The Missing Kin Read Free Page A

in her bones.
    This was the power that only the rulers of the
seven kingdoms knew. With it, Tayesha had the
strength, the endurance and the solidity of the land.
She could not be moved if she did not want to be.
She could delve into the land, finding the riches
beneath. She could open great chasms and make the
earth shudder – although she had to admit that such
displays of might had become more difficult as she
had aged.
    She put a hand to her throat and felt the loose
skin there. The years were closing in. Her quest for
immortality was an urgent one.
    She placed her hands together and closed her eyes.
When she opened them, she was in another place.
    It was utterly black, a darkness profound and
deep. It did not trouble her, because her magically
enhanced eyes could see as clearly as if it were day.
    She was in a chamber in the heart of the earth,
leagues beneath the surface. This ancient place,
a sanctuary and a place of meditation deep in the
embrace of the land, was only known to the rulers
of Thraag. Pillars grew out of the solid rock like
trees. Archways, shelves and tables looked as if they
had been formed in place rather than carved. It was
a private place – quiet, silent, cool. The smell of
mineral-rich moisture came from a large pool at the
far end and its gentle lapping was the only sound.
    Confident in the absolute blackness, knowing
she was welcome in this most secret place, Tayesha
crossed to a granite table. On it was a collection of
books and writing materials. The books varied in
sizes, colours and ages, and Tayesha smiled sadly
as she remembered that it was Wargrach who had
brought some of the most useful volumes to her. Slips
of paper protruded from them, marking important
pages.
    She picked up The Land and the Saur , a rare
volume from Bondorborar, and began reading.
She spent some time looking for a reference to the
connection between rulers and the ruled. Somewhere,
she remembered, it referred to a ceremony attempted
in the rule of Queen Silminac. She had perished, but
it was rumoured that she, too, had been striving for
immortality.
    Tayesha put her head in her hands. Alone in
the darkness, her destiny was a heavy weight and
she wondered if she were strong enough to bear
it. If she couldn't solve the mystery of the ritual of
unification, Krangor was in peril, made unstable by
the events that she had unleashed. Her people would
lose everything and she would lose her chance at
immortality.
    For a moment, she was on the verge of despair.
    The blackness seemed to swirl about her. She stood,
shaking herself. 'No,' she said, and her voice echoed
in the vast, lightless chamber. 'I will not give up. For
my people, for all the saur, I must succeed.'
    She picked up another volume, sat once more,
and began to read.

Five
    The room was compact, opening off one of the
great halls in the Lost Castle. A round table of
dark, fine-grained wood stood in the middle of it.
Diamond-paned windows gave a view of the river
and forest below, with the encircling mountains
in the distance. A simple fireplace, unlit in the mildness
of early autumn, took up one wall. Simangee had
dubbed the place the Room of Dreams for it was
here that the three friends did most of their
planning.
    The table was strewn with maps that Simangee
had found in one of the three libraries in the castle.
Adalon had added many sheets of paper, with figures
and diagrams scratched on them. Quills and ink pots
nestled in the jumble.
    Adalon stood in the corner of the room and eyed
the stranger at the table. 'You say she can be trusted?'
he muttered to Targesh.
    Targesh shrugged. 'Trust the herd. Be wary of
others.'
    The stranger frowned. 'If you don't trust me, then
let me go.'
    She was a well-rounded Billed One. Her scales
shone and her flat beak was burnished. Her red tunic
was edged with purple piping and her leggings were
green. All her garments were of rich make and in good
repair. Adalon thought she looked like a courtier out
for a stroll in a palace