Born of Oak and Silver (The Caradoc Chronicles) (30 page)

He
circled me slowly. He then chose to speak. “You have grown well, Daine Dalatún, Son of Caradoc. Your energy is strong. However it is not as it should be after the attainment of so many years. You have become weak and complacent. You have not been exercising and exploring the Druid within. Despite a pressing threat from the Sidhe, you have chosen to be content with mediocrity. Perhaps it would be best if the Druid was removed from you, and given to another who would more greatly value its worth?” His words hung cloyingly in the air, pressing down on me with the weight of all that such a warning would entail.

I paled, struggling
to set my self right. I knew his threat was not idle. He could remove this gift and burden from me. I desperately did not want that. I spoke, choosing my words wisely. “I humbly ask your forgiveness. Teach me how I may improve. Please, that I may be worthy of the Druid.”

Máedóc appraised
me in the silence that followed my words. My heart prayed that it was enough. “I commend Bramwyll for his instruction; he has taught you well. He is unquestionably adept, though he does not possess the same talents and strengths as your own. And yet, despite his subordinate abilities, he has been in open rebellion against the Sidhe on more occasions than yourself. You were to be the world’s champion, yet you have cowered. How could you have allowed such remiss?”

My heart sank at having obviously been found lacking.
There was not much I could say by way of explanation. He was right. I exhaled slowly, speaking steadily despite feeling as though my world were in danger of being thrown off axis. “I have not ceased to search for the Sword. That is all that matters.”

White hands removed the hood from
Máedóc’s face. He was regal in bearing and appearance. A thin and stately nose centered his face, which was both handsome and noble. His square chin was cleft, and his hair was of the same shade and wild nature as my own. But it was his eyes that caught me off guard. They were identical to my father’s. The very same shape and bottomless brown that bordered on black—eyes that were so deep you could swim in them, my mother used to say. They too were kind, and as I gazed upon them, I felt an instant pang of longing for my father.

“Daine,” the voice was no longer as thunder
, but sincere, “there is no time left with which I could further instruct you. You must persevere with what you have thus far managed to acquire. The Sidhe draw perilously close to finding the Sword; within a day, all efforts to circumvent them will be too late. Search yourself. Inside of you lies the knowledge necessary to find the Sword. The ring will show you the way.” Máedóc smiled encouragingly.

A red dawn showed signs of break
ing along the horizon of the sea.

I did not understand. I opened my mouth to voice as much, but was met wit
h Máedóc’s own words. “You will. The knowledge is inside of you,” he addressed to my unspoken thoughts. His face grew sad. “I must leave you with a warning, one that pains me to convey. Beware of your grief. If you allow it to, it will destroy you. Find strength wherever you may, and anchor yourself there. No matter how large the storm that rages against you is, you must hold firm.” This time he did not smile, but remained grim as his hands returned his hood up to again shadow his face. With a slight bow of his own, he righted himself and began to back away. Once outside of the standing stones, he was gone.

Without a moment
’s delay, I was whisked out of the peaceful place and flung back into an abrupt awareness of my body. I was still sitting comfortably in the upholstered chair. I shook my head in an effort to shake my frantic thoughts back together. I was slightly disoriented, and the panic that I had felt after the first dream now seemed to grow until it threatened to choke me.

The Fae were about to find
the Sword.

I stood up too quickly,
ending up momentarily dizzy and forced to steady myself against the chair until the room ceased to spin. I walked to the window and raised my hand to the moonlight. The sapphire gleamed with promise. I went into my study, drawing the doors closed tightly behind me. If the answer was inside of me, and I had been blatantly chided for not fully exploring the inner Druid, that was exactly where I needed to begin.

It was as though my mind knew exactly where to go,
skipping over inapplicable knowledge. I supposed it should, given that my subconscious would have known no boundaries in exploring every part, hidden away or no, that was of me. Having found what I was looking for, a memory came.

It was faint, ancient
, but still clear enough to see and understand.

Four men stood within a grassy clearing upon a hill. Standing stones circled its crest, and lush trees and foliage served as a barrier to protect its guests from unwanted eyes. To the left, the hill fell away sharply down to the sea. The men were all dressed in heavy leathers and furs
; iron swords and torques hung about their necks. They were large, with bodies that were accustomed to hard and heavy labor merely to survive. Three had long beards and wild, braided, long hair. The fourth, Máedóc, was the only one who wore his hair short, with his face cleanly shaven. Instantly, I received an answer to the question that my mind had wondered.
It reduces the chance of lice and fleas
.

A stone alta
r stood between them. Upon its surface lay a beautiful sword, with a blade that shone like the most finely polished silver. The hilt was decorated by large sapphires and runes. The largest sapphire of all served as the pommel. Quickly, the men worked, randomly looking over their shoulders as if afraid of being discovered. Words were spoken in the Fae tongue, as runes were laid meticulously upon the diminutive area where the grip met the pommel. With the last rune in place and the last of the Fae words hovering in the air, blinding-white light erupted from the Sword. The men turned away, attempting to cover their eyes from the light that would surely blind them.

A loud crack was heard, sounding out like a stone being broken.

At once the light was gone. The most ragged of them all, Aiulos, was the first to turn his face to the altar. He lifted the large sapphire that had broken cleanly away from the hilt into the air in triumph. He set it down intently upon the stone platform, which I now knew had cracked as well. Nimbly, he crashed a massive stone hammer upon the sapphire. All men huddled in more closely, anxious to discover what had happened. The gem had split into four equal pieces.

Rings were made, with hidden binding runes placed into the iron that had been overlaid with silver, forging the precious stone and the metal of the ring to be bound as one. The men had successfully been able to steal and divide some of the
Sidhe’s magic. Máedóc took the Sword and his ring.

They split up,
fearing that remaining together would make them easier targets of the Fae’s malevolence. The barriers between Faery and the Earth were secure, but they had reason to fear. 

Maurelle.

Suddenly the scene switched. Maurelle had found Máedóc, and stood beguiling him to return the Sword that he had stolen. His eyes bled, as her alien pheromones caused his brain to overload. She smiled wickedly, promising him heaven if he would return the Sword.

He did not have it,
he lamented. He’d lost it, thrown it away and into the sea when he feared she would find him. Disgusted, she cast him away. When Máedóc had recovered himself, he began to laugh with sheer joy. She had underestimated him.

Máedóc had discover
ed a rune that would bind two things irrevocably together. He had placed it on the Sword and its match upon his ring. Being each a piece of the other, they would forever know where the other was to be found. Speaking the words of passage, the sapphire called to its other half.

I
burst from the memory. Silently, I sent a word of gratitude to Máedóc, hoping desperately that he heard it. Miming what he had done, I held my ring near to my heart and spoke in his ancient tongue.

It was as if a current had connected my mind directly to the sapphire of the ring. I could see exactly w
here the Sword was located and the proximity of all life forms to it.

Máedóc was right
; soon it would be too late.

It wa
s the quiet time just before dawn when I rushed into Bram’s room, waking him roughly in the dark.

“What is it
, boy?” he said worriedly as he sat up in bed and worked his way toward its edge.

“I’ve found the S
word. Hurry, Bram.” Urgency was thick in my voice. Bram sensed it as he dressed quickly, taking his own daggers from the small table beside his bed. Together we strode swiftly, but soundlessly, from the room.

“Where is it?” he asked
as we hastened to the stables.

I was not in the mood for talking
; time was of the essence. “There is no time to explain; stay close to me, it will not be far.” I swung myself up to my favorite horse’s bare back, feeling so pressed that I did not know if I had moment enough to saddle him. Bram followed suit.

W
e kicked our horses into a gallop, flying toward Kamarina. I did not slow as we drew close to town, but kept at it, taking the road that jutted away from Main Street just before the town grew clustered. This road curved, making a large arc before leading back again toward Kamarina. When we drew near, I slowed my horse to a steady trot. I couldn’t help but look for the Sidhe that I knew were about.

We were here.

I abruptly slowed my horse and jumped off, running into a thicket of brambles. Bram muttered curses behind me as he did his best to catch up. The sun had risen, and the birds sang sweetly in the trees overhead. Before long, the thick forest and undergrowth cleared, revealing a meadow, sun filtering through the leafy boughs overhead to shine down upon a sprawling field of golden flowers.

I couldn’t
hide my smile as I moved into the clearing. Ahead, a natural rock wall rose about fifteen feet above the flowered-covered ground where we now stood. There would be a deep pool of clear water beside the wall, the water springing forth from the rock’s face before cascading into the pool of water six or seven feet below.

I knew this place. I h
ad brought my children here many times over the summers to swim in the pool’s cool and clean water. Now that I was here, I wondered if I had not been drawn to this place by my ring all along.

I stopped at the water’s edge. I was looking for a granite boulder that was wedged between the meadow’s floor and the wall’s edge. There it was. Exactly as I had seen it in my mind’s eye.

I went to stand before it, and without waiting to see if Bram had followed, I opened the earth, revealing a sword hidden deeply inside of the wall. It had not tarnished, but still shone like highly polished silver in the morning’s light. Sapphires sparkled from where they had been carefully laid into the hilt.

I reached out, and took it in my hand, marveling that it
seemed entirely weightless. A feeling of rightness began to resonate from within me, growing in strength until it had flowed and washed over my entire body. I could not be sure, but in that moment I felt as though I too shone as brightly as the Sword itself. I closed the earth, and turned to find Bram just behind me.

His
eyes were wide, going from the Sword to me, and his face was absolutely elated. He nodded: this was the Sword of Light. I motioned for him to follow me. I knew that the Sidhe would be close, and I did not want to risk meeting them just yet.

“Hello
, Daine. It has been too long since last we met. I find myself more than pleasantly surprised at the effect the years have had upon you. You’ve matured into the most handsome of men.”

A shiver ran down my spine as
my every molecule became attuned to the bearer of that voice. I turned around slowly, holding the Sword out in front of me. I would not hesitate to see if it lived up to its claim of being able to kill the Fae should she so much as blink in a way I did not like.

Maurelle
stood ten steps away, and though she paced, she never drew nearer. It was clear, even without having used it myself, that Maurelle believed that the Sword I now possessed was fully capable of ending her.

“Bram,” I said evenly, “get behind me.”

From the corner of my eye, I saw my old friend taking shelter behind my back, though I did not take my eyes off of her for a moment. I allowed the Druid free rein, and was awed as everything was brought into acute clarity. I could hear Bram’s steady heartbeat sounding behind me, as well as the speeding hearts of the birds from where they now cowered in the trees.

She continued to smile warmly, a fact that only seemed to put me more on edge. “I hope you are not still so adamant about refusing our undeniable chemistry. We could be explosive
together.” She waited to see if I would react. Her bottom lip protruded as she mock-pouted. “Pity, I have always had an appetite for older men.” She winked at Bram. I felt him inwardly wince as her dart found its target. She gave a small, mirthful chuckle in response.

“Daine, I see that you have found something that is mine. It has been lost to me for quite some time. I would be most rewarding and appreciative if you would but return it to me.” She smiled,
using the smile that could rob me of myself.