The Sun Goddess of Cargills Castle

by Neisha Nilsen

  “I don’t understand. Why would Hayden tell me your name was Cichol?” I was confused. Maybe Hayden just got it wrong and just assumed Cichol was the man from my dreams. He’d told me that everybody here was happy that they didn’t need Brigid to become unfrozen. This place certainly was not in a happy place right now, even a blind person could see that.

  “Who is this Hayden?” He asked as he offered me a seat on the stool beside the fire.

  I sat down. “Hayden is my best friend. He was the one that told me about Brigid and the light.” Then I realised. Maybe he was tricking me, and he wanted me to confirm that I had the light in my body so he could kill me.

  He must’ve read my thoughts. “Brigid, I know that you have my Mother’s light in you. You held my hand, remember and I saw the glow.”

  “That was in my dream, how do you know that?”

  “It wasn’t a dream Brigid, you were here with me.”

  I shook my head in disbelief. I was actually here in my dreams, it was all real. I held his hand and we walked through the hay. I was in complete bliss when I was with him. I yearned for him so much it hurt. Maybe that’s why I kept grabbing his hand. I trusted him, at least “dream me” trusted him.

  “You need to tell me about this Hayden. How long have you known him for?”

  I didn’t want to tell him anything about him. “I’ve known him for a long time, he's my friend, that's all you need to know. He’s protecting me from the Fomorians. Maybe he got you wrong, but he has my back. I trust him.”

  He didn’t believe me, but I wasn’t about to snitch on my friend. I didn’t know what this Uar guy was capable of.

  I changed the subject. “So, all this can be changed if I bring Brigid back to life?”

  “Yes.”

  “When I bring her back to life, will my life become normal again?”

  “Yes.”

  I frowned at that. That would mean that I wouldn’t be able to see him again. There’d be no reason to. “Okay, so how do I do this?”

  “We need to get you through the Oak Trees and past the bones of judgement.”

  “The bones of judgement? Are they those creepy little bones tied up in the trees past the meadow of hay?”

  “Yes, they will not allow anyone through that has bad intentions towards Mother. They surround her. If your intentions are not true and pure towards her, they will not let you pass.”

  “Right, judging bones,” it seemed a bit odd, but I’d go with it. “In my dreams, I’d freeze at that point. I could never get past. The only time I got past was when I was with you. What if I go and they won’t let me through?”

  “Do you want to help my Mother?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then they will let you through.”

  I starred at my dream man. He was so cute. He sat on a stool opposite me. His bare tanned skin glistened with the dancing light of the fire. “You know Uar, I’m finding this all a bit hard to believe,” which was true. “You’re the son of Brigid, the lady of the sacred flame, but didn’t you go into the sea with your Father? Didn’t your older brother start all of this?”

  He looked down at the floor. “I was dragged to the sea by my father’s guards.” A dark cloud covered his face. “I was imprisoned. He said that my Mother could never have me. She was to lose everything. My older brother Ruadan was on my Father’s side. He was a ruthless coward. He followed my Father everywhere, and he would do anything my Father asked of him, even kill my Mother and her family. He took his abuse and craved it. I hated him for it. I did not mourn him when he died. Luchar was my middle brother. He kept to himself. He took the side of my father too, but he was afraid of my father, everyone was. He was not imprisoned like me. He wandered around the bottom of the sea as if nothing had happened. It used to infuriate me, until he freed me.”

  “He freed you?”

  “Yes, he freed me. When I got back here, it was too late. The realm was in mourning. My Mother was gone. It kills me every day to think that my Mother’s last thought was of a son and family’s ultimate betrayal. They were people she loved and trusted. She would have felt completely lost and I wasn’t there for her. The colour of this world faded along with its people when she was frozen. The Fomorians had taken over and drained any joy and love the land offered and with it came disease and fear. Only your light can bring my Mother back to me, to us all. I never saw my brother Luchar again.”

  “Right” I was amped now, this was my destiny, and I was doing this. Damn those Fomorians, I needed to save these people, to save Uar. “Let’s do this, let’s go. Show me where and how.”

  “First of all, you need to come here.”

  “I am here.”

  “No, you’re not really here. You are back in your world. It is only your spirit that is here.”

  I touched my body to confirm that I was here. “Ah, how do I do that?” I asked.

  “Go back to the stone. For some reason it has a portal to our world attached to it. Touch the stone, come through.”

  “Can I get back through? To my world I mean, can I get back through when I’ve finished.”

  He nodded.

  “I need a more definite answer than that.” Just nodding wasn’t going to cut it, and it wasn’t even a convincing nod.

  “Yes, Mother you will be able to get you back.”

  “Brigid! What if I don’t succeed, does that mean I’ll never be able to come home?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “That is a possibility, I’m powerful, but not as powerful as my Mother, especially now with my powers being muted with the encasement of my mother.”

  “You have powers?”

  “Yes I am a deity, a demi god. You will have powers too. Have you ever noticed any?”

  I thought about it. “No, I don’t think so.”

  He smiled.

  “Why are you smiling? Do you know something I don’t know?”

  “Next time you are in front of a fire, talk to it.”

  “Talk to it?”

  “Yes talk to it, it may dance for you. Or better yet it may talk back.” He gave me a cheeky wink.

  I looked at him strangely and felt my face turning red with the memory of his wink and what that may have meant. I turned away from him so he couldn’t see my face. I was totally going to try it though. How cool would it be if I had super powers! “Okay, so let’s get down to business,” I said once my face calmed down. “Tomorrow morning I will go down to the castle and come through. Will you be here waiting for me?”

  “Always,” he replied.

  Of course he would be, I thought dreamily to myself. “Great, do I need to bring anything?”

  He looked at me strangely.

  “Like do I need to bring my toothbrush or anything?” He was still looking at me strangely. “What I’m trying to find out is whether I’ll be here for a long time and if there’s anything I need to bring with me?”

  “No, just bring you and your light. That is all we need. But Brigid, you need to hurry, they have found you.”

  “Who? The Fomorians?”

  “Yes the Fomorians. You have to come here to the Otherworld not just to save us but so you can save yourself.” He stood up and took my hand. I felt his warmth tingle up my arm. I took a deep breath. “Brigid, they are trying to kill you, they want you dead. They will stop at nothing, you must come here, come to me so I can protect you and so you can save us.”

  People really did want me dead? “What about my family? If they know where I am will they kill my family?”

  “No, I don’t think so. They have searched for you for centuries. They will not waste their time with your family.” He put his hand on my knee and gave it a squeeze for reassurance. I desperately wanted to put my hand on top of his, but I held back.

  I wasn’t sure I believed him, if I was in danger surely my family would be in danger too. I could always get Hayden to look after them while I was away. Yes, that’s what I’ll do, I’ll let Hayden know, if anyone could protect them he could. />
  “Right, so I guess I’ll see you again soon.” I was ready to go back to my body now, but I had absolutely no idea how to do it. “So… how do I go back to my body?” I asked Uar.

  He smiled as he pulled me to my feet by my hands. He held me against his chest and gently placed his head against my neck and screamed, “Wake Up!”

  CHAPTER 12

  I sat up. “He just yelled at me!”

  I was back in my bed, on top of my blankets. B was lying on the far side of my pillow with his bum up in the air, snoring lightly as the sun started to peek through my curtains. I pulled my duvet up over him to keep him warm and cosy. I made my way to my bathroom and splashed some cold water on my face. He yelled at me. I was certainly awake now!

  I silently got dressed into my running outfit. I had a feeling I’d need to be agile when I crossed over to the Otherworld, especially if I was being hunted. A shiver ran up my spine. People actually wanted to kill me, it was so scary. I had to get to Brigid and unfreeze her. She’d be the only one, apart from Uar that could save me. I was confused. I should be going to Hayden first and asking him if I was doing the right thing but I had no time to waste. I had to get to Cargill’s castle and pass through the portal and get there, for all I knew the Fomorians were on their way to get me now. That made me move faster. I grabbed my small Roxy overnight bag and threw in a clean pair of knickers, a change of clothes, deodorant and of course my toothbrush. I put on some makeup then threw it into my bag, after all – Uar was going to be there, I needed to look my best. Even though I didn’t know how I felt about him yet, I still needed to look good. He’d be waiting for me like my knight in shining armour. I sighed, what am I thinking about? Only yesterday I thought he was trying to kill me. Next thing I know, he is the good guy and is there to save my life. Could I trust him? I quietly walked down the stairs so nobody could hear me. I left a note for Mum and Dad, letting them know that I was going to Kate’s family’s holiday home in Brighton. I’ll be back in a couple of days and I’d give them a call. I tucked my phone in my pocket and grabbed Tom’s packet of Cheezel’s, and a couple of Mum’s chocolate bars as I ran out the door. I jumped on my bike and pulled the straps of my bag tighter against my shoulders. It was an overcast day, something was on the horizon, and it had an airy feeling to it. I quickly text Hayden to let him know what I was up to and what was going on. I knew he’d be mad at me for running off like this, but there was no time. He’d keep an eye out on my family. I knew he would.

  ◆◆◆

  I pulled up to the small round-about on the top of St Clair Hill. I walked my bike off to the side of the road. Sweat was pouring off me. Biking up those hills was not easy. I gave my eyes a wipe to clear any rouge mascara running down my cheek from my sweaty face. Uar didn’t need to see that. The sea was rough this morning I could hear it pounding the bottom of the cliffs below me. Where was I going to put my bike? I decided to walk it to the wire fence and dump it on the ground, hidden in the long grass. Hopefully it’ll still be there when I get back. I pulled the wire up and crawled under it. My bag caught on it. I turned around to pull it out when I noticed a couple of men walking slowly towards me at the other end of the grass section. They had their hands in the pocket of their trousers, lazily walking towards the edge of the cliff, looking out to sea. When they noticed I’d spotted them, they started to run, and not towards the cliffs but towards me. My heart jumped in my throat. I pulled my bag free and ran. I ran across the next field and instead of going through the gate, I scrabbled over the old rock fence. Some of the rocks fell loose against my abuse and fell to the ground. I could hear them behind me. I looked back. There were even more men after me, one of them had a dog. Pure fear ran through me. I bolted towards the archway entrance. I could feel my body getting its glow on. I ran faster up the wide concrete stairs. I felt a sharp pull on my foot as I touched the stone. I could hear Uar on the other side.

  “Grab me Uar!”

  I felt his hand as a stabbing pain exploded in my calf muscle.

  I hung onto Uar as the spinning stopped and my mind refocused.

  “You’re bleeding.”

  “I’m bleeding? What?”

  I looked down at my pounding calf. I’d felt that dog’s jaw clamp down on my leg just as I jumped through the portal. “It was that bloody dog, Uar they knew I was coming here. They were there when I went to the castle, they chased me and their dog…”

  “Shh” he hushed as he pulled me closer to him. He stroked my hair as my body melted into his. “You’re safe now.” He kept me tight against him for a few moments longer before he draped me in the familiar grey cloak and guided me towards the houses. “Let’s get you indoors and we will see to that wound. If they know where you were going, they will be here soon.”

  I let him take me with him as my heart pounded. I knew they wanted to kill me, but this made it all so real. I had a dog bite to prove it and it really hurt. I could feel it pounding up my leg with every step I took. I hope Hayden was looking after my family. My Phone! I grabbed for my back pocket for my phone. I pulled it out. Dam! No signal. Of course there’d be no signal, I wasn’t in Dunedin anymore, let alone New Zealand.

  “What is that?” Uar asked me.

  “It’s my phone.”

  “What is a phone?”

  How was I going to explain this? “Well, this allows me to talk to people that aren’t here with me.”

  “What? You can talk to anybody on that phone from anywhere?”

  “Well, as it turns out, not here. I have no bars, no signal. I can’t contact anybody?”

  “Bars?”

  He looked confused, I changed the subject. There were a lot more things I’d need to explain first before I discussed the workings of a mobile phone. “Um, maybe we could discuss this another time. Let’s just concentrate about getting me safe and not dead.”

  He pushed me faster down the back alley streets. We ducked and dove through some small alleyways, dodging the small amount of people as they walked gloomily by, not even giving us a second look. Life was bad here. We came to a dead end. Wooden barrels were stacked up against one of the walls. Uar pushed a couple away and knocked on the crude hidden wooden door twice and then three times slower than the first two. The door swung open.

  “Uar! Did you get her?” A big burly man poked his head out. He took one look at me. “Aye, I think that is a yes, get yourselves inside, quick.”

  We were quickly shuffled into a small room that looked similar to the room I was in last time I was here. Uar held my hand the entire time. It felt like he didn’t want to let it go. I appreciated his warmth and friendship, this was not my normal social situation and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen.

  “Uar!” shouted a group of people sitting on a long shared banquet table.

  Uar pressed his fingers to his lips to shush them. He had a smile on his face. He was clearly happy to see them. I positioned myself slightly behind him. Who were these people? They all looked delighted to see us. They were dressed the same as Uar, all topless, except for the female that was beaming happily at me. She had on a gold breast plate of armour and her dark long hair was swept up in a high ponytail. A grey cape draped down her back. She looked every part of a warrior. She definitely belonged in this room. Everybody was huge and intimidating. I shrunk closer behind Uar’s back.

  “Brigid, this is the Gold Belts.” He swept his arms out past them all to introduce them.

  I waved sheepishly from behind his back. “Hi.” My voice sounded stupid and weak. I was embarrassed and felt so small. They all looked like they belonged in the WWF wrestling arena.

  They quickly jumped out of their seats and pushed and shoved each other to introduce themselves to me. I politely acknowledged them, forgetting all of their names instantly. I think there were about twelve people there, all huge warriors, with bulging muscles and they were all in skirts. They made those skirts look good though. There was a tall skinny one, that didn’t seem overly happy to see me. When i
t was his turn to greet me, he just grunted. His name was Yute. That was the only name I remembered.

  The female came up to me and looked me up and down with concern. “Uar, she is bleeding.” She turned to me and took both my arms in her hands. “I’m going to put you on the stool beside the fire. Gurt, get the girl some mead to drink. Uar get over here.”

  A stocky dark haired man at the end of the table poured some liquid into a clay cup of me. I sat down on the stool and looked down at my leg. There was a large flap of skin folding down to my ankle. A pool of blood lined the floor. That dog had done a real number on me. I felt faint. I knew my leg hurt, but I hadn’t realised it looked like this, it made it seem even worse. Uar was right, there were definitely people out there to kill me and in this case a dog.

  The female gently turned my head to face her. “Uar is going to heal your leg, now it won’t be completely healed, but enough so that it won’t get infected. Are you ready?” I nodded. I could do this, I was a bit suspicious about Uar though - he could heal my leg? Seemed a bit unbelievable, but – wow! I took a sip from my drink. It was bitter sweet. It tasted good though. I nodded in acknowledgement. I was anxious, I didn’t know what to expect. I knew there was a flap of skin hanging off my leg, had it torn my muscle? When did I have my last tetanus shot? OMG – was I going to get rabies? I was starting to panic. I took a huge gulp of my mead. It made me feel temporarily better. I clenched my teeth and waited for Uar to heal me, hoping it wasn’t going to be painful.

  Uar came over and placed both his hands over my calf. I winced at the pain as he pressed the flap of skin back in place. He closed his eyes and started chanting. I took another sip and closed my eyes. I felt the warmth instantly flow up my leg, it soothed me. I heard a combined intake of breath, but I ignored it and kept my eyes closed, savouring his touch. This feeling was amazing. I could feel light flowing out from me and my skin knitting itself together again. It was magical, this didn’t hurt at all. I opened my eyes once Uar’s touch left me and coldness washed over where his touch had been. I instantly missed it.