75. Dispatched

"Why are we waiting?" Colm asked quietly. Even with his voice lowered, I could hear the impatience in his tone.

The two of us had moved about half a kilometer north of the others, while staying concealed in the trees. The idea was when we finally emerged onto open ground we wouldn't be anywhere near the rest of our group. Incase the castle sent scouts or something, to check where we came from.

I glanced at the knight and replied quietly, "I was hoping to see Keenan leave. I'm not eager to confront him."

Colm frowned slightly, "Are you scared of him, Lady Tegan?"

"No," I sighed. "I just don't want to have to kill my girlfriend's grandfather. I don't want to have to kill anyone at all, for that matter."

"And if Eamon is a traitor?" he asked. "If the whole castle has been turned against your mother?"

I frowned at him, "I don't know. What if? What do we do then?"

Colm stated quietly, "We kill as many as we can on our way out. An empty or under-manned castle is better than one fully staffed with traitors."

I just sighed again, as I watched the castle's main gate.

So far I'd never actually killed anyone. People have died around me, people have died because of me, and people have died protecting me. That was bad enough. But I hadn't taken any lives myself. I really didn't want that to be the next line I had to cross.

I was capable, of course. I knew at least a dozen spells that would snuff out a life before the person even knew they were in danger. Even if they did realize the threat, most would be helpless against me. I still hadn't run into a limit on my power. With the magic I knew, I was pretty sure I could raze castle Griofa from the landscape along with everybody inside.

And that frightened me. It was the dark side of my gift with magic.

I wasn't scared of men like Keenan, I was scared I might one day end up like that myself. And I was scared that if I kept crossing the lines I'd set for myself, I might not even notice when it happened.

I tried hard not to let it all go to my head. I knew I wasn't indestructible. The pain in my right thigh reminded me of that fact every other day. And I knew I was still young and naive, even by human standards but especially to the fae.

Finally I took off my wide-brimmed hat and stuffed it into my backpack, then said to Colm "Ok, let's go. We can't wait all day. And he may have already left. He can probably travel unseen."

The knight was happy to finally be moving again, and he led the two of us out. We emerged from the trees and started walking towards the castle gate.

As we got to within a hundred meters or so, Colm mentioned "Lookouts have spotted us."

"I have defensive magic ready," I replied quietly. "If they try attacking, I'll keep us shielded."

He nodded slightly, "I don't see any raised weapons. They'll have sent word down to the captain of course, but just two of us approaching on foot won't alarm anyone."

As we continued to approach, Colm added "They will likely recognize you by your hair, or will at least suspect you are a Brádaigh. And they may realize I am in the service of the king. The blue patch on my jacket is the king's colour."

We continued our approach, and when we got to about twenty meters from the gate it opened slightly. A half dozen men emerged and took up a position before us. They were wearing my family's livery, with chainmail jerkins overtop. All six had swords and daggers hanging from their belts, and all carried loaded crossbows. They held the bows downwards for now, but I knew it only took a second to raise and fire if they wished.

A seventh man emerged from the gate, this one dressed like an officer. He too was armed with sword and dagger, but he wasn't holding a bow, and wasn't wearing armour.

"Greetings travellers," the officer called to us. "I am lieutenant Desmond. Who are you, and what brings you to castle Griofa?"

The knight spoke first, "I am Colm Mac Cionaoith, knight of the realm. I am here by order of king Cathal, and at the request of Lady Maeve Brádaigh."

I kept my eyes on the officer as I stated "And I am Lady Tegan Vale of Clann Brádaigh, daughter of Maeve Brádaigh. We are here to meet with captain Eamon."

The lieutenant bowed deeply, "Sir Colm, Lady Tegan, it is an honour."

After he straightened up he gestured, "Please, follow me."

He led us in through the gate, and the six soldiers followed us inside. Once we were all in, the gate was swung shut and sealed tight. I glanced around as we followed Desmond. Inside the castle walls, about half the space was an open courtyard. It didn't look far off how I'd expected, based on movies set in the middle ages. There were soldiers up on the walls, and the half dozen behind us. Lots of eyes were on us but so far nobody seemed to be threatening.

Across the courtyard the main buildings were built right into the castle walls, and we were led through a central doorway into a sort of hall. From there Desmond took us through a doorway on the right. We found ourselves in a sort of dining hall. There were three tables, arranged in a sort of C shape. The chairs were all along the outside so when everyone was seated they all faced inwards. There was nobody here at the moment, though I could imagine come evening it would be busy with the officers and soldiers in here taking their dinner. In addition to the door we'd come through, there was a door off to the left that probably led to the kitchens.

Colm and I were standing in the middle just quietly looking around. The six guys in armour didn't follow us in here, it was just me and the knight and Desmond.

"Please make yourselves comfortable," the lieutenant said with a friendly smile. "I will fetch captain Eamon at once."

"Thank you," I replied.

Desmond bowed slightly then turned and left. He pulled the door closed behind him.

Neither Colm or I made a move to sit down, we just stayed where we were. I could tell he was on alert. He left his weapons where they were for now. I kept ready with defensive magic, quietly preparing both my barrier spell and some anti-magic spells to keep them on the tip of my tongue.

After a minute or two, the door we'd come through opened and a dozen soldiers filed in and took up position all along that wall. Each was wearing chainmail and carrying a loaded crossbow. They hadn't raised their weapons towards us, but it was obviously a threatening move. They stood between us and the exit.

Then the other door opened and an officer entered. I was positive he was the guy we'd seen on the tower, talking to Keenan. He was carrying a mug of something, probably ale. He had a self-assured smile on his face, as he sat down in one of the chairs off to our left and had a sip of his drink.

"So," he stated, watching me and Colm. "Lady Maeve has sent her little girl and a single knight to come and talk with me? I'd suspected her resources were stretched thin, but I had no idea she was this close to breaking."

He had another sip and added "And I'm very surprised that she'd send her own babe into what she must have known would surely be certain death."

I sighed as I watched him. He wasn't even trying to hide his treason. "Captain Eamon, I am Lady Tegan Vale of Clann Brádaigh, great-granddaughter of Taralynn. I order you to stand down your men and surrender yourself to sir Colm and I."

Eamon laughed, "Please, child. I'm not falling for that nonsense."

"You obviously haven't heard the stories," Colm stated.

"I've heard rumours and lies," Eamon replied. He still sounded amused, he wasn't taking us seriously at all. "This girl might have the Brádaigh name and looks, but Taralynn's dead and gone. I happen to know this girl's no great mage. I even know she's lame in one leg, she needs other people to provide regular magic just to keep her upright."

I thought about that a moment, then I realized. He was getting his information from Keenan. Keenan knew about my injury and my need for regular treatment, because Kelsey knew that. But Kelly never told her mother about my gift for magic, she never told her mother the Taralynn stuff. So all Keenan knew was I could cast a few very basic spells.

I actually had to fight to keep a smile off my face. Keenan and Eamon both believed I was a helpless twenty-five year old fae child.

"Captain Eamon," Colm stated in a warning tone, "You have been ordered to stand down your men. This is your final warning."

The captain just laughed and had another swig of his drink.

Glancing between Colm, Eamon, and the dozen guys with crossbows I realized things were probably about to get ugly. And as much as I hated to do it, I knew we needed more information before things went bad. I'd already crossed that line once at my mother's command, so I grit my teeth and did it again.

It was easier this time, and I hoped that was because Eamon was actively being a dick and threatening us. I really hoped it wasn't easier because I was getting used to doing it.

While Eamon was watching my companion, I closed my eyes and worked the spell that let me peak into his mind. I saw his collaborators, the men he worked with. And I saw what Eamon knew of their plans, his memories of their meeting a little over a year ago.

That was all I had time for, as Eamon ordered his soldiers, "Kill the knight. Spare the girl, my associate has plans for her."

As I ended the spell I got a brief glimpse of what he knew of Keenan's plans for me, and it left me feeling both sickened and enraged.

Moving as one, all twelve men raised their crossbows to their shoulders, aiming at Colm. And as one, all twelve fired.

I gestured slightly with my right hand as I worked the spell. The dozen projectiles all shattered when they hit my barrier mid-way between the line of men and where Colm and I were standing.

At the same time, Colm slipped his bow off his shoulder with his left hand while his right pulled an arrow from the quiver at his hip. In one smooth action he set the arrow on the string, raised and drew the bow, and released his arrow.

Eamon was sat no more than five meters away from where we stood, and the look of shock was frozen on his face. He didn't even make a sound as the arrow buried itself up to the feathers as it passed through his chest, through his heart, and pierced the back of the chair behind him.

The dozen soldiers all looked shocked to varying degrees. What seemed at first to be target practice for them suddenly became something else entirely. Half of them started scrambling to reload their crossbows, the other half dropped the bows and drew swords. They charged at us, and all six of them were stopped in their tracks as they bonked into my shield.

Colm already had another arrow on his string and he let it go, into the chest of one of the men who was trying to reload. Unlike at Duma Dé, the barrier I'd raised here was one-sided. It kept us safe, but did nothing to protect our enemies.

I ordered the soldiers "Stand down! Lay down arms and surrender!"

A couple of them looked like they weren't sure what to do, while Colm started picking off the ones who were still trying to fight back. I felt sick again. I knew the men were helpless, I could hold the spell all day long and they had no way to get through it. Meanwhile Colm was able to just stand there and eliminate them, one after another.

When the seventh soldier went down with an arrow through his chest, the remaining five finally got the message and dropped their weapons.

I sighed, "Thank you. Now..."

Something felt wrong. I was suddenly very weary, and couldn't remember what I was going to say. It became hard to think, like my head was filling with fog. I wanted to sit down in one of the nearby chairs so I could rest, but even that seemed like an impossible chore. The floor would be cosy enough, I could just close my eyes and...

There was a surge of adrenaline as I realized what was happening. Another presence was in my head, influencing my thoughts, draining my resolve. I mentally scrambled to work the counter-spell, and the fog immediately lifted from my mind. My heart was racing though as it struck me just how close that had been.

I decided at this point we needed to get clear. Keenan was obviously nearby, and I had to assume he already had control of the rest of the castle. We had our answers, we knew Eamon was a traitor and I knew who he was working for. I needed to get that information back to Maeve.

Colm was still next to me, with his bow at ready. I put my hand on his shoulder and teleported him back to where we'd left Feichin and the twins. As soon as he was gone, I teleported myself clear as well.

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