Early Irish Myths and Sagas - Jeffrey Gantz [101]
‘My plan now,’ Medb said to Ailill, ‘is to keep the three heroes with us tonight, in order to test them further.’ ‘Do as you like,’ replied Ailill. The heroes were detained, then; their horses were unyoked, and they were taken to Crúachu. They were given a choice of food for their horses: Lóegure and Conall chose two-year-old oats, but Cú Chulaind asked for barley. The heroes slept at Crúachu that night, and the women were apportioned among them: Findabair and her fifty women were taken to Cú Chulaind’s house, Sadb Sulbair (the other daughter of Ailill and Medb) and her fifty women were taken to Conall, and Conchend daughter of Cet son of Mágu and her fifty women were taken to Lóegure.
The next morning, the heroes rose early and went to the house where the lads were performing the wheel feat. Lóegure took the wheel and threw it halfway up the wall of the house; the lads laughed and smiled in mockery, but it seemed to Lóegure that they had raised a shout of victory. Conall then lifted the wheel from the floor and threw it up to the ridge pole of the royal house; the lads raised a shout of mockery, but Conall thought it a shout of applause and triumph. Cú Chulaind, however, caught the wheel in mid-air and threw it so high that it knocked the ridge pole from the house and sank into the ground outside the length of a man’s arm; the lads raised a shout of praise and victory, but Cú Chulaind thought it a laugh of scorn and ridicule. After that, he went to the women and took their needles from them, and he threw the three fifties of needles into the air one after another; each needle went into the eye of the next, so that they all formed a chain. After-wards, he returned each needle to its owner, and the lads praised him for that.
The three heroes then bade farewell to the king and the queen and the rest of the household. ‘Go to the house of my foster-father and foster-mother, Ercol and Garmuin,’ said Medb, ‘and be their guests tonight.’ The three left after the horse-racing at the fair of Crúachu, where Cú Chulaind was victorious three times; they arrived at the house of Ercol and Garmuin and were welcomed. ‘Why have you come?’ Ercol asked. ‘That you might judge us,’ they replied. ‘Go to the house of Samera, for it is he who will judge you,’ Ercol said.
They left and were directed to Samera, and he welcomed them. Moreover, his daughter Búan fell in love with Cú Chulaind. They told Samera that they had come to him for judgement, and he sent them out, one by one, to the spectres of the air. Lóegure went first, but he left his weapons and his clothing and fled. Conall went out in the same fashion, but he left his spears and his sword behind. Cú Chulaind went the third night. The spectres screeched at him and attacked; they shattered his spear and broke his shield and tore his clothing, and they bound and subdued him. ‘Shame, Cú Chulaind,’ said Lóeg, ‘hapless weakling, one-eyed stripling, where are your skill and valour when spectres can destroy you?’ At that, Cú Chulaind’s ríastarthae overcame him, and he turned against the spectres; he tore them apart and crushed them, so that the air was full of their blood. Then he took their military cloaks and their weapons and returned triumphant to the house of Samera. Samera welcomed him and said ‘It is my judgement that the champion’s portion should go to Cú Chulaind,