by Sarra Cannon
A cave so large that she couldn’t see its other end stretched before them. Rune sat on his haunches, a dark shadow barely visible in the cavern’s dusky gloom. She dribbled magic to her mage light. Breath whistled through her teeth. Lava formations made whimsical archways. Multi-hued crystals glittered in the depths of some of them. The effect was dizzyingly beautiful. Water ran down one wall. She grinned in spite of herself. Gee, that part’s a lot like my house.
“What now?” she asked the wolf.
“We wait. They know we’re here. They likely knew last night.”
“Your animal has wisdom.” Metae’s unmistakable voice, something like temple bells with a buzz saw behind them, preceded her form as it oozed through one of the walls. “I wonder about you, though.” The tinkling bells cooled perceptibly. “Did I not tell you I would let you know when to come here?”
“Oh?” Aislinn did her very best to look surprised. “I knew you were angry because I didn’t get here in the four-day time limit, but I thought you meant for me to get here as soon as I could. See,” she prattled on, working to infuse truth into her voice, “we ran into more troubles. D’Chel—”
“What about that charlatan?” Metae demanded.
Well, that seems to have gotten her attention. “I met a fellow traveler. Also a Hunter, bonded to a raven. D’Chel attacked the raven—”
“And me, too, but I got away,” Rune cut in. “I marshaled the forest wolves to help fight.” He leveled his amber gaze at the Old One. “But we were not strong enough. Two were killed.”
Metae’s gaze shifted from Aislinn to Rune. Something unspeakably alien and undeniably ancient shone from her iridescent eyes. Aislinn shook her head to clear her thoughts. Wonder why I never noticed how strange her eyes were before?
“Because I titrate which parts of me humans can see,” Metae sent. The temple bells pealed again. “Never forget I can read your mind, child. Now, what happened to the raven bondmate?”
Aislinn sucked in a breath. “I, uh, offered myself in exchange for D’Chel letting the raven, her human, and Rune go.”
That inhuman gaze drilled into her. “Apparently you got away. How?”
Opening her mouth to try to talk felt strange. Suddenly, she knew anything shy of unvarnished truth wouldn’t pass her lips. “He stopped shape shifting and took on human form. He touched me and kissed me, but he was so cold.” Aislinn shuddered at the memory. “I’d planned to just have sex with him and figure out a way to escape after, but he was leaching everything warm out of me. I, uh, knew if he fucked me, I’d lose myself.”
“Good you figured that out.” Dry amusement ran beneath Metae’s voice. “You still have not told me how you escaped.”
“I told you how cold I was. Well, I drew fire. Since I didn’t have a spell in mind, I held it within me.” Aislinn squared her shoulders and clasped her hands behind her back. “The heat made me feel a whole lot better, especially when I figured out my skin was so hot that he couldn’t touch me. He tried a couple times and then turned into a cobra.” Aislinn shrugged. “Since I already had power to spare, I diverted it into a jump and was gone.”
“And he did not try to follow you?” Metae sounded incredulous. “You had better be telling me the truth, Daughter.”
“You know I am. You’re in my mind.” Aislinn tried to keep defensiveness out of her voice. “He may have followed me, but he didn’t find me. I took refuge underground. My next jump left from there.
“Anyway,” she hurried on before Metae could question her more closely about exactly where underground she’d been, “that’s why I’m here. I need an anti-sex charm or something to protect myself. Christ, I’ve had run-ins with two of them in as many days. Perrikus would have had me if you hadn’t shown up. I don’t know if he’s another refrigerator man like D’Chel, but…” Aislinn let her voice trail off, hoping she’d done a decent job convincing Metae of her continuing trust in the Old Ones.
No one said anything for what seemed like hours. Rune moved close to Aislinn and leaned against her side. Her legs grew tired, but she knew better than to sit in an Old One’s presence.
“I must confer with some of the others,” Metae said at last. “You and your bond animal will remain just outside the entrance to this cave. Hunting is plentiful. It is safe to have fires, and the water flowing down yon wall emerges as a spring not far from here.”
“How long do you—?” Aislinn caught herself and bit off the rest of her sentence. She knew better than to question Metae.
“Maybe you have more in the way of wisdom than I thought,” Metae muttered just before she vanished in a blast of light so bright that spots danced in front of Aislinn’s eyes.
Rune padded toward the cave’s entrance.
Cunning! It’s illusion. That’s why I couldn’t see it from outside. Either her magic had sensitized itself to it, or Metae had done something to make it visible.
“Do you think it’s safe to talk?” she asked the wolf.
“No.” He headed through a stand of Jeffrey pines.
“Where are you going?” she called after him.
“Hunting. Want to come?”
Aislinn realized she did want to come. The thought of parking her butt outside the entrance to Taltos for an indeterminate time chilled her. She understood what a dangerous game she played and how few tools she had in her arsenal—especially compared with ancient creatures who’d been alive for thousands of years.
My biggest asset is they think I’m stupid, she realized. I’ll have to capitalize on that.
“Coming?”
“Huh?” With a start, she glanced at the wolf. “Sure. Lead out.”
Loping after him, she wondered just how long it would be before Metae returned—and how many Old Ones would come with her. Aislinn had seen enough to know they operated in small groups. It was rare to find one alone, as Metae had been the other day in the square outside her cave, or just now at the gateway to Taltos.
The chirrups of an outraged group of marmots pulled her out of her musings. Good. Must mean Rune got one. The thought of meat cooked over a fire until it was actually done made her mouth water.
Chapter 10
Aislinn gutted the marmot and was ready to head back, but Rune ran downhill, toward the remains of the town, saying, “We need at least two more.” She wondered about that. The animal hanging from her hands weighed a good five pounds. They still had a couple hours of daylight, though, so she followed him. Walking was always better than waiting. The wolf’s tail disappeared into a thickly wooded grove. Willows grew so close together, they scratched her skin and tugged at her clothing. She came to a spot where she couldn’t go any farther and wondered if she’d missed a turn in the undergrowth. “Rune?”
“Look down.”
Sure enough, the willows formed a rough archway that began on the ground and ended at knee level. Dropping to all fours, she slithered through, cursing the wolf for making her follow him. She could’ve waited outside until he chased down his prey. Wet ground soaked her wool pants and flannel shirt. The rich smells of loam filled her nostrils. She looked around, surprised to discern a passageway. Someone had cut away branches to make a rough opening in the thicket.
“Ouch!” She pulled her hand back from something sharp and summoned her mage light. Its gentle glow bounced off a veritable jungle of crystals in all shapes, sizes, and colors. The cleverly hidden passageway led into a six by ten foot cave. Its gently rounded roof was high enough for her to stand upright, if she crawled a foot or so toward its center. Swiveling around, she pushed her feet forward and stood as soon as she could. The thick soles of her boots cushioned her from the sharp crystals. “This is amazing. How’d you find it?”
Rune shifted from paw to paw. “I think it is safe to talk here. The crystals should mask our conversation.”
“Yes, but how did you find it?”
“Marta knew about it. She cut the path.”
Marta was at Taltos? “How about if you start at the beginning?�
�� Aislinn suggested. “You told me you came here for justice for Marta. There’s more to it than that.”
Rune’s amber gaze skittered sideways. “I believe the Old Ones killed Marta. Set her up.”
“Why would they have done that?”
“Because she was getting too close to the truth about what they are.”
“Do you know what she found out?”
The wolf looked her way, and his eyes glittered dangerously. “No. She would not tell me. Said it was too risky. She figured out a way to keep me out of parts of her mind, so I could not find out that way, either.”
“So when you came here after her death—?”
“I pretended to be crippled with grief. It was not difficult, since it was hardly an act. I was hoping that if they saw me as a bereft bondmate, I could learn something.”
“Did you?”
“No, they made me leave.”
Aislinn walked carefully across the uneven floor. When she got to Rune, she squatted next to him and put both arms around his neck. “I’m sorry you lost her.” She buried her hands in his thick coat and breathed in the musky wild animal scent of him.
A low growl vibrated in his chest, but he didn’t shake her off. “If they take you down into Taltos, tell them you want me with you. I can merge with you.”
“Like you do when we jump?”
“Yes. I can lend you my senses. It will help protect you.”
“Do they know you can do that?”
“I do not think so. I have spoken with many other bond animals. Except for Bella, none admit to merging minds with their mates.”
“I wonder why they’d take me to their city?” she mused, still hugging the wolf.
“To turn you into one of them.”
“But they’re reptiles under some sort of coating that only looks like skin. They lay eggs. They’re not even male or female all the time.” Her skin crawled. The last thing she wanted was to be transformed into what they were. She craved Fionn, the warmth of his arms and the heat of his body pressed against her, rigid with need.
No, don’t go there. I need my wits front and present. Not in my crotch. Besides, I haven’t even tried to wrap my mind around his last name and what it might mean.
She stopped petting Rune. “You never told me your true name.”
“And I am not going to.”
“Why?”
“It is safer for both of us if things go wrong. The Old Ones can hurt me, but they cannot control me if they do not have my name to hand.”
Something nagged at her, the same something that had been bothering her ever since she’d asked Fionn for his last name. She knew about Celtic mythology from her mother. Aislinn doubted Fionn would’ve told her his full name, no matter how much he wanted to see her again, if she hadn’t asked. Power and knowledge had to be earned. They weren’t bandied about freely.
“Is there anything more you need to tell me?” She straightened, but couldn’t unkink her back entirely. A hank of hair had caught on a down-sweeping crystal. She untangled it and crab-walked to a place she could stand upright.
“Yes. Unless they plan to kill you, which is unlikely, they cannot hold you in Taltos against your will. It disturbs the magic they need to maintain their home to have negative energy present. Besides taking me, your other condition for going with them is that your visit will be short.”
“Do you think a day is enough?”
“More than enough. Half a day is better. If you stay too long, you will lose your will. Once that happens, they will suck the energy out of you and remake you into one of them.”
She stared hard at Rune. “How do you know these things?”
He woofed softly. The sound echoed in the small space, amplifying itself again and again. Silvery highlights glinted in his coat, reflected by the glow from her mage light. “It took Marta a while before she figured out just how dangerous the Old Ones were. You see, she visited them, too.”
Aislinn’s mouth went dry. “How long did she stay?”
“Two days once. She was a shell when she escaped. After that, she closed her mind to me and told me if she ever talked about returning to Taltos, I should do anything in my power to stop her—including killing her.”
“How long after that did she die?”
His upper lip drew back into a snarl. “Only one turn of the moon. It probably would have been sooner, but she stayed inside our warded home where no one could get to her, trying to get her mind back. She had me recount our years together because the Old Ones stole her memories.” Rune’s tail swished angrily. “Marta finally thought she was strong enough to face whatever they could throw at her. She said she couldn’t hide forever.”
“What happened?”
Another snarl, this one louder. “A pack of Bal’ta, led by Tokhots, lured her to her death. She used the last of her magic to protect me.”
Aislinn swallowed hard. “Anything else?” Do I really want to know? She shivered, wanting the warmth of a cook fire.
“No. We can leave.”
— —
Strong magic zinging through the air brought Aislinn bolt upright out of an uneasy sleep. The night was well on its way toward dawn. Three of the Old Ones glimmered in the darkness. They all looked like Metae, with long, thick blond hair, iridescent, golden skin, and whirling pools for eyes. Where Metae favored gold ornaments, her two companions wore heavy silver bracelets and rings. Metae had traded her white robes for pale green. The other two wore black, sashed with peacock blue silk. No matter how many times Aislinn saw them, their height was still unnerving. She wondered what the bodies under those robes looked like. Were reptilian claws and scaled skin hiding beneath the long, dagged sleeves?
“We have come to a decision,” Metae announced.
“Yes,” an unfamiliar voice seconded. It was deeper, but the multi-faceted voice tones were genderless.
Aislinn scrambled to her feet and hastily stuffed her few things into her rucksack as she waited to hear the results of their discussion.
“We offer you a choice,” the third Old One said.
“Uh, look,” she said a shade too brightly, to mask her pounding heart. Did they knew how nervous she was? “All I really wanted was an anti-sex charm, so I can hold the dark gods at bay. Once I have that, I’ll be on my way.” She was chickening out, but she wanted to put as much distance as she could between herself and the Old Ones. Her conversation with Rune had been unnerving. She wished they’d had it before she’d dragged them to Taltos.
“What you want is of little consequence,” an Old One informed her.
“We have decided you need help developing your…potential,” Metae added.
“Yes, we will be taking you into Taltos,” the third one said. “It is a great honor.”
“Please don’t take this wrong”—Aislinn spread her hands in front of her in a self-deprecating gesture—“but what if I don’t want to go?” She had no idea where her sudden burst of courage came from, but she welcomed it. “I have a home. I don’t need yours.”
“We think you do.”
An Old One took hold of her arm, his fingers ice cold. It was the first time one had actually touched her, and she was appalled. Their touch was just as frosty as the dark gods’ had been. Pulling fire, she yanked her arm away and stepped out of easy reach, the sound of her own breathing loud in her ears.
“Now, now,” Metae said, a placating spell woven into her words. “She must come willingly as our guest. We agreed on that point. You’ve frightened her.”
“Yes, he did,” Aislinn agreed quickly. Had it been a he? She wasn’t sure, but it didn’t really matter. “I’ve been scared enough lately.” She tried to infuse just the right hesitation before her next words. “If I can bring my wolf, I’d be willing to come for a short visit. Maybe half a day, but I must be free to leave if I’m uncomfortable.” Suspicion gnawed at her insides. Her stomach burned. “What choice were you talking about earlier?”
Between when she’d wrenched her arm
away from the Old One and now, Rune had positioned himself between her and it. The clicks, clacks, and buzzing that comprised their language filled the air. Aislinn had never been able to interpret it. Untangling their speech was as impossible as trying to make sense out of a buzzing beehive.
“That would be…acceptable,” the Old One who hadn’t grabbed her said.
The one who’d touched her bowed stiffly from the waist. He looked like a marionette, bobbing on unseen puppet strings. “I am most sorry if I made you uncomfortable. Metae has told us much of you. I was simply…eager for your visit.” Something feral shone from his swirling, multi-colored eyes.
“The choice,” Metae made a chopping motion in his direction, “was which of us you wanted to apprentice yourself to. We all possess slightly different skills. Would you like me to tell you about them?”
Aislinn shook her head, trying to figure out a diplomatic way to get out from under the Old Ones’ gun sights. The last thing she wanted was to antagonize them. “I’m sure you’re offering me quite an honor.” She picked her words with care. “Maybe, someday, I might be interested, but not just now. I’m still rattled from Perrikus and D’Chel. And from finding I have Hunter and Healing talents. I need time to assimilate them before I add any more magic.”
Metae inclined her head. “I understand. Perhaps, once you have seen Taltos, you will change your mind.”
“If the half day begins now”—Aislinn wanted to get things moving before she completely lost her nerve—“that means Rune and I will be back outside in this clearing by noon.”
“Child,” Metae purred, “whatever has happened to you?” Compulsion ran beneath her words. “You used to trust me.”
“It’s been a rough few days,” Aislinn answered honestly. “I’ll fight all the Bal’ta, wargs, bats, and human shades I run across, but those dark gods are downright creepy. I particularly didn’t like it when Perrikus told me he wanted to use me as a brood mare.”
More clicks and clacks. She thought there might be an outraged undercurrent, but she wasn’t sure.
