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> Cynthia looked at an older woman, he could see the contempt on her
> face as plain as the hoard in the vally below them.  "And what does
> death mean to a wraith?"  She spat out.
>
> Nothing, when one is mindless, one's existence is not worth saving."
> She spoke clearly and very acutely, she seemed to look on Cynthia as
> sort of an inferior creature that she was teaching the most simple of
> lessons too and hoping she could wrap her head around the concept.
> She was a hellspawn.  "Thus, again and again, wraith will fling
> themselves into the flames of your dragons, thinking nothing of doing
> so, simply because they can *not* think."  She crossed her arms over
> her chest and looked at them all as if to measure how much they had
> absorbed.  "But I am no longer a wraith, and I am no longer mindless^�
> and now find that I no longer consider myself expendable.  I have no
> love for your warren, nor for you^� but I do value myself.  I am
> willing to help you defeat my former masters^� for that is the only
> way I can survive.  I know things you do not, things that may help
> you.  In return, I ask to be given a host body and means to leave
> this place forever.  Decide quickly, for our time is running short."
>
> C'aranth's mind worked it over for only a second, and he knew where
> the wraiths were weak.  "Can you get us to the queen?"  He stepped
> closer to the group, his hand on his sword, if he was to kill a
> wraith today, he knew who it would be.
>
> Danki/Amar seemed a bit shocked at the question.  "I could, I know
> where she is."
>
> C'aranth bowed to C'ynthia.  "I offer my humble opinion.  We can use
> one wing to draw out the wraith, and a portion of another to attack
> the queen. They will protect the Queen, and without her, they will
> not fight as units, but as mindless feeders, and they will not kill
> as many of our riders."  He looked at the hellspawn and sneered.  "As
> for this creature, I see no reason to give into its demands.  If he
> does not help us, we can see it is the first to die.  But if you must
> sacrifice someone for the warren, I would ask for that honor."  He
> bowed again to show he was not going to force the issue with his
> Warrenlady.
>

"What if we refuse what you offer?" Cynthia asked skepticly.

"Then I die here," Danki/Amar replied, "but so do you, your mate, and
everyone else you value."

"What sort of host would you require?" Trevor asked.

Danki/Amar laughed unexpectedly, "I would ask for you if I thought she
would part with you, but I'm not that picky.  You've figured out by now
that I don't stay in one host for very long."

"Can't you mean," Cynthia put in, fishing for information.

"Can't," Danki/Amar admitted.  "This one," she gestured toward C'aranth,
"is either foolhardy or extremely brave.  Either way, he would be
unharmed when I am finished with him."

Cynthia turned to C'aranth, "I can't ask you to do this."

"You have not asked.  I have volunteered freely," he replied.

Cynthia turned back to Danki/Amar, "I am prepared to uphold my end of
the bargin, but you have to give us enough information to survive.  So
far I've heard very little."

Danki/Amar gestured toward the gathering grey cloud, "There are three
hives amassed already.  The queen will not send them against the warren
until all for hives are together.  I would recommend striking out
first.  She will not expect you to do that."

"What about the queen?" Dan'yar asked, "Where is she?"

"She is in a cave system nearby, but you do not want to kill her,"
Danki/Amar replied.

"He lies!" C'aranth exclaimed, "If you cut off the head, the body dies.
This must be part of a trap."

Cynthia held up her hand and C'aranth fell silent.  "What you tell us
feels wrong.  Why shouldn't we kill the queen?"

"C'aranth is correct that without the queen the wraiths would be driven
by instinct alone.  The problem is that their instinct is to feed on
living things.  With the queen dead you would have to kill every last
one of them.  If the queen is alive you may be able to drive her off,
and not have to kill every wraith," Danki/Amar explained.

"What would we have to do to drive her off?" Cynthia asked.

"If you destroy enough of the wraiths, she may retreat to avoid having
them all destroyed.  Or she may retreat if she feels threatened."

"You mean that you do not know?" Katrina pressed.

"I do not pretend to know exactly how the queen will react," Danki/Amar
said.  "Does not feel fear the way you do because she does not
understand emotion.  She is driven mostly by instinct, an instinct to
feed and an instinct to reproduce.  But there is more than just that.
She has the ability to plan, reason and see a bigger picture.  She can
make long range plans, and understands that her survival is more
important than this battle.  You must make her fear for her existance.
Then she may retreat."

Cynthia nodded, "We have a deal, but I have my terms too."

"They are?"

"You will remain here and C'aranth will remain to guard you.  If we
survive this, you will be allowed to take over his body and he will take
you away from here.  I promise you that I will not ask him where he took
you."

Danki/Amar regarded her for a moment before nodding, "I agree to your
terms.  Now, I'd recommend that you hurry."

****
[A short while later on the green]

Cynthia walked over to where Dan'yar sat atop Shinner.  "Have you
selected a group of riders to try to flush the queen out from her cave?"
she asked.

"I have," he replied.

"Are you willing to tell me who you've selected?"

"No.  I don't want you worrying more than I know you will anyway."

"Thanks."

"My pleasure," he said.

"Good luck," she said stepping back.

He simply nodded before puming his fist in the air.  Alpha wing lifted
into the air, and sped toward the grey cloud on the horizon.

*****
[Mess Hall - A little later]

The children had been gathered together, and the older ones were tending
the younger ones.  They knew what was at stake for their parents, and
themselves, yet they were calm.

Cynthia glanced across the room to where C'aranth was sitting alone at a
table with Danki.  They were both waiting to see what would happen.

Madyllin came over with a steaming mug and sat down across the table
from Cynthia.  "This is the hardest part, isn't it."

"Which part."

"The waiting.  Not knowing what's going on out there."

"It is," Cynthia agreed, "I know the risks, but I've always wished I
could be out there.  At least I'd know what's happening."

"We'll know soon enough, I suppose."

****
[P'ker with Beta Wing]

The first wraiths charred in a blast of fire as Verdanth flew over the
top of the cloud of wraiths.  He and Dotharth were alternating bursts of
flame to continuously burn through the wraiths.

P'ker fed another lump of coal to Verdanth and the dragon prepared to
flame again.  He was watching the wraiths move and react to the attack.
It seemed to him that they were not able to respond to the numerous
pairs of dragons attacking the cloud.  He wondered if the queen could
only concentrate on a few things at a time.  Perhaps she was in over her
head, or maybe not.

NRPG:
Happy Valentine's Day.  You know what I think would be the bummer about
being made a saint?  (Other than the fact that I'm Jewish.)  It's that
you have to be dead to become a saint.  All that hard work, and you're
not even around to enjoy it.  Ah, well, I still like Valentine's Day.

This post took forever to come together, but I think it came out ok.

Barb: I'm expecting at least one of your characters to lead a crazy
charge against the wraith queen.  I'll let you select the character.

Darren: I appear to have taken you up on the offer to have C'aranth
serve as Amar's get away vehicle.  Have fun with it.

Um....Other business.  I think we all got the message, but just in case,
I'll summarize.  Katrina's DSL model got roasted by rolling blackouts.
She'll hopefully be back in working order soon.

I think that's all for now.

Respectfully submitted,
Warrenlady Cynthia - Cleft Warren
Alton Reich
--
    Alton & Elizabeth Reich
    areich@alum.wpi.edu
"Love is born with solar flares / From two magnetic poles /
It moves toward a higher plane / Where two halves make two wholes"
-- Rush, The Speed of Love



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