Red Hood's Revenge

she returned to try to protect us.
    “I ran to the house, but the howling started before I was halfway there. I wanted to flee, but the touch of the wolfskin gave me strength. By the time I reached my village, little was left. Most of the Hunt were riding through the woods, chasing down the survivors. I ran into my house to find the same hunter who had killed my grandmother now standing before my parents. He murdered my mother while my father watched. He would have done the same to my little brother had I not donned the skin to stop him.”
    Roudette’s hands were shaking. Strange, the power those memories still held over her. She dug her fingers into the wolf’s fur until anger pushed the fear away. “The church taught that the Wild Hunt were minions of God, taking only the sinners from this world. For years I wondered what sins we had committed to draw the Hunt’s fury. Only later did I begin to understand. I searched for meaning and motives from those who had neither. The Hunt has no purpose, no plan. They simply are.”
    Talia stared at the men below. “The Wild Hunt roams the entire world.”
    “Which means Zestan’s power will do the same,” Roudette agreed. “If she controls the Hunt, she can send them against anyone. For the moment she’s content to conquer Arathea, but after that . . .”
    Talia turned to retreat down the hill. “We’ll cut a false path east, toward the Makras River. If we’re lucky, we can divert them away long enough for us to disappear.”
    Roudette grinned. “I have a better idea. Those men have supplies, yes?”
    “Nobody comes into the desert unprepared.”
    “We could use extra food and water, and I’m ready for another fight.” Roudette unfastened her cape and flipped it about. She brought the hood over her head, letting the skin’s magic seep into her skin. Pulling it tight would trigger the transformation, but she wasn’t quite ready for that. She threw back her head and howled.
    The sound faded quickly. Talia dropped flat, peering through thorny plants at the men below. “They’re coming this way. You know, normally I prefer to have surprise on my side when I’m outnumbered five to one.”
    “Wait,” Roudette said. A second howl made the men whirl, searching the hills for the source. A third followed, then two more. Roudette howled again, drawing on the skin’s power to summon the wolves of the desert. “Who’s outnumbered now?”
    “One of Rajil’s men will carry a horn,” Talia said. “If he calls for help, or if even one of them get away—”
    “You worry too much. We’re all going to die someday.” Roudette pulled the skin tight. As the wolf enveloped her, she added, “If it’s today, you might as well go out fighting.”
     
    The cave the fox had found was hardly an ideal location for Snow’s magic: low and cramped, full of sand and old spiderwebs. It had been full of old spiders too, until Snow used a quick spell to clear them out. She shivered, trying not to think about the parade of spiders and other creepy things that had poured from the shadows.
    She would have given much for the comfort of her library, not to mention a good night’s sleep.
    “You can’t restore her if you don’t know what you’re restoring her to,” Trittibar said.
    “I know that!” Snow scowled at the tiny image in her mirror. Trittibar’s arm was bandaged against his body. His clothes were more subdued than normal, and his voice had lost some of its spirit, but he was doing his best to help. Unfortunately, there was only so much he could do from Lorindar. “When I use shapechanging magic, the subject’s own memories help restore her to her natural form. Faziya has no memory of her former shape.”
    Snow turned the mirror so Trittibar could get a better view of Faziya, who lay curled in a furry ball near the back of the cave.
    “We can argue for as long as you’d like,” Trittibar said. “If you’re right about Zestan, the kind of magic we’re dealing with is far beyond anything I could counter, even when I was still able to draw upon the power of Fairytown.” He stumbled only briefly. “Jinniyah aren’t powerful enough for this kind of magic. Given what you’ve described, I’m sure she used Zestan’s power to cast these curses.”
    “We already figured that out,” Snow complained. “You’re no help at all.”
    “Even if we knew how to break the spell, there’s a possibility neither one of us is strong enough to pull it off.