A boar hunt would have thrilled and daunted Murtagh when he was younger. Boars were dangerous animals, and heโd known of at least four earls who had been maimed or killed by a wild hog. The
danger was part of the appeal; it was an opportunity to prove your mettle, sharpen your martial skills, andโfor many a manโwin favor with the women at court. The ๏ฌrst time Murtagh had gone boar hunting had been with a group of nobles, headed up by Lord Barst. It had beenโฆa less-than-enjoyable experience. Heโd missed his chance at a boar and ended up smeared in mud from crown to sole. Lyreth and his peers had relentlessly made fun of him on the ride back. Heโd had better luck on future expeditions, but theyโd always been colored by his memories of that initial humiliation.
Now, though, Murtagh found no thrill in the prospect of a hunt. His wards removed any possible danger, and with it any sense of challenge or accomplishment, leaving only slaughter for the sake of meat. It was a dour thought. There was a signi๏ฌcant di๏ฌerence between a hunter and a butcher, and he had no desire to be a butcher.
Along with Bachel and her retinue, he departed the temple and returned to the front courtyard.
Dust shook from the building as Thorn landed beside them.
Bachel spread her arms in a welcoming manner and said, โA hunt, noble dragon! Join us on our venture, and you may slake your thirst for blood and
hunger for ๏ฌesh.โ
Thorn snorted and looked at Murtagh.ย She enjoys making lots of noise, like a magpie in the morning.
Do you want to come?
The dragon licked his chops.ย Iโll not let you wander o๏ฌ with her alone.
Besides, she is not wrong; I do hunger.
โAssemble, my faithful children!โ cried Bachel. โBring us horses and water and wine and all the things needed for a hunt. Quickly!โ
Dozens of grey-robed cultists and white-robed temple acolytes rushed about the courtyard as they sprang to obey. Alรญn approached carrying two braces of broad-bladed, short-handled spears, one set of which she handed to Bachel and the other to Murtagh.
Bachel tested the edges of her spears with her thumb and then pointed a spear at Murtagh, like an accusatory ๏ฌnger. โThere is a condition to the hunt, Kingkiller.โ
Of course. โAnd what would that be, my Lady?โ
โNo spells are to be used in the killing of the boars. They are sacred beasts, touched by the power of this place, and it would be disrespectful, as well as blasphemous, to do otherwise.โ
Murtagh likewise tested the edges of his spears. They were tolerably sharp, but the metal seemed to be rather poor iron; they would bend after the ๏ฌrst hard blow, and the edges wouldnโt stay sharp for more than a few strokes. Using them would be a challenge, as would forgoing magic.
He liked the idea.
โThat seems eminently reasonable. I shall abide by your custom.โ
She inclined her head. โThe Dreamer will look kindly upon your e๏ฌorts, my son.โ
Then Murtagh gestured at her spears. โDo you mean to hunt as well, my Lady?โ
A gleam appeared in Bachelโs eyes, and she hefted one of the spears with surprising ease. โThink you that I am incapable?โ
Murtagh didnโt, but neither did he have a good measure of her. In a mild voice, he said, โHunting boar takes great strength. I have never seen a
woman attempt it.โ
Bachelโs laugh echoed o๏ฌ the mountains, and crows cawed in response from the Tower of Flint. โA human woman, you mean to say. โTis good, then, that I am not wholly human. The blood of the elves runs in my veins. Though it may not be so thick as my motherโs, it is still thicker than that of the women of your kind.โ
โThen I look forward to seeing your prowess upon the ๏ฌeld of action.โ โAnd I yours, my son.โ
 |
As the cultists hurried to organize the hunting party, several of Bachelโs servants brought screens and held them about her while Alรญn and two other women attended her. When the screens were lowered, Murtagh saw Bachel no longer in her dress of red but now garbed like a man, with leather vambraces upon her forearms and chased riding boots that went to midthigh and a peaked helm divided by lines of bright rivets. The helm had a half mask to protect her eyes and nose, and an aventail of ๏ฌne mail edged with rings of brass or bronze. It was a handsome look, Murtagh thought, for war or for sport.
From among the stone buildings came men leading a score of horsesโ short, hardy animals that were barely taller than ponies. Their coats were shaggier than those of any horse Murtagh had seen before, as if they were wearing their own knotted blankets for warmth in the long northern winters.
The cultists gave him a mare with a liver chestnut coat to ride. She was a far cry from the chargers heโd been trained on, but the animal seemed steady enough. He just hoped the mareโs nerve would hold during the hunt.
Before getting on the horse, he slipped o๏ฌ his cloak and tucked it into one of Thornโs saddlebags. It would only hinder him when on foot.
As he climbed onto the mare, Thornโs disapproval washed over him.ย It does not seem right to see you ride one of those hornless deer animals.
Horses. Theyโre called horses, and you know that.
But it sounds more insulting to call them hornless deer.
Murtagh glanced over. If Thorn were human, he would have sworn the dragon was smiling.ย Youโre enjoying this, arenโt you?
Thorn coughed in his chest.ย It is not every day I see a Rider riding aย horse.
As the hunting party readied itself for departure, a realization came to Murtagh:ย DogsโฆThey donโt have any dogs. Now that he thought of it, the village was surprisingly quiet. There were no hounds baying, nor were there mutts yapping in the streets or scrapping over food. It was an odd thing. In all his years and all his travels, Murtagh had never before seen a human settlement without dogs.
Are dogs so important?ย Thorn asked.
They are. For the common man, having a dog is the closest thing to the bond you and I share.
Do you mean to compare dragons to dogs?
No, no. Not as such, only to say that the connection a human may share with a dog canโin partโresemble the connection that we have.
Thorn seemed unconvinced.ย Mmm. Did you ever have a dog?
You know I didnโtโฆ. The other boys would have hurt or killed any dog I owned. Thornโs lip wrinkled slightly, not enough that others would notice, but
Murtagh saw.ย They would not have dared were I there.
Murtagh chuckled.ย No. That they wouldnโt.
He coaxed his mare to sidestep over to Bachel. โI notice you have no dogs.โ
Disdain sharpened the witchโs angled features. โAnd for good reason.
They are blasphemous creatures.โ โDogs?โ
โThey refuse to accept the insight one may receive through the power of this place. No dog will stay here in Nal Gorgoth, and that has ever been the case. Crows are wiser. They understand the promise of dream.โ
โHow will you drive the boars, though?โ
Her hooded gaze grew mysterious. โYou shall see, Kingkiller. We will not need such assistance as you are accustomed to.โ
As the group organized their provisions, Murtagh spotted Alรญn watching from among the templeโs shadowed pillars, a furtive ๏ฌgure half hidden behind the carved stone.
When everyone in the party was mounted up, Bachel lifted a spear over her head and cried, โWith me!โ and spurred her shaggy stallion forward, away from the temple and into the village.
Murtagh was tempted to brandish Zarโroc, as if rallying troops, but instead he spurred his mare and followed at a sedate pace. The cultists trailed after, and Thorn brought up the rear, his weighted tread shaking dust from the shingles of the buildings.
Dozens of villagers gathered along the streets to watch them depart. Murtagh spotted a surprising number of children among their ranks.ย It seems like there ought to be more people here, given how many children they have, he said to Thorn.ย Itโs odd.
The dragon answered:ย Perhaps they send the younglings elsewhere when they are grown.
Once the party reached the edge of Nal Gorgoth, Bachel reined in her stallion and pointed toward the southern side of the valley. โDo you see that small gap between the mountains, Kingkiller? Where the trees follow a stream out of the heights? That is our destination.โ
โWe will ๏ฌnd boars there, my Lady?โ
โEnough to feed a thunder of dragons!โ Then she spurred her stallion again, bending low over the horseโs neck as he sprang forward with a startled snort over the blackened earth.
Grieve scowled and lashed the side of his mare as he followed. โKeep with the Speaker, blast you!โ he shouted at the warriors who ๏ฌlled out their party.
With a clamor of drumming hooves and the cries of the excited men, the group headed south toward the narrow wedge of space that separated one mountain from the next.
It will be a wonder if we donโt scare away all the boars with this ruckus, said Murtagh.
Thorn surprised him then by taking ๏ฌight; his wings cast a crimson shadow upon the group as he soared over them.ย I will scout ahead and see where our prey might be, before you drive them from their feeding grounds and watering holes.
Murtagh watched with some regret as Thorn rose with enviable ease above the foothills. He wished he were riding Thorn instead of the mare with the coat of liver chestnut; he hated being left behind among strangers.
Most of all, he hated how familiar a feeling it was.
The air grew warmer as they neared the sliver of a side valley, and more and more wisps of smoke rose like garden eels from the crusted earth. A few times, a scrap of wind-torn smoke struck him in the face, and he gagged from the overwhelming stench of sulfur. The land had a charred and barren appearance, as if razed by ๏ฌre in the recent past.
Bachel had slowed her stallion to a more measured pace, so Murtagh rode up next to her. โIโve never seen a place like this before, except for the Burning Plains far to the south. And those donโt smell of brimstone.โ
The witch nodded. โThere are many such places, Kingkiller, scattered about Alagaรซsia, though you will not easily ๏ฌnd them. There is another, not far south of here: the barrows of Anghelm, where Kulkarvek the Terrible is buried in state.โ
Murtagh fought to hide his reaction. Kulkarvek was the only Urgal known to have united their fractious race under a single banner, an event that had occurred long before the fall of the Riders, if stories were to be trusted. His resting place was one of the other locationsโalong with the ruins of El-harรญm and Vroengard Islandโthat Umaroth had warned Thorn and Murtagh to avoid.
But what bothered him most was the implication that there were many such places throughout Alagaรซsia: places where the ground was burnt and the air smelled of brimstone.
Why arenโt they more widely known?ย he asked Thorn.ย Even if theyโre in remote, isolated locations, surely the Riders or others would have noticed any place that smelled like this. It would be di๏ฌcult to hide, especially from the air.
A weirding veil, perhaps? A spell that hides the obvious from sight?
Wards ought to block that sort of thing.
It depends on the spell. You know that. It could be an enchantment of a sort none now are familiar with. Or something akin to the Banishing of the Names.
Murtagh glanced up at Thorn.ย Dragon magic?โฆDo you feel something of that here?
I do not know what I feel, only that the land seems alive, despite the charring.
The world narrowed around them as the hunting party entered the side valley and the mountains pinched close, until the foothills were only a few hundred feet apart and dense ranks of trees blocked their sight. It was good, Murtagh thought, that Thorn was in the air and not there in such tight quarters.
Bachel led the way along a well-trodden path that wound between the tall pines.
Past the gap, the valley widened again, and Murtagh beheld what elsewhere in the Spine would have been a long alpine ๏ฌeld where deer and bears and other wildlife would gather. Not here. Here the earth was still scorched and blackened, and the trees were dead and skeletalโbare of all but a few clumps of brittle needles. None of which made as strong an impression on Murtagh as the enormous numbers of mushrooms growing from the ground.
They came in all kinds. Brown-capped, white-capped, round as pu๏ฌballs, tiered like the temple in Nal Gorgoth, broad as shields or as tall and narrow as a spear; the profusion of forms was overwhelming. There were gilled mushrooms, and mushrooms as red as ladybugs, and huge woody funguses that rose higher than a horse-mounted man. A rich, savory smell scented the areaโlike a cut of well-cooked beefโand thin veils of brown spores drifted upward along currents of rising air, mixing with the wisps of vapor from the ground.
Amid the ๏ฌeld and forest of mushrooms, Murtagh spotted dark shapes moving through the shadows: monstrous wild boars, ridge-backed and covered in coarse black bristles.
โThey eat the mushrooms and grow to exceptional size because of it,โ Bachel explained, bringing her horse alongside his. โIt gives their meat a
taste unlike any other.โ
Murtagh shook his head, still taking in the sight. โIโve never seen or heard of mushrooms like these.โ
โThe ground here suits them as much as it is hostile to green growing plants.โ
From above, it looks as if the ground is covered with melted fat, said Thorn, circling over the far end of the narrow crevice splitting the Spine, some miles away.
Delightful, Murtagh replied.
Bachel continued: โAs you can see, we need no drivers. We are our own drivers. We will push toward the head of the valley, and the boars will gather before us. If your dragonโโ
โHe is onlyย mineย as much as I amย his.โ
Her eyelids drooped with what seemed like amusement. โOf course, Kingkiller. If Thorn wishes to hunt there at the other end, he might help us and so trap the boars between our spears and his teeth and claws.โ
It is a good plan, said Thorn, and Murtagh could almost hear him snap his jaws shut with ๏ฌnality.ย I will do so. The dragon folded his crimson wings and dove toward the far end of the valley, a burning meteor blazing.
The ranks of mushrooms hid Thorn as he descended.
Then Bachel lifted her spear. โDismount!โ The hunting party obeyed, as did Murtagh, grateful to be rid of the liver chestnut mare for the time being. Some seconds later, a mutedย thudย rolled down the valley: the sound of
Thornโs impact belatedly arriving.
There were, Murtagh saw, numerous game trails wending through the expanse of overgrown mushroomsโpathways pounded ๏ฌat by the passage of countless sharp hooves.
Along with the cultists, Murtagh staked and hobbled his horse and then set out on foot along the near trail. The ground, though blackened, was softer than by Nal Gorgoth, as if the entire subsurface were riddled with fungus.
Murtagh made a face as he stepped on a shelf of brown mushroom and it dissolved into a slippery, foul-smelling liquid the color of night soil.
โSpread out,โ commanded Bachel. Her warriors responded quickly, forming an arching line to either side of her. Grieve remained close by, which she seemed to expect.
Murtagh moved away from the group toward the eastern side of the valley. He wanted space to maneuver; hunting with strangers was always a dangerous proposition, and doubly so here. Besides, he knew from past boar hunts that having room to run was often the di๏ฌerence between success and injury or death.
โWhere are you going, Kingkiller?โ Bachel called out in a gay voice. โI hunt better alone, Lady Bachel!โ he answered in a like tone.
She ๏ฌashed him a savage smile. The mushrooms appeared archaicโ primitive predecessors of more ๏ฌnely ๏ฌnished plantsโas if theyโd endured from a time beyond recorded history, and Bachel seemed a part of that ancient remnant. โOnly remember to control your tongue, Kingkiller. You must make your kill without magic.โ
โOh, that I shall,โ he muttered. No matter how poor the metal used to make the spears theyโd given him, Murtagh knew he could deliver at least one fatal blow apiece.
Step by measured step, they proceeded up the valley. Ahead of them, an occasional roar sounded as Thorn chased this boar or that. It wasnโt long before the dragon touched his mind again, and Murtagh found it full of blood and excitement and the hot thrill of the hunt.
The witch was right, said Thorn.ย The meat is good.
Murtagh laughed softly.ย That should be all the recommendation a butcher or cook needs. A dragon said, โThe meat is good.โ
Thorn roared with amusement.
Mushrooms crunched and squished and snapped beneath Murtaghโs boots with every step. The soft fungal bodies made it di๏ฌcult to keep a steady footing. He was o๏ฌ any trail now, which wasnโt ideal for ๏ฌnding game, but it allowed him to keep his distance from Bachelโs group, a few hundred feet to his right.
His senses sharpened as he neared the edge of a dense stand ofโฆhe wasnโt sure what to call them.ย Mushroom trees?ย Their gnarled trunks were as
broad as a horseโs chest and had scraps of cobweb-like membranes clinging to them.ย Please, no giant spiders, Murtagh thought. He would rather face a horde of Urgals barehanded.
The air was thick and moist and smelled ๏ฌeshy and overheated, as if he were pressed close against an enormous, sweating armpit. He grimaced and moved forward with caution, eyes darting from shadow to shadow as he looked for any boars.
Would it be using magic to ๏ฌnd the beasts with my mind?
He hadnโt meant the thought for Thorn, but the dragon answered all the same:ย Do you care about pleasing Bachel?
I care about keeping my word.
Murtagh decided to rely on only his eyes and ears for the time being. It made for an even more interesting challenge.
A chorus of squeals and grunts sounded across the ๏ฌeld to his right. He dropped into a crouch as he spotted a cluster of seven or so hogsโboars and sows alikeโrun out from under the treelike mushrooms and charge Bachel and her line of warriors.
Bachel sank to one knee, planting the butt of her spear against the instep of her back foot and aiming the tip of the blade toward the oncoming beasts. Her warriors did the same, and she loosed a piercing cry that captured the attention of the lead boar and drew it toward her as metal to a lodestone.
Murtagh watched, momentarily breathless, as the animals closed the distance between them and the cultists, crashing through every mushroom in their way.
Some of the hogs bypassed the waiting cultists. But threeโincluding the lead boarโplowed straight into the hunters, impaling themselves on the weapons. One of the warriors fell, and he screamed as a hog trampled him, gouts of blood spurting from the animalโs gored chest.
Bachel caught her prey on the point of her spear. The impact drove her back several inches. Then she dug in her heels, thrust hard, and forced the spear through the chest of the outraged boar. With a gleeful cry, she stood and lifted the boar upon her spear and then slammed the dying animal back down against the ground. It was a feat of astonishing strength. Even with the
heightened abilities of a Rider, Murtagh knew he would have been unable to perform such an act without the help of magic.
Bachel planted a foot upon the back of the fallen boar, spread her arms and threw back her head and ๏ฌlled the valley with her triumphant ululation.
The sight and sound sent a savage thrill through Murtagh. The witch was as a wild beast, pure and ๏ฌerce and terrifying. In that moment, she seemed more like a dragon than either human or elf.
โThat is one to me, Kingkiller!โ Bachel cried without looking at him. Behind her, the trampled warrior lay groaning on the ground, his broken chest heaving. The manโs hog was on its side a few steps away, a wide wound in its breast, and it kicked and shuddered as it bled out.
Then a thousand more squeals seemed to sound: a tormented assault upon their ears as ๏ฌrst dozens and then hundreds of wild pigs stormed out of the mass of overgrown mushrooms in front of Bachel and her warriors. Beyond, Murtagh heard Thorn approaching, the dragon making no attempt to conceal his heavy tread.
Distracted, Murtagh peered between the trunks of the mushroom trees in an e๏ฌort to better see. He glimpsed Bachel setting her spear again, and the warriors closing in to protect her ๏ฌanks.
Another grunting squeal sounded, startling in its nearness.
Murtagh dropped to one knee as a bristling shadow charged toward him through the fungal forest. Tusks ๏ฌashed white and sharp in the dim light, and a reddened mouth gaped, and small eyes rolled, black and beady. The boar uttered a coughing bark that Murtagh had heard in more than a few nightmares, and then it was upon him.
The boar slammed into him with shocking force. The animal was denser than any human and many times stronger. Murtagh felt his spear sink into the beastโs deep chest, and likewise, he felt the vibration along the haft as the iron blade struck a rib and snapped in two.
The boar squealed and twisted sideways as it tumbled into Murtagh. They both fell to the blackened ground in a tangle of arms and kicking legs.
Sharp, hard blows struck Murtagh along the ribs and the back of his head, and though his wards ๏ฌared to life, the blows still hurt.
He yelled and tried to rise, but the boar was lying athwart him, kicking and thrashing, and Murtagh couldnโt ๏ฌnd a good angle to push himself upright.
Then more boars rushed pastโa torrent of frightened, blood-maddened beastsโand their weight drove him into the slippery, slimy mire of the crushed mushrooms. A thick, rotting stench clogged his nostrils, making it impossible to breathe. Dozens of sharp hooves dug into his back, deadly as any dagger, and his wards drew even more of his strength.
The squealing and grunting were deafening. A crimson tunnel closed in around his vision, darkening the world.
Murtagh groped for Zarโroc. His ๏ฌngers found the pommel, but he didnโt have room to draw the sword while lying on his belly.
A word from the ancient language leapt to mind. A single utterance and he could drive the boars away or else kill them entirely. But then he would have failed Bachelโs challenge, and failure was more painful than the blows battering his frame.
He managed a quick, shallow breath. It wasnโt enough.ย Blast it. He was running out of time. Ifโ
He cried out in pain as a boar stomped on his right elbow. His wards
kept the joint from breaking, but the pressure pushed his arm into the soft soil, and the angle caused something in his elbow to stretch or snap.
Then a black hoof came down along the side of his head, scraping his skull, and the impact whipped his neck to the side.
Stars ๏ฌlled his vision, and the world grew dark and hazy, and all sound faded into the distance, dimly heard and badly apprehended.
