The Shepherd King 1
Rachel Gillig
1 - Twin Alder (?)
2 - Nightmare (telepathy) - burgundy
3 - Mirror (invisibility) - purple
4 - Scythe (mind control) - red
5 - Iron Gate (health) - green
6 - Well (loyalty) - blue
7 - Chalice (truth) - turquoise
8 - Maiden (beauty) - pink
9 - White Eagle (courage) - white
10 - Prophet (foresight) - yellow
11 - Golden Egg (wealth) - gold
12 - Black Horse (strength) - black
PART I - THE CARDS
1. There is a disease that started spreading. If someone got it and their veins didn’t turn black, they were fine. But if they did, they were taken away. Elspeth got the fever and her veins turned, her aunt threw her out the window and told her to run to the woods. She ran to the woods as best she could, but she was bleeding from her head from the fall. She gets to the woods, but can’t move. A mist comes and surrounds her and she passes out. Someone helps her get into the woods enough to be hidden. She doesn’t fear him, but she should. For years, they thought she was the only one that had gotten the disease and not inherited any magic from it. But she does have a presence that seems to live in her head. Now, she is older and goes with her cousin Ione to visit with her father for her name day. Her step-mother, Miranda, and much younger twin half-sisters are not too happy about her being there. She makes a remark about Elspeth’s mother. In anticipation for the upcoming festival, she mentions what happened during the previous year’s games because Elspeth didn’t go. Her father approaches and the thing in Elspeth’s head can see the glow of the Well card (1 of 12 in the deck) he got as the dowry from marrying her mother. The cards are the only legal way to use magic, but if the cards are overused, there are consequences. Her father used to be one of the men that would hunt down magic users. He brings her the same flower he brings her every year for her birthday. When Miranda questions him, he gets annoyed and points out he is visiting with his daughter in his house. She says Elspeth Tommy be going to the festival for obvious reasons. Elspeth gives into her natural instinct to run.
2. When Elspeth got sick, her father took her in the night by carriage to her Aunt Opal and Uncle Tryn Hawthorn’s house. No signs of magic showed up, but even the animals stayed away from her. Her uncle had a providence card called the Nightmare that allowed the user to put thoughts in anyone’s mind. The creature in the card was scary and had yellow eyes and she felt like it was watching her. She touches it. She faints and wakes up on the library floor. She hears claws tapping together and looks around for an intruder, but it is in her mind. She can speak to the nightmare monster, but she doesn’t not have the card’s ability. It has been in her head for 11 years. While walking through the woods at night going back to her uncle’s estate, a few highway men catch her alone. They ask for her name and the monster tells her to lie. She does, but when she says she works on her uncle’s estate, they get greedy by the idea of his Providence Cards thinking she will know where they are. She calls out of help. The monster floods her veins and helps her get away, but she will show the marks of it for a while. Elspeth worries about being reported, but the monster tells her card theives (killed slowly and publicly) would only be giving themselves away. The monster fades away for a while.
3. An invitation to the Equinox party is sent to Elspeth’s Uncle Tyrn's house. Opal isn’t sure they’ll be going because they are behind on the previous years taxes. He puts the nightmare card on the table saying it will pay for it. There are multiples of almost every card. There is only one Twin Elder and only two Nightmare cards. Ione is excited and her brothers look at the card. Tyrn shows them it is indestructible. Elslpeth finds her Aunt’s copy of The Old Book of Alders with the family name she once shared with her mother, Iris: Whitebeam. She remembers laying on the floor with her aunt and Ione while Opal told them the stories. The old diety was the Spirit of the Wood. People went into the forest seeking the smell of salt to find her. The Shepherd King was granted strange magic and he wanted to share it with the kingdom. He made the cards, but for each one, he had to give something up, like his soul. People stopped seeking out the Spirit of the Wood because they already had magic and she sent out the mist that grows more every year. The Shepherd King wrote how to stop the mist by collecting a full deck of the Providence Cards and bringing them to the King’s namesake tree. Elspeth tells Opal she doesn’t think she should go to Equinox. Opal thinks she should go if just to upset her step-mother, Nerium. She also reminds Elspeth of a boy, Alyx, that writes to her, but Elspeth doesn’t have any interest in him. Elspeth is worried about the degeneration that eventually happens to the infected’s mind. She think the Nightmare could take over and she will be found out. That night, she dreams for the first time since touching the nightmare card. She sees a man dressed in gold armor with a sword and lost in thought until he sees her and she sees his gold eyes. It is not something the nightmare he intended her to see. When he asks, he tells her it was someone who died a long time ago. He tells her there was once a Shepherd King and a girl and they became a monster.
4. The mist has been spreading for years and the families in Blunder have learned to stay away from it. There are 78 Providence Cards total. Ione tells Elspeth she is going with Tyrn to present the Nightmare Card to the king. He is hoping to introduce her to one of the princes, Hauth Rowan. Elspeth thinks her cousin is delusional for wanting to be with the prince and Ione walks away from her angry. When they arrive, her father is surprised to see her. Nerium is furious. He offers for Elspeth to stay with them and she accepts. On her way to the great hall, Elspeth run into Alyx. He offers to save her a seat, but she declines. When she gets into the hall, she sits in the first available seat. She ends up being next to Emery Yew, the princes’ cousin. He reminds her to stand when royalty enters. They drink a bit of wine, but Elspeth starts to feel unwell and gets up to go outside. He follows her insisting there is something odd about her. When he says there is blood on her hands, she slaps him across the face. His older brother, Ravyn Yew (her father’s successor as Captain of the Destriers) arrives and sends Emery away. When Elspeth tells him her name, he says her father only has two of his daughters living with him and questions why. She tells him it isn’t any of his business and then apologizes saying she is tired. He walks her to her father’s rooms. As she lays down, she wonders how his couslin, Elm, told Ravyn about Emery’s behavior and was able to corral him when Ravyn wasn’t anywhere near the great hall.
5. The next morning, Elspeth is woken up by her twin half-sisters. Her Nerium walks in and they imply she left the hall the previous night to have sex with Emery. She tells them it wasn’t like that and he was rude and unruly. Her father comes in to tell them he is going on the king’s hunting trip and they are expected to walk around the gardens with the other women. Elspeth goes to the garden and starts looking for Ione, but only finds Opal. She asks her aunt if she thinks any other children might have survived the fever like she did. Opal says she doesn’t think so, but admits it is possible. When Ione finds them, Elspeth is upset she has a Maiden card in her pocket. Elspeth begs Ione not to use it because it will drain everything good out of her. Ione says that if Elspeth really loves her, she will let her make her own decisions. Ione walks away and Elspeth runs into the bushes to cry. Ravyn finds her there.
6. Elspeth can see the Nightmare card in Ravyn’s pocket and panics. He asks what she was doing alone on in the woods at night 15 nights ago. She quickly realizes he was the highway man from that night. She can hear the hunting hounds and tries to run, but he grabs her telling her to stop. She kicks his nose and starts to run. When he is finally able to stop her, he can see the black inkiness running through her veins. He tells her he doesn’t have any intention of sending her to the dungeons. She asks what he heard in her head, but he doesn’t seem to know what she is talking about. She tells him she doesn’t have magic and he tells her she is a good liar and will fit in. She asks them not to go through the garden with the ladies and their Providence Cards. He asks how she knows they have cards.
7. Ravyn leads Elspeth in a round about way into the castle. When they pass the way down onto the dungeons. He tells her he will never send her there. When they pass his dogs, he is surprised at how they react to her. She tells him animals don’t like her. He puts her in a room and licks the door when he leaves. When he returns, he has his younger sister (only female Destriers) and a physician. He asks her when she got the fever and she tells him 11 years ago when she was 9. She tells them her power is that she can see the Providence cards. They ask about the price she has to pay for her power, but she says she has not found out what it is yet. Prince Elm comes in and Elspeth can see the red card, the Scythe, in his pocket. When he speaks, she recognizes his voice from that night in the woods. She refuses to say anything else until he leaves.
8. Filick, Elm, and Jespyr leave the cellar. Ravyn blind folds her and has her tell him what Providence Cards he is putting on the table. She thinks about the power of each card and the consequences of using it. When he puts one down that doesn’t give off any light, she tells him there isn’t one there. He tries to use the Nightmare card to make her say there is one there, but the Nightmare inside her head tells her there isn’t a card there. When she takes off the blindfold, she sees the Twin Elders card, but tells Ravyn it is a fake. He is impressed with her skill and asks her who knows about it. She is reluctant to tell him her family knows anything, but admits they knew about her fever. She promises him she hasn’t told anyone about her ability to see the cards. The Nightmare tells her she needs to strike up a deal with him to keep herself out of the dungeons. She tells him she will help him and the prince hunt down cards if they leave her family alone and he never uses the Nightmare card on her again.
9. Ravyn takes Elspeth to the stairwell and says he will see her at dinner. She goes back to her fathers rooms where her sisters and Nerium are almost ready to go. She asks if any of them knew about Ione getting a Maiden card. None of them were aware. Elspeth has to brush the brambles out of her hair and puts on the dark green dress Tyrn bought her. One of her sister remarks it was an expensive dress and Nerium makes a rude comment about Tyrn having to sell something valuable to get it for her. They walk down to the Equinox celebration, and they run into Prince Elm along the way. He offers to escort her into the party. She is reluctant because of the Scythe card in his pocket and the Nightmare’s warning not to trust the Rowan family, but she takes his arm anyway. He says Ravyn is impressed with her magic and surprised he spent all day with her. They walk in and High Prince Hauth comes to meet her. She has a very low opinion of Hauth because he uses his card like a brute. Elm steers her away from him before leaving her. Opal finds her and tells her Tryn took Ione with him to meet with the king. They have made a deal about Ione’s future and left Opal out of the decision completely. She rushes off after her sons that are being mischievous. Alyx comes up to ask her to join his family for dinner saying he already has her father’s permission. When Ravyn comes up to them, she tells Alyx she already promised to dine with his family. As they walk over to the Yew table, Ravyn suggests Elspeth sit with his sister Jespyr. When he mentions sitting with Elm, she says she would rather sit with Emry, who is not in attendance. Everyone stands as the King and High Prince are announced and enter the feast. Hauth shows that he has been given the Nightmare card and in return, he will marry Ione and Tyrn was knighted.
10. Elspeth demands to know everything, but he says he will have to call the council together. She and Ravyn leave the feast separately and meet up. They go up to his room and she is surprised to find it covered in books. Outside the door, they hear the physician Orithe Willow (Filick’s cousin) talk about sedating Emry). Ravyn goes to his wardrobe and removes a false back. He takes out his Nightmare card and uses it to tell his family they need to meet. He then takes out a Mirror card and offers it to her. She refuses to touch it and only tells him it is because she knows there is a price for using magic. He uses the card to make himself invisible and they start heading back to the cellar with her following the glow of his two cards. Nerium finds her alone in the hall and says she is starting to earn a reputation by running off with the Captain of the Destriers. When she insults Elspeth’s mother, Elspeth finally tells her off. She points out that her father, Erik, won’t let her change anything Spindle house because it is the way Iris set it up. She says when the house alls, the only thing left will be the whitebeam tree he planted in the courtyard next to the spindle tree the day she died. She leaves her stepmother there and when they They are out of range, Ravyn tells her she did well dealing with Nerium. Before the enter the cellar, he warns her it will not be a pleasant discussion. He opens the door to reveal Elm Rowen, Filick Willow, Jespyr, Fenir and Morette Yew.
11. Jespyr, Elm, and Ravyn present their cards to her and she has to choose between the Chalice, the Scythe, and the Nightmare. The Nightmare in her head tells her to trust him and chose the Scythe. She does and Elm warns her what it will be like before he takes control. He worries melt away and she is blissfully happy. She wants to do what Elm wants and slaps herself in the face three times before Ravyn tells him to stop. She tells them she got sick when she was nine. Her father sent her away to keep his new wife and daughters safe. He paid Tryn for keeping her. They ask how Tyrn got his Nightmare card and she admits she doesn’t know. She was a child when he brought it home. They are all surprised he has held onto the card for 11 years. Ravyn remembers her fighting them off in the woods and her kicking him in the gardens. He asks who trained her. She tells them she didn’t have any training and has only taught herself to defend herself. When they ask if she has any other magic, the Nightmare takes over telling her the cards don’t affect him. With him in control, she is able to say “no.” When they don’t have any more questions for her, she asks why they are trying to collect the deck of cards on their own instead of helping the king complete his. They tell her in order to lift the curse, they have to hav the complete deck and spill the blood of one of the infected. The king intends to use Emry and they don’t want that to happen. She asks who they intend to use and they say someone dangerous that is close to the king. She agrees to help them.
12. Elspeth listens to the conversation the Yew family has outside the cellar door. Morette saw they would find someone on the forest road. None of them expected it to be Elspeth, but there is a reason she is the only one they found that night. They decide she will need to go back to Castle Yew with them, but they need a story to tell people why she is there. Jespyr suggests they tell people she is there so Ravyn can court her. He says he will do it if there isn’t any other way. When he goes to open the door, Elspeth tries to back away from it and falls. He asks how much she heard and she admits she heard enough. He tells her they will make their way up to the garden so they can be seen together, but says he wants to show her the reason for his treason first. She asks why the king chose Emry for the sacrifice and Ravyn tells her it is because he is dying from the infection. He says he has tried to reason with the king 100 different ways. They have to complete the deck by the solstice because the Old Book of the Alder says they should be joined on the darkest day. Emry’s power is also more chaotic on the Equinox and Solstice. When they get to Emry’s room, he isn’t there.
13. They start to go search for Emory, but run into King Quercus Rowan along the way. He notes that they are together and says he expects to so Elspeth at court more. They get out to the party in the garden and most of the attendees are drunk. Elspeth points out Emory and Ravyn takes off after him. Elspeth is knocked to the ground and Elm helps her up among the crowd. He keeps her close and uses his card to calm the raging crowd around them. He tells her Emory’s power allows him to read people with just a touch. Emory was excited to meet Elspeth because his brother was the only other infected he had ever met. They watch as Ravyn beats up the two men that went after Emory. He puts his hand out and they each give him a White Eagle card and the light disappears from them when his hand touches them.
14. Elspeth is furious that Ravyn didn’t tell her he was infected. When she starts yelling at him, he pulls her aside and reminds her they are in public. He shows her his ability to make make the cards not work, and they don’t work on him. For some reason he can still use the Nightmare and the Mirror (perhaps the Twin Alders). When her drunk sisters approach, Ravyn ends the conversation and takes her hand. To avoid them, they head to the dance floor. She wonders if the dancing is necessary and he tells her to trust him. She admits it is difficult to trust him when he didn’t tell her he was infected. He points out they have only known each other one day. When they stalk back toward the castle, Elm makes a joke about her and Ravyn making up. Emory talks about the Nightmare before he starts throwing up blood.
PART II - THE MIST
15. Elspeth sits next to Ravyn on the way back to their estate, but they sit as far apart from each other as the seat will allow. When they arrive, Jon Thistle offers to take her to her room, but Ravyn says he will take her there. He tells her he has forgotten how to talk to people about his magic. She tells him their house is far enough away form the town that they don’t have to pretend they are acutally courting when there. Jespyr wakes her up in the morning with a letter from Opal wishing her well there. For a moment, Jespyr thinks she sees a flash of yellow in Elspeth’s eyes, but she shrugs it off. She says they are going to have tea with the Pine women because they believe their father has an Iron Gate card.
16. Down at the table for tea, Jespyr pulls out a flask with wine. Morette scolds her for drinking, but Jespyr just passes it to Elspeth who takes a small drink before closing it up. The Pine women arrive and the conversation starts. When one of the girls, Gerta, mentions Ione looking beautiful, Elspeth tells her she received a Maiden card for her betrothal. They get to talking and Elspeth says she will probably inherit her fathers card someday. She is able to get Gerta to tell them her father keeps his Iron Gate and Prophet on him. After the Pine women leave, they go to tell Fenir what they have learned. They decide they will send Jespyr to tell Ravyn and Elm what they have learned so they can get the Iron Gate card from him when he leaves Stone. Elspeth asks if they will hurt Pine, but they say they are trying to avoid hurting anyone. He tells her about the history of the Twin Alders card. The Shepherd King took it into the mist and returned without it. He passed without an heir, so the Captain of the Guard, Brutus Rowan took the crown. She asks who they intend to sacrifice to end the curse. He tells her Orithe Willow, who claims he can see who has been infected with his power. They show her their remaining cards that aren’t held by members of their family. They need the Well, the Iron Gate, and the Twin Alders. Elspeth says she knows someone who has a Well card and lives just down the street.
17. The next morning, Ravyn returns to the castle, Elspeth goes out through the gardens and finds they are a mix of many different things rather than the carefully manicured gardens in Stone. Ravyn finds her there and picks a rose for her. He plans to take her into the mist and he tells her people like them don’t need to worry about going into the mist. He shows her the ruins of the original castle that was there long before Stone. There is only one room left with one window. The nightmare tells her that is all she ever needed. Elspeth realizes he has been there before. Once they are inside, she asks him what it is like to use the Mirror card. He says it is cold, and he hasn’t seen any spirits yet as the card is rumored to do. She asks about the Nightmare card next. He says he hears a voice, but it is his own.
18. Elpeth goes to the armory with the others and is given a dagger. Ravyn tells her she won’t have to use it, but she wouldn’t look much like a highway man without a weapon. They’ve her pants to change into and she is very uncomfortable with how exposed she feels wearing them. Next, they take her out to the stable and try to get her onto a horse. The mare is skittish, but Ravyn tells her it is just the horse sensing her anxiety. When he gets her on top of the horse, the Nightmare hisses at it and it throws her off before taking off. They now believe that animals don’t like her. Elspeth rides with Elm and they wait in the woods for a long time. When Ravyn puts on his mask, it shocks Elspeth and reminds her of the night they found her on the road. Ravyn takes off the mask and apologizes for scaring her. He went back for several nights after the incident trying to find her. He gives her the dagger and her own mask. She tells him to call him Elspeth rather than Miss Spindle since they are about to commit treason together. They hear the signal and get ready.
19. The carriage approaches, but there is also a second carriage following behind. Elspeth tells Rayvn the iron gate is in one of them, but the other has a Black Horse and a Scythe meaning High Prince Hauth is with them. Ravyn uses his Nightmare card to tell the others what Elspeth has seen. They go on with the robbery as planned. Elspeth tries to keep the the edges as the highway men attack the two carriages. She tells Ravyn the Iron Gate is in Pine’s pocket and Ravyn leaves her to retrieve it. Elspeth sees her father about to kill Elm and throws a rock at Erik’s head. He turns on her and she has to get the nightmare’s help to kick him back away from her. Jespyr grabs her and they take off into the woods. They run into another Destrier and Jesypyr fights him off. She searches her pockets, but has lost her charm. She says they have to go deeper into the mist even as she is choking on it. She ends up tripping on a tree root and Elspeth runs back to try and find Ravyn to get his extra charm since she doesn’t have her own on her. She runs into Hauth he demands to know who she is. She calls on the nightmare again, who slashes up the princes’ arm and face so they can get away. She finds Ravyn but they hear something in the woods. They wait behind a tree with interlocked fingers while something approaches. They hear their own men and relax for a second before Elspeth tells him they have to get to Jespyr. They get to her in time and he gives her the spare charm. Elm is accusatory about her father’s possibility of recognizing her. She points out that Erik would not try to kill his own daughter. When they ask how she got away from Hauth, the nightmare says it says the prince is the one that got away.
20. Ravyn sends the rest of their party ahead and has Elspeth ride back with him. When they get to the castle, it is near dawn. He helps her down and his hands linger at her waist. He asks if she would like to continue to pretend courting. She tries to be coy and he tells her to call him Ravyn to make it believable. Her only answer is using his name as she goes to bed. Elspeth sleeps in and gets herself cleaned up in the morning as best as she can one handed. Ravyn finds her on the stairs and stops her to check her arm. She admits she is sore, but he says it looks worse than it is. Ione is there to visit and it is a surprise to them all. Elspeth barely recognizes her. They sit in the parlor with Morette. Ione asks what happened to Elspeth and she tells her cousin she fell off a horse. Ione’s mocking tone shows the use of her Maiden card is starting to make her cold. Elspeth is surprised by the statement. Elm comes in and starts making remarks, but Morette warns him of their company. He asks Ione what she is doing there. She says she is there to see Ravyn and see Yew castle since she hadn’t seen it since she was a girl and believed it was haunted. Elspeth and Ravyn share a smile as he says he wouldn’t discount the rumors.
21. Elspeth walks with Ione while they follow a Ravyn and Elm out to where the Destriers and Hauth are waiting for Ravyn’s instructions. Ravyn tells them he is disappointed that a few highway men got the best of four of his Destriers and the high prince. He challenges Hauth to spar with him. When the high prince refuses, Elm goads him into it. Ravyn fights him and ends up breaking his hand. They stalk off in opposite directions and everyone else disperses. Elm tells Elspeth that Ravyn broke Hauth’s hand for her. Elspeth goes to dinner, but everyone else is dining with the high prince except Fenir and Morette. They don’t eat much before they all excuse themselves for the night. As Elspeth is making her way to her room, she hears Elm warning Ravyn about Elspeth being dangerous and hiding something from them. He tells his cousin she has had to hide a lot her entire life and he understands why. Elspeth hurries into her room and he knocks on her door. When she answers, he tells her he wants to show her something
22. Ravyn takes Elspeth back to the castle ruins and into the last remaining room through the dark window. She recognizes the room from her dream. Ravyn shows her the stone table in the middle. He cuts his palm and puts it on the table to reveal their family’s hiding spot for their cards. He tells her only people with infected blood can open it. He shows her the cards. He got the fever when he was 13. He didn’t know if he got any powers and left for training to become a Destrier at 14. He couldn’t get the Black Horse card to work. Hauth realized what was happening and told his father. Because the cards wouldn’t be used against him, the king made Ravyn captain. Each year he loses the ability to use another card. She offers to close the table with her blood and he refuses at first. When she state to leave, he takes her hand and makes a small cut on the heel of her palm. He tells her it doesn’t take much blood. HE shows her how to close it. They kiss. When Elspeth pens her eyes, she sees a man in bright armor and yellow eyes in the room. She runs out of the room and back to her room in the castle. She looks all around her room and sees the depictions of the Shepherd King. She realizes the Nightmare is what he became.
23. Filick finds Elspeth sleepwalking and wakes her up. He takes her inside and gives her tea to warm her up while he re-bandages her wrist. He tells her how the Shepherd King held great power granted to him by the Spirit of the Wood. He made the cards to share his power with his people. The spirit became angry that no one came to her anymore and sent in the mist. The Shepherd King went into the mist to bargain with the spirit of the wood. He traded the Twin Alders card for the Old Book of Alders before he realized he would need the card to end the mist. Filick thinks Brutus Rowan killed the Shepherd King in a grab for power, but they don’t know what really happened. She asks him what her degeneration is, but he tells her it is different for everyone. When she leaves him, she is wondering the castle when she realizes her degeneration is the Nightmare growing stronger in her. Elm finds her and tells her to dress in her colors because they are going to Market Day.
24. Elspeth dresses in the red dress she inherited when her mother died. She braids her hair and puts the rose Ravyn gave her in it. She goes downstairs and Jespyr is the one to greet her and lead her to the others at Market Day. Elspeth wears a green and gold mask for borrowed from the Yews for the event. Ravyn is there and looks happy that she has his rose in her hair. Hauth is also there and apologizes for his behavior the previous day. Ravyn tries to hurry him along, but when Hauth grabs Elspeth’s arm, she winces. Ione tells him that Elspeth fell off a horse when they were ridding the previous day. Hauth questions what she sees in Ravyn and she replies that he is tall before she walks away from the High prince and over to Elm. She asks if he thinks his brother suspects anything, but he isn’t worried about it. As they pass Spindle House, Elspeth thinks about going in to steal the Well card. Elm warns her it is not the right time and they keep moving. Lost in her thoughts, Elspeth is started when Ravyn touches her shoulder. They start walking together and he tells her he hasn’t stopped thinking about her since they met that night on the highway. Her has noticed her eyes are sometimes yellow. Elspeth’s half-sisters find her and their father and Nerium join them shortly after. Erik tells her she looks like her mother and Nerium is not happy about it. The twins, Dimia and Nya, take Elspeth for a turn around the square. Elspeth catches up with Elm and begs him to use his Scythe to make her sisters go away. He does and they wander off to find more wine. Elm asks her if she sees any Chalice cards around. When she says there aren’t, he takes a drink of his wine. Elm warns her Ravyn will find out what she really is eventually. Suddenly, three Destriers push through the crowd. They have apprehended a child with the infection and the parents that harbored him. Hauth intends to make an example of them.
25. A Destrier whips the father before the entire crowd is lead to the edge of town. Hauth uses his Scythe to send the couple into the woods while the child watches. Elspeth takes Elm’s cloak and mask. Elm uses his own Scythe to keep the couple form going any further. Elspeth runs to towards the boy, but Orithe Willow tries to stop her. She asks for the Nightmare’s help again. She is able to get away from the physician and tells the boy to come with her. A Destrier, Linden, follows after them. She gives the boy her crow’s foot charm and sends him off to help his parents. She face Linden and again asks the Nightmare for help. The Nightmare slashes at the Destrier and gets him across the neck. Elspeth run and hits Ravyn and she tells him she doesn’t know what happened. When he reaches for her hands, they are curled like claws.
26. Ravyn cleans off Elspeth’s bloody hands. He asks about her yellow eyes, but she says she can’t tell him because he won’t want anything to do with her. He uses the Nightmare card to tell Jespyr to send Orithe to help Linden. He tells her to take off the mask and cloak and they find Elm. She gives him his cloak back and they join the rest of the Destriers. Ravyn scolds Hauth for attempting a public execution in the middle of Market Day. He sends the Destriers to look for the boy and tells them to alert him at Castle Yew if he is found. Ravyn, Elspeth, and Yew head back home and Fenir runs out to tell them Emory has run away from Stone.
27. In the library, they go in to check on Emory who walked all night to get from Stone to Castle Yew. Elm uses his Scythe card to warm him up. Emory asks who Elspeth is. He doesn’t remember her from Equinox. They introduce her and tell him she is a friend. Emory makes a comment about how he thinks the Shepherd King’s last name was Yew. All around the ruins of the original castle are Yew trees. Elspeth asks the Nightmare what his name was and he says Ash. When Emory and Elm start to argue about history, Fenir puts a stop to it. Morette stays to watch over Emory while the others go to eat. Elm warns Ravyn that Elspeth is hiding something from him and can’t be trusted. Ravyn tells them his plan was to have the Ivy’s steal the Well card from Spindle house so they would all have alibis during the robbery. However, they were unsuccessful. Elspeth points out she need to be there to find the card, but they say there would be an inquest and they can use the Chalice to question anyone. Jespyr returns at night, but didn’t not find the boy (they have a special place they send infected children). They all leave Ravyn and Elspeth alone. She admits that she is degenerating and doesn’t know how to explain it because she has never told anyone about it before. They start making out, but when Thistle walks in on them, they move to his bedroom. They have sex.
28. The next morning, Elspeth puts on her thin chamise and goes leaves Ravyns room. Jespyr catches her in the act but seems happy about it. Elspeth rushes to her room and gets dressed for the day. She heads down to breakfast where Jespyr is snickering at her. Everyone is surprised when Ravyn come in and is smiling and in a good mood. Jespyr makes a comment and Elspeth kicks her under the table. When Elm realizes what is going on, he gets up and leaves the room. Emory starts to cough up blood again. They agree to take him out to see the trees before taking him back to Stone. Elspeth walks with Ravyn and she tells him she left that morning because she wanted him to get some rest. They are both happy with how the night ended. Elspeth has a moment alone with Emory and she asks him to touch her again and see how close the Nightmare is to taking over. He is scared by what he sees and tells her she doesn’t have long. When the others come looking for them, she asks if he will tell them. He says he won’t and will forget everything by the next day.
PART III - THE BLOOD
29. Elspeth dreams of helping children into the room with the one window. She wakes up in the room and then again in her bed. She tells the Nightmare to leave her alone. The king has ordered the Destriers to Stone for training after losing the infected boy and one of their own being so badly injured. Linden will survive, but will have bad scars. Jespyr, Elm, and Raven and returned Emory to Stone and stayed. They were all invited to Spindle house for the twins’ named day celebration. They intend to use the party as an excuse to find the Well card.
30. Once inside Spindle house, they decide to split into pairs to search for the card. Elm insists on having Elspeth with him to keep Ravyn from getting distracted. The divide up the five floors and Elspeth tell them they don’t need to search the sixth because that is where her room was and her father doesn’t go there anymore. Elspeth and Elm are in her father’s library when his servant Balian comes to retrieve a book. Elspeth dismisses him, but Elm makes him bow to her before going. She asks why he does it. He tells her it is for fun. In reality, he would do anything for his family, the ones that are just as loyal to him. He is worried she will betray them. She says she won’t betray them knowingly. The four thieves meet on the first floor and none of them found the card. They go to the great hall for the festivities. Elspeth tells them to go ahead while she continues to search. Ione comes along and is clearly under the influence of Hauth’s Scythe card. She tells them to follow them and they do. They sit at a table and has them each take a goblet of wine. Ione toasts the twins and drink. When Hauth comes to the table, Elm immediately knows what is going on. Elspeth catches on when she sees the High Prince has the Chalice card in his pocket. He takes a drink and sits with them.
31. Hauth looks to Jespyr to start the game. They go around the asking the high prince questions. He is jealous of Ravyn and plans to try to take over Destriers. Ione doesn’t want to play, but Hauth doesn’t give her a choice she offers to go next. She admits she wants power and doesn’t have any other means of getting it. Elm goes next. He admits he doesn’t live at Stone because he hates it there. Hauth asks if he thinks he is more fit to be king and Elm says yes. Ravyn offers to go next, but they know the chalice won’t affect him. When it is Elspeth’s turn, the Nightmare tells her to frame the truth carefully. She asks for help, but he says she has to figure it out herself. Ione asks if she is in love. She isn’t ready to say it, but can only answer yes. Hauth asks what happened to her arm. Elm starts an argument with his brother. Ravyn uses the Nightmare card to get in her head to give her advice on how to answer. She tells him to get out and the Nightmare tells him to get out. Ravyn falls out of his chair in fear. Hauth grabs Elspeth’s broken wrist and Jespyr tries to stop him. In the chaos, Ione taps the Chalice card on the table and walks away. Ravyn tells Hauth they are leaving. Elspeth takes his arm, but falls and vomits blood.
32. Elspeth wakes up in her room at Spindle house and finds Ravyn sleeping in a chair next to her bed. When Elm knocks on the door, Elspeth pretends to sleep while Ravyn wakes up. She listens to them talk for a bit before the Nightmare tells her she shouldn’t lie to Ravyn if she loves him. She opens her eyes and invites Ravyn to use the Nightmare card in her. He hears the voice in her head again and she points to the Nightmare card. She says she absorbs whatever the Shepherd King gave to create the card when she touches a card with her bare skin. In this case, she absorbed the Shepherd King’s soul. Ravyn asks Elm to give them some time alone. She apologizes for not telling him sooner, but he tells her she doesn’t owe him an explanation. Jespyr comes to get Ravyn for patrol and he reluctantly goes saying he will be back that night. Erik comes to talk to Elspeth alone. He gives her the Well card saying he wants her to have it. He tells her she doesn’t have to give it to anyone. Elspeth rushes downstairs to catch Ravyn before he leaves. She tells him about the Well. He says he will send Filick for it. She tells him to be safe and doesn’t realize those are the last words she will say to him out loud.
33. Filick comes for the card. Elspeth is too tired to go back to her room. Her Uncle Tryn comes to visit and says Opal is waiting for her in her room. He takes her upstairs, but it is Hauth and Orithe there. Hauth dismisses him and he leaves. The High Prince tells her she was getting in the way of her uncle’s plans for power. He starts attacking her demanding to know what her magic is. He intends to make Rayvn step down as Captain. She asks the Nightmare for his help and he warns her that he degeneration is almost complete. She already knows it. Orithe comes out of the shadows.
34. The Nightmare asks her to trust him and Ravyn won’t need to die. She knows she doesn’t have a choice. Orithe suggests they call the other Destriers, but Hauth doesn’t want to involve Ravyn yet. Orithe wants to test her blood before presenting her to the king. He recognizes the yellow eyes and that she was the one who helped the boy escape. Ravyn enters her mind to make sure she is alright. She tells him Hauth and Orithe know what she is and are waiting for him. She sees a vision of men dumping infected children into the inferno of the old castle. She kills Ortihe and then crushes Hauth’s face into the floor. Before the Nightmare takes over completely, she makes him promises to help the Yews. He promises to help them in all their endeavors.
35. Ravyn arrives and is relieved to find Elspeth alive. He is distraught when he sees the Nightmare has taken over. She tells them to arrest her as she acted on her own. Ravyn watches her in the dungeon and doesn’t get much sleep. She asks to speak to the king and he comes down to see her. None of the Destriers are willing to go near her. Ravyn uses the Nightmare card to enter her mind, but cannot find Elspeth. She offers to find the Twin Alders card for the king in exchange for letting Emory go home. The king is skeptical. She tells him she is the one that put the card in its hiding place.