“And the man’s name, do you know it?” Una pressed, though she knew the answer before it came.
“Wrath,” said the lady of the castle. The effect of that single word was immediate. Una straightened and took a deep breath, George lifted his weapon unconsciously, and Brit raised a hand to her chin. Only the two guards remained immobile, both of them staring at Brit as though waiting for her to lash out again.
“If he comes you will be in danger,” said Malecasta. “You must leave.”
“Why?” said Brit, looking at each of them in turn. “If he is coming here, should we not face him? Do we not wish to destroy this man?”
“Rarely is confronting a Sin directly a good thing,” said George. “We know little about him, and his power could make us vulnerable. Better to leave and learn what we can.”
“He will already know you are here,” said Malecasta. “He will have felt her anger.” She pointed at Brit. “You must all leave tonight.”
“Perhaps we should consult with the Faerie Queen,” said George to Una.
“If...if you seek to destroy him,” said Malecasta, hesitantly. “I would help you if I can. I do not want his influence here.”
“What can you tell us?” asked Una.
“His coming here is unpredictable. He might be approaching right now, but you could lie in wait for him and never see him arrive. But, I hear he has a home of sorts, a place he goes when he is not terrorizing us and the surrounding villages.”
Brit narrowed her eyes. “How came you by this information?”
“My husband, he knows more, but that is not important. All that matters is that I am willing to help you defeat him if you can.”
Una glanced at the others. It could be a trap. They all knew that. But something about the fear that stood out in Malecasta’s eyes told Una otherwise. She had no doubt the woman was slimy in other ways, but she was no friend of Wrath.
“Where is this place?” Una asked.
“Along the eastern coast,” said Malecasta. “I’m told there is a cave where he came from.”
Una’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Came from? I don’t understand.”
Malecasta paused for a moment, looking as though she was trying to find a way to explain. “It was the place of his emergence, and he goes there now in order to be with others of his kind.”
“There are others there as well?”
“Sometimes,” said Malecasta. “I know little more. Sometimes they are there, and sometimes they are elsewhere, as though they can travel long distances. But many somehow travel through this cave. That is all I know. Perhaps there is a system of tunnels we don’t know about.”
“A breach,” said George, and Una nodded. It matched the description and must have been the one Wrath had come through.
“Do you think the breach is still open?” she asked George.
He shook his head. “If it were, we would have bigger problems right now.”
“A portal to the Shadow Realm then?” That would make sense from what Malecasta had told them of others traveling through this cave. The Shadow Realm was a place similar to Annwyn itself, but also not. It was a place easily accessible by those who had come through the breaches, allowing them to disappear and then reappear at the site of any other breach. Una had encountered one with Guyon on an island off the coast of Anglesey. Guyon had nearly died in the Shadow Realm, but instead he had escaped, nearly destroying the Sin of Greed along the way.
George nodded, “I think that makes sense. I’ve been studying that place recently and it would certainly be possible for him to use as a transportation system.”
“What is this Shadow Realm?” Brit asked.
“A story for another time,” said Una, turning instead to look at Malecasta. “Is there anything else you wish to tell us?”
Once again, she saw a look of hesitation in the woman’s eyes. Una took two steps forward and stooped down until her face was inches away from Malecasta’s. “Tell me.”
“I swear that’s all I know about Wrath,” she said. “If there was more I would tell you.”
Confusingly, this time she appeared to be telling the truth. As someone who had spent years taking on different personas in order to get what she wanted, Una could spot a lie when she saw it, and she saw nothing here. If there was something Malecasta was holding back, it wasn’t about Wrath.
“Very well,” she said. “We will leave and try to find this cave.”
Malecasta nodded, taking a few quick breaths as though she had been holding one in.
“But if you have deceived us,” said Una, making sure to lock eyes with the lady. “We will return here, and you will regret ever meeting us.”
“I already do,” said Malecasta softly.
Una straightened, then glanced at Brit and George. “I suppose we should gather our things.”
“That is fine with me,” said Brit. “I no longer wish to enjoy the hospitality of this place.”
George only nodded and retreated back into his room.
11
An hour later they were all clothed in their travel gear again, with both George and Brit donning much of their armor. An hour after that they had saddled their horses, and Malecasta provided them with provisions for their journey. Una had been willing to just leave without anything but that which they brought on arrival, but Brit had insisted Malecasta ‘owed’ them for such a lack of hospitality. Una refrained from pointing out that it was Brit who almost ran Malecasta through. Thinking of it that way, the lady of the castle was doing them a kindness they did not deserve.
They exited the castle and traveled for several hours before deciding they had gone far enough. After all, none of them had slept long, and they were all still tired from their battles and journeys the day before. Add to that the fact that the light of dawn was still several hours away.
They settled down for the remainder of the night, though they lit no fire. Even though they were some distance from the castle at this point, the last thing any of them wanted to do was attract attention. If Wrath was near, as Malecasta had surmised, it was best to keep a low profile.
When they awoke the next morning, the sun was already high in the sky.
“Remind me,” began George as he stood up and stretched. “Never to go back to that place again.”
Una huffed in agreement, but Brit remained oddly calm. She said nothing as they arose, gathered all their things and untied the horses so they could have a moment to graze.
Una couldn’t help but stare at Brit whenever she wasn’t looking. There was something different between them now, and she couldn’t help but wonder why the Faerie Queen had asked her to accompany the Armorican knight. Gloriana had claimed that she would be in danger if she left Brit’s side, but what if Brit was the danger? Of course, Wrath was nearby, and who knew what kind of influence he could have on any of them. They would all have to be on their guard. But that influence had obviously affected Brit more than the rest of them. Una and George hadn’t felt a thing.
Perhaps there was more going on here, or Brit was simply prone to fits of anger. Maybe Una was meant to accompany Brit in order to save her from her own emotions.
“Are you coming with us?” Una asked George as they gathered the horses.
“For now, I think,” he said. “I received no further instructions by the Faerie Queen in my dreams. But that could change at any time. Still, I have nowhere else I’d rather be.” He flashed a smile at her, and she couldn’t help but blush just a little.
“Good,” said Brit, speaking for the first time that morning. “I do not wish to be delayed in finding Artegall.”
George raised an eyebrow at Brit, and Una thought she saw recognition in his eyes at the mention of the name Artegall, but he said nothing, so Una didn’t pry.
“I think a more pressing matter might be the Sin of Wrath,” said Una. “After last night, it’s clear he has great influence, and I imagine we’ll run into him sooner rather than later. We need to be prepared.”
“Yes,” said Britomart. “But we do not know exactly where he is either. So we search for two people, Artegall and Wrath. Whoever we find first is who we deal with.”
“So where do we go next?” asked George.
“We continue to where the river empties into the sea to search for the cave that vile woman spoke about,” replied Brit. “If we find nothing there, we continue north until we reach Lindum Colonia.”
George nodded as though that made reasonable sense. Together they saddled the horses and Una got on behind George. She wasn’t a big fan of riding, but it would seem a waste to walk when they had two horses, and she didn’t mind riding with George. There was something rather comforting about wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning into him. She was content to stay that way for some time.
“Britomart,” said George as they rode, apparently uncomfortable with the silence. “Why exactly did you decide to become a knight? There aren’t...well, that is to say, there aren’t many...um…”
“Women knights?” said Brit. Una waited for an outburst, but surprisingly none came. Brit remained quite calm, the polar opposite of how she had behaved the night before. “It is a long story. I search for my ‘true love’ Artegall, so I can kill him.”
George seemed taken aback. “Kill him? What for?”
So Brit went on to relate the brief story of how she had seen Artegall in a magic mirror given to her family by Merlin. George listened with interest, but when she was finished, he couldn’t help but ask, “But killing Artegall seems rather...well rather extreme.”
“It is the only way I can be sure the vision will not come to pass.”
“Yes, but couldn’t you, I don’t know, just avoid him?”
She glanced at him, “I cannot trust that to work. After all, you know how fickle love can make a person. The two of you have hardly known each other and already you’re wide-eyed and dumb.”
“It’s…” George sputtered. “It’s not like that, the two of us...well we spent some time together and…”
“You see,” said Brit waving a hand. “Wide-eyed and dumb.”
Una couldn’t help but smirk. Brit had a small point. But something she said had interested her. “You think you could be in love with this Artegall?”
“I think nothing,” said Brit. “I beware the mirror’s vision, it is not to be taken lightly.”
“And just why don’t you want to fall in love with this Artegall?” asked George. “From what I hear, he’s an honorable man. You could do far worse than to have him as your husband.”
“You know of Artegall,” said Brit, suddenly reigning her horse in. George quickly followed suit, though Pegasus overshot Brit a little so he had to bring him around to look at Brit properly.
“Well, I’ve heard of him,” said George. Una nodded, remembering the knowing look George had worn early.
“Where can he be found?” said Brit sharply. “If you have known this whole time I will ensure you never…”
But George was raising both hands, defensively. “I swear I don’t know where he is. Though if I did, you don’t think I would tell someone who plans to murder him, do you?”
Brit huffed. “Tell me what you know?”
“I know he is an honorable man. He’s a wandering knight, like myself and Sir Guyon. He isn’t tied to any one lord, though I suspect he may serve the Faerie Queen like myself. That’s why I don’t know where he is.”
“You do not know the whereabouts of the other servants of your Faerie Queen?” said Brit with narrowed eyes.
“I know only that which the Faerie Queen tells me,” said George. “And only she knows the whereabouts of all her servants.”
Brit sniffed. “Perhaps I need to have another talk with this Faerie Queen. She said nothing of her connection to Artegall the last time we spoke.”
“That sounds like her,” Una cut in. “Withholding information is exactly her style.”
“I will say,” said George, choosing his words carefully. “That he has been known to be seen in this area, often among the Saxons. He is one of them after all. But unlike many of the Faerie Queen’s knights, he sometimes travels undercover. It may be hard to find him.”
“You will let me deal with that,” said Brit, heeling her horse forward again.
“I caution you,” said George, not yet following as Brit’s horse rode past him. “Anger and violence against an innocent person will never lead to anything good.”
“I am not angry,” said Brit. “I am only practical. I wish to maintain my own destiny, and if this Artegall stands in the way, he must be removed. Besides, he is, as you say, a Saxon.”
George sighed, and Una patted him on the back, speaking softly so only he could hear. “Don’t bother, I’m pretty sure she’s set in her ways.”
“But you know, if she ends up finding this Artegall, we can’t let her kill an innocent man.”
“I know,” said Una. “You can let me deal with that. The Faerie Queen asked me to stay with her. Perhaps it was so I could stop her from doing something she might regret.”
George nodded, as though that made sense. “Well I’ll stay as long as I can to help with that, but there’s no way of knowing when the Faerie Queen might call me away.”
“Couldn’t you just, not answer her call?”
“I must obey her command,” he said. “Even if it goes against something I want.”
Una shook her head silently, not bothering to push the point. She was reasonably certain that there was a line even George wouldn’t cross for the Faerie Queen, a point where he would choose to disobey her. But Una didn’t care to argue, and there was no point in debating hypotheticals.
George kicked Pegasus forward, and together they caught up with Brit and her horse. They had entered a lightly forested area, which sloped down on their right side into the river, Nene. It was the very same river that flowed close to Castle Silene. Una couldn’t help but stare at it for some time, feeling a strange longing reach her. It wasn’t a longing for her old home, or was it? Why would she ever want to go back there after the betrayal of her parents? All the memories she had of them that ultimately led to nothingness, to death and destruction.
But she had to admit, there were good memories there too: memories of learning to hunt with her father, of learning courtly etiquette with her mother. Neither of them had been harsh to her. As their only child, she had been nurtured and adored, with no way of knowing from their behavior that they secretly wanted to open up a portal to the Otherworld.
Una shook her head to clear it. She needed more answers. Too much about her past remained hidden, and the Faerie Queen was not helping. Perhaps she could lay hold of this mirror that Brit had used, or better yet, find Merlin and make him tell her what he knew. He was also of the old blood after all.
“Brit,” she said after several minutes of riding in silence. “You mentioned once that you actually went and visited Merlin. Could you tell me where he is?”
“It is far from here, in the other direction,” Brit said with a wave of her hand.
“And I doubt he stays in any one place for too long,” added George.
“Tis true,” said Brit, nodding her head.
Una shook her head in frustration. “Well, could you tell me more about how you came to meet him?”
“There is not much to tell.”
“I’d like to hear it anyway.”
Brit shrugged. “If it will entertain you on our journey, I suppose I can tell you. But do not interrupt,” she added, sharply. “Merlin is not one to be found easily. As the tall one said, some days he is here, and others he is there. Everyone we asked said we could not find him, but that he would find us if it was important enough to him.”
“‘We’?” asked Una. “Who else was with you?”
“My old nurse, Glauce. She was the first to notice that something was wrong with me after viewing Artegall in the mirror. And...it was her idea to dress as a knight, not mine. We needed disguises, you see, and n
o one would know I was a woman if I was covered in armor. We traveled for a very long time, all the way across your country to its western tip.”
Una nodded. That sounded like Cornwall.
“It was there that we searched, for we had heard that Merlin sometimes had dealings with your people there.”
George was also nodding. “And that’s near where Uther Pendragon had his seat of power. Everyone knows Merlin was Uther’s advisor.”
“I said do not interrupt!” Brit raised her voice. George kept silent and Brit watched him for a moment before speaking again. “We were directed towards a place called Merlin’s cave, near the old fortress of Tintagel. We were told if he was near, we would have a chance at finding him there.”
“And did you?” asked Una, leaning forward a little.
Brit frowned at her, as if to say that Una shouldn’t interrupt her story either. But maybe it was the earnestness in Una’s eyes that kept Brit from reprimanding her.
“No, we did not.”
Una’s shoulders slumped.
“Not for many weeks.”
That caught Una’s attention. Suddenly she was all ears. If this cave was to be found in Cornwall, she would have to find it. If Brit had success there, maybe she would too. Though Cornwall was admittedly, quite a distance from here. And Brit had been right, it was exactly in the opposite direction they were heading now.
Brit continued her story, “We were about to leave, to search for Merlin elsewhere, or perhaps to sail home and never come back. But I did not like the idea of running, so we stayed one more day. That was the day he came. It was like hearing voices from beyond, from my past and my future, from my mothers and fathers who came before me, and my children who would come after. I woke and knew he had found me at last.
“I arose from where Glauce and I had made camp inside the cave, but though I tried to wake her she would not open her eyes. Then I heard a voice. It called my name, and when I turned, I saw him. Merlin. The man I had come all that way to see. He wasn’t as I expected. He was old, but young at the same time. Though his body was strong, his eyes carried an age far beyond what any mortal vessel can hold. It was the first time I felt I was in the presence of a power greater than my own.”
Knight Spellbound Page 8
