He strikes me again and I fall to my knees. I rise when I remember my father’s words. “Even the darkest shadows cannot escape the light of Sihde!” The light from my crown penetrates the darkness and they fall back into the shadows.

The others keep their distance, but the one with the staff pushes me into a dark chamber that leads to the castle gates. The others follow several paces behind, until we reach the stone steps that meander toward the Great Temple.

There are crowds of Ash-Shayton followers outside the castle walls, along with Sihde captives slated to be sacrificed. They corral us into a mound of stones, penning us like sheep to be slaughtered. I feel certain we are the last of our kind.

The Ash-Shayton High Priest steps forward, grabs a woman by the forearm, and drags her to a stone platform. She stares down at me through matted black hair, wild and bemused, begging to be rescued. I clamber over to the platform and pull her away from his grasp.