Unexpected

(Swords with Souls)

By Dan Watt

Cover by Darren Joy

Fantasy Fiction

(Adult content)

As he watches her walk alongside the narrow river that flows down the centre of the valley, he feels hollow. For comfort he places his hand on Alberta’s chest. The mare’s heartbeat gives him strength.

“We travel deeper into the forest for foraging and to learn it’s secrets,” Endellion says from a short distance ahead. “Together we learn what animals are female and whether they are pregnant or not, including the water creatures. We have forbidden each other from hunting those.” She stops and whistles.

Alberta rears up as two young wolf pups, a black bear cub, and more slowly an old fox rush towards Endellion. He is shocked once again. These are horrible monsters who kill human babies and livestock. He begins to draw his sword.

Endellion starts scratching the back of one of the wolf cubs. The fox barks at the bear cub and one of the wolf pups as they begin to fight. The bear cub puts it mouth around the wolf pup’s neck but doesn’t bite down. It’s at that moment he realizes they are playing, much like he would play wrestle with his brothers when they were younger. The fox barks angrily and the bear cub and wolf pup abruptly sit.

“We consider the children of all creature’s sacred,” Endellion says. “Lemmitty was already living with us for a few years when the pups and cub were brought home. She’s mothered them along with one of the goats named Minna.”

“Never name something you plan to kill,” he warns her.

“Of course not. So far, amongst men, I have only named you and your uncle. There are at least ten soldiers I will never name.”

He lifts his face to the light drizzle and curses. Maybe those soldiers will die quickly in battle. It would be better for them than whatever fate she has planned for them. There is no doubt in her tone that vengeance will be hers.

One of the wolf cubs moves towards Alberta. At first the mare steps back. The pup barks up at her without a worry. He is finding his day full of shocks as Alberta tenderly lowers her nostril to the pup.

He is in a daze as he watches the two wolf pups, bear cub and old fox follow Endellion along the river bank past the mini orchards and garden patches. After a while they veer left towards one side of the valley. As they get closer to the hillside, he notices a curtain of ivy. Endellion pulls some of the vines to the side and gestures him to go inside. She follows him in. On a boulder near the entrance is a partially used torch. Beside the torch is a flint and a pyrite stone. She holds up the torch as he strikes the stones over it. Once the beeswax covered jute ignites, she starts to walk farther into the cave.

“As we were exploring one of the girls found this cavern,” she tells him.

The cave’s ceiling is quite high. He and two of his brothers would have to stand on each other’s shoulders to touch the top. The walls are moist and covered in moss and split into two tunnels.

“The left tunnel goes a long way in but we want to go into the right one,” he hears her voice echo.

What he sees at the far end of the right tunnel gives him the shivers. The skeletal figure of a giant lies against the back wall. This giant is close to twice his own height. The skull has a hole above the right eye socket. What is most terrifying is the open mouth. He steps closer. There’s two layers of teeth. He looks along the arms and notices the skeletal hands have six bony fingers.

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