Page 116 of Queen of the Shadow

“Or open that huge mouth again. If you ram your sword down his throat, I’ll strike up through it and try to slant mine into his brain.”

Together they jogged through the sand, giving the monster a wide berth as they headed to the water’s edge, looking for shallows.

The thing had stopped roaring and turned its massive head to follow their progress down the beach. And then, with speed and grace that belied it size, Curruid slithered from the water onto the beach.

“That’s bad,” said Cuchulainn.

“Very,” agreed Scáthach.

“What do we do?” Cuchulainn asked as they faced the beast.

“We kill it. Again.”

Curruid half slithered, half crawled toward them. His red-eyed glare was surprisingly intelligent as it studied them. Scáthach and Cuchulainn took their battle stances, raising their swords and shields. And then the beast’s voice blasted through their minds, so loud, so deep, that they grimaced and staggered back.

“Give me what I most desire! That is the only way to possess the Gáe Bulg!”

“Gods! He speaks!” Cuchulainn said.

Scáthach stared at the creature. She lowered her sword and took one step toward it. Curruid’s red gaze skewered her. She dipped her head in a small bow. “I am Scáthach, Queen of Shadow, daughter of Béfionn. Tell us what it is you most desire and, if it is within my power, I will grant it you.”

“It cannot be told. It must be discovered. And it is within your power to grant, Shadow Queen.”

Curruid’s voice assaulted her mind but Scáthach did not flinch. She studied the creature as it roared again and then struck at them. She and Cuchulainn split up. They took turns in their deadly dance. Scáthach rushed in to slice and jab, and when Curruid turned on her, Cuchulainn raced in to strike at the side of his throat, drawing a long line of scarlet. But it didn’t seem to faze the sea monster. Curruid lashed out, using his long, flat tail to whip around and strike at Cuchulainn, and though Cuchulainn hacked at the tail, he could not pierce the black scales that covered it.

Curruid struck and struck and struck at them. He caught Scáthach with his tail, throwing her across the beach several yards. In response Cuchulainn shouted his mighty battle cry and attacked the monster with such speed that he was forced back to be partially submerged in the Winter Sea.

“I’ve got an idea!” Scáthach called to Cuchulainn. “Try to keep him in the water!”

While Cuchulainn continued his furious attack, Scáthach turned her back to the sea, facing the Winterlands. “You have been so good to me,” she told the frozen realm. “I ask another boon...”

“Scáthach!” Cuchulainn yelled. “I can’t hold him much longer!”

The Queen of Shadow sheathed her sword, dropped her shield, and picked up the pole that had appeared at her feet. She took the dagger from her waist and gripped the handle between her teeth to free her hands, which she positioned carefully on the pole. Then she turned and raced toward the sea monster and the Hero of Ulster who battled him.

“Get ready! He’s going to show you his throat!” she shouted as she planted the end of the pole in the sand and leaped, arching up perfectly and landing on the monster’s boney back.

Scáthach moved with blurring speed. She took the dagger from between her teeth and plunged it into Curruid’s eye. The monster bellowed in pain and tossed his enormous head back, dislodging Scáthach and throwing her into the frigid water behind him—and in doing so he exposed his neck to Cuchulainn, who quickly slit the creature’s throat.

Scáthach surfaced, sputtering and wiping hair and water from her face as she shivered and sloughed through the shallows to the beach while Curruid roared once and then collapsed, turning the black sand even darker with his blood. She made her way around Curruid’s head to Cuchulainn. Scáthach looked into the monster’s eye. She was surprised not to see rage but a deep sadness.“Give me what I most desire. That is the only way to possess the Gáe Bulg.”The words echoed again through her mind while the light in the monster’s eye faded and then was snuffed out.

Cuchulainn headed down the beast’s side, raising his sword.

“What are you doing?” Scáthach asked him.

“Trying to find a soft spot so I can cut into him and pull out a rib before he reanimates,” said Cuchulainn.

“I think there’s more to it than that,” Scáthach began. “He wasn’t that difficult to kill. There are too many skeletons here. It should have been harder to—”

With a deafening roar, Curruid reanimated. He whipped his head around, jaws snapping with a sound like lightning splitting a tree as they missed Cuchulainn by only inches. And then the battle with the sea monster resumed.

The day progressed with a macabre rhythm. They would kill Curruid, attempt to cut the monster open to retrieve the Gáe Bulg, Curruid would reanimate, the battle would resume. And each time the sea monster collapsed with a mortal wound and lay dying, his deep voice echoed in Scáthach’s mind,“Give me what I most desire. That is the only way to possess the Gáe Bulg.”

When they killed him the sixth time, neither attempted to cut into the monster. They bent at the waist, gulping air, waiting for the thing to reanimate.

“We can’t keep doing this,” said Cuchulainn.

“I know. I’m not sure what to do.” Scáthach’s gaze went to where her shadows lurked nearby. “Perhaps we should retreat. Call the shadows to cloak us and rest.”