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"What are these?" Felicity asks.

"That is the language of our elders."Advertisement

"Magic arrows?" Ann asks, peering at the tips.

Felicity raises the bow and closes one eye against an imaginary target. "They are arrows, Ann. They shall work like any other."

"Perhaps," Philon says. "If you have the courage to aim and shoot."

Felicity glowers. She turns the bow to Philon.

"Felicity!" I hiss."What are you doing?"

"I've plenty of courage." Felicity snarls.

"Will you have it when it counts most?" Philon asks coolly.

Pippa pushes the bow down and away."Fee, stop it."

"I've plenty of courage," she says again.

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"Of course you do," Pippa soothes.

Philon regards them curiously."We shall see." To me it says, "Priestess, these arrows, then, are they your choice of weapon?"

"Yes," I answer."I suppose they are."

"We should be leaving," Felicity says. "Thank you for the arrows."

Philon dips that magnificent head. "You are most welcome. But they are not a gift. They are a marker against a debt to be paid."

I feel as if I am falling into a hole, and the more I try to dig my way out, the deeper it gets."What sort of payment?"

"A share of the magic is what we ask, should you find the Temple first. We do not intend to live in the dark again." "I understand," I say, making a promise I do not know if I can honor.

Philon walks us to the edge of the forest, where the strange glowing lights wait to take us back to the ship.

"They will all try to keep you from the Temple. You must know that. How will you protect yourselves? Have you any alliances?"

"We have the gorgon," I say.

Philon nods slowly. "The gorgon. The last of her kind. Imprisoned on a ship for all time as punishment for her sins."

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"I mean there is much you do not know," Philon says."Tread carefully, priestess. There is no hiding here. Your fondest wishes, your deepest desires or greatest fears can be used against you. There are many who would want to keep you from your task."

"Why are you telling me this? Are you loyal to the Order after all?"

"This is war," Philon says, long purplish hair blowing across sharp cheekbones."I am loyal to the victor."

The lights circle and dart about Pippa's head. She swats at them playfully. I've one last question before we go, though.

"The gorgon is our ally, isn't she? She is bound to tell us truth always."

"Bound by what? The magic is no longer reliable." With that, the tall, thin creature turns away, its thistle cape trailing like a chain.

When we reach the shore, Creostus is there waiting for us, his arms crossed."Did you find what you were after, witch?"

Felicity pats the quiver of arrows on her back.

"So Philon's given you a token. What will you give us in return? Will you grant us power? Or will you deny us?"

I do not answer but climb aboard the gorgon's winglike plank, listening as it creaks closed behind us. The wind catches the wide, translucent sail, and we move away from the tiny island till it is only a spot of green behind us. But the centaur's raw cry follows me on the breeze, catching my breath in its fist.

"What will you give us in return, witch? What will you give us?"

We sail once more through the golden curtain and down the river. When we come again to the statues in the cliffs, to the Caves of Sighs, I see colorful smoke--reds, blues, oranges, purples--rising from high above, and I am fairly certain that I spy a figure behind the smoke. But when the wind blows, the smoke changes direction, and I see nothing but wisps of color.

A silvery fog rolls in. Hints of the shore peek through here and there, but it is difficult to see. Ann runs to the side of the ship.

"Listen, do you hear it? That lovely song is back!''

It takes a moment, but now I hear it. The song is faint but beautiful. It seeps into my veins and runs through me, making me feel warm and light.

"Look! In the water!" Ann shouts.

One by one, three bald heads emerge. They are women like none I've ever seen before. Their bodies shimmer faintly with luminescent scales that glow pink, brown, and peach. When they lift their hands from the water, I can see the faint webbing between the long fingers. They are mesmerizing, and I find I can't stop staring. I feel giddy with their song. Felicity and Ann laugh and crowd the side of the boat, trying to get closer. Pippa and I join them. The webbed hands stroke the great barge as if it were a child's hair. The gorgon does not slow. The tangled mass of snakes hisses wildly. pqdm.com