"Briggs, Patricia - Sianim 2 - Steal the Dragon.text" - читать интересную книгу автора (Briggs Patricia)

dare thread the shoals and reefs in the Southern Sea.

"Once there was a road through the Swamp. The magic of the Archmage held
back the Uriah, wights and other nasty swamp dwellers. But as the seasons changed
so did the Archmage, and other matters became more important. The road was
overrun and swallowed by the Swamp."

He paused and sipped water from a glass that sat on the corner of his desk.

"I have heard that there was once such a road," commented Rialla, "but what
does that have to do with Darran? The Swamp is nowhere near there." She had
cleared off a place for herself on a worn tapestry chair, and sat on the very edge of
the seat, though her hands were open and relaxed in her lap.

"Have patience and I'll tell you. Now," Ren fell back into a storyteller's voice,
"when I came into office, I noticed that we lacked information on anything on the
other side of the Swamp. An oversight, of course, which I have corrected.

"For some time I have been monitoring the expansion of an Eastern empire called
Cybelle. A decade ago it was a small country and very poor, then its ruler died
leaving no legitimate heirs. When the ensuing fight for power was over, the man on
the throne was a religious fanatic who called himself 'the Voice of Altis.' I have tried
for ten years to find information on his background, but he seems to have appeared
from nowhere.

"This man professes to believe, as do his followers, that the ancient god Altis
appeared to him and revealed that it was Cybelle's destiny to rule from the Eastern
Sea to the Western, from the far Northlands to the Southern Sea. In the relatively
short time that 'the Voice' has been in power, he has managed to take over most of
the countries between the Eastern Sea and the Great Swamp."

Ren glanced at Rialla to make sure that she was still listening before he
continued. "Long ago, after the Wizard Wars, the people of the East rose up in
anger against anyone who practiced magic, much as we in the West did. In the East,
however, there was no refuge. Without countries like Reth or Southwood to shelter
them, the mages disappeared into stories told to frighten children.

"The religious revival is spreading even faster than the rule of Cybelle; the last
few countries to join the empire have not even put up a fight. I am informed that the
Voice of Altis performs miracles. Altis has given him the power to make light where


there was only darkness, to make a building burst into flame with a wave of his
hand. He can kill with a word. Sound familiar?"

Rialla looked up at his question. "A trained mage has set himself on the throne of
Cybelle." Her voice had lost all traces of timidity or mockery and was merely
thoughtful.

Ren nodded and smiled with the growing conviction that she would turn out to