They were all silent for some moments. “Then it is just the prophecy concerning the Sentinels that needs to be fulfilled before I can wield the Rainbow Sceptre,” Axis said. “Has anyone seen them, StarDrifter? In the events of the past months I had completely forgotten about them.”
“No,” StarDrifter said. “Wherever they are, whatever they do, they do not seem to want anyone else to know.”
“Well, there is nothing to be done, I suppose. I shall have to trust in them to fulfil their part of the Prophecy.”
“They have dedicated their entire lives to the Prophecy, Axis,” Azhure reminded him, “and the other prophecies have worked their way through without any help or prompting from us. Trust. And try not to worry.”
“Yes, you’re right, Azhure. StarDrifter…have you…?” He couldn’t voice the question.
“Within a day of my arrival, Axis. SpikeFeather and the Strike Force had been here two weeks; Talon Spike was clean and the bodies of the dead neatly laid out. Stars!”
His voice quavered and he turned away, his shoulders trembling. Azhure stepped up and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “StarDrifter?”
StarDrifter took a deep breath and tried to smile, cuddling Caelum closer. “I’m sorry. But I have never seen such injuries. Not even after the Yuletide slaughter in the Earth Tree Grove.” He took another breath, remembering. “We lit a great pyre at the peak of the mount and burned them there. Their souls drifted straight to the stars.”
He paused, and Axis and Azhure held their peace. “RavenCrest and I were never particularly close,” StarDrifter said after a moment, “for there was such an age difference between us, and our personalities were so different.” The reflection in his eyes turned to pain. “RavenCrest so often accused me of being reckless, Axis. Stars, but he was right! It was my own son who ordered this slaughter! My simple lusts brought all this death and destruction down upon my own people.”
“Simple lusts, StarDrifter? Then blame yourself for the fact that the Icarii now fly the southern skies again,” Axis said fiercely. “Blame yourself for the fact that the sacred sites are now reclaimed. Blame yourself that your simple lusts have resulted in your people’s freedom!”
StarDrifter lowered his head. “With great gain needs must also come pain,” he whispered.
“Would you rather that the Icarii sit here in the Assembly and mouth useless dreams, StarDrifter? Gods, but I have not been through all that I have to stand here and watch you develop a conscience!”
StarDrifter stared at Axis. Then, unexpectedly, he laughed. “You bring me joy, Axis, and you have brought the Icarii far more joy than pain. Forgive my maudlin ramblings.”
Azhure lifted Caelum from his arms. “RavenCrest and BrightFeather and all those who died here have been avenged, StarDrifter.”
“Yes, SpikeFeather told me. Accept my thanks, Azhure, on behalf of all Icarii, for what you did in Gorken Pass.” He laughed again. “I wish I could have seen it.”
Azhure grinned. “No doubt Axis will recall the memory of it for you, when you both have nothing better to do but sit about a fire and cultivate maudlin thoughts.”
“Axis? Azhure?”
They turned and saw FreeFall enter from the doorway in the lower tiers. EvenSong was directly behind him. Their greetings encompassed laughter and a few more tears, and Azhure hugged both tightly when she heard that FreeFall and EvenSong had, finally, formalised their union.
“The First heard our vows, Azhure,” EvenSong told her, “and she cried even more than you do now.”
That made Azhure laugh, and she wiped away her tears. Then she kissed FreeFall again. “Enjoy the SunSoar luck in marriage, FreeFall.” She paused, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “And father a beautiful daughter for Caelum to love.”
Both FreeFall and EvenSong reddened, but whatever retort they might have made was cut off when Axis looked to the upper Chamber. “SpikeFeather,” he said softly.
SpikeFeather TrueSong stood at the head of the steps, resplendent in his true dark red colouring. But it was not SpikeFeather’s red feathers that caught people’s eyes.
In his hands he held the jewelled torc of the office of Talon.
FreeFall’s eyes grew troubled at the sight of it, and as SpikeFeather stepped down slowly, he shuffled nervously. Axis spared him a puzzled glance—surely FreeFall had anticipated this? As SpikeFeather reached them, Axis looked at Azhure, and without a word they both stepped back, StarDrifter and EvenSong following their lead.
Now FreeFall stood alone and increasingly nervous in the centre of the golden circle. SpikeFeather stared into his eyes, then dropped gracefully to one knee, holding the torc extended in his hands.
“You are RavenCrest’s son,” SpikeFeather said, “and you are his heir, ratified by the StarMan himself. This torc is yours.”
“I cannot wear it,” FreeFall said, stumbling over the words.
Axis frowned, but it was StarDrifter who spoke. “You will be officially recognised in the Assembly on Temple Mount, FreeFall. When Axis…when Axis returns he will conduct the ceremonies there. But the torc is yours, and you can wear it as Talon-Elect from this moment.” He paused. “Take it.”
But FreeFall still hesitated and SpikeFeather extended his hands further.
“I cannot,” FreeFall said again, but then he seized the torc and held it out to Azhure. “Azhure, this is yours by right.”
“What?” she exclaimed. “How can you—”
“WolfStar was murdered by his brother who then took the throne as his heir. But you are WolfStar’s rightful heir, Azhure, and the office of Talon should be yours.”
Abruptly Azhure set Caelum down on the floor and, stepping forward, took the torc. “Damn you, FreeFall!” she snapped. “Must you keep evading your duties? I was not born to the throne of Talon, I have other responsibilities that would never enable me to rule over the Icarii as Talon, and I was conceived after WolfStar was murdered!” She paused and took a deep breath. “Damn it, what are you going to do next? Offer it to Axis or StarDrifter or EvenSong? They are all tied by blood and by right to the throne, far more so than I. Now, take it!”
FreeFall almost snatched it from her hands, then grinned shamefacedly. “I had to offer it to you, Azhure. Your father was done a great wrong, even though he had done wrong himself. You had to have the throne offered to you.”
“In a sense, he’s right,” StarDrifter said. “Ancient Icarii law clearly states that—”
“Curse ancient Icarii law!” Axis growled light-heartedly, then he took Azhure’s arm and smiled at FreeFall. “Cousin, when I shared out the honours that shining day beside Grail Lake I gave you little else than your right to the Talon throne back. Now, Azhure and I would give you more. FreeFall, Talon-Elect of all Icarii, I bequeath to you and to your heirs the overlordship of the Icescarp Alps and the Fortress Ranges, as all the eastern regions of Tencendor, from the southern and eastern banks of the Nordra to the southern reaches of Minstrelsea and Widewall Bay, saving those areas that Ysgryff of Nor and Greville of Tarantaise still hold. You may have those lands, and the rights to a tithe of all rights, customs and duties, save those I have already promised to Greville and Ysgryff and those of the free city of Arcen. This gift carries an awesome responsibility, FreeFall, for you will have Icarii and Acharite and Avar—if they ever return—under your sway, and you will answer to none bar me or Azhure or our heirs. Well? What do you say?”
FreeFall glanced at Azhure. “But you are Governor of the East.”
She laughed. “Largely an empty title, FreeFall, when I gallivant about the Icebear Coast with my husband. Besides,” she continued, “I will have responsibilities elsewhere. To…” she glanced at Axis, “to the House of the Stars.”
FreeFall took a deep breath, then nodded, his eyes proud. Then he, too, dropped to one knee. Placing the torc on the floor before him he held out his hands to Axis, and Axis took them between his.
“StarMan,” he said, “before these witnesses here present,
I accept with honour these lands and peoples and the tithe of all the rights, customs and duties that come with them. I give you my pledge and my oath of honour and fealty, that I and my heirs shall serve you well and faithfully all the days of our lives.”
Then, surprising StarDrifter and SpikeFeather, FreeFall held out his hands to Azhure and repeated the same oath to her.
As Azhure smiled and kissed him, Axis bent down and lifted the torc and clipped it about FreeFall’s neck before he could escape.
“And so you are jewelled and so you are bound, Talon-Elect,” he said, and helped FreeFall to his feet.
“Well,” Axis said, “will no-one offer Azhure, Caelum and me something to eat and drink? We have ridden far and fast to reach you and I, for one, am tired.”
StarDrifter took his arm. “Then come, Axis. Now that you are here we can reconsecrate Talon Spike.”
“When?”
“Tomorrow night.”
They gathered at the very peak of the mountain in the depths of the night. Azhure shivered, half at the cold wind that blew this high, half at the awesome view from the towering pinnacle. Even in starlight the alps could be seen spreading on three sides, while to the north she could see, and feel, the grey sea pounding along the Icebear Coast. She had never been to the pinnacle during her time in Talon Spike; it had been out of bounds to all but the Talon and senior Enchanters. It was, StarDrifter explained to her in quiet tones on the way up, one of the most sacred places of Talon Spike.
“From the peak all of Talon Spike can be touched,” he had said, and now Azhure knew why.
The peak was quite large, large enough to hold the several dozen Icarii who had gathered here. In its very centre opened the central shaft of the mountain complex, and when Azhure stepped to its guardrail she could see to the depths of the mountain itself. All shafts and corridors opened off the central shaft; here many of the Gryphon had entered, and it was their befouling touch and murders that the ceremonies tonight were intended to eliminate.
StarDrifter led the proceedings. He motioned Azhure back from the shaft impatiently and, chastened, she hastened back to the circle of watchers. Tonight Azhure and the others in attendance wore loose white linen robes that hung in soft, thick folds to their feet. Azhure let her eyes linger on Axis standing part-way around the circle. She had only ever seen him in fighting clothes or courtly fashions before, and she thought he had never seemed so powerful, so starkly princely, as he did in his robe.
At everyone’s feet lay unlit brands.
“Talon Spike has been corrupted,” StarDrifter said, his voice very soft, yet rich and musical. “Fouled by evil bodies and deeds. Tonight we meet to reconsecrate and rededicate this mountain, beloved of the Icarii people. And, in the wishes of Talon RavenCrest SunSoar, who died here, we will reconsecrate it in the memory of the Enchanter MorningStar SunSoar, our mother and widow of Talon RushCloud, who loved our people and this mountain more than most.”
StarDrifter’s eyes swept the assembled Icarii. “Think of her,” he commanded.
He was silent for a few minutes, letting people recall their own memories of MorningStar.
“She was murdered,” he said, “far from here. She had been excited at the discoveries to the south, and she was excited most of all by the ancient books we found in Spiredore. Many of these texts the Icarii thought lost, and MorningStar believed that she would have the time and the luxury of being able to study them. Yet that was not to be.”
He walked slowly about the circle, the shaft glowing pale golden in the night and lighting his face. “We have already farewelled MorningStar, as those murdered here, in fitting ceremonies. Tonight we cleanse Talon Spike itself and rededicate its spirit. For ancient generations the mountain was a summer pleasure palace for the Icarii, and then it became a safe-haven…and a goal.”
As he walked he reached out to touch the faces of those he passed, gazing deep into each one’s eyes, as if he wanted to touch their very souls. As he passed Azhure, running his fingers lightly over her face, she felt his eyes sear into hers, and she inhaled and trembled. In daily life it was too easy, she thought, to forget just how powerful StarDrifter was.
“But now the time has come for Talon Spike to be reborn,” StarDrifter continued. “Time for us to think anew about what service this mountain can do us…and how we can serve it. FreeFall SunSoar, Talon-Elect, will you speak?”
FreeFall, the torc about his neck, now stepped a pace out from the circle. Stars, but he is beautiful, Azhure thought. He looks like a god himself with his pale gold hair and violet eyes and those white, white wings at his back.
“Talon Spike waits for a new direction…and a new name. StarDrifter has suggested that the mountain complex now be used as a place of contemplation and study, a place where Icarii can come to examine and debate the mysteries. I concur. It will become a fitting monument to MorningStar and to her love of mysteries enlightened. The mountain shall become a place of libraries and halls, of music and enchantments, of tremulous discoveries and lingering silences. And it shall have a new name, for the Talon will now rule from his palace in the Minaret Peaks. Its new name shall be—”
“Star Finger,” Axis said to the side.
FreeFall stood with his mouth gaping. It was not the name he and StarDrifter had chosen.
“Star Finger,” Azhure said clearly, and her eyes met Axis’.
StarDrifter looked sharply between the two of them, then at FreeFall. “Star Finger,” he said.
“Star Finger,” FreeFall repeated, and the name was murmured about the circle as tongues and hearts embraced it.
Then FreeFall stepped back and StarDrifter began to sing in the ancient and sacred language of the Icarii. He sang spells and enchantments that would protect Star Finger from further depredations and would encourage all those who worked and lived within her to thrive in her harmony and peace. His voice was sweet and true, not as powerful as the force he had unleashed in the Temple of the Stars, but moving and inspiring nevertheless.
When he had finished he lifted a brand and, in the act of lifting it, somehow lit it. He raised the brand above his head and cried to the stars. “Let the Star Gods witness the cleansing fire!” Then he sent the flaming brand hurtling down the shaft.
One by one the others stepped forward, the brands bursting into fire the moment hands lifted them, and all echoed StarDrifter’s cry and sent their brands plunging down the shaft. As they dropped their brands, the Icarii moved to stand in one corner of the peak.
Finally only Axis and Azhure were left, and StarDrifter gestured to them impatiently.
Axis looked at Azhure, then turned to StarDrifter. “You have asked the Star Gods to witness, Father.” StarDrifter’s eyes widened in shock at the parental appellation. “And so they shall. Will you call them?”
What are you trying to do, Axis?
Call them, Father.
StarDrifter stared furiously at his son, angry that he would upset the ritual. But to argue now would only corrupt the ritual further and risk contaminating it altogether, and so, with obvious bad grace, StarDrifter cried once more to the stars.
“I call upon Adamon, God of the Firmament, to witness the cleansing of Star Finger!”
“And I accept with honour,” a deep voice said, and Adamon stepped out of the darkness into the starlight about the shaft. Like all others on the peak, he was dressed in a long white linen robe, but he had a circlet of light in his dark hair, and his eyes radiated with the glory of the stars themselves.
He stood near the shaft and looked at StarDrifter.
StarDrifter stared at him, his chest heaving in great breaths, then he turned his eyes back to the stars.
“I call upon Xanon, Goddess of the Firmament, to witness the cleansing of Star Finger!”
And Xanon, similarly clothed in linen and circlet and power, stepped forth and smiled gently at StarDrifter.
His voice becoming ever hoarser, StarDrifter called in turn on the Gods of Sun, Fire and Air to witness, a
nd Narcis, Silton and Pors stepped forth.
Then StarDrifter called on the Goddesses of Water and Earth to witness, and Flulia and Zest stepped forth.
Now the seven gods stood in an almost complete circle about the shaft. Two spaces remained.
StarDrifter stared at the seven gods, distraught. “The names of the Goddess of the Moon and the God of Song have not been revealed,” he whispered, “and I cannot call on them to witness. I am sorry.”
Adamon returned his gaze steadily. “You know them well, StarDrifter. Call them to witness and they will stand forth.”
“I do not know…” StarDrifter began, then he looked at the two empty spaces, and then…then he looked at Axis and Azhure waiting patiently in the shadows.
Both were gazing at him, and both had compassionate expressions on their faces.
“I…” StarDrifter stopped again, unable to speak. He felt faint, disorientated.
“Speak, StarDrifter,” Azhure said, “for you have nothing to fear.”
“I call upon Azhure, Goddess of the Moon, to witness the cleansing of Star Finger.”
She smiled. “I accept with honour, StarDrifter,” and she stepped forward to fill one of the last two remaining spaces. As she did so a circle of light appeared in her hair, and her eyes blazed with the glory of the stars.
StarDrifter dragged his gaze away from her and towards his son. My son, he thought, my son. “I call upon Axis, God of Song, to witness the cleansing of Star Finger.”
“I accept with honour, Father,” Axis said, his eyes holding StarDrifter’s for a moment of such all-consuming love that StarDrifter literally swayed with emotion.
Axis stepped forward to take his place among the Nine, and as he did so the light burned in his own hair. Then the Nine took each other’s hands and raised them above their heads, and as they did so fire burned about the shaft, then they brought their hands down sharply and the fire speared into the mountain. Those still inside reported a great light that enveloped the chambers, halls and spaces of the complex—and in that instant Star Finger became a place truly blessed of the gods.
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