Piece of Me by Steve Stred

Author:Steve Stred [Stred, Steve]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-12-12T22:00:00+00:00

Five.

Northern Mountains.

For the next four days and four nights they walked.

Not a word was said between them. Kari was lost in thought and in hope of what might come. Fritjof was lost in thought of what had been and how to cross the divide when they arrived. He knew he would have to tell her the truth sooner rather than later. How he would do that, he couldn’t say. All he knew for the time being was that Kari hadn’t looked this peaceful since he’d first met her.

On the fifth day of walking they finally left the densely wooded trail on the other side of the first mountain. Ahead four more loomed.

“That was the first mountain. My father used to call it ‘Simple.’ No creatures patrol the mountain as they know Jotun is nearby. Many humans who say they have visited the northern mountains have spent a night on Simple Mountain. The worst I have come across there was an old bear. I took it down with my knife, while not even breaking a sweat. We’ll spend the night here and then tackle the next mountain tomorrow. It is known as the Hollow Mountain, as many stories tell us of a cave system within that is home to the beasts like the blind one we encountered earlier. If you find the cave system, it will take you below all three mountains and you’ll leave on the far side, at the ice plains where I grew up.”

Kari nodded and began to gather firewood without being asked.

*

That night they sat quietly watching the stars and listening to the crackle of the fire. It felt good to rest after the many long days of walking. Kari found she missed Jotun. She knew he would crush her in an instant if he believed it was necessary, but he had a grandfatherly presence that she found heartwarming. Part of her wondered if he reminded her of her own father.

Off in the distance the first roar of a night beast echoed through the valley. It was a good reminder for them to keep their guards up. This was the last night they would be ‘safe’ while sleeping. For the rest of their journey it would be a delicate balance of sleeping while remaining alert. Kari wondered if, after finding Aatto and Tapio, they would return home. What did their future hold? She truly didn’t care, as long as she was with them. As she fell asleep looking at the bright moon high above, a silhouette of an eagle soared through the night sky, before landing on a rocky crag far up the mountain side.

*

Fritjof woke Kari with a jolt. She rolled over mumbling to him, asking what he wanted, when she noticed he was on high guard.

“What is it?” She asked the question with a whisper while rolling to her knees. As she moved she drew an arrow from her quiver, loaded it onto the bow and aimed into the woods before them, seeing where Fritjof’s eyes were focused.

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