He found his grand-nephew where he thought he might, sitting in the glade they often used for their lessons. But this time was different. He sat alone in the darkest shade he could find, and his head did not lift in acknowledgement of his mentor's arrival. Ashevathallion sat down beside him and wordlessly reached out with one hand to turn Shane's face more to the light.

"Aiee, sister's-blood! You've been fighting again, I see. The usual band of human boys?"

Shane nodded. "I got Wat a good one in the face, but his cousins jumped in. I wish..." He stopped, turned his face away. "Sometimes I wish.."

"What do you wish, sister's-blood?"

"I wish I could use the Gift and make them just..just go AWAY!"

"Hmm. Not turn them into frogs like you wanted to do to Travis and Logan?"

"This is different. I was younger then. I'm nearly a man now." His voice had dropped to a murmur as he tore up some grass and tossed it away from him.

Ashe sat silent for a minute or two,then nodded. "Vengeance is a fine thing, a thing of song and glory, is it not?"

"They called me a mongrel. A half-blood! It's not so; I'm more elven that Da is!"

"Ahhh. So that is it. And you feel your honor slighted."

There was no answer from the boy. Again Ashe sat in silence with him until at last he gestured with his right hand in the manner of one of the storytellers of his People and then spoke the timehonored words to start his tale:

"Long and long ago, when the humans first landed on the shores of the Forest of Green Silences, there lived a kinsman of our House, his name Terynvathallion. Like others of the House of the Silver Rose, he fought against the invaders, as only someone defending his home can. But the Children of Flame were too many, and one by one our towers and cities fell, and Teryn's heart became full of hate as he could do no more than hide and watch as the mortals made the cities their own. His anguish was almost more than he could bear as he saw his own home city Melarth conquered, its docks by the river full of strange vessels as its people melted away into the woods."

"His heart cried out for vengeance"

"Now in those days the ElderKin, the Dragons, were still a part of the world, not yet withdrawn into their caves to dream their long dreams, and the ties between our Folk and they were strong.So Teryn walked until he came to the hills overlooking Melarth, to the place where a great dragon sat and watched the war below.

`Elder Brother! By the ties and love betwen our races, I beg you to help stop the loss of the land to the humans. Behold, they crash on our land like wave after wave upon the shore, and there is no hope!'

"For long minutes, there was no answer, and Teryn turned to leave. But the dragon stirred, it's scales murmuring like leaves in the wind, and in a voice so low that only Teryn could hear, it spoke: "

`Go to the ocean's shore at tomorrow's dawning, and watch for the changing of the tide. When the first wave of the high tide moves to the shore, you must run from the beach towards Melarth, not looking behind you, and if you do this thing, then you shall have your revenge.'

Ashe paused; only the chirping of crickets could be heard as he waited patiently until Shane once more turned his face back to him.

"What happened?" The boy's voice was barely a murmur, but the elf could sense the curiousity. "What happened to Teryn?"

Smiling to himself, Ashe continued.

`The next day, Teryn did as he had been told by the dragon.The ocean's shore was but two miles from where Melarth sat inland by the river, and Teryn was a swift and strong runner. He had no doubt he could run to the city. He stood and watched the tide, waiting, and then at last he saw it start to turn. As the first wave made its way towards shore, Terynvathallion turned and he ran from the ocean and towards the city of Melarth.

With his first steps, a great stillness descended upon the world, and the light seemed to become darker.

Still he ran on.

There was a loud, tremendous roar somewhere behind him, and it seemed to Teryn that he could hear voices, thousands of them, howling in his wake.

But still he ran. And he did not look back.

He angled out of the forest and towards the road that ran by the river, passing a mile marker as he did so. The noise behind now seemed to fill the world; there was nothing else but that immense roar and the sight of the towers of Melarth coming closer and closer as Teryn ran. Now he could make out the guards along the wall pointing at him. Or were they pointing behind him? He did not look past his shoulder. From the corner of his eye, he could see the river off to his right suddenly begin to churn wildly.

The barest question of what he was bringing upon Melarth began to niggle at Teryn. But still he ran, never looking back, now at the city and running past the outer walls for the hills beyond as humans screamed in fear.

There was a great crash, cries and screams vanishing in it's greater volume. The air around Teryn seemed heavy, trees nearly bending over in the direction he ran, and it almost seemed as if an invisible hand pushed him forward ever faster.

He never looked back.

Not once.

At last, as his lungs burned and his legs finally began to tire, he slowed. He now was climbing towards where he had spoken to the dragon, and water suddenly flowed past him at ankle depth. Now at last he feared what he had done, and as the water rose to halfway up his knees, he scrambled up to collapse in the grass by the dragon. He lay there for minutes, afraid to look back, yet knowing he must.

And so he did. Terynvathallion looked back, and saw nothing but ocean. Bodies floated on its surface as far as he could see, and he cried out in grief as he saw a child wash up upon the newmade shore.

Of Melarth, nothing was ever seen again. What the sea claims, it seldom returns.

"What have I done?" He turned to face the dragon. "What have I done?"

"You have had your vengeance. And vengeance, like the sea,is bitter thing." The dragon unfurled his wings, and flew away, and as he watched, Terynvathallion walked into the ocean, and went to join his beloved city forever.'

"`Vengeance is a bitter thing', Shane. Do not let it consume you. There is more to life than revenge." Ashe stood and helped his grand-nephew to his feet."Come. We'll get you cleaned up and no doubt your father can show you how to defend yourself by normal means." He led the boy back towards Camelot.

"Uncle?"

"Yes, Shane?"

"Do you miss Uncle Yarrow?"

Ashevathallion thought of his twin, of his vow to destroy Ian and his family, including this boy walking beside him, and he nodded wordlessly.

"Aye, Shane. I miss the way he was. I miss him very much."

Shane took his hand. "I'm sorry, Uncle."

"So am I, Shane. So am I."

8/2000