Page 43 of The Iron Vow

The other path led you here,the Whisper told us, as a chill ran up my spine.To this pool, to me. And when you left, the path before you grew hazy and unclear, and you vanished into the fog.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

It means I do not know what became of you once you departed this pool,the Whisper replied.It means the outcome is yet to be determined.

“Because of something you are going to tell us,” Ash guessed.

I do not know, the Whisper replied.It is unclear whether my words will have any effect on the outcome. But I can tell you this. Named Elder Nightmares are very powerful, and nearly immortal. There is only way to kill one—find and destroy the essence of their core. Whatever that might be. It will not be attached to the Nightmare. It could be hidden very far away. But you must destroy the core before you can slay the Elder Nightmare.

“Uh,” Puck said, frowning. “I’m just gonna go ahead and say the thing everyone is thinking right now—what?”

That is all I can tell you, said the Whisper.That is all the mist can provide. When you face the Wailing One in her castle atop the Howling Peaks, you must find the essence of the Nightmare’s core. Only when you destroy it will you have a chance to slay the Wailing One for good. She hunched her shoulders, drawing her arms beneath her tangle of wispy hair.That is all I have to say.

“Yeah.” Puck crossed his arms. “I’m just going to mention it again.What?”

But the Whisper didn’t answer. She bowed her head, long hair falling to cover her face, and didn’t say another word. I remembered the Pale Rider’s words about the Whisper, that she spoke only when she had something important to convey.

I guess she had delivered her message and was done speaking for a while.

After a lingering moment of silence, we turned and headed back to the edge of the forest, feeling the gaze of the Whisper on our backs the entire way.

The Pale Rider waited for us at the edge of the woods, both mount and rider nearly indistinguishable from the mist itself. “The Whisper has spoken,” he said, regarding us all with an icy gaze. “Consider yourselves both lucky and cursed. Many never hear her voice.” He tilted his head, wispy strands of hair floating around him. “Now that you have heard the Whisper, what is your next destination?”

“The Howling Peaks,” I said. “To the lair of the Wailing One.”

He nodded. “The climb will be treacherous,” he said. “I cannot take you all the way to the Nightmare’s castle, but I will show you the path up the mountain. Beware, though. Once you are through the fog, you are beyond our territory. Many Nightmares and Elder Nightmares roam those peaks, and our own warriors rarely venture into the mountains.”

“We appreciate your help,” I told the rider. “If you do speak to the Whisper, please convey my gratitude for the information she revealed. It was very important.”

“Yes,” agreed the rider. “The Whisper never speaks without need. Seasons pass, and her voice is never heard. But, come...” He took a step back, melting halfway into the fog with barely a thought. “Your time with us is at an end. Follow me, and I will show you the path to the Wailing One.”

Interlude

The girl who lost her father and hoped for years to find him did find other friends along the way. Not many, for people seemed to forget she existed once she left their presence, but those she did find, she kept close.

Her best friend, for example, seemed as if he’d always been there. Always a part of her childhood, conjured out of nothing, like a dream whose beginning she couldn’t remember. But later, after myriad adventures, heartbreak, and reconciliation, she finally got the story of how they met out of him.

Or at least, this is howhetold it.

Puck did not want to go to the human world.

Normally, he liked visiting the mortal realm; there were so many oblivious humans, living their oblivious human lives, doing oblivious human things. So gullible, ignorant, naive. They were always fun to play with.

Today, however, he had a mission. A very long mission, involving a mortal girl who was not completely human, who didn’t know she was not completely human. And she could never find out. That would be his job for the next decade or so. Hang around this mortal girl, protect her from anything “strange” that might appear to hurt her, and make sure she never realized what she really was. It didn’t sound fun at all.

He would just have to make his own fun.

The schoolyard was noisy and crowded, full of shrieking human children running around like wild puppies. Sitting on the outer wall, Puck swung his heels against the brick and watched the crowd of mortals swarming the play yard. He had glamoured himself to look like them: a human child around eight or nine years old, with a missing front tooth and his red hair hanging in his eyes. But no one would notice him until he wanted to be noticed. And right now, that seemed like a good thing.

Puck usually liked hanging around children, or at least, small children. Very young humans could still see the fey. Toddlers still believed in magic, imaginary friends, and monsters under the bed, until they grew up a bit and “forgot” about them. But this bunch was a bit too old to be able to see through glamour anymore. Probably just as well. He wasn’t here to play; he had a job to do.

He scanned the schoolyard, watching small groups of children swing on the monkey bars, or stand in a circle throwing balls at a child in the middle. Oberon had given him a description of the girl, but none of these children seemed to be the one he was looking for. He’d thought waiting near the playground where all the other kids were playing was a no-brainer, but the girl he was waiting for had other ideas, apparently.

“Well, this is boring,” Puck finally muttered to no one in particular. “Where is this kid?”

Hopping down from the wall, he went looking for her.

Wandering around the building, he walked past smaller groups of children, circling all the way to the back, until he came to an isolated part of the schoolyard. There was nothing back here but a few shady trees and a peeling picnic table that was probably for teachers and staff.

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