Wizards Conclave

In the darkness and the silence of the deep forest, Coryn began to muster her defiance. Someday soon she would confront Je

She knew such whispered words from Umma's books, the books that she had committed to memory years ago. One word, spoken by pure instinct, had saved her from the walrus-men as it whisked her, still wet from lying in the soggy snow, onto the floor of Umma's cottage.

She remembered the word Je

It was with a sense of rebellious determination that she rolled onto her side, her back toward the low fire and the sleeping woman beyond. Cory didn't have a medallion, but reaching out a hand, she felt around until she found a small stone, small enough that she could easily hold it in the palm of her hand.

As softly as she could, she whispered the remembered word, focusing the power of the magic on the stone cupped in her fingers. Immediately, to her delight, it came to light, spilling a surprising brilliance over the ground, across the clearing, and into the nearby fringe of woods. The girl listened for any disruption in Je

And then she saw the black-cloaked figure standing there at the edge of the woods, regarding her with an expression of keen interest.

Coryn gasped and sat up, raising the stone so that its full light spilled wildly into the woods. With a grimace, the stranger-he was a rather handsome man, she noticed vaguely-raised a hand to shield his eyes from the rays.

"Would you mind?" he asked, pleasantly enough, as he strolled forward into the clearing.

"I-I don't know how to stop it," Coryn admitted, though she cupped the stone tightly to cover its brightness.

"Then your mistress is doing a poor job of teaching you," the stranger remarked. He was dressed in a sleek black robe, the fabric intertwined with silvery threads that picked up and reflected the light. He had an expression of mild amusement on his face as he looked past Coryn toward the sleeping Je

"Mistress?" Coryn suddenly realized she needed to raise an alarm. "Je

"Of all people-Dalamar!" she snapped, her tone angry. "What are you doing here? Get away from her-get away from both of us!"

"Not so quickly, mistress of the Red Robe," said the man dressed in black. He walked past Coryn as if the girl didn't exist, his eyes fixed upon the woman, his face still creased by that expression of mild amusement.

He was the most magnetic person Cory had ever seen. His eyes were wide and unusually large, shaped kind of like almonds, she decided. His face was so smooth that, though he was clearly an adult, his skin showed no signs of ever having been touched by a razor. The cowl of his black hood covered much of his head, but she could see enough of him to realize that he had light-colored, beautiful hair. He walked with a sense of utter assurance, and even as he crossed the grassy ground-littered with fallen twigs, as she had noticed when gathering firewood-his steps made no sound.

"You are a difficult person to find," said the one called Dalamar. "I have been seeking you for some time, but did not expect to run into you so far from your usual haunts. What brings you here, to wild Qualinesti?"

"I needed to get out of the city," Je

"I suspect there is more to it than that. I think you are here for much the same reason that I am here. What I can't figure out-at least, I couldn't figure out until tonight-is why you brought this girl."

"You've been spying on us?" blurted Coryn. "For how long have you been hiding there in the woods?"

"It is no use asking questions of one wearing the black robe," Je

"Tsk, tsk," Dalamar chided. "Leave it to the Red Robe to lecture about self-serving behavior." He turned to regard Coryn, favoring her with just a hint of a smile. "Has she been treating you well? Teaching you things, is she?"

"I-well, yes. She treats me fairly." Cory was confused, her mind whirling. She felt oddly compelled to come to Je

At that, Dalamar smiled broadly. "I see… you're just a humble servant girl who makes pebbles glow in the dark. Well, that certainly makes sense-can't have the servants stumbling around in the thick of the night. I don't know how many times I've heard Je

"Who are you?" demanded Coryn. She was undeniably flattered when he bowed, deeply, looking out from the cowl of that dark hood to look her squarely in the eyes.

"Forgive me. I am called Dalamar the Dark, and I have long been an associate of your mistress." Startlingly, he winked. "You can tell by the warm greeting she has offered an old friend, after a long time apart."

"Get away from her-and me. I mean it, Dalamar," Je

Still those almond eyes lingered, making Coryn suddenly conscious that she wore only her nightshirt. She pulled the blankets up over her chest, but continued to meet Dalamar's eyes until, with visible reluctance, he turned back to Je

"I have no ill designs on her, or yourself, for that matter," he said pleasantly. "But we do need to talk, and I have come a long way to find you. Perhaps your… 'servant' could add some wood to this fire, and we might make ourselves comfortable."

Coryn watched Je

Dalamar turned respectfully away as Coryn shrugged into her trousers. She looked at the dwindling pile of firewood-there was enough for breakfast tea, no more-and she knew she would have to plunge into the dark woods in search of more fuel. She looked at the pebble in her hand, which had now dimmed to nothing; and she didn't dare try the word again. She was reluctant to leave these two, and desperately curious to see what this meeting was about.

Dalamar crossed to Je

The woman in the red robe said one word-it sounded something like shroud-yus-and then all was utterly silent. Cory stared in surprise to see that Je

But she could hear no words, and there was no sound at all in the still forest clearing.

At length Dalamar raised his hands and Je