She stood there her long red hair blowing back behind her, metal ties holding her hair in the style of a warrior. She felt the heavy weight of her shortsword in her hand, the weight familiar to her so many years ago. She and her mother stood there ready to lead their tribe into war with the local opposing tribe . She looked back at the tribe saw the detrmination on thier faces.

Her mother let out the war cry and the tribe followed suit with thier own crys. The skillful tribe that had defeated so many of thier oppsosers would lose this battel to become slaves to the victors. To be traded and bartered like cattel, many had escaped, but somehow she was always found, her mother's punishment had been death for leaving her master, Shealti had vowed it wouldn’t happen to her.

Eall woke up shouting her mother’s name and mumbling in her native tounge, her scars on her back searing hot and painful. She tired to go back to sleep but couldn’t. Eall got up got dressed and went out to the garden to medate. She knew in a few days these recent events would come out and she wasn’t sure she wanted anyone to know about any of this.

Sweat poured off Rowena’s brow as she braced herself for another attack by Eallerica. Her focus was on her defense as the Ancient Immortal had pounded into her head over the past six months. As most of these sessions ended with Rowena on the floor looking up at her instructor, and as far as Rowena was concerned it was one of those days, she would be glad to see it end. She was compleatly supprized by what happend next.

Eall had been training Rowena hard, making sure she knew the moves like they were second nature. Rowena flipped and caught Eall on the arm with her sword and she then remianed still, Eall making no move to attack her. Rowena thought this odd that her mentor was not focused on their session, which was unlikely. Eall decided to cut thier session early, she was not focused and thought it would be nice to let her off early.

Rowena was excited when she found out that Richie was comming, only to be estatic about the fact that Duncan and Methos would be comming. Eall had been in a good mood untill Amanda had annouced that she was comming and Fitz would be accompanying her to the island. Not that the Ancient minded the reunion with everyone, it was that her memories of her life before any of them were comming to the surface and she wasn’t too keen on any other company. It wouldn’t be much longer before Rowena could tell and once Methos got here he would be able to tell instantly.

“Eall?” Rowena’s voice brought her out of her thoughts.

“Yeah?” she asked toweling herself off.

“Uh, was that a slip of guard or were you not focused?” Rowena asked placing the pratice blade back on the wall.

“I’m sorry my mind’s just not on the present right now, and the fact that you need a brake.”

“I appreciate the thought but you never let me strike with out working for it, what’s up?”

“Nothing to worry about.” Eall said with a grin. “ Let’s get something to drink, my mouth feels like the Saraha.”

“Yeah, I’m having that symptom myself.” Rowena said grabbing her own towel.

The house was huge, once a castle transported from Ireland to Avalon a few peices at a time. There were only a handful of people there at any given time, most of the staff went home after five o’clock, only one staied, Edgar Linsmith. Eall had found the boy in a viliage outside Bombay at the age of four, his family had been killed and he was being cared for by one of the loyal family attendants who took pity on him. It had been luck that she had been there in India on business. Eall smiled fondly at the memory, and pulled a bottle of ginsing tea out of the fridge, reaching for a bottle of juice that Rowena always drank after their sesions.

“Thanks.” she said accepting the bottle. “Eall, can I ask you a few qusetions?”

“Sure.” Eall said looking up from the paper.

“I heard you shout someone’s name this morning, can I ask who?” Rowena prodded gently.

“My mother.” Eall said breifly.

“Okay, it wasn’t a happy shout it was an agonizing shout, did something happen to her long ago?”

“Yes, she was killed in front of me as an example of what a slave shouldn’t do.” Eall said shortly.

“I’m sorry.” Rowena said seeing she wasn’t going to tell anymore.

Eall knew the girl was only curious, but it was such a intamate part of her life that she didn’t want to talk about it yet. Methos and Richie were the only people who knew anything about her past. She felt bad that she was short with her but Eall wasn’t sure she was ready to tell the tale.

Rowena wanted to know about the Anceint that taught her, but Eall did not voulnteer information about her past, and from the shout she heard this morning it must have been a painful begining. Rowena thought about asking Methos when he arrived, but she knew that Eall would want Rowena to ask her herself. Rowena had tried the direct approach, but it didn’t seem to be working, so her alternative was to ask the world’s oldest man about her.

Edagar watched the two of them and he knew more about his employer that she thought, he had been a Watcher and he was now her Watcher since she was discovered this year. Her start in Imortality had been difficult, she didn’t have a teacher untill she was a few hundred years after she had her first death. Watching her mother die at the hands of her capters was bad, but the two times she had been married she had lost them both in a sudden manner, her first husband had died of a heart attack way back before they even knew what to call it. Her second husband died at the hands of an Immortal challenger who thought some personal hurt would be a better way to get at her. He knew the pain of her life as well as the joys there. She had gotten more joy out of the past few years than he guessed she had ever had.

“Alright Edgar,” She said looking over at him her violet eyes set on him “I know and your right, I’ll go appologise.” she said folding the paper up.

“I know your reasons, but she only asked.” his accent still thick as it was when he was twelve.

“I’m just not sure I’m ready.” she said headding after Rowena.

Rowena was in her room getting dressed for the rest of the day, when she heard the knock. She pulled on her capris and threw on a ash baby tee shirt, shoveing her feet in a chunky Asian style sandles and walked to the door.

“Hey.” she said. “Before yout tell me I know that was way out of line I-”

“Wait a minuet,” Eall intrupted her “I’m the one that should be appologising here. You asked, and you have a right to know, its just that I’m not sure I’m ready to tell you.”

“Okay, I can only guess at what you’ve gone through watching six millina pass.”

“Alot,” Eall said with a half grin “more than I thought I would.” she looked around the room “So are you ready to go pick up our guests?”

“Richie only.” she winked.

“Methos isn’t too bad, Connor’s more fun than his cousin Duncan, Amanda is one you’ll have to determine for yourself, Fitz is a charmer and Joe is very likeable, Duncan’s a bit of a stick in the mud, don’t ever tell Duncan what I said.”

“Said what?” Rowena grinned mischivously.

“I’ve trained you well young grasshopper.” she said with a wink.

The two Immortals headed for the Sloang International Airport in Eall’s black VW bug. Listening to the raido and chatting. Rowena’s excitment becomming more evident as she drummed her fingers in her leg. Eall did talk about the first time she met Duncan since Rowena asked.

“Let’s see it was around one of my last trips to Scotland when I sent Connor word that I would drop by and see him.”

Eall had been riding hard for the past two days to get to Connor’s place, arriving that afternoon she found him and what she guessed was a student. He hadn’t mentioned a student, but she shrugged off and dismounted her eyes following Connor’s every move watching him as he parried and chuckled as his young student jumped back to avoid being sliced in half. Causing the student to fall on his back, remianing motionless for a moment Connor approached cautiously, poking him with his sword.

“Get up cousin,” he grinned “I’m not falling for that again.”

“Connor your no fun.” the studnet extended his arm for his Clansman to help him up.

Connor reliquished and gave him his free arm and Duncan managed to pull him to the ground where a wrestling match began. Eall walked over and stood there for a moment, seeing that they were engrossed in the match she cleared her throat. Connor tookadvantage of Duncan’s distraction and pinned him to the ground.

Duncan’s brown eyes traveld up the frame of the intruder and quickly noticed this was a woman and she was dressed like a man. She was tall, taller than most women around Glenfinnan, red hair, long red hair he could only imagine what it felt like wrapped around his fingers. Her eyes were the color of thistles, an unusual color, she was also one of them making her just as deadly as any of his other opponets. Grinning at her as he stared at her when she smiled back he took time to introduce himself.

“I’m Duncan Macleod, and this is-” he said being cut off by the woman.

“Connor Macleod, I see your still torturing those you teach.” she said grinning at the eldest.

“You know me Eallerica,” he grinned “just keeping up traditions.” he said letting Duncan up. “Duncan, this is a long distance cousin, Eallerica Connally.”

“Nice to meet you.” she said extending her hand for a hand shake.

“The Pleasure is all mine.” Duncan said turning her hand over and kissing the back of it.

“I see you leave nothing out of the lessons.” she grinned at Connor.

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