The Knight

“Dog.” He looked up at me. He had brown eyes set deep in his brown face, and most of the time I did not notice them much; but when he said “dog” they looked straight at me, and I knew he was begging me to understand what he was and how he felt.

“Yes,” I said, “you’re my dog, and nobody ought to be afraid of a friendly dog. A knight shouldn’t, for sure. Disiri said a dragon had the sword called Eterne—somebody like Garsecg, I guess. How am I supposed to fight a dragon if I’m afraid of my own dog?”

Gylf only looked up at me, his eyes saying he could not make himself any smaller than he was. (It was really pretty big, a lot bigger than any other dog I ever saw.)

“I’m supposed to fight Kulili, too.” I wanted to hide my face in my hands as soon as I said that. “I gave Garsecg my word, and look at all he did for me. But I don’t want to kill Kulili. The Aelf hate her because they’re afraid of her, that’s all. It’s one of the things fear does to you, it make you want to kill things that haven’t ever hurt you, just because they might. Like it made me try to leave y ou behind before I forded the Irring. I’m ashamed of that, too.”

I waited a long time for him to talk because I did not feel like talking any more myself. Finally I asked, “Why didn’t you come back to the boat? You went to get Garsecg, but when he came it was just him and some Water Aelf. Why didn’t you come with them?”

“Chained me.”

“That’s right, the innkeeper’s wife said you had a broken chain on your collar.” I turned his spiked collar on his neck, and sure enough there were two or three links of chain hanging off it. There was no catch or anything, so I just undid the collar and threw it away. I think it may have been Aelf skin, but the spikes were shark teeth. After that I asked Gylf if he knew why Garsecg chained him up.

“Afraid of me.”

“There it is again.” I took a deep breath and let it out with a whoosh! “Well, I’ve apologized, and maybe Garsecg will too, eventually. He let you go free, though, once he and I had separated. I’m glad of that.”

“Broke it,” Gylf said succinctly.

“And came to Forcetti to wait for me?”

Uri stepped from behind a tree; it was as if she had been waiting there since Mythgarthr was made. “He came to search for you, Lord. He came to this wood looking for you, and to a good many other places besides. Baki and I would catch glimpses of him now and again while we were watching you.”

“I don’t like your doing that,” I told her, “but since you were doing it anyway, why didn’t you tell me?”

“You did not ask. You scarcely spoke save to tell us to steal your weapons back.”

I did not buy that. “I’ve never noticed that you and Baki were shy about forcing your talk on me.”

Uri bowed the woman way, spreading a skirt she did not have. “Because you are not sufficiently observant. We are diffident, Lord, whether you notice it or not.”

“Then you must have a swell reason for elbowing in on me and Gylf.”

“I do, Lord. Someone must explain to you that this is not the first time your dog has been in this wood. Far from it. You seem to think him newly come—”

“No!” Gylf said. It sounded a lot like he barked, but it was no.

“That he cannot wind this ogre you hunt because of the storm. The truth is that he has been here in many weathers. Have you ever winded him here, dog?”

Gylf eyed her with disfavor but shook his head.

I asked, “Have you ever smelled him at all? Anywhere?”

“No.”

“Maybe you really have.” I was testing him. “Maybe you smelled a strange smell, and you didn’t know what it was.”

He shut his eyes.

“He feels it is useless to talk to you since you will not believe him,” Uri explained. “Baki and I often feel the same way, so I recognize the symptoms.”

I stood up, swinging my arms to get warm. “Well, it’s possible, isn’t it?”

“It is not, Lord.”

“How do you know?”

“Because he has said that he did not. I trust his word, and so should you. Perhaps this ogre is a ghost. I cannot say. I have never seen it, or smelled it either. But if it is a ghost it is not in this wood. I would know.”

“What about Disiri? Is she here? I should’ve asked you before, and Gylf, too. Have either one of you seen her?”

Gylf rose, shaking his head. “Hungry?”

“No,” Uri said. “I cannot declare she is not present, for her arts are greater than my own. But I would be as surprised if she were to step from behind a tree as you were when I did.”

“Go home to Aelfrice,” I told her. “Wait there until I call you.”

She nodded and walked away.

“When we find this ogre,” I told Gylf, “I’m going to fight him by myself. I’d like any help you can give me finding him, but once the fight starts you leave him to me.”

Gylf looked unhappy.