Skandranon Rashkae is perhaps the finest specimen of his race, with
gleaming ebony feathers, majestic wingspan, keen magesight, and sharp
intelligence. Courageous, bold, and crafty, Skan is everything a
gryphon should be. He is the fulfillment of everything that the Mage of
Silence, the human sorcerer called Urtho, intended to achieve when he
created these magical beings to be his champions, the defenders of his
realm - a verdant plain long coveted by the evil mage Maar.
Now Maar is once again advancing on urtho's Keep, this time with a huge
force spearheaded by magical constructs of his own - cruel birds of
prey ready to perform any evil their creator may demand of them. And
when one of Urtho's Seers wakes from a horrifying vision in which she
sees a devastating magical weapon being placed in the hands of Maar's
common soldiers, Skandranon is sent to spy across enemy lines, cloaked
in the protection of Urtho's powerful Spell of Silence.
As days pass and Skandranon doesn't return, all in Urtho's camp wait
anxiously.
But there is one among them for whom the possible loss of
this great bird will be more than just a major military defeat.
Amberdrake, a Kestra'chern - a Healer of body, mind, and spirit whose
talents are as essential to the army as those of any general - waits on
the landing strip with anguish in his heart. For Amberdrake has come to
value the vain, cocksure, and brave Skandranon as his closest friend
and comrade, and he now fears that this prince of gryphons will never
return.
