Free Warden by Kevin Hardman

competent as Tom might not have survived the events detailed in the log. It also explained what Errol had seen in the cabin cellar.
    Tom had crossed paths with a Wendigo.

 
    Chapter 13
     
    “A what?” Gale asked again.
    “A Wendigo,” Errol repeated softly. He was trying to keep his voice down; Digby was still bathing, but Errol was afraid that mention of the thing that had captured him would further unhinge the man.
    “It was supposedly a man at one time,” Errol went on, “who was cursed for committing cannibalism and transformed into a monster that craves human flesh.”
    “Is there any kind of monster that doesn’t crave human flesh?” Gale asked rhetorically. “Anyway, we should be safe now, right?”
    Errol shook his head. “You don’t understand.  Once a Wendigo starts tracking someone as prey, it never gives up. It will pursue them forever if it has to. Moreover, when it catches them, it’ll kill anyone with them.  That’s why Tom never came home.  It would have tracked him there and killed him and me.”
    “Wouldn’t both of you guys have been able to kill it? Ambush it or something?”
    “It’s not some dumb animal that’s just going to walk into a trap. It used to be a man and still has the intelligence and cunning of one. On top of that, Wendigos are incredibly fast, preternaturally strong, and have enhanced senses, like hearing and smell.”
    “But it has to have some kind of weakness.”
    “Just two,” Errol said, frowning.  “Fire and silver.  But even if you could manage to kill it, Wendigos are supposed to be able to resurrect themselves. Then they come after the person who killed them.”
    “So, basically this thing is unstoppable?”
    Errol just shrugged.  “Hopefully Tom noted some things that could help us.”
    With that, he went back to reading Tom’s log again, which didn’t describe the Wendigo itself in great detail, just how Tom had encountered it. Apparently the Wendigo was the thing Jarruse had seen, although why it hadn’t come after the apothecary was a mystery. Going in the direction Jarruse had indicated, Tom had come across the cabin (and the slaughter therein), which seemed to be the monster’s lair. It was also the place where he’d found the odd book of magic, although Tom hadn’t been able to glean much more about it than Errol.
    He read the last few entries in the log two more times before snapping the book shut and putting it away. In the last entry, Tom noted how he was starting to hear strange sounds all the time. Errol didn’t want to think about what that meant, nor did he want to dwell on the fact that there were bloodstains on his brother’s pack.
    “Anything in there that could help us?” Gale asked.
    “Maybe. According to his log, Tom’s plan was to head to the fire marsh.  We should do that as well.”
    “The fire marsh?” Gale was obviously a little shocked.  “Isn’t that, well, dangerous?”
    “Yes, it’s dangerous. So is being here. So is sneaking into the Wendigo’s lair. So is farming next to the Badlands. It’s all dangerous, Gale! Everything we do is dangerous!”
    Gale looked at him with watery eyes, although no tears fell. He hadn’t meant to let his emotions get the best of him like that, to lash out at her in that way, but she didn’t seem to have an appreciation for the gravity of their situation. He had no doubt the Wendigo would be coming after them. Moreover, he still had no idea about the fate of his brother.
    In truth, hers was a fair question. The fire marsh was a large boggy region of noxious fumes and combustible gases. During the day it exuded mind-boggling heat, and spontaneous fires were not unknown.  In addition, it was home to a number of fierce creatures, large and small, that had somehow adapted to – and in some cases adopted – the fiery temperament of their environment.
    “Look,” Errol said in a calmer voice. “It is dangerous, but fire is one of the few things that can hurt a