I slipped away from the usual round of fireside stories and lay down in the tent, huddled under my blanket, thinking about Quon behind us and the great mountain ahead. It was hard getting warm, so I borrowed the blanket from Quon’s pack, thinking I should give it to Victoria or Malaiki, but deciding to wait until later.

In the distance I heard soft big sounds, which grew louder and closer. The mountains to the north rumbled. Soon there were flashes of light illuminating the tent, and oohs and aahs from those sitting around the fire. The flashes were followed by explosions of thunder ten seconds later. Soon the interval was five seconds. I heard one tick on the tent, then another, then a thump, then another, and suddenly it was deluged by raindrops.

I heard laugh-filled screaming and drew back from the tent door, knowing David and Shad were running my way. I felt left out, alone. I pretended I was asleep as they loudly settled in, droplets flying off their clothes onto my face. Then, to the background of the hard and heavy rain, I moved my head back to the tent flap to watch as the glowing remnant of the fire washed out.

Great bolts split, dividing into vertical and horizontal. Each line of this cosmic script was painted on the canvas of the black sky, so vivid that when I closed my eyes I still saw the bolts exactly as they’d been five seconds earlier. I counted seconds between lightning and thunder and now it was less than two. A massive lightning bolt struck some nearby fir trees and an explosion followed, then a smash on the ground just before the thunder crack. Frodo whined nervously and pushed himself against my stomach. I rubbed his ears.

Another eruption of light followed, and for a long moment the entire tent was lit bright, right through the concussion of thunder. The bolts were so thick and brilliant I could see them through the tent canvas.

What was that?

In the moment of light I saw the shadow of a man, but after a brief darkness, lightning flashed again and it was gone. I stared at the same place. Three light bursts later I saw another shadow—a great beast prowling the ground, either hunting or guarding, I wasn’t sure which. I didn’t know whether to feel comfort or dread. When the next bolt glared, it too was gone.

The wind pushed against the tent flap, and I held onto it, still watching the fireworks. The clatter of the pounding rain was so loud that when I heard David or Shad raise his voice and say something, I couldn’t even make it out. I snuggled in, grateful for the tent and the blankets, strangely feeling more secure now than I had the night before when there’d been no storm. The storm was a blanket of comfort, though I couldn’t understand why.