CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN

CYWEN

Cywen found Brina sitting on a tree stump with the giant book open upon her lap. She looked up as Cywen approached and smiled, her face drawn with deep lines.

“This book,” Brina said, tapping the ancient pages, “may have the answer.”

“Answer?” said Cywen. She had given the book to Brina upon her return to the camp, and Brina had shown a rare display of excitement at having it back. Since then, though, Brina had become more and more irritable. Until now.

“Yes. To the war. It hints at something. A spell…” She closed the book with a snap. “Where’s Corban?”

“He’s just returned to camp, back from a raid on Nathair and Lothar.”

“Come on,” Brina said, jumping to her feet, and marching off through the camp, which was full of activity, a band of a hundred or so leaving to begin a fresh raid on Nathair and Lothar’s warbands. Coralen had split the camp so that there was always some kind of assault on the enemy, giving them no respite. Even so, Cywen had heard that the road was still moving steadily towards Drassil.

They found Corban pulling on his breeches after washing in a stream. He was bare-chested, bruises mottling his ribs, a long gash down one forearm. Gar and Farrell were with him, tending to their own collection of wounds.

“I’ll look at that,” Cywen said, moving to inspect Corban’s arm.

“Can we destroy the starstone dagger?” Brina asked as she marched up.

“No,” he said.

“How do you know?”

“Well,” Corban blinked, brow furrowing. “Meical told me.”

Brina gave him a long hard stare and waited for that response to sink in. Corban reached to his belt and pulled the dagger from its sheath, turning it in his grip. They all bent close to stare at it, the blade dull and black.

“We need someone big and strong to hit it,” Cywen said.

“Balur,” Corban called out.

The giant didn’t answer or appear.

“I’ll have a go,” Farrell said, sliding his war-hammer from his back. “Put it on that rock.”

Corban did, and Farrell swung his hammer high, bringing it down with all of his prodigious strength. There was a concussive boom and Farrell’s war-hammer bucked high into the air, dragging Farrell staggering backwards. The starstone dagger remained upon the rock, completely unmarked.

“Maybe you didn’t hit it hard enough,” Cywen said.

Farrell scowled at her. “Tell that to my wrists.”

“A forge?” Gar suggested. “Perhaps we could melt it.”

Footsteps sounded and Balur One-Eye emerged through the trees, Veradis with him. Balur looked from Farrell to the starstone dagger.

“You can’t destroy the Treasures while they are apart,” he said.

“How do you know?” Brina asked him.

“We tried hard enough with the cauldron in Murias,” Balur answered. “I spent a long time pounding it with my war-hammer. No. The Treasures must be together, and even then Nemain told me that only words of power would unmake them.”

“Unmaking,” Brina whispered.

“Aye, that is what Nemain called it,” Balur replied.

“Looks like Meical told you the truth, then,” Brina said to Corban.

“This time,” Corban agreed, a hint of bitterness edging his voice.

Meical’s betrayal cut you deep, my brother, Cywen thought.

“Well, my thanks,” Brina said, picking up the dagger and passing it back to Corban. “This has been most helpful. One more question, Ban.”

“Aye.”

“Your visits to the Otherworld. How do you get there?”

Corban shrugged. “Meical has called me, somehow. Like a summons, I think. And sometimes I just…” He frowned. “I don’t know. There have definitely been times when I have been there without Meical’s call. But how? The last time I was there, Meical told me that I am drawn to the Otherworld.”

“Could you go there, at will?” Brina asked.

Corban shrugged.

“Think, because that could prove very helpful,” Brina said.

“I will think on it,” Corban murmured, looking as if he already was.

Brina walked away, calling Cywen after her. She followed, then heard Veradis say something to Corban and hesitated.

“I would speak to you, of Nathair,” Veradis said.

“Aye,” Corban answered slowly. “Go on, then.”

“Fidele left to try and reason with him. She believed he could be reasoned with.”

“Didn’t you already try that?” Corban asked coldly.

“I did, but I was too shocked, and Calidus was close. He is the true villain here, the deceiver and manipulator. And Nathair is far from him, now, away from his influence.”

“Calidus is the head of the snake,” Gar said, “and it was Calidus who slew Gwenith.”

“I know that well,” Corban growled. “Calidus is the true enemy here, but every king has his battlechief, and that is what Nathair is to him.”

“Nathair has been deceived and manipulated,” Veradis repeated.

“As were you,” Corban said. “But now you and Nathair both know the truth, and yet you are here, and Nathair is not.”

Veradis hung his head, Cywen seeing the pain in the warrior’s eyes.

“Nathair knows the truth, and has made his choice,” Corban continued.

“And if Nathair chose to renounce the path he’s on? Chose to stand here, before you, and ask your forgiveness?” Veradis whispered.

Corban stared at Veradis in silence.

“Would you forgive him?”

“He slew my da.”

“He did. As I have slain many while I was deceived. Deaths that I deeply regret. You speak of truth and courage. Forgiveness can be the greatest act of courage.”

The silence lengthened.

“Cywen!” Brina called, making Cywen jump and sending her running after the healer. She caught up with her in the shadow of a great oak, a fire-pit dug before it, a pot hanging suspended over the flames. Brina was prodding at the embers, the giant book open on the ground. As Cywen skidded to a stop, Brina stood and drew a knife from her belt, a look on her face Cywen had never seen before: dread and determination mingled.

Brina put the knife to her thumb and cut a red line, blood dripping into the pot.

“What are you doing?” Cywen whispered, something about the scene sending ice down her spine.

“Learning,” Brina said. “Starting small, with just the pricking of my thumb. But if we are going to do this, we will need a lot more blood.”

“Do what?” Cywen asked.

Brina gave her a long, sad look.

“Master the spell of Unmaking,” she said.