My father was a horse-tamer
On the edge of Hali Plain.
His work was good and his horses fine,
But he got little gain,
For few folk come now to Hali Town;
The trade is gone away,
And the distant glower of the ruined Tower
Makes few folk care to stay.
So poor we were, but free we were
As the wild herds on the Plain.
And I was a child as free and wild
As the wind in my tangled mane.


My Grand-dam told me cradle-tales
Of the great days long ago
When the wizards ruled and the land was taxed
And the lords would come and go.
"But the land was torn by war," she said,
"The Tower was broken down,
And the lords appear no longer here
To rule over Hali Town.
And neither do the wizards
Come take our children, one in ten.
So grateful be that we're poor but free,
And you are not living then."

My father had no sons at all,
Nor could he pay the fee
Of hireling men to help his work,
So he turned to Mother and me.
We helped him run the wild ones down,
To catch and tame and train.
And we lived thus free and merrily
On the edge of Hali Plain.
So well I loved the whispering grass
And the children of the land,
That in time I learned, as the seasons turned,
To call them into my hand.

As I rode out on Hali Plain,
I would set my mind to fly
'Til I felt the grass below my feet
And the birds high in the sky.
I'd feel the wild ones running,
And I'd bid them turn again.
And a few I'd see would come to me:
About every one in ten.
I never called them to the rope;
For their trust I'd not betray.
And willingly they'd carry me
On the Plain to run and play.

There is a lake beyond the town.
The Tower stands on its shore.
Close by the Holy Castle looms,
Where none may pass the door.
But I always chose that ruined Tower
As my favorite place to play.
And I'd daydream long of my grand-dam's songs
And the tales of the ancient days.
The stones breathed wondrous tales to me
Of the powers within the ground,
'Til within the stones of the Tower's bones
A magic mirror I found.

The mirror in its iron frame
Was black as a winter sky.
Never a sight it'd show to me,
'Til I set my mind to fly.
Aye, then it showed me wondrous things,
A window on the world:
The Plains, the town, the land around,
For as far as the oceans curled.
I wore it tied about my neck
So's to keep it always near:
Besides the land and my wild-horse band
Was the treasure I held most dear.

But I'll never wear red robes.
I'll never wear blue stone.
The ruined Tower stands abandoned and alone.
But when the moons are high
And the wind is roaring free,
When I send my silent call...
Wild horses come to me!

As we rode down to Hali Town
One summer market day,
I saw the folk in turmoil run,
And I heard an old man say:
"Go back, go back, you horse-tamer,
The Wizards come again!
They come, I fear, for the children here.
They're taking one in ten.
Go back, go back, you horse-tamer,
And your daughter hide away.
Go conceal your child where the land is wild,
'Til the wizards have gone away."

Back I rode to Hali Plain,
As fast as a horse could run.
And I hid myself in the ruined Tower,
Away from wind and sun.
I gazed into the mirror's deeps
To see what might befall,
And close at hand saw the Wizards' band:
So fierce and fair and tall.
Then one of them raised up his eyes,
And he said: "Who can this be?"
And he turned his head, with its hair so red,
And he looked straightaway at me.

"What is this power that I feel," said he,
"So clear and raw and strong?
Ride up, ride up, my sisters all;
My god, we've been searching wrong.
More power's here than we thought to find.
The gods so jest with men;
It may be, still, that within our will,
That Tower will awake again.
'Twas an ill-trained Keeper's mind I met,
But I've rarely felt such power.
We dare not wait lest we come too late.
Make haste now to Hali Tower!"

As soon as I thus heard their plan,
I turned my mind away
And I set it flying over the plains.
To the wild ones I did say:
"Oh, come to me, my free friends all!
Oh, come to my right hand!
We must prevent these lords' intent
Of the claiming of our land.
For if they should rule the land once more,
We shall all be servant-men --
And you, my dears, will be captives here
And will never run free again."

I bound my mind to the wild ones' minds,
And I called as I never did call,
'Til seven mares and a stallion bold
Came into the ancient hall.
Just seven mares, a stallion bold,
A magic mirror and me,
To stay the command of the lords' command
And keep the Plains-folk free:
So I bound my soul to the wild ones' souls
As I'd never done before,
And we raised our might in a ring of light,
To fight in a wizards' war.

We raised a shield about the Tower,
All made of wind and thought.
With hooves of light, through the mirror's sight,
We battered, thrust and fought.
The wizards flinched, the wizards fell,
And they cried up from the ground:
"Have done, have done, ye nine-and-one!
Only tell us what we've found.
How did your Star-stone hold intact
When it should have burned away?
What kind of men can stand up again
Through the fires that we threw today?"

"I have no stone at all," said I,
"Just a mirror like the sea.
You fought with never a man this day,
Just eight wild horses and me.
I am the horse-tamer's daughter
The defender of the land --
And I know my kind were never inclined
To live at a lord's command.
So it is my wish ye shall go away,
And shall leave us as we've been.
Leave us free as we choose to be;
We will never be ruled again."

Up then spoke the Wizard-lord:
"It shall be as you have said.
Better to make us an eighth Domain
Than to duel 'til we all are dead.
With a Circle made of wild beasts
And a plain first-level screen,
You've all the power of any good Tower --
And much more than many I've seen.
You are the Living Matrix then;
That's all that you can be.
It's clear your breed is of wizard-seed.
Oh child, keep away from me!"

So Hali Tower is tenanted now.
Fresh straw lies on the floor.
Tall wild horses come and go,
Free through the open door.
The Hali-folk bring corn and cloth
And wood for the winter chill.
The tales they tell are spreading well,
And I fear they always will.
I'm just the Horse-tamer's daughter,
But they love me for my power.
They've made of me what I feared to be:
The Keeper of Hali Tower!

I'll never wear red robes.
I'll never wear a blue stone.
The ancient Tower stands
no longer quite alone.
But when the moons are high
And the wind is roaring free,
When I send my silent call...
Wild horses come to me!