The Scourge of Muirwood Read Online Free

serpents woven together, their heads facing each other. It forms a circle. Most of the Leerings I see are shaped like faces, but this one is different. It is small. I see this symbol everywhere in Dochte. The Aldermaston says it is an ancient rune, that the serpent is one of the manifestations of Idumea. There are seven manifestations of Idumea. Dahomey embraces the manifestation of the serpent. I believe him, but it makes me afraid. There are serpents engraved everywhere. People keep serpents as pets here. There are no rats or voles. I will try again tomorrow to speak to the Leerings. There is one that will stop the Blight. Colvin said I must hurry. There are things he will not tell me. If Lia were here, he would tell her.”
     
    - Ellowyn Demont of Dochte Abbey
     
    * * *

CHAPTER THREE:
Kieran Ven
     
     
    Lia understood the language of the Pry-rians. It startled her to hear it on the Abbey grounds and startled her even more that she recognized the man. The last time she had seen him, he was picking fruit from a small enclosed garden behind Tintern Abbey where Colvin hid. Her hand dropped to her gladius hilt.
    He smirked. “You were brave enough to pass the mountains of the Fear Liath,” he said. “No doubt you are equally brave enough to face me with a blade. But given your limp, I would suggest against it.”
    Lia tried to calm her heart, to let him sense her confidence instead of shock. “How did you get here?” she demanded of him. “The waters have not subsided. The land is flooded for leagues around the Abbey.” He was not wet.
    “I do not wish to be seen,” he replied, not answering her question. “Follow me.” With that, he stepped back into the shadows and started towards the rear of the kitchen. It was dangerous, she realized. What was he doing there? Why had he come? She stood rooted in place, fingering her weapon, wondering whether to return and warn the Aldermaston or find Seth to accompany her.
    His voice drifted from the dark. “It is a beautiful moonlit night. And mild enough that others will be wandering the grounds, so if I am to remain unseen, as is my desire, I must withdraw to where fire cannot reveal me.”
    Lia was intrigued by his choice of words. They were almost musical the way they came out of his mouth. There was a different manner of speaking in Pry-Ree, a different way of expressing ideas. Rather than being alarmed, it calmed her. Cautiously, she ventured into the shadows and followed him to the copse of oak trees at the fringe where she had observed Colvin at his swordplay more than once. She was tensed, ready to cry out if surprised by anyone else.
    “Explain yourself,” Lia said, listening keenly for the sounds of others. She remembered how Colvin and Ellowyn had been lulled into a trap by Martin. She glanced around and searched the darkness for any sign of others.
    “I am alone,” he said.
    “Who are you?”
    “My name is Kieran Evnissyen, though I am called Kieran Ven which means ‘night’ in the tongue of this land. I do most of my work after sundown. I am part of the Evnissyen. As are you.”
    Lia walked in a half-circle around him, forcing him to turn to keep her in view. “What is that name? Is it a Family name?”
    “It was, long ago. But those abandoned by their parents use it now. We are the protectors of the royal family. Advisors to the nobles of Pry-Ree.”
    “Their abductors as well, it would seem,” Lia said. “This is not your first journey to this land.”
    “I confess it. I know that our Aldermaston sent Ellowyn to Dochte Abbey. It was clearly the Medium’s will. We did not oppose it. Now it bids us rescue her from that den of snakes…and hetaera.”
    Lia gasped as he said the word.
    “I know you are a maston,” he said with a nod of approval. “As am I. Unusual for Evnissyen, but not unheard of. Which brings me to the answer you were seeking at the first. I arrived at nightfall, crossing the Apse Veil from Tintern. The way to Dochte was