2 Dono del Cielo (Gift of the Sky)
Moonday, Hare Moon 3
Yvette rolled a pair of crimson silk garters and set them in her vanity drawer.
“Are you going to dress while I watch?” Thorne’s gloomy tone suggested the thought appalled him.
“No.” She tried to ignore his grimace by...
3 Inchiostro e Ceneri (Ink and Ash)
Midweeksday, Hare Moon 5
The name echoed in Daniela’s mind. Rafe, a foreign name from the north. When the three men entered, Daniela wondered which her betrothed might be. The tall, dark-haired man with chiseled features and sporting three days’...
With his coat still lying in a heap on a pink, flowery rug, Jarren crossed his arms before him for warmth and thanked the gods the bitch hadn't thrown him out without his trousers too. Not wanting to wait out the coming day without the benefit of a coat, Jarren stole home as the sun crept over...
Chapter 1
Hooves pounded the ground, rumbling like thunder as four-hundred mounted men galloped across the field. Each time the horn blew, the riders in the fore changed formation. Those behind followed in unison, as a school of fish or flock of birds, each individual moving so...
CHAPTER 2
“Alisha!” Harris yelled, from where he knelt on the floor.
Three men wearing the rough homespun garments of peasants surrounded Harris. Two of them were older, with graying hair, while the third was Cedrick’s age, not a boy, but not yet an independent man. Harris...
CHAPTER 3
“Cedrick Beringer, from Rheinguard,” Cedrick said as he dismounted. “Who are you?”
“Zedrina, from Seidr.”
“Seidr? I’ve never heard of it, is it a village nearby? I’ve just come from Larkridge, and no one mentioned another settlement here in the swamp. I would...
CHAPTER 4
“I... I..” Cedrick stuttered. “Who are you?”
“You first, stranger,” the wild-looking man growled. Tall, ox-like in build, his thick mane of dark hair was indistinguishable from his beard. It was near impossible to tell where one ended and the other began...
1
Praise to the storytellers of our time, without whom we would live in darkness.
Hand in hand, Aarin and Ayleth hurried for the trees, where beyond lay their secret sanctuary along the banks of the river. A serene glen lined with willows and birches, it was just the sort of place...
2
When asked to create potions for matters of the heart, temple healers often say, “Love cannot be forced to grow where it isn’t nourished, nor cannot it be denied where it has taken root.”
Ayleth woke before midday, choosing to roll around in the loft until she tired of the itchy hay...
3 (unfinished)
Ayleth awoke to cooking smells. She could hear Galen’s high voice from downstairs. “The black and yellow one is my favorite, Da. Kyla says she’ll trade it to me for my green shooter. Should I trade her?”
“That’s up to you,” Ren said. He was surely smiling, if the tone...