Page 47

thirty-five

The Root of the Problem

S kye approached his parents at the throne dais, his mother’s eyes round at Heather’s altered form.

A smug smile curled on the king’s lips, his pleasure obvious.

His one concern would no longer be an issue, for the lovers would now have the same life span.

With hushed words, Skye whispered Heather’s plans.

The Queen beckoned their herald, instructing him quickly before the pixie scurried over to the musicians.

Flower trumpets sounded with fanfare, disrupting the music. Her Majesty stood and addressed the crowd. “Hail thee fellows, Prince Skye and Lady Thistleby are confident they have a solution for the rains plaguing our continent.”

Vibrant applause erupted. The Queen continued, “They have conversed with the Spirits Divine.” The gathering went mute in a state of stupor.

“The mortal king toppled the Standing Stones early this summer, and we believe this disruption of the earthly realm is the source of our woes.” Camellia let the information saturate several heartbeats, before continuing.

“The Spirit of the Heavens stipulated the restoration of the Standing Stones. And we must comply. Prithee fly with Prince Skye to Sarsen.”

Skye whistled shrilly, summoning the bird-drawn cart from the dark. The robins fluttered aloft, positioning the chariot onto the lily pad. After assisting Heather up into the conveyance, he joined her, situated within, his hand a comforting weight on her lower back.

As the birds took flight, pulling the couple along, a procession formed from the revelers on lofty, shimmering wings.

Heather was thankful for the magick keeping them dry.

Otherwise, they’d be miserable as rain continued to fall and crash about them in large drops, like cannonballs.

The fete’s musicians added to their ranks, refusing to end the celebration, sounding their instruments, creating a merry parade.

Silvery pink moonshine lined the hillside as the procession flew swiftly over the countryside, a rainbow of their magick marking their way.

In the dark expanse of the night, the stars twinkled above, like winking eyes of great hidden beings.

The wind blustered in the direction of their flight, as if ushering their party forward.

Stout lightning bugs rushed past, and Heather reached out a hand, trailing their amber light. The small swarm delighted in the melody, circling round her, then Skye with zeal before bobbing alongside the chariot, accompanying them.

Heather willed her new appendages alight. She stroked the pendant Skye imbibed his magick into, the smooth opal had sparked the memory of the streaming lights of Sarsen. The pendant was pretty, but it wasn’t until Skye’s magick struck it that she was able to perceive its true shine.

They made extraordinary time. Ahead, five brilliant rays of swirling light penetrated the sky. With pixie vision, Heather could see deeper into the assortment of winding colors within. It was pure, unfiltered magick. The power and life force of a primordial being.

Heather’s wings glimmered pale pink behind her. “Everyone needs to gift a bit of their power to the stones.” Skye registered her words and sent his wide wings ablaze.

Their chariot approached the first stone, lying dank on scorched, barren earth. Skye lofted an orb of his magick at it. Heather held her hand aloft, conjuring her own- but it merely sputtered in her palm. She couldn’t get it to hold steady long enough to aim it.

As their conveyance floated towards the second pillar, Heather gazed over her shoulder, happy to see the remainder of their number mirroring their actions.

Spheres of every color catapulted against the rock, splattering and dissipating upon its surface.

Heather tried again. Concentrating at solidifying her intentions.

By the time the chariot passed by the third, she successfully drew forth the rose-pink glow, strong and steady enough to will it into the shape of a sphere, laying heavy within her palm. She hurled it with all her might.

If they could fill the severed, dark rocks full of power, hopefully the stones would cease drawing it from the earth and anything in contact with them.

Together, they struck each of the stones, as they glided by, until they rounded the monolith they began with.

Steadily, a colorful prism smoldered within the rock, swirling as lightning in a bottle.

It lit up the dark stone, giving it an opalescent sheen.

As power brimmed within, the sparse ground below it rejuvenated.

Grass sprouted and unfurled, spreading a sea of emerald from the stone.

Heather’s shoulders loosened. It was working!

With a heart and mind brimming with intention, Heather lobbed yet another globe of her power to the initial stone.

Onward they flew in a pattern encompassing the rocks.

Skye launched additional green orbs to the second megalith, this time setting it to shrink.

Heather struck the third, Skye the fourth and from out of nowhere, a massive orb of white crashed into the fifth.

Turning as one, Skye and Heather found the King to be its source.

Skye pulled the reins, wrenching their carriage to a halt.

The procession formed a circle around the Stones.

Someone would need to assess the pillars.

To decipher if they remained deadly to touch.

Heather drew in a deep breath, recollecting the pain she experienced last time they were in Sarsen.

Skye guided the robins to the earth, where they dismounted.

Heather strode over to the rock, prepared to place her hand on it.

But Skye grabbed her arm, pulling her back.

“Let me, Moonbeam.” Heather wanted to protest- she was the one adamant about ceasing the rains and sparing the humans from starvation.

Before she could object, Skye boldly slapped his palm against the rock…

and he didn’t flinch. He turned to her with a wide grin.

And she couldn’t help returning the smile.

Heather’s plan had succeeded. With the stones brimming with power, they would be able to move the stone without it suctioning the life force from their bones.

Clusters of pixies gathered at each shrunken monolith, skirting perilously near the streaming light.

In miniature, the slab remained weighty and as long as a pixie.

Heather and Skye were accompanied by the royal family, Aster and Rhoden at the primary rock.

Together, they heaved it to its former upright stance.

Rhoden’s eyes widened as he caught sight of Heather’s wings. Not one for subtlety, “What’s this, now? Ye be pixie?” exclaimed the male. Heather blushed profusely and her appendages fluttered in kind.

“Hoist on the count of three,” commanded Skye. They crowded round, bracing themselves for his tally. As one, they hoisted the mass vertical, matching the jagged edge as best they could.

They willed the stone to enlarge. Their wish giving force to the power within. It increased in height, weight and density at a snail’s pace.

Heather flapped her wings, desiring to move out of harm’s way as the stone grew. The slab was slipping into place over the stream of light, and suddenly, she was falling.

She tumbled into a lightning bolt.

Blinding, swirling rainbows of light enveloped her as she fell through the stream, arms flailing.

Her heart skipped a beat.

A loud, ragged draw of breath tore from her throat. Reverberating shock eclipsed her, chattering her teeth, sending a quake down into her bones.

Light speared her as if she were a prism of glass instead of flesh and bone.

She opened her eyes to see the growing slab of stone crashing toward her. With a snap, the jade sash strapped around her torso snapped taunt and before she could blink, she was hoisted up. Skye hauled her out of the stream, narrowly escaping the crushing rock.

Skye cradled her in his arms, shaking with adrenaline.

As the stone enlarged, it covered the stream of light, smothering it.

A blinding flash erupted, rising and washing over every pixie.

It roved past, a misty tide of colorful rays rushing across the land, giving way to green vegetation- returning the power and life source the Stone had siphoned from the soil.

“Do ye feel that?” inquired Rhoden.

Heather didn’t know what he meant. But as heartbeats passed, she realized rain no longer pelted her magick shield.

“We did it! Skye, we did it!” Heather jumped into his open arms, and he spun, twirling her round. The entire gathering cheered in jubilation! The musicians leapt into a boisterous tune and the pixie’s magick flared brighter than the moon.

Heather and Skye led their ranks into a dance and the Flower Moon Fete continued between the pillars of Stone.

Before the light of dawn, they tumbled past the open balcony to the castle, crashing into her chambers.

She stumbled over her own feet, giggling as if she had too much mead.

Skye landed right behind her. Magick, excitement and joy thrummed through her veins.

After chimes upon chimes of dancing, she still didn’t feel like she could settle for sleep.

The rains ceased to fall, and her friends would no longer be in danger of starvation.

She clasped a hand around Skye’s neck, their lips a hair’s breadth apart when a cough rang out within the room.

Turning pink with embarrassment, Heather dropped her arms and spun in the direction from which the noise originated.

Skye had partially unsheathed his rapier before realizing it was none other than Rhoden sitting in the gloom of the hearth.

Skye growled, “What are ye doing in my betrothed’s chambers?”

Rhoden stood, holding his hands up in surrender, “I thought this is where I would be most likely to find ye.” Skye re-sheathed his weapon.