Chapter 1

“Tread lightly on this earth for the fate of worlds may rest on the tremor of your footsteps.”

~ Phylia of Ilith Iktan, A History

Helena turned to her companion, a dark, lanky young man. “To the river,” she said. “And I’m warning you, no cheating this time.”

Liam smiled, his black eyes gleaming roguishly. “I wouldn’t risk a flogging, Milady.”

Helena rolled her eyes. You’d risk decapitation if it meant beating me in a horse race, she thought. “On three. One, two—”

Liam kicked his horse; it charged down the steep incline. “Hethor take you, Liam!” she shouted, digging her knees into the mare’s sides. I don’t know why you’re surprised. He always does that.

The wind bellowed in her ears. She could see the boiling stream just ahead. “Come on,” she growled, thrashing her horse with the reins. The animal grunted. Its head was nearly level with the gray horse’s hindquarters as they splashed into the seething water. Liam slowed his mount; his copper cheeks glowed with triumph. She wanted to strangle him. What could be more humiliating than losing to a servant?

“If I had Coric I would have won, even if you are a god-cursed cheater,” fumed Helena.

“I won last time you had him,” he laughed.

“I would hardly call it winning,” she retorted. “He fell and broke his leg.”

               Liam shrugged. “I won the time before that.”

“I was riding Persephone,” she snapped.

               Liam laughed, pushing his unruly hair out of his face. Helena glared at him. “Gods beneath, Liam! It won’t happen again.”

               A horn blasted in the distance as a multitude of horses crested the far hilltops. Her anger vanished.    
               “Eirik!” she cried, kicking the mare.

               Helena streaked across the field, her fair hair aflame in the high noon sun. One of the riders raced ahead to meet her. He wore a bronze breastplate hammered to mimic contoured muscle across his abdomen and chest. A red commander’s cloak fluttered from his shoulders. Helena slowed her horse and threw herself from its back, a surge of giddy joy overtaking her.

“Eirik!” she shouted as the rider dismounted.

Throwing her arms around his neck, she sprang into a ferocious embrace. He lifted her off her feet and whirled her around.

“Put me down!” sputtered Helena. “You smell terrible.”

“So do you, little sister,” said Eirik, dropping her to the ground.

“Hethor take you,” she retorted. Eirik laughed.

As the other riders neared, Helena and Eirik remounted their steeds. Equanes manor peered over the rolling hills from the center of a walled garden awash with flowers. Striated columns and supple statues ornamented the façade.

A throng of stable hands took the reins of their horses as they halted in the courtyard. A beaming, flaxen-haired woman rushed to meet them, her ruddy cheeks flushed with excitement. “Gods be praised, you’re home at last!” cried Lady Diana. Eirik embraced his mother tenderly.

“It’s good to be home,” he said. “Where’s Father?”

Lady Diana raised an eyebrow. “In his study. As usual.”

A tall young woman with tight, humorless lips walked slowly toward them, her belly swollen with child. “Is Caie not with you?” she asked curtly.

“Good to see you too, Alea,” said Eirik. “He stopped in Palenon to speak with Lord Gaius. He is a few days behind us.”

               She nodded stiffly. “It is good that you are home, brother,” she said.

Helena shot an angry glance at her sister. God’s beneath! He’s been gone forever! Would it kill you to smile?

Lady Diana called to the weary soldiers. “There is food and drink inside.” They followed her through the courtyard into the garden. Helena latched onto Eirik’s arm as they walked slowly behind the others.

“You’re home just in time,” she grinned. “We bought three new horses and Coric sired a foal. Male. I’m going to break him myself.”

“Good. You look stunning with black eyes,” said Eirik.

Helena rolled her eyes. “I’m better at it now. I broke two horses all by myself while you were away. Well, Liam helped a little.”

“Oh yes, but I’m sure you were the real hero,” laughed Eirik.

“We should go to the stables so you can see them. Father had a fancy new saddle made for me too.”

“You don’t like saddles.”

Helena shrugged. “I haven’t used it. But it’s still very pretty. Come on.”

“It’s been a long ride, Helena. I’ll go with you later.”

“Then I won’t tell you my secret,” she replied. “It’s a good one, too.”

Eirik sighed. “Fine. Fine. Let’s go.”

Helena beamed. They turned around and moved back through the labyrinthine hedges toward the garden gate.

“So what’s this secret?” he asked.

“I’ll tell you when we get there.”

Eirik growled in exasperation. “Alright.”

Helena smiled smugly.

“So who’s the father?” asked Eirik, nodding back at Alea.

“I don’t know what you mean,” said Helena innocently.

“We’ve been gone almost a year. It can’t be Caie’s. I know you know whose it is.”

Helena grinned. “Well, I don’t know for sure, but I’m almost certain it’s Titian’s. He’s the only tolerably handsome one in the lot. And he plays the pipes.”

Eirik shrugged. “Passably.”

“I asked her about it. She insisted it is Caie’s.” Helena smiled wryly. “Well, when the child has black hair, we’ll know.”

“When he turns out to be a bad musician we’ll know,” said Eirik. “She’s a fool.”

Helena laughed. “Well, let’s not talk about her anymore.”

               “I brought you something.” Eirik reached into a small pouch hung on his belt and drew out a perfectly spherical stone suspended on a thin gold chain. Different shades of green swirled and seethed beneath the surface as if it had a tempest captured in its heart. A gold band coiled around the stone, holding it in place. Helena nearly forgot to breathe as she gazed, enraptured, at the turbulent orb. “I bought it from a merchant in Poiena. It is called Siannadh,” said Eirik. “It means ‘Wise Flame.’ The stone is said to be a piece of a fallen star.”

Helena fastened the chain around her neck. As the stone fell on her skin, she felt it pulsing in time with her heart. “Thank you,” she said. “I don’t know what else to say to such a gift.”

“Just don’t tell Mother or Alea. I didn’t bring them anything.”

Helena grinned squeezing Eirik’s arm. “I promise. Tell me about the council. I want to know everything.”

“It would take far too long to tell you everything. The short of it is, King Lucius has decided to open up trade with Dimwar and Eros.”

“You mean, let people through the Wall?” gasped Helena.

“Yes. He has already sent men to the Dimwara capital, and now he is mounting an expedition all the way down into the jungle,” said Eirik darkly.

“You don’t think that’s a good thing?” asked Helena.

Eirik sighed. “We’re walking right into another war. The King will send his five thousand, and then he’ll send another five thousand. We can barely provide for ourselves as it is. How are we supposed to survive when all of our resources are consumed supporting the army? Galabrand is a dying country. He is only pushing it closer to the brink.”

Helena watched her brother’s face. He looks so much older, she thought sadly.

“What did Caie want with Lord Gaius?” asked Helena.

“Prince Tynan has commanded that each of his lords supply thirty men.”

“Will you have to go?” asked Helena.

Eirik shook his head disgustedly. “There are plenty of men at Equanes and the surrounding lands who will eagerly ride off on a pointless crusade. I am not one of them.”

“Even if your Prince commanded you?” asked Helena.

“I would rather gouge out my eyes,” he spat. “Prince Tynan is not even going himself. He was the one pushing for the expedition. The coward.”

Prince Tynan had visited Equanes once years before. Helena remembered only a sweaty, pug-nosed man folded in ridiculously adorned silk. She shuddered at the memory of those flabby pink legs hanging like hairy hams from his breeches. The big oaf, she thought.

               “How I’ve missed this place,” said Eirik. “All the world may die away, but this is always right.”

“You wouldn’t think that if you were a prisoner here,” said Helena.

“You will find nothing beyond our borders to satisfy you, sister. Believe me.”

“Nobody here even notices me. Father’s always locked in his study, Alea is Alea, and Mother only ever wants to talk about her stupid flowers. Sometimes I think the roses are more her children than we are”

“You have Liam, don’t you?”

Helena shrugged. “He’s always working. Besides, it’s hardly fitting for the daughter of Lord Antoneus to spend all her time with servants.”

“Now you sound like Alea.”

“I’m nothing like her!” cried Helena. “I just wish I could do something instead of wasting my time here. I’ve never even seen Equanes Village. I wanted to go with Father last time he went, but he said he didn’t have time to look after me, as if I were a screaming child. Sometimes I hate him!”

Eirik shook his head. “You haven’t a care in the world, sister. You are only blind because you don’t open your eyes.”

Helena fell into taciturn silence as they left the garden and trekked across an open field to the stables. Three soldiers met them at the doors. “We finally got him locked up,” said one.

Eirik beamed. “Excellent.”

“One of your stable hands has a pretty gash, though,” laughed the soldier.

“What’s he talking about?” asked Helena.

“Come and see,” said Eirik.

Helena brightened as they entered the rows of well-kept stalls. She pointed at a powerful, dappled stallion. “Isn’t he beautiful” she said. “I rode him in less than a day.”

“You’ve done well for yourself,” said Eirik. “Is he fast?”

Helena shrugged. “Fast enough, I suppose. But not a match for Coric or even Persephone.”

Eirik nodded. “That’s a shame.”

“I suppose. But Coric’s son will be faster than any of them.”

“Come and see what we found,” said Eirik, leading her to a separate stall at the end of the stables. He unlatched the door and opened it a crack. Helena peered through. A colossal stallion—larger than any she had seen before—stood majestically in the corner. As the door opened, the stallion uttered a deep, guttural sound and advanced menacingly toward them. His muscles swelled beneath his glistening black coat.

“He was following us as we came home. He fought valiantly, but a single warrior is no match for ten.”

Helena glimpsed a white, trident-shaped brand pressed into the flesh of the stallion’s shoulder. Her eyes widened with wonder. “He’s not a....”

Eirik nodded. “He’s a Noril, no mistake.”

“Does he have a name?” asked Helena.

“I thought you might like to give him one.”

Helena gazed at the stallion thoughtfully. “Aodhan. The sun god.”

“But he’s black,” said Eirik.

“It’s in his eyes.”

Eirik nodded. “Alright. Aodhan. He may never be tamed, but by Pelion, I’m going to try. But not today.” He shut the door and latched it securely. “So what was that secret you were going to tell me?” asked Eirik.

“There was no secret,” said Helena.

“What?”

She grinned wickedly. “It got you to the stables, though, didn’t it?”

Eirik shoved her, and she toppled into a mound of straw. “Hethor take you, you little demon,” he growled. “I’m going back to the house.”

Helena sprang up and followed him, plucking the straw from her hair. He paused beside a stall where a snowy stallion stood gingerly on three legs. The fourth was heavily bandaged.

“What happened to Coric?” he asked.

“He fell,” answered Helena. “Liam and I were racing one day and we didn’t walk the field first. Father wanted to cut his throat, but I wouldn’t let him. It wasn’t Coric’s fault there was a hole.”

“It’s not punishment, Helena, it’s mercy. Broken bones never heal right. He’ll probably die of an infection before he can even walk again.”

“If you broke your leg, would you want us to kill you?”

“It’s a horse, Helena. It’s completely different.”

“It’s not different at all!” cried Helena. “Besides, how do you know he won’t heal? For all you know, he could be racing again by next summer.”

Eirik shook his head. “If you want people to stop treating you like a child, then you have to stop acting like one.”

Helena eyed him coldly. “I think I’ll stay here for a while.”

Eirik shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

●●●

Liam slipped out through the stable door leaving the other groomsmen laughing drunkenly behind him. He stretched his aching back, laughing quietly to himself. That beast nearly got the better of me, he thought. Eirik will have his hands full trying to ride a Noril. It’ll break him before he breaks it.

Footsteps rustled in the grass ahead of him. His heart turned a summersault as he recognized Helena’s sweet round face. “What are you doing out here?” he asked.

She jumped, her hand snapping to her heart. He smiled. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

               “Where are you?”

               Liam touched her arm, and she slid her little, calloused hand into his. “Follow me.”

               Helena clutched his hand tightly as he led her across the deserted field. She stumbled in a hole, and he caught her around the waist.

               “How can you possibly see where you’re going?” she demanded.

               He shrugged. “It’s a gift. I see like a cat in the dark,” he said. “My sense of smell isn’t bad either.”

               “So you know you smell like horse?”

               “I wonder why,” he retorted.

               She giggled. “I like horse smell. It’s comforting.”

               “Here we are.” Liam gestured at a huge boulder whose center sank into an indentation perfectly formed for three or four bodies to lay side-by-side. He helped her climb over the lip of the rock.

               “Do you sleep out here?” she asked.

               He nodded, springing up behind her. “All summer. I like to watch the stars. They’re brightest at this time of year. Lie down and look straight ahead.”

She stretched out, her pale hair fanned around her head like a pillow of spun gold. His eyes lingered on her tender young body perfectly outlined beneath the thin shift. Gods beneath, she’s not some kitchen wench, he chided himself.

She looked at him questioningly, and Liam sprawled out next to her. “That’s Porlyn’s Horn.” He traced the imaginary lines with his finger. “The bright cluster there is Brandon’s Torch. If you ever get lost, it will guide you north.”

“What about that red star over there?” asked Helena.

“Gannon’s Forge. If you wait long enough you may even get to see the Fountain. It only comes once in a while just before the sun rises. It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

Well, almost, he added silently.

“How long before the sun rises?” asked Helena.

“A good many hours. You’re out late. I’m surprised they aren’t looking for you.”

She shrugged. “They’re all in their cups.” Helena smiled to herself. “Do you remember when you taught me how to climb trees? My mother thought I was lost, and they didn’t find us until after sunset,” she said laughing.

“I was beaten by the stable master and sent to bed without food.” He frowned. Why would you remind her of that?

Helena looked away. “I’d forgotten.”

“That was years ago,” he said.

The somber wail of a wolf resounded in the distance. Helena stiffened. Liam cupped his hands and returned the howl. The wolf’s answer call echoed over the hills. “He’s just lonely,” he said.

Helena yawned and stood up. “I should be getting back home.”

Liam rose to his feet. “I’ll walk you to the gate.”

“I know my way.”

“In the dark?”

“The torches are still lit,” she said. “I’ll be alright.”

He nodded. “Perhaps you’ll see the Fountain on another night.”

Helena smiled. “Goodnight.” She turned and disappeared into the darkness.

He lay back down. Her scent lingered in the air beside him, and he heaved a sigh. Hethor take me, I am a fool, he thought.

···

The summer sun blistered the steely blue sky overhead, and the restless cries of horses trembled on the still, dry air. Helena sat in the shade of a pear tree, peeling the folds of her dress from her perspiring skin. She lifted Siannadh. Though she had carried the stone for more than a day, her fingers never tired of touching its flawlessly smooth surface. As she gazed into the swirling vortex, the shifting colors pulled aside. Images—hazy at first—emerged from the emerald clouds. She saw dark, rugged mountains rising from the earth like jagged teeth, then expanses of windblown dunes dotted with small oases. The desert faded into an open marketplace filled with exotic merchandise and bronze-skinned people with dark, almond shaped eyes. The images faded back into the churning green.

The stone fell once more against her skin, still pulsing. Restlessness rose from the depths of her being and seized her heart in an iron grip. The color around her muted and paled, and the rolling grasslands seemed to close in about her. Her heartbeat quickened, the throb of the stone speeding with it. She rose quickly and began walking; she knew she had to keep moving or be crushed by the folding hills. Helena stepped through the stable door, only then becoming aware of her surroundings. Coric pushed his snowy nose over his stall door, whickering quietly. Helena stroked him affectionately.

“I’m sorry you can’t run with me,” she whispered. “I need to go far today.”

Helena walked to the back of the stables where the door to the Noril’s stall stood closed. She glanced behind her—she was alone save for the horses. Slowly, she unlatched the door and entered. The stallion gazed at her with dark, intelligent eyes. Fear danced in her stomach as she slowly approached. The stallion did not move, but continued to stare at her, calculating her movements.

“Aodhan,” she said. The Noril nodded as he recognized his name and moved toward her.

Slowly she advanced, her guts turning in knots. Aodhan shifted his weight from one leg to the other. She put out a shaking hand and laid it on the horse’s firmly muscled body. Air surged from his cavernous nostrils, but he did not move. What are you doing? she thought. Have you lost your mind? Helena edged slowly from the stall. Aodhan followed her as she backed across the stable. Once they passed through the door, she turned and continued walking toward the open hills. Aodhan followed like a giant shadow.

She stopped. Aodhan moved in front of her, dropping his huge bulk to the ground. Helena approached warily and grabbed his mane. He made no movement, so she swung her leg over his wide back. I’ve gone mad, she thought. The horse lurched upward, his muscles swelling beneath her body with terrifying power. Her heart palpitated wildly, her knuckles white as she clutched his mane.

Aodhan walked slowly forward. Her fear mingled with excitement as his pace quickened to a canter. Then he ran. The stallion’s step was smooth as polished stone. Helena released his mane, holding her arms outstretched. The wind rushed through her hair. She closed her eyes, laughing in elation as the joy of flight surged through her veins.

Aodhan slowed in a small grove of apple trees that grew in a ring around a limpid pool. He dropped down once more. Helena slid from his back, and he pounded out into the pond. Aodhan snorted with pleasure as the water soothed the sun’s heat from his lathered coat.

Helena unclasped the silver brooch at her shoulder and left her dress in a crumpled heap in the grass. She pulled off her boots and waded into the pond, sucking in her breath as the cool water bit her naked skin. Aodhan whinnied after her as she kicked out into deeper water.

“Don’t worry about me. I swim like a fish,” she said. He snorted, shaking his mane. She laughed.

Helena lay in the sun to dry, then climbed one of the trees in the grove to pick some apples. She had not noticed how far the sun had sunk.

The warm night air smelled of fermenting fruit. She lay down in the grass and looked up at the distant stars. Siannadh throbbed in rhythm with their dance. I wonder if Liam is watching the stars tonight. Is he thinking of me, too? She frowned at herself. Why should you care if a stable hand thinks of you? It was harmless for us to play as children, but perhaps the time has come for me to move forward. Helena sighed. Well, I cannot hope for other company in this place. It’s hardly a wonder my thoughts are so strange. The lonely wolf’s howl sounded in the night, but this time she felt no fear.

●●●

Liam emerged dripping from the horse pond. After a long afternoon of unloading hay bales and mucking out stalls, he needed a good bath. The traveling soldiers’ horses had eaten every spare morsel and shit in every corner of the stable. Yet another reason I hate it when they come home, he thought.

He sat down under a shady oak, leaning back against the trunk. Hopefully no one would find him for a few hours yet.

               “I thought I might find you here,” called a bubbly female voice. So much for that idea. Not that Marissa was too unwelcome a visitor. She smiled down at him. Her dark hair was pinned back meticulously, her thin, heart-shaped face white as a lily. She had nothing of Helena’s sun-washed athleticism, but she was certainly a pretty girl. “You look tired,” she said.

               “Not too tired,” replied Liam.

               She smiled coquettishly. “I thought not.” She dropped down onto his lap, kissing him long and hard. “You’re wet,” she said. So observant, he thought.

               There was never much talk between them. The kitchen gossip hardly interested Liam, and she had an unnatural terror of horses. Thank the gods for women like her, he thought wryly. They keep men sane and away from the sheep.

               “You haven’t come to me for weeks,” she whispered.

               “A week,” he replied, shifting her back onto the grass. “I’ve been busy.”

               Liam pushed up her dress, running his hands along her thighs. “And yet you’re not too busy right now,” she sighed. “I’ve had to wait until their precious princess goes missing to run away and find you.”

               Liam froze. “What?”

               “Helena disappeared. They’re sending a search party out for her. No one will be missing us for hours.” She drew his face back toward hers, but he pulled away, rising to his feet. His whole body ached with dread. Perhaps she had simply wandered off and lost track of time, as she was apt to do. But what if something happened to her?

               Marissa sat up, frowning. “What is it?”

               “I have to go.” Liam hurried away across the field.

               Marissa trotted after him, grabbing his arm. “Where are you going?”

               He shook her off impatiently. “I have to find out what happened. They may need my help.”

               “They’ve sent all the soldiers in Equanes after her. She probably just rode her horse into a rabbit hole. It’d serve her right to break her neck riding around like she was a boy.”

               Liam seized her wrist. “Don’t ever speak of her that way again.”

               “Ouch! Let go of me, you brute,” she snapped, struggling uselessly.

               He could feel the strain in the delicate bones. Be careful. She’s not worth it, he warned himself.

               He released her. Ignoring the tears quivering in her enormous green eyes, he strode away, his blood boiling. You’ve got to learn to control your temper, he thought. Restraint always came harder where Helena was concerned. He had broken several noses when idiot stable hands or servant boys said things about her. He always regretted the outbursts, but that never seemed to contain them the next time he become enraged.

               Liam found the search party readying in the stable. Marissa had been right—nearly every soldier seemed to have been deployed. Even Helena’s father was saddling up a stallion with arthritic fingers. Liam suddenly felt queasy. Something must be horribly wrong to draw Lord Antoneus from his study.

               Eirik looked more than a little anxious when Liam approached him. “What’s happened?” he asked.

               The furrow deepened in Eirik’s brow. “No one has seen Helena since breakfast this morning. We’ve searched the entire house and the garden. Everywhere. The Noril is missing too. If she tried to ride him alone…”

               Liam’s heartbeat quickened. Of course Helena would try to break the Noril by herself. If it threw her or kicked her she could be dying right now, alone. Liam hurried away from the stable and returned to the pasture. Helena’s marble-gray mare, Persephone, trotted toward him at a whistle. He threw himself onto her back and urged her into a gallop. Twilight was gathering in the skies, and he thanked the gods for his uncanny sharpness of sight in the dark. He searched through the lower orchard and around the far horse pond where she sometimes liked to read.

               How could she possibly have gotten so far away if she had tried to ride a wild horse? Why would no one have heard her call for help? Fear gnawed at the pit of his stomach. Everyone knew the stories of the savage hill people who carried off unarmed innocents and subjected them to horrific rites for their heathen gods. Liam urged the mare toward the open hills.

               He rode until the moon rose high overhead. Suddenly he caught a trace of her familiar scent. His heart instantly raced faster, and his whole body went rigid. Liam turned the horse around, searching for the fleeting fragrance. This is impossible, he thought. A human can’t follow a scent like a dog. I must have imagined it. The moment the thought crossed his mind he picked up the scent again. His body tingled as if barbed briars were brushing against his skin. Have I gone mad? he wondered.

               They came to a ring of wild apple trees beside a still pond. Helena lay on her side, her head resting in the curve of one arm. He jumped to the ground and raced to her, laying two fingers lightly against her throat. Her pulse beat steady and strong.

               Helena stirred, lifting her head a fraction. “Liam?”

               She sat up, looking around confused as if coming out of a dream. “What are you doing here?”

               “They sent out a search party to look for you. We were worried.”

               “Now they care,” she muttered darkly.

               “Are you alright?” he asked.

               She nodded. “I’m fine. I was just out riding.”

               Liam frowned. “Where’s your horse?”

               Helena glanced around the grove. “I don’t know. He must have gone when I fell asleep.”

               He held out his hand. “We should go. It will take a while to get back, and they’re already panicked. Even your father came out to look for you.”

               “My father? I was hardly gone for half a day!” cried Helena, taking his hand.

               “The Noril was missing too,” he said. “They thought maybe you had tried to break him yourself.”

               She smiled, amused. “That would be foolish.”

               Liam climbed onto Persephone’s back. Helena mounted behind him her arm circling his waist. Although his body ached, he wished that the ride were longer. The moon had set by the time Equanes manor came into view. He stopped near the manor gate. Helena dismounted.

               “I’m glad you found me,” she said. “I would have had to walk all that way. I didn’t realize I was so far out.” She frowned. “How did you find me?”

               Liam smiled. There’s no way she would believe me. “I don’t know. Luck?”

               “You just happened to ride several hours in a random direction?” He inclined his head, and she shrugged. “You always were uncannily good at hide and seek.”

Lady Diana dashed through the gate and caught her daughter in a tight embrace.

“Helena!” she cried, “I thought you were dead! Where were you?”

“I was out walking. I lost track of the day,” said Helena. “I didn’t want to try to find my way in the dark.”

“I don’t know what I would have done if something had happened!” She hugged Helena again. “Everyone is out looking for you. Do you know how worried we were when you never came back?”

“Well, I’m home now. Liam found me, and I’m fine.”

Lady Diana looked over at Liam as if noticing his presence for the first time. “I am in your debt,” she said, her ruddy face earnest.

She’ll forget by tomorrow, Liam thought. Aloud, he said, “I’m glad to be of service, Milady.”

Lady Diana pulled Helena toward the courtyard continuing her lecture. So was it worth it? he thought. Marissa probably won’t come sniffing around again. Helena glanced back at him with an impish smile that set his heart racing. It was worth a thousand nights alone. He laughed derisively to himself. It’s good that you feel that way because that’s exactly what you’ll get.

●●●

Helena slept a heavy, dreamless sleep unaware that a new day had come and gone. When she awoke, the light had faded into a brilliant purple seam where the heavens kissed the distant mountaintops. Helena rose from the blankets and dashed the musty taste from her mouth with water from the jug.

When she left her room, she found the doors to the great hall standing open. Men sat picking at the last of the food while Alea’s ladies flirted coyly with them. One of the soldiers played a set of small wooden pipes while the others sat in groups laughing loudly and guzzling ale.

“Your father’s been waiting for you, M’lady,” slurred a thin, pockmarked soldier. “We were out all night looking for you.”

“Can you tell me where he is?” asked Helena.

“I’m sorry, I can’t. Join us. There’s plenty of food left. And good company.” He laughed drunkenly, and his companions guffawed with him.

“I’ve already eaten,” she said coldly. Helena left the great hall. The raucous laughter faded behind her as she escaped into the garden. She stopped a servant lighting torches scattered among the flora and asked if he had seen her father.

“He’s in the stable, M’lady,” he answered with lowered gaze.

Helena left the garden and crossed the field to the stable. Groomsmen attended their duties at a frenzied pace. In one corner, a group of soldiers spoke excitedly among themselves. Her father stood, steely-countenanced, at the opposite end watching the stable master flog a shriveled groomsman with a leather strap.

Helena stopped next to the soldiers and asked, “What’s all the trouble about?”

“The Noril has disappeared,” said a weasel-faced man.

“Oh,” she said. “What a misfortune.”

The old groomsman gasped weakly as the blows rained on his back. She felt a lump catch in her throat. Helena frowned. What did the life of a servant mean to her? Lord Antoneus raised a hand, and the stable master stepped away.

“I have given you your life back twice before, have you forgotten already?”

“No master,” said the man in a thin, trembling voice.

“This will be the last time,” said Lord Antoneus.

“Yes master.”

“Go back to your work.”

The old man hobbled off followed by the stable master.

Helena approached her father. His face darkened with fury. “Do you know what you put me through? What you put everyone through?”

“I’m sorry, Father,” she said, “I lost track of the day. That was all. I’m sorry.”

Her father’s face remained stony. “It will not happen again, Helena.”

She nodded. “I promise, Father.”

Lord Antoneus nodded. “Good.”

Loud accusations exploded from the group of soldiers. Lord Antoneus grunted in annoyance. He strode regally to the congregated soldiers.

Helena’s gaze wandered to the limping gait of the old stable hand as he struggled with his work. He groaned quietly with each step. Helena bit back the emotion and fled the stable.

She wandered in the twilight to the stone where she had watched the stars with Liam. The first stars winked at her from the translucent sky, but she saw only the old stablehand’s face wincing in pain. Gods beneath! she thought. Eirik was right. You are a child!

Siannadh began to pulse in a strange rhythm against her skin. Her fingers strayed to the stone, and she lifted it from beneath her dress. The swirling storm secured her eyes and encompassed her entire body. Then she stood in the midst of a vast quarry. Half-clothed men moved by her, their backs hunched under heavy loads. The sickening stench of refuse and rot gagged her.

Helena turned away in horror and found herself staring into the empty eye-sockets of a young boy. His face was skeletal and pale. He turned and hobbled away toward the tunnel shafts entering the stark cliffs. Angry red welts crisscrossed his back. Tears sprang into her eyes and her stomach burned with nausea.

The quarry faded, and a blast of wind carried Helena to the foot of a marble staircase. A faceless man wearing the gold coronet of Galabrand sat on a golden throne at the top of the stairs. A massive serpent draped over his shoulders raised its scaly, hooded head as though scrutinizing her. Its lips cracked in a malignant smile, its curved fangs red as if coated with blood.

Helena’s eyes snapped open. She trembled uncontrollably, her heart pounding. Someone called to her from far away. She recognized Liam’s voice. “Helena. Are you awake?”

She opened her mouth but no sound issued from her lips. She tried twice more and finally succeeded in forming words. “I’m awake.”

She pushed herself into a sitting position. Liam grabbed her arm to steady her. Her face was stiff with dried tears. Helena moved her arm and realized that she was still clutching Siannadh. The light no longer shone inside it.

“How long have I been here?” she asked, slipping Siannadh out of sight beneath her dress.

 “It’s nearly morning,” he replied.

“What happened?”

“You were asleep when I found you,” said Liam.

“Oh. How long have you been sitting there?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. Most of the night.”

“Did you see anything strange?” asked Helena.

“Just you sleeping. Why?”

“I don’t know. I just thought maybe … I don’t know. Some strange things have been happening lately.” She hesitated. “You said you thought I had tried to break the Noril. Well, you were sort of right. I rode him yesterday.”

Liam frowned. “That’s impossible.”

“I’d have thought so too, but it’s not.”

“I believe you. But how did you do it?”

“I didn’t do anything. He just let me.” Helena recounted her ride to the apple grove. “He must have gone after I fell asleep. Some old wretch got a beating for losing him.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” asked Liam.

“I don’t know. He was just an old servant,” muttered Helena. “He’s probably used to it by now.” The vision of the blind child flashed before her eyes. She shuddered.

“Are you alright?” asked Liam.

Helena forced the image back to the depths of her mind. “Liam, do you ever think that maybe you were born at the wrong time?”

“Yes,” he said. “Sometimes I think that the gods made a mistake.”

Helena glanced at him skeptically. “Do you really believe in them? It seems to me that they’ve made too many mistakes to exist.”

Liam chuckled. “You’re right about that.”

Helena propped herself up on one elbow, watching the intense, dark figure beside her. He shifted his gaze to her face. A tiny shock, like the nip of a lightning bolt, skimmed through her belly. She sat frozen, half-convinced he might lean forward and kiss her. He dropped his eyes, and she lay back down, her heart pounding with—was it disappointment? Don’t be ridiculous, she thought.

A small yellow line crept across the sky. “It’s the Fountain,” said Liam excitedly.

“That’s it?” she asked looking at the thin trail of light.

“Just watch.”

Helena gasped as the sky exploded in gleaming colors. Deep purple shades mingled with sprays of blood red light. Threads of gold and silver spilled from rends in the skies, capering in intricate patterns. Helena stared, open-mouthed in amazement as the colors wrapped around the moon in a shimmering halo, then rained in sparks behind the mountains, leaving the sky dark once more.

“That was the Fountain,” said Liam.

“This happens every night?” asked Helena in breathless wonder.

“No. But it happens often enough in the summer.”

“Why have I never seen it before?”

Liam’s eyes skimmed her face. “You probably never looked.”

Helena gazed at the sky, pulsing with a gentle afterglow. “I never had a reason to.”