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.Not that death was likely with a magical blade of Angul's strength in her keeping.Joined, hilt to hand, she and Angul would be together forever.After all, the blade's power made certain little could permanently harm her flesh.Kiril spied the camp.Two hide tents, finely cured, with subtle sigils cut into the surface.The interlopers were apparently not ores or the other coarse peoples.No, these must be wood elves who ranged yet in Aglarond.They should know better than to camp so close to the megaliths! It was part of the compact established when the Yuir elves first moved out of Aglarond and into their artificial realm.Had the remnant elves forgotten?Ignorance is no excuse, Angul imparted to her conscious mind, their presence is in violation of the compact of Yuireshanyaar."Yes," she breathed, "of course." The intruders must be induced to leave.Immediately.Kiril moved to within five of so paces of the tents.She saw no movement, despite the warning her blade's light provided."Come out and be judged!" she bawled in Elvish.Whispers broke from the tents, and a moment later, four or five lithe forms emerged.As she'd guessed, wood elves, or half-elves most likely, members of trie degraded fey race that remained behind after the Yuir departed.She hadn't guessed these would be children, or nearly so.The oldest, a youth of no more than fourteen or fifteen suns, stepped forward.His hair was strung with garlands, his torso inked with patterns of leaves and acorns.He responded in the same language."We are on a quest, and mean no harm.We—""You have broken the compact," interrupted Kiril."Why?""We." the youth's initial confidence began to collapse in the face of her asperity.".We seek to discover a truth.Our seer spoke of a prophecy.""What prophecy?""About the megaliths.She said the Yuirwood's 'salvation or destruction lies beyond stony bounds of the ancient rings.' "Kiril frowned.She'd never liked prophets.The riddles they spoke were too easily decoded in a manner convenient to the interpreter.And true prophets irked her more; she had a visceral distaste for the concept of predestination."Who is this prophetess?" demanded Kiril.If some hoary old tribal shaman was able to determine which among the hundreds of stone circles in the Yuirwood opened onto Stardeep, well, that was a real security hazard.Instead of answering directly, the boy said, "We came here to see if the words she spoke were true.Who are you?" The last was asked with a tremulous waver, as Kiril's stony expression hardened into a scowl."Your judge," she responded."And I judge you've overstayed your welcome.Be gone."They have disregarded the treaty upon which the realm of Sildeyuir was born, and on which the security of Stardeep depends.Kiril's sword spoke the truth.It saw past all distractions to the heart of the matter, she was learning.She lowered the tip of the sword to point at the interlopers.The boy's companions shrank away.Not the boy.He held his ground, screwed up his courage once more, and said, "You are not of the tribes, are you? I see you are a full-blood elf, but not of these woods, or even those far to the north.Have you come from behind the menhir circle? Is it true star elves roam thete, in a realm apart?"These children guess too much.Stardeep's defense is imperiled."Yes!" she agreed aloud with het blade, not the child.The sword lent her a focus completely new to her experience.It was almost like having Nangulis himself at her side.When he was alive, he had called her his Bright Star."You are? But that's wonderful!" exclaimed the boy, misunderstanding her response.He had no inkling of the death sentence silently handed down by the Blade Cerulean.She closed the distance between them with five quick steps and brought the sword around.When the blade swept through the space beneath the boy's jaw, she hatdly felt a tug on the hilt.The youth's head rolled into the underbrush.Fluids sprayed.She blinked blood from her eyes.The murdered elf s companions stood frozen in soul-stopped hotror.She continued moving, making one harvestlike motion after another, taking advantage of the interlopers' shock.Sword in hand, she moved to eliminate Stardeep's liability.Her lips moved, too, but Angul's words were in her mouth."We do not suffer abominations."She learned that day that Angul impelled where dry reason faltered.Angul excited where debate and philosophy failed to motivate.With Angul in hand came purpose, exaltation, and the ultimate high of being part of a spectacular moment.A moment in which Angul delivered triumph in the face of insurmountable odds.The scteams of the children, as she cut them down, penetrated her blade-given conviction
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