Page 104 of The Rebel Seer

I shake my head. “Annwn was never Hell. It was the afterlife. The idea of Hell is a Christian belief. Viewed in that way, Annwn would be more like Heaven, but I get your point. It would also likely have some effects on the land around it. Perhaps there’s a reason those spirits wouldn’t go further into the forest.”

“The proximity to Annwn protects them,” Rhys agrees. “There might be other distances that would be safe, but we can’t count on that. Whatever spell Myrddin’s put in to attract the souls of the dead is definitely working in other parts of this sithein.”

Lee nods. “From what they can tell. We’re not allowed close to the mountain. My father has guards on all the trails. It’s been going on since shortly after he first met with Myrddin. We had a couple of spies make it to the mountains, but they didn’t come back.” Lee gets to one knee as the hounds roll around and offer their bellies up. “We’ve had some disturbances as well that led our witches to believe something is wrong.”

“So he did something to the mountain.” I think carefully about what the gnome told me. “Something that attracts the recently dead. They’re drawn in through Myrddin or the king. Likely via some spelled object they’re wearing. If one could see it, it might appear as though the soul was being consumed.”

“Are you telling me my father isn’t a soul eater?” Lee asks.

“I don’t think so, but it might be possible to use those souls as fuel for something. I don’t know if it would destroy the soul however. I think that might be impossible. But it could damage it.” I consider the problem as my hand strokes down Fluffy’s back. I like the fact that they’re here. They weren’t responsible for tricking us. They only wanted some affection and treats. “A spell like that could disrupt the balance.”

“Balance?” Cassie asks as her brother hides behind her because Caddoc is still trying to get a whiff of him. “What balance is there to death?”

“A soul needs to move on, and most do. It’s why the sluagh colonies aren’t filled to the brims,” I explain. “The truth of the matter is most people move on quickly because they’re ready. Otherwise, the world would be filled with spirits, and they would be restless. So restless they would disturb the waking world around them. I suspect that’s why no one is allowed near the mountains and why your people never came back.”

“They’re dead, too, aren’t they?” Lee asks, his expression grim.

“I think we can count on it,” I reply. “That many restless dead forget they’re trying to move on. They become angry even if they were not in life. They know they’re not in the right place, and after a while they seek revenge for it on anyone they can.”

“Myrddin needs my father because of his access to the mountain,” Lee says with a huff. “Why didn’t I think of it? We know he’s holding them there, but they had magical properties, too. Those mountains have long been ruled by my family. It’s where we hide our treasures. The sluagh actually guard some of them. I think he needs my father to access the mountain and get what he needs. He has to have my father alive to perform his ritual, and the only way to get him to agree was to give him what he wants.”

“My mother.” Rhys leans in, his arm going around my waist.

“He’s also convinced my father that he can take his temple back if he integrates with Bris,” Lee explains.

“Why bring Ostara into it?” Cassie asks.

I think I’ve figured that out. “She’s the experiment. They found a fairly weakened ascended goddess. If they can find the right spell to peel her off her host, then they can do the same with Bris. Bris is a non-corporeal spirit. They might think he could get sucked into the trap, and let me tell you, his soul moving on would be the big bang of that kind of magic.”

I shudder at the thought of it. Bris leaving could be everything Myrddin needs to do his will. To close us off. When that is done, he will open the gates to Hell and Earth will become a warzone like nothing we’ve ever seen.

It must be stopped at all costs.

“That might be enough to close the celestial planes off.” Rhys takes a long breath. “And he thinks you can stop him.”

He’s talking to me. Of course he is. I don’t understand it. “Me?”

“Yes, my love. You. He’s afraid of you,” Rhys says. “I want nothing more than to take you to Lee’s village and hide you away, but you are the key to all of this.”

“He’s terrified of you, Shy,” Lee agrees. “I saw it in his eyes when you were fighting him in the dining hall. You are what he didn’t count on. He thought he would get Rhys’s parents.”

“But the trap was about me,” I point out. “The crone came for me. Not the king and queen. Not the high priest. Me.”

“Which is why we have to consider the fact that the gods we call are not always the ones who answer,” Lee says solemnly. “What if my father and the wizard sought to trick your parents by hiring the hag, but the hag tricked them? What if, after all these years, she still loves the god she worked for? She is a divination witch. What if she saw what must happen and gave it the push it needed?”

“Like the dark prophet did.” Rhys nods. “This is all dependent on you, my goddess. I can stand by your side and accept whatever fate brings us, but you will lead us down the path. You will win or lose this battle.”

Tears spring to my eyes, and I am so afraid of his words. Because they ring true. “I have no idea what I’m supposed to do.”

I feel my power, but I don’t know how to use it. I don’t know what I’m supposed to be. I only know I’m more than I thought I was.

Water caresses my toes and I glance their way, thinking someone must have spilled. When I look down I see my bare feet in the mud of the pond that father used to fish in, and for a blink I am there. I feel the sun on my face, the warm winds of a Texas spring on my skin. It’s almost dark and Mama will call me in soon, but for now I stand beside my father as he whips the fishing pole into the pond and waits.

“Such a feral child,” he says with a grin. “You know we buy you shoes, Shy.”

I smile his way. “But I like the feel of the earth between my toes. And the sky above me.”

My father grows serious and he stares my way, his eyes going dark. “Because you are earth and sky. You are the bubbling cauldron we were all born of. When you need him, call his name. He always meant to find you again.”

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