4: Under the Cover of Darkness

Shulamite stopped to listen as Rayann spoke to her mind. ‘Kali’… that must be her real name, her birth name, not the name she had always known. Sadness filled her heart she closed her eyes and breathed in, filling her lungs as if it would push the haze from her thoughts. How on Krynn could they protect her? There was no way she could go into Silvanost, the Elves would pounce on her, and with justifiable reasons. She took long, drawn breathes, trying to find the answer, she felt dizzy with emotion and thought.

Rayann blinked in front of her. Shulamite took an alarmed half a step back and immediately broke eye contact. She was suddenly self conscious about her dragon eyes. What was once a feature of pride for her was now a cause for great shame and loathing. As she stared at the ground, she could feel something strange in her chest, the thud of a heartbeat, but not her own… it was… she looked up at Rayann, her eyes scanning the woman’s face, tracing the white curls that came from under her robe hood down to her chest. Then she felt another heartbeat, presumably her father’s. She couldn’t help but feel deep emotion, sensations that were getting stronger by the second as the haze in her mind cleared, the effects of the spell slowly receding. Shaking her head she looked back up into Rayann’s eyes, the dragon slit pupils narrowing to a razor think line. She spoke; her voice was weak and shaky.

“Rayann, I can’t go into the Elven city. I killed the greatest Elf wizard to walk Krynn, I stole his staff, I am responsible for the destruction of their greatest structure, and I blew down the main gates in a matter of seconds…” Rayann could see where this was going, though she was aware of Shulamites new clairvoyance, the Silvanesti would attack her on sight, they wouldn’t listen to reason, they would lash out and destroy her. “I am not pretending nothing happened, something did happen, something by my very hand. Yes, I am scared, I am frightened to death…” The look on her face was clear, she was a frightened woman, with nothing left.

She looked up and touched her temple with her left hand, she whispered again to Rayann, “Could you please do me a favor, could you speak to me with your voice, not your mind? Things up here are just…. Well they aren’t clear at the moment.”

Rayann watched the daughter she and Myth had brought into the world and it was still so strange to think this child was a product of their union and had yet to be born yet here she stood before her mother. Rayann looked down at herself and wondered now if any of this would be replayed in time. Without realizing what she was doing, Rayann placed her hands protectively over her lower abdomen as though she could somehow protect a child.

Slowly Rayann lifted her eyes back to her daughters and saw the way she was looking at her mother. The spell Rorie had kept her mind shrouded in was finally clearing away enough that Kali was seeing clearly for the first time. Rayann also knew she couldn’t bring her daughter into the Elven city for fear of the retribution that would surely come down on her like a crushing weight.

When Kali asked her to use her voice to speak to her, Rayann swallowed hard and nodded. Swallowing a few more times again, she finally felt as though she could speak verbally and did so with a quietness to her voice.

”There is a place we can go that will be safe for you. And for me. A place your father…..Myth’alas will have access to as well. A place where your healing can begin. A place where you can learn about who you are. Who you REALLY are. A place where I can also learn more about who I really am. It will be a journey we will travel through together. Privacy will be yours until you seek me out. Or call for your father. I give you my word.”

Shulamite looked back towards the city gate, it was still smoldering and there was still conflicts erupting as the forces of the Queen battled despite their certain death. She watched as her father directed the battle, reasserting his position as the true Prince of Silvanesti and General of her armies.

Turning back Shulamite locked her eyes to her mothers. She nodded her head in agreement, but the look on her face was obvious, she had no other options. She was not showing hesitation in a way that spoke of her doing something against her will, but there was obvious uncertainty and fear associated with her non-verbal commitment to go with Rayann. She gripped her staff tightly and turned back, looking at the massive gate which lay strewn across the ground. Her spell had obliterated the once magnificent structure, what had taken months to construct was gone in seconds. She could still feel the magic around her, she was surprised at this. For all practical purposes she had just severed her relationship with Tahkisis, yet her magic remained, she could still feel the flow of arcane and ambient magic all around her. Looking up into the sky, the white moon and the red moon shimmered as twilight was fading. The two moons were so close to one another in the sky, the glow coming off each intermingled and created a magnificent pink hue which scattered itself across the ground. It was the first time she really appreciated what she was seeing, the first time she understood what she was, a wizard.

She reached up and grasped the clasp that kept her cloak tight around her neckline. Yanking it from the cloth she held it in her hand, palm up, between herself and Rayann. The clasp was a deep onyx stone, inlayed with the crescent shape of Tahkisis. It was a symbol of her loyalty to the Queen of Chaos. Holding it up between them, Shulamite hissed the spidery words of magic and Rayann would feel the natural magic of Krynn swirl around them as Shulamite wove her spell. The stone shimmered in her hand, bathed in the light of the moons, and began to crack. Suddenly it split and burst open, the crescent within shivered and melted away, then the stone with it, running through Kali’s hands like sand. She looked up at her mother, her eyes glistening as the moon light intensified.

“I am free of her grasp, I am Kali.”

Rayann wanted to rush and embrace her daughter but she knew right now wasn’t the time for that. If she were to approach Kali like that right now, it could be more detrimental than therapeutic. As she saw the resignation in Kali’s eyes, she felt her heart constrict in her chest. Rayann couldn’t even begin to explain how she was able to understand exactly how Kali felt without Kali feeling as though her privacy were being invaded.

As the clasp melted and slid through Kali’s fingers, Rayann actually let out a small whimper of relief. Glancing around at the destruction surrounding them, her eyes found Myth’s as he became the leader his people needed him to be right now.

She felt her heart skip a beat as she knew she would have to tell him she and Kali would have to leave here. But Rayann also knew Myth would understand and even insist on making sure Kali was safe. There was just one thing she had to do before she could leave from here. Looking over at Kali, she nodded slightly.

”That you are, Kali.”

Slowly, hesitantly, Rayann approached Kali and stood a mere foot in front of her now.

”I have to tell…..your father….where we are headed and give him the means to reach us. Remain here, under the cloak of invisibility and I shall return in mere moments.”

With a nod of reassurance, Rayann glanced back at Myth, turned to face Kali again then blinked away to where Myth stood. Kali could see Rayann talking to him and saw the way he glanced in her direction but saw his daughter was not visible. As his look turned concerned, Rayann laid her hand gently on his forearm and reassured him Kali was indeed there and safe. With a heart felt embrace, Rayann and Myth parted and Rayann disappeared once more. It was only a few seconds later when she reappeared where she left Kali and spoke.

”It’s done. And now….we must go, Kali.”

Rayann stepped to the side of Kali and whispered the spidery words of magic and swung her hand in a wide circle. A portal opened up and Rayann looked at Kali then reached over to gently take her hand. There was a sensation when their hands touched that was like a link that had been broken was suddenly restored. Rayann turned to look over at Myth as he watched his beloved and his daughter. There was an unspoken message that passed between them then Rayann took a deep breath and stepped through the portal guiding Kali through it as well.

When they arrived on the other side, Kali was standing in the middle of a large room furnished modestly. It was dark, still and the pink hue of the moons lit the room in an ethereal light. Rayann whispered a word and the candles erupted to bathe the room in a warm, amber glow. Rayann let go of Kali’s hand and walked to the large window and looked beyond. Everything still looked the same it did the day she left.

Turning back to look at Kali, she gestured for her to follow. Leading Kali through the home, Rayann led her past a large foyer and up a set of stairs twice as wide as they were tall that curled along the wall of the large foyer. As they moved through the large home, the candles and torches lit their way and Kali could see they were in a castle. Past the first landing and group of rooms, up to the second landing and group of rooms. There Rayann walked down the corridor and stopped before a door. Opening it slowly, she glanced around as the candles flickered to life then stepped inside.

The room was rather large and had an elaborate bedroom set made of natural oak. The bed was large but not oversized. The linens were feminine but not overly so. A wardrobe sat to one side of the room, a dresser on the other. A full length mirror to the side of the wardrobe. A vanity sat in the corner near the privacy screen that concealed a huge tub behind it. Two fireplaces adorned the outside walls. One near the bed the other near the tub. When Kali gave a puzzled look, Rayann gave a small smile.

”It used to be my room before I left. It’s yours now. I will take my mother and father’s bedroom on the floor below.”

Rayann could still see the confused look on Kali’s face and realized the girl had no clue where they were.

”Forgive me, Kali. This is Glen Durel. It’s the home I grew up in. It’s the home my mother and father built. My father, Lachlan, was an Archmage. He had the Tower of Kells. Although I’ve never ventured in there since his death. And I’m not sure I can now. But I will need to soon in order to insure our safety. But that will be tomorrow. Tonight, rest here. If you need me, you only need to say my name. Verbally or not. We’ll find a more suitable room for you tomorrow if you wish. This is the only one of the few rooms I know of that’s ready for occupancy”

Rayann stood back and let Kali look around the room on her own not wanting to interfere. It was strange being back here without Rorie but of all the places Rayann knew to go, away from everything, this was the safest. And when she put the wards in place it would be even safer still.

Kali did as Rayann requested, and waited where she was for Rayann’s return. The battle was all but over, a few small skirmishes were being fought when a minion of the Queen was uncovered from hiding here and there, but the enemy had been successfully routed and the Silvanesti Elves were cheering their victory. She could not help but loathe the idea that they had nothing to do with it; she and she alone prevented the destruction of Silvanost. Though they would probably never know it, or even accept it, had it not been for her closing the portals, this city would be in ruins by now; only the tip of the spear had made it through the portals before she closed them.


She watched as Rayann and Myth talked, the look on Myth’s face was slightly disconcerting, however she knew he had much on his mind, after all, this was his home. When Rayann blinked back, Kali looked over at Rayann, their eyes locking. She didn’t smile, but she did feel a sort of peace in her spirit that had never been there, and though she wasn’t sure why, when Rayann opened the portal she knew there was no harm in following her through it. When Rayann grabbed her hand, she looked down, feeling the strange sensation of connection. Her curiosity got the best of her and she squeezed, almost feeling if that would heighten the awareness of it, and though it didn’t she still felt a new dawn rising. Rayann lead and Kali followed with very little hesitation.


They stepped through into a warm looking room, finely crafted from beautiful stones. She looked around inquisitively, quietly taking in everything all at once. As Rayann lead her up the stairs the pain began to grip her. Her mind was aching, it was nothing like she had ever felt before, but she let it pass as they continued up the stairs, showing no sign of her discomfort to Rayann. As they walked into the room and Kali looked at Rayann, puzzled, Rayann instantly understood and explained what this place was. She nodded a grim look on her face, exhaustion mixed with confusion and fear.


“It is a fine room, thank you.” Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper and laced with sadness. Her left eye twitched slightly as the sharp pain entered her head again. She could feel Rayann behind her, and she looked around the room, beginning to get dizzy. She swayed slightly to the left and then collapsed, falling to the floor, grasping at her head. She moaned in agony as the pain in her head pounded like a dwarf was using his hammer to bang his way out of her skull. Then the darkest voice Rayann would ever hear broke the air, it was smooth as silk and laced with malice.


“You dare break from me girl!! After All I have done for you!” Shadowy serpents surrounded Kali as she thrashed on the floor. The horrific scene playing out right in front of Rayann, and though it looked like magic, there was no feeling of magic what so ever. “I gave you power! I gave you strength! I gave you the sight of my children and this is how you repay me? Betrayal!! Then you send back your uncle and think this will be vindication for your disloyalty and unfaithfulness to me!”


Kali’s eyes welled with tears, she was in so much pain the only sound she could produce was the tiniest of whimpers as she gripped her head. “You will always remember me girl! I can get to you whenever I wish!”

In an instant, the pain stopped, Kali was breathing heavily and her heart was beating so hard she thought it would explode right out of her chest. The room went quiet and the shadow serpents disappeared. She sobbed uncontrollably as she lay on the cold floor of Rayann’s childhood room. How could she be foolish enough to begin to think there would be no consequence for her deeds against the Queen?

The instant Kali fell to the floor, Rayann was beside her. As the voice filled the room, Rayann felt a chill unlike any she’d felt before. When the shadow serpents slithered around Kali, Rayann gasped. With Kali trying to fight off the pain, Rayann reached out for the girl. As quickly as it had begun it had ended leaving Kali sobbing and Rayann shaken to the very core. She knew that voice. Knew who it belonged to and knew it would be a long, winding, and difficult road ahead of them but Rayann was determined not to let anything happen to Kali now. No matter what. No matter how frightened this revelation made her. Rayann would have to find the courage to face the Dark Queen herself in order to free her daughter completely from the life her brother had made her a part of.

As Kali sobbed, Rayann cradled the girl in her arms close to her and rocked gently. As she rocked Kali, she began to hum a song her own mother used to hum to her when she had a bad dream or had fallen and scraped her knee. A fire came to life in both fireplaces of the room and began to take the chill from the air.

Exhaustion seemed to settle over the two mages like a wet, woolen blanket in the middle of a summer heat wave. Before long, Kali was resting, but how peacefully had yet to be determined. Rayann settled the girl into the middle of the soft bed and kneeled beside the bed as she prayed to the Gods and thanked them for the gift of Kali as well as the other gifts she had been granted.

Fearful to leave the girl alone just yet, Rayann sat down in the easy chair near the fire and turned it so she could have a clear view of Kali as she rested in the bed. Finally, in the wee hours of the morning, Rayann drifted off to sleep as well.


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As Kali laid in the bed she felt a rumbling sound as her bed shook and the sound of Rayann’s voice.

”OW! What in the name of the Gods….

When Kali awoke she would see the room was bathed in warm sunlight and Rayann was no where in sight but she could feel the flow of the magic around her, flowing toward the opposite side of the castle. If she followed the magic current she would reach the place the magic seemed to be concentrated, she saw Rayann standing there holding her hand.

Rayann hesitantly reached out for the door handle to the tower’s door again and a low growl could be heard rumbling through the entire castle. The metal of the door handle actually looked as though it were snarling at Rayann. A nasty red welt could clearly be seen on the back of Rayann’s hand showing the physical markings of the doors defense.

”Oh now this is just too…..insane. Let me in, you ungrateful…..thing.”

The tower seemed to growl even more as though Rayann’s words agitated it. Blinking, Rayann stomped her foot in frustration.

”I’m going to make fire wood out of you if you don’t let me in.”

She’d heard of Wizards facing trials to enter another wizard’s tower but she thought she wouldn’t have to since she was Lachlan’s daughter. However, as she was discovering, a wizard’s tower belonged to them and no matter the blood ties to the former owner, the new owner would need to gain possession of the tower as though they were strangers.

Kali woke and looked directly into the sun. Her eyes flickered, immune to the blinding light and she watched as the star burned brightly, illuminating the landscape outside. She watched the curtains waving gently in the mid-morning breeze and inhaled deeply as she sat up. The knot on the front of her head was slightly smaller, but the new one on the back of her head throbbed and seemed to have grown overnight. She reached up and gingerly poked at it, she could feel the congealed blood and grimaced slightly.

She swung her feet out of bed and went to the closet, searching through the clothing within. There was a brown linen, ankle length nightshirt that caught her eye. She took it and went out into the hall, looking for a bathing room. She found one down the hall and entered in, expecting to find it void of water since there were no servants in this castle that she knew of. Oddly, there was a copper pipe with a valve sticking out of the wall sitting over a large tub. With curiosity she turned the valve and ice cold water began to poor into the tub. She looked down and plugged the drain and let the water fill the tub. How delightful to have water that flowed into the home. Looking outside she could see a stream on the hillside, someone had figured out to pipe that water into this room, simply amazing. The water however, was ice cold, and she furrowed her brow. She hissed words of magic and placed her hands in the water, casting ‘burning touch’, and spell that made the wizards hands as hot as a branding iron, typically used to inflict incredible pain on a victim, she cleverly used the spell to warm her bath.

She undressed and got into the water, feeling the warmth and comfort of the steam. She washed and got all the blood out of her hair, groaning every time she went over the gash in the back of her head. She unplugged the tub and got dressed, drying her hair as best she could and then wrapping it in a towel. She walked out into the hall and heard Rayann’s voice. She followed the magic signature she felt and as she got closer and closer she felt an eerie feeling, one that got worse with every step. She began to feel cold and shivered, her mind screaming at her to leave. She fought the sensation and kept pressing forward and turned a corner, seeing Rayann arguing with… a door. Her body quaked with cold and her teeth chattered, the door literally seemed to be sneering at her, she focused, her head throbbed, and she screamed, turning and running down the hall, the sensation of what she felt fading with each meter she put between her and the door until she was back in her room.

She caught her breath and calmed herself, clearly that was an area of the house to avoid, or explore closer later, depending on how brave she was feeling. After a while, she looked over at her robes, the robes she had earned and wore with such pride. She was confused, she did not want to put them on again, she did not serve the one who gave them to her, and she felt it was a betrayal of the true god of dark magic to wear them. She stared at the robes, slumped lazily over the big chair in the corner, sighing deeply she felt alone and scared, all the purpose seemed to be sucked from her life and she was unsure what or how to move forward.

Hearing Kali’s scream, Rayann quickly snapped her head in that direction then quickly followed after the girl. The blasted tower would have to wait. Hopefully Rayann would have the patience needed to gain access to it before too long. It was going to take some doing, though.

When Rayann found Kali in the room, she just stood in the door watching her for a long moment. The swirl of emotions she was feeling from her daughter made her want to move to her and draw her into her embrace once more and reassure her everything would be alright. But she couldn’t do that. Kali was no ordinary child born of ordinary parents. While it would sound nice to hear it would be OK, everyone knew nothing would be alright until balance was restored in the magic of Krynn.

Rayann noticed Kali had chosen a plain brown nightshirt and her hair was still damp. But Rayann also noticed how she was looking at the robes that lay lifeless over the chair. Rayann herself was void of the robes she normally wore and was dressed in a simple tunic, belted at the waist and a pair of dark brown leggings and of course the soft, high boots Myth had gotten for her.

Sighing softly, she walked into the room and sat down on the foot of the bed and looked over at the robes as well. She was about to use her empathetic communication but decided to use her voice instead.

”So what do we do now?”

When Kali looked over at Rayann she would see her mother looking at the robes as well.

”Everything was crystal clear yesterday when we woke up. But things have changed. So where do we go from here?”

Rayann blinked then looked over at Kali and gave a small smile.

”I don’t know, Kali. At least, not entirely. Let me share with you what I experienced yesterday. After I cast the severance spell on you and Rorie, I was knocked back like you were. As I regained my bearings, I saw what was happening around me. I stood in the middle between you, Myth, and Rorie and I literally felt the world of Krynn crying out for help. The magic that flows so naturally in this world was crying out for someone to hear it. And I did. Not so much as in here…”

Rayann pointed to her head then moved her hand to cover her heart.

”….but here. I realized then there was only one true way to help bring the balance back to the magical essence of this world. To be truly neutral. It’s not one side or the other that will maintain the delicate balance. If the white robes gain too much, the scales will be tipped in their favor. If the black robes gain too much, the scales will be tipped in the opposite favor. It’s only by those who stand in the middle, able to see both sides equally and can wield the magic of both, can true balance be maintained.”

Rayann paused as she let this news settle. Her voice was quiet as she spoke now.

”Rorie and I were no ordinary children, Kali. We are mortal children of the Gods. Born of mortal parents but the Gods were responsible for our creation. They just needed the vessels to help produce us. And they found them in our parents. You are a child born of a union of a child of the Gods and a child of the Elves. You have been blessed with the natural ability to wield the magic of Krynn as though it were a part of you just as myself and Rorie can but you were also blessed with the natural ability to become one with the world. The magic of Krynn is a living, breathing thing. If you let yourself feel it, you will see for yourself how alive it truly is.”

Again Rayann paused before she went on.

”You and I, Kali. Now that Rorie is with the Dark Queen, we are the ones that have been chosen to restore and maintain the balance of the magic of Krynn. Exactly how we go about doing that, I don’t know, yet. But I’m confident we’ll find a way. There will be hurdles we’ll have to clear and it won’t be easy, but I know, in my heart, we will be the ones to right the wrongs and bring the scales back to equal levels.”

The room was dead silent until Rayann’s voice pierced the quiet. Kali had been so deep in thought she never even felt her mother approach. She turned and looked at Rayann; she appeared so different when she wasn’t in her white robes. Her mother’s hair was even whiter than it appeared when surrounded by the fine white silk of traditional wizards clothing. Kali listened to Rayann’s story with all her attention. She began to cry as Rayann talked about the destruction of magic, her eyes welling and the tears streaking down her pale cheeks. After Rayann finished Kali responded.

“That is the goal. That is what Tahkisis is working towards. She has stolen magic from her son Nuitari. It’s been happening for centuries but recently she has been channeling more and more to her wizards. Nuitari is furious with her, but we didn’t care, it was a means to an end. Interlacing the ambient with the arcane allowed us to destroy the arcane and create spells beyond imagination through the shattering of its power. Rorie is… he is the most powerful of her ambient wizards. It makes sense; she took the tool of the gods and is using it against them toward her own end, which is the destruction of Krynn. There is a whole other world Rayann, a world on the Celestial Plane that we were to return to once this deed is done, and on that world our new power would make us the instrument of the one god, Tahkisis.”

She turned and looked out the window, watching the landscape as it stretched out in front of her. She continued to speak knowing Rayann was listening behind her. “We knew we were destroying arcane magic, but that was the point, that was what we were trying to do. You are right; the living breath of magic is being suffocated by the dark wizards of Tahkisis. At the rate they are going, the deed will be accomplished in 24 months. Nim’Sul was a target because of his strength, he was capable of bringing a significant threat to the plans, and the stealthy infiltration was designed to snuff out that threat. Silvanus is more a symbolic victory than a strategic one. The Elves are the first of the created; they are the ultimate symbol of the gods’ creations on Krynn. To destroy them first would create a psychological blow to the rest of creation. Yes, we have been marching and creating chaos in our wake, but Silvanost was to be the beginning of the genocide of all the Silvanesti Elves.”

She turned and looked at Rayann, her eyes were puffy and red, her cheeks soaked with her own tears. “I now know why Rorie was so bent on destroying you, Tahkisis never saw you as a threat, but Rorie insisted that we destroy you, claiming that you were the lynch pin to putting disharmony in the magic, especially after Nim’Sul was dead. I doubt that Tahkisis has killed him, at best he will be punished, but he is too strong, too powerful to remove from her service, she’s not foolish in the least, she will keep him around.”

She looked at her robes, the iridescent sleeves shimmering in the sunlight; the inky black folding on itself seemed infinite. Her lower lip quivered and she spoke, starring at the robes, almost as if she was daring them to move on their own and make a move against her. “These robes are all I have ever known, magic channeled by Tahkisis is all I have ever felt, but some god is still allowing me to cast.” She turned and looked at Rayann, lifting her hand up and hissing words of magic, a small flame appeared about an inch above her palm and danced like a fairy. “You see? I am still a Wizard, I am still able to use magic, and not ambient magic, this is a gift of the arcane, the kind of magic that can only come from allegiance with a moon god. So to answer your question, I think we both know what is next; it is time for the purpose of Rayann to be fulfilled, but not with her twin, with her daughter.”

Rayann couldn’t help but cry with Kali. To hear what the Dark Queen was doing so plainly made Rayann feel as though she was going to heave. It was far worse than what she had suspected. And to hear that they were going to destroy the Elves in an effort to win the psychological side of the war was even harder to hear. The Dark Queen simply had no thought but of her own gain and that gain was the world of Krynn.

Rayann felt as though her heart were breaking as the thought of this beautiful world being ripped apart by something so devastating as this was more than she could comprehend. It was all just too much to fathom. Yet here she was, sitting with her daughter, crying over the way the world was being thrown into utter despair.

But as Kali told Rayann what was next for them, and heard her say the words she said brought more tears to her eyes, but not ones of sadness. They were tears of pride. Tears of joy. Tears of bonding. Reaching out her hand towards Kali, Rayann nodded slightly. Swallowing several times, she finally found her voice to speak.

”It’s not just A God, Kali. It’s all of them. They know in order to defeat the Dark Queen, they have to join together in us. They are showing you what you’ve been able to do all along. It was Rorie’s actions that prevented you from realizing the truth.”

With another nod and swallowing hard again, Rayann let Kali know it that while one door had closed, another had opened wide for her.

”We’ll work together on this, Kali. It’s the only way to we can do it and succeed. And the first thing we need to work on is the one thing Rorie used to keep the truth from you. Our empathetic and mental connection. I know you’re scared of that but we won’t do anything you don’t want to do. In fact, I won’t place myself in your mind unless you invite me to. But on the flip side of that….I will leave myself open to you at all times. Nothing will be off limits to you. With the exception of some things that have to deal with Myth. That is not mine to divulge.”

There was a pause.

”What do you say?”

Kali looked at Rayann and as her hand came up Kali looked at it a moment. She was unsure of what to do. It was obvious to her that Rayann wanted a moment of bonding, to touch and connect, but Kali simply couldn’t just dive into something she wasn’t ready for. Her calculating nature fought her thoughts, and she did oblige the gesture by reaching forward and gently touching the back of Rayann’s hand, but she withdrew after only a second or two and stood again, walking to the window and looking outside again. There was something out there that was fascinating her, the land that surrounded this place. She could almost hear the laughter of Rayann and Rorie as children; running across the emerald grass of the hillside she was staring at. She listened to Rayann talk about the gods of magic, and their plans. She couldn’t help but feel that Rayann was a pawn, just as she was, simply caught in the chess game between the beings of ‘divinity’. It angered her, but she subdued her anger and turned to face Rayann.

“Neutrality.” The word was strange coming off her tongue, she let it linger in the air, waiting to see if the cool morning breeze would carry it out the window. “I have never known what that means, I have always been focused on the will of a divine power bent on a purpose and a set of absolutes.”

She leaned back against the window sill and stared at Rayann, her dragon slit eyes were ominous and cold, there was no emotion in them, simply darkness. It was why she had them, the Dark Queen intended for them to strike fear into all that gazed into them. The intent was for the last thing Shulamites victims to see was a vision of hopelessness. Kali fixed her gaze on Rayann for a long while, simply letting the silence move between them, and finally she spoke after contemplating Rayann’s words. “I am not going to be able to let you into my mind. There is too much pain and uncertainty right now. I’m sorry.” She could see by the expression on Rayann’s face that this was not the answer she was hoping for, but it was the only one she could give. Her mind had been brutally assaulted for as long as she could remember, and she was not about to let someone else in, no matter who it was. Though she now knew the truth Rayann was still a stranger, a person she had only really begun to get to know in the last 16 hours.

Rayann could tell that all the pleasant emotions had been driven out of Kali, she was constantly stone faces and every gesture of her face was one of sizing things up, breaking them down, calculating the odds and knowing every angle. It made sense, she had been forged into a machine of destruction, and it wasn’t the sort of thing that was going to simply disappear overnight. It might take her whole life of relearning her world, and even then, that might not be enough. Kali turned again and looked at the morning red moon. It was full, beaming through the blue sky of day. She could feel it’s pull, and she became lost in contemplative thought, almost forgetting that her mother was sitting behind her.

Rayann merely nodded when Kali answered her question. As she studied the girl she realized there was a large chasm separating them and it would take a long time before that bridge was constructed to close that gap. If ever. That possible realization hurt Rayann more than she would ever admit and as Kali stood, staring out at the land around her, Rayann stood up. Her voice was sanctuary quiet as she spoke.

”The castle and grounds are beautiful. Explore them as you wish. If you need me, say my name.”

Silently slipping from the room, Rayann made her way back down the corridor and through the castle to where the tower came into view. Like before, she felt a strange nauseating sensation as she grew closer and she felt as though she should be deathly afraid of…something, but she gritted her teeth and moved closer only to feel the protection of the tower grow even stronger.

This was her father’s tower. Not hers. If she were going to gain entrance, she would have to earn her right to enter it now. She’d never done anything like this before so this was new territory for her but she did have one thing on her side; her father’s stubborn determination.

Bowing her head and saying a quick prayer, she pushed up her sleeves and furrowed her brows as she clenched her jaw and began casting. Almost immediately the tower retaliated and Rayann felt as though her head were going to explode. Stumbling back, Rayann quickly cast defensive spells. This was not going to be as easy as it appeared. Already she could feel the tower pushing her back further and to make matters worse, she had the most frightening sensation about her. She wanted to run away screaming but she stood her ground and kept working to find a way through the defenses and into the tower. She HAD to. Her and Kali’s safety depended on it.


(lame, I know, but it's the best I can do right now. sorry)

Kali could feel her mother’s sadness, and she closed her eyes as her mother offered free movement about the grounds, barely nodding. She cursed her eyes under her breath, this curse disguised as a blessing. She was ashamed to look Rayann in the face, the dragon slit eyes would be a constant reminder of her past allegiance, and she felt deep sadness knowing this was how her mother would always see her. She suddenly felt the presence of Rayann leave, and she turned sharply, opening her mouth, but nothing came out, not even breath. She was so confused and conflicted… she wanted to love her mother, she knew what and how a daughter should be, but she felt nothing, there was only emptiness.

Rayann was a wizard Kali had been taught to hate, she loathed the woman up until yesterday, it wasn’t as easy as simply flicking a switch, at least not for her. Obviously it was for Rayann, the woman had reached out several times just this morning and what Kali regretted more than anything was she felt she was letting Rayann down.


She knew the physical distance between herself and Rayann was growing by the second and she felt a single tear roll down her cheek, her voice came out as the slightest moan. She physically reached up towards the door, “mom…”


Her skull felt like it was splitting along the seam as she fell forward, her body hit the ground with a dull smack as Tahkisis entered her mind again. The silky voice came, there was no magic signature, no traceable source, this was a goddess, doing as she pleased, playing with her mouse. Shulamite thought her brain was literally being scrambled and the silky voice slide through her ears, “Well hello my little toy, did you miss me? Now that mommy’s not here we can get down to business. She’s too busy concerning herself with uncle, and don’t worry, that will conclude soon enough. She thinks Kells can keep Rorie out of this castle, but this is his home too. Does she not think we have already been here dozens of times to unlock the secrets Lachlan kept within the tower walls? She is a fool to believe otherwise, how do you think Rorie was able to relearn to cast magic so quickly after she destroyed him the first time?”


A sadistic laugh penetrated Shulamites mind and just when she thought the pain couldn’t increase, her whole body felt the agony of Tahkisis wrath. She grit her teeth, withdrawing into a fetal position and not even able to bring so much as a whimper to her lips, much less call Rayann, not that she thought it would have matter, but at least someone would have been here to hold her as she died.


Tahkisis smiled and she spoke again as she felt Kali’s heart flutter, the body was dying, she would never get the message to Rayann to stay away from the tower, that it wasn’t resisting her, it was defending her from what lied within if she opened the door. “Now little pretty, you get to die, and if you think this hurts wait until I get you in the Abyss.”


The red moon flared that day, for the briefest of seconds. Anyone who was unaware might have simply thought something glinted in the distance and shaken it off as a matter of bad timing. Kali however felt power enter her in that second like she had never felt before. Her body rocked as she leapt to her feet involuntarily and threw her arms out from her body. The bellowing of a silky dark voice screaming curses to Kali’s name boomed off the walls of the castle. The power overtook Kali and she felt the warmth of magic’s absolute potency as the report of a massive explosion shattered the exterior wall of Rayann’s childhood bedroom. The red moon visible from any place in the room now, beaming its outwardly subdued light onto Kali, but the power transferred in that moment was unprecidented.


Kali burst out in a blood curdling scream, the sound echoed off the walls and reverberated out the window across the countryside. Her ancestral home shuttered as Kali’s voice resonated over the emerald grass, flowing up the hillside and across the Lochs. She hissed words into the air, her voice was full of venom and hatred. “You might be able to destroy this body, and you might destroy this soul in the Abyss, but you will NEVER crush my spirit! I will not yield to you! You only enter through your servants because you can’t enter this world yourself, you are flawed in this world, YOU…. ARE…. LIMITED!” With that last word, Tahkisis hissed, her voice flowing through the air, “SHULAMITE!” and then a flash of crimson light burst forth from Kali’s body, the dark silky voice went silent.


She collapsed, her body buckling under the strain of such power. She felt a warm feminine voice in her head, a voice that was almost as soothing as her mothers. “Fear not Kali os Padraig Thel'Radin, she can torment you no longer…” Kali looked up, there was nothing there except the pale pink of a subdued red light, obscured by the suns powerful rays, but present all the same.

She felt a tingling sensation in her eyes and she looked into the mirror on the wall, her shimmering blue eyes looking back at her, restored. They were nearly identical to her uncles, swirling slightly around the pupil, but a slightly darker shade of blue. She felt her lip curl to a smile and she began to cry tears of joy. She then turned and looked as the pink light moved across the floor and barely made contact with the hem of her beloved robes, as if someone was pouring ink on them, the black fabric changed from black to blood red, taking over a minute to move through the folds and alter the entire garb.

She could hear Rayann running through the halls of the castle, screaming her name, the pounding of her footsteps getting closer and closer. She spoke to the wind as her mother had told her to do the instant Rayann burst into the room, “Mom……”

The instant the wall of the castle exploded, Rayann was knocked down. Disoriented for only a moment, she quickly got to her feet and started running, screaming Kali’s name through out the castle as she ran. She was petrified something had happened to her daughter when she ran as fast as she could up the stairs and down the corridor that led to her old room.

She could see the pink light emanating from the bedroom door and when Rayann ran into the door jam, trying to stop herself and ready for what may be on the other side, she heard Kali say the one word she thought she’d never hear from her daughter, “Mom…”

Rayann was only able to see her daughter for a second before that pink light quickly engulfed her. She felt a warmth and peace fill her that she had never felt before. Closing her eyes, Rayann gasped softly and closed her eyes. The soft, feminine voice that filled her head was the same that had filled Kali’s just a few moments ago.

“Rayann Padraig, your oath has been accepted. You duty to us, to Krynn, is to learn what I can teach you. What your daughter can teach you and what you can teach your daughter. By learning together you will become a powerful team. But do not become complacent. Use what you have learned already to insure your success. All of Krynn will depend on you.”[/i]

”But first, you must leave here. You are not safe. The tower is protecting you from itself. It knows you. Knows who you are. Who your father was. And who your brother is now. Rorie has been here and has laid traps. You and Kali must go to a place where can healed a broken bridge. I will make sure Myth’alas can still reach you. But you must go and go now. I will insure your safety until you can put the wards in place to protect yourself.”

To Rayann’s right a portal opened up and as the pink light began to fade, she blinked her eyes open and saw Kali standing next to her holding the Staff of Winds. When Rayann saw Kali again, she saw the red robes and the color of her eyes. Lifting her hand to touch Kali’s cheek gently, she smiled as tears of joy slid down her face and that’s when she noticed her she was now wearing robes.

Of Red.

As the pink light faded entirely, the voice in her head did so as well.

“Go. Teach. And learn. Both of you. And know you are never alone.”

Rayann looked through the portal and blinked again then looked to Kali. She had no idea where they were being sent, but she trusted Lunitari to send them someplace safe. Taking Kali’s hand in hers, Rayann stepped through the portal

Tanjee and Kwinn were still out in the forest when the attack started on Silvanost. At fist, Tanjee was uncertain what was really going on, but she could smell the magic in the air and knew it wasn’t good. But when the different armies of the Dark Queen started invading the area, Tanjee almost screamed in terror. If it hadn’t been for Kwinn clamping his hand over her mouth and tackling her to the ground Tanjee would have given away their location. Thanks to Kwinn’s quick thinking and his knowledge of the forest he guided Tanjee to a safe place where they could hide.

Tanjee trembled as she saw the different creatures pass by attacking her kin. More than once she yelped in terror and curled into Kwinn for comfort. In all her years she’d never seen anything like this and knew she was helpless to do anything about it. Her talents were for healing not combating.

But things began to change and the tables were turned. Tanjee started seeing her Elven brethren chasing the creatures and killing them. By the time it seemed everything was done, Tanjee and Kwinn made their way back to the gates of Silvanost, Tanjee and Kwinn saw the utter destruction of the gates, the dead bodies littered the ground, the cries and moans of the injured and the chaos that was slowly starting resemble order under Myth’s guidance.

Tanjee and Kwinn just jumped in and started helping how ever they could. The bad thing about it was that they had to each go their separate ways. It wasn’t until the middle of the next day before they saw each other again. Tanjee was exhausted from working in the healing center and Kwinn was exhausted from helping the Elves clean up the mess.

When Tanjee saw Kwinn walk through the door to her home, she let out a small gasp then quickly closed the gap between them. Wrapping her arms around his back, she laid her head on his shoulder for a moment before lifting her dirt smudged face (that matched his own) to look up into his face and smile tiredly.

”I never thanked you for saving my life. Thank you, Kwinn. For saving my life and keeping me safe. I am forever in y our debt.”

Tanjee had yet to hear about her brother or what he had done. Truth be told, people had been so busy that he was all but forgotten. He was still in his cell but the sleep spell had worn off. He was sitting in the far corner brooding like a child who didn’t get his way.

Kali walked through the portal with her mother and instantly felt the safety of where they were. She looked around in awe and turned to Rayann, a grin on her face, “The Misty Isle!”

It was a place of mystery, part of the chain Dragon Isles inhabited by the Silver and Gold chromatic dragons of good. It was nearly impossible to get to due to the charms and incantations set all around it, but obviously Lunitari being a dragon herself had the necessary means to get people there. Kali turned to Rayann with a smile on her face; it was obvious the wonder of where they were at was breaking down the stone walls around the young woman.

“Mother! Can you believe it? The Misty Isle!! Never in my days would I have thought I would be standing here, at least not peacefully.” She walked, her blood red robes showing in sharp contrast to the colors of nature all around them. She let her eyes trace the high, snow cap mountains, several times trying to use her dragon sight to zoom in on features before realizing that her eyes were purely half-Elven again. As she walked with Rayann they came up over a small rise and before them stood the grand capital of the Dragon Isles, the city of Aurialastican. Kali gasped softly and reached towards her mother, grabbing Rayann’s robe sleeve and tugging gently. “Look at it! It is the most magnificent thing I have ever seen!”

This was the Isle of the gold and silver chromatic dragons, as such, they were everywhere. Many of them in their human form, but several were in their native form, the light reflecting off their scales and shimmering like thousands of waves on an ocean concentrated into small areas. She watched as dragons came and went from the city, going about their business in such a casual way, like any other creatures on Krynn. Kali was simply speechless and simply stood, watching from a distance.

There appeared off the main gated wall a being, watching Rayann and Kali. The humanoid leapt off the wall and morphed into a Silver Dragon, and crossed the great distance between the two Wizards and the city. The dragon came in quickly, soaring over their heads and circling before landing in front of them, morphing and touching down on human feet. He regarded the two red robes magi a moment and then spoke, his voice was smooth and full of kindness, “Greetings ladies, I am Nol’Lore Silentclaw, but you may simply call me Nol.” He bowed low, his long silver hair scrapping the ground before he snapped back up and regarded them with soft eyes. “Lunitari messaged me that two of her followers would be joining us for a while. She asked that I be your host and guide until you get acquainted.”

The kindness in his face was over whelming. It was long known that the silver dragons adored humanity, typically choosing to spend their time with the mortals of Krynn rather than with their own kind. It was obvious in his face that Nol was beside himself with excitement to have been given this assignment. “Would you care to come into Aurialastican and have some refreshments? Or would you like to see your quarters and rest? It is of course, entirely up to you.”

Rayann was as shocked and surprised as Kali was. As the girl’s excited exuberance filled the air, Rayann couldn’t help but laugh softly. But like Kali, Rayann was just as much in awe as the red robed girl next to her. It was like watching the well constructed gates of Silvanost crumble before her as Kali emerged from this transformation like a butterfly from a thick cocoon. While Rayann was fully prepared to accept a respectful but distant relationship with her daughter, to see Kali get excited and jubilant at being where she was made Rayann stand back and watch with awe.

But it was when Kali called her ‘mother’ without even realizing it that Rayann saw the last of the walls around her daughters heart crumble as though they were sand in a dust storm. Rayann couldn’t help but gasp softly. Even as they started walking up small rise Rayann saw her daughter outshine the sun this day and she couldn’t help but wish that Myth were there to see this as well.

When they crested the small hill and saw the beautiful city of Aurialastican, Rayann also felt the same awe Kali did. As they stood on that hll overlooking the magnificent city, watched the dragons coming and going, glittering in the sunlight like beautiful jewels, Rayann didn’t realize she was clutching Kali’s hand.

As the one dragon quickly approached, Rayann couldn’t help but duck at the last minute. So taken by the graceful form and large size of the dragon that she forgot she could be in danger of being attacked, although she highly doubted it. After all, these dragon were known to see man as a friend and not something to eat or torture. But when the dragon transformed and landed with human feet then bowed as he introduced himself, Rayann blinked, closed her gaping mouth then smiled in kind.

Already she could sense the magical current on this isle as it flowed over her and she wondered if Kali could feel it as well. It was much stronger here than it had been back in Glen Durel and she wondered if it was because of the dragons or something else. What ever it was, she didn’t want anyone else to know about it for fear they would some how find a way to this place and exploit it as they had the rest of Krynn.

As Rayann studied the kind face before her and looked into the even kinder eyes, she quickly recovered from her awe and put her arm across the back of Kali’s shoulders then bowed humbly herself. When she righted herself once more, Rayann looked to Kali then looked out over the land once more and her smile grew.

”Well, Nol, we are honored to have you as our host. And it would be our esteemed pleasure if we could venture to Aurialastican for some refreshments. I am Rayann Padraig of Glen Durel, and this is my Daughter….Kali os Padraig Thel’Raden. We are the newest follower of Lunitari. And we appreciate your help in getting acquainted.”

Kali felt her mother’s hand clutching her own. It was not comfortable, and yet, she didn’t want to let go, and she didn’t. She wasn’t used to this sort of affection, the physical contact, the emotions, but she didn’t feel as if it was wrong, and she held on. As the dragon approached she watched in amazement as he whooshed overhead and when Rayann ducked she could not help but giggle.

The Dragon shifted shape and the handsomest man she had ever seen appeared before them. He was muscular and shirtless. His Elven-like features were sharp and distinct, proportional and perfect in all aspects. The two glowing blades that hung from his belt were etched with ancient runes and the blades glowed a smooth sky blue. She also noticed the chains that adorned the ends of the hilts, dangling in brilliant silver and each had a figurine of a silver dragon hanging off the end. She felt her cheeks flush as he gazed at her, and she was convinced that her face was as red as her new robes. As Rayann introduced them she smiled and nodded her head respectfully to the immortal silver dragon before her, and she responded, her voice slightly shaky.

“As my mother stated, we are honored to have you host us Nol. Your kindness to mortals is beyond expectation, especially considering how we have treated your kind over history.”



Nol’s expression changed and he was amused as Kali spoke to him. His eyes traced her features and he responded to her. “It is our pleasure to honor servants of the red goddess. It is not as much a burden as you might think.” Smiling he turned and gestured for them to walk with him. He walked beside Rayann on her left, on the far side of Kali. Kali could not help but feel regret that he had chosen to put Rayann between them, or maybe he didn’t… she wasn’t sure what this feeling was inside her, she felt like a child, what the hell was wrong with her. She shoke the webs from her head and admired the city before them. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. She had memories of Tahkisis’ castle, it was the grandest structure she had ever seen, but it paled in comparison to this place. Where the Dark Queen’s domain was set as a place to intimidate and strike fear into those who gazed upon it, this place gave off nothing less than feelings of safety and peace. She had heard of the Chromatic Dragons, the dragons of Paladine. Tahkisis would scoff about them any chance she got, that they would dare to align themselves to serving lesser creatures. Kali had always believed them to be simple and stupid, but it was obvious to her now that all her pre-conceptions and the teaching instilled into her as a child couldn’t be further from the truth. She was in awe at the sight of them.

Rayann was still unsure as to how to treat Kali and respond to her but as she held her daughter’s hand she noticed Kali wasn’t trying to let go either. The hold Rayann now had on Kali’s hand wasn’t near as tight and she knew when Kali was ready to let go, she would of her own accord. She was, after all, not a little girl but a half grown woman who could handle herself very well.

When she heard Kali’s slightly shaky voice, she let her smile fade slightly then looked to her daughter. Noting the color on her cheeks and the look in her eyes, she let her gaze swing to Nol then and she saw the way the dragon in humanoid form was looking at Kali. Rayann loved Myth with all her heart but she was not immune to noticing certain…..things about the opposite sex. And right now, Nol was looking like a fine specimen of a male. And Kali was quite the beautiful young woman. It suddenly dawned on Rayann what was happening here and she suddenly felt very awkward. But not in a bad way.

As they started walking, Rayann noticed where Nol had decided to walk and glanced at Kali. She could see the disappointment in the girls face and made a mental note of it. As they walked along, Rayann looked around and couldn’t help but strike up conversation with the friendly host.

”It seems as though Lunitari has picked the perfect place for Kali and I to study. I will be sure to thank her this evening. I can’t think of any better place right now in all of Krynn. Can you, Kali?”

Rayann felt as though she were emerging from a long dream as she walked the Misty Isle. So this is what a new beginning feels like, she kept thinking. To Rayann, this is exactly the place Kali needed to come to learn how to be human. It was clear that the girl had been trained to study magic in such a way that there was no time for anything else. No nurturing. No time for talking about incidental things. No time to learn what it was like to be hugged. No time to learn what it is to be truly loved.

A hurtful sadness filled Rayann then as she thought about this. to think of the childhood Kali went through made her close her eyes for a moment and block those thoughts from her mind. That was in the past. Kali had her whole future ahead of her now. And Rayann was prepared to spend the time and practice the patience needed to help her daughter see life was not about torment and fear. It was about living…and loving.

Taking a deep breath, Rayann let it out slowly and walked along with Kali and Nol letting the sun warm her, the soft breeze bring her the many different scents to her and feel the magical current was over her.

Myth watched the flash of magic as his lovce and daughter disappeared from the field of battle. He felt a heavy weight upon his heart for not being able to join them at that moment but there was still a great deal of work to do. Defenses needed to be shored up and there was still rabble to disperse.

Myth orchestrated the remainder of the battle till every mage and draconian that had made it through were destroyed. Emerald eyes scanned the ruins of the gates and the elf let out a heavy sigh. There was no doubt about the girl's lineage as Myth looked upon the destruction she was capable of. Turning his attention from the gates Myth made his way into the city proper. He could feel the eyes of Sylvanost upon him as he entered the square.

Elves parted ways watching him intently his eyes settled upon one of the gate soldiers who was no standing upon the silver stump.

"Citizens of Silvenost the evil that assaulted our gates has been driven back to the dark recesses from whence it came. We have lost several and many have been injured but teh walls of Syvanost still stand."

The speaking commander's eyes settled on Myth and he gave a wink that made Myth cringe.

"All praise to Lord Myth for he and his companions went forth leading the counter against our enemy and triumphed."

The people cheered loudly and Myth frowned inwardly keeping a proud look on his face. He knew the reason the attack had been averted was because of his daughter's actions. The battle would have lasted far longer and the elves may very well have lost their homes, but he was not about to sour the crowds mood witht hese facts. He simply nodded and waved to the crowd before he began to make his way towards the barraks. Myth had not seen Aeolis upon the walls and he was going to find out where the damned elf had been.

The crowd continued to cheer as the speaker did his best to paint them a pretty picture and Myth exited fromt he crowd only to be met by another soldier. The elf bowed as Myth approached "Pardon prince but there was an incident I think needs to be brought to your attention."

Myth raised an eyebrow slightly looking at the man's homeguard uniform a moment. "I would think that all incidents should be brought to the attention of the Homeguard Commander." Myth crossed his arms.

The soldier sighed slightly stepping closer to Myth "The commander is the problem. Aeolis freaked out and assaulted the white robe Ceridwyn upon the defensive walls as she tried to help repell the black robed woman. The white lady has been taken to the infirmary and Aeolis has been placed under heavy guard. A sleep spell was cast upon him and appears to be holding for now."

Myth surmised the second in command was the one giving the grand speech and with Nim'Sul gone there were a limited number of people that could handle this matter. Myth sighed shaking his head. "I assume that you have not reported this to the Speaker."

The elf shook his head and Myth nodded. "Very well I will report this to the speaker of the stars. When the second in command is free tell him I want alert guards on that wall and scouts in the woods. Tell him I wanted them there yesterday. The enemy was driven back but we do not know how far away they were being teleported in from. I will report the situation to the Speaker of the Stars."

The elf saluted and disappeared from sight. Myth's eyes staired at teh barracks for several moments before he turned on his heel and began walking towards the last place in all Sylvanost he wanted to visit, home.

Kali could feel Rayann looking at her, and she was feeling her mother’s thoughts. She didn’t know what Rayann was thinking word for word, but she could feel the emotions connected with them. She knew in an instant that this was the mind connection Rayann had been telling her she shared with her mother and father. She found herself uncomfortable knowing that her mother would always be able to know in an instant what she was thinking, and she furrowed her brow slightly as she lingered on the possible implications of this. She had been raised to not trust anyone, not even Rorie. The Dark Queen had instilled a fear of connecting with anyone, to rely solely on you and keep everyone at arm’s length. Naturally when she began experiencing the tingling of this thought bridge the negative potential came to her mind and she couldn’t help but feel how this might be used against her.

She did her best to push these feelings from her mind, and concentrate on the magnificent city that was rising from the landscape before them. It seemingly extended all the way into the plain of constellations. Kali leaned her head back far as the passed through the gate, some of the towers went so high they disappeared into the clouds above. She could not help but feel the wonder of this whole thing, just a couple weeks ago she was plotting the death of the most powerful white robed wizard, sitting under the safe shadow of his wing and waiting for the time to pounce. She regretted the sins of her past, but she was only on the first steps of coming to grip with those things. She was maintaining a level head, she knew it wasn’t her fault per say, but she was responsible and she knew in time Lunitari, Rayann and Myth would help her come to grips and let go of the demons that once bound her.

Nol walked up ahead of them slightly after giving a non-verbal motion for them to stop. He looked past Rayann to Kali as he did and smiled warmly. She could not help but feel that small butterfly in the pit of her stomach again and she bit her lip the instant he turned away. She felt like her teeth would burst through her flesh and she turned her head looking through the windows of a shop full of magical items so her mother couldn’t see the embarrassment on her face. She was ashamed that she wasn’t keeping her entire mind, body and soul in check, and she vowed to work on this as she began meditating to Lunitari. She knew how Wizards learned their magic by study, exploration, research and meditative devotion to a god of the moons. It was almost identical to how she had learned magic her whole life only she prayed to Tahkisis and wielded stolen magic rather than magic given in a pure form. She knew there would be obstacles and adjustments would be necessary, but Lunitari had spoken to her directly, and she held onto that to gain confidence.

She could feel Rayann staring at the back of her head and finally she turned, smiling with the left corner of her mouth. It was somewhat forced but she was trying her hardest to be genuine. She could see it in Rayann’s eyes, she knew exactly what her daughter was feeling, and in a pointless attempt to mask the butterflies in her stomach she tried to make small talk and divert the conversation, “This city is absolutely amazing. I have never seen anything like it on all of Krynn.”



She turned and looked as Nol approached again, a broad smile on his face. “OK ladies, The Inn of Luminescence” is just ahead. I had to make sure they were ready for your arrival. Please, follow me.” He turned, there was perfection in every step, as if he had spent his entire life simply learning to walk. His back was strong and the muscles screamed of discipline and training. He stopped and turned, a massive golden door inlaid with a dragon made from what looked like thousands of pearls. The center knobs were massive emeralds and glistened from the light refracting through them. “This is the nicest Inn in all of Aurialastican Lunitari instructed us to give you the top two floors as well as the meeting hall on the top most level. We have made modifications so you will have all you need to pray and study.” He reached behind himself and grasped one of the emerald door handles, twisting it and rotating while opening the door at the same time in one precise motion. The Inn was full of patrons and they cheered as Kali and Rayann walked into the well lit and well decorated main hall. Kali looked at Rayann uncomfortably, this level of attention was well beyond anything she was used to and the discomfort on her face was obvious, but she maintained her composure and smiled as best she could. Nol spoke, “I GIVE YOU THE RED ROBES! RAYANN AND KALI OF LUNITARI!” The crowd cheered again and raised their mead, shouting the names, “TO RAYANN AND KALI!” Nol turned and both Rayann and Kali would hear his voice in their heads, ~’Forgive them, the “Ones of different eyes” have been predicted to walk among us for generations, and to know you are finally here to restore the balance of magic, there is great excitement’~

Rayann would instantly feel the discomfort Kali was feeling regarding her mind being spoke directly into, and there was an immediate feeling of her disconnecting with everything around her, closing her thoughts and emotions to anything in every way possible. Her facial expressions were showing more and more discomfort by the second, and Her eyes were darting for the exits out of this place.

Rayann could feel Kali pull away a little as they made their way into the city. Sensing how uncomfortable Kali was getting, Rayann slowly let go of the girls hand. Fortunately, the sense that Rayann knew what Kali was feeling and thinking was not near as strong as it was when physical contact was taking place. But Rayann could still sense Kali wasn’t exactly excited about the idea either. Making a mental note make sure she put blocks up to protect Kali from thinking her privacy was being invaded, Rayann did just that in an effort to make Kali relax just a little.

Like Kali, as they walked into the city, Rayann was full of amazement and felt her neck grow tired of looking high into the sky at the towers that seemed to touch that sky. It was nothing less than beautiful and she wondered ho anyone would want to bring death and destruction to this place. It was peaceful here. More peaceful than when she had been with the Elves. But then again, there were forces at work there that were intending to bring an end to the Elves. Still, as Nol led them through the city, Rayann felt as though she had found a new home.

Once more Rayann saw the way Nol smiled at Kali. Try as she may, she couldn’t stop herself from looking at Kali and when she saw the girl looking at a shop window, Rayann was a little puzzled but figured something in the window had caught her attention. Still, she felt a sense coming from her daughter that she didn’t quite understand but she pushed it aside for now. Perhaps in time Kali would be comfortable to talk to her about things. When Kali turned around and smiled crookedly at her, Rayann let out a small smile of relief and smiled back at the girl. Nodding in agreement, Rayann looked at the wonderments around her.

”Neither have I and I agree completely with you, Kali. It’s absolutely amazing.”

As Nol led them to the Inn of Luminescence , Rayann couldn’t help but look on in complete amazement again as she noted the elegant and bejeweled doors that belonged to the place. She almost didn’t hear the dragon host explain the top two floors were theirs as well as the meeting place at the very top. But when Nol opened the doors and the place was filled with patrons, Rayann, like Kali, felt very uncomfortable. She never really liked crowds especially when undo attention was given to her. Rayann had always been very self conscious about the fact her eyes were very different and in recent times the fact she herself was very different. If ever she wanted to be just a plain, human woman, it was right now.

To make matters worse, when she heard Nol’s voice in her mind, Rayann instantly seemed to tense up and feel an intense degree of discomfort from Kali. While Rayann had tried to put a cheerful look upon her face, she knew that look turned to nothing less then a panic filled grimace as she looked to Kali and saw the girl ready to run like a frightened rabbit. What upset Rayann more than anything was the fact she felt Kali close herself down to everything and everyone.

Without realizing it, Rayann reached out and grabbed a hold of the sleeve on Kali’s robes in a death like grip the way she had done to Rorie in years past. Like mother, the daughter was suddenly feeling invaded, overwhelmed and cornered. Finally her eyes darted to Nol and she gave him a pleading look as she conveyed empathetically with him for help.

~It’s too much…please…..we must find a more quiet….private setting…please…~

There was a flash of brilliant light. Rayann and Kali were standing somewhere in a room which was high in the clouds. The massive windows surrounded them in a circle and though the clouds obscured the sun there was still a shimmering light bathing the room.

Nol was standing in front of them still, his hand coming down, obviously he had cast a spell to teleport them out of the room. Rayann would be able to tell by the architecture that they were in the top most meeting room of the Inn of Luminescence. There was a look of empathy on Nol’s face as he stared at Rayann, and she could also see the regret. He spoke quietly to Rayann, “I am so very sorry. We have awaited your arrival for over 500 years, the prophecy was spoken so long ago many of us were wondering how much strain could be put on natural magic before it was destroyed. I never intended to harm you.”

The look in Nol’s face was speaking volumes to Rayann, he was merely trying to have a warm welcome for the magi but was realizing very quickly that he had made a terrible mistake. He looked over at Kali who had withdrawn into one of the comfortable arm chairs beside the windows and sorrow filled his eyes. Looking back at Rayann he spoke quietly, his voice full of sadness, “Please tell your daughter I am sorry. If you need anything send me a missive and I will come at once.” He smiled meekly and nodded as his body evaporated into a burst of silver light.

Kali felt her body pulled through space and then she felt her feet back on solid ground. It was quiet, and that was all she cared about. She didn’t care in the least where they were, so long as they were away from the hall. She hurriedly went to one of the large leather chairs that were spread all around the room and crawled into it, pulling her robes around herself so tightly she hoped it would make her disappear. There was a time when her magic would have been unleashed in such a furious display at such a feeling of discomfort. It was the way of her past to respond with aggression if faced with an uncomfortable situation. Her instincts had been screaming at her to simply start casting and bring the walls down, but she had restrained, and simply had wanted out.

She closed her mind off, the mental barriers that were in place kept her thoughts and feelings to herself, but it wouldn’t take much instinct for Rayann to see she was afraid, and confused. There was a time she would have revealed in the praise of her accomplishments, but those things she had done in her past were things of such evil and malice she didn’t want to linger on them. Praise was associated with destruction in her current state of mind, and though Lunitari had given her a cleansing of sorts, she was still plagued with the memories of the dying, whom she herself had killed.

She heard Nol speaking to Rayann, but she didn’t listen, too engrossed in her own thoughts to give any regard or attention to anything outside herself. She felt the pull of magic as Nol left the room but she didn’t turn around. She could feel that her mother was still there, and she wanted to speak to her, to vent these feelings and this fear, but she didn’t know where to start and remained paralyzed, wrapped in her robes in a fetal position.

Rayann saw the look on Nol’s face and saw the sadness and regret in his eyes. As he apologized to her for what had taken place, she gave him a small smile of understanding. If she had been in their shoes, would she have done anything differently? She doubted it. As Nol apologized again and disappeared, Rayann nodded to herself. There was no doubt Nol was berating himself unnecessarily and she would take it up with him later. Right now all she could think was that they were alone and in a quiet place.

As Rayann looked over at Kali, she saw how withdrawn and pale looking the girl was. She could feel the blocks that had been placed to protect herself from prying by anyone. Not that they had fear of that, but Rayann could only imagine what it was like for Kali under the hand of the Dark Queen.

With a heavy sigh, Rayann walked over and stood next to the window that Kali was looking out. Easing herself onto the wide ledge and looking out over the clouds that surrounded them, it felt like they were in a different world up here. The warm breeze that drifted in was welcoming and Rayann closed her eyes for a moment as she calmed herself even more. Finally she began to talk in a soft, soothing voice as she watched the clouds roll by like playful balls of cotton.

”When I was little, I detested going places with Mama and Papa. Everyone would stare at me for one reason or another. At first, I didn’t think anything about it but by the time I was five, I began to realize they weren’t staring at anyone else. Just me. It made family outings very difficult. My parents and…Rorie….would do all they could to shelter me from the outside world, but it was impossible to shelter me from everything. What was worse, and no one but my brother seemed to understand, was that I could hear what everyone was thinking.”

“As I got older, I began to isolate myself away from the outside world. Unless I could travel in disguise or in such a way no one would see me, I would remain at home. I didn’t think there was anyplace else I needed to be. But then, my parents sent us off to study with a Council of Wizards and for the first time, I left home for an extended period of time. It was frightening to say the least. Thankfully I had someone with me who understood exactly what I was feeling and was there to help me through the most difficult times. Even when they tried to separate us, it ended in disaster and they realized there was little they could do but let us stay together.”

“And then, one day, I had to leave everyone I knew and loved all my life behind and strike out on my own with someone I didn’t know. I was so scared. Terrified, even. But I knew if I didn’t go on, what I was meant to do would never get done. Many times I wasn’t sure I was doing the right thing for a while and had even considered turning back and giving up the mission but the person I was with would never have let me do that. I began to realize that while he was strong and kept a hard shell about him, inside he was a caring man who found he was on that same path of discovery as I was. It wasn’t until he was faced with an ultimatum of life or death, not just for himself but me as well, that he realized who he really was.”

“But in order to begin living the life he wanted, he had to reveal the cold, hard, unsightly truth to me and risk losing the one person he’d learned to love. It wasn’t easy and it took some time for me to trust your father again, but when I realized how much I loved him, I didn’t care what he’d done in his past life. All that mattered to me was his future. And I wanted to be a part of that more than anything in the world.”

“And now, I find history is repeating itself again. I’ve had to leave everyone I know and love behind to strike out on a path I’ve never walked before with someone I don’t know. But, if I know history, I know that time heals all wounds and there’s nothing love can’t overcome. No matter how bad the things are that you’ve done, when someone loves you, the end of what used to be becomes the beginning of what can be.”

Kali felt her mother walk up and then saw her as she stared out the window. She shivered slightly, though the breeze was warm it was nothing in comparison to the molten heat that always permeated the place she had lived in for so long. She could sense Rayann’s sadness and listened as she spoke. She felt a tear crawl down her cheek and when Rayann spoke of love conquering all, she felt pain in her chest and she responded. Kali’s voice came gently, like a soft breeze as she spoke, barely above a whisper.

“Uncle Rorie would constantly teach me magic, even before I could read he would teach me the verbal incantations and I was lighting candles when I was 3 using nothing but my mind. The guards feared me; imagine a six year old child terrifying the ones she was supposed to be guarded by. There was another wizard, a man with a stone white face and a massive scar on his right cheek that spread like a star in five directions. His eyes were like mirrors and if you stared directly into them you could see the way you were going to die. I was terrified of him, but he was assigned to teach me. What he taught me, was how to hate, and to kill without feeling.

He was a cruel man, and though he never laid a finger on me physically, my mind was his playground and would be pricked when I gave incorrect answers or talked back. If I tried to seal him out, he always managed to get back in, and then he would punish me for trying to limit him. My lessons were in torture, cruelty, feeling no regret or remorse while dissecting a human with nothing more than thought. He was a master at bringing the maximum amount of pain and discomfort, so that the person knew they were dying. He made sure they felt death’s sting for as long as possible.

That was the difference between he and Uncle Rorie. Uncle Rorie is a master of the arcane, he grasps it with every fiber of his being and his thirst for knowledge is limitless. It doesn’t matter how much Tahkisis feeds him, he seeks more, and he finds it. He has abilities beyond what Tahkisis even thinks, but he is not a master of the ambient, he knows it, but he can’t wield it. That is why we were paired, because of our natural mind connection. Where my other instructor taught me to fear the mind connection, Uncle Rorie taught me to embrace it because I could trust him. In tandem, with him weaving the arcane and me weaving arcane and ambient together, we learned to bring forth magic that hit harder than dragons breath and literally razed villages to the ground without the aid of any army. Above all however, he loved me, I could sense he loved me, and all that time I felt it, and I assumed that ALL my instruction was worth it, and that Uncle Rorie was allowing me to be mentally abused for my own benefit.”

She looked up at Rayann, directly into her mother’s eyes, “Uncle Rorie is a vicious man Rayann, and he does hate you, he wants nothing more than to kill you for what he honestly believes you did to him. But he loved me…, and I loved him…”

She paused, her eyes welling up. Kali’s face suddenly turned sour. She stared into Rayann’s eyes with even more intensity, “He loved me, and he delighted in me, and he LIED to me my whole life? So is that love? Is that all love is? Is love holding a child tenderly and kissing her on the head every night while tucking her into bed, all the while modifying her and manipulating her so as to use what she has merely to satisfy your own personal goals? That’s the only love I have ever known, and if that is love, I am not sure I want to be part of it.”