Cast in Oblivion

## **Blurb**

**POLITICS ARE HELL**

Kaylin wasn’t sent to the West March to start a war. Her mission to bring back nine Barrani might do just that, though. She traveled with a Dragon, and her presence is perceived as an act of aggression in the extremely hostile world of Barrani-Dragon politics. Internal Barrani politics are no less deadly, and Kaylin has managed—barely—to help the rescued Barrani evade both death and captivity at the hands of the Consort.

Before the unplanned “visit” to the West March, Kaylin invited the Consort to dinner. For obvious reasons, Kaylin wants to cancel dinner—forever. But the Consort is going to show up at the front door at the agreed-upon time. The fact that she tried to imprison Kaylin’s guests doesn’t matter at all…to her.

A private Barrani Hell, built of Shadow and malice, exists beneath the High Halls. It is the High Court’s duty to jail the creature at its heart—even if it means that Barrani victims are locked in the cage with it. The Consort is willing to do almost anything to free the trapped and end their eternal torment. And she needs the help of Kaylin’s houseguests—and Kaylin herself. Failure won’t be death—it will be Hell. And that’s where Kaylin is going.

## **Plot**

The Consort successfully avoids Kaylin's attempts to uninvite her to dinner, so Emmerian brings a very thick brief on what the dragons know about internal Barrani politics to prep for it. Tempers are short, and the cohort fights among themselves, losing coherence and needing to reform corporally in the basement sparring room. The Consort comes, preceded by the Arkon Lannagaros and Emmerian doing a security sweep, and proves unexpectedly sympathetic to both dragons and Cohort, even asking Kaylin to violate ancient tradition and describe the Test of Names. The Arkon uses mirror magic to recreate the battle at the High Halls from the first Draco-Barrani war: two flights of dragons were being struck down from behind powerful magical shields maintained by the High Lord, when a shadow-tainted Barrani arcanist burned him, allowing dragon fire to decimate the Barrani defenders, much of the High Halls. This was the final defeat for the Barrani, but the victorious dragons recognizing a third power on the field allied with their foes to force the great shadow Adversary into the Lake of Names and reroute all the power of the High Halls to keep him there.

Six days later, minor Barrani lord Bressarian shows up at the front door with a  gift of clothes and a carriage, but also two shadows who literally try to undermine Helen; when her tennents immediately deal with them, he comes boldly into the parlor, tells them Sedarias' brother Coravante moves the court (including his father) but uses shadow magic, and offers his loyalty as soon as she passes the Test of Names.

When they all arrive at the High Halls, they are received graciously by the Consort and High Lord with most of the Barrani nobility in attendance. During the reception, invisible shadow flows from Coravante to Terrano, trying to get him to change form and discredit the entire Cohort's "barrani-ness". Hope and Kaylin break the enchantment, and the Consort invites everyone to her private audience chamber to re-evaluate. Though it is clear the Adversary (the shadow in the Lake of Names) has possessed agents in the court, they decide to go ahead with test, suspecting it is manipulating them in an attempt to escape.

In the Tower of the Test, they are immediately separated into different dimensions, some of which are attacked by three ferals. Kaylin, coached by Ynpharion and Spike, shifts to one of these dimensions, claims the True Names of two and forces the third to retreat. Teela executes one, but the other is convinced she's been decieved by shadow-agents, and helps guide the party to the magical rite being performed by the usurpers at the Lake of Names. The High Halls, though damaged by both the end of the First Draco-Barrani War and more recent shadow attacks, is able to summon up its sentience and show trust in Kaylin by asking her to rewrite its True Name without taking its power for selfish ends. (She was recommended by Helen and Alsanis).

Once free, the Avatar of the High Halls creates an altered space, and she enters the same reality as Adversary. She walks through elemental fire by telling it a story, then Spike and Hope build a bridge through the Barrani Hell to Adversary. Geared for war, it is disarmed when instead she simply asks it what it wants. She learns it is a quasi-independent sentient "limb" of the great Shadow in Ravellon, and cuts it free.

All are returned to our reality, where Sedarias kills Coravante and the other conspirators are captuerd and imprisoned by the magic of the Consort's song. Terrano goes missing for a few months, but eventually decides living among his kin is what he wants and returns.

## List of Characters

1. Kaylin
2. Helen
3. Mandoran
4. Bellusdeo
5. Teela
6. Tain
7. Hope
8. Sedarias
9. Ynpharion
10. Terrano
11. Annarion
12. Nightshade
13. Emmerian
14. Allaron
15. Serralyn
16. Torrisant
17. Fallessian
18. Valliant
19. Eddorian
20. Karian
21. Severn
22. Maggaron
23. Lannagaros
24. Consort
25. Spike
26. Brennaire
27. Bressarian
28. High Lord
29. Evarrim
30. Coravante
31. Edelonne
32. Averen
33. Karellan
34. Lumennar