"Maggie Furey - Artifacts of Power 1 - Aurian" - читать интересную книгу автора (Furey Maggie)

father like?"

The question took Forral by surprise, and he was very much aware
of the plea that lay behind the words. "Hasn't your mother told
you?" he asked her.

"No," she replied. "She won't talk about him. She said that this
was all his fault." She gestured around her, her voice quavering.
"She said he'd done a bad thing, and that it was our duty to make
up for it."

Forral shuddered. What had happened to Eilin? What a terrible
burden to lay on a child! "Nonsense," he said firmly.


"Your father was a good, kind man, and a true friend to me. What
happened was an accident. He didn't do this on purpose, pet. He
made a mistake, that's allтАФand don't let anybody tell you
otherwise."

Aurian's face brightened. "I wish I could remember him," she said
softly. "Will you tell me about him, as we ride?"


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CKapter 1



"Gladly," replied Forral.

About two leagues from the center of the bowl, the ground began to
level off to a smooth surface with a slight downward slope. Soon
the rock was covered with a thin layer of soil, and tiny,
struggling plants began to appear. By the time the lake came into
view they were riding on wiry turf starred with daisies, and
passing thickets of hawthorn, blackberry, and elder that were
bowed down beneath a rich harvest of fruit and alive with birds.
Groves of shapely trees stood along the green lake shore, some
still bearing apples and pears. Forral could not help but be
impressed by the scale of Eilin's accomplishments in eight short
years. A pity she couldn't have lavished the same attention on the
child.

The lake was large and round, formed by water draining into the
bottom of the crater. In the center stood an island, obviously man
(or Mage) made, that was connected to the shore by a slender
wooden bridge. On the island a tower rose above the lake like a
spear of light. Forral caught his breath. The ground floor was
surrounded by gardens and built of black stone, but above it was