As time passed, the attendees of those midnight meetings became less and less cautious when returning home. The three Haolims' merely walked through their front door and trotted down the winding staircase to the main level of the house, past their parents' bedroom, and hopped through the hole in the floor with the ladder leading down another level to their bedrooms. That first summer they simply had to crawl back into hammocks, and even in the beginning of the second one, but for the past week Myrtle had reverted to sleeping indoors, and all her children as well. It was only temporary, she said, only until Rasa returned. But that hardly changed anything for the trio; they just continued to walk unconcernedly in and out of the house at midnight, all thoughts of capture long ago abandoned.

~*~*~*~

Around midnight, shortly after Glub, Ponto, and Porto had left the house—unnoticed if not noiseless—Myrtle got up, dressed, and headed into the large company dining room, used only for parties or when Rasa had conference meetings with other military personal. It was empty, dark, and cold, seemingly void of life, then a figure rose slowly from a seat at the very back of the long room, and walked forwards to greet her.

"How did you know I was in here?"

"Just a feeling," she quickened her footsteps and opened her arms, Rasa wrapped himself around her, hugging her tightly. "When did you come home?" she whispered in concern.

"About twenty minutes ago. We have a meeting here in ten or so. Myrtle, Thanduil...I will give the boy who came to warn us leave to go home in the morning, but only if he wishes to do so. We arrived too late, I'm afraid. There is not much left."

"Oh, Rasa," Myrtle squeezed her eyes tightly shut, "I'm so sorry..." There was a brief moment of silence, then Myrtle looked up into his eyes, her own full of concern, "the meeting is to cover that then?"

Rasa nodded, "For the most part,"

"Then put it off until the morning, Rasa. What good can you do for them by simply exhausting yourself?"

"Nothing, nothing at all. But this is only mostly about that. We've received concerning reports from the north, Myrtle. I mean to bring them up. Movement of the Makezens, slipping out, headed east, to the Camelia Sea, ships with black sails...its more than a coincidence, Myrtle. And the bodies we helped dispose of in Thanduil? Makezens. Cursed in full, the living dead. But why they would come now...it makes no sense to me."

Myrtle groaned softly; had Rasa said anything else she could have brushed it off as insignificant, but now...now she had to bring it up. "But it does make sense, Rasa. If you have all the puzzle pieces it does," and she hurriedly told him everything that Glub had told her while peeling potatoes. "It has started. Though if the attack happened before the incident...then it must have happened before as well, but was not as large, and now..."

"Myrtle, slow down," Rasa looked her in the eyes, "What are you talking about? Go back to Glub, her story...it makes no sense. I was there when the Rider collapsed; he was exhausted but in total command of his mind. And more importantly, neither Pervinca nor the Twins or any other children were present. So how...?"

Myrtle shook her head, "Don't ask me how it happened—when, or why, or to whom is irrelevant now. It clearly happened, Rasa. And it troubled her enough to speak of it to me. She may have been withholding details, too many certainly, but in the end, does it matter? Her powers, Rasa; she has used them and noticed them, and now she will explore and begin to delve deep into them, trying to access all her abilities, no doubt. I know my daughter; something has caught her attention, and she will not rest until she has discovered it in its entirety."

Rasa's face was pale, he could deny it, but it would do not good. And he knew Myrtle was right; Pervinca would not rest until she had explored the deepest reaches of her powers, and who knew where that lay? And then, as she played with her powers, they would realize that she was in Raye. They would come after her, and charge right into the Liean Woods to attack her, and then...suddenly Rasa realized that it was too late. They had already come. They knew she was here, and were out to get her, kill her. A sudden urge to check and make sure Pervinca was safely asleep in her bed grabbed him, but he shook it off. Where else would she be?

"Myrtle, we have to get her out." Rasa began pacing around and around the room. Then he stopped, spun, and placed his hands on the table, leaning forward so his eyes met Myrtle's, who now stood on the opposite side of the table. "She has practically called them, not intentionally, but her powers have been revealed to be seen by all who can, and the Makezens saw it, hardly by chance though, they've been waiting for it. To them it was like a signal flare lighting up the skies." He began pacing again, muttering nearly to himself, thoughts spilling out into the air, "And they are moving...but we may still have time. They know she is in the forest, but where they can't tell. They attacked south, and now, while they think we are weak in the north...it all falls into place!" He turned triumphantly to Myrtle, "They will attack us here next, if I'm not mistaken."

"Here?" Myrtle whispered, "Raye?"

"Quite possibly, yes." Rasa sank into a chair and gazed up at the shadows flickering against the ceiling. "I've changed my mind," he said suddenly, "tonight's council will no longer be mostly about Thanduil; it will be entirely about the Prophecy. Because it is all one and the same, is it not? Everything is connected. This is now a council of war."

And so it was.

As fate would have it, not two minutes after the heads of the guard began to arrive at the Haolims' home to hold the council that would determine their destinies, Glub, Ponto, and Porto returned home.

~*~*~*~

The trio were in a delicately balanced situation, though they were oblivious to it. They were in the state where adrenaline still pulsed through their veins, yet all light seemed magnified, and all sound dimmed. Sleep was their singular thought, and nothing else was of any consequence. Tonight was worse than usual, though, because Porto was 'wake-drunk' as they called it; instead of getting progressively crabbier as he got sleepier, he got sillier, and started laughing for no particular reason. At first it was a tiny snicker, then a snorting laugh, and then Glub was giggling, and then all three were gasping for breath as they staggered through the night with swords at their hips trying to be as quiet as possible.

The twins tumbled down the few steps leading between the massive winding tree roots which jutted above ground and served as the entryway to their house, flung open the front door, marched in and stopped dead in their tracks. In the mudroom stood Lieutenant Rudger Slipstream, who had just been hanging up his jacket and preparing to head into the conference room when the Twins had appeared. He stared at them speechlessly for a moment, then darted forwards and snatched each by a wrist, eyeing them suspiciously.

"I see this goes deeper than I thought," he murmured, then marched the duo—who were still trying to process what Rudger was doing in their house at midnight—down the hall towards the conference room.

Glub had stayed outside in an attempt to gather herself and lock away her laughter while the Twins barged right in. And as their capture had been virtually silent, initially she had no cause for suspicion. She stepped through the front door and paused; something was off. Why were the lamps lit? The Twins may have been tired, but they would never be so brash as this; it was practically asking to be caught. She spun in a slow circle, every muscle suddenly awake and alert, and was surprised to find herself fingering the hilt of her sword ever so slightly. A smirk flashed across her face; it was a dream come true, searching for a hidden menace with a sword at her belt... She shook her head.

Careful, she thought, if you start daydreaming now, who knows what might happen?

Cloaks and jackets hung from pegs on the wall, considerably larger and more than were usually there. Glub frowned and pulled her own dark cloak around her tighter, covering her sword entirely. The shoulder of one cloak held the symbol of a General, another a highly ranked captain.

Father's home, she realized, a wave of relief washing over her. He must have left the light on.

She turned down the lamp and trotted out.

Glub descended a twisting staircase into the small hallway beneath the dining-room, then followed that along until she came to a turn, which led into a larger hallway. But this one, strangely enough, was lit with a row of lamps that were fastened into the walls. Glub frowned. It was not like Rasa to light all the lamps in the house and leave them. She waited in the shadows, wishing there was another way into her room, then decided there was nothing else but to go for it. Silently she slipped in front of one lamp, then froze, watching the flame until it was still again, then she darted past the next. The entrance into the conference room was open just so slightly, and Glub could see a brighter light and hear a bit of commotion from inside. Panic seized her; if anyone in that room were to glance up just then, they would have seen her. She abandoned all thought of silence and ran down the rest of the hall.

Unfortunately, it was not Glub's pause which caught someone's attention, but rather her flight. The very same Lieutenant who had taken the Twins into custody had purposefully placed himself just inside the door in a position where he could see out into the hall. If two were sneaking about Raye in the dead of night, no doubt the third was as well. He kept watch faithfully for a few minutes, then glanced up at Rasa, then into the fire. Had he turned at that instant, he would have seen Glub, but he didn't until a half-second later. When he looked back out into the hall, he saw all the lamps flickering as though a strong breeze had rushed through it. He frowned and slipped out of the room unnoticed amidst the bustle of seating everyone and greetings.

Just to the end of the hall there was a hole in the floor protected by a small fence to keep people from falling down it. The hole had a ladder rather than a staircase to get to the next level of the house. Glub was just about to descend the ladder and make her way to her bedroom when Rudger stepped out into the hall. She froze, with her back to him, hoping he would not see her. Seconds ticked by. Glub winced when she heard his footsteps coming towards her, then squeezed her eyes shut tight, and waited. Then with one hand she slowly lifted her hood to conceal her face.

"Well, well, well. What have we here? Someone sneaking out? Or shall I say...back in?" He took a subtle step nearer. "But why were you out all alone in the middle of the night?"

"I wasn't," she said quietly.

Rudger sighed and shook his head, "Of course not, my mistake." Sarcasm made his disinterested tone and expression bite, and suddenly he didn't want to toy with her. It was late, and his patience was running low. "I already took the Twins to your father, where no doubt there is a fascinating conversation being had as we settle in for our meeting. Which has most likely started by now,"

"I shouldn't waste any more of your time then," Glub tensed, preparing to leap through the floor and hopefully land alive and undamaged on the level below. He was lying about the Twins, they never would have followed him without a tussle.

"No, you shouldn't," Rudger nodded, "I'm glad we finally agree on something. Come on," He took another step towards her then dove just as she leapt, barely managing to slip his fingers tightly around her wrist. He slid across the floor, snagging his other arm around the rail surrounding the hole in the floor where the ladder was placed.

There was a painful shock that traveled down Glub's arm and yanked on her shoulder as the weight of her fall was stopped and she was left hanging by her one arm. She gasped as the breath was forced from her lungs by the sudden jerk, and wriggled desperately, attempting to loosen herself. They stayed frozen there for a moment, Glub suspended nearly four feet from the floor below, Rudger sprawled on his stomach, clinging to her arm and also the rail. Slowly he managed to pivot his body so that his feet pressed against the rail and hauled Glub up at an agonizingly slow pace. She twisted and kicked desperately, then Rudger gave a final heave and dropped her face-down on the floor. She grunted as her breath left her lungs again and glared up at the suddenly despisable lieutenant. He glared back, both breathing heavily, faces red with the effort given into their silent struggle.

"This is pointless," he muttered under his breath, then catching Glub under her arm, he hauled her to her feet and marched her towards the conference room, iron grip giving her no chance at escape. Glub was furious at the way she was going to be forced into the conference room, but pride wouldn't let her slouch in, so as Rudger banged the doors open, she held her head high and gaze steady. Bright eyes flashing indignantly met every surprised glance directed her way, and her quick, sharp step almost made it look as though she was really the one in charge of her situation, not Rudger.

The only change to her stony expression came when she saw the Twins seated in the back of the room looking nervous and confused, with Myrtle nearby keeping a close eye on them. One of Glub's eyebrows lifted suddenly in surprise, and the corner of her mouth quirked up—at least she made it longer than either of them—but she quickly leveled her countenance again.

Myrtle's scowl deepened upon seeing Glub, and all revelations about power forgotten, she marched over to Rudger, thanked him coldly, and snatched Glub's arm from him.

"Ouch," she mumbled, and Myrtle squeezed tighter.

"You go sit over there by your brothers right now, and do not move a muscle!" Myrtle whispered fiercely, "You three have just broken my trust in you entirely and chosen the worst possible time to do so. Now sit!"

Glub sat.

Myrtle glared at them each in turn, "Believe me, you have not heard the end of this!"

"All of us?" Porto whimpered.

"Any of you. Now, do not move!" Myrtle narrowed her eyes, then, momentarily satisfied that they were not going to try and escape, she walked over to Rasa and whispered something to him. He nodded, and they both glanced at the trio seated behind them, who in turn tried to look as innocent and pleading as possible. Rasa shook his head and said something else to his wife, then turned to face the room.

"Welcome, all," he began loudly, and soon the buzz of conversation died away and all sat down at their places. "Welcome," Rasa said again, "thought it be under strange and dire situations. Most everyone in this room was in Thanduil with me and witnessed the grief our sister province had fallen to. And all of you saw what those poor villagers did not, or what most of them could not recognize. A pirate attack had taken place, but new information has come out concerning that; such is the cause for such an untimely gathering. They were pirates indeed who attacked Thanduil, for 'pirate' can be a title given to any such being who is willing to slaughter for the sake of blood and death alone. For those who plunder and kill and leave behind nothing but the horrors we saw in Thanduil. But theses were not the seafaring type of pirate, nor were they the ordinary human type." Rasa looked directly across the room and into the eyes of his Captains and Lieutenants seated there. "They were Makezens."

Gasps and uneasy glances filled the room.

"But General," one captain broke out, "the Makezens were cursed—they can never leave their mountains!"

"Not so!" Rasa called over the din, and it slowly died down. "The curse, as it were, we know little to nothing of. But this I do know; they are often referred to as the living dead, because once their mountains are left, their physical forms begin to decay, like the dead in a grave, except they live on. We know that a Makezen boy was to be born, raised by Lieans, and then play some disastrous part in the curses and prophecies. Their curse is broken when this boy, allegedly, gives up his life for a Liean he loves. Rumor has it, that this boy has been born, and we have reason to believe that he has also died, though clearly not breaking the curse. Not many know this, but the boy was also to be the only true living heir to the throne of the Makezens. Our problem arises in the fact that he wasn't. You may recall that the rightful heir to the throne of the Makezens was rumored to have a power, or a gift unlike those given to any other mortal. Once the king died, the power would pass along to his successor, or oldest child. If, however, the child died before having any children of their own, the power would then pass on to the next child in line. A younger sister, for example. And that is what has happened in this case."

"Begging your pardon, General," someone called, "but what has this got to do with the Makezens attacking Thanduil?"

"Everything," Rasa sighed, "you see, they are attracted to this power, they can feel it every time it is used, and the more the user suspects its use, the stronger its scent becomes to them. The Makezens have learned that hidden somewhere in this wood is the heir who would break their curse, and they are coming to kill her."

Ponto's head was spinning, and he interrupted without thinking, "But why on earth would they want to kill the person who would save them, break their curse? Especially if she was going to die anyway by saving a Liean she loves..."

All eyes turned to him. Then Rudger begrudgingly nodded, "The boy has a point,"

"I am a General, not a lore master," Rasa said, "I do not know. But I feel that there is something more here that we know nothing of, that all of our tales of a curse are merely scratching the tip of the preverbal iceberg. It goes deeper to a place where we have never dared delve, and we may never reach. We do not know exactly what Josua said upon cursing the Makezens, or exactly what would take place when the curse would be broken. Would the Makezens be returned to their original state, or would they merely perish? We do not know. We only know that the Makezens have learned that this child is somewhere in our midst, and so they sent a small force to attack the south of the forest, and then, while we all remained there to clean up the aftermath, they plan to attack on the northern part of the forest, the part lying closest to their mountains. They could get in a larger force and virtually wipe us out, if we were still camping in the south."

A long silence followed his words. "What further proof do we have of your theory?" someone asked.

"I began to suspect when we received reports from our scouts in the far north of movement in the High Peaks. And now..."

"Where is this...Makezen who they are looking to kill?" Another Liean questioned.
Rasa looked hard at Myrtle, then addressed the table again. "We have reason to believe that she is—and has been for a good amount of time—right here, in Raye, among us."

A murmuring filled the room, and eyes flew to all men who had grown daughters.

"A moment, please!" Rasa called for attention again, "before we begin pointing fingers, I would like to tell you a brief tale. Once upon a time, my wife, pregnant with those two troublemakers seated behind me, and myself went on our honeymoon in the purpose of seeing the world. We traveled far and wide, and at one point rested for a while in Livton, a small port-town on the Single-Star Channel. There was, on one of the last nights of our stay there, a shipwreck, and my wife—against my will, I might add—and I went to aid those on the ship, to help them escape. On that ship, my wife encountered a dying woman, horribly ill, and giving birth. A daughter. We saved the child, as the woman's final wish, not knowing who or what she was, or who she was bound to become." As he was speaking, Rasa had walked over to Glub and pulled her gently from her seat, now he wrapped her in a fatherly embrace, holding her as he revealed her history.

"We named her Pervinca Narolia," he continued, "and she stands here before you, the most powerful and singular heir to the throne of Makezens. The one we must protect with our lives."

~*~*~*~

Glub was numb. Her world was crumbling, and a deep, fierce pain clutching at her heart. She felt like she was being torn into the tiniest pieces with every word her father spoke. Ears ringing, she limply wriggled out of his embrace and sagged dazed back into her seat.

Rasa was proposing and idea to save her and perhaps them all from the Makezens, but though she heard him, she did not comprehend a word of it. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see that the room was empty, and her parents were standing in front of the fireplace, waiting for her to come to them when she was ready. Ponto's hand was on her shoulder, and Porto's face was streaked as if with tears. He pulled her to her feet, and then slowly, solemnly, they escorted her towards their parents.

They assured her, one at a time, that this would change nothing, that she was still their daughter, just as she had always been, that they loved her just the same, and on and on. She heard none of it. It rolled over her and beyond, and suddenly she realized she was crying.

"But why didn't you tell me?" she sobbed, "why did you never tell me?"

"We couldn't, Pervinca! And we thought we may never need to; we assumed your brother would live and take care of everything. Don't you see that?" Rasa pleaded.

She choaked on her tears, and shook her head for the whole speech, then looked up at them,

"You could have told me," She whispered accusingly.

"Pervinca, listen—" Rasa began, but she cut him off.

"No, no! The best part of my life...my whole family, my childhood, none of it was real! It was all fake, and you didn't tell me, none of you told me! Why didn't you tell me? You could have told me!" Emotion choaked her off, and suddenly she turned and ran out of the room and fled to her bedroom, where she collapsed into her bed. Sobs wracked her exhausted body; her soul felt crushed. She was an orphan, then. And now she—who had never known, never had any cause to suspect anything—she was being singlehandedly blamed for every premature death that had taken place in the course of the last fifteen years. Horrible thoughts and false accusations filled her mind, she tormented herself unwittingly, and at long last, not an hour before dawn, fell into a haunted, heavy sleep.

Glub's eyes opened slowly when she woke at last. Her body was numb; never had she woken to such bleak despair before, and for the briefest instant she couldn't recall why this black mood had fallen on her. But then the previous night came rushing back, and she lay as if frozen, each word biting into her as it had before she had slept. But there was another voice as well, this morning. A voice of reason, condemning her self-accusations as lies. Most of them at least.

"For fifteen years they lied to me, told me I was one of them, I was their child. Fifteen years!" She whispered angrily into the empty bedroom, "And now, a war comes, and they only now tell me who I am so that they have someone to blame this war on. How is it my fault? I didn't ask to become the person in this prophecy. They have no right to blame me!"

"They never blamed you. You blamed yourself. It wasn't your fault, true, but now this burden has been thrust upon you, and it is up to you to fulfil the prophecies. Your brother was dead before you were born, he never received the powers of your ancestors. You have had them since the instant of your birth. You are strong enough, but this and this alone you must remember; alone you are nothing. Without these people, you would be dead. Rely on those you trust, trust those you love. Without them you will fail, and without you, they will perish." Glub's eyes were nearly popping out of her head when the Voice first whispered through the room, and she scrambled back against the wall, hugging her sheets around her. She glanced franticly about the room, but there was no one in it except her.

She sat for a while, pondering the words that certainly did not come from her head, and then at long last, she slowly began to disentangle herself from the sheets, dressed, and made her way up to the kitchen. Myrtle sat at the kitchen table, gazing off into space, looking as though she hadn't slept at all. Glub glanced around the kitchen in surprise before getting Myrtle's attention.

Six packs, each containing some of the Haolims children's clothing, were piled by the front door, and a large basket full of cooking supplies and food.

Glub's brow wrinkled in confusion, and she looked towards Myrtle, "What's all this?"

Myrtle pursed her lips, and smiled sadly, "Our goal is to have everyone out by noon today. We're evacuating all women and children, including boys under the age of fifteen, to the Fort. We'll hide out there, supplying clothing and care for soldiers that need it, and pray that this war is over soon."

"But...I thought..." Glub scrambled to get her thoughts in order, "I thought that a war was only a possibility,"

"It was, honey...it was." Myrtle rose and walked over to the counter, slicing a piece of banana bread, and spreading some butter on it. "It would seem that wind of our council last night reached our enemies, though how I don't know. They have gathered and are setting up an encampment in the center of the burned wastelands, we expect an attack any day now. Our scouts have returned with information concerning their numbers...far more than we could have imagined. More, even, then all our guard's combined from all our provinces. So we're leaving."

"It's not..." tears welled up in her eyes, and Glub fought them back down, "this isn't happening...this war, it isn't my fault, is it? Please, Mother...I just need to know the truth. It isn't my fault...is it?"

Myrtle's eyes widened, tears standing out, "No, no, Pervinca! It isn't your fault, this war." She wrapped her arms around her daughter and kissed the top of her head, murmuring, "You must be brave. Remember, courage is not how you feel when you are afraid, it is what you do when you are so frightened you feel you cannot go on. We all love you, more than you can imagine."

Glub pulled out of her embrace and looked into Myrtle's eyes, her own slowly filling with dread. "What are you talking about? We're just going to hide in the Fort..." her gaze fell on the pile of bags at the door; six. Only six. Quickly she looked back up into her mother's eyes, "Mother? Why are there only six bags?"

Myrtle looked down, not answering, and Glub pushed further away from her.

"Mother! Why are there only six bags? Why is mine not with them?"

Myrtle closed her eyes, then in a whisper so quiet Glub could hardly hear it, she moaned, "Because you can't come with us."

~*~*~*~

Glub was stung. "What do you mean I can't go with you? Why can't I?"

Myrtle shook her head, "I hate it, Glub. I hate it so much, but there's nothing else to be done. We're sending you away."

The words from the Voice in her bedroom came back to her, and she whimpered, "Alone?"

"No, not alone. Not entirely, that is. You'll be sent out as well as three others in the guise of a messenger. You'll be together for a little while, and then split off into two groups. One will go south, to the Hidden Valley, you will go east, to the Hawk Hills. It won't entirely be a front though; you will be carrying messages to give to the kings of the Hawk Hills and the Hidden Valley. They will tell of our plight, and plead for aid from their armies, but mainly you will be going to protect yourself, and us. The further you are from the forest, the more confused they will grow, and the lesser the strength of their attacks will become. So the theory goes, that is. The other messengers will mostly be decoys and will only know that they are messengers. And you should view yourself as a simple messenger, but one with an urgent message to carry and a great need of secrecy."

Glub sank into a chair at the table; it was a lot to take in. "Who else is going?" she asked weakly after a long pause.

"A council is being held right now to determine who," Myrtle looked at the massive grandfather clock in the corner, "Actually, it should be over by now, if you want me to go with you and find out."

"No, that's alright," Glub would go on her own, she needed to be alone, but she had one last question before she left. "When do we leave?"

"At the same time as the rest of us, I presume." Myrtle nodded to herself, trying to remember any other details, "It's my understanding that you four will be given a brief bit of survival and navigational training at the Fort, but the point was to choose three others who already knew all that, and then you will be set off once you are deemed ready."

Glub sighed and nodded.

"One more thing, Glub," Myrtle called after her as she started out the door, "You will be going out into the world of men, now. You'll be going by your first name from now on, no more introducing yourself or being referred to as Glub. At least, not once you leave Raye. Now you will have to be Pervinca, all the time."

She nodded once again and left.