Page 175 of Mountain of Mirrors and Starlight
Beau finished carving out his spells. “I’m not sure how well they’ll guard against Aeron’s magic,” he said. “But it should hold him off for a while… unless he’s secretly got an army of fae sorcerers, too.”
It seemed unlikely. Whatever Aeron’s plans were, he’d done his best to avoid collecting a force that used any magic at all. Strange. Could he honestly be plotting against the fae? What were his motives?
He had to be behind it, didn’t he? This couldn’t be Owen’s doing. Not the Owen that Caer knew. He’d always been wary of the Fae—what mortal wasn’t?—but to outright plot theirannihilation…why? He’d never been as distrustful of Rowan as Caer had been—
Rowan.
Caer leant against the wall, the truth staggering. “He’s the healer that was trying to save my mother,” he said quietly. “I thought I recognised him before. That’s how he forged an alliance with Owen. He must have worn a glamour when he visited us…” He paused. “I think he let my mother die,” he continued. “I think he wanted her dead to motivate Owen into forging this alliance. I heard him say he had a back-up option.” He paused again, breathing hard. “You can’t bring back the dead, right? Not without… extenuating circumstances. Like Dillon’s soul being trapped in the vines.”
The room fell silent. No one would meet his gaze—no one but Aislinn.
“That’s my understanding,” she said. “Dillon is the first case I’ve ever heard of.”
“The soul remains attached to the body for a little while after death,” Beau continued. “It allows for resuscitation. But once that connection is severed… no. It shouldn’t be possible. Not unless the soul was contained somewhere else.”
“Mother’s wasn’t,” Caer said slowly. “Clay’s couldn’t have been either.”
“And yet Aeron is claiming to have done it…”
Aislinn sighed, shaking her head. “I don’t understand it,” she said. “Helied.He straight uplied.How did he do that?”
“Does that part matter?” said Minerva. “He’s poisoned my sister’s ear. He has two armies on his side, and a Mirror he believes he can use to resurrect the dead. How’s your father’s army looking, girl? You think he can take on all that?”
Aislinn swallowed. Caer didn’t know much about the Fae military, but he imagined it was sparse, relying on magic to bolster its ranks, and its fearsome reputation to ward off external invaders. They were not ready for war. But the dwarves, though—they were built for it, and with Owen’s army behind them—
“This is my fault,” said Aislinn. “I used the vines to help us find the Mirror. I helped return it to its form.”
“I helped too,” Beau admitted. “This isn’t all on you.”
“No, lass.” Minerva shook her head. “You aren’t to blame for this. We might have sped up Aeron’s plans somewhat, but he’d have found a way to get to it eventually. And we’re the ones that agreed to the quest, even though we knew he was up to no good.”
“I shouldn’t have come here,” Caer whispered. “This—all of this—is because of me.”
Minerva snorted. “Actually, son, you’re the least to blame out of any of us. You’ve told us not to act on many an occasion, and we’re the ones that haven’t listened.”
Magna tugged on her sleeve, making several elaborate hand gestures, too quickly for Caer to understand. His eyes felt heavy, like his entire brain was trying to sponge out of his sockets.
“Yes, yes, I know you warned us too!”
Magna rolled her eyes, slumping back.
“Still—” Caer began.
Minerva shook her head. “You. You are obsessed with taking the blame, obsessed with shouldering things that aren’t yours to shoulder, when all you ever did to anyone was be born. You are an arrow, Caer—not the archer.”
Caer swallowed. “Someone is responsible for this.”
Minerva shrugged. “Perhaps. Aeron seems a good target for it right now. But sometimes, son, there is a lot of bad in the world and no one to blame. Life doesn’t owe you an easy ride. But you find the right people to ride it with you, and even the hard times will be endurable. You’ll see.”
“You still think we’re going to survive this?”
“I think we’ll give it our best shot.”
They set to work searching the house for anything useful. Most of the stairs had rotted away, but Aislinn and Beau were able to scramble up there and find a few blankets and a couple of mattresses that weren’t too mouldy. No one dared start a fire in case the smoke gave away their location.
“Luna?” Minerva called at one point. “Any luck in the kitchen?”
“Um… I found a rolling pin.”
