‘We must deal with these intruders,’ Derwyn said grimly. ‘The animal can wait.’ He began giving orders to the people standing about him.
‘No!’ Farnor cried, seizing his arm. ‘Listen to me! It’s asleep now. It may be possible to find and kill it before it wakens. If it wakes, then…’ He waved an arm over the now hectic camp. ‘… everyone’s life here will be at risk from it.’
Derwyn looked at him intently. It was a strange gaze, full of a terrible passion, but Farnor could see indulgence and patience vying there. There was a forced calmness in Derwyn’s voice when he spoke. ‘I feel your concern, Farnor, and I respect it. But you don’t under-stand what it is to be Valderen. We must rid the Forest of these intruders before we do anything else. On your own admission, you’re no hunter. I’ve no doubt that this… thing… this creature… is something very dangerous. Or that it gave you a severe fright when it chased you into the Forest.’ He tapped himself on the chest. ‘But we are hunters. We know about animals. Truly. There’s none as bad and treacherous as man, and we’ll deal with those first. Then we’ll return for the creature, have no fear.’
Farnor released him and looked around frantically as he felt events slipping away from him. Somewhere, ill-formed and unclear though the thoughts were, he knew that Derwyn and the others were using this unexpected development to take refuge from the strangeness of this whole eerie, alien hunt. There was, after all, nothing strange in protecting the Forest from the depredations of outsiders. It was the Valderen’s ancient duty, and even though they had not been called on to exercise it for countless generations, it was none the less a fundamental measure for them of their worth as a people.
Farnor’s every instinct told him that he could not overcome the momentum of this ancient will, but he could do no other than try. ‘If your old tales are anything like ours, with battles full of glory and excitement, then this will be nothing like them,’ he shouted, again seizing Derwyn’s arm as he was turning away. ‘Nilsson’s men aren’t casual intruders. They’re brutal fighting men, and they’re doing whatever they’re doing to fulfil some purpose of Rannick’s. If you go against them like this, rashly, they’ll hack you down without a thought.’ He pointed up towards the moun-tains. ‘And if that thing smells blood, it’ll awaken. You could end up with Nilsson’s men and Rannick to your front, and that creature at your back.’
Derwyn faltered before Farnor’s grim purposeful-ness, but the deeply ingrained history of his people carried him forward. ‘We’ll drive these people out, Farnor, return to hunt the creature, and then help you to deal with this Rannick,’ he said, though the reassur-ance in his voice was denied by the impatience with which he pulled himself free from Farnor’s grip.
‘In the name of sanity, tell them!’ Farnor roared silently at the trees.
‘The Valderen are the Valderen,’ came the reply. ‘As you are you. Your pain is that of a Mover. It is beyond us.’
Farnor swore at them viciously and turned to Marken. ‘Tell him, for pity’s sake,’ he said, waving towards Derwyn’s retreating back as he walked through the camp issuing instructions.
‘I can’t,’ the Hearer replied, his face pained. ‘I’m torn myself. I understand what you say. I feel the truth of it. But I’m Valderen. I…’ His voice faded and he made a helpless gesture.
Farnor looked around desperately. He saw Angwen and Edrien standing nearby, watching. Edrien’s face was distressed, but Angwen’s had become like a mask and was beyond any reading by him. He went over to them.
‘Do Valderen women fight?’ he asked Angwen bru-tally, his eyes glaring into hers.
‘We hunt,’ she replied, very quietly, touching the bow that Edrien was carrying.
‘Fight?’ Farnor insisted, baring his teeth and raising a clenched fist in front of her face. ‘Kill people?’
Angwen shook her head.
‘You’ve a few hours to school yourselves to the idea then,’ Farnor went on, his voice harsh. ‘You and the other women, pack this camp, arm yourselves, and wait. If things go badly for your husbands… and they probably will… be prepared to kill as many of the pursuers as you can. Show no mercy; it’s not the time, and they don’t deserve it. But above all, make sure that some of you get back to your lodges and spread the word of what’s happened here, because this will be only a beginning. Do you understand me?’
Angwen nodded slightly, but her face was still un-readable. Edrien laid a shaking hand on her mother’s arm. ‘And what will you do, Farnor?’ Angwen asked, her voice almost icily calm.
Farnor put his hand to his head, then dropped it limply. He looked from side to side, as if for some way of escape. His thoughts were in turmoil. How could things have gone so horribly wrong so suddenly? ‘I don’t know,’ he said eventually.
‘You seem to know what my father should be doing, though, don’t you?’ Edrien burst out furiously. Angwen raised a gentle hand to silence her.
Farnor glowered at her, a vicious response forming in his mind. Then he felt Angwen’s eyes on him, and Edrien became a daughter – someone little different from himself in that soon she might well be cruelly, pointlessly, orphaned. He turned on his heel and strode off without replying.
Chapter 24
As soon as Gryss had left them, Marna turned to Aaren. ‘Take me with you,’ she said.
‘No,’ Aaren replied unequivocally and without hesi-tation. ‘It’s too dangerous.’
‘Here is dangerous,’ Marna retorted. ‘Everywhere in the valley’s dangerous now, especially for me. I can’t go with Gryss and the others, can I? And there’s nothing useful I can do here.’
Aaren’s reply was impatient. ‘Just stay here. Stay hidden until it’s all over.’
‘The hell I will,’ Marna blazed. ‘This is my valley, woman, and most of what you know about it is because of me!’
‘No! You’re not trained. You couldn’t…’
‘I killed that man.’ Shame filled her at the boast, but she held Aaren’s gaze.
‘You got lucky. Be told. Stay here. You’re no use to us.’
The shame became a livid rage as Marna took in this remark and its scornful utterance. Furiously she swung her hand up to strike Aaren’s face. A contemptuous flick deflected it effortlessly and she suddenly felt Aaren’s hand closing about her throat. The pressure was not great, but almost immediately she felt everything around her begin to swim and darken. Somehow she lifted her hands to take Aaren’s wrist, though there was no strength in them. ‘My valley, my people, you bitch,’ she heard herself saying in the distance.
Then the darkness was gone and two strong arms were wrapped around her, supporting her. ‘I’m sorry, Marna,’ Aaren said, her voice hoarse and unsteady. ‘You’re right, and I’m wrong. It is your valley and it’s not up to me to stop you fighting for it. We’ll find something useful for you to do. You can come.’
Her embrace fell away. Marna straightened up and looked at her erstwhile antagonist. Her anger vanished at what she saw. ‘You’re a long way from home, and frightened, aren’t you?’ she said with a sudden, heart-breaking insight.
Aaren’s lips tightened briefly, then her features composed themselves and she raised an ironic eyebrow. ‘And you, young woman, are too much like I used to be.’ She became purposeful. ‘But understand, as we told you before, if you come with us you keep quiet and do exactly what you’re told, immediately and without question.’ She looked at Marna uncertainly. ‘I hope I’m not going to regret this. Let’s hope your luck holds.’
The next few hours saw the two women making a stealthy journey through the woods and across the rainswept landscape until they were in the woods to the north of the castle. There they were met by Engir, Levrik and Yehna.
Engir threw a quick glance at Marna and spoke sharply to Aaren in their own language.