The Choice of Magic - Michael G. Manning Page 0,195

this human thing,” he protested.

She glared at him. “Human does not mean nice. You should have listened better to what your grandfather told you about me.” Then she twisted his ear. “Now, the truth.”

“Ow, ow! Yes! Maybe? I don’t know!” She released him then, and he could see Tailtiu laughing silently in the background.

“That’s better,” said Aislinn.

“So, you have feelings, and now you think she’s using you. What you need to consider is—”

“Think? I know she’s using me,” corrected Will.

His grandmother’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t interrupt me again, William. I didn’t misspeak. You think she’s using you, and that may well be the truth. The words you overhead seem to indicate it, but they could have different interpretations. From this point forward you need to be cautious, but not stupid. Don’t let your prejudice color your judgment. Stay in her good graces, discover the truth, but don’t give away your heart until you know what that truth is.”

Her human-like façade faded away after that, replaced by the cold, alien gaze of the fae. “I’m done,” she said. “But also, I would like to add that you should kill her.”

“You really are bloodthirsty, aren’t you?” said Will dryly.

“The rise of sorcery and the war that followed have a lot to do with my current condition,” said Aislinn. “Beyond that, the crimes they committed go far past my personal grievances.”

“I need her help to destroy the Darrowan supplies in Barrowden,” insisted Will.

“Easy enough,” said Aislinn. “Trade her to me. In exchange, I will do everything she would have and ten times more.”

“I already said no. I’m not a warlock.”

His grandmother smiled. “You’re beginning to think, learning lessons you haven’t been taught yet.”

Will was growing impatient. “You had some reason for wanting to talk to me. Thus far all we’ve done is discuss my problems.”

“I have a gift for you.”

Accept no debts. Will shook his head.

“But you will have to pay for it,” added Aislinn, her lips curling into a faint smile.

“What is it?”

His grandmother waved a finger in front of him. “I will not tell you. I will only say that it is a thing of such vile knowledge and power as to cause weak men to faint and cry out in horror.”

Tailtiu was standing behind her mother, nodding in agreement. “It really is. I can’t wait to get rid of it.”

“Silence!” snapped Aislinn.

“It doesn’t sound like something I would want,” said Will.

Aislinn shook her head. “It is something only you would want, as our prior conversation has already proven.”

For the life of him, Will couldn’t think of anything they had talked about that related to objects of vile power, but her statement that he would want it intrigued him. She couldn’t lie directly, only mislead. “What is the price you want?”

“An elemental,” she said immediately.

“I’m not a sorcerer either,” said Will firmly.

“You don’t have to deliver it. As a service to me, I ask that you free one elemental,” she clarified.

Will thought back to his previous fights but failed to get an exact count. “I’ve already done that several times.”

“Did we have an agreement then?”

He shook his head.

“Then don’t pretend to be stupid, William. Free an elemental and call my daughter. I will give you my gift at that time.”

“Well, if I don’t get killed, I would probably do that anyway. So you have a deal,” said Will. “Anything else?”

“Do you know the elements humans are composed of?”

Will was confused. “Do you mean like earth, wind, fire, and water?”

Aislinn shook her head. “No, they are made of three things, mind, soul, and flesh. All magic relates to those elements.”

“Where is this going?” His grandmother was beginning to remind him of Arrogan, which irritated him. It also caused him to stop and think. “Wait. How do they relate to magic?”

“The mind represents the knowledge to create spells, the soul is responsible for the will that creates them, and flesh is the source of the turyn used for magic. When a person dies, these things become disconnected, but they are not necessarily destroyed. All mages are fundamentally the same, but they have their differences. Wizards focus more on knowledge than the amassing of power; warlocks deal mainly in things of the flesh to attain their goals.”

“Why are you telling me this?” asked Will.

“Because riddles are the way that the fae coerce mortals into doing our bidding when they won’t make a bargain. Teaching you to think is the only way you’ve left me to gain what I want. Think about what I’ve said.” She