finally given up the ember, he had dropped it into the one they called Stormfast. But there was no certainty that it would remain there. Underlying the volcanoes was a network of rivers flowing with lava. The ember could move to any of the other volcanoes. He wondered if he should set up a watch to guard the ember. He would mull this over in his mind. Perhaps Dunmore MacDuncan would be the perfect wolf to captain such a watch over this ring of volcanoes.
He looked on now with great interest as the wolves dispersed. Which of MacHeath’s mates would stay with him. And which would leave? He saw MacHeath approaching each one, undoubtedly with new promises and favors. Indeed, they all stayed with him—all except one! Hordweard. She was the oldest of his mates. Perhaps at long last she was tired of his abuse. For ears she had only stubs. MacHeath had bitten them off in a fit of ragewhen she had not laid them back in submission quickly enough. Or perhaps she was beyond bearing any more cubs… Or perhaps, thought Fengo, she is a traitorous old she wolf. Had he convinced her to spy for him? After all, MacHeath is missing one eye now. Why not have three! What has he promised Hordweard? MacHeath held a power over his mates that was hard to escape despite his abusive treatment. He controlled them not only with physical force but with threats and bribes. Fengo sincerely doubted that a wolf as old and weakened Hordweard would dare leave him for long.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Hagsfiend of the Ice Narrows
A bizarre-looking bird with a fat orange beak, beady black eyes, and shaggy feathers cautiously waddled up to Pleek and offered him some small fish that it had just dived for. Pleek shook his head once more in disbelief as he watched this peculiar concoction of a bird. Half-hagsfiend, half-puffin, and strangest of all, it could dive with immunity into the sea and fish like all puffins. The salt water did not harm him.
For the cycle of one moon, Pleek and Ygryk had been sheltered in the Ice Narrows by Kreeth, the old hagsfiend who was Ygryk’s friend. Both he and Ygryk were recovering from their wounds. But Pleek wondered if his dignity would ever fully recover. How could Lord Arrin have turned on them so? Halfway back to the Ice Narrows they had been set upon by Lord Arrin’s most cunning assassin: Ullryck.
If Kreeth had not been flying by with two of her monstrosities they would never have survived the flight over the Bitter Sea. But she was a powerful hag and what she lacked in strength and size, she more than made up for in the power of her charms. “Kreeth, why would Lord Arrin send Ullryck to kill us? If it hadn’t been for you and your two…puff-hags, we would never have made it back here.”
Kreeth thought hard for a long moment as she gazed about her cave. It was like a laboratory of nachtmagen. Gizzards of owls and other birds she had murdered were neatly dried and hung up. There were salt stars that had formed in the evaporated lakes of the Nameless and several petrified bird eggs that she had excavated from a region she would not reveal. The entire ice cave was strung with macabre garlands of withered eyeballs. Finally, she turned to Pleek and spoke: “Most obviously, Ullryck was spying on you and Ygryk. When she saw Ygryk trying to…remove the young owl’s eye, she must have thought she was trying to kill him. So she planned her own attack.”
Pleek nodded. Kreeth pointed to one of the withered eyeballs that hung above her. “Got that one from a polar bear. Imagine that,” she cackled. “Me going after a polar bear. But I got him, and I started pouring the fyngrotinto him. But he got away. Still, cursed be the creature that encounters a polar bear with fyngrot.”
“Does he know how to use it?” Pleek asked.
“Can’t tell you. And if he does know how, will he have the gallgrot to use it? You see, this is what is so interesting about my work. It is both nachtmagen, and scientific and philosophical.” She
He looked on now with great interest as the wolves dispersed. Which of MacHeath’s mates would stay with him. And which would leave? He saw MacHeath approaching each one, undoubtedly with new promises and favors. Indeed, they all stayed with him—all except one! Hordweard. She was the oldest of his mates. Perhaps at long last she was tired of his abuse. For ears she had only stubs. MacHeath had bitten them off in a fit of ragewhen she had not laid them back in submission quickly enough. Or perhaps she was beyond bearing any more cubs… Or perhaps, thought Fengo, she is a traitorous old she wolf. Had he convinced her to spy for him? After all, MacHeath is missing one eye now. Why not have three! What has he promised Hordweard? MacHeath held a power over his mates that was hard to escape despite his abusive treatment. He controlled them not only with physical force but with threats and bribes. Fengo sincerely doubted that a wolf as old and weakened Hordweard would dare leave him for long.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Hagsfiend of the Ice Narrows
A bizarre-looking bird with a fat orange beak, beady black eyes, and shaggy feathers cautiously waddled up to Pleek and offered him some small fish that it had just dived for. Pleek shook his head once more in disbelief as he watched this peculiar concoction of a bird. Half-hagsfiend, half-puffin, and strangest of all, it could dive with immunity into the sea and fish like all puffins. The salt water did not harm him.
For the cycle of one moon, Pleek and Ygryk had been sheltered in the Ice Narrows by Kreeth, the old hagsfiend who was Ygryk’s friend. Both he and Ygryk were recovering from their wounds. But Pleek wondered if his dignity would ever fully recover. How could Lord Arrin have turned on them so? Halfway back to the Ice Narrows they had been set upon by Lord Arrin’s most cunning assassin: Ullryck.
If Kreeth had not been flying by with two of her monstrosities they would never have survived the flight over the Bitter Sea. But she was a powerful hag and what she lacked in strength and size, she more than made up for in the power of her charms. “Kreeth, why would Lord Arrin send Ullryck to kill us? If it hadn’t been for you and your two…puff-hags, we would never have made it back here.”
Kreeth thought hard for a long moment as she gazed about her cave. It was like a laboratory of nachtmagen. Gizzards of owls and other birds she had murdered were neatly dried and hung up. There were salt stars that had formed in the evaporated lakes of the Nameless and several petrified bird eggs that she had excavated from a region she would not reveal. The entire ice cave was strung with macabre garlands of withered eyeballs. Finally, she turned to Pleek and spoke: “Most obviously, Ullryck was spying on you and Ygryk. When she saw Ygryk trying to…remove the young owl’s eye, she must have thought she was trying to kill him. So she planned her own attack.”
Pleek nodded. Kreeth pointed to one of the withered eyeballs that hung above her. “Got that one from a polar bear. Imagine that,” she cackled. “Me going after a polar bear. But I got him, and I started pouring the fyngrotinto him. But he got away. Still, cursed be the creature that encounters a polar bear with fyngrot.”
“Does he know how to use it?” Pleek asked.
“Can’t tell you. And if he does know how, will he have the gallgrot to use it? You see, this is what is so interesting about my work. It is both nachtmagen, and scientific and philosophical.” She
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