Hibernia
Eanáir 8th, 431 AD

After we were done at An Santéig, my siblings and I went to our next destination. Even with how things went dealing with Chieftain Garbhán, part of me hoped the residents of Lios na Dónailla would treat us better.

Oh, how wrong I was.

Our misfortune began before we even entered the settlement; the guards hurled abuse at us when we reached the wooden gate.

"Let us in, damn you!" Brennan snapped, only to pause when I held a hand up for silence.

Looking at Saoirse, a grim smile adorned my face. "You know what to say, sister."

With a grunt, she mirrored my smile. "Callan, I wish these guards would open the gate."

Ignoring the blood that ran down my nose, I snickered as the gates slowly swung open.

"How many wishes you have left, Callan?" Darragh inquired while we entered Lios na Dónailla.

"One, I think," I answered, only to cringe when an ear-splitting headache interrupted my thoughts, "After that, no more for the month."

"Really?" Brennan chimed in.

"Well, that is what I have noticed," I replied, "every month, someone is able to wish for something three times. Once that limit is reached, nothing happens."

"Huh...Good to know."

Once we were within the settlement, we had to deal with the steadily-growing crowd of villagers that had amassed before us. Judging by the weapons they held, they were not here to talk.

"We wish to speak with your chieftain. Our feud is not with you," I began, feeling a lone bead of sweat run down my face when I realized no one moved a muscle.

"You and your ilk are not wanted here," one of the villagers stated, stepping forward to face us with a knife in his hand.

"Too bad," Saoirse answered before I could, "Our business does not concern you, so move."

"Make me," the same man retorted, spitting at my sister's feet, "Soith (Bitch)."

Instead of responding, a small, cold smile adorned Saoirse's face. Before I knew what she was doing, she uttered one word.

"Finian."

Almost immediately after saying that name, the person before us loosed a splintering gasp and fell to his knees, clutching his chest. In what felt like the blink of an eye, he was dead.

"Mac Soith (son of a bitch)..." Brennan muttered, loosing a low whistle as he spoke, "This won't end well."

Oh how right he was...Regarding the rest of the crowd before us, I was able to tell they were all terrified of what just happened. They were still understandably enraged, but their hesitance to attack was a relief, slight as it may have been.

"If you wish to live, move," Saoirse rumbled. Her bum eye was black again, and the iris contained within was glowing with a sinister light. That fact alone caused people to stumble away and give us room to push through them.

Ignoring the hissed out curses, we made our way toward the chieftain's hut. A few guards tried to stop us, but it only took Saoirse roughing one up to send a clear message; all she did was grab the guard's arm and bent it away from him. A jagged crack could be heard, followed by a pained scream.

"Saoirse isn't playin' around," Darragh mused, snickering to himself, "I like it."

Ignoring my brother, I regarded my sister and felt my throat bob. "Saoirse, try to dial it back a tad on the violence, please."

A grunt was all I got from her, and I couldn't help but notice how hardened my sister's expression had become. Almost hard to believe this is the same person I can have an idle chat with...

Pushing those thoughts out of the way before they got the better of me, I continued moving forward until my siblings and I stood before the chieftain's hut. Two guards stood at the ready, and they certainly looked like they wanted a fight.

"Move out of the way before we toss you aside," Brennan stated, boredom dripping from his every word.

Neither of them budged, but their attitudes quickly changed when Saoirse stepped up. All it took was her unfurling her spine whip for the two bastards to turn tail and flee inside the hut.

Taking that as our opportunity to enter, we regarded a wizened old man as he glared up at us from his seat.

"Why have you barged into my Cashel?" he demanded in a stern voice. With a ring of iron, the presumed-chieftain of Lios na Dónailla drew a sword from his belt as he rose to his feet.

"Your feud with An Santéig caused four dullahans to be brought into this world," I explained, not moving from where I stood, "My siblings and I are here to ask you one thing: agree to make peace with An Santéig, and we will leave you alone."

"You don't understand a damn thing!" the old man retorted, advancing on us, "Those monsters have raided my lands and slaughtered my people. There is no peace when it comes to the Velnica."

With a growl, Saoirse met him in the middle and stared the chieftain down. "Did you not hear what my brother said? Your actions led to the creation of several dangerous entities that make the Velnica look like mere babes. You have never stood before a dullahan before, have you?"

When he didn't answer, a dark laugh escaped my sister. "Well, let me show you what they are capable of."

Before anyone could weigh in, a black steed burst through a wall near where we stood. Hoisting the elder up as if he were a sack of grain, Saoirse mounted the dark horse and spurred it on. In an explosion of wood and clay, my sister broke through another wall and rode off to who-knows-where.

"Danu help us," I muttered, raising my voice as I turned to address my brothers, "We need to catch up with Saoirse before she does anything brash."

"She hasn't already?" Darragh prompted me, only to grunt when Brennan hit him on the back of the head.

"Now's not the time for yer antics! Move it, ya fecker!"

As one, we scrambled to keep up with Saoirse, only to stop in our tracks when we saw the scene before us; sitting above the small crowd of slack-jawed individuals, Saoirse held the chieftain by the front of his tunic and regarded everyone with a cold smile.

"Brethren, before you is a coward," She stated in a voice that could cut metal, "Your so-called chieftain would rather hide in his hut and wage his silly wars while ignoring his failures. Your feud with the Velnica have caused four dullahans to enter this world. Were it not for my siblings, those twisted fae would have wreaked havoc amongst your kinsmen."

Then, she turned to regard the struggling chieftain. "What are these peoples' lives worth to you? How much bloodshed must you endure before you realize the error in your ways?"

When he did not answer, an expression of pure, raw scorn adorned her face. "You do not know what a dullahan can do, hmm? Let me show you a portion of the dismay they can impart on those they view."

In the next instant, she called out another name. "Niamh."

In the crowd, a middle-aged woman dropped to her knees with a cry.

"Aisling," she continued, unmoved by the dread that overtook the crowd as she casually listed off the names of people.

By the time she listed off a sixth unfortunate soul, Saoirse's captive was beyond broken.

"I concede! I concede!" he cried over the sorrow of his people, "Please, I beg you! Stop!"

"Will you agree to peace with the Velnica?" she snapped, pinning the old man in her emotionless gaze. Black blood streamed from her bad eye, and I realized with a start that my sister had pushed herself too far.

"Yes! Yes! Whatever you want, I agree! Just please, spare my people."

Saoirse dropped the chieftain, and he unceremoniously landed on his rear. Slowly, he staggered to his feet and regarded his people.

"Go back to your homes," was all he said before shambling away.

While some seemed hesitant to leave, the crowd gradually left. When it was just me and my siblings left, I struggled to find the words I needed to say.

"I did what was necessary," Saoirse breathed, "Hate me later."

Without saying another word, she rode off.

"She...just made an entire cashel her bitch. Go way outta that...(no way)" Brennan muttered, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You can say that again," Darragh began, rubbing at his eyes as if he couldn't believe what he had just saw, "Saoirse...isn't feckin' around, is she?"

"Níl, she isn't," I breathed, silently panicking as the gravity of our current situation set in, "We need to keep up with Saoirse."

"Can't argue with that," Darragh replied, "Let's move."

After we left the settlement and caught up with our sister, I couldn't help but wonder what other obstacles laid before us.

- - -
(six hours later...)

"Well, we survived yet another trial," Darragh stated, leaning back in his saddle as we rode through the sparsely-wooded environment around us, "Whoever's gettin' drinks, make sure you get the good shit."

"I got ya, brother," Brennan replied, flashing him a toothy grin.

Rolling my eyes, I looked around for Saoirse, only to realize she was tailing behind us.

Falling back to where I was riding beside her, I regarded my sister with a small grin on my face.

"Lovely weather, isn't it?" I stated.

Saoirse snorted in response. "It's not snowing, for once."

"Means we can make more progress before setting up camp," I replied, "Here's hopin' we can get back home before too long."

She grunted and fell silent. Soon after, she spoke again. "If you think ill of me for my actions, I don't blame you."

"I'm not mad at you, sister. What you did was...unexpected, but necessary in the end. Because of what you did, a peace agreement was made."

A bitter laugh escaped my sister. "Peace through bloodshed. How ironic."

"Sometimes, that is the only way we can get people to listen. Just...please try to avoid causing further death, my sister."

Saoirse looked at me, and I was shocked to find her expression was clouded with grief.

"I will try, Callan."

Sensing the sincerity in her voice, I could only nod in response. Thankfully, we got back home not long after we were finished speaking.

I would have felt relief then, but my heart dropped when the front gates of our home came into view; they were wide open, and judging by the damaged wood, whoever decided to visit was not here to be friendly.

Feeling my heart hammer against my ribcage, I hurried ahead of my siblings and entered Cathair Mac Carthaigh.

The first thing I saw was the black dust: it was sprinkled through the snow and covered the nearby buildings. 

Immediately, I was swarmed by my younger siblings. Judging by their panicked expressions, something wrong had happened.

Amidst all the shouting around us, a few words stuck out; "Keira", "missing," and "blood" were the three that made me push through the crowd with a renewed vigor. Saoirse was by my side the entire time, and I could tell she was just as unnerved as I was.

Soon, we stood before Keira's hut: the Druid's humble abode had signs of damage on it, which did not ease my worries in the slightest. Scratches were scored into the cobbled walls, and I spotted several footprints in front of the front entrance. I tried to push the door open, only to curse when it fell to the ground. Stepping over this new obstacle, I went straight to Keira's desk.

Immediately, I spotted black and red specks of blood spread out amongst the various tools my sister used on a daily basis. I realized her mortar and pestle was missing from its usual place, so I tried to look for it.

"Look. There are stone fragments scattered everywhere," Saoirse pointed out.

Sure enough, small chunks of stone littered the ground around my feet. Stooping over to pick up a broken half of the pestle, I felt a frown adorn my face. "What would have caused this."

"Dropping it certainly wouldn't have shattered it," Saoirse responded, picking up a jagged shard, "If I didn't know any better, someone may have thrown it."

"That's a possibility," I murmured, shaking my head in disbelief, "Who could have possibly done this? Keira has harmed no one..."

Looking at my sister, I saw a grim certainty in her expression.

"Whoever did it, we will ensure they pay for it," she rumbled, leaving the devastated hut without another word.

Oh dear...

~End of Act 1~