Intermission - 766 Gran


They messed up. They had lingered too long, too close. He had known that. They had known that. But they had heard that Aunt Ayra and Uncle Lex were near Isaach Castle and they just… they just couldn't help it. They had to see. It has been five years since they had seen anyone of the army they called 'family'. Five years since they left for safety and then heard of the horror called the 'Battle of Belhalla'. Even now, it hurts. Even now, he expects to see Sigurd riding up with a smile to give him a hug and ruffle his hair. He expects to step into an infirmary and see Alicia mending something, probably with Sylvia or Claude making medicine. He expects to find Chulainn outside in the early morning, and walk with him before lessons. He expects Uncle Lex to appear from nowhere and pick him up to let him ride on his shoulders, with Aunt Ayra laughing nearby. He expects… he can't believe they're dead even now. And if they're not dead, they're missing. The only person he knows of that isn't dead or missing is Alicia, but they're holding her prisoner in the castle. Or something. He thinks that's what it is, anyway.

Regardless, though, they messed up due to nostalgia and have to run. The Grannvale soldiers have already torched the village they had been hiding in, to chase people out into the streets for slaughter. Danann prefers the 'kill everyone' route when it came to 'dealing with rebels'. As if this is his country. He's half-certain someone is going to assassinate the bastard, who he really can't believe is Uncle Lex's brother. But, regardless, the village is being demolished, and so, a sane person would be long gone. To be fair, most are. But he's not. He's not, because when he, Oifeye, and Aideen had gotten the children out to safety, they had realized they were missing two: Caitriona and Conall. So, he had run back into the flames, desperately hunting for the two, wondering just why they hadn't followed. They were good about that typically. They had told them how unsafe it was.

"Where are they, damn it?" he growls, coughing from the smoke and heat. Soot is smeared by the sweat, giving his appearance an eerie grey look. Like a ghost, but with more coughing. "Where…?"

"...Nan…!" A tiny voice, barely louder than the crackling flames and the snapping wood of burning buildings. But it's enough for him, and he's after it immediately. "Shanan…!" As he gets closer, he recognizes the voice as Caitriona's. "Shanan! Help!"

"Caitriona!" He pushes straight through a falling apart wall and finds Caitriona curled up in a ball. The fire immediately around her seems to hesitate, like a nervous animal. Distantly, he wonders if she's instinctually using the power of her Vala… Fjalar… whatever. If she's controlling the flames. "Hey, there…" He kneels down by her and gathers her up in his arms. "Hey, it's okay…"

"Shanan!" She leans into him, sobbing into his chest. "Shanan, it's scary!"

"I know. But I'm going to get you out of here." He had made a promise long ago. He would protect the children. Even if the people he had promised had died, he still will… "Where's Conall?"

"I… I don't know!" Her voice cracks and she nods to the giant pile of burning wooden beams. "Those fell and he was on the other side and… and…!"

"Okay." That… complicates things, but nothing he can't deal with. The loud snap above their heads, though, shows that this building isn't going to hang on much longer. "Let's get some place a little cooler, yeah?"

He picks her up and almost grimaces at how much she weighs. She's six years old now, too big to carry around while also fighting. He'll have to be sneaky from here on. So, he times his movements carefully, darting from shadow to shadow until they find a stone building to rest near. By this point, Caitriona has stopped crying to simply sniffle and he almost asks why she and Conall didn't follow. But then he sees that she's clutching two things, and curses himself again. They messed up twice. He'd known they were forgetting something, but in the haste, he had thought it was something replaceable, like shoes. Gods knew that Ulster and Larcei had been barefoot when they ran. But no, it hadn't been, because Caitriona is clinging to her stuffed dog and one of the ruby drop earrings Chulainn had bought. Priceless things, and things that children would go back for. It's the only thing they have from their father.

"Okay, what to do…?" he whispers to himself. He looks down the path, wondering where Conall is. There's no sign of him and some part hopes that he had run towards the group, to get help for Caitriona. But he doesn't know, and he wants to search. However, the place is crawling with Grannvalian soldiers, and competent ones from the look of things. He's not sure he can sneak past them. He's not sure he can fight them. "What to do?" He winces as he realizes just what the answer to that is. "Gods, I hate you." And he picks up Caitriona again and rushes out of the city. Because the answer to the question is, of course, 'save the one right in front of you first'.

"Shanan!" Oifeye is waiting for him on the hill near the village. The plan is to escape into the mountains and then figure out from there. Aideen must've taken the children there already. "Oh, thank goodness…" Oifeye murmurs, taking Caitriona from him. Oifeye winces when he sees what Caitriona is holding, realizing just what happened now too. "Conall?"

"...I'm going back to see if I can find him," he declares. He shakes his head when Oifeye tries to protest. "I have to try, damn it!" He knows it's stupid, and he knows he should just leave with Oifeye now. He's just seventeen, nowhere near strong enough to do anything really. But he has to try. He has to. It's Alicia's son, and he owes Alicia everything, just as he owes Sigurd everything. He can't just… "I…!"

"...I'll wait a couple of more hours. Or try to at least." Oifeye smiles sadly, understanding. Part of him hates how 'wise' Oifeye appears, but then again, Oifeye is twenty-three. Maybe he'd get that same wisdom when he's that old. If he lives that long, that is. "Much longer, though, and you're on your own with tracking us. Too dangerous."

"Got it." He leans down and kisses Caitriona's forehead. "I'll be right back. You're safe." Caitriona smiles sweetly at him and curls up against Oifeye's shoulder. "See you soon."

Then he's off again, back into the city. The fires are just starting to die out, but the smell of smoke continues to choke the air. Blood and iron has joined it, hinting to the fighting and the dead. He almost trips over a couple of bodies, but he pushes forward, looking for any sign of Conall. When he finally does see him, though, he has to hide because… because Conall is surrounded by Grannvalian soldiers, trying to interrogate him. He wants to charge, especially when he hears the leader is named 'Aida', the same name as Arvis's right hand, and the name of the woman who 'lured the traitor Sigurd into a trap'. In other words, trick him.

He hates her. He hates her almost as much as he hates Arvis. They both took advantage of everyone's trust and kindness. He'll never forgive them, and gods, he wants to kill her. But he knows he can't. There's too many. He'd die before he even got close. He'd die and Conall would be forced to watch. He looks for some sort of weakness in the guard to exploit, but there isn't one. Worse, though, is that Conall is perfectly silent despite the soldiers repeatedly questioning him, clinging to his dog and the other ruby drop earring. Conall knows that there's going to be no rescue.

He leans against the wall of a gutted building and bloodies his lip to keep from crying in frustration. Too weak to protect Deirdre back in Agusty, too weak now to protect Conall. All he can do is hide and wait as someone takes away a loved one he swore to keep safe. Again. It hurts. It hurts terribly. And he has to wait until they're out of sight before returning, just to make sure he doesn't accidentally lead the soldiers directly to the others.

When he stumbles back to the hill, sooty and blood dripping from his mouth, with no Conall, Oifeye doesn't say anything. Oifeye just gives him a hug, makes him hold the now-sleeping Caitriona, and leads the way to where Aideen is waiting with all the children. From there, they push forward to a cabin in the woods they had scouted out a few weeks ago, as a potential hiding place. From there, it's pretending things are 'normal'. While he jumps into a nearby river to get the damn soot off, Aideen and Oifeye make dinner and tuck the children in for bed. They all curl up together, keenly aware that one of them is missing, but they don't protest. They don't cry or ask why. Such things have become far too common for them. They're used to running from death and battle. They're used to people just… disappearing. He sits by them while they sleep, and his heart breaks for them. He's always respected Aunt Ayra, but his respect has grown immensely these past few years, now that he knows just how hard it is to be on the run while keeping a child safe.

"I wonder if it was a trap," Oifeye murmurs, much later, leaning against the wall by the door to better keep an eye out the window. "In retrospect, it was so obvious…"

"Hindsight is perfect," Aideen agrees. She tries to smile warmly, but it's clear the years of running are taking their toll. Not to mention the whole 'hey, your husband is dead, your best friend since diapers is dead, your sister and her lover are missing, and all of your friends are either dead or missing' thing. It's a miracle she'd carried Lana to full term, and that there hadn't been too many complications with the birth, given all that stress. "So, where do we go?"

"Sophara is supposed to be near, right? That's Chulainn's original home." Oifeye rubs at his eyes tiredly. "Maybe there?"

"No, we should get farther from the castle," he whispers, fixing the blankets over Caitriona. She's curled up between Seliph and Larcei, both hugging her in their sleep while she clings to her stuffed-dog. Opposite her, Lana is safely between Lester and Diarmuid, since she's the youngest. Ulster marks the 'boundary' between the trios. Normally, it would be him and Larcei, with Conall between Larcei and Caitriona, but… "Further north."

"Where to?" Oifeye asks, watching him closely. "Silesse north?"

"Not exactly." Though it is tempting. Silesse… they had all been so happy there, civil war aside. "There's supposed to be a village in Northern Isaach, hidden by trees and mountains. They say it's where King Odo… Od…" The Empire has changed so many of the names. It's difficult to keep up with. "Whatever. It's where he's from. It's far from the castle."

"Then let's see if we can find it, then." Oifeye tries to smile, but it's just a grimace. Today's events prove how they can't afford to make mistakes. They lost Conall because of two. He can only pray that Conall will be okay. Aida is loyal to Arvis, clearly, so hopefully… but it's all up to the gods, at this point. That hurts keenly. "In the morning, then."

"Yes. In the morning." Back to moving. Back to running. They had promised to keep the children safe, and they will. Promises are important, even if the people you had the promises to are dead. "In the morning."


Author's notes: So, to clarify, Shanan is the focal point, POV char of this little section, and it takes place around the same time as Alicia's death. If you're curious about Conall's childhood, check out Memoirs of Belhalla, a short story told from Deirdre/Diadora's POV that focuses on the family during the early years of the empire.

Next Chapter - Tirnanog (Gen2 starts)