The rest of the somber company departed. But Edlyn stayed with Dally there by the Elven portal. The Elven queen remained as well, along with one elderly attendant. The sun was hot and the day silent, as though the Ashanta’s preference for quiet reached beyond the distant boundary stones and dominated this borderland.
Dally could not hide her fear over everything the emerald tunnel represented—the surging power of further images, the tornado of confusion to follow, and most of all the loss of control. Not even her mind or heart were hers then. Not even the secret recesses where she had dwelled and yearned and hidden away all the sorrow of being left alone in the world . . .
Edlyn’s voice broke in. “My dear, there is little in your recent history that gives you reason to trust anyone. Much less strangers like us. But I ask that you do just that.” She gave Dally a chance to respond, then went on, “There is clearly something else to your message that troubles you deeply. Something—”
“It’s not the message,” Dally said.
Edlyn folded her hands inside her robes. Her back was impossibly straight, her eyes clear as the sky overhead. “Will you explain that, please?”
Dally struggled over the words. She hated talking about herself like this. Especially to people as powerful and potent as these two women. But their presence indicated an opportunity. And she needed help. Desperately.
The words came in fragments, and finally she stopped mid-sentence. The impossibility of it all stifled her ability to fashion another thought.
Edlyn said, “There are two issues that we must address.”
“Three,” Ainya said quietly. “Or four.”
“Two that must be faced immediately.”
“Either the Ashanta join with us,” Ainya said, “or we face utter ruin at the hands of our dark foe.”
Edlyn tsk-tsked. “We knew that already. Dally’s final vision was merely a punctuation to our fears.”
“Then what . . .”
“Dally has a gift,” Edlyn said. “We must gain a clearer understanding. Else it could well take control and destroy her.”
Dally reached up and gripped her throat, directly over where the gorge rose to choke off her air. The confusion had a name now, the fear a reason to coalesce.
In response, Edlyn reached over and took hold of Dally’s free hand. “Calm, lass. We will solve this together.”
“In case you’ve forgotten,” Ainya exclaimed, “we are on the verge of another battle. Which means time is not our friend.”
Edlyn actually found that a reason to smile. “Forgive me, Majesty. But I have more experience with living in time’s realm. We have hours yet. The army is being positioned. Your husband and his senior officer are discussing tactics with Meda and Shona. This could well be our only time to resolve these issues. And resolve them we must, else this young lady and her gifts might well be lost to us.”
Ainya nodded. “Very well. Direct us.”
“Dally, may I please see the wand Bryna gave you?”
Dally drew it from her belt and handed it over. The stick at its base was thick as her wrist. The gemstone at its peak was almost completely covered with petrified roots.
Edlyn studied it a moment, then passed it to Ainya and said, “Would it be possible to replace the Milantian’s staff with one that represents our aims?”
At a gesture from Ainya, her elderly attendant took hold of the wand and spoke a soft word, and the ancient wood became dust in his hand. When the wand was destroyed, he held the clear glass up to the light and spoke.
Ainya said, “He detects no red force in the jewel.”
“A thousand years in the Ashanta cellars,” Edlyn said. “The taint has been cleansed.”
When Ainya translated, the elder’s only response was to draw the jewel closer to his eye. He spoke softly, causing Ainya to jerk upright.
Edlyn demanded, “What is it?”
“He is certain this is a heartstone.” Ainya took the stone from him and held it to the sun. The elder pointed and spoke, which Ainya translated as, “The jewel has all three signs. The oval shape. Its size is twice as large as most. And there at its heart, see the spark?”
“Remarkable indeed,” Edlyn said.
Ainya handed the jewel back to the elder and spoke softly. He bowed in response and walked back toward the Elven tunnel. She told Edlyn, “I have asked him to craft for us a new wand in the ancient Elven tradition.”
Edlyn watched the elder depart. “What does the heartstone signify?”
“So little is known about heartstones, and almost all of it is legend. Each orb has but one. Before today, only three were known to exist. Two form the center of the Elven crowns. The third is in Hyam’s own wand. What they might do, what extra powers they might hold, we have no idea.”
Dally said, “So that wand . . .”
“Belonged to a senior mage,” Ainya replied. “That much is certain.”
“Everything else must wait,” Edlyn said. “My dear, here is what we know. Your gift of far-seeing is something normally known only to Ashanta.”
“And Hyam,” Ainya added.
“Hyam’s bloodline is a mystery. You are the astonishment, Dally. You are human. Yet you possess an Ashanta power. What is more, your talent takes strongest control when you come in contact with the Elven realm. And an ally within the Ashanta has been called to offer you a treasure they did not even know they possessed.”
The wind strengthened, causing the forest behind them to murmur its agreement. Far overhead, an eagle cried. Otherwise the valley was silent. Listening.
Ainya asked, “What does it mean?”
“Dally represents a hidden link,” Edlyn replied, directing her words at the Elven queen. “We must assume that this is all intended as a message. What this might be, and what her presence represents in our current struggle, and why we have made this contact now, are the questions she must answer.”
Dally jerked back. Not so much from Edlyn’s words as from the spark that surged through her. A resonant force that shook her entire frame. “Why me?”
“That is part of the same question, one which you must commit yourself to understanding.” Edlyn’s gaze penetrated deep. “This defines your quest, my dear. We can offer you aid. We can help you develop your powers. But the quest is yours and yours alone. Refuse it at the peril of all mankind. Fail, and we shall no doubt perish with you.”