat rose and fell in the rich smelling stew as Tynan stirred it with a wooden spoon.

Adam was on all fours by the fire, watching the pot with excited glee as the puppies wagged their tails and frolicked around him. "It smells so good!" he said excitedly and lifted a finger to dip into the pot. The spoon smacked down lightly on his knuckles and Tynan gave him a stern look.

"How about you get the bread and some bowls?" Tynan asked the boy pointedly. With a pout, Adam rose from beside the fire and went to rummage in the packs stored deeper in the den, the playful pups who had taken to the boy followed along, jumping and yipping delightedly. Tynan smiled up at Feather, who sat disconsolately opposite him, hugging her knees to her chest. "I hope you're not still angry with me?" he said blandly to her. "I'm not very good with people, I'm afraid."

"Probably not from you," Tynan replied, sounding quite unconcerned. Maybe from the little passenger you seem to carry around, though, he added privately to himself. "It's something else, probably..." His eyes grew distant a moment. "...probably a few of them, so the owls are warning."

He saw the skeptical look she gave him. "Druid, remember?" he added, jerking the thumb of his free hand towards himself. "Druid? Powers? You don't have to be Araawan to have them, you know. And 'a few' is about as accurate as you're going to get from owls, since they're not famed for their arithmetic abilities. That means it could be two, could be a dozen. I'd feel alot safer once I'm surrounded by my happy furry friends with the sharp teeth and even sharper noses."

"Is this how you make friends?" Adam asked blandly.

"Must be the company I keep, they have that effect on me." Tynan replied. Adam stuck his tongue out at his guardian.

"That's not the point-" Feather began.

"Oh? Where exactly will you go then, all on your own, with no blessing from Shinistra?" Tynan asked bluntly. "Every creature out there knows there's something in these woods - something dangerous. Where will you run? I've lived here for three years and nothing has ever scared the animals like this. There is safety in numbers - especially when surrounded by a dozen big hairy things with pointy teeth. We'll decide what to do in the morning. Or would you rather run off and get killed? Now there's a hard choice to make."

The fires burned long after the sun set, the flames dancing and writhing in an almost unholy joy as they reached up to the stars. Tynan stood beside Feather as the grimly watched the flames, the warm light seeming to glint in her jewel blue eyes as if they themselves held flames. Tynan wondered how long it would take for those flames to be extinguished. After a while, he walked away into the dark forest, leaving Feather with Adam by her side.

"The miners were wrong, you know," Adam said matter-of-factly as he watched the flames with Feather. "The Araawans didn't kill those foragers." He looked up at her, his face lit by the flames as around them, the forest came alive as the shadows darkened. "But the miners are dead now, it doesn't matter. The things that were responsible will be forgotten, because blood spilled will demand blood as payment." He looked to be no older than seven years of age, yet his words were far wiser than his years.

There was something different about this child.

A voice broke the silence. "We should get back to the den." Tynan said as he re-emerged from the trees. "Something's terrifying the animals, everything's hiding for miles around - I hardly think a funeral pyre's scary enough to terrify everything up here but the wolves and cougars. It won't be safe here for long." Adam stretched his arms out to Tynan, who silently picked up the boy and carried him in the crook of a muscular arm.

Tynan and Adam walked side by side, holding eachother by the hand. To the casual observer, it wasn't hard to assume they were father and son as they walked through the carnage. They stood still before the caves and Tynan tightened his grip on Adam's small hand, though it was hard to tell if the gesture was to reassure the boy or himself. When he let go, however, his hands were still, his brown eyes focused and intent. "Fine," he said to Feather.

He closed his eyes then and lifted his face to the sky. The budding trees around the village suddenly erupted in bird song, the shrill sounds of boundless joy lifting high into the clear sky. Robins burst from the trees then, carrying small twigs of oak, heather and thyme. Tynan held up his hands as the birds dropped the symbolic herbs onto his open palms and flew away. He opened his eyes and walked next to her. "Ready?" he asked her solemnly.

To her surprise, Adam stood next to her, his face full of regret. He looked up into her eyes and something in the child's emerald green eyes spoke to her deep in her soul. Wading in the blood of thousands of humans wouldn't bring her parents back, and it wasn't what they would have wanted. To hide from sorrow behind the red mists of revenge would only bring pain. The boy reached up and took her free hand, his touch strangely comforting.