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By Root 550 0

times, that there was something terrible in the future. Something that threatened not only Valdemar alone, but all our lands. I thought it was only Falconsbane, but I continued to have terrible dreams, and spells of great fear after he was gone. Now that this mage-storm has come upon us and I have searched out that old memory, I—I have—” he shook his head. “I am no great mage, for all the potential power that Firesong thinks I hold, but there are some things that are now making dreadful sense to me. The Avatars spoke to me once of ‘power and chaos echoing back across time.’ I thought that meant Falconsbane, but now I do not think so. I have the memory of how much power lay in all those spells that were released in that long-ago time of the Mage Wars. Ma’ar believed in his last moments that it was more than the fabric of the world could bear, to have it all released in a single moment—and as importantly, to have two such centers of power interacting with each other. I think that what happened then is about to echo back upon us now—but in reverse of the original. I think that the storm we just experienced is only the warning.”

An’desha drew a halting breath, and summed it up as best he could. “What we experienced was the little chill breeze that presages a hurricane.”

Firesong stared at him, stunned. Now it was Treyvan’s turn to break the silence.

“It isss in the trrraditionsss of the Kaled’a’in k’Lesshya that therrre werrre weeksss of mage-ssstorrrmsss following the death of Urrrtho,” the gryphon said with steady calm. “The old chrrroniclesss sssay that it wasss imposssible to dessscribe how terrrible they werrre, in effect, and in ssstrrrength. The verrry land wasss torrrn assssunderrr, and even time ssseemed to flow ssstrrrangely forrr the yearrr afterrr.”

“There is an oral tradition of the same among the Tayledras,” Firesong managed and shook his head. “I can’t even begin to guess what effect the release of that much mage-energy would have. If it could turn the land around the King’s Palace where Ma’ar was into a cratered lake, and the land around Urtho’s Tower into a plain of glass, there is no reason to suppose it might not even travel through the fabric of time itself. So many spells and wards are linked to time as if it were a physical presence—and even small magical explosions wreck the latticework of magic for a dozen leagues around them.”

The others turned their attention back to An’desha, who looked horribly pale. “I do not have the learning to guess at more,” he said humbly. “And if you will please forgive me, I do not wish to delve more into those memories that might give me that learning—at least not tonight. They make me feel ill.”

“I have knowledge of the old Kaled’a’in magicsss,” Treyvan rumbled. “Asss passsed to Vikterrren and Ssskandrrranon by Urrrtho himssself. The making of Gatesss warrrps time, asss waterrr warpsss wood; the making of perrrmanent Gatesss warrrps it morrre. Therrre werrre at leassst twenty sssuch Gatesss at Urrrtho’s Towerrr, perrrhapsss morrre. Theme werrre all the weaponsss that Urrrtho would not ussse, forrr they werrre too terrrible. Therrre werrre the prrrotectionsss on the Towerrr, and the magicssss of the placssesss we grrrryphonsss werrre borrrn.”

Ulrich’s brows knotted with thought. “I—this goes beyond what I have learned,” he said at last, “but I can tell you this; I have myself had warnings from an Avatar of Vkandis that something of this sort portended.”

Elspeth looked impatient. “You had vague warnings, An’desha had vague warnings, why didn’t anyone get anything clear?”

An’desha winced. That was a perfectly reasonable question. And he didn’t have an answer.

But Ulrich only smiled slightly. “Perhaps because even the Star-Eyed and Vkandis Himself did not know what the effect would be,” he replied gently. “Hear me out. When the Gods granted mankind free will, They allowed uncertainty to enter the world. Some things can be predicted; others cannot. If I may make an analogy—I can tell you that a great storm is coming. With the knowledge I have that when the wind blows