by Emmett Swan
Jessica turned to Conall. “If we give the mirclair to no one, there can’t be war, because they can’t get to either realm. Even if more mirclair is made, it would take another two hundred years to make it. Perhaps by then they would find a path to peace.”
“Yes,” said Conall. “A wise course. But we would be forced to return to our lives as trees.”
Jessica felt sick. “Yes,” she said simply and shrugged in hopelessness. That was the truth—the way of it. And she couldn’t change it. This decision would have to be entirely theirs.
Conall sat on the bank of the pond with his legs crossed, holding the vial between both hands. He closed his eyes and furrowed his brow as if in meditation. Jessica noticed him slightly rocking back and forth. She could imagine his anxiety as he thought things through. But she understood. This was the most difficult and important decision of his life—of his brothers’ lives.
“You are right, Jessica,” he said with finality and conviction. His face appeared more peaceful, as if he had already accepted his fate. “Though it means our doom, we cannot unleash war on innocent people to save ourselves, regardless of who is in the right.”
“No!” cried Keeva. “It is mine. It was in exchange for my assistance. Bring me my payment!” The shadows around her began swirling with a menacing darkness. Horrible screams and groans emanated from the dark swirls. Keeva’s form grew.
“It was your malice that put us in need of your assistance to begin with,” called Conall, now standing.
“Give me the vial, or I will destroy you all!” The dark chaos extended beyond the rim of the pool, seeping over them and carrying fear with it. Keeva’s beautiful face became ugly with an angry scowl. Swirls of chaos surrounded them, flowing around their bodies, howling and threatening.
“Bring me the vial!” she repeated.
“Oh my God!” cried Meyler. “Do it Conall! Quickly. Or we shall perish!”
Jessica was on the verge of panic. She wanted to run. To hide. It’s okay, said a tiny voice in the back of her mind. She looked up at the awful figure hovering before them and remembered she could not hurt them.
And then she grew angry. She was growing tired of cowering to this evil witch. Keeva was all noise.
“No!” called Jessica. “She is inert. She can’t hurt us. It’s all show.” Her words had a strong new confidence she had not felt in a long time.
Conall stuck his hand into one of the dark shadows that swirled around them. “I feel but a brisk breeze. There is no danger. Jessica’s right.”
“You meddling peons!” Keeva cried. “You do not know what you do.” Her size expanded again, and her face became red and distorted with rage. “Bring it to me!”
But the fear was gone. Conall shook his head. “We will not,” he said simply. After a moment, Keeva reduced her size and reigned in the shadows.
“We will not give you the mirclair,” said Conall, “but we ask that you release this curse.”
Keeva looked them all over, spite in her eyes, and scowled. “Never!” she said. “Live your entire miserable lives in the forest!” The oval of light reappeared, and she passed through it and vanished, leaving them all alone in the rain-soaked swamp.
Thirty-Five
The sudden absence of the Lady of the Mist made Jessica feel horribly empty. She considered trying to summon her again, and to plead with her, and to show her how unreasonable she was being. But she realized it was futile. There was too much anger in her voice. Besides, they were out of gold.
The group was silent as they walked out of the smelly swamp, holding their heads low. The fate of the boys seemed sealed. Without Keeva permanently reversing her luth application, they would return to being trees in a matter of hours. And she would not help them without the mirclair in her hands. Without unleashing war on Panagu.
Since they had nowhere else to go, they decided to use the creek to wade back to their forest retreat. After all, if Conall, Laughlin, and Meyler returned to their tree form, it would be best for that to happen in a secluded patch of woods. There they would be somewhat protected. Otherwise, they may one day be felled for kindling.
The rain had reduced to a light sprinkle. Jessica quietly watched her feet slosh back and forth in the cool creek water. She felt frustrated and sick, and she tried to think of a way to save the Kyne brothers. She looked at her watch. “We have nearly a full day before you return to being trees. Can we use that time somehow?”
“I don’t see how the extra time is of any value,” lamented Laughlin. “Either we give the mirclair to Keeva, who starts a war, or we accept our fate.”
“The choice is clear, but still…”
They reached the familiar mossy bank and climbed up to the forest enclave. Conall looked around. “It’s hard to accept that we are doomed to return to this place. I’m not sure I can bear it.”
“It would have been better not to have tasted freedom,” said Laughlin.
“Riley, perhaps we can go to your uncle’s land and return to our tree form there,” suggested Meyler. “At least we would have company.”
“Sounds good to me,” replied Riley. He turned to Jessica. “What do you think Uncle Basil would do if he woke up one morning to find three old trees growing in his back yard?”
“I’m not sure,” said Jessica. “Even if he were convinced not to cut the trees down, he may change his mind later. Or his daughters might once they take over the estate. As trees, you may have many years left to live. The safest option is to stay put here. But it’s okay. Even should the worst happen, Riley and I will figure out a way to fix this.”
Conall took her hand. “Thank you, Jessica.” He softly kissed the back of her hand, his lips hovering unabashedly over the skin. “I have treasured our brief time together.”
This felt like good-bye. A rush of anxiety washed over Jessica. She only just brought him to life. The relief and exhilaration of restoring him threatened to give way to abject disappointment. She so wanted to know Conall better. Her heart was aching already.
Riley stood up and began pacing in an agitated fashion. “We can’t just let this happen! There’s gotta be something we can do.”
“Will you come see me, Riley?” asked Meyler. “Maybe on moonlit nights? We can laugh and tell jokes.”
“I will,” said Riley. His moist eyes were on the verge of tears.
“Arrrgh!” cried Conall in a sudden surge of angst. He raised his sword high and plunged it deep into the mossy bank. “Keeva! The bane of our existence.”
“What a vile woman,” added Laughlin. “And we thought her benevolent.”
“I cannot do this,” cried Conall, who had taken his turn to pace back and forth. “I cannot just wither away in this forest.”
It felt like they had reached an impasse. Jessica asked Conall for the vial of red elixir and held it in her hand, studying it. How could they get Keeva to release the curse without causing an all-out war? If only she could be more reasonable. What was her problem?
She watched the mirclair swirl in a slow pattern around the sides of the small vessel.
“Two hundred years in the making, huh?” Jessica sighed. “And this stuff transports someone between realms? Wonder how that works.”
“Wait!” she cried. She took Conall’s hand. “I have an idea,” she said and then paused, looking the brothers over. “But you would risk everything.”
The three Kyne brothers looked back at her. “We would hear your idea,” said Conall. “If it pleases you to share it.”
“Well, we have plenty of mirclair,” she said, holding up the vial of precious liquid. “And we have norl. If Keeva will not help us, why don’t we go to Derfaria and find her?”
“Wanna see that bitch in person?” asked Riley. “In her full glory?”
“Maybe not everyone in Derfaria is as difficult and angry as her,” suggested Meyler.
“But why confront her in person?” asked Conall.
“Who knows what’ll happen? Maybe we can convince her t
o help. Or maybe we can force her somehow. Maybe others of her kind would take our side. All I know is, if you stay here, you go back to being trees.”
“Hmm,” Conall said, rubbing his chin. “Your point is well taken. But as you say, going to Derfaria carries many risks, not the least of which is the fact that if the plan doesn’t work, we return to tree form in an unfamiliar place.”
“And Keeva would never agree,” added Meyler.
“Maybe not,” said Jessica. “But there is always the chance someone else there knows how to use her blue elixir and can help us. Heck, maybe we can find some of the elixir and lift the curse ourselves. It doesn’t seem hard to use the magic elixirs. You just drop the stuff on your arm.”
“But don’t forget about the rune,” said Riley. “We would have to know what rune to draw.”
Conall looked at his two brothers. “Going to this place may lead to our demise, but I would rather attempt it than accept our fate and return to the forest.”
Both Laughlin and Meyler solemnly nodded in agreement.
“Aye,” said Laughlin. “The chance of success is unknown, but I prefer to risk it.”
Conall turned to Jessica. “Thankfully, you had sufficient foresight to copy the mirclair runes.”
“And the norl runes too,” she added, proud of herself. “With Thallach’s green elixir, we can snoop around Derfaria without detection.”
“There is at least hope,” said Laughlin. The brothers’ faces brightened.
Conall turned to Jessica. “There is no requirement for you to go at all. Or you, Riley. No need to take the risk.”
Conall had a point. They may never make it back to Earth. Restoring life to the boys in Ireland was one thing, but going to a completely different realm of existence was quite another. And if something happened to Riley, it would be on her. She was responsible for him. She briefly thought about her parents’ reaction should something horrible happen to both of them. A mother’s grief in losing her child.
It didn’t matter. Jessica couldn’t bear seeing the boys off then going back to Connaree Manor without knowing their fate. She had come this far.
“Oh, no you don’t,” said Jessica. “I’m the one who knows the runes. I’m going.”
“Are you sure?” asked Conall. “Who knows what Derfaria is like.”
“Yes. I’m sure.”
They all looked at Riley. “Well, no way I’m missing out on a chance to visit another world. I’m going too.”
“So it’s settled,” said Jessica. She pulled out her notepad and flipped through the pages. “I’ll mark the runes on all of our arms.” She pulled the cap off the purple marker and looked at Conall.
“I need your arm,” she said, smiling.
He returned her smile. “I’m at your service.”
Using her pad as a guide, she drew the rune—a circle with a square on the inside. “Let it dry,” she said and proceeded to draw the same symbol on all the others, including her own arm.
Conall took out the ampoule and looked the group over. “Are we ready?” he asked.
“Carpe diem, big brother,” said Laughlin.
“Carpe diem,” said Conall.
“And where in Derfaria will we end up?” wondered Meyler. “Hopefully not in the middle of some ocean, or inside a prison.”
“Keeva told Conall he would appear in her bedroom should he be interested in her offer.” She looked at Conall with a smirk, but the thought of Conall in Keeva’s arms did not amuse her.
“Aye, lassie. And here I stand, still at your side.”
“Yes,” said Jessica, smiling. “And I am happy you are.”
“Can we get on with this?” asked Riley. “Or are you two going to flirt all day?”
Jessica cleared her throat. “Sorry. So if the gurgling fountain corresponds to Keeva’s home, and we are about a mile or so away from the fountain, then if we transport from here, we should be close to Keeva without being right on top of her.”
Conall nodded. “Makes sense to me. Let’s hope she doesn’t live by the sea.” He walked up to Laughlin. “You first, brother.” Laughlin sighed and held up his arm. Conall turned the vial upside down and watched a glowing red drop form, detach, and fall squarely on Laughlin’s purple rune. Red light and wind swirled around him. It expanded to a red funnel that fully engulfed him. An instant later the light vanished, and Laughlin vanished with it.
“That looked like it hurt,” said Meyler, whose turn was next.
“Well, you’ll be able to tell us about it in Derfaria,” said Conall. Meyler slowly held out his arm and Conall released a drop of the red liquid, and he too vanished in the red funnel of light. He repeated the procedure with Riley.
“I’ll see you in Derfaria,” he said to Jessica. He leaned in and kissed her on the mouth. “For good luck,” he said. Before she could react, he released the drop of the elixir onto her arm. A swirl of red color overwhelmed her, but she felt no pain. A second later, the light was gone.
* * *
Thallach struggled with his bonds, but despite his strength, the knots remained tight. The Kyne brothers had made certain Thallach would not escape. As he was cursing their skill with rope, he noticed the warm red glow of the droplet still dangling from the bottom of the glass piping. The very last drop of mirclair had yet to fall. Thallach squirmed along the floor of the workshop and, using his feet, pushed the table aside that stood underneath the spout. He positioned himself directly underneath the piping, with his forearm under the droplet, and waited. He did not wait long. In a matter of minutes, the droplet finally broke free of the spout and descended, striking the rune tattooed on Thallach’s forearm. A vortex of red light, like a miniature whirlpool, swirled around Thallach, and then he was gone.
III
Part Three
Thirty-Six
Jessica felt as though she were floating amid swirling red color. The color abruptly vanished, yet the world continued to spin. She reached out to support herself and discovered she was already sprawled out on the grass. The spinning abated, and she sat up to look around her. Laughlin and Meyler were there. So was Riley. He reached down and took her hand.
“Hey Jess, you made it fine. The dizziness goes away.”
Riley pulled her up to her feet just as a red funnel of light appeared next to her, and then she saw Conall tumble onto the grass. He raised his head, looked at her with an uncertain expression, and then smiled. “Did we make it?”
“I guess so,” said Jessica.
She was flustered, both from the effects of the mirclair and from Conall’s sneaky kiss just seconds before. She was still aware of a pleasant afterglow from the kiss and felt more than a tinge of guilt. She had not kissed anyone since Curtis.
But I didn’t kiss him; he kissed me.
Setting her inner conflict aside for now, she turned her attention to their surroundings.
“Um,” she managed, looking around her. “Looks like cows.”
There were, indeed, cows. They had transported to a pasture with a waterhole nearby and a herd of cattle standing around it. All were drinking, though a few of them gave the group a bored glance or two.
“Let’s get out of sight,” said Laughlin. “In yon stand of pines.”
The cluster of pine trees was close, and they scurried into its shadowy depths.
“This wood should shield us from onlookers,” said Conall. “Though I see no one about.”
“There must be a farmstead nearby,” observed Laughlin. “The cows must belong to somebody.”
“It is so dim and misty,” observed Conall, looking across the pasture beyond the watering hole. “Is it already nighttime?”
“Not night,” replied Laughlin. “Maybe twilight.”
“Aye, I see two yellow moons in the sky,” returned Conall.
“Look yonder.” Meyler pointed toward the edge of the woods opposite the pasture. “That looks like something important.”
Through the trees and misty gloom, they could see an expansi
ve walled compound. Rising from the middle was a tall, multi-storied structure elaborately decorated with massive shards of yellow crystal. Bands of silver glittered in the pale sun. The roofs of smaller but similarly adorned buildings peeked over the compound’s surrounding wall.
Jessica judged the distance to the compound to be about the same distance they walked from the swamp to their enchanted forest.
“It could be Keeva’s home,” she said. “It’s the right distance.”
“Aye,” said Conall. “It looks to be a royal residence of some kind. And Thallach told us Keeva is the king’s daughter.”
“I hope he’s okay,” said Riley, stroking his chin.
“Aye, me too,” said Meyler. “We tied him up pretty tight.”
“Yeah, about Thallach. I’m going to go ahead and say that he hit the nail right on the head,” Jessica said with confidence.
“What does a hammer and nail have to do with this?” asked Conall. “Such an odd manner of speaking.”
“Whatever,” said Jessica a little irritably. She was still processing what she felt about Conall’s kiss. But she did enjoy it, so she wondered why she was irritated. “I mean that he’s telling the truth. What he said played out. Keeva did turn you into trees to stop you from finding Thallach’s workshop so that you wouldn’t interfere with the making of the mirclair. So, I believe he is also accurate about her mission to wage war on his people. And that he only wanted to warn them.” Jessica’s words trailed off as she thought about innocents dying in a surprise attack on Panagu.
“We’ll attend to him when we return,” promised Conall. “For now, we must either find Keeva or find some blue elixir.”
“It looks like a little village over there.” Riley pointed to a cluster of rustic buildings on the far side of the compound, outside the containing wall. The buildings were of an architectural style similar to those inside the wall and had rooftop terraces, but they lacked the elaborate decorations of yellow crystal and silver inlay.
“Hmm,” said Conall, squinting. “Those structures seem simple, basic. Probably the homes of the servants and other support staff who work inside the royal compound.”