“I didn’t know. I’m sorry. Are the others alright?” Ariana said.
“They’ll recover.” Rhyanna said briskly, “What happened after that?”
“I don’t know how to explain it. My mother came to me and comforted me.”
“How?”
“She took over your body.” Ariana said.
“Luna save me what evil is this? What kind of witch are you? Is your mother a demon?” Rhyanna backed away raising her hands to ward Ariana off. A bolt of blue fire sped by Ariana’s head. She ducked out of the way. Instinctively she created a shield around herself.
“No, wait it’s nothing like that.” Rhyanna stopped, “Listen to me for a minute. Have I seemed evil to you?”
“No, but…”
“Well, I’m not and my mother isn’t either.” Ariana paused searching for words, “My mother died when I was fifteen.”
Rhyanna looked skeptical but no more fire shot at Ariana.
“I never believed in ghosts either. But once I got here she visited me and started sending me visions.”
“Why?”
“She was one of the Guardians. She saved the Heartstone and fled to Earth with me as an infant.”
“I don’t believe you. What was her name?”
“Julia.”
Rhyanna paled. “I can’t believe she was the traitor. I thought she died that night. How could she have done it?”
“She was no traitor. She was preserving the Stone.”
“All those years,” Rhyanna muttered sitting down on the steps putting her hands to her cheeks.
“You knew my mother?”
“She was one of my dearest friends.”
“Then you know she only did what she had to do.”
“Why didn’t she come right back? What happened?”
“I was an infant. She stayed to take care of me. Then she died. She meant to come back.”
“She betrayed her trust.”
“She didn’t mean to. Now, I’m here to put it right.”
“I have much to think on.” Rhyanna said wearily, “Pray excuse me.”
“Wait,” Rhyanna turned, “Can I talk to you later about my mother?”
“Later.” Rhyanna tottered out of the chamber.
Ariana went to her chamber and dropped into a dreamless sleep. She woke up ravenous. Geneth walked in. Ariana sat up and started to push back the coverlet.
“Ariana, Oh Ariana…” Geneth was flushed and stammering. Ariana was surprised; she had never seen Geneth anything but calm and gentle. Ariana thought she saw puffiness under her eyes.
“Geneth, what is it? Are you alright?”
“I’m sorry. I was so worried. You were so white and still and it took all of us to get you back. It frightened me. I should have more faith in the Mother but I…” She continued in a whisper, “I doubted.”
“Geneth, thank you. Don’t worry. I’m tougher than I look.”
“Thank Luna, but I failed you. I wasn’t strong enough to believe.”
“Nonsense, you’re my friend. You cared enough to worry and that makes you human. No one is perfect.”
Geneth looked doubtful, and then she recollected herself. ”I must get the Mother. She left instructions to be told when you awoke.” Bowing deeply, she glided silently away.
Ariana sat back on the pillows and waited. In a few moments, Rhyanna stepped through the arched doorway. She looked calm and well rested again.
“Fair morn child.” She sat down on the bed and took Ariana’s hand in hers. Her flesh was cool and smooth. “I am sorry for my words yesterday. I was shocked.”
“It’s alright. I understand.” Ariana began.
“No, there is no excuse for letting you think for even one second that I blame you for your mother’s mistakes.” She paused, “I am sure Julia did what she thought was right and proper when she hid the stone and again yesterday. I am sorry if I insulted her memory.”
“Thank you. I hope you’re not angry anymore.” Ariana said
“No. I’m not. You said you had questions?” Rhyanna said gently.
“Well, how did you know each other?”
“We both went through the training together and became Guardians. Julia had been born at Galancarrig. Your mother took such joy in her duties. She was a flame against the dark.”
“So her whole family lived there?”
“Yes, your grandmother was the High Guardian and everyone thought Julia would follow her when the time came.”
“What about my father?” Ariana held her breath.
Rhyanna smiled, “His name was Aran. He was one of the soldiers protecting Galancarrig. He was originally from the eastern lakes. He had the bluest eyes and the merriest smile. You have his hair and that same firmness of his jaw. Julia could be too serious. He made her laugh.”
“So they were married?” Ariana asked.
“Yes, and soon Julia was with child. She was so happy. Then Galancarrig was attacked. Our soldiers tried to defend us but the enemy outnumbered them. Your father was killed in the fighting. Then somehow, they breached our magical defenses. Many died trying to stop him. Your grandmother was killed blocking the Web of Stars. When they reached the center the Stone was gone. In his rage they destroyed the tower and killed everyone they found. I escaped with some others and we fled here.”
“Oh my god.”
“For the last thirty years Rhysin has searched for the Stone. Now that he knows it is here again he will stop at nothing.”
“What can I do?”
“You are doing all you can. Do you have any questions for me?”
“No, thanks you for telling me about my parents.”
“I wish you could have known your father. He was one of the gentlest men I have ever known.”
Ariana thought Sandy had that in common with Aran. Had her mother loved Aran more than Sandy? She would never know. There was a lot to absorb.
“Dearest I know you have a lot to think about but we must prepare. This night we open Leudwen.” Rhyanna rose and left the room. Ariana followed her.
“It is time for the final purification.”
Ariana was led to the bathing chamber. Chanting filled the hallways as the women called out for good fortune from the Goddess. Everywhere women were praying, sending up fragrant smoke to Luna. Washed, polished and dressed in a linen shift she was led back to Rhyanna. Ariana’s stomach growled as she walked into the chamber. She had fasted all day. Now that the test was close, her stomach knotted.
She tried to remember what Rhyanna had shown her about the ritual of opening the gate. Her mind was a blank. Rhyanna had also given her the layout of Galancarrig that morning. What if she forgot?
“Don’t worry. The Stone will guide you. The closer it gets to the Web of Stars the more powerful it becomes. Be careful, it could overpower you.”
Turning Ariana from the mirror, she dipped a small brush into a pot on the table. Ariana drew back. Rhyanna painted a little of the silver pigment onto her own wrist. Ariana grinned sheepishly and obediently closed her eyes.
“You must control the magic as the gate opens or it will go wild and destroy you and everyone else.”
Rhyanna daubed Ariana’s face and hands. The small brush tickled Ariana’s face and she wrinkled her nose. Rhyanna smiled and continued painting.
“The magic becomes more difficult to control at each Gate. Be cautious about using the Stone. Even small things become magnified.”
Rhyanna put the brush down on the small tray. She took a silver crescent headdress from a waiting handmaid and placed it carefully on Ariana’s head. It was tight the ends dug into her scalp.
“Once you open Leudwen, you have very little time. You must remain focused and get through the gate as quickly as possible.” She turned away. “Bring the robes.”
Geneth and one other handmaid brought in an indigo velvet robe scattered with diamonds. Lined with white satin it was sumptuous against Ariana’s bare arms. Rhyanna stood back and looked at her critically.
She folded a pleat and placed a small brooch at the shoulder of the robes.
Ariana turned around to the mirror. A stranger looked back at her. Her face was covered with intricate patterns of silver. The Heartstone against her chest pulsed like a star. She didn’t look human. She turned away disturbed. While she had been engrossed in the mirror, Rhyanna had changed and it was time.
A deep sonorous tone filled the caverns. Handmaids filled the hallways and filed into formation around Rhyanna and Ariana. Reverently the entire population of Leudwen processed into the great central cavern. The scent of incense filled the air and the solemn yet joyous chanting bounced off the high ceiling.
Three feet from the pool silence, the procession halted. Rhyanna gestured to Ariana. Slowly, Ariana stepped forward to the altar. The Stone was pressing her, pulling her into the alabaster circle. Within a few steps, she was inside the circle. The Stone was burning against her chest its light almost blinding her.
As she passed into the center, the light bathed everything with a cool pure glow. Ariana stepped into the center of the circle and lifted the Heartstone over her head. The light intensified and energy rose like a column from the depths of the earth pouring out of the Stone to the sky. The light bounced off the pillars and focused on one spot in the ceiling right above her. Energy beamed to a small point that glowed white-hot.
The energy poured through her and up to the roof of the cavern. It filled her. The power swept her up with it and she couldn’t see anything or hear anything except the sweet white light of the Stone. Rock groaned, shifted, and with a tremendous noise the roof shifted and the entire top of the mountain opened. The pillar of light shot up until it reached through the twilight sky to the full moon above.
Ariana was the light, flooding the twilight sky with silver, drawing closer to the moon, merging in ecstasy. She was almost there. An alabaster staircase made of moonlight coalesced from the pool and led up to the great opening. Ariana heard the muffled sobs of the prostrate priestesses and then nothing else as she crumpled to the cold floor.
The next thing she knew she was held and given small sips of cold water. There was a wet cloth on her head.
“Dear, you must hurry. You don’t have much time. The stairway wanes with the moon.”
While she spoke Rhyanna took the robe off Ariana and handed her traveling clothes. Everything was clean and new or mended, even her boots resoled. A knapsack that bulged with food and water completed the ensemble. Quickly Ariana dressed and put her knife on her hip. Her finger caressed the hilt.
“Inside the pack is food and water. Geneth wishes to come with you if you will permit it.”
“But it’s too dangerous.”
“Please Lady Ariana, I would serve you.” Geneth’s eyes beseeched her.
“OK, I can’t resist you. It’ll be nice to have the company. I don’t know what to say. Thank you all so much. I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you too Ariana. I am glad we came together like this and I was able to help Julia’s daughter restore the Heartstone even in this small way.” There were tears in Rhyanna’s eyes. Rhyanna hugged her and kissed her on the cheek. “All our hopes go with you, blessings on your journey.” She stepped back.
Ariana stepped onto the moonbeam stairs. They looked translucent but were solid underfoot. Geneth followed a few steps behind. Tears streamed down her face at leaving her friends. But joy beamed through the tears at beginning a great adventure. Ariana looked back as she neared the top. Everyone stood silent in the great open cavern. A great sea of expectant faces looked up. She turned to the gateway, smelled the fresh air, the breeze chill on her skin and stepped forward into the night.
Chapter Thirteen
Ariana and Geneth walked in the silvered darkness for a few minutes. Ariana glanced over at her young companion. Geneth was pale and shaken by the magic she had witnessed a few minutes ago. Ariana didn’t blame her. She had been overwhelmed by the power of Leudwen, the first gate.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
“Oh yes, honored one.”
Ariana frowned in the darkness. Abruptly she stopped and faced the girl.
“No, don’t call me “Honored One.” I thought we settled this before. If you want to travel with me, you have to stop calling me that. What is my name Geneth?”
“Ar…Ariana”
“Good, don’t forget it.”
They continued walking through featureless hills of jagged pebbles and cinders extended infinitely into the dark. The only clear place to walk was the trail stretched out before them like a ribbon of silver. It led west toward a further ridge of mountains. Ariana was surprised the trail was so clear. It was a dark night despite the bright moonlight.
“Why is the trail so clear and bright?”
“When you opened the Gate, the powers of Luna became yours. The trail is invisible to those not given the gift. If any should come unwary and forbidden to these lands they would wander forever lost and blind. You linked to it through the gate and the blessing of Leudwen. Look around, does not the night seem bright to you.”
Looking around Ariana realized that it seemed like twilight instead of the middle of the night. By concentrating, she was even able to see each individual stone limned by the moonlight.
“Do you see it this way also?”
“Yes, but not as clearly. You have been blessed with Luna’s sight.”
They kept walking. Ariana was entranced with her new vision and time flew by. Cresting the top of yet another hill Ariana realized that she was tired. The distant peaks were still distant. She turned to Geneth with a tired smile.
“Let’s take a rest. I was going to wait until morning but… What?”
Geneth looked at her strangely. “Morning never comes here. These lands are sacred to Luna, the mother of night; the sun never shows his face.”
“But…”
“Time is different here. A day here can be either a month or five minutes outside the gates.”
Ariana looked around. Everything was still bathed in silver radiance. There wasn’t even the tinge of dawn. She looked closer. “What else do you know about the land between the gates, Geneth?”
“They are legend. No one I know has ever been here before. They exist as a blessed resting-place for Luna’s servants. But there are also dangers here for the unwary. The borderlands are the boundary between Leudwen and Heulwen.”
“We’ll have to go on that then until we know more. For now we rest.”
The journey continued. They rested when they were tired and ate when they were hungry. There was no way to mark time. They could have been on the trail for three days or two weeks they had no way of knowing. The trail wound through the unchanging cinders that crunched under their boots. Looking up from the hypnosis of motion and the silver lure of the trail Ariana noticed something. Turning the corner, she noticed an indentation in the cinders as if someone had flattened out the ground to strike a tent and there were the remains of a fire. It was their campsite from the previous night.
“That’s our campsite. We’re going in circles.” Ariana’s voice sounded loud in her own ears.
It had been utterly silent up to now: the steady tramp of their feet and whispers of their breath the only sound. The silence of the cinder hills had seemed too profound to be sullied with voices. Without questioning it, they had journeyed in companionable silence.
They looked at each other appalled. Ariana opened her mouth to continue, when she heard a noise. Shattering the stillness, it sounded like distant barking.
“What is that?” she asked.
Geneth grew pale. Grabbing Ariana’s hand, she leapt down the trail like a frightened doe.
“What is it?” Ariana gasped as they pounded down the cinder trail.
“The hunt!”
They fled. The baying came closer. It grew triumphant. The hounds had found their scent. Ariana thought she heard different dogs, the ringing bell tone of the hounds and the higher pitched cries of the coursers as th
ey sighted their prey. Ariana knew that any minute she would feel the heat of their frenzied breath, rending teeth biting into her flesh. Faster and faster, they ran, hearts pumping, gasping for air. Now they heard the hooves of the horsemen behind the trailing hounds pounding on the trail. They would never outrun these hunters.
Geneth stumbled almost knocking them both over. Her hair had fallen from its neat braid and hung in sweaty elflocks around her face. Ariana grabbed a wildly flailing arm and looked back into Geneth’s frightened eyes. “I’m lost save yourself.” She panted.
“Never.” Ariana shook Geneth by the arm, “Hurry!” Instinctively her mind sought the Heartstone. She needed more strength. As she felt its presence there was a great surge of light in her mind and she got an idea.
She wasn’t sure if she could do it. The power of the Stone surged up in her and she felt as if she were floating. Without breaking stride she opened herself up to the power and held on to Geneth’s arm.
“Geneth, don’t let go whatever happens.” Ariana thought of speed and power. “Hold on,” she yelled.
The Heartstone blazed. In two great bounds, they overleaped the cinder hills the sharp rocks cutting into tender feet. She came down running on a great wide plain. Then there was nothing except running. The dogs followed in a flood of red eyes and yellow fangs. The scrabbling of their claws was loud on the cinder hills, the thunder of their voices a not so distant roar.
The flat plain galvanized the prey. New strength and power came into them as they ran faster and faster. The world filled with the thunder of feet, the labored breathing of the girls and the panting baying pack behind them. After an endless time, there was a glimmer of water on the horizon. All too quickly, they were there.
Like a white avalanche, the sky filled with the slender whipcord shapes of coursers and hounds. Silent now the hounds ringed their quarry, sides heaving, and mouths red against the brilliant white of their coats. Their eyes too were red and glowed as they watched the captives. A horn blew in the distance and the dogs drew back. They came alert, a small twitching of their coats the only sign. Their eyes grew eager and from some, a slight breath of a whine sounded.
The Heartstone Page 16