Katharine Kerr - The Gold Falcon

The Gold Falcon — read online for free the complete book (whole text) full work

Below is the text of the book, divided by pages. System saving the place of the last page read, allows you to conveniently read the book "The Gold Falcon" online for free, without having to search again every time where you left off. Put a bookmark, and you can go to the page where you finished reading at any time.

Light

Font size:

↓

↑

Georgia Tahoma Arial Verdana

Reset

Interval:

↓

↑

Bookmark:

Make

1234567...122

THE POISONED ROOT OF IT ALL

IN THE YEAR 643, deep in the Dark Ages of the kingdom of Deverry, a loose coalition of clans, allied with the few merchants and craft guilds of that time, put a new and unstable dynasty on the throne of the high king. In those wars the Falcon clan lost most of its men, noble-born and commoners both. In gratitude, the king betrothed his third son, Galrion, to the last daughter of the Falcon, Brangwen. But her brother, Lord Gerraent, loved her far more than a brother should, and Prince Galrion loved the magical dweomer power more than he did his betrothed. When Galrion broke off the betrothal, his father the king banished him from the royal line forever. The prince took the name of Nevyn, which means no one in the Deverrian tongue, and went off to study the dweomer with the master who had hoped to teach his craft to Galrion and Brangwen both.

As for Brangwen, left heartsick and shamed, she fell into her brothers arms and bed. Soon enough, she was with child. Only then did Nevyn realize how greatly he loved her and how badly hed failed her. Although he tried to get her away from her brother, he failed to stop the inevitable tragedy. When she drowned herself in shame, at her grave he swore a rash vow. Once she was reborn again on the wheel of life and death, he would never rest until he put right the evil hed done by bringing her to the dweomer power which should have been hers. Little did he realize that fulfilling this vow would take him four hundred years of a single dweomer-touched lifetime, while the other actors in their tragedy were reborn and died again and again.

During his long life other souls would find themselves tangled in the chains of his and Brangwens wyrd (fate or karma). Some were people he helped; others became his enemies. Nevyn took apprentices, such as Aderyn and Lilli, and made contact with other masters of the dweomer, such as Dallandra, one of the Westfolk, elven nomads who wander the plains to the west of Deverry proper.

Eventually Brangwen was reborn as Jill, the daughter of a mercenary soldier named Cullyn of Cerrmor and Seryan, a tavern lass. After more than a few adventures she finally saw her true destiny and went with Nevyn to study the dweomer as she should have done all those years before. Only then could Nevyn die.

Jill outlived him by many years. With the help of the elven dweomermaster, Dallandra, and her bizarre lover, Evandar, a powerful soul who had never been incarnated at all, Jill captained the first war against the savage Horsekin and their so-called goddess, Alshandra. In truth, Alshandra was a mortal spirit, though one of immense magical power, and in the end Jill managed to kill her, though she went to her death as well. One of those Jill left behind was the man shed loved in her youth, the half-mad berserker Rhodry Maelwaedd, whose wyrd turned out to be something stranger than even a great master of the dweomer could have imagined.

For over fifty years, Dallandra and the Westfolk have stayed on guard against the Horsekin and the cult of their false goddess. Although Alshandra is dead, the religion she left behind lives on. Dallandra has also been doing her best to shepherd the other souls bound by wyrd to her and ultimately to Jill and Nevyn while she continues her own dweomerwork of serving her own people. But now, on the border between Deverry and the Westfolk lands, the winds of change are blowing, and they are ill winds indeed....

ARCODD PROVINCE SUMMER, 1159

The ancient Greggyn sage Heraclidd tells us that no man steps in the same river twice. Time itself is a river. When a man dies, he leaves the river behind, only to cross it again at the moment of birth. But betwixt times, the river has flowed on.

The Secret Book of Cadwallon the Druid

Horseshit! What would she see in a common-born man like me?

Salamander seemed to be about to say more, but with a small sigh he turned away and looked across the great hall. From their bench they had a clear view of Cadryc, seated at the gwerbrets right hand. Across the table were two other men, silent as Cadryc talked urgently to his overlord, who sat at the head of the table in a half-round carved chair. Dark-haired and slender like his sister, Ridvar of Cengarn had just turned fourteen that spring, but he held himself straight and proudly, and every gesture he made was measured and firm.

Ye gods! Salamander whispered. Hes but a lad.

He is, but never let it slip that you think him one. He had an elder brother, but he died of a fever a few years after the Horsekin slew their father.

Leaving a child in charge of the rhan.

These things happen. See those two men at the gwerbrets left? Gerran pointed as he spoke. The graybeard sitting across from Cadryc is the chief councillor, Lord Oth. The young dark-haired one in the next chair down is the gwerbrets equerry, Lord Blethry.

A painfully thin man, Oth had sparse gray hair, a neatly trimmed gray beard, and an abundant gray mustache that seemed to be trying to make up for the lack of hair elsewhere. Blethry was stocky and not particularly tall, though he wasnt particularly short either. His narrow eyes, set under full dark brows, and wide mouth spoke of some High Mountain blood in his clan.

Theyre an interesting pair, Salamander said. Different as chalk and cheese.

Theyre both loyal men. Thats what counts.

True spoken, of course.

Wheres our scribe? Gerran turned in his chair and addressed his men. I dont want him lost.

He hared off to the marketplace, Captain, Daumyr said. Looking for ink and suchlike.

Well and good, then. Lets hope he doesnt get into any trouble.

Ill go look for him later if youd like, Salamander said. But I think wed best stay here for the nonce.

Gerran turned his attention back to the honor table. Even from his distance he could see that Cadryc was fighting to keep his temper. The tieryn leaned forward, left hand balled into a fist, the other clutching the table edge as if he were afraid hed float to his feet and hit someone.

I dont like the look of that, Gerran said. But I cant just go and impose upon the noble-born.

In a few moments a page solved the problem by coming to fetch him. Salamander tagged along uninvited, walking a few paces behind. Gerran decided that sending him back to the table would make bad manners into an incident and ignored him. When Gerran knelt by Cadrycs side, the gwerbret acknowledged him with a small nod.

Ive been telling his grace here about this last lot of brigands, Cadryc said. He thinks sending more riders to Lord Samyc should be adequate. Do you agree, Captain?

Forgive me, my lord, but I dont, and besides, Samyc cant feed any more men.

Gerran looked only at Cadryc while he spoke, but the gwerbret leaned forward.

You can speak up, Captain, Ridvar said. I intend to maintain the men for Samyc out of my own pocket, and it wont be some token force. Twenty-five good men and coin to maintain them.

Well, truly, Your Grace, Gerran picked his words carefully. That would be more than enough to handle ordinary bandits and the like. But these are Horsekin.

Ridvar sipped mead from a silver goblet and made no answer.

Twenty-five men wont be enough. Cadrycs voice snapped with barely-concealed frustration. We need an army.

It would be most inconvenient for me to ask the high king for an army.

Next page

1234567...122

Light

Font size:

↓

↑

Georgia Tahoma Arial Verdana

Reset

Interval:

↓

↑

Bookmark:

Make

Similar books «The Gold Falcon»

Look at similar books to The Gold Falcon. We have selected literature similar in name and meaning in the hope of providing readers with more options to find new, interesting, not yet read works.

Philip Kerr

A Man Without Breath

Katharine Ashe

How to Be a Proper Lady

Peter Kerr

Human Rights in a Big Yellow Taxi

Alex Kerr

Shot Down

Romaine

Gold panning Colorado: a guide to the states best sites for gold

Miranda Kerr

Empower Yourself

Tim Kerr [Kerr

Take Words With You: Scripture Promises & Prayers/A Manual For Intercession

The Editors of New Word City

Katharine Graham

Katharine Kerr

The Silver Mage

Katharine Kerr

A Time of Omens

Katharine Kerr

The Shadow Isle

Katharine Kerr

The Spirit Stone

Discussion, reviews of the book The Gold Falcon and just readers' own opinions. Leave your comments, write what you think about the work, its meaning or the main characters. Specify what exactly you liked and what you didn't like, and why you think so.