CHAPTER 55: THE LYCANTHROIDS
We startedup the mountain again, wary and watching. Thornhold and I took the front because my eyesight was better than any of the others. As we slogged our way along the chiseled path of compounded snow and ice, it occurred to me that I’d rather be doing just about anything else than this.
“Sometimes, I really miss being home,” I said, keeping my voice low.
Thornhold, who was managing better than any of us because of his lower center of gravity and his muscle, nodded. “I understand. As the days go on, it’s becoming more obvious that this is it — that we’re here for good. I’ll admit, I don’t have a lot of hope left for getting out. I think that the rest of our lives will be spent roaming this world.” He gave me a wistful look, then shot his glance at the ascending path in front of us.
I worried my lip, silent. For the first couple of weeks, I had tried to keep my focus on the present. And, given all we had already come through, it’d been easy to avert my gaze from the future. But now, on these long stretches of traveling, we spent more time in silence than in conversation. For one thing, it saved energy. For another, there was only so much to talk about as the hours stretched into days.
Back home, I hadn’t been focused on what was to come. It seemed set, at least for the foreseeable future. I loved my job, even with all the problems, and I was relatively happy. I wasn’t in a relationship, but I hadn’t been looking for one. I had my friends, my hobbies, and all in all, a comfortable life.
Now, though, it was as if fate had picked up a snow globe in which I’d been living and given it a good shake. The pieces of my life swirled around me, and I had no idea what things would look like when the storm passed.
If wewerestuck here, I didn’t want to keep wandering around the world. But where would I settle? And what would I do? Would I chance starting a family without knowing whether we might ever leave the game? And if Ididfind someone to settle down with, if Ididhave kids, what happened if the game devs ever fixed the game? I wouldn’t be able to leave my family behind, and yet I knew they wouldn’t be able to come with me.
In fact, once we were done with destroying the curse and we went home to Liesel, the only sure thing I knew was that Star would be waiting for me.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Thornhold said.
I just shook my head. “A thousand pennies, you mean? I’m thinking about the future and what it might look like.”
“Don’t let me get you down,” he said, lowering his voice. “You know I’ve always been a pragmatist, but even I know you have to have some hope in life.”
“Oh, don’t worry yourself —” I paused, looking ahead.
We stood at a curve in the path, and we couldn’t see the trail ahead until we rounded the bend. But I was positive that I heard something around the curve, though I couldn’t pinpoint what the noise was. I held up my hand and turned.
“I hear something,” I said in a low voice.
We all listened for a moment, then Reggie nodded.
“I hear it too,” he said. “Like voices caught up in the wind.”
“I suggest we ready ourselves for anything.” I withdrew my silver sword, wondering if it was wise to charge in, looking as if we were ready for battle. If they were friendly, it might scare them into attacking. On the other hand, if they were spoiling for a fight, we’d be ready.
I lowered my sword, but kept it unsheathed. The others armed up. Without another word, Thornhold and I started to climb again, rounding the bend to see who—orwhat—was waiting for us.
Up ahead,to one side of the path, a campfire crackled, sitting atop a thin but wide stone slab. A wagon sat on the shoulder next to the rock wall, with two horses deep in their feedbags.
Two men and two women gathered around the fire, which had a kettle hanging over it. Something delicious bubbled within, smelling so good that my stomach rumbled. A fifth person—another man—draped blankets over the horses to keep them warm. They were dressed for the weather in leather and fur.
There was a different look to them, not quite human, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on exactly what I was sensing. All five had jet-black hair, and their skin was a shade darker than tan. The older woman, who was stirring the cauldron, slowly set down the spoon.
She straightened, drawing a short sword from its scabbard. The blade glowed with a pale lavender light. The others waited as she circled to the front of the camp, where she stood waiting, tapping the flat of the blade on her other hand.
“Stop where you are,” she said. “Identify yourselves.”
I took a deep breath, then I took one step forward and stopped. “I’m Erenye. These are my companions. We aren’t looking for a fight. We’re just traveling over the pass.”
The woman — who looked to be in her late 40s or early 50s — hesitated. She glanced at her blade, which was still glowing with the pale lavender light, and seemed to relax.
“Who are your companions?” she asked.
It seemed a bit rude that she didn’t introduce herself first, but I decided to take no offense. It wasn’t worth a fight.
“The dwarf is Thornhold,” I said, then pointed to Reggie. “This is Reggie, that’s Ray, and Brynn. Your turn. To whom am I talking?”
She paused another moment, then said, “Magdala. I’m the mother of my clan, the Ossaylas. We’re heading home. These are my sons, Aisling and Rupert. My daughter Alina and her husband, Sean.” They each waved as she introduced them.
