A snow globe, she thought dumbly, shaking her head. Like she was inside a snow globe of magick, and now she faced down the ice queen herself. Glancing below her, she saw the mermaids trying to break through the magickal force field that Domnu had thrown up, confirming her suspicion that the final battle – the real battle – was going to be just between Neala and the dark goddess herself.
“We make our own chances,” Neala parried, vying for time as she tried to catch the breath that had been knocked out of her from the fall.
“Nothing is chance. Don’t you understand that it is all preordained? And here I have you, delivered up to me with all the treasures I need. The clock ticks down as we speak,” Domnu said, twirling a lock of hair around her finger and laughing when she pulled it away, silver blood dripping from her finger where her own hair had bitten her.
“We’ve time yet,” Neala said, her eyes on the madness of Domnu.
“Time moves faster in magick. What is a minute in your realm is triple that here,” Domnu shrugged, unconcerned.
“You still don’t have the cauldron. You can’t win without it,” Neala said, fairly certain she was right, but not entirely sure. Nobody had briefed her on what happened if all four treasures were not found.
“That’s why you’re here. Don’t you see? Once you give me the cauldron, I will have won. The power will be mine. I can feed myself and whomever I choose forever. There will be no famine if I say so. If I’m displeased, the world will die in hunger. That’s the beauty of the power I will now wield. I get the say,” Domnu crowed, all but dancing on the ledge in front of Neala.
But that’s not power. A thought niggled deep in Neala’s brain and she fought through the mind fog to try and reach it.
“I don’t have the cauldron. You have no power,” Neala said instead, still searching her mind desperately. What had the clue been about again?
“You do too have it! Give it over!” Domnu shrieked, and then Neala could think no more. The goddess whipped magick at her, slicing across her chest and down her legs, wounding her so deeply that blood began to pour from her. Neala gasped as her life’s stream began to seep from her body, staining the rocks at her feet. When the goddess raised her arm again, Neala struck out with the spear, slicing the goddess a blow that sent her tumbling, slipping from the ledge and bouncing to the rocks at Neala’s feet. A look of shock raced over the goddess’s face as she looked up at Neala, her hand coming to her chest where silver blood gushed from the wound.
“You’ll never win. Your friends are already dead. Your man? He’s gone. I’ve sent a special army after them. You’ll have nothing and die for nothing. The time is up for the curse, just now – I can feel it. I shall rise and the power will be mine – mine and my people’s,” Domnu gasped, clutching at her chest.
Neala raised the spear for the killing blow, beyond mad with the rage of knowing that all the good people she loved above were to die because of one woman’s quest for power. And as she swung, she remembered Dagda’s words.
Head up, heart open.
Neala stopped the spear inches from Domnu’s throat as the answer poured into her and the final seconds of the curse counted down.
She looked at Domnu and held out her hand.
“You… you fool,” Domnu gasped, her face lighting with delight.
“No, I’m not the fool; you are. Power doesn’t come from taking from others. True power comes from giving – giving love, giving generosity, and giving chances. You may call us humans stupid for doing so, but I’m claiming my power. The Cauldron of Plenty isn’t meant to be used as a tool for power to hurt others. Its only wish is to give. And so, Domnu, I won’t fight darkness with darkness. I give to you my light and I will help you stand.”
Domnu threw back her head and howled, the bubble of magick shattering around them, the sounds of the battle above and below roaring down into the cavern, the walls shaking with Domnu’s rage as the cauldron appeared at Neala’s feet and Domnu disappeared from sight, vanquished once more to the dark underworld that would forever be her prison.
Neala dropped to her knees, wrapping her arms around the cauldron, as tears flowed from her much like her blood still did. For though she’d saved the world, she’d failed her friends. With nothing left to live for, she closed her eyes and let the unknown claim her.
Chapter Fifty-Two
“Wake now. Wake, my blessed one,” a woman’s voice crooned to her.
Neala struggled, not wanting to open her eyes, sadness weighing her down. “I don’t want to,” she said, turning her head away from where a cool hand pressed to her cheek.
“You must. The tide rises and you’re still needed,” the voice said again, more firmly this time, and something cool was pressed to her lips. Neala gulped the liquid, which tasted like she supposed starshine might, and felt her insides go liquid with joy at whatever filled her.
Blinking her eyes open, she saw a woman kneeling before her, angelic in her beauty. Neala was still huddled on the ledge in the cavern, the famous treasures at her feet, and the last moments of battle slammed back into her mind.
“My friends…” Neala struggled to sit up, but the woman held her back with just her hand.
“Shh, give the magick a moment to work.” The woman smiled so lovingly at her that Neala looked more closely. She seemed oddly familiar.
“Mother?” Neala squinted, seeing now why the woman seemed so familiar. They shared the same eyes and mouth.
The woman nodded. “Aye, my blessed and beautiful daughter. I’m bursting with joy at the lessons you’ve learned on this path. Not many could have nurtured someone so dark the way you did.”
“I didn’t nurture her,” Neala protested.
“As the goddess of nurturing and family, I say you did,” her mother laughed, a tinkling sound of joy. “You could have given her punishment, but chose to give her love and forgiveness. That’s nurturing if I’ve ever seen it. I’m so proud of you. You’ve done well this day, and we’re forever indebted to you.”
“I… well, I just did what I thought was right,” Neala protested, embarrassed by the praise, but lapping it up like a kitten being given warm milk for the first time.
“You did. You trusted your heart, your true north, and you saved us.”
“Is… what happened above?” Neala’s voice cracked. She was so scared to ask about Dagda and her friends.
“Why don’t you see for yourself?”
“I can’t get out of here on my own.” Neala looked up at the sheer cliff walls, and her mother laughed the tinkling laugh once more.
“My gift to you, my daughter: I will bring you up. Come now, put your arms around my neck and I shall carry you once more, as I did when you were but a baby.” With that Neala’s goddess mother gathered her into her arms, along with all the treasures, and brought her to the cliff’s edge, depositing her gently on the rocks, far from the edge of Hell’s Hole.
“I’m scared to turn around,” Neala whispered.
“Have faith. All will be well.” Her mother kissed both her cheeks, and as quickly as she had come, she was gone. If Neala hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she would have thought she’d been hallucinating.
“Neala!”
Neala choked out a cry, bringing both her hands to her face at Dagda’s shout, tears pouring from between her hands. All she could do was turn, so scared was she to move or to uncover her face and look at the destruction before her.
“Neala! You’re safe. Holy shite, you’re safe. I’ve died a thousand deaths since you went over the edge. You saved us. You saved us all. Butterfly, my beauty, my angel, look at me. Please look at me,” Dagda whispered, crooning to her until Neala dropped her hands so she could see his face.
Aye, the man looked like he’d been in battle. As dirty as if he’d ridden a hundred days on a horse through muck and mud, with scrapes and bruises, and a cut lip just beginning to swell – but he was in front of her and he was in one piece.
“You’re really here? I’m n
ot dreaming?” Neala whispered, raising one hand to gingerly touch his cheek, wiping a smear of blood she found there.
“I’m really here,” Dagda whispered, dropping his forehead to hers, his breath coming out in anxious little puffs. “I thought I would die when I saw you go over the edge.”
“You’re safe? You’re not hurt?”
“Och, what’s a few scrapes here and there? But you?” Dagda stepped back and ran his hands over her body, making sure for himself that she was safe. “There’s a powerful lot of blood on you, lass. We need to get you to a medic.”
“No, I’m safe. My mother… the goddess. Magick. Oh, Dagda,” Neala said, tears falling again. Dagda, not caring about his split lip in the slightest, claimed her mouth in a bruising kiss.
“I love you, Neala. My fierce and kind warrior, my heart. I love you for all time,” he whispered against her lips.
“And I you, my mighty warrior.” Neala smiled at him, but immediately sobered. He was too large for her to see around. “But… what about everyone else? Did they…”
“See for yourself, lass,” Dagda said, sweeping Neala into his arms and turning her so she could see.
And there, in the light of the full moon, her friends cheered, the army of Danula echoing them so that the cries of happiness shook the land, and the mermaids danced in the waves that crashed far below.
Forever after, when the full moon rose over Hell’s Hole, visitors could hear the cries of joy as light once more drove out darkness, reminding all who heard it that love will always be the answer.
Epilogue
“Why are we here again?” Neala complained, annoyed that she couldn’t just go sleep for days and days like she wanted to. Though her mother had given her a healing magick, her body still needed more recovery time from what should have been a fatal blow by Domnu.
“Them’s the rules, kid,” Bianca smiled at her, completely comfortable with following all the silly fae twists and turns that had guided this mission they’d all found themselves drawn into.
They’d hightailed it back to Grace’s Cove that same evening, arriving as the sun broke the skyline, heralding a new day of peace. People went about their business, getting the newspaper, opening the tea shop, and sending their children to school, completely unaware that their world would have been forever different had Neala and the other Seekers been unable to break the curse. Neala wondered briefly if not knowing of the evil in the world was a better option than knowing, but decided it wasn’t. She supposed she’d rather know what they were up against, and had defeated, than remain blissfully unaware of all the magick that was out there.
And so much magick it was! Neala had a lifetime of learning to catch up on, and Bianca had promised to school her in some of the finer points of fae magick. But for now, they stood on the beach of Grace’s Cove, a supposedly mystical beach which Neala had been told was heavily enchanted. She figured it must be, since each of them was required to stop and offer some sort of gift to the cove before they were allowed to set foot upon its shores.
Except for baby Grace.
She’d raced for the water’s edge the minute they’d reached the beach, and nobody had tried to stop her. Now, she skipped and danced her way through the edge of the surf, her chubby toddler’s legs making her waddle as she went. It seemed that the cove had no issue with Grace.
The lot of them stood on the beach, battle-weary, covered in dirt, scrapes, cuts, and bruises, and waited. Neala was about to open her mouth to ask a question when a soft blue light began to emanate gently from the depths of the cove.
“Whoa,” Neala whispered, and Dagda clenched her hand tightly.
“Neala.” The goddess Danu stood before her. Neala wasn’t sure if her heart would ever get used to people appearing out of thin air, and she puffed out a breath of surprise before bowing her head to the goddess.
“Goddess.”
“You’ve done our people a great service. We are indebted to you. Remember that, should you ever need help, you’ve only to whisper it on the wind and we will come,” Danu said. So saying, she held out her hand and gestured to Neala’s pendant, which hung outside her torn shirt. Neala slid it off and handed it over, feeling oddly bereft as she did so.
Danu slid the stone she held in her palm into the last part of the quaternary knot and then held the pendant between her closed palms. A light flashed, and Danu murmured over it before kissing it once and handing it back to Neala. The last stone, which looked to be an emerald, shone brightly in the true north position. The pendant was now closed, the metal soldered around the stones, with no way for them to come loose. Neala smiled, delighted at the piece, and slid it back over her head. It felt different somehow, lighter, and it snuggled warmly at her chest.
“This necklace is to remind you to always look for the light – and that no matter what, family is near. You’ve only to place your hand upon it to feel the love.”
The goddess stepped back and smiled at the group on the beach. Bending, she sheathed the Sword of Light in a special carrier on her hip, and pocketed the Stone of Truth in a pouch at her side. Holding the Spear of Lugh in one hand and the Cauldron of Plenty in the other, she looked ready for any battle – no matter what.
“My Seekers, my protectors, and all the helpers along the way, you are forever favored in the eyes of my people – both the fae and the gods and goddesses alike. To my Seekers” – Danu met their eyes each in turn – “I’m sorry for the scare at the end when I allowed Domnu to capture you once more. There was a caveat to the last treasure. If the Seeker wasn’t able to overcome each lesson along the way, then she wasn’t deserving of the treasure. There was a level of selflessness that was required that could only be obtained in that manner. I know I frightened you, and for that, I apologize. Please know you’re the favored ones now, and your lives will be blessed with the luck of the fae.”
Neala opened her mouth to protest or to ask more questions, but as suddenly as she had come, the goddess was now gone.
“I suppose she can’t tarry too long with those treasures,” Gwen said.
“Still makes me mad that she let you get kidnapped,” Loch said, holding Gwen tightly in his arms. “I’ll have words with her at some point about this.”
“Och, let it be, man. Now is the time for a party!” Gwen said, turning to kiss Loch.
“Yes, I’d like to formally invite you to a private celebration at Cait’s pub tonight,” Fiona said. “You’ll rest for the day and we’ll see you this evening for a celebration.”
They all waved goodbye to the cove, which for some inexplicable reason still glowed blue, and began the climb back up the cliff wall. Neala kept glancing behind her, watching baby Grace dance in the sand, the ever-watchful Keelin hovering at a distance.
“That Grace is magick, isn’t she?” Neala asked. “Like real magick beyond what we know.”
“I believe so. It’s hard to read her. She’s not fae; she’s something else entirely. It’ll be fascinating to watch her grow,” Dagda said.
“You’re going to watch her grow?” Neala asked, raising an eyebrow at him as he lifted her into his arms, seeming to sense her exhaustion.
“What do you say we settle down here? I quite like the vibe, and Flynn’s already spoken to me about a job on the boat. Seems to me you were quite charmed with the village. Do you think you could leave your bakery in Kilkenny?”
Neala gaped at him, caught totally off-guard. Pausing, she looked around at where the cliffs kissed the sky and Gracie danced in the magickal water far below.
“Aye, I could leave it. Sierra’s been dying to get her hands on running it.”
“I say we do it then,” Dagda said, sealing his words with a kiss.
Neala slept like the dead, curled into Dagda’s arm, until a banging at the door of the apartment woke her.
“Go away,” Dagda murmured, causing Neala to laugh.
“I will not go away, Dagda scarypants. We’ve got a party to attend and we even get dresses!” Bianca sh
outed through the door.
Neala sat straight up. “Dresses?”
“Aye, Fiona didn’t want us to have nothing to wear. She even sent a surprise. Open!”
Neala stumbled to the door, wrapping a robe that had been left on the bed around her, and opened the door to a beaming Bianca and a man she’d never seen before.
“Oh, honey, you are fabulous,” the man said, pursing his lips as he took in the rumpled hair that fell almost to Neala’s waist.
“This is Maddox, and he’s brought clothes for us. I’ve kicked Seamus out to the pub. Meet us in my room in ten,” Bianca giggled, delighted with a girl’s night, if even for an hour, and tugged Maddox to her apartment.
“I’ve got a girl’s thing. Dresses and whatnot,” Neala said, eyeing up Dagda, who looked wickedly handsome lying in bed with the sheets twined around him. “But I feel like my energy is back…”
“Don’t start something you can’t finish. And if I know anything at all, I know that blonde will be back banging on the door in ten minutes if you aren’t at her apartment and ready.” Dagda smiled, his stormy eyes lighting with love. “But, I promise you, I’ll be taking my time with you tonight.”
His words sent a shiver through Neala that still warmed her when she thought about it later as they readied to go to the pub. True to his word, Maddox had arrived with dresses galore and had delighted himself in dressing all of them exactly as he wanted, while refusing to listen to any complaints from the ladies. The end result was nothing short of spectacular. Maddox had dressed each of the Seekers in rich jewel tones that complemented their coloring, with a deep emerald green for Neala, her hair hanging loose in ringlets to her waist, and a headband of rose gold woven through her curls.
For Bianca, he’d chosen a gown in the softest blue, almost a white, making her blue eyes pop in her face, and had woven her blonde hair into a braid at the crown, tucking sapphires amongst the braid. She looked like a seductive maiden of yore, and Neala quite fancied it. She wouldn’t wear something like this normally, but it seemed fitting, after a magickal fairy quest, to don a beautiful gown and go dance the night away with the ones she loved.
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