Read Strange Dominions: a collection of paranormal short stories (short story books) for Free Online Page B

what we truly are.”
    “Are you the ‘White Lady of Sorrow’?” he asked.
    The question had come innocently enough to his lips. The full import of his query, however, was not lost on Áine who replied cautiously, “I am known by many names.”
    Rannith, whose sense of hearing was every bit as acute as his sense of betrayal, had picked up on their conversation. He cast aside the bulb of wild garlic he had been gnawing on and strode up to them with mischief in mind.
    “Aye, leveller, she
is
known by many names, some more accursed than others. Mark my words;” he warned, “you may have escaped the sound of her lament this night, but it will not always be so.”
    Áine scolded him, “Were your black heart not filled with hatred and mistrust, foul imp, you would see the boy for what he truly is!”
    The warrior-Sidhe knew in his heart of hearts that there
was
something special about the teenager. That he could see and converse with them and had done so without their bidding was beyond doubt
and
unheard of. From what he’d learned of his father he was undoubtedly human, but what of his mother?
    “She was called Aislinn. That’s all I know about her,” he said in response to Rannith’s query, “She left home after I was born.”
    “I am Rannith of the Fianna Sidhe. For centuries I have wandered the earth and I know a liar when I hear one, leveller.”
    Enraged by his high and mighty attitude, Áine found herself revealing more than she had intended, “He is of the bloodline
Coinlighct
, like me!” she exclaimed.
    Though taken aback by her revelation, Rannith studied the pair keenly. Each had the same conspicuous green eyes, the same pale complexion and finely sculpted features. Be that as it may, it was going to take more than mere similitude of features to convince him of the boy’s bean-sidhe/human hybridity.
    “Are
you
my ma?” asked a somewhat confused Conner.
    “No leveller, she is not,” Rannith cut in, “When a Sidhe- what you call faerie - gives itself to a human it is no longer Sidhe but becomes an immortal of your race, and they can no longer return to our realm . Their Sidhe immortality now becomes a curse! Its ageless nature betrays it, so it cannot stay in one place too long. It is cursed never to see its offspring grow into adulthood, and that is why Áine cannot be your ma.”
    “He tells the truth, Conner. Though I am not your mother, I knew her as well as any sister could,” she said.
    “You have no siblings! Sidhe are not born like humans,” affirmed Rannith, “We are created by the will of our parents and the primal universal source and the essence of magical things.”
    “It is as you say: I have no blood sister.” confirmed Áine, “The one of whom I speak was my sister in common purpose; the one whose love you sought, but could never attain and for whom you have searched these many years.”
    Rannith erupted into a sudden rage, “You lie, foul ell-maid! Merle would never consort with a leveller.”
    Áine did not shrink from his outburst, but laid her hand gently on his shoulder. “Though she was my friend I was not blind to her conceit and vainglorious ambition. She despised her duality. The transfiguration of the keening that turned her into a hag was abhorrent to her. She sought perpetual beauty in the only way she could. Your search is at an end. The truth of what I say sits before you.”
    He looked at Conner for what seemed an eternity before speaking, “Because you are the son of Merle – for that is her true name – and innocent in this matter I will bring no harm upon you.”
    Áine watched the crestfallen warrior walk deep into the interior, unaware of the dark thoughts he entertained against those who had wronged him.
    She turned to Conner. “Return home now, quickly, and tell no one of what you have heard or seen.”
    “Will I see you again?”
    “You will, but I fear the circumstances of our next encounter will come sooner than we think,” she counselled,