“I never thought I’d live to see a monarch—a woman, no less!—thrash a nobleman like that,” Amemun continued. “I can see why you are so devoted to her, my friend.”
Orkid heard something crash through the brush up ahead, and looked around anxiously for any sign of danger. It turned out only to be an outrider rejoining the hunt trail. He exhaled in relief and relaxed the grip on his bear spear. It had been a long time since he had been on a hunt, and the tension was getting to him.
“Are you equally devoted to the daughter?” Amemun asked suddenly.
“What do you mean by that?” Orkid asked.
“I mean, do you see Usharna in Areava?”
Orkid frowned. He was not sure he liked the line of questioning. It sounded like something Marin would ask, not his old tutor. He laughed aloud then. Of course, it was Marin asking him. Amemun was acting as messenger again.
“I see Areava as the key to our plans in Kendra.”
Amemun nodded, apparently satisfied with the answer.
There was a “Haroo!” from up ahead, and the sounds of horses being kicked into a canter.
“That’s it!” Orkid cried to Amemun. “They’ve found our quarry! Hurry, or we’ll be left behind!”
The two men dug in their heels and their mounts surged up the trail. The low brush gave way to scattered conifers that towered over them, reaching for the sky. They caught up with the main group, now scattering among the trees to take up flanking positions on either side of the royal party. Somewhere ahead, one of the outriders had seen or smelled one of the great bears and given the call.
Orkid and Amemun reined in their horses to a walk and hefted their spears under their arms, the blades pointed toward the ground in front of them. They eased up next to Sendarus and Areava. Orkid stole a glance at the princess, and had to admit she reminded him of the young Usharna. In her youth, the queen had possessed the same long hair the color of summer corn and the wiry frame that held surprising strength and speed. Areava was taller, more angular, but he knew as she got older she would lose height and become rounder, and so be the mirror image of her mother.
Perhaps Marin had been right to worry about Orkid’s feelings toward Areava. He shook his head. No, that would never happen. His devotion to Aman came above all else, including the queen’s children.
The woods became more dense, and low branches slapped the riders’ faces. They reached a shallow, fast-flowing stream along a narrow ford that continued the trail. Areava gave the order to dismount. Two of the guards remained behind to hold the reins; the rest held their spears in two hands and went on. They crossed the stream and continued up the slope, now so steep it was getting difficult for the hunters to keep their weapons steady.
They climbed for several minutes before there was another “Haroo!” from up ahead, closer this time, and more frantic. The party heard something coming toward them, thrashing the underbrush, but there was no sign of any beast. The conifers now crowded around them.
“It could be anywhere,” one of the guards said.
Areava ordered him to keep quiet. Everyone was listening so intently for any sound that would give away the position of their prey that when it actually came they all jumped. They heard the voice of an outrider cry “It’s here! It’s here!” and then the words were cut off with a scream.
“God’s death,” Areava breathed, and rushed up the slope with such agility that all but Sendarus had trouble keeping up with her. The scream died to an agonized whimper and a sound of breaking bone, then silence. A moment later the party burst into a small clearing. At first, they thought the clearing was empty, then Sendarus saw and pointed to the head of the outrider in a silver leaf bush. A long trail of blood led them to the rest of the man, his body gutted.
Areava was the first to pick up its spore. “Here.”
“Lord of the Mountain!” Sendarus cried. “It’s heading downslope, toward the horses!”
Areava ordered four of the guards to follow the beast’s trail, then the rest of the party headed directly back toward the horses, shouting warnings to the guards left behind with their mounts. But they were too late. They all heard the screams of the horses and men, the sounds echoing around in the woods like the calls of lost ghosts. Areava shouted her family’s war cry, a long ululating shout, and rushed down the slope, heedless of branches and jutting roots. Sendarus kept up with her, his blood rushing in his ears.
Orkid called for them to wait for the rest of the party, but his cautioning words went unheeded. He ran as quickly as he could, but he was too stiff and too old to make any more speed. Amemun, puffing like a woman giving birth, was falling farther and farther behind.
Areava and Sendarus reached the stream to find the bear on its hind legs, the claws on its forelegs sunk deep into the chest of one of the horses, its terrible jaws clamped around the horse’s neck. Another horse lay dead on the ground, its throat slashed open, its blood pouring into the stream and turning it red. One of the guards was dead, opened up from neck to crotch, and the other lay in a heap nearby, his head bleeding heavily from a deep gash. They could hear the other horses galloping away down the ridge, heedless of falling, frantic to escape.
Areava leaped across the stream and charged the bear, using all her strength to drive her spear into the hollow between its shoulders. The beast spun around with such force that the head of the horse was tom loose, its body collapsing. Blood fountained over Areava. She tried to retreat, but her feet slipped and she crashed to the ground. The bear swiped the air where Areava had just been, overbalanced, and dropped to all fours, Areava’s spear wobbling in its back.
Before it could turn around to finish her off, Sendarus was by the princess’ side. He drove upward with his spear, catching the bear in its open maw. The beast made a horrible gargling sound and lurched up and back, its front paws scrabbling at the blade impaled in the roof of its mouth. Sendarus grabbed Areava by the arm and pulled her to her feet. They retreated, keeping the bear in sight as it thrashed on the ground. Both spear hafts snapped, but the blades remained embedded.
A guard appeared. He saw his princess covered in blood. Shouting in anger, he jumped the stream and lunged at the bear, but the animal’s movements were so frantic, he only caught it a glancing blow on one shoulder. The bear dug into the ground with the claws of its rear feet and swung around to meet the challenge, knocking the guard’s spear out of his hands. It lurched forward and cuffed the guard with one paw, raking him across the skull. The man screamed, falling to his knees. The bear stood to its full height, roared in anger and pain, and picked up the guard between its front legs.
“No!” Areava screamed. Before Sendarus could stop her, she rushed forward, retrieved the guard’s spear, and slashed at the bear’s face.
The bear dropped the guard and twisted around to face this new threat. For one instant it exposed its throat, and Areava did not hesitate. With a great shout, she hurled the spear into the exposed muscles and tendons, severing the animal’s jugular. Its forelegs pinwheeled uselessly in the air as it fell backward to the ground. There was a sickening crunch as the blade of Areava’s first spear was driven into the bear’s spine and snapped.