by J W Murison
‘How does the numbers thing work,’ Graun asked.
‘Simple, you flood the area with so many men that the mage’s can’t cope, at that point their hold collapses. That means they lose the hold on their men as well. A man waking up from a spell and finding himself in imminent danger has a tendency to run, everyone knows that.’
‘Is that why my predecessor didn't try and control the men on the battlefield,’ Gareth asked.
‘From what I've heard of the battle aye, he used his magic to conceal the movement of his forces and concentrated his control on a small number of people, those in command.’
‘So you think he is trying to draw us into something more than an ordinary ambush.’
Scout shrugged, ‘not my area of expertise Gareth, that's for you to figure out I just report what I see.’
‘You see well my friend, bloody well. Tell me how this web works.’
‘Different magic, different kind of magic, more powerful but less mobile, but it can still be defeated with numbers. He will have laid out pieces of gold, probably in rings and planted them into the soil like this,’ he demonstrated with a small ring he took from his pocket.
‘He will have laid them out in a pattern; you will have to ask your own mage, I know there are different patterns and; fuck it! Ask the mage, he will explain that to you, however, the more gold you have the more powerful a web you can construct. A spell is cast into the gold when it is still molten and only cutting the ring will break the spell. I have to say it’s been my experience that these Eagle breeders have no shortage of gold.’
Gareth thought it over, ‘I really don’t like it. They must know by now we aren’t affected by their magic, or at least suspect it. Are they showing us what we expect to see and trying to draw us in like lambs to the slaughter. Their only chance to keep on doing what they are doing is to give us such a kicking we will never bother them again, make it too costly for us. A few weeks ago the Eagle King sent a delegation to them to ask if they would sell him all the Eagles they had. They got no farther than an outpost. An official was sent out to find out what they wanted. He dealt with them there at the outpost.’
Graun sat forward, ‘you mean they were never invited past that point.’
‘Exactly, Scout how come his own men aren’t affected the same way you were or the women?’
‘They have protection, small rings on their fingers like Eagle riders the rings have their own spell that protects them.’
‘Thanks, what do you think Graun?’
‘Well after hearing all this I'm going to have to agree with both of you, there's certainly more going on here than meets the eye, but what?’
Gareth turned to Billy, ‘find out what the bastards have in store for us.’
Billy grinned, ‘right up my street.’
Gareth broke the meeting up and went to see his friendly wizard; he only confirmed what Scout had told him.
When Gareth reconvened the meeting they had things well in hand. Billy, Scout and Graun were pouring over the only map they had of the area. It wasn’t very detailed. He confirmed what Scout had told them and sat around and watched them make plans. In the corner three young Eagle women sat quietly. Graun had given one to men he trusted. Billy was responsible for one as was Scout. Gareth could just about make out what they were saying to one another. As time passed he found he was becoming more capable of listening to their silent conversations. Melina assured him it was something very rare and probably had something to do with the fact that he was married to an Eagle Queen and she had grown royal feathers. It gave her more magical power and with it endued Gareth with greater abilities.
Billy’s wife and Scouts girlfriend were extremely unhappy about the arrangement, he knew that, but Graun wanted a strong calm influence around the women. His own relationship with Chloe seemed to stabilise when the young Eagle woman appeared. She was now heavily pregnant and enjoyed the young woman’s company and help but Graun suspected there was something more behind the young woman’s acceptance of her. It was Chloe who had gone out of her way to talk to the other women and reassure them. There was also a great deal of sympathy towards the young women for the ordeal they had endured.
Gareth himself hadn’t heard from the Highland council for months and as such was slowly coming to terms with his new role in life. It had been three months since they had destroyed the last Eagle breeding centre and Gareth wanted this next operation in place for the next time the moons aligned in three months time. He was thinking about that when a thought jumped into his mind.
‘Scout.’
‘Aye Gareth.’
‘This web of spells. Once we cut the big ring, will the Eagles still be trapped inside the web?’
‘Shit, I hadn’t thought of that, I think so aye, as a matter of fact I’m sure they will be.’
‘So unless we dig up every gold ring in the whole area we are still going to have a bunch of flightless birds on our hands.’
Scout thought it over, ‘worse than that, we are going to have a bunch of unconscious Eagles on our hands, the main ring protects them from the influence of the smaller ones in the web. Fuck this changes everything, for any chance of success were going to have to locate and lift every single one of those rings before we attack.’
The men sat down and watched Gareth who mulled over the new problem. ‘This man we are dealing with, what’s his name again Scout?’
‘Bonnily.’
‘This Bonnily has give this far more thought than we have, at the last count he had somewhere in the region of near a hundred thousand Eagles, by far the biggest breeder on the continent, which makes him the richest and the smartest. It seems he has every angle sewn up. Even if we attack when the moons align in three months time we are still going to have the problem of transporting a hundred thousand of them to a safe distance and we don’t even know how far that is at the moment. I have no doubt that would give him time to rush in any reinforcements he has in the area and we would be vulnerable strung out in a long convoy.’
‘We couldn’t even carry them out Gareth,’ Graun was now on the same page, ‘we would need hundreds of carts and would the magic affect horses.’
‘We need to look at this another way. I would imagine he is self sufficient so the magic won’t affect domestic animals.’
‘That makes sense,’ Graun agreed, ‘but it also means we can’t starve the bastards out.’
Gareth nodded, ‘what’s the area like Scout.’
‘Fairly temperate, mild not too hot, very green so they must get enough rain. We covered about a hundred miles, plenty small towns with fields, we didn't linger long.’
‘So you’re saying this web extends at least a hundred miles.’
‘At least, we never got all the way round, by my estimates maybe a hundred. Some of the villages had been relocated, the villagers pushed out of the area.’
‘Did that cause problems?’
‘Not really, they were well compensated and the area is sparsely populated.’
‘How is he getting his Eagles out of the area?’
‘I have no idea.’
‘Find out and make that a priority, send in scouts, no more than a dozen, I want to know the exact location of the breeding centre, is it occupied, I want the layout mapped. I want to know the exact area he occupies, roads in, any rivers and I want them graded in the Highland way. I also want the locations of any camps, soldiers, there dispositions every piece of intelligence you can gather on the place. Send others to map in the routes he’s sending his Eagles out by and how his customers are getting into him, can you manage all that.’
Graun turned to Billy, ‘what do you think?’
‘I will handle everything inside the perimeter if Scout handles the outside and we’ll both report back to you Graun.’
‘How’s that?’ Graun asked Gareth.
‘Sounds good to me.’
‘What are you thinking Gareth?’
‘We can’t starve them out, at the moment a di
rect assault is completely out of the question. There's no way we are going to be able to take the place before the moons align again in three months time. The only thing I have on the table at the moment is to cut him off from his customers.’ Gareth stood and looked over the map, ‘once we have established the perimeter, we could construct forts all round him. Ok we aren’t going to starve the bastard out but we can certainly stop his trade.’ Gareth smiled coldly, ‘maybe throw a few surprises his way. This may even take a couple of years, so don’t any of you go making any plans in the near future.’
The men burst out laughing and the meeting broke up. The women watched Gareth leave the meeting and sat patiently as the men began to make more detailed plans.
CHAPTER 22
Six months later Billy sat at his table and watched Lena leave with his daughter Tina. His wife slapped down a bowl in front of him, ‘can’t you take your eyes off that woman for five minutes,’ she snapped.
‘Leave it be Bess, I have no time for your petty jealousy, the girl has absolutely no interest in me or I in her.’
Bess scoffed, ‘right, that's why the pair of you are never here, she is like a shadow.’
Billy sighed and found he wasn’t hungry any more, but he shovelled the gruel into his mouth, it would only give is wife one more thing to complain about. ‘I have explained this to you a hundred times woman, she stays with Scout and the other abused girls. I spend my time where they cannot follow.’
‘It’s not what I hear.’
‘You don’t hear anything; you just make it up because you’re a bitter old crone.’
‘Don’t you dare call me that,’ she hissed at him.
‘Then stop acting like one.’
‘I gave you everything you bastard.’
Billy snapped and tossed the unappetising mess across the room, ‘you haven’t given me anything for a fucking long time woman and I have accepted that. I accepted that as part of life, neither have I been with another since you dried up.’
‘I have not dried up,’ she screeched at him.
‘Then give me a fuck before my fucking head blows up.’
She stormed out of the room and Billy sat down with a groan. She came back a few minutes later, ‘I want to go home to the Highlands.’
‘It’s the middle of fucking winter you stupid bitch, you wouldn’t make it home, this is your home now, why can’t you just accept that.’
‘I hate it here.’
‘How can you hate it,’ he stormed, ‘it’s warm all year round, we have plenty to eat, there's plenty food here, yet you insist on feeding us this fucking crap.
‘It’s winter food.’
‘It isn’t fucking cold.’
‘I don’t care, you’re never here.’
‘Woman, I have a lot of responsibility.’
‘You could give it up and move home.’
Billy’s head was beginning to thump, ‘go home to what?’
‘Our life.’
‘This is our life now, why can’t you just fucking accept it.’
‘I don’t like it,’ she snarled.
‘Fine, come the spring you can go home, that's what you want isn’t it.’
‘Are you coming?’
‘No,’ she turned away and Billy thought he caught a hint of a smile. His anger began to simmer and he followed her through to the kitchen. It was full of food and fruit. ‘What the fucks all this?’
‘What do you mean?’
It was a place Billy had rarely entered, ‘this place is full of food, why were you feeding me that crap, come to think of it why do you always fed me crap like that.’
‘I don’t know what you mean.’
‘You know exactly what I fucking mean you old bitch.’
‘Don’t you call me that.’ She hissed in his face.
‘This has all been a set up isn’t it, you've been deliberately antagonising me so I will send you home.’
‘You can stay here with your Eagle slut.’
Billy’s hand stopped just short of her face, she backed off with fear in her eyes. ‘This has been going on a lot longer than she has been around, it started the week you got here.’
‘I told you I didn't want to come, you forced me.’
‘I forced you to come because I was told you were fucking the baker when I had been away.’ Her face turned white, ‘I didn’t want to believe it though, I took you away to save the children the shame of finding out exactly what their mother was.’
He drew his dirk and grabbed her by the hair, ‘you have disgraced me and this family,’ she screamed as he raised the dagger.
‘Dad, don’t.’
He turned to find the two young women in the doorway. Blood pounded in his head. With a great deal of self-control he lowered the knife and walked out of the house.
‘Take your Eagle slut with you,’ she screamed after him.
In an instant an infuriated Eagle was hissing in her face. Bess choked on the words that followed then Lena changed back into a woman, her golden eyes spat fire, ‘Billy is a man of honour, he has never touched me or even tried. None of the men who look after us have ever tried. You are an evil woman, you do not deserve him, twice you have almost died today, next time you call me a name I will not hesitate, you will die.’
She turned away, ’I'm sorry Tina I have to leave.’
‘It’s ok.’
Lena picked up her ripped shift on the way out and took to the wing. It wasn’t long before she found Billy and swept down. He never blinked when she transformed beside him, he was used to it by now. She threw her shift on and walked beside him in silence for a while. Billy passed through the palace and found a narrow path down to the rocky shore. It wasn’t as nice a spot as Gareth's but Billy liked it.
‘I know you are supposed to stay with me Lena but I would like a little privacy if that would be at all possible, just for an hour or so.’
‘I don’t want to leave you Billy.’
He sighed, ‘I just want to clear my head. I'm sorry.’
‘For what?’
‘For the violence you witnessed, it was wrong of me I will ask Graun to find you a new mentor.’
‘I have no wish for another mentor Billy, I am happy with you. I heard the argument; Tina forgot her purse and we turned back. We both heard it.’
‘Great,’ he sighed, ‘my shame deepens.’
‘A wise Eagle once said, we cannot help who our hearts fall in love with, we can only pray that those who receive it shall treat it with the kindness it is offered.’
Billy sat down on a rock, ‘very wise indeed, but what do you do when you have half a dozen children and you’re stuck with the bitch.’
‘Send her home and begin a new life, I know you humans can do that sort of thing.’
‘Be like Graun and have two families, one here and one in the Highlands, I don’t think I can do that, I know I don’t want to do that, I'm too fucking old to start all over again. My oldest son now marches at my side; my oldest daughter is of marrying age and the other four still need their parents.’
She squatted beside him, ‘are you sure she cheated on you?’
‘Yes too many told me, including my own father before he died, our last words was a bloody argument over her, I didn't want to believe it.’
‘Are all the children yours?’
He raised an eyebrow at her, ‘that's not a nice question to ask a Highland man Lena, a very dangerous one in fact.’
‘I trust you not to hurt me but I feel the question must be asked if you are to face this moment in your life.’
He looked away, ‘it doesn’t matter if they are or not, I love each and every one of them.’
She stood, ‘you are a wonderful man Billy.’ A moment later she took to the wing. He grabbed her shift as it fluttered past to prevent it falling in a rock pool. He folded it and placed it on a rock at his side. Then he sat and watched Lena soaring high above letting his mind drift.
It was almost an hour later when light footsteps
alerted him to the fact he wasn’t alone. He recognised them, ‘how did you find me Gareth.’
‘When you’re married to an Eagle it doesn't take you long to find someone Billy.’
‘They make it a small world don’t they.’
‘Am I disturbing you, you look like you want to be alone.’
‘I do and I don’t, I suppose you have heard.’
‘Your wife came banging on my door and told me that you and Lena both tried to kill her a short while ago.’
‘For fucks sake,’ Billy closed his eyes, ‘that's not quite what happened.’
‘Another advantage of being married to an Eagle Billy is your wife can see right into their minds and she can look right into yours, I know exactly what happened.’
Billy felt his anger rise again, ‘great, just fucking great, my shame rides on the winds.’
‘Hardly, no-one other than Melina and myself know. Do you want to go home?’
‘In the middle of fucking winter!’
‘Stupid question but your wife is determined to travel home.’
‘Aye and you know why don’t you?’
‘The Baker.’ Gareth hadn’t wanted to say the words.
‘The Baker, the bitch.’ Billy snapped.
‘You could go home and kill him.’
‘What good would that do Gareth; to be honest I'm sick of the woman, if I had the choice I would just leave her.’
‘You’re thinking of the children.’
‘Of course.’
‘What good is it going to do them if you end up cutting her throat?’
‘Now that is a bloody good possibility Gareth, thanks for the heads up. Of course after I kill her I would have to go home and kill him, then there’s a dozen children parentless.’
‘You almost did it today Billy, your building up a terrible rage inside you, sooner or later it is going to get loose and they will be the first to suffer. Better you separate the strands of marriage and each of you goes your own way.’
‘I don’t think I could live with the shame.’
‘I did.’
‘You didn't have children to think about. I want you to find Lena another mentor. She is just giving ammunition to my wife to stir things up; she married me she can live with it, but I won’t have her hurting an innocent. Besides the only revenge I have is to keep her away from her lover, it’s the one thing she wants and it’s the one thing I won’t give her.’ Billy smiled, ‘call me a bastard if you want, but I will kill the bitch before I let her return home and continue to shame me.’