The wind blew her tears away, and Laira's voice rose in song. "As the leaves fall upon our marble tiles, as the breeze rustles the birches beyond our columns, as the sun gilds the mountains above our halls—know, young child of the woods, you are home, you are home." The others joined her song, and Requiem's prayer rose from many throats. "Requiem! May our wings forever find your sky."

She would always find this sky, she knew. And Requiem would always be her home.

JEID

 
JEID

Snow coated the graves of war, and new light and life filled the hall of Requiem, by the time the young blue dragon returned.

Fin glided on the wind, a small dragon with three normal legs and one leg shrunken. Jeid sat on the Oak Throne, staring up. The azure dragon circled the hall once, then glided down. Three of his feet clattered against the marble tiles; the fourth foot hung loosely, no larger than an apple. Smoke plumed from the dragon's nostrils, and he shifted back into human form, becoming a boy clad in rags, his left arm only several inches long. Face tanned and eyes wide, Fin stepped closer and knelt before Jeid.

"King Aeternum!" he said. "I bring news of Issari and Tanin."

Jeid rose from his throne so fast his head spun. His heart burst into a gallop. Laira, who stood by his side, rushed with him toward the boy.

"Tell me everything you know," Jeid said. "Where are they? Are they well? Are they—"

But Fin's eyes rolled back and he swayed. Jeid had to catch the poor boy before he collapsed.

I told the damn boy not to fly for days straight, Jeid thought as he cried out for food and water.

Fin lay on the floor, mumbling, only half-awake. Vir Requis rushed forth with a meal: wild berries, mushrooms, venison, and water infused with sweet leaves. The scrawny boy nibbled the food at first, gained some strength, then bolted down the rest. He spoke between mouthfuls.

The Vir Requis crowded around the boy, and for a long time, they listened. Whenever Dorvin interrupted with a question, Jeid cuffed the young man's nape, silencing him, and Fin spoke on. The boy spoke of Issari and Tanin traveling across the southern realms from city to city, gathering an army. He spoke of nephilim—the winged children of demons and mortal women—infesting the south and mustering for war. He spoke of Raem descending into the pit of darkness, of naming himself King of the Abyss, of wedding Angel in the shadows.