Darkwell - Douglas Niles [152]
Thus he would lie for generations, as a forgotten god and a distant relic of the human past.
Epilogue
They debated the merits of springtime but quickly decided to wed at the height of the Yule festivals. Friar Nolan performed the ceremony. A diamond ring bearing a stone of impressive size, a gift from Pawldo of Lowhill, symbolized their union.
The Great Hall of Caer Corwell overflowed with celebrators, and the party spilled into the courtyard, where great fires burned, holding winter's chill at bay.
Grunnarch and his northmen had stayed in Corwell, and they were joined by other guests from all over the isles: Lord Llewellyn and his own young bride, the Lady Fiona of Callidyrr; Lords Koart, Dynnatt, and Fergus from the cantrevs of Corwell; Brigit and a full complement of the Sisters of Synnoria; and the halflings of Lowhill. To a tumultuous welcome just prior to the ceremony, the dwarven chieftain Finellen arrived with a hundred of her doughty warriors.
The wedding itself was a simple ceremony, marred only by a minor incident as Newt surprised the guests with an illusion of a huge red dragon. They soon returned to the hall, and everything proceeded according to plan.
As winter closed in, Corwell bundled snugly against the world. Cheery fires glowed in every hearth, none more cheery than the blaze lighting the great fireplace of Caer Corwell. Once again the Ffolk sensed that their only enemies were natural ones, foes with which they had long coped successfully.
The great bulk of Caer Allisynn, the floating fortress, stood at the shore of the firth throughout the winter though heavy surf made access to the keep impossible. With the coming of spring, swimmers found the massive structure at rest firmly on the bottom.
The underwater exploration of the ancient building, smaller than Caer Corwell but more finely constructed, occupied the king for most of the summer, and the queen as well, until her pregnancy made such excursions dangerous. The relics of ancient glory, including volumes of lore from the time of Cymrych Hugh, would keep the bards and scribes busy for years.
The line of Kendricks received an addition in the autumn with the birth of the Princess Alicia. By late winter, yet another royal heir was expected.
Peace with the North became a fact of the land. The combined skills of the seafaring northmen and the craftsmanship of the Ffolk proved clearly useful to both peoples, and the recent military accomplishments of the Ffolk served as additional deterrence against any future raids.
The land itself did not change drastically. The blasted areas of Myrloch Vale gradually returned to normal. The fields continued to be worked with hoof and plow, but their area was considerably enlarged. The wild places grew smaller and fewer, though they still existed. The memory of the goddess remained with the land and the Ffolk, but the changing of eras had begun.
There were those, including the High King, who felt that perhaps this increased use of the land was not a bad thing, that perhaps it was merely the sign of fortuitous progress. Certainly this represented the view of the goddess Chauntea, and through her blessing came many years of bounty from the land.
And many healthy children to the Ffolk.
Acknowledgments
The creation of the Moonshae Trilogy has been a joyous task for the past few years, but it has not been mine alone. I am grateful for the opportunity to thank some of those who have contributed their energies.
Foremost has been the work of three talented editors who have helped shape the trilogy from its inception to its final form. Pat McGilligan, Mary Kirchoff, and Bill Larson have each provided invaluable aid and criticism to the books. Jim Ward has also been a source of wonderful ideas and (brutally) honest evaluations of manuscripts.
I owe thanks also to a team of British game designers, Graeme Morris, Phil Gallagher, and Jim Bambra. While the