Brenda's day in dreamtime included a picnic by the lake that Mòr Dubh had found for us, once before. The big stallion followed her around like a puppy. Brenda had made sure to be prepared for her trip by bringing some apples for her friend.
After we had eaten we simply lay back for a while to enjoy the sunshine and then I sprang my first surprise on my girl. I stood up and stretched my arms wide.
"Aquilaire, afflubh!"
A few moments later the eagle and his two lieutenants appeared and they circled overhead.
Mentally I asked the eagle a question and he squawked his reply. His squawk set Accipiter in motion and he swooped low and then settled onto the ground beside us.
Brenda looked at me quizzically, as if to ask what was going on. I smiled at her and motioned towards the eagle.
"Accipiter has asked whether you would do him the honor of flying with him."
"Don't be silly, Sean. You know I can't fly."
"No, but Accipiter can."
The meaning of my words sank in and I could see a mixture of excitement and nerves playing across Brenda's face.
"You mean, he wants me to ride on his back?"
I nodded to tell her that she had guessed right and then I helped her onto her feet. The eagle crouched down and Brenda took her time thinking about how she could get onto his back without damaging his feathers. In the end I gave her a boost and she settled with her legs astride Accipiter's back, behind where his wings met his body.
No sooner had she settled than the huge eagle used his powerful legs to spring into the air. His wings beat the air furiously as he climbed into the sky and Brenda shrieked her joy at the sensation of flying. Down below I laughed to hear her having so much fun.
When the eagle eventually returned her to the ground, she was breathless and her eyes were gleaming with excitement at the experience. Accipiter bowed formally to her and she curtsied in response, then the eagle took to the air once more with a squawk.
After such a high point, the remainder of the day was pretty tame. We talked about how she could suddenly speak and understand Gaelic and the only answer we could come up with was that it might have something to do with my birthstone and her trips to dreamtime. We rode back to the cabin on the stallion's back and I shared my second surprise of the day with Brenda.
I took her hand and pulled her along behind me to the side of the cabin. There were a number of projecting logs and on one of them I had carved our initials with a sharp dagger. The initials were encased within a love heart with an arrow passing through it.
Brenda squealed with delight and threw her arms around me. We shared a tender kiss, staring soulfully into each other's eyes.
"I love you, Brenda Thomas," I told her
"And I love you, Sean Taggart, you might be a goof, but you're my goof" she replied happily.
That was pretty much the end of my next to last visit to dreamtime and on this occasion there was an added benefit. Instead of waking up as usual and finding Brenda wasn't in my furs, I woke up and found myself in my bed at home in the Midwest. That meant I would be able to see my girl without any delay!
By the time that I was up, showered and dressed, Brenda had already arrived. She was in the kitchen with Mom. Both of them were preparing breakfast for a complaining Cormac.
"But, Highness! It is most irregular for you to be preparing food for a mere envoy."
"Oh stuff and nonsense!" Mom replied.
There was already a large stack of pancakes on the table. I grabbed a chair and began to help myself. Between mouthfuls I decided to tell everybody what I had decided.
"I've been thinking about things overnight," I began.
Brenda smiled. She knew that I'd spent far longer than that thinking about my decision. Mom caught the smile and figured out what it meant, but she bit her tongue.
"I'm not willing to commit myself one way or the other about returning to Gael, but I think I have to make the informal visit, so that I can at least meet my father."
I saw Brenda's face and immediately knew I'd gotten things wrong.
"What I mean is that 'we' have to make the informal visit."
Brenda's smile let me know that I had correctly worked out where I'd made my mistake.
My statement led to mixed reactions in the kitchen. Cormac was delighted. No doubt he had been worrying about having to go back to the King to tell him I'd refused to return to Gael.
Mom was concerned that something awful was going to happen to me and also worried that she would lose me to the world of Gael.
Brenda was just happy that she was included in whatever plans I was making.
"I suppose there's nothing I can say to make you change your mind?" Mom asked.
"Mom, I think it's only right that I meet Dad, don't you? I honestly haven't made up my mind about returning to Gael for good, but I do want to meet my father."
She seemed to accept defeat gracefully.
"All right, that's settled. Now all we have to do is speak to Brenda's parents and get permission for her to go with me. I think we'll have to tell them that it's an early birthday present, Brenda, and that we're going to Scotland to visit my father."
Brenda's birthday was on March the thirty-first so an early birthday present would sound like a plausible excuse for me to pay for her to join me on a trip.
"The only white lie in what I intend to tell your parents is that we are going to Scotland," I said to Brenda.
"Actually, Prince Sean, we will be going to Scotland. We have to go there to get to Gael," said Cormac.
Cormac proceeded to describe how we would get to Gael and it was something of an eye-opener. At least the first stage - O'Hare to Glasgow by plane - was straightforward enough, but I couldn't wait to experience the final leg.
Brenda's parents were surprisingly easy to persuade, especially since it would mean she would need to take a week out of school. Everything was fixed for us to leave with Cormac on the coming Saturday.
Mom drove us to O'Hare airport and parked so that she could stay with us until we had to go through the departure gate. I tried to re-assure her that everything would be all right, but there were dark circles under her eyes that screamed out the fact that she hadn't been sleeping well.
"It's only going to be a few days, Mom. We'll be back before you know it."
Neither Brenda nor I had been on a plane before and we were excited at the prospect. For those of you who have travelled a lot, you won't be surprised to learn that our experience turned out to be a big anti-climax.
It was all new of course, but it was so cramped and uncomfortable that the novelty soon wore off. The meals didn't really taste of anything, either. The movies they showed during the flight were some we had seen before.
For an experienced envoy (I guessed the King would send his best man on this mission) Cormac was as nervous as a kitten. I found some time to speak to him during the flight although we had to communicate in whispers so the other passengers wouldn't hear. It transpired that he was experienced, but that virtually all of his work had been within Gael.
The technology that surrounded him was a constant wonder, but also a source of fear and anxiety. His knuckles gleamed white as he gripped the armrests of his seat on take-off. He looked out of the plane's window once and nearly suffered a heart attack when he saw how high we were above the ground. Cormac apologised constantly for the fact that he was not performing as well as a man of his experience should.
"Look, Cormac. It's all right, stop worrying would you?"
After too many hours of being cramped and extremely bored, we touched down at London's Heathrow and caught our connection to Glasgow airport. Just over an hour later we landed in Glasgow and looked out of the plane's window at the rain.
Clearing customs in Glasgow was not half as bad as we had expected. After 9/11, air travel had been the subject of so much additional security that we expected to have a hard time. Surprisingly, we were simply waved through!
There was no delay in retrieving our bags, as we were travelling very light and only had carry-on luggage. We were only going for a few days after all (although Brenda did complain that she wanted to take more time).
Still very nervous, Cormac directed us to a taxi rank, and asked the driver to take us to Queen Street railway station in Glasgow city centre. The cab driver talked constantly during the journey, but we found it difficult to understand his strong accent.
When we arrived at Queen Street, Cormac counted out the correct money for the fare and then led the way inside the station. We had a wait of several hours before our train was due and we took the opportunity of eating something that didn't taste like cardboard.
Queen Street station wasn't huge, but it did have a bar and several fast food outlets. We chose Burger King and ordered up burgers and fries with large cokes, eating them while we watched the good people of Glasgow going about their business.
Cormac scuttled away to the booking office to buy the tickets we would need and Brenda and I took the opportunity of laughing at just how nervous he was about everything around him.
"Did you see the way he was watching the traffic on the freeway on the way into the city?" Brenda asked.
"I know, but it must be difficult to go from a world where there are no cars at all to one where you can't walk safely for fear of being run over!"
After our experience on the plane, the train journey was really something to get excited about. It started off much like any other train journey, as we pulled out of Glasgow and travelled through the city centre and then through the suburbs. Within half an hour though we were stopping in Dunbarton and we could see a castle perched on top of a rock that overlooked the River Clyde.
After that it was like a seeing series of Christmas cards, as the train took us effortlessly through the West Highland glens and mountains. We passed through Crianlarich, Spean Bridge (where the World War II commandos apparently did their training), Loch Eil and finally, more than five hours later, we pulled into Mallaig. The scenery was snowy, raw, rugged and absolutely spectacular.
Brenda and I agreed that we would need to return during the summer to spend some time here rather than simply pass through such remarkable countryside.
My girl couldn't see everything that I could though and there was something else about this Scottish scenery that had me excited - there were ley lines and I could feed off of their power!
Cormac seemed to be getting more relaxed the closer we got to Mallaig. When we eventually arrived, it was already getting dark and the February night air was bitterly cold here by the sea. Our guide urged us to hurry and he managed to grab the only taxi available.
A short cab ride later and we were dropped off at a tiny village called Beoraidberg. The driver clearly thought there must be something seriously wrong with us for asking to be dripped off in the middle of nowhere. Cormac assured him that that we knew what we were doing, and that everything was fine.
Once the cab had driven off, Cormac led the way off of the road. We made our way into the fields, which were covered with snow. I knew better than to use the power to make our journey easier, as Charles had warned me I had to keep such abilities a secret. That meant that we had a rough twenty minutes struggling through ankle deep snow until it began to thin out.
The closer we got to the coastline, the thinner the snow became. That was probably due to the combined effects of the wind blowing off of the sea and the salt in the spray. Whatever the cause was, we welcomed the fact that the going became easier and it didn't take much longer to reach a sheltered cove that had a small sandy beach.
This was the part of our journey I had really been looking forward to. Back in the Taggart household, Cormac had explained that the only way to reach Gael from the 'other-world' was if you had a sponsor who could call the special transport. This ensured that there was virtually no travel between the two worlds other than those few journeys the royals permitted.
The journey involved leaving from the west-coast of Scotland and entering into the different dimension in which the world of Gael existed. The crossing was achieved using a very special method of transport and our guide called for that transport now. We stood shivering on the beach, watching the huge waves crashing ashore.
Almost instantaneously, three brilliantly white, winged, horses appeared as if from the very sea itself. They seemed to gallop up the beach just like the angry waves and before we knew it, the magnificent beasts were standing in front of us.
"Don't be afraid of them, they are very gentle and there is no danger of you falling off," Cormac assured us.
Each of the horses knelt down on their front legs to make it easy for us to mount and then stood again before wheeling and charging back down the beach.
The crossing was almost a disappointment after the dramatic appearance of the horses. One moment we were skimming across the rough seas and then we were in sunlight and riding up a much different beach on what I presumed was now Gael.
There was a large party of men, sitting on much less impressive horses, waiting at the head of the strand of sand. I could see that they were wearing half-armour and they were heavily armed with swords and spears.
"No need to be alarmed, these are Axonite troops sent by King Kenneth to make sure no harm befalls you, Highness," Cormac called out.
The winged horses slowed and came to a halt before kneeling once more to allow us to dismount. Brenda and I felt it necessary to stroke the magnificent beast and to thank them for seeing us to Gael safely. They wheeled with a flourish and were gone within moments.
Cormac led the way towards the welcoming party and suddenly began shouting angrily at them.
"Fools! Have you no respect? This is Prince Sean, son of our King!"
There was a scramble as all of the men tried to dismount at once. The fact that their horses were standing close together made that quite difficult and Brenda and I were soon trying to stop ourselves from laughing at the mess they were getting themselves into.
"Wait! Wait! There is no need to dismount on my account. I don't expect anybody to stand on ceremony because of me, remain on your horses please," I called out.
Cormac gave me a doubtful look as if to tell me that this was not the way things were normally done. I smiled to myself at the thought that this was certainly not going to be the last time I received such a look. There was no way I was going to accept people constantly bowing and scraping. The very thought of that left me feeling uncomfortable.
Despite the fact that I had tried to save them some bother, the soldiers were not looking at me kindly. I got the impression they resented my presence altogether, but why? I didn't know. As far as I was aware I hadn't done anything to upset them.
To try to avoid any further awkwardness, I thought it might be an idea to start the final leg of our journey as quickly as possible. There were three spare horses to one side and I assumed (this time rightly) that they were meant for us.
"How far do we have left to travel?" I asked Cormac, leading Brenda over to the horses.
"I'm afraid we still have half a day of riding, Highness."
I was worried that Brenda would be too tired to stay on a horse. I had been soaking up power to replace my reserves of energy and felt as fresh as when we had started our long journey, but my girlfriend didn't have the benefit of that. Despite that, when I studied her, she looked fine. She smiled one of her patented smiles at me.
Before we could mount up, two wonderful and amazing things happened almost simultaneously.
I heard a chorus of squawking and the drumming of hooves. Just as I was about to look up to see what was making the squawking noise, Brenda cried out.
"Look! Sean, it's Mordew!"
I didn't know where to look first now. Brenda's cry won out in the end and I looked to where she was pointing. There was a sight indeed. The big, black stallion was thundering towards us. It was Mòr Dubh. There could be no doubt of that. How was that possible?
When I looked up at the sky I had another shock when I saw a whole squadron of eagles - twenty of them - flying in a 'V' formation. My senses let me know that Aquilaire was at the head of the 'V' and immediately behind him were Accipiter and Buteoni.
How the horse and the eagles could be here in 'real' time was a mystery, but I admitted to myself that it was comforting to have them around.
Cormac and the soldiers were alarmed at the fast approaching horse and I could see some of those with spears preparing to defend themselves.
"There is no danger! Put your weapons away!" I called urgently.
Mòr Dubh slowed as he got nearer and then he made straight for the spare horses and nipped them on the rump with his big teeth. The horses yelped and skittered away a few yards, eyeing the stallion warily.
"It would be an insult to me if you were even to consider riding on such pathetic creatures, Sean. You and the Princess will ride me!"
"She is not a Princess yet, my friend, but if I have my way she will be soon!"
My exchange with Big-Black had taken place silently. I now turned to a grinning Brenda.
"It seems that we will be sharing a horse for the next part of the journey," I said.
"Of course," she replied in that way of hers.
I boosted her up onto the stallion's back and leapt lightly up behind her.
"All right, will you lead the way, Cormac?" I asked.
"As you command, Highness," was Cormac's response.
Very quickly we found twelve horsemen in front of us, and twelve behind. While that should have been re-assuring, I wondered what would happen if someone was lying in ambush and timed their attack to take us from the side. Mòr Dubh also found it annoying to have such inferior beasts in front of him and it was all I could do to stop him from pushing his way to the front.
Aquilaire informed me that his eagles would fly ahead and look for possible trouble. That soothed me, and I felt much more relaxed. We would have plenty of warning of any potential ambushes or attacks. By my rules, that meant I could stop worrying about it.
Our little party maintained a fair speed and that meant there was little opportunity for discussion. Instead I took the time to study the countryside as we were riding.
I came to the conclusion that this was a warmer region than that which I had visited in dreamtime. The grass and the trees were not as lush looking. In fact, everything looked more arid. I tried to recall my geography lessons, to try to guess roughly where we might be.
Apart from the unspoilt scenery, there was little of interest to comment on about most of our journey. We did see some of Gael's wildlife. That drew a squeal or two from Brenda when it was something that had no equivalent in the 'other-world'.
The first such squeal was when we cantered through a valley and frightened a large Gaelcait. A Gaelcait is like a cross between a domestic cat and a Lynx. It's fur had markings similar to a tabby in the 'other-world, with mainly dark stripes over a sable background. It was significantly bigger than a cat and had some distinctive differences - tufts of fur on its ears, bigger whiskers and a much thicker tail.
Brenda called it cute, but I had to warn her that it could be ferocious and that its claws and teeth were deadly.
"It's still cute!" she argued.
Then we saw a small herd of Timmons. How to describe a Timmon? They are delightful creatures. They have four-legs and what can only be described as a black, afro-fuzz coat. Imagine a small sheep that's been dyed black and then had its coat back-combed. That should give a reasonably accurate mental picture!
They didn't walk, or run; rather they pranced everywhere and they pranced quickly out of our way as we passed.
"Now they are cute!" I told Brenda. She had to agree.
Not long after that we had our first glimpse of King Kenneth's capital city and I realised we were in the far south of Axon.
We had passed numerous dwellings already, places where the common people lived while they worked the land to provide food for their fellow Axonites. The typical house was single storey, stone built and roofed with some kind of slate.
The capital city was called Gower and it was on a much grander scale than anything we had passed so far.
The city looked as if it sprawled for miles. I could see it was surrounded by a defensive stone wall. The afternoon sunshine was glinting off of spires and glass windows, and there was a heat haze that distorted the image a little.
A ragged fanfare was blown as we approached the huge gates of the city. I could see a small band of soldiers lining the wall above. Once again none of them looked terribly impressed by our presence.
We didn't stop, but instead rode through the gates and followed a winding road that took us deeper into the city.
Aquilaire told me that the eagles would leave me here and return when needed. I wondered why they couldn't remain on station over the city, but I was about to find that out.
The houses here were quite basic in their construction. The materials used looked like stucco over brick and that seemed to fit with the climate. What was most noticeable was the stink! Raw sewage seemed to be running down an open gutter and I had to pull the neck of my sweatshirt up to cover my nose. Brenda did the same. Now I realised why the eagles didn't want to circle above Gower!
The faces of the people we passed were sullen and tired looking. They watched us ride past without much interest at all and I got the impression that the common folk had little time for the nobility here in Gower.
We passed several market places, which to my mind should have been places of excitement, noise and bustle, but even here the atmosphere was subdued and somehow flat. Overall the city gave the impression of weariness, of a people ground down by hard work and hardship. The people looked poor and extremely unhappy.
Brenda and I exchanged looks and I could see she was as uncomfortable with what we were seeing as I was.
In contrast, when we arrived at the royal palace everything smacked of wealth and there was a frenzy of activity as people rushed here and there with a purpose.
Grooms rushed forward to take our horses from us and Cormac dismissed the guards. The soldiers led their horses away without a backward glance and I was left again with the impression that they could care less about my visit.
Mòr Dubh tossed his head and let me know that he would return to the fields meantime. People stopped to watch the magnificent beast leave the palace courtyard.
"I will take you directly to the King and then you will have a chance to rest and refresh yourself," said Cormac.
He led off into the palace itself. The sheer scale of the palace was extremely impressive. There were towers and turrets; carved stone and stained glass. All of it set the building apart from anything else we had seen so far. The whole thing screamed wealth and privilege!
Inside, the corridors were carpeted in thick material and decorated with paintings and other artwork like statues and ornamental vases. Brenda and I raised our eyebrows at each other and I glanced upwards. The ceilings were high, vaulted, affairs with intricate mouldings that spoke of master craftsmanship.
"It could do with a lick of paint, don't you think?" Brenda joked.
We passed a footman who was struggling to control two large Creach Hounds. Creach Hounds are a bit like an Irish Wolfhound only half the size again and they had two sharp incisors that protruded from their top jaw. The hounds fascinated Brenda, and her head turned to continue to watch them after they had passed us.
I realised the palace had to be huge if the length of the corridor we were walking along was any indication. We passed room after room, each with grim-faced guards stationed on either side of the doorway and I began to wonder what all of these rooms were for?
"The King must have lots of relatives who regularly drop by," I suggested and Brenda had to try to stifle a giggle.
I was studying the clothing that people wore as we passed them and these were another sign of the wealth that existed in this place. The common folk had all been wearing plain garments, in subdued colors, like brown and tan. But here, everything was bright and flashy, with sashes and jewelled decorations.
At last we came to two doors. They looked to be made from oak and were banded and studded with some kind of metal. Two huge metal rings were mounted on the doors as handles and four guards, two to each door, were required to pull them so we could enter the room beyond.
Well! Inside was unbelievable. Two ornate thrones sat at the far end of the room and a red carpet led from the door all the way up to them. Ranks of other gilt-covered chairs lined both sides of the room, clearly intended for the nobility that would be attending the King.
The room was bedecked in silks, gold leaf and ornate tapestries. Light was provided by intricate chandeliers that hung from the ceiling and I sensed the glow inside the crystal glass was provided by some kind of magic.
When we entered, the room was empty and we turned on the spot to take in all of the details.
"I think it's a little kitsch for my taste," said Brenda and that cracked me up.
I was still giggling when our ears were assaulted by another fanfare of bugles and a small group of people swept into the room from a door to the side of the thrones.
There were two men blowing bugles. I could see that they wore white trousers and shirts under a tabard that had a coat of arms delicately embroidered in gold stitching. The design was of an eagle with its wings spread wide, its head standing proud and a battle sword clutched in its claws.
The ringing notes were cut short and one of the men announced the presence of the King.
"His majesty, by grace of the mother, Kenneth the Second, King of Axon!"
One of the small group was taller than the others and my eyes were drawn automatically to him. He had brown hair and blue eyes and stood perhaps six foot two. My senses could feel how he was connected to the power of 'the Road' and I had no doubt that this was my father.
His clothing was even richer looking than that which we had already seen. Something about him made my nose wrinkle, as if I was back amongst the stench of the city we had ridden through.
Our eyes met across the room and I could see amusement in his. He waved us forward with a little gesture of his hand and Cormac hastened to respond. Brenda looked to me for guidance and with the slightest shake of my head, I let her know that we shouldn't answer this royal summons.
I heard two of the 'hangers-on' who surrounded my father gasp when they realised we were not doing what the King wanted, but Brenda and I both held our ground and Kenneth was forced to walk towards us.
Cormac's face was an open book and I could read that he was suddenly worried about what was going to happen. He recognised that I was challenging the King by my attitude and that was unheard of.
Now that he was up close, I could see that King Kenneth looked considerably older than Mom did (she would be pleased when I told her that!). Apart from the rich clothing, he wore a simple circlet of gold to mark his rank. His whole bearing was one of authority, privilege, rank and ... arrogance!
"I see that your mother has failed to teach you proper etiquette," he said, letting me know that he wasn't impressed by the fact I had ignored his summons. "I suppose we must be thankful that you at least answered my royal command to return to Gael!"
It was a strange feeling. Only recently I had admitted to myself that the absence of my father as I grew up was something that I regretted. That should have meant that this was an important moment for me, a moment when I could discover and get to know the father that I had never known. I should have been positive about this man. If anything, I surely should have been anxious to please him?
Incredibly, the overriding feeling I had was antagonism! Perhaps I should have been more respectful, but nothing I had seen so far suggested that my father deserved respect. He had ignored me all this time. His people seemed downtrodden and resentful. He appeared arrogant, overbearing, and now he was also bad-mouthing Mom.
Something inside me reacted very negatively to him. I realised that I wasn't thinking of him as a 'father' at all and I doubted that I ever could.
"My Mother taught me very well, highness. If there is any failure in my etiquette then it is my failing, not hers. As to my being here, I thought about it long and hard. My understanding was that I was responding to an invitation, not a command. Indeed, if I had thought that it was a command, then it is almost certain that I would not have come!"
"So. The puppy can bark!"
The hackles of hair at the back of my neck stood up and Brenda physically took a step towards the King (have I mentioned the fact that I love this girl?). I put a hand on her arm to restrain her and forced myself to smile at King Kenneth.
"Control your strumpet, boy!" snarled the King and it took everything I had within me, the power of 'the Road' included, to stop myself from hitting the fool. I had to actually turn away for a second, as I tried to gather myself.
I coughed to clear the nervous lump that had appeared in my throat and then tried to reduce the tension that I was feeling.
"I'm sorry, but you can't speak to people like that. You are both arrogant and ignorant and I can't believe you have the cheek to talk to me about etiquette! If you talk about my girlfriend like that again, then I promise you that we will leave!"
I wasn't so overawed by either the situation or King Kenneth as a man that I couldn't remember one of the reasons why he wanted me to return to Gael.
Without me committing to be his heir, Axon would fall into the hands of the Scanian royal family on his death. I firmly believed that that fact gave me the upper hand in this exchange.
Simply put, Kenneth needed me more than I needed him. That was a strong position to be in, or so I thought.
The people around the King turned pale, clearly unused to anyone speaking to their monarch like this. The King himself found it funny apparently and he began to laugh.
"The only way you can leave is if I permit it, boy. Don't forget that! You will do your duty to this kingdom and make up for the shortcomings of your Mother."
"What?" I cried in disbelief.
"Axon has been without a wizard since your mother ran away seventeen years ago. In all that time Scania has taken advantage of our weakness. Now you will fix that by being named as my heir, and marrying Princess Hassan of Scania. It is all arranged.
"At one stroke we will secure our kingdom an heir, gain a wizard, and forge a marriage between the royal families of Axon and Scania to ease the conflict between us!"
I was stunned by his words and by how the situation had deteriorated so badly, within minutes of our first meeting. I heard Brenda's teeth snapping together and I prepared myself to prevent King Kenneth losing his eyes to her sharp nails.
Edited by TeNderLoin