The Secret Burial Grounds of Knocknakil

by Gregg Holt

  From the arched doorway, a rope was dangling down just a foot or two off the ground.

  Lepy jumped, managing to grab the rope first time and with the aid of knots every foot or so climbed up into the doorway.

  Carragah was last up the rope., clambering to his feet he gazes up into dark empty room where a stone staircase spiralled up. When he stepped off, Lepy pulled the rope up and shut the mature oak door

  “We should be safe up here,” Lepy announced and they all collapsed onto the floor.

  The four of them sat against the round wall; after a few silent moments they fell asleep. Graham’s head drooped forward and his eyelids started dancing emphatically. Seconds later he was walking over the tranquil fields of Knocknakil, the sun was shining and there was enchanting music and laughing coming from beyond the hill. Slowly he walked around the hill to see several leprechauns singing and dancing around an open fire. Glancing around, he noticed numerous small entrances into the hillside where a couple of young female leprechauns came running out. They wore beautiful green dresses and their hair was blonde and tied into braids. Catching Graham’s eyes, they giggled and ran off. He realised these were their houses, on top of the mounds the sweet smell of turf escaped through small chimneys and he felt a delightful atmosphere fill the air.

  The sound of music increased with small cheers celebrating. He turned in the direction of the noise and noticed a large group of leprechauns moving towards the fire. Instantly, Graham recognised Lepy, he looked younger and was walking with a beautiful female leprechaun. Their arms were linked, she had a stunning green dress on and pink flowers tied into her hair. Graham was flabbergasted with her beauty and noticed them both smiling contently at him, it was their wedding day.

  Instantly, Graham was woken by the sound of voices; he looked at his companions, they were all exhausted and had fallen asleep unintentionally. Lepy was staring at Graham in a peculiar way. Suddenly Graham remembered his dream, it was only a dream yet it felt so real. The voices continued. Abruptly, Graham realised there was danger and his attention switched. Graham prodded Lorna, holding his finger over his mouth so they were quiet.

  The voices were now at the bottom of the tower and he could now hear what they were saying.

  “Oi, where are you going, we have got work to do,” said a coarse voice with an unusual accent.

  “What walk round on a wild goose chase looking for four people including a leprechaun? We both know it’s some big joke.”

  “No, we have a job to do; we have to capture them for Iroquois dead or alive!” the second voice replied.

  Lorna and Graham stared at each other instantly.

  “Well he won’t know if we have a kip in here will he? Oh no, look there is no ladder. Ah well, the floor it is.”

  Graham peeked through a small crack in the wooden door. He could see two Viking soldiers both in full body armour and carrying swords and shields.

  Graham whispered to Lorna “We are trapped; there is no other way down from here”.

  “Get up now!” the voice demanded.

  “Why, what you going to do about it?”

  “It’s not me you need to worry about, its Iroquois; he has been known to rip out peoples’ tongues if they fail to follow his instructions.”

  “Well maybe Iroquois should be worried about me.”

  “I will let you tell him then,” and one of the guards walked off.

  “No, no, its OK, I’m coming.”

  “They’re going now,” Graham said, pulling away from the door and listening to the voices moving away into the distance.

  “Phew, that was a little close for comfort; we will wait for another half hour and then move to the bottomless lake. If we make it by morning maybe there is at least some chance of survival,” Lepy said.

  The next few minutes were spent in silence; Graham thoughts returned to his dream, it felt so real and the way Lepy was staring at him when he woke made him suspicious he knew something about his dream.

  Lepy slowly opened the door before dropping the rope down.

  “Wait here, whilst I check the coast is clear,” he barked, rapidly sliding down the rope.

  “Do you think he is OK Graham, he’s been gone quite a long time?” Lorna said, looking through the doorway.

  “Maybe we should go and look for him?” Graham replied.

  “Give him another couple of minutes,” Carragah said.

  “Right I’m going looking for him,” Graham said a few minutes later and still no sign.

  He climbed down the rope into the unknown, beads of perspiration forming on his forehead. Graham edged out of the tower and into the night air; he heard a twig crack on the floor behind him.

  Slowly he turned, fearful of seeing the soldiers in his unprotected position.

  Lepy appeared from the shadows. “Come on, it is safe to proceed and we can use that dry stone wall to hide our movements against the sky.” Graham sighed with relief. Lorna and Carragah climbed down and they started to walk off towards one of the many stone walls littering the land.

  Lorna looked skywards, noticing the clear night and the banana-shaped moon.

  “Have you seen the stars Graham?” Lorna whispered.

  Graham gazed upwards, the stars in the sky twinkled, unaware of their struggle for survival. This rich and picturesque landscape was now dark, sinister and dangerous. They had been walking for about fifteen minutes around the edge of stone walls when Graham noticed a small fire burning in the direction they were heading.

  “Get down,” Graham whispered and they all dropped to their hands and knees. Graham let out a small chuckle.

  “Lorna, look, Lepy is stood upright but still has less chance of been spotted than us.” Lorna chuckled.

  “Oh don’t be so cheeky!” Lepy replied, flapping his hands downwards in a ‘quieten down’ gesture as they approached the light.

  “It’s those Vikings from the tower,” Graham said, tapping Lepy lightly on the arm.

  “Bang, the little green leprechaun is history!” said one of the soldiers, swiping his sword across, to the amusement of his friend.

  Lorna let out a low nervous laugh only to be greeted by serious stern frown from Lepy.

  “What, I’m nervous,” she whispered in response, shrugging her shoulders.

  Edging slowly to the wall they crawled down the side quietly; the two unsavoury characters were directly on the other side. Graham heard them joking about what they would do to the leprechaun to get his gold. No mention was made about Carragah but they did say the kids would wish they had stayed in England after Iroquois was finished.

  Edging past, Graham was sure his breathing was so loud that at any time they would jump over and grab him. “That was close,” said Lorna “How far have we to go Lepy, it all looks the same to me in the dark?”

  “Only another mile or so, let’s hope they don’t have too many search parties.”

  “My knees are aching,” Graham complained, standing up slowly and it took a few steps before he could walk normal again.

  “I’m with you there Graham; I have never walked so far on my hands and knees,” Lorna replied.

  The countryside was unpredictable; Graham and Lorna found it hard going in the poor light and found themselves frequently tripping up and landing face down.

  Luckily, none of them landed in the countless cow pats scattered around. The field dropped into a valley and the cows were lying down chewing as they lay.

  Slowly, they turned their heads, watching them pass, uninterested or oblivious to their plight.

  The silence was broken with the sound of a dog barking some way behind. “Sounds like they may have dogs picking up our scents,” Lepy said, looking worried.

  “Lets head west across the river and approach the lake form the other side. Hopefully that will throw them of the scent for a short while, long enough for us to make it to the lake,” Carragah suggested.

  “Is that someone hiding over there?” Lorna asked, dropping instantly to her
knees.

  “No it’s just a bush,” Lepy replied

  “The darkness is playing tricks on my eyes; I keep thinking I see something,” Lorna continued, climbing back on her feet.

  “Yeah, same here,” Graham replied.

  The glistening moon light reflecting off the ripples on the river revealed they had arrived at the waterside.

  Lorna watched the swift current rushing over the protruding rocks, desperately seeking the safety of the ocean. The sound of the strong surges of water constantly flowing somehow offered her an ounce of comfort.

  There was no time to celebrate, they needed to cross this raging torrent and fast, the barks were now getting anxiously louder.

  Graham stumbled and fell as he entered the water; his arms hit the rocks below and stopped his torso from a cold wet soaking. The river pushed at his heels and calves, it was no longer inviting it was trying its best to drag him in. Lorna managed to make it across, followed a short time later by Graham. Just as he climbed the bank on the other side he slipped slightly on the mud.

  Graham regained his footing and turned to see how the others were progressing. He noticed Carragah carrying Lepy on his back when all of a sudden Carragah lost his footing in the middle of the river. The weight of Lepy must have been just enough to tip the balance; they both landed fully into the water. Lorna ran to the water’s edge, the torrent was strong pulling at her feet.

  Carragah fought and successfully managed to climb to his feet.

  “Where’s Lepy, I can’t see any sign of him!” Lorna shouted nervously.

  Graham ran down the bank to where Lorna stood. “Where is he?” His heart was sinking.

  “Is it possible to survive so long?” Lorna gasped frantically, stamping up the riverside.

  Graham gasped, unable to say anything. Frantically he searched the dark glistening water for a hint of where he could be.

  “No sign of him, anywhere!” Lorna said with a long a face and her hands on her hips.

  Suddenly, Graham noticed the leprechaun’s feet protruding and moving quickly in the current away from them. Lepy’s boots were kicking frantically, trying to regain composure and flick himself back above the water. Without thinking, Graham jumped in, lurching towards this splashing foot waving in the air. The pace of the river was now torrential, purposely hauling Lepy away. He dived despairingly, hoping to make contact before the leprechaun was washed away. As his face hit the fresh water and dropped below the surface, he lost sight of Lepy’s boot still frantically kicking.

  Lorna gasped in amazement as Graham disappeared below the surface. Beneath the surface, Graham threw his hand forward hoping to make contact with his small frame. Fortunately, as he clasped his hand, it grabbed Lepy securely. Instantaneously, Graham regained his footing. Lorna watched as he managed to stand holding Lepy up by his foot above the raging river. Dripping, he looked at Graham and smiled. “Thanks Graham!”

  They climbed back on the bank where Carragah was waiting.

  “Well I’m not asking you to help me across the river again!” shouted Lepy, staring at Carragah.

  “Do you know how embarrassing it is been lifted out by your boot, eh?” and he stomped off up the river bank muttering to himself. Carragah looked at Graham and Lorna; they all burst out in fits of laughter, a way of releasing the nervous tension.

  The silent night gave way to a whizzing noise that flew above their heads at a frightening speed. A second or two later a crack rang out as a large spear penetrated deeply into the ground just beyond them.

  “There they are, get them!” a chilling voice beckoned from the other side of the river.

  They glanced back across the river.

  “More Vikings!” shouted Lorna nervously.

  “Run!” shouted Lepy and they all started running as fast as they could.

  “There’s the bottomless lake!” Lepy shouted, pointing forwards as he ran.

  In the distance, Graham could just start to make out the water’s reflection.

  “What will we do at the bottomless lake Carragah?” Graham gasped breathlessly, running as hard as he could.

  “Like the swallow hole in the stream there is a secret entrance just below the surface.”

  Graham glanced up at Lorna who was running ahead, she was always a faster runner. Suddenly she disappeared, Graham tried to stop running but his momentum carried him forward like a freight train. Trying frantically to stop, he soon found the reason for Lorna’s departure. His stomach ended up in his mouth as he landed heavily on some rocks and stones.

  “What is this?” Lorna demanded.

  “It’s a quarry that was hidden in the darkness. Ouch!” Graham screeched as he felt a heavy bang on his back. Lorna chuckled as she saw Lepy land heavily on her friend’s back.

  “Thanks Graham, you broke my fall, why, you are looking after me tonight,” Lepy said, quickly looking around to see where the pursuers were.

  “They have gone the wrong way,” he whispered and dropped back down. Carragah appeared holding his leg.

  “Are you OK?” Graham whispered.

  “Yes I think so.”

  Carragah continued: “There’s the lake.” Graham and Lorna looked across – it was only a hundred yards away.

  “Right, once we get there stay with me and I will get us into the concealed entrance in the lake. We will be safe there.” The three accomplices nodded. Lepy climbed to the edge of the quarry. “Oh no, they are heading this way.”

  “Right let’s go,” ordered Carragah.

  “Is that dogs I hear?” Lorna said, with her hand over her ear.

  The silent air was broken with the sound of howling dogs.

  “I don’t think they sound like dogs!” Lepy said, climbing up to the edge of the quarry.

  “Wolves! Not seen them in these parts for centuries,” he shouted, jumping back in the quarry.

  “The howls are getting nearer,” Graham shouted, starting to panic.

  “Right come on, to the lake,” ordered Carragah, rising to his feet and ushering them forward. Quickly they all jumped and started running as fast as their bodies would carry them.

  The wolves were virtually on top of them directly, howling and snarling. Graham quickly glanced back, noticing dozens of them foaming and drooling at the mouths.

  “There is no way we are going to make it to the lake!” he cried as his legs were starting to give way.

  “In there,” pointed Carragah with his staff.

  The stone circles started to surrender their location in the dark night and they all quickly ran into the centre. Positioning themselves with their backs pushed against each other they peered into the darkness to see if the wolves had noticed.

  Just beyond the edge of the erect rocks, the wolves started to appear and snarl. Glancing around the circumference, each gap in the rocks was filled with wolves entering the circle. Cautiously, they started to edge towards them. Lepy raised his sword, took a step forward and struck at the nearest wolf. It let out an awful howl as the sword connected with his snout. The howl penetrated the night air alerting any interested parties of their exact location.

  “Leave this to me,” Lorna said stepping forward.

  “I admire your courage Lorna,” Carragah said, pulling her back abruptly by the collar.

  In all directions they edged in, fangs protruding, snarling and ready for the kill.

  Chapter 14

  The Castle at Knocknakil

  The nearest beast snarled at Lepy, snapping with its powerful jaws. Lepy’s sword flashed in the air and made contact with its snout, pushing him back only to be replaced instantly by another hungry predator. The wolves appeared from all directions, grey dishevelled coats and glorious snarling, white teeth threatening the terrorised party. They closely huddled together in the centre of the circle their backs tightly pushed against each other desperately fighting off each menacing lunge.

  “Lap oh Sact Omono.” Carragah appeared in a trance, holding the staff at the glass ball. The wolves
were starting to get at Lepy and only the prods from the sword prevented him from being snatched.

  The largest wolf snapped at Lorna, she leant backwards kicking at the attacker, suddenly her foot slipped and she fell, landing on her back. The wolf went to bite her leg but only managed to penetrate her jeans. It pulled at her, its jaw locked trying to haul her away from the others. Inch by inch she edged away as it pulled her relentlessly towards the vicious pack.

  “Graham, HELP!!!” she screamed.

  Graham grabbed her shoulders fighting a tug of war with this brute, preventing the wolf from dragging her off.

  A single beam of light quickly intensified around the base of the stone circles.

  It accelerated clockwise, rising to the tops of the stones, giving the impression they were inside an extremely fast fairground ride. Carragah lifted his staff high above his head. At its summit, a perfect white light emitted towards the stone circle, intensifying, creating an energy field.

  The wolves on the edge of the circle howled as the newly-created energy beam disintegrated everything in its path. Instantly, they violently shattered into crumbling grains of dust which fell harmlessly inside the ancient circle.

  The remainder in the circle quickly tried to escape, only to suffer the same fate as the others. One wolf remained, it snapped at Lorna’s leg again, narrowly missing her flesh. Determined, it continued to pull and Graham started to lose his grip. “HELP, STOP IT GRAHAM!” Lorna screamed.

  The energy field crept in towards the centre of the circle; inch by inch it swallowed the remaining wolf. Just as it reached its head it howled and instantly exploded into ash and Lorna was free.