Leanalham's yellow shirt stood out in the dark. She smiled and ran straight for Sgaile with her light brown ponytail swishing. Sgaile pulled her against his chest, and Leanalham's eyes wandered about the group until they found Wynn.

"I am so glad you are found," she said with the relief of a lifelong friend. "Urhkarasiferin said you were lost in the forest, but I knew Sgailsheilleache would find you."

Wynn smiled briefly over her exhaustion.

Magiere waited for Leanalham's rush of questions. But when the girl tried to go to Wynn, Sgaile's arm tightened. He held her back, turning slightly away. Magiere knew it wasn't Wynn who he kept the girl from-it was herself.

Sgaile spoke harshly in Elvish to Leanalham, and the girl's mouth dropped open with a flash of hurt in her eyes.

"Bartva'na!" Sgaile half-shouted, cutting off her rising protest.

Magiere understood the word from the little Elvish that she'd heard Wynn translate. Sgaile commanded the girl to stop and obey. Leanalham stared at him with open resentment.

"He ordered her back to their quarters," Wynn said quietly. "She is not to speak with us."

"What?" Leesil asked. "Why?"

It wasn't right for Sgaile to deny the girl so harshly. He didn't want his little cousin anywhere near the unnatural thing discovered among them. But for all the man's fear, he couldn't possibly believe Magiere would harm Leanalham. She'd given her word to watch over the girl whenever possible.

Sgaile's distress ran more deeply than Magiere had guessed.

She glanced carefully about at the other Anmaglahk. Most remained expression less, except for En’nish’s venomous glare and Freth's smoldering silence. But Brot'an now peered about the trees with a strange uncertainty.

Magiere wanted no more confrontations with Sgaile, and hopefully Leanalham would do as he asked.

Leanalham backed away, her features fading in the deeper black beneath a tree in the darkness.

"Shiuvalh!" Sgaile snapped.

That word Magiere didn't know, but his tone made her tense. A shadow appeared behind Leanalham, followed by another to the right. Magiere whirled around to find more closing on the left and from behind.

"Leesil…" she hissed in warning.

He turned, watching dark figures move in the night.

Osha stepped closer to Wynn. Sgaile pulled a stiletto, as did Freth. Brot'an turned about more slowly, the puzzlement in his steady gaze becoming cold displeasure. The first shadow stepped into plain sight.

Urhkar stood calm and passive. Another anmaglahk came in behind him, and another from beyond Sgaile, and then another. All but the elder anmaglahk held shortbows drawn with arrows notched, their gleaming heads resting over bow handles of silver-white metal.

Magiere found herself ringed in on all sides with Leesil and Wynn by at least twenty Anmaglahk. No wonder Sgaile pushed them all so hard, knowing what waited upon their arrival.

"You split-tongue son of…" Leesil started, his gaze on Sgaile.

Magiere grabbed Leesil's wrist and squeezed hard in warning as she glanced back at Wynn. A wrinkle of the sage's brow hinted at something more beneath her fright-a tinge of anger in the once-timid sage. Magiere saw no course of action that wouldn't end in all of their deaths.

Freth and Sgaile faced inward toward Magiere. Sgaile kept his blade low, but Freth did not.

"What are you doing?" Leesil demanded.

Brot'an gave Urhkar a slow shake of his head, but the other elder returned no reply.

"All of you pull back and allow us through," Brot'an called out.

Not one anmaglahk retreated, and Freth came straight at Magiere and Leesil.

"You will come with us."

Magiere heard Leesil's foot slipback, and the grinding of sod as he anchored it and shifted his weight. Six Anmaglahk stepped in with bows raised. Two were aimed straight at Wynn.

"No!" Magiere whispered."Too many for a fight."

And then Brot'an sidled into the path of the bows aimed at Wynn.

"She is correct," he said plainly. "We must wait to find another way to resolve this."

Leesil turned his head side to side, his eyes moving even quicker as he studied the spread of all those surrounding them. None of the elves lowered their weapons.

"Go!" Freth ordered.

Uncertainly, Leesil moved up beside Magiere, and they followed Brot'an. They were swept away into the heart of Crijheaiche. Magiere grew more uncertain as they entered a wide clearing encircled by domicile trees.

Near to each tree's curtained doorway, she saw more of the Anmaglahk. At the clearing's center rose a massive oak that dwarfed any tree she'd seen since entering these lands.

"They're taking us to Most Aged Father," Leesil whispered.

Wynn stayed close to Magiere as they faced Most Aged Father's dwelling. She looked about for any sign of Chap, but he was nowhere in sight. Neither was the pack or Lily. Sgaile pulled the doorway's curtain aside.

"Down the stairs!" Freth ordered.

Wynn looked up anxiously at Brot'an. He nodded once and stepped through the entrance after Sgaile. Leesil went next, then Magiere, and Wynn followed with Freth close behind her.

Inside, candle lanterns lit the wide barren chamber. A stairway of living wood along the left wall led down into the earth. Wynn reached the bottom, stepping off the last stair of embedded stone, and found herself in an earth-walled chamber. At its center was a root the size of a small domicile tree.

Glass lanterns hung from stone-packed earth walls and cast hazy yellow light upon massive roots arching through the ceiling overhead. Wynn was not certain why they were here, but this underground chamber disturbed her. No elf that she knew would choose to live this way.

"Move!" Freth ordered and shoved Magiere from behind.

Magiere stumbled forward awkwardly, pulling her hand back from catching herself on the center root. She wobbled, and Wynn grabbed her arm, feeling the uncontrolled shudders running through Magiere.

Leesil whirled about, and Freth raised her blade.

"You wouldn't even try," he said. "Your sickly master still needs me."

"Enough," Brot'an warned, but his eyes were turned toward Freth.

"And Chap wouldn't let you," Leesil whispered at Freth.

Wynn's attention was pulled in too many directions. Magiere quaked in a way Wynn had never seen before. She did not usually frighten this easily-and her fear led to fury, not weakness.

A flash of gray on the stairs caught Wynn's attention.

Chap descended, his jaws already open.

Sgaile tried to reach over the stairs and grab the dog. Leesil slammed his shoulder into Sgaile's back, shoving him aside as Chap lunged off the stairs with a rabid snarl.

Freth barely caught sight of the dog before Chap's jaws snapped shut on her wrist. She dropped the stiletto with a startled inhale and jerked her arm free as the blade hit the chamber floor. Chap's snarls rang off the stone-packed walls as he drove Freth backward.

Leesil snatched the fallen stiletto before Sgaile could dive for it. All Wynn could do wastry to keep Magiere on her feet.

Freth scrambled over the bottom stair, braced herself against the wall, and kicked out. Her foot struck Chap's chest, tossing him away. Chap twisted back at her so fast that Freth gained no ground. He lunged at her, jaws opened wide.

Brot'an slipped between them, and Chap's teeth closed fast on his forearm. Chap thrashed his head and dragged Brot'an to one knee.

"Chap, stop it!" Wynn cried out.

Brot'an did not strike back. He crouched there, rigid and waiting as Chap settled to rumbling stillness.

"No more!" Brot'an said sharply.

Leesil held off Sgaile with the stiletto, but his eyes shifted toward Freth. "There's little I wouldn't pay to kill you. Don't ever touch me or mine again."