“Oakhammer, Great Tree Spirit and Ninth Keeper of the Forest, Wanderer of the Frozen Wastes, Watcher of Beyond and Keeper of the Balance, I beg you in the name of my ancestors to awaken.”

Nine times he chanted it and, with each repetition, the tension in the clearing increased.

Then, so suddenly that Five yelped, the eyes above them flickered open and the mouth stretched wide to draw a deep, rattling breath.

Oakhammer was awake.

Chapter

Thirty-Two

Something invisible knocked them all back a step, a release of energy too deep to have sound, but that reverberated through them warningly.

Oakhammer gazed down on them, his eyes gleaming like the night sky, all darkness and starlight.

“Moxie!” Oakhammer said, focusing on Foxpaw. “Why have you woken me?” His voice was the slow growth of old wood, the creaking of branches, the passage of time in an untouched glade.

Foxpaw gulped as he bowed before the tree. “Great Oakhammer, I owe my life to these humans and the Guardian who accompanies them. They have lost their way and seek to regain the path. I have brought them to you, knowing you may choose to help them.”

Icy wind, as sharp as a blade, cut through the clearing, making them all flinch. Twelve and Six exchanged worried glances.

“Wonderful,” Five muttered under his breath. “What have you got us into now? I’ve barely recovered from my last near-death experience.”

“Shh.” Six hushed him, seeing Oakhammer’s focus was now on them.

“Who are you?” the Heart Tree asked. A simple question, but his voice made Twelve’s teeth chatter. Her tongue slithered uselessly in her mouth. Six was the first to gather himself enough to speak. He cleared his throat nervously and told Oakhammer their tale.

“So, we’re tracking Seven,” he finished a few minutes later, “but the trail vanished in the forest. Please will you help us find it again?”

The starlight grew brighter in Oakhammer’s eyes and his mouth creaked slowly into a smile. “How could I refuse such a polite request, especially from huntlings?”

“Really? You’ll help us?” Six asked, a delighted grin spreading over his face.

“Of course,” Oakhammer said. “Although I will ask for something small in return.”

Foxpaw suddenly looked worried. “Oh no.”

“We don’t have much with us,” Six admitted, “but whatever you want is yours if you’ll help us.”

Twelve shot him a sharp look. “As long as we all agree,” she added, throwing back her head to look Oakhammer in the eye. “We’re in this together after all.”

He laughed gratingly and the sound filled Twelve with irrational fear. Widge was shaking so hard she worried he’d fall out of her furs. She willed him to stay still, not to show himself.