A Game of Chi Book III: A Sword of Dust

Chapter 9: Skinnet II

SKINNET

I've been taking Speedorz for granted, Skinnet thought. A storm was raging through the land beyond the Barrier, and he and the bears, travelling on foot, were caught in it. The Ice Tower wasn't visible in the distance; in fact, the trees surrounding them were nearly obscured by the snow as well. Fortunately, a few bears had given Skinnet some of their pelts to keep him warm, but it didn't help their slow pace. As they trudged through the snow, Skinnet called out to Bulkar, who was in the lead. "Bulkar!" he hollered. "By my estimate, we're about halfway there!" Bulkar grunted his approval. "Thanks!" he shouted back. "Then we need to keep moving! The sooner we get to the Ice Tower, the better." Skinnet's own thoughts were nearly drowned out by the blizzard, but he grit his teeth and remained resolute. Wilhurt, Wiz and a few others killed Worriz, he thought. I'm sure of it. How else would Wiz know how Worriz died? They must have tricked him and killed him just to kick the bears out. Skinnet shook his head in frustration. Did they really hate the bears that much? Worriz was their friend, and they killed him! Balkar's horrific death had not left Skinnet's mind either, and he winced at the thought of it. To think that Wilhurt was so heartless...

On his left, a bear suddenly collapsed. "Hey, wait up!" Skinnet cried as he went over to the fallen bear. "Someone's down!" Bulkar and the other bears turned to see who had collapsed in the snow. "Bumpy!" Bulkar exclaimed, running over to them. "Bumpy? One of the bears we had captive, right?" Skinnet asked, but the bear chieftain did not answer. Bulkar turned the bear over, and Skinnet indeed recognized the bear that had been in Wylda's Stronghold's prison, but compared to Bulkar, Buchuma and the rest, he looked much thinner and less healthy. I hadn't even realized that the former captives were malnourished, Skinnet thought. Wulfric and the Grey Wolf Tribe obviously didn't do a good job of taking care of them. "Is he...?" Skinnet asked tentatively. Bulkar looked down for a moment before sighing. "He's gone," he muttered. Skinnet peered at the dead bear in horror and curiosity. There was a bit of frost forming on the bear's fur, and he was horribly limp. "He must have been barely hanging on during the storm," Buchuma observed. Bungey fell to his knees next to them, and pounded on the snow in anguish. "Damn those wolves!" he shouted. "They didn't keep him fed while he was inside. This is their fault too!" Skinnet looked around and saw the other three bears that had been captured, who looked terrified. They must be wondering if they're next, Skinnet realized. How the prisoners were treated was something even Worriz hadn't considered.

Bulkar picked up Bumpy's body and slung it over his shoulders before moving forward once more. "You're going to carry him?" Skinnet asked, following him. "We can't leave any bodies out here," Bulkar replied, not turning back. "Or they'll come back to haunt us. Literally." Nodding in understanding, Skinnet helped Bungey to his feet, but was pushed aside. "I don't want your help," he growled, standing up himself. "Your people got us in this situation." Skinnet didn't bother trying to defend himself, but surprisingly, Buchuma stood up for him. "What are you, an idiot?" she demanded. "This skunk is on our side, so much so that he turned on the Pack to protect us. Blame that black wolf if you want, but not him." Bungey sheepishly turned away, but Buchuma stopped him. "Apologize to Skinnet at once."

"No, he doesn't have to," Skinnet insisted. "I get it. But Wilhurt took the life of someone I cared about too. At least, I think so. In any case, he committed a great injustice by exiling us. We'll make him pay for that." Bungey mumbled his agreement, and Skinnet continued forward, hoping to catch up with Bulkar.

The storm was beginning to lighten, allowing the Bear Tribe to make more progress as they headed towards the Ice Tower. "Bulkar, I've been meaning to tell you," Skinnet said, "Lavertus escaped his prison cell. That's why he's not here; we didn't kill him." Bulkar let out a rough chuckle. "I figured as much. Executing Lavertus was something that Wilhurt would have bragged about." Thinking back to Balkar's execution, Skinnet's stomach turned. "Where do you think he went?" he asked. "I don't know," Bulkar replied. "But you can expect Lavertus to crop up again. He's a fighter."