Ravenna drifted to and from the Dark Spire, midwiving the last of the horrible thing’s eggs, and trying very hard not to think about what the One demanded she do for him. She had thought Eleanon a vile taskmaster, but the One . . . Ravenna spent her time wishing she were anywhere but here.

The Land of Dreams, back in the arms of the Lord of Dreams, Drava.

Back in the marshes, in her mother’s house.

Ravenna wondered if Drava ever thought of her, or if he remembered her.

She wondered if her mother’s house in the marshes had fallen into disrepair and disappeared into the marsh.

But why wonder now, when all this was denied her forever? She had chosen a bad path in life, and it had led her to the very gates of Hell itself.

Elcho Falling was crowded with soldiers and with many different races. Icarii, Isembaardian, Escatorian, Outlander. All of them hurried and scurried everywhere and their leaders spent much of their time studying, and worrying over, the Dark Spire.

They did not see what Ravenna knew it contained. The One had hidden his presence very well.

He did not need to show his hand. He had Ravenna to do his work for him. Ravenna’s only hope lay in wondering if Eleanon would notice that she had slipped beyond his control to that of a new master. But she did not hold out much hope. Eleanon had shown no interest in her once he’d managed to secrete her into Elcho Falling. He would be thinking that the curse he had added to Ishbel’s curses would be enough to keep her to her duties.

Even if Eleanon did realise the One’s presence (which Ravenna doubted very much) he was highly unlikely to mount a rescue of Ravenna from the One’s clutches.

Eleanon did not have the power to confront the One.

So Ravenna went about her task of shifting the eggs, because for the moment this was what the One required of her, no longer doing it for Eleanon’s benefit. As she moved within the citadel she noticed its inhabitants also worried and studied a ball of ice in the bowels of the citadel. Ravenna didn’t know what it was, but Isaiah and Georgdi, as well as Axis’ body servant Yysell, often spent hours in silent vigil, as if waiting for something. Yesterday the thing had blackened, and cracked in half, revealing nothing inside save a little melting ice. There was much consternation.

When it happened, Ravenna had been there placing one of the Dark Spire’s eggs in its hiding spot within the walls. She had watched for a moment as Isaiah and Georgdi shouted and then fell into a grave silence. Ravenna had drifted away, uncaring, lost in her own problems.

They had not seen her — no one ever saw her — and Ravenna did not care what it was that so concerned them.

They would not have much longer to worry about the broken ice ball as the Dark Spire was now perilously close to breaking into the chamber where, from what Ravenna understood, an underwater tunnel led back into the lake.

On this day Ravenna was, as usual, engaged in her work. She had spent the night huddled in a never-used doorway, dozing off and on, often waking with a jerk thinking she could hear the baby somewhere in the levels far above her and feeling sick to the stomach as she thought about what she had to do for the One.

Now, early in the morning, she took herself down to one of the lower levels from where the Dark Spire twisted its way higher into the citadel.

As usual, there were guards and one or two Enchanters there, but Ravenna took no notice of them. She walked slowly about the base of the spire, looking for any small lumps or protuberances.

Ah! There! Ravenna glanced about to make sure no one was looking directly at her — they might not see her, but they would see the change in the surface of the spire — then bent over, her hands working away to release the egg.

It felt loathsome, cool and clammy, and she could feel the One within, watching her, but Ravenna forced herself to ignore it. Her fingers burrowed deeper and deeper until . . . pop! The small jet-black egg popped into her hands.

Ravenna quickly backed away from the spire, her eyes darting to look at the other people in the room, but none had noticed anything. Sighing in relief, she allowed the egg to dictate where it wanted to go.

Up!

Ravenna climbed the main stairwell of Elcho Falling. She shared the stairwell with many others, but none saw her and did not notice even when they occasionally brushed past her. She climbed many levels until the egg urged her toward a chamber on the eastern side of Elcho Falling.

There, at the egg’s prompting, she laid it against the stone wall where it met the floor. The egg burrowed its way into the outer wall of Elcho Falling and vanished.

Ravenna had set hundreds of these eggs over the past weeks.

She knew that, one day, they would hatch and create havoc within Elcho Falling.

She didn’t care. Very soon she would be unleashing her own havoc.

Ravenna turned and walked back to the Dark Spire.

Once there she began searching for the next egg. She walked around and around the spire, concentrating.

Nothing.

Ravenna felt sick. Were there no more? If there were no more eggs, then she would need to move onto the task the One had set her.

The eggs, initially easy to find, had, in the past few days, become ever scarcer. Instead of placing ten or fifteen a day, there had been only eight, and then five, and yesterday merely three.

Perhaps her time working as the Dark Spire’s midwife was almost at an end.

Her feeling of nausea grew as she continued to walk about the spire for another two hours.

Nothing.

Eventually she stopped. There were no more eggs. The Dark Spire had finished with her.

Now you must do what I need, the One whispered in her mind.

Ravenna swallowed. Oh gods .

Now, the One said. The eggs are set. Now you do what I need, before it is too late.

Ravenna took a step away from the spire toward the stairs leading upward.

Another step, then she turned for the stairs and walked up, one leaden foot in front of the other.