The story begins – a point of time many years earlier.
Sadie stood on the garden step looking out over the fields behind their house. She laughed, the soft musical sound floating through the air, as she watched her cousin trying to catch a fish from the little stream that wound its way through the fields towards the wood. As she watched the younger child play she noticed a blackbird swoop down just over her head. With delight she followed its flight only to realise it seemed to be struggling, one wing not working as well as it should. Her warm heart filled with concern and she set off across the field to follow the bird and see where it might crash land. Her cousin, Robbie, set off after her though he was struggling to keep up on his smaller legs.
"Uncle Tewy said downt leave the gwass"
"Then go back to the garden" Sadie called back as she kept running.
"But Uncle Tewy said ..." Robbie trailed off as he stopped to catch his breath and looked forlornly after his cousin.
Sadie glanced over her shoulder and sighing walked back. Scooping Robbie up in her arms she carried him towards where the bird had gone "we will just check it is okay! Alright?"
"Owkay" Robbie quietly replied with a smile as he leaned his head against her shoulder.
As they entered the forest Sadie looked around in wonder. Everything was so beautiful. She ran one hand across the soft leaves of the bushes and breathed in the scent of the lilac that grew by the wooden bases of the ancient trees. Holding Robbie tight with one arm she then found he was slipping so she quickly bought her other hand back to keep from dropping him. She heard noises further down the path and set off in the direction. Chatting to Robbie about how the blackbird must have been alright because she could not see him anywhere. Robbie was sleepily and barely paid attention to her chatter as he drifted off leaning against her.
Sadie was not entirely sure what happened next. One moment she was stopping beside a tree to catch her breath and the next her entire body was filled with agony. She fell to her knees dropping Robbie as she did so. She could hear his soft cries and the echoing sound of a childish scream which she realized must be her own. She closed her eyes tight and just prayed it would be over soon. After what felt like hours but was no more than a few moments the pain stopped. Opening her eyes Sadie looked around and realized she was surrounded by a group of woman clad in red leather – the Mord' Sith.
The one directly in front of her, a blonde, was holding Robbie under one arm. The small boy was kicking and screaming but the woman was ignoring him. As though he was worth nothing more than the clothes he wore. She was holding her ageil in the other hand. Sadie knew about such things, her Ma had told her the stories. But her Pa had always told her they were imaginary stories made up to scare her. How could he have lied to her? Maybe if he had let her believe the stories she never would have wondered into the woods all alone, except for Robbie. But right now she could not think about that.
"Put him down" Sadie demanded as she shakily managed to get to her feet, her features set in a frown before she added in a wavering tone "please put him down?"
"Now tell me, who is going to make me? More importantly, why should I?" the blonde replied in an amused tone with a cruel smirk spreading across her beautiful features.
"Because he is not ... I mean ... you have to" Sadie falteringly insisted with a nod to emphasise her point, though that still hurt with the lingering after effects of what she could now assume was the power of the ageil.
The blonde remain silent and then encircling Robbie's ankle with one leather clad hand she dangled him upside down. With her other hand she bought her ageil so it was a mere half an inch away from the young boy's leg. Robbie looked pleadingly at his cousin; his eyes open wide with horror, as he begged her to do something. Too tired to struggle any more he depended entirely on her to save him. Sadie bit down on her lower lip and felt tears gathering in her eyes as she realized just how helpless they were. Looking around the circle of Mord' Sith she remained motionless.
"Well as you clearly need some incentive to 'stop me' I am going to offer you the chance" the blonde announced clearly as she nodded at the brunette beside her. A dagger landed in the dirt beside Sadie. Then one of the Mord' Sith, one who looked the youngest of the group, kneeled down in front of Sadie and closed her eyes. "Stab her, and we will leave you and your family alone. Stab her and this will all go away. Stab her and you can go back to your pathetic little life ... just fine."
Sadie shook her head and mouthed the word "no" in a choked voice. She did not take her eyes off Robbie. But somehow she knew she could not bring herself to stab the girl in front of her. She was another human being. The tears flowed down Sadie's cheeks faster as she moved towards the dagger before sharply stopping and shaking her head again. She could never do it and everyone there knew it. Of course, how was she to know that is why she had been chosen? Her heart ached at the suffering of even the most inhuman of people – even at the age of ten. This choice would come back to haunt her in years to come. A choice her two year old cousin would never forget as long as he lived.
What happened next was a blur again. Sadie felt pain like she had never felt before. She did not even notice the blonde closing the gap between her cousin's leg and the ageil. No she was too focussed on the agonizing pain spreading through her own body, as the young Mord' Sith she had been told to stab using her own ageil on Sadie's tender flesh. She did not even have the strength to scream, even when the pain stopped, and swaying she slumped. The world went black. But even as she fainted she was left with the tormenting sound of her cousins screams and the sharp sound of one of the Mord' Sith scolding him. That was the last time Sadie ever saw her cousin alive.