It had been a long time since Neddryn had seen this cavern, the place of his childhood in Vuzsdin. A handful of candles melted to the stone table in the center of the room threw dim flickers of light against the smoothed cave walls. Neddryn sat on the floor with his legs crossed, playing with blocks. Their colors were faded and cracked — more likely than not, Solae had found them in a garbage heap and had brought them home for his younger brothers to play with — but Neddryn could barely tell anyway in the dim light. He stacked the shapes into two tall walls, then lay down between them, imagining he was walking down a corridor in a mansion of one of the Vuzsdin nobles.
When he lay on his side, one ear pressed to the floor, the blocks seemed to move. He thought he was pretty darn good at this architect thing, as the walls looked real. There were tapestries and paintings, and every so often a fine table or arrangement of flowers that looked faintly exotic. Neddryn stood up, reaching one small hand out to touch one of the fiery petals, and suddenly realized he was no longer at home.
Somewhere distant, a gong was chiming the hour. The sound vibrated through him, spoke to him. "Down here," said the brassy voice. "Come. This way."
