“You stand in the Arena of Aurevan. You were brought before us by rite and witness. Your skill has been proven.”

  A pause.

  “You will serve.”

  Marquil had a rough start...thrust into a life and death situation, prevails only to be given the good news of servitude. Great first day.

  "That was when he saw it.

  At first, he thought it was fog—low and pale, drifting between roots. But fog didn’t glow. This shimmered faintly, as if the moon itself had frayed and caught on the undergrowth....

  Long and sinuous, its body coiled in gentle loops across the forest floor. Its hide was pearlescent, translucent enough that moonlight seemed to pass through it rather than reflect off it. Along its sides, fine threads trailed like spun gss, pooling softly around it.

  A silkworm".

  Lumora, the giant silkworm and Silken’s first beast friend.

  "A shape unfolded from the darkness above. At first, it was monstrous—vast, many-limbed, eyes catching the light like stars trapped in amber. But as it descended, the form shifted, elongating, refining. Limbs became arms... She nded lightly before him. Tall. Slender. Draped in yered silk that moved as if alive.

  I am Arachnele, Keeper of the Quiet Weave."

  Marquil starts to realise he is undertaking something much rger than he originally thought, time will tell just how rge...