“What does that mean?” I asked confused. “Cyn said he is the only one that has ever had that power.”
Grandpa nodded. “It means you were made from the same essence. You are soul mates. That is why you can feel each other and why you have the same magic. You belong together and now that you have bonded. You will only become more powerful. You have been destined to be together.”
We had bonded?? My cheeks began to burn while my eyes fell on Cyn’s face. He had told him we had sex? Oh he was so dead. Suddenly, the embarrassment faded and I realized there was something more important in his statement. Cyn’s eyes looked baffled just like mine had become. I looked at Grandpa.
“What do you mean destined Grandpa? Cyn is an immortal and I am not.” I stopped for a moment. Cyn was an immortal and I was not. My heart squeezed from the realization. It took me a moment to recognize that grandpa wasn’t answering my question. I swallowed. My throat instantly became dry.
“Grandpa, He is immortal and I am not, right?”
When his gaze finally raised to mine there was guilt in his eyes. “I performed the Banna Síoraí rite when you turned eighteen. You are immortal.”
“Oh sweet mother of…” I said gasping and rose from the sofa, walking away from him. I covered my mouth from the shock and stood by the window. I stared blankly at it while my mind tried to process. My heart slammed against my chest, so hard it almost hurt. My hands began to tremble and my mind rushed with the implications. I whirled around.
“Did my feelings or wishes ever matter to you? You made me immortal without my consent, or even asking me if that was the kind of life I wanted. What if Cyn had never found me?” my heart suffered another rip when realization dawned on me. “You never planned on telling me the truth, did you Grandpa? If it weren’t for this, I would have never known. And what would you have said when I turned thirty and realized I wasn’t aging? Would you really have let me live my life without knowing what was happening to me? What if you were already gone by then? Would you really have left me alone for the rest of eternity after you died?” I asked feeling devastated. “How could you do this?” I turned around rushing to the stairs.
“I can’t be here right now,” I said running up the stairs as the tears fell freely from my eyes.
“No, sweetheart. Please, I’m sorry. I was only trying to protect you. I am sorry!” Grandpa cried after me.
I didn’t stop. I burst through the door of my room and ran to the window. I kneeled on the floor picking up Cyn’s portal stones. My hands trembled. I closed my eyes thinking of the Cherry Blossom clearing and begged between sobs.
“Please open. Please… I can’t be here. Please,” Cyn’s warm hands covered mine and I broke down as he took the stones from me. He threw them in the air and the portal began to form. His arms wrapped around me and I held on to him for dear life. We stepped through it. He sat with his back to the cherry tree and placed me in his lap. He embraced me tightly against him. I hid my face in the crook of his necked and cried.
*
CYNWRIG
I could feel her sorrow scorching my insides. I watched the tears slide down her face even in her sleep. She had fallen asleep in my arms while crying in the Cherry Blossom clearing. I gently fixed the pillow under her head and covered her with the blanket. I kissed her lips and walked out of the room. When I reached the bottom of the stairs I found Mo meantóir sitting on the sofa. The man before me was a broken man and I felt his heartache. His eyes were red from crying and his hands were tightly clasped on his lap. His lips moved as he repeated something over and over again. He was praying. I sat beside him and took his hands in mine bringing them to my lips. I kissed them.
“She will be alright. She will understand.”
He shook his head. “She will never forgive me.”
“She shall. She needs time to comprehend. She knows you love her and what you have done, you have done out of concern for her.”
His lost gaze fell on mine. “I needed her to be safe. I had to protect her.”
“I know, Mo meantóir,” I answered and my gaze went to the stairs. “It is possible I would have done the same. There is nothing on this earth I would not do for her.”
He held my hands fiercely and held my gaze. The determination became clear, in his previously vague eyes.
“No you don’t understand, Mo mhac. Long before your time, one of the Ovates announced a new era. There would be a time when a High Priestess would walk among us and guide our people into the next life.”
“A Priestess? But there has never been such a thing. Our leader has always been the first son of the high priest for a woman has never been born of the blessed family. Only Men. Only High Priests,” I said startled by his statement.
“A woman has never been procreated from a blessed family,” he said in agreement. “We always believed that was the way our Earth Mother Goddess wanted it to be. But the Ovate prophesied there would come a time for a Priestess. Her power would be like no other. Her gentleness and purity, would be unrivaled by any High Priest before her. But she would have the heart and strength of a warrior. Our people would follower her blindly, like a hive would its Queen Bee. She would lead us into true peace.”
I shook my head not able to fully understand, “Did any other Ovate see this?”
He shook his head. “Not before you were born, Mo mhac. For many years we thought she had been mistaken. That it was a man we would welcome into the Order. When your time came and I realized the power you held…when I saw your heart. The heart and strength of a warrior.”
He trailed off as though willing me to heed his words. My eyes widened when I realized his meaning.
“You thought I was the High Priest from the prophecy. The one the Ovate had seen. That is why you trained me and made me a Druid. That is why I became the first Druid Warrior.” I pushed my hands through my hair desperately trying to process his confession.
“Mo mhac,” He called pulling me back to the present. “The title of High Priest was never meant to fall on Gildas after my passing, I meant to give it to you.”
I struggled for breath while I looked at him. I tried to grasp his words but there was too much emotion inside me for my thoughts to clear.
“After Eisha was born, her mother Venetia had a new vision. The baby had barely been taken from her womb when the trance began. It lasted three days. When she returned from it, she confessed to me that she had seen not one but two. A High Priest and a Priestess. They shared one half of the same essence. The same soul. They harnessed the same power, and had the same destiny. Once they bonded, their powers would become one and they would complete each other. Balance each other. One to be firm, one to forgive, One to love, one to protect. Ying and Yang.”
“Two sides of the same coin.” I repeated Eisha’s words, bewildered.
“Venetia had been the strongest Ovate we ever had. Still I didn’t fully understand her vision. Neither did she. We never shared it with anyone. She only told me. There was no way to know which vision was true. When Brina was only three years old she began to display signs of power. One day while we were playing at the park bees surrounded her. Any baby would have been afraid but the bees didn’t mean her any harm. I noticed there was a Beehive on the tree above us. The full swarm had exited their hive just to go to her. She began to play with them and they followed her as she ran and jumped on the sand box. I realized then her spirit animal was the Queen Bee. Just like the Ovate had first announced. Her powers began to manifest very similarly to yours. However by this point I already thought you to be dead. So I believed the first vision to be the right one. Now that you two are together I believe both were true. One just saw half of it.”
My head instantly cleared. There was no uncertainty, or confusion anymore. She was mine and I was hers. I was meant to protect her. We would lead our people together into whatever destiny was set for us. And I would make sure to be anything she needed me to be, to help her achieve it.
After checking on my Go
ddess one last time, I decided it was best to return home and come back later to be with her.
“She is still asleep, Mo meantóir. She was tearful in her sleep. I did a blessing to help her rest. Would you like to come with me to the village? Eisha and Art must know about you. They deserve to learn you are well. Our people would rejoice from your return.”
He shook his head with a pained gaze. “You were right about one thing, Mo mhac. The High Priest is dead. I am all that remains. Don’t take the memory of that man away from them. I am not worthy anymore.”
I fell to one knee before him and placed my hand above my heart. I looked straight into his eyes.
“You are wrong. I know life has not dealt you an easy path, but you have walked it nonetheless. You have kept Brina safe and done what was best for her. You did the same for me when I was but a child. No one could ever have the heart that lives in you. No one will ever be able to stand in your shadow. You are the great Nels Anwell. You are our Ard Sagart.”
CHAPTER 17. DISTRESSED
CYNWRIG
I walked through village alone. The dim light of the rising moon illuminated my steps. Mo meantóir had refused to return with me. I felt the weight of the burden he carried, his pain as if it was my own. He had sacrificed many things for her. Nevertheless, looking at his actions I could say only one thing for certain. Without a shadow of a doubt, I would have done the same.
I knocked on Eisha’s door to check on her. She had gone into a trance after the dinner with my Goddess. After what occurred last night and this morning, I had not been able to come back and see if she was well. My heart was troubled by what had happened. What I had learned. I knocked on the door and heard Art’s distressed voice instructing me to enter. Confused, I pushed the door open and my eyes widened when I took in the sight before me. Art was holding Eisha close, her body was limp in his arms.
“Hurry Brother, I need you.”
I rushed to their side and realized Eisha’s eyes were glowing.
“Has she not come out of the trance since last night, Brother?” I asked alarmed and Art shook his head, the anguish clear in his eyes.
“I have tried everything but she’s not responding to the spell. And she cries and screams sporadically.”
I sat next to her deeply concerned. Her body trembled but not from cold as it was expected. Her skin was flushed and sweat covered every inch. I took her hand and it felt like pure heat. She had a fever.
“No! No… let her go!”
Her voice startled me, tears spilled from her glowing eyes.
I looked at Art and noticed his eyes welling with tears of his own. He took a wet cloth and dried her cheeks then wiped her forehead. I placed one hand above her heart and one on her temple.
“Be at peace a chara, it has not happened yet. We are with you. You are safe. I will let nothing happen to you. I give you my word,” My hands glowed on her body and the fever instantly began to recede. The trembling gradually disappeared, her body calming. I sighed and placed a hand on my brother’s shoulder. “I will stay with her if you wish to rest for a moment.”
His pained gaze found mine. “I’m not leaving her side.”
I nodded. “Very well, then I shall remain with you. Have you eaten anything today brother?”
He shook his head. “I’m not hungry,” his gaze returned to her face. He dipped the cloth in the water once more and wiped her face and neck.
“I shall make you something nonetheless,” I stood and walked to the kitchen.
“Please let her go. Please… She has nothing to do with this… No!”
My brother and I exchanged a worried glance while Eisha’s cries continued. The short hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. That plea had been deeply unsettling. I prayed we never had to hear it again.
The sunlight spilled through the window, partially illuminating Eisha’s hut. Her cries and screams had continued as the night progressed. I had accomplished to pull her out of the vision for a short period in two occasions. Yet she had not regained consciousness. Her body had scarcely rested before the trance successfully pulled her under once again. Art had remained by her side, unwavering. And I had remained by his. My body was tense and weary yet I had no intention of leaving. It had never been this way for her. This was the very thing she had feared for centuries, what her mother had suffered before passing. Nonetheless, I would not allow anything to happen to her. She was a sister to me. I would keep her safe.
I took a deep breath ignoring the calling. My Goddess’ energy stirred inside me, the connection begging me to go to her side. To hold her and be with her, but I knew she was sleeping and well. Her essence had been too distressed when I last saw her, The resting spell I had provided, would allow her to fully rest. She should not wake up until the morning when she would go to work. With any luck, a chara would be back and well by then. Mo meantóir was with my Goddess. I had nothing to concern myself about. Although I wanted to be with her, I knew she would be alright. Eisha needed me. My brother needed me. In this moment, I had to stay here for them.
My eyes settled on Eisha. The pain inside me grew seeing her distressed state and I wondered what else would we be forced to endure? Her cries, her implores were dreadfully real. I feared what she was witnessing. Whatever it was, it must be particularly imperative that she witness it or the trance would have ended by now.
Mo meantóir, my mind returned to the events that transpired yesterday morning. Everything I had learned. My Goddess was the only woman ever to be born of a blessed family. And destined to be with me. Destined to be the first High Priestess the Order of the Druids had ever seen. I regarded my brother for a moment and considered whether or not to tell him. Seeing Eisha like this was torturing him. I decided this was not the time. I took the water bowl and cloth to wash and replenish. I began to walk to the kitchen when a jarring scream filled the air. My head snapped towards Eisha at the same instant her back arched on the bed.
“Nooo!” She yelled. Her body began to convulse.
Throwing the bowl to the floor I rushed to her and placed my hands on her chest once more. Art’s arms held her. He desperately tried to stabilize her body. I could not let anything happen to her.
“From my essence to yours I beg for your protection,
Let her mind calm and the dream end.
Let her fall into a deep rest where no bad spirits shall burden her.
Nothing can hurt her there.
Let it be as it once was and fill her essence with joy,
And when she awakens,
Let her eyes gaze into mine with peace.
From my essence to yours I beg for your protection,
Let her mind calm and the dream end….”
I repeated the prayer over and over while the convulsions continued. Art’s eyes were on mine, fiercely begging me to break the trance.
“I cannot lose her.”
His plea was but a whisper yet it reached every part of me. His eyes filled with tears.
“She will be alright Brother, I have given her my word and now I give it to you. She will be alright.”
I continued to pray. My hands glowed while the healing magic transferred from me to her, invading her whole body. After a couple of minutes, she began to calm and the convulsions stopped. Her eyes ceased to glow and closed as she fell into a deep rest. I sighed relieved but wondered how long it would last. I placed my hand on Art’s shoulder, my grip reassuring.
“It is alright Brother. She is resting now, she should for at least a while.”
He nodded still looking at her. “Thank you Brother,” he leaned in and kissed her forehead, a tear escaped his eyes. He lay down next to her, and pulled her to him, her head rested on his chest. His eyes closed while whispering. “Everything will be alright Mo sgòthan. You are safe.”
*
BRIANA.
I woke up rested and refreshed although my heart felt tired and ached. There were so many things from Grandpa’s confession that haunted me. It was filled wit
h the one emotion I never thought I would feel for Grandpa. Hurt. I had tried to hear his reasons. Tried to process the information as logically as I could, I was a lawyer after all. But somewhere along “I did it all to protect you” and “You are immortal,” my subconscious had said screw it, and the drama began. I just couldn’t wrap my mind around, how he thought never telling me the truth would be acceptable. It was too late for that though. The truth was out and what was done was done. There wasn’t much I could do now, but try and make sense of all of this and try to find a way to cope with who I was.
“Brina Anwell.”
I sighed and got up from the bed.
“I wish Cyn was here. What time is it?” I asked noticing the colors of the sunset paint the horizon. I reached for my phone and fell on the bed. It was Sunday evening. 6:25pm to be exact. Had I slept since yesterday afternoon? I must have been emotionally exhausted because I couldn’t even remember falling asleep. The image of Cyn and I in the Cherry Blossom clearing crossed my mind.
“I must have fallen asleep in his arms.”
The worst part was I hadn’t even eaten in a day and a half and I wasn’t really hungry. I got up again and headed to the bathroom. I began walking through the hallway, and froze. The sound of a door opening reached me and I took a deep breath turning to look at Grandpa. My eyes watered the moment they caught his face. Unlike me he looked so tired. I doubted he had slept.
“I love you Grandpa, and that will never change. But I’m afraid I’m not ready to talk to you just yet.” A tear ran down my cheek and I wiped it with the back of my hand. His expression was pained but he nodded and went back into his room. My heart broke. I hated feeling like the bad guy, but I was hurt damn it. He had hurt me. He lied to me. Kept so many things from me that I wasn’t sure he would even tell me if Cyn hadn’t come into my life. Another tear fell while I stared at his closed door. I sighed and went into the bathroom.
An hour later I stepped out of the bathroom. Pruned hands and all. The bath hadn’t really helped much. I braided my wet hair and walked back into my room with every intention of going back to bed. My phone beeped and I recognized the sound I had set up for Lia. I reached for it and read the message. My stomach dropped.
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