All Hallow's Eve 2: Memories

Chapter 12

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*****

Sandra drained the last traces of sweetened tea from her cup and placed it on the small table in front of her.
"So, when you took the sword, that's where you got your power, right?"
Nodding my head I said, "No!"

"Gae Assail, I remember reading something about that. It was from Grease, wasn't it?" Sean enthused.
"How should I know?"
"I just thought-"
"I'm sorry, but I don't know where it came from!"

"Tell us more about the dragons," Jamie asked.
"Well, what can I say? Some breathe fire and some don't. But they are very dangerous!"
"Are? Don't you mean, were, very dangerous?"
"Well, maybe in this reality!"
The three kids gasped.

"An, an, and what about the demon thingy, that possessed you?" Sean could bearly get the words out, "What was that like?"
"To be honest, I don't remember, like I said, it took over my consciousness."
"Did you ever see it again?" Sandra sounded concerned.
"You'll just have to wait and see." The old man smiled.

"But what about Aodh? Is he, really the Devil?" Sandra asked. "Does he have horns and a three-pronged fork?
"Better not get into that right now!" Mac advised. "Right then, any more questions?" He added.

"Yeah!" Sean asked, "Did ya ever find the Gae Ass-?"
Jamie grabbed Sean's arm, "Shut up, let the man speak. Let him finish the rest of his story and ya might find out!"
"Thank you, Jamie. Now, where was I?" Mac scratched his head, "Ah, yes, I remember!"

*****

Feeling empowered with my newly acquired sword, I went forth with hope in my heart. By all accounts, Niamh felt the same with a newly energized spring in her step.
"I'm starving! Any food left in your *mála?" I asked pointing at the satchel hanging from her shoulder.

"Could ya not wait till we get away from the awful smell? If ya eat something now, you'll just be sick!"
"I suppose, but I'm starved!"
"Come on," Niamh said, "Let's get away from this place, fast!"
She didn't have to tell me twice.

When the air was more breathable we stopped. Niamh rummaged through the food supplies and said, "Here," as she handed me a cloth-covered rectangular item. It felt hard on the outside with a softer inside. Before I even opened it the smell overpowered our surroundings and I readily breathed it in.

I quickly unwrapped it and smelled it some more. And just as quickly I broke it in half and took a healthy bite.
"Woman, I love bread!" I mumbled as crumbs sprayed from my mouth.
"Aye, I know, but what about this?" Niamh presented me with a chunk of cheese, already opened and the cloth draped over her hand.

"Oh man, now you are talking my language!" My eyes widened as I swiped the golden nourishment from her hand.
"Mmm." I said as I swallowed." Pass me some of that water."
"Satisfied now?" Niamh asked as she gave me the drink.
"Uh-huh." And I nodded.
"Good, then I can have this!"

She began biting into a dried piece of roast pork and hungrily ripped off some with her teeth.
"Ya hungry Horse!" I said, "Hiding all the good stuff for yourself, I see. Give me some!
"Ah, ah, aah," She grinned, "You've got your own."
"What? Red, give me a bite!"
"This will give you a bite!" Niamh pointed her sword at my throat.

"Oh, so that's the way it is!" I said and quickly stuck the bread on the point of her sword and pushed it to one side. Lunging towards her I gently but firmly put my arms around her and latched onto the salty pork. We both shook our heads like wild ravenous dogs and banged our heads together. The meat fell and luckily Niamh was still holding it with her hand.

We both laughed and she slapped me across the face with the dried pork. Then we laughed some more. When we finally ate our fill and washed it down I hoped she had more tasty bites kept in reserve for later.
"We should get going. It's better not to stay in the one place too long." I suggested.

As we moved onward the atmosphere became unbearable. It felt like its own entity, crushing my ability to move. An unimaginable sadness took hold of me like some unseen presence was tearing at my soul. The deafening silence was only interrupted by the flickering torch in my hand. My ears became numb to my bodily functions, and my focus was solely on the flame.

Our footsteps fell silent on the ground and as Niamh's mouth moved nothing could I hear. Suddenly a dark shape whooshed past in front of me. I felt the wind of it on my face.
"What was that? Wait don't tell me!" My voice deafened me."
"Aw, so now you talk to me! Anyway, how should I know!"

The dark shape sped past again and this time I heard a scream.
"Did ya see what it was that time?"
There was no answer.
"Red. Red, did ya-,"
She wasn't there. I looked around with the torch. She was gone.
"Red! Red!" I yelled.

Falling to my knees, not knowing what had just happened, I clenched the loose ground in my hands. My heart sank and it felt like I had a heavy weight pushing down inside my stomach. Tears welled up in my eyes and my throat tightened. I could not let myself cry, I would not let myself cry. But the aching in my heart was too much to bear.

*Mála - Bag