“Well met, Hyden Hawk,” said Borg, with a smile. Unlike the primitive-looking breed giants, Borg looked like a thrice overgrown man. While Oarly found this frightening, Phen and Lady Telgra were intrigued by his size. The soldiers had seen Borg when he was in Dreen, so to them, he was familiar. To all of them, his presence was both encouraging and a relief at the same time.
“I hope you're being sarcastic, my old friend,” Hyden said. He stood and ruffled the scruff of Huffa’s neck, then began brushing the icy debris off of his soaking wet britches.
“In those furred cloaks, I thought you were a pack of gremlets,” Borg laughed. “I almost let nature take its course. Only your bowman's horse bolting through the trees gave you away.”
“Thank you for intervening,” Lieutenant Welch said. “Come on down, lads. Hobble the horses and build us a fire. Sir Hyden Hawk will be needing some heat.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant,” said Hyden.
“They are beautiful.” Telgra looked up at Borg from the back of a young male great wolf.
“His name is Yip,” Borg replied, taking in her elven features. Her amber gaze made her look wild. “I think he likes you.” Borg’s eyes scanned the others but then stopped on Phen. After a moment, he burst into a deep, rumbling laugh.
Phen scowled up at him and then glared at Hyden.
“Ah, young Phen,” Borg sighed through his glee. “Hyden Hawk has told me much about you and your predicament.”
“It’s not funny,” Phen said.
“No, I suppose it’s not funny to you,” Borg agreed. The giant looked at the soldiers leading the hesitant horses back into the valley. Then he glanced around the area until he saw Oarly. The dwarf was staring up at him and shivering.
“Master Dwarf,” Borg said, bending at the waist to extend a hand down toward him.
Oarly looked unsure as to what to do with a hand that could cover his whole head as if it were an apple. Slowly he reached up, grabbed two of Borg’s fingers, and shook them in greeting.
“Let’s make camp here,” Hyden ordered from his place by the pile of deadfall that Jicks was trying to light. “I would like to visit my friend’s resting place, and I need to speak to the Southern Guardian alone.”
Just then, Spike leapt out of the saddle pack in which he had been riding. The poor lyna was trembling with terror from the scent of the wolves. It leapt to the ground toward Phen, but the little spiked cat could do no more than hop a few inches at a time through the deep, fluffy snow.
“No!” Phen yelled sharply when Yip darted his nose in to sniff the creature.
The wolf jumped back, yelping loudly. One of Spike’s needle-sharp quills was sticking out of its nose and Telgra was thrown from it’s back. Being elven, Telgra’s reflexes and grace allowed her to land well. Rising from her cat-like crouch, she fought away a flush of embarrassment and went to pick up the frightened lyna cat.
“Get yourself dry, then go, Hyden,” Lieutenant Welch said after a moment. “If you two leave a few of those wolves behind to keep the bear away, we will be all right until you return.”
Huffa left Hyden Hawk’s side, and after growling and nudging at Yip, she took up a position a little above the camp where she could see the bulk of the valley. Yip wagged his way over to Borg, who checked the wolf’s nose and gave him a loving pat on the head. After only a few minutes by the fire, Hyden, Borg, and two of the great wolves started into the trees to cross the valley.
Hyden saw the miraculous sight long before they were upon it. A ring that was twenty paces across formed of bright blue flowers encircled the rock pile grave where Loudin was buried. Despite the fact that it was mid-autumn, the flowers were in full bloom.
The man had died saving Ironspike from Pael’s evil minions. Hyden remembered watching the sword tumble through the air only to bury itself in the center, where they later buried their friend. The blade’s powerful magic no doubt fueled the magical growth. It was like a droplet of spring in an otherwise snow-covered opening in the forest.
“More men like Loudin in the realm, and it would be a far better place,” Hyden said as they approached the burial mound. “I didn’t know him long, but I knew him well. May the goddess grant him peace eternal.”
“Well said,” Borg murmured softly. He moved away and stood silently at the side for a while. He only spoke when Hyden stood and starting striding out of the magical circle of flowers.
“Where did the elven woman come from?” he asked. “There’s an air about her.”
“She's the daughter of the Queen Mother, Borg.” Hyden shrugged as if it were all beyond him. His eyes were still glazed with the memory of Loudin, but he continued speaking, glad for the change of subject. “She has lost her memory, and seeks the Leif Repline.”
“Why isn’t she traveling with a group of her kindred?” Borg asked.
“They died in an attack on the Isle of Salaya.”
“King Mikahl touched on that subject when I was in Dreen. What will she do once you’ve left the fountain pool and continue north for the Verge crystal? Does she know that the Leif Repline isn’t your final destination?”
“Aye, she does,” Hyden said. He looked skyward and grinned broadly. Talon was approaching. The hawkling was excited about something, but Hyden could tell that the bird was tired from carrying the extra weight of its condition. Borg followed Hyden’s gaze and his expression went grim.
“King Aldar will be surprised at the size and composition of your party, Hyden. Five kingdom men, a dwarf, an elf, and a living statue are going to cause quite a stir in Afdeon.”
Hyden held out his arm for Talon to land on. Already he and the hawkling were communicating mentally in a way that was second nature to both of them. Talon landed, and worked his way to Hyden’s shoulder. Hyden absorbed Talon’s thoughts as if he were drawing a breath into his lungs.
He looked up at Borg and cringed through his sheepish grin. “Make that six humans, two elves, a dwarf and a living statue.”
“What?” Borg asked, his expression incredulous. “If there were more of you in these mountains, I would know.”
Hyden chuckled uneasily. “An elf and a human monk are a little over a day behind us. They are what’s left of Princess Telgra’s party. I have to admire their persistence.”
Borg snapped a command in the old language. The great wolf, Yip, listened alertly and then went bounding away. Borg wasn’t showing distrust, Hyden knew; the Southern Guardian was upset that someone was in his land without his knowledge. To Hyden’s surprise, a pair of chitter birds came spiraling down. They warbled around the giant’s head, whistling and chirping intensely.
“Dien!” the giant called out so loudly that the birds darted a few feet away.
Yip, who was already tearing up the far valley side at breakneck speed, heard the command and slowed himself to return. “It seems my messengers are growing lax.” Borg chuckled. “It is as you say. Do we divert them, leave them behind, or do you want to wait for them?”
Hyden sighed. “I think we’ll wait.” He took a piece of dried meat from his pack and fed it to Talon. The hawkling ate it greedily. “I only hope King Aldar will shelter us for the winter. I never intended for the group to grow this large.”
“He wouldn’t refuse you anything, Hyden Hawk.” Borg gave a booming laugh. “As a matter of fact, he might even surprise you.”
“Surprise me?”
“I’ll not say more about it.” Borg turned and started leading them toward the pass where the others were. “I wish I could join your quest.” Borg’s voice was sincere. “I’m anxious to see how your group fares after you leave the Leif Repline and King Aldar’s protection.”
“Doesn’t King Aldar reign over all of the Giant Mountains?” Hyden asked. A sudden worry poked in his gut, like a pinprick in a wineskin. The subtle warning in Borg’s tone was unmistakable.
“He does,” Borg spoke as they walked. “But not all giants are civilized. Nor are all parts of these mountains rulable, especially the northern reaches near the Wedjak. How do you reign over a band of wild mountain trolls, or an ice wyrm? King Mikahl might hold reign over the kingdoms of men, but you can’t tell me he controls what the Zard or the snappers do.”
“I see,” Hyden said uneasily. The pinprick in his gut was now a finger hole. Confidence was flowing out of him freely. His wineskin was emptying as if it were in Oarly’s hands. He’d envisioned his group making it through the Giant Mountains without having to worry about being attacked. In his mind, common animals hadn’t seemed a threat. He was so worried about demon kind, the Choskas and hellcats, that he had discounted the mountains’ natural inhabitants.
He would have to rethink his plan. Another random encounter, such as the one with the mother bear, could end them all, if they weren’t prepared.
Borg must have seen the concern on Hyden’s face. “You’ll be just fine, Hyden,” he said. “You can communicate with the animals through Talon. You just have to remember to listen to what they say.”
From not very far away, the disgruntled bear growled out a deep, rumbling warning. Hyden looked up to see that they were passing very close to the cave mouth. Oof came bounding up out of nowhere and positioned himself between them and the opening. Nevertheless, Hyden nearly had to run to keep up with Borg’s suddenly brisk pace.
After they had gotten some distance away, Borg asked if there was meat.
“Not enough for two days,” Hyden replied.
“There’s a large herd of elk moving in a nearby valley,” Borg said before barking out more orders to the great wolves. “We’ll be fine as long as there’s enough meat for this night. I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.”
Hyden didn’t laugh. Spoken by a human it would be an exaggeration, but spoken by Borg, it was something else altogether. Lieutenant Welch had the camp erected closer to the tree line. Hyden had to smile at Mikahl’s choice of commanders. The more protected location would serve them well, since they would be waiting on the other elf and the monk. As Hyden and Borg neared, the whole pack of great wolves, save for Huffa, waggled and wiggled around Oof and Yip. Then all five of them were off to hunt elk as Borg had instructed them to do. Huffa, however, waited until Hyden took a seat on a log that the young soldiers had dragged out of the trees for just that purpose. The alpha female eased up beside him and put her white fluffy head in his lap.
“She knows you?” Telgra asked curiously. She was sitting across the fire from Hyden, on a blanket with Phen. She was staring into the flames and scratching the lyna’s ears lovingly. As Hyden answered, Talon fluttered down to land on Phen’s shoulder.
“Aye, my lady, she does. I have to tell you, though, there’s an elf and a monk following us. They tried to catch us in Dreen. I think King Mikahl might have told you about them. They were with you before you were lost in the storm.”
Her look soured. She seemed embarrassed as she spoke. “I don’t remember them. I apologize if I am causing trouble for you.”
“It’s not me who they might offend, my lady,” Hyden said. “We’re going to wait for them. We can’t keep leading them through the giant’s realm. They’ll meet an ill fate for certain.”
She nodded that she understood his reasoning.
“There’s more,” Hyden continued, trying to choose his words carefully. “I know you don’t remember much about yourself, but there’s one thing you should know.”
Hyden looked to Borg for help. The giant’s expression showed that he was offering none. Hyden took a breath and got on with it. “You are the heir of the elven realm, Princess Telgra. Your mother is the Queen Mother, and though she knows that you are alive and safe, she doesn’t know where you are, or the condition of your mind.”
“I knew it!” Phen blurted out excitedly. To his surprise and obvious disappointment, her yellow eyes filled with tears. She shoved him away as she jumped up and started off. After two steps, she stopped, turned around, and picked up Spike, who had tried to follow her.
“Why did she start crying? Why is she so upset?” Phen asked.
What Hyden thought was a boulder wiggled and unfolded into an over-bundled hairy dwarf.
“She’s a she,” Oarly said, before taking a pull from his flask. He offered it to Hyden, who refused, but Borg reached his big hand over and took it. It looked like a thimble between the giant’s fingers. “Woman folk, be they dwarves, humans, or even elves are peculiar at best. Give her a while to think. I’ll go talk to her for you after that.” Oarly reached up to take his flask back from Borg, who had squatted down among them.
Hyden had to laugh when Oarly shook the container and found it empty, then scowled up at the huge being. Borg returned his glare with a look that caused Oarly to blanch.
“I’ll fetch some more,” Oarly grumbled. “And a fargin bucket for ye to drink from,” he added under his breath.
Borg heard Oarly and belted out a deep belly laugh. After a moment he said to Phen, “The dwarf is right. Giant women are no different.”
Lieutenant Welch sat down nearby and began whetting his sword. “Aye. Is she really the Princess of the Elves?”
“Aye,” Hyden answered with a sigh.
“You’ve all gone mad then.”