Page 84 of Feast

The ukkur army had its hands full too. They were trying to round up the naked creatures and provide them with furs, of which there was an abundance stored in the saddle packs of the skriks. Some of the naked creatures apprehensively accepted the ukkur’s help, but others were just as scared of the ukkur as they were of the nith, and they tried to flee away into the snowy landscape. Other ukkur had to run after them.

Ika also noticed that the naked creatures all had marks drawn onto their hips. A series of parallel black lines. Was that the mark that the nith had asked her about before?

As Ika, Thusar, and Gunnar approached the chaos, one of the other ukkur came forward to meet them. He was a tall, handsome warrior with his mane trimmed into a mohawk that spilled down his back.

“Who are you?” the warrior called. “I’ve never seen you before.”

“I am Thusar. My pack has been traveling south with the intent of joining your army. But we didn’t expect to encounter you this far north.”

The warrior with the mohawk grinned and shook Thusar’s hand.

“Greetings, Thusar. I am Jale. You are more than welcome to join us. We are always in need of strong and experienced ukkur warriors. The only requirement is a desire to kill the nith, and I can see that you and your companions possess that trait. I will introduce you to my leader Krogg as soon as we get these humans rounded up.”

The warrior, Jale, turned his attention to Ika.

“Thanks for catching this one,” he added. “I see you’ve already dressed her in furs as well. The army shall reimburse you for that.”

Jale reached out for Ika.

“Come little one. Don’t be afraid. We are here to help you.”

Ika almost laughed at the childish way Jale was speaking to her. Thusar and Gunnar, however, did not find it funny. They positioned their bodies in front of hers and snarled aggressively at Jale.

“She is ours,” Thusar growled. “She did not come from this place.”

Jale backed off and his face transitioned into a quizzical look.

“You rescued her from another slaughterhouse then?”

Thusar shook his head. “No.”

Does she have a mark?

“No, I don’t have a mark.” Ika said, butting forward. “And I’m standing right here. It’s a bit rude to talk about me in the third person.”

Jale’s face had shifted from a look of curiosity to outright awe. His eyes were wide and his jaw hung open.

“You…speak perfect nith. No accent at all.”

“Of course,” Ika said in annoyance. “What do you expect? I’ve been speaking it my whole life.”

Jale stared at her in a daze, then shook his head and swallowed.

“I…I need to let the leader know of this. You must come with us to the south. The First Woman will definitely want to meet you.”

The First Woman? Ika wondered who that could be.

“That’s the plan,” Thusar said. “We intend to join you on your journey southward.”

Jale nodded, slowly recovering his composure.

“Good. Just stick close by for now. We will leave as soon as the humans have all been gathered.”

“Humans?” Ika asked. “Is that what these creatures are?”

Jale gave her one last confused look before he departed.

“Yes. Humans. The ones with the piss sticks are men and the others, the ones like you, are called women.”