“Yes. Tudfwlch,” she replied, hardly able to say his name without it catching in her throat, “told me the story of how she fought the Malevolence in the southern desert.”
“That’s right. Tudfwlch told you the version that has been handed down from generation to generation by cludyddau across the Land.”
September detected a strange tone in Aurddolen’s voice.
“Is the story true?”
“Oh, yes. Breuddwyd and the Maengolauseren cast the Malevolence beyond the stars where it comes from. But Heulyn was careful to ensure that only a special version of the story got spread around the people. This is the full version.” Aurddolen tapped the leather bound book.
“What does it say?”
“Heulyn describes the confusion Breuddwyd felt on her arrival, her struggle to understand what was required of her, her temper and depression when she felt cut off from her home, her determination to master the starstone and the difficulties she faced in doing so. All that she said and did is recorded because Heulyn realised that one day there would be another Cludydd and we would need all the information we could get to help her through her ordeal.”
Aurddolen placed the book in September’s hands. It was very heavy. She turned the thick, hard cover and the first few pages of stiff, rough paper. The book was written in ink by hand. The writing was small and the shape of the letters strange but by concentrating hard she could make out the words and the sentences.
“Don’t read it now. You may take it with you and read it whenever you wish,” Aurddolen said.
“Oh, thank you.” September closed the book and held it against her chest. It was a link with Mother and home. “Do you have another copy here?”
“There are no copies. This is the book written by Heulyn, hundreds of years ago. There is one passage I would like you to read soon. It describes how the Cludydd Breuddwyd learnt how to control the Maengolauseren.”
September was excited. Could Mother teach her what to do? To protect others in addition to herself? Her twin’s taunts had hurt her but she realised now that so far the stone had only responded to her basic need for survival.
“But not now,” Aurddolen continued, “First I will try to explain why you are here.” He got up and drew another heavy tome from the bookshelf. “This is a collection of the writings of mordeyrns and Prif-cludyddau through the history of the Land. It describes what we know about Daear…”
“Daear?”
“The earth on which we live.”
“You mean planet Earth.”
“Daear is not a planet. It does not wander. It is fixed at the centre of the universe.” Aurddolen tapped the book, “The book tells of how six thousand years ago the universe was a seething ferment of energy, good and bad. Then the good came together, separate from the evil and the universe as we know it was formed. Daear at the centre with its seven guardian planets on spheres revolving around it. Haul the greatest amongst the planets giving us light and warmth.”
Again, September was reminded of how different this world was to everything she had learnt about the Sun and the planets.
“What about the stars?” she asked.
“Ah, the stars, the beacons that mark the boundary between good and evil; lights fixed to the outer sphere that encircles us.”
September had an image of something like a light shade pricked with tiny holes surrounding a light bulb.
“So all the stars are the same distance from us?”
“That is correct.”
Another marked difference with her own world, September reflected. At home the stars and galaxies, billions of them, extended far into space while here there was just Daear and its guardian planets and sphere of stars. What other differences were there for her to discover?
“What’s beyond the stars?”
“Chaos, evil, the realm of the Malevolence. We do not know what is there but it is from there that everything bad and sick and corrupting originates.”
“And it’s where my sister went.”
“Yes, the souls of the unborn, untouched by the good of Daear, ascend to the sphere of stars and become merged in the maelstrom of evil.”
“But not my sister. She still has her own personality.”
“Yes. I do not fully understand what has become of her. Something like this has never occurred before. It must be because as the child of your mother she is partly of this world and of yours and as your twin she has retained a separate existence. Somehow she has influence over the Malevolence and is able to direct, at least in part, its evil fury.”
September did not feel enlightened but she guessed that she would have to confront her sister again before her task in the Land was completed. The Mordeyrn did not however have all the answers.
“What part do the Cemegwr play?”
“The Cemegwr?” The Mordeyrn seemed mystified by her question but surely he knew the stories of the mysterious creators of the universe that she had been told of.
“Didn’t they make this world?”
“So say the tales that old folk tell,” Aurddolen agreed.
“But I have been told that they are still around. Perhaps they have a part to play.”
September saw a dark cloud cover the Mordeyrn’s face.
“Utter nonsense,” he roared, “there is no evidence that such beings ever existed let alone that they walk amongst us now, unseen. Their existence is a myth that mothers use to soothe their children’s fears. Do not consider the Cemegwr or the stories that are bandied around concerning them.” Aurddolen turned away from her, struggling to calm his outburst.
September decided to change the subject.
“Where do the metals and the cludydds come into all this?”
The Mordeyrn turned back to face her, his breathing normal again.
“Ah, metals. The greatest gift that we are given. All that exists within our universe is made from the four elements, earth, air, fire and water. Have you heard of them?”
“Um, I think so.” But her hazy recollection of chemistry was telling her that an element was something else and there were more than four, “I’ve been told that the, what do you call them, ‘manifestations’ of the Malevolence come from each of the elements.”
“That is correct. Malevolence corrupts the elements to its own will. The metals are of course formed from the four elements, each in its own proportion but each is also imbued with the power of the heavens. The seven metals grow from the depths of the earth and are drawn upwards by the powers of their respective planets. They embody the goodness at the heart of Daear and rise close to the surface where our miners can find them.”
It was meaningless mumbo-jumbo as far as September could follow it.
“What about the Maengolauseren? Where does that come from?”
“It is the material from which the stars were made that was formed at the very centre of the universe.”
“The centre? From what you say the Earth or Daear is at the centre.”
“That is correct. The Maengolauseren was forged at the very centre of Daear.”
“But how have I got it? I just seemed to find it.”
“It found you, my dear. The Maengolauseren is linked to the Cludydd by some attraction that we do not understand. It can cross from one world to another and as you found out it carries the Cludydd with it.”
“How do you know it was formed at the centre of the Earth?”
“In the very deepest shafts, the miners occasionally find tiny fragments of starstone, mere specks. They have the same appearance as the Maengolauseren but on a smaller scale and like it, embody the energy of the stars.”
“Oh, what do they do?”
“Just glow, I’m afraid. When night falls and in darkness they light up, but that is all. We have never found a way of invoking the energy of the stars in the way that the Cludydd and the Maengolauseren can. We just use the fragments to illuminate the Arsyllfa.”
September recalled the lights in the ceiling of her room. She looked at
the stone in its locket. It seemed like a rough glass pebble, dull at the moment, but she knew its power.
“So that’s it, is it? The good Earth and the Sun, Moon and planets battle to keep out the bad with just the metals and the starstone to help.” She decided not to add the Cemegwr to the list.
Aurddolen smiled, “You have summed it up quite well.”
“What does that huge book have to say then?”
Aurddolen tapped the cover of the book on his lap.
“It recounts all that has happened in the Land since the last descent of the Malevolence, records the movements of the planets, the recovery of metals, the names of cludyddau across every region. There is not just this one book, this is just the latest. There are many more.” He pointed to the packed bookshelves.
“And these books have told you what to do when the Malevolence came again?”
Aurddolen looked desperately miserable.
“I realise now that I committed the sin of complacency. I thought the records gave us everything we needed to cope with this onslaught of evil. The astronomer would forecast the exact time of the Conjunction when Daear would be most exposed to the forces of evil. I successfully summoned you and you have proved a worthy successor to your mother. The date and place of the confrontation is set and I had no doubt that you would overcome the Malevolence and all its manifestations.”
“But?”
“The arrival of your twin is not something I either planned for or expected. The Malevolence has never had direction before. Its destructive power has been indiscriminate and widespread. But with her commanding the legions of evil, I do not know. What is she called?”
“Apparently my mother had the dead baby christened Mairwen, but she doesn’t seem to know that. She calls herself Malice.”
“Ahh,” Aurddolen nodded, “We must find out how much power she does indeed wield over the manifestations.”
“The manifestations, the monsters that have attacked me?”
“Yes. You may have been a particular focus, but there are reports of increased attacks across the Land.”
“How do they form? You said the Earth and the planets are good. How can the Malevolence turn air and water into monsters?”
“Ah, this is something you need to understand,” Aurddolen leant forward earnestly before continuing “When the Malevolence can reach through the sphere of stars it can corrupt the fabric of our universe; not the metals, or the Maengolauseren, for they are protected by the power of the planets and the stars, but the ordinary fire, air, water and earth that make up the rocks, the rivers and lakes, the air we breathe. They are all vulnerable to the Malevolence’s corrupting influence. Surely you know that good can turn bad. A firm, shiny apple decays into a loathsome, poisonous pus. Each element can be turned against us.”
“I remember Cynddylig and others saying that one monster was an air thing and another was water and so on.”
“That’s it. The Draig tân are conjured from fire, the Adarllwchgwin from air, like the Pwca and Cyhyraeth; Ceffyl dwr are summoned from water; Gwyllian and Tylwyth teg from earth.”
“Tylwyth teg?”
“You seem to have escaped them so far. They are more often sent to torment the miners in the depths. There are Coblynau too. I hope you escape their nasty attentions.”
“So do I.” September didn’t need any description to want to avoid further monsters.
“When a manifestation is destroyed its matter reverts to its original element and finds its own place.”
September recalled the Adarllwchgwin exploding into air when they were destroyed, the Ceffyl dwr becoming a deluge of water and Gwyllian falling into heaps of dust.
“You said the Malevolence cannot corrupt metals or the starstone, but why did Tudfwlch want it when he was under the evil spell?”
“Yes, that surprised me but now I think I understand. Perhaps Tudfwlch’s actions were being guided by Malice.”
“She tried to grab the stone from me last night.”
“Did she?”
“But what can she do with it?”
“Well, apart from depriving you of it, and hence weakening our defence, perhaps she thinks she could wield its power and become a sort of Cludydd.”
“That’s what she said. She thinks it was luck that made me the Cludydd while she died. She thinks that if she had been born after me our positions would have been reversed.”
“Chance is a narrow line between what is and what may have been.”
“Perhaps she feels that she could use the energy of the stone for evil purposes and increase her power over the Malevolence still further.”
Aurddolen didn’t reply but stood and put the book on the table. He began to pace around the small room. There was silence for many moments. September grew a little impatient.
“Aurddolen?”
He stopped and looked at her as if noticing her for the first time.
“I’m sorry. What you said made me think. I have never had to contemplate the Maengolauseren falling under the power of the Malevolence. Previously it seemed unthinkable but now with Malice or Mairwen growing in dominance I have to include that thought in my plans.”
“Do you want me to leave?”
“As I have considerably more thinking to do perhaps that would be for the best. Take the time to relax and recover from your journey and trials.”
September hauled herself out of the comfy chair, lugging the big book.
“And read this,” she said.
Aurddolen smiled.
“Read what you can. I will help you.”
As September walked to the door she noticed that Aurddolen was already far away in his thoughts.
3
September went to her room next door and flung herself and the book on the bed. Her head was spinning from all that Aurddolen had told her. She had been in Gwlad for long enough to accept that she was not dreaming and that her surroundings were real, but she had experienced so many strange, wonderful and terrifying things that she felt overwhelmed. Was all that Aurddolen had told her correct, at least in this universe? There was so much more for her to learn particularly about the role that had been thrust upon her.
She opened the thick cover of the book, and started to read. The formation of the letters was strange and many of the words were unfamiliar, but the writer had taken care that this handwriting would be legible for a long time. She ran a finger along the lines reading one word and then the next like she had when she learnt to read. Slowly she got used to the shapes of the letters. It was like reading some fancy font on the computer that one of her friends had decided to use for artistic effect. Gradually her reading sped up although there was still a great deal that made no sense.
The first few pages recounted Heulyn’s summoning of Breuddwyd and her arrival in the forest. Her mother seemed more confused than she had been and Heulyn reported her rambling about God and heaven and angels in white robes. September could perhaps make more sense of that than Heulyn since she knew that Mother must have imagined that she had been carried off into some Biblical dream. It took Heulyn quite a few days and pages of diary before he managed to get Breuddwyd to accept that she was not dreaming or dead and in some kind of hell, by which time they were already under attack by the Malevolence.
There was a light tap on the door. September looked up as Sieffre peered around the door.
“Ah, September you are here. I wondered if you would like some food. The mid-day meal has been served.”
September felt reluctant to have to meet all the other guests of the Arsyllfa.
“Do I have to come to the dining room? Could I have something here?”
“Of course,” Sieffre replied, noticing the book, “I see you are busy. Is that the Book of the Maengolauseren?”
“If you mean is it the book about my mother, the last Cludydd, then, yes it is.”
Sieffre was wide-eyed with awe.
“The book is always kept in the Mordeyrn’s study. No-one but him may rea
d it.”
“He gave it to me to read. He thinks it may help me find out what I’m supposed to do with the stone.”
“Ah, yes. Those of us who know of the book’s existence would like to know what secrets it tells. We know that the last visitation of the Malevolence cannot have been quite as the popular tales tell.”
“How’s that?”
“Well, the tale is that she appeared as a great warrior and leader who immediately took control of the war against evil. But those of us who have worked here know that it was Heulyn who guided the Cludydd and who left instructions as to what to expect of her when next the Malevolence came upon us.”
“You’re right. Aurddolen told me that there is more in this book than has been let on to the people outside. I can tell already that Heulyn had problems getting across to Mother what had happened to her.”
“Perhaps it is for the best that only the Mordeyrn and the Cludydd should know what really happened. I will leave you to your reading and go and get some food for you.”
“Thank you Sieffre. You’re very kind.”
“It is my pleasure.”
Sieffre left and September returned to the book. She could read lines quite quickly now and get the gist of Heulyn’s account. She turned the pages, hoping for accounts of what she really wanted to know. How did Breuddwyd learn to use the Maengolauseren? What powers did it have? How did she defeat the Malevolence?
There were no immediate answers to her questions in the pages that she read. Heulyn recorded attacks by the manifestations of the Malevolence and Breuddwyd’s involuntary use of the Maengolauseren to defend herself just as September had done. Heulyn had to protect himself and his followers with the power of gold when Breuddwyd’s wild responses left them exposed. Heulyn also reported her mother’s prayers and oaths to God and Jesus and all the saints she could name which seemed to mystify him as they had no effect. September recognised her mother from Heulyn’s description; she still appealed to the saints whenever she needed help or advice. Gradually however, as Breuddwyd’s time in the Land lengthened, her experiences forced her to a realisation that she had a role to perform and that Heulyn and not God would have to be her guide.
The Power of Seven Page 5
