Tiero edges carefully up to the door of the small room, the tea tray clutched tight in trembling hands. "In the time before times," says the woman - Carianaya - as though she is telling a fairy story, "when the descendants of the seventh scion were given their land, two sisters quarrelled violently, and their families with them. Whatever the roots of the disagreement, and there are many tales about it, it ended when the losing family made a mighty spell and fled to another world. They have never been seen since. The family that remained became the Sarayan clan. The family that fled was called Alseryn." Tiero jumps, steadies the tray, and listens harder. "The legend says that they performed their escape spell in Athal En Jehir. Nara was convinced that the bookwyrms came through that spell from the world to which the Alseryn family fled. What is a matter of record is that the Sarayan wyrte do indeed keep a close eye on Lisgaros and the two other worlds with similar coordinates, which are candidates for the lost Alseryn clan." "And should the lost Alseryn clan be found, what would Sarayan do?" Invarioneth's voice is as calm as ever, as though the question is unimportant. "I believe they have been," Carianaya says. "They have?" Mild surprise. Tiero leans his head against the wall, heart pounding, tray all but forgotten.