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The night was silent, and then I heard a far off squeal.
It hurt my ears, but not like the haselnuss. There had been something good in that, even when it was painful.
Kalle threw dirt on the fire.
“We have minutes, now, at the most,” he said.
“I think we have even less,” Kara said, moving closer to the fire. “There are three creatures coming from the north. I see their breath, hear their cries, their whistles. Even their breath hurts me. They are very magical. And they are very evil.”
Kalle drew back, and out of his mouth came a word, a word of power, kalt, and green fire extended out of his raised hand. Cold poured into the smoldering fire, as the word vibrated on all four dimensions.
Then Kalle was picking up nuts and handing them to us.
Kara took them, but shook her head. “They’ll come all the faster now, after that spell.”
Kalle shrugged. “After the song of the haselnuss, nothing could be a stronger signal that we’re here.”
Another squeal from not so far away. I didn’t want to stick around and find out what made that sound. I felt a chill vibrate up my spine. “That was close,” I said.
Kalle’s face tightened. “We must gather every nut and flee. Quick now! Look for them with your third eye. Don’t miss any, or they’ll be food for the beasts that hunt us.”
I opened my third eye and saw several dozen points of light in the firepit. Kalle and Kara were already picking them out quickly and putting them into pouches.
I picked up several nuts, one at a time, and put them in a pocket inside my cloak. I grabbed several more. They tingled in my fingers, but Kalle’s magic had taken away their heat — they were merely warm to the touch.
Another squeal sounded, closer now, and I stopped for a moment. Kalle and Kara kept right on picking up and storing the nuts. I picked up two more. Then I looked down one last time. There were no more points of light.
I looked up at Kalle and Kara with a grin of satisfaction, but they weren’t grinning.
They were looking out across the clearing.
Two pairs of red eyes were rapidly approaching.
Chapter VI
Keiler. I felt the word in my mind, projected from Kara and Kalle next to me. Wild boars. I’d read about them. A long time ago the keiler had run on the ground, and made their trails through the forest. People had hunted them. Then the hunters had become the hunted.
The keiler were supposed to have grown to unbelievable sizes, some with tusks the size of a child’s arm. I’d even read that sometimes they spoke, and walked on two legs. At the time I hadn’t believed a word of it. Now I wished I’d paid more attention.
“Stand tall,” Kalle said. “Remember the strength of your forefathers.”
“It’s too late to run, isn’t it?” I asked.
“Their eyes are weak and they hate fire,” Kara said. “If we can hold them off until daybreak, then we may have a chance to flee.”
I stood tall, like Kalle said. Running away was pointless. Where could I run to? My mind raced instead. How could I simply stand there, weaponless, and await my fate?
I looked down at my side. My blade hung there, forgotten. Maybe I wasn’t weaponless, after all.
No, I was fooling myself. It was a wooden blade, a practice tool, a boy’s weapon.
And yet, it had cut Giancarlo, my blademaster.
It would have to serve.
My father had made me practice every morning with a cane, before the blademaster had trained me with the staff. My arms were strong even if my legs were weak. If only I had a length of steel in my hand.
I drew my blade.
