to be big and fierce enough now to scare off a full-grown wolf.
‘Ujurak! Ujurak!’ he bellowed out loud. ‘Come back!’
CHAPTER EIGHT:
Ujurak
U jurak’s wings beat strongly as he sliced through the sky above the lake. The wolf had dwindled to a grey speck at the edge of the water. Memories thronged his mind, though they were not his memories: bright, ravenous eyes, sharp teeth and snapping jaws, and the spattering of blood on white feathers. Vaguely he remembered a time when his own fangs had sunk into goose flesh, but it seemed as if that had happened to another creature, a long time ago.
Faint cries came from below; glancing down, Ujurak saw three small shapes bounding along in the wake of the flock. Black, white, and brown . . . briefly Ujurak felt puzzled. He thought he should have remembered who they were, and why they werecalling to him. But his confusion was swallowed up in the joy of his escape from the wolf, and the power of his wings as they cut through the air.
Around him the rest of the flock switched places and overtook one another until they were flying in a ragged triangle, heading for the ocean. Ujurak found himself about halfway down one side.
‘Fly! Fly far! Leave wolf behind!’ The honking cries of the geese surrounded him; Ujurak realised that the commands were coming from the lead goose and rippling from one bird to the next down both sides of the triangle.
‘Fly far! Fly!’ he croaked as the harsh cry reached him.
The hills fell away behind them and the coastal plain opened up ahead of the flock as the geese winged their way towards the sea.
‘Feed well now!’ Another command swept down the line of geese from their leader at the front.
‘Soon fly to other home! Feel sun on feathers!’
‘Other home . . . sun . . . feed well . . .’
As the geese passed the words back and forth, Ujurak could almost feel the warmth of the sun’srays soaking into his frail bird-bones, and the longing to fly to this other home gripped him like a claw.
The sunlit vision distracted him so completely that he forgot to concentrate on his flying. A more powerful wingbeat sent him blundering into the goose ahead of him. Both birds fluttered and rolled in the air, trying to regain their balance. For a few dizzying moments the earth and sky whirled around Ujurak; he didn’t know which way to fly. A third goose, following just behind, lost its rhythm too, and flapped wildly to recover.
‘Slug-brain!’ the first goose hissed at Ujurak. ‘Did you just hatch, or what?’
‘Slug-brain . . . slug-brain . . .’ The insult rippled on down the line.
‘Sorry!’ Ujurak struggled to regain his place. Beating his wings to propel himself forward was a lot harder now that he was outside the wedge. Air currents tugged at him and buffeted him around the sky. With a massive effort he caught up to the rest of the flock and found another place within the wedge. Flying was instantly easier as he rode in the rush of air created by the goose in front of him.
The two others found places, glaring at Ujurak and then ignoring him. Ujurak reminded himself to stay out of their feathers once the flock landed.
Whirling behind the leader, Ujurak spotted an eerie shadow on the far horizon. It looked as if a storm cloud had sunk to earth. There were flashes of light inside it and some kind of solid structure that Ujurak couldn’t see clearly.
‘Bad place!’ the goose leader honked as he veered away from it. ‘No food! Bitter water!’
‘Bad . . . bitter . . .’ the rest of the flock repeated.
‘Noisy beasts! Landwalkers! Never go there!’ the leader ordered.
‘Never go there . . .’
Ujurak didn’t know what the geese were talking about, but their words called up a feeling of dread inside him. He remembered that the very first time he had set paw in this place –
Paw? Not wings?
– he had felt uneasy. He had known that this wasn’t where the journey was supposed to end. Now the feeling of uneasiness
‘Ujurak! Ujurak!’ he bellowed out loud. ‘Come back!’
CHAPTER EIGHT:
Ujurak
U jurak’s wings beat strongly as he sliced through the sky above the lake. The wolf had dwindled to a grey speck at the edge of the water. Memories thronged his mind, though they were not his memories: bright, ravenous eyes, sharp teeth and snapping jaws, and the spattering of blood on white feathers. Vaguely he remembered a time when his own fangs had sunk into goose flesh, but it seemed as if that had happened to another creature, a long time ago.
Faint cries came from below; glancing down, Ujurak saw three small shapes bounding along in the wake of the flock. Black, white, and brown . . . briefly Ujurak felt puzzled. He thought he should have remembered who they were, and why they werecalling to him. But his confusion was swallowed up in the joy of his escape from the wolf, and the power of his wings as they cut through the air.
Around him the rest of the flock switched places and overtook one another until they were flying in a ragged triangle, heading for the ocean. Ujurak found himself about halfway down one side.
‘Fly! Fly far! Leave wolf behind!’ The honking cries of the geese surrounded him; Ujurak realised that the commands were coming from the lead goose and rippling from one bird to the next down both sides of the triangle.
‘Fly far! Fly!’ he croaked as the harsh cry reached him.
The hills fell away behind them and the coastal plain opened up ahead of the flock as the geese winged their way towards the sea.
‘Feed well now!’ Another command swept down the line of geese from their leader at the front.
‘Soon fly to other home! Feel sun on feathers!’
‘Other home . . . sun . . . feed well . . .’
As the geese passed the words back and forth, Ujurak could almost feel the warmth of the sun’srays soaking into his frail bird-bones, and the longing to fly to this other home gripped him like a claw.
The sunlit vision distracted him so completely that he forgot to concentrate on his flying. A more powerful wingbeat sent him blundering into the goose ahead of him. Both birds fluttered and rolled in the air, trying to regain their balance. For a few dizzying moments the earth and sky whirled around Ujurak; he didn’t know which way to fly. A third goose, following just behind, lost its rhythm too, and flapped wildly to recover.
‘Slug-brain!’ the first goose hissed at Ujurak. ‘Did you just hatch, or what?’
‘Slug-brain . . . slug-brain . . .’ The insult rippled on down the line.
‘Sorry!’ Ujurak struggled to regain his place. Beating his wings to propel himself forward was a lot harder now that he was outside the wedge. Air currents tugged at him and buffeted him around the sky. With a massive effort he caught up to the rest of the flock and found another place within the wedge. Flying was instantly easier as he rode in the rush of air created by the goose in front of him.
The two others found places, glaring at Ujurak and then ignoring him. Ujurak reminded himself to stay out of their feathers once the flock landed.
Whirling behind the leader, Ujurak spotted an eerie shadow on the far horizon. It looked as if a storm cloud had sunk to earth. There were flashes of light inside it and some kind of solid structure that Ujurak couldn’t see clearly.
‘Bad place!’ the goose leader honked as he veered away from it. ‘No food! Bitter water!’
‘Bad . . . bitter . . .’ the rest of the flock repeated.
‘Noisy beasts! Landwalkers! Never go there!’ the leader ordered.
‘Never go there . . .’
Ujurak didn’t know what the geese were talking about, but their words called up a feeling of dread inside him. He remembered that the very first time he had set paw in this place –
Paw? Not wings?
– he had felt uneasy. He had known that this wasn’t where the journey was supposed to end. Now the feeling of uneasiness
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