Silver Winds

Chapter 37

Astra and Jun had taken two steps when they heard a whooping sound in the woods, in the direction away from their camp. Astra and Jun whirled, and Astra dropped low to the ground as a reflex. The pair peered into the woods, eyes wide and heads tilted. Astra gripped her longbow and pulled an arrow from her quiver, sensing a large group. As she made her movements, Jun saw her and began doing the same, but she shook her head and jerked it back toward the river.

"–Slimy backstabbers!" someone cried. Astra stepped backward, trying to be careful to make as little noise as possible. Jun ran into the woods, his feet striking through the snow with precision.

A loud cry rang through the woods, filled with rage. The bow slipped a bit in her hand, and Astra wiped her palm against her pants. After a few more moments, in which the sounds got louder and louder and the beating of her heart almost eclipsed that din, she turned and ran. She followed the swaying, dark hair without seeing anything else.

"The Dragons are dead!"

Terror struck her as she recognized the voice without a doubt in her mind. Her feet sped up, but the noise was covered by the cries of the group blundering along behind. A branch smacked her in the eye, and she clenched her teeth over a cry of pain.

"That's our Vinr! You sure know how to say it, Berg!"

The stream before her seemed just a little too wide for her to manage the gap. But when she heard a shout, Astra looked across the stream, seeing a pair of outstretched arms clad in a too-large coat.

"Jump!" Jun cried. She slowed at the last moment, weighing the options in her mind.

"There's one!" the scream happened at the time, and Astra whirled around, her mouth agape. Berg's ears were the first thing that she noticed, then the twisting smile on his face. His coat was covered in fur, fluffy enough that it made him seem larger than he already was. Astra's lungs froze up, taking with it all ability to move. The massive man took a step toward her, and it set her back into motion.

"Astor!" came the cry across the river. Astra scrambled upstream, trying to get to a place where she could jump. The thumping in the snow behind her got louder, and she tucked her arms in at her side and pushed against the ground with every stride. She let out a small squeak as a hand seized the back of the coat she was wearing. She felt the pull behind her, and she shook her shoulders. The pressure was relieved, and she darted to the side, flying across the river. Jun was still on the other side, waiting to grab her and pull her to his chest. He dropped her the moment after, and the pair took off in the direction of the cave.

"Go ahead," Astra commanded as she watched Jun slow to keep her near him. "Warn them."

"But–" Jun began, but Astra cut him off with a blow to the ear, just a soft one.

"Don't be stupid," she interjected. "I'll be fine."

His eyes were pulled together in some fashion of strange squint, but then his face went blank. "Of course," he said. He sped up and disappeared after a minute.

Once her legs began to weigh her down, she turned and dug her feet into the snow. Her arrow was nocked before she stopped. Her arrow was loosed just before the Sharks came within four meters of her. It embedded itself into the calf of Lars Caisen, and he fell with a shriek.

For the next shot, Astra didn't pull the string all the way to her anchor point. It struck Kjell Christoffersen in the forearm, and he cried out and cradled it like it would kill him if not treated properly. She then threw her bow into the snowbank to her far left and removed her seaxe, holding it near her hip, with her other arm extended in the traditional defence position. Her heartbeat was the only thing she could discern in her ears, even above the curses and taunts of the Sharks.