Carrier of the Mark (24 page)

“Couldn’t I just stop training?” I interjected. “I could give up my element.”

“No, Meg,” Adam said. “You don’t know what you’d be giving up.”

“Adam’s right, Megan; you can’t do that,” Rían said. “You have to look at the bigger picture.”

“This only becomes a problem after I evoke my power. I could try to delay it and buy us more time,” I pleaded.

Fionn put out his hand. “Regardless of what we want and don’t want, you must remember that your first priority here is to the alignment. As much as it pains me to say it, for now your personal life comes second to your calling. Megan, trust me; I know how you’re feeling, but for the greater good you need to see this through.” He looked from Adam to me. “Look, Adam’s right. The Druid Scribes are pretty flaky and the translations are seriously flawed. While we can’t ignore them, we can take comfort in the fact there is a chance the Order has it wrong. The untranslated story of the unnamed pair may even hold the answers to your problems. Let’s proceed with caution. I take it that you two weren’t planning on starting a family in the near future?”

I flushed with embarrassment, but Adam’s strained face broke into a little smile. “Not just yet.”

“Good. Let’s keep it that way; cool your relationship down until after the alignment. In the meantime let’s get our hands on the Druid Scribes. If they hold the answers we are looking for, we’ll find them. Okay?”

We nodded in agreement and Fionn went on. “Adam, how are you feeling? Have you got your power under control?”

Adam nodded.

“Okay, then. I think we should go meet Hugh and the others for lunch.” With that, Fionn, Rían, and Áine got up to leave.

I tugged Adam’s hand, pulling him away from the others. “I don’t want to choose between you and the power,” I whispered.

“You won’t have to,” Adam reassured me, running his finger down the side of my face. “Fionn will find something in the Druid Scribes.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

Adam didn’t reply.

“The Order says we can’t be together if I evoke. And I can’t imagine not being with you. But I feel this pull in me—I want the element too. I can’t help feeling like you, me, and the elements are all connected somehow, and I don’t know if I can choose one over the other.” My heart was pounding as I rushed on. “And what if they’re right? What if our attraction
is
based on the elements? If I decide not to evoke, I might lose you anyway! There has to be a third option. There
has
to be a way I can keep the element and you too. How can I separate the two things that make me feel whole?”

Adam cupped my face and looked into my eyes. “You won’t have to; I promise. I’ll find an answer. I will never give you up.”

“If we don’t find a solution, I’ll do my best to stop the evocation—at least that will give us a chance.”

“Don’t do that.”

“I’m going to try.” I turned away from Adam and called after Fionn to get him to come back.

“No!” Adam said, raising his voice.

“You’re not sure, are you? You’re as scared as me!”

His strained eyes met mine. “I’m not scared,” he protested. But I saw it in his eyes—the fear that his feelings
were
tied to my element.

“Fionn,” I called again, feeling light-headed with the implications of Adam’s resistance.

“Yes?” Fionn said, coming back into the room.

“I don’t want to evoke yet. We need you to get the Order to wait until the last moment possible to perform the ritual.”

Fionn looked at me for a second, then flicked his eyes over to Adam. “Are you sure about this?”

I nodded.

“This will solve nothing, Megan. Don’t do this,” Adam said.

Fionn sighed. “I don’t know how much time I can buy you, but I’ll see what I can do.”

“Fionn!” Adam pleaded.

“It’s her decision, Adam.”

T
he Dublin Order was waiting for us when we got back to Trinity, and we gathered at the huge table and sat down. Áine sat across from me, a picture of desolation. I felt terrible for her, but I knew she would understand my decision. Rían sat beside her, dark and silent. He had been entrusted to train me and had been doing so well; it had given him purpose. Now his scowl had returned, his eyebrows back in that flat line above his dark eyes. Then there was Adam, sitting by my side.

Everything else paled in significance. I could not live without him. As much as it upset me to hurt the others, it was nothing compared to the stabbing pain I felt when I thought of being parted from him. What we had was powerful. Forces beyond our understanding brought us together and held us there. How could anything as beautiful and pure as that be dangerous? But I wasn’t about to take any chances. This decision might be the wrong one, but I had to try. It would buy us time for Fionn to find a solution, and for Adam and me to figure this out.

Fionn stood at the head of the table. “Today was not the day we were all expecting, but I don’t think we should forget the reason we’re all here. Megan has found her way to us.” He smiled at me. “Now, new information has come to light about a serious issue regarding Adam and Megan’s relationship, but let’s not get caught up in the technicalities of that for the time being. Our main purpose for meeting was so that Hugh, Will, and M.J. could meet Meg and talk to us about how best to train her and prepare her for evoking her full power.”

I started to interrupt Fionn, but he held up his hand to silence me.

“Megan appears to have immense power. She has surprised us all at how well she has embraced her element. It now seems very likely that Megan will be able to evoke her power before the summer solstice.”

Adam was still sitting rigidly beside me. His face was like stone, his eyes narrowed into two slits and his jaw set in a stiff line.

“We were going to do a demonstration today,” Fionn continued, “but in light of our new circumstances, I feel it’s best not to put Megan under any more pressure.”

Will removed his half-moon spectacles and fiddled with them nervously. “Fionn, can you give us some details of Megan’s powers to date?”

Fionn sat down and leaned back in his chair. “Well, she can repel fire, and she physically moved Rían and Adam simultaneously.”

M.J. leaned forward, rubbing his beard in excitement. “She did what?”

Fionn nodded in M.J.’s direction. “Yes, Megan will be very powerful. However…”

“However?” repeated Hugh.

Fionn looked over to me and back around the table. “After today’s big ‘reveal,’ Megan has decided to slow training in a bid to delay evocation.”

Hugh went all purple in the face. “She can’t! We have been waiting so long for a fourth. It’s a miracle she’s here at all! She has responsibilities. You all do. You can’t shirk them so lightly.”

Fionn shook his head. “As I understand it, their being together poses no threat until after evocation. They deserve an opportunity to find a solution before it comes to that.”

Will looked pleadingly at Fionn. “But she must be made to understand the importance, the significance of what she is.”

Adam was staring at the table. Now his gaze rose slowly. “Stop speaking about Megan like she isn’t here. If you want to say something to her, then say it.”

He looked around the room, his glare making Will, Hugh, and M.J. shrink back into their seats.

Adam had tremendous presence. I saw in that moment that they all respected him, even feared him. In all the time I’d spent with the DeRíses, I’d only ever thought to fear Rían. I realized now that there were three incredibly powerful people here today, people who could wipe out everything in this room—in this college, even—with the flick of a finger. They wouldn’t do it, but the potential was there, and the three men of the Dublin Order seemed acutely aware that Adam was teetering on the edge.

“Megan, I’m sorry.” Will cleared his throat and looked nervously at Adam. “I’m just not used to having another member of the family. In some ways you still feel fictitious to me.” He smiled kindly. “But please understand. The Order has waited thousands of years to perform the alignment ritual. We could never get the four elements at full power at the same time. Now we’re so close. You have the ability to transform the world, to align the seasons, the weather, and seismic activity. You could help end droughts, plagues, and famines, and alter billions of people’s lives for the better. Don’t you want to be part of that?”

I felt guilt rising up inside me, but I stood firm.

“I am going to continue working on my power, but I’m just going to tone it down a little, temporarily. Fionn is going to help us find a solution. I still want to evoke before the time is up. But just not yet.”

“Evocation can be difficult; it might take several attempts. What if you misjudge your abilities and don’t develop the strength required for the ritual? Adam, speak to her,” M.J. pleaded with him. “She needs to be fully evoked by March at the latest. Otherwise she’ll never be ready for the summer solstice alignment.”

Adam took my hand firmly. “We’ll make sure she’s ready for the ritual when the time comes. What is important is just that she evokes before the solstice. The alignment can wait until the next summer solstice, and you know it. You’ve waited this long—another year won’t make a difference. For now, I’m supporting her decision.”

Áine sat forward. “I’m with Megan. I’d do it too, given her circumstances.”

Rían shifted in his chair and put his hand on the table in front of him. “This is what Megan wants. She’s strong. I’m confident she can do it.”

“And I’m with them too,” Fionn added. “So there is no debate. Anyway, I’m not entirely convinced of the danger posed by Adam and Megan’s being together. I propose that we continue training, but very carefully. Megan will maintain her power until she’s ready for the next level. Megan and Adam are very responsible, and I’m confident they won’t put the world in any danger in the next six months. In the meantime, we’ll dissect the Druid Scribes for the truth and unlock the secrets of the unnamed pair.” He looked around the room. “Are we all in agreement?”

There was some mumbling and nodding of heads.

“I suggest we set a tentative date of … February twentieth,” Fionn continued. “That’s exactly four months to the solstice. That gives us time to schedule another ritual, just in case the first one fails.”

My heart fluttered as I mulled over the implications of my decision. I knew I was being selfish and the guilt made my head spin. I rested my cheek on the table, letting the coolness of the glossy wood ease the heat from my skin.

“Are you okay?” Adam asked, bending down to me.

“I’m fine. I think I need some air,” I whispered.

Adam stood up. “I’m going to take Megan out for a while. We’ll meet you back here later.”

“Sure,” Fionn said. “We’ll see you outside.”

Adam nodded and we left the room quietly, making our way up the tunnel and the winding stairs, out of the hatch, locking doors as we went. Finally we emerged into the evening light.

I went into his arms. “Thank you.”

“For what?” he asked gently. “What have I done that deserves thanks? I put you in this situation.”

“For letting me do it my way.”

“I can’t stop you.” He shook his head slowly. “I know that you’re worried about my feelings for you, but they
are
my own. Not my element’s. I’m sure of it. I just don’t want you to sacrifice your gift because of me. I don’t know what to do. I’m potentially denying you your power by not giving you up, but I’m too selfish to.” He looked down at me sadly. “I always thought I was the strong one in the family. I see now that I’m the weakest link.”

I hugged him fiercely. “You are not weak. I’m the selfish one.” I smoothed my hand down his face, trying to wipe away some of the worry around his eyes. “You never know; it might all work out.” I nodded back in the direction of the door we had just come through. “They might find the answer.”

Adam shook his head. “I can’t believe our fate is being dictated by the Druid Scribes.”

I took his hand and started pulling him toward one of the greens. “Will you show me around?”

He faltered a little. “I guess.”

I laughed at him. “Come on; you can do better than that.” I stood on my toes and kissed him gently.