Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
Edith did not know what to take in first. That Thomasin stood next to her, free of bruises and broken skin, and that the sharp sting across her own neck had vanished.
That they were no longer in a cave, but in a glen that glittered with dew and smelled of wildflowers.
That it was no longer night, but the most glorious morning, with golden sunlight raining down on them.
Her first thought was that she had somehow smoked hash again, and this time entirely too much.
There were actual treasure chests strewn around the glen, and beautiful, ancient artifacts lying around, pillowed by lush, tall grass.
She spotted a shield emblazoned with a red-and-gold lion, a cauldron filled with a murky purple goo that bubbled and sizzled, a finely woven basket, a drinking horn, a chessboard with the pieces moving about as if they were being played by invisible hands.
And at the center of it all was a cerulean lake, the waters still and crystalline.
“Holy shit, Edith,” Thomasin said, her voice strangely echoey in the open space. Before the lake, there was a gilded sarcophagus with a marble statue of a crowned man lying atop it.
Edith couldn’t summon a response. She just nodded dumbly and took a step forward.
When her boot landed softly in the grass, a tremor shook through the glen.
Her heart stuttered as the waters of the lake began to ripple.
Little waves radiating out that grew larger by the second until the center of the lake became a whirlpool of frothing white water.
A gleaming silver sword pierced the churning surface.
The blade continued to emerge from the water, pointing straight up at the sky. There was a pale hand wrapped around the jeweled hilt, the red rubies glowing in the sun.
A woman rose from the depths, Excalibur wielded aloft above her head.
Edith stared, mouth agape, heart racing.
The ethereal woman floated above the surface of the lake, her bare toes dipping into the water.
Her features were too sharp to be beautiful, and yet she was striking.
Ghostly white skin, black hair that fanned out in a halo around her head, strands dancing on a nonexistent breeze.
Long, willowy limbs draped in a golden dress that shimmered and flowed down her tall frame.
A thin nose that was slightly crooked and wide eyes that narrowed down at them beneath a strong brow.
Despite the impossibility of this floating woman, she seemed strangely human.
There was a scar slashing across her lower lip, and freckles dusting her cheeks.
But when she spoke, any illusion of humanness drifted away. Her voice cut the air like glass. Edith felt each word vibrating underneath her skin. “Welcome to Avalon, travelers.”
Edith couldn’t get her mouth to work. Fortunately for her, Thomasin still seemed to be at least somewhat functioning. “What is … who are … what’s happening?”
“I am the Lady of the Lake.” She said it like she wasn’t a fairy tale, like she wasn’t everything Edith had ever dreamed of.
“Are you shitting me?” Thomasin blurted, which jolted enough sense into Edith for her to shoot Thomasin a reproachful look.
Then, Edith curtsied, deeper than she ever had before.
Honestly, she probably looked ridiculous.
Definitely did, if she was judging by the confused, but equally amused expression on Thomasin’s face.
Edith widened her eyes, jerking her head in the direction of the ground.
Thomasin got the hint and offered a half-hearted curtsy of her own.
The Lady of the Lake tilted her head. “I am the spirit of Avalon, the keeper of its wonders.”
Edith felt the powerful tide of history pulling at her as she stared up the Lady. It was a pure marvel to stand before the legend. The story come to life. She felt miniscule in the face of it but summoned all her courage. She hadn’t come all this way for nothing.
“We’re here for Excalibur,” Edith said, her voice shaking just slightly.
“Are you here to stop us from taking it?” Edith noticed that Thomasin’s hand strayed to one of her daggers as she posed the question.
She didn’t know where she and Thomasin stood.
It was true Thomasin had embraced her after she had slid under the falling wall, but Thomasin could have just gotten caught up in the moment.
For all Edith knew, Thomasin could still hate her.
But her hand reaching for that dagger, the small show of her protectiveness. Perhaps that was a good sign.
The smallest smile tipped up the corners of the Lady’s red lips. “You have proven yourself worthy. Thus, the fate of the treasures, of all of Avalon, now lies with you.”
“Sorry, what do you mean, all of Avalon?” Edith ventured nervously.
The Lady of the Lake widened her arms in a broad gesture.
The silver of Excalibur caught the sun and gleamed brilliantly.
“Let me tell you a story,” she said, her voice gentle and clear.
“Long ago, a noble king was sent to me by the most powerful wizard in all the lands.
I deemed this king worthy, and so I forged him a sword to bring peace to his kingdom.
But my gift was not without its price. Bringing such magic into the world was dangerous, and I needed assurances that it would be protected.
“When I gave King Arthur Excalibur, he made me a vow. He swore that when death came for him, he would return Excalibur to me and then spend his eternal afterlife in Avalon to protect it.”
With the tip of Excalibur, she pointed at the sarcophagus before the lake. “As you can see, he rests here to this day, ready to defend Excalibur from any unworthy souls that might breach the trials that Merlin and the knights of the Round Table left behind.”
The Lady of the Lake lifted her chin and looked deep into Edith’s eyes. Her smile widened. “But you are worthy. And so, I will offer you the choice that I have offered all those who came before you. Excalibur is yours.” She held Excalibur out toward Edith, letting it rest in her open palms.
“But do not accept this gift hastily. For as Arthur made a vow, so must you. If you take Excalibur from this place, you must return it to Avalon upon your death. Then, you will join Arthur in his vigil, spending an eternity in Avalon.”
There was a storm roaring in Edith’s chest. Every one of the Lady’s words struck her like thunder. Edith could hardly take any more, but still she kept speaking.
“You can have everything you’ve ever wanted. Excalibur can give you the life of your dreams. But in return, you must give your afterlife for Excalibur. For the magic you have sought your entire life.”
Edith spoke through the tightness in her throat. “What happens if I do not return Excalibur to Avalon?”
“Then Avalon, the magic and the wonder, they will all be lost forever.”
“But why?” Edith asked, not quite ready to give up on the idea of being the one to discover Excalibur.
“Avalon is an Eden held in perfect balance. The door only opens and closes for those who have proved themselves worthy and pure of heart. If you take an artifact, a little piece of magic, back out with you, and your vow is true, then the magic will hold. But if you were to take Excalibur with the intention of breaking your vow, then the door won’t be able to close.
It will, in simple terms, be propped open.
The magic will slowly seep out, until there is nothing left.
“But as I said, the choice is entirely yours. All things have an ending, and perhaps this is Avalon’s.”
Edith dragged her eyes away from the Lady of the Lake and looked over her shoulder, back the way they had come.
There was the round arch of the doorframe, not set into a cave wall, but simply standing free in the glen.
She could not see beyond the threshold of the door, could not see the cave.
All that was visible through the door was an opaque sheet of shadows that shimmered ever so slightly.
It had always been her dream to take Excalibur beyond the threshold of Avalon and into the real world.
She had wanted to prove it was all real, had thought her life wouldn’t matter unless she changed the world with her knowledge, with her discovery.
She had to prove to the world that she was right.
That there was a reason she had never fit in the normal world, and it was because she was meant for something more, something magical.
She was going to parade her treasures in front of everyone who had underestimated her, or ignored her, and her being right was going to fix everything.
And she had believed that her being right only mattered if everyone else knew it too.
Which meant she needed the proof. She needed to take her proof from Avalon and reveal it to the world.
She considered the choices before her. She could take Excalibur, have everything she ever wanted, and then break her vow to the Lady of the Lake. Edith tried to imagine herself being Avalon’s ruin, ridding the world of magic. That wasn’t who she was.
She could leave Excalibur here, where it was safe. But could she let it all go, just like that?
There was only one other option. She could have Excalibur, prove to the world that she mattered. That magic was real, and she had known it all along. She could have fame and glory and power. But she would have to return it all, pay for it in a way that she could not entirely comprehend.
Yes, she could have her glory, but in order to preserve the magic of Avalon, she would have to sacrifice eternity.
Edith had never been one to believe in God nor heaven, but she did believe that love had to exist beyond death.
An eternity in Avalon did not sound so terrible at first, but her grandmother would not be there. Nor her family.
And not Thomasin.
It was, after all, quite simple.