Amourelle was the latest addition to the Lord Emperor's harem of desert concubines; always a dangerous role. Younger and more beautiful women inevitably aroused the jealousy and ire of the senior wives and because Amourelle had so rapidly became a particular favourite of the Lord Emperor they took a particular dislike to her and began to plot against her. "She is a northerner and an outlander and she has no respect for the ways of the desert", Tristina told the Lord Emperor who merely smiled and ignored this. "She makes eyes at the Guard Captains", Soiri said. That didn't concern the Lord Emperor. Even if it were true, which he doubted, the Guard Captains were all eunuchs. "She does not follow the Rules Of Solar Obedience", Jaquina whispered into the Lord Emperor's ear as she fed him grapes. "And I have spoken to the Dawn Priests. Arch Priest Illios has decided. The girl must take the test in the Temple of the Sun to prove her faith." The Emperor was furious with Jaquina but there was nothing he could do. Arch Priest Illios was the one man in the Empire who could dare to go against the Lord Emperor and ensuring that the powerful Faithful of the Sun supported the Legions of the Sky, required that he balance his own powers against those of the Arch Priest. This wasn't just a test for Amourelle, it was a test for him, set by Illios. He would feign unconcern and find a way to strike back later. "Then the girl must take the test", he said. And so it was that Amourelle found herself in the outer rooms of the Temple Of the Sun as the short desert evening closed rapidly to night. In the fullness of day, this was no place for any man or women; it was a place reserved for the gods. Only gods could walk in the bright heat which the shining beaten walls of copper magnified to the glory of the sun. Any mortals caught in the many reflecting chambers and lenses when the sun sanctified his temple would end their life in burning agonies. The Test Of The Temple Of The Sun was always undertaken between sunset and dawn. Amourelle must find her way unguided through a labyrinth of complex chambers and rooms, to the central sanctum. Here she must find the Heart Of The Sun; a giant gemstone, reputed to be the size of a house and cut into many complex facets that glittered in moonlight and blazed in sunlight. The Heart of the Sun was suspended in a web of mirrors which focused all light and heat to its greater glory. Sacred writings, carved into the base of the gem told of the Three Great Public Truths and the One Secret Truth. If Amourelle could not return to tell the Arch Priest the Secret Truth she would be sacrificed to the sun; always assuming that the coming dawn did not take her in the Temple as a sacrifice before the priests could act. The young concubine gripped the torch tightly and felt the almost unbearable heat raising a glow of perspiration on her face. Despite the fountains at the windows the Temple seemed hardly to have cooled at all and it felt like being in an oven. She suspected it would not feel much better until many hours had passed by which time she must have found the Heart Of The Sun. But this was what she had worked all her life to achieve... How secretly and with what great subtlety she had manipulated her enemies into giving her this chance when they only thought they were brining her to ruin. The Heart Of The Sun! How she needed to reach it, and not for the reasons her tormentors thought! Yet, there were many secret dangers in the temple beside the obvious ones, and as Amourelle hesitated at a junction of the ways, two snake guardians emerged from their water cooled chamber beneath the fountain and sensed possible prey... [In addition to the credits below, the model is Didi from Liquid Rust productions at DAZ; the hair is an old one from Alla (Elleana hair), the torch comes from one of the Danie products (can't remember which one), the snakes are from DAZ, the fountain and the walls are from Cornucopia and the rest is down to me...]