I pressed a hand against my forehead, gasping in slight shock.
“Fergus!” I growled as I climbed out of bed.
I grabbed a pair of pants and pulled them on but didn’t bother with a shirt. My skin was still hot from the fever that often plagued me after using my magic to its full extent.
“Why didn’t you send me an unspoken message?” I demanded of my spirit guide, now yipping and scratching at the bedroom door.
I did. You would not respond. Too deep in sleep.
I contemplated his silent words and lowered my hand. So why this need to wake me? How long have I been asleep?
Many days. Meghan is in trouble. The Morrigan has lured her into the Otherworld.
I cursed, bringing the sharp pain in my head back to a nearly unbearable level. Pushing the discomfort aside, I frantically began to pull on my shoes. How could I have been out that long without waking? And how could Fergus fail to reach me? He’d always been able to reach me. It’s as if I’d been drugged . . .
I froze, but just long enough to feel the cool rush of dread coursing through me. Of course. The Morrigan had done something to keep me asleep for so long. I don’t know how, but I was certain of it. She knew that I would do whatever I could to help Meghan. She knew I would break my geis. Which meant she also knew what Meghan meant to me . . .
“Where are they Fergus?” I asked as I tore through the door, taking the steps down into the great entrance hall two at a time.
The stone circle, just on this side of the dolmarehn leading into the mortal world.
I took a deep breath and broke into a full run. As soon as I made it over the bridge and into the fields, I called out for Speirling, my stallion, using the same method I used to speak with Fergus.
The black horse must have sensed my urgency because he trotted up a few minutes after my call.
“To the wooded hills Speirling, as fast as you can!” I shouted as I nudged him towards the west.
We flew across the fields, Fergus close on our heels. The wind cooled my hot skin but it did nothing to calm my agitation. I was so angry, but worry and terror dominated every other emotion. If the Morrigan got what she wanted before I arrived, Meghan might not live to see another day.
* * *
I urged Speirling up the narrow path between the hills, risking the chance that he might trip and injure both of us. When he couldn’t make it any further because of the thick brush and rough terrain, I leapt from his back and hit the ground running. I cut across the thick woods, leaving the trail behind, and headed directly towards the dolmarehn. I would most likely have several new bruises and scratches from the times I ran into branches and tripped over rocks, but a more direct route would get me there in half the time. My exhaustion pulled at me and my breath came in quick pants, but I pushed myself ever forward, hoping beyond hope that Meghan was still alive.
I burst through a final thicket of dead bushes and stumbled upon a horrible scene. The fog was thicker here, brought on by the Morrigan’s magic. I darted my eyes around, taking in the image of the goddess in her battle garb: a black dress that mimicked a dark cloud of evil. Various faelah, all of them rather small, gathered around the stone circle, half-covered in the earth they had just emerged from. The chant filling the air was a familiar one; one I had heard many times at the Morrigan’s rituals of sacrifice.
Suddenly, a sharp cry drew my attention downward. Every last nerve in my body went numb. There, lying on the damp ground and pressed up against one of the tall stones was Meghan, covered in blood and surrounded by almost a dozen of the Morrigan’s hellhounds.
“Meghan! No!”
I didn’t even try to fight my magic as it surged forth, taking only a few moments to overwhelm me. I had been through this process recently, and it wasn’t safe to go into my battle fury again so soon, but Meghan’s life depended on it. My unique gift, the strange power my glamour gave me, something I had inherited from my father, rippled over my skin and for a few agonizing seconds, I was trapped in a world of pain. When the agony stopped, I blinked a few times and glanced at Meghan. I couldn’t tell if she was still conscious; I couldn’t tell if she was still alive. Pure, raw fury took control. I eyed the closest Cumorrig, still trying to tear her apart, and roared, a sound that was more animal than anything else.
In my current state the Morrigan’s hounds were easy to kill. I grabbed one after another, tearing them apart with my bare hands or throwing them against the stones circling the entrance to the dolmarehn. At some point in time, the Morrigan fled in her raven form, but I ignored her. I killed one hellhound after another, and when they were all destroyed I turned to the faelah that had arrived to take part in the massacre. I can’t say how long I fought them, but when there were none left my battle fury slowly dissipated and I almost collapsed to the ground.
My head was pounding and my muscles felt like they’d been through a shredder. I fell to my knees and squeezed my eyes shut until some of the pain went away. I took several deep breaths, my heart rate slowing with each one.
A tiny sound drew my attention away from my own personal ordeal and I looked up to see Meghan. My heart nearly stopped. She was covered in several lacerations and purple bruises were forming all over her exposed skin. She coughed once, a horrible wet sound, as if she was choking on her own blood.
I scrambled over to her side and, as carefully as I could, scooped her up into my arms.
“Meghan!” I rasped, “Oh no, stay with me darling girl!”
She felt so frail and I cursed myself for failing her. I ran my hand through her tangled hair and leaned close to whisper in her ear. I spoke to her in the language of Eile, a spell of magic often spoken over children when they were sick. I poured my heart into that spell and willed the magic to keep her with me. My lips touched her temple. I hadn’t meant them to, though there was nothing I wanted more at the moment. Ignoring the small voice telling me that Meghan needed far more than kissing right now, I continued pressing my lips to her skin, making a trail down to her mouth.
Her eyes fluttered and closed and just before she lost consciousness and went limp in my arms, I pressed my lips to hers, giving in to what I had desired for so long. But it was too late to enjoy it; to learn if she felt the same way about me. The kiss lasted a split second before I cried out in fear.
I pulled away, still holding her, and shook her shoulders gently. “Meghan? Meghan!”
Take her back to her world. To a hospital. Her family will worry and she will be frightened if she wakes up here.
Fergus’s voice in my head jerked my attention away from Meghan.
I growled and clenched my teeth. I didn’t want to take her to a hospital. I wanted to keep holding her and whispering words of magic over her until she healed. But Fergus was right. I was certain the magic of Eile would take care of what the Morrigan and her ilk had done, but this place was so foreign to her that it might be too overwhelming, at least for the time being. The mortal world did, after all, have its own magic. Not nearly as powerful or as pure as Eile’s, but magic nonetheless. And being Faelorehn, Meghan was stronger than most.
Wise old hound. I don’t like it, but you’re right. It’s what’s best for Meghan.
Fergus trotted up to me, his tongue lolling. He had a few cuts from the fight, but most of the blood staining his pale coat looked like the rotten blood of the faelah.
I scooped Meghan’s unconscious form up as I stood, cradling her against my bare chest. I didn’t mind the cold, and I liked how Meghan felt pressed against my skin. I would much prefer to have her awake and returning the gesture, however. I entered the dolmarehn sideways so that we would fit, and in the next breath the magic swept us away.
We arrived in the mortal world moments later. The Trans Am was in the garage on the other side of the highway, but I needed it to get Meghan to the hospital. Carrying her would be a bad idea. It was after dark already and if anyone saw me carrying an injured girl, both of us covered in blood, I’d have too many uncomfortable
questions to answer. I sighed and looked down at Fergus.
I need you to guard her while I run and get the car, I sent to him.
Fergus panted and pulled his lip back in a half snarl. I’ll kill anything that comes near her and cloak her in glamour if the Morrigan arrives.
I nodded once, my face grim, and gently lay Meghan down in a bed of leaves. I placed my hand against her face and leaned in to kiss her one more time. Her lips were soft and warm, something that surprised me considering the shock she had been through. I wanted to let that kiss linger, but I’d already taken advantage of her once and I needed to get her to safety as quickly as possible.
I’ll be quick, I sent to Fergus, then took off jogging down the trail. As I ran, I kept the memory of kissing Meghan close at hand. I wondered if she’d remember it when she woke up and what she would think of me. The warmth of that thought quickly died as I remembered the Morrigan’s words to me: “You are Ehriad. Unwanted.”
A bitter dose of pain twisted my heart and I pushed myself harder. I should not let the Morrigan’s thoughts affect me, but some things were not so easy to dismiss. Besides, thinking of my conversation with the Morrigan reminded me that I had done what I had avoided doing for so very long: I had broken my geis. I had interfered where I had been told explicitly not to.
Oh well, I thought with a sigh, water under the bridge. I’ll deal with the consequences when they come my way.
Within twenty minutes I was walking back up the dirt trail to my car, cradling Meghan in my arms. She was still unconscious, but breathing steadily.
When I carried her into the emergency room at the local hospital, the staff reacted immediately, taking her behind closed doors to tend to her injuries. The clerk at the counter asked me what had happened, eyeing my bare and bloody torso, so I made up a story about a pack of coyotes and how I just happened to be driving by. I gave the woman a fake name and the moment she glanced down at her paper to add it to the report, I used a bit of my glamour (what little I had left) to slip out of the door unnoticed and to make her forget what I looked like. I wanted more than anything to be by Meghan’s side, but a hospital was no place for an immortal Faelorehn. Well, at least not one who was unfamiliar with the ways of the mortal world. She would be alright, I knew she would. She had strong magic in her and it would help her recover. I would simply wait until she returned home to speak with her.
I drove out of the hospital parking lot, scowling at the orange glow of street lamps as I headed back for the Mesa. Yes, Meghan would heal and she was safe. For now. I gripped the steering wheel of my car, my knuckles turning white. Meghan was safe, but I wasn’t. The Morrigan would not take my interference lightly, and I knew this time my punishment for disobedience would be much worse than it had ever been. This time she might actually kill me, as she promised.
* * *
I returned to Luathara to lie low and allow myself to heal. An entire day went by and I did nothing but sleep. Fergus watched over me, coming and going between my castle and the mortal world as I had instructed him before I fell asleep. In my dreams he let me know how Meghan was doing, and as long as she was safe I managed to stay put.
When I finally woke up late in the evening I felt a little stronger, but I knew better than to think I was well enough to take up my old duties. Secretly, I hoped the Morrigan had forgotten I’d broken my geis or that she’d find me too useful to destroy. I snorted. I sounded pathetic, even to myself. But it wasn’t out of fear for my own wellbeing that concerned me, it was out of fear for Meghan’s. Despite what I had told her regarding the world she had come from, she really had no idea what she had stumbled upon that fateful night in the swamp. And after spending more than a lifetime alone, enslaved by an evil goddess, I wasn’t ready to give up what little happiness I might have found. No, I didn’t fear death or suffering, I feared losing Meghan. I had been willing to forget her, to walk away for her sake. But after all that had happened, I knew that option was no longer possible. As long as she lived and as long as I did as well, I knew I’d be forever drawn to her and forever compelled to protect her. In order to do that, I had to remain close to her, or at least as close as I could.
Sighing, I ran my fingers through my hair and scrubbed the sleep from my eyes. I glanced across the room, taking in the moonlight streaming through the window. Just after midnight. I’d get up and take a shower, then Fergus and I would make a little trip into the mortal world. Meghan should be home from the hospital by now and although I was still feeling rather ill myself, seeing her awake and breathing would be a balm to my spirit.
* * *
The moon was low on the horizon when I stepped free of Luathara’s courtyard, my breath misting in the chilly air. Dawn was still a few hours away, but Speirling would get me to the dolmarehn long before the sun rose. I lifted my head and drew breath to whistle for him, but the lone, dark outline of a figure several yards away gave me pause.
I recognized that silhouette, the same one that had been the bane of my existence for all my life. The Morrigan. So, she had come to claim my life after all, or perhaps the unnamed boon I had promised her. Very well. If she wanted my life, I would fight her. I would most certainly fail, for as weak as she was after her attack on Meghan, I was even weaker.
I dropped my arms and spread them, as if to offer up my soul.
“Come to collect what is owed to you? Don’t expect me to just hand over my life. I’ll fight until the end.”
The Morrigan moved forward, like fog drifting over the land, until she was only ten feet away from me. She crossed her arms and turned up her nose. There were dark circles under her eyes and she looked paler than normal. Killing her Cumorrig and interrupting her sacrificial ritual must have taken a far greater toll than I had thought. I tried to hide my smirk of satisfaction.
“No, Caedehn,” she sighed, sounding grossly disappointed. “You are far more useful to me alive than dead for the time being. Oh, but you will regret what you did.”
I huffed out a breath of frustration. I had wondered if she would prolong my suffering and I guess I had been right. I pushed by her, the sensation of prickling ice running up my skin where I had brushed her arm.
“Well, if you aren’t going to kill me then I’ll be on my way. I have something I need to do.”
I wasn’t about to tell her where I was going, but of course, she already knew.
“You can’t protect her, you know. And now she’s more vulnerable than ever before.”
I stopped and turned around, my hands clenched into fists. “What do you mean?”
“Her geis. She broke hers as well. As long as she stayed in the mortal world she was immune to me and my faelah. Now she’s as helpless as an infant all because I convinced her to follow me here.”
No. She was lying. Meghan wouldn’t have followed her; she wouldn’t have entered the Otherworld with someone she didn’t know. But why had she come to Eile?
“I don’t believe you,” I snapped. “You’ve sent your faelah after her before.” Meghan had told me as much.
The Morrigan snorted. “Yes, and none of them have ever been able to harm her. I even tried once but only met with a powerful shield of magic. Someone placed a geis on her when she was very young, a powerful geis.”
I swallowed, my throat dry.
“Who?” I croaked.
The Morrigan’s lip curled wickedly. “Do you really think I’d tell you Caedehn? You are lucky I am allowing you to continue breathing. But mark my words, I’ll be getting what is due to me, all in good time. Just not today. I want to play with you and your little Faelorah for a little bit longer.”
I shook with anger. I didn’t know what was worse, knowing that I now must await my death, or knowing that she would make what was left of my life miserable.
“Until then, you will work twice as hard as before.”
“No, my geis is forfeit. If you wish to kill me, do so now. I won’t give you another moment of my life.”
She no longer had the powe
r to control me and if she wanted a slave, then she would have to find someone else. Or kill me.
She sighed heavily and shifted her weight, as if the burden of the world was placed on her shoulders.
“You do owe me a boon, if you recall, and the threat of death is obviously not going to work on you. So, I have an alternative.”
She stepped forward, her power rising all around her, weakened from the recent fight but still present. Still dangerous.
“If you do not do as you’re told, I will kill your precious fae strayling where she sleeps. I will draw it out, make her suffer, and you will be there to witness it. And then I will do the same to you. Do not anger me beyond my limit Caedehn, for as you well know, I am not in the least bit the forgiving sort.”
“Very well,” I gritted out, “what do you want from me?”
“Meet me tomorrow morning outside my fortress and I will give you instructions. Now,” she said, taking a breath and clapping her hands together, “do run along to the mortal world and check on our common interest. You won’t be seeing her for quite a while and I want to make sure you know what you’ll be losing should you decide to betray me again.”
With a flash of dark magic, the goddess transformed into a huge raven and took to the skies, croaking in avian laughter. Only when her cawing faded into the distant east and I knew for certain she wouldn’t be hunting Meghan today, did I turn back to the fields. Speirling arrived a short time later, an inky blotch against a sky of the same color. Fergus soon joined us, reappearing after the Morrigan had left. He had a habit of making himself scarce when she was around.
A half an hour later I was picking my way through the dark hillside, climbing to the spot where Meghan had almost died. I shivered as I approached the dolmarehn, the damp, dark earth still reeking of death and evil. Taking a deep breath, I passed through the stone gateway and came out into the shallow swamp behind her home. I had done my best not to think about all that had passed in the last few days; of what horrible things the future might hold.
Think only of the fact that you are alive, that Meghan is alive, and as long as you are both breathing, there is a chance to defeat the Morrigan.
Ehriad: A Novella of the Otherworld Page 7