Chapter Twelve

  The Greatest Hunter

  Cailean and Gwen followed the great Duncan Hightower back to a small hovel he had built for himself in the deep woods. “I’ve been clearing out these Spiders for weeks, this early in winter and they’re already out,” he said, dragging with his one arm the corpse of the monster.

  “This isn’t a winter like the last year’s, or the one before it, is it?” Cailean asked.

  “You tell me, young Winter Hunter, you said Mythis was attacked, and being that you value this little Sun-kissed girl so much I assume that Giran is dead, and the girls?” he asked.

  Cailean looked at Gwen, “Yes, the Sun family was killed,” she said, lowering her head and biting her lip.

  “Elsie and Abby, they’re both dead,” Gwen said as they watched the one-armed man drop the spider carcass and pull out his great sword again, striking it against some flint mounted on an oven and blowing on the small sparks to get a fire started as he heaved the spider corpse on top of it.

  “Poor girls, and now you’re the last hope for the spring I take it, good you’ve found yourself a hunter,” he nodded.

  Gwen wrung her hands on her jacket, “Does the blood mean anything, it’s not real, is it? Spring will still come right even if I-”

  “I don’t know if I could speak to that, I’m not a Druid, just a Hunter, at least I used to be,” Duncan drew his sword and sliced one of the great arms off the spider, put the blade against the stove and moved to get the leg over the fire.

  “Lost my arm in a fierce winter, about a decade ago,” he said, “The armies of some man in Ehlorn who thought himself a king thought there would be a reason to conquer our land, thought we would be weak when winter came, they didn’t expect the monsters fighting in league with the swords and spears of the defenders, the Winter Hunters, you heard stories are the War in Winter boy?” he turned to Cailean.

  “Yeah, during training,” he looked down, his hand nervously wringing on his blade’s hilt.

  “War in Winter?” Gwen asked, “I’ve heard of the Longest Winter, even the Steel Winter, I never learned about a War in Winter,” she said.

  “Because it’s not a period of history the land can look back on and smile at, the first winter since that long cold night that more men than monsters died,” Duncan said, “It’s how this happened,” he motioned his head to the stump hanging off his right shoulder.

  “I heard that Duncan Hightower died in the siege of the Winter Hunter fortress in Sleighburn,” Cailean said, “You killed, or at least they say you slayed over a dozen Cold Treaders,”

  “Seventeen,” Duncan corrected him as he went to his hovel and reached in for a bottle of spirit and three glasses, it would seem that in his years of disability, he had learned to live well enough with just the use of one hand. He knocked the cork out of the bottle and poured three glasses, “Drink this,” he said.

  “What is it?” Cailean asked.

  “Ancient Winter Hunter vigor, will keep the monsters at bay, and make you stronger against them, you too lass, take a drink,” he said.

  “Really? What’s in it?” Cailean said as he cautiously picked up the drink.

  “What is this going to do to me,” her hand trembled as she took her own glass.

  “It’s whiskey, you young fools,” Duncan said, putting the bottle down and taking his glass, downing a shot, “It’ll keep the demons at bay though, metaphorically at least,” he shook his head and slammed his glass on the table.

  Cailean looked to Gwen, shrugged his shoulders, and took his shot like a man, slamming his glass down in the same fashion, “That’s quite a brew,” he said, his voice straining as he put his fist to his mouth, fighting to keep the drink down.

  He looked at Gwen as she shook her head, she brought the drink to her lips and was barely able to stomach half a gulp of it, coughing as it went down her throat, her tongue out as her lips pursed, “Poison!” she said.

  “Far from it, sorry if it’s not up to the fancy wines and delicate tastes of a royal girl,” Duncan laughed.

  “I wasn’t a royal, I was a handmaiden,” Gwen said.

  “I saw how he treated you, handmaiden or not, your pa loved you,” Duncan smiled.

  Cailean looked at her, and saw her shake her head, “I know, there were times when he was away from Elsie and Abby, times,” she shut her eyes tight, looked down, and brought her hands to her face, “They’re dead, my sisters are dead,” a tear came from her eye, and then another.

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  “Gwendolyn, Gwen,” Cailean put a cautious hand on her shoulder, “I-” he searched for the words, and none came, he sighed and just rubbed her back as she began to weep.

  Duncan took a deep breath, “Sun blood is strong in her,” he said, “Tell me, Winter Hunter, are you capable enough to defend her?” he asked.

  Gwen looked up, dried her tears, and grabbed her glass, downing the second half of her drink, almost coughing it back up as she forced it down, she pounded her fist on the table and swallowed the bile coming up from her empty gut.

  “Strong girl,” Duncan laughed, “So, you said that Spiderfolk was your first kill, monster kill I mean, rare hunter finds a Spider Folk as his first kill, they usually come to threaten a traveler when the winter’s deeper, A hunter with some salt on him faces a Spider Folk, you being a whelp and taking three of them no less, you may have some rind on you yet,” Duncan took a seat at the table. “So, you say you faced a Dark Stalker, I saw a few of them myself. Many winters ago, maniacs,” he said.

  “He tried to kill Gwendolyn,” Cailean said.

  “Did he use steel or bronze?” Duncan asked, pouring himself another drink. He poured Cailean another drink and slid the glass towards him.

  “Steel,” Cailean said, taking his drink and downing another shot of it.

  “Dark Stalkers ain't been a real threat seen since the Steel winter. I was pretty sure I saw the last one die, was hunting an Ursaling with him, and we slayed it together, my bronze and his steel, then a Wood Scraper jumped at him. He couldn’t even put a dent in it, got his throat slit. Are you sure you can put a kill like that under your belt? Sure he wasn’t some pretender, I’ve seen men claim to be Dark Stalkers since then, trying to find some foolish pride in it, you really think you killed one?” he asked.

  “I don’t know, but he told us he was, and then he lunged a steel dagger at her,” he looked to Gwen.

  “And Cailean killed him,” she said, taking a deep breath, recovering from her crying fit, “Cailean is a Winter Hunter, just as much as you,” she said.

  “No, no I’m not,” Cailean said, then turned to Duncan, “I’m just a first year, and apparently this year is throwing everything it can at me, at us, at the Winter Hunters,” he said.

  Duncan swung his hand and smacked Cailean across the cheek, “Just a first year, my first year I took an Ursuling’s charge, rammed a bronze blade down its throat, the winter gives no damn if it’s your first season or your twentieth,” he looked to Cailean, lowering his eyes “You’re still soft around the edges, hell if you were trained up to the snuff of my day you would have blocked that blow,” he said.

  “What do you mean?” Cailean said, rubbing his chin, trying to soothe the slap he received.

  “You’re training starts tomorrow, so you best be ready, I’m going to put you through a real bell ringer Winter Hunter, do you want to see to the spring is found or not?”

  “I’ll see the Spring is found, I am a Winter Hunter,” Cailean said, speaking the words of that ancient oath.

  “Save the theatrics,” Duncan cut his recital off, “If you want to be a Winter Hunter, then be a Winter Hunter,” he said.

  “You’ll train me, here, in the woods,” Cailean looked out the window of the humble cabin, “We’re in the middle of the trees, what if more monsters come?” he asked.

  “Then you would have more opponents to train against, now do you want to be a Winter Hunter or not? Would you be so confident in your skills that you would refuse a tutelage from who ignorant people say is the best man our profession has ever produced?” Duncan asked.

  Cailean looked for words and couldn’t find them, just nodded his head in respect and agreement.

  “Good, good, I’ve seen a great deal of potential in Winter Hunters under me, for twenty years I trained our ilk, I’ve seen men so pathetic and men who could be so strong. You may not see potential in yourself, but I see it in you, you're a Winter Hunter, born and bred,” he smiled, “Oh yes, young Winter Hunter, I see the ways of our ilk in you, take another drink, I’d highly suggest it,” Duncan said, “You need a good rest tonight, and a good drink could put the worries out of your head and put you out, get you a good nights sleep in this horrible winter,” he said.

  “What are you talking about? Good rest? We have to get to Altinbren,” he said, “We’re on our way to the Severed Mountains, if Gwen can bring the spring back, the Druids will know how.”

  “You’ve got a whole season to get the sun-kissed girl to the Druids, but if you’re going to do that, you’re going to need to make sure she’s with a Winter Hunter worth his salt,” Duncan said, “I’ve got a bed you can use, rest up, hell share it with her if you want,” the one-armed man turned to Gwen and grinned.

  “Gwen can take the bed, where are you sleeping?” Cailean asked.

  “I don’t spend many nights in the bed, too soft for my liking, usually pass out on the floor,” he came to the table and poured himself another drink, “Sometimes I just drink this until I find myself in the next day, sometimes I sleep on the floor, and sometimes I sleep in the woods, I go to town sometimes and I get a bed at the inn, get a discount for being a poor wounded traveler,” he smiled as he downed another glass of the drink, “I say drink up, Winter Hunter, a hard day is ahead for you, hard days are ahead for all of us,” he raised his glass.

  Cailean looked to Gwen, “I am a Winter Hunter,”

  “Boy, I have heard that oath in my life more times than I care to remember,” he said.

  “I am the last line against that horrible darkness, I have sword and shield against threats so old, against threats without names, I defend those with nothing and those with even less, whether those threats be a one or a thousand,”

  “You’re a true believer aren’t you?” Duncan grinned.

  “Cailean,” Gwen looked up to him, dried what was left of her tears.

  “I will see the spring is found,” he said, looking into Gwen’s eyes, reaching out and taking her hand.

  “Sleep well tonight, young Winter Hunter,” Duncan said, “Tomorrow you begin your training, real training, the training of the first winter, training that was passed down to me with the hope I would find a worthy student to pass it on to,” he said.

  “Master Duncan,” Cailean took a knee in front of him, “If you can help me bring the spring, I will train with you, I will learn all I can, I give you my promise, this young Winter Hunter will do everything he can to not disappoint,” Cailean bowed his head.

  Duncan laughed, “There’s no room for pomp and circumstance here boy, get rested, I’ll have breakfast for us at sunrise, and then, then you can see what the life of a Winter Hunter truly has to offer,” Duncan said.