C8 Looking ahead …

It was deep in the night when Danuwil shook Nikko gently to wake him, whispering to the heavy-eyed lad to be quiet. Nikko needed a few seconds to orient himself because he had been sleeping surprisingly soundly.

“Quiet,” Danuwil whispered. “I think there are orcs moving across the river. The wind is at our backs, so they shouldn't pick up our scent, so no thoughtless noises, now. We don't want to give ourselves away.”

Nikko was too stunned for a moment to be afraid. The first thing he had to do was wake up properly.

“If they come too close to the shore, or if the wind turns, then wake me up quietly,” Danuwil whispered. “I'm going to get some sleep. Otherwise, wake me just before dawn.”

The lad was still not fully awake and did not say anything in response to Danuwil's news. When he had finally recovered his senses, the nobleman was already slumbering peacefully beneath his blanket.

It was a grim night, with not a star in the sky. Nikko could barely see his hand before his face. The darkness made the noises coming from the other side of the river even eerier. The lad could almost believe that he heard the rasping language of the orcs, barked orders, grunting responses. With both hands clenched tightly around the magic wand, he could not stop himself from trembling in the sinister blackness. How could he get caught up in a mess like this again? Wasn't it only recently that he had sworn never again to set foot in Hymal?

He had no idea how long he sat like that. Perhaps only a few minutes, perhaps hours. But a bloodcurdling howl suddenly ripped through his body and jolted him violently out of his trance! He shook his head to clear his mind, and pricked up his ears. He heard another howl, this one from much further away. Almost paralyzed with fear, the lad wondered whether he ought to wake the experienced nobleman.

“A wargrider,” he heard Danuwil suddenly whisper. “Sounds close to the shore. We need to move further back from the water. Quietly!”

The first howl must have woken Danuwil, Nikko realized, and he followed the nobleman as he crept slowly away from the riverbank. It was some minutes before Danuwil stopped again, when they had moved a good distance back from the river.

“The wind is still on our side,” Danuwil said in a low voice. “But those damned wargs have a better nose than an orc. We can count ourselves lucky if the wind doesn't give us away tonight.”

“You don't think we were spotted?” Nikko asked, a miserable quivering in his voice revealing his terror.

“No,” the nobleman replied. “They may not like water, but once they scent prey, there's no holding them.”

“Then they weren't searching for us?”

“No, I don't think so,” Danuwil said, trying to sound reassuring. “A patrol along the river, I'd say. Perhaps a scouting party. Don't worry. Try to get to sleep, Nikko. It's still an hour or two until dawn. I'll finish your watch.”

Read more in:

“The Warlock of Hymal, Book II: The Fall of Hocatin”