Faire Eve

by Catherine Stovall

  The Earthly Immortals were the first to hear the call. The few of their kind who still walked the earth or lived in the protective folds of Evalon, could not deny the summons. Destiny’s own voice echoed in their dreams. Bibesia was walking in the sands of Egypt with her long lost love when the world faded to black and the voice told her she must go to Trig Na nOg. Edesia was lying in the clouds pondering the great secrets of life when the voice cast her from the sky and showed her the halls of the great castle covered in ice.

  A Daoine, like any other soldier, lived and died by the sword and fate called them in the same way. Throughout the day, when any warrior laid his hand on the hilt of his blade, the images came like a flood. A battle without end filled their vision. The night came to end the day beneath the forever twilight skies of the heart of Evalon.

  The Ki’Lin’s minds did not work the same as a fey or a human. Their magical link was with the natural elements of the world. The link made them stronger in many ways. Providence needed no special talisman or dreams to tell them what would come to be. The need to travel out of their home pastures drove them in herds onto the roads and through the gates.

  The Valkyries received a messenger. A warrior on fetid wings with frostbit skin. His blue lips trembled as he told them the future of all of Evalon waited in the fair twilight city. The Valkyries would only survive the chaos of Tiritchiq long enough to carry an endless row of frigid corpses into their soldier’s paradise. Once Tiritchiq conquered Trig Na nOg, even Asgaurd would not be safe.

  The unmistakable message traveled through Evalon and the Upper World. The goblin, hobgoblin, and awd googy clans felt the call in the bones of their human victims. The nymphs, lady of the lakes, and other water fairies felt it in the currents pulling them towards Trig Na nOg. The centaur and satyr colonies heard it in the winds as they ran. The baku found their calling in the dreams they wandered. The experience was different for each clan and colony, but the meaning remained unchanged. The battle of Evalon was nearing and sides must be chosen. Without Eve to protect, Jaryn, Daryn, Vandel, Yath, and Heron moved swiftly through the dark lands. The Ki’Lin were on their own path, leaving the warriors and the small purple child to travel more by foot but through places the Ki’Lin could not or would not venture. The images they witnessed urged them on quicker than they could have imagined possible.

  No longer worried about the danger of taking the various portals or the dark roads with Eve in tow, they hop scotched through every available passage they could find. Sometimes the passage was treacherous and the constant change of time and atmosphere wore on them until they neared collapsing. Vandel seemed more affected than the others did. Jaryn and Daryn forced him to enter a witch’s den deep in the heart of Dreg because the younger soldier nearly went mad from the darkness surrounding the place.

  The bus came to a bumpy halt and Crash turned off the key, silencing the voices of the Blue Oyster Cult classic, Don’t Fear the Reaper. The irony did not escape Eve. Her hands trembled and her stomach threatened to empty itself on to the sandy dirt beneath her feet. Looking up from where they stood, the cave seemed small and unthreatening. Something inside her longed for what lay inside. Her present met her future in the place where the fairy world met with the human world. Once she entered there, Eve knew nothing would ever be the same.

  The point of no return came and went. She took a deep breath and grabbed Eldon’s hand. The four of them said a quick goodbye to Crash and thanked him for his services. He wished them well and drove away, not waiting to see if they would need him again. Loose gravel crunched under their feet as the foursome trudged up the small rocky incline to their destination.

  The closer she came to the mouth of the cave, the more her nerves jangled and screamed. Too afraid to mention her concerns to Eldon, Eve tried to ignore the alarm bells sounding inside her skull. A sense of dread filled her with the familiar hysteria that seemed to hide beneath the surface since the battle in Haven. The darkness lurked inside the paranoia. Sometimes, she thought she heard its harsh and raspy voice but she blocked it out before it could speak clearly. She wanted no guidance from the dark, only the light.

  They reached the cave opening and stood staring down into the cold pit. Fingers of frigid air seeped out of the hole before them to chill their flesh. Eve’s apprehension climaxed to the point that she shook all over. Her inner voice was silent and she begged to hear it once again. She needed guidance more than ever. Eldon wrapped his arms around her and looked into her face. The love in his eyes did not calm her but it helped build a little confidence. She knew she must be something special to win the heart of the warrior.

  “Are you ready to go in? His voice warmed her against the chill.

  Laughing uneasily, Eve called in to the dark cave, “Ready or not, here we come.”

  The joke was lost in translation. Apparently, fairy children did not play hide and seek. Eldon, Faya, and Caleb all produced smooth stones the size of half dollars. Eldon handed one of them to Eve. She stared at the snot green rock in complete confusion.

  Faya explained quickly, “It’s a witchlight. We use them quite a bit in Evalon. They are like those things humans use. The um…stick with the light?”

  Eve stared at the strange stone doubtfully, “Do you mean a flashlight?”

  Faya clapped her hands in childlike enthusiasm. “Yes, that’s it. I always forget the names of the more mundane human items. Anyway, the witchlight is similar to a flashlight.”

  Caleb, unable to miss an opportunity to show off, interrupted her. “The humans call it a Willemite mineral. They discovered it about one hundred and seventy years ago. The fey have been using it since the beginning of time. The humans think they are pretty and shine UV lights on the rocks to make them give off a slight glow. We use our magic to enhance the mineral and it illuminates. In Trig Na nOg, witchlight is the main source of lighting.

  Eve still looked skeptical, “So how does it work?”

  Eldon took her hand and led Eve inside the cave. The air inside was colder than she expected. The dim light from outside barely illuminated the small cavern they entered. The remnants of human excavating stood covered in dust like monsters ready to wake. Eve was never afraid of the dark as a child but the things she had learned in Evalon taught her what hid in the shadows. She felt as if she may collapse from the anxiety of being in the cave.

  Eldon took her hand, fisted over the witchlight, and coaxed her to concentrate. “Reach inside of you to where your magic lies. Imagine it like a great ball of yarn. Pluck a single thread from the ball and pull it up into your arm. Picture it leaving your body and wrapping around the stone. See, in your mind, a light flowing through the thread.”

  Eve shut her eyes and listened to his voice. Her magic woke within her and it vibrated her body with warmth and power. She felt it move through her and out of her to touch the witchlight. She could see the light burst through her fingers to light up the cave in her mind’s eye.

  “Tune it down, Eve!” Faya shouted.

  Eve sprang back from her meditation and her eyes flew open only to slam shut again. The light in her hand shined brightly and she feared it would scorch her irises. Dots of brilliant white danced behind her eyelids for a moment. She willed the light to dim as embarrassment flooded her face.

  Opening one eye slowly, Eve peeked out. The light in her hand glared significantly less and she could see again. The others stared at her in mute fascination. Eve felt like a freak of nature. Every time she used magic, it turned out to be some sort of overkill. She felt like one of the nouveau rich who spent lavishly on gaudy and ghastly things making the more illustrious shake their heads in disgust.

  Caleb snickered as he lit his own witchlight, “I would hate to be the one who has to train her. She needs to seriously learn to leash it in.”

  Eldon gave his second in command a stern look but said nothing. Taking point, he led the group through the cave. The witchlights bounced with each step they took, casting an eerie green illumination around t
hem. Eve could feel the history of the cave around her. Thousands of years of humanity had leaked into the rock walls and dirt floor but it could not mask the undeniable sense of magic permeating from everywhere around her.

  The farther they moved, the more she could see of the ancient drawings on the walls. Faded and worn, the witchlight only made them contrast more with the stark tan, brown, and red rock walls. The hollowed out portion of the cave began to thin. The ceiling lowered until Eldon and Caleb walked with hunched shoulders. The cold wrapped around them like a blanket of ice, Eve wondered how they could still be walking. When they began, she could clearly see the back wall of the cave but it seemed to go on forever and even with a witchlight, she saw nothing ahead.

  Eve asked Eldon how they would continue. Turning his head from left to right, he listened to the silence. “We are close. A few more feet this way and we shall be there. The cave is spelled, sweetheart. The doorways have been here for millennia. The creators knew humans and animals would come to seek shelter in the cave. Allowing others to use the front part of the cave was a social experiment. The fey could secretly observe the occupants with ease while the wall of magic held them firmly at bay. Being fey, we walked right through the wall.”

  Eve pressed her lips together. She felt more like a ghost than a fairy princess when Eldon said such things. She couldn’t help thinking that carrying glowing stones and walking through walls was unnatural. She didn’t have time to express her dislike of such things. The group came to a deep crevice in the wall, wide enough for the men to squeeze through by turning sideways. Eldon motioned them onward and Eve grabbed his hand tight. Human fears about bats, spiders, and snakes crawled their way through her young mind.

  Emerging from the tight space, they found themselves inside a massive cavern. The ceiling stretched high above their heads. Hunks of stalagmite stretched down like a thousand pointing fingers. The floor was smooth gray slate leading up to a circle in the center of the room. Inside, green grass grew impossibly lush for the dark and cold cave atmosphere. The gateways stood proudly on the foliage, beacons to another land.

  The group headed toward the circle with determination and speed. Being so close to the way back to Evalon, the two warriors and the witch were impatient to return. Eve kept up pace with the others but the overwhelming pressure of the moment weighed her steps. She could feel her magic pumping inside her, begging to let loose in the sacred place of her ancestors. She could hear the whisper of darkness vying for her attention. The insistent nagging feeling that something was not right, tugged harder on her brain. Still, her secret voice did not come to offer her advice or encouragement.

  Stonehenge was no longer the monument it once had been, inside Eve’s head. The duplication paled in comparison to the architectural miracle before her. The outer ring of large blue stones were of gem quality and sapphire in color. The smaller stones making up the inner circle were black as night and shined as if polished for a thousand years. The five gates were crystal clear stone and resembled arches of ice. Within the horseshoe figure of the gates, fifteen green stones strongly resembling the small witchlights, stood. Inside the curve, the altar stone sat untouched, dark and unreadable in color.

  Eldon took her by the hand and led her to the inner sanctum. The first stone in the horseshoe had a niche on top of its rounded surface where he placed the palm of her hand. Eve felt the zinging thrill of magic pulse through her. Her wings ached to unfurl but she willed them to stay within her. Eldon went to stand across from her at the other end of the horseshoe and placed his hand on the stone there. Caleb stood with his arms crossed over his chest near the altar stone with Faya by his side. As always, he looked unimpressed while Faya looked on with curiosity.

  Eldon nodded to her and Eve closed her eyes knowing what she needed to do. The warmth moved up her arm and into her heart. She saw the power, not as a string but as a current. It ran in fast rapids out of her into the stone. The flesh of her back stung when her wings burst from within and spread themselves to their full impressive reach. Eve’s eyes opened and she chanced a look at Eldon. The warrior’s wings spread fully out behind him, trembling with the power surging through the stone and into his body.

  Looking down the row of stones before her, Eve gasped. The light was building in each of them. She closed herself off to the distraction of Eldon. She no longer saw Cal or Faya. She didn’t want to screw up and really blind them all as she had nearly done with the witchlight. She let her power synchronize with the beating of her heart and it flowed outward with each new pulse. When at last the stones glowed like beautiful green lanterns and provided sufficient lighting, Eve and Eldon pulled their hands away.

  The whirlwind of exultation spun inside her and she wanted to dance with the twisted sisters of Asgaurd Hall. The excitement and energy drummed through her veins like nothing she had ever felt before. Eldon came to stand beside her and she could see that he felt as if a billion watt current ran through his body and soul, as well. They walked on clouds to where Eldon and Faya stood bathing in the strange apple green lighting that beamed from the enormous witchlight stones.

  “We must choose our gate.” Eldon’s face and words were serious but his eyes danced.

  The five gates, filled with the strange green lighting, glittered as if there were fireflies dancing within them. Eve was the first to move. She walked around the half circle formed by the gates. She timidly laid her hand on each one and let it speak to her. She thought her inner voice would come again and tell her which to choose, but no such communications came. Instead, she relied on what the vibrations in the strange crystal slabs seemed to tell her.

  The first gate held nothing for her. The only sound was of waves on a shore and of wind whipping through a tunnel. She heard nothing but white noise with no resonation with her desires. The second gate produced the beating of a drum so familiar, Eve could never forget. The gate would lead them to the Hall of Asgaurd if she should choose to enter there. The third gate felt differently but held no sound. As if it were a barren tomb, the feeling of death crept up Eve’s spine. The fourth gate was silent as well but energy burned inside it. Something akin to longing filled her when her hand left the cold smooth surface. The fifth gate produced the sound of rustling parchment and voices whispering in languages she could not decipher.

  She walked slowly back around the half circle and looked at the others. They watched her with interest and waited patiently for her choice. Eldon and Faya knew in their hearts Eve would choose the correct path. Even if it were not the path to Lil, the gate she chose would lead her to her destiny. Caleb was prepared to take a flying leap through the portal he suspected would lead the way. Beltane was dangerously close. Rather than die, he would risk being wrong or persecution for bringing the girl against her will.

  Eve went back to the fourth gate. Laying her hands against the cold smoothness she let her magic pull out from her again. She wrapped it around the tall sapphire stones and powered magic into the vortex. Once the gateway began to churn and open, she announced, “This is our gateway. Shall we embark on our journey?”

  Eldon stepped forward and took the blow meant for Eve. Tiritchiq’s spiked tail slung down from where he lay hidden in the stalagmite and slammed into the young man’s body. The force of the blow slung the warrior into the giant blue stones. The sick crack as his head slammed into the unforgiving mass left Eldon crumpled on the floor. Eve screamed and leapt backwards, placing the altar between her and Tiritchiq.

  The dragon landed amongst the stones with a thud. His body was nearly half the size of what it had been outside the diner in Haven. To be able to shift shapes and sizes allowed him the upper hand in their battles. Eve’s mind calculated a way to equalize the odds even as the fear paralyzed her.

  The dragon’s eyes burned with blue flame and his icy breath filled the cavern with a thin layer of frost.

  “Hello, Faire Eve, I have been waiting for you.”

  Caleb leapt in front of her and Faya came to her side. T
he dragon laughed at the fey warrior who challenged him. “Step away from the little changeling and I may let you live, for now.”

  Caleb drew his blade and the dragon’s fire built inside its throat like a storm brewing in Antarctica. The room temperature dropped and the crystal gates groaned under the constricting freeze. The fairy warrior, for all his hardened outer shell, truly felt loyal to the would-be queen. There was no doubt his own death meant little to him if he could save all of Evalon and Faire Eve. Tiritchiq paid little attention to the warrior. Thinking him of no real threat, he advanced on Eve.

  Faya slung curses and witch magic at the beast but it only made him shake his head, as if nothing more than a horsefly were bothering him. While distracted by Faya’s efforts, Tiritchiq lost sight of Caleb. Spry for his size, the warrior leapt from one of the circle’s stones and careened toward the dragon’s back with speed and agility. Before his sword found its mark, the dragon turned.

  The ice fire exploded with a terrible roar from the mouth of the dragon. Caleb felt the chill of death brush against him as he twisted in the air. The impact was unexpected. He slammed hard into the very face of the monster. The coldness in the great Icelandic eyes nearly froze him before he sank the blade of his sword deep into the terrible orb.

  The dragon roared in pain and surprise. Tiritchiq slung his head and Caleb flew from his snout like a rag doll. He landed in a heap before skidding across the gray slate for several feet. Faya pushed Eve farther behind her. The small and determined witch, stood with her fist clenched at her sides. The power of her sect rose up out of her like crackling electricity. She called out names of gods and goddesses Eve didn’t know.

  Tiritchiq was no longer in the mood for conversation or distraction. Blood, as black as death, ran from the punctured right eye and Caleb’s sword still protruded from the pupil. The dragon advanced on the girl, drawing in a ragged breath to call upon the ice fire again. The last breath may have missed Caleb but it covered the stones of the circle and they crumbled beneath the weight of the sickening ice covering them.