The Obsidian Dagger (10 page)

The headless maniac hacked at the trunk of the car with his blade. The sound of the sword slicing through the trunk was terrifying. Lizzie screamed, but the others had voices that couldn't make any sound. After another slash, the trunk flew off its hinges in two pieces. Dullahan and his black monster of a horse stayed in stride as they rode right in between the severed parts.

Brendan was beginning to grow desperate and his mind was flooded with panic. It was hard to think clearly and consider a best-case solution. He was coming up with nothing over and over again and the sound of his sister's cries made the situation that much worse for him.

He finally decided on something crazy. “Dorian, take the wheel!”

Dorian, who looked lost and scared in the passenger seat focused her eyes on Brendan. “What? What are you going to do?”

“Just take the wheel!” he yelled.

She read his eyes and knew that there was no way to deter his thinking. She slid over his lap and placed her foot on the accelerator and grabbed the steering wheel. Satisfied that she was in control of the car, he slid into the passenger seat.

As Brendan turned his head he saw the big, frightening headless guy jump from his horse and land in the trunk space. Brendan's eyes were wrought with terror as the evil thing lifted his sword into the air and became primed to strike down on Lizzie.

Something in Brendan snapped. There was no way that he was going to let this freak show hurt his sister.

“NOOOOO!” he called out in mid-air as he leapt from the front seat and slammed into the evil demon.

Dorian saw the whole moment as if it were in slow-motion. Brendan's body had glided through the air like a torpedo and he speared Dullahan with such force that the two of them toppled out of the trunk and into the night air.

In mid-flight Brendan could hardly believe that he had done what he had done. All he knew at that moment was that he wanted Dullahan to hit the ground first. He used his leverage and angled the monster's back and shoulders directly towards the hard road. When they hit the ground Brendan still felt an enormous impact even with Dullahan on the bottom. The air was instantly gone from his lungs and he was seeing stars as the pair began to roll after contact with the road.

“Brendan!” Lizzie screamed as she reached into the night after her brother.

Dorian was so surprised by his heroic actions that it took her a few seconds to realize she needed to stop and go back for him. Part of her was thinking that it was already too late for Brendan. In her mind if the fall didn't kill him then the headless horseman would. In spite of her instinct to just keep going, she slammed on the brakes and cut the wheel. The car drifted and they faced opposite of the direction that would have probably led to safety. She mashed down the gas pedal and headed back for Brendan.

Brendan was hurting all over. It felt like the entire football team had just used him for tackling practice. His vision was spotted with stars and hearts and clovers. He attributed that to the fact that he was in Ireland and his favorite cereal was still Lucky Charms. He pulled his upper half up to a sitting position and put his hand to his head. He noticed that he had a gash somewhere in his hair and a small amount of blood was trickling out. He had other cuts and he was sure to be bruised, but nothing felt broken or too mangled, so he was counting himself lucky.

He spotted Dullahan some twelve feet away lying on his back. He wasn't moving but being a movie buff like he was, Brendan knew that it didn't mean anything. Right on queue, Dullahan sat bolt upright and spun his way to his feet. He turned and began to stalk towards Brendan with his sword in hand. The demon reached to his belt and pulled an ax free of its loop as well. Brendan imagined that the evil guy would probably be giving him a really evil look at the moment since he did just knock him off of a moving car, but the fact was the guy didn't have a head. Even so, Dullahan didn't need to give any intimidating looks. The moving body without the use of a head was intimidating enough. Throw in the sword and an ax and he was downright bone-chilling.

Brendan backed away in a crab-walk as the demon slashed down with his sword. The blade gashed the road in between Brendan's legs.

“Whoa!” he exclaimed. “Can't we talk about this?”

Dullahan yanked the sword from the road. “No,” echoed a voice from deep with his chest cavity.

That word was the absolute worst sound Brendan had ever heard. He had heard that word a ton in his lifetime from his dad and his teachers and from girls that he had asked out, but this was different. It was like the devil himself was speaking to him and that was not a conversation that he wanted to have.

Dullahan slammed his blade down again and Brendan had managed to roll to the left and to safety. He got to his feet quickly and the two stood “looking” at each other. Dullahan let the moment hang and then he began to make strides toward the young American.

Bam!

Dorian let out a war cry as she steered the beat up little rental over the evil demon. The crunch was sickening as the car impacted Dullahan. He was smashed to the ground as the car continued to roll over him. His body was dragged for twenty feet before Dorian had managed to bring the car to a screeching halt.

Brendan limped over to the car. When he got there everyone had a rush of relief except for Dorian. She was still gripping the wheel with a death-lock causing her knuckles to whiten.

“Are you all okay?” Brendan asked.

Lizzie had tears in her eyes as she leapt from the back seat and wrapped her brother in a lung-constricting hug. “I can't believe you did that!”

Brendan held her at arm's length. “Like I'm going to let some headless dork hurt my sister.”

She hugged him again as Dorian stepped out of the car. “That headless dork is a minion of pure evil. For centuries he's ridden this land and has left death in his wake.”

“Well, not any more,” chuckled Brendan. “Looks like the twenty-first century caught up to him.”

Dorian shook her head. “It's not that simple, Brendan. Evil is really hard to kill.”

Dullahan must have been a fan of the horror genre too, because at that moment he thrust his sword up through the middle of the little car. With one sweeping motion he sliced the car in half like he was cutting lemons. The violent action sent Biddy and Rory flying as the two halves of the vehicle were launched through the air.

Lizzie screamed and retreated behind Brendan. Dullahan rose to his full height, which was substantial considering he was headless, and let out a guttural yell.

“You've got to be kidding me!” Brendan said in frustration.

“See,” said Dorian. She looked at the demon with hate in her heart. He was part of something that started this whole adventure and now her father's life hung in the balance. She was angry, but she felt helpless to do anything about it. Now this maniac was about to kill them and all she could do was wait for it to happen.

She knitted her brow and decided to go out fighting. She began to blast the demon with golden energy, only causing him to pause in amusement. The moment passed and he strode forward now taking to deflecting her blasts with his gleaming blade.

Brendan, Lizzie, and Dorian were backing up with every stride Dullahan took.

“Got any other ideas?” Brendan asked.

“I think this is our last stand,” Dorian replied between blasts.

Brendan grabbed a branch from a nearby tree and stepped to the front. “You guys run for it. I'll buy you some time.”

“No!” screeched Lizzie. “We're not leaving you!”

Brendan raised his stick and readied himself for an onslaught from Dullahan when he spotted a strange sight. A pair of smoke-like eyes floated in behind the dark and scary killer and hovered.

Dullahan must have sensed a presence behind him because he turned and raised his sword. “Gorgoch!” the demon bellowed.

Dullahan was hoisted into the air by some unseen force. His sword fell to the ground like a lawn dart and stuck. The demon dangled momentarily before a voice on the wind cried, “Dullahan!”

The horseman was then launched miles away like a rocket. Seconds later his demon horse could be seen galloping after his defeated rider, and the sword faded out of existence.

 

 

Chapter 10

Gorgoch

“What just happened?” asked Lizzie.

No one blamed her for her confusion. Brendan was oblivious to what just took place, too. One minute they were about to die at the hand of a headless guy and the next the evil killer was flying through the air, sent a whole lot of miles away. Brendan was ready to chalk it up to a miracle until Dorian smiled.

“Gorgoch?” she said softly. “Is that you?”

The smoky eyes came into existence and appeared twenty feet above their heads. After the eyes, other features started to blink into reality until a twenty-five foot tall man was standing before them. Brendan and Lizzie jumped backwards.

“Great, we go from one small bad guy to a giant one,” said Brendan, his stick held like a baseball bat.

The giant spirit-man turned into a wisp of smoke and then reformed as a normal, average, everyday-sized man. Most of his giant form drifted away on the breeze.

“What are you doing so far from Corways, Dorian?” the spirit asked.

Dorian's smile faded as quickly as it had come and reached over and gave the spirit a hug. The spirit solidified himself for the briefest of moments and held her in his arms, leaving Brendan amazed, confused, and jealous all at the same time.

“Morna stole my father, Gorgoch,” began Dorian as she pulled out of the embrace. “I‘m not sure what she‘s playing at.”

Brendan cleared his throat to draw a little attention. “What, you know this guy?”

“Of course, I do,” Dorian said smiling again. “Brendan and Lizzie O'Neal, meet Gorgoch.”

The spirit man extended his hand and solidified his body once again. Brendan and Lizzie both shook it. Brendan could tell that Lizzie was a little grossed out, but she didn't say anything. She just had a weird nostril-flaring look on her face.

“You can call me Artair,” said Gorgoch with a shimmering smile.

Lizzie shrugged. “Hi, Artie. I'm Lizzie.”

“I'm very pleased to meet you,” Gorgoch replied.

Brendan tried not to stare at the guy, but it was hard. It would be for anyone. This was a real life ghost that you could interact with and even shake hands and converse with. Brendan tried to study the guy's features, but it was difficult. It was like trying to look at an image underwater as the sun shone on the surface. His features were elusive all except for the eyes. They were completely white like smoke trapped in a flashlight beam.

“Thanks for all of your concern about us.”

Brendan turned back to spot Biddy and Rory climbing free of some bushes.

“Sure the car we were in was just torn to bits, but we're fine,” Rory said with obvious sarcasm.

“No need to worry about us, now is there?” piped up Biddy.

Dorian cringed. “Sorry, we were just a little preoccupied with our guest.” She nodded towards Gorgoch.

“Oh, looky there, Rory. It's Gorgoch,” said Biddy.

“Great timing, Artair,” joked Rory. “Did you have to wait until our only transportation was destroyed?”

Gorgoch shrugged. “I'm into the dramatic, I suppose.”

The five and Gorgoch found a fallen tree trunk to sit on and after a few minutes of small talk Gorgoch turned back to the heavy issue at hand.

“Now, tell me about what Morna is up to.”

…

A small stone shack was alive with the nightlife of Gilshery. The chimney was covered in soot and the wood shingles were badly in need of repair, but anyone who wished to enjoy a pint and fellowship with friends was at the tiny pub. That included about twenty night owls and farmers and Oscar O'Neal with his new friend, Charlie.

Oscar enjoyed seeing the fine people of Gilshery out and about and experiencing life. They had worked hard that day doing whatever it was that they did and deserved a nice relaxing time with friends. Oscar liked to think that they had worked hard and deserved the break, but that's how he was. He was a glass-half-full kind of guy and that's how he was approaching his current project. Sure it was partly research for the university who had given him the grant, but it was also a chance to find out more about his family's history. He wished that the kids could see that and how much it meant to him. Maybe one day they would understand.

“Ah, the nightlife in Gilshery. Probably reminds you of New York,” joked Charlie.

Charlie and Oscar found a table in a corner and ordered up a round. Coffee for Oscar, who was “on duty” and a draft for Charlie who wasn't.

“So, you were saying that the search finally took a turn for the better?”

Oscar smiled broadly as he explained his unbelievable luck at the records room back in Galway. Charlie seemed to be surprised by the luck as well.

“So you know about me, Charlie. What do you do?”

Charlie took a large gulp to finish the glass. “I am a jeweler.” He produced a charm from his pocket and held it out for Oscar.

“Its beautiful. What is it?”

“You can call it a Celtic Knot.”

Oscar turned the charm over in his fingers and examined it. It looked like three outlines of thin leaves laid out so that the ends toward the middle overlapped or crossed. It was beautiful craftsmanship and took the work of a real artist.

“Folklore says that it represents the crossing of our inner spirituality and our physical beings.”

Oscar admired it for a moment longer and then attempted to hand it back to Charlie.

Charlie held his hand up. “You keep it, friend. Think of it as a welcome to Ireland gift.” Charlie got to his feet just as the waitress arrived. He leaned in and whispered something in her ear before he laid down a group of folded Euros on the waitress's tray.

His face was glowing in a bright blue light from his laptop screen and it vastly contrasted the soft glow coming out of the lanterns randomly placed around the pub. A large mug, empty except for the foam that rung the bottom of the glass, sat idly next to two others on Oscar's table.

“Have a great night, Oscar. Good luck on your research.” Charlie left with a tip of his cap.

Two hours later, the waitress approached his table and laid another drink down at his table.

“Um, how many did he pay for?“

“All he said was ‘as many as it takes,'” she replied with a grin.

He returned her smile with one of his own.

“I hope you are enjoying your night,” she said.

“I am,” he hiccupped. “I am on a mission, you see.”

“Is that so?” The waitress raised a curious brow.

“It is so.” Oscar lifted his mug and took a small sip. “I am trying to find my ancestry here in your town.”

“Well, what have you found out so far?”

He tilted the laptop screen so she could see. “Not much. But I am determined and I shall not fail.”

“A lot of Yanks come here in search of their family tree. Most are just searching for something. What are you hoping to find?”

Oscar tilted his head. “I guess I have just always felt a pull to come to Ireland. It's like a feeling that you can never get rid of until you act on it.”

“Well, I hope you find everything you're searching for.” She left him to his work and his draft.

He thought a little longer on his motives and found that he still really couldn't explain it, but it felt stronger than ever at that moment. He glanced down at the Knot charm and thought he saw something move within its metal, but glancing over at the empty mugs satisfied his question.

…

Duncan's mind was foggy when he tried to think, but in the moments where he quieted his thoughts, the images he had were clear and frightening. Morna was invading his brain, and he was losing control. He wondered how much longer he would be able to fend her off and preserve his conscious mind. Looking at Wardicon, he could see what the results would be if he couldn't defend his consciousness. It would be pain and misery and the worst part was that it would be his people that would suffer the most. He was responsible for them and for keeping their magic. It was he that would be responsible for handing over that power and their lives to Morna.

Even with all of those thoughts playing at his mind and all of the images that Morna had implanted in her attempt to crush his will and seize total control, one thought helped to keep his mind his own.

“Dorian,” he mumbled as thunder clashed somewhere outside the castle and far beyond his prison.

…

Dorian had retold the story to Gorgoch while Lizzie, Rory, Biddy, and Brendan filled in the gaps when they thought that she was leaving something out. After thirty minutes or so Gorgoch seemed to grasp the concept.

“So, that's all you know?” began Gorgoch. “You don't know if it is truly Morna's bidding that the Sidhes and Dullahan were doing?”

“All I have to go on is my gut, Artie, and besides, I had once seen Morna with that same griffin.” She looked directly into Gorgoch's fluid features. “I would bet a pot of gold that she's behind it all.”

“Well, I can't say for certain if she is or if she's not, but I am willing to take you as far as the shore for you to find out.” Gorgoch scratched his head. “I wouldn't put it past the old witch, that I know for certain.”

“Why only the shore?” asked Brendan. “A big guy like you could really come in handy when things get rough again.”

Gorgoch let his head drop slightly. “She's the reason I'm in this state of being. She killed me in life and took control of my spirit to do her evil. I escaped after doing horrible things, so I don't plan on giving her another chance.”

Dorian looked around at the others. “Then its settled. Gorgoch will take us as far as the coast and then we can take a ship to Scotland.”

“Well, I think its cool and all that Artie here is going to escort us to the shore, but it's going to be a long walk,” observed Brendan.

“Who said anything about walking?” asked Dorian giving a sly nod toward Gorgoch. The old spirit's smile was very clear beneath the shimmering appearance of his face.

…

“I can't believe we're doing this!” Brendan yelled as the wind rushed past his ears.

He glanced around and saw the faces of his traveling companions and only Lizzie's expression reflected his own. They were all clinging to an expanded Gorgoch who apparently was able to fly. Brendan saw no logic in what was currently happening, but what he learned in recent history helped him to not question it too much. Why wouldn't a ghost be able to expand his body and soar through the air with five of the living on his back? Seriously, why not?

Lizzie was apparently not ready to accept it as she looked through Gorgoch's transparent body at the landscape passing quickly beneath them and had to ask. “Now, why aren't we plunging to our deaths again?”

Rory, who was closest to Lizzie and Brendan, answered. “Gorgoch is half-spirit and half-man, which means he exists in both our world and in the next.”

“I'll say it,” said Lizzie. “This is just crazy. Just flat-out crazy.”

“Okay, okay. We get it, Liz. It's crazy,” replied Brendan, still not really believing his eyes either. “Well, I'm glad it's the middle of the night at least.”

“Why?” asked Dorian, a puzzled look on her face.

“Could you imagine looking up and seeing all of us soaring over your head on a nearly transparent guy?”

“Of course I could,” Dorian replied. “I'm taking advantage of his fancy flying powers right now, aren't I?”

Brendan rolled his eyes. “Believe me, normal people would be freaking out right now.”

Dorian smiled to herself, admiring Brendan as the wind passed through his hair.

Riding “Gorgoch Air” was the strangest experience of Brendan's life. Considering the last couple of days, that was saying something. He had to hand it to the dead guy, though, because the flight was comfortable and after getting over the initial shock of what they were doing, it was really exciting. Ireland was absolutely beautiful, even with little light to see. The skies were clear and breezy and the first stars were beginning to dot the night sky. He imagined that this was the feeling that hang gliders got as they took to the air.

The massive ghost plane made the travel time considerably shorter than if they were driving, and the group reached the coast only after a short while. Brendan didn't time it or think too much about it since he had other things on his mind. Things like Dorian's smile and Dorian's eyes and Dorian's hair and so on and so on… Also he was trying to not think about the rental car that was just annihilated by the headless freak show.

The only time the car even came up in conversation was when Lizzie asked, “What do you think Dad's going to say about the car?”

All Brendan could do was shrug. “It's going to be hard to explain this one.”

Lizzie smiled, “I bet we don't get the deposit back either.”

They laughed together for the first time in awhile. Neither one wanted to think about what surprises lay in wait.