Edith Pattou - Fire Arrow

And what have we to counter it, she thought, but this tiny patchwork army? It was like constructing a fence of straws to stop a rampaging herd of bulls.

Suddenly she saw him. Balor was seated at a table in a room high up in his crystal castle, looking out over the sea and drinking a liquid the color of rubies from a frosted goblet.

There was a knock, and Balor serenely lowered his glass, welcoming into the room a large goat-man with matted white hair and bulging eyes. The goat-man's face had more of man in it than the other gabha Brie had- seen, but he had grotesque corkscrew horns spiraling out of his forehead.

Balor led the goat-man, whom he called Cernu, to a white marble table covered with a map of Dungal. With his finger, Balor traced a route through Dungal. The goat-man listened intently, nodding several times. They spoke for several more minutes, then the goat-man left the room, carrying the map.

Balor strode to the window. Gazing out at the sea, he smiled and lifted the glass to his lips. But suddenly his eyes narrowed and his movement was arrested. He turned his head and seemed to look directly at Brie, an intent, listening expression on his handsome face. He reached up and lifted the eye-patch from his white eye. Brie's breath stopped. Had he seen her? She did not know how these seeings or visions worked. Was it like a mirror that suddenly became a window? Because she saw him, could he now see her? She reached out her hands as if to somehow close the shutters of the window between them.

Balor shook his head with a puzzled frown, replaced his eye-patch, and turned to look back out the window of his crystal castle. Once again he raised the glass to his lips. Then the picture was gone.

In a haze Brie realized the picture had come without her holding the arrow, like the time in the tower when she had seen Collun. Only this picture had been clearer; this time she had even been able to hear the voices, though she could make out only a word here and there. The draoicht the arrow had been kindling in her was strong now. But had Balor seen her?

"Brie?"

She blinked. She could not see.

Collun sat beside her. "What is wrong?"

"The arrow. It, um, does something to my eyes..." She trailed off, then said loudly, "I saw them, Collun. Hundreds of them, goat-men at Sedd Wydyr. And more soon to come, through a mountain pass. We have three days, at most, before they reach Balor's stronghold. And when they do, his army will begin its march."

NINETEEN

Fire Rain

Collun was silent. Brie could not see the expression on his face. She blinked rapidly and rubbed her eyes, then stood, putting her hand in front of her. "Uffern!" she cursed. Collun guided her back to the campsite. She could feel Fara against her legs, and as they walked, the blur began to ease. Soon she was able to see clearly again.

Quickly they woke the others and told them what Brie had learned.

"The arrow shows you things that are far away?" asked Maire, her eyes wide.

"Sometimes," Brie replied.

"And you told me there was no draoicht in you," Aelwyn said with her catlike smile.

"It rests in the arrow, not in me," Brie said shortly.

"Do we return to camp?" asked Maire.

"Yes," Brie replied. But she made no move to depart.

"It is too bad you did not consult the arrow before. It would have saved us a trip," grumbled Aelwyn.

"Mmmm," responded Brie, her mind elsewhere. "Aelwyn," she said suddenly, "is there, by chance, a porth near? To Tir a Ceol?"

"Perhaps." The wyll looked sulky.

"Aelwyn!"

"Surely the arrow can tell you where it is," Aelwyn purred.

Brie waited.

"Oh, very well. Yes. And it happens to be quite close."

"Why, Brie?" asked Collun.

"I'm not sure. But I was thinking that if we could get word to Silien..."

"Yes, an Ellylon army!" Collun's eyes lit up.

Hanna spoke, her face serious. "No matter how close your friendship with Prince Silien, it would take much for Ellylon to involve themselves in a matter that does not directly concern them."

"They were prepared to help us when Medb threatened," Collun pointed out.

"There was the cailceadon at stake then. Furthermore, there is no time for an army of sufficient strength to be mustered."

"It is worth trying," stated Brie. "At the very least we could send word to King Midir. After all, Prince Durwydd is a friend to Ellylon."

Hanna snorted. "Midir no doubt has as little respect for our prince as we do. But ... as long as it does not take us far off our path," she agreed.

They made it to the porth by midday. Aelwyn led them to an ancient willow tree on the edge of a still, silvery pond.

The wyll approached the tree, her hands upraised. But there was a sudden wrinkling on the surface of the trunk, accompanied by an almost melodic whispering sound. A person with golden hair emerged from the tree.

It was Silien. Collun let out a glad cry and clasped the Ellyl in a bear hug. Fara wound between Silien's legs, while Brie, too, warmly greeted him.

"We had come in search of you," she said in amazement, "and here you are!"

"I was seeking you as well. Well met, Breo-Saight."

"There is trouble, Silien," she said, after introducing him to the others.

"So I have heard."

"Will King Midir help us?" Brie asked bluntly.

Silien shook his head. "No. My father is preoccupied with cleaning up northern Tir a Ceol. Before the Firewurme was destroyed, it wrought havoc in the far northern stretches; the waters were fouled and the land corroded. Further, there has been an infestation of nathrach. They are strange small snakelike creatures and are quite toxic. We believe they were also let loose from the Cave of Cruachan by Medb. They have been bedeviling small pockets of Tir a Ceol. When I heard the rumors of trouble in Dungal, and that you and Collun might be involved, my father gave me leave to investigate, but he said not to count on him should there be trouble. Our own people must come first."

"Did you travel here alone?" asked Hanna.

"Well, no actually ... There was a small band of Ellylon stationed at the porth in the Blue Stack Mountains. I asked for a volunteer, to accompany me north. He seemed enthusiastic at first, though I'm afraid ... I'd better fetch him." Silien disappeared back into the tree.

The others were starting to fidget when Silien finally reemerged, followed by none other than the Ellyl Monodnock.

The Ellyl prince looked annoyed, saying, "Please excuse the delay." Monodnock's cheeks were almost as bright a red as his hair and he looked terrified. But when he saw Brie and Aelwyn, he let out a glad cry.

"Fair and tender ladies," he said, drawing himself to his full height, "it is a jubilation to see you once again. And shall I say that I am quite gleaming—no, blazing —with honor and privilege to have the opportunity, snatched from me so prematurely when last we met, to serve you on your mighty quest."

"Monodnock, well met," said Brie, biting on her lower lip to keep from laughing. She caught Aelwyn's eye, which flashed back at her merrily. Hanna, Collun, and the brother and sister merely looked astonished.

"Monodnock here keeps straying off; it's almost as if he wished to be elsewhere," Silien said with an ironic tilt to his eyebrows.

"Oh, no, no, no! I was merely performing a close inspection as to the state of the tunnels," blustered the taller Ellyl, running both hands through his spiky hair. "I know King Midir has the highest standards and I—"

"Yes, quite," broke in Silien. "Now, tell me," he asked Brie, "is it true that the gabha are on the move? And that they answer the call of a sorcerer with one eye?"

"He is Balor and he has two eyes, but one is all white. He seeks to overthrow Dungal, as well as Eirren. And ultimately, I believe, even Scath itself."