Land of the First – Servant of Fire
They entered the Umadya Semeiel and went straight to the Hall of Making. He stood before the door and waited. The others left him. He was alone.
The door opened and he entered the hall. It was dark, except for one place, the place reserved for him. It was set at the centre. He went to it, feeling the weight of eyes as he did so. Out there, in the darkness, others watched. He arrived at his place and knelt, his robe spreading out around him. The light shone down on him and he felt almost naked under its glare. The light went out and it was deathly silent. For how long he knelt there he did not know, but as he began to wonder what would happen next, the stone on which he knelt rippled with force. It cracked and opened. He would have moved but winds suddenly assaulted him from all sides, pummelling him and holding him in place. Then fire swirled about him, brilliant flame, so even if he had wanted to move there was nowhere to go. Next he heard the rush of waters, a great roar like the emptying of a sea. The stone around him fell away and dark waters swirled under the fire, rising up as if hungry for him. He was alone in the night, caught by the elements – earth, air, fire and water – and he had no other choice but to endure...
