The Bwy Hir Complete Trilogy (59 page)

‘No and it should stay that way. The last thing I need is Taliesin chasing my tail. Now go.’ Celyn-Bach vanished behind the curtain of fabric and Awel returned to her packing. ‘Not five minutes after the
Tylwyth Teg’s warning I am already blabbing “what I learnest.”’ She scolded herself for revealing to Celyn-Bach that Anwen had delivered a boy. She supposed they would all find out soon enough if she could find Anwen, or if Gwyn could find her.

Awel intended to travel with Gwyn through the
Cerdd Carega until they were as close to London as possible while still being under the cover of the countryside. Gwyn would have to enter the city alone, Awel for obvious reasons could not go, but she would be waiting their return to the Cerdd Carega
where they would travel back together, if Anwen Morgan could be found.

CHAPTER FIVE

Taliesin was waiting for Celyn-Bach’s return to Maen-Du.  Aeron Ddu had refused permission for Taliesin to leave the Hall of the Druids and so he paced impatiently around
the Cerdd Carega
waiting for Celyn-Bach to return with news from the Dell.

Taliesin had grown increasingly frustrated with his confinement and had grown more and more withdrawn. He was the youngest of the Pride and felt as if he was still being treated like a child
. Only Celyn-Bach treated him as an equal.

He had grown increasingly close to Celyn-Bach, spending many hours in study in the Great Library, paw
ing over the Grimoires and every text they could find on Arawn and his era. They had gained an insight into Arawn’s nature; his traits, likes and dislikes, but none of the knowledge had helped them locate his stronghold, nor where he intended to strike next.

The study of the Grimoires, especially a tome called
Grimoire o Gyfrinachau:
Grimoire of Secrets
,
had been more fruitful. The text revealed many limitations with the practice of possession, the confines of manifestations and poltergeistic capabilities. It also instructed how to counter, capture and banish Ysbrydion back to the realms of y Gwag.

Taliesin and Celyn-Bach were due to continue their studies as soon as he returned and Taliesin was keen to resume their research. Anything they could find to counter or slow Arawn would be another shield between him and Taliesin’s child. Taliesin was prepared to do anything he could to protect Anwen Morgan and his child.

A flash of light announced Celyn-Bach’s arrival. He practically stood on Taliesin as he stepped through the Cerdd Carega. ‘I wonder whether you simply missed me or whether you are such a diligent student that you cannot wait to resume your studies.’ Celyn-Bach tapped a finger on his chin mockingly. ‘Or whether you are so keen for news from the Dell that you risk being trampled on by my arrival?’

Taliesin blushed slightly
. ‘All three?’ he offered and Celyn-Bach laughed aloud.

‘Come then
.’ He clapped Taliesin on his shoulder. Taliesin was now a similar height to Celyn-Bach and of equal strength, not only did they spend hours together in study, they also sparred together and trained together with sword and bow. Taliesin could not yet beat Celyn-Bach in combat nor wielding the elements but with the bow and arrow Taliesin was unbeatable. ‘To the library.’ Celyn-Bach led the way. ‘I will tell you what news I have from the Dell as we go.’

Taliesin’s stomach lurched; Celyn-Bach had news. ‘Is my mother well?’

‘She is and she sends her love to you.’ Celyn-Bach smiled and grew silent, protracting Taliesin’s agony, he knew of what news Taliesin really wanted to hear, but “walls have ears” and Celyn would wait for the privacy and quiet of the library to whisper what Awel had told him. After all, Taliesin had a right to know he had a son.

CHAPTER SIX

The sun was setting, the final rays adorning the mountain peaks with golden light and plunging the valley below into misty muted shadows. Awel heaved her satchel onto her shoulder and leaned on her staff as she watched the last molten rays sink behind the craggy crests and give way to the twilight.

The air in the forest where she walked was damp and musty, the ground beneath her feet spongy and sodden
. ‘Too much rain.’ She tutted and shook her head. It was this motion that allowed her eye to catch the flicker of movement to her right. She stopped in her tracks and stooped low, peering through the thickets of saplings and thorny tangles, scanning between the dark, dampened tree trunks, straining to catch another glimpse of who or what had caught her attention.

The tendrils of evening mist hung low on the forest floor, swirling and rolling over fallen trees and mossy mounds, muting and muffling the sound of the woodlands. There. A tall shadowy figure passed into a small clearing followed by two smaller, bounding streaks of motion, a sudden
‘yip’ confirming their identities: foxes. That meant the figure had to be Cadno.

Her curiosity piqued, Awel decided to double-back and follow Cadno back towards the
Dell, keeping a safe, discreet distance, lest she alert the foxes to her presence. Foxes were very difficult to remain hidden from but the mist and her down-wind position gave her an advantage and she remained undiscovered. On silent feet, Awel followed Cadno back to the Cerdd Carega that led to the Dell. She knelt down behind a copse of young ash trees and kept watch.

Cadno stepped up to the huge stone standing erect and alone in the forest clearing
. The foxes who had kept him company on his short journey here slipped away from him, eager to hunt now the sun had set.

This was the second time Cadno had been here in as many days. He folded his arms across his chest and scrutinised the
Cerdd Carega’s worn and pitted surface. With a sullen but determined expression Cadno unfolded his arms and placed both his hands against the cool, damp limestone. He closed his eyes for a few moments before reopening them to stare at the rock.

Awel was confused.
Why didn’t he vanish
? Awel tipped her head to one side and then the other, akin to a bird inspecting an insect.
What is he doing?
Again Cadno leaned his hands against the rock, his eyebrows knitted together, his eyes screwed shut. Awel watched him push against the Cerdd Carega, straining as if he intended to move its position.

Finally he threw himself away from the stone, cursing and panting. He was distraught, beaten and above all powerless to use the
Cerdd Carega – the only access into the Dell. He threw his head back and cursed again. ‘What did I do?’ he shouted at the rock. ‘What did I do?’ he shouted again, louder, more desperately. Only silence answered him and with a growl he turned and fled into the darkness of the forest.

Awel remained in her hiding place and listened to the muted sounds of the forest until she was sure she was alone before she stood up.
How can this be?
Wanting to disbelieve what she had witnessed, she slowly approached the Cerdd Carega
standing tall, its base shrouded in the thickening mist that hung above the forest floor. Lifting her hand tentatively she pressed it against the limestone. Immediately she felt the rhythmic pulsing pulling at her, ready to return her to the Dell. She removed her hand. “
Cadw yn graff a ddysgych.”
The Tylwyth Teg’s voice echoed inside her head.
Was this what we spoke of? Is this what I should reveal to no-one?

If Cadno could not gain entry to the
Dell it meant one thing: Cadno had committed evil and the Tylwyth Teg would not grant him entry into their realm.

With leaden footsteps Awel left the
Cerdd Carega and resumed her journey, mulling over her discovery with a heavy heart. ‘And so we demise,’ she said to the trees as she walked along the muddied footpath towards Ty Mawr Farm. ‘Broken and fractured we stumble towards our fate ... all things must perish …’

Troubled and disturbed
, Awel trudged onwards, all her senses alert, her head turning from side to side, listening and watching as she passed silently through the lower fields of Ty Mawr. The sheep huddled together under the great oak tree, grey lumps in the mist, thick fleece hanging damp and dense, heads hung low, following her passage with disinterest.

Twilight had faded into night, the sky was dark and brooding, pregnant with the promise of rain. More rain. The land was saturated, it needed more than
Summer’s gentle touch to dry and flourish: it needed Aeron to give sway to Mab and restore the balance. ‘Bah.’ Awel shook her head. That was as likely as Arawn sprouting wings and ascending into heaven.

The farmhouse was shrouded in darkness by the time she reached its door. All the curtains were closed and only the faintest hint of candlelight leaked from beneath the kitchen curtains to illuminate the windowsill. Awel paused on the doorstep and gathered her thoughts before gently tapping on the door with her hazel staff.

The door opened immediately and she ducked under the frame and entered the house. The door was locked behind her as she entered the kitchen. A sea of faces greeted her and then bowed in unison, as was their practice. She recognised all of the men sitting and standing around the table, all except one. Dismissing the stranger for the instant, she leaned down and outstretched her free hand towards Gwyn Morgan and spoke softly. ‘It has been a long time, my friend.’

Gwyn clasped her hand between his two meaty fists
. ‘I’m sorry it’s been so long,’ he said dropping his head, ‘I’ve not exactly been sociable of late.’

‘Of late?’ Glyn-Guinea cackled
. ‘It’s been four years, man!’

Gwyn blushed and Awel smiled at his embarrassment. ‘That is in the past, Gwyn Morgan.’ He released his grip and stuffed his hands in his pockets. ‘What matters now my friends,’ she
said, addressing the room, ‘is what happens from this moment on.’ They solemnly agreed with nodding heads and downturned mouths.

Awel turned her attention to the one stranger in the room. He was st
anding next to Elder Nissyen, slightly stepped behind him as if Nissyen could offer him shelter and protection. Awel blinked slowly and turned her gaze to Nissyen himself. ‘Elder Nissyen, I sought your assistance alone and no other. Why does a Druid initiate stand in our midst?’ Her voice was stern, cold.

The Chosen men silently watched the exchange. Elder Nissyen bowed to Awel, his reedy voice cracking as he spoke
. ‘My Lady, may I introduce Brother Cai.’ He flourished a hand towards the initiate. ‘He was once Afagddu’s body servant.’ A growl erupted from the Chosen men and Awel held up a hand to silence them. Nissyen continued. ‘Elder Tomas does not require a body servant and so Cai was given to me. He serves me well and I believe he will be of great assistance to us.’

Awel remained stony-faced and silent, her head bent to avoid the ceilings giving her the impression of a hunting owl. Nissyen ushered Cai from behind him and brought him forward to face her. ‘You see, although I am flattered by your invitation to join this illustrious gathering, I believe what Cai can offer us is far greater than the knowledge inside my old head.’

Standing behind Cai, Nissyen motioned with his head to Dai who immediately moved to plant himself in the kitchen doorway. Awel noted the gesture but kept her eyes firmly fixed on the man in front of her. He was short of stature, even by Human standards, with a thin frame and an unfortunate hunted mien that set his shoulders forward and his head lowered. His skin was pale and waxy, his eyes hollowed and blackened, his hair thinning and patchy. Even at his young age he looked aged and ill.

‘Tell me
… Cai, what assistance can you offer my cause?’ She said his name as if she could taste it.

He spun to look over his shoulder
; Nissyen offered a reassuring smile and waved his hand for Cai to answer Awel but Cai remained silent, a sheen of sweat beading on his forehead.

‘Perhaps you can answer on his behalf, Elder Nissyen
.’ Awel peered down at Cai, her smile was warm and kind but her eyes flashed and glinted in the candlelight. The room was still, poised ready to ignite with a single spark. Glyn-Guinea had put away his pipe and sat with a straight back, leaning on his walking stick as if to use it as a level to thrust him forward.

Nissyen placed a hand on Cai’s shoulder
and Cai involuntarily flinched. ‘For more years than I care to remember I have walked the Halls of Maen-Du, I have stood on ceremony in more council meetings than I can recall, I have learned and in turn, taught many, many initiates the ways of the Druids and yet in all those years I have never met one as … illuminating as young Cai, here.’

‘You see, my young friend Cai here,’ Nissyen
said, squeezing Cai’s skeletal shoulder, ‘knows something of which I know very little about.’ Cai shrunk in on himself and twisted his head to look into Nissyen’s eyes. Nissyen saw recognition, acceptance and fear. Nissyen stared into those hunted, sad eyes and he couldn’t help but feel pity. ‘Cai is one of the growing numbers of Druids who call themselves ‘The Faithful’… he is one of Arawn’s new recruits.’

There was a collective intake of breath and Cai simply surrendered to his fate and slumped to his knees at Awel
’s feet.

‘He is one of
them
?’ Dai blurted. ‘You sure?’

Nissyen nodded
. ‘He bares the mark, I have seen it, or at least glimpsed it.’

Awel took a step back
. ‘He bares the mark of Arawn?’ Her voice was low, just above a whisper, she looked horrified.

‘Show them, Cai.’ Nissyen urged
. ‘All is not lost, you can redeem yourself if you would help us and tell us what we need to know.’ At first, Nissyen thought Cai was crying, huddled in a heap on the floor, his shoulder wracking and his head bowed, but Cai wasn’t crying: he was laughing.

Cai raised his head and stared at the ceiling as he recited through rapturous lips, ‘
“
Arawn will give their kings into your hand, and you will wipe out their names from under heaven. No one will be able to stand against you; you will destroy them. To you will be delivered your just and rightful place.”’

Gwyn could stand to witness no longer, he stepped between Awel and the snivelling, half-crazed little
Druid and balled his fist, slamming it into the side of Cai’s face who crumpled to the floor with a sigh. Gwyn shook his hand. ‘I’ll not have blasphemy in this house’ he said matter-of-factly.

Awel had been in the midst of
Humans for a matter of moments and already she was at a loss. One man, a Druid initiate was in league with Arawn, one man had attacked him and rendered him unconscious, and the others were all looking at each other like territorial robins in a hedgerow. And the way they drawled over their words or shortened them to near incomprehension. They spoke so quickly – did everything so hastily – that it was difficult to keep up.

Their names were the worst, they insisted on shortening them or calling each other by their first name only, which only added to Awel’s confusion. She found it near impossible to decipher Cai from Dai, Gwyn from Glyn, Selwyn from Nissyen.
What was I thinking? How could we all work together?

She roused herself from her withdrawn pensiveness
. ‘Show me the mark.’ Her voice was steady, belying the flutters of misgiving she harboured.

Nissyen leaned forward with great effort, his body was withering, but as he had just displayed his mind was still sharp and his observations acute. Turning Cai onto his back, Nissyen untied the
initiate’s robes and revealed his chest to show a newly branded motif, the skin raised and angry, depicting a horned skull.

The Chosen groaned as Awel hissed her disgust
. ‘It is the mark of Arawn,’ she confirmed, ‘it is his insignia. This initiate has truly turned to the shadows.’

Nissyen shook his head sadly
. ‘This boy would have been easily swayed … how many more of them are there? How many hide within the Triskele? How many Druids? How many Chosen are now corrupt?’

‘Not I, for one.’ Glyn-Guinea was on his feet, his shirt hanging open displaying his seasoned chest, covered with faded blue-black runic tattoos.

‘Your mother gave you those?’ Awel asked.

‘My grandmother.’ Glyn-Guinea began re-buttoning his shirt
. ‘I added a few when I got older – you can’t be too protected.’

Awel smiled in spite of herself as she nodded her whimsical agreement. ‘Are all of you covered so?’

Between shaking of heads and unbuttoning of shirts, the men displayed their chests, only the Triskelion brand marked them as Chosen. The mark of Arawn was not on any of them; even Nissyen bared his withered silver-white chest to prove his innocence.

‘Do you wish me to bare my chest too?’ Awel enquired with all sincerity. They all chorused
‘No’ and some even looked embarrassed at the proposition. She was always surprised by the Chosen’s modesty and prudery when it came to the naked body.