Description: Table of Contents Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Praise for First Truth "A beautifully told, simple story that looks unblinkingly at how prejudice unnecessarily reinforces misconceptions, misunderstandings, and hatred." -- Booklist "The author excels at demonstrating the tension between the farmers and plainsmen with Alissa''s and Strell''s stereotypical attitudes toward each other upon first meeting . . . With an almost claustrophobic setting and a small cast of characters, this novel is an admirable effort . . . An entertaining read." -- Kliatt "A refreshing, humorous take on the coming-of-age quest. The plot tightly builds empathy for the characters even as it makes fun of their foibles." -- Romantic Times "Though First Truth may be Dawn Cook''s debut novel, readers will place this excellent tale on their keeper shelf." -- BookBrowser "A fun book, sure to appeal to fans (like me) of Tamora Pierce or Robin McKinley. With characters to cheer for, vicious villains, and attack birds, First Truth has everything I need in a good read. I look forward to Alissa''s next adventure." --Patricia Briggs, author of Dragon Blood "In her beguiling debut, Cook has woven together magical threads." --Deborah Chester, author of The Queen''s Gambit And don''t miss Hidden Truth Ace Books by Dawn Cook FIRST TRUTH HIDDEN TRUTH FORGOTTEN TRUTH If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as "unsold and destroyed" to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this "stripped book." This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author''s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. FORGOTTEN TRUTH An Ace Book / published by arrangement with the author PRINTING HISTORY Ace mass market edition / December 2003 Copyright 2003 by Dawn Cook. All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author''s rights is appreciated. For information address: The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014. ISBN: 9781440619557 ACE Ace Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014. ACE and the "A" design are trademarks belonging to Penguin Group (USA) Inc. For Tim 1 A lissa''s throat tightened at the sight of the updraft, a deeper blue against the washed-out autumn sky. It rose like a column of shimmering heat from the open field of grass. Beneath her was the icy cool of the surrounding forest. Tops of individual trees were lost in a blur of damp pine smell from her speed. The wind slipping over her felt and sounded like gray silk, but instead of her usual pleasure, she felt only a coming dread. "See it?" Beast said in her thoughts. "What''s going to happen when we find it?" "We go up," Alissa thought back, swallowing nervously. "The sun''s setting, and I have a lesson tonight. Perhaps we should stop. It''s getting hard to see the updrafts." "It is not. We''ve been at this since sun-high. It''s not that hard, Alissa." The voice in her thoughts gave the impression of an aggravated sigh. "We''re almost there. What do you do when you reach it?" "I--uh--cup my wings about it and turn into a rising curve?" "Yes." Alissa''s long tail made an exasperated twitch. She was sure Beast had done it. Alissa wouldn''t have minded, but it shifted their momentum, and Alissa gasped. Beast said nothing as she impatiently abandoned this pass and angled Alissa back to the forest. Beside her came a faint chitter as Talon, Alissa''s pet kestrel, protested at the sharp shift of direction. The bird had accompanied her all afternoon as if in encouragement. "Beast," Alissa asked, "why are we bothering? I don''t care you do all the flying." "I''ve seen your teacher watch you when we fly. He knows something is wrong. Someday he might realize it isn''t you who is flying but me." Beast turned Alissa back to the updraft. "Look sharp. I''m not going to help you this time." "Beast?" Alissa thought, concerned as she took control over the gentle glide Beast had left her in, but the voice didn''t answer. Alissa eyed the approaching updraft, knowing from countless passes she had a moment to gather her courage. She glanced forward to the Hold. The nearly abandoned fortress nestled into the rock of the mountain. Behind the peak was a steep drop. The setting sun had beaten upon the sheer rock face all afternoon until the wave of heat streaming from it was so strong, it was almost purple to her raku eyes. Beast had sported them in the windy violence earlier, showing Alissa the glorious possibilities to be found in updrafts before settling down to try to teach Alissa to fly on her own. The heavy upwelling of energy behind the Hold made the updraft over the fallow fields look like a washbasin in comparison to the sea, but even so it scared Alissa silly, making her long fingers tingle down to the tips of her savage claws. Cup my wings and ease into it, she thought, her lips pulling back from her long canines as she felt Beast''s thoughts turn impatient. "Not so stiff, Alissa," her feral consciousness complained. "Tear my dame''s wings to shreds, why don''t you trust the wind? It''s more faithful than the most loyal mate." "Mate?" Alissa thought, embarrassed. Distracted, she slammed into the updraft unprepared. The wheat-scented wind caught her wings, shocking her with the force behind it. Alissa overcompensated. Feeling herself stall, she tried to flap her wings. It was a mistake. Pain shot through her back as she sought to find lift from a standstill. "Alissa!" Beast shrieked. "You can''t rise that way! Cup your wings!" Alissa''s tail whipped wildly as she tried to find her center of balance. It smacked painfully into a treetop. She was out of the updraft and back over the trees. Without the help of the rising air, she fell. A massive hemlock loomed before her. "Beast!" she cried. Beast tried to snatch control, but panicked, Alissa wouldn''t let go. Wings flailing, Alissa crashed through the canopy. Branches as thick as her arm snapped. Pain raked her wings. Frantic, Alissa struggled to fold them. There was no time to even gasp as the ground came at her. She hit hard. In an uncontrolled barrel roll, she tumbled along the ground. Undergrowth and small trees cracked. End over end she spun until slamming into a tree. Her long neck flung out, and her jaw smacked into the earth. The tree shivered, sending dead needles to the ground and birds into the air. Blood filled her mouth. She had bitten her tongue. "Oh, Ashes," she moaned aloud, her words coming out as a pained, guttural groan. Talon fluttered down to perch on her head, the bird''s nails digging painlessly into Alissa''s bare scalp. Alissa waved a nastily clawed hand at her bird to get her to leave. It was so undignified when Talon perched on her head like that. The kestrel made an insulted squawk and flew away. "Alissa?" came a dry, disgusted thought from the depths of her mind. "You are the only raku I know who can fall down in an updraft." "Ow," Alissa groaned aloud, her thick rumble carrying more pain than her human voice ever could. She slowly picked herself up, settling into a suffering, hunched crouch. Red-rimmed scratches marred her golden hide, and she was sore with what would probably be bruises. "Look at your wing," Beast demanded. "I think you tore it." Stomach turning, Alissa extended her left wing, being careful to not hit any of the remaining trees in the clearing she had made. Her neck snaked to look behind her. "Burn it to ash," she thought. A panel close to her body

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