At the gate, all was in motion. Armsmen fidgeted and hesitated, uncertain whether to abandon their posts to aid in the firefighting. At the far end of the bailey covenfolk kneeled or lay, already scorched or exhausted. And through the great door of the keep a broken stream of householders rushed in and out, tripping and knocking into each other as they staggered under burdens of books and the castle's other few valuables. Above it all hung the smoky red glare of conflagration. "It's the Council chamber," said Renaut, pointing to the far end of the keep where the glare flickered brightest.
They fought their way into the foyer. Forba stood at the doorway of the Council chamber, a hellish mouth of flame that she struggled to beat back with commands of magic. But control over elements was not her strength. "Get Daria," she yelled, the press of bodies and roar of flames making it almost impossible to be heard. "She's in the library, but others can save the books. I need her here! And find Aline!"
As Renaut struggled his way into the library and Edgard descended toward Aline's underground chambers, Albrecht, joined by Olaf, set to organizing the library's rescuers. Brother Christophe returned to the inner bailey to aid the injured, accompanied by Rutger, concerned that the fire might attract enemies.
Daria was not in the library. "She aids Forba," Ulistarius shouted, but Renaut had already turned to leave. Daria's chambers and lab were directly above the Council chamber.
He rushed up the steep spiral steps into the upper solar. Here the roar of the flames was dulled and the castle was empty. From beneath the door to Daria's lab came an angry orange glow, and the wood was warm to the touch. Renaut pushed open the door. The room was filled with smoke and the glow of flame. Opposite, the doorway to the corner tower--his own chamber--issued a column of fire, and flames were breaching the floor in a number of places, but it was not the conflagration of the chamber below. Casting a protection on himself, Renaut stepped into the room.
Daria lay unconscious under a table. Flames were already engulfing an arm, leaving her hand a blackened claw.
"The wound is serious, but she will certainly live," Brother Christophe declared outside. "I do not know why she will not awaken." "It's not the injuries," Renaut responded. "She has exhausted herself with magics." Just then Daria's eyes opened. They gained no focus, nor turned upon anyone present. Those around leaned in as her lips formed a word: "Vis."
"The vis stores!" Renaut exclaimed, slapping his forehead. The others looked on, uncomprehending. "Vis! Magical power given form. More valuable than gold. We keep it in the strong room--under the Council chamber!"
They rushed down into the cellars. From the last twist in the spiral, light could be seen below. A flash of movement revealed Pietre down among the stores. With a quick casting the apprentice slammed the iron gate to the strong room, locking himself inside. As Edgard and Olaf forced the gate, Pietre, skulking in the shadows at the back of the chamber, produced the black egg. He put it to his mouth and whispered gently, casting his eye on Renaut, then rolled the egg into the center of the room.
Rutger and Edgard closed with Pietre, but another gate barred their way. The apprentice was surrounded by heavy chests, their locks forced but the contents not yet looted. Behind him a set of symbols had been scrawled on the floor in charcoal.
Olaf had not before seen the egg, and he picked it up where it had rolled to his feet. Albrecht was just shouting a warning when the egg burst into a flurry of darkness, driving Olaf back. The black creature took form, hunched beneath the low vaulting, filling the space with its bony, clawed darkness. It regarded Olaf for a moment with its eyeless face, then turned. Its attention fell upon Renaut, and it moved toward him.
Edgard forced the second gate, and he and Rutger stepped through. With a curse, Pietre backed away from an open chest, turned, then stepped into his charcoal markings--and disappeared.
The opidephene moved toward Renaut, but Olaf shattered a flaming lantern upon its back. The others set upon it with their steel. It drew grievous wounds, fighting tenaciously and with its only intent the murder of Renaut. But its moment was lost, and it soon fell to dust.
Above, the fire was nearly extinguished. There had been no deaths. The library was unburned, though it would later come to be known that Pietre had taken several valuable tomes. His escape was complete, but he had looted only a portion of the covenant's vis. His motives would become the subject of speculation for many seasons, until eventually he would be just a mysterious figure of history--gone, it would seem, to never be seen or heard from again.
End of the Prologue
Friday 7 December 2007
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