Read Online Forged In Flame (In Her Name: The First Empress, Book 2) by Michael R. Hicks - Free Book Online Page A

were established.”
    “Except for the Desh-Ka and the Ka’i-Nur. Do not think that there is anyone alive who has not heard that tale. And I fear that is but a taste of things yet to come.”
    “That was different,” Ayan-Dar huffed. “They tried to kill me without cause and T’ier-Kunai intervened, as was her right. Besides, the Ka’i-Nur are not truly a priesthood, nor have they been since their crystal was destroyed at the end of the Second Age. None of their warriors have worn the sigil of their priesthood in nearly two hundred thousand years.”
    “Do not fall prey to your own assumptions, great priest.” Li’an-Salir looked at Keel-Tath. “I do not know what the future holds for you, child, and I myself am not sure if I believe in the prophecy. But you may know this, just as surely as you now bear Ayan-Dar’s blood in your veins: as long as I am mistress of Ku’ar-Amir, you will be welcome here.”

 
     
     
     
    CHAPTER SIX
    Living Metal
     
    That night, Li’an-Salir herself had shown Ayan-Dar and Keel-Tath to their quarters. They were high in one of the towers of the mistress’s personal domain, the keep, and looked out over the plaza toward the sea. 
    Keel-Tath stood on the balcony, watching and listening to the waves beyond the promenade as the stars twinkled above her in a black sky, bereft now of the Great Moon, which had set. She remembered little of the day after the counsel of war had finally come to its grim conclusion. It seemed now like the world was caught in the gears of a great machine that would, if left unchecked, grind them all into dust. The engine behind the machine was Syr-Nagath, but the greatest gears, beyond even the Dark Queen’s legions, were the priesthoods. Blinded by their own pride and the faith that what had been for ages past would be yet for ages to come, they could not see the truth of what the Dark Queen was doing. Keel-A’ar should have been their warning, a clear and vicious departure from the true Way, but they stood by and did nothing.
    “They see, but they do not heed.” She spoke into the night, her words carried away by the light breeze. “No one can stop the coming darkness.”
    “You can.”
    Startled, she turned to see Ayan-Dar standing behind her. 
    “You still see the world through the eyes of a young warrior,” he told her as he moved up beside her, putting his hand on the rail next to hers, “not as what you someday will become. There will come a day when the Dark Queen is no more, and the name of Keel-Tath will be hailed by every soul under the heavens.”
    “You are right, my priest. I cannot see these things.” She looked down. “I wish we had not come here. This was to be my free time, my very first. Instead of happiness, I feel as if death will stalk me at every turn once we leave this place.”
    “I am sorry, my child. You must believe that I did not know these things would come to pass when I brought you here. All I expected when we came to the city gate was a warm meal, some ale, and a comfortable place to sleep.” He sighed. “But you must also not cloak yourself in fear or regret. Knowledge is often the best weapon in any battle, as are allies. Li’an-Salir is a very powerful ally, and was quite taken with you. More than that, while she is still conflicted, I think she believes in you, in the prophecy.”
    “I wish I did,” Keel-Tath whispered. She took hold of her braids and held them before her eyes, the white hair now nearly black in the moonless night. “What if I am nothing more than an aberration, a freak?” Releasing her hair, she held out her hands, looking at them with a sense of loathing. “And what of the healer who died? Everyone says that all these things are impossible. What other horrors await me?”
    “These things are not horrors, they are gifts.” Ayan-Dar took her chin in his hand and turned her to face him. “And I hope that there are many more, because these things, these aberrations, will give you