“I’d say you’re right.”
She watched me for a moment. “And one thing more. You have found your true name.”
“I have?”
“Yes. You remind me of that hawk who once sat on your shoulder. You can be fierce as well as gentle. You grab hold with all your strength and never let go. You see clearly, though not with your eyes. You know when to use your powers. And . . . you can fly.”
She glanced toward the circle of stones, gleaming like a great necklace in the light, then turned back to me. “Your true name ought to be Merlin.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“I am.”
Merlin. I rather liked the name. Not enough to keep it, of course, though I knew that names sometimes had a strange way of sticking. Merlin. An unusual name, to say the least. And all the more meaningful because of the sorrow and joy it brought to my mind.
“All right. I shall try it. But only for a while.”
Table of Contents
Title page
AUTHOR’S NOTE
PROLOGUE
PART ONE
1: A LIVING EYE
3: RIDING THE STORM
4: THE RAG PILE
5: SACRED TIME
6: FLAMES
7: HIDDEN
8: THE GIFT
8: THE YOUNG BIRD
10: THE OLD OAK
11: SAILING
PART TWO
12: FALLEN WARRIOR
13: A BUNDLE OF LEAVES
14: RHIA
15: TROUBLE
17: THE ALLEAH BIRD
18: THE NAME OF THE KING
19: HONEY
20: SHIM
21: THE GRAND ELUSA
22: ENCOUNTER IN THE MIST
23: GREAT LOSSES
24: THE SWITCH
PART THREE
25: A STAFF AND A SHOVEL
26: THE TOWN OF THE BARDS
27: CAIRPRÉ
28: A SIMPLE QUESTION
29: LOST WINGS
31: THEN CAME A SCREAM
32: DARK FATE
33: THE WAGER
34: FLIGHT
35: THE SHROUDED CASTLE
36: THE LAST TREASURE
37: DEEPERCUT
38: ANCIENT WORDS
39: HOME