*****************For Arwen and Bella*************************
Mab hadn't been in Brough anymore. After the night in Cair Ebrauc she and the Pictish slaves had been brought southwards to the coast. For two weeks they had traveled through the country. It had taken her several days to realize, what was happening to her. Firstly she had been overwhelmed by the pain. After a while it had become bearable but still horrible. It was then Mab gained back her consciousness and it was then, when she realized the bonds which were keeping here from moving. She had realized that she had not been the only one captured. They were brought somewhere, and even if she had not known where to, she knew to what purpose. Their captors had not let them out of the carriage. And only for bringing them food and water they had made contact with the prisoners. Mab still had been too weak for anything, but in her thoughts she had already been desperately searching for a way out. This couldn't be - at last she was Mab, Queen of the old ways, and now she had been caught by mere humans? She still wondered how it had gotten this far. How was it, that she hadn't noticed the ambush? And why could a single damn arrow hurt so much?
They had reached Durnovaria. This was one of the few cities, which had remained in its wealthy Roman style. It had thermae, aqueducts and amphitheatres and it was an important market place, cause of its connection to the sea. Here the slaves were brought from their carriage into another fort. It was the fort of the old Second Augustan Legion, a solid building, where the prisoners were brought into a gaol. When two of the soldiers of Arelianus drew Mab from the carriage into the cell, she made her first attempt of resisting. She was scratching, struggling and screaming. But she couldn't overcome her bonds, nor could she impress the strong knights. And every time she tried to summon her concentration for a spell, she felt the burning on her neck and lost her concentration again. She had never been injured before. She felt like Aphrodite in the Trojan War. The pain was entirely new to her and worst of all, it took all ability of performing magic from her. She simply couldn't concentrate enough for this. She could not even make herself vanish or invisible for escape. Put in a nutshell – Mab seemed absolutely helpless.
When Frik arrived in Brough, he had no idea how to look for Mab. It had taken him a week to get there, for it was not possible for him to travel long distances by magic without Mab's aid. But she obviously could be no support for him now. The passengers he asked either knew nothing, or they instantly made the sign of the cross when they saw him. Not because he looked like a monster, oh no, he had chosen a good form, but because of the person he was asking after. After a while he had heard of the Pictish raid a few weeks ago. The people told him proudly how the king's men had defended their country. The Picts had been slain and defeated, only a few had returned behind the borders to their own kingdom. So Frik went on, moving far north he sought out for the Pictish leader. Reaching the kingdom of Ystrad Clud he finally believed himself at his goal. There he found the Brythonic king Tudwall fighting the Pictish leader Cailtram. What foolish allies they would make, he thougt, fighting their little battle without knowing the real enemy. But still he made his way to Cailtram, in an unwatched moment he came unseen to the warlords tent.
A strong and proud warrior he was. Cailtram seemed twice as tall as Frik. The gnome asked himself why he had the foolish thought of consulting this man. But nevertheless he had his mission. But the leader did not seemed pleased when he heard gnome ask him about the whereabouts of Mab. "You tell me little twit!", he spat. "I sent my best men for speaking with your mistress, and now I all what I hear is, that they are dead!" "What?", Frik squeaked and nearly jumped backwards in fear. "She betrayed us to the British king!" The warlord was outrageous. Ok, think diplomatically Frik, he still had to find out where Mab could be. "Oh no she never would, we despise the Christian king!", the gnome affirmed to Cailtram, "She would fight him till death!" The warlord calmed down a bit, but he still seemed unconvinced. "So then tell me, how comes it, that our camp was plundered, our warriors were slain and our women hauled off?" "Hauled off? You mean the women were abducted?"Frik's face went white. The warlords continued: "They have taken them and soon they will be sold on their big markets!"