The Fire Opal by Regina McBride

Author:Regina McBride [McBride, Regina]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 2010-10-22T16:00:00+00:00

I awakened, and sat up panting and disoriented. Mam and Ishleen lay in the same vacant postures they had been in when I had fallen asleep. In my hand was the jagged piece of mirror. Shocked, I tried to understand how this could have occurred. My heart beat swiftly, and I listened for the weather. The wind had gone silent. I dressed and put the compass and the piece of mirror into my pocket.

Outside, streamers of sunlight threshed through the clouds. The sea was calm and could be, I decided, easily navigated. I went down and dislodged Da’s boat from the rocks. When I turned around, I gasped, wondering if I was still dreaming.

The Swan Woman was there, looking expectantly at me, her garment so white that it glowed in the sunlight. Her shoulders, I noticed, were taut, as if they might transform at a moment’s notice into wings.

“Maeve,” she said to me urgently, leaning slightly forward from the waist. “You cannot approach that ice barge alone and unprotected.”

“Are they there through that mist? My sister and mother?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Has my mother been there all this time?”

She nodded. “Though the ice barge has not always been at anchor this close to Ard Macha.”

I was flooded with anxiety. “All this time, she’s been on that barge waiting for someone to help her. I’ve got to go there and get them both back!”

I showed her the compass and the mirror, and told her how I had come upon each.

“The creature who lives on that barge was a battle goddess. Her name is Uria,” she explained. “The women in gray-green are some of her henchwomen. They taunted you with the compass, believing it was powerless because it was shattered. Instead, they provided you with an invaluable tool. For you, the needle is still sensitive and alive. You will need these items, but neither is enough to protect you. You will be killed if you try to approach.”

“What can I do? How can I save my sister and my mother?”

“I will tell you how you should go there, but first I have to tell you what you must do.”

Clouds were now gathering above us, their shadows moving across the landscape. Her eyes darted around uneasily.

“Somewhere on Uria’s barge, there is a jewel the size of a small apple, very cold to the touch but with a look of bright fire about it. It is called the Fire Opal. You must do everything you can to find it.”

“Why?” I asked. “What is its power?”

“I can’t tell you this, but you must find it, and when you do, guard it with your life. Danu needs it.”

“But what about my mother and sister?” I asked.

“I can only tell you that we are at the very precipice of a new cycle in nature. In order to save your mother and sister, you must first do this.”

As the moments passed, the feathers she wore looked more and more like they were growing directly from her skin rather than sewn to the fabric of her cloak.

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