Death's Hand

by N. P. Martin

  "And you want that thorn pulled out."

  "Indeed."

  "Can’t you just talk to her then?"

  She looked confused for a second. "And say what?"

  "I don’t know," I said puffing my cheeks out. "That you… forgive her maybe?"

  "Forgive her? I could never forgive her. She stole my property and is now causing me all this trouble. How could I?"

  Unsure if she wanted a real answer to that, I just shook my head, tiring of her obstinance. "Look," I said eventually. "Whatever you think of her, that’s between you two. I just want Dalia to stay alive, and I need Sorcha for that. So I’m asking you, as respectfully as possible, to help me find Sorcha and then to help me talk her into lifting the curse she put on Dalia."

  Hedrema shook her head. "You humans, you always make everything about yourselves, don’t you?"

  "I don’t think I’m being unreasonable here. Either way, Sorcha has to be stopped."

  "Perhaps, but I simply can’t take the chance that she would force me into killing her, and then I would lose my power." She seemed to shudder at the thought. "I’d rather die than lose my power."

  "Well, I’ve news for you," I said. "You are going to die anyway thanks to Sorcha, along with everybody else."

  "Not if you stop her first."

  Sighing exasperatedly, I sat forward in my seat as I lit a cigarette. "How the hell can I stop her on my own? For a start, I don’t even know where to find her, and even if I did, what chance would I stand against her?"

  She took a step forward, seeming very tall as she stood in front of me. "What if I could give you that chance?"

  Now I was curious, but also wary of what she might say. "What do you mean?"

  "Out there," she said, gesturing her staff toward the sea, "is an artifact of sorts that will help you find Sorcha, and then when you do find her, the artifact will allow you to drain her of her power."

  It sounded too good to be true. "What is this artifact? Where is it?"

  "It is called the Hand of Drakkar, and it lies in a box beneath the sea."

  My heart sank. "How am I supposed to get something like that? It could be anywhere out there."

  "True," Hedrema said. "But there is someone out there who can help you find it."

  "Who?"

  She hesitated before answering, as if she daren’t say the name. "Manannán."

  "Manannán?" I blew out a steam of smoke as I thought for a moment. "Are you talking about the old Irish god of the sea? I though he was just a myth."

  She gave me a look as if she thought I was being overly naive. "There is no myth, just history. Manannán was formerly a Druid of the Tuath Dé Danann. As a merchant also, he possesses many artifacts, of which the Hand of Drakkar is one."

  "And what, he’s just going to hand this thing over to me? What would he want in return?"

  "You would have to ask him that."

  I shook my head at the thought of some terrible price that would have to be paid, most likely in blood. "How do I find him then?"

  Hedrema stepped to the side to allow me to see the sea beyond. "You simply go out there and call him."

  "That’s it?" I said. "Just go out to sea and give him a shout? Sounds too easy."

  "Not if you have to swim out."

  I stopped dead with my cigarette half way to my mouth. "Are you serious? You want me to swim out to sea? How far?"

  "As far as you can. In order for Manannán to show, you must demonstrate your commitment to summoning him." She looked down at me. "You must keep swimming until you start to drown. At that point, you call his name and he will save you from drowning."

  I couldn’t help but laugh. "That sounds fucking insane, no offense like."

  "Insane or not, it’s true. If you want Dalia to live you must go to the edge of death."

  "The edge? I’d say drowning myself is slightly over the edge, wouldn’t you?"

  She sighed as if I was overreacting. "Manannán will save you. We are talking about an act of faith here. You humans talk much about your faith, I’m sure you have plenty."

  I sat in silence for the next while as I smoked the rest of my cigarette, finally extinguishing it in the ashtray next to me. "This is really the only way?"

  "For you it is, yes."

  I stood up and stared out at the dark sea with a sense of foreboding. "It looks like I’m going swimming then."

  11

  After Hedrema disappeared, I got a phone call from Monty, informing me that his search hadn’t gone well. Apparently there were a few artifacts that would likely stop a Fae like Sorcha, but they were scattered in the far corners of the world, and to get them would take too long, if we managed to get them at all. Monty was apologetic, but I told him not to worry as I had a lead on something else, though I didn’t tell him what it was. He also tried to insist that he was coming to Cork, but I managed to talk him out of it, for the time being at least. Knowing Monty, he would probably go against my wishes and turn up here at some point. If he did, there wasn’t anything I could do. I had more important things to worry about anyway.

  Tired and still a bit drunk, I sat outside and smoked a final cigarette as I got my head around what I was soon to do. The thought of swimming out into the vast ocean scared the shit out of me, if I’m being honest. I’m not the strongest of swimmers and I hadn’t been in the water in years. I probably wouldn’t make it out too far before I started to tire, at which point I would have to keep going anyway… until I couldn’t.

  "This is madness," I said as I went inside and dumped the rest of my cigarettes into the bin, along with the empty whiskey bottle. Then I grabbed my keys and headed out into the night to all but drown myself in the cold sea.

  There are beaches scattered all along the peninsula so it didn’t take me long to find a jumping off point, so to speak. The beach I stood on was bathed in twilight, the sky being a dark gray color as the first beams of light from the coming dawn began to seep into it and dissipate the darkness. A stiff breeze blew around me as I stood in the wet sand with the waves crashing gently onto the shore. In other circumstances, it would have been a peaceful scene, but I was too full of foreboding to even contemplate the natural beauty of it. All I saw in front of me was a cold, dark sea just waiting to swallow me up.

  When I stripped down to my boxer shorts, I placed my clothes in a neat pile on a nearby rock, wondering at the same time if I was ever going to need clothes again. Not if I ended up in the bottom of watery grave, I thought. It was difficult to imagine that any of what Hedrema said was true. I knew there were greater beings out there—gods and monsters from a more ancient time—but to actually expect one to come along and save me just because I called his name was asking a lot. I also told myself that if Hedrema wanted me dead, she probably wouldn’t go to such lengths and would’ve just killed me herself, though you never know with Fae, tricksters that they are. The only thing I had to go on was faith, that human construct that Hedrema was so quick to pour scorn on. Whether the idea of faith was worthy of scorn or not, I didn’t care. Faith was all I had to go on. Faith that I would somehow save Dalia. It was the only thing that would allow me to step into the great unknown, as it were.

  I stood on the shore for a few more moments, my arms folded across me as I stood shivering while the water lapped at my feet, its icy touch causing my muscles to tense and my breath to catch in my throat.

  "You can do this," I said, starting to shake myself loose as though I was limbering up for a race. Which I was in a way, only this race was potentially to the death.

  When I had finally psyched myself up enough, I began to walk out into the sea, crying out in shock as the freezing cold water rolled into me. It was all I could do to keep going and not run straight back to the shore again. When the water reached my groin, I cried out again as my breath left me for a moment and I stood where I was, unwilling to go any further. But I knew I had to. There was no turning back now.

  Deciding just to go for it, I dived forward into the wate
r, feeling like I’d just dived into an ice bath. When I came back up I gasped in shock as I struggled to regulate my breathing. I couldn’t feel the bottom with my feet anymore, so I bobbed in the water for a moment as my body began to adjust to the shocking temperature. The only good thing about all this was that since it was high summer, the water was fairly warm, once you got used to it, that is. If it was winter, I wouldn’t have lasted long before hyperthermia set in.

  As soon as I began to swim, I soon became shocked at how quickly I seemed to tire. I was doing a rather shoddy breast stroke to try and conserve energy so I could get as far out as possible, but even at that it still felt like I’d been swimming for hours after just a few moments. When I stopped and looked behind me, the shore seemed like it was very far away. It already felt like I’d passed the point of no return.

  "Keep swimming," I gasped. "Just keep swimming… be like feckin’ Dori…"

  I swam for another few minutes until it felt like my limbs were turning to lead and that I would sink at any second. Stopping, I did my best to regulate my breathing as I looked behind me again. I could hardly see the shoreline at all now. About the only thing I could see around me was a blanket of gloomy dark gray thanks to a thick fog that seemed to have come from out of nowhere. I couldn’t even be sure which direction I was supposed to be swimming in, so I made my best guess and carried on.

  I had swum barely a meter when something exploded out of the water in front of me. A dark shape that seemed massive from my viewpoint. Stopping, I began to look around, soon getting the feeling that were things swimming around beneath me, though I didn’t know what. Sharks was my first guess of course, as it inevitably would be. But then something popped its head up from out of the water not too far in front of me. Whatever it was, it was completely black with a head shaped like a dolphin. Two bright yellow eyes stared right at me, and when the dolphin, or whatever it was, opened its mouth, it was close enough for me to see that it had rows of sharp, needle like teeth. Then it made a sound that was halfway between that of a dolphin and that of a human who was screaming. It was an ear-splitting noise, and so unnerving it chilled my blood, if it was even possible to chill it any further. Pretty soon another head popped out of the water, and then another and another until a dozen of the creatures surrounded me.

  As I treaded water, my body became more fatigued by the second. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could last before I started to slip under. "What… do you want?" I shouted at the strange dolphin creatures, hardly expecting them to answer me, but not knowing what else to do.

  In response, the dolphins began to make that horrible noise again as they furiously bobbed their heads up and down, pinning me in the middle of their cacophony. I couldn’t even cover my ears because I needed my arms to stay afloat. The only thing I could think to do was to swim. It was either that or drown, and even though I was supposed to drown (or nearly), I couldn’t bring myself to do it yet, so I started swimming again, right toward the dolphin in front of me, who began to increase its cries as I neared it, while the rest of them started to swim around crazily, churning the waters so much that it became almost impossible to keep swimming. And thanks to the fear the dolphins were stirring up in me, my adrenaline was pumping madly now as well, which only served to tire me out further.

  Just a few feet from the dolphin in front of me, I had to stop, knowing I couldn’t carry on. My limbs were too heavy to keep moving, and I found myself slipping beneath the surface as I struggled to stay afloat.

  It’s now or never…

  "Manannán!" I screamed the name as loudly as I could, and the second I did, the dolphins began to go wild, all of them swimming madly around me, erupting from the water to launch themselves over the top of me from every direction, showering me in so much water that it felt like I was beneath the surface already.

  With my lungs burning, I tried to scream Manannán’s name again. But as soon as I opened my mouth, it got filled with water, and the next thing I knew, something latched onto my leg and dragged me beneath the surface, taking me down, down, down…

  Until the darkness took me.

  12

  I awoke in a panic, gripped by terror, and the first thing I did was take in a huge lungful of air. Shocked that I was even able to breathe, I soon began to cough uncontrollably, until my body turned to the side of its own accord and ejected the salty water that had filled up my lungs. Then I began to cough some more as I struggled to get rid of whatever water was left in me. When I finally stopped coughing, I just lay there as my vision slowly came into focus. It was with much relief that I realized I was no longer in the water, and that I was lying on something solid. Above me, I saw the sky, which wasn’t dark anymore, but filled with a cold light. Turning my head to the side, I saw that I was lying on wooden boards that were much worn. Then I became aware of a rocking motion beneath me, as if whatever I was lying on was moving. As I forced myself to sit up, I soon saw that I was on a boat of some sort.

  No, not a boat, something else…

  At either side, I could see huge, spoked wheels jutting out of the water. This was no boat I was on, this was a chariot. As I looked behind me, I saw a giant of a man at the front of the chariot, and I shook my head in awe and disbelief. Could it be him? I thought. It had to be.

  Gingerly, I got to my feet at the back of the chariot to see that we were surrounded by nothing but sea. There was no land to be seen anywhere. Up ahead, a massive steed was pulling the chariot, its hooves impossibly traversing the waves as it pulled us along at speed.

  It all clicked then. I was aboard Scuabtuinne—also known as the "Wave Sweeper"—the great sea-faring chariot fabled to be ridden by Manannán. And indeed, Manannán himself stood at the front, holding the reins. From behind, he stood at least eight or nine feet tall. His brown hair was long and spilled down over a long cloak, which itself covered most of the dark purple armor he wore underneath. At his side, a huge sword hung, which I knew from legend went by the name of Fragarach, or "The Answerer." The cloak he wore was also magical and reputedly enabled him to become invisible. Before he even turned around, I had no doubt I was in the presence of a god, or as close to one as it was possible to get.

  Feeling slightly fearful and somewhat insignificant in Manannán’s presence, I cleared my throat and said, "Hello…"

  Manannán didn’t turn around immediately, and for a moment I thought he didn’t hear me. But then he pulled back on the reins and slowed his steed to a stop, saying, "Woah Enbarr." The steed came to a stop and stood atop the water as though it were standing on solid ground.

  When Manannán finally turned around to face me, I was immediately struck by his ruggedly handsome features. He had striking blue eyes and a jawline that any movie star would be proud of. Age-wise, he looked around his mid-thirties, though he was obviously thousands of years old at this point. When he spoke, his voice was expectedly deep given his huge size, but it was also unexpectedly soft. "Dia duit, mortal," he said.

  "Dia duit," I said, finding myself bowing my head slightly in a gesture of respect. "My name is Corvin Chance."

  "Well, you know my name." He spoke in English now, thankfully, for as I’ve already mentioned, my Gaelic isn’t the best. "Those Black Dolphins almost drowned you before you said it."

  I had forgotten about the Black Dolphins, and the mention of them made my heart race. "What are they?"

  "Dark spirits of the sea who have no problem drowning any man foolish enough to swim out to sea in the darkness."

  I looked away from his intimidating gaze for a second, feeling as foolish as he implied I was. "I’m afraid I had no choice."

  "Clearly, if you were willing to court death just to get my attention." He crouched down so he was almost level with my face. "What is it you so desperately need?"

  My body began to shiver uncontrollably as I stood with arms folded tightly against myself. "A b-blanket would be nice," I said smiling awkwardly.

  Manannán waved his hand and a blanket magically appea
red around me, cloaking me in its warmth, bringing an instant sense of relief and comfort. "Is that better?"

  I nodded. "Yes, much better thank you."

  "Well, now that you are warm, perhaps you can tell me what you are doing here. I take it you need my help with something?"

  "I’ve come for the Hand of Drakkar."

  Manannán didn’t react much to what I said. I’m sure I wasn’t the first mortal to end up on his chariot begging for his help. "Why would you need such a thing?"

  "To save the world?" I said, laughing slightly. "And my friend, who will die if I don’t do something to help her."

  "To save the world? You fancy yourself a hero then?"

  "A hero?" I laughed slightly as I shook my head. "No, I just… got roped in."

  Manannán smiled. "That’s always the way, and why I like to steer clear of the shore. There’s always trouble on the land."

  "You got that right."

  He laughed this time, as though he knew all about it. Then he stood up straight, his great cloak billowing in the wind. Behind him, Enbarr neighed like he knew all about mortals and their destructive ways as well. "So," Manannán said. "You come here seeking the Hand of Drakkar."

  "Yes."

  "I can retrieve it for you, but its possession comes with a price."

  Dread filled me. "What price?"

  "A hand for a hand."

  Jesus…

  I did my best not to seem too rattled as I pulled the thick blanket tighter around myself. A hand for a hand. What did I expect anyway? That he would pass it along to me for free? There’s always a price, I was just too caught up in things to consider it before. I’d come this far, there was no turning back now. If losing a hand meant I could save Dalia, it was a small price to pay. "Okay."

  Manannán stared at me a for a long moment, as if he wasn’t certain I knew what I was agreeing to. "So be it," he said eventually, obviously satisfied that I knew the score. He then turned to the side and held up both hands, closing his eyes as he began to speak loudly in Gaelic, and as he did so, I could feel his power in the air, like nothing I’d ever felt before. God power.