Conner Macleod
A silence of profound grief sat on Conner's soul. Until now his wife of a life time had filled the silence with laughter and joy. Heather's last request had been that he should light a candle on her birthday. For four long years he had done just that. He reached out and lit a candle using another candles flame. "This is for you bonny Heather." He moved to a seat that was empty. The small country church happened to be empty right then. He tried to review his life with her. The pain of her loss still brought tears to his eyes. He prayed for her sole and rose to his feet. It was time to head South. There it would be warmer, and the memories wouldn't be so harsh.
He felt the quickening and started to draw the sword Ramirez had used. No this was holy ground and sword play was forbidden here. A tall dark young man with long dark hair stood in the doorway, His face a mask of confusion. Conner smiled.
The young man knew only that the man in front of him was the reason he was feeling this strangeness. He covered his forehead with his right palm. "Who are you?"
"I am Conner Macleod of the Clan Macleod. You wear my Tartan colors. You must be Duncan. I was about to come looking for you."
Now Duncan was even more confused than before. "How can this be. Conner is only a legend?"
Conner smiled. "You must be very new to this. I'll teach you what I know and help you learn to live."
Duncan smiled and stretched out his arms. "If your really Conner then I'm like you. I can not be killed."
The smile left Conner's face. He looked around to make sure they were alone. "You can be killed." His sword was suddenly in his hands and the back of the blade was cold next to Duncan's neck. "If I cut off your head. You will be just as dead as if you were anyone else. Do you understand?"
Sweat instantly beaded Duncan's forehead . "Yes. I understand."
Conner laughed. "You'll understand a lot more by the time we go our separate ways."
We're alike, you and I. We can feel each other. That's how we know when one of us is near." He put his hand on Duncan's shoulder. The big chore will be to keep you alive long enough to learn about it." He laughed again. "Lets go have a beer. Talking is thirsty work."
Out side the church the smell of animal waist, cooking fires, and dirty bodies assaulted their senses. "I hate being in a city." Conner said. "I much prefer the quieter life in the country. Here." He stretched out his arms. "Is the worst of civilization." He held his nose and laughed. "It stinks."
The last of the lightning flashed and the man in red knelt holding his sword point down. Taking a quickening was always an event to wonder at. For a little while you knew your opponent inside and out. Then of course it would start to fade. You always learned something though. The snap of a dry twig drew his attention. Ahh, yes the woman. Spoils of war. This would be sweet. He had caught them in the act of making love. She had tried to cover herself, but mostly had failed. He held his hand out to her and smiled. "If you don't want his fate. Then come to me on your own, but I'll have you either way."
Conner laughed as Duncan told of his encounter with the witch of the woods. "It sounds like she found a way to beguile a young boys mined. I'll bet she's pretty old."
Duncan smiled at this. "No. She's not much older than me." He hooked his thumb and bounced it off his chest.
Conner laughed again. "Duncan. I don't look any older than you. Yet I'm at least fifty years if not more older than you. Where we are concerned age doesn't matter. However experience dose. She had a lot more than you. So have I, and a great many others. You and I are not the first and probably not going to be the last of our kind. So don't be fooled by looks."
Duncan sat his horse letting it pick the way next to Conner's. He was thinking about what Conner had said. A sound on his side of the road brought him out of his reverie. "Conner. Do you hear something?"
Conner drew his sword. That sort of question could be a precursor to violence. He listened. Bees buzzing, birds in the distance singing. A girl's voice sobbing. "Yes. It sounds like a girl. Go carefully Duncan It could be a trap."
Duncan nodded and dismounted drawing his sword as he did. He followed the sound back through a small thicket of trees. There he found a young red headed girl bent over the headless body of a man. She was rocking back and forth as she sobbed. "Who are you lass?" He asked.
She looked at him. Her face was filled with fear. Should she run? She saw the sword. Did she dare.
Conner stepped up next to Duncan. "We won't hurt you. We're only here to help. What can we do?"
It took a long time through her sobbing for them to get the story. The man in red had surprised them. For some reason her boy friend had known about the man before he arrived. He had jumped up grabbed his sword and waited. The man had come through the trees and laughed when he saw a naked man was facing him, he attacked. Her boy friend hadn't had a chance. The man in red had stabbed the boy and then cut off his head. There was lightning and when it was over he attacked her. Now she would probably get pregnant and the people of her village would look down on her at the least and possibly force her to leave, if not stone her.
The village chiefs son came out in Duncan. "Conner. We have to find this villain and see that justice is done!"
Conner shook his head. "No the first thing we have to do is get this woman home and the dead body back to his people. He grabbed the young woman's arms. You must never tell what you saw when he was killed and speak nothing of the rape. Do you understand."
She tried to draw away. "What if I'm pregnant. What then?"
He shook his head. "Your not."
She looked in his eyes and stopped struggling. "I'll say nothing as long as that's what happens."
He nodded then pointed at the body. "What of him. Who is his family?"
The girl was starting to get her wits back. What should she tell these men. What would they tell her Mother and Father. Finally she shrugged. "He said he was a foundling. He came to my village a couple of years ago. He apprenticed to my father the black smith. He and I were going to run away next month." She started to cry again. "I loved him."
Conner nodded. "I understand. I'll no say anything to them of this. "He looked up at the suns position. How far is it to your home?"
She wiped away her tears and pointed south. "About a mile and a half that way."
Conner nodded. "Here Duncan. Lend a hand. We'll wrap him in his own clothes and strap him to your horse. Then we'll walk the two of them the distance to her village."
Duncan started picking up clothes.
"Some of those are mine." The girl said trying to cover herself more than she was. The air was starting to cool down plus reaction to what had happened was starting to set in.
<
The village was in turbulence. A great hulk of a man was standing outside the smithy yelling. "James! Come on out James!" He put his hands on his hips.
"What in the world are ya yelling about Jock. Can you no see what your doing. You'll have the Lord his self down hear if you don't quiet down man." In all the village the powerfully built black smith was the only one who would dare talk to this man that way.
"Well then where is your apprentice." He thumped the other man on his chest with his finger.
"I dunno. I gave James the day off. He requested it a month ago and I haven't seen him since breakfast."
"You'll no do any good screaming at me. I did no see them leave together. This I swear."
The large man flapped his arms as if to say something but nothing came out. He looked around and a crowd was beginning to form around the two of them. "What are you people looking at. Go about your own business."
The two men stood glaring at each other when one of the village women yelled for them to look down the road. Mary and two men followed by two horses was approaching the village. The two men wore the blue tartan of the Macleod clan. What would one of them much less two of them be doing in this area.
"What would two men of the Macleod clan be doing with my Mary?" Jock roared.
Conner stopped and held a hand over Duncan's chest. "I am Conner Macleod." He pointed at Duncan. "This young fellow is Duncan Macleod. We came across the girl and what's left of the boy about a mile or two back down the road. We felt it our Christian duty to see her home safe."
"What do you mean what's left of the boy?" The black smith asked.
Duncan and Conner both stepped aside so the two men could see the dead young man. "This is the way we found him." Duncan volunteered.
Conner looked at him, but kept silent.
"Its true father. James and I were coming home from market when we were set upon by a man dressed in red. James tried to defend us but the man killed him and stole our supplies." Mary stood with her head down. She hoped that no one would ask any further questions.
The Black Smith staggered over and sat down on a rock. It was true that James was no kin but he had become a good friend, and he would be missed.
A large hand was placed on his shoulder. "I'm sorry about your man."
He looked up. "I'll miss him Jock. He was like a son to me."
Jock looked over at the two Macleod's. "Do you know this man in red?"
Both of them shook their heads. "If we see him justice will be done!" Duncan half yelled. Conner shook his head. The boy had a long way to go.
"Conner. Why did you tell her to say nothing of what happened to her?"
Conner faced the young man. "Its better that the men of that village think her a virgin. At least then she has a chance of marrying well."
"I see." Where do we go now.
Conner smiled. "South of course. There you will see things that you didn't think existed in the world."
"The English are in the south." Duncan protested.
"Yes my young Scott. They are. You need to get to know them. I think you'll fine that they're not such a bad lot of people." He chuckled. "Besides. You need to get to know your enemy."
Duncan looked South. "Do you think the man in red went that way?"
Conner sighed. "I suppose so. Are you that anxious to die?"
"What do you mean!?"
"I mean that according to that girl back there the boy was armed and the man in red killed him easily. Just like he would you."
"I know how to fight. Besides. If he starts getting the better of me you can join in and take him."
Conner shook his head. "No. Between us immortals its one on one only. If you start it you finish it or die trying."
Shhhh! Back to the Library
The two men stopped at the top of the hill and looked back on what seemed a quiet little village nestled back in a small canyon. Two of the city walls had been built by nature. The other two of field stone in an effort to clear the ground for plowing. Nature had done the better job.R
To The Tour
Get your own Free Home Page