Azrael’s voice remained calm. ‘I won’t let them be used in that way. I won’t.’
‘Your sister will die unless you hand over the Twins,’ said the Morrigan from the centre of the circle. ‘I need them to return. Leave them and you will have your sister back. If you do not then I will still return. I already know how. And your sister will … die here.’
‘You know I cannot give them to you. I know what ends you will put them to,’ said Azrael ruefully. ‘But my sister has no part in this. Let her go and I will find a way back for you.’
‘You know full well you can find me no other way back. You are too … pure … in your views of what constitutes great magic to use the type of spells needed to bring me back. I will do this myself,’ snapped the witch. ‘So I ask again. Will you give me the Twins?’
Azrael stood with his wand by his side looking beaten. But he did not give the witch any response.
‘Then her fate is sealed.’ With a movement faster than a striking snake the witch drew a blade from her waist and slashed it across the neck of the woman in white.
A line of blood seeped from Aisling’s neck and spread quickly down into her dress. It flowed unnaturally fast as the gown changed from pure white to a deep crimson red. As the life seemingly flowed from the eyes of his sister Azrael screamed. The sound echoed around the hills and flowed out across the still lake. Aisling cast one lingering look at her brother before her eyes rolled up into her head.
The Morrigan stood laughing as Aisling’s dress grew bloodier. The spell held her motionless in the air.
‘You left me with no choice,’ said the Morrigan calmly. There was no emotion in her voice except a slight satisfaction at her handiwork. Not a drop of blood had touched the ground inside the circle. ‘She is still alive. I have the skill of bringing people to the brink of death but keeping them from passing into the embrace of the ferryman and crossing the river. And this gives me my way back from this … torture you inflicted upon me.’
‘I inflicted nothing on you,’ said Azrael, sitting with slumped shoulders. He knew the Morrigan was not lying when she said his sister still lived. ‘You chose a path. I could have killed you but yet here you are still. I should have taken my chance to end you.’
‘You should have,’ said the Morrigan, walking closer to the edge of the circle. The body of Aisling drifted alongside her as she walked, as if in some macabre trance. ‘Why didn’t you?’
‘You know why,’ said Azrael angrily. ‘I loved you. Or at least I thought I loved you. Once upon a time anyway. That was before I understood you. Love is like that. Even when it passes, the roots of love never wither. It exists inside you like some parasite and no matter how hard you try to remove it there is always a tiny scrap that lives forever. A gift given never asked for, and impossible to return.’
The evil smirk on the witch’s face softened at Azrael’s words. ‘Yes. You did love me once. I knew it,’ she said gently. ‘But the time for love is long gone,’ she added with venom.
‘Don’t do this,’ said Azrael, rising from his knees.
The Morrigan did not respond but simply smiled. She turned to the body that hung beside her. The figure revolved to face her, before the Morrigan slowly, deliberately, stepped into the body of Azrael’s sister.
As the figures melded into one, the near corpse gave a shudder and its chest heaved. Life flowed back into the limbs and face, which turned its gaze towards Azrael. It raised a hand, staring at it, as if seeing fingers for the first time.
‘This is much better,’ said a voice which Azrael recognised as his sister’s but was no longer hers. The face that looked at him was familiar but the spirit behind the eyes was under the control of a different mind.
The troll had stood indifferently watching the exchange, but now smiled. ‘Are you ready?’ she said quietly.
The witch nodded while keeping her eyes firmly on Azrael.
The troll placed her hands on the pillar. It glowed as it had previously and the circle blurred again. It flickered and rotated as the pillars realigned and ground to a halt.
‘I rather like this colour,’ said the Morrigan, swirling the blood red gown as she stepped towards Azrael. ‘I think I shall always wear it as a reminder of my journey back to this world.’
‘This is not possible,’ said Azrael under his breath.
‘Oh, there are so many more things possible than you dare to let yourself dream.’ The Morrigan laughed loudly, the sound seeming to mock Azrael as he stood bowed before the woman who had come back from the dead.
‘What is he doing?’ said Grady from their hiding place. ‘I thought he was an all-powerful wizard. What’s the point in having the Twins if you can’t use them against someone like her!’
‘That’s his sister, sort of,’ said Niamh, her eyes still glued to the tableau in front of her. ‘Would you turn your wand on me?’
Grady hesitated in his answer.
‘Oh, thank you very much,’ said Niamh angrily.
‘Of course I wouldn’t,’ said Grady reluctantly.
‘Well that’s still his sister standing in front of him. He’s not about to blast her, is he?’
‘I’m not so sure,’ said Grady. ‘He looks like he’s about to get angry.’
Azrael, as if he had heard Grady’s words, tightened his grip on his wand and opened the flap on the pouch by his waist.
‘Thank you,’ said the Morrigan, reaching her hand out as Azrael took the Twins from the bag. ‘You should have given these to me a long time ago and there would have been no need for any of this.’
‘You really don’t understand anything,’ said Azrael, taking a step back. ‘That has always been your flaw, thinking there was only ever one path.’
‘You wouldn’t do anything to hurt me now, would you?’ said the witch, using the voice of Aisling in a way she knew would appeal most to Azrael’s sibling affections.
This time it was Azrael’s turn to laugh. ‘You should never underestimate me.’
The wizard drove his wand into the ground before him. A shudder ran through the earth towards the Morrigan. Molten stone erupted from the earth and encased the witch in a glowing, swirling cocoon. The Morrigan screamed as the liquid rock settled upon her. It shimmered and glowed brightly before appearing to cool and sink into the flesh of the witch who collapsed to the ground, her wand dropping from her fingers.
‘What have you done to me?’ she spat at Azrael.
‘You were right,’ said the wizard. ‘I won’t defile the body of my sister any more than you already have, and I will not destroy it. But I have bound you now to this land, to this place. You will not be able to leave here. If you try to venture beyond the boundaries of the lake land, and you know where those places are, then you will die, truly die.’
The witch looked to the troll, who had stepped down from the stone dais and the pillar. ‘Why didn’t you do something? Why didn’t you stop him?’
‘That was not in our bargain,’ said the troll calmly. ‘I will already pay a price for this and I will not make it any worse.’
‘You do have the power of foresight,’ said Azrael, turning to the troll.
‘Do what you will,’ she said, standing meekly.
Azrael nodded as he understood what the troll was saying. With a flourish of his wand a bolt of blindingly white light leapt from the tip and hit Modron square in the chest.
The creature shattered and shards of crystal flew high in the air, seeming to hang weightless before eventually settling back to earth. As they touched the ground they glowed before melting into the turf until there was nothing left to show the creature had ever been there.
The Morrigan screamed again, a feral catlike screech that had never been made by the body she now inhabited. She reached for her wand and prepared to unleash a spell against Azrael, who still stood with his back to her.
A voice sounded urgently from the edge of the forest. ‘No!’ it screamed as a bolt sizzled from the underbrush. The Morrigan saw it comi
ng, but too late. The spell touched her cheek as it shot past, causing the witch to cry out in pain. But the distraction was all the time Azrael needed. He spun round and with a deft flick of his wrist disarmed the witch, her wand clattering into one of the stone pillars.
‘Why did you kill her?’ screamed the witch. Blood seeped from between her fingers as she held them to the wound on her cheek. Her gaze turned to the spot the bolt had come from.
‘She is not dead,’ said Azrael. ‘But she will not be able to help you again for a long time.’
The Morrigan hissed at Azrael before casting a hand towards Aisling’s broomstick. It flew across the clearing from where it stood propped against a tree. The witch mounted it and cast another hand towards the wand which lay by the pillar. Once that too was in her grasp she pushed away from the ground, screaming at Azrael.
The wizard watched her go before turning his attention back to the forest. He started to walk to where the bolt had come from. Directly towards Niamh and Grady.
‘What were you thinking!’ hissed Grady angrily. ‘He knows we’re here now!’
‘What did you want me to do?’ said Niamh. ‘Let her kill him?’
‘We need to get out of here!’ said Grady, grabbing his sister and pushing her back towards where they knew their way home waited for them.
They dashed through the undergrowth staying as low as they could. Despite their protective spell it was not hard to see their passage as bushes were pushed back and branches snapped under their feet. It did not take them long to reach the door that opened into the maze of mirrors.
Behind them they heard Azrael running after them. ‘Who is there?’ he yelled, but there was no way the children were going to wait for him.
The old man stood at the door as they ran forward. Behind him the children could still see the Twins standing quietly. Niamh jumped into the passageway with her brother tumbling in behind. The old man stood motionless as Azrael bounded into view. The two figures stared at each other, recognition etched into their features. As the door winked out of existence the children stared in disbelief at the face of the old man. The face of Azrael.
Chapter 19
Off the Map
The children untangled themselves as the greatest wizard of any age sat on a chair conjured from thin air.
‘Excuse me sitting down,’ said the wizard. ‘I must be getting old. That really took a lot out of me.’
‘Why didn’t you tell us?’ said Niamh angrily.
‘That I was a thousand-year-old wizard? Yes. Good question. Would you have believed me?’
‘Probably not. But why would we. Aren’t you supposed to be dead?’ said Grady.
‘There are things in this world worse than death,’ said Azrael softly and slowly, as if he were tired beyond belief. But the moment passed and a light of anger returned to his eyes. ‘Why didn’t you keep yourself hidden as I asked?’ he said accusingly.
Niamh looked guilty as she glanced at her brother. ‘Will there be trouble?’ she asked as she glanced behind her. The door to the clearing had closed and only a mirror now stood there reflecting the uncomfortable look on her face.
‘What sort of trouble, do you think?’ said Azrael.
‘You know. Like time-travel trouble where the world changes because of something stupid someone does when they go back in time.’
‘You mean like someone firing a spell they should not have and bringing me face to face with my younger self?’
Niamh shuffled uneasily. ‘Yes. Exactly that sort of problem.’
‘I really couldn’t say. The only thing I do know is I don’t have any memory of that meeting. So perhaps it never happened. There are many ways to end up at the place we are at today. Not all roads move in a straight line.’
‘What happened to your sister in the end, to the witch.’
‘That is another sad and long story. I do not think it is for today.’
‘No way!’ said Grady. ‘You bring us here and then don’t finish the story? That’s totally unfair!’
‘No one ever said adults were fair. Why would you think life works like that?’ said Azrael, chuckling. ‘But now I do have a question for you.’
‘And that would be?’ said Niamh defiantly.
Azrael narrowed his eyes at Niamh’s tone but continued anyway. ‘You know now the Twins are not mere spirits from the past, they are alive, and are, even now, still growing in power. It’s something I cannot stop, now they have been released from their prison.’
‘We’ve already worked that out,’ said Grady.
‘Yes. As I said. It’s a long story and one I won’t tell you today, despite your complaints. I do promise I will, eventually, share it with you unless you read it first in my diary. But despite the fact that these two behind me need careful management, I need to ask you two a favour.’
‘Why should we do you a favour?’ said Niamh. ‘You kidnap us, send us back in time, and then refuse to tell us why. Why would we do you a favour?’
The old man paused. ‘You know when you put it like that I can see your point. Is it worth me telling you that the fate of two worlds rests on whether or not you do me this favour?’
‘Not that one again,’ said Grady. ‘I thought we already saved the world once.’
Azrael laughed. ‘You really do not understand yourselves properly yet. One day you will, but not yet I can see. But yes, it is “that one again” and I hope your sense of … duty will lead you to the right answer.’
‘What do you want?’ said Niamh, trying to draw herself up as tall as she could.
‘You need to let the Twins here back into your mind. They have been … free … if that is the right way to put it, since you went back in time. Search your minds. You know that is true.’
Niamh touched Grady’s arm. ‘He’s right, isn’t he. I can’t feel Persephone.’
‘I can’t feel Hep either. I’m not sure I want him back though.’
Azrael appeared to read Grady’s thoughts. ‘If you do not let them back in then there will be a problem. I will not be able to control them when we leave here. There is no telling what their spirits might do if they roam free. There is someone out there who would love to get hold of them, as you know, though she could never do what you can do with them.’
‘The Morrigan?’ said Grady.
‘Yes. What she does not understand is the Twins cannot be controlled by one person. She could manage it, for a while. But eventually it would kill her. The Twins need two people together, two siblings with the right set of powers, to really be able to manage them. A pair with the right genetics, with the right family line. With the line of my family.’
‘You mean us,’ Niamh whispered.
‘Yes,’ said Azrael flatly. ‘You need to accept the Twins as part of you because if you do not then as soon as I let this place dissolve, they will be free. The Morrigan will sense them, and she will find them. It is inevitable. She already knows they are close.’
Niamh closed her eyes and took a deep breath. ‘How do we know we can trust them now? You said yourself they are growing and alive. How do we know they won’t try and take over our minds?’
‘That is a possibility,’ said Azrael, nodding. ‘But the Twins also know they would not survive without you two, that the Morrigan would use them in a way that would be worse than the prison they have been in. They know you are their only hope. I won’t explain more now but there are things at the end of my diary that were written long after I … passed on … from this world that you need to know. But you will need to accept the Twins into your being, truly accept them, before you can read those chapters.’
‘That’s the stuff that Quinn said he couldn’t work out!’ said Grady.
‘Yes,’ said Azrael, nodding again. ‘I have heard much about Quinn and still have my doubts about him. But clever though he is, and strong as he is, when it comes to magic, he could never have understood how to access those chapters. There is only one person who knows how to allow the words to be r
ead. And you are in front of him at the moment. There is only one key to those chapters, and that key is the two people you see behind me. Accept them back in willingly and you will, eventually, have the key.’
‘Why can’t you give us the key to understanding the chapters? You’ve told us everything else,’ said Niamh.
‘Because the key to those chapters requires you and the Twins to truly, become one with each other. You will have to give yourselves over to each other for the key to be yours. You will need to share your minds with the Twins in a way you cannot imagine yet. It will be the ultimate test of worth.’
Niamh touched Grady’s arm lightly. ‘Can we trust him?’
Grady stared at the Twins as they stood silently behind Azrael. The empty space Hephaestus had occupied in his mind for months now seemed to be calling to the boy in the mirror. Grady closed his eyes and replied to his sister. ‘I think we have to. I think he is right.’
With that Grady cleared his mind and reached out a hand towards the mirror. Hephaestus smiled, turned to his sister, and vanished. Grady twitched as he felt the spirit of the Twin return. But rather than feeling uncomfortable, it felt more like the return of a friend. He opened his eyes and smiled. ‘You now.’
Niamh nodded and turned to face Persephone, raising her hand as Grady had done. Like him she too felt no sense of threat as the spirit of the girl returned and nestled into her consciousness.
‘Thank you,’ said Azrael. ‘You still have a step to take in your understanding of what is at stake here. But I have the feeling you two, being who you are, will get to that in your own time and not before.’
Azrael's Twins and the Circle of Stone: Book Two of the Nearworld Tales Page 26