Shades of Errol Flynn - Chapter Thirty-one

A new chapter of this draft serial will be posted every Wednesday. Your comments are always welcome!

Prologue~Ch. 1~Ch. 2~Ch. 3~Ch. 4~Ch. 5~Ch. 6~Ch. 7~Ch. 8~Ch. 9~Ch. 10~
Ch. 11~Ch. 12~Ch. 13~Ch. 14~Ch. 15~Ch. 16~Ch. 17~Ch. 18~Ch. 19~Ch. 20
Ch. 21~Ch. 22~Ch. 23~Ch. 24~~Ch. 25~Ch. 26~Ch. 27~Ch. 28~Ch. 29~Ch. 30~

Jessica squinted at the standing stones on top of the hill in the distance. “A Well of Power?” She turned and caught the look on Ewan’s face. It was gone before she could put a name to it – anger? disappointment? annoyance? Maybe it was a combination of all three.

“Surely thou hast them in thy land? ‘Tis whence the power of magick resides.”

It took a moment for Jessica to interpret what he was telling her. If she understood correctly, the power of the well was magical in nature, which explained the look Ewan had been giving her. If she was a magic worker, like he assumed, she’d know this. While the subject had never really come up between them, she had the feeling that her position in his camp was dependent on his assumption that she had magical powers. So she did what any sane person in her place would, she lied through her teeth.

“Oh, I see. Yes, of course we have them where I come from, we just call them by a different name.”

“Indeed.”

He didn’t quite look like he believed her. Jessica smiled her most sincere smile and crossed her fingers behind her back. His eyes narrowed a fraction.

“Mayhaps thee dost wish to venture closer?”

“Yes, of course,” Jessica replied, hoping that was the right answer. Evidently it was. His face cleared and he offered her his arm. She was starting to enjoy the gallantry of this lifestyle, it was very romantic.

Four of the knights accompanied them, presumably to guard the prince in case of an attack, so the stroll to the hill was not as romantic as it could have been. Jessica was not quite ready to give up the hope that Ewan was interested in her as a woman, which made her a little disgruntled at having four chaperones.

There was no path up the hill, but Ewan guided her around to the side where the slope was gentler. Fortunately, her riding habit did not come with a train, so it was much easier to walk in than a gown would have been. Still, Jessica wished she was wearing something a little more normal, like jeans and a tee-shirt.

She slanted a look at Ewan. He may be hot, and a prince, but he really needed to loosen up a bit when it came to women’s fashion. Whenever he saw her in her pants and jerkin, he got this pinched look on his face, as though he just got a whiff of something really smelly. So, since she was dependent on his good nature, she tried to wear pants as little as possible. She stifled a giggle, as a vision flashed in her head of the green dress she wore when she and Ellen went out. Ewen would probably have a coronary if he ever saw that dress.

At last they reached the top of the hill. It was higher than it looked; she was a little out of breath. The only resemblance between Stonehenge and what she’d taken to be ruins was the fact they were both made of stone, and they were both set in a circle. The ancient stone circle in front of her was much smaller than Stonehenge, and the stones weren’t nearly as high. Nor were they connected by capstones.

There were actually three circles of stone on top of the hill. The outer circle was made of tall, dark grey monoliths, standing like silent sentinels. Two of them were leaning slightly, one was only kept upright by leaning on its neighbour. They were weathered with age, moss growing on them although the vines that grew in abundance in the surrounding trees left the stones alone. In fact, once past this ring there was nothing growing at all.

Jessica had started to feel a faint hum as they drew closer to the ring on the hill. It grew in volume as they climbed and by the time they reached the top of the hill she realized that it was not a sound she was hearing, but a vibration she was feeling. Now, standing within the first ring of stones, she could feel the hum crawling over her skin.

The next ring was low to the ground, only rising about a foot in height. The stones were placed tightly together – not even moss grew in the cracks between them. They were an earthy brown in colour, almost like wide, flat bricks. There was writing carved into them, a beautiful, cursive text that Jessica wished she could read. She almost asked Ewan what they said, but then thought better of it. If she was supposed to know about the well, then she was probably supposed to know what the writing was.

The knights had stopped at the outer ring, spreading themselves out to keep vigil in all four directions. She was aware of Ewan still beside her, though her focus was on the ring in the centre. The hum had risen in pitch, making her whole soul vibrate.

Jessica reached out a hand and could feel an almost physical barrier rising from the earthen ring. Leaving Ewan behind, she stepped over the low ring, pushing through the barrier with ease. In front of her was the third, and final, ring.

The final ring was made of what looked like crystal – she’d hate to think it was made of diamonds, but that’s what it looked like at first glance. It, too, rose about a foot in height, but the stones were sharp and jagged, more like shards than stones. Within this circle was a layer of pristine, white sand that glowed like diamond dust.

Closing her eyes, Jessica straightened up her back and inhaled. It was like inhaling a cold fire. She could feel the power burn its way down and fuel the spark of magic inside her. It was a heady feeling. The pull of the magic was almost irresistible and without conscious thought she took a step forward, stepping over the shard-like ring.

Too late she realized her mistake.

Her eyes snapped open. “Oh, crap!”

Everything dissolved into white fire.