by Maggie Furey
Then, just as he felt panic beginning to overtake him, he had a clear memory of the woman standing before him in her dark robes, emphasising what she was saying by counting the points off on her fingers. He remembered her words:
‘One: you’re safe. Two: you’re quite well now. You only need to rest for a day or two to complete the healing. Three: you’re not a prisoner.’
Suddenly, Dael felt better. For the first time in his life, someone was taking care of him and treating him with kindness. Never before had he been given his own room with a fireplace - a fireplace - a soft, comfortable bed and plentiful food. And no one had ever smiled at him the way this mysterious Lady had done.
Even if she turns me into a frog or a monster later on, even if I have to work from dawn till dusk, it’ll have been worth it, just for this, he thought. Even if she kills me, it will have been worthwhile. But I don’t think she will. She said I’m safe, and that I’m not a prisoner.
He felt his eyelids beginning to close but, just as he was on the edge of sleep, he heard a small, warning voice in the back of his mind:
You’d better hope she was telling you the truth.
Dael ignored it, turned over, and went back to sleep.
7
THE EVANESAR
The grinding, creaking, rumbling voice of Taku was the sound of the glacier. ‘Who comes here, where no stranger has dared to tread for many a long age?’
Corisand staggered and almost fell, her mind blank with shock. All her equine instincts were screaming at her to flee, while the reasoning, human side of her was determined to stand its ground. This awesome being might look terrifying, but so far it had made no move to hurt her. How could she ever hope to save her people if she ran away from every challenge?
She took a deep breath and tried to control the knocking of her knees. ‘My name is Corisand,’ she said in a loud, clear voice, ‘and I am the Windeye, Shaman of the lost race of the Xandim, and Seeker of the Truth.’
Though the serpent’s expression did not alter, its voice took on a more kindly note. ‘I judge that you are also a speaker of the truth, O Corisand. I already knew you were the Windeye of the Xandim, for it was I who sensed your presence in the mundane world, and brought you here. It came as a great revelation, not to mention something of a shock, to discover that the Xandim race, despite all my fears, was still in existence. What is this truth that you seek, Shaman? The accursed Phaerie Lord--’ His voice sank to a menacing growl. ‘Has he finally loosed his tyrant’s grasp upon your kind?’
Now it was Corisand’s turn to be astounded. ‘You know about that?’ she gasped. ‘But how?’
The glittering blue stare of the serpent fixed upon her greedily. ‘There was a time when I was known to each Windeye, through all the generations. They were welcomed among myself and my fellow Elementals, granted access to this world through our powers, and honoured by us for their wisdom and their skills. Then Hellorin subjugated the Xandim, and without their magic, we were unable to connect with your Shamans.’
‘You say “we”,’ Corisand interrupted. ‘So there are more of you?’
‘Indeed there are.’ Light flooded the sky from horizon to horizon. Rippling veils and bands of colour drifted, a jewel-box of hues all pulsing, streaming and mingling in wild and spectacular abandon; green bleeding into pink, spun with blue and lavender and gold. The air hummed and crackled with energy, a roaring whisper right on the edge of hearing. And in that sound was a voice. As the Windeye watched, open-mouthed, the form of an eagle emerged within the drifts of liquid light, its vast, glimmering wings of drifting colour spreading across the sky. Fierce golden eyes transfixed her with their piercing gaze.
‘What in the name of all Creation do you think you’re doing, Taku, bringing her here? She has no business in this world.’
The great serpent reared up to face the eagle’s glare. ‘She is the first Windeye in many generations who has been able to venture here, and I brought her because she does have business in this world. The Lord of the Phaerie is here, Aurora. Did you not know?’
‘What?’ Corisand gasped. ‘But that can’t be. His Wild Hunt was ambushed in the forest by a pack of feral mortals. He was wounded, almost dead, and to preserve his life, his daughter took him out of time.’
‘And left his spirit in oblivion, lost and disembodied. The Moldan Aerillia, an ancient ally of the Forest Lord, sensed his presence and succeeded in bringing him here. He still holds Corisand’s people in slavery. This world is the only place she can fight him.’
‘That has nothing to do with the Evanesar.’
‘How can you say that? The Windeyes of the Xandim have been our friends and allies down all the long ages, just as Hellorin has been our foe.’
‘Your friends and allies, you mean.’ There was an edge of mockery in her voice. ‘Most of us outgrew the need for pets long ago. What use could she possibly be against a being with the powers of the Forest Lord? What use were any of them? They couldn’t even protect their own people.’
‘This one may surprise you.’
Corisand, who had been listening with mounting annoyance to the argument going back and forth over her head, decided she’d had enough. Gathering a double handful of glimmering air, she moulded it into a missile and hurled it down with all her force. As it struck the magic that held up her bridge, it exploded with a resounding bang, and a fountain of light shot up into the sky, spreading out in a canopy far above and raining down again in sizzling spatters of silver.
Taku and Aurora shut up abruptly. Two pairs of fearsome eyes, one blue and one gold, pinned her, but the Windeye was too angry to be cowed. ‘I’ll thank you to talk to me, not over the top of my head,’ she snapped. ‘You may be ancient and powerful, but that’s no excuse for rank discourtesy. And as for protecting my people, I’ll cherish and defend them to my last dying breath. Why do you think I’m here? And Taku: you may have brought me here for your own reasons, but if I can use this place to free my race, I won’t let anything get in my way.’
There was a protracted moment of silence - then, just as Corisand was having serious doubts about the wisdom of her outburst, Aurora began to laugh, sending waves of rose-coloured light flickering across the sky. ‘You may be right,’ she said to Taku. ‘She has already surprised me. And she does not lack for courage.’ She turned to fix the Windeye with her glittering gaze. ‘Very well, little sister. Let us talk.’
‘Thank you,’ said Corisand. ‘When you came, Taku was just telling me about the Elementals.’
‘As you should already know,’ said Aurora severely, ‘there are four Elementals of the Old Magic dwelling in this world. Taku, Elemental of Water and Master of the Cold Magic; myself, Aurora, Elemental of Air and Mistress of the Wild Magic; Katmai, Elemental of Fire and Master of the Death Magic; Denali, the Mother, the Great One, Elemental of Earth and Mistress of the Old Magic. In the Elsewhere, we are known as the Evanesar.’
‘But I didn’t know any of that,’ Corisand replied. ‘That’s why I need answers. Where am I? What is this Elsewhere that you mentioned?’
‘It is, if you like, a sister world to your own,’ Taku replied. ‘An alternative realm in which the Old Magic reigns supreme.’
‘But how did I get here?’
‘I brought you,’ he answered brusquely. ‘And now it is time for you to answer some of my questions. I will repeat what I asked you before. Has Hellorin released your people from their bondage?’
Corisand sighed. ‘No, that has not changed. I have only recently come into my powers, and because we have been trapped as horses, my predecessor was unable to explain anything to me; nor could I access my magic. I have no idea how or why you brought me here, but I count it the greatest stroke of good fortune. Surely this could not have happened by chance. I’m hoping desperately that it means I might be the one Windeye, out of so many lost generations, who could save her people.’
Taku regarded her thoughtfully. ‘It would certainly explain why, after such a lengthy absenc
e, I was able to call a Shaman of the Xandim back to this place. Perhaps you are right, Corisand. Your coming here can be no coincidence. This realm, like your own, is governed by a number of natural laws. In your mundane world, the laws are mainly physical, dealing with the forces and energies of objects interacting upon one another. Here, however, those natural laws are mainly magical. Before today, I would have been unable to bring you here, for in your equine form you lacked the magic to make that initial connection with me. But now something has changed. When Hellorin was brought through from your own world by Aerilia, one of the Moldai, that created the portal through which I could reach you.’
The Windeye frowned. ‘But who is Aerillia? And you mentioned the Moldai before. Who or what are they?’ she asked.
Aurora sighed pointedly at a further interruption.
‘It’s not my fault,’ Corisand protested. ‘This is all new to me, remember? It seems that I can draw upon the knowledge of my predecessors to give me an understanding of my own world, so I knew what a glacier was, for instance, though I have never seen one. But when it comes to this place, I have not the scantest knowledge about anything. So far, I have just been going on my instincts.’
‘And very good instincts they are,’ said Taku. ‘I imagine that the wisdom of your predecessors regarding this place is no use to you because such a tremendous length of time has passed since your forebears were able to access their powers and come here. The knowledge, useless to the Windeyes in their equine state, must have been lost during the intervening years.’
‘Will you help me reclaim it, Taku? I must learn to understand these things. As Windeye, the knowledge is my birthright, but it goes much deeper than that. If I am to free my people, I will need every advantage I can find.’
The serpent dipped his head. ‘Very well. Ask. I will do what I can.’
‘Why ask only him?’ There was an edge to Aurora’s voice.
A number of excuses raced through Corisand’s mind. Then she decided to stick with honesty. ‘Taku brought me here,’ she said, ‘and so far, he has been much more friendly.’
A flash of red lit up the sky. ‘I give my trust and friendship where and when they are merited. But I am willing to help you for now. Who knows? Trust and friendship may follow. I certainly would not be offering my assistance if I did not believe that.’
Corisand smiled. ‘I also believe that we could become friends, and I am glad of it.’ Addressing both now, she added, ‘You said Hellorin’s spirit was brought here. Does that mean I am only here as a spirit, too?’ She ran a hand down her body. ‘This certainly feels like solid flesh and bone to me.’
‘To all intents and purposes, it is solid flesh and bone,’ Taku told her. ‘Conditions in this world are formed by our powers and will and imagination, and can even extend to our physical forms. Here magic rules, and only those possessing magic can come here. Things are less rigid, less certain, more malleable. But though the body you are wearing now is a reality in this world, I was only able to bring your spirit here, Windeye. Your true physical form is back in the mundane world, in a semblance of sleep.’
Corisand felt crushing disappointment. ‘Then this human form - it isn’t even real.’
‘No.’ This time, Aurora answered. ‘There you are mistaken. It is real, and it belongs to you. If you finally succeed in freeing yourself and your people, and regain your human aspect in your own world, you will find it to be just as it is here and now.’
‘But what happens if the Horsemistress, or one of the other Phaerie, comes along while my spirit is here? Surely they’ll try to awaken me. What will become of me when they cannot? Or would their attempts to wake my body drag my spirit back there?’
‘Be easy,’ Taku said. ‘Time here runs very differently, relative to the world in which you live. We can return you very shortly after you left, so that there will be no opportunity for the Phaerie to be suspicious.’
‘Well, that’s a relief. But why did I assume this shape in the first place? Why not take the one to which I’m most accustomed?’
‘Ever since you became Windeye, and learned what you could be, your mind has yearned after this alternative form.’ Taku’s voice was kind and patient, as though he could sense just how much this meant to her. ‘Also, you have all the courage and wisdom of your forebears, Corisand. It was only natural that you would choose the more powerful aspect of your being - the one in which you could think and communicate clearly. The one in which you would be most useful to your people. The one in which you could fulfil your dreams, and access your true powers at long last.’
All at once, the serpent’s voice turned grave. ‘But I give you warning, Corisand. Heed me well. Other beings dwell here. Their will, their thoughts, their magic can influence and mould reality just as well as your own, and if it comes to a clash of wills, the most powerful will prevail. So a conflict here will not be won by physical strength, but by the power of magic and imagination. Always keep that in mind. One day it may save your life.’
A chill crawled up her spine. ‘And if I were to die here?’ she asked quietly. ‘What would happen to the Corisand of the mundane world?’
‘If you die here, you die in all realities.’
Aurora’s stark words were as shocking as a physical slap. The dreamlike sense of unreality that had beset her since her arrival in this strange new world burst like a bubble. She knew, however, that she could not afford to let herself be daunted. This miraculous opportunity had somehow been granted her, and she could not afford to let it go to waste. She straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. ‘In that case, it is all the more important that you teach me what I need to know.’
‘Indeed.’ There was new respect in the serpent’s mien. ‘Then let us return to the association between the Moldai and the Forest Lord. The Moldai are an ancient, elemental race who dwell simultaneously in this realm and the mundane world. Here, they usually take the form of giants, and though they can change their shape as they choose, they are inevitably very large in scale. In the mundane world, their aspect is tremendous mountains of living stone. Originally, they were the offspring of Denali-- ’
‘Who can’t say that the rest of us didn’t warn her,’ Aurora interrupted in acid tones.
‘Be that as it may,’ Taku said, and resumed his tale. ‘The Moldai belonged solely here in this Elsewhere, but as they grew in power they became ambitious and, like the Forest Lord, desired the conquest of other realms. However, unlike Hellorin, who quit one place for the other, the Moldai wished for a foothold in both worlds, and in order to achieve this, they were prepared to stop at nothing.
‘They discovered that they would need a tremendous amount of power to achieve their ends. Something that could both store magic and magnify it. But they lacked sufficient lore to complete the task. For that, they needed the help of the Phaerie, a different race with a different form of magic. Hellorin agreed, and so, between the two ancient races, the Fialan, the Stone of Fate, was created.’
Corisand discovered that she had been listening with such attention that she’d been holding her breath. ‘What did it look like?’ she asked.
‘What a very female sort of question,’ Taku scoffed, ignoring the red flare that emanated from Aurora, and flashed across the sky. ‘Considering its vast power, the Fialan was small, and quite innocuous-looking. I expect, however, that you would have thought it very pretty. It was simply a glittering green crystal, about the size of your circled finger and thumb, but it was one of the most powerful implements in this world, and Hellorin’s price for his assistance in its creation was very high. After they had used the Fialan to gain their footholds in both worlds, the Moldai had to give custody of the Stone over to the Phaerie.’
‘Give such tremendous power into Hellorin’s hands?’ Corisand gasped. ‘They would be mad to do such a thing.’
‘Nevertheless,’ said Aurora, ‘that is exactly what they did. The Moldai had no choice, and in truth, they had little need for the Fialan once they h
ad achieved their ends. But it rankled that the Phaerie should possess this priceless artefact that was partly their handiwork. So, before they gave up the Stone, they put an additional charm of their own into it, without the knowledge of the Phaerie. It was half a spell: in order for the Stone to be used, the spell must be completed - and only the Moldai knew how.’
‘But surely Hellorin would have found that out straight away?’
‘Why would he? They had designed the Stone to create a portal between the worlds, and at first the Phaerie were content here in the Elsewhere. But as their race grew and prospered, we Evanesar decided to set curbs on their ambition. At that point, Hellorin decided that he too wished to take his people to the mundane world, so that he would be free of us, and his ambition could no longer be shackled.’
