When I awoke and made my way to where the other warriors were I met warriors who were Identified with each of the 4 moons. To each moon of Ayalos there was an old temple. A 5th region also existed on the Isle of Hybrasil. That land was where the merchant princes ruled from.

The folks from the region of Murias were a heavily agricultural people. They were also known for herbal medicines. The men from Finias in the south had been warriors for generations. The folks from Gorias were tough men. Men of mines and mountains much like the pit where I was first brought. I was here in Draeyga which was not far from the Crimson Temple which marked Falias. In the old days before the god king many high kings of the land were reputed to have come from here.

The old warrior who was the master of the rites came to size us all up. His hair and beard hung like a willow tree. You could barely make out a milky right eye under the hanging strands of his hair. The old man spoke up. “In some days there are 3 men by 3 men by 3, and some times there are 3 men by the three times that many. In the strongest of the days of old we had many warriors. This day we will choose 3 by 3 by 3 of you.” He looked us over “702 of you will not take the oath this season. 27 of you will.”

I saw men of my own age, 16 years….at least what passed for 16 years here….and men who were likely in their 30s. People tended to age harder here. The men in their 30s were on their last chance to be sworn in as warriors. Most of the prospective warriors were men of my own age.

I pondered if it was right for me to compete against men who were near the end of their journey…It was then an older man smacks me on the back of the head. His skin was somewhat Greyish. I then realized he was one of the guards from the Pit. I stiffen up a bit at his appearance.

“I thought I recognized your gait and your eyes. I see that I did, however I don’t remember from when.” I gruffly responded to him. “I was once in the pit.” The words spilled out more in a growl then in speech. He perked up “Yes…I do remember you know. They still are talking about you. The slavers have spent a lot of coin trying to find more men like you.” He laughed “Which means they are a lot poorer. Their greed being their own doom.”

I cocked an eyebrow at him. “What is your name?” He barked back to me “Lachlan.” I nodded to him “I hope you do the race well then.” He nodded as well “You as well Brian Kane.” I paused for a moment and he laughed “Oh every lord who has brought men here to compete for the honor has spoken of you. Your foster brother has spun tales of you.” I groaned at that. Conn seemed to be interested in building a reputation for himself and his father upon my back.

The race was 13 RiMiles. None of the fellow contestants seemed to know how long that was. As the mile of the lord varied The old man of Willow like appearance, his name was Eogan, was tight lipped at that. Beyond saying we would find the markers to follow the way. The race was also one that was timed as well. Anyone who failed to make it to the end of the race in time would not proceed to the next test.

Had I been permitted to ask Conn he would have told me these tests take a different form every time. But we candidates were lead away from the places where our people remained encamped. The lords like my Foster-Father would politic. Younger Nobles would court and do such things as that…. Warriors would work out improving their trade and craft. They would also have feasts. Each lord hosting the next. The king of Drayega who hosted the festival…. he would host the victors of the trials.

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Before we get to the starting line several people try to steal a clue from Eogan or one of the other elder warriors supervising the trial. I didn’t focus on that. I saw a bit of the old druid writing written on the tree. “Cet” two slashes were marked in the tree. This was the first point. I put my hand on the tree as I did so Eogan seemed to notice me but said nothing.

As we ran there were in the paths in the woods with various other trees. I found another one that meant to indicate it was the second. I found one for the third….what I noted curiously was two branching paths. One that went to a fourth….but the path to it was clean. I forked to the unclean path. That one had a tree marked the 5th tree…. Then another marked as the 7th….. one the 11th…..and finally one marked the 13th. As I touched the 13th tree Eogan was there.

“I am impressed.” The old man spoke. “How is it you found the right path?” I looked at him for a moment. “Dumb luck then I recognized the pattern.” The old man rubbed his beard. I decided it was wisest to tell him about Prime numbers. He then laughed a bit. “Are you part Druid boy?” I shook my head “No sir. But sir. I didn’t want to come in first in this race.”

The old man cocked an eyebrow at me. “And why is that? You showed intelligence and diligence in addition to the skill of the body.” I sighed a bit “Would you want to be known as the toughest warrior? Have any warrior who wished to test his merit by fighting you?” The old man laughs “Tell you what lad?” he slapped his leg. “I’ll let you deceive everyone if you prove it worth my time.” So I doubled back…. I looked for stragglers.”

I found Lachlan, and 4 other stragglers. I lead them to find a path that led them to the 13th RiMile. Eogan looked at me. 3 others had found their way there. They seemed frustrated. “Old man” A young man with blonde curly hair “Shouldn’t he be disqualified for leading people here? Doesn’t that violate the rules?” He had a sort of accent I came to recognize of a merchant of Hybrasil. Eogan smirked “It’s a race….so long as you finish nothing is outside the rules. And he decided to finish with other people.”

In the ending of the first day where we once had 729 who started the race 243 finished. 486 men who fell short came by and saluted us as a group. They were led back to the encampments where all our kith and kin remained.

I later found out that Conn had an absolute fit hearing I didn’t win. Old Kane and the nobles however seemed more pleased. Or that is what Grainne told me of these things. After the ceremony and running the race twice I was exhausted. In exhaustion I drifted into a deep sleep of dreams. As I walked into the dreaming, I found myself in an encampment. I was older. My hair was long and I had a beard. “You are aware of me?” I heard her voice…. the voice of the woman I would come to know as my Annie….the woman who is Morrigan.

I nodded to her. In this dream…. I see a thing that is happening in the future. But in this event in the future, I am looking at it again in dreams. The me that is speaking to her is in a dream where he see’s things and understands them.

“Should I worry about you and this harlot?” As I hear this exchange, I wonder who this other woman is…who this first woman is who speaks to me from some odd place in time. “No” The future me speaks “All is proceeding as it needs to.” The woman I come to know of as Annie clucks at me. “I could slit her throat for you…...it would be simple.” I glance into the starless sky…. the me that was in the future from that day of the great race….in my past now…” My dear lady, it will play out as it has to play out.”

The dream soon dissolves into darkness. As the endurance of my body needed to grow, so to did the endurance of my psyche. I wasn’t fully ready yet to touch her mind. I wonder if she had reached out to me first…or I reached out to her first. When I asked her about that she answered my question with a curious statement. “If I tell you all my tricks how can I surprise you my lord husband.”