aithne | Imryne, of House Melrae: Where Suns Despair (Reply)

(Stone Sky Dramatis Personae)

Imryne, of House Melrae
Book Three: Stone Sky

Chapter Three: Where Suns Despair

Horrible sights and sounds of the unreached pole,
    And shrill fierce climes of inconsolable air,
Shining below the beamless aureole
    That hangs about the north-wind's hurtling hair,
A comet-lighted lamp, sublime and sole
    Dawn of the dayless heaven where suns despair;
Earth, skies, and waters, smitten into soul,
    Feel the hard veil that iron centuries wear
        Rent as with hands in sunder,
        Such hands as make the thunder
    And clothe with form all substance and strip bare;
        Shapes, shadows, sounds and lights
        Of their dead days and nights
    Take soul of life too keen for death to bear;
        Life, conscience, forethought, will, desire,
Flood men's inanimate eyes and dry-drawn hearts with fire.

--Swinburne, The Eve of Revolution

(Imryne, in House Melrae)

There were thumps outside the bedroom door.

"Faeryl, what did you do with my shoes?"

Imryne turned over, hiding her face against Tar's back. It was always the shoes with Lesrak. "I didn't do anything with your shoes. You left them under the chair, just like you always do," Faeryl said, her voice muffled by the door. The two children went on to squabble a bit more--both were evidently in temperamental moods--and then cleared out. The noise did wake Maya, who Jevan came and fetched into bed with them, handing her to Tar to put to her breast.

For a little while, there were no sounds other than Maya's contented suckling and the breathing of the three adults. Then Imryne changed Maya and put her back in her cradle; she would sleep now for a little while. It took very little convincing to get Tar and Jevan to make love to her, the feeling in her nethers that had been assuaged by last night's bout returning full-force.

A pair of hours later, Imryne's body was sore and her head was far clearer. She washed and dressed, leaving Jevan to his practice and Tar to go down to the cathedral for services. Imryne was wearing Maya in a sling, and went down to speak to the illithid first, to warn him what was coming. He considered what she told him, and said that he would tell his people to move to the location of the secret temple when the time was right.

He also told her that Ulitree, when Kilsek Elerra died, would need the most powerful healer they could manage to repair the damage to her body. The illithid would keep Ulitree's mind alive and rejoin her mind to her body once more once it was repaired.

As for the one in Xalyth, they will kill themselves after the explosion, he said.

Imryne blinked. She felt her understanding of that statement had been somewhat incomplete, as if the illithid had been attempting to express the thought of the illithid in Xalyth in ways that her mind could not bend to accommodate. "It--they--can't get out?"

His tentacles writhed thoughtfully in the shadow of his hood. They are watched too much for us to bring them out. And their knowledge of our whereabouts must be kept a secret.

"Oh. I'm very sorry. I know that one is important to you," she said.

We all are, but one life will keep the others safe. It is a trade we are willing to make. He paused. I will remain here, if that is a concern of yours.

Imryne inclined her head. From the sling that held her, Maya raised her head and gazed at the illithid, three fingers stuffed in her mouth and her blue eyes calm. "I was going to ask you if you'd consider it, since you're helping Talabrina and Phaere."

I made you a promise. Illithid don't break them. Talabrina will not need my help much longer, but Phaere will take much longer.

She nodded. "I should go see Talabrina today or tomorrow, and see how she's doing. Thank you, for staying."

The illithid shifted, spreading one three-fingered hand. I think that you can relinquish your obligation to Talabrina. Another has taken your place.

"Really? Who?"

She could almost swear that he was smiling, as much as a creature with a beak instead of lips could smile. Your brother Zyn.

Imryne smiled, as well. "Well. Good for her."

And for him. They are both in pain. It was not long ago, soon after we spoke about her the first time.

"I'm glad Zyn is talking to someone, and I think they might both need each other in some respect," she said thoughtfully.

He inclined his body towards her. It makes my job easier with her. Her mind will heal more quickly.

"Good." She took a breath, and Maya nestled closer into her body. She frowned, then, knowing that she had to be honest. "I'll admit to being a little disappointed on my own behalf, but neither of them have anyone else."

That door may have closed to you, yes, but I think there will be others.

She chuckled under her breath. "Probably. Even if there aren't, I'm happy with what I have." She brushed one hand over the wispy hair on Maya's head. "I just thought Talabrina was quite attractive when I met her. She and Zyn will be good for one another."

Zyn thought her attractive too, he said. The illithid seemed to want to say something more, but forbore. My people have been alerted and are making preparations. The one in Xalyth has accepted their fate.

"Good. If all goes well, this will happen tonight," she said. "Some of the outcasts will be in the same area. They've agreed not to attack you."

The illithid stilled. Thank you, Imryne of House Melrae.

"Convey my thanks to your people, and my hope they will like their new home."

I am sure they will, he said. Imryne took her leave, walking the corridors to go talk to her mother.

She was shown into her mother's apartments swiftly. Triel was playing a board game with four of her husbands, a three-board version of qithak that looked like it had just gotten started. "Not planning on going anywhere much for the next thread?" Imryne said.

Triel looked up from her contemplation of the board. "Where would I go?" she asked, giving her daughter a wry smile.

"Enough of truth," Imryne said. "Can I speak with you, Mother?"

"Of course." Triel rose, her skirts rustling. "Ruathym, would you take Maya for Imryne? And I will know if any of you move pieces while I'm gone."

Ruathym laughed and held out his hands, and Imryne lifted Maya out of her sling and handed the baby to him. He was Triel's first husband, the oldest of them all. His long limbs reminded her of Rauva, and his smile reminded her of the good parts of her sister, the few that there had been. He cradled Maya and started talking to her in a soft voice.

Imryne and her mother retreated to the study. "Mother. Interesting news for you," she said.

Triel settled down into her chair. "You always have interesting news."

Imryne was perching in her habitual chair, the edge of it hard against her thighs. "House Kilsek is sitting on a bomb made from their rotting dead."

"And you plan to set it off?"

"Yes. I've made the necessary preparations. Chakos had also sent out devices to change the outcasts back into drow, and Oblodra is working on creating more of those."

"Good news," Triel said, genuinely pleased.

"Yes," Imryne said. "You know, I don't think I ever mentioned the name of the leader of the outcasts, did I? I found out what his birth house was last night."

"Really," her mother said. "No, you never did."

"Fanaedar Balok," Imryne said. "He said he'd known you, once."

Triel took a sharp breath. "Goddess, he is still alive. We knew each other through his sister Khaless."

"Yes, and restored to being fully drow, now." Imryne was watching her mother carefully. There was something in her mother's manner that worried her. The pulse was flashing irregularly in Triel's throat. "We'll be taking him and the others who have been changed back up to the surface tonight."

"There to live his life hopefully in peace." Triel's fingers were playing with her ring, fidgeting.

"I hope so. He has had a terrible few centuries. He volunteered to be changed into drider because of what his former wife did to him."

"Xalyth." Triel drew a shaking breath, closing her eyes as if the dim light were hurting her. "Daughter, we should suspend this conversation."

She bowed her head, putting her palms down in submission. "I'm sorry. I should have known it would upset you."

"Balok may have told you some, but I can't tell you much more," her mother said. Her voice was trembling, but steadied as she continued. "Do you know how I knew it was possible to erase memories?"

Imryne looked up at her mother, saw the pain she had seen so many flashes of over the cycles fully surfaced and present in her eyes. There was no glitter of tears, just pain sharp as one of Jevan's swords. "No, you just mentioned that you sometimes wished you'd been able to place the memories of Khaless at a distance so you could heal."

"I did." Triel pressed her lips together. "I couldn't live with them. I left the general knowledge--we had a relationship, I loved her more than anyone. I took the details and put them away. It was the only way I could survive without her. Each string of the past that comes to batter at that door threatens to open it again." Her voice was clear and steady now. "Without her the headaches would have consumed me, much like yours nearly did when you were parted from Jevan."

"The headaches." Imryne swallowed against the pain the crowded her throat. "I think...I think I understand, mother. And I will leave this subject alone. I think it will be best."

"Thank you, daughter." Triel straightened, the pain in her eyes shuttering. "And be careful. I know you are doing the right thing, but something still bothers me."

The weight of her mother's pain lifted from her, leaving behind only faint metallic taste in the back of her throat. "I thought about not doing this. Vandree wants us to do this, and on the face of it, it benefits both of us. But this is Vandree we're talking about."

"It must benefit them more than it does us, somehow." Triel shook her head. "We will have to take the chance and see what the goddess provides."

"Yes. And if we don't, well, I'm afraid Vandree would turn around and have us eliminated."

"It is our only course." There was still that shadow on her mother's face, the same shadow Imryne felt lying on her spirit. "Go and do it, Imryne. Goddess speed."

Imryne rose and went around the desk to hug her mother. "I love you, Mother."

"I love you too," her mother said, hugging her back hard. Then she released her, and Imryne went to collect Maya and go back to her rooms, to think and plan.

The ilit passed slowly, Imryne working out the last of what was needful for the venture that would start late in the third period, in the hard quiet hours when heads nodded and eyes were less watchful. She spoke to her mother once more, telling her what was to be done with Ulitree and when, and to Jevan of visiting House Oblodra before he went down into stone to accomplish his mission.

That left one last person to talk to. Imryne would not have Jevan with her during a critical hour of the operation she was planning, and so needed some of the house guard to protect her. She found Zyn in his bare rooms, frowning at some papers. They looked like rosters, from what she could tell looking at them upside down. "I had a question for you," she said as she settled on a hard chair.

He was looking at her with a steady gaze. "Sure sister, what?"

"Well, the first part is that I'm going to need an escort tonight to the deep. I'm taking the illithids to their new home, and taking the outcasts that have been changed back to the surface. Jevan will be elsewhere, so I'll need some swords to watch my back." She shifted, tilting her head. "My other question is, do you want to go to the surface with the others? To stay?"

The question did not surprise him. "Someday, probably, yes. Not yet."

She nodded, a small fear easing inside of her. Ilfryn dying made her cling to those she loved even harder, it seemed. "You being officially dead means that you're as much a prisoner inside this house as Mother is. I hate to see that happen to you. I thought you might want to go with the outcasts. Maybe talk Talabrina into coming with you." Imryne smiled.

Now Zyn did look briefly startled, then smiled in return as if this was not too unexpected, as if he expected Imryne to know immediately of everything that went on in the darkest corners of House Melrae. "That was my intent, but I will need time to see where this goes and if she wants to spend time with me or go to the surface."

He was serious about her, then. Males never spoke of females in that tone of voice unless they were unbearably important to them. "I understand. Well, would you put together an escort for me? We'll need to leave soon."

"No trouble. You will have to disguise me on the way out." Oddly, he looked a little relieved.

"That we can manage. I need to finish putting together some communication set-spells, and then I'll be ready," she told him. She rose and thanked him, and retreated to the mage lab, her mind refreshed and ready to put the final touches on the twists of paper that were to carry words from a speaker to a listener over distance and through stone. When the third period began, Jevan went alone to House Oblodra to pick up a spell and get into position. Imryne and Zyn took a small escort with them a few hours later, walking through the quiet city. Fanaedar slept in stone, and Imryne hoped that inside House Kilsek, most were asleep and innocent of fear.

She met the outcasts at the temple, all of them squeezing in through the crack in the stone. Many of them were back to their former bodies, and Imryne saw the marks of many of the noble houses on their faces and bodies--there was House Noquar's beaky nose, here was House Jenn'Xyir's heavy build. Imryne opened the wall to the old temple, and saw with some dismay that there was sun beaming down from the ceiling, too bright to be stood with unshaded eyes. Balok, ever practical, instructed all of the outcasts to make blindfolds from whatever rags they were wearing. "We can't afford to wait until night falls," he muttered to Imryne.

She agreed. She took them all to the surface and then returned with her escort down below, closing the wall and waiting. The pressure of a message spell activating made her ears pop, and she winced. Jevan's voice came to her clearly. "I've set off the ignition spell, and it's sucking in air like you wouldn't believe. I've retreated to a safe location. Hang on to something."

As his voice cut out, the floor gave a sickening jerk, and then Imryne was hanging on to Zyn as both of them tried to keep their balance and the ground shook. Pebbles rained down from the ceiling of the temple, bits of stone dislodged by the tremors. A wave of terror broke over her, and her hands were hard on Zyn's arm; all creatures under stone feared cave-ins and drow were no different. Goddess, please let Jevan survive! He had been much closer, and if he had been in the wrong place or had gotten unlucky... She swallowed her fears.

Her stone sense told her that the stone around them had not shifted too far out of alignment, and the tremors quickly subsided and the stones stopped pattering to the star-strewn floor. Doors began opening in the air around her, illithids stepping silently out. Imryne fought down panic once more, letting go of Zyn. One illithid was all right to deal with. The seventy that had just arrived were another matter entirely, something dark at the base of her brain waking to see an ancient predator and priming her body to flee.

Another pressure, and Jevan's voice came to her again. "I'm alive, heading to the temple. Be there soon." She sagged in relief.

One of the illithids came up to Imryne. This one was bigger than the one in Melrae, and its hood was pulled back so she could see its lidless black eyes and the writhing tentacles that surrounded its beak. We are in contact with the other in your house. He wishes to speak with you.

The voice of this one felt decidedly different than the one in Melrae. She did not know enough about the illithids to have any idea what the difference meant, whether this one was older or of a different sex, or something else that she had no comprehension of. "Through you, I assume?" She held out her hand.

It wrapped its three-fingered hand around hers, and for a moment before it opened its mind to hers she felt that the skin of its hand was moist and smooth, very unlike the one in Melrae. Then the mind of the illithid had her, and she could feel what seemed like thousands of voices whispering, surrounding her. All individuals. All part of a whole. Her mind quailed away from the hugeness of it, big as the world, alien.

The mind that held her seemed to be covering some sort of distance, and she felt the familiar presence of the illithid that resided in Melrae. Imryne?

Imryne tried to breathe out carefully, only to discover that she seemed to have no lungs, no mouth, no connection to her physical body. She twisted in the grasp of the one who held her, and then relaxed. She got the feeling from the one that held her that this was expected and perhaps a little amusing. "Yes, it's me," she finally replied.

Ulitree is fine, though her deformities remain. But we need you to see something that was unforeseen by all of us. She felt herself gently transferred from the one that held her to the more familiar one. There was a sense of motion, and then images began to pour into her mind. A thousand pairs of eyes, all staring at the same thing, all stunned. The hole in the ground that had once been House Kilsek, great stones thrown everywhere, streets cracked and smoking, air smudged with black and chokingly thick. The walls were still standing, but they had been breached in hundreds of places. The buildings that had not been directly over the blast were crumbling and burning. Bodies and parts of bodies lay everywhere; there were survivors as well, limping or crawling away as they could. Some lay still except for making a thin wailing noise, the sound of death approaching.

Surrounded by rubble and the twisted metal that had once been the proud gates of House Kilsek, Vandree Imrae stood straight and tall, a look of utter concentration of her face. In one hand she held a pale yellow crystal, and Imryne started to realize that it looked like the crystal that figured so prominently in the paintings on the walls of the temple that her body was standing in as she and the illithid who held her surveyed the scene. Before Imrae stood a drider.

It was perfect and grotesque, eight silk-furred legs supporting a heavy, segmented spider body. Where a spider would have a head, the drider had instead the torso of a male drow, soot-stained white hair hanging lank down his naked back. The eyes of the drow were black, without pupil, and there were glistening spots around the eyes that Imryne thought might be extra eyes. It opened its mouth, and a pair of small limbs unfolded themselves from within, dripping with spittle and poison. "We pledge our allegiance to the bearer of the stone," it said, and its voice was deferent and terrible. "What will you have us do?"

Imrae smiled, and the expression on her face was once of vicious triumph. "Take half and post guards around the city, kill any that resist our leadership. The other half, send to Abburth and destroy it."

The drider bent its front two pairs of legs in a horrible parody of a bow, and all of its eyes were fixed on the stone. Then it hissed, and behind in, in the wreckage of House Kilsek, the ground began to shift.

Behind the drider, a drow head broke the surface of the stone. It heaved itself up and out of the stone, almost as if were liquid. Around it, there were other heads coming up out of the stone, and what seemed like hundreds of drider climbed up out of the rubble and poured out and away from Kilsek. Imryne stared, stunned, as the hundreds of pairs of eyes that the illithid was gathering bits and pieces of sight from flinched away, closed, tried to believe it wasn't true. If Imryne had been in her body, she would have felt sick. As it was, she hung limply in the illithid's grip. She watched as the drider spread out and began to kill, slaughtering anyone, drow or slave, who dared even glance their way.

"Imrae used me." It was all she could say, all she could comprehend. Oh Goddess, I have delivered my city into the hands of my enemy.

She has. The voice of the illithid felt almost sympathetic. It will probably not help to say that you had no choice, though it is the truth. The illithid at Xalyth has taken their life, we mourn their loss but will remember their sacrifice.

With her mind in intimate contact with the illithid's, she felt the being's sorrow, and her mind stretched to comprehend its thought. The one inside House Xalyth had been special, alone of their generation. The only words Imryne could put to the concept that the illithid was embodying for her was that the one in Xalyth was an individual. They were the soul and the memory of the collective, the-one-who-touches-spawn. They had been very young. They would be reborn; even now, one of the quickened spawn carried within the spines of the bearers was being prepared as a receptacle for their soul.

There was more, but Imryne's mind could not bear it all, and she struggled in the illithid's grasp, trying to turn the face that her mind was currently not connected to away, close eyes that she could not feel. The illithid took pity on her, and shifted his grip so he was no longer in such close contact with her. "As will I," she said. "I will finish here, and move your people to their new home."

Thank you. The illithid turned her over to the one that was physically holding her, and broke contact.

Imryne snapped back to her body. Her cheeks were wet, and her eyes hurt. The tall illithid let go of her hand. We are sorry for what has happened, we will help in any way we can. It is the least we can do for what you have done for us.

She shook her head. "For the moment, it's enough that you have somewhere new to go." Her hand was wrapped tightly around her staff, and she leaned heavily on it, feeling the weight of all the stone over her head. She roused herself and walked towards the center of the room, cautioning all of the illithids back. Then she fitted the staff into the receptacle and turned it, opening the floor.

One magical door opening was almost silent. Seventy of them cast almost at once made a sizzling noise, a hum and pop as the illithid stepped through their doors and out below. It took a matter of moments for all of them to appear below, the tall one that had spoken to Imryne in the center of the crowd. It looked up at her and raised a hand in an oddly drow-like motion, farewell and thanks.

Then she turned the staff back and the stone slid closed, and Imryne felt the buzz in her feet as the wards in the floor powered up once more.

It was done.

To my sorrow.

She sank down to the stone floor, crossing her legs and putting the staff across her lap. Her fingers searched the carvings, over and over again. Though she heard Zyn and the others moving around and talking in low voices, none approached her, and none touched her.

Until there was a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up into a pair of worried blue eyes.

She reached up for him, wordless, and he sat down beside her and put his arms around her. "What's the matter, love?" he asked. "Zyn is fretting about you."

Imryne leaned into him, her throat closed, then swallowed. "Imrae used me. She has the stone that controls the drider. She's taking control of Fanaedar with them, and sending half of them to destroy Abburth. Kilsek had so many drider. It looked like nearly a thousand."

"Dear goddess," he said, stricken. His arms around her tightened. "It's not your fault. We did what we had to do."

"I know. But it changes everything." She raised one hand and wiped her eyes.

"It does. But we do what we always do, survive and go on. We fought before, and we will continue the fight. The rules may have changed but the end is still the same."

Jevan seemed so sure of himself, and she wondered how much of that was genuine, and how much of that was a brave face put on to lift her spirits. It did not matter, she decided. It was what she needed right now. "It was not certain before, and it's even less certain now. I don't know what Imrae plans to do, but I can't imagine it's going to be good."

"We can only wait and see. I think it would have been worse if Kilsek had released them. This might have been why Imrae was so intent on doing this now, knowing Kilsek was about to do something."

"Probably. Though of those two evils, I'm not sure which I'd knowingly pick." She took a long breath.

"Better the evil we sort of know," he said. "Let me take you home. We're done here."

She raised her head. "I just need to talk to Zyn, tell him what the situation is. I'm not sure how he and the rest of the escort will get home."

"I will come back and get them one by one if necessary," he told her, and the rock-steady confidence in his voice heartened her. She got to her feet and went to see Zyn, who was standing with the escort clustered around him by the entrance to the temple, the jagged crack in the stone. She motioned to him to come away with her, and the two of them began to pace along the perimeter of the temple.

They fell into step so easily, though Zyn was half a head taller than her and his legs were much longer. "Kilsek is gone, but we've unleashed something terrible in its place. Vandree Imrae has taken control of what looks like a thousand drider, and is using them to take control of the city."

Zyn nodded grimly, as if he had expected something of the sort to have happened. "House Melrae?"

"Still stands, and is safe for the moment."

"Good, home then, if we are done here."

Imryne felt breathless, and the shock was settling into nausea that churned in her gut. "We are, but I'm not sure that you and the rest of the escort will be able to go through Fanaedar safely. The drider are killing everyone who even begins to question them. Jevan can bring you back one by one."

"We will get as close as we dare and he can transport us in and out," Zyn said. He glanced over at her, and a frown crossed his face, an expression so transient that Imryne wondered if it had been there at all.

She was gripping the staff in her hand so tightly that her knuckles were paling, the engraved words cutting into her skin. "Good. I don't want to lose any more tonight."

Zyn stopped, and as if the two of them were connected by a rope Imryne came to a stop as well. He put a hand on her shoulder. "We won't." The words were a promise.

She spent a long moment looking at him, the brother who she knew so well and yet not at all. Then she nodded and turned away, raising her voice to bring the escort and Jevan towards her. They began the long trek to Fanaedar, walking to twisted tunnels.

There were no drider guarding the gallery of the dead, but there were several pacing by the entrance to Fanaedar. They detoured and climbed, Zyn guiding them all to a place that he knew where a narrow tunnel opened onto the wall of Fanaedar's cavern. There was no ledge, but such was not needed. Jevan squeezed out first and then caught Imryne in his arms. The air was thick and foul with smoke and stone dust, and Kilsek still burned. If there had been any fight left, the drider had ended it, and the streets were still except for the movement of the drider through them, menacingly smooth. They walked the streets and stood at the gates of the noble houses as if possession of the city had been passed to them.

Jevan dropped like a stone into the outer courtyard of Melrae, setting Imryne down. She held him tightly for a moment, then kissed him and released him. "Go get the others. I have to talk to my mother."

He nodded and took off without another word, and Imryne walked into the inner house. As she shed the garment of her outside persona, she felt her body bowing and bending, her shoulders rounding. She did not find her mother in her apartments, but instead on a balcony in the tower that rose proudly from the inner house. She was alone, except for a pair of guards who stood well back, and she did not turn as Imryne joined her at the railing. She was staring at House Kilsek, and the driders that paced around the crumbling walls.

"The thing is done," Imryne said. "To my sorrow."

Triel did not turn to look at her, not yet. "I see that we had some unplanned results."

"I knew Imrae had strength she was not showing, but I never suspected this."

Now Triel did turn to look at her daughter. Imryne tried not to flinch at the look in her eyes, knowing the anger was not directed at her. "Nor did I. We wait now and see what tomorrow brings. I worry about an attack on us or our allies."

"With all those drider, if Vandree decides that one of the houses needs to die, it will." She looked down, seeing three drider walking around the walls of Melrae.

"They will, at that. I think things will shift and alliances will change. Xalyth may even fall." Triel turned, looking at the great bulk of House Xalyth that was nearly hidden by the thick smoke rising from Kilsek. Behind Xalyth, House Vandree was invisible. "If we survive the strand, there will likely be no attack. If Vandree decides that we are Ellistraee, we are doomed."

"We also just did them a very great favor," Imryne pointed out. "We did it in large part because we could not say no, but it may count for something."

"I think it will play in our favor in the end. Vandree will take it into consideration. Stay low this week, daughter. Let's watch and see." Triel glanced down, at the walls of Melrae. "Get Jevan to fortify everything. If we have to fight, I want to take as many with me as possible."

"I will. He's currently bringing Zyn and the rest of my escort back." Her voice trembled and she cursed silently, tightening her hand on the stone railing.

Her mother her gave her a look that told her that she had heard the weakness. "We may need Zyn's sword as well. Don't blame yourself. It was our decision, remember?"

Imryne nodded shallowly. "I know, but it's still hard to look out there and see what's happened. Even knowing the alternative might have been worse."

"If Kilsek had released them, it's not hard to believe that they would have cleared the city of any even rumored to be Ellistraee. Vandree at least owes us something."

"Yes, and you have to admit our actions tonight have been somewhat unlike how our religion is rumored to be. Those who don't know the goddess think her soft." She smiled thinly.

Triel returned her smile. "They do, but love encompasses jealousy, and that is very dangerous. And so are we."

Below them, a shadow moved. A lone drow crept along, bent almost double, keeping to the shadows and moving slowly. The drider did not bother him or her, but the figure flinched whenever one of them looked their way. "I don't think the Lloth worshipers realize that about us," Imryne said, watching the progress of the figure.

"That will get them killed. The end is the same, daughter. We fight to get back our city. We rest for now, but we will start again."

"We will." Imryne bowed her head. "I should see you at first meal, Mother."

Triel reached out and brushed her fingertips across Imryne's cheek. Her skin burned where her mother touched her. "I will see you when the ilit turns, daughter of the eighth house of Fanaedar."

Imryne stepped back, then turned and walked into the house, her gut churning with fear. She went back to the set, where Tar waited, the children clustered tightly around her. Imryne joined her on the chaise, gathering Lesrak onto her lap and feeling Challay press herself against her back, Faeryl wriggling into the space between Tar and Imryne. The only one sleeping was Maya, who was cuddled on Tar's lap. They spoke in hushed tones, and Imryne answered the childrens' worried questions as much as she could. Yes, House Kilsek had exploded. No, she didn't think there would be an attack on their house any time soon. Yes, there were driders in the streets, and no, she didn't know what was going to happen next.

Jevan returned just before first meal, and right after he arrived a message was received at the mews that Imryne was summoned to council immediately. She quickly washed her face and changed her clothes, sent Challay to Triel with her apologies and a promise to share third meal with her, and walked out, Jevan at her shoulder.

There was a drider waiting for them on the other side of the gate. It offered no threat, simply fell in silently behind her. She tried not to flinch away from it, but her skin crawled. She was close enough to it to feel the air currents that its body disturbed, and hear the scratching noise that its feet made on the stone.

It stopped when she reached the doors of the council house, staying outside. Jevan took his usual place along the wall, and Imryne joined a silent knot of representatives. Naerth Akordia was wide-eyed, her lips pinched and pale. T'sarran Jhulae was quite a bit calmer, reminding Imryne of Ilfryn at his most self-possessed and silent. The other representatives stood in twos and threes around the large room, some of them whispering but most silent. DeVir Yasrena, representative from the new House 12, unsuccessfully tried to hide her terror, standing alone near the table.

Finally, Xalyth Greyanna appeared...and for the first time since Imryne had begun attending council, she was not the last representative to arrive. There was no representative from Vandree yet. Greyanna took her seat at the head of the table, and the rest of them arrayed themselves around the tables, leaving the second position's chair open. Nobody spoke.

The doors of the council house opened, and all of them turned to look. Vandree Imrae walked in, and Imryne's stomach tightened. Imrae's ornate dress made a hushing sound against the floor as she walked from the door to Vandree's seat next to Greyanna. She glanced for a long moment at Greyanna, then took Vandree's seat in the number two position.

Greyanna's lips were pinched. "What is the meaning of this attack on our ally?" she asked, and Imryne heard her voice nearly break on the last word. This was as afraid as Imryne had ever seen Greyanna.

Imrae simply looked at Greyanna, and smiled just a little. The entire room flinched away from that smile, down to the spiders on the walls. "You serve now at our whim, Greyanna. You will be first house as it pleases us to be the power behind... well nothing really, we are the power." Greyanna flushed black, but kept her mouth shut. "There are new rules now. The drider control the city and we control the drider. The council serves at our pleasure. Your house ranks will remain. But for now, we control the city. Now is the time for control, so those that defied us or laughed or thought us weak will remain in house, conducting business as normal. No one leaves the city without our permission, the drider will be making sure you are on the list to leave if necessary. One exception will be made to this rule. House Melrae for its participation and loyalty to House Vandree will continue the slaving on the surface unabated."

Her mouth dry as dust, Imryne nodded to Imrae as if in thanks. Imrae inclined her head briefly, and then continued. "As for other news, the threat of Abburth has been neutralized. The drider are returning this very ilit from a successful campaign. Abburth is no more, we let survivors go to warn other drow cities about our power. We welcome DeVir and their representative Yasrena to the council. This council will now meet every fourth strand. Please mark this change permanent, and it may increase in infrequency at our discretion." Imrae's voice was dry, and her hands were on the wood of the table, perfectly still. You are all dismissed. Let the groveling for your lives commence." She smiled at Imryne. "House Melrae, this does not include you."

Greyanna shoved her chair back and rose abruptly, and walked out at a pace just a shade short of a run. Despana Aunrae was right on her heels. The rest of the council clustered around Imrae, congratulating her on her victory, paying homage to her with their fingertips pressed lightly on the back of her hand. Imryne stayed where she was, feeling Jevan's gaze resting on her, until the crowd began to break up and she was free to approach Imrae.

She bowed her head as she came close, clasping her hands briefly in submission. "We are pleased with your work, Imryne," Imrae said. "Thank you."

"And thank you, for giving us this chance. You've discomfited Greyanna, which is always good to see." Imrae smiled at her, and the churning feeling in Imryne's gut was back. She continued, "Do you know what Kilsek was going to do with all of those driders?"

"The plan we uncovered was to release them and sweep into power," Imrae said. "They were going to take us, you, Naerth, T'sarran for sure. Possibly others. Any that were once allies of Nurbonnis."

"Much better you than them," Imryne said quietly.

"So we thought." Imrae smiled again, and despite herself Imryne found herself responding to that smile, some part of her wondering why she was so afraid of this matron mother. "We have no plans for killing houses. Peace is all we want, and if it is peace through drider then so be it."

"Speaking of, congratulations on the victory over Abburth."

Imrae wove her fingers together, her rings sparkling on her thin fingers. "Thank you, it was short and with minimal losses. It was easier to destroy them than to try to get them to stop."

She inclined her head. "And now, peace. As strange as that is."

"I know that is too much to ask for drow, but for a time, yes. I am sure the infighting will continue, as is our way." Imrae grimaced briefly. "But the outer fighting will cease. The drider will take over the patrols in the underdark and we can bring some of our sons home."

"Do you want us to bring in slaves at the wartime rate?" Imryne asked. "If we do that with no war, we will soon be stuffed to the roof of the city with orcs. And do you want to take Xalyth's place in receiving the first pick of the best?"

"Please," Imrae said. "You can cut back, we just need to replace losses from that war. Once that is accomplished then feel free to cut back as the market demands. I find it more important to build back our houses. We once had over fifty houses in this city. We are down to forty-one. I hope this is the last house loss for some time."

"I understand. Are you thinking of splitting some of the larger houses?"

"When our numbers are greater." Imrae favored her with an unreadable look. "I would think you would want your own house."

She twitched the corner of her mouth. "At the moment, I am more than content to be the heir and representative of Melrae."

Imrae snorted gently, her nostrils flaring. "Representative of Melrae is soon going to be a hollow job, I think. Council never seemed to accomplish much but to listen to Greyanna blow hot air. And no one wants to listen to that."

"It was on occasion difficult to keep a straight face," Imryne said.

"I am sure. So go, House Melrae, take time in peace and rest. We thank you again for your faithfulness." She paused, and her smile grew by just a fraction. "By the way, if the rumors are true or even if they are just rumors, I will not and neither will the rest of the council have words about who you sleep with, or marry." She gave Imryne a measuring look. "I was always envious of House Fanaedar's willingness to experiment."

Imryne's nerves were singing a discordant song. But the secret was no secret now, it seemed, and Imryne raised an eyebrow. "Then I have more to thank you for than I originally suspected."

"Ah, so the rumor was true." Imryne thought she detected more than a little amusement in Imrae's voice. "I had thought it just rumor because of his looks, and envy from the others."

"It was a rumor that I was about to confirm, out of necessity since my brother Zyn died." Imryne kept her voice steady. "Jevan is our weaponsmaster, now."

Imrae smiled again. "I had wondered if that is who you would choose."

She gave a half-shrug. "Melrae breeds good soldiers. Not necessarily good leaders."

"Well at least one good leader." Imryne almost stiffened at the compliment, not sure what exactly Imrae meant by it. "Rest, Melrae, I am sure trials will come again, and we will have to prove our loyalty to each other again." Imrae stood and swept out, motioning to her guards, who fell in after her, the shadow of her drider escort falling on the threshold as they opened the door. The door banged closed, leaving Imryne in silence with Jevan and the restlessly moving spiders on the walls.

Imryne sagged, her hand on the back on Imrae's chair. Jevan was beside her now, and he pulled her into his arms, kissing her soundly. She closed her eyes and lost herself in that kiss, allowing the warmth and scent of him to fill her entire consciousness. "Always wanted to do that in here," he said after breaking the kiss, grinning.

She laughed, and there was a giddy lightness in her chest overlying the fear that still moved in her. "You want to do that everywhere. Here." She reached up to the back of Jevan's scratched golden collar, feeling for the hidden catch. She snagged it with her finger, and it came off with a soft click of release. Imryne pulled it off of his neck and set it on the table. "Might as well test Imrae's word."

"Want to really test her word?" he asked, and there was a dangerous sparkle in his eyes.

She looked at him a bit askance. "You're not thinking what I think you're thinking, are you? Well, I suppose there's nobody left here but the ghosts and the watching spells..."

He chuckled, and she warmed completely to the idea. "Xalyth's chair or yours?" Jevan asked.

"Mine. I want to make some good memories to go in that chair." She stepped back, pulling him along with her, her hands sliding under his shirt. The urgency had woken in her again, and the fear in her faded as she pushed him down in her chair and straddled him, her skirts draped over his legs. She breathed into his ear, "I want to always think about making love to you on the table, every time I walk into the council house."

His answer was a growling groan, and it seemed like only moments later when the two of them, still mostly dressed, were entwined on the table. She was tired, so tired, but the feeling of him within her assuaged a need that had been growing to a fever pitch, washed away fear and anger and guilt. Her orgasm broke over her far more quickly than usual, and Jevan paused for a moment, letting her recover before continuing. This was not the leisurely lovemaking that she had grown used to in the last cycle, especially in the days after Ilfryn had died, when Jevan was so very careful with her, as if he feared damaging their regrowing bond if he moved too quickly.

This was hard and fast, their bodies moving together in frantic need, urging each other on with hands and mouth and whispered yes there oh don't stop don't ever stop--

When it was over, they lay pressed together on the table. Imryne's hand rested on the piece of skin that she had almost never touched, the roughened place on his neck where the collar had rested since he had arrived in Melrae. "Home," she murmured. "I would feel better behind our walls."

Jevan kissed her and clambered down from the table, and she followed him, shaking out her skirts and pulling up her bodice as he rearranged his own clothing. They left the council house, and the drider that had been waiting for them fell in behind her. That one took up permanent residence at the gates of Melrae, standing statue-like for hours and then ilit. It did not prevent anyone passing. It merely stood--and watched.

House Melrae retreated behind its walls, waiting.

Hours became ilit, ilit became threads, threads became skeins. A feeling of sullenness descended on Fanaedar as the population realized that the drider were not going anywhere. The festivals of Lloth went on as planned. Every so often, Imryne would receive word from the illithids, saying that they had found some refugees from Abburth. Imryne went to their new home as often as she could, to transfer the silent and shaking drow to the surface. In all, over five hundred drow from Abburth were transferred to the new settlement on the surface, where small earth residences were dug into the ground.

Imryne's younger brother Omareth returned home six skeins after House Kilsek died, returning from his time in the army thin and hard and silent as the blade he was now entitled to carry. He was as unlike the laughing male she remembered so well as could be, at least at first. He spent his time being Zyn and Jevan's shadow, and slowly, so slowly, began to smile once again.

And slowly, the drider in the streets and the infrequency of council meetings became to seem normal.

The great houses of Fanaedar turned inward upon themselves.

*****

"I swear, this child is going to eat me to a thread!"

Tar leaned over and tickled Sabal's cheek. The infant opened his blue eyes, blinked, and then went back to greedily nursing. "You can get a wet nurse if you're having trouble keeping milk in," she said, then leaned over to kiss Imryne. "How are you feeling, love?"

She was curled in the big chair in the main room of the set, her nearly-newborn son at her breast and a soft blanket covering the both of them. "Better," she said. "The potion last night helped. It doesn't seem to have done Sabal any harm, either." She glanced up at her wife. "Thank you for catching it in time."

"Glad I could. Is there room enough for me in that chair?"

Imryne laughed and lifted the blanket, shifting her legs. "I think so. Where's Maya?"

"Urlryn took her, Nendra, and Ulitree to the temple." Tar slid in beside Imryne, dislodging Sabal from Imryne's nipple for a moment. Sabal made a blurted sound of baby frustration that was silenced as Imryne shifted him so he could continue nursing. Tar pulled the blanket up to cover all of them. "Faeryl's with your mother's husbands."

She leaned over to kiss Tar on her new-shaven head. "Has Triel emerged yet?"

"Not yet." Her wife paused, pressing her lips together. "I asked Ulitree this morning if she wants to go back to her own house, now that she's completely better."

"And?"

Tar shook her head. "She started crying, thinking I wanted to send her away. I'd say that she doesn't want to go home."

Imryne chuckled. "I think here's home for her, really. It's not like she takes up much room, and she isn't any trouble. We're going to have to move to Jaelryn's rooms, though, if we keep picking up strays."

"Might be an idea, anyway." Tar kissed Imryne's shoulder and snuggled down farther. Her whole body relaxed, and she reached out to brush Sabal's head, covered in the downy hair that all drow children were born with. "I can't believe it's been a cycle since Imrae took over."

"Truth," she said. Sabal started wriggling, and Imryne shifted so she could transfer him to the other breast. He was almost twice the size Maya had been at his age, which likely had much to do with the fact that he was male, and Imryne was tall. He hardly fussed except when he was hungry, ate so voraciously that Imryne had already lost most of the weight she had put on when she was pregnant, and was overall possibly one of the least difficult infants that Imryne had ever known. She hoped it held true through the rest of his childhood.

She closed her eyes, thinking about time passing, about the drider that stalked the streets. It was so much easier not to think about it, to go to council once every few strands and listen to Imrae talk, and then come home to Tar and Jevan and the children. She was supposed to start going to House Oblodra for lessons once she was fully recovered from giving birth, and in the wake of the Star Dance potion that had been administered to her last night, she found she was looking forward to that.

Triel counseled patience, but was closeting herself more frequently these days, shutting herself away from the family for days at a time. Imryne was taking on more of the duties of running the House, and Challay was her razor-thin shadow, resembling Ilfryn more and more with every passing cycle. She was proud of Challay's housecraft, but she was by no means ready to be on her own. Then again, neither am I.

Right now, though, it was enough to be here, with Sabal nursing and Tar at her side, safe behind the walls from all of the threats of the place Fanaedar had become.

*****

"What now?"

It had been an evening full of interruptions, from the minor crises of Faeryl having a fight with one of her fellow students and Sabal falling and skinning both knees in the outer courtyard, to the more major one of a scuffle at the gates between the drider that stood watch there and a trader who had treaded just a little too close. Now there was a heavy tattoo of a knock at the door, and Imryne had swung to her feet. She was meant to be practicing--her teacher in Oblodra had given her an assignment to work on--but she was too restless and out of sorts this ilit to work on it. Her studies were going well, when she could concentrate; the combination of disciplines she was pursuing made everything fit in her head much better than either priest or mage studies alone.

Jevan was working on some rosters, and Tar was reading one of the books that had been brought down with the last batch of slaves, a quite filthy romance that she was quite enthusiastic about. They glanced up as Imryne went to answer the door; it was a good bet that whoever was there wanted to see her.

When she opened it, instead of a messenger or a guard, there was Urlryn, standing with her hands on her hips, looking determined. Confused, Imryne began to open her mouth to ask what Urlryn wanted.

She only got as far as, "What--" before Urlryn had her hands on Imryne's shoulders and her mouth was covering Imryne's, her body pressed close. Heat washed in a tingling wave from the top of Imryne's head down to her toes, and before she could really think about it she was kissing Urlryn back, her body making decisions before her stunned mind could catch up.

It took the space of a few breaths for Imryne to regain her composure. She took Urlryn's shoulders in her hands, breaking the kiss, holding her away from her a little. "Er, Urlryn? What under stone? I'm not objecting, mind you, just confused."

Urlryn took a shallow breath, looking up at Imryne with an odd expression in her tilted eyes. There was fear and determination, and something else that Imryne could not name. "I am lonely," she said, and her voice was tense. "I want you, and what you have. I want to be part of this family, and yours." Imryne could feel her shaking, her whole body trembling. "I want to be loved, to be held. I was never good at things like this, people think me reserved. I couldn't tell you. I thought maybe expressing it was better."

Imryne just looked at her for a moment, lost for words. Urlryn, over the last four cycles, had become a constant presence in the house, running what Melrae had for an informant network and lending a hand with the myriad children of the House. She had never spoken much to any of them, and Imryne had had no inkling of the feelings Urlryn was expressing. "It seemed a bit sudden, was all," she said, finally. "I need to talk to Tar and Jevan about this."

"Four cycles is not so sudden for me, but I understand. Even just tonight, if all of you would make love to me..." Her eyes pleaded with Imryne, and the shaking in her shoulders had increased.

She pulled Urlryn into a hug, feeling how her small body cleaved to her own, a whole-body expression of attraction. "I'll ask Tar and Jevan. If nothing else, you might find me showing up at your room tonight."

"Thank you." Urlryn had her arms around Imryne, and needed significant encouraging to let go. Imryne shooed her out the door and closed it, then wandered back into the bedroom, feeling confusion with a bit of giddiness around the edges.

She sat down on the edge of the bed. "Well, that has to have been the oddest pass ever made at me."

"By who?" Jevan asked.

"Urlryn, if you can believe it."

Tar snorted. "She has been eying you for years. All of us, really. So yes, I can believe it." She levered herself upright, putting her book aside.

Imryne blinked. "Now you tell me!"

"Thought you had noticed and dismissed it as a crush," Tar said. She ran a hand over her scalp. "I wasn't going to go there without you two."

Imryne gave her wife a sharp smile. "Tar, love, I'm occasionally oblivious to these sorts of things. I have to admit that I'm tempted, but I told her I needed to consult the two of you first."

"All of us, or just you?" Jevan asked.

There was a world of old pain in that question, and Imryne tried not to flinch. "Well, I was somewhat hoping all of us. Tar doesn't sound terribly opposed. Urlryn did say that if she could even have one night with all of us, she'd take it."

Tar was grinning, now. "I think she is cute. And the quiet ones are usually the loudest and kinkiest."

"They are, aren't they?" She wondered what Urlryn would sound like in the midst of passion, if she would be as loud then as she normally was quiet. "What about you, Jevan?"

His voice was thoughtful. "I have a bit of trouble separating love and sex. So if it's going somewhere, like another lover for the three of us, I have no trouble. If it's just one night, while fun, it might hurt her more than help her. And why now? Her time?"

"I hadn't thought about it, but maybe it is. She just said she's no good at saying these things, so she just sort of, ah, pounced on me when I let her in." Imryne considered it for a few moments. "I certainly wouldn't mind the possibility of having her as another lover for the three of us."

"Think you could love her?"

She thought about Urlryn's unstinting service to House Melrae, her intelligence, her quick, shy smile. "I think I could. But...there was some amount of deception involved in bringing her and her house into this one. I'm not very good at keeping secrets from people I love. And this has the potential to hurt her."

Jevan nodded, and she thought she could hear approval in his voice. "Want to tell her the truth first?"

"I think I--or we--ought to. If she doesn't hate us afterwards..." She trailed off, shrugging.

He turned then to Tar. "How about you, Tar? Could you fall in love with her?"

Tar stretched, making her breasts press a clear outline in the filmy dress she was wearing. "I think so."

"I think I could too, so we should tell her and if she hates us..." He shrugged. "Then there's nothing to start. If she doesn't, then let's try and see."

Imryne rose. "I'll bring her in so we can talk to her." She went out and down the halls to Urlryn's room, her stomach tightening in nervousness. How long had it been since she had been here, considering bringing a new person into her life? Jevan, once they had remembered one another, had slipped into her life as if he had always belonged there. Since Tar, she thought. Ilfryn had been arranged for her by her mother, but Tar had been the first person she had pursued for herself. Her throat was dry and a bit sore. She wondered how much Urlryn really knew about her, what information about her episodes had leaked out.

She wondered if it would matter to Urlryn, even if she did know.

First, there was the matter at hand. Urlryn came with Imryne to the set, following her silently, and allowed herself to be seated on a low stool in the bedroom. This was not a conversation Imryne wanted any of the children to overhear, and Tar had put Maya and Sabal to bed with Challay while Imryne was gone.

Imryne sat facing Urlryn, and Tar perched on a chair. Jevan had retreated to the other side of the room, as if fearing that his presence might be too much for Urlryn. Imryne swallowed, and began. "Urlryn, we all think there's potential for us to love you. But before we set your feet on that road, there are things we need to tell you. I, at least, am not good at keeping secrets from those I love, and best you find this out before we begin than later." Her hands were trembling, but she forged ahead. "About eight years ago now, the Jenn seriously suspected that House Millithor was Abburth's contact in Fanaedar. We couldn't allay their suspicion, and Xalyth had been alerted as well. Xalyth asked us to eliminate your house and bring her the body of your mother. It was merely a matter of time before the Jenn would have been ordered to help us. We chose to save as many lives as we could. Unfortunately, the one we could not save was your mother's. We were forced to kill her."

Urlryn's eyes were wide, and she was staring at Imryne without really seeing her. Her hands were twisted in her skirt, and she was shaking. "You killed my mother? It was because of what I did, wasn't it?"

"They said someone from Millithor showed up on their doorstep, asking to see the bodies of the Abburth drow they were keeping."

"That was me. Oh, goddess, I got my mother killed." Urlryn was crying now, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, her chin tucked to her chest. "I knew I had done something wrong, that it was my fault. Now I know."

This was not the reaction that Imryne had expected from Urlryn. "It would have happened anyway, I think. It was mere chance that Melrae was assigned to find out who the spies for Abburth were," she said, as she went to Urlryn and put her arms around her.

Urlryn leaned into Imryne, sobbing, repeating, "Goddess, oh goddess," over and over again. They had opened a floodgate in Urlryn, it seemed, and all of the tears she had not shed when her mother had died and the name Millithor had been extinguished came rushing out. Imryne beckoned Tar and Jevan over, and the three of them held her as she cried.

By morning, they had her sleeping in the bed, pressed between Imryne and Tar. There had been no sex that night, just a crying Urlryn and murmured words of comfort. When she woke, Urlryn moved stiffly. She muttered, "Sorry," and hugged all three of them, leaving with her head hung low.

Imryne watched her go, thinking. "She'll be back," she said softly.

For the next strand, Urlryn assiduously avoided the three of them, though she still spent time with the children. They saw not a hair of her, and Faeryl reported that she seemed sad. Imryne started to wonder if she hadn't been wrong, if Urlryn had gotten angry with them after working through her grief.

Then came another knock on the door, late one ilit, and Imryne suspected it was Urlryn even before she pulled the door open. Urlryn stood on the other side, wearing a filmy dress, her hair unbound. "Will you three hold me tonight?" she asked, looking uncertain.

"Of course, Urlryn." Imryne brought her inside and into the bed. There was no sex this night either, but Imryne had not expected it. She was simply glad that the tilt-eyed woman had returned. Rising the next ilit was significantly less awkward than it had been the last time, and Urlryn shared first meal with them before melting away back into the house.

After that, Urlryn came to sleep with them on a regular basis, though they were still waiting for Urlryn to be ready before initiating sex with her. All of them were feeling the tension, and they would often see her off after first meal and then retreat into the bedroom to work it off.

About three strands after Urlryn had begun sleeping with them regularly, Imryne woke from a liquid, multicolored dream to the realization that an unfamiliar tongue was making its way to a very intimate part of her anatomy. She raised her head long enough to determine that the tongue belonged to Urlryn. Then Urlryn's tongue hit a very sensitive spot and Imryne gasped and arched her back, pressing her hips upwards shamelessly. Her movement woke Jevan and Tar, and once Urlryn had quite thoroughly acquainted herself with Imryne's nethers, it was their turn to introduce themselves.

Tar had been right. Urlryn was indeed quite loud, and Imryne finally got to hear her voice raised in passion and rough with longing. She quickly became a regular visitor, and after three skeins they made it official that she was part of the family. Urlryn joined their sub-household when they moved into Jaelryn's old quarters, three times the size of Imryne's set. A skein after that, Urlryn announced that she was pregnant, and that the child had been sparked by Jevan.

Three-quarters of a cycle later, she gave birth to a girl named Angaste. Maya and Sabal were old enough to be overjoyed by the prospect of a little sister, and young enough that they were very willing to do much of the work of taking care of her. If Angaste was not in the arms of one of the adults, she was being hauled off by Maya and Sabal, smuggled into lessons and into the temple. Fortunately, like her mother she was very quiet most of the time, and Maya and Sabal only got in trouble over her once a skein or so.

Urlryn had settled in very well, despite a rough patch or three at the beginning. Imryne finally told her that her younger sister, who had been in the womb when her mother had died, was living in House Shobalar as a daughter of Jaelryn, and together they went to visit. It was agreed that Lledrith would never know that Jaelryn was not her mother, but something in Urlryn seemed to ease when she saw her sister playing happily with the boy they called her twin, nearly twice her height and extremely protective of his sister.

So time passed, and things were for the most part easy and pleasant within House Melrae. Imryne had every need attended to, three lovers and all of her brothers and sisters for company, and a growing passion for the art of the priest-mage that she was learning in House Oblodra. She would sometimes disappear into her studies for days at a time, and it was always Jevan who would come get her, take her out of the laboratory attached to their new quarters, insist that she eat something and talk to people.

Her duties outside the house were light, and her episodes of depression few and far between. Melrae Imryne, the hard part of her, retreated into the darkness at the bottom of Imryne's soul. There were others in the house who were also improving; Phaere was finally fully recovered, and Talabrina had a son by Zyn. Talabrina, Zyn, and their child departed for the surface about a cycle after Talabrina gave birth. Triel's episodes of withdrawal became less frequent than they had been right after House Kilsek had exploded, though she was no longer having children.

The illithid that lived in House Melrae stayed, even after Phaere was well. When Imryne asked him if he would not rather be with his people, he raised his black eyes to hers, the first time he had ever met her gaze that Imryne could remember.

This war is not yet over, he said. I will stay.

As the cycles passed, that memory occasionally returned to Imryne, safe in House Melrae, sheltered by its strong walls.

This war is not yet over.