Before the era of the witchcraft trials, there was a period of rumors. They started quietly, half-formulated whispers and slander, impossible to defend. The rumors continued until even the most respected High Stone was accused.

An old woman in the village was clever, a little too clever. One day a young man tried to cheat her, but she outsmarted him. Embarrassed, he started the rumor that the old woman was a witch. The people of the town got together, carrying their torches, ready to burn the woman as soon as they found her. She tried to defend herself, but the other villagers remembered when the old woman had outfoxed them, as well. She could not outwit them again.

As evening drew near, the villagers burned the woman from the highest rock. As the moon rose, they went home in triumph, leaving the pyre smoldering. The next morning, a black cat was found hanging from the highest rock. The rumors were confirmed. She was a witch!

The High Stone was very unhappy, saying, “Now, I am complicit to murder. I cannot approve of this. If a chapter is convened to discuss the madness of men today, I will testify to this folly.”

But the whispering continued.

Next, the Stones near the Donon were accused of having received the mark of the Devil. The accusers pointed to indentations in the Stones vaguely resembling footprints.

Things continuing spiraling downward until they reached the point where the Elder Stone decided to hold a meeting. Not that she really feared the Stones would be burned, how could they? But she was compassionate and open-minded. She saw beyond the Salm to the pyres that burned, one after another. Because the stones were slow to move, she was still considering her options when the Thirty Years War came along and soon there was no one left to burn.