AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I paused, thinking about what could happen. Very bad things, no doubt. But then the words of Iris, and Grandmother Coyote, and the Elfin Queen floated through my mind. They had all pointed me on the path and I knew better than to fight destiny. But there was one last thing I had to do before I committed myself.
I walked out under the moonlight and knelt before my Lady. The Moon Mother was near. I could feel her in the tattoo throbbing on my shoulder blade, in the blood flowing through my veins, in the silver fire that wreathed my aura.
“Moon Mother, guide me. Raven Mother is your nemesis—this I remember from training. She seeks to take that which you have. But you have handed me over to the Black Beast and she walks by his side. Should I undergo this ritual? Should I place my trust in him?”
As I fell silent, listening with every fiber that made up my being, a slow mist began to rise around me. It whirled like a vortex, a tornado of smoke and fog, and then all I could see were the twirling mists that surrounded me.
My pulse began to race—the energy within the cone was building and I was at the center. Dizzy, I swayed under the power of the winds buffeting me from the swirling storm. At the top of the vortex, all I could see was the brilliant orb that was my Lady’s sign and sigil. And then, the Moon Mother appeared, clad in silver and black, ready to lead the Hunt. She stood a hundred feet tall, towering over the land, a feral smile on her face.
I leapt to my feet.
The goddess leaned down and said to me, “Run with the Beast this night. You will both join me in the Hunt, where you—my daughter—will find your true place in my service.”
With a single wave of one finger, the mist evaporated and the night shone through, brilliant and beautiful, and her laughter echoed through the forest as she vanished and I stood there, staring up at the star-studded sky, grateful for every trial she’d put me through.
As the glow from her presence faded, I turned to Morio, surprised to find he was still holding my hand. He looked at me gravely, and I could see my reflection in his eyes. The light of the Moon Mother cloaked me in silver, and for just a moment, I saw myself as he saw me: as more than a fuckup. More than a Windwalker. More than just a pawn in a war I didn’t want and hadn’t started. I saw myself as the Moon Witch I was, brilliant and beautiful and one of the thousand faces of the lady of the night.
“I’m positive,” I said. “We have to go through with this. Whatever it is.”
He nodded. “As you wish. I’d walk into the fire with you, if need be.”
Trillian silently crossed over to the two of us. “Camille—I love you,” he said simply. “Do what you need to. I trust you.”
Startled, because Trillian usually didn’t talk about love, I opened my mouth but he pressed two fingers to it, then turned to Morio. “Keep her safe, Morio. And . . . yourself as well.” And then, he returned to Iris’s side.
The sprite stared into my eyes. She didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to.
I summoned up my courage and said, “If something happens . . .”
She nodded. “I will make certain they know. But you’ll come through this. I know it in my heart and center.”
I turned back to the Black Beast. “We’re ready.”
Raven Mother laughed and her laughter was like the cawing of crows. She reminded me too much of Morgaine and I wondered if there was a connection.
“She’s with you, my love,” she said and leaned over to kiss the muzzle of the Beast. He nuzzled her neck with his nose and she languorously tipped her head to the side, her eyes closing at his touch. She reached up and lightly brushed her hand across her breast. The thought, Get a room, why don’t you, crossed my mind but I managed to stop myself before my mouth made mincemeat of this meeting.
After a moment, Raven Mother dropped her hand and slithered up to me. She paused, then cupped my chin in her hands. “You are delicious, my beauty, yes you are.” Her eyes glinted like steel beads as she cocked her head. I tensed as she leaned down, her face inches from mine. With her brilliant ebony lips, she brushed my own. I tried to pull away, but she held me fast, her fingers grasping my chin so tightly that it felt like she could break my neck with a simple twist of the head if she wanted.
“Don’t be so coy, my lovely. I could kiss you all over, you are so precious. That glorious orb you call your goddess better not take you for granted, because I’d be happy to take you off her hands. Think about it. You could spend your days running in my forests and playing with my toys, and I would treat you like the lovely you are.”
“Enough,” the Black Beast said. “You can entice her later. For now, she has lessons to learn and demons to fight.”
Raven Mother turned to him, her eyes narrowing as the smile left her face. I liked her better without it. She wasn’t nearly so creepy.
“Very well, my love.” To me, she added, “Go now, but don’t forget me. I can gift you with marvelous favors and my price . . . is worth paying.” And then she backed away and with another flash of red, turned into a raven and winged her way into the top of a nearby fir.
Scared out of my wits, I stared up at her. Elemental Lords were dangerous and wild, and they didn’t play by our rules. It paid to avoid their notice, as Delilah had learned the hard way. The fact that Raven Mother was interested in me was so not a good thing. She delighted in trying to woo away the Moon Mother’s followers, and she coveted the glowing orb in the sky, wanting to rule the night from a brilliant throne instead of a treetop.
I moved closer to Morio and he protectively slid his arm around my waist. The Black Beast turned toward the dark shadow from which he’d emerged. When we hesitated, he let out a snort of impatience.
“Follow me,” he said. “The others will wait here.”
And so, we did.
The inky blackness wasn’t really a portal, but an entrance into a circular, foliage-shrouded tunnel that stood a good fifteen feet in diameter. The walls of the tunnel were a latticework of thorns and briars, except on the bottom, where a path of compacted dirt ran through. The tunnel was lit with eye-catchers in shades of brilliant fuchsia and violet, of neon yellow and soul-shattering green.
I hesitated. I hated small, enclosed places and didn’t like being underground, but Morio took my hand and led me into the tunnel. Like the first time we’d gone exploring together, when we first met Smoky—I followed him into the labyrinth.
