Enchantress Awakening: Part One of the Book of Water (The Elemental Cycle 1) (27 page)

Upon reaching her bed, Caleigh was quickly able to bring herself to a climax recalling all the thoughts that had been in her head when she brought forth the charmed fire. Sleep followed and took her exactly where she had wanted; to the golden stone halls where she had last seen Loreliath. There she was again in slightly more modest attire of a backless top fastened by across her shoulders and halfway down her spine. A long slit skirt hung from the golden belt around her waist. Both parts were pure white. Also present in the room was the bald lover she had watched before, adorned in gold over his bare torso and sitting on a throne placed centrally atop a series of steps overlooking the room.

On the floor beneath the throne was a crowd of people in highly coloured garments of widely varying styles. Although there were many, a handful of these faces stood out more than the others. Argahan stood to the side in simple rustic robes with a group of fair skinned men and women in similar attire. He showed no interest in taking part in the debate occupying most of the people there and shared a wry smile with Loreliath across the room.

Foremost among the debating group was a small delegation dressed in robes of flowing silk.  At their head was one taller than the others adorned in blue, whose white hair hung low over his back. Despite his age this man was straight-backed and sure of step faltering in neither movement nor speech. His was the voice that the room hearkened to at this time. “Does it go unnoticed here in the west because his expansion does not touch your lands? While we debate here the hand of Xyraxis is felt from the inner seas all the way to great mountains that lie at the edge of the eastern kingdoms. Every man who treads upon the silk road must pay homage to him if he wishes to pass. This touches us both in equal measure.”

“I do not dispute this.” The King answered. “Yet I have no more influence with him than you. Xyraxis does not receive my emissaries.” At this point a wizened man in black robes who stood by the King’s side made his presence known.

“I believe Xyraxis is wont to give thou an audience, Loreliath. Might thou have speech with him and avail upon him to hear our concerns.”

“I will endeavour to achieve this end if it is the will of this council to send me thither.” Loreliath answered. A russet-robed man laughed aloud at the suggestion drawing Caleigh’s eyes. He was handsome with carefully trimmed dark hair that contrasted with his pale grey eyes.

“Shall we truly consent to sending one of our best into the dragon’s maw?” He mocked.

“Nothing is decided.” Spoke the King. Debate ensured again but the red-robed man detached himself from it with a shake of his head. He retained Loreliath’s glance and she was not alone. A man with a powerful physique dressed sparsely in furs kept watch on him while sidling up to Argahan. The two huddled together and Argahan nodded.

The council was adjourned shortly after and the delegates exited by various corridors. Caleigh followed Loreliath in her route away from the debate noting from behind how the red robed man skilfully conducted people away from her until they were alone far away from everyone else and here they came to a stop and exchanged smiles. It was a strange thing for Caleigh, seeing Loreliath on good terms with those who would later betray her but then, that moment may have been many years after this one and the seeds of that betrayal were yet to be sewn. “Do not let them put thee to harm for the sake of harmony.” He cautioned.

“What wouldst thou have me do instead?”

“We have a growing strength here and that is our hope. For no other reason would I have left my homeland for this place. Nor wouldst thou.” Loreliath smiled in amusement.

“There will be time to put this forth in debate. For what matter must we speak alone?” Caleigh could not help but notice that the space between them had shrunk considerably and with their matching heights they stood directly eye to eye.

“What may I say of any worth? The men who have told thee of thy beauty must number as armies. What proof may I offer that tells truly of my desire for thee?” Loreliath reached down with her hand to the bulge about his crotch.

“I believe it is plain.” Caleigh was torn, partly repelled by the notion that this future traitor may have feelings for Loreliath and also excited by the thought of such a handsome couple making love.

“Doest though return my desires?”
Say yes
Caleigh thought despite herself. Loreliath pulled her hand away and took a step back.

“Alas, I have a lover for whom my desire cannot be sated and a love I will not betray, no matter how handsome the offer.” The man smiled and raised his eyebrows.

“Then your lover is a man of peerless fortune.”

“And to my lover I must now return.”
Yes! Show me your lover. He must be beyond belief. What kind of man will he be?
The answer to this question was not to be revealed as the red robed smiling face changed expression and the scene around him shifted to the Shrine of Lost Souls. Fire flashed from his fingers and encased Loreliath like chains and then there was darkness. Caleigh looked up and thought the darkness saw great thick vines crawling up an earthen wall and high up in its clutches there was someone trapped.

“Loreliath!” Caleigh cried and at once tried to pull herself up the vines. Her body felt weightless and this made the climb easier than it ought to have been and within moments she seemed to fly up to where Loreliath was trapped. “Worry not, I will free you somehow.” Caleigh said trying to pull at the branches. They did not move by even the smallest margin.

“Caleigh, it cannot be done.” Loreliath spoke. The voice was not the one she had grown used to but the strained wheeze of a parched and unused throat. “Tonight the walls between our worlds are weak but thou art no more in this one than I am in thine.”

“What can I do to help you?”

“Heed these words only; do not let haste lead thee to peril. A true heart is the greatest power thou can possess.” What this meant Caleigh could not ask for here ended the vision.

26. Cedric

Several factors came together over the next two days that led Caleigh to an unavoidable conclusion; she needed to go on a trip. Success in her lessons was the initial contributor that put the wheels in motion as she at last achieved what she had been aiming for in the weeks prior. Mabon nodded with satisfaction at the sight of his projectile spell disappearing in the shimmering haze enveloping Caleigh’s body. “Very good, I think we can consider that condition met.” He remarked.

“And what was the condition?” Vaughn asked listening to Caleigh’s explanation of the necessity of her trip.

“I want to create an amulet to better protect me from hostile magic.”

“That’s a very good idea.”

“But Bryn has not the materials here to make one. So I asked Mabon for the funds to buy these materials from Aldred. I owe him for the wand I could not ask him to work again without payment.”

“And Mabon said you could have the funds when you learnt how to do the spell?”

“Yes, he does not approve of short cuts.”

“So now you want to visit Aldred again?”

“That is not all. Tovrik thinks I am ready to travel on the ley lines.”

“Ah, now I get it. Save for one thing, why did you come to me before Gideon?”

“I could list many reasons.” Caleigh said sweetly. “Beside them it is also Gideon’s birthday next week and I want to get him something.”

“Anything else?”

“I need some ingredients for a potion. I know not if Aldred will have them.”

“We may need to go further then.”

After lunch, Vaughn led Caleigh, Bryn and Rhiannon west of the castle of Elevered to a patch in the tree line that surrounded it. Stomping through long grass and thickets they came upon an open glade with a standing stone at its centre strewn with ivy and nettles about its base. “Using the ley lines will be a drain on our power. Those with no magical talent would find it very hard to travel in this way unless they are in the company of one with enough talent for the both of them. Fortunately, everyone in this group is gifted so we shouldn’t have a problem.”

“I’m not really a wizard, am I?” Bryn stated.

“Nor I.” Rhiannon agreed.

“It is not necessary to be a wizard. Anyone with magical talent can walk through this door once it has been opened. Come now, stand close to the standing stone.” Caleigh and the others shuffled close together whilst Vaughn put his wand to the stone and concentrated. Beyond a circle of a few yards all became unfocused like to the eyes of one spinning around very quickly. A sound like a roaring wind filled their ears until immediately ahead of them the distorted image of another standing stone came into view a bit by bit became solid. “Go to it.” Vaughn urged. The group stepped forth and suddenly all became still causing all but Vaughn to lose their footing and sprawl over the grass either side of the mud track leading up to the stone. Bryn rose first and almost at once fell to the ground again. Rhiannon seemed in no hurry to move, holding onto the grass like a raft in rapids.

Caleigh rose first to a seated position and then when she felt sure of her position climbed the rest of the way to her feet. “That was quick for a first time.” Vaughn commented. “I’d give them a little longer.”

“Where are we?”

“You’ll see when we walk up this path.” When Brian and Rhiannon were finally able to join them they walked a short way along the narrow clearing in the trees to a point where it turned a corner and widened out revealing Aldred’s cottage from the workshop side. Aldred burst out the back door at their arrival.

“By the Gods, that was fast!” He exclaimed. “I sent the message mere moments ago.”

“What message do you speak of?” Vaughn asked.

“Ah, this is happenstance then. I sent a message to Tovrik asking for help and here you are unbidden.”

“What’s the trouble, master?” Bryn inquired.

“Two nights ago as I slept someone must have come into my cottage. The next morn I was sure I was short of a willow wand from the rack. Then today when I returned from gathering firewood I find all my silver stores raided. There’ve been no horses or travellers this way since you were last here so it had to have been someone using the ley point. That’s why I sent a message to Tovrik, thought he might be able to help. But you have come for a different cause, how might I help you?”

“We wanted to buy some silver from you.” Caleigh said dejectedly. 

“Oh dear, was that all?”

“And some mistletoe berries if you have store of them.” Rhiannon added.

“I did.”

“Tell me not that they were taken also.” Caleigh pleaded.

“Alas.”

Bryn and Rhiannon opted out of the rapid return journey that Caleigh and Vaughn were forced to make. Landing back at Elevered was slightly better than the initial trip but it was not helped by the dash to the castle and climb up the stairs to Tovrik’s office that followed on its heels. When the door to the antechamber opened without a touch Caleigh fell through with a lurch and landed on the side of her rump at Tovrik’s feet. The old wizard lifted her upright and conducted her to a chair in the illusion room without the need of explanation.

“The message came ahead of you. Doubtless you wish to find and pursue this thief and as commendable as your swiftness here is, he will not evade you in the time it takes to regain your breath.” Caleigh nodded and took a moment to calm herself and recover. Tovrik waved his hand over the god’s eye and brought it into focus over Aldred’s cottage.

“How does a thief feel?” Caleigh thought aloud.

“Nervous, worried that people might catch them but excited to think they might have got away with it.” Vaughn supplied. Caleigh closed her eyes and tried to summon up these thoughts but somehow it wasn’t enough. Something was missing.

“Where does this ley line lead?”

“It is on a line to Stonecairn and Helmgard.” Tovrik drew the god’s eye over Stonecairn showing a village partly encompassed by a huge circle of standing stones.

“Could he travel to any point within this circle?”

“Stonecairn is a major junction on the ley lines. He could land next to the stones, in the heart of the circle or even within one of the buildings if he had the skill.” Caleigh tried to picture it again
you are nervous and excited about the theft but you are also worried that someone might see you
. A long haired youth appeared from nowhere stumbling between the trunks of two trees in an area of shade. He carried a bundle covered with rags in his hands holding it to close to his side as he broke into a run towards a nearby cottage. 

“He is in Stonecairn, I think he lives there. Shall we go there?”

“It can wait till the morrow. If he lives there then you will find him soon enough. Besides, I want Diarmund to go with you when you travel to Stonecairn. Your search will prove easier with his company.”

That night Caleigh stared longingly at the empty phial that had contained her charm. It had got her so close that she had almost been able to touch Loreliath. She was not sure what she could achieve without it. That she had no visions that night was not surprising to her, the fitful restless nature of what little sleep she got was something new. Despite this she woke with energy, excited by the prospect of travelling somewhere new.

Diarmund led the incantations when they went back to the standing stone. The process seemed to go quicker this time, though Caleigh could not be sure if this was in truth or simply because she knew what to expect. A field appeared ahead of them lined with further man height stones rising out of the long grass. Diarmund moved forward and the group followed bracing themselves for the shock when they came out on the other side.

Both Bryn and Rhiannon pitched onto their knees amid the grass; Caleigh managed to stay upright on this occasion by supporting herself against the nearest megalith. Diarmund joined her there pressing him palm flat against the surface and putting his ear to the rock. With his free hand he pulled and oaken wand from his robes which began to shudder in his grasp until he held it out at an angle pointing towards a small clump of trees. “This way.”

When they reached the shade of the trees Caleigh recognised it as the place she had seen the long haired young man appear and a short way beyond was the cottage he ran towards. Still following the direction of Diarmund’s wand they went thither. Out in the field it was possible to get a sense of the whole of Stonecairn. The standing stones formed a wide border around a grassy area where a handful of cottages were spaced and sheep grazed in between. The majority of the housing was clustered beyond the limit of the stones to the west. “Hail, is there anyone at home?” Diarmund called out approaching the threshold.

“I’ll go round the back.” Vaughn informed the others. Caleigh stepped after Diarmund inside the cottage. Still nobody responded to the calls.

“Caleigh, come here.” Diarmund urged upon entering a room to the side of the hearth. Lying on the bed was a woman in her middle ages, who even in the half-light was clearly off colour. She showed no awareness that she was not alone either. Diarmund crouched at her side and tried to rouse her. “She needs water.”

“I’ll go.” Rhiannon volunteered and skipped out of the room hurriedly.

“What ails her?”

“She is in a fever.” Diarmund looked around the room cluttered with various ingredients and attempted remedies as well as half furled scrolls and open books. “I think we can guess to what end our thief steals.” Bryn appeared behind them.

“This is definitely the place.” He explained. “Vaughn has found some remnants of Master Aldred’s silver...oh, who’s she? She looks ill.”

“She is.” Caleigh said softly then quietly suggested. “Why don’t you see how much of Aldred’s things you can recover?”

“Yes, I’ll do that.”  Bryn departed and Caleigh moved over to the books trying to discern what malady had overtaken this woman.

“I’m back, mother.” Called out the voice of someone coming through the threshold. Caleigh darted to her feet and moved into the main room. The newcomer was the dark haired young man she had seen in her vision. To her surprise he did not question who she was but immediately tensed to flee and turned back on the doorway just as Bryn reappeared there. There was a moment of recognition as Bryn deduced who this must be and he in turn looked from the man blocking his exit and back to Caleigh then leapt towards the solid wall and vanished clean through reappearing the other side of the window and breaking into a run. Bryn scrambled out the door after him.

“It’s him!” Caleigh followed watching the young man sprinting free from the longer grass to where the sheep grazed. Vaughn was after him stabbing his wand towards his moving limbs. It was all happening too quickly to see the spell move but she did see the thief stumble then roll over three times as his momentum continued to take him forward. He did not stay down and propping himself up with his arms he tried to limp on dragging the dead leg with him.

Vaughn waved him wand again and the grass where the boy was standing whipped round in a circle just as he lurched forward in the most ungainly fashion hurtling several yards ahead each time one foot hit the ground. Seeing his prey rapidly moving out of range Vaughn threw a further spell this time catching him with a ghostly bond around his ankles and dragging him earthward on the track into the centre of the village. Several farmers started moving towards them and Vaughn quickly put away his wand while keeping up the pursuit. Though she was farther off Caleigh followed suit.

The thief tried to get up again but now Vaughn was on him using his weight to pin him to the floor with Bryn closing in support. The farmers came close intrigued by the sudden scuffle on their doorsteps. Worried what their reaction would be Vaughn held out his hand placatingly. “This boy is a thief he has stolen things from a friend of ours.”

“Not again, Cedric.” One shouted out.

“We said we wouldn’t let you off any more.” A group came forward and took the thief they named Cedric off the ground and helped Vaughn to his feet.

“Come on, this is really bad for you now boy. We warned you not to steal anything for a while.” They led him down the track into town and Vaughn brushed the dust off his robe. Caleigh skidded to a halt alongside him.

“Where are they taking him?”

“To the stocks, I expect.”

“Not this time.” The three of them turned around and saw an older farmer leaning on a hoe.

“Why not?”

“The Cruxiars are in the village. Someone must have told them that there was a wizard thief about and they came looking for him. We warned him, we said ‘keep your fingers to yourself until they leave, at least’ but now they’ll have to hand him over to them.” Caleigh drew Vaughn’s ear close.

“We cannot let them take him.”

“He stole things, what are we to do?”

“He stole those things to try and treat his sick mother. Diarmund’s with her now. Vaughn, he’s like us and from what I’ve heard Cruxiars do not like people like us. We cannot leave his fate in their hands.”

The Cruxiars were keeping him in the town guardhouse, fortunately, none of them were in sight when Caleigh and Vaughn went by and with a bit of charm she was able to persuade the jailer to let them in to see him under the pretence of trying to find out from him where their stolen possession were. Cedric looked up angrily from his wooden bench at their entrance. His hands were tethered behind his back and there was bandaging fastened around his throat to no apparent purpose. There was a red mark on his cheek and his lips were swollen. Caleigh put her hand to her mouth in shock. “Are you not satisfied? Why did you pursue me?”