e people of the house; and whatever they would
throw at the bird, it is on the heads of some of themselves it would
fall. And the night Caoilte came in, the hall was made ready for a
feast, and the bird came in again, and did the same destruction as
before, and nothing they threw at him would touch him at all. "Is it
long the bird has been doing this?" said Caoilte. "Through the length of
a year now," said Derg, "since we went to war with Sidhe Fionnachaidh."

Then Caoilte put his hand within the rim of his shield, and he took out
of it a copper rod he had, and he made a cast of it at the bird, that
brought it down on the floor of the hall. "Did any one ever make a
better cast than that?" said Ilbrec. "By my word," said Caoilte, "there
is no one of us in the Fianna has any right to boast against another."
Then Ilbrec took down a sharp spear, having thirty rivets of gold in it,
from its place, and he said: "That is the Spear of Fiacha, son of
Congha, and it is with that Finn made an end of Aillen, son of Midhna,
that used to burn Teamhair. And keep it beside you now, Caoilte," he
said, "till we see will Lir come to avenge his bird on us."

Then they took up their horns and their cups, and they were at drinking
and pleasure, and Ilbrec said: "Well, Caoilte," he said, "if Lir comes
to avenge his bird on us, who will you put in command of the battle?" "I
will give the command to Derg there beyond," said he. "Will you take it
in hand, Derg?" said the people of the hill. "I will take it," said
Derg, "with its loss and its gain."

So that is how they spent the night, and it was not long in the morning
till they heard blowing of horns, and rattling of chariots, and clashing
of shields, and the uproar of a great army that came all about the hill.
They sent some of their people out then to see were there many in it,
and they saw three brave armies of the one size. "It would be a great
vexation to me," said Aedh Nimbrec, the Speckled, then, "we to get our
death and Lir's people to take the hill." "Did you never hear, Aedh,"
said Caoilte, "that the wild boar escapes sometimes from both hounds and
from wolves, and the stag in the same way goes away from the hounds with
a sudden start; and what man is it you are most in dread of in the
battle?" he said. "The man that is the best fighter of all the Men of
Dea," said they all, "and that is Lir of Sidhe Fionnachaidh." "The
thing I have done in every battle I will not give up to-day," s