Brighid’s Quest

With a sense of wonder, she thought of the deer she pla

Then something quivered at the very edge of her spirit vision. It was coming from the north. An emerald glow so bright that its light was blinding, and it made her spirit give a little startled jump, breaking the meditation trance she had so easily fallen into. Her eyes fluttered open and she felt an unaccustomed weariness drag against her body and soul. Cuchulai

Mentally she shook herself and gently touched her husband’s face. “Cu, I’ve been using my affinity with animal spirits to track game for years. It’s nothing to worry about. I’m a little tired, but I’m fine.”

“I know… It’s just.” He shook himself and smiled at her. “You’re right. I’m being foolish. Did you find my errant horse?”

“Yes, and he’s not far from here. Head northwest and you’ll find a deer track. Follow it to a clearing and a pond. That’s where he is. At most he’s an hour’s easy walk from here.” Then she gri

He raised his brows at her. “You aren’t going to tell me what else is there?”

“How about I give you a clue. She’s furry and very, very a

“Fand?” he said immediately.

“None other.”

Cuchulai

Brighid gave an exaggerated sigh.

Still gri

“I’ll bring the di

“I’ll bring the wine and the company.”

Brighid’s laughter followed him as he strode toward the northwest, climbing the gentle slope of the rolling tor. When he stood at the top of the little hill he turned back and watched his wife gather her bow and strap her quiver of arrows over her shoulder.

“I love you, Brighid,” he called and then shook his head at his own romantic silliness. She was too near the waterfall to hear him, and he could see even from that distance that the concentrated look of a Huntress was back on her face. Right now the only thing she would pay any attention to would be the scent or track of a deer.

“That’s my beautiful Huntress,” he murmured to himself. She was powerful and sensuous and intelligent. With her beside him he believed there was nothing the two of them couldn’t accomplish. Tonight they’d eat and restore the energy the past days had sapped from them. Tomorrow they’d enter the Centaur Plains. He’d make sure she got to the Dhia

Cuchulai

Whistling happily, and thinking how good it would be to see his wolf cub, he hitched the bridle over his shoulder and headed into the northwest.

Brighid stood at the edge of the Centaur Plains and drew in a deep, joyous breath. It had been worth it. Yes, there were deer much closer to their cave than the plains, but Cuchulai

Weary or not, it felt good to have her hooves in the rich soil of her homeland! She’d chosen a different life and she’d left her home believing she would never return-and she had made that work within her mind. But now she could admit that her spirit had never been easy with her choice. Inside of her there had been a yearning to return, and a restless stirring that she now realized had been the dormant High Shaman.

No more, she promised herself. From here on I will use the gifts granted me by Epona and I will take the position I was born to.

She decided quickly not to take herself back into a meditation trance to locate a herd of deer. This was her homeland. If she couldn’t hunt venison here she didn’t deserve to be called Huntress. Her sharp eyes sca

She forced her body into a smooth canter and smiled as the wind and grass swept past her.

By the time she’d reached the cross-timbers line she was almost ready to admit that her decision to hunt the plains had been a hasty one-if not an outright mistake. Sweat soaked her body, and she was having trouble concentrating. She’d crossed several different centaur tracks, though she hadn’t met anyone. She could see the dark spots of bison not far to the east, but she hadn’t found any deer tracks at all, which was decidedly strange. Unless a centaur village was near, there should be plenty of deer all around a cross-timbers area-and she knew of no centaur village so close to the borders of Partholon. The luster of hunting on her homeland was definitely wearing thin. If she didn’t find sign or spoor of deer soon, she would have to use her spirit powers to locate one. Just the thought of it made her groan in exhaustion.

The grasslands began to give way to the blackjack and post oaks that predominated the cross-timbers, and she let herself slow to a listless walk.

She just wanted to find the deer and get it back to their camp. With gratitude she thought about Cuchulai

Later, she couldn’t decide if it had been her weariness or their stealth, but she heard and saw nothing before the rope snaked around her neck. Her hands were instantly up trying to pull the noose free, then she felt another rope catch her hind leg. She was jerked roughly off her feet, hitting the ground so hard that the air rushed from her. Her head cracked against a rock and blackness engulfed her.