It glowed green in the darkness, and then it began to sing.
Without thinking, I spoke a word: feuer, and my hand moved, and the bonfire burst back into flame, and with a flick of the wrist green flame covered my wooden blade, but the blade was unharmed.
My arm hummed, and then Kalle pulled out a silvery blade, that glowed green too in my third eye. Would I ever close that eye again? The third eye hid nothing.
Was I imagining it, or could I hear a faint song, too, coming from Kalle’s blade?
Kara spoke her own word: sonne and a ball of light like a small sun formed over our heads. I felt instantly warmer.
Kalle spoke a word, and the word was: schnell and he seemed to speed up and be everywhere, all at once, which was good, because that was when the keiler charged.
I held my blade out, and the blade hummed in my hand. The boar was over six feet long, and as it reached me, it reared up on its hind legs.
I was sorry to see it was over six feet tall as well.
But the keiler didn’t attack.
I glanced over to the side. Kalle and Kara stood shoulder to shoulder, facing off the other boar.
PRINCESS.
The shorter boar’s eyes glowed. I realized it was communicating with us. The other boar, half a foot taller, grunted and steam came out of its mouth.
Princess. Losp and I must bring back the book to the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord loves his books. He reads them with so much attention. He sends you this message: give him the book, or die and give him the book. What is your answer?
Kara snorted.
He’s no lord of ours. The book was my father’s, and is not mine to give. Take our own message: leave us in peace, or be destroyed and scattered to the four winds.
SO BE IT.
The shorter beast jumped. I ducked as it sailed easily over my head. Puah! What a smell. Then it was back, snarling, and spitting burning yellow-green spittle.
I looked with my third eye for the creature’s heart.
The blade hummed in my hand and the magical sun above us burned in the darkness before the dawn. Next to me Kalle was a whir of brown and gold and silver, striking the taller beast and drawing thick green magical blood that burned where it hit the ground.
The shorter beast moved toward me, and spat green spittle. I ducked, and saw the hoof come down at me. I struck it with my blade, and the flaming edge of my blade burned into the beast. I felt the shock of contact run down my arm, through the wooden sword, its edge a line of fire. I spoke a word: brucciare. Fire coursed through the silver pommel into the wooden sword and the pommel turned red hot in my hand but did not burn.
I struck the keiler again, beneath its head, and my arm went numb. The keiler screamed as it burned, the flames flowing over it and into it.
There was a smell of roast pork and one last cry of a beast with the mind of a man.
In that scream I recognized a word, a magical word: Herr.
I looked into its eyes and the eyes looked at me, with recognition. Then it was dead, and its red eyes went dark.
I had never killed before. My body shook. I think I was in shock.
But I was also exhausted from the sword fighting and the spell work. I’d done more practical blade and spell work today than in all of the last year combined.
I pulled the blade back and took a defensive posture. The flames flickered around the edge of my blade and the blood sizzled.
Kara and Kalle were still fighting the other beast.
Kalle was whirling around it, dancing with his short silver blade. Kara smote it with a long thin sword and it howled. Again the howl hit me right in the heart.
The keiler turned to face us, looked at me and it said the word again, its dying eyes boring into mine.