The Alturan lords and soldiers entered the Halrana market house and were led down a corridor to a reception chamber, decorated with Halrana art — paintings of the land and the harvest, with colours of brown and red. The lords took seats around a stone table, and the heavy chamber door closed with a boom.
A bladesinger stood behind each Alturan lord while the Alturan soldiers lined against the wall. Behind each Halrana lord stood a black figure, polished to a high gloss and standing motionless. Beautifully crafted, perfectly in proportion, Miro realised they must be iron golems. He measured one against his height and realised they were nearly seven feet tall. Symbols covered the golems, the runes glowing red, indicating they had been activated. The constructs were alive.
Halrana in brown robes lined the wall behind the golems. Each wore a torque around his neck and carried a small tablet in his hands. These were the men who could control the golems.
Then Miro forgot everything when High Lord Legasa spoke his first words, staring directly at High Lord Tessolar.
"Our Lexicon has been stolen. We need to know, what do you know of this?"
All in the room tensed.
Miro glanced at the closed door.
8
Do you know what the problem with the world is? Too many houses open their doors to unwelcome guests.
— Emperor Xenovere V, 532 Y.E.
STUDENTS at the Pens were given only a basic class in lore before their abilities in swordsmanship were developed, honed and tested.
Those who proved themselves at the Pens were accepted into bladesinger training. Miro assumed this was where a bladesinger’s knowledge of the runes was taught.
Ella was the real expert. Sometimes Miro felt she knew things he wouldn’t understand if she spent a lifetime trying to explain them.
He pictured her now, her eyes lit up with excitement, explaining to Miro the things only an enchanter knew about Lexicons. He’d found it fascinating.
"Each house has its own lore," Ella had said. "Halrana animators bring golems of wood and bone to life, while Alturan enchanters make the sharpest swords and the toughest armour. Builders from Torakon construct the tallest towers and strongest fortresses. Petryan elementalists can heat the air or draw moisture from it. Louan artificers use their skills to create everything from timepieces to mortars. A Lexicon is the key to all of a house’s lore."
"So everything an enchanter needs to know is in our Lexicon?" Miro had asked. If this was the case, why were there so many books on enchantment?
"No, there’s more to it than that. In the pages of the Lexicon are the perfect representations of the rune structures. Something like an alphabet, combined with a dictionary."
Miro nodded. He hadn’t particularly enjoyed grammar.
"At places like the Academy of Enchanters in Sarostar, new methods and techniques are always being created — ways of arranging runes into matrices for stronger steel, for example — but the runes themselves, drawn by hand by a fallible human, well they can only approximate the perfection of the Lexicon."
"Is that all?"
Ella sighed in exasperation. "No, that’s not all. A Lexicon is a relic of the Evermen — they weren’t created by human hands, and from a Lexicon stems the power that allows the magic to function. Our Lexicon must be protected at all costs, not only for the knowledge, but also so it can be renewed. Just like enchanted items need renewal, so does a Lexicon. Our High Enchantress would not be able to renew our Lexicon if it was lost, which means the runes would fade, and the magic would no longer work."
"All magic?"
"Everything that was made with those rune structures. In our case that means all of our enchantments — zenblades, armoursilk, nightlamps — everything."
"So it needs to be protected."
"That’s right. Each house appoints one individual above all whose responsibility it is to maintain and protect their Lexicon. Unlike the lords, whose position is hereditary, the loremaster is a position that can only be reached with intelligence, skill, and dedication."
Miro had nodded. From what he had heard, even High Lord Tessolar deferred to High Enchantress Evora Guinestor.
~
LORD Marshall Devon was the first to speak. "You have lost your Lexicon? But how?"
Next to him, High Lord Tessolar placed a hand on Devon’s arm. "This is a grave and serious matter. We offer our sympathies, and our full support. This is the first occasion we have had to know about this."
High Lord Legasa nodded, as if confirming something.
The Alturan High Lord continued, "But I have to agree with Lord Devon. This comes as a shock. How did you lose your Lexicon? What of the High Animator? Were there safeguards in place?"