Day 16 of Midwinter, Nightfall

At Sea, Straits of Segais

Annwn

I had heard about Nuada’s grand new naval flagship, the Seodra Nuada. Of course, I had intentionally avoided the christening ceremony. It had been so far away… and I had been so busy.

My mantra had always been to avoid stupid, self-important people and their self-important things, hoping that one day they would cease to exist. But even with all my intentional apathy, I had still heard about the ridiculously gaudy ship and its ostentatious figurehead.

The carved man on the bow of the ship was apparently supposed to be King Nuada. I’d heard it looked a lot more like his brother Lir, which some considered to be intentional since Lir had historically been the leader of Murias.

Whoever it was, the figurehead held a gigantic sword, meant to represent Claíomh Solais, the king’s mighty “Sword of Light.” What a bunch of dumb and self-aggrandizing nonsense. They should have stuck with either a mermaid, a barmaid, or a handmaid. That’s some classy chet.

The plan seemed to have worked. A murmured conversation had been followed by the sensation of the crate being picked up and carried from Hullraiser. Before long, I’d felt the thud of the crate land in its new home aboard the navy ship. After what felt like hours, the ship had quieted.

To pass the time, I had gone into another trance. Back-to-back trances were not my usual practice, but it did help to pass the time. In doing so, I was able to look more closely into the fluctuation of the weave I had seen at the tail end of my last trance. Based on the flow of magical energy in the area, I had been able to see enough to know that someone or something powerful was close by. Now that I looked closer, I could see it was both a someone AND a something.

A very clear Tuatha signature was visible in the flowing of the weave. I wasn’t surprised, given the flagship was so close to Hullraiser. Only a relative of Nuada would be allowed to command the Jewel, after all. But the interesting part was realizing that whoever was on board the flagship also carried what had to be a relic-level magical item. The two patterns of energy were close to one another, yet distinctly different.

I couldn’t see the color differences of magical energies the way that some could. But I could see the pulse and movement of the weave as it changed based on the beat of a person’s heart, and the static nature of item magic.

I racked my brain for what I knew about the four treasures. The Sword of Light was with Nuada. According to Nemain, the spear was with Cai, and I knew the Stone had been destroyed during the battle of Brú na Dallta. That left only the Cauldron unaccounted for.

Was it possible that the relic that had been stolen from The Dagda could be on this very vessel? If so, that changed my plans slightly. Gorias was owed justice for the loss of her treasure.

My mind spinning, I waited as long as I could stand before beginning to extract myself from my square prison. I hadn’t heard voices for what felt like days. And though I had no idea exactly how much time had passed, I assumed it had been nowhere near that long.

The false bottom of the crate dislodged with much less effort than I had anticipated, and I did my best to silently shift the booty that remained on top of the hidden space as I made my way up to the true lid. I quietly cracked open the top to find that I was in a reasonably lit and well-furnished room. Given the spaciousness of the room and the obvious quality of the furniture, I realized I must be in the Commander’s quarters… not what I was expecting.

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From my vantage point, I couldn’t quite see the entire room, but based on the reflections from the various mirrors and glass surfaces, I judged it to be empty. Quickly, I hopped out of the crate and re-fixed the bottom so that it looked the same as it had before my escape. If Scolt and Salka had kept my secret, I would keep theirs.

The room felt warm and lived-in, with the air of nobility that the Tuatha had become accustomed to. Red-lacquered dressers and a writing desk lined one interior wall, separated by a large map of Annwn. The red velvet blankets that covered the bed matched the color and pattern of the area rugs that littered the floor. The exterior wall had three large porthole-shaped windows dressed up by lacy white curtains.

On the desk, I found papers stamped with the personal seal of King Nuada. I pocketed them quickly without looking at them before I continued my scan of the room. My eyes fell on the bed again, and I drew in a shocked breath. It appeared the room wasn’t empty after all.

I immediately recognized the sleeping young man under the velvet covers as the baby-faced Ogma, brother of Nuada, and god of the knowledge domain. With his short, curly hair and his lack of facial hair, he was almost identical to his nephew, Manannán. Ogma, however, had less tone to his muscles and a softness that screamed more “life of luxury” than “battle-hardened warrior.” I wondered if that was why he typically wore more clothes than the Son of the Sea.

Ogma lay asleep in the plush bed that belonged to his tyrant brother. He appeared to have dozed off while reading, as a book lay propped on his chest and the lantern on the nearby desk remained lit.

His right hand was beneath the covers, but in his left hand, he clutched a small black and gold object. I couldn’t believe it. There, directly in front of me, was the missing Cauldron of Plenty!

My Silverwhite blades glinted in the lantern light as I instinctively swung my wrists to loosen them. But I paused. What was I to do here? The cauldron was so close. I wouldn’t even have to reach across Ogma’s body to grab it.

But if I did, would the boy-god awaken and cause difficulty for me? Would he start yelling for help? It wasn’t as though I could kill him, nor did I want to. What sort of magical shenanigans did this ancient adolescent have up his sleeve?

Taking a deep breath, I slid my girls back into their scabbards and thumbed the Rings of Identification.

Name: Ogma Grianainech

Race: Tuatha Dé Danann

Current Power Rank - Level 59…

The power rank notification was interrupted by a piercing pain in my belly. Looking down, I saw a bolt sticking out of my fae jack bodice just above my navel. Blood began to flow out of the wound and spill down my legs.

“Fíadan!” came the panicked voice of the boy-god, now sitting up in his bed. He dropped a tiny crossbow from his hands. “The appraisal startled me… I didn’t know it was you! I swear it!”

My eyes met his horrified gaze. His expression portrayed a mix of confusion, fear, and clear remorse…But I didn’t care.

Behind me, I could hear his words rousing the guards that were posted just outside of his door. There would be a dozen guards in the room in a matter of moments. Worse, this momentarily confused child of Danu would regain his senses soon and use all the boons of his domain against me. It was clear from his eyes that he wouldn’t try to hurt me any more than he had, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t end up his prisoner, and that thought didn’t appeal to me.

Screaming, I snatched up the cauldron he had dropped on the bed and swung it wildly. There was a resounding gong as the cauldron bounced off Ogma’s head. The boy-god fell limp, the momentum of the blow throwing him backward into the window, where the pane of glass promptly shattered.

Ogma, god of knowledge, toppled out into the night, wearing nothing but his pajamas. The satisfying splash of the water below was muffled by the sound of soldiers bursting into the chamber, swords drawn.

I felt the room begin to spin at that point, as my feet slid in the slippery blood I stood in. I turned to face the men, stepping backwards up onto the bed. The cauldron was still clutched tightly in my hands.

I wanted to reach for Swish so that I could properly defend myself, but my hands seemed to be moving in slow motion. I felt the sensation of pins and needles in each of my appendages growing as I stumbled backward to the open window before falling out into the dark water.

This time, fortunately, I would get to hear the sound of the splash. Unfortunately, the enjoyment of that splash would be short-lived, as my body and my consciousness sank into the depths.