Shades of Avalon

by Carol Oates

  Our group separated but remained within seeing distance, and circulated with other guests. The atmosphere was electric, and I wondered how much these people knew of Zeal’s plans. Had they any idea this was only the calm before the storm, or did they believe this a kind of victory celebration? Did they really believe Triona, or any of us, were here to concede to Zeal?

  A couple of hours later the atmosphere began to dull as our host had yet to put in an appearance. Emma’s expression lost the sense of hope that had been visible in her eyes even behind her mask. Her shoulders dropped a little more, minute by minute. Though she hadn’t said, I was sure she expected to see John by now.

  “Stay here,” I instructed Amanda and Emma when I spotted Samuel making his way over. Amanda nodded while Emma’s astute eyes continued to observe everything going on around her.

  “What are your thoughts?” Samuel inquired when I met him on the lower terrace under a sculpture of two cherubs sitting back to back. Both leaned their chubby cheeks on their fists with an expression of boredom.

  “Do you think we misread?” I answered in a volume matching his. I scanned around us for anyone paying too much attention. “Maybe he’s keeping us here waiting for him while he’s off doing whatever he’s up to.”

  Samuel shook his head and frowned. “No. Zeal is too pompous, convinced of his own invincibility despite everything. He won’t do anything at this point without an audience to pass on tales of his triumph.” He chuckled humorlessly.

  “So, this is a game like everything else.”

  Samuel nodded once, his eyes straying to Annice, situated by the fountain with Joshua. “The only question is when will he show?”

  I checked the time. It was already past two in the morning. “Maybe we should do something. This standing around waiting is driving me crazy.”

  “Look at how they watch her, Ben.” Samuel’s eyes darted around the garden where many of the gathered deliberately avoided the area where Triona stood, although they watched her, shifting their gaze when they thought no one paid attention. “We have no chance of gaining their trust if we make a move first. It will only serve to scare them more and further his cause.”

  “I don’t know that he’s going to leave us any other choice.”

  Murmurs rippled through the guests and escalated until it seemed like a thousand bees hummed in my ears. Anticipation coated the garden in the way molasses poured off a spoon. Without another word, Samuel left my side to rejoin Annice. I rushed back to Amanda and Emma without pause. My heart picked up speed, and my stomach muscles tensed.

  “What is it?” Emma asked.

  “I presume our host has finally decided to grace us.”

  Chiming bells, like music from a church, rang out sounding ghostly and seeming to come from every direction at once. It had to be coming from the hidden sound system. All heads twisted toward the center of the main building and the arched entrance to the house. Some began to make their way farther up the terraces for a closer view.

  Much to their collective disappointment, a man did appear through the doorway, but it wasn’t Zeal. Despite being masked, he was much too short to be the man in question. His posture and sloping shoulders, one slightly lower than the other, screamed human. He wore a similar costume to the jesters, although his was rich ruby and emerald green. Gold rimmed his mask, and he wore a cloak over one shoulder and tied with a cord.

  “At the behest of your host, I cordially invite you to make your way to the grand ballroom where the festivities will continue.”

  He bowed with a flourish, sweeping one hand in front of his chest, and disappeared back into the building. The crowd immediately began to follow like obedient dogs schlepping after their master’s voice.

  Resigned to follow, I was about to lead Amanda and Emma forward when a muffled commotion to the left side of the top terrace caught my attention. Two figures were silhouetted against a backdrop of an intricate cast iron gate that broke a tall hedge running the length of the garden and twisting out of sight. At first it seemed they had found another way into the house. Then I realized they were arguing. Arthur combed his fingers though his hair and gestured wildly with his other hand. Guinevere scrubbed her face and shook her head, but they both managed to keep their voices so low it was impossible to discern anything much among the din.

  Guinevere reached out for Arthur, attempting to circle her hands around his wrists. He surprised me by jerking out of her range and turning his back on her. The iridescent fabric of his long cloak shimmered silver and blue like undulating water. Zeal knew too much about our movements. The effect of his cloak was eerily similar to the tower of water that released Arthur from the Fáidh. I narrowed my eyes in an effort to focus on their expressions since neither gave anything away in words. Whatever the conversation, they appeared to have reached a conclusion…or an impasse.

  “What the heck is that about?” Triona asked after reaching us.

  “I have no idea,” I said, “but I hope whatever it is, they sort it fast. They haven’t exactly picked prime time for a lovers’ spat.”

  “All these people are like children scurrying from a monster. I’m not feeling very loved around here.” Caleb chuckled humorlessly.

  “Don’t flatter yourself—you’re unloved most places,” I deadpanned.

  “Ben!” Carmel exclaimed, but I smirked and so did Caleb.

  There appeared to be a thaw in our relationship.

  Now that Triona and Caleb were with us, guests made a wide arc when moving around us. As though they skirted the edge of an invisible precipice.

  “I feel like a monster,” Triona said, playing on Caleb’s words. She peeked up at him with a glum expression. “Am I really that terrible that having Zeal as a world dictator is a better option than supporting me?”

  Carmel frowned, clearly wanting to comfort Triona too but holding back and allowing Caleb to handle it. He pulled Triona close to his side and kissed the top of her head.

  “You’re unknown to them, and the unknown is always a little scary.”

  She caught the eye of a young Guardian woman rushing up the steps to the top terrace as though she was Cinderella and midnight had just chimed. The woman’s dress belled out from the waist, and the blue fabric shimmered in the orange glow of the lanterns. The woman froze mid-step when she realized we were watching her. A tiny gasp escaped her lips before she shot off again.

  “That’s more than a little scared,” Triona murmured.

  Chapter 35

  Venomous

  WE MADE OUR WAY INSIDE, leaving Arthur and Guinevere behind and trusting they’d follow us. Staff guided us into the entrance hallway. This time instead of going through the front door, we were led up a carved staircase situated against the side wall. I walked beside Amanda and kept Emma in front where I could keep an eye on her. Ahead of us Triona linked Caleb’s arm. He looked nervous and used a tissue to blot perspiration from his top lip. Perhaps Triona was justified to worry he had been pushing himself too hard after his kidnapping. I hoped his insecurity regarding John and his need to prove himself to Triona wouldn’t make him sloppy.

  She paused when a couple ahead of us hesitated then shuffled forward again. Caleb took her hand and slipped it through the crook of his arm. It offered Triona support while appearing casual enough so she didn’t appear weak. As least that’s how it looked.

  “Please come along.” One of the masked servers ushered us to double doors under an arched façade opening to a grand ballroom.

  I took Amanda’s hand in one of mine while gripping my sword in the other. I kept my mind focused on her soft, warm skin in contrast to the cold metal of Lasair against my other palm.

  I’d never seen anything like it, not even at the Brier. The room was easily two stories high and now the low ceiling of the entrance hall made more sense. Halfway up the pale yellow walls, a gallery wrapped around the entire room. Enormous windows carried the arched theme through the length of the room and velvet midnight blue seemed painted
on the glass, creating the illusion of more space in the reflection. Crystal chandeliers hung from above, twinkling with ethereal light. Beneath, tables were laid with candelabra, dripping with more crystals.

  They herded us into the large ballroom, like finely dressed sheep, blindly following the person in front of them.

  Still, I remained there with everyone else, like sheep rushing insanely to the edge of a cliff with no chance of evading the inevitable. One way or another we were all going over a precipice in a matter of hours. Either these people surrounding us would stand with us or be destroyed by us. Going down fighting seemed like a noble fantasy in theory. In truth, I was terrified.

  Just as Arthur nudged his way through the crowd, Zeal appeared in a cloud of gray mist, like a Vegas magician ready to put on a show. His black cloak swished around his body revealing flashes of the red satin lining, and a scarlet mask covered most of his face, leaving only his eyes, mouth, and chin exposed.

  “We have another problem,” Arthur whispered in an urgent, strained voice close to my ear. It was pointless since Guardians nearby would hear him regardless. Arthur removed his mask, no longer caring to hide behind a secret identity.

  Joshua edged closer to us as I opened my mouth to ask which of the multitude of problems he was referring to. Our problems weren’t singular. Before I got the words out, John and the Guardian who had accompanied Caleb through no-man’s-land walked across the gallery. John’s mask was pewter and cover in triple spirals. It covered the top half of his face while leaving his mouth and jaw exposed. Last, came Guinevere.

  I openly gaped as Guinevere skimmed her fingertips along the smooth wood of the rail between pillars and took the vacant place beside Zeal.

  Emma released a loud breath, her hand stroking along the hound’s spine absently.

  “I am…” Arthur’s teeth locked, and his fingers curled into fists so harsh his joints cracked, and I winced. “I swear I did not know.”

  Merlin’s voice carried from behind me with a disappointed tut. Did he suspect? I whipped around, caught unawares by the open sadness in his expression before he replaced his mask. If he suspected, I couldn’t see it in his bewildered eyes.

  “She has been his snake in the grass and attempted to win me over to his side once we were called inside. I don’t understand,” Arthur whispered.

  Samuel placed a hand on his shoulder and glared daggers toward the gallery.

  Annice moved around to his other side, blocking a couple of curious onlookers. Arthur blinked rapidly and shook his head. Joshua and Eila shifted their position too in a pointless attempt to keep our discussion private. Lewis and Carmel stuck close by Triona’s side.

  Arthur met Guinevere’s eyes with cold disappointment and spoke in a monotone voice. “He offered to extend my life so we could be together always.”

  Merlin huffed out a sad breath and lowered his head.

  “The price is too high,” Arthur breathed so low I was sure the words were only for him.

  I thought back over our time with Guinevere, right back to my initial suspicions and how time had eroded those uncertainties about the woman. It made sense now that she knew where and when Emma and I would be attacked. She elegantly won our sympathy and gained our trust because she needed me to release Arthur from the Fáidh. She had used me. She’d also tried to plant suspicions about the nature of Triona and John’s relationship in my head.

  Even Zeal knowing our location at every step, and the pretty good estimate he made at our measurements. Guinevere had well and truly sold us out. I’d left her alone with Amanda and Emma more times than I could count. She was a snake alright, and she could have so easily poisoned us with her venom.

  Blood pounded in my ears and behind my eyes. I shook my head and willed my pulse to slow. I wouldn’t allow this to distract me from our task. Guinevere had chosen her loyalty, and there wasn’t a damn thing any of us could do about it. She was the enemy now.

  I exchanged a glance with Caleb, and his eyes flickered to Lasair, no doubt thinking the same thing I was, but reluctant to speak it allowed. This gave Zeal an important weapon against us. Now he had Excalibur. I wondered how he hoped to restrain John, because when it came to it, without a shadow of doubt, he’d come down on our side.

  John put on a good show of appearing unrattled, but his hard swallow and stiff shoulders betrayed his surprise and confusion. He searched the crowd below for Emma and passed over her just as quickly, as if he wanted to assure himself of her safely without drawing undue attention. I watched as he clasped his hands in front of his body, pressed his lips into a line, and fixed his line of vision on a point directly ahead. He was far from the man who told Triona he dreamed of monsters and demons walking the streets after he learned about Guardians.

  Finally Zeal raised his hands to hush the crowd, a sneer playing on his thin lips. He thought he’d won.

  “I’m so happy you could be here on this momentous eve. Tomorrow we will come together, Guardian and human. And of course, no longer under the shadow of the long foretold prophecy. You will join me in welcoming our honored special guest.”

  His mocking sneer stretched into a full smile as the gathered crowd turned their attention on our group, especially Triona.

  We moved in unison to form a circle, placing ourselves between Triona and the crowd. My heart slammed against my ribcage, and my instinct told me to protect. I took slow breaths to control my talons from emerging and prevent my hand from taking hold of the hilt of my sword. I wanted to look to the others, to gage their reactions, but resisted and kept my vision trained on Zeal.

  “Oh, the young half-breed queen is special to be sure.”

  A warning growl rumbled in my chest despite my best efforts and mingled with low reverberations from others in our group. Zeal knew exactly what he was doing by calling Triona a young queen. He used the word “young” to insinuate her inexperience while addressing the role of power he wished to usurp.

  “Of course I’m referring to this strapping young man to my right.” He gestured to John as murmurs rushed over the room like a jet of chilled air. “For those of you still in doubt of what Triona Pryor and her family are capable of—”

  Zeal cut himself off, and in a blinding flash of movement so unexpected that no one had a chance to react, he pitched John head first over the balcony.

  Chapter 36

  Face Off

  THE CROWD SCATTERED LIKE RATS, wailing and scurrying to get out of the way. Some of the Guardians among them moved faster, tossing humans to the ground in their wake and leaving them to scramble to their feet once more. The movement forced us to back up nearer to the windows.

  In the immediate confusion some didn’t look up, but I did. John lithely tumbled through the air as though gravity held no power over him. He caught the base of the rails with his long fingers and swung there a moment until he was sure there was no one in his way. Amid gasps of shock and displeasure, John dropped gracefully into a crouch in the center of the floor.

  As a group we stood our ground in a tight formation with Archú in front with Triona, Caleb, and I, and the most vulnerable of us were surrounded. Amanda stayed behind my shoulder. Emma briefly struggled to nudge her way forward, but Carmel tugged her back. John stood slowly, lifting his eyes to Zeal as he did. He knew as well as we did this cemented Zeal’s position. A human with the capabilities of a Guardian was unprecedented.

  John rolled his shoulders back and stood tall. He removed his mask, his eyes flickering to Triona and behind her searching for Emma before settling on Zeal defiantly. None of us could have failed to notice the strong, steady thump of his heart. I’d never heard anything the same as the base, metronome beat. His breathing never wavered.

  “This man was once human.” Zeal raised his voice, though the ballroom was silent enough to hear a pin drop on a cushion. He straightened his arm and pointed his index finger at Triona. “Look what she can do. I ask you, is this not a threat to the existence of both our races? Was the prophecy not
true? She will destroy us all.” He snapped his hand back, and the corners of his lips quirked to a triumphant grin at the sound of fearful mutterings. They believed they were witnessing the impossible. They trusted that the Council had always told the truth of the prophecy, and we were propagating a lie.

  Amanda’s hand settled at this base of my spine in a show of support, and I ran over everything Merlin had taught me about traveling through the mist. He told me to calm my mind, to find stillness in a moment, no matter how chaotic. He said I should think about where I wanted to be. Emotions fuelled our supernatural abilities. I already knew the most important of these was desire. If it wanted something, I had to will it into being.

  I wondered if we might pool our abilities and force the humans among the Guardians to leave for their own safety. Zeal wasn’t controlling them with the supernatural, rather using plain old fear. Fear of us.

  “You’re a liar!” Triona’s voice came out booming and clear, distracting me from my thoughts. She made to step forward, much to the dismay of the crowd squeezing their way toward the other side of the room.

  Caleb inched out, keeping her back without making it obvious he was blocking her. When she inhaled and exhaled, so did he. They were perfectly in tune, parts of a whole. I realized my own heart had steadied to match Amanda’s. John stood in the middle, his expression guarded and his eyes fixed on Zeal. We had to put on a united front but ultimately, we had to stand behind Triona.

  “You’re a liar and a murder,” she continued venomously.

  Archú panted heavily, a slow shudder trembled his shaggy fur.

  Zeal removed his mask so everyone saw his shocked surprise at Triona’s accusation. Guests looked on with horror. John was clearly more than an average human, but how could we make them believe long forgotten tales of magic and heroes were true of humans too? That they were more than fairy stories. I lived it, and sometimes I didn’t believe it.