Chapter 59: Questions

16 May, 2008 – 6:27 pm

Interlude

‘Where am I?’ said Fox, prodding the table angrily with a finger. ‘I want the truth.’

Cordelia felt her way slowly to the stool and sat down.

‘In truth? she asked, wearily.

Fox glared at the old woman.

‘Aye. That is all I want. The truth.’

‘But I’ve told you already.’ she sighed. ‘You are in Faerie.’

He threw a hand up in frustration.

‘And what exactly does that mean?’ he said, frowning. ‘Fairyland?’

‘Oh, it has many names my dear,’ she said, pinning her grey hair back. ‘Tir Na Nog, Elfhame, Avalon, Sithein, The Isles of the Blest, The Lost Island. Suffice to say there are hundreds more - and many more that we have yet to discover.’

She sighed once more. Despite her blindness, she could sense his confusion and disbelief, which was to be expected. At least this man different; he was focused, and driven. More than could be said for the others that had arrived.

‘Do you wish me to continue?’ she added.

Fox fidgeted - he felt uneasy and kept glancing down at the body of the cat that he’d killed not ten minutes before. It lay in the corner of the room in a sad, pathetic ball.

‘I’m sorry about your cat.’ he mumbled, pulling the bloodied knife out of the table top and wiping it on his breeches.

Cordelia raised an eyebrow, but continued to stare into the distance with her milky white eyes. She was pleasantly intrigued; this man seemed to be surprising her more and more as time went on.

‘Really,’ she said. ‘You must stop feeling guilty for things that anyone else in their right mind would not think twice about. If I was in your predicament, I wouldn’t have given two figs for the cat.’

Fox glanced around the kitchen, with its strange plants and wall hangings. It would have seemed rather quaint had it not been for the bones, and knives and various animals strung up by the window.

‘It’s just that this place, this land, seems so different. I don’t feel comfortable here at all. Do you understand?’

Cordelia nodded and smiled knowingly.

‘You want to know why it resembles your world so much? That is because you are in a mirror land to Earth - on the cusp of its dreamlands. It stands to reason that things are not always as they seem and yet at the same time appear to be so familiar.’

Fox shook his head and rubbed his temples. He didn’t understand what the hell she was talking about. And to top everything off he could feel a headache coming on.

‘By what am I doing here?’ he said, in despair.

‘Who knows?’ said Cordelia. ‘Maybe the gods of your world were displeased with you somehow. Maybe you had done something in your life that needed reckoning. I could not possibly even begin to guess. My head would start to hurt. There are things in this world that I still profess to have no knowledge of, never mind the workings of your world.’

‘But how do I get back to my family though?’

‘If you want it badly enough you will find a way eventually - that is, if you can reconcile the longing and the pain inside and it doesn’t become too much to bear.’

‘That’s not helping.’ he hissed, half listening.

Cordelia nodded. ‘You need to know the right direction.’ she said.

‘Yes. Indeed I do old woman.’ he said, half concentrating. And then he pricked his ears up as he realised what she had said. ‘The right direction?’

‘Indeed.’

A rattling sound forced Fox to look up. The latch on the window was open, and the gently swaying branch outside kept tapping on the window frame.

‘Please, carry on.’ he said, staring absently out of the window.

The old woman cleared her throat and continued.

‘In the far north west of this land lies a great fortress by the sea called Talistay. In the past it was a beacon in the dark times, but after a great war was waged there, all that remains are empty ruins. Nothing lives there now save for the spirits of the dead.’

‘Sounds like just the place for me then.’

‘Hush! When you’ve quite finished then I’ll continue, but not before.’

Fox grinned whilst the old woman sat there, cradling her arthritic hands on the table top, as if waiting for an answer. Feeling slightly awkward, he opened his mouth to say something, but before he could speak, the old woman continued.

‘Take heed,’ she said. ‘Listen carefully to my words, for I believe they hold the key to your presence here.’

‘And?’ said Fox, slightly impatiently.

The old woman frowned, and Fox instantly shut up.

‘I have seen this place, but only through the eyes of creatures of the air using the Rite of Enthralment.’

She cast her mind back to the time when she’d flown to the high red tower of Althanor, by the west gate of Talistay, and discovered a vast room in which was kept the records of Theobold the Elder.

In her mind’s eye she recalled the musty smell, as she - in the guise of a crow - hopped across bookshelves caked in dust, and over tables strewn with discarded scrolls, searching for long forgotten volumes of magic.

It was then that she inadvertently discovered veiled references to something called the Wyrdstone.

‘My sisters and I have seen it.’ she mumbled, half to herself.

‘You have sisters?’ he said, almost immediately.

His words snapped her out of her daydream, and she smiled slightly as she sensed the unease in his voice.

‘Why, you didn’t think I was all alone here by myself did you?’ she said.

She stared at him straight in the eyes and blinked, and for a moment, he thought that she could see once more.

Fox looked around nervously, and reached for the knives.

‘Don’t worry.’ she whispered. ‘They’re outside in the forest.’

‘Who are? Your sisters? What are they doing out there?’

‘Why, seeking helpless travellers of course.’

‘But why?’

Cordelia bent forward to his ear.

‘Because, my dear, they hunt with the pack.’ she whispered, and sat back in the chair.

A cold sweat broke out on Fox’s forehead and he shivered as he suddenly realised that the old woman could only have been referring to one thing: the dreaded wolves in the wood.

‘Can’t you feel them outside?’ she said. ‘Can’t you feel the power of the forest? Of the trees?’

As she spoke, Cordelia’s milky eyes became wide and wild with excitement. The words scared Fox enough that he moved back on his chair, clearly uncomfortable with what she was saying. He glanced at the door. It was closed, but now that he that thought about it, wouldn’t it be easier to make a run for it?

‘I wouldn’t try it dear, you wouldn’t stand a chance.’ she said, as if reading his mind.

‘They’re werewolves aren’t they?’ he said, holding the knives too tightly.

‘Such a vulgar term.’ she said, shaking her head in disgust. ‘Vulgar and ignorant.’

She stood up, and gestured with her hand.

‘Hand over the knives. Lay them on the table.’

Fox looked incredulous. Was this blind old frail woman joking?

‘You must think I’m mad.’ he said.

‘No. Just a fool. Nothing more.’ she said with a smile.

From out in the wood the sound of a wolf call came floating in through the window. Startled, he lowered his guard and - as quick as lightning - Cordelia reached out and took the knives from him.

‘There. That was easy.’ she said.

‘But they’ll kill me.’ he said, horrified. ‘You tried to kill me!’

She grinned. ‘Yes. And you I. But that’s beside the point now. That was before you outwitted me, before you made your intentions as clear and as bright as they could be. You’ll have to trust me dear. You see, I could tell my sisters outside to rip your throat out. All it would take would be a single thought. But I’m not going to.’

‘Why?’

‘Because I want you to do something. Something that will profit both you and me.’

‘And what makes you think I’d do anything for you?’

‘Because, without my help, you will never find your way back home.’ she said, matter-of-factly.

Fox stood silent and still for a moment. Events had taken an unexpected turn and he found himself lost for words.

‘But first I must tell you of something called the Wyrdstone…’ she said.

Fox slumped down on the chair again, seemingly more bewildered than ever. When would this madness stop?

‘The what?’ he said.

‘Your answer lies in the thing that has eluded us for centuries. A half-stone. To the uneducated it would appear to be no more than a fragment of rather plain splintered rock. But it is very important to me, and indeed, the sisterhood.’

‘Just a stone?’

‘Yes. And no. It is part of the one true source of magic - the seed that blossomed into the world you see here. And I believe that by using it in a certain ritual, we could establish a gateway so that we could return you from whence you came.’

‘And how do I find this stone?’ he said.

‘First you must find your way to Talistay. They have used the stone for generations in their King-making rituals. There you will find it.’

‘And why can’t you go? Why me?’

‘We have a shared interest. But I am too old and frail dear to go all that way myself, and I fear that I have little time left to see my heart’s desire of visiting the world of my ancestors.’

Fox nodded, uncertain still of her motives, but willing to trust her if it meant that he could see his wife and children again.

‘But before I continue,’ she said, ‘and you decide that you will seek the stone, you must swear that should you find it, you will return here with it.’

‘Why me though?’ he said. ‘You said yourself that I wasn’t the only one to stumble upon this world. There must have been others. Why not some other poor fool who made their way here?’

‘Because they were not like you. They were… different.’ she said, awkwardly.

‘Why, what happened to them?’

‘Promise me that you will return.’ she said, ignoring his question.

‘Did you kill them?’

‘Swear this to me!’ she screeched.

Fox shrugged his shoulders. He strongly suspected that these people who had come through the gateway before had no doubt been dispatched by the old woman - after all he’d narrowly escaped being poisoned by her, so why not others? But it didn’t matter a jot, because his over-riding purpose was to return home to his wife and family. Nothing else mattered. Not even the werewolves outside the door. If this old witch was going to help him, then he wasn’t going to stand in her way, even if she was a murderous old crone.

‘Alright I swear.’ he nodded, finally. ‘By all that is holy. I swear it.’

Cordelia closed her eyes and mumbled a few words under her breath.

‘It is done - your Oath of Acceptance has been accepted. A yes or no would have sufficed my dear, nothing more. And you need not have sworn on things that were holy, for no such things exist in this world that are.’

And with that, she opened her eyes, and looked sternly at Fox. He was amazed.

‘You… your eyes…’ he stammered. ‘You can see?’

As she continued to stare at him, the cloudiness in her eyes began to disappear, fading away until they shone and sparkled with a brilliance that belied her advanced years.

‘Aye. Indeed I can Mr Tufford. Indeed, I can… Your words have renewed my spirit.’

Fox listened, but the sound of movement and breaking branches outside made him wary. In the silence of the kitchen, the noises could be heard quite clearly, and he shivered at the thought of meeting the old crone’s sisters outside - whoever, or whatever they were. If they turned out to be wolves, though, he’d managed to see off a fair few of them in his time.

‘My sisters wait outside, but do not be alarmed. They will not harm you as long as you do not harm me.’ she smiled. ‘You have sworn an oath to us that you would return should you find a passageway through to the other world. Now the Oath of Acceptance, which cannot be broken, must be honoured.’

He followed Cordelia out of the cottage, but stopped dead in his tracks. For there, hiding in the trees and overgrowth, were several large wolves - larger than any he’d seen before. Their eyes were red, their fangs were sharp, their claws were large. In short, if there was a fight, he didn’t fancy his chances much.

He gave a furtive look and bowed slightly in acknowledgment.

‘Greetings ladies.’ he mumbled.

Cordelia turned around to face him.

‘Now take this.’ she said, holding out her hand.

He looked quizzically at her, as she dropped a smooth pebble into his palm.

He held it in the air and scrutinized it. It looked shiny and he rubbed it to see if it was wet.

‘What is it?’ he said, finally.

‘Ahh!’ she screeched, holding her ears. ‘You almost deafened me!’ she tutted. ‘Isn’t it obvious? It’s a magic stone you dimwit. Rub it when you want to talk to me - or hold it to your forehead when you want me to see what you see.’

Fox raised an eyebrow and pocketed it.

‘Also,’ she said, ‘take this money pouch, and my knives - for whatever good they’ll do you. I suggest following the path to the Windings, there you will be able to get lodgings for the night there and also stock up with any provisions you may require. I also suggest arming yourself, for you never know what you might encounter out here.’

* * * *

As Cordelia watched him leave one of the wolves padded over to her and stood close by.

‘Another poor fool full of hope.’ it said. ‘He trusts you more than he should and far more than is healthy. Hope can be a dangerous thing.’

Cordelia nodded, returning a smile and a wave to Fox Tufford as he walked down the little dirt track that led to the Windings, whistling cheerfully as he went.

‘He is blinded by his desire to return home.’ she said, from the corner of her mouth. ‘And that is our greatest advantage. Did you know he killed a Cockatrice?’

‘Really? That is most impressive.’ the wolf said. ‘Maybe he does have the stuff of heroes.’ The wolf cocked its head slightly as if in thought. ‘Even so, he has heart - if he is strong enough he could break the Oath of Acceptance.’

‘Pah.’ she spat. ‘None of the others did. You worry too much. His desire will prevent that.’

‘He has no idea of what he searches for does he?’

‘Perhaps it is better that he doesn’t have any idea…’

‘Don’t you think he will become curious?’

‘Of that there can be no doubt, sister. But as you know, only someone who is pure of heart can take the stone…’

She stared at Fox as he disappeared over the brow of the hill.

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