Lucky

Chapter 12

There was no humor in the way that Mac Germait looked down at both Deaglan and Kaie; no hint of his usual jovial, wry self. There was no charm in his smile, for he wasn't wearing one, and there wasn't so much as a hint that he was glad to see the two travelers returned safely. Instead his arms were crossed over his broad chest, his body language was dispassionate and he looked at both Deaglan and Kaie with such an icy stare that Deaglan could feel literal chills sweeping up his body.

Usually Mac Germait was the sole sense of warmth in what was otherwise a very cold reception from the other three members of the Tuatha De Danann Council. On previous occasions he had made the meetings bearable, always suggesting to Deaglan that despite the other Tuatha's clear contempt for him, he was safe.

This time it was Mac Germait who led the charge.

He and the other three members of the Council had remained seated as Deaglan and Kaie entered the throne room. They sat stiff backed, unmoving, watching with curled upper lips and hard stares as Deaglan and Kaie approached the room's center. There was a chill in the air that made Deaglan shiver and when he met the stare of Mac Germait, he very much considered turning and fleeing beyond the walls of the city. Maybe the Fomorian would let him join them instead?

They knew. Somehow word had reached them that Deaglan and Kaie had failed in their mission. And as Deaglan explained the mission to the Council, telling them what had happened and trying his best to emphasize that there was nothing he or Kaie could have done, the Council members listened and watched impassively. They're facial expressions never once shifted, and by the time Deaglan finished his tale, he was all but sure that returning to the city of Falias was a huge mistake.  

When he finished telling them what had happened, the four members of the Council said nothing. They continued to glare at he and Kaie as if trying to break the two, as if trying to drive them into the ground. Deaglan's eyes glanced from one to the other, trying to find an ally in the room. There was none. Instead he reached his hand out and took Kaie's in his. She accepted willingly; her hand was hot and sweaty.

That was the only good thing to come from the experience as a whole. Following the kiss, Kaie began to treat Deaglan like a... well not like a boyfriend, but like a person she actually cared for. She spoke to him, asked him how he was doing, and continued to make sure that he was OK. She suggested rests when they were tired, offered to scout ahead if need be and even floated the idea of the two not returning to Falias.

"You're serious?" he asked her in disbelief when she first suggested it. They were on the bus, heading back to the Ghillie Dhu and ultimately the Otherworld.

"Why not?" She had responded in seriousness. "You don't know them like I do Deaglan. You don't – they are liars, Deaglan. You think they're your friends but they're not."

"What do you mean?" He pressed. It wasn't the first time she had spoken about the Tuatha in such a way. If he didn't know any better he'd almost thing she saw them as the enemy, rather than the ally they were.

"It doesn't matter," she said softly. "Just no you won't be thanked for going back there."

"I don't..." he began, unable to find the words; unable to comprehend what she was suggesting.

This disbelief came on two fronts. The first and most obvious was at her willingness to abandon the Tuatha without care. She was clearly not a fan of the Tuatha, she had made that perfectly clear. But her reasons were as murky as Lake Nemed, and she wasn't interested in clearing them up.

And the second came from her suggestion that they do it together.

"No," Deaglan eventually concluded. He would have loved nothing more than to run away, move somewhere where the Tuatha could never find them. Maybe even start a life with Kaie... unless he was getting ahead of himself? But he couldn't. There was no way. "We have to go back and tell them. They need to know."

And yet as the silence built in that room, as the Tuatha stared down at Deaglan and Kaie with such a level of hatred that one would think they were worms being watched by hawks, Deaglan wondered if he had made the right choice. And when Mac Germait finally spoke, he realized that he had not.

"Why did you even come back?"

"I..." The question caught him by surprise. Even more so than the chilly reception they had received. "To tell you what happened. You needed to know."

"And?" Mac Germait questioned coldly. "Then what?"

"I don't know," Deaglan responded with confusion. He looked around the room again for support, only to find none. "I just thought you needed to know. So that... so that you were prepared."

"Aye, we should have been. For your failure."  There were murmurs of agreement around the room.

Deaglan could feel Kaie tense up beside him. She pulled her hand from Deaglan and stepped forward. "That's not fair --"

"Silence!" Mac Germait roared. His voice was like the roar of a lion. It cowered Kaie and seemed to literally push her back beside Deaglan. "You have failed. There is no other way to look at it. The means are not what matter, but the result. And now... and now we must face the battle unaided."

"I'm sorry," Deaglan attempted. He spoke into his shoes, unable to look Mac Germait in the face. "I'm..." He looked up. "But we can still help! Both us can --"

Mac Germait cut him off with mocking laughter. "You wish to don a sword and shield? You wish to fight? And how about you Banshee? Do you also wish to fight?"

Kaie looked down at her feet. Deaglan could feel her shaking with fear beside him... or maybe it was anger? He had seen her scared before and this certainly wasn't it. No, she was furious.

"No, I don't think so," he shook his head, his lip still curled. "You aren't soldiers and you aren't warriors. You, Leprechaun can barely hold a sword and you, Banshee are as likely to cripple us as the enemy. The two of you had but one use and you failed in it. Be gone from my sight," he spat. "I hope for your sake you aren't in the city tomorrow if it falls. I really do."

Deaglan didn't leave right away. He remained where he was, too stunned to move. He had expected the Tuatha to be upset and maybe even a little angry, but this was something else. They had truly put all of their faith in Deaglan succeeding and now that he had failed... they seemed content on blaming the defeat that hadn't even happened yet, on him.

"Come on," Kaie snarled. She took his hand and led him from the throne room. He looked up at Mac Germait a final time, the Tuatha meeting his eyes with his own, cold stare. With nothing left to say, Deaglan allowed himself to be led.

As they left, Mac Germait began to address the rest of the room. "We have been left no choice but to meet the Fomorian in battle. Mac Loran, how soon will we be ready."

"Tomorrow morning," Mac Loran answered immediately. He sounded almost happy at the prospect of doing battle. "Fifty thousand strong and ready."

"Good," Mac Germait answered. He didn't sound like he thought it to be good at all. "Then tomorrow it is..."

His voice faded as Deaglan and Kaie exited the room and continued on down the hall, away from the throne room. It seemed that battle was going to be joined tomorrow. If the Tuatha won then everything would remain as it was. Deaglan would go back to Ireland he would hopefully be able to locate his grandmother and maybe resume some semblance of a life.

If the Tuatha lost however and the Fomorian killed them all, then there would be no going back. If that happened, the world as he knew it would be over. He just wished there was something that he could do.