by Lani Lenore
From the hill, Calico was approaching with two male hunters who were toting spears. The Pack stood to meet them – to be on guard – and Rifter gave them his full attention as well.
Calico appraised them all briefly before focusing on Rifter, recognizing him as the leader. She spoke only to him. Sly translated as well as he could.
“She wants you to come with them. Their elder wishes to speak with you.”
Rifter studied them a moment, but believed that this was genuine. For the sake of the group, he would do as they asked, though he couldn’t imagine what the elder had to say to him.
“It would be good to show some respect,” Sly advised. Rifter was willing to agree with that.
“You come with me,” he instructed Sly.
“Not a problem,” he agreed. He was no doubt anxious to learn what he could about these people first-hand.
Before Rifter left, he cast an eye at Wren. She looked on at the exchange without a word, but that did not mean there was nothing on her mind. He offered her a short nod to assure her and then turned, considering it good enough.
Calico led them onward while the two hunters stepped in behind Rifter and Sly to make sure they didn’t stray, as if they would wreak havoc on the village if they took one step out of line. The boys were led up the hill and through the midst of the village until they reached a tent.
Calico went inside first and Rifter and Sly were instructed to follow. The two spear-toting warriors remained outside, at the ready in case they were needed. Rifter didn’t think he was in for trouble here, but he had already mapped out exactly how he would kill them if he needed to escape, and he suspected Sly had done the same.
The tent was simple in design, a cylindrical shape supported by wooden poles. The floor was of grass and straw. All of this was foreign to the boys, who were used to the underground.
On a woven mat in the middle, an ancient Tribal was sitting. One could nearly read a story from the folds in his face. Calico went forward to him and knelt at his side as Rifter and Sly sat on their knees at the edge of the mat.
Calico spoke to the old man quietly. When he acknowledged her with drooping eyes, she looked at Rifter, seeming very anxious when she spoke in their direction.
“This is the elder,” Sly translated lowly. “He has something he wishes to say to you.”
Rifter nodded. “I’m here.”
The old man’s voice was uneven and difficult to hear. It might have been a struggle even if they were fluent in the language, but Calico was there to help them along. Sly let him go on for a length of time, Calico reworded the rougher parts, and Sly explained what he could to Rifter.
“He says he is saddened by what happened at the cliffside camp, but he is grateful to you for stepping in to drive the enemy away. He considers you a hero for that and for saving their princess – who is apparently some relation to him also. It’s very interesting.”
“Princess?” Rifter was confused by the use of that word. Images of towers and dragons were the only things that came to his mind.
“Calico,” Sly informed him.
Rifter wasn’t sure who else he might have been talking about, but the huntress was not quite what he thought of when he imagined a princess. She was dressed in skins and feathers and teeth. There was nothing royal about her, except perhaps the way she held her head and shoulders.
Princess… He’d saved a princess. That gave him a particular sense of pride that he’d never felt.
He snapped back when he heard Sly’s voice again.
“He knows who you are. He’s seen you in visions. He knows the sort of evil you’ve been fighting.” Sly hesitated a moment, unsure. “He’s talking about something he calls ‘the great shadow’. Whatever that is, he says it’s coming closer. He wants to warn you: don’t lose yourself to your desire for blood. Remember what’s important. Don’t forget—” He hesitated again. “Don’t let the memory be taken from you – or something like that.”
Rifter was content to listen to that, but he felt he didn’t need any advice from an old man. He was capable of taking care of himself. He didn’t need some shaman making predictions about his grim future.
“Tell him thanks for the warning, but I know what I’m doing.”
Sly hummed thoughtfully. “I think I’ll make it sound a little more humble than that.”
It was all the same to Rifter. Sly began speaking to the elder again, but Rifter let his eyes drift toward the girl next to the old one. She was gazing at him boldly with deep black eyes. He watched her stare at him, taking note of her appearance once more. Her skin was marked with blood and paint. She was wearing the spoils of her kills. He knew just by the way she held herself that she was not afraid of anything. He respected her for that. This girl – and these people – were not so different from what he and the Pack were.
If Sly said anything else in his direction, Rifter didn’t hear it. He was stuck on a thought, counting the ways that it was true.
She’s not at all like Wren, he decided. Not at all.
This princess Calico was a fighter. She had chosen not to rely on the protection of men. As Sly would say, it was interesting.
“I’m ready to go. Has he dismissed us?” Rifter asked abruptly, completely unaware that he’d cut into the conversation.
“Um, yes. I think it’d be alright if we left now,” Sly agreed.
Rifter stood to leave, but the elder began to speak in rhythmic lines that caught Rifter’s attention. Even though the accent was poor, the words were in English, and Rifter knew them by heart.
“Remember, oh child, do not forget.”
A cold chill pierced him.
“As it began, so shall it end.”
“Ask him how he knows those lines,” Rifter demanded swiftly. Sly turned to him, dazed. “Ask him!”
Sly tried to ask the elder what he meant by this, but Rifter was already insulted. He looked back toward the elder as he explained himself, but then Rifter was caught staring at Calico again, as if she would give him an answer.
She was watching him. No doubt, she had noticed the change in his behavior. He had just now noticed it himself. His muscles were tensed and his breathing had grown rapid. Why had this affected him so strongly? Not even he knew.
“He says that those things are for you to know,” Sly told him, “but he says you should hold onto what you have left, or else you might lose everything.”
Rifter was not entirely sure what this elder had meant to accomplish by asking him here, but he had definitely succeeded in making him angry. He'd had enough.
Without another word, Rifter turned to leave. Why did everyone think they could tell him what to do – how to handle his own situation? Didn't he know, better than anyone, what he was doing? Wasn't he the expert in knowing what his enemy was capable of? Why did they all keep questioning him?
They have no faith in me. They think I’m feeble, but they’ll see.
He would show them the way of it. Once he killed his enemy for good, he would show them all.
2
Wren kept gazing toward the elder’s tent, wondering what was going on inside there. Were they making some sort of treaty? They must have been talking about an arrangement for staying here, but Wren had to say that she was already anxious to leave. The Tribals were all casting a wary eye at her. She couldn’t tell if it was for the entire group or if she was being isolated, but she knew the truth: they were not truly welcome here, despite what the huntress had said.
“I don’t see a lot of girls,” she heard Finn say, drawing her back. “These Tribals are all men – and bare-assed hunters at that. Not my type.”
“I’m sure that if there are women, they’re asleep,” Nix said disapprovingly. “It’s late. Honestly, that’s what you’re thinking of right now?”
“It’s all he does think about,” Mach accused.
“It is not. It’s only one of three things I think about,” Finn corrected.
“Yeah,” Mech laughed. “Food, s
leep, and soft round – Ow!”
Nix had slapped him on the back of the head just as Wren snapped around to glare at him.
“Don’t say shit like that in front of a lady,” he scolded, and she could hardly believe he was defending her.
Mech only shrugged as he massaged his scalp where the blow had landed. “It’s just Wren. She doesn’t care. She’s one of us.”
At another time, she might have only rolled her eyes, but tonight, this insulted her. She was not like them near enough to be thrown in with the group.
“I can’t believe you’re even talking about things like this right now,” she countered. “Don’t you know the situation we’re in? We’ve lost our home to the fire and have nowhere to go!”
“We’ll find a new place,” Mach said carefully.
“Yes, it’s alright, Wren,” Toss offered in an effort to assure her. “Don’t be upset.”
They all stared at her as if they couldn’t understand her distress. Maybe they didn’t care if they had a place to call home or not. It was just another part of the adventure to find somewhere else to be. The blank look in their eyes was suddenly too much for her.
She rose up and tromped away from them, toward the tent, leaving them dumbfounded.
3
It’s all a game to them. If they can’t take this seriously, then maybe there’s no hope for anything else.
Wren was on her way up the hill when she saw Rifter emerge from the elder’s tent. Sly exited as well and met two warriors at the door, but she was focused on Rifter. She expected him to come back toward the group then, but he was led away by the pair of natives, who took him over the hill and showed him to another tent. When they reached it, Rifter went inside alone.
Now what are they doing?
She was so focused on him in the distance that she didn’t notice what was happening directly in front of her face. There was movement; someone was approaching.
Wren looked up to see that the young huntress had come to meet her, looking her straight in the eye. Her head was angled so that she looked down her nose at the pale girl. Wren wasn’t sure what to do except look back at her, but she felt distinctly small, even though she was taller.
Calico opened her proud mouth and spoke, but Wren didn’t know the meaning of the words; however, she could tell by the tone that it was meant to be very snide.
“I’m sorry,” Wren apologized. “I don’t understand.”
The Tribal princess repeated what she’d said, but of course it didn’t help. The words were wasted on her.
“She’s asking if you’re Rifter’s woman,” Sly translated, appearing behind Calico. He hadn’t been far, on his way back after leaving the tent. “Not to be eavesdropping, but I believe that’s what she said.”
The huntress stood there, looking at Wren but ignoring Sly, because he was not the one she had been speaking to. Wren was embarrassed, not only by the question, but because of how the girl standing so near to her was dressed. Wren could see the full stretch of her stomach – could outline all of her ribs. Was Wren the only one in this world that had any shame?
The haughty Tribal continued to stare at her. She was waiting for an answer.
“Why is she asking me that?” Wren asked Sly quietly, as if her whisper was less likely to be understood by the other girl.
He spoke to Calico and then looked back to Wren. “I won’t pretend to know how her mind works, but I thought it was best to tell her that you are.”
Wren wasn’t sure if she wanted it to be said that way, but she wouldn’t have denied it either. She was with Rifter, yes – at least she considered herself to be.
Calico spoke again, sounding just as spiteful. Sly interpreted, but he was more hesitant to deliver the message this time. Wren didn’t know if it was because he had a hard time understanding it all, or that he was beginning to regret entering this conversation.
“She says that you should go to him – that a woman should stay close to her warrior, or else another might come and take him away.”
Wren’s eyes widened and her face grew red. When the native girl saw that, a slight smile rose up on her beautiful mouth. Wren wanted to come back with something poignant, but she was not that quick.
“Tell her I appreciate her concern,” she sneered, and stormed away. She left the savage maiden behind, but the heat of humiliation stayed with her.
Would the blows never stop coming? Everyone was out to ruin her – first the fairy, then Nix, and now this girl! Wren wasn’t sure what to do with the threat, but she was not going to let it keep her away from Rifter.
She had just reached the tent when the flap swung back and the one she had been seeking emerged abruptly. She jumped back, and likewise Rifter was shocked to see her standing there.
“Oh! I was looking for you,” she said once she’d regained herself. “What did the elder say?”
“They gave me a tent,” he said with a shrug. “They say I’m a hero.”
Was he rubbing that in her face? These people thought that he was a hero for standing against the Scourge? She had scolded him for it.
“Rifter, I—”
She quieted when he stepped nearer to her.
“I want you to stay with me,” he said, and she felt her chest tighten, squeezing the air out of her lungs. He wanted her to stay in the tent with him? Alone? She thought of saying how it wasn’t proper, but then couldn’t see how she could think that was inappropriate, since she had already stayed with him once before. After what the huntress had just said to her, perhaps it wasn’t a bad idea if she stayed close.
“There’s no reason you should have to sleep out in the open,” he added, creating a truth for his reasoning. “Tomorrow, well, we’ll think about that when it gets here. For now, we all need our rest.”
“I want Max with me,” she told him. “I can’t leave him alone.”
Rifter was silent as he considered that, looking in her eyes, and then nodded. “Go ahead and get him. I’ll be here.”
“Aren’t you going to talk to the others?” she asked. He looked down the hill where the boys had built their fire, but she wasn’t sure he could even see them through the fog that seemed to have clouded around his senses.
“I just need to rest,” he told her without further explanation, and before she could seek more from him, he vanished behind the flap.
4
There couldn’t have been many more hours until dawn, but Wren knew she was exhausted. When she got back to the tent with Max, Rifter was already asleep with his coat cast aside. It hadn’t taken much for him to drift away, and she was at least contented to see that.
The tent was lined with blankets and furs, and was certainly more welcoming than the ground outside. She didn’t even wonder who had previously slept here or what had happened to them. Just after she had made sure Max was settled in, she had quickly fallen asleep as well.
Sometime after that – she couldn’t say how long – a drizzle of rain began to fall, pattering against the stiff hide of the shelter, pulling her out of her sleep. She might have slipped directly back into it if not for what she saw when she opened her eyes.
Rifter was sitting there, close, looking down at her. She gasped to see his face there looming over hers, but the shock faded when she recognized him, knowing he wasn’t a threat.
“I can’t sleep,” he confessed. “I thought I was tired, but I can’t.”
His eyes were glassy, and he stared at her face as if it was an impassable maze. She sat up beside him, still drowsy herself, but that did not resolve the way he looked at her.
“I’m sure you’re exhausted,” she told him quietly, hoping not to wake up her young brother. She looked over at him to see that he was still resting peacefully.
Rifter appeared so dejected that it made her heart ache. She couldn’t even imagine what he must have felt. He had lost his home.
“My head’s just full I guess,” he said.
Mine too, she agreed silently.
“
I keep seeing things when I close my eyes,” he went on. “I don’t want to lose myself to that.”
“You’re afraid you’ll have a bad dream? Like before?”
He looked at her unappreciatively and she guessed that he would like to deny it, but he didn’t say anything. She hadn’t forgotten about the night of the storm. There was clearly something that troubled him – maybe something he hadn’t quite forgotten – which rose from the back of his mind and attacked him in his nightmares.
“I wish you would tell me about it. Sometimes it helps to talk about things.”
“I’ve never told anyone,” he informed her, and the solid way he’d said it made her feel that he wasn’t going to tell her either. Why did he insist on keeping such a distance? Why wouldn’t he come clean? Didn’t he know that she wanted to be closer to him? Yet he kept pushing her away.
Wren wasn’t going to play this game. She started to turn, aiming to roll over and go back to sleep without another word, but he touched her shoulder, pulling her back in.
“Don’t, Wren,” he entreated. “Please.”
Her breath caught at how intensely he gazed at her. There was something in the way he examined her face that made it impossible for her turn away, but yet the pain she saw there kept her mind from drifting. She thought of all the things she wanted to say to him. I’m tired of you being distant. Won’t you just talk to me? I want to make you feel better. I love you. But she kept quiet. He pulled her close, resting his forehead against hers. She looked at her hands, watching her fingers lace with his until he got his own thoughts together, and finally he spoke.
“I don’t like to admit it, but there’s a lot I don’t remember about the past. I’ve been here so long that things have gotten blurry at best, but one thing that I do remember is what brought me here in the beginning.”
She was confused, leaning back to focus on him. “I thought you only remembered waking up here.”
“I don’t remember how I got here or what led to it, but I do remember why I sought this escape in the first place. It’s been said that it was my own dream that created this world. I’m not sure about that; they can say what they want. But I know what made me want it. It did begin with a dream – my dream. I dreamed about the man I was going to become. That’s what started it. I don’t know what I saw, but I knew where my life was going, and I hated it so much that I had to escape that somehow. After that, I found my way here. Here, I wouldn’t have to fear that life.”