Malnai sat back in his chair and took another sip of the Ryvena's herbal drink. He began to relax for the first time that day as he knew that the older woman would make good on her promise. There were times that he felt that she could do anything, or more to the point that she would do anything to help someone else. What he did know was that she had not lived in Jarros all her life but he had never asked her about what had gone before. Sometimes he had been tempted to read her cards, but it was difficult without her cooperation and he had the feeling that she would know if he did it. There was a lot more to Ryvena than was immediately apparent and he liked having her on his side. In addition he felt that there was a great darkness in her past and just at the moment he had enough darkness of his own. So instead he turned his thoughts to the previous evening. The darkness had angered rather than frightened him. It had whispered in his mind like the dark which came to him in pain, it had moved and threatened like the dark which had stolen Syleth's child. Were they the same thing? Were there other forces of evil moving on Jarros? Of course the more important question was, why did they want him? He was merely a fortune teller who got things right now and again, the people for whom he saw did more of the work than he did and there were numerous people in the city that were better than him. However there was also the small matter of the light and the power which had so obviously scared the dark away. Maybe there was more to it than he knew...

Almost in reaction to these thoughts he felt a slight chill run through him so he got up and added another log to the fire. When he sat down he noticed that Syleth had pushed back the hood of her cloak and was looking at him. He met her gaze, neither smiling nor frowning and was about to say something when she spoke first.

"Malnai," she said. "Tell me a little of your story. I feel it is unfair that you labour with the burden of my pain and yet it seems clear that there is darkness in your life too."

The young man was about to smile and begin to tell her that his life contained very little pain, especially compared to hers, when she spoke again.

"Last night. If you cannot tell me exactly what happened, at least how it could be possible."

This time Malnai did frown. "Last night? What happened? Why did it happen? What did it mean? In truth, I don't know, but maybe talking about it will bring answers, or maybe it will just bring more questions. Maybe I am missing something by being so close, by not knowing as many legends and stories as I should. You are sure you wish to listen to my tale?"

Without really waiting for an answer Malnai took another drink and made himself comfortable.

"Very well then, here is a tale for you m'lady, a tale with very few complications..." He frowned, "Well, that is not true, the middle of the tale is free of those, the beginning and the end, not so. But I digress...

"I want you to imagine a house, a very, very small house, a small house crammed in between a number of other small houses. In this house lived two people, a man and a woman, a young couple who loved each other and were happy, in their own way. Yes, the house was small, but it was enough. The man had a job in the market and the woman worked as a maid at the palace."

"Time went by, as time does. They had a child, then another. Now I believe the man came from a large family so two children would have been nothing special. Both of the babies were boys and both were healthy. A few more years went by and a three more boys arrived. The house quickly filled up and belts were tightened. The woman grew tired and by this time she had lost her job at the palace and so there was even less money than before. However the children didn't stop."

"After the five boys there were a couple of girls, then a sixth and seventh boy. By this time the oldest was fifteen years old and he was going to work with his father. The rest of them were all ages in between. The marriage was no longer happy and idyllic, there were arguments and tears nearly every night. On top of all of this the birth of the last child had damaged the woman's health and so he was named Malnai, 'bad birth'. This is not to say he was the runt, this is no cute story, he was neither the biggest nor the smallest, perhaps his only qualification was that he was the most annoying."

"The boy always managed to get under the feet of the man and woman and his siblings, as time went on he managed to annoyed the bigger children on the street, and sometimes their parents. Most of the time this annoyance was justified, the boy seemed to have an innate shine, even at the worst of times he could smile, he didn't seem to know fear and his easy-going manner rubbed everyone up the wrong way. The man hit him, the gangs on the street chased him, and occasionally caught him, and some of his older brothers picked on him. By the time he was five the woman had stopped caring where the boy was, if he was there at dinner time he was fed, if not the others ate more."

"By this stage the boy had taken to exploring the streets around his home. When he was beaten he merely hid somewhere and waited until he got better. He was always able to find food and water when he needed them but his life was not one of luxury. As he grew older he went further. This meant that he saw more people and things, but he also encountered more danger. Bigger gangs, city guards, things in the sewers. There were times when he felt his time had finally come but his body always put itself back together and he would keep on going. Always. If there was one constant in his life then it was the fact that he never stopped."

"However every time he came back home the man decided to beat him. This went on for a long time, a very long time. When the boy was fifteen he finally decided that a break should be made. For the last couple of years he had been making some money on the streets, he would juggle, tell stories, sing and generally entertain people. As he got better he got more money. However as he got more money he attracted the attention of the League of Bastards and his siblings. Both groups took his money and beat him up. Now this didn't happen all the time, but often enough. He did begin to notice that some of the money would get back to him and he heard that those who stole from him sometimes had accidents, but he kept on going. One day he just left his part of the city and moved to the upper class area. He did more fortune telling, made more money and got a nice place. Sometimes he was hassled by the guard, sometimes the League, but he always came back."

"Life was good. Women liked him, a lot, he made a fair amount of money and he had unwanted attention less and less. He still went down to the sewers and sometimes he didn't re-emerge for days. These days were spent hiding or healing, but not really worrying about the darkness that was surrounding the city. The only other constant in his life was his journey, once a year, to his old street. This was the pattern for years. He would explore, entertain, read the cards or the runes, meet good looking women, have bright days and interesting nights. Life was good."

Malnai sighed and opened his eyes, he looked across at Syleth, "Then it all changed."

"The King decided that he needed his fortune read, so he send his guards out to kidnap someone who could do it. I can only presume that people like Oreon got away, the boy... no, young man, didn't. He was brought before the King and the King didn't like what he heard, so he..."

Malnai winced briefly and when he started talking again his voice was lower.

"...he tried to kill the messenger, maybe to stop the message? I do not know who saved the young man, but someone stopped him being buried. As he lay in darkness someone tried to tempt him, tried to bring him finally into the darkness, but the young man liked the light, so he woke up."

"The rest you know. Your scream woke him up, your scream saved him, so he returned the favour. He brought you somewhere safe and then brought you to a friend of his. That friend is now helping you. That is my story."

Malnai looked down into his drink and saw it was empty. He put the mug back onto the table and stretched a little. "Of course that doesn't fully answer your question. Last night a darkness came, I don't know who it was looking for and I don't know why. The darkness... it upsets me, it's wrong, it shouldn't be here. It makes me angry, so I reacted, I needed light, I called the light, the light came. I don't know how, but it came. The darkness fled before it. I don't know if it will return, I suspect it will, but you are safe for now. Maybe I am more than a fortune teller, maybe I..."

A smile crossed the young man's face as he noticed Syleth was only half listening, obviously the exertion of the previous few days was catching up on her. Maybe she would be able to talk about it the next day, maybe she would have some answers or good questions, but now he was content to let her sleep. He was about to add some more wood the the fire when Ryvena returned. Malnai moved quickly over to the door and lowered his voice.

"How did it go?"

Ryvena began to undo her cloak, "Just a moment." Malnai resisted the urge to tap his foot as she slowing took her boots off and put them away.

Her face became serious, "I fear you've gotten yourself involved in a little more than you're used to handling, Malnai."

"Believe me, that occurred to me. What of your friend? Will he help us?"

"Close to the temple there's a small jewellers shop. You may be familiar with it? Anyway, most of his business is selling trinkets to the tourists. Not a booming business these days. Over the years he has, however, had occasion to create more specialised items. As a result if there's a symbol or sign in this land and if it means a thing at all, he'll know. You'll find him there tomorrow. He's expecting you. In the meantime, I have a couple of rooms free upstairs. You look like you could both use some sleep."

Malnai smiled, nodded and fished around in his pocket until he drew out a handful of coins. "Will this cover it?"

She shook her head. "Save your money for tomorrow. You'll need it. Malcolm has promised me that he will help you but he's a businessman and therefore not beyond bleeding you for more. If he asks more than is reasonable remind him that you will be talking to me again."

"Thank you again. If there's ever anything I can do for you..."

"You'll be the first to know." Ryvena smiled at him and his own smile quickly returned. He crossed over to where Syleth slept and very gently lifted her in his arms to carry her upstairs. He was at the first step when she called him again.

"Malnai, if I don't see you before you leave, good luck. You will come back and let me know how it went, won't you?"

He looked over his shoulder at her. "Count on it. Good day Ryvena." With that he continued up the stairs barely noticing the weight he carried. It was strange, he had only been in bed a few hours ago, but he knew he would sleep well again. He quickly found the room which Ryvena had given them and let himself in. He gently lay Syleth down on the bed and covered against the winter chill. A few moments later he was in his own bed, already drifting. His last hope was that this time the dreams would be of a more pleasant nature...