Page 15 of A Touch of Stars and Stones
Huts, stalls, and small buildings litter the area close to us, as though the city has spilt out and can’t be contained. To one side, I see the edge of a forest, trailing into thick and lush foliage, but what’s most impressive is beyond the walls of The Court, slabs of dark stone rose from the ground, forming mountains, for they are far too big to be described as hills. Small and green in the foreground, they lose their elegance the further I look, revealingsharp edges, snow-lined peaks—huge and monstrous in size. My neck aches from looking up so far.
I had never thought I’d see something as beautiful, so vast, with so much all in one view right in front of me. It snatches my breath as I stare in silence.
“Impressive, isn’t it?” Lyle whispers in my ear.
I blink at the awe threatening to bring tears to my eyes and grasp to hold on to the anger that she hid all of this. She can’t placate me with beauty and wonder. But I can’t help wanting to catalogue every little detail I can.
Lyle leads us towards a stable amongst the buildings spreading from The Court, and what she said was the entrance. We leave the horses, and she meanders back through the many dwellings.
We follow the curve of the outer wall that pulls us in as the shape turns into a spiral, continuing the protected ring. Every step is a wonder, and I thirst to drink it all in. As we round the natural curve, the edge of one of the mountainsides casts us in shadow. Beneath it, homes and buildings made of stone, with thatch roofs and simple windows, remind me of our own home, and I wonder if Lyle lived in one of these when she was here.
We continue further, the gradient rising as we climb inward. Candles and lanterns are lit by people as we pass, illuminating buildings and houses that are set into the walls. Different designs and different shapes of buildings, all crammed inside the spiral. I realise these were what I could see as we approached from the outside. A tapestry of life.
We walk, and I remember what Lyle said to me about The Court, that she called the spire The Tower. I guess that’s where she is taking me. Everything is bigger than I had first thought. Big enough to contain all of Osanor within the giant spiral wall.
Finally, when only the light of the buildings around me can show us the way, we arrive at the centre—the end. Part of meregisters that there is only one way in or out of here, and that sends a shiver down my spine. The spire I can see is the crowning point of an opulent castle beneath, set in a half-moon shape of buildings many storeys high, with arched windows glowing from within. Grand and intimidating, I now stand before it, a courtyard area at the foot of stone steps. The spire, or Tower, beyond.
A shadowy figure, craggy and hunched over, with thinning hair, stands at the foot of the spire. She is cloaked and has a gnarled stick to complete the witch aesthetic that I draw to mind. She raises her head to reveal a haggard-looking face. Her eyes, hallowed and dark where they should be, are sealed shut, her skin sagging and wrinkling.
She is… like something out of a fairy tale book, and not in the princess kind of way. But none of that worries me.
It’s the voice that scares me.
The voice I hear inside my head.
“Welcome, Ever Hart.”
six
. . .
Ever
My feet itch to move backwards, the quaking in my legs unbearable. I want to turn away, find Nettle, and ride back to our house, galloping all the way.
But I make sure I don’t flinch, even as my heart pounds in my chest and fear fills my stomach with an acrid dread.
I see the slight nod that Lyle gives to the witch next to me.
Was this it? Would Lyle leave me with this woman? In this place?
My fears want to take flight in my mind and overtake me, but I lock my body from moving.
“I see there are many questions still to answer. Step forward.” This time, I hear the words the witch speaks out loud, a small relief. Lyle nods, encouraging me, and I have to remind myself that she won’t intentionally put me in harm’s way. My whole life tells me that, but it still takes all my courage to walk towards the woman.
As I get closer, she raises her hand, stretching it out to hold before me. Waiting. An urge sweeps over me like a phantom,and I place my hand in hers as if by command. Her papery-thin skin feels like it might split and crack as her fingers close around mine, my stomach twisting at the sensation against my own skin.
A blinding pain, like I felt when we were leaving, cracks through my skull, splitting it open, surely, for that must be why it hurts so much.
Voices, images, feelings… they all swamp me, invading and taking over my mind.
I can’t remember when my legs gave out, but they must do because I’m crumpled on the floor, the witch looking over me with her sightless eyes when mine open again.
Lyle is there, too.
The witch looks at her with concern on her face, although how I can read that emotion between the lines and the sagging skin is a mystery.
It’s not like I can read their concern. It’s more… I can feel it. As though it’s hampering me, seeping into me.
