River of the Sun, chapter 19 – The Return of the Silence

Lord Menascare pushed with all his might at the edge of the damaged temple door. On the other side of the structure, Anzety, the high priest, did the same, though in the opposite direction. Both men were wet with the sweat of their efforts, but the discomfort had not diminished their determination.

Around them a sea of silent faces stared at their doomed work to partly restore the damaged doorway. Menascare cursed beneath his breath. It should have been unthinkable to attempt to repair the huge portal during the very start of the restarted ritual, but, looking at the damaged bronze, he had felt such a depth of emotion that he wanted to make a gesture–to insert a sense of reparation–into the violated space.

One set of eyes, in particular, radiated venom – those of Obion, the Commander of the…