Mystic Knight of Spirit Part 5

It was after midday when she arrived. The rocks stood out of the ground much further than she originally expected. They towered many feet above her, desperately reaching for the sky. According to the map she held in her hand, the next rune stone should have been buried somewhere near where she stood.
Breaca began to dig. The rock made it difficult to find much. Everytime she got very face, more rock would surface. She began to wonder if the map was marked right. She dug for many more hours, finding nothing, but more rock. Holes littered the ground.
She decided to call it off for the evening. She pulled some rations out of her pack and proceeded to have a meager meal. She wanted to light a fire, but feared that doing so would attract some rather unfriendly natives. Instead she curled up and fell asleep.

That night she slept soundly. The hard work of searching for the second rune stone had worn her out. She only wished that Angus had been there to rub her shoulders or tell her that all of her work would not be wasted. She feared that she would return to Kells too late to be of any use.
The thought of her friends murdered by Maeve once again, pulled her from her slumber.
This day was not as pleasant as the others. Clouds filled the sky and threatened rain. A cold wind blew, chilling the Knight to the bone. The weather was not what she would have preferred, but nonetheless she had to continue her search for the stone. Nothing could deter her from her quest.

By midmorning, the rain had begun. It took no time for her to be soaked to the skin. She dug in the mud, hoping to find the stone, before she needed to seek shelter, though she didn’t know if there was any.
She had almost given up, when she saw the glimmer of the rune stone in the mud. She pulled the stone free, holding up for the rain to wash clean.
The power ebbed from the stone, into her arms and eventually throughout her entire body. She could feel her body wanting to let go, but feel her will slipping, drawing into the power of the rune stone. Suddenly her mind took over control of her body and forced her to tuck the stone away into the leather sack.
Breaca took a look around her, hoping find some sort of shelter from the rain. She could see further to the east, a large grouping of trees. Deciding to head to the trees to wait out the rain, she began walking. The rain came down harder as she got closer to the trees. She was sure that Dagda had been ignoring her plea for luck.
As she entered into the woods, she noticed that the canopy kept much of the moisture from getting to her. Though she would not be able to build a fire, she felt that she would at least be able to dry out some.
It was midday and the rain showed no signs of letting up in its intensity. Breaca decided to make her way further into the woods, hoping that maybe she would encounter some small signs of civilisation.
The further she made her way into the trees, the denser they became. The rain barely made it through the leaves. She was thankful for that. Her clothes were cold and wet. She shivered from the wind.
She stopped at some fallen trees, trying to get her bearings. She knew that it would be difficult to find anything in these woods. She feared that she may even not be able to find her way out. Just as she was beginning to feel very depressed about her miserable situation, she noticed a small group of buildings in the distance.
Deciding that maybe not all of the natives in this land were as savage as the ones she had first met, she made her way toward the buildings.
The first building she came to appeared to be a barn, since there were some animals roaming around in front of it. She stepped carefully around the edge of the building, hoping not to frighten any of the creatures. She hoped that someone was home. At least there are people living here, she thought, watching the chickens feed.
The farmhouse was not too far from where she stood, so Breaca headed for the front porch. The wood creaked on the first step. She said a silent prayer to Dagda, hoping that there wasn't an irate farmer on the other side of the door with a dangerous looking farm implement.
She knocked soundly on the door. After a few moments she heard someone approach the other side of the door.
"Who's there!" An angry, gruff voice questioned.
"I'm a traveller looking for shelter for the duration of the rain." She hoped her voice sounded convincing enough to the man on the other side of the door.
She heard movement in the farmhouse. Possibly another person. After a few moments, the farmhouse door opened to reveal an elderly man and his wife.
Breaca smiled her most charming smile at them, hoping that she also looked needy enough.
The man looked rather suspicious of her, but his wife was more than happy to welcome her in.
Breaca thanked them several times as she was shown into the small farmhouse
"You're absolutely soaked!" the old woman shrieked. She immediately scuttled across the room and grabbed several large blankets, which she unfolded and threw around Breaca's shoulders.
The Knight was thankful that the old man was not alone in the farmhouse, otherwise she may have still been wondering around the forest looking for shelter.
She thanked them again and settled herself on the floor by the blazing fireplace. She said another silent prayer to Dagda. At least for the moment he seemed to be looking favourably on her.
The old woman offered her some stew, which she accepted with more thanks.
During the meal, the old woman introduced herself as Elspeth and her husband as Slevin.
"We are but simple farmers. We don't get many visitors." Elspeth explained. She seemed absolutely delighted with Breaca's presence, though her husband appeared to be rather untrustworthy of her. "What is such a lovely young woman like you doing out her in the middle of nowhere?"
Breaca smiled. "I am travelling. Just seeing what is here. I have never been to this area before."
Elspeth nodded. She offered Breaca more stew, which she accepted. It had been a few days since she had consumed a hot meal. Dried meat was getting a little obnoxious.
Slevin decided it was time that he spoke up. "Where are you travelling from?" He seemed to have a rather demanding tone to his voice.
Suddenly she remembered what the fairie king had told her as she left. "Be careful along the way, everything could be against you." The words echoed in her mind. She realized that this whole farmhouse could have been a trap. But Elspeth seemed so nice. Slevin on the other hand could have been trouble.
"I am from Kells."
Slevin shook his head. "Never heard of it."
Breaca finished her bowl of stew, but declined the offer of another bowl. "It is far from here. I have been there for some time and decided that it was time to travel. See the world."
Slevin opened his mouth to make some comment, no doubt rude, when his wife broke in. "You are so young. You should not be travelling alone."
Breaca told them that she was perfectly capable of handling herself.
The old woman just nodded. Slevin eyed her suspiciously. Breaca felt uncomfortable.
"You can sleep in the barn," the old man told her.
Breaca thanked them once again for their hospitality. The rain had let up some so she decided to make her way to the barn. As she entered, she turned to see Slevin watching her still. Something about his gaze made her feel strange. She suspected that it could be a trap. Some sort of magic maybe. Elspeth was just a creation to make her feel more comfortable. But something in the way the old man looked at her, made her uneasy. She decided she would have to sleep lightly that night.
The barn was no where near clean. The loft looked to be the least messy. She made her way to the ladder, trying to avoid as much animal mess as she could, and climbed up. There was a small loft door looking to the outside on the front of the barn. Breaca made her camp by the door. She could see the farmhouse from where she sat.
She began to wonder what the old man saw when he looked at her. Could it all have been mistrust on both of their parts? She had thought that maybe all of this was a fairie trick, maybe he thought the same thing. Maybe to him, she was a trick. Something the fairies conjured to make him weary of his surroundings.
Breaca didn't know. All that she knew for sure was that she was in a dry place, where she could get some rest. Her search would continue in the morning for the next rune stone. There were still three to find.
She sighed and thought of Angus. She wanted so much to be back in Kells, with her friends, with the man that loved her. His words came back to her. He had had so much trouble telling her how he felt. She understood why. They hadn't known each other for very long, but love was something that could not be fathomed. Sometimes it took many years, sometimes only minutes. She felt something for Angus as well. Something strong. She wondered if maybe she loved him.
Breaca arranged her belongings around her so that she could easily get to them should she need to make a hasty exit. Laying down to sleep, her thoughts wondered back to her homeland. Somehow this land seemed much less vile than when she had landed her so long ago.
She smiled to herself as she fell asleep.

A sound. Footsteps. Maybe something else. Breaca couldn't quite discern what the sound was. The hay in the barn muffled it.
She opened one eye. The sun was coming up. A sickly orange light covered everything. She saw a figure. A man, but not Slevin. This man looked to be a warrior.
He approached her. She squinted so she could still see the figure, but let him think that she was still asleep.
He was a warrior, she could make out the blade at his side. He was dressed in what appeared to be leather. He was staring at her. Looking at her with an expression of curiosity, but she didn't trust him for one minute. The curious were usually the most dangerous, she had learned.
With speed most had never seen, Breaca jumped to her feet. The man jumped back.
"Who are you?" He asked, reaching for his weapon.
"Who are you?" She smiled.
"I asked first." His hand wavered over the top of his weapon.
She stood tall and crossed arms over her chest. "I am Breaca, a warrior."
"What are you doing here?"
"Sleeping, obviously. The couple in the farmhouse offered me the barn to sleep in." Breaca gesture out the window to the farmhouse.
The man's expression changed from anger to one of confusion. "Couple? No one lives in that farmhouse. Haven't for years."
Breaca stared at him. Either she had been imagining the previous evening or something very strange had been going on.
The man stood tall and looked at her. Suddenly he smiled broadly and introduced himself. "My name is Bowen. I am constable of this area."
Breaca raised an eyebrow. "How did you know I was here?" It hadn't occurred to her to just then, that if the farmhouse had been deserted for such a long time, no one should have known she was in the barn.
"The inhabitants of a neighbouring farmhouse saw a stranger poking around this place. They were curious." The constable explained.
Breaca picked up her things, thinking all the time that she had been tricked.
"People around here see the old folks who lived in this farmhouse all the time. Most of the never think twice about it." Bowen informed her.
She looked at him. She didn't think he was lying to her about any of it. He didn't seem to have a reason.
"Is there a town near? I would assume there would be if you are constable." She smiled politely.
He nodded and offered to point her in the direction of the town.
As she climbed down from the loft, she thanked him for his helpfulness and told him to apologize to the neighbours for her.
"May I inquire why a stranger such as yourself is in this area?" Bowen placed his hands on his hips. He looked more the constable now that they stood outside the barn. He was tall and handsome. His red-brown hair was pulled back in a small tail, which hung just past his shoulders. He appeared to be well muscled, though she couldn't quite tell with the clothing he wore. His blue eyes peered at her.
"I am a traveller. I was just walking when I got caught in the rain storm. This place caught my eye." She adjusted the sack at her belt. "Thank you for understanding. I must be on my way."
He nodded. "Well, enjoy the hospitality of our small town."
She thanked him again and headed in the direction of the town. She had a strange feeling that she would see him again.

As she entered the outskirts of the small town, she noticed many of the people watching her. They acted as if she was something they had never seen before. Was a woman warrior so unusual in this land? She couldn't imagine that there were no female warriors, but she supposed it was possible.
Breaca approached a young man and asked where the closest inn was. He pointed down the street, if one could call the bare strip of dirt and mud a street. She bowed to him and thanked him.
She knew that he stared at her as she walked away. The inhabitants of the town acted as though she was something very odd. She began to wonder if she had hay sticking in her hair. But after looking at several of the people in the town, she decided that it wouldn't have matter if she had hay in her hair.
She found the inn. It was a rather modest building, not unlike most of the others in the town. It was built of stone and was two stories. She entered the front door of the inn, only to find that the patrons stopped their meals to watch her.
After a lengthy discussion with the innkeeper about the price of rations, she managed to buy a supply to last her at least a week.
As she turned to leave, the innkeeper leaned over the bar and asked her, "So where you heading?"
She smiled at him. "I don't know. I am just wondering."
She turned to the patrons of the inn and bowed on her way out.

Breaca decided it was time to consult her map. There were still three rune stones to find. Looking around her, she decided to head back in the direction in which had come into the town.
On the way back into the woods, she noticed Bowen smiling at her. She bowed to him and bade him farewell. She didn't wait for a response.

As she emerged from the woods, she could see the outcropping of stone where she had found the second rune stone. According to the map, the next rune stone was in a lake somewhere near to her. The town she had visited was not on the map, so she assumed from the way the map was drawn that the lake she needed to get to was somewhere to the west.
Breaca checked her bag. The rune stones were still there. Time to find the next one, she thought.

It was nightfall by the time she reached the shores of the lake. The moon was high in the sky when she decided to make camp.

The brightness of the sunshine on her face woke her. The sun was just coming up over the horizon. The sky was clear and the air cool. This will be a good day to search for the stones, she thought.
Breaca pulled out her map. The mark showed the stone to be somewhere near the shore. She frowned. She really didn't like the thought of wading into an unknown lake. One never knew what could be lurking in the water.
She sighed as she slid off her boots. She knew that the only was to find the stone was to search. If it was marked as being in the water, then the water was where she had to search.
Breaca gasped as she stepped in the water of the lake. It only covered the top portion of her foot, but was very cold nonetheless.
Suddenly, the surface of the lake began to glow. Slowly the glowing light rose from the surface and up into the air. Swirling around itself, it began to form a figure.
The knight watched as the light formed into a figure of a young woman.
"Who are you?" the woman asked, her voice soft and subtle, almost like the water in a slow moving stream.
Breaca stared at the figure. It took her a moment to realise that the woman had spoken. "I am Breaca, Mystic Knight of Spirit." She hadn't told anyone other than the fairies who she was, but for some reason, a reason she did not know, she felt safe telling this woman. "Who are you?"
The woman glided forward, across the water, stopping a few feet from where the knight stood.
"I am known as Nayla. I am guardian of these waters." She smiled at Breaca. "Why are you here?"
Breaca explained that she was searching for a rune stone.
Nayla nodded. When she moved her body moved like rushing water. Breaca had never seen anything like it before.
"I know of the rune stone that lies within these waters. May I ask why you wish to possess it?" Nayla cocked her head to the side as she peered at the knight.
Breaca felt as if the water spirit could reach into her very soul and extract whatever information she wanted.
"I wish to stop a powerful sorceress from destroying what I now call my home."
The water spirit looked down. She appeared to be thinking. Slowly she looked up at Breaca. "I understand. But you already have two of the stones. Why do you require this one?"
"The King of Tir-Na-Nog told me that I needed all five stones to stop her. She has had two stones already, which have been destroyed. We are afraid that if she obtains the rest of them, she will be too powerful to stop, even for the Mystic Knights." Breaca slowly removed her foot from the water to stand on the rocky lakeshore.
"This sorceress, she has harmed you before?"
Breaca nodded. "She destroyed my homeland some years ago."
"The name of your homeland?"
"Crannaght."
Nayla sighed. "I remember now."
She slowly raised her arm from her side. The surface of the lake began to glow once again. Nayla closed her eyes, apparently concentrating on something. The glowing surface of the lake began to swirl as it had done before. This time, though, the glow descended deep into the waters of the lake. The lake waters began to churn and bubble. Like an angry sea serpent, a column of water shot up out of the lake, stopping to rest calmly at the side of the water spirit.
Breaca could see, positioned on the top of the column of water, the third rune stone. The water spirit reached out to pluck the stone from the column. As she did the water crashed back into the lake.
"Take this rune stone, then. Use it to bring the sorceress to her knees. Once used, give it to King Fin Varra of Tir-Na-Nog. He will know what to do." She held the stone out to Breaca.
The knight slowly reached forward to take the stone. As she grasped it her hand, she could feel the coolness of the water and the warmth of the power of the stone. The sensation was odd to her, but pleasing nevertheless.
"Thank you, Nayla." Breaca bowed to the lady of the water, as she placed the stone in her bag.
The figure above the water, slowly began to dissolve into millions of tiny droplets of water, but Breaca could hear her voice still. "You are most welcome, Mystic Knight." With that she was gone.
The lake waters were calm again.
Three stones, only two left, Breaca thought. She studied the map carefully. The next marking was on the top of a mountain. She scanned the landscape. Mountains to the south. I'll go there then.
Gathering her things together, she took one last look at the lake. It looked so calm and peaceful. She could hardly believe that she had spoken to a spirit that guarded those waters. She wondered whether the people in the area, knew of the spirit.
As she prepared to depart for her next stop, she realized that there were no people near the lake.

The journey to the mountains in the south took almost three full days. By nightfall of the third day, she had reached the base of the mountain range. They were tall jagged mountains, treacherous to say the very least. According to the map, the fourth stone was kept somewhere on the top of the tallest mountain.
Breaca sighed heavily, she had no desire to climb one of these mountains, but she knew that she must, if that was what it took to retrieve the stone.
She made a small camp at the base of the mountains. Morning would come soon enough and she would make the trek up the mountain then.

The knight wasn't sure which the tallest mountain was, so she made her ascent up the closest that appeared to be meant for climbing. The trek up the mountain was none too pleasant. She slipped several times, scraping her armour and her skin. Rocks fell from their places to slide down the mountain. She made a silent thanks that she was not on the other side of those rocks.
After hours of climbing, she reached a small plateau. She decided to stop there for lunch and a rest. The dried meat in her bag had begun to take on a life of its own. Coming to the conclusion that the inhabitants of that town in the forest, had no idea how to preserve meat, she tossed it casually off the side of the plateau. Her stomach grumbled at her ungratefulness.
The sun was beginning its descent to the horizon. Breaca stood, making the attempt to figure out of she was on the right mountain. After peeking around the edges of the rocks, she figured that she must have been. Dagda had been watching over her once again.

Not noticing another plateau anywhere near her current position, she decided to call a stop to her climb for the day. She needed to rest her weary bones. Her stomach rumbled more. Quietly she informed it that there was no food and it would just have to wait. She smiled to herself. If only Angus could see me now, sitting here on a lonely mountain, talking to my stomach. She laughed quietly, imaging what he would say.
Large birds circled around the mountaintops. Suddenly she wondered if they were birds. She had heard many stories of dragons, but she had never seen one. There had never been any of the fabled creatures on her home isle. Kells was different though. She had heard mention of a great red dragon, but she had never seen it. If there was one though, surely the Mystic Knights would know about it.
One of the large creatures flew closer to where she sat. It was a large bird. Dragons would be more majestic and less feathery, she thought.
As the sun began to set, her thoughts strayed. She remembered the day when she'd first arrived in Kells. The looks on the faces of the other Mystic Knights had been priceless. She'd known that they would not be expecting another Mystic Knight, but she must have been quite a surprise. Her armour and weapons were so much different than theirs. In fact, her armour wasn't even truly visible, but she knew that it was there and was protecting her, regardless of its lack of visibility.
She slipped into the land of dreams before she realized it. Her dreams were littered with unknown images and confusion. But none of it woke her from her slumber.

The next day, she climbed further up the mountain. The climb was treacherous. The mountainside became steeper as she tried to make her way up. Soon there were few foot and hand holds. The summit came into view, but she could see no easy way to get to it.
She stood on a narrow ledge, looking up to the top. She began to wonder whether she would be able to draw her swords and have the spirits mover her there. The top of the summit was not completely visible, so she would be taking a great risk trying to move there by magic.
Breaca thought for a moment. Finally deciding, since there was no visible means of reaching the summit, she would rely on the spirits. Carefully she drew her blades, making sure not to throw herself off balance, knowing that no matter how much the spirits protected her in battle, they would never be able to save her from such a fall.
She raised her blades over her head, crossing them. "Spirits move me." she intoned.
Within seconds, she stood on the summit of the mountain. There air was very thin, making it difficult for her to breath.
She looked around her as she sheathed her blades, hoping to maybe see the stone. She saw nothing. Nothing but air, rock and clouds. Then she remembered the water spirit and thought that maybe there was also a spirit on the mountain.
Not knowing exactly what to say, she asked, "Hello?"
Nothing. All was calm. At least she thought it was. She noticed that the clouds were slowly forming into something. They swirled more and more, until they formed a face.
"Did you say something?" A voice asked. The voice sounded like the calm movement of the wind. Suddenly she wondered why the other stones hadn't had guardians. Or maybe they had, but she had never noticed them.
"Yes, I am Breaca, Mystic Knight of Spirit. I am looking for the rune stone. Can you help me?"
The face looked thoughtful for a moment. "Why do you need it? Rune Stones are very powerful."
She nodded and explained to the spirit about Maeve and the need of the rest of the rune stones.
The face appeared to nod. "Well, then. You are a true Mystic Knight. You may have the stone." He then told her the same as the water spirit had, to return it to Fin Varra, when she was no longer needing it.
The clouds swirled for a moment. She saw the stone appeared with the clouds. Breaca reached for it. Her hand grasped around the stone. Once again the power ebbed from the stone into her hands and body.
"May I ask you something else, spirit?" She asked as she placed the stone with the others.
"Yes, you may."
"Why did I not encounter spirits at the tree and the rocks?"
The face smiled. "Then you did not need them. We only appear when needed." Slowly the face began to blow away in the wind. She thought for a moment about the first two stones. She had found them fairly easy. The wind began to pick up, forcing her to notice that she was still standing on the summit of the mountain.
She pulled her blades and intoned, "Spirits move me." When the mist disappeared, she stood at the base of the mountain once again. Glad to be on solid ground again, she sheathed her blades one more time.

Continued