The unspoken name

They walk the road of white stones that leads into the hills. Every other day of every other year they are farmers and woodsmen, but on this day they have an ancient purpose to serve. Despite the cold these bearers are naked from the waist up. The Prioress rides in a palanquin with six bearers. Its acolytes leave offerings at the foot of the steps that lead up to the Shrine, but they do not come any closer.Įvery fourteen years, in spring, when the streams in the hills begin to thaw, a procession leaves the House of Silence. In the valley below the Shrine is a temple known as the House of Silence. Birds and insects keep away from the place. This is a quiet country, but the Shrine of the Unspoken One is quieter still. The forest covers these hills like a shroud. IN THE DEEP WILDS of the north, there is a Shrine cut into the mountainside.