Cast in Ruin

## **Blurb**

Seven corpses are discovered in the streets of a Dragon's fief. All identical, down to their clothing.

Kaylin Neya is assigned to discover who they were, who killed them—and why. Is the evil lurking at the borders of Elantra preparing to cross over?

At least the investigation delays her meeting with the Dragon Emperor. And as the shadows grow longer over the fiefs, Kaylin must use every skill she's ever learned to save the people she's sworn to protect. Sword in hand, dragons in the sky, this time there's no retreat and no surrender…

## **Plot**

With great difficulty, Kaylin holds her temper in check during Diarmat's annoying etiquette lessons, then goes to meet the Norannir refugees in their new home in Tiamaris' fief. This is interrupted by a shadow-giant in the last fief sending shadow-creatures across the boundary and leaching all color from the world, until Kaylin walks across the edge and speaks his True Name (Maggaron), revealing him as refugee who fell defending the rest in the Dreamways. He gives Kaylin his enormous rune-etched sword, and after a contest of wills with shadow and with Tara's intervention, he crosses the border back into the light.

They return to Tara's tower, where she finds seven completely identical young women murder victims with golden eyes. This disturbs Kaylin, but not as much as it does the Arkon Lannagaros when they ask him about it. After some roaring and storming, and some linguistically difficult consulting with Norannir leader Mejrah, they determine that a great golden dragon named Bellusdeo had held the shadow at bey for years on the Norannir homeworld, part of a clutch with an unheard of nine females, who hatched simultaneously and had magical and telepathic abilities among their sisterhood. They find the eighth Bellusdeo dying under the city; Tara flies her back to the dragons at her tower but she dies on arrival, begging for Kaylin to kill her using the magic sword.

After retrieving Maggaron's memories in Tara's pool, as soon as shadow warning drums boom all rush to the boundary where the ninth and last Bellusdeo is struggling to avoid the Black Outcaste dragon. While dragons fight above them, Kaylin returns Magarron's sword and he stabs her, keeping her alive with his power as Bellusdeo's Ascendant; Kaylin creates their True Names in runes, blends them, and then the three move into the rune itself to birth Bellusdeo's dragon form. The beleaguered Black Outcaste retreats before Tiamaris and the new golden reinforcement, and Bellusdeo returns to Tara to learn about the her new world.

Much to everyone's consternation, Bellusdeo decides to stay with Kaylin in her squalid one-room apartment. They attend etiquette lessons together, and she does not put up with Diarmat's haughtiness. She takes inspiration from The Chosen Kaylin's uncomplaining poverty to become a figuehead goddess for the Norannir as they adjust to living under The Emperor.

## List of Characters

1. Kaylin
2. Marcus
3. Severn
4. Caitlin
5. Manners Forall
6. Diarmat
7. Sanabalis
8. Clint
9. Tanner
10. Hanson
11. Teela
12. Tain
13. Grammayre
14. Tiamaris
15. Tara
16. Morse
17. Mejrah
18. Maggaron
19. Nightshade
20. Lannagaros
21. Red
22. Andellen
23. Makuron
24. Bellusdeo