Aoife shook her head. "I don't, but one of the others might." She said, though she seemed a bit lost in her thoughts. "And... do we have any idea what will happen to Aine once she's no longer tied to this place?" Aoife asked. "If... if she took her own life
Ruadhán... there is only place that she'd be able to go. Are you, are you okay with that?"
"I would have thought so to, but I now know that it is possible for her to have another chance at salvation. Either way, anything must be better than this place and being one of them. Jesus died for our sins, and teaches forgiveness, perhaps if I can give her another chance, then repentance will be enough. "
Aoife shook her head. "For your sake my friend I hope you're right... but I believe you are wrong." She said truthfully. "We damned are damned..." Aoife said motioning to herself. "once a life ends... I don't think there is a due over."
Cnoc Aine...
It is said that those who were king to her prospered and that those who were cruel would suffer poor crops and sick cattle.
She is associated with midsummer and the sun.
"In our own world, Cnoc Aine is four days south. A ceremonial site in ages past, and rumoured to be a portal to the Otherworld at certain points of the year. Perhaps it is a way out?"
"God damnit, are we going to be dragged all around this damn place?" Aoife asked mainly to herself. "Wait... isn't there an old story around there... it was one about a princess, a king passing through the land raped her but when she fought back she bit off his ear! Thus making him unfit to be a ruler. We should be really nice to her if we come by her. She's will be gracious to those who are kind but if you're cruel... let's just say we wouldn't survive long." Aoife said.
Ruadhan nods along with Daire and Aoife "Ay, that sounds like the story. Best we make a dedication when we get there too."
"Right right..." Aoife said to Ruadhán before she paused and said "Aw f!+%!"
"So, you remember the Aine we're suppose to get help from? Well I remember a story about her... and Grian... they're duel sided. Aine is the sun of summer where as Grian is the sun of winter. They're inseparable... honestly in this world I wouldn't be surprised if we find out they're one in the same." Aoife sighed as she crossed her arms.
Thorun remains where he is, blankly staring down into the dirt.
Aoife paused and looked to Thorun. He had always been a quiet giant unless the group was in battle... but this seemed... off. "Thorun... you okay?" Aoife asked softly.
"Aye, Thorun. Are you well?"
Thorun shakes his head, inhaling sharply. "What? Aye...aye I'm alright. What's next, gonna climb the tree of insight or something?"
Aoife looked at Thorun with more than a hint of superstition. Taking a few steps foreword she looked Thorun in the eye. "What's wrong?" She asked. "I can't try to help if you don't tell me what's wrong."
Thorun gives a dark chuckle. "Oh piss off. Long as I keep loppin' heads off fer ya everything's alright, yeah?"
"The salmon had a lot to say, then?", interjects Daire.
Aoife's looked turned to one of hurt before she smacked the mountain of a man on the side of his head. It wasn't so hard to couse proper damage but sure enough to be a shock. "You lumbering dult!" Aoife said with a shake of her head. "Why is it so hard to believe we care about you?" She asked. "I know I asked you to pick a weapon up again after you wanted to set it down for good... but I did have a reason. It was selfish I'll admit... but it's because... I need you here." Aoife said as her expression became one of shame. "I can't... I can't keep everyone safe alone Thorun... but also... I don't want you to leave. You, Ruadhán, Daire, and sister Cobhlaith... you've all become like a family to me... I never really had one, it was just me and mother. Later Fintan." She explained.
"But you all... you've been there, at my back through battle, through hard times that... I might have caused... you all don't, look at me and see a... a... possession. You call me by name, you save me, and you don't think less of me." Aoife said as she rubbed her eyes. "I love you guys as I do Fintan my own kin. So please... let me help you."
Thorun gives a dead stare at Aoife.
"Come on, let's get out of this shithole. I'm sick of it."
A feeling of defeat washed over Aoife and settled into her gut. One would think this would be a feeling she was use to by now. But she closed her eyes and hung her head, allowing her hair to hide her face. "Yeah... I'll bet..." She muttered in agreement before she made ready for the group to leave.
Daire says nothing more for now. But when Thorun isn't looking, he throws a worried glance towards both Ruadhan and Aoife.
On Thorun's suggestion, Ruadhan agreds and prepares to move out. As they move up to the front as scouts, Ruadhan slaps the big man on the shoulder. [b]" I hope their was some hope in what you learnt friend, if I am realistic, I learnt that I am in for a hell of a ride and it won't be easy if it is possible at all, but there was hope."[b], with that he hefts his javelin into a carrying pose and sets off at a light jog.
Thorun gives a dark glance at Ruadhan, continuing to move forward silently.
Aoife didn't return Daire's look, she didn't even see him. It was like for a time she had muted all around her. Likely because she just embarrassed herself.
"If you're going to talk, talk and move." Aoife stated. "We've got ground to cover." Her voice was flat and to the point.
Daire says nothing and falls into line.
The heroes of Largay grab their gear and get going. Tested and tired, battered and bruised, the weight of this world heavy on their shoulders, they wonder if they will ever see the bright light of the sun again. Here, the sky is always grey, colourless. Life seems somehow, less. They no longer face the roving bands of accursed undead, but this realm nevertheless smells of death and decay.
Cnoc Aine is four days away. And the Beara peninsula is another four days to the southwest. Will this odyssey never end!
Sister Cobhlaith leads them with unerring wisdom as they travel south and set camp after a day's hard march at the foot of the Slieve Bloom mountains. On the morrow, they head into the valley beyond until they reach the Devil's bit. They set camp anew, only too glad to have gone this long without a fight.
In the morning, they continue southwest, avoiding the Devil's bit entirely and travelling through the day in the open plains to the south of the range.
They set camp and consider what is to come. Tomorrow, they will reach Cnoc Aine...
"Do any of you remember the story of the Children of Lir?" Aoife asked. "... do either of you two remember what I told you?" She added as she looked at Thorun and Ruadhán.
"Cnoc Aine. Let us hope that Aine sees fit to help us find a way to approach The Chailleach.
I do not think that we can wrest the sword from her by feats of strength."
Sister Cobhlaith lets her mind roam freely through the stories told in King MacMurrough's halls and the scrolls and documents she's been able to study throughout the years.
"Death and curses, something like that yeah?"
"I was talking about when I chose to look like a mad woman to both of you but sure we'll go with that." Aoife stated, obviously a bit annoyed. "The Children of Lir, it was them we saved from the future they would of had and in turn freed Queen Aoife from being a Banshee." She went over again. "It's said the children of Lir had been buried in the Beaga peninsula."
Sister Cobhlaith looks in horror at Aoife.
"Dear God in heaven. You have changed history!"
Aoife looked Cobhlaith dead in the eyes and said "I've walked through history, and come back." She folded her arms over her chest as she continued. "That cloak, my second skin, is one of five... the only ones who stepped through time itself and came back. It was there I left my own kin, my brother, to protect a woman who was a victim of a creature from the winter court here."
"So try not to look too shocked, you channel power from God himself, surely I can step through time." Aoife pointed out.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Oh no, I do not doubt *your* power.
It's just that prophecies and knowledge that were true at one time can no longer be relied on to guide us. Stories that might have helped us navigate this strange land are no longer useful.
It is as if the river of time has split in two, and we are being carried downstream on unmapped currents.
Old knowledge is just as likely to betray us as help us now.
We don't *know* anything any longer"
Ruadhan just about remembers the stories of the children of lir, but he drifts out at the philosophical debate about changing history.
"I suggest we give Aoine an offering tomorrow although what I am less sure. If she is goddess of midsummer, we'll it was early summer when we left our world and it has been about a week, so her celebrations would be around now. Maybe then we can persuade her to help us."
"Glad to know we have even less guidance here than before." Thorun chuckles, not even seeming bothered by this next setback. He seems beyond getting kicked down any further.
"It isn't about power" Aoife stated. "But about doing what people believe cannot be done." Aoife said. "I know I changed the fate of the Queen Aoife, yet the story of the Children of Lir still remains. It may not have been Aoife who did it, but the event still happened. Likely at the hand of another woman. Pieces of events might be altered... but time cannot so easily be changed." She told the sister.
"We saved one woman, keeping her from becoming a banshee... and doomed another to it." Aoife said with a long sigh. "Time would not be denied, only bargained with."
Daire pipes up.
"My dear Aoife, knowledge *is* power. There are good reasons why kings, priests and bards clutch their secrets tight to their bosoms. But it sounds like time has a sense of balance regardless, so what we know might not be too far off. Just...off."
He does not sound entirely convinced of this possibility himself.
After another good night’s rest, they embark on the last leg of their journey. Since they started south, the weather has become more clement and today, the sun almost pierces through the grey clouds above. Almost. By midday, they can see the hill in the near distance. Cnoc Aine, where the goddess Aine resides. Here, frail flowers and the song of rare birds suggest that this world is not entirely dead. Leaves on trees speak of spring and the burbling of the river Camogue breaks the oppressing silence that has been their constant companion since this testing journey began.
Hiding in the trees and tall grass are diminutive creatures – humanoids with wispy, mothlike wings and long, thin ears.
The return of nature sounds seems to be good for Thorun, who is still far from the picture of cheeriness but seems a bit less of a grumpy cunt now.
The brighter day and particularly the return of birdsong refresh Ruadhan in a way he hadn't even imagined he needed, and although he remains alert, his muscles relax their tension just a fraction.
Aoife seems to pause on the edge of such a nice place. "Part of me can't believe this is real..." She quietly admits.
"If you want to make a offering Ruadhán, I'd do it here."
Cobhlaith is deep in thought.
First, God's grace still guides us in this place. We have evidence for his miraculous powers, even in this other world.
Second, the land is remarkably like the world we come from. Relying on our knowledge for navigation would probably work.
Third, Aoife is right. Time would not be denied, only bargained with. So perhaps the shape of the stories still holds, if not the details
She brightens
"Perhaps our journey is not as dire as I first perceived.
God still holds us in his hands. I cling to that truth no matter what else befalls us.
And Aoife is right, time cannot be denied. Both the stories and the land still hold the shapes we have previously learned. Perhaps there is some guidance left."
She looks around with a smile on her face.
"We seem to be nearing the Summer Court. The sun and the warmth and the new growth can refresh our hearts even when we are wary of the source of these doings."
She reaches for her paternoster beads, and begins reciting her early morning prayers.
Daire smiles, genuinely feeling better for hymns in his ears and freshness in the air.
As they climb up the sacred hill, they fully expect to see any number of fairies paying homage to their queen, but they see nothing of the sort. There are only trees, tall grass, and a cairn at the top.
In the mortal world, every spring, men bring flaming bunches of hay or straw on poles to the summit of Cnoc Aine. They carry them round the three ancient burial mounds of their ancestors, and then run around the fields and pastures to bring good luck to the animals and crops. Supposedly, these are the rites that the fairies performed before the coming of man.
When they near the summit, they find the ground carpeted with sweet-smelling flowers. It is warmer here, and the sun seems brighter. A soft breeze caresses their skin. The wind seems to almost whisper a soothing song in their ears...
Sister Cobhlaith looks around, puzzled.
"We left Largay on Beltane morning, and it is not yet Midsummer in our world. I would have expected the people of this land to be making merry and holding court here.
Surely they have revels on days other than the few feast days when the veil between the worlds thins."
She turns to Daire.
"Daire, can you remember any old stories that would explain their absence?"
"Why can't the rest of this place be like this?" Aoife asked as she settled into a place to sit. She wasn't sure when the last time she had just... sat down and looked over the land.
"I think I could stay here... and be happy." Aoige said before she took in a deep breath.
"Well i wasn't suggesting it should be me, by the way of things I would have thought Daire would have known more about it, still I will see if I can gather some of this grass and fashion something to burn it on whilst we walk around the cairn at the top. I do not know how our religion would see this Sister, but I am beginning to come round to an idea that I once heard "if all truths come from god, then it is only likely that some good and morally strong will come across those truths from another angle. They are not blessed by knowing God's love as we do but they know some of his truths just the same." Perhaps such is the way of the gods of this world, they are merely beings that have stumbled upon some of God's truths, thereby serving him whether they know or not."
With that Ruadhan starts to gather a small sheaf of the grass, using 1 long blade to the the others to his blade. When they approachcloser to the mound he will endeavour to light the sheaf before walking around the carb.
Sister Cobhlaith searches through her bags.
"Perhaps if we offer some bread and apples, and invite the faeries to join our meal, we will be rewarded with their presence."
"Ruadhán, God's first commandment is love, and we have seen Him enfold us in that love, even here. This is no God-forsaken land; it is still part of His domain and His grace extends even to those who dwell here.
If we mirror His love for all creatures, I am sure Our Father will not take it amiss. We can not do wrong by sharing His grace and love with any we find here. "