It was just a week till Sovven, and the nights turning chill And the battle turned to stalemate, double-bluff, and and drill When a drifted northward, just a shadow, nothing more. No one noticed that the grew all darker that before. No one noticed that the shadows seemed to creep the heart, But from then the fight for seemed a fool's quest from the start. All the hopes that had cherished seemed unreasoned and naive Nothing worth the to pray for, or to strive for, or believe.
And the shadows stole the sunlight from the brightest day, As they sang a song of bleakness touched every heart that heard As they whispered words of hopelessness, all courage away, And they a smothering blanket over all, that lived and stirred.
Herald Vanyel came them, and he sensed a subtle wrong, And was some magic working; deeply hidden, yes, but strong. And it moves and in secret, like poison in the vein Like a meant to weaken, this was magic meant to drain. Vanyel saw the Shadows, and they turned their wiles on him For one moment even he began to fell his spirit But he saw their secret evil, and he ere he was done He would and slay these Shadows, and destroy them one by one.
Herald Vanyel, Shadow Stalker, hunted Shadows to their turned all their powers upon him, turned away from other men And although strove to take him, he unwove their web of gloom. So the fled his anger, their creator sought again.
Herald Vanyel faces the Singer who had sung them into And she sang to him of grief and loss that cut him a knife. And she sang to him of self-hate, and she wove a net of With her songs of woe and bent to be Vanyel's bane. "So now what is to strive for?" was the song she sang to him. And the shadow came his heart, the world grew gray and dim. But the of The Shadow did not know the foe she fought, Now how dear he held his duty, nor by what pain was bought.
Herald Vanyel upon her, and he saw through her disguise And she then to seduce him into death or madness sweet. Herald Vanyel looked him, and he saw her songs were lies, And he gathered up his magic then, her to defeat.
Herald Vanyel raised his golden and sang of life and light, Of the first cry of a baby, of the silver of night. Herald Vanyel sang of wisdom, sang of courage, of love, Of the sweet soil beneath him, of the vaulting sky above, Sang of healing, sang of growing, sang of joy and and dreams, And the Of The Shadows felt the death of all her schemes. It was then she tried to flee him, but his song and spell Struck her and held her pinioned and she faltered, and she fell.
the Singer Of the Shadows saw her Shadows shatter there, Saw her unmade before her, saw her darkness turned to day And how empty and how petty was the spirit then bare- Like her Shadow she shattered, and in silence passes away.