Chapter 11

Nimue crept forward to the foot of the path leading up to the hill-fort. She had lost all contact with Garth so was unsure of everything that had gone on. She had watched from the woods as King Beli and his troops had passed on their way back to Strathclyde so she had a fair idea that Eochaid had overthrown the invaders. Why Beli and his men had been allowed to live wasn't clear to her and indeed was something of a surprise.

She made her way to Dunadd and was now contemplating ascending the hill to try and locate the boy. She was sure he would be here with Eochaid. Overcoming the guards at the foot of the hill was not difficult. She flitted close to them without being seen and sprinkled some dust into her palm before blowing it towards the guards. The dust formed a little cloud as it floated over the guards and when they inhaled it they quickly slumped to the ground unconscious.

The Lady of the Loch stepped lightly over the guards and made her way up the passageway to the top of the hill. She closed her eyes and began to mentally sweep the structures here, trying to locate what she had come for. Her eyes opened with shock as she identified that Merlin was present. She knew she had little time before he would sense her presence and come for her so she had to move fast.

She had also sensed Garth's presence and it appeared as if he was under guard. Leaving him for Merlin to question could be dangerous so she would need to free him before she left this place. She knew what her first priority was though - the boy.

Nimue crept towards where she had sensed a faint picture of the boy and found herself outside a chamber. She slipped past the heavy drape covering the doorway and took in the scene before her.

"Oh, how sweet. The boy has found himself a fair maiden and don't they look good together. Well, I'm sorry, young lovers, but I'm going to have to break this up," she thought.

Nimue worked on her most powerful controlling spell. It was complex and required absolute concentration. As she quietly muttered the words of power, a ball of energy began to form between her palms. It glowed a luminous blue and had strands of pure brilliant white within it, as it began to grow and strengthen. When she judged that the spell was strong enough she looked across at the sleeping boy and smiled as she cast the spell towards him.

The ball flew across the chamber at Eoric's head, but just before it hit him, a halo of fiery orange light appeared around his head and the ball was consumed by it as it hit.

Nimue's hand came up to her mouth as she gasped in surprise. She turned and quickly slipped out of the room, realising that she had failed this time and ran the risk of being caught herself. She ran with light footsteps towards where she had sensed Garth was being held and dealt with his guards in the same manner she had dealt with those outside.

When she slipped inside the chamber she found the druid lying on a mattress and roughly shook him awake. Garth went from being asleep to being wide awake in an instant. His smile returned when he saw Nimue and he rose to join her, both of them slipping out of the chamber. They stepped over the unconscious guards and made their way over to the path down from the hill top.

"Eoric, you are under attack! Wake up! Wake up!"

Eoric became aware of his inner voice screaming at him and he sat bolt upright in the bed.

"What is it? Who is attacking us?" he asked.

"There was a woman in the room. She tried to cast some kind of spell at you, but we stopped it by using some of your energy as a block."

Eoric slipped out of bed and pulled a robe around himself. He extended his thoughts across the hill-top in search of his attacker and quickly identified the beautiful woman he had caught sight of once or twice when he had connected with Merlin. He could tell what she was doing when he identified the presence of the druid beside her.

He crept out of the chamber and headed in their direction. At the same time he reached out and tried to connect to Merlin.

"Merlin, there is trouble afoot. You need to wake and come to me now. I've been attacked by some kind of witch and she is now helping the druid to escape."

He ran forward quickly and caught sight of the pair running down the pathway. Instinctively he lifted his hand and fired a blast of energy at them. His blast hit the rock just as the pair disappeared round a bend in the path and he knew he had missed.

Merlin appeared at Eoric's elbow, a worried expression on his face.

"Where are you hurt?" he asked.

"What do you mean? I'm not hurt at all," Eoric replied.

"But you said you had been attacked by a witch!" Merlin exclaimed.

"I was, while I was sleeping. It seems that whatever I absorbed is able to act as a silent guard and when the witch cast a spell at me, it drained off some of my energy to block it. Merlin, the woman was one I have seen when I've been connected to you in the past," Eoric said.

"Nimue! By the gods, I think I need to apologise, Eoric. I thought it was safe to leave dealing with her until after I had caught up with you. It would seem I have made a mistake and should have dealt with her quickly. Where are they now?"

Eoric had been following their progress through his connection to his surroundings.

"They are on horse back and heading east. If I ran I could probably catch them," he said.

"No! She is too dangerous and it seems she has designs that involve you my young friend. I will have to follow and deal with her, but first we need to discuss with Eochaid what his plans are. What are you doing now?" Merlin asked.

"I can sense she has somehow drugged some of the guards and I'm going to see if I can help them," Eoric replied.

Together they made their way down the path. Merlin paused at the scorched rock where Eoric's blast had hit.

"You?" he enquired.

Eoric simply nodded and continued down the path. He found the two guards lying in a heap on the ground and reached out to take the hand of one of them.

"This is a mix of magic and plant. It is very powerful, but we know how to overcome it. The plants you will need should be available in the kitchens," said his inner voice.

Merlin watched as Eoric assessed what was wrong with the guards. He had a good idea what Nimue would have used against them and to his knowledge there was no way of reversing the effects. Only time would bring the men back to consciousness.

Eoric summoned some additional energy from the rock at his feet and then lifted both of the guards, one under each arm. He made his way slowly back up the path so he didn't bump the guards against the rock and laid them down beside the other two that Nimue had drugged. Merlin followed along behind him, impressed once more by the boy's ability to harness nature's energy in this way.

Merlin trailed behind as Eoric quickly made his way to the kitchens. He lit some torches with his finger and began searching for the plants he needed. When he had found the ingredients, he mashed them together in a bowl with some water to make a cold soup. Then Merlin heard him begin to chant some words over the bowl.

When he finished chanting the words his inner voice had told him to use, Eoric picked up the bowl and a wooden spoon and made his way back to the guards. He held each guard up as he spooned some of the soup between their lips. To Merlin's amazement all of the guards began to come round immediately. He wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't witnessed it with his own eyes.

"I see now that you do indeed have access to much lore, Eoric. I'm pretty sure I know what Nimue used on these men and to my knowledge there was no way of reversing it. She would have mixed some powerful magic with her herbs yet you have beaten it without much effort. How did you know what to do?" Merlin asked.

"The voice inside me told me what to do, the same as when I needed to find a remedy for Eochaid," Eoric replied.

"Then it is clear that you do have access to all the lore you described earlier. All you need to do is ask this inner voice of yours and it should be able to explain what you need to do in any given circumstance. I do believe you have lore that is well beyond even my knowledge," said Merlin.

The guards were now awake, but still groggy. Eoric told them to find others to relieve them of their duty for the night and then to rest. With little else to do, both he and Merlin returned to their own beds for the night too.

Nimue led Garth to the Dunadd stables at the run and he selected a suitable mount. She ran on to where her horse was tethered and swung lightly up onto its back and then the two of them galloped off together. They were anxious to put miles between themselves and Dunadd in case they were pursued.

After several miles Nimue slowed her beast and Garth followed suit. She cast her thoughts behind them, but couldn't detect anyone following and relaxed somewhat.

"You're lucky that I decided it was too dangerous to leave you behind for Merlin to question, Garth. You have let me down badly in all this. You were so sure you could engineer the fall of Dalriada that would keep the Celts at each other's throats. And now you have allowed Merlin to have control of the boy, a boy that I now know has some extraordinary power. I have witnessed what he can do with my own eyes - he should never have been able to withstand my controlling spell, even if he had been awake. He brushed it off like a fly while he yet slept! I need to get my hands on him and if you want to return to my good grace you will need to help me!" she said.

"I will do my best for you, my Lady, as always," Garth responded quietly.

"This is what we must do..."

Eochaid's rage the next morning was something to behold. He had been looking forward to exacting his revenge on the druid that had tried to kill him, had poisoned him and the news of his escape had the King livid. It was clear to all those who knew him that this temper would take days to subside and accordingly, everyone was giving him a wide berth.

They had been intending to sit down and discuss Eochaid's plans for the future, but that was not going to happen now and Eoric and Gemma decided it might be altogether more pleasant if they went outside for a walk. Merlin chose to accompany them, failing to see that in doing so he would be something of a gooseberry.

The three could still hear Eochaid shouting at anyone who happened to go near him, as they descended the path and out onto the flat land around the hill-fort. The June weather was warm and sunny, warming them as they walked slowly through the long grass in companionable silence. Swallows were darting around over head and Eoric in particular was enjoying the summer's day.