overwhelming.
Why couldn’t it have been love? The salty tears stung the cuts on her face.
”What’s wrong?” Elaine asked.
”Did you swallow the blood, Elaine?” Jonathan asked.
She stared up at him with panicked eyes. ”Yes.” Her voice sounded strangled.
”No,” Tereza said. ”It was just a wolf.”
”That size, in the company of a man-wolf,” Jonathan said. He shook his head. ”No,” she said again, voice strong and sure. ”It was just a dire wolf, unnatural perhaps, but not a werewolf.”
”How do you know that, Wife? How?”
Tereza shook her head stubbornly. ”It doesn’t have to be a werewolf.”
”But what if it is?” Konrad said.
They all looked at Elaine. Blaine fell to his knees beside her, tears running down his cheeks, freezing in tiny silver beads on his face. ”But Blaine was bitten. Is he in danger, too?”
”I have a salve for scratches and bites if I can get to them before the poison has time to spread, but... if you swallow the blood, the salve cannot help.” ”Surely a potion,” Tereza said.
Konrad shook his head. ”Most who drink the blood want to be a werewolf. There is no potion to save those who don’t want to be saved.” ”There is a way to tell if wolves are natural or not.” Gersalius sat on his horse at the edge of the clearing. He had been so quiet Elaine had forgotten about him.
”What of the travelers?” Jonathan said, ”Will they be safe while we linger here?”
”Safe enough,” the wizard said.
”Jonathan, if there is a chance to know whether Elaine is contaminated, we must take it.”
Jonathan turned to his wife. ”Magic to save us from magic.” Tereza made a small pushing motion with her hands. ”Enough of this argument, Jonathan. Do what you must, wizard.”
Jonathan opened his mouth as if he would argue, but didn’t. ”I will go see to the travelers.” With that, he took his horse’s reins and walked back the way Thordin and Konrad had come.
With a sinking heart Elaine watched him go. Did he hate magic more than he loved her? She watched him disappear through the trees and feared it was so. Gersalius pulled a small mirror from his pocket. He sprinkled a pale powder over the glass and spoke a few soft words. The sound raised the hairs on her body, like an army of marching ants. The air was too heavy to breathe, as if a thunderstorm hung in the air. Elaine looked at Konrad, but he was looking at the wizard. No one else seemed to feel anything out of the ordinary. There was an almost audible pop. Then Gersalius put his mirror away and said, ”They are just wolves.”
”Even I need more proof than that,” Tereza said. ”You spill some salt over a mirror, mutter some nonsense, and expect us to believe it’s magic?” ”Look at your friend’s trophies,” the wizard said. Thordin looked down at his necklace of ears. He raised it slowly so all could see. Two of the ears were human.
Gersalius smiled. ”It’s a good spell. Not very flashy, but it gets the job done.”
Tereza could only nod. Elaine could only stare at the two very human ears.
« ^ »
TEN
One deadman was wearing full-plate armor. Elaine had seen such shining metal only twice before, on the wealthy, or the foolish. Much of what stalked the land was not kept at bay by armor. The wolves had been, though; four of the great beasts lay scattered around the deadman like a child’s broken toys, four dire wolves killed by sword, not by arrows. He had been a great fighter. Now he was so much meat for worms.
She shook her head, huddling her cloak tight around her. With a little water, she had cleaned off what blood she could, but the blood had frozen in her hair in crimson ice. She needed a hot bath.
The second deadman was young, about the same age as Elaine and herself. His curly brown hair was cut unfashionably short. His face was handsome even in death, soft as if he had smiled often. Two wolves lay dead at his feet. One had been pierced through by two arrows.
Why couldn’t it have been love? The salty tears stung the cuts on her face.
”What’s wrong?” Elaine asked.
”Did you swallow the blood, Elaine?” Jonathan asked.
She stared up at him with panicked eyes. ”Yes.” Her voice sounded strangled.
”No,” Tereza said. ”It was just a wolf.”
”That size, in the company of a man-wolf,” Jonathan said. He shook his head. ”No,” she said again, voice strong and sure. ”It was just a dire wolf, unnatural perhaps, but not a werewolf.”
”How do you know that, Wife? How?”
Tereza shook her head stubbornly. ”It doesn’t have to be a werewolf.”
”But what if it is?” Konrad said.
They all looked at Elaine. Blaine fell to his knees beside her, tears running down his cheeks, freezing in tiny silver beads on his face. ”But Blaine was bitten. Is he in danger, too?”
”I have a salve for scratches and bites if I can get to them before the poison has time to spread, but... if you swallow the blood, the salve cannot help.” ”Surely a potion,” Tereza said.
Konrad shook his head. ”Most who drink the blood want to be a werewolf. There is no potion to save those who don’t want to be saved.” ”There is a way to tell if wolves are natural or not.” Gersalius sat on his horse at the edge of the clearing. He had been so quiet Elaine had forgotten about him.
”What of the travelers?” Jonathan said, ”Will they be safe while we linger here?”
”Safe enough,” the wizard said.
”Jonathan, if there is a chance to know whether Elaine is contaminated, we must take it.”
Jonathan turned to his wife. ”Magic to save us from magic.” Tereza made a small pushing motion with her hands. ”Enough of this argument, Jonathan. Do what you must, wizard.”
Jonathan opened his mouth as if he would argue, but didn’t. ”I will go see to the travelers.” With that, he took his horse’s reins and walked back the way Thordin and Konrad had come.
With a sinking heart Elaine watched him go. Did he hate magic more than he loved her? She watched him disappear through the trees and feared it was so. Gersalius pulled a small mirror from his pocket. He sprinkled a pale powder over the glass and spoke a few soft words. The sound raised the hairs on her body, like an army of marching ants. The air was too heavy to breathe, as if a thunderstorm hung in the air. Elaine looked at Konrad, but he was looking at the wizard. No one else seemed to feel anything out of the ordinary. There was an almost audible pop. Then Gersalius put his mirror away and said, ”They are just wolves.”
”Even I need more proof than that,” Tereza said. ”You spill some salt over a mirror, mutter some nonsense, and expect us to believe it’s magic?” ”Look at your friend’s trophies,” the wizard said. Thordin looked down at his necklace of ears. He raised it slowly so all could see. Two of the ears were human.
Gersalius smiled. ”It’s a good spell. Not very flashy, but it gets the job done.”
Tereza could only nod. Elaine could only stare at the two very human ears.
« ^ »
TEN
One deadman was wearing full-plate armor. Elaine had seen such shining metal only twice before, on the wealthy, or the foolish. Much of what stalked the land was not kept at bay by armor. The wolves had been, though; four of the great beasts lay scattered around the deadman like a child’s broken toys, four dire wolves killed by sword, not by arrows. He had been a great fighter. Now he was so much meat for worms.
She shook her head, huddling her cloak tight around her. With a little water, she had cleaned off what blood she could, but the blood had frozen in her hair in crimson ice. She needed a hot bath.
The second deadman was young, about the same age as Elaine and herself. His curly brown hair was cut unfashionably short. His face was handsome even in death, soft as if he had smiled often. Two wolves lay dead at his feet. One had been pierced through by two arrows.
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