Page 68 of Galadon
Then again, when had Rayna ever kept her thoughts to herself? It was only because things were going so well that she didn’t want to ruin it, especially when Galadon was about to reveal something he hadn’t for others.
“I can see you’re thinking hard. What is it?” he asked, giving her a questioning look.
She drew in a deep breath. “Would you consider letting me add my power to the wards so I can feel the intruders, too? Then, if you must go away somewhere, or there are too many attacking at once, I can help deal with them.”
Galadon was silent for a moment as she stood there nervously waiting for his response.
“I will consider it,” he finally said, giving her an appreciative smile. “It’s not a bad idea, but I want you to knowthe land and become comfortable with it before accepting that kind of responsibility.”
She supposed that was fair enough. “Alright.”
Galadon took her hand. “Come. It’s time to see what you came here for.”
He led her through the trees until they came to a clearing where a silver metal and stone circle lay. It was large enough that any size dragon could have fit as long as their wings were folded. At least a dozen adult humans could have fit inside with room to spare, but she couldn’t fathom its purpose.
Galadon said nothing as Rayna walked around the stones, studying them. Each had a unique symbol carved into it. Then she knelt and rubbed her fingers over one. “They’re warm.”
“Yes, even during the coldest winter.”
She tried to pull the stone up but had no better luck than him. “They’re stuck?”
“By some magical force, yes. I’ve tried everything I could think of to no avail.” He shook his head. “Until my mother returned and finally explained it to me a couple of weeks ago, I had no idea of its purpose.”
The repercussions of this place floored her. Galadon had guarded this place for centuries without knowing why it was even there. “So, what is it?”
“We believe it’s a fairy circle,” he said.
Rayna mulled that over. She’d read her fair share of fairytales as a child and plenty of fantasy books as a teen and adult. Then, there were those months with her mother studying ancient texts before things went badly, and they parted ways. Ofcourse, who knew if any of it was accurate, but looking at the circle, she had a good idea what it might do.
“It’s a portal for travel to other worlds,” she surmised.
Galadon’s eyes lit with surprise. “How did you know?”
“I read a lot.”
He grunted. “I should have known.”
Rayna sighed. “I mean, a lot of fiction has some basis in old lore, but after magic returned, my mother somehow got hold of some ancient spell books. I think they came over from Kederrawien. Before we became estranged, we practiced our magic together.”
“You don’t see or speak to your mother any longer?” he asked.
“No.” She looked away from his concerned gaze. “She wanted me to focus on my sorceress powers and not go through with the slayer rite. I always tried to please her, especially back then, but she was so rigid that living up to her standards seemed impossible. All the while, I kept seeing innocent people die all around us. Everything in me screamed to protect them, so I killed twenty dragons with lightning bolts before finding out I needed to eat one of their hearts to complete my transition. When I did find out, mom forbade me from doing it.”
“What about your father?” he asked, frowning.
Rayna smiled fondly at her memories of him. “He’s the one who ran into the Straegud while out searching for food for us. They figured out what he was, and being a lot more open to slayers, they told him what he needed to do. He’d just killed a green dragon, so he finished the rite of passage right there.When he got home, Mom had to watch him go through the transition.”
Galadon cocked his head. “What is that like?”
She supposed he’d never had a reason to hear about it. The slayer from his childhood had passed her rite decades before she met him and likely didn’t think it was relevant to discuss. Most of the ones he’d met after Amari attacked him right away. Only Bailey might have told him, but maybe by that point he didn’t care to ask. Only with Rayna did he have a reason to bother.
“Horrible.” She shuddered. “It’s complete and total agony as your body changes on a molecular level from the inside out. It lasts for three days. All you can do is lie in bed and suffer through it. Mom was horrified. Dad said it was awful at the time, but he didn’t have much memory afterward. Like your mind blacks most of it out, or it does for most slayers.”
He took a step closer to me. “And you?”
Rayna shook her head. “I think it went differently for me because of my sorceress powers. I remember every moment in vivid detail. In a way, that helped me endure the torture with the Kandoran, but I wish I could have forgotten like the others.”
“I’d erase those memories for you if I could,” Galadon said, caressing her cheek. It touched her to hear him say that. “What made you defy your mother?”
