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This short story originally appeared in Nature, May 4, 2006. It can also be found in the anthology Year's Best SF 12 (2007), edited by David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer. The story is included in the collection Journeys (2010).

Read the full story for free at Nature.

Book one of the King of Ys series: Blending fantasy, history, and adventure, the epic story of Ys begins as the Roman Gratillonius finds himself thrust into the highest seat of power.

In the waning days of the Roman Empire, Magnus Maximus sends his prefect Gratillonius to western Gaul and the faraway land of Ys, a place shrouded in legend and ruled by a cruel and tyrannical king. When the sovereign challenges Gratillonius to a duel, the envoy from Rome emerges victorious and claims the throne as the new king of Ys, inheriting a land whose religion, culture, and history are entirely foreign. He also gains the former king's nine wives, the Gallicenae, a powerful group of women to whom he must appear equally devoted despite his growing feelings for one in particular. As he adjusts to his new role as ruler of Ys, Gratillonius must fight to keep his strange new country on its feet while the rest of the Roman Empire begins to crumble around him.

Roma Mater is the first book in Poul and Karen Anderson's King of Ys series, which continues with Gallicenae.

In book two of the King of Ys series, Gratillonius adjusts to his new role as sovereign of Ys as threats from all sides begin closing in.

As the Roman Empire loses its grip on its far-flung territories, the mystical kingdom of Ys in western Gaul is in great danger of slipping into oblivion. Suffocated for years by the rule of a tyrant king, Ys's last hope arrived in the form of a Roman emissary, Gratillonius, who defeated the sitting king to take the throne himself. Now Gratillonius must grapple with the kingdom's political strife and religious tensions while balancing his responsibilities to the Gallicenae, nine wide-ranging witches who have become his wives. Though Rome seeks to spread Christianity, and Gratillonius stands firm in his worship of Mithras, the Ysans hold to an entirely different religion in service of pagan deities who must be obeyed lest grave consequences descend on the fragile kingdom.

Gallicenae is the second book in Poul and Karen Anderson's King of Ys series, which continues with Dahut.

In book three of the King of Ys series, Gratillonius's reign faces a deadly new threat from across the sea.

For sixteen years Gratillonius has been the king of Ys, a position he has used to bring the once-teetering city-state back to stability as the Roman Empire continues to collapse around it. Rome would prefer a more malleable leader in Gratillonius's place and makes no secret of it. As pressure from Roman leadership increases, Gratillonius must also contend with Niall maqq Echach, the leader of Northern Ireland who holds the Ysan king responsible for the death of his son. Compounding these complications is the ever-present threat of retribution by the Ysan gods, should the kingdom's leadership make a misstep. But perhaps the greatest danger of all is unfolding from within Gratillonius's own household, where, following the death of one of his nine wives, the gods have named an unsettling replacement: Dahut, Gratillonius's own daughter.

As treachery mounts from within and without, Gratillonius must hold to his principles in defiance of the gods while still protecting Ys from the destruction closing in on all sides.

Dahut is the third book in Poul and Karen Anderson's King of Ys series, which concludes with The Dog and the Wolf.

In the fourth and final book of the King of Ys series, Gratillonius and the Ysan survivors have one final chance to rebuild in the wake of inconceivable destruction.

As legendary as King Arthur's Court and as mystical as Atlantis, the fabled kingdom of Ys has finally fallen, the victim of invading hordes and vengeful gods. Destitute, the remaining Ysans put their faith in their longtime leader, Gratillonius, who protected the city-state of Ys for two decades before it succumbed to the malevolent forces surrounding it. Now more vulnerable than ever, Gratillonius and the Ysans set out to rebuild their beloved city, first with wood and then with stone, providing a fortress against the elements and the marauding King Niall maqq Echach, still on his years-long quest to see Ys turned to dust. While the Dark Ages begin to rise across Europe, the Ysans and their king grasp one last time for survival--lest their history be lost forever.

The Dog and the Wolf is the final book in Poul and Karen Anderson's King of Ys series, which also includes Roma Mater, Gallicenae, and Dahut.