Fate/Curadh Beag

Chapter 9: Progress in Galway

FATE/CURADH BEAG

"Little Champion"

Chapter 9: Progress in Galway

The late afternoon sunshine soon gave way to the dimming early evening hours, painting the sky with a gorgeous gradient of pinks, oranges and purples. The blood-red sun started to set by the time Conall and Connla reached a particular estate situated in the small hamlet of Castlegar just northeast of Galway. It had been two days since they agreed on their plan to find a sponsor for her, but now that they were finally at this nobleman's secluded home, Connla was starting to feel a strong sense of trepidation.

"Uwah," she gasped nervously.

The front gate loomed over them, and the yard between the gate and manor was populated by several large hounds possessing the meanest glares in their beady black eyes. The darkening atmosphere didn't help to ease the young girl's anxiety. Connla hid behind Conall, who didn't appear perturbed by the sight of these vicious canines. One of the dogs noticed her and started barking wildly between throaty growls, as if the animal was commanding her to leave the premises. Once one started making noise, it didn't take much for the others to howl along.

"Whoa there!" Conall exclaimed. "Usually these guys are quite docile!"

"Maybe I should go somewhere else," Connla murmured. "I don't want to make them angry or anything."

"Relax. They'll warm up to you soon enough. They're just doing their job of keeping this place safe for their owner. Speaking of which..."

The front door swung open, and an elderly man shouted at the top of his lungs, "SILENCE!"

The dogs immediately ceased their pell-mell and scattered about the grounds. The man approached the two warriors, having to take his time since he needed to use a cane to get about. He opened the gate, then said, "I'm surprised to see you here, Conall. I thought you would be busy with your training right now."

"I know, but something's come up," Conall replied sheepishly. He put a hand behind his head and muttered, "Sorry if I being unreasonable here, but I met up with this kid who says she's from Scotland, and she doesn't have anywhere to stay. Think she could crash with you for a bit?"

"Hm?" the old man mumbled and stared at Connla. "Who is she, some kind of runaway?"

"Not at all. She's a pupil of Scathach's who just arrived here from the Land of Shadows."

The old man threw his head back and laughed. "Pah hah hah hah! Don't make fun of me, boy! How can a petite waif like her be a student to that demoness!?"

"I'm not joking! She proved herself to me in combat earlier!"

"Bollocks. How could she last against one of this country's finest warriors and earn his trust so easily?"

"Oh, believe me, I had my doubts when she first said who she was, but she wound up handing my hide back to me without batting an eyelash! I dare say, if there was a way for us to travel through time, she'd give young Setanta a run for his money! If you don't believe me, sic one of your boys on her! Just don't go crying to me if you wind up losing one of your pups like you did back then! Heh heh!"

"Ghh..."

"Um," Connla murmured hesitantly. "I'm kind of lagging behind in this conversation."

"Oops, my bad," Conall smirked. "This geezer is Culann, a smith who likes to coop himself up in his workshop 24/7. If you can't tell already, he likes dogs more than even people."

"Hmph!" the old man snorted. "At least dogs aren't capable of betrayal, unlike most people I know. I swear, this country is a total mess because of that conniving harlot Medb. If we hadn't lost the Cattle Raid, I'm sure we'd still be independent from Connacht!"