Obsidian Ridge

Prologue

The Year of the Leaping Frog, 1266 DR Somewhere over Calimshan.

The princess was ushered quickly through the black stone hallways. The shadows shifted with every twist and turn, making the entire place seem as if it had been torn straight from the nightmares of an overly imaginative child. The floor beneath her feet vibrated softly-the clicking of her escorts' claws on the chipped stone barely audible over the constant hum.

Coming to the end of a long swooping corridor, the princess was abruptly shoved inside a large, poorly lit chamber. She fell to the ground, landing hard on her knees and hands. The door slammed behind her.

"Well met, princess," said a voice-or rather, two voices: one high pitched, one much lower. They seemed to echo one another, one following only a fraction of a heartbeat behind the first.

The princess got to her feet, smoothing her robes and straightening herself in a rather regal fashion. "Who are you?" she asked.

"Yes, my servants aren't very accommodating when it comes to introductions," replied the echoing dual voice. "I am Arch Magus Xeries, the lord and ruler of the Obsidian Ridge."

The princess examined her surroundings.

The walls of this chamber were made from the same black, chipped obsidian as the rest of the citadel. The ceiling, if there was one, was obscured in darkness far, far above. The floor was smooth and polished, and in the very center sat a large dais, a pair of connected thrones atop of it.

"There is only one of you?" she asked, puzzled by the echo.

A bent figure sat in one of the thrones, obscured by shadows.

"Yes," he replied with his two voices. "But that is why you are here, so I will no longer be alone."

The princess shuddered, a chill running down her spine. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself. "What do you want from me?"

"What does anyone want from anyone else?" replied the arch magus. "I want you by my side. Your sympathy. Your loyalty. Your companionship. Those things that everyone craves."

The princess turned her back to the throne. "And why do you think I would give myself to you?"

"Because I can give you whatever you desire," replied Xeries, his voice echoing over itself. "What do you wish for?"

The princess turned back around, softening her stance. "Whatever I desire?"

"Immortality. Riches. Power." Xeries leaned over, lifting a decanter of deep red wine and pouring it into a goblet in his bent, twisted hand. "Is there something else you could want?"

The princess took a step closer. "And what must I do for this immortality, riches, and power?"

Xeries chuckled. He took a sip of his wine, then wiped his lips with the back of his hand.

"Like all things, there is a price."