Chapter Eight
The Devil
Alaunus had beeninsistent that the two of them leave the village after they wed. Aveta wondered if he knew something she did not.
Still, she spent the day carefully packing her herbs, potions, seeds, and tools in several baskets. She was not as concerned with her clothing as the few dresses and nightgowns she owned could easily be rolled into a bundle. She decided she would ask Bran to sell her cottage and hold the money until she and Alaunus could return.
To her surprise, the day passed quickly. She wondered how Alaunus was faring with the villagers and their response to his sudden illness and equally abrupt healing. She tried not to worry about the shadow that had passed over her garden that morning, focusing instead on what was to come after she and Alaunus were wed.
It was late afternoon when she heard a light rap on her door. Assuming it was a villager in need of a potion or tea, Aveta opened her door with a warm smile to greet them.
When her eyes fell on Rhiannon, she felt the imminent danger. The other woman hurled a curse at her, the ancient words falling from her lips with ease. Aveta threw up a hand, deflecting the curse with a spell of her own, her reaction immediate. The words came from her mouth instinctively.
Before Aveta could fully understand what was happening, Rhiannon reached out and grasped her wrist. Her black eyes shone like mirrors as she hissed another spell.
Aveta screamed as the world fell away and she was hurled into the blackness.
Something soft brushedAveta’s cheek before moving on to tickle her nose. Her head jerked away from the strange feathery sensation on her skin.
“You’re awake,” Rhiannon crooned. “Good.”
Aveta sat up suddenly, her head aching fiercely. Groaning, she lifted a hand to her forehead. “What have you done, Rhiannon?” she asked. “Where are we?”
“Since you refused to do as I asked, I have taken matters into my own hands.” The younger woman rose from her crouched position next to Aveta, straightening to her full height. A black feather dangled from her fingers.
Aveta stared up at her, swamped by the sensation that she was seeing Rhiannon’s true form for the first time. The woman seemed taller, thinner, and her black hair glistened with blue highlights rather than the subdued hints of color that Aveta thought she noticed before. It struck her that Rhiannon’s hair was the same color as the goddess’.
“Who are you?” Rhiannon was clearly more than human, perhaps even more than a witch. Now that the veil was lifted, Aveta could see the shimmering power that cloaked the other woman, the same blue light that sparkled in the stream in the woods.
“I am you,” Rhiannon replied, sweeping the skirts of her dress to the side in order to pace across the rock floor. “Or I once was.”
Aveta noticed that they were enclosed in some sort of cave, the jagged rocks appeared vaguely threatening in the dim glow of the candles scattered throughout the chamber.
Rhiannon stopped her movements, facing Aveta with a chilling smile on her face. “You see, long ago I too was blessed by the god and the goddess. They saw fit to give me power with the instruction to use it for the benefit of others. Like a good little sycophant, I did as they said. As the years passed, I grew older and poorer, living in a mud hut half the size of your cottage. Then I fell ill. After years of serving others, helping the sick and wounded in my own village, do you know what they did?” Rhiannon’s eyes sparkled with fury and bitterness. “They left me to die. No one cared that I was ill and alone. They knew I was dying, andthey did nothing.”
The flames that danced upon the candles expanded, shooting several feet in the air. Rhiannon’s rage seemed to fuel them.
“So I decided then that everything I did from that moment on would be formybenefit, and mine alone. There is more to magic than the unselfish servitude that the god and goddess would have you believe,” Rhiannon explained. “I did whatever was necessary to heal myself, to gain wealth and beauty, but my powers have begun to wane.”
Aveta inched away from Rhiannon, wracking her mind for a spell to protect her. She reached out for the goddess, but could not feel her. She did not dare call for Alaunus. While he was stronger now than he had been before, he did not possess the skill to defeat a creature such as Rhiannon.
“What is it you want from me?” Aveta asked desperately, realizing her power had deserted her. She felt no energy, no pulse of magic, within her.
Rhiannon laughed. “Little witch, I told you. I wanted you to stay away from Alaunus.”
Aveta’s eyes grew wide as she finally grasped Rhiannon’s true motive for wishing to wed Alaunus. “You want his power,” she whispered.
For years, Aveta had known that Alaunus had great potential. His power was still raw and untutored, and he seemed completely unaware of the magical feats he would be capable of performing. In fact, he did not seem to know that he held power at all.
“Yessss,” Rhiannon hissed. “I am sure you have felt it.”
Aveta nodded, speechless. How could she have been so blind?
Rhiannon laughed. “What fools, the pair of you. All this time, you had no idea that the most powerful wizard this land has ever seen was the same man you spread your legs for. And he was too blind to see you for what you are. Had either of you been willing to acknowledge the true strength of your natures, I would not have had a chance.” Her smile widened. “I must confess I am quite pleased that is not the case. Especially since you have improved Alaunus a great deal.”
Aveta stilled at Rhiannon’s words, watching the dark witch closely. “What do you mean?”
“Come now, Aveta. Surely you have realized by now that it was I who cursed Alaunus. Since I could not siphon his power a bit at a time by living as his wife, I decided that I would strip it from him all at once as he died. It was not the ideal arrangement, but it was my only opportunity since he resisted all my attempts to…persuade him. When you changed him, I was shocked. I did not think it within your ability to create an entirely new being. Still, I have decided that I am grateful. He is stronger now. When I drain his power, it will make me stronger as well.” She laughed with false humor. “Now that I know how you created such a beast, I believe I will make more of my own. Warriors to do my bidding and strong enough to defeat any enemy.”
