Castien, an elf mage who cannot speak except with the aid of a magical dagger, has been captured while on a mission. He is freed by his companion, the warrior elf Daeron, and returns with him to Daeron’s homeland. There they will join forces to rid the land of a Lord bent on the destruction of the elves.<br><br>Theirn, a young half-elf thief, attempts to rob Castien during his stay at an inn and is caught by the mage. Much against Theirn’s will, he is enlisted into the group of rebel elves. But as Theirn's infatuation with Castien grows, he becomes more than eager to risk treachery, betrayal, and even death on dangerous missions just to be close to the man he is growing to love.

Mage of Silence

Lain pointed to the viscous looking green slime on the tunnel floor and said, “Be careful where you step, it is acidic and will burn through almost anything it touches.”


The others followed him around the sharp bend. They pulled up when they saw the bodies of three small, frog-like winged creatures on the path.


“What are those?” Theirn asked, both appalled and intrigued.


“Vodyanoi,” Lain told him. “They are a species of water spirit. It would seem they thought they had found a home in the stream.”


Theirn glanced around. “Are there likely to be more?”


“I would doubt there are as they attack en masse when they sense trouble. We should, however, move warily for the time being until we are well past this spot.”


And so they did even when they were well beyond the spot where Lain had slain the vodyanoi. As they’d now had encounters with two forms of creatures, they all felt it incumbent to be extremely careful from now on.


Chapter 39