by G L Roberts
“Rise, my daughter,” Lady Adhar said to Bryn. “We have asked our questions, and we have heard the answers. It was our hope and our fear that the Jewel would be revealed this year at the Stones. We had no idea who would be chosen, nor if they would survive. Centuries of legend and myth clouded our knowledge of how the Jewel would return. Today we have seen something we could never have imagined. To have been chosen by the dragons and to survive the joining could only have happened to one who was not only of Athyl’s bloodline, but one who was pure of heart and mind. One truly a child of the earth, sea, and sky. We witness this now and pledge as the elders of the clanns our loyalty to Lady Athebryn.” Lady Adhar took Bryn’s hand and placed a kiss on her palm. “It has been a very long time coming. I thought perhaps I would not live to see this day. News of this joining will move the elves to again consider their relationship with humankind. For this I am grateful, and I am yours to command.”
Bryn kissed Lady Adhar’s cheek. Adhar returned to her bench. Next, Lady Albistan approached Bryn. She took Bryn’s hand and kissed her palm.
“I can only imagine what you must have endured to reach this moment,” she began. “You have passed through fire and have survived, Lady Athebryn. I do not think I could have been as strong. My clann is yours.”
Bryn kissed Lady Albistan on the cheek. “I am so glad you are here, Lady Albistan. I know my mother has missed your company all these long years. Perhaps now, some of your clann will return to Alban.” Lady Albistan dabbed at her eyes and gave Bryn a smile. She returned to her bench where she reached over to take Arlendyl’s hand.
Lady Anethar rose and stood before Bryn. “Does your arm give you much pain?”
“Very little, though I would not mind a cup of your tea right about now.”
“I realized back in Skiel when you lay sleeping in my house that you would not be the same once you saw the Stones. Change was already in your heart. The little girl has grown, and in her stead is one I will follow. I am your faithful servant.” Lady Anethar kissed Bryn’s palm and bowed her head.
Bryn lifted Lady Anethar’s chin with a touch of her fingertips and met her eyes. “You saved my life and allowed me to embrace my destiny.” She kissed Anethar’s cheek.
Lady Anestar rose slowly and stood before Bryn. “It is true. I had placed some of my own hopes in the jewel being found by my daughter and brought to my clann.” She took Bryn’s hand and pulled it to her breast. “Your strength and foresight led you to Staenis long before I or my clann even considered sending my daughter. Your heart spoke to you long before my daughter was even conceived. Of that I am now certain. As you have been chosen by the High Dragon, I too choose you to lead me and my clann. Your banner is my banner. The Bridei will follow Lady Athebryn.” Lady Anestar placed a kiss on Bryn’s palm.
Bryn stared long into Anestar’s eyes and saw the truth in her words. She kissed Anestar’s cheek. “Long have you sought the truth of the Jewel. Long have you thought yourself and your clann outcast from the others. I will not forsake you or your clann. The Bridei shall find fealty among the other clanns, and we welcome you home.”
Lady Anestar seemed surprised by Bryn’s words of compassion. She bowed her head before her new liege. She backed up a step before turning to walk over to join her daughter Kenna on the bench.
Gement rose and stood before Bryn. “The Picts, kin to the clanns, wish no longer to be on the outside of the circle. Long have we desired to join our cousins and the clanns who carry the histories in their books. Long have we desired to be a part of that history. We will follow the strength that is the Jewel. You have already shown us that you are a leader by way of the rescue of one of our own. You have demonstrated your courage by accepting the tears of a dragon. If legend is correct, that alone could have caused your death. Worry not about the Picts, Lady Athebryn. We are yours.” He placed a kiss on Bryn’s palm.
Bryn smiled at Gement. “I would not think to unite the clanns without also including the Picts. It is Alban I wish to unite, and the Druids and the Picts are the heart of Alban. Together we will seek the kingdoms of the south and, joined as one, we will bring peace to our peoples.” Bryn kissed Gement’s cheek, and he returned to his bench.
At last, Lady Arlendyl rose and stood before her daughter. “The High Clann has nurtured and guarded this bloodline for millennia in hopes of again uniting the clanns under one banner. You were so named Athebryn at your birth by a dragon destined also to become the hope of the people. The Druids are on the verge of disbanding in the outer regions. The southern kingdoms struggle amongst themselves, and the Norsemen from over the sea threaten our very existence. Alban has waited long to be united. We wait no longer. Welcome Lady Athebryn.” She kissed her daughter’s palm.
Bryn first kissed her mother’s cheek then lightly kissed her mouth. “Your teachings have been the most valued of all that I have received. I thank you and my father for your patience and your forethought. Yes, the clanns are in peril, threatened by men who strive to pillage, kidnap, and murder. All must unite or our island, our Alban, will be lost and our heritage tossed into the sea never to be seen again. Ever have you instilled in me the desire to protect my home and my people. Ever have you nurtured in me the love of all things of this earth, the sea, and the sky. Ever have you made clear to me the knowledge that no one thing is alone, that all things are a part of the whole. My desire spoke to the heart of the dragons long before I drew breath. Now, I am ready to face my fate. I will have peace in Alban or I will die trying.”
Bryn noticed Thalynder and Arryn exchange a glance. Thalynder looked especially frightened as she grasped at her tunic so tightly that her knuckles whitened. She was sure Arryn, as a soldier, understood she could very well die while trying to rid Alban of the invaders. He had acknowledged that fact when he had first chosen to follow her. Now, as one of her captains, she was also sure he would feel it was his duty to keep her safe and not allow her into battle.
Bryn sensed a change in the room. They are all thinking the same thing.
They are concerned about you, their Jewel, lost in battle, Meydra’s thought answered.
“Come, let us get some air,” Bryn said. “Lady Arlendyl, would you take us to the Ring of Elders?” There was a gathering site inside a small stand of trees just outside the village where the elders would meet when the weather was warm. “Arryn, could I have a moment with you please?”
They all rose and went outside. The first thing Bryn wanted to do was address the elders without the others present. Arryn joined her outside the meeting house and she led him away and spoke quietly.
“I have need to speak with the elders,” she said. “I want to do so where the dragons can join us as I call them with their dragon riders. I would ask that you and the company wait far enough away as to not hear what I am about to propose to the elders. Can you do this?”
“You need us to be objective and not influenced by your words,” Arryn said.
“That is correct.”
“Yes, I can do this, as can the others.”
“I will send word to Meydra, and she will inform you when you are to join the elders.” Bryn put her hand on Arryn’s arm. “Ask Thalynder to join me for a moment. Please take the company to the hill and wait with the dragons.”
“You look tired, and you have not eaten.”
Bryn chuckled. “Now you sound like my Lynder. I will rest and I will eat once I have this bit of business behind me. Do not worry, I am a hearty sort.”
“Of that I have no doubt, My Lady. Nevertheless, you are still human.” He gave her hand a squeeze.
“Get thyself to the hill, Sir Arryn, before I become the petulant little girl you know I can be.”
Arryn left Bryn to speak with Thalynder.
Bryn saw Lady Arlendyl was waiting at the edge of the village with the Elf-Sisters and Gement. The company was gathered in the center of the village. Bryn watched as Thalynder left the little group and walked toward her. Bryn waited for Thalynder, took her hand and
led her back inside the meeting room where they could be alone.
Bryn pulled Thalynder close. “You look worried and earlier, you looked frightened.”
“I cannot have you die.” Thalynder choked on the words. Her eyes filled with tears as she clutched at Bryn’s back. She buried her face in Bryn’s shoulder.
“And I do not wish to die, my love.” Bryn held onto Thalynder tightly, kissing her hair and running her hands over Thalynder’s back. “If I ask you not to worry, you will do so anyway.”
“I will,” Thalynder sniffed.
“Now you understand how I feel. I would rather have you back in your father’s realm, safely tucked behind the walls of the Keep. What are we to do?”
Thalynder released her hold on Bryn and met Bryn’s eyes. “We are to behave as leaders. We have a country and all of its inhabitants to protect. We will lose lives of those we wish to defend as they join us in this fight. It is the way of war.”
“Ah,” Bryn said. “You did listen to our teachers.”
“I did, only I did not realize it until now.” Thalynder wiped at her eyes and touched Bryn’s lips with her fingers. “You will speak with the elders alone, yes?”
“I am.” Bryn kissed Thalynder’s fingertips. “There is something I need to do, and I must do it without the presence of the company.”
“Kiss me first, and do what you must.” Thalynder pressed her lips to Bryn’s mouth. She kissed Bryn softly, pulling gently at Bryn’s mouth.
“Hmm. You do that nicely.”
“I have a good teacher.”
“We will be staying here tonight,” Bryn said. “I do not know if we will sleep together.”
“We have a lifetime of nights before us. Tonight belongs to the Elf-Sisters and the Dragon Daughter.” Thalynder moved out of Bryn’s arms. “Go now and do this thing you must do. We will wait for you.”
The two women left the meeting house, and Thalynder joined the company. Arryn led them out of the village and back to the dragons who waited on the hill. Bryn walked over to the elders and took her mother’s arm.
Bryn spoke to the little group as her mother led the way to the Ring of Elders. “I need to discuss the Council of Elders.”
“It is something we need to consider,” Lady Adhar said. “It should be reestablished.”
“Yes,” Bryn replied.
They walked over to a small grove of trees and stopped before entering. Lady Arlendyl touched a tree. “I enter into this ring with an open heart. I will speak only truth.” She stepped between the trees and disappeared into the shadows.
Arryn watched from the bottom of the hill as the group stopped at the trees. He saw each touch a tree and enter the grove. Lady Adhar touched the same tree. The other Elf-Sisters followed suit, as did Gement, leaving Bryn to enter last.
When Bryn touched the tree, the tree lowered a branch and touched Bryn’s back as a parent would touch a child. The rest of the trees swayed slightly and reached out with their branches to form a circle of green and brown.
Meydra, who had greeted the company at Bryn’s request, spoke to Arryn. “She does not yet understand how special she is.”
“Can she not see the reaction of all around her?”
“It has been this way since she was born. If she sees it, she does not exult in it in the presence of others. To do so would be to assume she is better than others. She does not see herself as such. It is one of her gifts.”
Bryn disappeared into the trees. As she did, the trees quaked at her passing, the leaves shimmering like drops of water. Arryn sighed. “Her death will be a great loss to this world.”
“It will, but do not think on that, Dragon Rider,” Meydra said. “There is much to be done and to dwell on such things will dull the blade.”
“You are a poet.” Arryn smiled at the dragon. “You have been eavesdropping on the Druids.”
Meydra grunted and gave Arryn a little push with her tail. “Come. Lady Athebryn is about to address the elders, and you will be summoned.”
In the middle of the grove was a small ring of stones in which to build a fire. On the outside of the small ring, a larger ring of tree stumps encircled the fire ring. Outside the ring of tree stumps, spaced evenly in their own circle, was a ring of yew trees, heavy trunks and knotted branches older than Skerrabrae. The site was the ancient meeting hollow of the Council of Elders, formed before the dragons fell from the sky on the backs of stardust, ancient council of the first elves, forebears of the High Druids. The site was kept secret by the grove of trees, a single-celled colony of aspen, whose dense formation hid the ancient yews from the eyes of all save those with prior knowledge of where to find the grove. It was a magical place. Without the words of passage, the trees would not yield.
Bryn stood at one of the stumps and turned full circle to look at each yew tree separately and equally. She motioned at the other stumps. “Sisters, please sit. Would you like a fire?”
Arlendyl went to a spot behind one of the yews and produced a bundle of kindling. “We were prepared to meet here, but I am afraid that the kindling was all we could manage. There is not much in the way of fuel readily available in Skerrabrae these days.”
“I have asked Meydra to inform the elves they are to join us and to bring fuel for a fire,” Bryn said. “It is best we have them here with us while we discuss the council.”
Lady Anestar sat and pulled her fur-lined cloak tight about her. She gazed at the trees and then at Bryn. “This place has been but a rumor in my mind. I did not expect to see it again.”
“All of you have been long away from this place,” Bryn said. “It is time you reacquaint yourself with the grove. It lives and it remembers you.” Bryn passed her hand over the yew that stood behind her and the stump she chose as her seat. The tree responded by bowing a branch toward her. “The elves approach.”
Leus and Neulta entered the heart of the grove each carrying dried peat and moss for a fire. Leus carried the peat from the meeting house and Neulta carried dried moss as tinder. They each placed their peat and moss over the small pieces of kindling. Leus removed a stone from the bag at his waist. He rubbed the stone until it became two. He struck one against the other and the spark fell into the heart of the pile. The fire flickered into life.
“Join us,” Bryn said. She gestured to the stumps and waited for the elves to sit down. She remained standing and began to address the small group. Her voice was loud enough to be heard over the crackle of the fire, yet remained calm and soft.
“I have asked the others to wait until summoned. Though Arryn and Kenna have lived among the stories of the clanns, the two royals, Thalynder and Malcolm, have not had the same upbringing. To them the events of yesterday and today are the stuff of magic and myth. They will doubt themselves and the farther away they are from me, the more they will doubt their own minds. You may find the idea of the legend to be possible, but I can see you too have your doubts.
“First, I assure you that I am as you see. I have not only joined with Meydra, the new High Dragon, I have also joined with Meydra’s predecessor Meylarn. Each of the elder dragons who carried the means to release the jewel gave up their lives to provide me with all that I need to unite the clanns and the kingdoms, as well as the elves.”
Bryn turned to Neulta. “Your elders know of this already. It is not something you will need to explain to them. They sent you and your brother to me in preparation of the reconvening of the Council of Elders. Representation by the elves, your elders hoped, would be granted to one or both of you.”
“Is this to be?” Neulta asked.
“Yes, Neulta. Leus will represent the elves. I ask that when this meeting is adjourned, that you return to your kin and report all you have seen and heard here. Stay now and listen as I name the others to the council.”
Lady Anestar stirred and cleared her throat. She hesitated a moment, “As Queen of Clann Bridei, I will of course be named to the council.”
Bryn walked over and knelt before Lady Anestar
, taking her hands. She gazed at Anestar’s face, and as she did, the jewel in the crown began to glow. Anestar’s eyes widened as the color of the jewel changed from a cool blue to a brilliant white, as bright as any star. Bryn kept her gaze on Anestar and waited while her thoughts gathered to show themselves to her aunt. As the jewel’s light filled the circle, it danced and shimmered on Bryn’s skin. Her hands began to glow, and Anestar resisted Bryn’s hold on her hands.
Bryn kept her grip on Anestar, bringing her hands now to her breast. She spoke so that only Anestar could hear her words.
“You have labored long under the thought that you or your daughter would arrive at this day and claim the jewel. Yes, you pledged your clann to me, but your heart has hardened. So much so that you have lost sight of the true meaning of the Jewel and what it brings to the clanns. Your path has taken you away from your kin, your sister elves, and from your daughter. You have blinded your sight to all other paths. Now, face a choice—to remain on this path and watch from afar as the world changes around you, or to step away from your solitary existence and walk a new path. Join us here in the light and remain as a valued and treasured elder.”
Anestar remained quiet as she obviously gathered her own thoughts and words. When she spoke, her voice was warmer and her eyes softer. “I have long battled this fear that I would be left out of our future. I wore hate and retribution as my armor. I wanted my daughter Kenna to claim the jewel, not caring what it meant for her future.”
“I know this, dear Anestar,” Bryn said. “Fear not the others and embrace the change. We of the new council need your advice.”
“I am to be left out of the council?” Anestar asked.
Bryn kissed her aunt’s hands. “As are all the Elf-Sisters, Gement and the other elders. You are not singled out. I am choosing those who will rule in the days still before us, where we will find ourselves fighting to save our country and our people. What the council decides in these dark times will affect the future of the clanns.”