The Power of Seven

by Peter R. Ellis

  “Without ceasing. Every manifestation known was thrown against the doors and walls of the Arsyllfa without effect.”

  “So, how did Malice get in?”

  “It was her I tell you.”

  “How?”

  “After three days and you didn’t reappear everyone started to get perturbed. Even Aurddolen was uncertain what to do. With little time to make the journey to Mynydd Tywyll he was eager to start, but not without you. Not even he could break the seals on your room. Heulyn used all his power and that of the other cludyddau to make it secure. Heulwen got more and more worked up. She started saying silly things, such as that you had left and gone to help the Malevolence; that your twin had taken you; that she, Heulwen, must take your place. She accused the other cludyddau of belittling her, not acknowledging her power. She declared that she was her father’s successor and that she would be the greatest cludydd o aur.”

  “But she can’t be. Only men can wield gold. They told me on the Sun.”

  Sieffre looked at her with something like awe.

  “That’s right. She’d always had this idea that she was more than the Mordeyrn’s daughter, that she was his apprentice. I suppose people humoured her but when she started making these claims, the cludyddau told her that she was mistaken, she could not be a cludydd o aur.”

  “I suppose that didn’t shut her up.”

  “No, she went berserk; accused everyone of being in the service of the Malevolence and stormed off. We didn’t know where she’d gone. The Mordeyrn was distraught. Then there was a shout that the doors were open and the Malevolence was inside the Arsyllfa.”

  “She’d opened the doors?”

  “It seems so. We fought of course, but we were unprepared for fighting inside. A Cyhyraeth swept through and many were killed by its pestilence.”

  “But Aurddolen escaped?”

  “Yes. When it was obvious that the Arsyllfa was lost, he and I and a few others fought our way out.”

  “Did you see Heulwen again?”

  “No.”

  “What about my twin, Malice?”

  “The woman in the gown as black as night?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh yes, she was there alright. I can hear her laughter now as she demolished walls with her beams of darkness. She saw us escaping. I saw her standing on the edge of the observatory. She threw the instruments over the edge. I think she let us go so that there would be someone to tell the tale of how Heulyn’s Arsyllfa was brought down.”

  “Where is Aurddolen now?”

  “Gone. Heading for the Mynydd Tywyll with Cynhaearn and Cynwal.”

  “But you stayed?”

  “I’ve been waiting for you, Cludydd.”

  “Why?”

  “I knew you would return and perhaps would need a guide again.”

  “I’m sure I do.”

  “I hadn’t expected to see you in the form of a great bird, but I heard your call and knew it was you. You have changed.”

  “Yes, I’ve learnt how to do some things.”

  “I still don’t know why you brought her.” He gestured to the cocooned form of Heulwen.

  “She was there. She’s Aurddolen’s daughter. It doesn’t matter how it looks; I thought it was right to save her.”

  “Well, what are we going to do with her now? We can’t stay here. I’ve been lucky and managed to avoid the Malevolence. But you will attract the evil.”

  “That is true, although I have more ways of facing it now; but you’re right we must catch up with the Mordeyrn.”

  “They’re days away. I’m weak. I can’t see how we can catch them.”

  “I’ll carry you.”

  “What about her?”

  “I’ll carry you both.”

  “Even with your new powers I cannot see how your bird will be strong enough to bear two of us.”

  “Perhaps not as a bird.”

  Before Sieffre’s surprised face September changed into the panther. He cowered back from the massive beast.

  “Do not be afraid. You can both ride. Lift Heulwen onto my back.”

  “I’m not touching her.”

  September twitched her whiskered nose at the prone Heulwen. A grey coating of plwm spread over her.

  “The lead will protect you. Now do it. Let’s get away.” She crouched down.

  Sieffre lifted Heulwen onto September’s broad back, then he climbed on. As September rose onto her four powerful legs he grabbed the blue-black fur on her neck. September could feel the weight of the two people on her back but she felt strong and full of energy.

  “Which way?” she asked.

  “Northwards, up the valley.”

  September started at an easy trot then, when she was sure that Sieffre and Heulwen were safe, she accelerated into a run. She travelled faster than a cheetah, faster than a car, faster even than an express train. The meadows of the valley passed in a flash beneath her paws, the air rushing past her face. Sieffre was bent low over Heulwen, his feet pressed against her side and his hands holding her fur in a grip so firm that she wondered if his fingers were frozen by the wind of their passage.

  As she ran she called out to Aurddolen. A reply came to her.

  “Cludydd, is that you?”

  “Yes, it is me. I’m on my way to you and I’m bringing Sieffre and Heulwen.”

  “You have my daughter?”

  “Yes, but there’s something wrong with her.”

  “What?”

  “She’s alive and awake but doesn’t speak or move.”

  “She has been touched by the Malevolence. Be careful.”

  “I have her wrapped in plwm to protect us. We will be with you soon.”

  The contact with the Mordeyrn showed her where she had to go. She turned to the north-east and bounded up a grassy incline to a ridge, barely pausing at the top before racing down into the next valley. She sensed it wasn’t far now. Although the Mordeyrn and his party had been travelling for days their progress had been slow. As night fell they climbed another ridge and descended down into a valley filled with pine trees. She slowed a little as she entered the forest but soon came to a small clearing beside a stream. This was the meeting place.

  Aurddolen and the rest of the party were sitting around a small fire. They leapt to their feet, Cynhaearn drawing his iron sword as September loped up to them.

  “Stop,” Aurddolen said, holding Cynhaearn back, “It is the Cludydd.”

  She knelt allowing Sieffre to slide stiffly off her back. Aurddolen rushed forward to lift Heulwen from her. Relieved of her burdens September transformed to her normal self. There was a gasp as Aurddolen’s companions took in her luminous blue appearance.

  “Hello,” September said. There was a groan and she turned to see Sieffre lying on the ground. She rushed to him. “What’s the matter?” He groaned again.

  “I think every muscle I possess has cramped,” he grunted out between moans, “I have never travelled so fast or been so scared in all my life. I couldn’t move for fear of falling from your back.” She knelt beside him and rubbed the starstone over his arms and legs while thinking compassionate thoughts. Sieffre recovered quickly and sat up.

  “Thank you, Cludydd. Your skills with arian are most effective. I feel revitalised.”

  Hedydd, the astronomer’s apprentice, approached with a bottle.

  “I’m sorry we only have one flask between us but perhaps you need a drink.” She offered it to September who took a sip and passed it to Sieffre. He drained it eagerly.

  “You are changed,” Cynhaearn commented to September, “I sense that you have achieved the powers of the Cludydd o Maengolauseren of legend. Come and join us by the fire and tell us your tale.”

  The stout Prif-cludydd o haearn led them to the campfire. Some pieces of cooked meat from an unidentifiable animal were set out on leaves along with fruit and nuts.

  “Please eat,” Cynwal said, “we have not had time to collect much but all we have is yours to share.”
/>   Sieffre tucked into the food, greedily making some recompense for his days of fasting. Aurddolen carried the limp body of Heulwen into the circle around the fire and laid her out. He continued to fuss over her while the others ate. September nibbled on a few nuts and was surprised that she did not feel as starved as Sieffre. Perhaps she was drawing energy from another source. She briefly described her journey among the planets and the stars, avoiding too many details but indicating that she had learnt the key to using the power of the planets and their associated metals. Modestly, she tried to show that she could not match the cludyddau in their many and subtle ways of using their skills but they congratulated her on achieving her new-found powers.

  “We are in danger,” Cynwal said, “The Malevolence is seeking all those adepts and the cludyddau in particular.”

  “Have you met any monsters since you escaped from the Arsyllfa?” September asked.

  “We have been harried by Adarllwchgwin and Cwn annwn,” Cynhaearn replied.

  “Coon, what?” September enquired.

  “Dogs of fire. Everything they touch is burned.” Cynhaearn explained.

  “Ah, yes. That’s what Malice set on me. Heulwen was in their way so I pulled her out.”

  Aurddolen turned away from dealing with Heulwen.

  “I thank you, Cludydd, for rescuing my daughter,” he said. The others looked away and September noticed various expressions of anger and irritation on their faces.

  “We should think of ways of protecting ourselves for the night,” Cynwal said.

  “I think I can do that,” September said, raising the hand holding the starstone. Sorrow welled up in her chest and she moved her arm in a semicircle. A dome formed over them, grey but practically transparent. Cynwal gasped in admiration.

  “A shield of plwm. That is marvellous, Cludydd.”

  “I hope that will stop the monsters finding us or attacking,” September said, then in a more jovial voice, “Now tell me what your plans are. Where are you headed? Did anyone else get out of the Arsyllfa?”

  “We are returning to our homes in Mynydd Tywyll,” Cynhaearn said, including Cynwal in his words, “The Mordeyrn is joining us to forge a new golden symbol of his power.”

  “But the journey is long and we have travelled slowly,” Cynwal continued, “our home is our goal before we face the Malevolence at the Cysylltiad.”

  “I am homeless,” Hedydd said sadly, “and all my work is destroyed along with the observatory.”

  “What happened to the astronomer, um, I can’t remember his name?” September asked.

  “Eryl. He died trying to protect his instruments. A Pwca swallowed him up.”

  “Now his spirit is amongst those that hate everything that he worked for,” Cynhaearn said angrily.

  The weight of their sadness and anger bore heavily on September.

  “What about the others?” September asked.

  “We became separated in the battle for the Arsyllfa,” Cynwal said, “We do not know if anyone, cludyddau or others, escaped from being absorbed into the Malevolence.”

  “You think that the spirit of every person killed by the Malevolence has become its servant?” September said.

  “That has always been the fate of those that fall to the Malevolence,” Cynwal agreed, “a fate that everyone fears. To become the enemy that threatens us all is a constant horror.”

  “But that hasn’t happened to Heulwen,” September noted.

  “What do you mean?” Sieffre asked, “She betrayed us, opened the doors of the Arsyllfa to the forces of the Malevolence. You said yourself that she was beside your twin. She must be a servant of evil.”

  “But she is not,” September said, pointing to the still form of the young woman on the ground, “She is not a destroying zombie like the others, but in some kind of trance. I don’t know what happened to her to make her open the doors of the Arsyllfa. I think Malice, my sister, found her and used her, but she didn’t convert her spirit.”

  “The Cludydd is correct,” Aurddolen agreed looking up from beside Heulwen, “I have not seen anything like this before. My daughter is alive and her spirit is within her still but imprisoned in some manner so that she is unable to respond to the world. Malice has some power that is preventing Heulwen from escaping from her.”

  “She is a danger to us,” Cynhaearn said, “She may kill us or corrupt us or draw the Malevolence to us.”

  “No, I do not think so,” Aurddolen disagreed, “I do not think Heulwen will act as a servant of evil. The covering of arian and plwm that the Cludydd gave her is both healing and shielding her, but I do not know if she will ever recover her senses.”

  “Hmm. Well, I am going to rest while we have the chance,” Cynhaearn went on, “In the morning we can decide what must be done.” He lay beside the dying embers of the fire and closed his eyes.

  “Someone should keep watch,” Cynwal said.

  “I will,” September offered, “I don’t feel sleepy and you all look exhausted.”

  The travellers nodded in agreement and did not need any further persuasion to settle. Cynwal, Hedydd and Sieffre each lay down beside Cynhaearn and soon gave all the signs that they were fast asleep. Only Aurddolen remained awake at Heulwen’s side. September sat beside him.

  “I’m sorry about the Arysllfa,” she said, thinking it sounded rather a pointless thing to say.

  “It was my fault, and now I have the lives of many of its inhabitants on my conscience,” the Mordeyrn said.

  “Why was it your fault? Sieffre says it was Heulwen that let the Malevolence in.”

  “He may be right, but there is no proof that Heulwen opened the doors.”

  “Malice called Heulwen her friend.”

  “That’s as may be but it doesn’t make Heulwen responsible for her actions. It was my fault for failing to see the self-deception in my daughter. It was my mistakes as a father that allowed Heulwen to gain the impression that she could wield the power of aur.”

  “Your spirit on the Sun told me why Heulwen could not be your apprentice.”

  “You spoke to my spirit?”

  “Yes, on all the planets I met the spirits of the cludydds, living and dead.”

  “You journeyed to the planets?”

  “Yes. Well, I think I did. It felt real and the tasks they gave me were real enough although I was put in imaginary situations, like computer games I suppose.”

  “Computer games? I don’t understand.”

  September described all that had happened to her once she had locked the door of her room on Sieffre. Aurddolen listened, nodding and gasping at various points in her story.

  “If only we had held the Arsyllfa and could have met you when you emerged,” the Mordeyrn said when she had finished, “we could have welcomed your transformation and discussed how to use your powers to confront the Malevolence.”

  “That’s a talk we must still have.”

  “Yes, but without the security of the Arsyllfa around us and the knowledge that resided in the observatory, and while I and my companions travel to Mynydd Tywyll.”

  “But you had to travel anyway. You said that we have to meet the Malevolence at the Conjunction in the middle of winter.”

  “That is so, but the loss of the Arsyllfa means the loss of all our supplies for the journey to say nothing of the books of records. I cannot see how we can reach the mountains in time to prepare for the Conjunction.”

  September realised that Aurddolen had been shaken by the defeat at the observatory and the change in his daughter. She had never seen him without hope before.

  “You must use your power, Aurddolen. The hope that the Sun gives us. You will get to the mountains and help me face the Malevolence.”

  The Mordeyrn looked at her, perhaps recognising the growing power of the Maengolauseren in her.

  “You are right. Hope. It is what gives us the strength to fight against the indefatigable power of the Malevolence. Hope that we can banish the evil from the universe until the nex
t Conjunction.” He took a deep breath, sat up straight and looked into September’s eyes. “Hope and the power of all the planets and stars will help us to succeed.”

  September was delighted to see the golden glow reappear in the cludydd o aur and his aura of leadership restored. Having spurred him to his recovery she wondered whether now was the time to say what was on her mind.

  “There is my sister,” she said, deciding that it needed to be said.

  “Malice?”

  “Yes, or Mairwen. None of the spirits on the planets mentioned her. I don’t think they realised that the Malevolence has changed because of her.”

  “She has given it focus.”

  “Yes. She can make the spirits do what she wants. She can call up manifestations whenever she wishes and has powers of her own. She and I are matched.”

  “Do you think you can defeat her?”

  “I don’t know. I think I surprised her when I used the powers of the metals but we haven’t really tested each other yet. You say the power of the Malevolence will increase up to the Conjunction?”

  “That’s right. When all the planets are lined up, there are no barriers to the spirits of evil.”

  “So Malice’s power will also be greatest then?”

  “Yes.”

  “In that case I must get ready to face her. I need to practise the skills that the planets have given me and I will need all the support that you and the rest of your people can give.”

  “That we shall do, but first I must get to Cynhaearn’s stronghold in the mountains and there cast my new symbol of gold.”

  “It’s a long way?”

  “Many weeks of travel even when we are equipped for the journey and do not have to face attacks by the servants of evil.”

  “I can carry you there.”

  “Ah, yes. The panther or the eagle?”

  “Either. As a bird I could fly you there very quickly.”

  “What about Heulwen? You said you could not carry her and Sieffre as the bird.”

  “No, two on my back were more than I could fly with but I could take you then come back for Heulwen.”

  “I cannot leave her again now you have restored her to me.”

  “The others would look after her.”