Read The Saga of the Renunciates for Free Online

drank by mortal light;
    And as his brilliance paled away Into a dimmer earthly day Cassilda left her shining loom:
    A starflower in his hand she laid;
    Then on him fell a mortal doom... "
     
    "Are the windows accessible by ladders?" asked Gwennis, and Kindra snapped, "They might be, if we had ladders. Next question, but no more stupid ones, please! We have time to kill, but not that much time!"
    "Into the heart of Alar fell, A splinter from the Darkest Hell, And madness raging on him came, He cried again on Zandru's name, And at the darkened forge he made A darkly shining magic blade;
    An evil spell upon it cast... "
     
    "Devra and Rima, you will stay here, and the moment we come in sight, get moving! Be sure that the guards at the gate make no outcry-" Kindra looked meaningfully at Rima.
    The fat woman laid a hand on her knife, with a grim nod. Kindra said, "Camilla, you ride lighter than any of us; you will carry the child on your saddle. Lady Rohana- no, go on singing! You must be ready to ride close to Melora, to be alert for anything she needs; we shall all be busy enough evading pursuit and dealing with anyone who might come after us."
    Rohana felt a shudder take her, seize her body and shake it like a rabbithorn in the grip of a wolf. Her voice faltered; she tried to cover it with a cough, and doggedly went on, knowing she was garbling the words horribly:
    "He could not see the-something-plan That gave a God to mortal wife, That earthly love with mortal man-
    Should bring to man a-something-life, Camilla fell without a cry – "
     
    Damn, damn, I've skipped two whole verses again...
    "And Hastur, shielded by her heart, Knew he could die as mortals die... "
     
    "Lori, you handle the cralmacs; I understand you know how they fight. Those long blades... anything else? Leeanne?"
    "Remember that sometimes the Dry-Towners poison their swords. Don't neglect even a scratch. I've got some ointment that is supposed to neutralize their worst poisons... "
    "Then Hastur son of Light had known, (For so had ruled the Shining Sire When first he left the Realm of Fire)
    Once more his star must burn alone...
    For on the earth he might not reign If he should cause one mortal pain, Or in that hour he must return To the far realms that were his own... "
     
    "We'll never be readier than now," Kindra said softly. "Finish the damn song, Rafaella, and get your dagger."
    Gratefully Rohana began the last verse:
     
    "And ever more the cloud waves break, Along the fringes of the lake, And tears and songs still whisper there, Upon the still and misty air... "
     
    It was an unnerving experience, knowing they were all listening now, but impatient of every note, eager for her to finish. Damn it, no more eager than I!
    "They built a city in the wild, Fit for his rule, the kingly child, And singing of Camilla's doom, They wrought for her an opal tomb."
     
    She skipped the little postlude and rose impatiently, letting Rafaella put her harp away. Earlier in the afternoon she had packed the few possessions she had brought on this journey into a small bundle. Inside the tent the Amazons moved quickly and efficiently by the light of a single shaded candle, stowing food and necessary belongings in their saddlebags. Rohana watched, keeping out of their way. Devra and Fat Rima moved away toward the city gates, and Rohana felt another shudder take her; their business was to assure that those gates would be unguarded when they came back this way in a hurry, fleeing...
    Don't be squeamish! The guards there are Dry-Towners; they've probably deserved death a dozen times over...
    But they have no quarrel with any of us! There must be some good men among them, who have done nothing more than live as their forefathers have lived for centuries...
    Angry at herself, Rohana stifled the thought. I hired Kindra's band to get Melora and her child away. Did I really believe it could be done without bloodshed? You cannot take hawks without climbing cliffs!
    Kindra