Page 41

“So, what exactly did the Keeper tell you?” Iryana asked.

“Lots of patches of poppies, like the one we came across. And the occasional dakya stumbling around on its own, with no horns at all.” He reached over, trailing his gloved finger down the arm of her coat, like he couldn’t resist touching her. “Combined with what we’ve seen near the fort, it’s interesting.”

Pyetar was bundled just like her, his fur-lined cap swallowing his head. It made him look soft and cuddly, like he could wrap his arms around her and hold her against the soft cushion of his furs.

Iryana cleared her throat. “Yes. They’ve seemed… less wild. More intentional. Intelligent.”

Pyetar nodded. “We’ve seen more dakii straying from the paths, and they don’t seem to react as much when they see us. We’ve had plenty of cases where they just walk right past a whole party of soldiers. It’s eerie.”

“They’ve been wild, thoughtless beasts for the last fifteen years, and now they’re suddenly learning. Training the less experienced dakii.” The thought made her want to shiver.

Pyetar pushed aside a branch from a pine tree, allowing Iryana to slip between the trees. They were far from any paths.

“At least not here, they haven’t. Maybe the dakii from elsewhere are more strategic, and they’ve been moving into the area, spreading that knowledge.”

“That would be… I don’t even know if this change is better or worse.” Only time would tell, she supposed.

He was quiet for a moment, the soft sounds of their boots compressing beds of fallen needles filling the air.

“I actually sent some specialists to investigate animal dens in the mountains, to see if any looked like they could house beasts.”

She looked over at him. They’d discussed months ago how they’d never seen baby dakii or dens. “And?”

“Nothing. They found nothing.”

“It’s so strange.”

They fell back into companionable silence, but Iryana kept looking over at Pyetar. It had been over a month since she’d been alone with him, and now they had days together ahead of them. She didn’t know what she expected. She’d told him to fight for her, but the reality was messier. Their duties kept them in different places, and they were always so rushed, so busy.

There were so many things she wanted to ask him about, to bring up. Things that weren’t fit for a letter, and needed to be spoken face to face. But now, when she had the opportunity, Iryana realized she wasn’t ready to bring them up. She just wanted to enjoy being around Pyetar, focusing on this new mystery.

She looked up as a light snow started falling from the icy blue sky. She held out one gloved hand and let a few flakes land on it.

The first few dustings of the year were always her favorite, when the pale snow contrasted with the greens and browns and grays. It felt still and quiet, perhaps a bit magical. But it wouldn’t take long before she’d tire of the snow. They were perhaps only weeks away from an unending sea of white.

Iryana stopped walking, breathing in the cold, crisp air. It was almost an earthy scent, perhaps a bit sweet. Like the snow brought out the purest of smells from the dirt and leaves below. When everything was snow, it would smell like nothing.

Pyetar stopped a few paces away. Iryana ignored him.

“Did they say what the hornless dakii looked like?” Iryana asked quietly, still staring up at the sky. “Were they much smaller?”

When Pyetar didn’t answer, she eventually looked over at him. “Pyetar?”

“Shh.” He held his finger up, voice dropping to a whisper. “They probably look like that.”

Iryana tensed, slowly following the line of his gaze. There was a dakya pawing at the base of a tree a couple dozen paces away. It was certainly smaller, perhaps the size of a large sled dog, but she’d seen dakii that size before.

Nothing else seemed remarkable about it. The fur was gray-blue, darker where it stretched over its spine and bones, paler and bluer where it was fluffiest. Its mane waved against the wind, as if it had a mind of its own. The thin, tufted tail swung slowly in the air.

But then it turned slightly, sniffing around the tree. Where the dakii usually had their curving black horns, this one had only small bumps above its ears.

She slowly began walking toward it, trying to step lightly and avoid branches that might snap. The dakya wasn’t reacting to them at all. Pyetar followed beside her, hand at the ready to form his spear or sword.

When they had covered half the distance, the dakya suddenly turned toward them. Its great head tilted to the side, those wholly black eyes inspecting them. Iryana and Pyetar froze, waiting to see what it would do.

They all stared at each other for a bloated moment.

Then the dakya took off, bounding between the trees with unexpected speed and grace. Iryana almost chased it, but that seemed a bit reckless even for her.