The Story:
The Legend

The sun scraped below the top of the tall towers of Ajir Palace. Kauria fiercely decided she did not like the forest in the evening. A cold wind was blowing, and she hadn't eaten since the quick breakfast she had that morning, as a prisoner. She was beginning to worry about that; all she had with her was her clothing and the belt knife Rhillan gave her.

It reminded her of when Talle ran away during the storm and she was left walking alone on the road to Farlin. Only this time she didn't know where she was, and there wasn't going to be a friendly trader to giver her a ride. What had happened to Rhillan and Lady Mira when she left? Had they been killed or imprisoned? Or worse, had their minds stripped away by Dark Star poisoning? She had heard that the poison was strong enough that it only took a scratch from a coated blade to infect you.

She should have stayed, turned herself in. The Rhenries were good people, and she hadn't even had a chance to speak with them, yet they would be punished for her. What was her one life worth? She had broken a law by her very existence, yet it wasn't their fault.

But she was alive now, and was going to stay that way for as long as possible. She hadn't any choice whether she would be Magically gifted, and she wasn't going to let some reclusive, self-centered Emperor she had never even seen kill her for that. She was following and old path through the woods westward, toward Carul.

She remembered something Gedry once told her.

"You've a lot of power, Kauria," he said. "Even if you don't know it. It's one of the reasons Torrel would love to see you dead, or use your power for his own purposes, whether you like it or not. You've got to learn to use that power so he can't take it away."

The few weeks that Gedry had spent with her he taught everything he knew of Magic from his service as an empirical spy, and earned her trust and friendship- perhaps more. She missed knowing he was around to protect and help her.

The evening's chill reminded her of the solitude of the forest. Few people traveled through the Frozen Forest, she knew, because it was so desolate. As she walked, the only sounds were that of old branches being kicked out of her way, for nothing could break a branch, or a piece of bark, she thought wryly, of a Frozen Tree. She cursed silently at whoever it was that had planted the Tree so far away from the Frozen Forest; who would've thought that planting a seed hundreds of years ago in Belin could cause such a disastrous result?

No. There was another sound. Kauria paused, listening intensely. It was an odd clacking, and it was approaching her. She hastily left the old path, hiding behind a thicket of frozen trees. Somehow they had discovered where she was, and they were looking for her.

She unconsciously held her breath as the cart approached. Only one cart? she wondered, peeking around the edge of the tree. She could see the cart, and its driver. It was a young man, she discerned, wearing an odd uniform. As he came closer she could see his dark face, set in a determined cast of someone on a mission. She moved for a closer peek as the cart past by.

At first, she thought the cart was empty, but there was something large being held in the back. It was a bundle of dark fabric... no, Kauria's heart raced, it was a dress! She could see the young woman who wore it, laying unconscious. She was alive; Kauria could see her arm move. The cart passed close enough that she could hear a slight moan as the woman was regaining her senses, jerked by the cart. For a moment, the woman opened her eyes in Kauria's direction, and Kauria had the distinct feeling the woman saw her before slipping back into sleep, yet the cart was moving rapidly away from her. Kauria ducked back behind the tree.

Who is that? she wondered. Another person who made the mistake of being caught by Torrel? Yet why was she being taken from Crowns? And why was she familiar?

There was one thing for certain, Kauria realized: she had to follow the cart. She had already hurt the Rhenries by running away; she wasn't going to walk away from helping this time. Silently she crept onto the side of the path and followed.

She followed in that manner for nearly an hour, until there was barely any light left from the sun. She wondered if this was the purpose of the secret door and the path, but couldn't be certain. The cart stopped suddenly ahead of her, in the center of a small clearing in the woods.

She hid behind some bushes. Her mind was so set on watching what was happening that it didn't register the fact that there should be no bushes left living in the Frozen Forest, or that clearing was shaded by leaves, or the way the branches gave to her movements... All she knew was that she had to help whoever it was in the cart. . .

The uniformed driver of the cart jumped down from his seat and walked around to the back, reaching for something on his belt. Kauria was only a few yards away and could see that the woman was regaining consciousness again, rapidly.

The driver finally unsheathed his weapon, which glittered in the evening dusk. A dagger! He raised it, and Kauria felt she was going to be sick. He was going to kill her! When she couldn't defend herself!

"No!" Kauria jumped from the bushes, quickly drawing Rhillan's belt knife. "You can't!" The driver turned toward her, startled, and before Kauria knew what she was doing, she threw the belt knife at him. She missed, but it gave the woman time to regain her senses.

"What are you doing here?!" he cried, angry, turning on her. He advanced toward her, holding his dagger low and ready to strike. "Now you'll die, too."

Just then, the woman sat up in the cart, immediately accessing the situation with a speed Kauria found remarkable. The driver recognized a moment of distraction and lunged at Kauria.

"No!" The woman shouted again and threw herself at the driver. It was stupid, yet the driver missed Kauria. The woman and he tumbled to the ground, and the driver lost his hold on the dagger. It skitted along the ground and landed at Kauria's feet. She instantly snatched it out of his reach.

"Give that to me!" The man freed himself of the woman, tossing her to the side. He thrust himself at Kauria abruptly, and she slashed awkwardly with the dagger. Moments later, she felt herself smashing into a tree. Blackness crept into her vision and her hold on the dagger loosened. Her head spun as she felt the dagger being forced from her hand.

The driver took a step back, a dark line of blood forming on his cheek. He wielded the dagger in his hand dangerously, but Kauria only felt drowsy and swayed against the tree.

"This is for interrupting me, girl!" the uniformed man shouted and drew his hand back.

"No!" the woman suddenly positioned herself in front of Kauria. Kauria staggered backward into the tree again as the woman's body was driven against hers by the force of the blow. The woman uttered a low moan and the man withdrew the dagger, stained dark red. He looked surprised.

The woman fell into Kauria's arms and she fought to hold her up. She's not much older than myself, Kauria realized as her head cleared. She wrapped her arms around her and felt the damp warmth of blood seeping into the woman's clothing. "You're hurt!"

"Of course she is," the man scoffed, evidently watching the scene with scorn. "And you're going to join her soon, right Princess?"

"No, she won't," the Princess whispered softly. She reached the around her throat, quickly removing a necklace. "Take this!" she commanded hoarsely to Kauria, pushing her necklace into her hands. "Escape!" She fought free of Kauria's support and faced the driver, revealing her own dagger, hidden in the folds of her dress. "Leave, Kauria!"

And overwhelming sense of confusion and anxiety seized Kauria. She wanted to stay, yet knew she had to leave. She turned and ran into the woods, stuffing the necklace into her pocket. She didn't question how the Princess knew her name, only that she said to leave. She could feel a dark presence nearby, darker than anything only hinted at in Crowns. She continued running.

Something moved to block her way, and she ran straight into the dark thing. For a terrifying moment, it held her in its arms and she looked up into its face. Dark piercing eyes stared at her, and she screamed, pushing herself away. She tripped backwards and fell on the ground, feeling the blackness creep back into her vision. Even as she saw the Dark One step toward her, Kauria's vision went black.

"Kauria! Kauria!" a voice shouted. "Stop yelling! It's Rhillan!"

He knelt next to the young woman, jerking her by the shoulders. Why was she so frightened? He wasn't sure what had happened; he had been trying to find her in the woods when she unexpectedly ran into him as though she were running for her life. She glanced up at him and screamed, pushing him away, then fell on the forest floor.

"No, you can't!" Kauria suddenly yelled and opened her eyes. At sight of him, she started to yell again, but he immediately covered her mouth.

"Don't scream," he said slowly. "Or you'll give us away." She relaxed in his hold and began to breath regularly. Rhillan removed his hand from her mouth and let her go.

She backed away from him on the ground, raising a hand to her head, blinking. "It makes sense now," she murmured.

"What makes sense?" Rhillan asked. They had to hurry; the sun had already disappeared from the sky. Lady Miraussa....

"The dreams...the memories... they were Aralia's..." The girl shook her head. "The Pendant!" she recalled and reached in her pocket and pulled out the talisman. It was as large as her palm; the large round piece of glass shone in the dimness. Embedded in the glass circle was a large six-pointed star pattern. The main axle of the star was one long shaft of crystal, while the other four points were etched into the glass.

Rhillan fell silent. It was Aralia's Star Pendant! Kauria held it in her hands only a few moments before she slipped the necklace around her neck.

"You found the Star Pendant after all?" Rhillan asked expectantly. "So I was right!" Kauria frowned at Rhillan.

"You knew, didn't you?" she accused. "That's why you were interested in my dreams!"

"I wasn't sure it was you!" Rhillan protested. "But every Carullian trader knows the story of the Star Pendant, and the Princess Aralia. She saved Carul by driving back the evil force!"

A pained look crossed Kauria's face. "Did she survive?" she whispered.

"No," said a smug voice. "I'm afraid she didn't quite make it. A pity though," the voice drawled, "had she lived longer, we might have been able to test our Dark Star poison on her."

Rhillan jumped to his feet and whirled around, but Kauria's head was still too dizzy to stand. "Cor," she said calmly, "Henison Cor."

Cor smirked, training a sword on Rhillan, who stood with his hands in the air. Behind the military leader stood ten of the Emperor's brigade, each with a sword drawn. "Please, Kauria," he remarked, "It's just ‘Cor' these days."

Four men advanced beyond Cor, two to Rhillan and two toward Kauria. They pulled her up off the ground, forcing her to stand.

"So," Kauria tried to keep calm, "Are you going to kill me like you did Aralia? Because then you'll only have a scar to match your other cheek."

Cor scowled. "That," he said, "was the mistake of ignorance." He ran his free hand across the scar. "No, the Emperor has bidden you to come to Crowns. He is quite interested in seeing you again. He has special plans."

So he was the Dark One, she realized. "And what about the Rhenries?"

"They have obviously broken the Emperor's Laws and will be adequately punished," Cor assured her. "Don't worry, we'll be sure to let you live long enough to see that."

Kauria didn't reply, and Rhillan was astonished with her change. There was something different about her, more daring and collected. Maybe it was watching Aralia's pendant, he wondered. Didn't she mutter something about Aralia's memories? Unfortunately, he didn't have much time to wonder before they were taken back to Crowns.