Chapter 2

The girl looked mistrustfully at the cup of hot tea that one of the servants had handed her. She was seated in the far corner of the room, as far away form the fireplace you could get. When Daine had first led the girl into the room, she had taken one looked at the fire, yelped and retreated into the corner where she now huddled, wrapped in a blanked, several mages crowding around her, attempting to remove the protruding arrow. The girl, finally deciding that the drink was harmless and not alive, took a large gulp of it, promptly spitting it back out, pawing at her burnt tongue.

"It's hot, silly." Daine knelt beside the girl. "Tell me, do you, by any chance, have a name?" The girls staired at Daine for so long that she began to think that the stranger did not know Common. Finally, just as Daine was moving to get up and leave, the girl spoke.

"Azith-Rath." The girls voice was raspy and rough with lack of use. Daine leaned towards the girl.

"Is that your name? Azith-Rath?" Daine's voice stumbled over the unfamiliar syllables. The girl raised her head, sea green eyes staring unwaveringly into Daine's gray.

"He's coming."

"Who, who's coming?" The girl shuddered and looked down and would say no more. Daine shrugged her shoulders and left the room in search of Numair.

A/N: Short, I know and I'm sorry but I just had to get something else down to start me off. Thanks to Hecate's Diamon for letting me bounce ideas off of her and thanks to Phoenix Fanatic for the "spark" (aka suggestion). Cheers to all!