Lara stepped from the protection of Kaliq's cape. With a slow, deliberate motion, she drew Andraste from the scabbard, and planted it before her. The sword hummed softly, menacingly. "I am Lara, Domina of Terah, Arild, kin to Skrymir, Lord of the Forest Giants, kin to my friend, Og. I come to you in peace, but if you do not remove your hand from the hilt of your weapon I will remove your hand." She looked up at him boldly. "Where is your fosterling? I have business with him."

Kaliq stood silent, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth as he watched Lara take charge of the situation. He was pleased to see her years in Terah as a wife and a mother had done nothing to take away her ability to command a difficult situation.

"What business have you with Kolgrim?" the giant demanded. "He was given to us by the Twilight Lord's chancellor as a little one." He took his hand from his sword.

"Hear me well, Arild. Kol is where he will never again do anyone harm. His chancellor, Lord Alfrigg, has kept his kingdom together since the day Kol was incarcerated for his crimes. He did this so Kol's sons would have time to grow and to mature. That time now grows short, and one of Kol's daughters, the Darkling Ciarda, seeks to steal the Dark Lands from her half brothers after she has set them against one another so that only one will triumph."

"How can you know this, Domina of Terah?" Arild asked.

"Indeed, lady, how do you know?" Kolgrim stepped from the dais, and came to stand before Lara. "It is the first time I have ever seen anyone of my proportions," he noted. Then he took her hand and kissed it, his black eyes meeting her green ones.

"It does not matter how I know these things," Lara began, but he cut her off.

"You are my mother, aren't you? I certainly did not gain my golden hair from my father. I have a brother? Which of us was born first?" Kolgrim asked, coming directly to the point.

"You have a twin brother," Lara said. She had grown very pale at the sight of the boy. "The serving women helping as you were birthed were so surprised to see a second son born they put you both in your cradle without marking which of you came first. As you were identical at birth they could not tell us which of you was the elder."

"Why did you desert us then?" Kolgrim asked her bluntly.

"Your father stole me from my husband and children to force his seed upon me," Lara said simply. He did not need to know all of it. "After you were born, as soon as I was able, I fled back to my own family. I am of the light, Kolgrim. You belong to the dark. You belong to your sire."

"Yet now you have come to help me, haven't you?"

Lara sighed. "Nay, I have come to keep the light shining over our worlds. Your half sister and your twin brother are ready to murder you. Even now they are coming with your father's chancellor, Lord Alfrigg. Which of you is meant to rule here in the Dark Lands I do not know. Fate decided that long ago. It is not up to Ciarda to manipulate the situation. She does it for her own advantage not yours. Do not trust her."

"Listen to her, my son," Broska cried. "The wisdom of the faerie woman is legend. If she stands behind you you will rule the Dark Lands!"

"Are you she who fostered Kolgrim?" Lara asked.

Broska hurried down from the High Board and knelt before Lara. "I am she, Domina. It was an honor. He is a good lad. Mannerly and well spoken. He excelled at his lessons. I hope he pleases you."

Kolgrim looked amused by this declaration of devotion spoken by his foster mother. Broska was like an amiable milk cow. Biddable and loyal.

"You remind me of your father," Lara said softly. "He could hide his evil behind his charm, too, as you now do. Make no mistake about it. I have not come to champion you, Kolgrim, son of Kol. I have come to warn you so you may be on your guard against your half sister. Darklings have magic. Some more than others. She will use that magic against you if she decides you are not worthy of her plans. And your brother has already bedded her you may be sure. Like you, he enjoys pain with his pleasures."

Kolgrim flushed, but then he laughed. "Have you been spying on me, Mother?" he taunted her. His gray eyes darkened and danced wickedly.

Lara paled again. "I am not your mother," she said coldly. "I am only she who bore you, Kolgrim, son of Kol.

"Tell me of my twin," he said. "Give me some small advantage as he has an advantage with our sister."

"His dark hair makes him look like your father, but facially you are the same, Kol's get," Lara said. "He is ignorant, vicious and cruel. He lacks manners, and has no loyalty at all. He enjoys punishing his women. His name is Kolbein and everything you see of him is exactly what he is. He does not hide his wickedness as you do."

Kolgrim nodded. "Thank you," he said to her.

The Forest Giant Arild suddenly knelt before Lara. "Help us, faerie woman. Return when the chancellor and his party come."

Before Lara might speak Kaliq did. "Call us and we will come," he said. Then, wrapping his cloak about them, he took them back to Lara's small privy chamber.

She pulled away from him angrily. "Why did you tell them we would return?" she demanded to know. "Have I not done as you asked, my lord?"

"Our task is not yet complete. You cannot leave Ciarda to manipulate the situation with Kol's sons, Lara. We must be there to preserve the balance between light and dark. Arild is stubborn, and only remained in the Dark Lands because his fellow Forest Giants rejected his attempt to supplant Skrymir. He is not a bad fellow, and while Kolgrim is his father's son he is less of a threat than Kolbein would be. At least Arild and his wives managed to instill a public civility into Kolgrim for all the boy's private vices. And I did not see the Forest Giant's toady, Gnup, in the hall. This could very well mean that Ciarda has already subverted him. If she has he could easily become an assassin to be used against Kolgrim, Arild and his whole family."

"I hate this whole matter," Lara cried.

"Then help to correct it!" he almost shouted at her.

Lara looked directly at him. Her lips were pressed together tightly, and she was silent for several long minutes. He waited for her to compose herself, to consider the situation now unfolding, to make the right decision.

"You know what you have to do, and only you can do it, Lara. We must be there when Alfrigg arrives with Ciarda and Kolbein," the Shadow Prince said.

"I know," Lara replied reluctantly. "I know, Kaliq."

He reached out to take her into his arms. She stood silent against him, her head on his chest while he stroked her hair soothingly. He said nothing for no words were necessary between them.

Finally Lara spoke. "It is getting harder," she said, sighing again.

"I will be with you, my love," he replied.

"In the shadows of Arild's hall only, Kaliq. I will not allow this Darkling to pretend her powers are stronger than mine. They are not, and everyone in that hall must know it. I will appear alone so it cannot be said that it was your powers not mine that corrected this situation. Kol's sons are young, untrained and have no idea what magic they could possess. They will be dangerous enough without it. The Darkling cannot be allowed to aid them further. I will banish her from their lives. Whatever happens in the Dark Lands after that will be between Kolgrim and Kolbein. And hopefully they will be so busy trying to outrule each other they will not have time for Hetar and Terah."

Kaliq smiled but Lara did not see that smile, for she still nestled against his chest.

Two nights later Lara awakened suddenly, and heard the voice of the Forest Giant Arild calling to her. "Come quickly, faerie woman, for the chancellor approaches my hall!" Lara knew Kaliq heard Arild's voice, too, for a moment later he appeared in her bedchamber just as her feet touched the floor. With a wave of his hand he dressed her in a sapphire-blue gown, a narrow golden circlet with a sapphire in its center about her head and golden slippers on her feet. The crystal star holding Lara's guardian, Ethne, hung about her neck. Wrapping his all-enveloping cloak about them, Kaliq transported them instantly to the hall of the Forest Giant Arild.

Kaliq loosened his robe and Lara walked forth into the large chamber.

"Greetings, Mother," Kolgrim said, coming forward with a smile and kissing her hand gallantly. "Where is the Shadow Prince? Is he not with you?"

"This is my affair as you will soon see," Lara replied tartly. She turned to Arild, looking up at him. "How near are they?"

"They should pass through my gates in just a few more minutes," the Forest Giant said. "I have sent my women and children from the hall for safety's sake."

"Bring them back," Lara told him. "I will protect them. Where is Gnup?"

"I have not seen him in several days," Arild admitted.

"Then he has betrayed you. Take care of the matter as quickly as you can find him, and do not believe the lies he will tell you to save his miserable hide. Arild, you and your family are welcome in Terah among your own people should you wish to return to them. Skrymir will forgive you, and I will put your hall in their forest. Your sons and your daughters will need mates one day. Some sooner than others. Who will you wed them to if you are not among your own? You have done your duty by Kol, but he will not return to the Dark Kingdom ever again."

"Is he dead then, faerie woman?" the giant asked hesitantly.

"Worse," she said, "but ask no more. Now quickly send for your family."

Arild's family came into the hall, and Lara set a protection spell about them. They would be safe from any magic flung about the chamber this day. A servant ran into the hall to tell his master that their guests were even now entering the hall. Lara took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. She was ready now.

Kol's chancellor hobbled into the chamber, leaning heavily upon his staff of office. Behind him the beautiful Darkling Ciarda followed, walking beside Kolbein. Lara almost gasped seeing Kolgrim's twin, for with his dark hair he was the image of his father. The Darkling's eyes widened in surprise as she saw Lara. Kolbein, however, let his black eyes roam insultingly over Lara, as he licked his lips in apparent anticipation. But then, seeing Kolgrim, his eyes widened in complete surprise.

"Welcome to my house, my lord Chancellor," Arild said, bowing. He ushered the dwarf, careful not to step on him, to a comfortable chair by the enormous hearth.

Before he sat Alfrigg acknowledged Lara. "My lady," he said, and there was distinct relief in his voice as he spoke.

Lara immediately realized that Kol's chancellor had no real part in this situation, and was therefore no threat.

"Who is she?" Ciarda demanded to know. "And why is she here?"

"Why should I not be here?" Lara replied. "It is you who are unwelcome, for deciding the fate of Kol's sons is not in your purview. In the absence of their father it is my authority that decides their fate."

"And who are you?" Ciarda demanded to know.

"I am she who bore them," Lara replied.

"She's our mother," Kolgrim said cheerfully to Kolbein as he came to offer his hand to his twin brother. "But for some reason she cannot bear to say the word."

Brother love will stronger be than anything that comes from thee, Lara said in the silent magic language as she looked directly at the Darkling.

Ciarda shrieked with fury for of course she had heard the spell as Lara pronounced it. The others in the hall including Kolgrim and Kolbein had not heard. Horrified, Ciarda watched as the twins embraced one another. Exclaiming over their identical features, Kolbein touching his brother's golden hair, and then glanced toward Lara. They would never be enemies now. Rivals, yes, but not foes.

"You have ruined all my plans!" Ciarda snarled at her opponent, realizing exactly what Lara had done. "But I will have my revenge upon you, Domina of Terah! Wait and see if I do not. We will meet again, and next time I will have the advantage, I promise you!" Then the Darkling disappeared in a thunderous flash of fiery flame.

All in the hall but Lara shrank back in fear, but with a wave of her hand Lara banished the stench of burning, replacing it with the smell of sweet lavender. "She is gone now, and will not be back," she told her companions. Then she looked to the chancellor. "Well, Alfrigg, I have made my decision. Let them rule together even as they came into this world. And you must be their guide for the next five years."

"Lady, I am old and tired," Alfrigg said piteously, rising from his chair.

"Loyalty should not be punished, and your loyalty to your master is commendable, my lord," Lara told him. Then she set her hands upon the dwarf's shoulders, and said, "Let the years drop away. For ten years and a day. Unchained from pain limbs be free. Bright eyes be clear all to see. Ears be sharp, and memory sound. From your years you're now unbound." And Lara smiled at the surprise that dawned on the old dwarf's face as he heard her words, and experienced the result of them.

"My pains are gone," he marveled. Then he said, "But you said I must only serve them five years. You have freed me from aging for ten years and a day."

"Your loyalty to Kol is rewarded," Lara told him. "You were always his voice of reason, and whether you meant to or not you have helped us keep the darkness at bay. Serve his sons, as well, although I do not imagine they will be any easier than he was. In fact they will be twice the trouble. Still, Alfrigg, you should be able to manage them as you did their father, particularly given your newfound youth."

"We are to rule the Dark Lands? Why, Mother dear, how generous of you," Kolgrim said with a wicked smile.

"You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen," Kolbein said admiringly.

"I am not a creature," Lara said coldly. "I am a faerie woman."

"Why did you desert us?" Kolbein wanted to know.

"Don't ask her. I'll tell you everything, brother dear," Kolgrim said. "She doesn't like us because she didn't like our father."

"Which one of us was born first? It is the firstborn who should rule alone," Kolbein said angrily.

"I'll tell you all about that, too," Kolgrim replied. "No one knows which one of us came first." He chuckled. "It was really quite careless of them."

"Why is it you know more than I do?" Kolbein asked irritably. Then he held up his hand as his twin was about to speak. "I know! I know! You'll tell me that, too."

"Can you send us back to the castle of the Twilight Lord?" Alfrigg asked Lara.

"I can," Lara told him. Then she looked to Arild. "Will you return to the light, Forest Giant? Or will you remain here? Remember your children when your pride reaches up to bite at you."

"You are certain Skrymir will forgive me? Welcome us back into our family?" Arild asked her, trying not to sound too anxious.

"I am certain you will all be welcomed," Lara promised him.

Arild looked to his family. "I have decided we will return to our own people," he told them.

"What of Gnup?" Lara wanted to know.

"I told you we had not seen him in several days. If I find him I will kill him," Arild told her.

Lara nodded, satisfied, then turned back to Kolbein and Kolgrim. "Go and stand next to your chancellor," she told them. "Kolgrim, make your goodbyes to your foster family quickly."

Broska and Guri ran forward sobbing. Broska picked Kolgrim up in her hand and squeezed gently as she kissed the top of his head. Guri kissed his head, too. Then they set him back on the ground, and, sobbing harder, returned to where their own children stood. Evert, Kolgrim's foster brother, offered him a finger to shake before Kolgrim returned to stand next to Kolbein and Alfrigg. But as Lara raised her hand to transport them to the castle of the Twilight Lord he called out to her, "Farewell, Mother dear." And she heard his laughter and that of Kolbein as they faded away.

"My lord Kaliq, hear my plea. Cease all else and come to me," Lara called, pretending so the giants would not know he had been there all along.

The Shadow Prince immediately stepped from the shadows in a corner of the hall.

"Will you help me transport this hall to the realm of the Forest Giants in Terah?" she asked him prettily.

"It is done even as you spoke the words, Domina," Kaliq said. "Go and open the door to your hall, Arild."

And when the Forest Giant did so he was amazed to find his house in a sunny clearing in the midst of a lush green forest. And down the road that led from the house he saw his cousin Skrymir, Lord of the Forest Giants, hurrying forward to meet him, a smile of welcome upon his face. Brushing away his tears, Arild went forth, his hands outstretched to greet him.

Lara looked to Kaliq.

"While you were straightening out everything else I sought out Skrymir," he told her.

"Thank you," Lara said, smiling as the two giants embraced each other after their many years of separation.

10.

THE DARKLING CIARDA PACED angrily back and forth within her hall. Ruined! All her plans had been ruined. How had she been found out? And she had certainly never expected the faerie woman who had birthed her half brothers to become involved in their fate. The bitch had deserted them, deserted her father, who had actually loved that golden creature. Ciarda would have never guessed that Lara's magic was that strong. She had so wanted to complete her father's plans for the conquest of Hetar and Terah. To draw the darkness over this entire world would have been a magnificent accomplishment. To be the first female to rule from the Twilight Throne. Ciarda seethed with her fury.

Then suddenly her ire began to lessen slowly. Perhaps all was not lost. She just had to rearrange her plans, and attack the problem from another direction. The Hierarch she had been creating to govern Hetar for her was still waiting in the wings. If she could bring him to the forefront sooner than she had planned it would cause chaos for the Lord High Ruler Jonah and his minions, who would hardly appreciate being replaced. The Hierarch would draw them to his side efficiently, isolating Jonah. Her Darkling's magic would guarantee that the Hierarch would triumph over his opposition.

And once Hetar was firmly under her control she would set her half brothers against one another. The faerie woman's spell could certainly be broken, Ciarda considered, if she just thought about it. It was a simple spell, after all, wasn't it? And she would leave Terah in peace until they could be lulled into a false sense of security. Why would the faerie woman care what happened to Hetar, or to the Dark Lands? Ciarda believed that Lara had only interfered out of a sense of maternal duty toward her sons. Kol, her father, had appreciated that kind of loyalty, and for his sake Ciarda decided she would leave Lara and her kingdom in peace for the interim. After all, ruling an entire world was a great undertaking. Better she gather that world to her little by little. She didn't have to be so greedy. She didn't need it in her grasp so quickly. She had been foolish in her eagerness. She would not be foolish again.

She considered Lara. She had never until today seen the faerie woman, although she had heard of her beauty from the other women in her father's harem. Her father had wanted Lara's magic, and Ciarda had never understood why until today. Ciarda possessed certain magic from her father, but she hadn't ever known a woman could possess such strong magic as Lara did. Or was it all her magic? She had seen the Shadow Prince standing in the dusky corner of the giant's hall although she knew no mortal eye could have detected him. Perhaps Lara's magic wasn't all that strong. Perhaps it had been the Shadow Prince's magic. Of course it was! Women did not have that kind of strength. But one day she would, Ciarda vowed. One day.

She turned her thoughts now to the one she had chosen to be the Hierarch. She had sought for a young man whose background would fit the legend. The Hierarch, it was said, would come from a far place. He would be a simple man of the people whose natural charisma and handsome face would draw Hetarians of all ranks to him. And no one would question his sudden appearance among them because her magic would make him a wondrous figure to behold. But his heart was as black as hers was, Ciarda knew.