I would go out with my team: Daur, Aiden, Miranda, Jillian, and Donnell for three days at a time on surveillance. Aiden took on the role of reporting back to Emrys. I did like having Aiden on my team for that reason if no other. He’d loosened up a bit and seemed less offended by Daur’s ‘charms.’ The rest of the week I’d spend with Brian, watching over the training of the Knights and Neil. I always looked forward to returning—spending time with Neil was the highlight of my week. He hadn’t gone to his room in months and it held nothing of his anymore.
I walked into the training arena after having returned and stood next to Brian. We both had our eyes on the group of six that were about to be attacked in a simulation by twelve Tuatha. I snuck a glance at Brian. He was stoic as ever. I couldn’t help but smile as I spoke. “You’re advancing them quite rapidly don’t you think?”
Brian risked a smile, he didn’t do that often so when he did, it especially delighted me. “Just watch.”
Neil was in the group of six. They were perfectly synchronized in their defense as the dozen Tuatha attacked. The King’s orders of keeping our strengths and skills a secret still held, so the Tuatha fought at a matching level against the Knights.
Brian cleared his throat as we continued watching. “Neil has truly become a leader. Their King. Watch how he will shift from defending to attacking and the others follow.”
I nodded, and as Brian predicted, Neil began a beautiful attack. He was strong, stronger than most humans. His execution of each swing of the sword was precise and graceful. His face never contorted in anger or showed any signs of fatigue, but rather intense duty, focusing his energy at the task at hand.
Brian continued, “The rules are, once struck with the wooden sword you are considered fallen and are ‘out.’”
Neil continued slicing through the Tuatha. He hit one of the Tuatha on the shoulder as he leapt on top of him, only to jump further towards the onslaught and took out two more swiftly.
I recognized the move as one of Brian’s signature attacks. He nodded approvingly. This must be what Neil was so excited about having learned.
The Knights and Neil defeated the Tuatha in the mock battle. I raised my eyebrow to Brian. He only shrugged. “Occasionally they must win. It is best to continue to bolster their confidence.”
I nodded, this time in agreement.
He said, “The Druids are going to begin training with us soon as well. Emrys is working on teaching them to slow down vampires so that the humans might actually have a chance at fighting them. He’s also working on a few other spells they may be able to handle. They’ll need to be incorporated into our fighting, and not just as healers.”
“Sounds logical,” I agreed, though not completely sure that was the best plan.
“Well done, Knights.” Brian shouted in his gruff, gravelly voice. “That’s enough for today. You’ve earned the rest of the day off. Go enjoy yourselves, but be ready tomorrow morning.”
The Knights were jubilant at having won. The Tuatha were congratulating them and they intermingled, verbally replaying every move. It warmed me to see them together.
Neil saw me and approached. He looked amazing. Sweat lightly glossed his tanned body. His muscles got larger and more defined every time I returned, it seemed. His caramel eyes sparkled with the remaining excitement of battle. He was now in his element. I couldn’t help but think of how different this man, this King, was from the one I met not that long ago.
“How’s the love of my life?” he said, grabbing my waist, lifting me up to kiss him.
“Very fortunate to not have been fighting vampires as skilled as you and your men.” I couldn’t help tease.
He laughed, shaking his head. “We aren’t quite at that level yet, but we will be.” He was completely confident. No doubt or arrogance in his voice. It was said only as a fact.
He continued, “Well it would seem I have the rest of the day off.” His eyes never left mine and the twinkle from battle turned into a flame that only I knew.
“Whatever will we do with ourselves?” I asked with a slow smile.
“It’s summer, and we haven’t gone swimming in the lake yet. How about we have a picnic and head there?” he asked with eagerness in his eyes.
Memories washed over me from so many years ago of leisurely spending time near a lake. Enjoying the warmth that came with summer. It sounded perfect.
The day went too fast. We were able to be alone at the lake for about an hour when everyone else had the same idea. That was fine. My belly and face hurt from laughing at hearing the stories of how their training was going. Once the sun began to sink low in the sky we built a bonfire and brought the cauldron out to continue the festive evening. I hadn’t gotten to know many of the humans so it was delightful to see them hang on every word Neil spoke. Many of the Tuatha joined in as well. I tried to savor the moment. To hold onto it. Humans, Druids and Tuatha all gathered here, laughing. Daur was surprisingly a huge hit, and one of the Druid girls was practically draping herself over him. I was slightly solemn at knowing this would come to an end. That many would lose their lives in the coming war. I pushed the thought from my head but it kept creeping back.
Chapter 16
The trees turned glorious oranges, reds and deep purples as crispness in the air replaced the lazy humidity of summer. Samhain had arrived.
It was a very important holiday for us. One of great feasts and celebrations. I was saddened that I would miss the festivities, but more anxious about being away for the span of a year. The entire grounds bustled as preparations for the great feast were being made. There would be bonfires, wine and roasted meats. Music, dancing and laughing would rule the night. The Royal family would begin the ceremony by walking through the crowd to light the first bonfire and all would cheer. The humans and Druids had the extra excitement of this being their first Samhain.
The official start would be after sunset. The moment the sun disappeared from the horizon would be when Emrys and I would enter the Great Oak to the realm between twilight and night to seek out Druantia.
It was late afternoon and Emrys, Brian, the King and myself were in the library going over plans.
Emrys cleared his throat before he spoke. “Riley is the best and brightest of the Druids that I have, and will continue to work with the others. Brian, I will trust you to make sure that the Knights and Druids become a single working unit for battle.”
Brian nodded and grunted his affirmation.
King Conall leaned back in his chair. “We’ll continue the training. Brian will decide progressions of the group over the course of the year. I will personally oversee the recon of the vampires and werewolves. Morrigan, you and Emrys will hopefully come back with the location of my sword. I fear that without the Sword of the Tuatha there is no hope of defeating Artaius. Somehow, Artaius, the vampires and werewolves are connected. By the Creator let’s hope Druantia has the answers for us.”
We got up to leave as Treasach, Alastar and Aine entered the library.
Alastar grabbed me in a bear hug, lifting me off the ground then setting me back down. “You didn’t think you were going to leave for a year without a proper goodbye did you?”
My heart leapt into my throat as my eyes misted. Treasach and Aine joined in the hug. The King stood back on his heels with his hands on his waist, smiling.
Aine pulled her head away from my cheek just enough to look at me in the eyes. “Have you ever been to this realm before?”
“No. I promise to remember every detail and next Samhain when I see you, I’ll tell you all about it,” I said, then pulled her head back to me.
Treasach towered over us and his bright blue eyes bored into mine as he spoke. “This will not be a true Samhain celebration without you. Next year, we’ll wait on your return and will not begin until you arrive. As it should be.”
The King walked over, placing his hand upon his son. “Treasach is correct. It is not a true Samhain without you. The Druids and Knights will have no idea wha
t next year’s celebration will hold.” He placed his other hand upon Emrys and asked, “Can we count on a little help from you to make next year’s Samhain extra special?”
Emrys smiled and bowed. “I promise you, King Conall, that it will be one that even the Tuatha will be breathless at.”
I said my goodbyes to Treasach, Alastar and Aine. Emrys walked out of the library with them but I stayed behind to speak to the King alone.
I shut the door and turned. “Conall…” The lump in my throat had grown so large I couldn’t manage to speak. Silent tears began to roll down my cheeks.
The King wrapped his arms around me and softly kissed the top of my head, then barely above a whisper said, “Morrigan, I know you hate to miss a year. Especially after our long… our long sleep where we missed centuries. I know you also fear that you will be too late. But this is my ‘Get your head out of your ass’ speech to you.” He pulled back to look at me. “I have faith in you. You above any other Tuatha will succeed. And I need you to have faith in me. Have faith that in the time that you are gone I will have gathered more answers. Can you trust in me?”
I didn’t hesitate. “My King, I have never wavered in my trust for you. I know that you will.”
He smiled down at me. “I mean it. Samhain will feel hollow without you. Though we traditionally start at sunset, we will wait for your return from the Great Oak to begin next year.”
He leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. It wasn’t quite a chaste kiss but at least it was not on the lips.
My heart was lighter, feeling secure that things would progress in my absence.
“Until next Samhain, my King. Watch well,” I said as I exited the room.
I stopped to say my goodbyes to the team that I’d spent the last few months tracking vampires and werewolves with. Daur cried like a baby. Like the King, he promised that next Samhain would be the true celebration. I promised I’d dance with him and he went from crying to his mad laugh. Even Aiden seemed emotional and actually hugged me, though he immediately looked embarrassed. I was warming to him.
The sun kept getting lower in the sky as I made my way to my room. My hardest and last goodbye. Neil.
I entered the room to find him sitting on the edge of the bed. His caramel eyes looked heavy. His light brown hair was a bit longer than when I’d first met him and I longed to run my hands through it.
He held his hand out and whispered, “Come here.”
I walked over, taking his hand, and he pulled me onto his lap. He stroked the side of my face, down my neck and rested his hand over my heart. “Morrigan, so much has happened over this past year. It’s gone so fast. Too fast. I’ve known this day was coming and now that it’s here—”
“I know.” I interjected. “There’s something I need to… tell you.” The words of Conall and Emrys about keeping my, our, history a secret for now reverberated in my mind. I caught myself. I’ll tell him upon my return, I vowed. Instead I said, “It’s only a year, though. Listen to Brian and continue to lead your Knights and work with the Druids.”
“I know what I need to do.” He kept his eyes intently focused on mine. He seemed to not notice my near stumble. “I just don’t want to do it without you. What will it be like for you?”
I stayed in his lap. His hand made its way to my back, rubbing it lightly. “Well, for me it will only seem like an hour. I’ve never been to the realm between night and twilight so I’m not really sure what to expect.”
“Will you be safe?” he asked.
“Yes, it’s safe,” I said, now rubbing his chest. “Druantia is there alone. I’m not sure if she’s unable or unwilling to leave. Regardless, there are no enemies there.”
“That seems so lonely.”
“I suppose it is,” I said, leaning down to kiss him.
His lips were soft. I could feel the heat building in them as the tenderness dropped away. I leaned him back onto the bed and slowly soaked him in. For me it would seem like only a few hours from now we would be making love again. But I knew for him, a human no less, a year was a long time and I wanted to ease the ache in his heart with enough physical love to sustain him.
We finished making love, then I began to get ready for the five mile trek to the Great Oak. We would be taking horses and needed to be at the stables in twenty minutes.
“Neil, I know it would mean you missing the beginning of your first Samhain celebration but would you ride with me to the Great Oak?” I asked, realizing I sounded like I was pleading. I was, though.
“Morrigan, for you I would ride to the ends of the Earth.” he said as he began to dress.
Chapter 17
Emrys, Brian, Neil and myself set out on horseback to the Great Oak. The horses felt the energy of Samhain and made good time.
Emrys and I dismounted and gave the reins of our horses to Brian and Neil.
“We will need to enter in less than a minute,” Emrys said, looking at me. I know he felt my uneasiness.
Neil hopped from his horse and gave me one last embrace. As he pulled away he cupped my face and with a seriousness I’d never seen from him said, “One year’s time, my love. I will be right here a year from now. I love you.”
I know my eyes teared a little. I didn’t mind Emrys seeing, but thankfully Brian looked away, clearly uncomfortable. I ran my hand through Neil’s hair and said, “One year. I love you.”
“Now, Morrigan,” Emrys said, grabbing my hand.
Then we entered the Great Oak.
We came out into the realm between night and twilight. You could feel the magic in the air. Literally. Goosebumps raised on my skin, though I was not cold. There was no breeze but my hair floated as if I were swimming in a pool. The scent of cherry blossoms filled the air. I looked to the pinkened sky. Every shade of pink I could imagine and possibly a few more swirled, from the softest pink almost faded to white, to a bright magenta. Because of the lighting the grass and trees took on a rich deep purple hue, and a distant pond looked almost black.
I couldn’t believe how light I felt. Like I could fly. Until we started floating, then a panicked look must’ve crossed my face because Emrys laughed.
“I love when I get to surprise you,” he said. Having been there before, he maneuvered himself easily, flying next to me.
“I’ve seen and done a lot of shit but flying?” I know I sounded like a child but even Tuatha have dreams of flying. The freedom of actually doing it was exhilarating.
“You’ll get the hang of it. Pretty cool isn’t it?” He winked. Then he pointed to a distant hill. “We need to cross beyond the ridge. There’s a spot next to a large lake. We’ll find Druantia there.”
I nodded, still amazed that I was flying.
We began slowly until I got the hang of it. I was staying upright, perpendicular to the ground. Emrys leaned forward so he was parallel and I followed. Then we really began to pick up speed. We soared higher up away from the ground. Far higher than the ridge we needed to cross. The distance must’ve been twenty miles but we traveled so quickly we were there in a matter of minutes.
A large tree with pink blossoms grew next to the lake and under it was a woman. Druantia.
We began our descent and she turned to face us. She was beautiful. Tall and lean. Strong. Long chestnut curls tumbled down past her shoulders and there was a crown of antlers upon her head. Her skin was a porcelain I’d only read about but had never seen the likes of. Large, warm brown eyes were trained on Emrys. Her full pink lips smiled in genuine joy at the sight of him. She wore a forest green gown—the color not only complimented her coloring but starkly contrasted the pink and purple hues of the realm. The low cut of the gown revealed an ample bosom and the snugness of it implied long thin legs.
I couldn’t help but glance sideways at Emrys. The Druid looked smitten. Hell, I was smitten at the sight of her. Who could blame him?
“Emrys!” She beamed and embraced him.
He had embraced me thousands of times but not in the way that he embraced Dru
antia. I felt like I was intruding. To make it more awkward Druantia kissed him with a longing that I well understood. I looked in the other direction at the hills. Seriously, I was staring at hills. I would’ve done anything to be able to give them some privacy. Regardless, I was going to be grilling Emrys about their history later, because obviously there was a major backstory that I was not aware of.
Emrys finally pried his lips away and spoke, breaking the silence. “Druantia, this is Morrigan.”
She released Emrys from her grip and then embraced me as if I were her long lost sister.
Her voice was like honey as she spoke. I could feel the magic in it. Though unlike Emrys, it was unintentional. She was just that powerful that she couldn’t hide it. “Morrigan, I feel as though I know you.”
“It’s an honor to meet you,” I managed to say, bowing my head.
“No formality is required here, my dear,” she said, releasing me from her embrace but still holding my hand.
She grabbed Emrys’ with her other hand and led us to the edge of the lake where we all sat on the soft grass. Mixed into the scent of the cherry blossoms I could smell the moisture from the lake. It was quiet and still, like glass. A breeze fluttered over us.
Druantia’s warm eyes stared out over the water. She began, “I get many visitors here. I know many in all the realms. Do you know how many realms there are, Morrigan?”
“Twelve.” I answered, not needing to think. Everyone knew that.
Druantia smiled. “Twelve. Twelve that you know of, yes. There are actually fifty-five.”
My jaw dropped. I looked to Emrys, his face betrayed that he knew this information already.
Druantia continued, “It is only myself and Emrys now that are left of the Druid Council. We were the only ones who knew how many realms there are. We were in your realm when it was still being created. This is what is left of our realm.”
Awakening - The Morrigan Chronicles Page 8
