Hunted

by Maggie Stiefvater

  Abeke! Rollan was stunned, even though the suggestion to follow the cat had been his. He vowed to make sure that Kunaya got a cat banquet thrown for her when this was all over.

  He ran to one side of the carriage; Meilin ran to the other. Resting in the center of the carriage’s floorboard was a massive wooden trunk with a heavy lock.

  Meilin leaned over the edge of the door. “Abeke! We’re here to save you!”

  “Meilin?” Abeke’s startled voice came from inside the trunk. “Is that you?”

  “And Rollan is here too,” Rollan said indignantly.

  “I didn’t think anyone would find me!” Abeke cried, her voice muffled. “I managed to knot my bracelet onto Kunaya, but I ran out of cord before I could spell out where —”

  “Great story,” said Rollan. “Tell us later. After we get you out.”

  He grabbed ahold of the lock on the trunk and gave it a tug. Frowning at Meilin, he shook his head.

  Meilin pursed her lips. “Perhaps there’s a spare key? Or — I bet Jhi could crush this entire thing if she sat on it!”

  “Jhi is going to sit on me?” Abeke cried, voice panicked.

  “Well, the trunk, not —”

  “Jhi isn’t sitting on anyone,” Rollan said calmly. Clambering up on the carriage back, he grabbed for the canopy. It ripped easily, and with it came the thin pieces of metal that gave the canopy its shape. In a heartbeat, Rollan had pulled one from the fabric. He jammed it into the trunk’s lock and wiggled it around in a practiced way. Looking over his shoulder at Meilin, he grinned cheekily.

  “What?” she said, flushing. “What are you smiling at me for? The lock —”

  “What lock?” Rollan said. At that instant he twisted his makeshift pick a final time. The lock popped open and clattered to the ground.

  Never has a poorly spent childhood paid off so well, Rollan thought with satisfaction.

  Meilin laughed, a bright, honest sound that she swallowed as soon as she realized he had noticed it.

  “Let me guess,” Meilin said. “Tutors?”

  Rollan grinned.

  In the carriage, the trunk’s lid flew open. Abeke and Uraza leaped out in motions so identical they looked like two of the same animal rather than one human and one leopard.

  “How did you find me?” Abeke asked breathlessly.

  “Kunaya’s not a spirit animal,” Meilin answered, looking down at the cat, “but she’s still a pretty great beast.” Meilin tugged the bracelet off Kunaya’s head and held it out to Abeke.

  “Have Devin and Karmo found Rumfuss?” Abeke asked as she took the bracelet from Meilin and put it back on her wrist. “They’ve been looking for hours now!”

  “I don’t think so,” Rollan said. “We can still find him before they do. Although I don’t have a clue where to look. What do boars like? Mud?”

  Meilin and Abeke exchanged a look of exasperation.

  “We could go ask MacDonnell?” Abeke suggested.

  “By the time we find him and then look for Rumfuss —” Meilin began.

  She was cut off by a sharp cry from the top of a nearby carriage. Essix was perched on a driver’s seat. When she caught Rollan’s surprised look, she cocked her head as if to say, What? I showed up, didn’t I?

  “What is she trying to say, Rollan?” Meilin asked.

  Rollan muttered, “Like I would know.”

  But the falcon ruffled her feathers at him and cocked her head. He felt the familiar sensation of her intuition trickling into his own mind. If it was like this all the time, he thought, things would be a lot easier.

  Meilin and Abeke were waiting for his verdict.

  “Essix is the answer,” he said. “She can guide us from above. Come on!”

  15: The Hare

  I HOPE THEY’VE FOUND ABEKE, CONOR THOUGHT AS HE AND Finn rushed down a path that snaked along the castle’s east wall. Their search for the hare had consumed more time than Conor liked, and still they’d seen no sign of their friends. Around them, the garden darkened as morning faded into afternoon, and afternoon into late afternoon. Losing the talisman to Devin would be awful, but losing another one of their team after Tarik . . . it would be unthinkable. Briggan glanced over at Conor, as if he’d overheard the boy’s thoughts.

  “Convincing the hare to rejoin MacDonnell won’t be easy,” Finn said from behind them, startling Conor back to the moment. “Not after the way MacDonnell treated him.”

  “Remember Rollan’s horse when we left Greenhaven?” Conor said, looking back at him. “He used to be a spirit animal. He was jealous of Rollan and Essix’s bond. Maybe when the hare sees Briggan and me, he’ll be jealous — jealous enough to want his bond with MacDonnell back.”

  “Maybe so,” Finn said. “I know that I find your bond inspiring.”

  It was high praise coming from the quiet Greencloak, and Conor felt a surge of hope too. They pressed on. Then, suddenly, there it was: a curtain of wisteria.

  This was in my dream, Conor thought.

  He dove for it, pushing the cascade of purple flowers out of the way. Beside him, Briggan snorted and rubbed his nose against the ground, protesting the flowers’ overpowering scent.

  The three emerged in a small clearing of trees. There was a stone bench on one side; on the other, the castle’s stone wall. The branches arched overhead, leaving only a tiny circle of the darkening sky visible.

  Finn made an uncertain noise. “The horse’s partner died,” he reminded Conor. “He had no choice but to go on alone. The hare knows MacDonnell is still alive — what makes you think he misses the bond so much?”

  Conor took a deep breath before stepping toward the castle wall. He extended a hand to a rosebush planted alongside the stone.

  “Because,” he said. “Do you know what’s on the other side of this wall?”

  “I don’t,” Finn admitted, voice cautious.

  “It’s MacDonnell’s bedroom,” Conor said. Careful to avoid the thorns, he brushed the rosebush to one side.

  With a soft whine, Briggan lay down. Finn sucked in a sharp breath. In the dark, two tiny, beetle-colored eyes shone, peering up at Conor. The hare had clearly been sleeping, curled up in a ball in the soft dirt. He looked surprised to see someone, much less someone so clearly looking for him.

  “Hello,” Conor said gently. “I’m Conor, and this is Briggan, one of the Great Beasts. We’re, uh, hoping to convince you to return to Lord MacDonnell.”

  The hare blinked. He did not look convinced. His ears sagged — not so much sleepy as hopeless.

  Conor wished he’d worked out more to say. He had really just thought the invitation, combined with the image of Briggan and him together, would be enough.

  Behind him, however, Finn exhaled before speaking. “I know what it is to lose your spirit animal. The pain I feel, I see in Lord MacDonnell’s eyes. I see in your eyes.”

  The hare blinked again, his ears sagging further.

  “Please,” Conor said. “Come with us. Come back to Glengavin. Give MacDonnell another chance. I know you miss him. You sleep beneath his bedroom window.”

  “He wants you back,” Finn added. “He’s changed.”

  This time, the hare did not blink. He sat still, his giant front legs locked in place. Only his nose moved, twitching with each breath. They were so close. Once they had convinced the hare to go back to MacDonnell, they could concentrate on Rumfuss. Time was running out. Conor finally reached toward the hare, palm open and promising, growing closer, closer to the animal —

  The hare bolted, gone so fast into the underbrush that even Briggan couldn’t have outrun him. It would be impossible to find him in this huge, dark garden.

  “Well,” Finn said, sounding defeated. “There goes that.”

  Conor gritted his teeth. Why had he reached out? He should have been more patient, given the animal more time. He was a shepherd — he knew better than to rush an animal slow to trust.

  Well, he reminded himself glumly. You were a shepherd.

>   Finn lifted a hand to touch a spot on his bicep — where his spirit animal, whatever it was, stayed dormant. “Perhaps sometimes a relationship is just too broken to fix.”

  Briggan walked to Conor’s side and sat down, letting Conor run a hand over his fur for comfort. As soon as his hand came down on Briggan’s ruff, he felt something shift in his head. His mind cleared, and the feeling of hopelessness that was threatening to overpower him was washed away. He had to lead. He had to make a decision.

  “We can at least stop Devin from getting the talisman, even if MacDonnell won’t let us take it for the Greencloaks,” he told Finn. “Let’s go find Rumfuss.”

  16: Rumfuss

  AFTER A FLYOVER OF THE GARDEN, ESSIX WAS ABLE TO GUIDE Rollan and the others toward the fruit orchards. The journey had taken the remainder of the day, but finally Essix had landed in the branches of a thick apple tree, and seemed to announce with a churr that they were close. Now, Meilin, Abeke, and Rollan hid in the shadow beside the apple tree, while Uraza peered across the orchard from the tree’s branches itself. Abeke was impressed — perhaps Rollan and Essix really were working on their bond.

  “My legs are cramping,” Rollan complained. “Let’s keep looking somewhere else.”

  Abeke looked up at Uraza, whose lavender eyes met hers with disappointment. Leaving Kunaya sitting in the tree, Uraza slunk down to join the rest of them. Her movement caused a few apples to shake loose, one of which knocked Meilin on the head. She caught it on the bounce and held it up to the leopard accusingly.

  “Sorry,” Abeke said for Uraza.

  Meilin looked irritated for a moment, then tossed the apple into the darkness. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go —”

  Meilin didn’t finish her sentence, because Rollan had grabbed her arm in an uncharacteristically serious way. Essix, who was perched on his shoulder, stared in the same direction — the area where Meilin had thrown the apple. It was through grapevines and fruit trees, a part of the orchards that seemed more wild than the rest of the garden.

  Under his breath, Rollan said, “It’s too dark and there’s all that stuff in the way. But I think it’s Rumfuss.”

  Meilin started in that direction. “Well, let’s go.”

  “Wait,” Rollan said, snagging her cloak. “Do you really think we should just go blowing over there like a hurricane? He might run, or worse. Remember Arax?”

  Abeke shuddered. The image of the gigantic ram bearing down on her would be with her for the rest of her life.

  “If you were Rumfuss and crazy MacDonnell had locked you up in his garden, would you be excited about talking to humans?” Rollan continued.

  “Well . . .” Abeke said as her gaze landed on Uraza. “Who better to approach one of the Great Beasts than fellow Great Beasts? Uraza, could you go see Rumfuss?”

  Uraza’s ears tilted forward and she sat down, tail twitching behind her. Rollan gave Essix a nervous look, but the falcon made a soft clicking sound and jumped to the nearest branch. Meilin held out her arm and Jhi tumbled out, crunching loudly onto the ground. Everyone cringed as Rollan peered back through the trees to make certain the noise hadn’t sent Rumfuss running.

  “All right,” Rollan said. “Good luck, guys.”

  Uraza was the first to go, letting her tail swing playfully in Abeke’s face as she walked off. She was every bit as silent on the ground as Essix was in the air. Jhi took a step forward —

  “Maybe wait a moment?” Meilin said, putting an arm in front of the panda. The panda obliged, giving Uraza and Essix time to reach Rumfuss before she started off. Jhi rumbled off into the trees, crushing leaves and sticks under her heavy paws. When Abeke could no longer see the bright white bits of Jhi’s fur, she worriedly rubbed the spot on her arm where Uraza usually waited in her dormant state.

  A growl came from the trees, then a falcon’s cry. There was then a huge, roaring sort of noise, almost human in its expressiveness — the boar. None of the noises were sounds of alarm, but it still made Abeke’s eyes widen.

  Funny, she thought. A few months ago I’d never even met Uraza. Now I’m nervous when I lose sight of her.

  “Oh!” Meilin said, reaching forward and touching her temple. “We . . . we can go speak to Rumfuss now.”

  “Jhi told you that?” Rollan asked, sounding impressed.

  Meilin shrugged. “Not told, exactly. But I felt calmness. Safety.”

  They crept through the trees — despite Meilin’s spirit animal, she was able to go rather quietly, though it was Abeke who truly moved like the leopard without even trying. Suddenly they broke through the darkened area into a copse of peach trees. Light now poured down from the heavy moon, so Abeke could see Rumfuss clearly. Perhaps too clearly.

  Abeke thought Arax the Ram was rather frightening, but he was nothing compared to Rumfuss. The boar was more than twice her height and had narrow, dark eyes. His hide looked more like armor than skin, and the hair that jutted out from either cheek looked like it would cut her hand if she touched it. Most dangerous looking, however, were the two thick tusks on either side of his snout. They gleamed yellow-white and looked like the sharp corners of two glowing stars. Several huge mounds of chewed apples, each as tall as Abeke, surrounded him on all sides.

  Rumfuss grunted, stamped at the ground, and then he spoke with a resonant voice that seemed to boom from both inside and outside Abeke. “You . . . want?”

  His words were filled with the hesitation of someone who does not speak a language fluently. Abeke thought it had probably been a long time since he’d spoken to any humans.

  “Rumfuss,” she said politely. “We seek your talisman — the Iron Boar. We need it to defeat the Devourer.”

  “Talisman?” Rumfuss grunted warily. He flicked his tail back and forth, the bundle of hairs on the end whishing at his legs. “Why . . . give it to you?”

  “The Conquerors will come for it otherwise,” Meilin spoke up. “They’ve already taken my country, Zhong. And they’ve taken over Trunswick. And two Conqueror recruits are here, in this garden, looking for you — for the talisman.”

  “Can . . . handle . . . recruits,” Rumfuss said. Abeke didn’t doubt that he’d be a match for Devin and Karmo, even with their powerful spirit animals.

  “We still need the talisman, though,” Abeke pleaded. “We can’t handle the Conquerors on our own.”

  “In return?” Rumfuss grunted.

  “Um . . .” Abeke frowned. She looked to Meilin, who was equally lost.

  “Freedom,” Rollan said. They turned to look at him. He was leaning against one of the peach tree’s branches, arms slung across it casually. He lifted his eyebrows at the girls. “That’s what anyone who’s in a cage wants most, no matter how big the cage is. Right, Rumfuss?”

  The boar stamped the ground and nodded his head; Rollan smiled a bit in understanding.

  “Wall,” Rumfuss said, turning his head and jutting his snout toward the edge of the peach trees. There was indeed an immense stone wall, which rose up high above even the Great Beast’s head. With all its jutting stones, it would have been nothing for an animal like Uraza to escape, but for a creature more lumbering, even one as huge as Rumfuss, it might as well have been a thousand feet tall.

  “Not so fast,” a voice jolted through the dark. A voice Abeke knew. A voice she knew too well.

  They whirled around. Uraza hunched and hissed, showing her impressive teeth. Rumfuss stamped the ground and gave a throaty, rolling growl. Even Jhi hunched forward and flexed her muscles.

  “What a reception,” Devin said, grinning like this was all a fantastic game. “Abeke! I see you managed to escape. My own fault — I always underestimate how wily vermin can be when they’re cornered.” Karmo, standing beside Devin, looked sour at the joke, though Devin snickered hard at his own genius.

  “Rumfuss, we’re going to need that talisman,” Devin continued. He whistled sharply; the wildcat appeared at his side. Karmo’s hammerkop flapped out from the trees, thick bill open and men
acing.

  Rumfuss looked unimpressed — and Abeke couldn’t blame him. The three of them, their spirit animals, and Rumfuss the Great Beast against Devin and Karmo? They could handle this.

  But then Devin grinned even wider, and whistled again. Now the trees were alive with footsteps, footsteps of all sizes, skittering sounds, crunching sounds, the sounds of hooves and paws and human feet on the ground. Conquerors — a dozen or more, and all with spirit animals — poured from the foliage. There was a man with an iguana around his shoulders, and another with a meerkat crouched at his feet. There was a giraffe, a lemur, and a bobcat, each paired with a human who looked armed and ready for combat.

  Devin had snuck Conquerors into Glengavin.

  “Well, Rumfuss? The Iron Boar Talisman?” Devin said, holding out his hand.

  Rumfuss studied Devin for a moment, so long a moment that Abeke began to worry he was going to give in. But then the boar lowered his head. He huffed, nostrils flaring, and his hackles lifted.

  Then he charged.

  17: Battle

  “I HEAR THE OTHERS! THEY’RE UP AHEAD!” CONOR SHOUTED back to Finn. Briggan was in the lead and howled as he blasted through the orchard, leaping over grapevines and dodging tree trunks. Conor wasn’t exactly sure who they were just yet — but he knew they were either in trouble or they were trouble. Animal sounds rose up like a storm in the night — roars, chirps, growls, snarls, hoots, and cries. Overhead, a falcon shrieked.

  “That’s Essix!” Finn shouted.

  Conor’s heart thrummed frantically. Briggan howled again, guiding them through the vines, until . . .

  Conor’s pounding heart stopped instead.

  Conquerors. Spirit animals. A boar as large as a carriage — that had to be Rumfuss. And in the middle of it all, Abeke, Meilin, and Rollan. Abeke and Uraza worked as a team, bounding off trees and tackling their opponents. Uraza knocked them down, with Abeke moving quickly behind her to fling the smaller spirit animals away and deliver a few well-placed kicks to her downed opponents’ ribs. Jhi was safely in passive state, a tattoo on the same arm Meilin used to box a Conqueror in the nose. Rollan dove under arms and ducked through legs like someone with a bit of practice at evading authority.