Sword Bearer (Return of the Dragons) by Teddy Jacobs

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.
    Herr .
    Kalle struck it one last time. Again the scream moved
through my body. Why me? Why did their death cries affect me like that? Why did
they call me Herr?
    Kara turned to Kalle then. “Why did they say that to him?”
she asked. “Can his blood be recognized here in the Schwarzwald?”
    I had no idea what she was talking about. My teeth
chattered. My whole body shook. I needed to sit down. I sank to my knees
instead, closed my eyes and fell to the ground. I so wanted to sleep, even
here, covered in blood, and so cold, on this frozen ground.
    “He’s weak, Kara. He’s used himself up getting here and
killing that keiler.”
    “I doubt he’s ever killed before.”
    “He fought like a warrior,” Kalle said.
    “But look how he’s trembling now,” Kara replied.
    “Let’s get him out of here,” Kalle said. “Before they come
for us, again.”
    Four hands were pulling me up then. I opened my eyes and my
vision swam, then slowly came into focus.
    My legs felt loose and disobedient but Kara steadied me.
    “We must flee now,” she said. “The keiler always travel in
packs. They will soon be here in numbers we could never hope to overcome. Eat
the nuts — they must be cool by now — and drink this water, and then, we run,
as kin.”
    Kara popped nuts into my mouth. I focused all my remaining
energy on chewing. Warmth spread slowly from my mouth through the rest of my
body. She held up water, and I drank.
    Water had never before tasted so sweet.
    Finally I stopped shivering, and pulled away from her.
    I looked at them, watching them quickly eat and drink. Then
it was time.
    Kara kissed me on the forehead, and whispered a word: anima .
    More energy flowed into me, through her kiss, through the
word. I felt warmer and lighter, and firmer of foot.
    Kalle looked off into the darkness, and then he pointed. In
the distance I could almost see the glow of the keiler hoard. There must have
been dozens of them, but they were still far off.
    Approaching quickly, but there was time to flee, if we ran
now.
    Maybe.
    I looked down at the wild boar creature beneath me. Why had
it called me Herr ?
    There were so many questions.
    But there was no time.
    Far off in the distance, came a squeal that was a scream,
echoed by another, and another. I felt the hair on my arms and neck stand up
straight.
    “They’re in a rage,” I said. I don’t know how, but somehow,
I knew this.
    Kalle nodded. “Run,” he said. “Run as if your feet were
feathers, and they blew in a gust of wind.”
    And we ran.

Chapter VII
     
    The forest lightened around us as we ran. Dawn was
approaching. I hoped the keiler would fear the sun, but in the black forest,
the Schwarzwald , would the sun make any difference?
    A branch whipped my face.
    Just for a moment, I hadn’t been looking. It felt like I’d
been slapped.
    I would have to be more careful. No use running into a tree
and ending up on the ground, food for the keiler.
    They were close behind me. Too close, I could feel it. I had
no idea where we were but somehow I managed to follow Kara stride for stride —
maybe that was part of the spell she’d cast on me when she kissed my forehead.
    The light was definitely stronger now.
    Kara stopped suddenly.
    I stopped short behind her.
    We were in front of a great gate. Maybe it wasn’t so big
physically. Not more than ten feet tall. But I could feel its greatness without
even opening my third eye. There was a tense humming in the air, and a buzzing
sensation on my skin. There were markings all up and down the gate, but they
were in no language that I knew. On an impulse I reached my hand out and traced
one of the