The distant walls of Roekshir had never looked so bleak as when Durg Joa Tan made her way up the rocky side of the valley ridge, alone, on a dirt path seldom used even by shepherds. Her feet were bound in thong sandals, but though her feet were spared the pain of the sharp gravel, she felt a duller ache in her heart, which caused her more distress than the topography might have ever done.

When she had finally reached the top, night had fallen, and the day had become even colder than before. A light rain had fallen, but Anhau had always been spared the worst of the rainy season, the walls of the valley acting as a convenient shield against the high winds. Most of the rain was swept along the plain, but Roekshir always got the worst of it, and Joa Tan huddled in her cloak against the icy gale.

There were no guards at the door, so she lifted the heavy iron knocker and let it fall. The clang that sounded was deafening.

It was several minutes before the doors began to open. The most well-fortified place in the city was Roekshir, and its doors were never open unless they needed to be. She was ushered in by a few wicks, who bowed their heads respectfully.

"I have come to see Solexa," she said, her voice proud of strong, assuring the wicks that whatever transpired, she would get in to see him, and they had better not stand in her way.

"Yes," they murmured, leading her swiftly down the stone corridors, which were lit sporadically with oily torches, the walls stained black with careless use of fire. The floor beneath had been worn by many thousands of feet, so that a groove down the middle suggested the route to take; she made her way towards the throne room with her impromptu entourage, her bright blue robes flying out behind her. Behind her, the Roek guards exchanged glances.

Solexa did not lounge on his throne like a usurper king, nor did he sit straight, proud and haughty like his father. He was seated on the floor, legs crossed in meditation. A handsome, wolfish man, he had long sideburns adorning a hastily shaved beard, shaggy black hair, and thick eyebrows; his yellow eyes darted out from behind them as he heard them approach, flashing in the firelight.

"Tan Joa, you join me at a late hour," he said, haughtily mixing up her last and first names - how like a Roek, she thought bitterly, and she almost snarled before she could stop herself.

"I have walked many miles to see you, Durg Solexa," she said.

"I know how far away Roekshir must seem for you, Tan," he said, leaping up on young muscles and beckoning her to the long table before the throne. She glowered at him. "I heard of your injury. It is a tragedy it happened right before the rice season...or do you not farm, anymore?"

"I am a Durg, Solexa, and you must address me as such," she said sharply.

His eyes panned over her. He did not respect women, she thought; his attitude towards the Kohore tribe had always been lacking.

"No jokes," she continued. "I am here for a grave matter. Your father would already have known, and prepared, for what I am about to tell you."

Solexa slammed his fist down on the table, threateningly; the guards near the door fluttered like anxious birds. But Joa Tan, unafraid of his wrath, made a subvocal hiss, and the hand bound itself to the table. Solexa winced, and looked angrier than ever.

"You are closest to hatcher territory, yet I am not hazarding a guess to say you are unaware of what currently unfolds there," she said sternly. He stopped trying to undo her spell for a moment and glanced up. "They are leaving. All of our elders have seen it."

"I do not put as much stock in Mans as you," sneered Solexa. "Dreams are also vivid, lifelike. How could they see a hatcher in a dream? They are unseen."

"Yes," sighed Joa Tan, releasing him; he cradled his hand, which was red and throbbing from the pain of being pushed down so hard. "That is why I have come to you. We cannot trust this to visions. We must investigate."

"You want me to give you my army," said Solexa, narrowing his eyes, "to confirm what your tribe already knows to be true. Do I sense doubts, Tan?"

"I am not the superstitious priestess I once was," she replied. Pulling out her pipe, she lit it with a quick spell, puffing intensely; being around Solexa always made her anxious. "I trust what I see. But nevertheless, we must be sure. If the hatchers have gone..."

"Then we are in danger once more," whispered Solexa.

The fires of battle were alight in his eyes. He had spent a dreary life trying to relive the glorious conquests of his ancestors, fighting a war with no enemy; the chance to rebuild the conflicts of old, to get a second chance to defeat their greatest enemy, Bruanhald...

Solexa strode over to his guards at once, passing Joa Tan, who was gazing suspiciously at him.

"Alert the palace guards," he said to them. "We will gather men at dawn and ride out into the mists...if indeed the mists still remain."

The men exchanged nervous glances. Going out into the mists was nothing but a death warrant; they bowed nevertheless, and hurried out the door, which closed with a shuddering boom.

"I am going with you," said Joa Tan seriously.

"Your place is with your tribe," he replied, turning around to look at her. The squat, tanned woman would normally be unremarkable; it was only her striking face that made her so intimidating, though he would never admit to it. As a new Durg, Solexa had yet to master the art of getting what he wanted; he tended to merely demand, while Joa Tan insinuated herself into where she wanted to be.

"My place is with Anhau," she said calmly. "But even I do not believe I cannot stand still while the winds of change roar around me. I must see for myself what lies beyond our borders."

"No Kohore will travel with us," thundered the Roek Durg, standing over her. He was a good foot taller, but for some reason he always felt as though she were looking down on him...

She sighed.

"Very well," she said, and turned away from him.

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Outside, the wind howled like a mad woman. Its anguish mirrored her own; she stepped down from the final stone slab of the steps and looked around her. She was alone, seemingly.

"You can come out now, Cosoa Bryn," she said to the empty air.

Silence.

"I know you've been following me," she continued, looking around her. The heather and brambles on the cliffside shifted slightly.

Bryn stepped out from her hiding place, red-faced and abashed, her grey hair in disarray and her robes torn. She had had a difficult time climbing to Roekshir; Joa Tan had noticed her discomfort and looked back several times to see her hurriedly dashing behind a rock.

"You are not as stealthy as you think," she said, her voice stern but slightly amused. "Why did you come here with me, child?"

"I am sorry," apologized Bryn, bowing so low to the ground the her hair brushed the earth. "I...I wanted to know..."

Joa Tan crossed over to her and patted the young girl on the shoulders. Bryn had been crying. Tan looked tenderly at the priestess, who had her family's silvery hair, an odd, unfortunate trait; she knew her whole family line, down to the newest toddler born of her sister, and felt affection for all of them.

"Your Sha Niae is soon, is it not, Beata Bryn?" she whispered.

"This isn't because of that," said Bryn fiercely, though she showed respect. "I want to know what you are doing about Elder Takala's dream...the dream everyone else has been having."

Joa Tan's lips were pursed. "How do you know of such things, child?"

"I listened in last night, when the Elders met at the Pylons," said Bryn, not prepared to lie and not willing, either; she looked as though any punishment would have been well worth the information gleaned. "And I have had the dreams too, my lady. I have seen the hatchers leaving! Where are they going, Durg? Where?"

The Durg sat down heavily on a rock, beckoning Bryn to do the same. "I have spoken with Solexa," she said, "and he has agreed to send out his men to find out."

Something in her face suggested that she was not entirely happy with this setup; Bryn cocked her head curiously. "Durg?"

"He has ordered me not to attend," she said, with a wry grin.

"Ordered you?"

"Yes," she said. "It was unwise of him to stir up such turmoil, in already tumultuous times. If the Roek ride without a Kohore, they will fall prey to the world around them; they do not understand the use of Mans, nor do they understand patience, kindness, compassion. And I do not trust Solexa. He bends the truth to his advantage, and would do anything to invite war on his own people; I saw rage in his eyes tonight, before the torches of battle have even been lit, before the thunder has even reached our ears...but, my child, I agreed to his condition."

Something passed between them them - a sort of understanding. Suddenly, Bryn realized what Joa Tan meant, what she was asking her to do; at the same time, Joa Tan recognized that Bryn had been planning such an action for a very long time.

"When do they ride?" she asked, her voice scarcely more than a whisper.

"Dawn," said Joa Tan.


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((Yeesh! I think my mama's gonna be in limbo again, isn't she? Scary plotline! Scary plotline!))

((gwa! brynn! IT'S DAAANGEROUSSSSS!!!))