Bryn's cabin

[alex]

Bryn watched Sinbad leave quietly. She was happy that she could help him some, even if it was a little bit. The rest he need to sort out on his own. She could only do so much. She sighed and turned to her bed. She sat down on it and looked up a Dermott. He was staring at her as if he was waiting for something. She chuckled. "I guess you heard the whole thing, too."

[Dermott]

Dermott looked at Bryn. She seemed amused, and her mood had lightened compared to how she felt in the morning.


“I’m sorry” said the bird using the same playful tone “But actually I had no choice”


Bryn was really somebody. Even if the whole crew thought that it was better not to interfere with the captain’s personal feelings, she didn’t gave up, and pressing to the point to exasperate the sailor, she had been able to let him sort out everything. To be honest, Dermott at first didn’t think this could have been a good idea either , and he guessed Doubar shared his opinion. But now, he had to admit that sharing the pain had helped a lot Sinbad.


“It seems that you’ve turned his soul up and down. But perhaps he needed it. You made him face a lot of things he had been suppressing for a long time.”

[alex]

Bryn looked at Dermott surprised. “Sorry. You have no reason to feel sorry.” She smiled at him. “And yes, I am glad I could help the captain a little. And having you here was a big help. I felt more comfortable knowing that I could always ask you if I needed help.” Her smile widened. “Oh. And thank you for sending me that picture of Maeve. I always wondered what she looked like. Do you think you could tell me more about Maeve?”

[Dermott]

Dermott listened carefully to Bryn’s question, noticing for the umpteenth time how much she had changed lately. She was growing more talkative, curious and restless, contrasting from the calm and mysterious woman she had been since not long ago. He could tell it also considering the just ended chat. From the look of it, Sinbad’s encounter with his dark side influenced deeply the sorceress. She was still unaware, but the bird wondered if she felt so involved because of the similarity between their personal situations. Someday, her forgotten memories will be finally awaken, and then, she’ll be obliged to face her own dark side, in a more deep and dangerous way than the one their captain was dealing with now.

Dermott had all the reasons to be worried, because unlike the rest of the crew he was the only one who met Bryn before and after her memory loss, and he couldn’t still forget the image of her younger self from the past. A pitiless girl with a strong determination and eyes filled with rage, bringing destruction whenever she stepped on. He chased away the memories of his green homeland covered by blood, and looked again at his friend. She appeared so different now, that somebody could have hardly recognized her. But not him. He shall never be able to erase from his mind what happened then. And neither Maeve, he was sure of it.

This was the main reason why he didn’t trust Bryn at first , even if apparently it pretended so. He just sensed a wake of magic in her, which he think was somehow connected to his sister. But he couldn’t penetrate the strong wall which was hiding her memories. So, strictly speaking, he tried to befriend an unconscious enemy to find out anything able to let him locate Maeve’s whereabouts.

The Celtic Sorceress was apparently lost at the time, and this ghost from their past, one of those who destroyed their native village, was right now in front of him, harmless and without an hint of who she really was. Dermott didn’t know her true identity, but could only feel that her appearance and his sister disappearance were related, and he wanted to learn more about the whole affair.

But a lot of things perplexed the hawk. For example, Master Dim-Dim’s stance about Bryn in his last channeling over a year ago. He clearly vouched for her, and the master never did or said a thing without a right reason. Secondly, Dermott never sense any evil coming from her, she was just like a lost baby, brave enough to not show her unhappiness to the others. Gradually, day by day, she gained his trust, or at least, this new forgetful Bryn gained his trust, and Dermott grew fond of her too. He met a lot of evil people during his young life, and the girl sitting in the front bed right now, wasn’t one of them.

And furthermore, each time the sorceress appeared in one of his visions, she was always stuck in an unstable balance in the war between light and darkness. But whenever she took a side, she made the difference. Dermott wasn’t that good in uncovering prophecies, but even him was able to understand from this recurring premonitions that Bryn was one of the “keys for victory”.

According to Master Dim-Dim, magic became white or black depending on someone’s intention. So, it’s up to us to choose a path. Nobody will ever be able to stole somebody’s free will. And Dermott now wanted to support Bryn as much as he could. If once regained her memories, she could remember that she had been trusted, and loved, despite her past, it could be lighter for her to face what it had to come.

For this reason, after many days of pondering, he decided to show an image of Maeve to Bryn, granting her wish. Even if the sight of his sister could have been able to unlock her memories, freeing a dangerous soul, he wanted to take the risk. With the dark forces’ rising, they need every possible help. Bryn was a very powerful witch, whose powers he hoped would remain by their side. And he thought that trying to keep her in balance was his own duty.

Apparently his friend didn’t remember she met both of them in Erin, but Dermott had already make up his mind, and cautiously pick up the hint Bryn was giving him.

“What can I say, if I start to talk about my mistress I think I could go on forever. She basically brought me up since I was a kid. Well, I mean, a little nestling”

[alex]

She raised her eyebrows and frowned a little. “Brought you up since you were a kid? You mean she raised you ever since when you were young. Where did she find you? Were you her pet?”

[Dermott]

"Found me?" Dermott couldn't hold back his laughter at this answer.

"It's more correct to say that we find each other. We both come from Erin, and I can assure you, it's a magical place, with an ancient tradition and an strong sense of spirituality. There, the friendship between humans, animals and the elven realms is very close. And we all live side by side, and respect each others like brothers and sisters. I've always had a special bond with Maeve, so I willingly decided to follow her when she made up her mind to study with Master Dim-Dim.

"But you surely already know him. Everybody talks about the Master on the Nomad."

[alex]

“Who, Dim-Dim? Well… ” Suddenly she had a mental picture of Dim-Dim, or a least what she thought was Dim-Dim, teaching her how to use magic. The vision only lasted for a split second, and once out of it, she looked back at Dermott with wide eyes. “He was my teacher, I think.” She bit her lip and looked at the floor. Could this be right? Dim-Dim, her teacher? Suddenly, she shot back up at Dermott. “But wait, didn’t you say that Maeve went to study with Dim-Dim?”

[Dermott]

Dermott stared at her in amazement, wondering for a moment if he really heard what she just said. Not only because in over a year, this was the first time that Bryn said something about her past. But especially because of "who" she trotted out in her sentence.

Dermott doubted that this had been a conscious admission, given that she suddenly changed the subject. Dim Dim always had a lot of pupils and students, and some of them were sailing on the ship now. Perhaps Bryn work out all their descriptions and saw herself in their shoes for a moment. It was a very late hour, and it had been an hard day. Maybe she was just tired and needed to rest. But even if it was her imagination, that could be a sign of her wish to remember. It was up to her to find a way back to her past, and this could happen only if she persuaded herself that she is able to do it. So Dermott tried to follow the topic answering her last question, believing that somehow, this could touch her inner self.

"Yes, I did. Let me think, it has been over two years ago now. We lived on a far away place at the time, the Isle of Dawn. And if we started sailing on the Nomad it had been only because Master Dim-Dim decided so. You probably already known what happened to him. We stayed on board hoping to find the master again someday."

[alex]

"No, what happened to him? He appeared a year ago, so he can't be dead, can he?"

[Dermott]

Dermott realized that he never talked about Master Dim Dim with Bryn during this last year. He gave for granted that she already know what happened to him, and that she asked somebody else on board. Wondering why she didn’t he replied:


“Master Dim Dim was the former Grand Vizier of Bagdad before he settled at the Isle of Dawn. Prince Casib banished him because at the time he had been fooled by the dark forces. When we joined the crew of the Nomad, we had to meet the person who took his place. Admir. Or at least, that was the name he used into the human world. He ended up to be a demon. But not an average one. He was no less than Iblis, the prince of Dijiins.

He went in a magical fight with the master. But Dim Dim was too powerful to be killed or just defeated. So, he trapped him on another dimension. We have been searching for a way to free him since then. But actually we have no clue of where this place could be”


And at his own words he felt a sharp pain in his heart. His sister was stuck in the very same dimension too.

[alex]

Bryn listened to Dermott, absorbing what he had to say. When done she spoke, "And Maeve is in that dimension with Dim-Dim." She looked at the floor and thought, trying to piece everything that Dermott said. Erin. The Isle of Dawn. She then shot up. "Erin is in Ireland, right?"

[Dermott]

"Yes". "That's it's celtic name" answered the hawk, while noticing that Bryn was very pensive now.

[alex]

"Why did Maeve travel all the way from Erin just to study with Master Dim-Dim? Surely their were other people in Erin who could teach her magic. Why Master Dim-Dim?"

[Dermott]

Dermott realized that the conversation was starting to become dangerous, so he replied practically:

"Honestly I don't know Bryn. She never told me why. I think that when the pupil is ready the master appears. Or at least, that was Master Dim Dim's opinion."


He paused for a while, and then asked a question he had in mind for a long while now"

"Bryn"

"Have you ever though about taking magic lessons, and find a master yourself? Don't you think that this could help you to control and understand better your powers?"

[alex]

Bryn listened to what Dermott had to say, but she was not very happy about his response. She could tell that he was lying to her, or at least hiding something from her. Why. Don't know. But Dermott's sudden change of the subject made her raise her eyebrows.

But she pushed the thought aside, at least for now. She did not feel like having an argument with Dermott. The discussion with Sinbad kind of gave her a headache. Why is everyone hiding something from me, she thought. Aren't I a part of this crew? Don't I have the right to know? Hmmm. Dermont? Raised ever since he was a kid. Brothers? Sisters? What does he mean by that? Could he be...nah? But its possible. After all, he is like no other hawk I met before.

Bryn snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Dermott asking her a question. "Oh, me? I would love to find a master to teach me how to control my powers. But I don't want to leave the Nomad."