CHAPTER TWO #2
Nya huffed and leaned against the wall. Her reaction was the confirmation I needed.
“Their meat has an unpleasant taste,” I explained as I studied the map some more. “So it only makes sense that you need their pelts.”
Silence.
“The problem is,” I continued. “Unless something has changed in the last six months, the pack local to this area has gotten out of control. At last count, there were upwards of thirty wolves sharing that den.” I scanned the lines of water. “Assuming this is the Eridanus Marsh. It is, right?”
Nya nodded. Her full lips were pressed into a thin line.
“The marsh wolves are at the top of the food chain in this area. There’s nothing out there keeping them in check. Again, unless something has changed. Magic makes things unpredictable.” I paused. “Have you gone up against them before?”
“Yes,” Nya replied.
Kieran added, “It didn’t go well.”
“It would really help if I knew what weapons you had available to you,” I repeated, and was met once again with silence.
“But I guess, not knowing, I would start by recommending that you catch them in the middle of a hunt. Marsh wolves typically hunt at night, and even though they’re pretty organized about it, they’d still be relatively distracted.
If you can take them by surprise, that will give you a small advantage. ”
I pulled out my desk drawer and grabbed a pencil. I also grabbed a sheet of paper, unsure if I should mark on their map.
I made a quick sketch of a marsh wolf. The powerful body with rough, scaly skin.
The long jaw with intimidatingly large teeth.
The massive paws with claws that arced upward before digging into the ground in sharp points.
Its eyes and ears were unremarkable, but as intimidating as all of its other physical attributes were, that wasn’t much comfort.
I added a few scruffy lines here and there, to represent the smatterings of waterproof fur that stuck out in certain spots against the scales.
Around the face, on the back of the legs, a bit on the stomach. And of course, the tail.
“The weakest spots on a marsh wolf are the furry spots,” I explained, using my pencil to point to each in turn.
“That’s not to say that you can’t puncture the scales.
But depending on what kind of weapons you’re using, you may not have anything sharp enough.
Going for the face is risky because their reaction time is already quick as it is, even without them seeing you coming.
And their bite, as you probably know, is deadly.
There are three thousand pounds of force behind it. ”
Nya made a noise in the back of her throat, sounding equally impressed and intimidated.
“Honestly,” I said, playing out the potential confrontation in my mind.
“I think your best bet is to observe them for a while and get a good understanding of their hunting patterns. Once you know where they tend to go and how often, you can set a trap of some kind. Again, something that goes for the face would be most effective in killing them instantly, but would be easiest for them to dodge, and therefore most risky. I would recommend something that injures or snares their legs.”
I glanced at Nya and Kieran, and they were both nodding, following my train of thought.
“Depending on how many people you have to help with this”—I assumed they weren’t going to share that, either—“you may have to do this in parts. If you ensnare, let’s say, five wolves at once, that still leaves fifteen to twenty wolves that you have to face.
Assuming a handful have stayed back to guard the lair.
You could ensnare a few at a time, hang back and wait for the rest of the pack to leave them to their fate, and then move in and finish the kill.
It would take some creativity, especially once they start to catch on that you’re hunting them.
But it’s probably the safest approach if you’re trying to minimize your casualties. ”
I returned to the map and scanned the waterways that had been sketched through the marsh. I found a spot where several intersected and gestured to it.
“A lot of fish and other prey that the marsh wolves feast on tend to gather at intersections like this. I would be willing to bet that this spot is part of the wolves’ hunting rotation. It would be a good place to start when looking for where to lay the trap.”
Kieran let out what sounded like an incredulous laugh. “You know all of this from books?”
That confirmed it, then. No one but the Library researchers and temporary, permitted visitors had access to Cyllene’s books. They knew about my work assignment.
“I have nothing else to do but read,” I responded. It seemed like a safe enough answer. And it was true.
Another thought occurred to me.
“It should go without saying, though,” I said. “To not, under any circumstances, have a physical confrontation with the marsh wolves in the water. Laying traps in the water is fine, but don’t try to fight them there. If all else fails, confront them on land.”
Nya and Kieran were quiet. Almost as if they were hesitating.
Eventually, Nya tilted her head to the side. “Why don’t we want to confront them in the water?”
“Marsh wolves are dangerous on land,” I began.
“But in the water, there’s no contest. Even though they get by just fine on dry land and even make their lairs above water, they also have all the key characteristics of a creature that lives exclusively in the water.
When necessary, they can swim at speeds of up to thirty miles per hour.
They can stay submerged underwater for twenty minutes at a time.
And most terrifying of all, they have the ability to completely disappear in murky water.
Even water that’s relatively shallow. Since they stand as tall as a human if up on their hind legs and are hard to miss while on land, we assume the disappearing underwater part is aided by magic. ”
Nya crossed her arms. “Makes sense.”
I sat back in my chair. “I don’t know if I’m helping much. I assume a lot of this is stuff that you already knew, especially if you’ve confronted them before. And I mean…you see creatures like this a lot, right? Out there?”
Nya’s brown eyes narrowed. “We get gored, mutilated, and sometimes eaten by creatures like this a lot, if that’s what you mean.”
Her words were like a slap across the face. These people were Strangers, and they were intruders in my home. But that had nothing to do with why I suddenly couldn’t make eye contact with them. I felt…ashamed.
“Hey,” Kieran said, his rumbling voice sounding almost gentle.
“We appreciate the help. To answer your question—no, most of the information you just shared isn’t stuff we already knew.
When you’re trying to survive out there, you don’t have time to do an in-depth study of the behavior of a marsh wolf.
” His expression was grim. “You don’t have time to calculate how fast they swim, or observe them enough to know that they can disappear even when the water’s shallow.
You just see a friend fall into water that seemed clear a second before, and they get dragged under before you even realize what’s happened. ”
“Kieran.” Nya’s voice was low. A warning.
Kieran glanced at Nya, and his mouth quirked up into that half-smile again. His gaze shifted back to me.
“You have beautiful eyes,” he said quietly. “Have you ever noticed that the shade of green changes slightly with your mood?”
I hadn’t. I also wasn’t expecting this change in conversation.
“They were clear and light when you were in the zone, telling us about the marsh wolves. But they got darker after Nya made you feel bad.”
“I didn’t ‘make her feel bad,’ I just said the truth,” Nya mumbled.
I swallowed. “Your eyes,” I said nervously. “Are the ones that are really exceptional. Did one of your parents have eyes that unusual color?”
Kieran’s smirk turned into a broad grin, like I had said something funny but wasn’t in on the joke. “Yes,” he said, crouching down so his face was only inches away from mine. “One of my parents did.”
Up close, I could see his eyes even more clearly than before.
They were still that bright silver, but they also took in every color around them.
Reflections of the flickering candlelight, myself, Nya, the slight glow of moonlight peeking through the window above me, and even the darkness itself danced in them.
They were utterly mesmerizing.
Nya made a gagging noise. “And on that note,” she said, jerking Kieran up by the arm. She snatched the map off the desk, stuffed it unceremoniously into the backpack, and stalked toward the balcony. “I think we have what we need. Like Kieran said, we appreciate your help.”
She yanked open the door and stepped outside. It was a humid night, and warm air seeped into the room.
“Wait,” I found myself saying. “I still don’t understand. Why did you come to me for this? How did you even get into Cyllene?”
Kieran gave something between a salute and a wave, then followed Nya out onto the balcony.
I stood up from the desk and walked to the door, which they were at least polite enough to close behind them. I peered through the glass.
They were gone.