by K. Panikian
BACK at our lodge, the guides buzzed with the news of Amy’s confession to Grace’s murder. We stayed out of it as best we could, saying we’d been hiking all morning.
I spent some time in the cabin double-checking my backpack, filling my water canteens, and making sure our freeze-dried food was still sealed tightly.
Then I typed a long email to Bard and Very, telling them everything that happened with the rusalka and our plan to go through for the water monster that night. There was a message from Bard saying he was in and out of places he could use his phone, but that he was working toward the solid potential of a portal.
I also saw a cryptic text from Very that said only, “Found gate. Bringing tigers.”
I showed it to Julian and he shrugged.
Eventually, we walked over to the lodge for dinner. We ate fresh trout in a garlic and lemon sauce and roasted asparagus. I savored every bite, knowing it was probably our last real meal for a long while. I caught Julian watching me pack it away and rolled my eyes at him.
After dinner I sat by the fire with the others, though I skipped the beers. After a while, I saw Julian stand from where he’d been talking to Ken and Caleb and he walked over to me.
“Take a walk with me?” he asked.
I nodded.
I thought we’d head back to the cabin to get ready, but Julian instead led me down to the dock, just like the previous night. I ignored the flutter in my stomach at being alone with him again. My heart could only take so many bruises.
We sat by the water, the sun still an orange ball in the sky, and Julian cleared his throat.
“I want you to know I thought a lot about what you said, and you’re completely right. I took away your agency, and I’m sorry.”
I blinked
“It wasn’t my intention. I swear I’m not that guy that thinks he knows best. But I did it and I own it.” His shoulders slumped as he sighed. “I’m not asking for another chance. I know you’re still upset with me. But I want you to know that I acknowledge what I did and I’m truly sorry.”
I looked at him carefully, his blue eyes earnest and sad. I felt my heart soften, then steeled myself.
“Thank you for telling me that.” I stood and headed for our cabin to get ready.
I would forgive him, I knew. I loved him too much to hold onto my anger. But he didn’t need to know that yet. Let him chase me for once, I thought to myself.
A little bit before the sun finally set, we snuck out of our cabin, armed and dangerous. I had my bow over one arm, my quiver on my back, and a knife at my hip. Julian had his spatha at his side and daggers on either side of his chest.
We crept carefully off the lodge grounds and dropped down to where the tree line hit the lake shore; then we hiked steadily west. The setting sun bathed the air in scarlet and opal hues and fish leaped in the lake, chasing mosquitoes and splashing around. It felt good to have my bow on my shoulder again. Striding confidently, I picked my way through the brambles and rocks.
We reached the cutoff for the pond, with its red blaze, and left the lakeside. The path became gloomy and dark. The rusalka was gone but the air still hummed with magic and the creatures of the forest knew it. No birds or bugs sang in the night air; no small rodents rustled in the underbrush.
We walked into the clearing surrounding the pond and I eyed its scummy surface with a definite lack of excitement. The air still reeked of sulfur and rotting vegetation. Fishing the necklace out of his pocket, Julian drew one of his daggers. I grabbed my knife and looped my fingers through Julian’s belt hooks, attaching myself to him. He shivered when my hand brushed his back and I suppressed a grin.
We sighed simultaneously and moved forward.
In the pond, the mud squelched under the chilly water. The algae and scum climbed my legs as we moved deeper and deeper. When we reached the center, the water began to glow a pale blue.
I released the breath I’d been holding. The necklace worked.
We took another step forward and then it was morning. I could see the pale sun peeking through the clouds and the air felt warm. We stood waist-deep in a pond, but this one mirrored a bright, healthy blue color against the sky. I could see clearly down to the pebbles on the bottom, with their myriad colors, as little baby fish darted here and there in silver glints. The air smelled fresh.
I squeezed Julian’s hand and let go, scanning around us.
Julian put the necklace in his pocket again, sheathed his dagger, and drew his spatha.
The surface of the water stayed flat as we edged slowly backward to the shore. The forest around us resembled the one we just left, full of soaring spruce trees. I didn’t see a large lake through the trees though, only tall grasses. Maybe a marsh?
I stepped out of the shallow pond and onto the sandy bank and Julian strode out beside me. We stood back-to-back and still, I didn’t see anything moving.
“It probably doesn’t live in this pond,” I murmured softly to Julian. “It’s shallow and small.” I gestured toward the marsh. “That’s probably a better bet, if it’s a vodyanoy.”
He nodded and we carefully moved in that direction. We reached the edge of the marsh and stopped again.
“Be still,” I whispered.
Sheathing my knife, I held my hands in front of me. Calling the air, I let the blue filaments swirl around my fingers and then thrust my hands out, sending an invisible pulse into the landscape. I waited a beat and when the return echo hit, I absorbed the threads and turned slightly, pointing southwest. “Large heartbeat, that way.”
Julian patted my shoulder and we started walking southwest. We stepped carefully through the outer edge of the marsh, never getting deeper than calf-length into the water. The tall rushes loomed higher than Julian’s head, shielding us from seeing more than a few feet in any direction. I felt claustrophobic.
The cattails split in front of us and I crouched in the water, peering through their green and brown stalks. Across the open water I saw a tall mound of logs and mud resembling a giant beaver dam. I pointed it out to Julian and then moved my mouth close to his ear.
“The entrance will be under the water. We can’t go that way; we’ll be too vulnerable. We need to draw it out.”
He turned his cheek to whisper to me, his blue eyes piercing in his tense face. “How? Like a wounded animal or like an intruder?”
I beamed at him. He could read my mind, it seemed. “Like an intruder, I think. If it’s full or asleep, it will ignore another animal. But an intruder will rouse it immediately.”
Julian said, “I’ll alert it here. You sneak around to the back of the mound. I’ll give you thirty minutes. Go very slowly and very silently.”
I nodded and started to rise. He grabbed my hand as I went past him and kissed it. I blushed and turned to face him again. He winked at me.
THIRTY minutes later I was in place behind the creature’s mound. The dried mud looked pale brown in the sunlight and pieces of golden straw poked through the walls. The air smelled of healthy vegetation and summer air. A snail inched past my boot. Up close, the mound was taller than me, and as wide along as a car.
Julian’s voice boomed from across the marsh. “Ho, you mud monster. Come out and face me!”
I smothered a laugh. Very subtle. Would it work?
I heard a muffled groan from inside the mound and then a tiny splash. I watched for movement near me and then started to sneak to the side.
I heard from the front of the mound a sibilant hiss.
Peering around the reeds I saw, in the knee-high water, the scaled body of the vodyanoy. Short and squat, its skin glowed fish-belly white. It had a head like a salamander or a frog, with bulbous eyes and an oblong mouth. It crouched menacingly in the marsh, staring at Julian.
Julian faced it, standing tall, his spatha in hand and his blond hair burnished in the sunlight. His eyes blazing, he thundered again, “Fight me, you foul creature of darkness!”
The vodyanoy stared at him and didn’t move.
It slid a pink, squirming tongue out through its thick lips and licked an eyelid, rasping out, “Who are you?”
At first, I was surprised that I understood what it said, then I felt stupid and remembered Ozwiena’s gift. The goddess of echoes blessed us when we fought Abaddon in Russia, allowing us to communicate with each other. Now, it looked like the gift extended to talking with monsters.
Julian waved his sword.“I am the great monster hunter, Julian of the Bear Sword!”
I crept closer, since its attention was wholly on Julian. I saw that it held a club in its right hand, long and misshapen. No, not a club, I decided, a thighbone, and likely a human one. Gross.
The vodyanoy rose out of the water, its long, thin legs stretching into pale stalks. Taking a step toward Julian, it held the club in front of its body.
“You’re just in time,” it jeered. “I am in need of a new slave. The last one was too tasty to last.” It licked its lips.
I slowly pulled my bow from my shoulder and nocked an arrow from my quiver. Julian saw my movement and starting dancing up and down, waving his arms like a gorilla to keep the vodyanoy’s eyes on him.
Aiming my arrow, I held my breath, then loosed it. The bowstring let out a soft twang and the vodyanoy moved. I anticipated it would and pushed with my air power, keeping the arrow aimed at its torso. I blew lightly and the arrow struck the monster flush in the chest, just inches inside of its prominent ribcage.
The vodyanoy turned its head toward me quickly, rotating like an owl to see behind its bulging body. It reached its webbed fingers up to pluck at the arrow. “A girl,” it hissed. “Mmmmm.”
I nocked another arrow and aimed. The vodyanoy grinned at me and leaped into the air. I tracked its movement as it rose into its arc and saw where it intended to drop—directly on top of me. I shoved the air aggressively, trying to divert the monster’s path, but it was too strong. Dropping my bow and arrow, I pushed my hands out in front of me.
I shoved every air molecule out of the space around my body and held them firmly, creating an impenetrable shield.
The vodyanoy crashed into it, feet first, and ricocheted hard, down into the mud a few feet away. I held my shield and waited. It appeared to be stunned.
Julian appeared. He swung his sword in a great overhead blow and struck the vodyanoy’s head from its body. The severed head, still looking shocked, slid off and fell into the mud with a moist, plopping sound. The body stayed upright, the mud holding it in place. Blood trickled.
I released my shield and took a breath. I grinned at Julian.
Chapter 15
Julian stared at Astrid. She looked fierce and strong, if a little bit muddy. His heart thumped hard in his chest.
“Are you okay?” he asked her reflexively. It looked like she made her air shield to defect the vodyanoy when it leaped at her. When that happened, he’d been too far away to intercept the monster. He’d felt fear flash through him and had run as hard as he could. But she was fine. His knees still shook.
“Yeah,” she answered.
Fishing her bow out of the shallow water in front of her, she looked at it critically. She grabbed a towel from her back pocket and meticulously wiped it down. When the bow was clean, she strung it over her shoulder again and fished out her arrow to do the same.
She walked to the vodyanoy’s body and stepped on its chest, pulling her other arrow from between its ribs. It let loose with a grating, sucking sound and a small spray of blood. She wiped that arrow down, too, inspected the head for damage, and slid it in her quiver.
Julian looked down at the frog-man’s body and then borrowed the towel to wipe his sword.
“I hate to say it,” he looked up as Astrid spoke, “but someone needs to check its den. Just to make sure it doesn’t have any prisoners still alive in there.”
Julian said, “I’ll do it.”
“At least the water is clean and fresh here.” Astrid knelt at the mound and started fingering along the lower edge of the mound just below the surface of the water. She moved around the dome until she stopped and stood.
“Here,” she said. “You’ll have to dive under, but this is the entrance. Hold your breath and go through the short tunnel, then stand up. You should be in the center of the mound and that part is all above water.
“Pay attention if there are any fish bones in special places. They may be gate keys and we should disassemble them.”
She reached over and grabbed his hand. “Hey, great job chopping its head off.”
Smiling at her, he handed over his spatha and belt so he wouldn’t get tangled up in them, and then unsheathed one of his daggers. He held it tightly in his hand and dropped to his knees, feeling for the gap in the mud. When he found it, he closed his eyes and ducked under the warm water.
Keeping his eyes closed, he put his hands in front and pulled himself through the tunnel with short, powerful swimming strokes. Then his torso was out of the water and he knelt in the center of the creature’s home. He shook his wet hair out of his face and looked around.
The sun peeked through the roof in tiny slivers of pale gold, giving him barely enough light to see.
The mud walls, caked full of branches, sticks, and straw, looked mostly smooth. The air smelled earthy and moist. He saw a raised platform in front with straw and blankets—its bed, he presumed. He spun slowly in a circle, looking around, but didn’t see any signs of life. He found another raised platform that had a shackle attached to it, but no occupant. The straw there smelled foul and bloody. Julian’s stomach churned.
He saw one shelf made out of a long piece of bone; Julian hoped that it was from a deer or a seal, and not a former prisoner. On it, three small fish bones sat in a row. He grabbed them.
Looking around one last time, he didn’t see anything else to take. Swimming back out of the narrow tunnel, he popped up beside Astrid with a small splash.
She looked relieved to see him and helped him brush the wet marsh grass off his clothes. He showed her the fish bones and she put them in her pocket.
“We’ll check and see if these ones work like the necklace,” she said.
Julian tied his dripping hair out of his face and pulled his sword belt on again.
They started walking back toward the little pond. After a moment, Astrid twined her fingers with his. He looked down at their mingled fingers, noting the dirt and mud, and sighed.
His throat thick, he swatted a buzzing fly away from his face. “My dad left when I was a little kid. My mom raised me by herself. She’s amazing and she did a great job. But I always felt like I was the reason he left. I was too hard to take care of, too needy, or just too something else.”
Astrid squeezed his hand.
“I majored in psychology, got my master’s in counseling, and I’m a licensed school counselor, so I can diagnose myself. I have abandonment issues; I have anxiety about the people I love leaving me.
“It means I have a hard time trusting people and I have a hard time letting people get close to me. The rational side of me is frustrated with this part of my personality. It often manifests as me rejecting relationships, or the potential for relationships, with women that I like.”
Julian continued, his voice quizzical. “I actually thought I was getting better at it. I’m seeing my own therapist and I dated a woman I liked last year for almost six months.
“But how I reacted to you over the winter, and the denials and explanations that I created to justify it to myself, show me that I have a long way to go.”
Astrid paused walking, staring up at him, her eyes a clear, crystal blue. He brushed her damp hair back behind her ear. Her skin felt so silky smooth. Her cheeks turned pink.
“I’m telling you this, not to make any more excuses, but to say I want to try again. I like you a lot. I’m probably even in love with you, though I know it’s too soon to say that.
“I know it’s not fair to ask you if you still feel the same as you did, but if you do, or if you think you could again,
please give me another chance. Can we start over?”
Astrid blinked and cleared her throat. “My mom left, too, you know, when I was little. I know it can feel overwhelming, to realize you have no control over the people you love. You can’t make them stay. But I always believed that it was worth it, even if you only hold onto that person for a little while.”
She reached up and stroked her slender fingers along his cheek. The pads of her fingertips caught gently against his late-evening scruff.
Then she rose up on her toes and pulled his face down to hers. Exhaling quietly, Julian lightly brushed her lips with his. She was soft and warm. They stood still for a long moment in the bright sunshine, their lips touching but not moving, and Julian felt a great weight loosen in his chest.
She pulled back and smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling. “Yes, we can try again.”
WHEN they climbed out of the stagnant pond a little bit later, stinking now of rotten eggs and pulling slippery, slimy weeds out of their shoes, Julian was thankful he’d forced himself to talk to her about his fears on the other side of the portal, when they were less damp and sticky. That kiss had been beautiful and hopeful, and not marred by muck.
Although the sun was down, the sky was still twilight gray and they were able to see their way back down to the lake shore. At the gravel beach, he paused to look up. There were so many stars in the sky; a billion tiny, twinkling pinpricks on a navy-blue canvas.
They walked slowly toward their cabin, picking their way carefully through the dim light. They whispered back and forth and made plans.
Returning to their bunk just as the rising sun started to send pink clouds into the sky, they slipped inside, leaving their damp shoes and socks on the porch.
“You shower first,” Julian told Astrid. “I’ll email everyone and let them know the vodyanoy is dead and we’re heading back through the portal in a few hours. We’ll be heading west, looking for the smoking mountain.”
Astrid nodded and grabbed a change of clothes from her pack.
A little while later, they were both clean and ready to go. Rolling up their damp, muddy clothes from earlier, Julian stowed them to bring along. They’d be washing their clothes in lakes and streams soon enough. He walked out onto the porch and saw Astrid fanning her hands gently in front of their shoes, steaming them dry with her magic.