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Ancient Fire

Valarians prepare for winter. Many died in summer, more will succumb to the cold. Only the heat of hope sustains them now. While waiting for the opportune time to strike, to finish what he started, Margus secretly begins a different kind of campaign: soul-snatching. He builds a new army of soltakin.

Torrullin meanwhile enters the forges of flame and betrayal in search of the means to put an end to Margus’ reign of terror. The man who emerges is reformed of fire to unleash annihilating heat.

Ancient Fire completes the forging of Torrullin Valla. His tale begins.

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First Four

Covers for the first four Tales from the Path of Shades. They may change again, but meanwhile I had fun playing with them!

Page 100 - Ancient Fire

Chapter Thirteen

Silas Island
Silas Bay

For centuries the people of Silas Town told of how the Great Dividing Forest shut the clanlands off from the continent, but both north and south discounted it as ravings of drunks and criminally insane.
Silas had access to both the Nor and Meth Peninsulas and saw well the lie, but were disregarded, and the two peninsulas went about their business wholly unaware of each other as well. While the Nor wasn’t clan, they, too, were divided from the south and living with the same delusions, and as time moved on neither peninsula ventured to the other, too afraid of the rife piracy and lunacy of Silas. That situation existed long before Drasso and time has a strange way of engendering a comfort zone. Only Silas and Two Town, sea-faring types, knew the truth- the only contradiction in all this was the south knew of Silas Island and its shameful way of life. Unlike the humanitarian forays into Two Town, however, Silas was ignored, out of mind because it was out of sight, and there was the Forest to consider, and all manner of ills waited if one dared sail around the northern headlands.
Although Silas Island possessed only one named town, the land was in reality a gigantic city that spread from coast to coast in all directions. Silas Town was Silas Island and vice versa.

It's good to belong

McSee watched the faces. It was good to belong once more. Because he could be regarded as a traitor, he’d expected them to turn him away. It hadn’t come to pass. He understood one or two were reserving judgement, but he hadn’t been made to feel unwelcome. He had not, after all, betrayed them, and they knew that. Vannis and Tanos had rowed out to Little Paradise on hearing their hail, and when McSee leaned over the rail and said ‘Torrullin sent us’, Vannis had smiled and simply said ‘Welcome’. Tanos gripped his hand and then he made Lanto and Raken feel right at home. Lanto’s big ears were still pink at finding himself in such august company, his freckles less evident against rosy cheeks. Raken and Vannis had stiffened at the sight of each other, an instant and mutual attraction. Both withdrew from it immediately, and were uneasy in proximity.

Something hidden

The second object was a burnished copper ring set with an oval garnet. Kylan frowned; it seemed familiar.
Torrullin dived into his pocket…and pulled an identical one out. ‘A Mantle signature ring. It permits the wearer access to the archives. Merle would have had one; it is yours now.’ He glanced at his own ring, and then put it away.
‘May I use it?’ He didn’t really desire to; he merely wanted to know what it meant.
‘The ring is not hereditary, but you may use it,’ Torrullin murmured, and then he smiled. ‘I am, after all, the one who yays and nays in that department….not that the Mantle will have much power after this.’
‘I have one of those,’ Raken said guiltily. ‘Plunder, you understand?’
Torrullin laughed at her. ‘So that’s how you got in!’
‘Yep, but it didn’t help me get out!’
‘Well, you may use it anytime also, lady pirate.’
‘Um, no, I’d be arrested if I go near any law abiding centre,’ Raken muttered. ‘But thanks.’
Torrullin grinned wickedly, and Raken stuck her tongue out at him.
And Kylan drew the final object from the chest, the by-play going over his head. It was a small hexagonal disc, pure gold, embossed with strange configurations.
‘Gods!’ Vannis gasped, instantly ashen as if he’d seen a ghost.
Kylan looked at the Valleur, they all did. ‘You know this?’
‘Where did your mother get that?’ Vannis rasped.
‘Vannis?’ Tanos demanded as Torrullin reached for the disc. Kylan relinquished it to him without hesitation.
Llettynn glanced between them, seeing trust, and speculated that Torrullin could engender either complete loyalty or absolute mistrust. He wondered where his feelings lay.
‘It’s Valleur,’ Torrullin commented, turning the disc this way and that.
‘Of course it’s Valleur! It’s…its…shit!’
Kylan frowned darkly; Kisha gripped his hand.
‘Vannis, calm down,’ Tanos said forcefully. ‘Kylan doesn’t deserve accusation.’
Vannis drew breath and then cursed again as Torrullin started reading the pictorial language on the disc. ‘Do not read it!’
‘Bloody hell!’ Torrullin bit out, also frowning darkly at Vannis.
‘You of all people, Enchanter, should know better than to read the Valleur glyphs aloud!’