Gods and Fighting Men, Lady I. A Gregory [best e books to read TXT] 📗

of the sword." "If you do

not believe what I am saying, beautiful Ailne," said Grania, "I tell

you more of your great army will fall by the Fianna, and that not by

treachery." "That is not so," said Ailne, "but I have good hopes that my

own army will do destruction on the Fianna, for the sake of the men that

are dead." "Well, Ailne," said Grania, "I know it is a far journey you

have come. And come now and eat and drink," she said, "with myself and

with the Fianna."

 

But Ailne would not do that, but she said it would not be fitting for

her to take food from people that did such deeds, and what she wanted

was satisfaction for the death of her husband and her two sons.

 

And first it was settled for two men of each side to go out against one

another; and then Ailne said that there should be thirty men on each

side, and then she said she would not be satisfied to go back to her own

country till she brought the head of Finn with her, or till the last of

his men had fallen. And there was a great battle fought in the end, and

it is seldom the Fianna fought so hard a battle as that.

 

And it would be too long to tell, and it would tire the hearers, how

many good men were killed on each side. But in the end Ailne of the

Bright Face was worsted, and she went back with what were left of her

men to their own country, and no one knew where they went.

 

And the hill in the west those battles were fought on got the name of

Cnoc-an-Air, the Hill of Slaughter.

 

CHAPTER III. (AILNE'S REVENGE)

One day Finn and his people were hunting on Slieve Fuad, and a stag

stood against them for a while and fought with his great rough horns,

and then he turned and ran, and the Fianna followed after him till they

came to the green hill of Liadhas, and from that to rocky Cairgin. And

there they lost him again for a while, till Sceolan started him again,

and he went back towards Slieve Fuad, and the Fianna after him.

 

But Finn and Daire of the Songs, that were together, went astray and

lost the rest of their people, and they did not know was it east or west

they were going.

 

Finn sounded the Dord Fiann then, and Daire played some sorrowful music

to let their people know where they were. But when the Fianna heard the

music, it seemed to be a long way off; and sometimes they thought it was

in the north it was, and sometimes in the east, and then it changed to

the west, the way they did not know in the wide world where was it

coming from.

 

And as to Finn and Daire, a Druid mist came about them, and they did not

know what way they were going.

 

And after a while they met with a young woman, comely and pleasant, and

they asked who was she, and what brought her there. "Glanluadh is my

name," she said, "and my husband is Lobharan; and we were travelling

over the plain together a while ago, and we heard the cry of hounds, and

he left me and went after the hunt, and I do not know where is he, or

what way did he go." "Come on then with us," said Finn, "and we will

take care of you, for we ourselves do not know what way the hunt is

gone, east or west." So they went on, and before long they came to a

hill, and they heard sleepy music of the Sidhe beside them. And after

that there came shouts and noises, and then the music began again, and

heavy sleep came on Finn and Daire. And when they awoke from their sleep

they saw a very large lighted house before them, and a stormy blue sea

around it. Then they saw a very big grey man coming through the waves,

and he took hold of Finn and of Daire, and all their strength went from

them, and he brought them across the waves and into the house, and he

shut the door of the house with iron hooks. "My welcome to you, Finn of

the great name," he said then in a very harsh voice; "it is long we are

waiting here for you."

 

They sat down then on the hard side of a bed, and the woman of the house

came to them, and they knew her to be Ailne, wife of Meargach. "It is

long I am looking for you, Finn," she said, "to get satisfaction for the

treachery you did on Meargach and on my two comely young sons, and on

Tailc, son of Treon, and all his people. And do you remember that,

Finn?" she said. "I remember well," said Finn, "that they fell by the

swords of the Fianna, not by treachery but in fighting." "It was by

treachery they fell," said the Grey Man then; "and it is our witness to

it, pleasant Ailne to be the way she is, and many a strong army under

grief on account of her." "What is Ailne to you, man of the rough

voice?" said Finn. "I am her own brother," said the man.

 

With that he put bonds on the three, Finn and Daire and Glanluadh, and

he put them down into some deep shut place.

 

They were very sorrowful then, and they stopped there to the end of five

days and five nights, without food, without drink, without music.

 

And Ailne went to see them then, and Finn said to her: "O Ailne," he

said, "bring to mind the time you come to Cnoc-an-Air, and the way the

Fianna treated you with generosity; and it is not fitting for you," he

said, "to keep us now under shame and weakness and in danger of death."

"I know well I got kind treatment from Grania," said Ailne in a

sorrowful voice; "but for all that, Finn," she said, "if all the Fianna

were in that prison along with you under hard bonds, it would please me

well, and I would not pity their case. And what is it set you following

after Finn," she said then to Glanluadh, "for that is not a fitting

thing for you to do, and his own kind wife living yet."

 

Then Glanluadh told her the whole story, and how she was walking the

plain with Lobharan her husband, and he followed the hunt, and the mist

came about her that she did not know east from west, and how she met

then with Finn that she never saw before that time. "If that is so,"

said Ailne, "it is not right for you to be under punishment without

cause."

 

She called then to her brother the Grey Man, and bade him take the

spells off Glanluadh. And when she was set free it is sorry she was to

leave Daire in bonds, and Finn. And when she had bidden them farewell

she went out with Ailne, and there was food brought to her, but a cloud

of weakness came on her of a sudden, that it was a pity to see the way

she was.

 

And when Ailne saw that, she brought out an enchanted cup of the Sidhe

and gave her a drink from it. And no sooner did Glanluadh drink from the

cup than her strength and her own appearance came back to her again; but

for all that, she was fretting after Finn and Daire in their bonds. "It

seems to me, Glanluadh, you are fretting after those two men," said

Ailne. "I am sorry indeed," said Glanluadh, "the like of those men to be

shut up without food or drink." "If it is pleasing to you to give them

food you may give it," said Ailne, "for I will not make an end of them

till I see can I get the rest of the Fianna into bonds along with them."

The two women brought food and drink then to Finn, and to Daire; and

Glanluadh gave her blessing to Finn, and she cried when she saw the way

he was; but as to Ailne, she had no pity at all for the King of the

Fianna.

 

Now as to the Grey Man, he heard them talking of the Fianna, and they

were saying that Daire had a great name for the sweetness of his music.

"I have a mind to hear that sweet music," said he. So he went to the

place where they were, and he bade Daire to let him hear what sort of

music he could make. "My music pleased the Fianna well," said Daire;

"but I think it likely it would not please you." "Play it for me now,

till I know if the report I heard of you is true," said the Grey Man.

"Indeed, I have no mind for music," said Daire, "being weak and

downhearted the way I am, through your spells that put down my courage."

"I will take my spells off you for so long as you play for me," said the

Grey Man. "I could never make music seeing Finn in bonds the way he is,"

said Daire; "for it is worse to me, he to be under trouble than myself."

"I will take the power of my spells off Finn till you play for me," said

the Grey Man.

 

He weakened the spells then, and gave them food and drink, and it

pleased him greatly the way Daire played the music, and he called to

Glanluadh and to Ailne to come and to listen to the sweetness of it. And

they were well pleased with it, and it is glad Glanluadh was, seeing

them not so discouraged as they were.

 

Now as to the Fianna, they were searching for Finn and for Daire in

every place they had ever stopped in. And when they came to this place

they could hear Daire's sweet music; and at first they were glad when

they heard it, and then when they knew the way he himself and Finn were,

they made an attack on Ailne's dun to release them.

 

But the Grey Man heard their shouts, and he put the full power of his

spells again on Finn and on Daire. And the Fianna heard the music as if

stammering, and then they heard a great noise like the loud roaring of

waves, and when they heard that, there was not one of them but fell into

a sleep and clouds of death, under those sorrowful spells.

 

And then the Grey Man and Ailne came out quietly from where they were,

and they brought the whole of the men of the Fianna that were there into

the dun. And they put hard bonds on them, and put them where Finn and

Daire were. And there was great grief on Finn and Daire when they saw

them, and they were all left there together for a while.

 

Then Glanluadh said to the Grey Man: "If Daire's music is pleasing to

you, let him play it to us now." "If you have a mind for music," said

the Grey Man, "Daire must play it for us, and for Finn and his army as

well."

 

They went then to where they were, and bade Daire to play. "I could

never play sweet music," said Daire, "the time the Fianna are in any

trouble; for when they are in trouble, I myself am in trouble, and I

could not sound any sweet string," he said, "while there is trouble on

any man of them." The Grey Man weakened the spells then on them all, and

Daire played first the strings of sweetness, and of the noise of

shouting, and then he sang his own grief and the grief of all the

Fianna. And at that the Grey Man said it would not be long before he

would put the