Faery in Shadow - Draiocht and Geas

Draiocht and Geas

Draiocht and geas (black sorcery and dire Necessity) are the two forces that drive Faery in Shadow. Caith is bound by geas to the Sidhe for committing patricide and is obliged to serve them. Dubhain, already serving the bright Sidhe, is also bound to Caith by geas because of his own past indiscretions. Thus Caith and Dubhain, like inseparable twins, have their destinies ruled by the bright Sidhe.

Geassi binds the draiocht of the worlds and the bright Sidhe keep the draiocht in balance. But Moragacht the witch defies the Sidhe by waking the ancient earth gods and practising stone magic, which disturbs Faery and its delicate balances. But to work magic requires giving something to the powers from where the magic comes, and the greater the magic, the greater the gift must be. Moragacht draws her magic from the earth powers, the banished gods, but her real desire is to control Faery, and Nuallan is her gift in exchange for this sorcery. However, the exchange cannot happen until Nuallan consents, until he accepts and worships the stone gods.

Moragacht wears Nuallan down with her dark magic, but Caith and Dubhain rescue him, each for their own reasons and in spite of the grief he has caused them. Caith recognises and is frightened by these old and hungry gods the witch is courting, and Dubhain, a dark creature himself, feels the temptation of these dark powers trying to claim him back.