hand to his eyes, squinting dramatically into the darkness. 'Then suddenly they appeared: seven grey shadows creeping across the ice.'
Brac shivered with delight.
'The alpha male came in fast, going straight for the kill. I quickly planted the torch on the battlements to give me light, but the wolves were so hungry that they didn't even pause.'
'Father said you roared like devils were after you,' laughed Brac.
'Of course I did! They'd have smelt him any moment.' Brennus shuddered. 'One man against that many wolves wouldn't stand a chance.'
'He jumped up and you had already killed three with arrows.'
Brennus shrugged. 'His task was far more dangerous. As I shot the third beast, Conall took the head off a fourth and maimed another, leaving only the leader and his mate. They were savaging the poor cow. I killed the female and managed to draw a bead on the male just as he turned to face Conall. They were only twenty paces apart, far enough for me to loose safely. But your father yelled at me to hold. 'The bastard's mine!' he said.'
There was silence for a moment.
Brennus stared at Brac. 'He was the bravest man I have ever known. That wolf was as big as a bear and Conall had no shield and no armour. Just his sword and a hunting knife.'
Brac rocked to and fro, barely able to contain his excitement.
'The wolf kept darting in, trying to knock him over, but Conall kept it at bay with ease, waiting for a chance. Then he slipped on the snow and fell flat on his back, losing his sword. Before I could react, the alpha male leapt into the air.' Brennus' voice dropped. 'It was going to rip his throat out.'
He paused and Brac's grip on the tooth tightened.
'Somehow Conall drew his dagger and turned it upwards with both hands. The blade went straight through the wolf 's heart as it landed.'
'You thought he was dead!'
'Seemed that way until he pushed the body off,' replied Brennus with a smile. 'I've never been so relieved.'
'Father always said he could never have done it without you. The only one who would help.'
'It was nothing,' Brennus muttered awkwardly.
'It meant a lot to him. And me.'
Brennus quickly looked away.
'Tell me another,' said Brac, trying to lighten the atmosphere, but it was the wrong thing to say.
'Not tonight.' Brennus poked a stick at the blaze, releasing a stream of sparks into the night sky. 'Another time, perhaps.' He gazed sombrely into the flames, mood changed. Conall's death the previous summer still affected him deeply. At the end of a major skirmish against the Romans, Brennus had been swept away from the main body of warriors and surrounded by dozens of legionaries. As the big man had watched his fellow Allobroges run for the safety of the trees, he had asked the gods for a swift death. But instead of fleeing like the rest, Conall had led several men on a suicidal counterattack, saving his nephew but losing his own life. Guilt had weighed heavily on Brennus since, and Brac knew better than to persist.
'Get some rest. It will be tough tomorrow carrying all that meat.'
The younger warrior obediently curled up in his blanket, secure in the knowledge that he was being watched over.
Brennus stayed awake for some time, brooding about Conall and remembering Ultan's last words.
The tribe 's druid had been an old man when Brennus' father was a boy.
No one could explain how Ultan had lived for so long, but he was feared and respected by all and his blessings and predictions were an integral part of tribal life. If a child or beast was sick, Ultan was called for. No one could draw an arrow from a wound or treat a fever like the druid. Even Caradoc consulted him before making any important decisions.
Brennus had been weaned on Ultan's amazing tales, told by the fire in the meeting house on cold winter nights. He looked up to the druid like no other and in turn Ultan had a soft spot for the man who had grown into one of the mightiest Allobroge warriors ever seen.
Before he and Brac left to go hunting, Brennus had asked Ultan for a blessing. Frustrated that the druid would not intervene on his behalf with Caradoc, he had not lingered to chat in Ultan's ramshackle hut on the edge of the village. Prayer completed satisfactorily, Brennus had reached the door when the old man spoke.
'You are always one for long trips.'
Peering into the dim interior, Brennus had been unable to make out the druid's features. Bunches of herbs and mistletoe hung from nails beside the dried carcasses of birds and rabbits. Brennus had shivered. It was said that Ultan could brew a potion to charm the gods themselves. 'Will it be a difficult hunt, then?'
'More than that,' Ultan had muttered. 'A journey beyond where any Allobroge has gone. Or will ever go. Your destiny cannot be avoided, Brennus.'
He had steeled himself. 'I will die in the forest?'
Brennus had thought he saw a trace of sadness in the old man's eyes. In the poor light, he had not been sure.
'Not you. Many others.
Despite the fire 's heat, a shiver ran down the big man's spine. Typically, Ultan had refused to explain further. Unsettled, Brennus was worried enough to offer more prayers to Belenus than normal as they had climbed the wooded slopes. The hunt had gone well so far, but he knew the druid's predictions tended to be accurate. Would his family be safe? Would Brac's? Although it was early summer, the journey over the mountains was not without peril. Snow, ice, swiftly flowing rivers and dangerous paths awaited them.
Or had Ultan meant something else altogether?
He stared round the quiet clearing. The normally alert dogs twitched happily as they dreamt of chasing deer. Nothing. Closing his eyes with a sigh, Brennus pulled the blanket closer and lay protectively beside Brac. He slept well, without dreaming.
It was the last peaceful rest Brennus would have for many years.
When the younger warrior awoke, the sun's rays were already lighting up the mountains on the other side of the valley, turning the snow on the sharp peaks pink, then orange. He threw off his blanket and stood up, shivering in the early morning air.
'Had enough sleep?' Brennus laughed, over by the drying racks.
Brac flushed with guilt when he saw the packs were ready. All that was left to do was roll up the bedding and fill their leather water carriers from the stream. 'How long was I asleep?' he muttered, hurrying.
'As long as you needed.' Brennus' tone was kindly. 'Feeling rested?'
'Yes.'
'Good! Try this on.'
Staggering under the weight of one pack, Brennus gestured at the other beside him. With help, Brac managed to fit the bulging bag on his back. He noted with shame that it was much lighter than his cousin's.
'Let me take the heavier one.'
'I'm bigger and stronger. That's all there is to it. Yours is heavy enough.'
Brennus clapped him on the arm reassuringly. 'It's more than most could carry.'
Brennus led the way, using a hunting spear to steady himself on uneven ground. Brac and the dogs followed close behind. The little party made steady progress through the forest and by mid-morning they had covered just over half the distance back to the settlement.
'Time for another rest.' Gratefully Brennus lowered his pack by a large beech tree.
'I can go further.'
'Sit down.' He patted the moss, thinking it was a good time to tell Brac about his plan. 'Let's eat. Leave less to carry afterwards.'
They both laughed.
The pair sat beside each other, leaning against the broad trunk. In companionable silence, they drank water and chewed on dried meat.
'Is that smoke?' Brac pointed to the south.
There was a thick grey plume rising over the nearest treetops.
