by A. S. Koutso
When she was far enough down the path, I summoned a bird.
A large raven landed on my shoulder. I whispered in its ear.
“Find Cara. Do I trust the king of Dunamase castle?”
Once I stopped speaking the bird hopped off my shoulder and flew off into the trees. I hope he understood what I was telling him to do.
I caught up to Orla rather fast. She seemed to be walking at a slower pace, I assumed it was for me.
“Are you feeling OK?”
“Yes, better now thank you”
“That's good, we should probably quicken our pace.”
“Agreed, it’s practically midday and we barely got anywhere so far.”
We continued for a few hours with our regular banter, and then my dreams became the topic of conversation.
“You said Cillian was in your dreams.” Orla asked bluntly
“Yes.”
“Well, in your past was he working against the Fae?”
“Its more complicated than that.”
“That’s fine, we have quite a long walk ahead of us, I’m sure we have the time for you to explain. In detail of course.” She said with a grin, nudging my shoulder
“I’m not really sure how to explain it. He was with Aisling, but they were also fighting on different sides. In one of my dreams he explained how he didn’t want to work for the church anymore. He wanted to kill the sovereign.”
“Hmmm” Orla put her finger to her lip as she rest her chin on her thumb
“That’s interesting, and your sure it was Cillian?” She asked
“Yes, why?”
“No reason. But are you sure it was the past? It could be the future.”
“I really don’t think so. A while ago Aisling spoke to me in one of my dreams. She warned me that Cillian and I were bound.”
“You can speak to Aisling?”
“Only sometimes. I have so many questions for her, but I’m not strong enough yet to hold my dreams for long enough. Cara had mentioned that if I visited Hollow Hill my powers would strengthen.”
“I’ve heard of that place before. I believe it’s the entrance to Tír na nÓg.”
“Do you know where it is?”
“I don’t, but my father would. I’m sure he would give us the map to get there.”
“If we make it that far that is.” I said as a horse and carriage approached from behind.
My hand slid behind me toward the hilt of my sword. We moved to the side of the path to give the carriage space to pass. The coachman tipped his hat to us as he drove by. The Celtic cross was burned into the door on the side of the carriage. An old man was sitting in the back, shielded by a stained-glass window. I recognised him; an evil energy radiated from the carriage. His eyes locked on mine as he drove by.
“We should stick to the forest.” I recommended
Orla nodded in agreeance
“I believe that was the high priest’s carriage.” Orla explained
“The man in there was no human. He had an evil and powerful aura.”
“I don’t think any Fae would be welcome into a carriage driven by the church."
"Something isn’t right Orla. I’m telling you. I met a jackalope once who explained what an aura was, and from my understanding the energy that man was emitting was in no way human.”
“Are you suggesting the church is using the power of the Fae?”
“No. I believe the high priest is some race of Fae. I felt it when he was staring at me. There is no way a human can be that old and have some much power.”
“The high priest can’t be much older than my father. He was inducted when his father passed away several years ago. They have an uncanny resemblance actually; I met his father at a gala a while back, I was accompanying my mother.”
“You’re sure that he died? Did you see a body?”
“We were not invited to the wake. It was a private event, held for his close family only.”
“So, you’re telling me a man of such high ranking didn’t have an open funeral. I don’t know much about politics but that seems fishy to me.”
“Now that you mention it, it is quite bizarre.”
“I would like to ask Aisling and Cara what they make of him.”
“Cara is a little far, but perhaps if you have enough energy tonight you will be able to dream.”
“With everything that happened today I’m not sure if I can even activate my death script.”
“That’s true. Perhaps tomorrow then.”
“For now, lets try and get as far away from any towns as possible. I don’t think it would be a good idea to visit even one.” I explained, treading through the brush and fallen leaves.
“We will need more supplies before we head out toward the kingdom of Tipperary. Even at that I believe the church controls all the other kingdoms in the Éire. We won’t be safe anywhere.”
I knew she was right, but I had a feeling the closer we got to the towns in Offaly the more dangerous it would be for her.
A princess crossing into another king’s land unannounced and uninvited could put her and Laois in a lot of trouble. Not to mention aiding a Fae. If the church found out she was helping me, they would surely execute her. We could always find another farming village when we run out of supplies, hopefully there won’t be any guards.
We continued on until sunset, setting up our camp deep in the forest. Well aware of the beasts that lurk in the shadows I doubt I’ll be getting much sleep tonight. Orla offered to hunt for our supper, but I refused.
“I’ll go. I think it would be best if you stayed and set up the fire. You know I’m not very good at that.”
“Ok. Nothing too big though. We won’t be staying long enough to eat anything bigger than a rabbit and I rather not waste an animals’ life.”
We passed a large cliff not too far from where we set up camp. I was sure there would be tons of smaller animals hiding around the rocks. While looking for the perfect spot to sit and watch a fox ran across my feet, it was chasing a rabbit. Hopping in and out of the bushes around. I grabbed my dagger from the strap on my leg. Lowered my body so the bush in front of me would mask my scent and waited for the fox to emerge. Coming out of a near by burrow were three orange bundles of fur, yelping for their mother. The hunter returned to its den with the rabbit hanging from its mouth.
I refuse to take a meal from the belly of children. I stood up and continued toward the cliff edge. The mother fox circled my feet whining for attention. I knelt to pet her, when she took off toward a tall tree. A low growl came from her lips as she jumped at the trunk. I looked up to see two pheasants perched on a low hanging branch.
“Thank you.” I whispered to the fox.
Retrieving my dagger, I began the process of activating my death script. My blade turned a faint red. With that I climbed up the tree, feeling my body phase in and out. Before the birds sensed my presence, I slit their throats.
When I got back to the camp Orla had the flames roaring. I plucked the feathers from the dead birds and fastened them on to a thick branch. She went into the forest and picked some leaves and flowers and placed them on the roasting pheasants.
“Trust me. It will taste great.” She explained.
“If you say so.”
We waited until the skin was crispy, then removed them from the fire. It took a lot longer to cook then our usual rabbit, but it smelled amazing. The birds were small, so we took one each, Orla threw me an apple she bought before we left the farming village.
“Eat up, we’ll need our energy for tomorrow.” She said, crunching through the red peel of the large dripping apple in her hand.
I woke up to a scratchy feeling on my arm. It was so dark out I could not see what it was, but it felt like little needles were penetrating my skin. The irritation reached the top of my shoulder. I felt around to see what it could be. A low purring tickled my ear.
“Odhran is with church. Stay away.” The creature said in a hushed voice.
I heard
flapping sounds. The creature was gone along with the sensation on my skin. It must have been Cara’s bird, but who is Odhran. I didn’t know what to do next. Should I wake up Orla and ask her who Odhran was or wait till morning. Is this person working with Orla? I have so many questions but who do I ask. If Orla is working with the church, I doubt she would tell me, then again, she is rather young and naïve. I doubt she could conspire such a plan. I’ll wait until morning. Theres nothing I can do about it now anyway. I am better off getting some sleep.
I woke up before the sun. Anxious to ask Orla what the bird meant. To pass my time I went off into the woods to pick some nuts and berries for the road. Birds were singing in the trees above, squirrels chasing each other up and down the bark. What a simple life they live. I found a tree with a soft purple fruit hanging from its branches, it looked like an apple, but it was much smaller. I picked a few and headed back toward the camp. Orla was just waking up.
I tried not to ambush her with questions. Instead I went back out to fetch water from a near by stream, hoping by the time I got back she would be ready to start the day.
I saw her packing her bag.
“Ready to go?” Orla asked as I approached the camp
“Yes. I picked some berries and fruits this morning. Do you know if these are edible?” I asked showing her the purple fruit.
Her eyes grew wide
“Plums! My favorite. Where did you find these?” She asked in excitement.
“Down in the woods.”
“Can we go pick some more before leaving? They won’t stay good for very long, but they’re a great snack.”
“Sure. Come, I’ll show you where the tree is.”
Heading back into the forest tension grew between us. I knew I had to ask her but how. She was in a great mood, and I didn’t want to ruin the day, but this was serious.
“Who’s Odhran?” I blurted out
“My fathers’ adviser. Why?” she asked effortlessly
“Do you know him well?”
“Not particularly. He has been part of the court since before I was born, but to be honest he kind of creeps me out. I try to avoid him in the castle as best I can.”
“Does he know the Fae secrets?”
“I’m not sure. What made you think of him?”
“Oh nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
She turned back to look at me, grabbing both my arms softly.
“Ash. Your hiding something.”
“I received word last night.”
“Word? From whom? About what?”
“I was told Odhran is working with the church and is not to be trusted.”
“Who told you this Ash? Was it part of a dream?”
“No, Cara sent a bird.”
“Like a messenger pigeon?”
“A little more Fae than that, but yes.”
“How would Cara know who Odhran is? What are you not telling me?’
“I don’t have all the answers to that. My powers are limited.”
“Well what do you know? Is my father in danger?”
“I don’t think so. I saw Cara running with me as an infant away from Dunamase castle when I was in my spirit realm. I was afraid so I sent word to her to see what happened. Her message was short but direct. “Odhran is with church. Stay away.” Then the bird flew off, I wanted to ask you last night but thought better of it.”
“We need to advise Father. This is serious Ash.”
“The king will be safe, I’m sure of it. Odhran has no need to harm him.”
“Can you send a message to him?”
“No, it will only work if the receiver is Fae.”
“There has to be some way to warn him.”
“Ceardaí.”
“Sorry, I’m not following.”
“The tailor, he’s on the lower level, but I’m sure he can help.”
“How will he get passed the guards?”
“He’s a merchant. Maybe he can get across.”
“No. I don’t think so. How long can your message be?”
“I’m not sure. If I can summon a crow, then perhaps a couple of sentences.”
“Perfect. Tell the tailor to find Patrick, he’s a guard at the wall. Tell him to use the word dearg, Patrick will know what to do.”
“Ok. Give me a minute please.”
I walked to a nearby clearing and let out a low caw, holding out only one finger. A small white bird landed and waited.
“Sorry not this time.” I whispered and it flew off
With a louder caw a large black crow landed on my shoulder.
“Never the finger I see.” I giggled looking at the crow, I wiggled my finger and it hopped in place.
Whispering in its ear
“Find Ceardaí. Please help. Go to Castle, find guard Patrick. Use dearg. Tell King, Odhran is with church.” The crow flew off.
I made my way back to where Orla was, she was pacing back and forth.
“I sent the message.”
“When will we know if he got it?”
“Hopefully Ceardaí will send another bird back soon. For now, we should continue on. We need to see the doctor as soon as possible. Then we will return to the king.”
“You will protect him, right?”
“Of course.”
“Let’s go then, we need to pick up our pace. No more messing around.”
Orla started walking down to the path
“Wait. Shouldn’t we stick to the forest?” I asked
“No. That will add an extra day or so to the journey, if the church wants a fight, then a fight they shall get. No more hiding.”
Chapter 16
With her father’s life in potential danger Orla made sure we walked as long and as fast as we could. We were approaching a small town off the main path in Offaly.
“Hey wait.” I whispered to her
“There are guards walking around the town, Its not safe.” I explained
“So what. Draw your sword and let’s go.”
I stopped in front of her.
“I’m not going to kill innocent people. They didn’t provoke a fight and don’t deserve to die.”
Orla grabbed my shoulder and pulled me closer
“Anyone who works for the church has done their fair share of killing. They have slain so many Fae for no reason, they were not doing any wrong, yet they went into their homes and killed them. Do you still think these men are innocent after taking the lives of your people?”
Her eyes glaring at me waiting for her statement to sink in.
My body filled with rage as visions of slaughtered Fae flooded my mind. Flashbacks of countless dead took over my surroundings, I felt the vines crawling up my cheek. My blood was boiling. The visions would not stop, the bodies thrown into piles, grass bathed in blood.
My ears rang with the sound of children screaming, memories of the church raiders pillaging through my village before the war began activated my death script. My body pulsing in hatred I tossed Orla aside. Pulling my sword from its scabbard with one hand. The red glowing blade dragging behind me, waiting for the guards to come out of the town. My body phasing in and out, slowly approaching. A woman’s scream pierced my ear. The guards rushed to attention as chatter grew in the town. The humans were fleeing into the closest buildings. Swords were drawn and the guards readied themselves. A line of shields formed in front of me. I stopped to smirk, lowering my stance and steadying my breath. Watching as my skin vanished, I leaped over the closest shield pulling my sword up with both hands. Reappearing behind them I slashed through the backs of two guards. Their bodies fell to the ground with a loud clang. The guards turned in dismay. Letting out a puff to blow the loose hair out of my face I continued, raising my blade I blocked the incoming sword. I pulled my dagger from my leg and spun around stabbing the attacking guard between his helmet and loose chainmail blocking his neck. Blood squirted out spraying the guard next to him. With the lack of vision, he was my next target. My body phased out, as my sword lodged
itself in the man’s arm. Flashing in the sunlight I yanked it out and reappeared on the opposite side. Before he could scream in agony his head was rolling on the floor. Four down, five to go. My body nudged forward when a guard tried his hand at penetrating my back with his one-handed sword. I turned to him tilting my head, raising my finger to wag it in his face.
“I don’t think so.” I proclaimed, as I phased out and knelt down in front of him. My dagger found its way through his chainmail impaling his stomach. Phasing back into sight I stood up, pulling my dagger up his torso ripping through his organs.
“Should have worn proper armour.” I whispered in his ear retrieving my dagger from his gut and wiping the blood off on his cheek. Four men stood behind me with their shields raised.
“You can run if you’d like.” I said without turning to face them.
They took a step backward still watching me.
“It won’t help though” I said vanishing before them, sword in hand.
They dropped their shields and started to run. Wearing heavy armour slowed them down. It was no use. One guard banged on the door of the closest dwelling.
“Let me in! She’s coming!” He shouted
I plunged my sword through his back, it reappeared on the other side of the door leaving a hole.
Onto to the next I went, two were running out toward Orla. I stopped at the entrance and chanted
In the name of the great God Dagda, I sentence you to death. Let the chief reap your soul as it has tainted this world. God of life and death hear my plea. Judge them for yourself and take what is yours. In the name of Dagda kill them.
Roots entangled the guards, lifting them off the ground. Turning from wood to flesh the roots formed a snake swallowing the coiled victim’s whole. With no remains to be seen a voiced whispered into my ear.