Windcatcher: Book I of the Stone War Chronicles

by A. J. Norfield

  On the first day—after Raylan left—he had tried talking to the guards, but they had ignored him, either out of a sense of duty or out of fear. He had half-expected the fear, which he still found strange because he did not seem that scary to himself.

  For the last few days, Galirras had put a lot of effort and practice into improving his wind manipulation, being careful he was not seen. He was mildly pleased with the amount of progress he had made, although he still got tired quicker than he would have liked. Playing around with leaves and flames had become relatively easy, so as a challenge, he had searched for something bigger. He had found it, when he saw the children playing with a ball made of straw.

  Asking them over, they had given in to their curiosity; though, some of them needed some convincing. They had approached the edge of the platform, where they threw the ball to him from a safe distance. He had nudged the ball back a few times with his head, making sure it did not accidentally end up falling off the platform. Just when the children became more comfortable with him, Svetka had shown up and rebuked them for coming close to such a dangerous animal. They had darted away at the first sound of her voice, and left their ball in their rushed retreat.

  From that moment on, Galirras had used the ball for practice. At first, it had not moved at all, so he experimented with different streams and approaches, using larger areas of air to funnel into a tighter stream. After an afternoon of practicing, he had been able to move the ball at least six feet. But during the night, after he had slept, he improved his technique some more and easily directed the ball all around the platform.

  Having now mastered the movement of the straw ball, Galirras found himself alone—and still confined to the platform—for the fourth night in a row. He absentmindedly pushed short bursts of air out of his nostrils, manipulating the moving air into small bubbles and rings of sparkles. The shapes got bigger as they floated upward. He tried different techniques and speeds of moving air. He wished others could see the shapes he was able to make, but it seemed Raylan was not the only one who did not see the small sparkling air particles. In fact, none in their group were able to see it.

  Perhaps it really is a dragon thing.

  Galirras felt his stomach rumble. He wanted to hunt. They had given him some small game, but now he wished he had not eaten everything at once. He could use a nice, juicy deer. His stomach answered with a rumble, as he felt saliva drip out of the side of his mouth.

  For a moment, he considered waking up Richard to ask for more food, but decided against it in the end. Instead, his attention was drawn to small, high-pitched beeps, which seemed to be coming from some small-winged, furry creatures. They differed in size, but were rarely larger than the kinds of birds he had eaten before. He tried to grab one out of the air, but it somehow dodged him at the last moment. He tried a couple more times, but every time, the small creatures were either too fast or were able to steer clear of his jaws.

  Driven by his curiosity, and his hunger, he tried different things. He now tried to hit the animals out of the sky with a quick thrust of air from his nose. It took a number of tries before he timed it right. Finally, he hit one of them, but the small thing was able to stabilize its flight and fluttered past him.

  So now, he tried to use a bigger air push from his throat. Taking care not to make too much sound, he breathed in deeply and gave a short thrust. He used his wind force to speed up the bubble, hitting one of the flying fur balls in the side. It spiraled out of control, as it tried to regain its balance. Galirras saw the creature crash into the tree and, missing the platform, it careened down into the darkness. He tried another time, missing his target. A third time gave him another hit, but the animal bounced off into the depths, again, thanks to its momentum.

  Galirras looked around to see if anyone was still around. Being late in the night, or rather, early in the morning, he saw both guards had dozed off at the edge of the platform. He silently stood up and moved toward the tree trunk. As he dug his claws in the bark, he climbed upward as quietly as possible, keeping a constant eye on his guards for any movement.

  Slowly, he moved higher and higher, until he was above the flying creatures. Just like before, he took a deep breath and sent out a burst of air which he sped up. As the air hit one of the larger creatures from above, it twirled straight down, hitting the platform with a thump. Quickly, Galirras let himself slide back down toward the platform, checking if the guards were awakened by the sound.

  He scooped up his kill and laid back down on the platform. It was more hair than meat, but the satisfaction of the kill and the pleasure of being able to move around, if only for a moment, made it taste like a five course meal…which, according to Raylan and the others, was supposed to be delicious. Galirras had heard them talk about it multiple times around the campfire during their travels, even if he was no step closer to figuring out what precisely a five course meal was.

  It was getting late in the afternoon. It was the fifth day already, and Raylan and the others were still not back. Galirras was hungry again. Even with his nightly snacks, he was not eating enough to quell his hunger. He wanted to go hunting, to get a nice, juicy deer…he would settle for a badger. Even a couple of rabbits would do. But he promised Raylan not to cause any trouble while they were away.

  That night, he had dreamed that he heard singing again. It sounded very distant, and soft, as if sung behind mountains and forests. It was as if the sound was carried on the smallest of wings, like those little animals he had seen flying around when hunting with Raylan.

  What had he called them? Buttered fleas?

  He felt like he knew the song, yet he could not remember it.

  While he was trying to remember how the song went, he felt a familiar, warm presence enter his mind. He raised his head, immediately, to look around.

  Richard and Xi’Lao, who had been sitting at the edge of the platform, both looked at him.

  “They are back!” Galirras said to them. “I can sense Raylan. He is back.”

  His tail twitched back and forth from excitement. He stretched his neck to look at the edge of the village. Xi’Lao and Richard both got up and walked to the rail, to get a better view. They saw people moving, heard soft shouts and saw guards using hand signals with one another. The children ran toward the entrance of the village.

  Xi’Lao almost stretched her neck as far as Galirras did. She saw the children arrive at one of the last platforms, when a group of men walked into view. Gavin was amongst the first to be spotted. Her face broke out in a smile as she let out a sigh of relief, surprising herself with the sudden realization she had clearly been nervous about his return.

  “There is Raylan. I can see him,” Galirras shouted to pretty much anyone who listened.

  As the group approached the platform, Galirras dashed forward, greeting Raylan.

  “Careful, careful, watch the tail. You’re going to push someone off, by accident,” laughed Raylan. He took his friend’s head in his hands and put his forehead against Galirras’.

  “It’s good to be back, little one.”

  Richard shook their hands. Xi’Lao seemed almost too shy to touch Gavin, only briefly squeezing his hand and giving a small smile.

  “You’re hurt,” said Galirras, as he sniffed the blood on Raylan’s leg. “What happened?”

  “It’s nothing, just a scratch. Otis already stitched it up and it is healing fine. There’s no need for you to worry,” he replied.

  The council came out to greet them and to see the result of their trip. Sebastian walked them through everything, while a number of men went through the sacks to catalog what was brought in. They had some more potatoes, and seeds that could be planted for crops. One sack contained dried and salted meat. And a number of sacks had grain, which could be used to bake bread. Overall, not a bad haul. It would help the village bridge the time until the new crops were ready to harvest.

  The council allowed them to hold a small, festive dinner that evening to celebrate the return of e
veryone, including Aanon’s group who had returned the previous day. It had been a long time since everyone was in the village at the same time, apart from Borclad who remained in the stables; but he preferred solitude over company, anyway.

  “Can I suggest,” began Raylan, who saw an opportunity to let Galirras hunt, “that Galirras assist with getting extra food for the festivities. If we are allowed to hunt, we will bring back a deer or some rabbits for stew. I think everyone would enjoy that.”

  The council was reluctant, but saw no real reason to object. The meat would be welcomed, but they did insist Sebastian go with them. He would show them the hunting ground, or so they said. And keep an eye on them for the council, Raylan expected.

  After Raylan briefly spoke with Xi’Lao and Richard, to get an update on their time in the village, they set out for the hunt, right away. As the sun lowered toward the horizon, the plant-eaters came out to forage, which made it an ideal time to hunt.

  Guided by Sebastian, Galirras and Raylan walked through the village to the far end of the platforms. He saw that the village had been experimenting with growing crops up in the trees, building large platforms to hold a few feet of soil. Sebastian told him it had taken a long time to get the soil up so high, but they were finally ready to have more localized crops. It would cut back on the traveling to and from the stables. Another platform they passed had been designed to collect water streaming down the trees when it rained. It ensured there was enough water for people to drink, unless the rain held off for a long time; but then the small lakes in the forest would provide a steady water supply. Now, a second water platform was being built, which would be used for crop irrigation.

  They took two descenders with them, to lower themselves to the forest floor. Galirras did it his own unique way and, soon enough, they were standing on solid ground again. It was the first time Raylan controlled one of the packs by himself, but he found it surprisingly easy to handle. They hid their descenders behind some shrubbery, making sure it could be reached quickly in case of an enemy troops encounter.

  “I’ll go check on some of the snares, while I’m here. Someone should have set some, this morning,” said Sebastian. “Be sure to keep track of where you are, in case you need to make a hasty retreat.”

  And with that, he walked off.

  “It’s nice to see someone trusts us, at least,” he remarked to Galirras.

  “I would like it if he would come with us. Do you think that is possible?” asked Galirras.

  “I don’t know. He’s got responsibilities in this community…I expect it will depend on their council, on Gavin and on what Sebastian wants.”

  “I guess you are right…maybe I can ask him, later.”

  He brightened up a bit, anticipating the meal he was about to have.

  “Thanks for going hunting with me, right away. I was getting really hungry.”

  “I know,” laughed Raylan, as he gave a quick tap on the dragon’s lower neck. “I could barely think about anything else because of your stomach. Now, let’s go catch a nice, juicy deer for you to eat your fill and we’ll see if there will be anything left after that to take back.”

  It did not take long for Galirras to track down a group of large deer. He just used his nose to follow the smell. He moved silently onto one of the large tree roots and launched himself from the high ground, taking down a large buck. While he killed it with a quick bite to the neck, Raylan heard one of the doe let out a cry. As he followed the sound, he found the animal had broken a leg in its panic to get away from the unknown predator. Taking out his knife, Raylan gave the animal a quick, merciful death.

  “I guess you got two birds with one stone,” he said to Galirras, who in turn looked at him, confused.

  “I thought these were called deer, where did I get a bird? Can we bring it, too? Richard told me he quite liked the taste of the colorful birds that live here.”

  “Sorry, just a figure of speech, my friend. But I think this doe will be very welcomed for the festivities tonight.”

  While Galirras started on his meal, Raylan gutted the female deer, cutting off the best parts to take with them. This time he kept an eye out for any wolves that might think of scoring a quick meal.

  He gave the parts he would not take back to the village to Galirras. As they finished, Sebastian returned with two fresh rabbit kills and a small, slender rodent which Raylan had not seen before.

  “Can I ask you to take the antlers back with us? They can be used for any number of things back in the village,” suggested Sebastian, after seeing Galirras’ leftovers.

  Galirras quickly broke off the antlers, so Raylan could pick them up.

  As they walked back to the spot where their descenders were hidden, Galirras’ attention was drawn to a soft scratching. It seemed to come from behind one of the large trees on the left. Without saying anything, he crouched down and slowly crawled toward the other end of the tree. Raylan and Sebastian looked at each other, wondering what was going on.

  Disappearing from view, Raylan began to move after him, when he heard Galirras call out in surprise.

  “Raylan, Sebastian, come look. There is some really hairy kind of animal here. Oh! There are two. They look like small, hairy rocks,” said Galirras, excitedly.

  Raylan sped up his pace, while Sebastian came running to see what was going on. As they turned the corner of the large root Galirras had climbed over, they both froze dead in their tracks.

  Galirras jumped down next to them.

  “Look, it’s like they are playing a game to see who can push the other one over first. I wonder if I can join in….”

  As Galirras started to move forward, Raylan grabbed him by his hind leg.

  “Wait!”

  Looking back, surprised, Galirras saw Raylan stare wide eyed at the two young bears that dug and scratched at the bottom of the tree. The young bears were at the base of the tree, surrounded by the large wall-like roots. As the three of them looked at the two playing bears, Raylan noticed they entrapped both small bears by simply standing there.

  Perhaps small was not the right word for the two young bears which, from the look of their fur, could not have been more than three seasons old. They were almost up to chest height when standing on four legs. Both bears were now looking at the trio with curious interest, making small noises.

  Sebastian turned around and scanned the surroundings.

  “Where’s the mother?” said Raylan, softly.

  “We need to get out of here,” whispered Sebastian.

  “Why? It looks like fun. I want to see if perhaps I can win their game. I bet I am stronger than them, since I am bigger. Can we not stay for a little while?”

  “You don’t understand Galli—” Raylan began, when a thunderous roar cut off the sentence midway.

  All three spun around, startled by the abrupt sound. In front of them, a gigantic bear stood, snorting and grunting, looking directly at them. The mother bear swayed her head back and forth, while scratching the ground with her forepaws. Each paw had five razor-sharp nails, easily three inches long, which were ripping up the ground with no effort at all. Her fur looked dark brown with patches of black in it. Large scars were visible on the nose and head.

  The bear grunted and moved a step forward, lowering her head.

  Galirras looked at the bear, in awe. She was the biggest animal he had seen up till now, even bigger than the wolves they had encountered. He felt the anger resonating from the bear. Her breath swirled around in the little particles of air at increasing speed. The wolves had just wanted them for food, for which Galirras could not fault them, of course. One needs to eat. This felt more like a personal anger, as the bear seemed to have a problem with them that was not driven by hunger. It made him wonder what he should do.

  “We’re standing between her and her cubs. We need to move but slowly. Don’t antagonize her further,” hissed Sebastian.

  The young bears, hearing their mother’s call, happily cried out to greet her. It was
the only motivation the huge bear needed, and before any of them could even back away, the large bear came at them at full speed.

  Recognizing the oncoming danger for Raylan, Galirras shot in front of him, immediately.

  “Don’t!” Raylan yelled, but Galirras made sure he stayed in front of him, indirectly shielding Sebastian at the same time.

  As the charging bear approached them, Galirras took in air and let out a deep roar of his own, trying to imitate the bear’s previous roar. As he had never let out a real growl, or any roar like that before, he was not sure if it would be enough.

  Raylan looked at Galirras taking a stand. His roar sounded low, vibrating deep in his throat. Raylan’s hand held the hilt of his knife strongly, his other clutched the pointed antlers of the deer Galirras had taken down. He wished he had not left his sword back at the food storage depot, but the knife and antlers were better than nothing, if Galirras required help.

  The bear, confused by the gesture of a creature she had never encountered, slowed her charge. Her motherly instinct still drove her forward. The need to protect her cubs drove her to get rid of this unknown danger.

  As the bear walked toward them, she let out her own deep roar, this time much longer. It sounded like she was challenging Galirras. Slowly, Raylan and Sebastian moved to the side, away from the cubs. But they were blocked by the large wall of tree root on both sides. Galirras inched sideways, to keep them out of the view of the bear as much as possible.

  Up close, the bear was even bigger than she had first looked. Galirras was slightly longer, but only because of his tail. Besides that, he was much skinnier than the rugged-looking bear. The sheer volume of the animal was incredible, her roar made full use of her mass to show Galirras she would not back down from protecting her young.

  Galirras raised himself on his back legs and let out another deep roar which did not fully follow through. The bear was winning this standoff. Having seen enough of the dragon not to be impressed, the bear focused her attention on Raylan and dashed forward, intent on mangling the smaller threats. Again, Galirras shot in front of her, showing his flank, trying to look bigger than he was. Raylan and Sebastian now had their weapons in hand.