Ancestors of Avalon.

Marion Zimmer Bradley.

To David Bradley.

Without whom this book could not have been written.

People in the Story.

PEOPLE WHO DO NOT ESCAPE ATLANTIS.

Aldela"of Ahtarrath; an acolyte, betrothed to Elis, killed in rescue of Omphalos Stone Deoris [temple name "Adsartha"]a"a former priestess of Caratra, mother of Tiriki, wife of Reio-ta (Domarisa"a Vested Guardian, priestess of Light, mother of Micail) Gremosa"a priestess, housemother to the acolytes Kalhana"of Atalan; an acolyte, betrothed to Damisa.

Kanara"chief astrologer of the Temple on Ahtarrath, Lanath's first teacher Lunricka"a merchant of Ahtarra Mesiraa"chief of the healers, a priestess of the cult of Caratra (Micona"Prince of Ahtarrath, father of Micail) (Mikantora"Prince of Ahtarrath, father of Micon and Reio-ta) Pegara"a landowner of Ahtarrath (Rajastaa"mage, priest of Light, and Vested Guardian in the Ancient Land) CAPITALS = major characters.

( ) = dead before story begins.

Reio-taa"regent of Ahtarrath and governor of the Temple of Light on Ahtarrath, priest, uncle of Micail and stepfather of Tiriki (Rivedaa"biological father of Tiriki, healer, mage, and chief of the Grey Robe Order in the Ancient Land; executed for sorcery) PEOPLE AT THE TOR.

Adeynaa"wife of the merchant Forolin Alyssa [Temple name "Neniath"]a"of Caris; a Grey Robe priestess (the Grey Mage), seeress, and adept Arcora"of Ahtarrath; a sailor on the Crimson Serpent Avena"an Alkonan sailor on the Crimson Serpent Cadisa"an Ahtarran sailor on the Crimson Serpent CHEDAN ARADOSa"originally of Alkonath; son of Naduil, an acolyte in the Ancient Land before its fall, former Vested Guardian, and now a mage DAMISAa"of Alkonath; eldest of the acolytes, a cousin of Prince Tjalan, betrothed to Kalhan Dannetrasa of Carisa"a priest of Light who assisted Ardral in the library; arrives at the Tor on the second ship Domaraa"daughter of Tiriki and Micail, born at the Tor Eilanthaa"Tiriki's Temple name.

Elisa"of Ahtarrath; one of the acolytes, especially good with plants Forolina"a merchant of Ahtarrath and late arrival to the Tor Herona"headman of the marsh folk Iriela"of Arhaburath; youngest of the acolytes (age twelve at the time of the Sinking), betrothed to Aldel Jarataa"a merchant of Ahtarrath Kalarana"an acolyte, betrothed to Selast.

Kestila"daughter of Forolin and Adeyna, five years old when she arrives at the Tor Larina"a sailor on the Crimson Serpent, later inducted into the priesthood Liala [Temple name "Atlialmaris"]a"of Ahtarrath; a Blue Robe priestess and healer Linneta"daughter of Nettle, of the marsh folk Malaeraa"a lesser Blue Robe priestess Metiaa"senior saji woman, nursemaid to Domara Mudlarka"son of Nettle, of the marsh folk Nettlea"wife of Heron, headman of the marsh folk.

Ottera"son of the headman, Heron Reidela"of Ahtarrath; son of Sarhedran, captain of the Crimson Serpent; later, a priest of the Sixth Order Redferna"a woman of the marsh folk Rendanoa"of Akil; a lesser priest in the Temple of Light and a sensitive Selasta"of Cosarrath; one of the acolytes Tareta"wisewoman of the marsh folk at the Tor Teirona"an Alkonian sailor assigned to the Crimson Serpent Teviria"one of the saji women, attendant to Alyssa TIRIKI [Temple name "Eilantha"]a"of Ahtarrath; a Guardian in the Temple of Light, wife of Micail; she will become the Morgan of Avalon Virjaa"one of the saji women, attendant to Alyssa PEOPLE AT BELSAIRATH AND AZAN.

Aderanthisa"of Tapallan; midlevel priestess from the Temple at Ahtarrath Aneta"daughter of the high priestess Ayo and King Khattar of the Ai-Zir Antara"bodyguard to Prince Tjalan ARDRAL [Temple name "Ardravanant," meaning Knower of the Brightest]a"of Atalan; an Adept, Seventh Vested Guardian of the Temple of Light at Ahtarrath, custodian of the library Ayoa"Sacred Sister for the Ai-Zan, high priestess at Carn Ava Baradela"Tjalan's older son, seven years old at the time of the Sinking.

Bennurajosa"of Cosarrath; a singer from the Temple of Light on Ahtarrath, expert on plants and animals Chaithalaa"Princess of Alkonath, wife of Tjalan Cletaa"of Tarisseda Ruta; an acolyte, herbalist, betrothed to Vialmar, fifteen years old at the time of the Sinking Cyrenaa"Princess of Tarisseda, betrothed to Baradel, nine years old at the time of the Sinking Dana"one of the three swordsmen known as Prince Tjalan's Companions Dantua"captain of the Royal Emerald, Tjalan's flagship Delengirola"of Tarisseda; a singer from the Temple in Ahtarra.

Domazoa"keeper of the inn in Belsairath, heir to the local chieftain Droshrada"shaman of the Red Bulls ELARA [Temple name "Larrnebiru"]a"of Ahtarrath; second eldest of the acolytes, also an initiate of Caratra, betrothed to Lanath Galaraa"half sister to Tiriki, daughter of Deoris and Reio-ta, a junior scribe Grehaa"Ai-Zir warrior, bodyguard to Heshoth Haladrisa"of Atalan; First Vested Guardian in the Temple of Light on Alkonath, formerly an archpriest in the Ancient Land Heshotha"a native trader Jiritarena"of Tapallan; priest of Light, astronomer.

Karagona"of Mormallor; a chela to Valadur Khattara"chief of the Red Bulls, high king of the Ai-Zir Khayan-e-Durra"sister of Khattar, queen of the Red Bull tribe Khensua"Khattar's nephew and heir Kyrrdisa"of Ahtarrath; singer and priestess of Light Lanatha"of Tarisseda Ruta; an acolyte, former apprentice to Kanar, betrothed to Elara Li'ijaa"of Alkonath; a chela, Ocathrel's eldest daughter, nineteen years old at the time of the Sinking Lirinia"of Alkonath; a chela in the Scribes' School, middle daughter of Ocathrel, seventeen years old at the time of the Sinking Lodreimia"of Alkonath; a Blue Robe priestess in Timul's Temple Mahadalkua"of Tarisseda Ruta; First Vested Guardian of the Tarissedan Temple of Light Maronaa"of Ahtarrath; a Blue Robe priestess and healer Metanora"of Ahtarrath; Fifth Vested Guardian in the Temple of Light MICAIL [Temple name "Osinarmen"]a"Prince of Ahtarrath; First Vested Guardian in the Temple of Light Naranshada [Temple name "Ansha"]a"of Ahtarrath; Fourth Vested Guardian in the Temple of Light, an engineer Ocathrela"of Alkonath; Fifth Vested Guardian in the Temple of Light.

Osinarmena"Micail's Temple name Ota"one of the three swordsmen known as Prince Tjalan's Companions.

Reualena"of Alkonath; Priest of Light, husband of Sahurusartha Sadhisebo and Saiyanoa"saji priestesses in Timul's Temple, skilled in herblore Sahurusarthaa"of Alkonath; priestess of Light, singer, wife of Reualen Stathalkhaa"of Tarisseda Ruta; Third Guardian of the Tarissedan Temple, a powerful sensitive Timula"of Alkonath; second to the high priestess of the Temple of Ni-Terat in Alkonath, head of the Blue Robes in Belsairath TJALANa"Prince of Alkonath; leader of the colony in Belsairath, cousin of Micail Valadura"of Mormallor; a Grey Adept Valorina"of Tapallan; priest of Light in the Temple at Alkonath, a naturalist Vialmara"of Arhurabath; an acolyte, betrothed to Cleta HEAVENLY POWERS1.

Banura"the four-faced god, destroyer-preserver; ruler of winter The Blood Stara"Mars.

Caratraa"daughter or nurturing aspect of Ni-Terat, the Great Mother; Venus is her star Dyausa"the Sleeper, also known as the "Man with Crossed Hands," the force of chaos that brings change; sometimes referred to as "That One"

Manoaha"the Great Maker, Lord of the Day, identified with the sun; ruler of Summer, and with Orion ("The Hunter of Destiny") Nar-Inabia""Star Shaper," god of the night, the stars, and the sea; ruler of harvest time Ni-Terata"Dark Mother of All, Veiled aspect of the Great Mother, goddess of the Earth; ruler of planting time The Peacemakera"Virgo The Sorcerera"Saturn The Sovereigna"Jupiter The Torcha"Leo, also called the Scepter or the Great Fire The Wheela"Ursa Major, also called the Seven Guardians or Chariot Winged Bulla"Taurus Places in the Story Ahtarraa"capital city of Ahtarrath Ahtarratha"the last isle of the Sea Kingdoms to fall; home of the House of the Twelve (acolytes) Ahurabatha"an isle of the Sea Kingdoms.

Alkonaa"capital of Alkonath Alkonatha"one of the mightiest of the Ten Island Kingdoms, famed for its seafarers Aman Rivera"the Avon, in Britain.

Amber Coasta"coast of the North Sea Ancient Landa"ancestral realm of the Atlanteans, located somewhere near what is now the Black Sea Atlantisa"a general name for the Sea Kingdoms Azana"the "Bull pen," territory of the five tribes of the Ai-Zir, from Weymouth northeast to the Salisbury Plain in Wessex, Britain Azan-Ylira"capital of Azan, modern Amesbury.

Beleri'in [Belerion]a"modern Penzance, in Cornwall Belsairatha"an Alkonan trading outpost where Dorchester is now Belsairath fortressa"Maiden Castle, Dorset Carn Avaa"Avebury.

Casseritidesa""Isles of Tin," a name for Britain City of the Circling Snakea"capital of the Ancient Land Cosarratha"an isle of the Ten Kingdoms Hellasa"Greece Hill of the Ghostsa"Hambledon Hill, Dorset Isle of the Mighty, Isle of Tin, Hesperidesa"British Isles Khema"Egypt.

Mormallora"one of the Ten Kingdoms, called the "holy isle"

Olbairosa"an Ahtarran trading station on the continent Oranderisa"an isle of the Sea Kingdoms The Sea Kingdomsa"the islands of Atlantis Tapallana"an isle of the Ten Kingdoms Tarissedaa"an isle of the Ten Kingdoms The Ten Kingdomsa"the alliance of Sea Kingdoms that replaced the Bright Empire.

The Tora"Glastonbury Tor, Somerset Zaiadana"a land on the coast of the North Sea.

Morgaine speaks ...

The people of Avalon bring to their Lady their troubles, both great and small. This morning the Druids came to me to say that there has been a rockfall in the passage that leads from their Temple to the chamber that holds the Omphalos Stone, and they do not know how it is to be repaired. Their numbers here are small now, and most of those who remain are old. So many of those who might have renewed their Order were killed in the Saxon wars or have gone instead to the monks who tend the Christian chapel that is on that other Avalon.

And so they come to me as they all come to me, those who remain, to tell them what they must do. It has always seemed odd to me that the way to a mystery that is buried so deeply in the earth begins in the Temple of the Sun, but they say that those who first brought the ancient wisdom to these isles, long before the Druids, honored the Light above all things.

The Sight no longer comes to me as it did when I was young and we fought to bring the Goddess back into the world. I know now that She was already here, and always will be, but the Omphalos is the egg stone, the navel of the world, the last magic of a land sunk beneath the seas so long that even to us it is a legend.

When I was a girl, there were tapestries in the Druids' Temple that told the story of how it came here. They have fallen to threads and dust, but I myself once followed that passage to the heart of the hill and touched the sacred stone. The visions that came to me then are more vivid now than many of my own memories. I can see once more the Star Mountain crowned with fire and Tiriki's ship poised trembling on the wave as the Doomed Land is engulfed by the sea.

But I do not believe that I was on that ship. I have had dreams in which I stood, hand in hand with a man I loved, and watched as my world tore itself to pieces, just as Britannia did when Arthur died. Perhaps that was why I was sent back in this time, for Avalon is surely as lost as Atlantis, though it is mist, not smoke, that veils it from the mortal world.

Once, there was a passage that led to the Omphalos Stone from the cave where the White Spring flows out from the Tor, but tremors in the earth blocked that way a long time ago. Perhaps it is not meant that we should any longer walk there. The Stone is being withdrawn from us, like so many other Mysteries.

I know all about endings. It is beginnings that elude me.

How did they come here, those brave priestesses and priests who survived the Sinking? Two millennia have passed since the Stone was brought to this shore, and five hundred more, and though we know little more than their names, we have preserved their legacy. Who were those ancestors who first brought the ancient wisdom and buried it like a seed in the heart of this holy hill?

If I can understand how they survived their testing, then perhaps I will find hope that the ancient wisdom we preserved will be carried into the future, and that something of the magic of Avalon will endure. . . .

One.

Tiriki woke with a gasp as the bed lurched. She reached out for Micail, blinking away tormenting images of fire and blood and falling walls and a faceless, brooding figure writhing in chains. But she lay safe in her own bed, her husband by her side.

"Thank the gods," she whispered. "It was only a dream!"

"Not entirelya"look therea"" Raising himself on one elbow, Micail pointed to the lamp that swung before the Mother's shrine in the corner, sending shadows flickering madly around the room. "But I know what you dreamed. The vision came to me, too."

In the same moment the earth moved again. Micail seized her in his arms and rolled her toward the protection of the wall as plaster showered down from above. From somewhere in the distance came a long rumble of falling masonry. They clung, scarcely breathing, as the vibration peaked and eased.

"The mountain is waking," he said grimly when all was still. "This makes the third tremor in two days." He released her and got out of the bed.

"They're getting stronger," she agreed. The palace was solidly built of stone and had withstood many tremors over the years, but even in the uncertain light Tiriki could see a new crack running across the ceiling of the room.

"I must go. Reports will be coming in. Will you be all right here?" Micail stepped into his sandals and wrapped himself in a mantle. Tall and strong, with the lamplight striking flame from his red hair, he seemed the most stable thing in the room.

"Of course," she answered, getting up herself and pulling a light robe around her slim body. "You are prince as well as priest of this city. They will look to you for direction. But do not wear yourself out on work that can be done by other men. We must be ready for the ritual this afternoon." She tried to hide her shiver of fear at the thought of facing the Omphalos Stone, but surely a ritual to reinforce the balance of the world had never been so necessary as now.

He nodded, looking down at her. "You seem so fragile, but sometimes I think you are the strongest of us all . . ."

"I am strong because we are together," Tiriki murmured as he left her.

Beyond the curtains that screened the balcony a red light was glowing. Today marked the midpoint of spring, she thought grimly, but that light was not the dawn. The city of Ahtarra was on fire.

In the city above, men struggled to shift rubble and put out the last of the fires. In the shrine where the Omphalos Stone lay hidden, all was still. Tiriki held her torch higher as she followed the other priests and priestesses into its deepest chamber, suppressing a shiver as the hot flame became its own shadow, greenish smoke swirling around the pitch-soaked brand.

The Omphalos Stone glimmered like occluded crystal in the center of the room. An egg-shaped thing half the height of a man, it seemed to pulse as it absorbed the light. Robed figures stood along the curving wall. The torches they had set into the brackets above them flickered bravely, yet the shrine seemed shrouded in gloom. There was a chill here, deep beneath the surface of the island of Ahtarrath, that no ordinary fire could ease. Even the smoke of the incense that smoldered on the altar sank in the heavy air.

All other light faded before the glowing Stone. Even without their hoods and veils, the faces of the priests and priestesses would have been difficult to see, but as she felt her way to her place against the wall, Tiriki needed no sight to identify the hooded figure beside her as Micail. She smiled a silent greeting, knowing he would feel it.

Were we disembodied spirits, she thought warmly, still I would know him . . . The sacred medallion upon his breast, a golden wheel with seven spokes, gleamed faintly, reminding Tiriki that here he was not only her husband, but the High Priest Osinarmen, Son of the Sun; just as she was not only Tiriki but Eilantha, Guardian of Light.

Straightening, Micail began to sing the Invocation for the Equinox of Spring, his voice vibrating oddly. "Let Day be bounded by the Night . . ."

Other, softer voices joined the chant.

"Dark be balanced by the Light.

Earth and Sky and Sun and Sea,

A circled cross shall ever be."

A lifetime of priestly training had taught Tiriki all the ways of setting aside the demands of the body, but it was hard to ignore the dank subterranean air, or the eerie sense of pressure that set goose bumps in her skin. Only by supreme effort could she focus again on the song as it began to stir the stillness into harmony. . . .

"Let sorrow make a space for joy,

Let grief with jubilance alloy,

Step by step to make our way,

Till Darkness shall unite with Day . . ."

In the desperate struggle that had caused the destruction of the Ancient Land a generation earlier, the Omphalos Stone had become, if only briefly, the play-thing of black sorcery. For a time it had been feared that the corruption was absolute; and so the priests had circulated the story that the Stone had been lost, with so much else, beneath the vengeful sea.

In a way, the lie was truth; but the deep place in which the Stone lay was this cavern beneath the temples and the city of Ahtarra. With the arrival of the Stone, this midsize island of the Sea Kingdoms of Atlantis had become the sacred center of the world. But though the Stone was far from lost, it was hidden, as it had always been. Even the highest in the priesthood rarely found cause to enter this shrine. Those few who dared consult the Omphalos knew that their actions could upset the equilibrium of the world.

The song changed tempo, growing more urgent.

"Each season by the next is bound,

Meetings, partings, form the round,

The sacred center is our frame,