Radford, Irene - Merlin's Decendants 01 by Radford Irene

Author:Radford, Irene [Radford, Irene]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2012-08-15T15:28:56+00:00

Chapter 31

My spell had two parts. First I must banish the attraction for the ravens from the environs of Caer Tair Cigfran. Second and hardest, I must find a new place for the birds to go.

I dropped the first bundle of herbs upon the flames, singing a thanksgiving to them and inviting them to join and enhance the power within me. The smoke climbed through the air in a lazy spiral. I let my mind drift upward on the same pattern. Another song inviting the Goddess to bless the spell followed the smoke. Belenos glinted bright red against the sparks within. Not much time. I had to finish at the moment of the sun’s setting and the moon’s beginning.

The smoke spread outward, reaching for the caer, village, and fields. My song drifted with it, seeking out hidden corners and dark places. When I sensed that I had permeated the entire area with the seeking, I added a second bundle of mixed plants—dried and newly harvested. Cleansing followed the seeking. With each breath I sent the combined smokes into every nook and cranny, banishing previous spells with fresh air and bright hope. Resistance rose up to meet me. Nimue!

She had grown stronger, more complete.

Her will pushed me back into myself. I wanted to draw back into my quiet fire, letting the smoke dissipate before it finished its work. But a spell left unfinished and ungrounded would backlash with threefold consequences. I had to persevere.

Go back. Go back to the arms of your father, Nimue’s counterspell whispered into my mind. No one else wants you. No one else can love you. “Never!” I shouted aloud. “I’ll never return to The Merlin as his daughter. Not after what he did to me.” He didn’t trust me. He didn’t trust anyone but himself. Since he couldn’t trust, he had to control and manipulate. So did Nimue. I had to balance her quest for power. Where had she learned so much about magic since her last pitiful attempt to counteract my wards?

A third bundle of herbs intensified the smoke. I willed this last portion of the spell to overcome my rival’s resistance and my own. Deeper I pushed the purifying smoke, singing of cleanliness and health and freedom from the weight of fear. Harder I pushed against her spell.

I pushed until I thought my mind would explode. I kept pushing even after my body rebelled with trembling limbs and terrible hunger. I enfolded Newynog and Cat within my arms. They couldn’t help me, but I found comfort in their presence.

Then I pushed one more time, a tremendous effort as if birthing a child. Thunder rolled, lightning flashed. The stupefying humidity gave way to drenching rain. Nimue’s spell washed away along with the last lingering daylight.

The ravens had nothing left to keep them at Caer Tair Cigfran. Now all I needed was a place to send them. A place they could call home forever. I sent them to the largest concentration of Saxons. Let the birds ruin their homesteads.

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