Revelations
The three of us returned to the Tir with no further interruptions, and
I thanked Momus for his timely intervention on my behalf, even if I was
not sure why he had intervened in the first place. What did he gain by
helping me? Admittedly, I had been kind to him when I first met him in
the Tir, but surely that was not enough to warrant him actually picking up
a Pattern sword. It could have turned him to ash as easily as my mother,
if he had not been careful. I asked him none of this, of course. It
would have been...rude. But it still confused me. Along with everything
else that had just happened. I needed time to think, to adjust to what I
had just seen. What I wanted most of all was to be alone right now, but
to ask for such would be to reveal how much seeing Mother had affected me.
So I remained with Cerridwen as she rejoined the others, doing my best to
look unruffled and calm. Much to my dismay, Ryan approached us
immediately, asking what was wrong. For a moment I feared I had failed in
my attempt to conceal my inner turmoil, but then I realized he was
speaking to Cerridwen, not I.
"My apologies," Cerridwen stated simply. "One of Edgar's minions made
an attempt on the Tir, and nearly slew Lady Melanie when she thwarted the
creature."
"Oh no," Ryan responded, looking very upset. "Are you OK?" He
checked his cat as well, although why he thought the creature would be
hurt when I was the one attacked was beyond me.
I managed a slight smile, more in response to Cerridwen's invented
tale than Ryan's question. "I am quite well, thanks to some timely
assistance."
Cerridwen looked at me and smiled then. "'Twould be a shame to be
stranded in this world forever, no?" she commented.
"Indeed, it would be...unfortunate," I replied, although I was not
quite certain what she was referring to by 'this world.' Mellisondra?
Wherever that pit had led?
"If my father was here, it would truly be hellish to spend forever
with him," Ryan added.
I raised an eyebrow in response to that unexpected statement. "I am
afraid I am not acquainted with your father. Who might he be?"
Ryan looked at Dara for a moment before he answered, "Prince Edgar,
son of Swayvill and Florimel."
Comprehension flitted across my features. That foul creature was
Ryan's father? No wonder Dara had kept the boy isolated. Many things
were clearer now. "I see. In that case, I agree with your statement. A
hellish existence, indeed."
Ryan looked towards his mother, then to the rest of us, then he
sighed, petting Burke gently on the crown of the creature's head and
saying, "Indeed. What now? What do we do?"
Cerridwen smiled faintly...tiredly. I felt much the same. "It's been
a long day for us all," she stated. "Why don't we retire to our rooms and
get some rest? They won't harass us in the Tir; it is warded against
things Abyssal."
"Is Chaos itself warded so?" Ryan blurted out suddenly. For once, I
found myself in accord with the boy. Of course, I doubted very much that
we could be so lucky.
Cerridwen did not answer him directly, saying only, "Ryan, I will have
the books sent to your rooms. Melanie, if you would please accompany me a
moment..."
I nodded and followed after Cerridwen, while Dara took Ryan's arm and
walked in another direction. I heard Dara begin to speak as they walked
away, although I had to strain to hear the words. "Ryan...your father
wasn't always like this...I just wanted you to know that. There was a
time when he would have made a good king...before he succumbed to
bitterness and regret..."
Dara's voice was quiet, and glancing back surreptitiously I detected
that she was shaking slightly. Ryan gave her an awkward hug, and they
were still standing that way when I lost sight of them as we walked around
a curve. More strangeness, in a day full of it. This was a side of Dara
I had not suspected.
I should have liked to observe further, but there were questions I
needed to ask of Cerridwen. I waited until we were both seated in a
nearby sitting room before I asked the one that was foremost in my mind.
"I was under the impression that those with Logrus were dead. How is it
possible my mo..." No, best not to think of her as my mother. "...that
Selena survived?"
"She did not survive, Melanie," Cerridwen replied. "Once tainted by
the Abyss, a creature is dead...unable to heal...to reproduce...to live as
men and women live. She has become a ghost...a shadow of herself...her
reality gone forever. I am sorry."
And for a moment, I gained a more acute understanding of Cerridwen
than I had possessed before. She wanted to console me. She even
empathized, as much as she could. But it just was not in her nature to
comfort. I understood this all too well. It was not in my nature to
comfort either, at least not sincerely. Even the fake compassion I had
shown to Anyssa had been a strain. I considered Cerridwen's words
silently for a time, my face carefully neutral, before asking the second
question that had been plaguing me. "Why do you suppose the Abyss wanted
me? There were plenty of other Chaosians present."
"Because of your bloodline, I suspect," Cerridwen commented. "And
because you can breed. Those tainted by the Abyss cannot reproduce. They
kidnap others to breed more soldiers. And if they capture one of royal
blood...one whose blood is linked to the Courts or Amber...then they can
breed soldiers who can break boundaries and enter those places. Do you
understand me, Melanie?" she asked very sternly. "I will not give
vocalization to what we both know...it is your tale, and yours alone."
I nodded, letting my distaste at the notion of being used as some sort
of broodmare show on my face. "Is that what they use Edgar for? No, he
demonstrated his taint when he left. I am surprised that they did not use
him for breeding purposes, given his bloodline."
"Who can say?" she replied. "Edgar is playing his own game, I
suspect, much as my aunt did."
"Then I hope he ends in the same fashion. Without destroying us all
in the process."
"We shall see," she replied quietly. "I am tired, Melanie...let us
speak on the morrow...I would rest."
"Of course. It has been a rather...strenuous day. Until
tomorrow."
We went our separate ways, but I did not head back to my quarters
immediately. Much as I hated to admit it, my encounter had left me rather
agitated, and I roamed the halls restlessly for a time. There were so
many questions remaining. How had Momus known I was in need of aid, when
Cerridwen had not until it was too late? Why had Edgar sent my mother to
capture me, when he could have made his own attempt on me earlier? Did
the Circle inhibit his power somehow, or was it Cerridwen's presence that
stopped him? And how long must I walk around with this wretched sword?
It rested heavily against my back, a cold, hard presence that I found
difficult to ignore. Sadly, I doubted that Edgar and his companions were
simply going to give up and leave me alone, although I could always hope
they would move on to easier prey. Which meant I was stuck carrying a
sword, distasteful as that was, at least until I could figure out a means
of resisting the power of the Abyss. There had to be a means of doing so.
All I had to do was find it.
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Melanie's Journals
All text on this page is © 1998-1999 by Kris Fazzari.
Last modified on January 25, 1999 by Kris Fazzari.