“You’re halfway there,” a voice said.
Startled, I opened my eyes. I was sitting with my back against a wide gray column. Before me stood the Wyrd Sisters.
“Welcome back,” the older woman said.
The world around me was very dark.
“Sid?” I called. I rose to my feet and tried to look around. “Sid?”
“Sidhe is not here, though she is close,” the old woman said.
“Come, come to the cauldron,” the younger woman said.
“Come, Cerridwen,” the ancient matriarch called, motioning me forward.
The younger, red-haired woman frowned. “Not too much or Epona will hide her away.”
“Bah, Epona will do as the Goddess commands.”
“Cerridwen…why call me by the name of the Welsh Cauldron Goddess?” I demanded.
“Welsh!” the elder woman declared in disgust. “The Goddess of the Cauldron is eternal. She is known by many names…Cerridwen, Hecate, Astarte…all ladies of war and magic, all the same divine creature…all just like you.”
I frowned at her. Her answer felt like a riddle. “Why have you brought me here?”
The younger woman with the deep red hair grinned at me. “You tell us. Why have you come here?”
“I was in the barrow.”
“But your path ends here,” the red-haired woman said.
“Yet still, you are right, Epona will keep her too long,” the older woman complained.
“Epona can smell the magic on her, but that is not why Epona keeps her.”
“You’re right. It is Crearwy she desires.”
“And the other.”
“Look in your cauldron. The boy belongs to the world. Don’t you see the crown on his head?”
The women became silent, their eyes flicking back toward me.
“Come, Cerridwen. I will show him to you. I know you wish to see him,” said the elder.
“Who?”
“The man in your dream. Your raven-haired man with skin like snow and eyes the color of the sky,” said the younger.
“Your King,” added the elder.
Curiosity got the better of me. I stepped forward and looked in the cauldron. He was there, the man from my dream just the night before. He was in battle. I gasped. Many men were upon him, but a blond-haired giant, swinging a massive battle axe, cleared them away. My heart stilled. The women were watching me, but I didn’t care. I watched as the raven-haired man moved through the battlefield. He was beautiful. His clear blue eyes sought out his enemy. His cheeks were flushed red from battle vigor.
I reached out and touched his image in the cauldron. The liquid did not ripple like water; it felt soft like silk. I was surprised when the man stopped and looked around him.
“Can you feel me?” I asked.
“Yes,” he answered.
“Where are you?” I whispered.
“Caithness.”
“Can you see me?”
He shook his head. Then a fierce warrior came upon him. Hearing my voice had caused him to be off his guard. The huge man beat him down, forcing him to hide under his shield, and his blond-haired protector was nowhere in sight.
“No,” I yelled. “No!”
I suddenly found myself floating above the battlefield. Below me my raven-haired man and his foe struggled. I flew downward and knocked the foe away. My black-haired man rose and stabbed his enemy. He turned to face me, and it was clear he could see me.
From behind me, someone shouted my name: “Gruoch!”
I turned to see Sid. I was then pulled with a dizzying force back to the cauldron.
“What do you have in the cauldron today? Eye of newt? Toe of frog?” Sid seethed at the Wyrd Sisters.
“Peace, Sidhe,” said the ancient one.
Sid took my hand. “Come.”
“Come again, Cerridwen,” the younger woman called to me. “You are welcome here amongst your sisters.”
“Hecate watches. Don’t tangle the webs of fate too soon,” Sid chided them.
Sid led me forward into the darkness. Moments later, we emerged in the barrow near the altar of Boudicca.
“Our roads take us to different places in the other realm,” Sid whispered.
The barrow was dark. “Is it night?”
“Two days later.”
“How?”
“That is the way of the otherworld.”
“What do those women want from me?”
“The Dark Goddess is an angry Goddess. Her anger at losing her people to the White Christ makes her seethe. She is full of fury, battle, vengeance, and secret magic. She is the queen of darkness and night. Those women, and you, wear her face…Cerridwen,” she whispered.
“It is my father’s curse.”
“It is not a curse. Call her what you will, Scotia, Morrigu, Hecate, you belong to her. It is a rare coven. They are the most powerful beings in this land. And they want you. You will be an avenger, as the fey have said.”
“Must I go to them? They say Epona is keeping me.”
“Epona knows the will of the Goddess as sure as they know it. And she will do what she must. But first, you must learn to be in the seat of power, not riding alongside. We will train you.”
“Sidhe,” I whispered, repeating the name the elder of the Wyrd Sisters had called Sid.
She grinned. “It’s just a name. I won’t be impressed until you remember what you called me when you were Boudicca. Come on. I’m starving! I hope Epona has something sweet in her cupboards.”
I shook my head and grinned at her. My mind spinning, I followed Sid down a path between nine oak trees back to the coven.
* * *
When we entered the grove, we found that all the houses were dark save Epona’s. As soon as we stepped into the clearing, Epona opened her door and beckoned us within.
On the table, several scrolls were rolled out, and I eyed them as Epona dipped into her cupboards. She emerged with bread and dried fruit.
“How are you both?”
“We are intact,” Sid replied.
“Did she follow?” Epona asked Sid.
Sid looked at me. “She did go to the other side.”
“To the Good Neighbors?”
Sid shook her head. “The Wyrds. I told them that they weave the threads of fate too soon.”
Epona nodded. “They are anxious.” She then turned to me. “So what have your sisters shown you in the cauldron?”
I balked.
“Come, girl.”
“A man,” I answered.
Epona looked thoughtful. “Have you seen this man before?”
“Peace, Lady. We’ve not eaten in days,” Sid said as she sliced bread for us both.
Relieved, I exhaled deeply. I didn’t even know what I had seen or what it meant. Something about Epona told me that she was trustworthy, that I was safe with her. But the Wyrd Sisters also warned that Epona had her own agenda, and I had no idea what that was. I wasn’t sure what to tell her.
Epona softened. “You know my concerns.”
Sid nodded.
“Tomorrow, go to the smithy and work with Uald,” Epona said to me.
I nodded, glad she didn’t ask any more questions.
“What are you working on?” Sid asked, looking at Epona’s papers.
“Calculating our projected harvest compared to last year’s and determining if we will have enough to get us through next winter,” Epona said, her brows furrowing.
I looked at her papers. They looked like scribbles to me.
Epona saw me. “Tomorrow, after dinner, you and Ludmilla will begin your lessons in writing.”
I nodded affirmatively and scarfed down the rest of my dinner. Almost immediately, I began to feel drunk from the food. Sid’s eyes also drifted.
“Go to bed, girls,” Epona said with a laugh.
Thankful, Sid and I departed.