‘How are you feeling?’ she asked him.
‘Better,’ he heard himself say.
‘You will take time to heal, young man.’
‘I must be strong by the time of the Feast,’ he said. ‘I am to wed Arian.’ Bane felt the surge of love and need within the youngster, but he saw also the sadness in Vorna’s eyes.
‘You must rest now,’ she ordered him.
Bane-Connavar was sitting upon a pony. He was very tired and weak. Crowds were lining the way, cheering and clapping, and he saw that he was riding into Three Streams. His body was still ablaze with pain, but his head turned back and forth, seeking out the golden-haired girl he had dreamt of for so long. Bane felt his anguish when Connavar realized she was not among those cheering him.
He was helped from his pony, and Bane saw Meria and Ruathain. They helped him to a bed and laid him upon it. The scene shifted and became dark, and from the darkness came a voice. ‘I suppose you haven’t heard about Arian. She married Casta at the Feast of Samain.’
A groan came from the stricken youngster, and Bane felt sorrow engulf him.
‘I’m sorry, Conn. I tried to tell you that she didn’t care for you,’ said the voice.
Bane felt the grief, and with it almost a seeping away of the will to live. All that saved the young man was a seed of anger, which flowered in his heart like a rose tipped with acid.
‘Bane! Bane!’ The voice seemed to come from far away, and he felt Vorna’s hands upon his shoulders, dragging him back from the body of the Morrigu. He groaned and sat down upon the earth. Then he looked across at the still figure of Connavar, crouched over the Old Woman. Bane rolled to his knees and rose unsteadily. Staggering to the king he dragged him back and laid him on the grass,
‘What happened?’ Bane asked Vorna.
‘Her spirit flowed into you. I thought it would kill you.’
Bane rubbed his hands over his eyes. ‘I saw things, Vorna. I watched Connavar fight the bear. I saw . . . him, in the cave, speak to you about my mother.’
‘He loved her very dearly,’ she said softly. ‘They were to be wed . . .’
‘I know. She . . . betrayed him.’
‘Do not think of it as betrayal,’ she said. ‘Arian was a fey and troubled woman. She needed someone to lean on, to keep the darkness at bay. Everyone thought Conn would die. This terrified Arian. So she wed Casta. But all this is in the past now. Let it go.’
The king grunted and sat up. ‘We will need to make a stretcher,’ he said. ‘I could not go through that again.’
‘What did you see?’ Vorna asked.
‘We must cut poles,’ said Connavar, ‘and thread them through Bane’s cloak. It is the strongest cloth we have. I believe it will take her weight.’
He pushed himself to his feet. Vorna moved to stand before him. ‘What did you see, Conn?’
‘Too much,’ he told her. Drawing his sword he walked away into the trees, returning with two stout lengths of wood. Taking his dagger he chopped twigs and leaves from the lengths. Then he spread Bane’s sheepskin cloak upon the earth and cut a series of slits along both sides before sliding the poles through them.
‘We’ve still got to lift her onto it,’ said Bane.
‘Aye,’ agreed Connavar. ‘Let’s do it quickly.’
Laying the stretcher alongside the Seidh they took up their positions and heaved her onto it. This time there was no flickering light. Bane and Connavar gathered up the stretcher and followed Vorna towards the south-east. It was heavy going and both men were sweating profusely as they climbed down the last hill. Before them, in a large clearing, was a circle of standing stones, shining golden in the dawn light. ‘I can’t . . . see any beasts,’ grunted Bane, his muscles aching.
‘Not yet,’ said Vorna.
Slowly they approached the circle. Once more a mist swelled beneath their feet, swirling over the stones, rising higher and higher, blocking the sunlight. Then the mist thickened, growing blacker and darker, forming a dome of night over the stones. At the centre of the circle, beside a long flat altar, a glowing form appeared. Bane and Connavar carried the Morrigu to the edge of the circle and gently laid her down. A low growl came from the creature by the altar. Bane drew his sword, and let out a long, low breath. As Vorna had described, the creature was almost eight feet tall, its body covered with silver scales. Its long arms ended in wickedly curved talons. Bane looked into the beast’s face. It had a long snout, almost like a wolf, yet with teeth like dagger blades.