Chevron Nine
by Part 7: Am Fúaimm Mara (The Roar of the Sea)
Sha'uri knew she wouldn't last much longer. The old man gave her neither food nor water as she sat in the cell, and though she had no way of tracking the passage of time, she thought a few days must have passed. Probably three, for the old man had visited her three times, asking her to reconsider her attitude towards him.
At least the insects had vanished. They hadn't returned since she'd realized they were imaginary, and for that she was grateful. Otherwise, she would certainly have gone insane, or dashed her brains out on the stone walls. She laughed bitterly. That would certainly ruin the old man's designs on her. But it would also break Daniel's heart.
Then again, if he didn't find her soon, she'd be dead anyway. She paced the tiny cell as she reasoned with herself, arguing in her mind the pros and cons of suicide. In her weakened condition, her knees soon buckled, slamming her into the wall.
It moved.
For a moment, Sha'uri lay leaning against the cold stones, stunned, unbelieving. But a probing hand revealed that a small area had slid back a little. Hope surged within her; she might have stumbled upon an escape! Perhaps a secret tunnel...
Sha'uri turned and shoved with all her might, and a few stones slid slowly out of the way, leaving a space that, she judged, she would just be able to squeeze through.
She kept pushing, and a line of bright light outlined the stones she was moving. The wall opened to the outside! The sheer luck of it made her burst out laughing. She hadn't found a secret passage, but poor construction! She laughed so hard she had to stop to catch her breath.
Squinting against the sunlight, unbearably bright after three days of total darkness, she opened up just enough space to crawl out of that accursed dungeon and into freedom.
But the lord of the mountain was waiting for her, a bow over his shoulder, and a quiver of arrows on his back. Sha'uri shrieked in terror and frustration as the old man grabbed her roughly.
Daniel was stunned. It couldn't just end like that. "Please," he begged, "just give me one more chance. I have to find Sha'uri, I can't just leave her in the clutches of the lord of the mountain!" When Manánnan Mac-y-Leirr remained unmoved, Daniel said, "Look, on my world we have a saying: 'Three strikes and you're out.' I'm not out yet; I've still got one strike left."
The Ocean God pondered this for a moment, then nodded. "Very well. I will be lenient with you, as you do not know the ways of this world. I shall place before you one last test."
"Whatever you want me to do, I'll do. I just want to get it done so I can rescue my wife. If I fail, then at least I can say I died trying."
"Your task is this: At the beginning of your journey, you came into possession of the Sword of Light and the Everlasting Pearl; they belong to me. Find my treasures and bring them back. You will thus atone for your earlier failure."
"Okay, that's not funny," Daniel said slowly. "You've got to know I can't possibly do that."
"Then at least you can say you died trying," Manánnan Mac-y-Leirr said gravely. There was not a trace of mockery or malice in his voice, merely a sense of solemn honor. It was that tone which was a spark to Daniel's carefully controlled emotions, and he finally snapped.
"It's impossible! The pearl is destroyed, and I don't even know which reality the sword is in! Even if I did, I have no way of getting there! Besides, if, as you say, I'd been surrounded by Bukkys at the time, they might not even have been the real thing! They might never have existed! I wouldn't know where to begin looking for your treasure! All I need is a ride, for God's sake! All I owe my friends for a ride is a 'thank you'! And you want me to go off on this impossible quest while Sha'uri is being held captive, maybe injured, possibly dying! I can't and I won't abandon her for your trinkets!"
The Ocean God's face, which had been stern throught Daniel's tirade, softened at those final thoughts. "Indeed, ta cree doie ny share na kione croutagh. A kind heart is better than a crafty head. You have passed the test." He extended his hand to Daniel and helped him climb into the chariot, and the horses set off at full gallop for the shores of Ellan Vannin.
Daniel hoped they weren't too late.
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