THE COURT OF DEAD GODS

SMALL THINGS

The pup was waiting by the door when Caelum returned.

He stopped just inside the shelter.

The animal sat on its haunches, staring at him with its one clear eye. The cloudy one remained fixed and pale, giving it a permanently strange appearance.

For several seconds neither moved.

Then the pup's tail thumped once against the floor.

Caelum sighed.

"I was gone half a day."

The tail thumped again.

A dangerous amount of enthusiasm for a creature that had nearly died two days ago.

He closed the door behind him and shook snow from his cloak.

The shelter smelled faintly of old wood, damp stone, and smoke from the stove.

The pup limped forward.

Its injured leg still forced it into an awkward gait.

Even so, it managed to reach him before he finished removing his gloves.

A cold nose bumped his hand.

The same hand it had bitten.

"Bold."

The pup attempted another bump.

Caelum moved his hand away.

The pup followed.

He moved again.

The pup followed again.

Eventually he surrendered.

The wolf immediately pressed its head against his leg.

Traitorous behavior.

Clearly.

Caelum reached into his satchel and removed a strip of dried meat.

The pup's ears lifted.

At least one of them did.

The other still drooped slightly.

"You're lucky nobody can see this."

The meat disappeared in seconds.

The pup stared hopefully at the empty space where it had been.

"No."

The pup continued staring.

"Still no."

A pause.

Then it sat down and kept staring.

Caelum rubbed a hand across his face.

The animal seemed convinced he would come back.

Strange.

Most creatures learned eventually.

Caelum looked away first.

This was going to become a problem.

The days that followed settled into a routine.

Morning in Ashfang.

Afternoon at the shelter.

Evening before the stove.

Small things.

The kind people rarely noticed while they were happening.

The pup improved steadily.

Its limp became less severe.

Its appetite returned.

The dark veins beneath its fur remained unchanged.

Sometimes Caelum caught himself watching them when he thought too long.

The markings looked unnatural.

Almost deliberate.

Like cracks spreading beneath stone.

He never mentioned them to anyone.

Mostly because there was nobody he trusted with the information.

And partly because he didn't know what he would say.

I found a strange wolf in the forest.

It refuses to die.

Would you like to see it?

The conversation seemed unlikely to end well.

Three days after the hunter's report, Selene found him in the storage yard.

She arrived carrying enough books to collapse a weaker person.

"Help."

Caelum looked at the stack.

"No."

"Please."

"No."

"You're cruel."

"You brought those yourself."

She considered that.

"That's fair."

The books ended up in his arms anyway.

Together they crossed the village toward the old records hall.

The building sat near the edge of the settlement, wedged between a disused granary and a watchtower.

Most people never entered.

Selene practically lived there.

Dust floated through narrow beams of sunlight.

Shelves lined the walls.

Scrolls occupied every available surface.

The entire room smelled like old paper and forgotten decisions.

Caelum set the books down.

A cloud of dust immediately attacked them.

Selene sneezed.

Then sneezed again.

Then glared at the room as though personally betrayed.

"You spend your free time here."

"I know."

"You choose this."

"I know."

"You could go outside."

"Why would I do that?"

Caelum laughed.

Selene looked pleased with herself.

She began sorting through her newest acquisitions.

Records from Frost Hollow.

Trade reports.

Census documents.

Fragments of maps.

Most looked boring enough to cure insomnia.

Selene thought otherwise.

"You found anything?" Caelum asked.

"Maybe."

"That word again."

"It remains useful."

She spread several pages across a table.

"Look."

Caelum leaned over.

A rough map occupied the center page.

Several sections had been marked with faded symbols.

"The northern tunnels?"

Selene nodded.

"The strange part is their age."

"How old?"

"Older than Ashfang."

His gaze lifted.

"How much older?"

"I don't know."

"You hate saying that."

"I do."

Selene traced a finger along one of the routes.

"The earliest records describe them as already abandoned."

That caught his attention.

"Who built them?"

"No idea."

"You really don't like this conversation."

She frowned.

"I dislike mysteries that leave gaps."

"You're in the wrong profession."

"Probably."

The discussion continued for another hour.

Most of it drifted far beyond Caelum's understanding.

Selene never seemed bothered.

She explained things when necessary.

Mocked him when appropriate.

Ignored him when deserved.

It worked.

By sunset they were sitting outside the records hall.

The mountains glowed orange beneath the dying light.

Snow covered the rooftops.

Smoke rose from chimneys.

The settlement felt peaceful.

For once.

Selene sat on the steps beside him.

A notebook rested in her lap.

Neither spoke.

The silence stretched comfortably between them.

A flock of birds crossed overhead.

Dark shapes against the evening sky.

"Do you ever want to leave?" Selene asked suddenly.

Caelum glanced toward her.

"Ashfang?"

She nodded.

"Sometimes."

"Where would you go?"

He thought about it.

The answer surprised him.

"I don't know."

"That's not an answer."

"It is."

"No."

"It absolutely is."

Selene rolled her eyes.

"You have no ambition."

"I have plenty."

"Such as?"

"Surviving winter."

"Very inspiring."

"I know."

The corner of her mouth twitched.

For a moment neither said anything else.

The village settled around them.

Children disappeared indoors.

Lanterns flickered to life.

The first stars appeared overhead.

Simple things.

Easy things.

The kind of moments that passed without announcement.

Across the settlement, Kael was having a much worse evening.

The northern patrol should have returned hours ago.

Only three hunters entered the meeting hall.

Four had left.

Kael stood over the map table.

"Where is he?"

Nobody answered immediately.

That was answer enough.

The missing hunter had separated from the group shortly before sunset.

They had searched.

Called his name.

Followed his tracks.

Nothing.

The forest had swallowed him.

Kael's jaw tightened.

"Search again at first light."

One of the hunters nodded.

"If he's injured—"

"He'll be found."

The certainty in Kael's voice sounded forced.

Everyone heard it.

Nobody mentioned it.

Night settled over Ashfang.

Snow drifted lazily through the darkness.

Caelum left the shelter later than usual.

The pup followed him to the door.

Then further.

Then even further.

"No."

The pup ignored him.

"Go back."

The pup continued limping after him.

Caelum stopped.

The pup stopped.

He pointed toward the shelter.

The pup blinked.

Then sat down.

For one hopeful second, Caelum thought it understood.

The moment he turned away, tiny paws followed again.

He looked back.

The pup immediately sat.

Innocent.

Obviously.

Caelum stared.

The pup stared back.

The contest continued for several seconds.

Eventually Caelum lost.

As expected.

"You are impossible."

The pup's tail wagged.

The next morning began with shouting.

Caelum heard it before he reached the center of the settlement.

People were gathering near the gates.

Hunters.

Villagers.

Children standing on crates trying to see.

A path opened through the crowd.

Caelum stepped forward.

Then stopped.

A horse stood alone in the snow.

Foam covered its sides.

Its saddle remained in place.

The reins dragged across the ground.

No rider.

No pack.

No hunter.

Just the horse.

Silence spread through the crowd.

Kael pushed forward.

His expression darkened immediately.

The animal belonged to the missing hunter.

And it had come home alone.