The Scourge of Muirwood
Page 90
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Knowledge flooded her as she pressed her palm against the Leering.
It was the Blight Leering – a carving that would summon devastation. In her mind, she saw images from the past whirl by, instances where Aldermastons had been summoned by the Medium to Dochte Abbey to unleash a Blight on the world. Some of the figures she saw in her mind were old men. Some were young. Some were women, of various ages. Always the Medium warned before the destruction came. Always it offered a chance to flee or escape. But throughout the centuries, there would come times when the people were so hardened by the machinations of the hetaera that they would not listen to the whispers of the Medium. They drowned the whispers in drink, in music, in dance, in smoke. They were lured by the wiles of the daughters of Ereshkigal until nothing could save them. In her mind she saw the horrors of what happened when the hetaera ruled. There was murder and lust and actions so terrible it made Lia shrink to even consider what occurred. The only way to reverse it – the only way to bring humanity back to its senses again was the coming of a Blight.
Lia’s hand began to burn.
She had never experienced the pain of fire before. She tried to take her hand away, but she could not. Her hand burned, but it was not just the sharp scalding pain of fire. She felt it passing through the Leering to her. The Leerings were just a conduit. They connected two points, bringing together two separate forces, combining them.
Knowledge of the Blight filled her mind. In the past, the Blight had manifested itself in many forms. Some it had killed by drowning. Some it had killed with famine. This Blight was different.
The Leering released her.
Lia nearly stumbled back, staring at her glowing hand. She could not see the Blight, but it was there, cupped in her glowing palm. Instantly, she knew what she had to do. The Medium whispered for her to return to the hetaera garden.
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO:
The Secret Veil
The hetaera gardens were empty, of course. The populace of the Abbey still thronged the furnace Leering as the last remnants were thrown to their deaths. The night was calm and the air smelled of jasmine. Lia entered the hedge maze, walking quickly until she reached the round stone lid that covered the lair. Staring at the stone, she knew in her mind the password that opened it and spoke the word aloud. The stone began to slide downward, sinking into the pit. Lia stepped on it quickly and descended into the black chasm. The previous time she had been terrified. There was no fear this time. Lia walked forward quickly, past the black gaps where the serpents waited for their victims. Her hand glowed more brightly now, the light keeping the snakes at bay.
Lia entered the chamber with the oath Leerings. They did not speak to her, for she had already made her oaths. In the center of the room, still in the floor, was the half-made kystrel. It was shallow in the grooves. The Medium commanded her to pick it up with her other hand, which she did after stooping. The kystrel was cold, lifeless. It was not a threat to her.
Walking forward, she met the barrier that had thwarted her before. Behind it, she sensed the Leering she had seen so often in her mind. The Leering with the twin snakes twisting into a circle. She felt its power throbbing, but it was pale compared to the Blight Leering she had just traveled from. She stared at the stone barrier. There was a dirge that would open the door – a command spoken by a Myriad One. But she was not controlled by a Myriad One.
“Open,” she commanded, drawing on the full power of the Medium.
The stone groaned in rebellion, but it could not defy an Aldermaston. It swiveled open silently, opening to the sound of rushing water and mist. The room beyond contained a giant pool, crafted from stones and tile and filled with overflowing water. There were three Leerings carved into pillars high on the wall and the rushing waterfalls came from them. The center of the pool contained a whirlpool. The waters swirled and churned in a spiral around the whorl. A single Leering rose from the edge of the water in front of her, the stone with the burning snake insignia.
The tiles and stone leading up to the Leering were beneath a shallow layer of water. Lia looked at the water and felt the thundering mewling of Myriad Ones within the pool. There were millions of them.
Lia raised her glowing hand into the maston sign. The waters parted away from her, leaving a path of dry stone to the Leering. She approached the serpent Leering, listening to the churn and foam of the waterfall, feeling the mist on her face as she approached. The room was dark, except for the light coming from her hand and the burning snakes carved into the Leering. This was the final place. This was where a girl became a hetaera after making the oaths and forging her kystrel. She stared at the Leering and experienced a rush of blackness inside her soul just looking at it. The water bubbled and hissed as if flames from beneath the pool were beginning to ravage the waters. The mist turned into steam. It burned hotter and hotter as she approached. The entire stone shuddered with power, trying to blast her away from it. But Lia pressed on, approaching the stone, her hand in the maston sign as she walked.
It was the Blight Leering – a carving that would summon devastation. In her mind, she saw images from the past whirl by, instances where Aldermastons had been summoned by the Medium to Dochte Abbey to unleash a Blight on the world. Some of the figures she saw in her mind were old men. Some were young. Some were women, of various ages. Always the Medium warned before the destruction came. Always it offered a chance to flee or escape. But throughout the centuries, there would come times when the people were so hardened by the machinations of the hetaera that they would not listen to the whispers of the Medium. They drowned the whispers in drink, in music, in dance, in smoke. They were lured by the wiles of the daughters of Ereshkigal until nothing could save them. In her mind she saw the horrors of what happened when the hetaera ruled. There was murder and lust and actions so terrible it made Lia shrink to even consider what occurred. The only way to reverse it – the only way to bring humanity back to its senses again was the coming of a Blight.
Lia’s hand began to burn.
She had never experienced the pain of fire before. She tried to take her hand away, but she could not. Her hand burned, but it was not just the sharp scalding pain of fire. She felt it passing through the Leering to her. The Leerings were just a conduit. They connected two points, bringing together two separate forces, combining them.
Knowledge of the Blight filled her mind. In the past, the Blight had manifested itself in many forms. Some it had killed by drowning. Some it had killed with famine. This Blight was different.
The Leering released her.
Lia nearly stumbled back, staring at her glowing hand. She could not see the Blight, but it was there, cupped in her glowing palm. Instantly, she knew what she had to do. The Medium whispered for her to return to the hetaera garden.
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO:
The Secret Veil
The hetaera gardens were empty, of course. The populace of the Abbey still thronged the furnace Leering as the last remnants were thrown to their deaths. The night was calm and the air smelled of jasmine. Lia entered the hedge maze, walking quickly until she reached the round stone lid that covered the lair. Staring at the stone, she knew in her mind the password that opened it and spoke the word aloud. The stone began to slide downward, sinking into the pit. Lia stepped on it quickly and descended into the black chasm. The previous time she had been terrified. There was no fear this time. Lia walked forward quickly, past the black gaps where the serpents waited for their victims. Her hand glowed more brightly now, the light keeping the snakes at bay.
Lia entered the chamber with the oath Leerings. They did not speak to her, for she had already made her oaths. In the center of the room, still in the floor, was the half-made kystrel. It was shallow in the grooves. The Medium commanded her to pick it up with her other hand, which she did after stooping. The kystrel was cold, lifeless. It was not a threat to her.
Walking forward, she met the barrier that had thwarted her before. Behind it, she sensed the Leering she had seen so often in her mind. The Leering with the twin snakes twisting into a circle. She felt its power throbbing, but it was pale compared to the Blight Leering she had just traveled from. She stared at the stone barrier. There was a dirge that would open the door – a command spoken by a Myriad One. But she was not controlled by a Myriad One.
“Open,” she commanded, drawing on the full power of the Medium.
The stone groaned in rebellion, but it could not defy an Aldermaston. It swiveled open silently, opening to the sound of rushing water and mist. The room beyond contained a giant pool, crafted from stones and tile and filled with overflowing water. There were three Leerings carved into pillars high on the wall and the rushing waterfalls came from them. The center of the pool contained a whirlpool. The waters swirled and churned in a spiral around the whorl. A single Leering rose from the edge of the water in front of her, the stone with the burning snake insignia.
The tiles and stone leading up to the Leering were beneath a shallow layer of water. Lia looked at the water and felt the thundering mewling of Myriad Ones within the pool. There were millions of them.
Lia raised her glowing hand into the maston sign. The waters parted away from her, leaving a path of dry stone to the Leering. She approached the serpent Leering, listening to the churn and foam of the waterfall, feeling the mist on her face as she approached. The room was dark, except for the light coming from her hand and the burning snakes carved into the Leering. This was the final place. This was where a girl became a hetaera after making the oaths and forging her kystrel. She stared at the Leering and experienced a rush of blackness inside her soul just looking at it. The water bubbled and hissed as if flames from beneath the pool were beginning to ravage the waters. The mist turned into steam. It burned hotter and hotter as she approached. The entire stone shuddered with power, trying to blast her away from it. But Lia pressed on, approaching the stone, her hand in the maston sign as she walked.
