Waters of Life

It is 290 AD. The Islands of Orkney are Pictish and pagan and ruled by rival Cènels or clans grouped in certain ancient sites.

It was at the time of the last air burial. The hunters had prepared the body, dismembering it skillfully as they would a deer.

Then the procession had wound its way up along the cliff path to the flat area before the mounded tomb, right on the cliff edge.

Here the wind tugged at the cloaks of the people, the druids in white, the people in grey. Skuas patrolled above the gathering; the eagles themselves circled high above on the updraft.

Dignitaries from other clans had come to honour the passing of the Chief of the Eagle Cènel. By inter marriage Liave had many kin throughout the islands even with their rivals for power, the Dog Cènel.

They had sent, not a direct relative, but Sorcha, their red headed sorceress.

A tall haughty woman who spoke as if giving orders not to equals. But the Law of Strangers meant that she was received well with respect and given bed space.

Liave’s queen, Bethoc had taken a dislike to her when Sorcha had complained the coverings on her bed were too plain, unfitting for a sorceress of her rank. Bethoc marked her red hair and coveted it.

As the funeral party wended its way back from the cliff to the Eagle Cènel, the great birds swooped on the corpse. In a day their work would be done and the druids could return and salvage the bones, washing them anointing them and placing them in the tomb.

In the chief’s boat shaped hut Bethoc summoned the elders and they debated whether to accede to the request from Sorcha. For Sorcha had requested some of the sacred eagle bones from within the tomb.

“She is known for her spells,” said Nechtan a hoary elder.

“She is said to have struck dead many sheep of the Salmon Cènel when they refused her the sacred salmon bones. What I want to know

Impressum

Verlag: BookRix GmbH & Co. KG

Texte: alastair macleod
Bildmaterialien: young shamaness and eagles ; photo purchased from Dreamstime royalty free photos.
Lektorat: alastair macleod
Übersetzung: cover typeset in classical
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 20.06.2015
ISBN: 978-3-7396-0079-6

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Widmung:
To the Tomb of the Eagles and to Ann Brundle who lived and felt the magic in the islands.