To Ride Hell's Chasm

by Janny Wurts

  Still murmuring in wonder, the shamans re-formed their circle. Next, Anzbek delved into his mantle and produced a phial of obsidian dye, then a brush fashioned from the fine hair clipped from the black gelding’s forelock. ‘Let today’s inscriptions be done in paint. When Mykkael recovers awareness and strength, the honours rightly bestowed on this hour can be awarded with formal ceremony. As he wishes, he shall bear proper Scoraign tattoos.’

  The healer accepted the dye and hair-brush. His warm acquiescence came touched by dismay, for he had no line of beginning. ‘What story shall be told of Mykkael’s blood origins? What design should be set at his navel?’

  Anzbek spoke without hesitation, having given the matter his circumspect thought. ‘The sign for his mother’s clan need not be left blank. None can deny he is Scoraign-bred. He shall be given the mark of all tribes, set into the sacred circle. This relationship has been justly earned. For the patterns that ward against the Tenth Name, all our people owe him for protection.’

  The surrounding elders thumped the earth with their hands, and sang the note for appreciation.

  ‘The marks of origin shall be done as described,’ the healer agreed. Though surprised by the daring departure from form, he nodded his earnest approval. ‘Tell me, what name shall I paint him?’

  ‘His own,’ Anzbek replied. ‘For he has marked his worth on the world’s weave alone. The nations who carry his debt for their sovereignty do him honour as Mykkael already’

  Then the eldest Jantii dreamer lifted his staff and called the circle to listening silence. With reverence, he recited the accolades, by which Scoraign people would know the inner spirit of the one reborn to a name on this day.

  ‘Mykkael is a warrior! Let his heart bear the sign of the sword, turned upright, the alignment given to mercy. His left wrist, which must show those gifts granted at birth, will bear the eye of the seer. On his right wrist, for the path he has chosen through life, place the arrows of high honour and sacrifice, configured between the stars for endurance and courage, and the sun’s triumph of lasting victory. He has been sorely tested, this man. His history of service is written in scars that require no further embellishment. May his union with Orannia grant him fine children and much laughter, as they grow to maturity and bring him the wealth of happiness and strong grandchildren.’

  Anzbek raised his birch staff to the sky, and song arose at his bidding. The gathered shamans offered the warrior their pealing tribute, as the healer set his brush to the dye, and began to record Mykkael’s heritage. The elder took pride in his work on that day, while Jantii tribe’s fox clan circle bore joyful witness.

  Birth to death, Scoraign people only borrowed their skins. Henceforward, Mykkael would be graced with the symbols to honour that ancient tradition. To trace such marks on the living man was to acknowledge his presence. Each chosen tattoo would reflect for all eyes the intangible flame of his being, that endured, as his deeds would endure, beyond the frail bounds of mortality.474

  Glossary

  Al-Syn-Efandi — Prince of Efandi, whose realm was overrun by a sorcerer.

  Anja of Sessalie — Princess of Sessalie, youngest child of King Isendon and Queen Anjoulie, sister of Crown Prince Kailen.

  Anjoulie — deceased Queen of Sessalie, wife of King Isendon, mother of Anja and Kailen.

  Anzbek — Scoraign tribal elder, dreamer of Jantii’s fox clan circle.

  baeyat’ji’in — do’aa term meaning ‘beware of me’.

  barqui’ino — a rare form of martial arts, which shifts the awareness to a primal state of focused clarity.

  Benj — poacher and woodsman of Sessalie, husband of Mirag, father of Timal.

  Bennent — First captain of the Royal Guard, second in command to Taskin.

  Bercie — palace wine steward’s wife in Sessalie.

  Bertarra — the late Queen Anjoulie’s niece.

  Beyjall — a foreign apothecary who lives in the citadel.

  borri’vach — an idiom used as a curse in Scoraign dialect, meaning ‘to douse the problem with sand’.

  Bryajne — a buckskin gelding.

  Bull Trough Tavern — tavern and brothel in the Falls Gate district of the citadel.

  Cade — Lowergate Garrison’s day sergeant.

  Cafferty — assistant to the Fane Street physician.

  Canna — maidservant to the Princess of Sessalie.

  Cockatrice Tavern — a tavern in the Falls Gate district of the citadel.

  Collain Herald — court officer of Sessalie.

  Covette — a chestnut mare of desert breeding.

  Crossroads Market — an unlicensed assembly of squatter vendors outside the citadel walls.

  Crown Advocate — ambassador for the King of Devall who stood as spokesman for the High Prince’s suit for marriage.

  Cultwaen Highlands — a country to the west, with advanced knowledge of sorcery.

  Dalshie — Benj the poacher’s lead hound.

  Dedorth — scholar of Sessalie.

  deit’jien tah — do’aa term meaning ‘the target that kills without quarter’.

  Devall — a wealthy coastal kingdom situated in the northeastern lowcountry, whose High Prince sues for the hand of the Princess of Sessalie.

  do’aa — the barqui’ino term for an enclave of learning, under a master teacher, whose students are sworn to life loyalty.

  Dreish — a coastal town.

  Ebron — a lancer of the Royal Guard.

  Efandi — a kingdom in the southeast, overrun by hot sorcery.

  ei’jien — do’aa term meaning ‘luckless sitting target’.

  Eishwin — a vizier who fought in the wars that defeated the Sushagos.

  Evissa — town in the southeast that was besieged by the Sushagos sorcerers.

  Falls Gate — a postern in the outer wall of Sessalie’s citadel, that leads into the disreputable quarter of town.

  Fane Street — a lane in the Falls Gate quarter of the citadel.

  Farrety — a lord of Sessalie.

  Fingarra — a kingdom in the mountains that lies south and east of Sessalie.

  Fouzette — a northern-bred bay mare.

  Gance — a kingdom to the northeast.

  Gorgenvain — name for the tenth demon.

  Great Divide — the high range of mountains that run north to south, and are impassable except in a few places near the southern coast.

  Grigori — a lancer of the Royal Guard.

  Gurley — a farmer in Sessalie.

  haw — voice command to turn a horse to the left.

  Highgate — the portal leading into the third and highest tier of Sessalie’s citadel, holding the king’s palace, the Sanctuary, and the homes of the old blood nobility.

  Howduin Gulch — a rift and a glacier in the ranges lying southeast of the citadel.

  Indussian — refers to Indus, a kingdom known for its healing arts.

  Isendon — reigning King of Sessalie.

  Jantii — a tribe from the Scoraign Wastes.

  Jedrey — noble-born sergeant who serves on the night roster of the Lowergate garrison.

  jee — a voice command to turn a horse to the right.

  Jussoud — Sanouk nomad who serves the Royal Guard as masseur and healer.

  Kaien — master of a barqui’ino do’aa.

  Kailen — Crown Prince of Sessalie, sister to Princess Anja, son of King Isendon and Queen Anjoulie.

  Kasminna — a sorrel mare.

  Katmin Cut — a pass leading into the upper ranges, west of the citadel in Sessalie.

  kerrie — a winged, fire-breathing predator inhabiting the ranges, that preys upon large game and cattle.

  Kevir — a lancer of the Royal Guard.

  Lindya — widowed daughter of Commander Taskin.

  long spell — the line of power strung by a demon-bound sorcerer. See Appendix for further detail.

  Lowergate — the keep that houses the citadel’s garrison, and also, one of the fortified entrances through the
lower tier wall.

  Mantlan — a kingdom famed for its wool, dyeing and carpets.

  Marshal of Devall — commander of the high prince’s honour guard.

  Maylie — a prostitute employed in the Bull Trough Tavern.

  Mehigrannia — goddess of the Scoraign tribes.

  Middlegate — the portal through the middle wall of the citadel, which separates the merchants’ district from the lower town.

  Mirag — wife of Benj the poacher, mother of Timal.

  Mistan — a lancer of the Royal Guard.

  Muenice — a noble of Sessalie.

  Mykkael — a desert-bred foreign mercenary, who serves as Captain of the Lowergate Garrison.

  Mysh kael — a lisped pronunciation of Mykkael’s name, an affectation common to Highgate society.

  Orannia — daughter of the Sanouk royal line, who once served in Mykkael’s company.

  Paunley — a soldier of the Lowergate garrison.

  Perincar — court vizier to Prince Al-Syn-Efandi.

  Phail — a duchess in the Kingdom of Sessalie, King Isendon’s mistress since the queen’s death.

  Pinca — a dialect spoken in the east.

  Quidjen — Name of one of the Nine demons.

  Rathtet — Name of one of the Nine demons.

  Sanouk — a nomad tribe from the eastern steppes.

  Scatton’s Pass — the difficult, high-altitude route over the Great Divide, that the mountaineer Scatton was first to cross.

  Scoraign Tribes — inhabitants of the wastes to the south.

  Scoraign Wastes — desert in the southern lands.

  seit shan’jien — a do’aa term meaning ‘the target with teeth that bites back’.

  sennia — a beverage brewed in the eastern steppes from beans of the Sogion plant.

  Serphaidian — the three related languages spoken on the eastern steppes.

  Sessalie — a tiny, isolated kingdom located in the mountains on the eastern side of the Great Divide.

  Shai — a lady who is Princess Anja’s maid of honour.

  Shaillon — the lord who is Seneschal of Sessalie.

  short curse — a mark fashioned by a sorcerer’s minion, to raise a circle of destruction.

  Sogion — a wild bean plant common to the eastern steppes, used for medicinal purposes.

  sorcerer’s mark — the form inscribed of white river clay mixed with blood, urine, or spittle, that enables a sorcerer’s short curse.

  Stennis — sergeant of the Lowergate garrison.

  Stone Bridge — the guarded span over the river where the trade road leads into the Kingdom of Sessalie.

  Stormfront — a black gelding.

  Sushagos — Name for one of the Nine demons.

  Taskin — Commander of the Royal Guard in Sessalie.

  Tavertin — a lord of Sessalie.

  Timal — son of Mirag and Benj the poacher.

  Tirrage — a kingdom in the southeast.

  Tocoquadi — Name for one of the Nine demons.

  Trade Gate — the third entrance through the lower wall of the citadel, where the trade road spans the lower moat.

  Trakish — a dialect spoken in Kingdom of Trake.

  Trigal — fifth son of the Emperor of Tuinvardia.

  Tuinvardia — empire in the southwest, over the Great Divide.

  Vangyar — a horse thief in Sessalie.

  Vashni — a grey gelding.

  Vensic — breveted sergeant of the Lowergate garrison.

  Vhael — a wasteland with volcanic calderas.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  I would like to thank the following individuals

  whose interest, enthusiasm, support and dedication

  walked inloving support alongside my creative footsteps.

  My father John Wurts,

  for the inspiration that led me to think outside the box.

  Andrew Ginever, Justin Harrison, Dede McKenna, Diane Turner,

  Jeff Watson,

  Jane Johnson, Sarah Hodgson, Andrew Ashton

  and the Voyager staff

  Jonathan Matson,

  and my unflagging husband, Don Maitz.

  By Janny Wurts

  Sorcerer’s Legacy

  The Cycle of Fire Trilogy

  Stormwarden

  Keeper of the Keys

  Shadowfane

  The Master of Whitestorm

  That Way Lies Camelot

  The Wars of Light and Shadow

  Curse of the Mistwraith

  Ships of Merior

  Warhost of Vastmark

  Fugitive Prince

  Grand Conspiracy

  Peril’s Gate

  With Raymond E. Feist

  Daughter of the Empire

  Servant of the Empire

  Mistress of the Empire

  Appendix Notes

  On Demons and Sorcery

  The hierarchy of the demonic sorcery that preys upon the human kingdoms in this book runs as follows:

  Power arises from demons, who are named, and who rule and contend as rivals within the nether realms of the unseen. To affect the material world, they must first snare and bind a sorcerer. This would be a human who desired to wield power, or receive longevity, who did not balk at paying the consequences. Such a person would have enacted a ritual to open a portal, or make contact with the nether realm, and treat with a demon to acquire power. Such pacts by their nature bound the human to demonic service. The payoff would be might and immortality. In exchange, the human would enact the will of the demon, at risk of the penalty of falling to eternal torment.

  A sorcerer would be closely tied to his portal, or source of contact with the nether realms. To expand his power base, he would create minions, or living subjects, bound into subservience. These would enact the work to enlarge his territory, since conquest of new ground provided the human victims that fed the demon, augmenting its powers in the nether realms.

  A long-established sorcerer might have more than one human realm under minion control, to provide for the demon he served. Such sorcerers could be bred, to create more bound souls, and establish a crèche. If a crèche was large enough, and the demon powerful enough, the sorcerer’s portal could be expanded, and the actual ground of the earth be suborned into demonic service. This would create a hot contact, or permanent portal between the nether realms and the physical world, and enable the demon to deal directly in its quest to feed upon life. A hot contact would also allow a source for demonic beings to incarnate in physical form, and work the bidding of the nether realms without requiring a human sorcerer to stand in liaison. Crèches of sorcerers whose demon had claimed a hot contact could then leave their point of origin, vastly more powerful than before.

  A sorcerer’s bound minion could operate within a limited range of the sorcerer. Over distance, the spell lines that fuelled them would break down by attrition. The power derived from the demon, as source, and would be channelled into the physical world through the sorcerer’s works, then be passed on to the minion by a spell line, woven through existing energy channels in the air, and the earth. A minion could augment and direct the forces running along these spun spell lines to enact the demon’s will, within a set range. He could ‘tie’ on a catspaw, or work a spell of compulsion upon an unsuspecting victim, to bind their will or otherwise move them to act in the demon’s interest. He could also create other minions; however, this required much power, and the spell line from the initial sorcerer could only channel so much available force at once. The power and talents of a minion might vary widely, and cover a range of effects, as would the characteristics of the creations, apparitions, and sendings it would spin from the sorcerer’s spell line.

  A short curse, or sorcerer’s mark, differs from a spell line. This would be a pattern of geometry, laid down by demonic intent, but powered by the minion who drew it. It would be painted with white river clay, to draw the demon’s power through the earth, then mixed with a bodily fluid to wed its properties to the minion or sorcerer
creating it. The fluid would link it to their being, and thus activate, or raise the mark into resonance. It would then ‘burn’, or fuel itself, off the minion’s life force, taking only enough to remain in a state of active readiness. Lacking that connection, the mark could not function, since it works independently from a spell line. A short curse requires contact with a live victim, or animal, to ‘trigger’ its effects. Proximity or contact would link the minion and the victim through the geometry, with the spirit of the latter subsequently claimed by the demon, who then can flow destructive power directly into the site where the mark was drawn. The phenomenon would last only as long as the victim’s aura holds connection to its dying flesh. Once the living spirit is consumed, the demon would lose connection to the site, which is why a short curse quickly consumes itself. If a sorcerer’s mark is grounded after triggering, the victim who becomes consumed to destruction (in forfeit), would be the minion whose connection raised the mark to resonance.

  A watcher’s mark would be a demonic geometry laid into air as a passive device for listening. It would be held active by a hair, or a nail clipping, or a bit of dead skin, left behind by the minion who set it. A last note: the English word ‘sorcerer’ may originally have derived from the French, sourciers, a meaning for which was used in connation with dowsers, who were ‘finders of sources’, and has no such evil connotation as my usage of the word for the purpose of this work of fiction.

  On Martial Arts

  The particulars of barqui’ino training, and the do’aa, are entirely fictional, and not derived from any actual existing discipline or school of teaching.

  Copyright

  Voyager

  An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers