The Faerie Blade

Chapter 8

Great. Wonderful. More problems.

"You, however, might not have that issue. The blood of the Kings of the Solar Court runs in your veins, and hence the amount of glamour you naturally produce is excessively strong. To be honest, I had thought that you would not be able to use glamour so effectively for the first time. Nonetheless, if you ever find yourself in need to cast a spell greater than your capabilities, the written form of Geiriau Grym, the Words of Power, can store some energy for you to use at a later time. For example, gwynerch."

He took out a scroll and quill, dashing a glyph onto the parchment.

"This means 'create'. When we write the glyph, we channel some of the energy and glamour needed to cast the spell, but not the full amount. When we read it out from the scroll, we channel the rest of the energy and glamour needed, and the spell is cast. The language of Geiriau Grym, along with our intention behind it, direct the glamour to do your will. However, before we get started on this more delicate aspect of magic, you will need to learn how to connect properly to the flow of glamour that permeates Avalon, and resist the compelling power of raw glamour that can be thrown at you by other Fae. Prepare yourself."

Merlin slapped down the quill on the table and stared at me intently. A sudden dizziness assailed me, reminding me of when Merlin presented me with that deal. I shot to my feet. "You glamoured me into accepting your bargain!"

The bastard Fae had the nerve to smile at my outraged accusation. "Good. You can recognise when others are trying to manipulate you through glamour."

"But..." I sputtered. "But you, you forced me –"

Merlin arched his left eyebrow in disapproval. "Calm. Down," he ordered. "I did indeed try. But the operative word here is 'try'. It did not succeed. No amount of glamour could force you to accept the terms of bargain; you were much too stubborn. The amount of glamour I was directing at you then would have made many other Fae – and humans – willing slaves to all my demands, but it merely caused you to be slightly more plaint and less aggressive. Slightly."

I decided to take that as a compliment. "Thank you."

Merlin narrowed his eyes at me. "That was not meant to be flattering."

I shrugged in a 'I couldn't care less' way.

The Fae male shook his head. "In any case, to expound, no amount of glamour could push you in the direction I wanted you to go. Instead, you changed the topic and asked for my name. Now, I am not sure if I have explained this to you properly, but giving your name to another Fae gives them a dangerous power over you. And the way you phrased your offer could have another Fae to couche it as a bargain and offer you a pseudonym in place of their true names, while you would offer up your own true name. Hence, never ask that of another Fae, or give your own name to them. In fact, since you are taking the place of Arthur, please use his name as a placeholder."

I nodded. "So you really couldn't manipulate me?"

Merlin's mouth twitched. I could not tell if he was grimacing or trying to smile. "No. Agreeing to the bargain was purely your decision. Now, you are still not fully blocking the glamour. Let us try again."

~

"Catch!"

"Oof," I grunted, as two thick rods smacked me in the chest. Fumbling, I managed to catch them before they tumbled to the ground. I swear, I was going to get a bruise with how hard Merlin threw the sticks.

He spun around to face me. "Now, attack me!"

He had his own stick in his hand, and he lunged at me. Backpedalling quickly, I barely dodged under his the first swing he made at me. Good gracious goodness (sorry, this weird...phrase...is what Merlin allows me to use in place of my usual swears), this guy was fast.