Beyond a Darkened Shore(27)
A vein in my forehead pounded along with my heart. I had seen the destruction the j?tnar were capable of in the Morrigan’s vision, but it was still hard to accept. There were those in my own clan who whispered of the old gods, but my clan had long since converted to Christianity. To believe in them branded me a heretic, and yet I could not argue against the Morrigan’s existence.
“Why kill all those people?”
“In truth, I believed they were killing mortals for the same reason we kill livestock: to eat. But the seer thinks otherwise.”
He paused to hand me one of the rabbits, and I only picked at it though I was famished. “The seer believes it’s not so simple as that?”
“She has said that the j?tnar have grown tired of their exiled existence,” Leif said, tearing into his own rabbit with no shortage of appetite.
I looked at Leif. “The seer is a woman?”
“Most with such power are women. Are you surprised?” he added with a raised eyebrow. “The j?tnar want us to believe they want to overthrow the gods and free mankind, but the seer believes the opposite is true. They want control of Asgard and the mortal realm of Midgard—to rule the world with all humans as their subjects. Odin’s own mother is j?tnar; they believe they have a claim.”
Horror dwelled in the pit of my stomach. “And they plan to do this by slaughtering us?”
“Fear is a powerful motivator. They’ve spared the ones who have joined forces with them—they will need someone alive to worship them, after all.”
In my mind, I saw éirinn turn to ashes.
I felt colder than I ever had, as if I stood in the midst of a furious blizzard. Goose bumps erupted over my skin, and I could see this world he spoke of. Ruled by men who unleashed evil on us all.
We fell into a mutually disturbed silence.
“We shouldn’t keep watch tonight,” Leif said after some time, his voice as low as the crackling fire. “It is better if we both sleep. We’ll need our strength tomorrow.”
I shook out my cloak and covered myself with it, neck to toe, until only my head was visible. I curled up on my side, my back to the Northman. If I wasn’t too tired to care, I would undoubtedly lie awake all night, self-conscious about my close proximity to a man not of my own blood. And an enemy besides.
“You are so sure my clansmen won’t follow?” I asked.
“I never sleep deeply. You have nothing to fear.”
Why would I fear my own clansmen? I thought, but soon, sleep was upon me, washing me into a sea of darkness.
I awoke slowly, with the sensation I was being watched. It was still dark, the moon covered by clouds and the sky an endless black. The fire had died down to a small flame, and I was chilled with only my cloak to cover me. My eyes adjusted to the darker edges surrounding the dying fire, until I could make out shapes: plants near the shore, larger river rocks, and the river itself.
Movement near the water’s edge captured my attention, and I stiffened. It was a horse, as deep black in color as the night sky, its eyes reflecting the low light back to me with an eerie yellow glow.
“God save us,” I whispered, and crossed myself.
“It’s been watching us for some time now,” Leif whispered. He lay motionless, but I could see the tautness of his muscles, as though he was ready to spring to his feet.
Sleipnir pawed the ground to my left, ears pricked toward the each-uisce near the river.
“Do not stare too long into its eyes,” I warned. A chill of unease spread over me. I shifted into a crouched position as stealthily as possible.
“Does it guard the river?” Leif asked. “What brought it here?”
I shook my head as I thought of the story I had told my sisters. “I don’t know. It isn’t unheard of to see an each-uisce, but it’s rare. It’ll try to drown us to feast on our flesh. We mustn’t touch any part of it, or we’ll be ensnared upon its hide.” I glanced at Leif.
He nodded once. “How do we defeat it?”
“We can’t. We must wait for the dawn. If we try to escape now, it will only give chase.”
He snorted. “Everything can be killed. What is its weakness?”
The each-uisce took a few steps toward us, but its gaze seemed focused on our fire. It tossed its head as though frustrated. Droplets of water flew from its dripping-wet mane. It paced, more as a wild cat or wolf would do than a horse, seeking our weak point. But we had solid rock to our backs, an outcropping from a steep hillside behind us, and a fire, though dying, before us. After a moment, it released a bloodcurdling neigh, high-pitched as a scream, its frustration evident.
Then it seemed to undulate before us, its skin shivering in the night. It transformed from a slick water horse into a man of such dark beauty, even I felt his siren call. His hair was long and black, his body leanly muscular.
“Come, my beauty,” he said. “I have been waiting for you.”
A fog seemed to descend upon my mind, and I was caught in that twilight between dreams and reality.
I came to my feet, and the beautiful man held out his hand, beckoning.
The rational part of my mind commanded my legs not to move, but they did not listen. I had always considered my mind to be powerful, but as I strained and fought against the each-uisce, I quickly realized my defenses were as weak as a child’s.
I took a step forward.