As we travel, I consider that Ronin is the perfect person to help me uncover the shamans’ motives. His summons drastically improves my chances of accomplishing what had seemed an impossible goal mere hours ago. If anyone can help me uncover the truth of the attack and win back my place with Kendara, it’s Ronin. As intermediary between the three kingdoms, he must be the most well-informed person on Thiy. Still, I berate myself for the way my hands tremble.

Saengo shares my apprehension. The Blades don’t allow us any time to speak, herding us along like cattle. But I sense her there, her fear a chill against the back of my neck. Although I’d planned to keep secret what happened to her, few people are given the opportunity to speak with the Spider King. I’d be a fool not to ask his advice.

The only craft I know of that can raise the dead is necromancy, which isn’t a shamanic craft. Kendara has a book in her workroom about the Calling of Shadow, the magic of the shadowblessed, the peoples of Kazahyn. It’s a slim volume, information about shadow crafts being so limited. But I’ve read about how, in the past, the shadowblessed raised the bodies of fallen foes to intimidate and demoralize their enemies. The bodies were nothing more than animated corpses controlled by the necromancer.

Saengo is no corpse, and I am not shadowblessed. I felt her heart beating against my palm and the warm aliveness of her skin.

But if anyone can explain what happened, it’s Ronin. According to history books, he originally hails from the far north, where the Great Spinners build webs that span mountainsides. Not much else of his past is known, but one fact has never been disputed: he is one of the most powerful shamans in Thiy.

Some centuries ago, a shaman who would become known as the Soulless rose against the kingdoms. He had the power to kill by ripping out the souls of his enemies. The history books are always vague about what exactly happened, but not even the armies of Thiy could subdue him. He merely claimed their souls for himself, strengthening his power and his madness.

Then Ronin descended from the north with a massive spider as his familiar, one of the Spinners of his homeland. No shaman had ever possessed a Spinner as a familiar before. Only the union of two such powerful beings could defeat the Soulless.

After the Soulless’s death, the souls he’d claimed scattered, taking root in the trees. Over time, the forest died and became a dangerous place for travelers. For whatever reason, Ronin made his home within the woods, using spidersilk spun from the bond with his Spinner to cloak the restless spirits. Not only that, but he convinced the kingdoms to sign the first and only peace treaty of its kind, one that would ensure peace for centuries to come.