Cormac gave the knight a cordial nod. “Captain Arne, Ennio Rossi here will see you and your men through to Annwn.”
“Bearer of Prydwen,” Ennio greeted Finn. “Shield of Mother Church.”
“Knight of the Seven, it is with great honor we meet,” Finn said, removing his eye from the portal. “My men are prepared for what is to come once through the portal. Expect our return soon.”
Ennio deferred his gaze and stepped aside.
“Kneel, Swiss Guard of the Vatican,” the Cardinal Vicar ordered.
Cormac blessed the group of soldiers for a safe return, but his thoughts were of Ennio. The knight remained hesitant to break the canon handed to him by the Church and Myrddin Emrys. No one was meant to pass either direction—not fairy creature, not man. Only the Heliwr had the ability to do so, and even the Unfettered Knight did so at great peril of spilling the long-held secret of the Vigilo. But the death of Donato had reinforced the need to enter Annwn, and without the Heliwr, Ennio knew he had no other choice.
When the prayer was finished, Cormac turned to Finn. “Remember what I told you,” Cormac said, mostly so Ennio would hear. “Stealth is your weapon, not might of arms. Spy on Caer Llion, watch for any army being built. Return as quickly as you can.”
Finn nodded, his face set stone, and entered the swirling portal. The men under his command followed their captain as well, disappearing as if through a veil of falling water. None turned back; none deviated. After seconds, Finn and his group of heavily armed warriors had disappeared from Rome.
The portal glimmered as it had for centuries, as if nothing had happened.
“Well done, Ennio Rossi,” Cormac said, pleased.
“If the others find out…”
“They will not,” Cormac assured. “The only one to possibly find out is Knight Richard McAllister and I promise, he will welcome the aid.”
Ennio looked at the portal. “Why do you think Richard went into Annwn?”
“I don’t know,” Cormac lied. “Perhaps it is Myrddin Emr—”
“Merle has never sent a portal knight into Annwn.”
“That you know of,” Cormac corrected. “Without a Heliwr, anything is possible.”
At the mention of the Heliwr, Ennio averted his eyes from the Cardinal Vicar and crossed his arms. Tension formed a rift between them. He knew Ennio did not tell him all that transpired in his role as knight, had not even told Donato everything. The Knights of the Yn Saith were close, able to communicate over the vast distances that separated them, and that bond and the knowledge that came from it remained an annoyance to the Church. If Ennio knew why McAllister had entered Annwn with Ardall, he wasn’t sharing.
“Whatever transpires, Ennio, we must be vigilant.”
“I will fulfill my responsibility,” the knight answered.
“As the Cardinal Seer saw in his mirror, odd elements are swarming around Caer Llion. Evil grows there. Creatures not seen before are ravaging the countryside, and we fear Plantagenet is sending his machinations into this world. The loss of a portal knight is a grave concern to the Vigilo.”
Ennio frowned. “Richard would never join—”
“He has had a hard life, my son,” Cormac said, sowing doubt. “We know not his reason for entering Annwn and must be wary.”
Ennio stayed silent, but Cormac saw his arrow had struck true.
“Be prepared for the worst if it comes to that,” Cormac said. “The Guard has already been doubled in the chambers of the Basilica above. Hundreds more are near to calling. With you warding the portal, a large force at your back and the corridors upward so narrow, we should be able to contain any attempt by Plantagenet to enter Rome.”
“When the Captain comes back through, I will notify you,” Ennio said. “And if it comes to it, I can bring this cavern down around the portal so that no one can enter.”
Cormac nodded politely, turned, and made his way up into the Basilica again and out through the façade into Italy’s cold air. Plans he had set into motion were out of his hands now. The Pope wanted results; Cormac would give them.
And become favored for his next appointment.
Pontiff of the Catholic Church.
He sighed, suddenly tired. The loss of Donato drove him stronger than any papal authority, but he was still just a man. Myrddin Emrys could not be trusted, his knights lacking the conscience to do what was right. With Finn Arne acting as the Cardinal Vicar’s extension, the Heliwr would be his and when that happened, Plantagenet would die along