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Aein yanked her bags out of her locker. The guards swore they would scour the city until they found the spy. Her wolves were on the hunt for the man's trail. But there was a feeling in the pit of her stomach that all their searches would fail. She cursed that she had not noticed him sooner, had not called for help faster, had not been able to stop it. A streak of black fur ran into the barracks and stopped by the foot of her bed.
"Lars?" she said, barely acknowledging the wolf as she threw her belongings on the mattress. "New plan. We have to go now."
He cocked his head but then ran over to his space, nudging his own locker open with his nose.
"I won't forget your things," Aein said, wrapping an ax in a blanket and fixing a mace to her side. Since her injury, she had lost the dexterity to wield a sword. Cruder weapons of brute force were the most she could reliably handle. Even so, she stared at her unused arrows, bow, and quiver at the bottom of her trunk. She could not leave them behind. Her hands shook as she picked them up, the adrenaline pounding through her veins. The last time she held them was the day Lord Arnkell stormed the castle. She had to keep calm, she reminded herself. But all of the ramifications - if the spy revealed where they were off to, if the spy reached the bush before they did, if the people she knew were trapped as werewolves for the rest of their lives - ran through her mind.
She hurried over to Lars's things. He barked at her when she touched something he wanted and growled when she packed something he didn't. Finally, she slipped on her chainmail, strapped her breastplate in place, and grabbed her metal helmet. She bent down to lift both of their bags and almost collapsed beneath the weight. She took a deep gulp of air. She hated that her body didn't respond the way it used to. She hated that she was weak. She called out to a page walking by the door.
"You! Take these things down to the stable and have horses prepared for me," she commanded.
The page took one look at the packs and dashed outside the door to find help. She cursed how they were making this escape. It was supposed to have been done with delicacy and stealth, but now they were madly running around. A hasty departure right after the disappearance of a spy? Who would not leap upon such a juicy bit of gossip to discuss in the city's taverns? But there was no helping it. There was a spy. He was on his way to report to Lord Arnkell. And they needed to leave now.
She strode towards Queen Gisla's private chamber, Lars at her heels. The guards opened the doors as soon as they saw her coming. Again, Aein found herself cursing, knowing that they must have been instructed to give her such ease of entry.
She had never been in the queen’s bedroom before. The walls were white plaster, painted with pink and indigo vines. The room was round with alcoves for the canopy bed, prayer room, and fireplace.
But Aein almost ran into Queen Gisla as she entered the room. Finn was at the far end and the she-wolf was blocking him from leaving. He welcomed Aein with a look of frustrated relief.
"Your majesty," said Aein, falling to one knee before rising, even though the wolf did not acknowledge her. "We must be off or your life may be forfeit."
Queen Gisla snapped, her fangs flashing at Aein in anger.
Lars began to growl.
"No, you two," commanded Aein. "We do not have time for this."
But Queen Gisla and Lars began to circle one another, their hackles raised and teeth bared.
"We must go!" Aein pleaded. "Know if there was any other way, we would take it."
Queen Gisla and Lars leapt at one another, fur flying.
"Gods curse it!" Aein swore. She and Finn jumped in to pull the two dogs apart. The air filled with snarling and snapping as Lars and Gisla tried to find a way to get around Finn and Aein.
"Your majesty!" shouted Finn as he tried to grab her by the scruff of the neck.
The queen lunged towards Lars and as she did, her mouth clamped down on Aein's chainmail. Aein instinctively cried out a terrified scream, the memory of when Queen Gisla's jaws broke that bone just a few months ago.
Immediately, the wolves stopped, shrinking back as if they had been struck. Queen Gisla cowered, as if suddenly remembering that her teeth tore at Aein once before. Her animalistic fury was replaced with the horrified memory, or perhaps realization, that she was human and this was the behavior of a wild creature.
"I am unharmed," Aein reassured her, still gripping her forearm. "I am unharmed..."
Queen Gisla hung her head. She tentatively crept to Aein, the embarrassment spoken in every movement. She lifted her snout and touched Aein's fingers apologetically. Aein rested her hand on Queen Gisla's head and gently stroked her fur, letting her know all was forgiven.
"Finn is your most trusted advisor and you must trust him in this. He swears there are others who are loyal to you and can take his place until he returns. But every moment we have wasted here has put our lives... his life... in danger." Queen Gisla shifted her puppy-like eyes from Aein to Finn and then back to Aein again. "The spy gets further ahead. He heard of our plans. We must get to the bush and protect it before Lord Arnkell gets there. We must find out what happened to the guard. We must..." Aein did not complete the sentence, realizing everything she could say were the words that Queen Gisla used to order her to go in the first place. "You put us in danger to keep us," she finished.
Queen Gisla whined at Finn. He knelt down to run his hands over her face and jaw. "I shall return. You are not abandoned. We go to protect you."
Aein wondered, not for the first time, if their stations had been different, if life had not unfolded as it had, if Finn would have sat beside Queen Gisla on the throne. There was a softness to his spirit, a gentle caring which Aein had only caught a glimpse of a few times in her life. She knew both Finn and Queen Gisla were aware of their place, that they would never do anything to damage the stability of the Haidra kingdom, but Aein wondered.
Queen Gisla seemed appeased, for she rose and leapt onto the bed. She flopped down, placing her head between her paws, and gazed at them with worried eyes. Finn turned to Aein and Lars and gave them a nod. He placed his hand upon his sword and they strode out of the room towards the stables.
They walked in silence, their minds adjusting from the conflict to the duty they now had to embark upon.
"Do you have everything you need?" asked Aein as they swiftly made their way through the hallway, the torchlight flickering.
"We shall find out," replied Finn grimly.
They arrived in the stables and two horses had been saddled and readied. A third horse was loaded with their supplies. Finn reached into his pack and pulled out two cloaks. He handed one to Aein. "Best not to make it too easy to see who travels," he explained.
Aein nodded and put it on, hiding her blonde hair beneath the deep hood. Without a word, they led the horses out and across the bailey to the barbican gate. Lars trotted between them, as if he understood it was best if he remained as hidden as possible. In the dark, he might be mistaken for a small pony. Outside the main castle walls, the city was still busy with revelers. There were many glances. There was no way two soldiers clearly traveling could have snuck out when there was nothing else to provide distraction. The more inebriated gave a tip of the hat and a bob of the head. But there were others, men and women, who glared at them with suspicion and mistrust. A man spotted Lars between them and spat upon the ground.
Aein began to understand why Queen Gisla was so anxious about Finn leaving. She knew tensions were high, that the people of the kingdom did not like the idea of a bewitched ruler. It was as if the darkness gave people the safety to be their true selves, and their true self was ugly.
Finn kneed his horse to the right and led them through the winding roads to one of the secondary gates. It was barred and locked. Finn rode to the gatehouse and pounded on the door. It opened and a sleepy man in a stocking cap rubbed his eyes. "What the blazes to you mean coming here this time of—" His jaws clamped shut as he saw who sat before him. He bowed his head. "My apologies."
Finn held out a parchment. "Open the gate," he said.
The man bowed and scraped his way back inside. Slowly the portcullis rose and they were able to ride beneath.
"The alarm rung in the city for a spy on the loose and that man sleeps abed..." said Finn darkly, glancing over his shoulder as the keeper closed the gate.
He did not complete the thought. If their mission was not so important, their need so dire, the man would have found himself looking for a new job. Was he incompetent or in league with the spy? The gatekeeper would have a few days’ grace before Finn dealt with him, Aein thought, trying to believe that they would be back soon.
"Let's keep our pace casual and slow until we get out of sight of the castle," Finn directed. "No need to add to the rumors that we left as if hellhounds were nipping at our heels."
Lars's tongue lolled out the side of his mouth. The grin on his wolfish face said that he was available if they needed such a service.
The countryside around them was quiet and still. The sliver of the moon barely lit their way. Aein thought back to that day when she and Lars first traveled to the swamp. She had been so full of excitement then, so naïve. She wished for those days again. The thought of the fog sent a chill up Aein's back.
"Warm enough?" asked Finn, glancing at her sideways.
She nodded, trying to display the ease and courage he wore as comfortably as a second skin. "Just thinking of what lay ahead."
Finn laughed. "That would be enough to send shivers up anyone's spine."
Aein and Finn fell silent as Lars raced ahead, sniffing the bushes and peering into the darkness. It seemed a false alarm and they both relaxed.
"What is beyond the swamp?" Aein asked him. "We always heard the stories of needing to guard it, but we were never told what lay beyond. What are we protecting ourselves from?"
She was surprised he didn't have an answer for her. "I don't know. No one has ever come back to tell us. But from what's gotten through during just my lifetime, I would hazard it isn't a very nice place."
"Maybe it is a land of indescribable beauty and they keep wondering why all these monsters they are banishing keep coming back," replied Aein.
"Wouldn't that be something?" said Finn, leaning back in his saddle and staring up at the sky.
"How bad do you think it's gotten?" Aein asked, terrified of the answer.
He couldn't meet her eyes. He stared at the stars as if he didn't have enough days left on the planet to gaze upon them. "Bad."
"I only served there for a few days before all of this happened," explained Aein. "I don't know what it's really like."
Memories seemed to flicker across Finn's face, thoughts of things that make a person strong or kills them
"Did you ever see anything?" she asked.
He nodded, wiping his nose as he glanced back to make sure there weren't any followers. "Of course."
"What did you see?"
"Monsters," he said. "Creatures out of your nightmares. They always came at night. Always hid in the fog."
"Were they real?" Aein asked, remembering how the fog played tricks on her, convinced her that there were phantoms when there were not.
"Real enough," said Finn. "Whether they exist in our imaginations or the fog created them, I did not wait to find out. They died like anything else at the end of my blade." He motioned to Lars with a jerk of his chin. "In fact, of all of us, I would say those of us who transform will be at an advantage."
His words gave Aein pause, made the thoughts jumble in her mind as the world shifted just a bit. "Strange that this thing which seems such a curse in our world will actually be useful in the swamp."
"Isn't it?" replied Finn. His horse pranced nervously beneath him, as if all this talk of the swamp was bringing back bad memories for him, too. Finn tightened his seat and patted his mount's neck. "It is only human intelligence which gives us an advantage over the beasts." This time it was Finn who paused. "But with the berries we consumed, we now have both the strength of the beasts and the intelligence of humans."
"Well, then. I hereby elect you and Lars to official defensive duty while I watch the horses," Aein pronounced.
"Oh, you're not getting off that easily," said Finn. "I tell you what..." He bended over to conspire with her. "I have heard you were one of the best chefs in the entire Arnkell stronghold. How about one fully cooked meal for every monster I kill for you?"
The first day Lars and Aein had left for the swamp all those months ago, Lars had made a similar proposition. Aein could not help the smile which crept across her face as she remembered. "Lars promised me two monsters per meal. But give me three and you have yourself a deal."
Finn held up his hands. "Too rich for my blood! I'm afraid you'll have to fight alongside us, instead."
"It appears I have overplayed my hand," she mock groaned. "I suppose I shall have to do what I have been trained for."
The corners of Finn's eyes crinkled as he laughed. Aein hadn't realized how much she missed that sight, how much she missed their easy camaraderie. For a moment, it was as if no time had passed.
Finn looked over his shoulder towards the castle and seemed pleased. "I think we're safe to go a little faster. There is a storm rolling in. Let's get as far along as we can and see if we can find some shelter."
He tapped his heels into his horse's side and they were off. Lars watched them with interest as they passed him by and then raced to catch up. The first gentle drops began to fall. They slowed their horses down, but within an hour, the heavens opened up. The rain beat down incessantly. Aein's cloak kept some of the rain from her face, but as the deluge thickened, it wasn't enough. Rivers of water flowed under her breastplate, the sound of the water striking the metal brim of her helmet made her want to rip it from her head.
Her horse slid badly and she dismounted, fearful he might go down with her on his back. She landed in a puddle of mud up to her ankles. Finn pulled up his mount and came back to Aein.
"Should we make camp?" Aein shouted at Finn over a crack of thunder.
Finn blinked as the rain ran down his scar and into his eyes. "It is too wet to light a fire. At least when we move, we stay warm."
"If we don't find a way to stay warmer, I think moving is going to be a moot point!" she replied.
Finn dismounted and walked by her side. They leaned into the driving wind. The horse slipped again and Aein wondered if they would have to walk all the way to the swamp. It seemed as if they were stumbling along for hours. She could not stop her teeth from clacking together and her body violently shook from the cold. She blew on her fingers to try and warm them. But as she did, she spotted a glimmer of something ahead.
"A light!" she said, lifting up her hand to block out the rain, trying to figure out if it was a lantern or a window.
Finn looked as relieved as Aein felt. "Come on! Let's see if it somewhere we might seek shelter."
"We should proceed with caution!" warned Aein. She had to spit out the water which blew into her mouth.
"The devil himself could be innkeeper and I would gladly sell my soul for a bed," he swore.
Aein looked back at Lars. His tail hung between his legs as the water dripped off his fur. She gave a loud whistle and his head perked up. He trotted over, as if thrilled for any distraction from the misery.
"I need you to go ahead and see what is causing that light," Aein directed.
The wolf gave a sneeze and then took off at a sprint. Aein hoped he would keep his footing. Though the wolves regenerated with each change, they could have a dog with a broken leg until sunrise, and that was not anything they needed in this storm.
Fortunately, Lars returned not five minutes later, dancing around with excitement. He barked and raced back and forwards.
"I think we're in the clear," Aein said to Finn.
"You don't have to be able to speak dog to understand that," he laughed. "Come along! Warm beds await!"
The promise of somewhere sheltered from the rain was just what they needed. Even the horses’ steps quickened. The square of light became brighter and brighter.
"An inn!" sighed Aein with relief. Lars let out a bark of agreement.
It was a small, two-story, half-timbered building. The paned glass washed the muddy road with the warm, golden firelight from inside. A dozen travelers sat on long benches, boards heaped with food balanced on their legs. A sign hung to the side of the door with a painting of a cart wheel. There was a muddy path from the inn to a barn filled with bales of hay. They unsaddled their horses quickly and rubbed them down before braving the rain once more. They were a motley crew as they entered.
All eyes turned to the soldiers and the carousing became very still in case this appearance of the Queen's guard was a sign of trouble.
A bald, fat man with a dirty apron stepped forward, a wooden cup in his hand. His mustache twitched as he spoke. "May I help you?"
"We seek shelter," said Finn.
It was then that Lars entered the room. The other guests recoiled, raising their weapons and preparing for attack. The air filled with the smell of wet dog and fear.
Aein motioned with her hand for Lars to sit, and he did. But instead of relieving the tension in the room, a wave of hostility and suspicion spread across it.
"He’s with you?" the innkeeper asked Finn.
"He is."
"He's not welcome here."
A single growl rose from Lars's throat. Aein glared at him to get in line. He was not helping the situation.
"In the name of Queen Gisla," said Finn, "he is, indeed, welcome." He pulled out that same parchment which caused the gatekeeper to open the town gate. The innkeeper took one look at the red seal and shut his mouth. But Finn took a sack of money from his belt and placed it in the man's hand. "She hopes this will ease any inconvenience."
The innkeeper wet his lower lip with his tongue, the lure of the money overcoming his discomfort. "You all may stay down here in the central room. I'll not have fleas in my beds."
"Too late!" shouted a man from the back.
At once, the tension dispelled and conversation returned to normal, but eyes still shifted towards them suspiciously. Aein noticed two men slip out the back door. There was something about them which caused the hairs on the back of her neck to prickle.
"I'll see to the horses," Aein whispered to Finn. He gave an imperceptible nod before allowing a wide grin to spread across his face as he announced, "Drinks are on the queen tonight! Open a cask for our new friends, innkeeper!"
The mood in the room shifted again to something more jovial. Aein didn't stay to watch it. She opened the door and stepped out, noting that Lars was with her. She crept towards the stable, grateful Lars was there to serve as her lookout. There were shadows and hidden corners her human eyes could not see in the night. He was alert, but not tense, and she took that as a good sign.
Inside the barn, the two men were saddling their mounts. They left the door open, most likely to make a quick getaway. Aein tiptoed in and hid behind a stack of hay.
"How did they find us?" one of the men said. Aein wondered who found them and what caused them to worry about being found out.
"It is those helldogs," said the other. "Lord Arnkell said they can track a man twenty leagues through a river. They probably smelled us from the road and led those soldiers here."
Aein swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry at the mention of Lord Arnkell's name. She strained to hear more. They were talking low and the sound of their saddles and stirrups clanked over their words.
"If you hadn't gotten yourself seen there at the castle—"
"That wasn't my fault. I don't know how that girl recognized me."
"You should have been more careful—"
"He'll want to know they're here. We have to get there before they do."
Aein pressed herself into the corner of the stall as the men walked their horses out. One gave a nervous whinny, most likely smelling Lars.
"Stinks like a dog in here," said one of the men as he left. Aein thought to herself he had no idea how close he had come.
What to do? she wondered. Should she let Lars loose on them right now? Go after them and question them? Or hurry to the swamp to fortify their defenses around the berry bush?
She rushed out of the barn. The men were disappearing down the road, swallowed by the torrential rain and darkness. She turned to Lars. "Wait here. I'll be back."
She raced towards the inn and tried not to fling the door open. Finn saw her come in and must have seen on her face that things were not right. With a hearty laugh and a backslap, he got up from his seat, carrying his drink with him and sloshing most of it on the floor. Aein knew his tricks.
She stayed next to the door, her back against the plaster wall. He smiled, placing his hand beside her head, and leaned into her.
"What are you doing?" she hissed.
He ran a strand of her hair through his fingers, drinking her in with is his blue eyes. "To anyone looking at us, it appears I'm just a man talking to a beautiful woman the way that men and women talk when they have had too much to drink, as opposed to a commander receiving vital information from a member of his team."
The closeness of his body made her heart skip a beat. She pressed her cheek against his to whisper in his ear, the stubble of his beard rough against her soft cheek. "Two men. Loyalists to Lord Arnkell, one of them was the spy. They have gone to warn him of our location."
Finn ran his hand down her arm and she could not help the shiver which ran up her spine. He interlaced his fingers in hers. "Is Lars outside?"
She pulled her head back, her lips a breath away from his, and nodded.
Finn opened the door, still holding Aein's hand like lovers sneaking off. Aein allowed him to lead her out into the stable. As soon as they entered, Aein stepped away.
"Those two men on the road," Aein commanded Lars. "Track them. Take them down. Do not allow them to reach their destination. "
The fur on Lars's back rose as a wildness came into his eyes. Despite the sanity the berry brought, he was still a wolf after the sun went down and Aein had given him the freedom to do what he did best — hunt.
Without pause, he was gone, sliding into the darkness like a shadow.
A half-hour passed, but Lars had still not returned. Finn kept pacing to the door and back again. Aein sat upon a pile of hay, clasping and unclasping her hands.
"Do you think he is all right?" she asked.
Finn ran his hand over the back of his neck and looked out into the night. "Of course," he said. "He cannot be killed except by silver or dismemberment."
"Except they know about werewolves," said Aein. "I overheard them."
"He'll be fine," repeated Finn, almost more to himself than Aein.
"We should have gone with him..." she said.
"We would die in that storm."
"Details."
He gave a small chuckle and rubbed his eyes. "What a day!" He threw up his hands. "We are utterly useless to him. Let's get some sleep so at least someone is rested tomorrow."
He reached out to Aein to help her to her feet. She chewed her lip as they walked back towards the inn, nervously glancing down the road, hoping Lars would suddenly appear. The rain had slowed to a trickle. Finn opened the door. Most of the other guests were already settled into their makeshift beds. The innkeeper jumped up from his stool and shut the door behind them, pulling in the latch. "Just waiting until you got back to close up. Wasn't sure if you'd be coming back in tonight."
"Just getting the horses bedded," replied Finn, giving the man a sly wink.
The innkeeper did not particularly care. He motioned to the floor. "Make yourself as comfortable as you can." And then he was gone.
There were other travelers in the room settling in. Most everyone had stripped down to their shifts to get their outer garments dry. Tunics and leggings hung before the fire and on the backs of chairs. Aein followed suit, stripping off her armor and chainmail and setting it to the side. From her bag, she pulled out a jar of bear grease and rubbed it on the links, hoping it would keep the metal from rusting if it had not already begun.
Finn rolled his bed out next to the far wall. He blocked it from prying eyes by placing a bench between him and the rest of the room, then draped it with his wet clothes. The care he was taking gave Aein pause. She realized he was worried about someone seeing him change into a werewolf when the sun rose. Aein walked over and placed her bed beside his and climbed inside the blankets. He raised an eyebrow.
"Just keeping the charade going," she whispered with a wink.
A slow smile crept across Finn's weathered face as he realized she was setting up a secondary line of defense, ready to shield him if necessary. He tucked his feet inside his blankets and pulled the scratchy wool up to his chin.
Aein rested her head in the crook of her arm. "Do you think he caught them?" she asked.
"I cannot imagine him not," said Finn softly.
"I hope he is safe."
The flickering firelight played across the shape of Finn's lips. She thought back to that night so many months ago when they had shared a moment alone, when things had been soft and tender between them. They had not had a moment together like that since, duty always coming between them, any moment interrupted by some task.
"I am glad you're here," whispered Aein.
"Me, too," he replied. His eyes became distant. "You two would have probably been fine on your own, but I had to make sure Queen Gisla..."
His voice trailed off and he did not complete the sentence. Aein tried not to sigh. He would always place the queen first. Though the queen would have to marry for political reasons and there was no hope for any sort of future, especially with one being a wolf at night and one at day, Finn cared deeply for her.
Still, Aein could not help but think back to that one night and wish she could close the distance between them.
Interrupting her own thoughts, Aein focused on the duty before them to distract herself. "What do you think Lord Arnkell has been doing all this time?"
"Raising followers?" Finn gave a small, powerless shrug. "Preparing to finish the war he started? This will not end until one of them is dead."
Aein knew as long as there was breath in his body, Lord Arnkell would fight. She thought back to all the carnage in the stronghold the night he poisoned his people, the way he was willing to slaughter everyone in order to bring down Queen Gisla. Aein's thoughts flickered to finding Cook Bolstad dying in his kitchen, the injuries he had sustained, the way this man she had sworn to protect had forced the only father she could remember to pick between her life and the life of the castle. And Cook Bolstad had chosen that he would rather an entire stronghold die than sacrifice Aein.
"Let's make sure it is him," said Aein.