Dawn gave a deep sigh, rubbed her nose and smiled weakly.

“I can’t say your plan is filling me with joy. But you’re the experienced fighter. If you think this is the best way to go, I’m willing to be the bait.”

Grinna laughed softly, eyes twinkling and said.

“Don’t worry. We’re not going to send you out all on your lonesome. I will be with you all the way, and I’ll take any bet you care to name that nobody will manage to keep Ankou behind. In addition, Teren here is going to watch over us from a distance with his bow. Then we need a few more Kharlins who can handle their bows, in order to keep watch from all directions.”

She turned to Halvar.

“You know the skills of your people best. How many Kharlins can fight with us? And how many can shoot a bow reliably?”

He pondered for a moment.

“At the moment, I would say we have fifteen fighters at most. Many of our hunters were abducted and killed by the demons. And while we have some decently trained youths, they have no experience in a fight and I wouldn’t want to send them out against the spiders unless it is certain we won’t survive the fight otherwise. Most of our hunters prefer the bow, so you can count with at least ten experienced bow fighters.”

Teren said calmly.

“As long as the queen doesn’t send all her offspring at once, fifteen in all should suffice.”

And Grinna continued seamlessly.

“Against the grown demons it is important that you keep your distance. We need to prepare a lot of fire arrows since the beasts seem to be susceptible to them. But no shooting until the demons are close to Dawn. Too early, and they may simply turn around and flee.”

Dawn shook her head and disagreed.

“I rather doubt they’re going to flee. So far, they’ve always been very aggressive and never backed down from a fight.”

Grinna tilted her head thoughtfully.

“True. But you said they learn, and from what you told us they’re very susceptible to fire. So there’s a chance they may retreat if confronted by fire arrows.”

After thinking for a moment, she added:

“If we’re fighting against the spiderlings or against a mix of grown demons and spiderlings, we can attack individual spawnlings with swords. But we have to keep an eye on the environment and be careful not to be overrun by them. Their venom works fast. If they bite you, you’re out of the fight. And Dawn, if we encounter the spiderlings, you should definitively use that big spell you have. That worked like a charm against them last time.”

Dawn nodded, but said a bit doubtfully.

“I will do that, but keep in mind I can use it only once, maybe twice if the fight continues on for a while. It takes oodles of mana.”

“Apart from that spell, you should try to keep the demons at arms length as best you can. No heroics please,“

Grinna told her, shaking her finger at her.

Dawn laughed a bit jerkily.

“Don’t worry, I’m certainly not hero material. I will do my very best to get out alive if we encounter any demons.”

Grinna only smiled and turned to Halvar once more.

“So, if we want to fight in the forest, not too close to the village, what place in the vicinity would you recommend?”

Instead of answering, Halvar simply raised an eyebrow at Dermo, who stood up and said.

“There’s quite a bit of forest half a day’s walk to the northwest of the village. It’s hill country, not as many rock formations as here directly around the village. There are several small streams running through the area. Usually the hunting is quite good there, though during the last days we only managed to catch some birds. You might want to head in that direction.”

Teren nodded and said evenly.

“Sounds like a feasible location. We should go and take a look at the location tomorrow with a few of your hunters. That will help us to get to know each other better, too. Always a plus if you have to fight together with others. And we can take a look at their proficiency with the bow and the sword. Now, let’s talk about the details of our baiting expedition.”

Two hours later Dawn left the council hut, exhausted, a bit scared with regard to her role as bait in the following days, but nevertheless hopeful that their plan to eliminate the demons would work. The discussion had been productive this time. Humans and Kharlins would work and fight together against the common enemy. Any maybe this would mark the beginning of a better understanding between the two species.

Outside, Ankou was lying spread out under a table. The gnawed bones sitting beside him showed he had been well fed. The whole cavern was filled with the promising scent of roasting fowl, and as soon as it reached her nose, Dawn realized she was starving. As she was settling down on the bench, Nuala came to stand beside her and laid a hand on her arm.

“How do you feel, Dawn? Are you afraid? It is no easy thing to play the bait against the demons.”

Dawn shrugged.

“Yes I’m scared. No matter how well we prepare, we cannot be certain to win in a fight. It all depends on the numbers of the demons we encounter. And, you know, the whole plan may not work at all. There’s still the possibility that the spiders will simply ignore us. But most of all I am just incredibly frustrated. I have so many questions and so many things I want to learn and to do. I would like to know more about magic. I want to finally study alchemy in earnest. Then there’s the weapon training with Grinna and Teren. And right now everything is on hold, because the threat of the demons has to take precedence. And if I’m unlucky, I may never get the chance to learn more."

She brushed her hair out of her face and sighed.

“Then again, I fear I am ungrateful. In a way I am so lucky to have met you and Grinna and Teren. If I had stayed in my village and married Beran like my parents wanted, I would never have learned any magic or alchemy, I wouldn’t have seen the ancient city and I would never have had the chance for any weapon training.”

And then she laughed and shook her head.

“On the other hand, I’m pretty sure there would have been absolutely no demons in my life.”

Nuala tilted her head, expressive ears quivering as she said.

“There’s no way to know where another path would have taken you. You made your decision when you got your blessing and left your village. As to your frustration…”

She shook her head a bit bemused and smiled.

“Oh, for the impatience of youth. You have so many years before you, what does it matter if your questions need to wait for a little while longer?”

With these words, the old woman sat carefully down next to Dawn on the bench and moments later the rangers and Niko came over and sat down at the table. Nestor was sitting at another table together with Dermo and several more of the Kharlin hunters.

Two Kharlin women were dishing out food and tea. After they had already been served, Halvar appeared, carrying his plate and sat down with them.

For several minutes silence reigned at the table, everyone busy with eating. Finally, Dawn looked up from her food and asked tentatively.

“Halvar, do you know where Kharma is? I haven’t seen him the whole time I’ve been here. Verene mentioned that he is in disgrace and being punished. But what did he do that was so bad? I can’t help but think he got punished for being friends with me.”

Halvar looked at her and said.

“Well, he did break a taboo when he went hunting in the gorge. The council had declared the area strictly off-limits to the whole tribe. So his punishment is not exactly because he befriended you. But it is true that a lot of the villagers blamed him in part for the attack of the demons and Ristop punished him pretty harshly. Then, when you turned up with the rangers, he ordered him to keep away from you. I will talk to Kharma and send him over to you after I’m done with my meal.”

“Thank you, Halvar.”

Dawn looked forward to seeing Kharma again, though she still felt a bit guilty. Despite Halvar’s explanation, she was convinced that Kharma’s harsh punishment was at least in part due to his friendship with her.

Halvar smiled at her sadly.

“Kharma can certainly use a friend. For Kharlin males, hunting prowess is of great importance. It defines their standing in the village. Unfortunately, Kharma showed no great talent for the hunt. Combined with his awkward speech, he was pretty much an outsider among the village youths when he grew up. A fact that may have played a big part in his decision to go hunting in the gorge. He wanted to prove himself. Unfortunately he didn’t choose a very good way to do it.”

Dawn protested indignantly.

“But hunting is not everything. Kharma is a stone-singer, that is an amazing talent and surely very useful for the tribe, if you live in caverns like this.”

“It can certainly be helpful,”

Halvar agreed.

“Kharma’s father was an accomplished stone singer. Unfortunately he is gone now, another victim of the demons. Today, we have only Laik left with the talent, and of course Kharma.”

“So he has a very valuable skill. What does it matter if he is great hunter or not?”

She asked exasperated, angry for her friend.

Halvar held up his hands in mock surrender.

“Peace! I didn’t say his skill is not valuable, only that his standing in the tribe is negatively influenced because his lack of hunting skills. I didn’t make the rules. It is more a matter of public opinion.”

Dawn subsided, but grumbled to herself.

“I wonder who sets up all these pesky rules. Human girls have to marry as soon as possible and have no need for any skills apart from those useful in house and garden. Male Kharlins have to be great hunters or are shunned by their village. It’s stupid, that’s what it is.”

Grinna laughed and rolled her eyes.

“You are absolutely right, it is stupid. But apparently there are a lot of people who feel very uncomfortable if they can’t put all their neighbours into neatly labeled little drawers. What do you think I faced when I got my class from the Warrior and wanted to enter the rangers? A girl, in a male profession, and a fighter at that. It didn’t matter to them, that I had trained with the sword since I was a little girl and could outfight most of the male candidates. It just wasn’t done, and for most people that was that. If it hadn’t been for my father, who had a very reputable position and pulled out all the stops to secure me a place in the trials, I’d never have had a chance.”

“It is not right, but it just the way it is. You can try to fight stupidity, and you may even win a battle or two. But it is a war you are always destined to loose. The best you can do is try and not to be stupid yourself.”

Teren added in his calm way.

Halvar nodded and stood up.

“Neatly put. I’ll go and look for Kharma and send him over to you. And may I suggest that you spend tomorrow with Lutha, Dawn? She is our herb woman and alchemist in the village. Your friends told me that you have an interest in alchemy, so maybe you can learn a thing or two from her.”

Dawn perked up.

“I’d be glad to learn from her, if she is willing to teach me.”

She had chafed a bit when the others had told her that she had to stay behind while they explored and prepared the designated location for the baiting expedition tomorrow. But if the demons were particularly interested in Dawn, she could not accompany them. Otherwise they’d run the risk to encounter them before they were prepared for the fight.

Now she had a study session in alchemy to look forward to. And she would see Kharma again. That reconciled her a bit with the fact that she had to stay in the village without her friends.