“I wonder if something like the dome I made at the campsite would help,” September said.
“A dome?” Ilar enquired.
“Yes, a dome of plwm,” Cynwal said excitedly, “the Cludydd summoned the principle of plwm to surround us and keep out all evil manifestations. Do you think you could do the same here, Cludydd?”
“You mean to encircle the whole town?” Heulfryn said. The young blonde man’s voice carried a note of awe.
“Yes. I’m sure that with Ilar and Cynwal we can produce a shield that will stop your enemies from getting in, so long as no-one lets them.” September was conscious that the Arsyllfa’s defences had been proof against anything that the Malevolence could do until the doors were opened from the inside.
“That will be a great reassurance for the people of Mwyngloddiau Dwfn,” Ariannell said.
“We will still have to clear the mines of manifestations in order to get at the aur for the Mordeyrn, but that is within our powers.” Cynhaearn looked satisfied. He stood up, “Right let’s get to work.”
“One moment,” Aurddolen said, raising a hand, “Cari, are you in touch with other settlements?”
“Yes, Mordeyrn,” the young woman replied, “Each day I receive messages from across Gwlad through my speaking horn.”
“Good. The Cludydd wishes to establish contact via the power of efyddyn with those that are under attack. You can help her to establish the links.”
“Yes, Mordeyrn,” Cari agreed then looked at September, “I will help you in any way I can, Cludydd.”
“Thank you,” September said. She realised that Aurddolen had given her a number of tasks and that she wouldn’t be leaving the mining town immediately.
Now the meeting did break up. Cynwal guided September to his own home in a small stone house, with Ilar accompanying them. He poured cups of steaming drink and offered them to September and Ilar. September took a sip. It tasted like a mulled wine.
“How do you suggest we construct the shield?” Cynwal asked.
“Well, all I did at the campsite was imagine what I wanted while summoning the emotion that links us to Saturn and makes the lead metal work.”
“But you didn’t have any plwm,” Cynwal said.
“No, I don’t need it. Since I visited the planets I seem to be able to use the powers of the metals even without having the metals in my hand. The starstone itself is sufficient.”
Ilar shook her head in wonder. “That is miraculous, Cludydd. You are using the essence of the metals direct from the planets. We, the humble cludyddau, must have the real materials in our hands to draw on our planet’s power.”
“I suppose it is a gift of the spirits on each planet,” September said, not wanting to show off in front of the cludyddau.
“It is a marvellous skill,” Cynwal said, “and it is most fortuitous that you are with us at our time of greatest need. Now the questions are, can you make a dome big enough to protect the whole town and how can we help you?”
“I don’t know how it happens but if we work together, I’ll do my thing and you do whatever you do.”
“We can only give it a try,” Ilar said, “the power of alcam will reinforce your plans.”
“Let us get to the centre of town and put our powers to the test,” Cynwal said. He led September and Ilar from the house and they followed the narrow, dark alleyways until they reached a small open space. There was nothing to distinguish it from any other space in the town. It was surrounded by the tall, brooding, windowless buildings with just a small patch of clear blue sky directly overhead. A cold wind blew down the alleyways forming eddies of chill.
“This is just about the central point in the town,” Cynwal said. He drew a short but thick metal bar from the leather pouch he wore attached to his belt. It was dull grey and much scored and gouged. September recognised it as lead. Ilar also produced her symbol of power, a roll of wrinkled, silver-grey tin which she unrolled into a sheet.
“So we need to invoke a dome surrounding the whole town,” Ilar said.
“A sphere not just a dome,” Cynwal said.
“A sphere?” September asked.
“Yes, to protect us from attacks from the rocks beneath us,” Cynwal said.
“Oh, of course,” September said, wondering how she could have forgotten the threat from the earth manifestations.
They stood in a triangle. September raised her hand holding the starstone and the two cludyddau lifted up their samples of lead and tin. Cynwal and Ilar began to chant in the old language that September did not understand. She closed her eyes and tried to summon simultaneously the sorrow of Saturn and the joy of Jupiter. Joy and sorrow together, how do I do that? She wondered. For a moment she was lost for ideas then she recalled the memorial service for her grandfather, her father’s father. Like everyone else she was sad at his death and missed the love he gave her whenever she visited him, but there in the church, relatives and friends told amusing stories about things he had done in his life; they played the music he had enjoyed and sang uplifting hymns. She remembered the feeling – joy and sorrow. She imagined a globe covering the whole town like the glass around a snow scene. Cynwal and Ilar sang loudly.
A silver-grey dome formed above their heads. For a moment the curved shield hung there and then it expanded faster than they could follow. Now they were looking at the sky through a veil of pale silver-grey.
September lowered her arm. Slowly Cynwal and Ilar did the same.
“I feel it,” Ilar said slowly, “it is as if the energy is still flowing through me.”
“Yes. I am the same,” Cynwal said, “the song continues. The metals are ringing, sustaining the shield.”
“You will have to keep it going when I am gone,” September said, realising that her power was different to that of the cludyddau. Her job was done but they remained as the source of the dome’s energy. “Can you manage?”
“Yes,” Cynwal said, standing as if he was unsure of his balance, “It is like having a continuous sound in my head, a wordless song that goes on and on, repeating. It is a strange experience but I’ll get used to it.”
“Me too,” Ilar agreed.
“Let us return to the Meeting Hall,” Cynwal said. Once again he led the way through the narrow passageways.
They found a small crowd outside the building, all staring up at the grey sky. Cynhaearn saw them approach.
“You have done it?”
Ilar and Cynwal nodded distractedly.
“Yes,” September said, “You and your people should be able to pass through it freely but evil will be stopped. I hope it will last.”
“So do we, Cludydd, but you have our thanks.”
“Now, I must see Cari.”
“I’ll guide you to her home.”
Cynhaearn led September into another part of the town through yet more, dark, narrow passageways. At last they climbed stone steps to a doorway. The door opened and the dark young woman welcomed September in.
“I sensed your arrival,” Cari said. Cynhaearn said his farewells and departed into the alleyways. Cari led September into a small workshop with a furnace and bench on which were articles made of copper, both small and large. September recognised the small speaking horns like that which Catrin had given her and she had left in the Arsyllfa. There was a copper rod with a ball at the end such as she had seen Catrin wield against the Gwyllian all those weeks ago at Amaethaderyn, and there were artefacts of other shapes for which she could not guess the purpose.
“Please sit,” Cari said, sitting down on a stool by the workbench and indicating another stool near the furnace. “The Mordeyrn said I could help you to contact other settlements, but I do not understand quite what he means.”
“The spirits of Gwener have given me the power of efyddyn to use through the Maengolauseren,” September said.
“Ah, you have spoken to the spirits.”
“Yes. I visited Venus, uh, Gwener. They gave me a task which I must have done well enough for them. N
ow by calling up the emotion of love I can use the power of copper, although I am sure I do not have the skill that you have.”
“But you do not carry any efyddyn with you Cludydd. Do you need a horn?” Cari indicated the speaking tubes on the bench.
“I don’t need one. The starstone is enough on its own,” she explained, showing the clear stone in her hand, “but I need to have some way of recognising who I am speaking to. I can speak to Aurddolen, but I don’t know many people across the Land.”
“I see. Well, I’ll speak to other cludyddau o efyddyn.” She picked up a horn and sang a brief song into its mouthpiece. Soon there was a reply. September heard the voice of another woman in her head and had an image of waves crashing on a beach. Cari changed her tune and another voice answered with a picture of tall, dark trees. Then there was another voice and scene and another and another. To September the voices and pictures appeared in her head like a slide display, one after another flickering into her vision and hearing. She had no idea whether her brain was taking in what she was experiencing or whether the stone itself was recording the voices and images. She did however begin to appreciate the number of places of habitation spread across the continent of Gwlad and the variety of people who lived in them.
A long time passed before Cari finally sighed and laid down her horn. She yawned and got stiffly to her feet.
“I think that is all the cludydd o efyddyn that remain. Many have been lost to the Malevolence,” she said. September felt Cari’s sadness made stronger by the love that linked all the copper bearers.
“Thank you. I hope that will be all I need to tune in to each of them. It’s like a mobile phone with lots of contacts.”
“Mobile phone?”
September noticed Cari’s mystified look, “It’s how we communicate on my world.”
“Oh.”
“I don’t think I can explain it, but we have instruments like your horn which allow us to speak to each other.”
“You have cludyddau?”
“No, everyone can use a phone.”
“Everyone. Surely there is not enough efyddyn for everyone to own a speaking horn?”
September felt the conversation was taking her into areas she didn’t know about.
“Perhaps you’re right. Look, thanks, I’d better get back to Aurddolen before I leave you.”
“I’ll guide you back to the meeting hall.”
Cari led September back through the alleyways although September could not tell whether they used the same route as when she had come or whether it was a different path through the maze of buildings. Soon, however, they arrived back at the large hall which was now deserted. Cari took her inside and upstairs to a door that stood ajar.
“These are the Mordeyrn’s rooms,” Cari said, “I will leave you here, Cludydd. May you have success in your tasks.” The cludydd hurried off and September felt that she did not want to see Aurddolen, or perhaps it was his daughter she was keeping away from.
September tapped on the door and stepped inside. Aurddolen was emerging from another room.
“Ah, Cludydd, you are back. You have completed your tasks?”
“Yes. Hopefully the shield will defend the town and I can keep in touch with people across the Land.”
“So, now you intend to leave?”
“Yes, I think I should. My hip hasn’t itched at all since I’ve been here but who knows when Malice might seek me out.”
“Ah, yes, your birthmark. It gives an indication of when the Malevolence is approaching?”
“Yes, but the warning time is short. I hope I can do better by linking to Malice.”
“Well, take care. That one has powers that are outside my knowledge. Her influence over my daughter is an aspect of evil that I have not experienced before.”
“Is Heulwen here?”
“Yes, in there.” Aurddolen indicated the room he had just emerged from.
“May I see her?”
“Of course. I have you to thank for rescuing her from Malice. Who knows what her fate would be if she had remained in Malice’s hands.”
Aurddolen led her into the room. It was a small bedroom furnished with a fur covered mattress, carpet and wall hangings that gave it a warm feel. Heulwen sat cross-legged on the bed, back straight, head up, eyes open, looking ahead but totally devoid of consciousness.
“Hello Heulwen,” September said. There was no reply or movement from the young woman. “She doesn’t respond?”
“She will swallow food and drink placed in her mouth. She balances, sitting and standing. Her body works, but she has no will of her own.”
“Do you think Malice can make her move?”
“I don’t know. I have seen no sign that Malice can control her since you returned her to me, but that does not prove that Heulwen cannot be manipulated like a puppet. You say that Malice has a link to her. That worries me.”
“What will you do?”
“I will look after her, talk to her, try to get through to her using my powers and those of the other cludyddau but I must ensure that she is kept secure at all times and not able to endanger the people here.”
“The others will help.”
“Reluctantly. I think Cynhaearn would prefer it if she was cast out onto the ice, but he and the others will do my bidding – for now at least.”
“If you think of anything more that I can do, call me.”
“I will Cludydd. We will talk wherever you may be. Now, I have held you up long enough. The rest of Gwlad has need of your powers.”
“Yes, but don’t forget I can return here in minutes.”
“I know.”
They embraced. It felt like more of a farewell than it needed to be. September had decided to stay away from Mwyngloddiau Dwfn unless the town was under threat. She would do her best to draw the Malevolence away while Aurddolen prepared for the Conjunction.
They parted and September returned to the main hall. Hedydd and Sieffre were there, standing close together. Both were now dressed in thick furs. September was certain that they had been holding hands. Sieffre took a step towards her when he saw her.
“Cludydd. We are glad to meet you. We have been told that you are leaving this frozen town.”
“Yes. It’s for the best. Do you want me to take you somewhere warmer?”
“No, well, yes, I want to return to the warmth of the southern lands, but it appears that I have a task to perform here.”
“The Mordeyrn wants me to continue making observations of the heavens,” Hedydd said.
“But your shield will obscure the stars and the mountains press too close, limiting the view of the sky,” Sieffre said, “so Hedydd will have to travel to a peak to make her measurements and I will be her protector.”
“I see.” September noticed that Sieffre was less relaxed with her than he used to be and had transferred his duty of care to Hedydd. “That is good. Your work is very important, Hedydd, and Sieffre is the best bodyguard you could have.”
Hedydd gave Sieffre a look of admiration.
“He says that he thinks your powers mean you have no more need of his services, Cludydd,” Hedydd said.
“I wouldn’t say that,” September said, remembering the gratitude she had felt for Sieffre’s willingness to remain at her side and his heroic vigilance in awaiting her return from the planets, “I will always want you as a companion Sieffre, but Hedydd is right, she has more need of your skills now.”
Hedydd and Sieffre looked at each other with satisfaction and relief.
“And now I really must go,” September went on, now sure that she wanted to be somewhere else. She left the building and stood in the square. The Sun was dropping towards the western mountain tops just visible above the roofs and while it was still autumn there was an icy chill in the air. Some people going about their business stopped when they saw her iridescent figure. They cried out when she changed into the giant blue eagle.
September spread her wings, cupped the air and rose.
September circled over the rooftops beneath the silver-grey dome, just looking at the buildings beneath her. At the northern end of the town there were towers and gantries and chimneys – the mines and foundries that were the purpose of the settlement. There were few people visible – the miners must be underground, September realised. She strove for height in the thin, cold air. The shield was close; then she was through and the blue sky shone above her. Now the town below was hidden beneath the grey curved surface. She hoped that she, Ilar and Cynwal had done enough to protect the community.
She flew up to the western ridge and followed it southwards until it fell away to the wooded plains below. Swooping down she landed on the final promontory and perched there, folding her great wings to her side. With her eagle eyes she peered northwards at the distant dark speck that was Mwyngloddiau Dwfn at the head of the snow-covered valley, turning to look southwards at the seemingly unending forest. There were people down there, beneath the tree cover and beyond, beside the northern and southern rivers, in the far east on the coast of the ocean, to the west in the Bryn am Seren and further south still on the dry plains that became desert. They were all hers to guard and protect, at least until the Conjunction signalled the final battle. There was just seven weeks until the fateful alignment of the planets but time enough for the Malevolence and Malice to work their evil as their powers grew. September had no doubt that her time would be filled but she was confident that she could face the threats of the manifestations and of people turned to evil. It was Malice that still troubled her. She had no idea at all how she could confront her and halt her plans to destroy the Land. If she could only follow her movements then she would at least have a chance to prepare.
How could she find Malice? She opened her mind with love and was assaulted by the chatter of countless conversing people. She didn’t try to identify individuals but there was no beacon of burning hate so she knew that Malice wasn’t among them.
Instead she summoned the closest feeling she could to Malice’s hate and spite – anger. The power of haearn filled her – clashing blades and pounding hammers, clanking chains and thudding machines – but there was no contact with Malice’s raw emotion. There didn’t seem to be a way to form a link with her twin using her metal skills. The source of her power was the planets and the stars; Malice’s came from the lost souls above the stars. Their only contact had been in their mother’s womb. September remembered her birthmark. She changed into her human form and pressed her right hand to her hip where she had the crescent shaped birthmark. It always began to itch and burn when the manifestations appeared. Was it a link to Malice or just the Malevolence in general? She rubbed the mark gently and tried to concentrate on the sensations that it gave her. She felt a warmth in her side but nothing else happened. She had to accept that she could not reach Malice, but Malice had said that she could locate September. How did she do it? Was it the disturbance in the universe caused by the starstone, the same disturbance that drew manifestations to her? If that was the case then the link was indeed one-sided because Malice was just one amongst the innumerable lost souls, made most powerful by having September as her twin.
The Power of Seven Page 14