Episode 22: Part 1
Several quiet weeks had come and gone since the last Fomorian attack and a lull in the fighting had set in over Somerset Valley. In the midst of the hot sunny weather, the townspeople who lived there couldn't help but wonder if the Fomorian monsters were avoiding the heat, or if they had gone on their own version of summer vacation. For now, the guardians of the valley did not complain and simply enjoyed the relative peace while they went about with their own summer jobs or recreational activities.
At the beginning of July, the five knights joined a large number of the local people to take part in an annual tradition of the town. Every year, volunteers from the college and local businesses would help to celebrate Independence Day by getting together and participating in the town's Heritage Festival which included some activities and reenactments celebrating life in colonial America. Usually there would be some reenactments on the third of July followed by a big parade and another big show on the following day.
On that particularly sunny and warm 3rd of July, the knights gathered together with other townsfolk in one of the large forest preserves that had been reserved for the event. Aside from many of the participants already dressed up in period clothing, there were many local families and children who had come to see some of the activities and demonstrations of colonial life taking place in the newly erected tents and stalls.
"I feel ridiculous wearing this dress and bonnet," Kristen Bloom sighed as she stood chatting with Mr. Sean O'Doyle. The older pub owner and fellow Druid simply smiled while organizing his colonial beer brewing exhibit.
"Nonsense Kristen. You look like a young Betsy Ross wearing that... very fetching. Maybe grab a colonial flag too and you can really turn a few heads."
The younger Druid mumbled grudgingly before they were approached by the other knights who had just finished dressing up too. Connor sported a tricornered hat and the blue coat of the American Continental soldiers. Not surprisingly the facing of his uniform was red. Beside him, Quinton dressed as a colonial militiaman but still wore a green tartan sash slung over his shoulder. They were followed by Noelle and Laura who had donned colonial costumes as well.
The Winter Knight had done up her golden hair and put on an elegant blue summer gown taking on the role of an English aristocrat, or perhaps a girl from a wealthy Loyalist Tory family. Beside her, Noelle had opted for a simpler dress resembling a nurse's outfit but with some French Fleur de Lis symbols on her apron and a light orange headband to tie her hair back. Finally bringing up the rear came a polished looking Stephen dressed in the red coat and accouterments of a British regular soldier.
"Well now... my own problems aside, you guys all look great," Kristen smiled as she greeted her younger friends, "I'm assuming you're all headed off to the battlefield soon for a reenactment?"
"I'm actually going to stay in the shade of the tents and model the fashion of the upper class society women," Laura said as she turned to Stephen and fussed over his collar and the buttons of his uniform, "As for you, I'm going to expect you to go out there and teach that traitorous American rabble a lesson."
"Well, I suppose I can't refuse the request of a fair lady so... okay!" Stephen shrugged with a laugh as he adjusted his hat and stepped back while looking very dashing.
Connor and Quentin exchanged a mild eye roll between themselves while Mr. O'Doyle turned to Noelle, "And what are you going to be doing Miss Moreau? Demonstrating some domestic chores? Baking? Churning butter?"
She grinned and hooked her arms around Connor and Quinton's while speaking with an exaggerated French accent, "Au contraire Monsieur. I will be on ze battlefield taking care of my boys. Lafayette and ze French came to help ze Americans so zees men will need some nurses, no?"
"So... if Connor is an American, Noelle is French, Laura and Stephen are British... what does that make you?" Kristen asked turning to Quinton.
"I'm Scottish...American!" Quinton said proudly while fluffing his sash. "The Crown can't force all if us to fight for them, right? Long live Bonnie Prince Charlie!"
"That's the spirit my man," Connor laughed as he clapped his roommate on the shoulder and slung his musket on his shoulder, "Now what do you say we go beat the pudding out of those uppity redcoats."
Laura simply sighed in exasperation and shook her head as the two walked off and began singing a few verses of Yankee Doodle Dandy.
Meanwhile, the exiled Fomorian general Leanansidhe wandered about the local Heritage Festival in the guise of Leanne MacClure. She had set aside her green Celtic dress and now donned the same disguise as some of the event reenactors. To the unsuspecting townsfolk who were milling about, the young red headed woman looked just like a regular female college student who was volunteering for the festival. After wandering by some of the food stands and the tents which featured some arts and crafts, she headed over toward a large grassy lawn where many of the local men had formed up to reenact a battle from the Revolutionary War.
The witch watched the fake battle with amused indifference as a line of British soldiers continued marching on in ordered ranks while a small mixed formation of American regulars and militia stood their ground and fired a few volleys with their muskets. Within Leanne's mind, Morgana gave a derisive sniff, "What an odd form of warfare these humans practiced. They fey have warred for centuries and would never use these cowardly firearm weapons… much less walk straight into the projectiles."
"Say what you will, but it did take a lot of courage and discipline to fight like that," Leanne replied inwardly as she scanned the battlefield. It was then that she stopped and found what she was looking for. There in the rear of the American lines, she spotted Noelle rolling out several red dyed bandages with a few of the others girls as the battle continued to be fought.
As the event announcer continued to narrate the battle for the crowd of spectators, the British let loose a volley of musket fire causing several Americans to fall. As per his scripted role, Connor reeled sideways and fell over. As he lay on the ground pretending to be wounded, he gave a laugh to Quinton who helped to drag him and a few others off the battle line, "This is it for me Quin. I'm a goner. Tell my family I love them…"
Quinton smiled and rolled his eyes before several of the female students came over and took on the roles of the battlefield nurses, wrapping up arms and legs with bandages and carrying water.
"So much for beating the pants off the redcoats," Noelle sighed with a small laugh as she took a bandage and tied it to the Summer Knight's leg, "What would you do without me?"
"I must be bleeding out," Connor joked toward her, "For a minute I thought you were an angel come to save me on the battlefield."
Noelle stopped for a moment and looked to him with sudden seriousness, "Please don't joke about being hurt like that."
Connor blinked in mild confusion, unaware of the startling parallel she had been alluding to when she had secretly saved his life in battle several weeks ago, "Oh… ok? I'm sorry."
The Autumn Knight shook her head to herself and glanced up just in time to meet Leanansidhe's gaze from across the way in the crowds. The fey witch tiled her head and subtly gestured for Noelle to meet her in a more secluded spot before disappearing back into the mass of spectators.
"Noelle? Hey… are you okay?" Connor asked in concern as she quickly glanced back to him.
"Ah… sorry. I just spaced out for a moment there," she said with a nervous laugh, "It must be the heat, huh?"
He kept shaking his head as she pulled him to his feet, straightened his coat and gave a quick but gentle push back toward the battle, "There. You're all good now. Go get em killer."
"Uh… thanks. I'll see ya later," Connor replied hesitantly at Noelle's suddenly unusual behavior. She watched him as he headed back to the battle before she turned and hurried away toward the direction Leanansidhe had been pointing.
Once she got clear of the battlefield, Noelle headed to a quieter wooded corner of the festival grounds and stopped when she spotted the fey witch leaning on a nearby oak tree disguised as a fellow volunteer. She tensed up and approached slowly while Leanansidhe turned her head and smiled back with a predatory grin.
"Ahh… there you are Autumn Knight. I appreciate your coming so quickly."
Noelle scowled and spoke with a level voice that betrayed a hint of hostility, "What are you doing here Morgana? What do you want?"
It was then that Morgana took control of Leanansidhe's body, "You already assume I am the mastermind behind all this? Child, I'm flattered and impressed by your perceptiveness."
"Cut the pleasantries Morgana. You didn't come to flatter me and we both know it."
The witch laughed in amusement, "You're absolutely right. I came to collect on my little… how shall we call it… debt?"
Noelle felt her stomach drop as she clenched her fists grudgingly, "I did make a promise. What do you want from me?"
The fey witch got off the tree and began walking over slowly. She reached in her skirt pocket and pulled out a handful of small iridescent stones which sparkled with a dark blue and purple color. She handed them to Noelle and the knight studied them curiously, "What is this?"
Morgana ignored her and led the knight over toward a pond just past the meadow. She snapped off a large branch of a tree and handed it to Noelle before glancing up to the sunny skies, "All I ask for you to do is to drop these stones in the pond and stir the water. Do it slowly and stir counter clockwise. After that... well, as long as you do not call your armor or raise your weapons, no harm will come to you or your fellow knights today."
Noelle stared incredulously at her foe before taking the large branch. The Autumn Knight hesitantly dropped the stones into the water and began to slowly stir the water in a methodical counter clockwise motion. She watched as the magical stones began to dissolve and dissipate before changing into a vapor that rose up from the waters in a thick foggy cloud.
"Keep stirring," Morgana said firmly as she watched the fog begin to spread out over the meadows and the surrounding forest preserves. Noelle continued to watch in dread as the magical fog continued to roll through and spread toward the fields where the town's Heritage Festival was going on. As the sinister mists swept through the region, the moral townspeople stopped what they were doing and began to gently lay down one by one as they were overcome by a powerful sleeping enchantment. Adults and children alike quickly succumbed to the spell as they collapsed in an eerie slumber.
From the tents and the field of the battle reenactment, the other Hibernian Knights stopped and stared in wide eyed shock as a thick fog swept through and caused all their fellow students and neighbors to fall into a deep sleep.
"What is going on here?" Laura gasped in alarm as the audience in her tent all nodded off to sleep. She tried in vain to wake a few people before running out and finding Kristen and Mr. O'Doyle walking blindly through the fog.
"Kristen? What's going on here?" the Winter Knight asked the two older Druids.
"I don't know," Kristen frowned, "But whatever this fog is, it looks like it's probably very potent faerie magic."
Laura chewed her lip and looked around again, "I don't understand... why did everyone else fall asleep when we didn't?"
Mr. O'Doyle scratched his chin, "If I had to guess... we probably have a level of resistance to this spell by virtue of being Druids or because of the magic of your rings."
His theory was proven correctly as the three male knights stumbled their way through the mists and joined them on the fair grounds. Stephen swept away some of the fog with his hat and gave a relieved nod toward the others present, "Do any of you have any idea what's going on? The three of us were out on the battlefield and suddenly everyone around us just dropped."
"We thought this mist was just the gunpowder smoke but when everyone collapsed and didn't move, we figured something bad was up," Connor added.
After being filled in by Laura of their working theory, Stephen crossed his arms, "You guys don't think the Fomorians are up to this, do you? Or could it be one of the Twilight fey again?"
Kristen shook her head and shivered at the static gloom around them which began to spread even more and dim the sunlight above. "Maybe, but this is high powered magic and it's got a very sinister feel to it."
It was at that moment, Quinton straightened up and looked around, "Hey guys... we've got a little problem. Where is Noelle?"
His question was answered as the knights and their allies spotted the forms of several spriggan warriors in the fog. The Fomorian foot soldiers seemed to be examining the area and looking over the forms of the sleeping townspeople. While it was strange that they weren't trying to hurt any civilians or cause destruction, their presence definitely signaled trouble.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing there?" Laura shouted in an attempt to get the enemy's attention or possibly intimidate them.
To the Knights' continued surprise, the spriggans stopped and turned tail when they saw the knights. Instead of charging forward and attacking, the evil fey soldiers fell back and began to flee the scene. Stephen slipped on his magic archer's bracer, "Come on! Let's follow them!"
"Hold it," Kristen cautioned them, "They could be drawing you into a trap."
Connor frowned and shook his head, "We have to take that chance. We still have to find Noelle and she might be in trouble. Come on everyone!"
The two Druids watched in dismay as the four young knights sprinted off into the mists and pursued the fleeing spriggans to wherever they were going.
At the other side of the forest preserve, Morgana smiled as she snapped her fingers and summoned one more group of spriggan warriors to do her bidding. By now, Noelle had stopped stirring the enchanted pond and stood in horror at what she had done. Whatever she had helped do, she had spread a curse over Somerset Valley and even as she helplessly stood there, the spriggan warriors nearby paid her little mind.
"What have you done? What is all this about?" the Autumn Knight demanded.
The witch glanced to her laconically, "What you have done my dear Autumn Knight is help to play into my larger plan. Once these spriggans lure your little friends here, all the pieces will be in place."
"They won't help you," Noelle challenged her, "And neither will I. I've fulfilled my part of the bargain. Now I'm free."
"That's very true," Morgana smiled, "But you'll find that I can still be very persuasive when I want to be."
Soon enough, the other knights emerged from the thick fog chasing the spriggan scouts back to their gathering point. Upon reaching the misty meadow, they halted in surprise at the sight of Noelle, Leanansidhe, and a pack of spriggan troops gathering around waiting for them.
"Noelle! What's going on here? Are you okay?" Connor shouted in alarm as he took a fighting stance against the other spriggans.
"I'm okay, but something strange is going on here and Morgana is responsible," Noelle called back, "Until we figure it out, I can't fight... not unless I want to risk you guys getting harmed!"
Morgana smirked, "My promise applied only to you my dear. I never made any provision for the others taking up arms."
"Holy crap! Did Noelle make some kind of deal with that witch?" Stephen gasped as he worked to put the pieces together.
"We'll worry about that later," Laura called as she raised her own ring, "If Morgana and her flunkies want a fight with us, then that's good enough for me!"
"Athru!" the four called as they instantly summoned their faerie armor and weapons to do battle.
The spriggan guards charged forward and locked in battle with the knights to slow them down while Morgana turned to Noelle and raised a glowing hand. The Autumn Knight turned in shock at the sudden move by the witch before she was completely blindsided by a spell burst of blue and purple energy. As the knights tangled with the spriggans, they watched in horror as Noelle limply collapsed to the ground and rematerialized into a ball of light which was absorbed in a little glass bauble.
Noelle's comrades all gave a furious shout as Stephen shot down several foes with his Silver bow while Connor and Quinton battered a few other spriggans out of the way with fierce slashes. As she agilely slipped around her own spriggan enemy and slashed him down, Laura turned and began to lead a charge toward Morgana but the fey witch waved her hand.
Before the knights could even react, the witch called down a powerful volley of fey lightning from above and blasted all the knights backward. Having absorbed the full shock of running into a wall of volatile energy, the four knights dropped to the grass while their protective armor dispelled. Morgana smiled in delight as she gingerly stepped forward across the smoking battlefield to loom over the stunned heroes.
From where he lay in the dirt, Connor groaned and rolled over struggling to regain his senses. His vision was temporarily blurred from the bright lightning and his limbs felt numb all over from the thunder's shocking power. In spite of his pain, the Summer Knight was able to crawl to his knees as Morgana stood over him triumphantly. He struggled again and sensed the witch bending down to his level. To his surprise and disgust, she reached out and touched his cheek before drawing back in amusement. "You're still trying to struggle... very impressive for a mere mortal."
"Ah gee, you're really hurting my feelings here," Connor groaned sarcastically.
Leanansidhe, or rather the entity inhabiting his friend's body fixed him with a wicked smile, "Come now Summer Knight... or should I call you Connor? There's no need for such hostility. I'm waiting here to speak to you."
"To me? Why do you want to talk to me?" he sputtered.
Morgana rose to her feet and paced idly, "Perhaps because you have a stronger connection to my student Leanansidhe... the girl you once called Leanne MacClure. And because I need you to do something for me."
"Forget it. How about I torch you with some Summer Fire instead."
A flash of anger crossed the witch's features and she immediately clamped down on Connor's throat with an iron grip before tossing him to the ground again. Speaking in Morgana's voice she said "That would not be wise my dear knight... not unless you want to harm your friend Leanne... or save your friend Noelle."
"What are you getting at Morgana?"
The witch idly paced around Connor again, "If you must know... I've lost something very important... and without it, I am weak. I believe you and your companions are strong enough and capable enough of retrieving it for me."
"You think we're going to help you get something to make you more powerful? Are you out of your freaking mind?" Connor retorted.
Morgana sneered, "Remember knight, I can be a dangerous enemy, but also a very powerful friend. All I'm asking is for us to make a fair exchange. You can get me something I want, and I can give you something you want."
She gestured to the small glass bauble containing Noelle's trapped essence. "After all... the Autumn Knight put herself at my mercy and made a bargain to save your life from that Redcap's spear blast. The least you could do is to return the favor to her."
Connor gasped in shock at the revelation and the truth of what really happened several weeks ago. "No... you're lying to me."
"The girl was so distraught when she thought you were going to die," Morgana cackled, "You would think she was ready to sign her very soul away to prevent that from happening. She played her part perfectly."
"So this was all an elaborate setup then..." came the voice of Laura nearby as she groaned and struggled to rise up from her own pain. Despite having been stunned, the Winter Knight forced herself to focus and assess the new situation that she had overheard, "You lured us here to force us into another bargain using Noelle and the sleeping people of town as your insurance?"
"Very perceptive my girl," Morgana smiled as she spared a moment to regard the downed Winter Knight. "Again... a pity that you're only human."
The witch turned back to Connor, "Now then... shall we come to an agreement?"
"You're going to have to humor us a little here," Connor answered with a hint of defiance, "You know... twirl your mustache a little and tell us what your nefarious plan is first?"
Morgana sneered at him and gave a sigh, "I was once in possession of a powerful staff... the staff of Morrigan. On that staff was a magic orb which shattered into many pieces and was cast to the winds. I need you knights to recover one of the shards for me."
"And where would that be?" Laura asked.
"I have learned that one of the pieces was recently discovered in the Faerie Realm... in a region of Spring, a sacred place known as the Mistmeadows."
"I assume there's a catch here?" Connor prompted with a skeptical look.
Morgana nodded, "I understand the ones who found the shard are a group of mortal zealots who worship nature. They are known as the Order of the Briar Circle and I suppose you can consider them extremist Druids. They guard a sacred meadow which has grown around some old ruins and I believe they have likely hidden the shard somewhere there."
"Why do you need us to get it?" Laura asked, "Can't you do it yourself?"
Morgana shook her head, "No. They have placed powerful wards and protections to prevent us fey from coming near the area. You four however, are humans and should not be affected by the zealots' defenses."
Connor wrinkled his nose, "So you're asking us to trespass, break into some ruins, and steal something from a bunch of wacko eco-terrorists?"
"Do we have a deal?" Morgana asked with a smile as she extended her hand, "I will guarantee the safety of your Autumn Knight and the townspeople until you return and we make the exchange."
Laura grimaced as she turned to her comrade, "I don't like this Connor. I know we have to help Noelle... but I have a bad feeling about this."
The Summer Knight thought it over for a long minute before nodding, "I agree to your terms Morgana. I will return the shard of that orb to this very meadow when it is time to make an exchange... and we'll do it peacefully."
"Agreed!" Morgana smiled as she clasped Connor's hand and sealed the deal.
She gave another laugh and walked off into the enchanted fog to keep watch over the people as Quinton and Stephen began to wake up and come to. As they helped their friends up, Laura cast a concerned glance over to Connor, "You made a deal with Morgana... I hope you know what you're getting yourself into."
The Summer Knight nodded grimly, "Trust me... I know what I'm doing. Besides, I owe it to Noelle. Right now, we have to focus on helping her and getting that shard back. If we're going to do that, we're going to need some help from Kristen... and there's no time to waste."
A/N:
Sorry for the little delay on this story everyone. I had been on kind of a roll with my other current series but now it's time to strap in and make a strong effort to catch up with this again. Thanks for the patience, oh and bonus points to whoever caught the PR:RPM joke. I've been waiting forever to use it. ;)