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The chamber was vast. So vast there was no telling how wide or long it was. Filled with giant dark roots of trees and stalagmites and stalactites, it was both cavern and barrow. Pale vines, devoid of pigment, trailed down from the tree roots, like some ghostly mirror of ivy plants gone mad.
They coiled around the rock pillars, around the roots that plunged down through the chamber into the ground below our feet. Like floral snakes hiding in tree boughs, they waited. A sparkle of crystal flowers dappled the albino leaves, violet and rose and brilliant peridot.
I slowly crossed into the chamber, unable to fully take in the beauty that spread before me. A pool shimmered in the center, wide enough that a boat sat on one end. The boat could fit six people and was white, painted with oak and ivy leaves. By the scent, it had been carved from a cedar log.
The pond rippled softly against the shore. At first I thought it was white sand, but when I drew closer, the sand was actually made up of millions of tiny white pebbles.
To my left, the shadows took hold—I could not see what lay between the roots and stone pillars creating a labyrinthine path. And to my right—another path, leading into the distance.
I turned back to Grieve, my breath hushed. “Where are we?” My words sounded lame, breaking the silence, perhaps the first words spoken here in thousands of years.
He shook his head. Chatter did not know either.
I cautiously made my way over to a fallen stalactite, gingerly sitting on it as I tried to figure out where to go from here. Rhiannon joined me. She took my hand as we sat there in silence.
Kaylin crouched near the water, his fingers reaching out to touch it, but he stayed his hand a few inches from the lapping waves, a look of uncertainty on his face. We were at an impasse.
Ulean, I don’t know what to do next.
What does your heart tell you?
That I am afraid, and lost.
Then what does your instinct—your gut—tell you?
I closed my eyes, trying to listen past the fear. For a moment there was only a sense of confusion, but then a small voice laughed over the surface of my bewilderment. I listened again, and realized the laughter was coming from me…from the Faerie tattooed on my breast.
I caught my breath as a whirl of music raced through me and my feet began to tap in time to the rhythm. Jumping up, I began to dance around the stalactite, laughing aloud, driven on by the mirth and joy in my Faerie’s voice.
Rhia was on her feet, joining me, and we clasped hands, leaning back, circling each other as we danced. Her eyes sparkled and she smiled, the years falling away. We were children again, dancing through the Golden Wood, hurrying to meet Grieve and Chatter.
Kaylin moved toward us, but Grieve caught him by the shoulder and shook his head, motioning him back. I could not hear what he said, but Kaylin nodded and stayed his ground.
And then, finally, our circling grew slower and Rhia and I stopped, my hands palm up, her fingers resting lightly atop mine. We gazed into each other’s eyes. I began to whisper.
“Wind…wind…winds arise and come to be my guide.”
Rhia opened her lips and her words slid out, flowing over mine. “Fire rising ever higher, light the way before me.”
“Winds of change, attend me, and never leave my side.”
“Flames burst forth from my heart, and light the path clearly.”
Our fingers trembled, and a ball of energy—fire and wind—rose between us, emerging from our hands, to hover over our heads. We looked up and watched as it spun around and around, and then—with one quick streak—shot out over the boat, showering it with sparks—and across the pond into the darkness.
Chapter 11
“We cross the water.” I turned to the men. “We must go where the boat will lead us—and it will lead us by itself. That much I can tell you.” I didn’t know how I knew, but I could feel the nature of the vessel in my heart. The boat was alive.
Grieve and Chatter nodded. The boat shifted as we approached, turning sideways in the water to make it easier for us to climb aboard.
I took the front, kneeling and looking out over the water. Grieve sat behind me. On the seats behind him, Kaylin, then Rhia, and lastly, in the aft of the boat, Chatter. The moment we were settled, the boat silently began to glide out onto the water.
The boat cut through the water, a silent creature slicing through the pond, as the ripples spread out along the sides. With need for neither oars nor sails, the magical ride carried us into the mists rising from the surface. As the fog rose up, I wondered where it was taking us. We were obviously in a different realm—we’d crossed through a portal, and should we burrow straight up, we wouldn’t find ourselves in Myst’s forest. We were traveling in uncharted territory, and dangers, along with our treasure, waited at the end. Here be dragons, and all that sort of thing.
As we crossed the pond, the gentle sound of the boat rippling through the water was our only companion. Tensions were high and there was nothing to say until we knew what we were facing. But my thoughts raced in circles. The magic Rhia and I’d done had proven once again to me that we had a bond deeper than just blood. We were fire and ice, the flame and the wind, and together, we made a powerful force.
Grieve reached forward and touched my shoulder, motioning ahead. I squinted through the mists. We were approaching an island, most likely in the center of the pond. My breath leaped to my throat. Was this our destination? Lainule had warned there would be beasts or creatures guarding the way.
