Malcolm straightened his back and cleared his throat. “At sunup I’ll be heading south,” he said definitively. “I must return to my home and decide what I will do next.”
“I think that’s a splendid idea,” Tristan said dryly.
“Where is your home?” Seren asked, ignoring her brother.
Malcolm motioned with his good hand. “On the west coast of Dumnonia. It’s a veiled fortress.”
Seren moved to her knees with a glint in her eye. “Then we will come with you.”
Tristan stiffened. “We are going north, Seren.”
Seren shook her head. “No, dear brother. I want to see this place Malcolm is from.”
Tristan groaned and wiped a hand over his face.
“And anyway,” Seren said with a raised brow to her brother, “you can keep a lookout while we travel.”
This piqued Malcolm’s interest. “How will he do that?”
She gave a wily smirk. “Show him, Tristan. Show him what you can do.”
Tristan was visibly irritated, but still, he got to his feet, glaring condemnations at Seren. “If I must,” he said.
Malcolm watched, trying to conceal his interest and wondering if this simple-man’s power surpassed his own.
Tristan stood and closed his eyes as his breathing slowed. Malcolm noticed Tristan curl his fingers like claws at his sides and then a strange noise, like metal on stone, came from Tristan’s throat. There was a moment of stillness and in the span of time it took Malcolm to blink, Tristan was gone and in his place stood a large, black raven with golden eyes.
Malcolm found himself agape as the raven cawed, flapped its wings and flew onto the branch of a tree above them. There it sat, fluttering its feathers and staring down at him. Malcolm was stunned. He knew Dia could alter their physical appearance, but never had he heard of one becoming a different creature altogether.
“How is he able to do this?” Malcolm asked Seren.
Seren shrugged. “He just can.”
“And this is how he will get to Valenia? He will fly?”
The raven cawed angrily.
“Yes,” Seren said, giving the giant bird a warning glance. “He can fly ahead and make sure there are no dangers on the road. Tristan is a watcher.” Her face lit up with pride as she looked at the raven, but it was not the look of a beloved sibling, but rather, more like the adoration of a cherished pet.
When Malcolm glanced up at the tree again, he saw that without even noticing it, Tristan had turned back into his human form, his legs dangling over the branch.
“Why couldn’t he do this before?” Malcolm asked. “Why didn’t he use this form to leave the village?”
Tristan jumped down. “And leave my sister behind? It may surprise you to learn that to some, loyalty is a virtue.”
“Well, it’s an impressive trick,” Malcolm said genuinely. “I must admit, I’ve never seen a Dia transform into another creature.”
Tristan’s face lit with satisfaction and for the first time, Malcolm saw him really smile. Malcolm turned his attention to Seren. “Are you a Raven as well?”
She shook her head.
Malcolm furrowed his brow in thought. “Wynn said the villagers called you a sorceress. Do you have the power to cast spells?” he asked.
“I suppose you could say that,” Seren said diffidently. Her eyes began to reflect the light like a cat in the dark and her lip curled in a devious smile. “Mother protected Bram and the rest of the village from our powers. Otherwise, it would have been simple to leave.” She sat forward, her attention locked on Malcolm. “Watch me and I’ll show you,” she said.
As he stared at her, Malcolm’s vision began to blur and his mind spun in a muffled haze of confused thoughts. His body relaxed, every muscle softened, every ache vanished, and in a moment, he felt as though he was lying in a bed of feathers.
Malcolm took in a deep breath, and for the first time in years, he felt at peace, not just at ease, but a penetrating peace that reached deep within his soul. He was completely lost in it, and without knowing why, he got to his feet, walked to the stream, took a step into the cool flowing water, and dropped to his knees. A gentle hush swept past his ear and a warm breath of air wrapped around his body.
This must be what bliss feels like, he thought. He dipped both hands into the shallow water and stretched out onto his stomach, putting his face in the stream. He opened his eyes underwater and looked around at the murky earth, the passing fish, the swaying reeds, and then he smiled. He could have stayed in the watery paradise forever. He wanted to. But when he felt the fire in his lungs, his moment of peace collapsed. His throat began to close and as his arms flailed in the water, it felt as though someone was holding his head down.
With what he was sure was his last breath of air, Malcolm let out a scream that bubbled up around him when suddenly he was freed.
His head shot out of the water and he fell back, gasping for air. The bright sun burned his eyes as he caught his breath, and when he was finally able to see, Seren stood at the edge of the river, her expression blank, and her eyes blood red.
Tristan joined his sister, staring at Malcolm with a curiously calm expression.
“I nearly drowned,” Malcolm choked. “What did you do to me? Why are you both standing there like idiots?” He took quick, angry breaths as he got to his feet, the pain in his leg returning.
“She is a Seiren,” Tristan said. “She enchants mortal men to their deaths. And by your own admission, you are mortal.”
Malcolm stormed out of the river, wringing water from his tunic. “You tried to kill me?” he shouted at Seren.
She shook her head. “If I wanted to kill you, you’d be dead. I merely wanted to show you my gift.”
“And what kind of gift is that?” Malcolm asked. “A Seiren kills mortals?”
Seren shook her head again. “A Seiren saves them.”
Malcolm pulled off his tunic and charged at her with a pointed finger. “Do that to me again and I will—“
“You will what?” Tristan interrupted, coming between them. “You are a mortal. You pose no threat to us. You might have notions of who you once were, but I think you should take a good look at yourself now!”
“Enough.” Seren stepped in and put a hand on Malcolm’s chest. “My apologies. I wanted to make you feel better, if even for a moment. My intention was not to harm you. I promise I won’t use my power on you again.”
Malcolm glared at her a moment longer, but had to admit, he had felt incredible under her spell. “See to it that you don’t,” he said, returning to the grass.
“You should get some rest,” Seren said to him. “Tristan can scout the road for the journey.”
Tristan grunted and got to his feet. “Where is this place?” He did little to hide the irritation in his tone.
“Southwest,” Malcolm said. “Along the coast.”
Tristan knelt beside his sister and whispered, “I don’t want to leave you alone with him.”
Seren gave him a warm smile and rubbed his arm. “Have no fear, Tristan. I am well enough protected on my own.”
Tristan nodded, yielding to his sister’s assurances. Then he walked over to Malcolm and glared down at him. “If you lay a finger on her, I won’t just take your fingers, but your whole fucking hand.”
Malcolm smirked with amusement. In a battle of strength, the boy would certainly beat him in this condition, but they both knew that Seren would rein her brother in like the dog that he was. “I’m sure you will.”
Tristan sucked in a breath and suddenly he was the raven again. It cawed and flapped its wings, taking off from the ground and hovering around Malcolm before flying into the sky, just below the clouds.
“How long has he been able to do that?” Malcolm asked when they were alone.
Seren shrugged. “Since he was a child.”
Malcolm watched her, looking for any hint of truth in her. She was a pretty young woman with a narrow face and high cheekbones. Her chestn
ut hair lay in plaits on her shoulder and her cat-like amber eyes sparkled. But now he was beginning to wonder just how much of her beauty was real, and how much of her allure was because she was a Seiren. “Are you not saddened by the loss of your mother?” he asked.
Seren leaned back on her elbows. “No. She was a vile bitch. It was at her command that I married Bram, even though she went to his bed every night. She was unhinged by her many years on this earth.”
“Was she an ancient?” Malcolm asked.
Seren nodded. “Well over one thousand years old. But she was exiled by our kind long ago. Even her twin sister wanted nothing to do with her.”
“Twins?” Malcolm mused. “Are there many more of you? Does her twin still live?”
“I believe she does. And yes, there are others out there. But we hide from each other almost as much as we hide from mortals. This is no longer our world. We are merely unearthly specters in a mortal land.” Seren shrugged. “Mother tried to hide us in the forest, in the little village of stolen children. Had Tristan not killed her, she would have come after us. We were chattel in her world, and nothing more. It’s been that way for the last fifty-three years.”
Malcolm eyed her. “You are fifty-three years old?” He blinked, trying to see beyond the face in front of him. “But you look like just a girl.”
Seren nodded with a smile. “I am. You know as well as I do that we can look younger than we are. I prefer to look this way.”
Now Malcolm couldn’t take his eyes off her, and for a moment, he thought he saw small lines appear, her eyes darken. “And Tristan, is he—”
“No,” Seren said. “He is nineteen years on this earth. A much younger sibling. But I might as well be a child. Mother kept me tethered to her like a ball and chain all these years. I know little of the world, little of our kind beyond what I’ve already told you.”
“I understand that well,” Malcolm said. “Being isolated, I mean.”
Seren picked up a blade of grass and twirled it between her fingers. “If you are a descendant of the Tuatha Dé Danann, how are we of the same race?”
Malcolm shrugged. “We are all Dia. Or were at some point. I suppose the difference between us is no more so than if you were Roman and I was Greek. We are both factions of beings descended from the same gods.”
Seren nodded. “Tell me more about this Dia woman, the one who took your Light.”
A shiver of irritation crawled up Malcolm’s back. “I don’t wish to speak of her.”
Seren bit her bottom lip. “Do you think you will ever get your Light back? Or do you plan to remain a mortal for the rest of your days?”
Putting his cloak behind his head, Malcolm laid back. “I don’t plan on being mortal. But getting my Light back has become even more complicated now that I’m like this. All I want at the moment is to get back to Valenia. I will figure out the rest from there.”
Seren reached out a hand and placed it on Malcolm’s arm. “We will help you. I feel a connection with you, as though I’ve known you before. And besides, we have nowhere else to go.”
Malcolm slowly withdrew his arm. Her kindness made him wary, but it also made his heart ache. He would rather she looked on him with the contempt he was used to seeing in a woman’s eyes. How was he supposed to react to this gentle countenance with lying eyes?
Malcolm turned his head away and looked to the stream. Her kindness was a ruse, a ploy to get something from him. There was no other explanation for it. The only problem was, Malcolm couldn’t figure out what.
Corbin couldn’t quiet the unease rising within him as the peak of Valenia came in to view. Apprehension was etched all over his father’s face, as well.
Barrett and Ailwen rode farther ahead, still amazed by their new strength and endurance for travel.
Corbin wondered what he would find once he set foot inside the place he’d once called home. Would Malcolm still be the crazed mortal they’d trapped in there? Or would his senses have returned to him? And the most troubling question of all, would Corbin find the restraint to leave Malcolm alive? The thought left a bitter taste in his mouth.
As his horse moved forward in a steady trot, Corbin edged up to his father, who’d been silent for hours, bearing the look of a man with many worries. As a child, Corbin had known his father to wear that very same look right before riding out to war.
“What troubles you?” Corbin asked.
Drake’s eyes lifted to Barrett and Ailwen ahead of them. “I am simply watchful, son.”
Corbin followed Drake’s gaze. “Wouldn’t we sense it if Ailwen was something else?”
Drake shrugged and shook his head. “Great change happens at a snail’s pace. It only seems swift to those with their eyes closed.” Drake paused and sighed. “I fear you may be blinded by your affinity for them both.”
“Both?” Corbin said. “I thought we were talking about Ailwen.”
Drake hesitated. “We are also talking about Mara, son. She is not herself. She hasn’t been the same since the night of the transformation ceremony, and before that, even. She carries the power of three Dia as well as the coire. This imbalance within Ailwen may very well be the result of an imbalance that has occurred within her.”
Corbin looked away. He hadn’t told his father about Mara’s change in demeanor, about how she’d snapped at him and Isa. “Is she in danger?” Corbin asked.
Drake pursed his lips. “The Keeper will always be in danger. That is the burden they bear. That is why they have a guardian. It isn’t an easy fate. Why else would Keepers die before their time, when they should live for an eternity?”
It took Corbin a moment to understand his father’s words, then it struck him. “An eternity?” Corbin slowed his horse to a near stop. “What do you mean, an eternity?”
Drake halted his horse next to Corbin’s and stared him right in the eye. “The Keeper is immortal. Truly immortal. Not like other Dia who have little more than a millennium in this world. The Keeper is meant to live forever.” Drake paused again. “As is her guardian.”
Corbin had no words as he looked at his father. “True immortality?” he whispered.
Drake nodded. “I didn’t want to tell you so soon,” he began, but Corbin leapt from his horse and walked towards the shore.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Corbin threw his hands up. “An eternity?”
Drake dismounted, his face sullen. “My memories only come back to me in pieces. And when I remembered, I wanted you both to have some peace. You needed time to deal with all that’s happened. Comprehending an eternity is hard enough, but knowing that no Keeper has ever lived it, let alone made it a full lifespan, is disheartening. If I am recalling the legends correctly, they’ve all died by fire. Every last one of them.”
Corbin clenched his fists and looked down at the golden sand. “Keeping it from us? That was not your decision to make. I’m tired of secrets.”
“And I am sorry for it,” Drake said.
Then a thought occurred to Corbin. He took a step towards his father. “Is this why you didn’t want Mara to give the others Light? Are they truly immortal now as well?”
“Perhaps,” Drake said. “I don’t know for certain.”
Corbin couldn’t help but wonder how Mara would feel about this. Knowing her mother was an immortal—now a dead immortal—would surely hurt her. But what did immortality really mean to them? Was a millennium not eternal enough already? Most Dia never even made it to their death age. Instead, they were killed by fire and steel, the only two ways to end their lives. Then where did they go after death? The Otherworld was a mystery to them all, a fabled place that could be no more than a blackened realm. Corbin didn’t want to die. But as the guardian of the Keeper, he was certain death would always be his shadow. He crossed his arms in front of him and looked out on the glassy water. “You should have told us,” he said.
Drake nodded. “Would it have stopped her from giving them Light? Would it have changed a thing these last two years?”
Corbin thought for a moment. “No,” he finally said. “It wouldn’t have changed a thing.”
Drake put a gloved hand on Corbin’s shoulder. “I wanted to save you the worry, son. I wasn’t able to protect you as a boy. This was my chance to be a father. You will understand when you’re a father someday.”
Corbin nodded with pensive smile. “No more secrets. Is there anything else I need to know?”
“Nothing,” Drake said.
Corbin walked back to his horse. “We’d better get moving. Ailwen and Barrett will wonder where we’ve gone.
When they reached the shores of Valenia, a swelling fog stretched across the top of the water, reaching its smoky hand out to the veiled fortress. Corbin kicked his horse into a gallop, passing the others until he was in the shadow of his former home. He dismounted and looked up at its single drum tower and smooth rock walls that dove down into the sea. This had once been a happy place. A refuge. Now it stood before him exactly as it had lived in his mind for the last two years—a remnant of happiness, now cast in shadows.
“Perhaps you should stay here,” Drake said to Corbin.
Ailwen and Barrett walked up beside them.
“Drake is right,” Ailwen said. “This might not be as easy as you think.”
Corbin looked up to the secret entrance, high on a rocky ledge. “No. I can control myself.” He wasn’t so certain that he could. Seeing Malcolm dead, especially by his own hand, would be the greatest revenge. But Malcolm’s death meant Mara’s death, and so right now, neither would come to pass.
“I wonder if the lad’s as senseless as we left him,” Barrett said, following Corbin up the rock wall.
“I hope so,” Corbin said as he reached the top. “But I doubt it.”
“D’you think he feigned madness?” Ailwen asked.
“I know he did,” Corbin muttered. Nothing Malcolm did was ever without purpose. And after Mara took his Light, the show Malcolm put on had been a good one. All were convinced the rat had lost his wits. All but Corbin, that is, who’d been witness to Malcolm’s narcissistic productions ever since they were boys.
The Embers of Light Page 15
