‘What a very female sort of question,’ Taku scoffed, ignoring the red flare that emanated from Aurora, and flashed across the sky. ‘Considering its vast power, the Fialan was small, and quite innocuous-looking. I expect, however, that you would have thought it very pretty. It was simply a glittering green crystal, about the size of your circled finger and thumb, but it was one of the most powerful implements in this world, and Hellorin’s price for his assistance in its creation was very high. After they had used the Fialan to gain their footholds in both worlds, the Moldai had to give custody of the Stone over to the Phaerie.’
‘Give such tremendous power into Hellorin’s hands?’ Corisand gasped. ‘They would be mad to do such a thing.’
‘Nevertheless,’ said Aurora, ‘that is exactly what they did. The Moldai had no choice, and in truth, they had little need for the Fialan once they had achieved their ends. But it rankled that the Phaerie should possess this priceless artefact that was partly their handiwork. So, before they gave up the Stone, they put an additional charm of their own into it, without the knowledge of the Phaerie. It was half a spelclass="underline" in order for the Stone to be used, the spell must be completed - and only the Moldai knew how.’
‘But surely Hellorin would have found that out straight away?’
‘Why would he? They had designed the Stone to create a portal between the worlds, and at first the Phaerie were content here in the Elsewhere. But as their race grew and prospered, we Evanesar decided to set curbs on their ambition. At that point, Hellorin decided that he too wished to take his people to the mundane world, so that he would be free of us, and his ambition could no longer be shackled.’
‘He tried to use the Stone and failed? He must have been absolutely livid.’ Corisand’s eyes sparkled. ‘Oh, how I wish I could have seen that.’
Taku’s eyes glittered with amusement. ‘As you say. And worse was to come for the Forest Lord. The Moldai knew that the opportunity for which they had waited so long had finally come to pass. They withheld the spell of completion until the Lord of the Phaerie had met their price - the return of the Stone of Fate into their custody. He agreed, seemingly readily enough, though inside he was raging. The Stone was given back to the Moldai and placed in the custody of Ghabal, one of their most powerful magicians, also known as Steelclaw in the mundane world. He had been nominated as the one who would act as focus for the spell of completion; the one who would combine his magic with that of Hellorin in order to allow the portal to form.’
‘But Hellorin had a treacherous plan to take back the Fialan.’ Aurora’s voice grew harsh with anger. ‘Even as the portal opened and his people passed through, he tried one last, desperate act of magic to wrest back the crystal from the Moldai. The result was catastrophic. The portal spell required tremendous amounts of two differing sorts of magic - that of the Phaerie and that of the Moldai - all bound together in a delicate and precarious equilibrium of force and counter-force, and Hellorin’s additional spell shattered that balance.’
Taku’s voice was a growl. ‘The resulting explosion almost destroyed the Elsewhere, and brought death and havoc to many of its inhabitants. The worst fate, however, befell Ghabal. Since he had been using the Fialan to help Hellorin form the portal, he caught the direct recoil of the spell and was dreadfully injured. In the mundane world, his body was shattered, the living rock of the mountain peak riven and melted. Here in the Elsewhere, he suffered hideous disfigurement, and was driven hopelessly insane. Yet he managed to retain the Stone, and still holds it, to this day. All that power and potential is now in the hands of a violent, mad and unpredictable creature.’
Corisand’s mind was racing, almost too fast for her to keep up with the welter of ideas and possibilities. ‘If Ghabal has the Stone of Fate, and the Moldai can dwell in both realities, does that mean he could use it in either world?’
Taku nodded solemnly. ‘I suspect that may be the case. Your own world is in danger, as well as this one.’
‘That’s not my consideration at present. I’m wondering...’ The Windeye took a deep breath. ‘I wonder if there is any way the Stone could be used to free my people? If I could only negotiate with this Ghabal, and somehow persuade him to help us. After all, his great enemy, the Forest Lord, is also my foe. Might that not be enough to convince him?’
‘It would be sheer madness even to attempt such a thing,’ Aurora snapped. ‘Put any idea of bargaining with Ghabal out of your mind. His people made a covenant with Hellorin once, and it cost him almost everything. He will never negotiate with anyone else. Approach him with that end in mind and he will strike you down.’
Corisand scarcely knew whether to be relieved or disappointed. Though it had seemed such a simple, elegant plan, the thought of actually trying to form an alliance with the crazed Moldan had filled her with misgiving. Yet if she could not be his ally, she would have to take the Fialan away from him, and that alternative was far worse. Nevertheless, she would have to do it, and she meant to. The fact that she hadn’t worked out how she could possibly achieve such a thing was simply a trifling detail. She fixed the serpent with her gaze. ‘But if I possessed it, I could use the Stone?’
‘I think,’ said Taku cautiously, ‘that with some training, you might learn to use it and bend it to your will. Hellorin and the Moldai made the Fialan for a specific reason: to use as a gateway between the worlds. But the Stone itself is not the portal. It is simply a way to store and magnify their magical power. I have the feeling, however, that other, alternative forms of magic - say the power of a Windeye or a Wizard - may achieve additional and far different ends.’
‘But we do not know for certain,’ Aurora added hastily, ‘and you would risk a great deal in trying to master such forces single-handed - if indeed you ever got that far. If you are determined to proceed along that path, you must first take the Stone from Ghabal. How do you propose to achieve that? Others have tried before you. None have succeeded. None have survived.’
At Aurora’s dark words, Corisand felt dread rising up like a dark miasma from her belly to her brain. With a struggle, she held it back. ‘You think I can do it, don’t you?’ she said to Taku. ‘That is why you brought me here, is it not?’
‘I brought you here on a gamble, nothing more,’ he said, with a wary glance at Aurora. ‘When I felt a Windeye abroad in the mundane world again, it seemed that there was one last chance, one faint hope, to regain the Stone. But when I brought you here, I did not know your mettle. Now that we understand one another a little better, I begin to see the faintest gleam of hope for all of us, and I am prepared to help in any way I can.’
‘Taku.’ Aurora sounded shocked. ‘What have you done? You brought this innocent here, and I have watched as you cleverly manipulated her into thinking she could recover the Stone. This is all wrong. How dare you give her hope where none exists, only to further our ends? She has no idea what she would be facing.’
‘I have simply made the most of an opportunity. She is a Windeye. Their powers are different from ours. It has been so long since Hellorin or Ghabal faced one of her kind that she might be able to take them by surprise. Some of the old Windeyes were very strong.’
‘That didn’t stop the Forest Lord from enslaving her race,’ Aurora snapped. ‘What you ask is beyond her, Taku. It is beyond any of us. How can we ask her to do what we cannot?’ The clear, golden gaze of the eagle turned in Corisand’s direction. ‘Windeye, be warned: what Taku asks of you is not reasonable. Let me send you back to your own world.’
Corisand stretched up a hand towards the shimmering vision in the sky. ‘Thank you, Aurora, for trying to protect me. I know you have my interests at heart. But can’t you see that Taku is right? This is my only chance to free my people, and I can’t turn away while that one small hope exists. If I succeed, then we all win, and if I fail . . . Well, there will be another Windeye to follow me, and carry on in my place.’