Priestess of the White

Priestess of the White Trudi Canavan

PRIESTESS OF THE WHITE

Book One of a phenomenal new epic fantasy trilogy

AGE OF THE FIVE

by international bestselling author

TRUDI CANAVAN

A brutally powerful blast battered her shield...

Auraya put all her concentration into drawing and channeling magic. The Pentadrian watched her intently, showing no sign of effort as his onslaught grew ever stronger. Then she found she could no longer draw magic fast enough to counter his attack. White light dazzled her as he broke down her defenses. She knew a brief instant of pure agony. Staggering backwards, she gasped for air and looked down at herself. She was alive and, to her surprise, unhurt.

Flee! Juran’s communication was like a shout in her mind. He is stronger. There is nothing more you can do.

The knowledge hit her like a physical blow. The Pentadrian could kill her. She felt a wave of terror and hastily created another shield. Looking up at the sorcerer she saw him smiling broadly. So much for immortality, she found herself thinking. People are going to remember me as the shortest-lived immortal in history. They’ll make jokes about me... She took a few steps toward the side door and encountered an invisible force.

“No, no,” the Pentadrian said. “You are not leaving.”

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Copyright

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be Construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

EOS

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New York, New York 10022-5299

This book was originally published in Australia in 2005 by Voyager, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Copyright (c) 2005 by Trudi Canavan

ISBN-13: 978-0-06-081570-7

ISBN-10: 0-06-081570-1

www.eosbooks.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information address Eos, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

First Eos paperback printing: January 2006

HarperCollins(r) and Eos(r) are trademarks of HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

Printed in the U.S.A.

To Paul

Acknowledgments

Many thanks:

Firstly to “The Two Pauls” and Fran Bryson who read the roughest of the rough drafts. Also to Jennifer Fallon, Russell Kirkpatrick, Glenda Larke, Fiona McLennan, Ella McCay, Tessa Kum for their feedback. To all the readers, especially all my friends on Voyager Online. And, finally, to Stephanie Smith and the Voyager Team.

Prologue

Auraya stepped over a fallen log, taking care that no crinkle of crushed leaves or snapping of twigs betrayed her presence. A tug at her throat warned her to look back. The hem of her tawl had caught on a branch. She eased it free and carefully chose her next step.

Her quarry moved and she froze.

He can’t have heard me, she told herself. I haven’t made a sound.

She held her breath as the man rose and looked up into the mossy branches of an old garpa tree. His Dreamweaver vest was dappled with leafy shadows. After a moment he crouched and resumed his examination of the underbrush.

Auraya took three careful steps closer.

“You’re early today, Auraya.”

Letting out a sigh of exasperation, Auraya stomped to his side. One day I’m going to surprise him, she vowed. “Mother took a strong dose last night. She’ll sleep late.”

Leiard picked up a piece of bark, then took a short knife from a vest pocket, slid the point into a crack and