Chapter Nineteen –
Night, and Yet We Do Not Sleep
It was late at night, even in the ever-living city of the faeries: Avalennon. However, though this was true, a shimmering glow could be seen emitting from the stained-glass windows of the Chamber of Meeting, telling of the presence of someone within.
The Chamber of Meeting – a tall, rounded structure amidst the other towers and pinnacles of the legendary fortress – was where the Lord Orandor and, often, the Lady Vahlada went to correspond with their most trusted and important associates. Tonight, only Orandor himself was present: he stood in a ring of three raised platforms, facing inwards to the two seemingly ghostly, almost transparent figures that were before him.
A secret council was ensuing among the three of them.
"…She has gone, and he after her. Only too late have I concluded, now that things have gone beyond my power to help, that the Lord Valdeth was indeed far from what he had named himself to be. He was no friend, and certainly should have never been trusted," the youngest and tallest of the trio finished saying.
Orandor looked at his friend – Prince Skye of the Elves – with lines of sympathy and tired, sad wisdom drawn on his noble face: reflected in the depths of his storm-gray eyes.
"Do not be over hard on yourself, Skye," he told the distraught Elven prince. "You could not have foreseen this, and it is not of your fault. To know that Elowyn is now safe with her friends, somewhere within your realm of Elvendome, is enough for us."
"I should have foreseen it." Skye said, vehemently: deeply grieved.
The third figure – that of Orandor's brother, Brendan – made a calming gesture towards Skye. "The Dark Lord works in more ways than one, my friend," the sandy-haired, ascetic faery agent of espionage said, grimly. "If he does not use force, he employs deception; if not deception, flattery…and the list of his abilities goes on. Orandor is right, as he is often wont to be,"—wryly—"We must accept the fact that, once again, the game has changed. Elowyn arrived late this past night, and we have not seen any sign of her pursuer: the vampyre Lord Valdeth, whom we now know to be Jaedin of Sytherria."
"Do not say his name," Orandor commanded, in a low but authoritative voice. "For we do not know what even that may be able to do for him."
The figures of the three powerful rulers lapsed into silence, and then Orandor posed a question to his brother.
"You say that she arrived by night?"
Brendan nodded.
"With Orpheus. The castle where we are staying is only a hunting lodge, employed by the Elven lords in a different time, and small, in comparison to other royal residences; there is nothing that goes on there in one part of the house that each of us is unaware of, because of this. Robbie and Sala had rooms next to one another, and mine was across the corridor from theirs."
He paused.
"None of us, in our sleep, marked the approaching wing beats of the Pegasus, and then all at once, I heard Elowyn's name said, and quite loudly, by both Robbie and Sala. She had gotten into the house, found and awakened the both of them. By the time that I reached them, we were all widely awake; and for fear that he had followed her, though vampyres will rarely travel by daylight, we made careful concealment of our presence there. She then told us all, of the Lord Valdeth, who had come as a guest to the Embassy Ball at Iordania; of how he had revealed himself to be her nemesis, the Dark Lord, who had taken her captive in order to bring her to his Queen, and of how she had made her escape from him. Orandor…"
The owner of that name turned his full gaze upon his brother, sensing that something of extreme gravity was about to be said.
Brendan was silent for a moment.
Then – "She said that he had rescued her from a fell monster of the Dark Realm – a five-headed ranthar. He rescued her, although she does not know why."
Orandor frowned, his dark curving eyebrows coming to meet over the bridge of his nose. Beside them, Skye could be seen doing the same. There was an air of puzzlement between the three of them.
"It is truly strange…" Orandor mused. "Why would a Dark Lord take such pains to ensure the safety of a faery princess, whom he had sworn to see the end of?"
"Why indeed – especially in light of the fact that the creature, which might have made an end of her, was in stark reality of his own affiliation?" Skye added.
Brendan shook his head, offering no explanations – for he couldn't.
"Apparently, my friends," he said, "There is more to this game of the Dark Lord's than what we have yet seen. But…regardless of this…Elowyn must be protected: at all costs."
"So she must," was the echoed sentiment of his two companions.
"What, then, is there for us to do now?" Skye inquired.
Orandor was pensive and silent for a moment, deep in thought. Finally, he spoke, and they hastened to pay close and rapt attention to his words.
"Brendan, you shall keep Elowyn and her two companions with you, at your side, wherever you now go; it does not matter where that is, as long as you keep moving. Do not stop long, at any time, and do not bring much attention down upon yourselves."
"As a spy, I have long been unable to do just that." was Brendan's dry rejoinder.
To Skye, "Have your sentries about the kingdom keep watch for any hint of the dark one's presence. The very earth groans at his approach, and the birds and the beasts fly in terror before him. That is how you will know of his coming, if indeed he chooses to appear again."
Skye nodded.
"The lands of Elvendome will be sealed against his wiles, I give you my solemn word."
Orandor smiled: half grimly and half sadly.
"I know, Skye; you have my faith."
"And what will the White Realm do now?" Brendan then asked.
His brother made a slight shrugging movement of his shoulders.
"It appears, brother, that we have little that we can do – little, but wait, hope, and pray. We will do our utmost to make certain that the child of prophecy, Elowyn, is kept safe from the hands of the Dark Lord, who would do all that he could to ensnare her. From what I can tell, there is more to his plans than perhaps even his Queen is yet aware of…"
Silence.
"We must all tread carefully now."
"These are dangerous times that we now live," concluded Skye, cryptically.
And, moments later, the lights in the stained-glass windows went out, and the night over Avalennon was silent and peaceful once again.
* * *
However, little did Orandor, Brendan, and Skye know, that far away – hunched over an opal-like glass, its glowing light reflected in his silvery eyes – a dark-cloaked figure had heard, and marked, their conversation. As it ended, he made a gesture, and the light in the glass went out, as if extinguished.
Then, stowing it somewhere in the depths of his shadowy robes, the figure stood up: straightening slowly, so that the cramped muscles in his back and shoulders would not give him too much agony. Narrowing his eyes until they became mere glittering slits in his face, he raised one hand to carefully massage the tight ligaments in his neck and gazed up at the moon, as it peeked through the dark tree branches overhead at him.
So, was his sardonic thought, You seek to escape me in the void of Elvendome, Princess; you think to disappear into the encircling arms of your friends.
And, with that, Jaedin took a step away from the place where he had been sitting, moments before, and raised his arms from his sides, until they were stretched out fully on either side of him – gauging the room he had around himself. As he formed the words of the transformation spell in his mind, recalling their exact syllables and nuances of expression and tone, he concentrated his mind on the dim outline of a picture that he had begun to call up within his memory as well…
The picture cleared, and he saw her face: the beautiful, peerless face that reminded him so much of a white lily, sprung anew in the depths of a cold mountain forest, blooming as the snows began to melt and recede around it. She slept, seeming comforted and calm, as he had never seen her. No, she had never bent such a kind gaze on him.
But she would.
If he had to take everything that she knew and loved away from her, never to be returned; if he had to break the entire balance of the world itself, in order to have what he wished, then he would do it. The ultimate power – the ultimate triumph, peerless consummation of everything that he knew he desired – he would have it.
A black whirlwind began to come up around him, deafening in the night; yet he could hear no noise of it, for his mind had focused elsewhere.
Elowyn…
You are mine.
* * *
Miles and miles away, but in the same stretch of forest – which covered a good deal of Elvendome – Elowyn slept peacefully, with Sala dreaming across the room from her. Through the open door between the rooms came the sounds of Robbie stirring in his bed every so often. Across the hall, Brendan also slept, as unaware of reality as any of them.
But then Elowyn awoke.
It hadn't been a nightmare that had caused her to open her eyes this time, oddly enough. Her sleep had long been interrupted by visions, horrible scenes of memories and thoughts that had been engrained into her mind, since her return to her friends and family…but tonight she had had no nightmare. She just suddenly didn't feel like sleeping.
She sat up, taking care to make her movements as silent as possible, to avoid waking Sala or Robbie. Both of her friends had been quite adamant about being at her side every possible moment, to protect, cheer, and reassure her – but she had no wish to make them endure any more concern than was absolutely necessary.
Besides, if she felt she suddenly had the urge to be awake at this hour of the night, it didn't have to be because of something horrid and dark…
Now she cast a glance across the room, to Sala: the tall, dark-haired faery slept as deeply as the moment before, undisturbed.
Elowyn smiled a bit.
How often, when they had been younger, had she and Robbie teased Sala about her nonexistent snoring problem, just to have a laugh in the morning…? And what happy memories being with them now brought to her…
Still, she felt ill at ease, sitting up in bed.
She wanted something more.
Cautiously, she pushed back the coverlet and sheets, laying them aside, and eased her legs off of the bed: the stone floor cold and hard against the soles of her bare feet. A shiver instantly ran up through her upon the contact and she rubbed her upper arms. Through the nearby window, she could see the clear stream of moonlight, shining down onto the floor and making a perfect rectangle there. She stood, totally getting out of bed, and went to that window.
The sight that met her eyes was a tranquil and calming one.
Below her, she saw the grounds of the small estate that she and her friends were staying in, for the time being, and beyond them was the forest and the rugged scenery of Elvendome: resplendent with mountains, grasslands, and stretches of wide open sky. If she had had the window open, she knew that she would have smelled the sharp, clean fragrance of the woods, with a faint tinge of briny sea air beneath it.
Clouds were gathering the distance now, she saw: rolling, enormous clouds full of volume and weight. Rain clouds.
When she strained her ears, she could already hear – vaguely – the beginning rumbles of thunder from within those clouds. There was a low, but quite visible flicker of light from in those clouds – lightning.
It was going to storm.
The prospect of this – of a thunderstorm – gave her cause for optimism. If she was going to be awake at this time of night, by herself, then at least the approaching storm would give her something to occupy herself with observing.
Quickly scooping her blue silk wrap up from the end of her bed, where she had left it before diving beneath the covers, Elowyn pulled it on over her long, lace-edged white nightgown and pushed her feet into her slippers, welcoming the feel of the cool satin against her bare feet. Then, quiet and careful as a shadow, she tiptoed across the room and stepped out into the hallway beyond it, closing the door behind herself.
The manor was very dark and very quiet at night. She hadn't really paid that much attention to its foreboding silence upon her arrival, being too anxious in her quest to find her friends to really notice it…but now, it seemed blank and unfamiliar.
There was light here and there: shreds of illumination among the shadows, from the windows that lined the corridor, and she went towards them, one hand placed on the wall to run along it and keep her path straight, just in case. Every once in a while, she heard more faint rumblings of thunder, as the storm came closer and closer, and brief flashes of lightning seared into the darkness through the windows.
A sense of premonition came over her then, and she stopped, frowning a bit as she bit her bottom lip, glancing about herself quickly.
Perhaps this isn't a good idea, Elowyn, she thought to herself. You're opening yourself to thoughts of fear, to figments of your own imagination. When you think that something is there, you really are bound to see it, eventually…
Tap, tap, tap.
She stopped dead.
Then, nothing but silence. Elowyn narrowed her eyes, peering into the darkness.
Nothing.
Tap, tap, tap. Tap, tap – creak.
Now icy trills were running up and down her back.
"Stop it," she muttered, fiercely, to the shadows. "Stop it now."
There was nothing there, she knew. There was no one inside of the manor but her uncle, herself, and her two friends. They had placed special, unbreakable symbols up around the house, binding them with their powers of magic and enchantment: no one, nothing, would be able to enter that place, unless they so desired.
Nothing, unless it was a specter – a wraith of her own…
Elowyn started, and whirled around.
Was that a faint chuckle that she had just heard from in the shadows behind her?
Thunder rumbled again. Now her fear turned, once again, into something else. Anger. Sea green eyes flashing, Elowyn stepped away from the wall and began to walk down the corridor again: faster, this time, her slippers making faint tapping sounds on the stone floor. Tap, tap, tap, they went. Light, and fast, clipping along.
But their sound was not the much heavier, more resonant clicking that she heard coming from up ahead of her.
Boots made that kind of noise, on stone floors…
Elowyn noticed that she was coming to the end of another long corridor, having turned right off of the one that she had originally been in. At its end, she saw that two illuminating wall sconces had been left burning. Their flames leapt and twisted within their metal cages, casting dancing shadows on the walls, making it seem as if the air itself was moving.
Her eyes narrowed, again, in concentration and suspicion: what had caused those sconces to light themselves again? She and her friends had made certain that all the lights had been put out…
Boom!
A huge, startling crack of thunder echoed in the sky above the manor, causing the stone floor to shake, the air to vibrate—
The same exact moment, a flash of lightning lit the air, and the sound of booted footsteps seemed to be coming from directly in front of her—
Suddenly – a dark-clothed figure stepped out of the shadows beneath a doorway at the end of the hall: the shiny, full-cut tail of his coat snapping and swirling about his form-fitting leather suit, the firelight glancing off the back of his head, upon his smoothly shaven scalp—
Turning right to quickly skirt the corner of the wall, and disappear out of her sight!
Elowyn slammed herself to a halt.
JAEDIN! she called out, furious and imperative, within her mind.
All she met, in that realm, was – for a moment – complete and utter silence. Then, from the great black void, a stirring of the darkness: a presence coming to meet her, approaching her. Recognizing, acknowledging, knowing her.
Well met, Princess, his voice said, in her head.
She struggled to grasp onto it, to lock onto him; he was fighting her, pushing her away, refusing to allow her a single brush against him.
Noiseless battling; then—
Where are you? he asked. Simply, and matter-of-fact, as if he were merely an inquisitive bystander, and not her worst enemy: her vile nemesis.
Elowyn drew back, icy and defensive.
I'll never tell you! she snarled at him.
An elegant, mellifluous laugh: condescending and arrogant, and cold.
What – do you think that that will keep me from finding you out, my Sea-Jade? I am already very close, am I not? I am very close, and you fear that I will soon find you. You can't keep me out forever, fairest one – you already know that your shield against me has begun to crack, and it only takes a very little for me to get inside of you, to where you can't ever escape me.
You'll never have me that way!
Thoughtfully, with immense self-assuredness – she could just picture his smirk now: Oh, I would not be so certain of that, sweet. You've already let me in, and I know now that you do, in some degree, to some measure, desire me as much as I desire you.
Never. I let you hypnotize me; mesmerize me into thinking as you wanted me to, for that one moment. Now I will never permit you to do it again. I only desire one thing, Dark Lord.
A dark, deadly tone creeping into his mind-voice, poisoning it with icy dangerousness, he asked her, And what is that, Princess of the Faeries?
To be rid of you – now get out of my mind!
And with that, she both literally and mentally flung out her hands, shoving him away from her. Then, in the next instant, her eyes flew open and she found herself standing, cold and trembling, utterly exhausted, in the middle of the empty hallway: the sconces still burning brightly on the wall. Swaying unsteadily on her feet, her strength drained from that single encounter, she reached out for the wall, glad to have its support.
Then, she turned so that she was facing out into the corridor, her back resting against the stones, and stared off into space: her sea green gaze coming to rest on a tapestry that hung nearby, its gold threads glittering in the firelight.
Her thoughts were floundering to recover themselves.
Oh yes indeed – the Dark Lord still had a plan for her. She had evaded him for the second time, escaping when he had been right there to prevent her, and yet still, he was here, with her, every step of the way…
She remembered what he had said.
We are tied together now by a bond that will not be broken: not by time, not by struggle, not by hatred, the light nor the darkness. We are one – you are mine now…
You are in me, as I am in you…
The words of her enemy, she was now beginning to realize, were not just a threat: a statement fabricated in order to frighten her, and fill her waking and sleeping hours with dread. They were real. He was with her now, just as she was with him.
And something was coming now, she sensed – something dark and utterly foreign to her perception: an evil that she had never before known…crawling on the wings of the night, searching for her, for her friends, for the very place where they were hidden…
* * *
A/N: You've no idea how much fun I had writing that little exchange…no idea… *cackles wickedly* And now back to sanity or something like it and personalized author's notes.
Rosethorn: These last two chapters are dedicated to you, and your incredible abilities of subliminal messaging. How do you do it…
Raal the Sword Master: Yes, this latest tale of mine is without a doubt considerably different from the others – there is truly not such a distinct line drawn between dark and light, good and evil, this time…I am much enjoying stirring things up like this, and delving into such ideas. Obviously. And Shadow-Sweepers would be fun, but – as you said – 'tis a great pity we humans lack the magical powers necessary to play it… ^_~
Grayfalcon: *bows* Glad to please, my friend…and like I've said before, it's all too nice to be able to finally write about Jaedin, who is the "hero", in a way, but is also the villain…a good change, methinks…
And furthermore, to conclude: Huge thanks and hugs to all who have reviewed so far, including fairytales101, Gryffindor-Gal, RaspberryGirl, Plaidly Lush, Riene, AngelofHope, DarkSlytherinAngel, Cheler, Sunrise-chick, and thepretender1031.
Now, enough with the incredibly long and tedious author's notes, Kates! Stop torturing these people and get on to the next chapter! (Please r&r.) ^_^