Constance took herself far, to the places of fire which had been told. There, from out a mountainside came a river of fire. Hot, such that all who came near might perish with it. The flames about it, the smoke and veils of airy gases, cloaked the river, which glimpses, of every now and then, in small parts. Crimson mass of rock flame crawling to away.
Ser Constance might not come near to perform her trial and take the broken words to the healing flames.
She made a shield of wood and grass, but in practice it burned away, even with the water on it. Then Ser Constance held a word out on a strong thing, but it bent, and the word must be recorded. Now she knew that she must find a clever way to come close enough to the flames to clean the words.
She made all her clothes wet and filled her boots with water and had water in all her armour although she knew that in later times it might squeak mightily. She then took up the words and went into the hot flames, staying there only until the words had risen, once more bright, from the fire.
When she came out, off with her hot armour and into the water, her hair all burnt and her skin much troubled and so she was not well at all. The people made a salve for her burns, and she lay days and nights to become well enough to travel once more.
When it was done and she came to travel, still burnt in the mind and seeking the solace of her partner Vivainne, she went slowly and painfully along the forest tracks. Mostly lost and not knowing day from night or tree from tree. Until at last she came to a clear place before a broken house, with stones falling but roof held. Thinking to sleep upon its floor, she came and shook the door to make it open, then shook the window shutters to make them open, but there was no going in. Then, as she turned away, a voice of her knowing came from within.
Help me come out, I am enchanted within and my song has been stolen in a clever lie that I cannot break. Bring to me the woman who has taken my song that I may break this enchantment.
I will come to you Vivainne, cried Constance, why can I not enter to you and why can you not come out to me neither through the door nor the window nor the roof. I shall find this woman and wrest the song from her mouth. Leave me to it.
She dug a hole in the ground and covered it with sticks and leave. Then she fashioned a thing with stick and a white stone, winding it all about with straw and making down the red berries for colour, so that it looked very likely and stood it about the trap. It will fall and be mine. She expected. Then she scoured the forest with her ears wide open. Also, eventually she heard it and chased the woman behind the trees till she was captured in the trap. Aha, said Constance, You are now mine to hear the song from. Then the woman in the hole cried out, Leave me my song or I shall mingle with the trees once more enchanted.
So Constance said that if the woman would give back the song and release Vivainne, then she, Constance, would donate a free song to crush the enchantment. So this was agreed upon.
Constance put a song in the stick being that she had fashioned that the woman might hold to ward away the enchantment. Then away the woman’s song went into the broken house and Vivainne was out and about with a song in her heart once more.
This was all very satisfactorily finished and Constance and Vivainne, once more reunited from danger, could about their business once more. They went home to the Castle Desegur in which was their own place and spent a many months there making good their defenses and provisioning all the people.
In the spring or early summer they set off once more to the trysting place to meet with the Blue Knight and release the cleaned and refurbished words into the wild once more.
The Guardians of the Cave 