A Mountain of Fire

by Marius Thue

  “Fishing is the best labor, boy,” Mekar says as he drops the sinker and hook into the water. “Here we can relax while the others stress over hunting. The key to being a good fisherman is to remain calm and silent.” He lies back, stretching along the length of the boat while nipping at the rod.

  Meanwhile, the seal hunters have gone far out to sea. The fog has grown thinner out here. Before they went out, they checked the boats for cracks and holes, making sure they would stay afloat. They row side by side, gliding silently across the calm black water.

  “Do you think it’s wise to send out so many?” Thoke asks. “What if the mountain demons attack in the fog?”

  “Relax, Thoke. Who knows if Horvag was speaking the truth? The man didn't seem to be all there,” Garnek says in an attempt to calm Thoke down.

  “Neera lost her tribe to something similar, we think, and when Rhekir was an infant, we were attacked by a man covered in black stripes. It doesn't seem like a coincidence to me.”

  “So the last time you saw one was … How old is Rhekir now? Six?”

  “Eight.”

  “So you were attacked by a man in black stripes eight years ago. You're not dead, so I expect he is. That means they can't be demons, then,” Garnek's says with a satisfied grin.

  Thoke does not respond but begins to ponder even more. After a while, he pushes the thoughts away, feeling somehow a bit more convinced.

  Thoke sits at the front of the boat with Renai behind him. They row out toward the open sea, passing several small islands. This far out from the island, lichen covers the rocky surfaces. No other growth can take hold. The islands are speckled in white and pale green, yet some don't even have that much. Just gray and black sticks out of the sea some ways further out.

  Thoke inhales deep from the cool, fresh ocean air. For most of his life, he has lived further inland. His father’s tribe specialized in hunting wild game. Often they would travel down to sea to trade fish and other seafood with tribes along the coast, but they never spent much time there.

  This is Thoke's first seal hunt. Another tribe member named Darbog used to be a part of these hunts, but he died last winter. Therefore Thoke now needs to learn. Garnek has explained how it's done, down to the smallest detail. Actually doing it will be much more difficult, Thoke knows, but still he feels confident.

  Garnek has been out here several times before, and he knows where to find seals. It would be best to find a seal on land, dozing off in the midday sun, and then cut off its route back into the water. Now there's no sun to make the seals lazy, but perhaps they might catch one on land. In the water, the seals are elegant creatures, but on land they are slow and clumsy.

  Garnek and Janeg lead in their boat. They're scouting for animals resting on the black rocks sticking out of the ocean. The carved out wooden oars cut smoothly into the water as they push it backwards.

  Thoke spots something moving ahead. In between the low waves, a head bobs up and down. He signals to Garnek by lifting his hand in the air. They have the gear to catch a seal out of the water as well. Each of the hunters have a long spear tied to them with a thick rope made from animal hides. The spears have serrated, sharp bone or rock at the tip. The tips are meant to attach themselves to the seal with barbs. This way the seal hopefully won't get away if hit with a clean shot.

  They row carefully toward the seal. As usual, they will try to get as close as possible before making their move. There's no place to hide out here, though, and the seal quickly discovers the hunters. It pokes its head up then turns and swims away.

  Thoke is the first to throw his spear. Precision is not one of his enhanced abilities, and his spear hits nothing but saltwater. Luckily, he's tied the spear tightly and begins to drag it back in.

  Janeg tries shortly after and hits his target in the back. His throw is too weak, however, and the spear simply bounces off the seals skin, falling into the water with a gentle splash.

  Another spear comes flying through the air. It also hits the seals back. Renai was the one to throw it, and it sticks into the animal’s thick hide. Garnek throws almost at the same time, and hits just as clean. As the spear digs in, the seal makes a sudden dive. Renai is yet to attach her rope to the boat and gets pulled over the side.

  With a quiet splash she disappears below the surface. Garnek and Janeg both grab hold of Garnek's rope, making sure the seal cannot dive too deep. Renai comes gasping to the surface, having managed to untie herself, flailing her arms around. Thoke throws his spear toward her. She grabs it, and Thoke drags her back into the boat.

  Meanwhile the seal has resurfaced. After a couple of throws, Janeg also manages to hit the struggling animal. Thoke attempts another throw and hits it clean. The seal begins to tire out, having dragged them far from where it was first hit. The ropes have been untied from the men and are now tied to the inside of the boats. Only Renai’s rope is missing as she had to let it go when she fell into the water. Feeling the seal start to slow down, they begin rowing back to shore.

  On the way back, the seal attempts several lunges to set itself free, but it doesn't have the strength. After a while they arrive back at the island. Everyone now realizes the hunt has been successful. Only a few more pulls and they can drag the seal ashore. They all look at each other before releasing a simultaneous cheer.

  A loud scream cuts straight through the air and interrupts them.

  “That came from the camp!” Janeg shouts.

  Thoke can hear who it is; Serk and the others must be in trouble. Quickly, they drag the boats and seal onto land. Janeg kills the already half-dead animal with a deep stab and cut.

  Garnek, Janeg, and Renai begin to run toward the camp, but Thoke tears off in another direction. Janeg and Renai stop when they see Thoke disappear into the fog at an unfathomable speed. They share a look as if to confirm that the other saw the same thing. Garnek has disappeared toward the camp. Janeg follows him while Renai goes after Thoke.

  Thoke runs as fast as he possibly can while trying to listen for any sounds. The fog is too thick to see much more than a few steps ahead. Someone is coming toward him. Gerak and Serk come running out of the fog.

  “What's going on?” Thoke asks, not even having to catch his breath. Gerak, on the other hand, has to fight to get the words out.

  “Two men,” he sighs. “They came at us with axes!”

  “Run back to camp. I will deal with them.”

  He doesn't have to ask twice. As they run along, two muscular men appear from the fog. They are sparsely clothed and have black stripes of coal painted across their face and body. Horvag spoke the truth then, Thoke thinks.

  The men hesitate for a bit when they see Thoke, but one charges at him before long. Thoke punches the running man lightly in the stomach, which makes the man fall onto his back. He lands right next to Thoke’s feet and starts trying to stab his legs with a dagger. Thoke grabs his arm before the tip reaches his skin and lifts the man high above his head, twisting him. He can hear the man’s bones crunch as he moves.

  Suddenly, the other man attacks. He somehow managed to sneak up behind Thoke and stabbed him in the left side of his throat. Thoke falls backwards with the first man dropping down on top of him.

  Out of the fog, Renai throws herself at the second man and with a crack they land on the rock and heather below. After rolling around for a bit, Renai comes out on top. She sits over him while stabbing repeatedly with her daggers. Thoke looks at the blood splatter and cringes. The man seems to have died from the very first stab to the eye, but that doesn't seem to slow Renai down. Blood covers her face as she stabs the man all across the upper body.

  Thoke hears the first man crying in pain. His arm looks deformed and broken in several places. Thoke takes a knee and sits next to him.

  “Who are you and what do you want?” Thoke deepens and raises his voice. The man responds by spitting in his face.

  Renai finally quits stabbing the other man. She then turns and throws her dagger at the first man, hit
ting him in the teeth. His screams must be heard all the way inland. The bloody dagger falls to the ground, alongside some of the man’s broken teeth.

  The man’s throat fills with blood as his tongue has been split or crushed. Thoke cannot see which. With a quick twist of the head, Thoke ends his misery. The man could not speak anyway. Gently, he turns the dead man’s head to the side so as not to have to see his bloody face.

  Renai looks at Thoke, wondering about something it seems. She saw him run off, saw him lift one man up in the air, and watched as he broke another man’s neck. Thoke couldn't hide his strength this time. Never before has he showed them his power.

  Thoke and Renai share a stare, one of dread and pondering. Her thirst for blood unsettles him. Neither of them say anything, and for a long while they simply stare, as if they’re having some conversation in their minds. Renai raises her eyebrows and seems to be about to speak just as Garnek comes running out of the fog.

  “There you are, finally,” he says before looking at the bodies on the ground. One is bloody and ripped to shreds, while the other appears nearly peaceful with his head lying to the side. “By the gods, what happened here?”

  Thoke looks at Renai, and she back at him. They both wait for the other to answer.

  “Any day now.” Garnek's voice grows sour.

  “We were attacked,” Renai answers. “But we handled it.”

  Thoke nods in agreement. Garnek regards them suspiciously. Garnek’s look suggests he knows they are hiding something, but fortunately he does not accuse them of anything.

  “Back to camp, both of you,” he growls before wrapping his arms around them both, smiling. Clearly he's happy they're both unhurt. “We'll deal with the dead later.”

  Back at the campsite, the tribe has gathered around the fire where Hiro sticks a piece of wood into the glowing embers. Earlier in the day, he rowed across the strait to cut up some firewood with his jagged stone ax. After some nagging, Sernak managed to take over his guard duties.

  Gerak and Serk sit trembling. No matter how large Hiro makes the fire, it will not make any difference. They both understand what could have happened if Thoke had not showed up when he did.

  Neera runs toward Thoke with Larii tightly wrapped in her arms, and he embraces them both. Neera puts Larii down, and she runs off toward her brother, who seems terrified. He sits peeking out from behind the flap of their hut.

  “What happened? Were you hurt?” she asks while taking his right hand between hers. Thoke scowls at the others, who seem enthralled by Gerak and Serk's story.

  “Don't worry,” he says gently, stroking her cheek with his left hand. He raises his voice so that everyone can hear. “Two men attacked us, but we defeated them.” He then turns his voice to a whisper. “One of them stabbed me in the neck. Renai saw it.”

  Neera looks concerned and lets go of his hand. She moves them to remove the long black hair that covers a small bruise with a red dot where the dagger struck. It never quite broke the skin.

  “You think she'll tell someone?” Neera asks. She covers up the bruise with his thick hair. His braid hangs nicely in front of his ear. Neera checks so that the one on the other side does the same.

  “She knows about my speed. She must have seen me run off. If not, she would not have found me in the fog. She also saw some strength, but not too much. Anyway, she looked at me strangely after,” Thoke whispers.

  “Then you must talk to her. Alone,” Neera insists.

  “I'm afraid we have other concerns now, my love.” He cups her head with his large hands, making her seem as small as a child for a moment. “It was them. The ones you called the ravages.”

  She jerks back before quickly embracing him, holding him tight.

  “I didn't want to believe it, but I still knew Horvag spoke the truth. Will they never leave us alone?” she says, the terror in her voice clear.

  “I don't know.” Thoke shrugs. “We need to talk to the others about this. First, I must speak to our son.” He gives his woman a long but soft kiss before walking away.

  Rhekir has left the hut and is throwing rocks down by the water. He must have snuck away while everyone was distracted. The fog is still thick, but it has lightened a bit. By nightfall it will be gone.

  He walks over to the boy, who flicks a rock across the still water, hitting the surface several times as it skips. Thoke pats his head and gets down on one knee.

  “You know what happened, Son?” he asks with as gentle a voice as he can possibly muster.

  “I think so.” Rhekir nods. “Are you alright?” he asks, his voice broken. A tear runs down his cheek, and Thoke wipes it away.

  “No one can break your father.” Thoke smiles before giving his son a long hug. “Come now, boy. We're gathering around the campfire.”

  Gerak and Serk sit, lively telling about the incident. They're excited and full of vigor.

  “They emerged from the fog. I don't think they expected to see us there, ’cause they almost wandered straight past us. We thought we could take them, really! But we figured it would be smarter to warn you guys first,” Gerak tells the crowd. Serk stares at the ground, seeming not to confirm the reality of his friend’s story.

  Chief Garnek turns from his son and toward Horvag, who now sits tied to the small tree. It looks stupid as the man could easily have broken it like a twig if he wanted.

  “Two of these mountain demons attacked us, but Thoke and Renai took care of them on their own. Perhaps your talk of them being immortal was somewhat exaggerated?” Garnek lets out a deep, hoarse laugh. Horvag gets himself up to stand. He regards Thoke and Renai before shaking his head.

  “Two of them you say?” Horvag laughs. “There are never just two.”

  Garnek looks around. Everyone has dropped whatever they were doing, standing in excitement, or perhaps dread waiting for what Horvag will say next.

  “Gerak says these mountain folk … they're not demons,” Garnek breaks in. “They are flesh, bones, and blood just like the lot of us. My son says they stumbled onto them, which means they probably were scouts. And if this fat shit of a man can be trusted…” Garnek points a finger at Horvag “…then there will be more of these people. Since they came at us from the north side of the island, they could have rowed straight past us in the fog. These waters are riddled with islands and if they plan on checking them all, we have some time. They will be back, though, when they realize two of their men have never come back. This island is the best one to defend from, and we have food and water for days. We will repel these people,” Garnek tells the tribe, before turning to Gerak and Serk. “Any fish, then?” He holds his hands out for an answer, or to be handed the mentioned fish.

  “We got ten, good sizes too, Father,” Gerak answers quickly.

  “Where?” Garnek opens a flap in his son’s furs to look inside. The boy turns red in embarrassment. He points toward the north side of the island.

  “Do you expect them to walk here? Go now!” Garnek barks.

  Scared, the boys don't move and look out into the fog. Thoke spots their fear and decides to get the fish himself.

  “I'll go,” he says. “Rhekir, Son, come with me.”

  The seal they caught earlier will now be prepared. Janeg and Garnek drag the seal toward the campsite. The weight of the animal suggests this was a great catch.

  It's the old man Sernak who gets ready to carve. He pushes the younger men aside as they lay the seal on the bedrock. Sernak gathers all the children and begins to instruct as he carves. Everything on the animal will be used. Nothing goes to waste. The bones can be used for fish hooks among other things. The guts can become string. Blubber burns slow and can be turned into oil for torches. The oil is also rich on nutrients humans in the north sorely need.

  Mekar and Terot comes walking up to the camp with seventeen fish in their hands. They all seems to be of a healthy size too. The fishermen are immediately met by Gerak and Serk. They begin to tell their story, which has already become quite differen
t from what it was earlier.

  “Two giant men attacked us! They were demons alright, no doubt. Serk and I were fighting them, and we were doing well, truly, but then Thoke showed up and helped,” Gerak tells eagerly.

  Thoke and Rhekir arrive at the site where the dead men lie. Rhekir appears frightened at first, but quickly turns curious.

  “What happened to them, Father? Are they dead?” he asks wide eyed. Rhekir has never been this close to a dead person before. Thoke and Neera have shielded him from it up until now. There have been deaths within the tribe, but mostly children. No one likes to talk about it, but the first years of a child's life are always dangerous. Rhekir is finally beginning to arrive at that age where the parents don't have to worry as much anymore.

  “They are, boy. They were bad people who wanted to harm us.”

  “Why would they want that?”

  “Perhaps they were hungry and couldn't find food for themselves,” Thoke says while dragging one body toward a cluster of stones. “Or perhaps they wanted to kill us so we wouldn't take their food. Maybe they were scared of us. Scared people, like animals, will often attack. People will always find a reason to kill someone, I'm afraid. We need to protect ourselves against such people. Do you understand?”

  Rhekir nods his head but still seems to be confused. He twitches his nose, sniffing the air. Thoke smells it too. Why dead men soil themselves when they die, Thoke will never know. He waits for Rhekir to make a remark about it while he drags the other corpse toward the stones, but no remark is made.

  “If they were hungry, they could have just asked. We have a big seal to eat … and fish!” Rhekir says. “We could have given them some. It would have been easier for them I think.”

  “You're a kind boy, Rhekir.” Thoke smiles. “If you have a lot, it's good to share.” He ruffs up Rhekir's hair with a shake of his hand.