Scotland has long been famous for its heroes. The bravest of them, Finn Mac Humala, was the subject of legends that were passed down from generation to generation.
Finn led a force of nine thousand warriors. This detachment was called the Fian Army; it united Ireland and Scotland, or, as the ancients said, Erin and Alba. There is hardly a piece of land in these two Countries where the memory of this hero and his exploits is not preserved.
The Fian army was born at a time when the Lochlannachs, or, as they were later called, the Norwegians, raided the shores of Erin and Alba.
And the High King of Erin convened a great council to decide how to defeat the powerful enemy. The Council of Husbands proposed to choose one hundred of the best boys and girls and marry them, so that their children and grandchildren would merge into a powerful army that would defeat the newcomers from Lochlann.
This is how a tribe of glorious warriors was born in Erin. Under the leadership of Finn, they drove the enemies out of their native land and no longer allowed them into the British Isles.
Tradition says that Finn was not the most powerful warrior in the Fian Army. He became famous not for his strength, but for his wisdom and generosity, protection of the weak and untarnished honor. They said: “Finn will never betray a friend.”
We will tell you how Finn once went to Lochlann.
Soon after the Fian Host had driven out the strangers from Lochlann, Finn and his warriors were hunting deer in the mountains when they saw a stranger greeting them in a foreign language.
-Where are you from and what do you want here? - Finn asked.
- From afar. “I’m looking for a master,” answered the stranger.
“I just need a servant,” said Finn. - What will you ask if you serve me for one day and one year?
“Just a little,” answered the stranger, “namely this: when my service is over, promise to go with me to a festive night feast in the palace of the Lochlannach king.” If you go alone, no one should accompany you - not a dog, not a person, not a calf, not a child. And without weapons!
Finn slapped the stranger on the shoulder so hard that he rolled down to the middle of the mountain. And said:
- I like your terms! They promise adventure. Serve me one day and one year, and I will go with you to the night feast in Lochlann.
For one day and one year the stranger faithfully carried out his service, and when the time was up, he came to Finn and reminded him of the condition.
Then Finn called all nine thousand of his warriors to him and said to them:
“I must fulfill my agreement with this young man, and now I am leaving you.” I don't know when I'll be back. But if in one year and one day I do not come, then I was killed in Lochlann. If this happens, let everyone, as one, some with a sharp sword, some with a tight bow, step onto the shore of Lochlann to avenge me in a great battle.
And Finn left his house, and his jester shouted after him:
“Oh, Finn, first among men, do not disdain my advice, for it happens that the wisdom of a king gets stuck in the head of a fool.”
- What is your advice? - Finn asked him.
“Listen to me, take Bran’s golden collar with you.” (Bran was Finn's faithful and strongest hound.) After all, a collar is not a dog, not a man, not a calf, not a child or a weapon, but it can serve you a great service.
“I’ll listen and take it,” Finn answered him. He put Bran's collar in his pocket and left his people, accompanied by a young man who served with him for one day and one year.
Finn was quick on his feet and agile, but he had difficulty keeping up with his companion - he flew as if on wings. Finn just tried not to lose sight of him as they made their way through thickets and winding gorges, forded rivers, and skirted lakes.
If the young man disappeared somewhere ahead behind a high mountain, Finn would quicken his pace and go around the mountain on the other side in order to see him quickly and not lose his way.
The journey ended when they reached the royal castle of Lochlannach.
Ominous, gloomy, he stood on the very shore of the sea, where foamy waves crashed with a roar against sharp rocks.
Exhausted and tired after a difficult journey, Finn entered the castle and sank into a chair to rest and then take part in the feast. He remembered well the agreement with the stranger.
But it was not a feast that awaited Finn Mac Humala in the castle of the Lochlannach king.
The king himself and the gloomy leaders of the clans, as well as all the best warriors of Lochlann, gathered that day to decide together what kind of death to put the Fian hero to death. From the moment Finn entered this castle, he became their prisoner and knew that he would see no mercy here.
- Hang him! - said one.
- Burn it!
- Drown in the deepest lake!
The advice followed one after another, like blows from a dull sword.
- No, let Finn Mac Humal die a shameful death! - said the warrior with the darkest, fiercest face. - Let's let him into the Great Gorge, where the Gray Dog lives. And the Dog will tear him to pieces. There is no death more shameful than death from the teeth of a dog!
These words aroused delight and loud approval among those gathered: who would argue that there is no worse death than from the fangs and claws of the ferocious Gray Dog, guarding the gloomy Great Gorge, where even the most desperate warrior has not dared to enter for many years.
Without further delay, the warriors took Finn to the Great Gorge and left him there alone among the thorny thickets and inaccessible rocks, covered in an acrid, damp haze. Only the long howl of the Gray Dog broke the silence.
Whether he remained in the Great Gorge or fled, there would have been only one end for Finn: death.
But it’s better to fall victim to the terrible Dog than from the hands of the traitors who lured him into their castle by cunning - so Finn decided and stayed.
Suddenly, somewhere in the darkness, a Gray Dog appeared in front of him, and the hero’s knees involuntarily began to tremble and fear squeezed his throat. The dog was no less tall than Bran, Finn's favorite hound. The fur stood on end on his back. The mouth opened, revealing sharp, long teeth and a red tongue. The breath rushed out of the nostrils with such force that it scattered everything around for three miles, no less.
Finn's spine went cold and his heart became numb.
And then he remembered that in his pocket was Bran’s golden collar, which he had grabbed from home on the advice of his fool. And a spark of hope flashed.
He took out his collar and waved it in the air. And it was as if a miracle had happened. The Gray Dog froze, stopped growling angrily and wagged his tail. Then he crawled on his belly to Finn and licked him first on his hand, then on his face, neck, and legs. He licked all Finn's scratches and sores from thorny bushes and sharp stones.
Finn put Bran's golden collar around the Gray Dog's neck and led this terrible, tamed beast out of the Gorge.
The warriors and friends held a feast in honor of Finn's return.
But the miracle was not that Finn returned home unharmed - everyone believed in his intelligence, resourcefulness and courage - but the meeting of the Gray Dog with Bran. True, the secret of this friendly meeting turned out to be simple: Gray Dog and Bran were brothers.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru