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The Soprano Sorceress: The First Book of the Spellsong Cycle

Page 65

by L. E. Modesitt Jr.


  What had it all cost her? Her life on earth. Her son and daughter, for she was dead to them, and their lives went on. Every time she glanced at the black-etched rectangle on her chamber wall, she was reminded of that. And there was young Daffyd, who had given her the lutar, helped and trusted her. Brill, who had given her youth in body again. Innocent Jenny, killed by the dark ones to prevent her from summoning another sorceress. Spirda, the young players, all the innocents swept away by the fires and floods she had unleashed. Even the guilty, like Delor and Behlem, had marked her, in anger for giving her no choice, and in regret that she had found no other way than the force she deplored—and continued to use.

  The list was long … and she had the feeling it would get longer … no matter what she did, and how hard she tried. No matter what amends she tried to make, no matter how many years Brill’s spell sustained her.

  Dropping her head in her hands, in the cool damp misting rain of early winter, Anna, destroyer of dissonance, savior of the land, Lady and Sorceress, Regent of Defalk, wept, silently, and in great shuddering sobs.

  And the cold, soft rain fell. Cold and soft, like sorrow, the mists of Defalk shrouded the sobbing sorceress.

  In time, she would go to the hearth below, her face clear, her voice clear.

  Now … . with the silvered rain that had cost so dearly, she wept.

  TOR BOOKS BY L. E. MODESITT, JR.

  THE COREAN CHRONICLES

  Legacies

  Darknesses

  Scepters

  Alector’s Choice

  THE SPELLSONG CYCLE

  The Soprano Sorceress

  The Spellsong War

  Darksong Rising

  The Shadow Sorceress

  Shadowsinger

  THE SAGA OF RECLUCE

  The Magic of Recluce

  The Towers of the Sunset

  The Magic Engineer

  The Order War

  The Death of Chaos

  Fall of Angels

  The Chaos Balance

  The White Order

  Colors of Chaos

  Magi’i of Cyador

  Scion of Cyador

  Wellspring of Chaos*

  Ordermaster

  GHOSTS OF COLUMBIA

  Of Tangible Ghosts

  The Ghost of the Revelator

  Ghost of the White Nights

  THE ECOLITAN MATTER

  Empire & Ecolitan

  (comprising The Ecolitan Operation and The Ecologic Secession)

  Ecolitan Prime

  (comprising The Ecolitan Envoy and The Ecolitan Enigma)

  The Forever Hero

  (comprising Dawn for a Distant Earth, The Silent Warrior

  and In Endless Twilight)

  Timegod’s World

  (comprising Timediver’s Dawn and The Timegod)

  The Green Progression

  The Parafaith War

  The Ethos Effect

  The Hammer of Darkness

  Adiamante

  Gravity Dreams

  Octagonal Raven

  Archform: Beauty

  Flash

  The Eternity Artifact*

  *forthcoming from Tor Books

  Praise for The Soprano Sorceress

  “Resplendent … fantasy with an inventive and expertly handled scenario, life-sized characters, and flawless plotting.”

  —Kirkus Reviews (Pointer Review)

  “From the first page of this engrossing novel, you will find yourself unwilling to travel back to Earth, for fear that you might miss some of the action on Erde.”

  —Tahoe World, Tahoe City, California

  “Fantasy fans who like political machinations with their magic will enjoy the layered plots.”

  —Starlog

  Following is

  A Tantalizing Taste

  of

  The Spellsong War

  Book Two of The Spellsong Cycle

  1

  WEI, NORDWEI

  The heavy gong sounds, and the two women in the uniform of the Council turn and open the lacquered double doors, each bearing the ancient symbol of the Council of Wei. Each wears twin black-lacquered scabbards at her hips, and the scabbards contain the infamous short swords of the Nordan Guard.

  Ashtaar moistens her lips and steps through the doors, then down the black carpet toward the dais.

  The black-lacquered Council table is also ancient, and behind it sit seven figures. The woman in the center wears a silver-and-black seal on a heavy silver chain. Her dark eyes hold Ashtaar as the spymistress walks down the dark green carpet toward the space below the dais holding the table.

  “The mist-world sorceress now holds Defalk. The Council has read your report, and would like to inquire further.”

  “Yes, Ancient One.” Ashtaar bows.

  “Please summarize the major events that led to the current state of affairs. Briefly.”

  “A travel sorceress and a player summoned the lady Anna from the mist worlds. Both are dead now. The sorcerer Brill spirited her away and tutored her in the ways of both Darksong and Clearsong. The Dark Ones tried to kill her and failed. She supported Lord Barjim against the Ebrans at the Sand Pass. Barjim and Brill were killed, and she collapsed, but not before she destroyed two-thirds of the invaders. She somehow found her way south and recovered in Synope, in the lands of Lord Hryding. Lord Behlem of Neserea then marched into Defalk and took Falcor, but not before Lord Jecks rescued the heir, his grandson Lord Jimbob. Lord Behlem offered his support to the sorceress, and she accepted it and went to Falcor. The Dark Ones gathered another army and marched toward Falcor. The sorceress used water magic and song to destroy the entire Ebran army and all the darksingers in Defalk. The Evult responded by flooding the Fal and destroying half of Falcor. Lord Behlem attempted to remove the lady Anna, and she used her sorcery to kill him and his consort and enlist the support of many of the Neserean troops in Falcor. Then she proclaimed a regency for young Jimbob. Shortly, almost at the dawn of winter, she marched a small force through the Ostfels and used her sorcery to destroy the Evult, the city of Vult, and most of Synek. She almost died, but the lords of Defalk, especially Lord Jecks, rallied behind her. So did the people. She has a reputation for being good and fair, and vindictively just.” Ashtaar bows once more.

  “The rains now fall on Defalk, do they not?” asks the red-haired woman to the left of the Council leader.

  “Yes. The sorceress removed the chains on the clouds when she destroyed the Evult.”

  “Will the sorceress attempt to rule directly and put young Jimbob out of the way?” asks the dark-haired Council leader.

  “That does not appear likely. She can have no children and has, in effect, adopted the boy.”

  “And Lord Jecks has not objected?”

  “He publicly supports the sorceress. As do the lords Birfels, Nelmor, Hryding, Geansor, Clethner, and the lady Gatrune, and the Rider of Heinene. There are doubtless others, and none of the thirty-three have raised voice or hand against her.”

  “With her powers, I doubt any of sound mind would do so,” suggests the Council leader. “Are there any whispers of discontent?”

  “Almost none that we have been able to track. She holds but one hostage, and that is Wendella, the consort of Lord Dencer of Stromwer. Dencer is rumored to be less than happy.”

  “No others?”

  “None that we know or can scry.”

  “What of Ebra?”

  “The land has been flattened, mostly by the floods she unleashed down the river Elha, and Vult lies buried under the fire peak the Ebrans are calling Zauberinfeuer. Hadrenn has claimed the ruins of Synek. He is the one of the sons of an ancient lord, and several pretenders are struggling over Elawha. A lord named Bertmynn is raising armsmen in Dolov. He wishes to be lord of all Ebra.” Ashtaar waits.

  “We have received a scroll from the Liedfuhr. He protests our interference in Defalk. He also informs us that young Rabyn is the Lord of Neserea and under his protection and regency. What b
eyond that do you know?” The dark-haired Council leader smiles faintly.

  “He has dispatched fiftyscore lancers to Neserea. They were delayed by the snows in the Mittpass, but travel the south road through the Great Western Forest.”

  “Spymistress of Nordwei … is it fair to say that a year ago we faced possible threats from the Prophet of Music and the Dark ones, and both have been destroyed?”

  “Yes, Leader Tybra.”

  “Is it also fair to say that you chose not to remove the soprano sorceress?” asks Tybra.

  “I waited to see whether the Dark Ones and the Prophet were successful in their attempts. The Dark Ones failed in four attempts. The Prophet and his consort failed as well. We have been able to trace at least two attempts by Neserea.” Ashtaar inclines her head. “I thought it best not to turn the sorceress’s wrath against Nordwei.”

  “So … now we have a strong and united Defalk on our southern borders, and this is your doing?”

  “We have a united Defalk, ruled by a woman for the first time in recorded history, and a Defalk that will take a decade or longer to recover from the drought and depredations of the Dark Ones and the Nesereans.”

  “That is what you say. For now … for now, we shall see. You may go, but do not hesitate to inform the Council should this sorceress take any action that could possibly affect Nordwei.”

  “Yes, leader Tybra.” Ashtaar bows a last time, then turns. She does not wipe the dampness from her forehead.

  This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  THE SOPRANO SORCERER

  Copyright © 1997 by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form.

  Edited by David G. Hartwell

  A Tor Book

  Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC

  175 Fifth Avenue

  New York, NY 10010

  www.tor-forge.com

  Tor® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.

  Cover art by Darrell K. Sweet

  eISBN 9781429958301

  First eBook Edition : February 2011

  EAN 978-0-812-54559-3

  Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 96-30645

  First edition: February 1997

  First mass market edition: January 1998

 

 

 


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