The Way of the Wilderking Read Free

he comes from forests and swamps.
    Watch for the Wilderking!
    Leading his troops of wild men and brutes.
    Watch for the Wilderking!
    â€œIt seems King Darrow wasn’t in the mood to watch for the Wilderking any longer,” said Percy. “He decided to take the fight to you. He was gathering a force of a thousand men for an invasion of the Feechiefen.”
    At this news, Dobro perked up. “Invasion? That’s a kind of fighting, ain’t it?”
    Percy sighed. “I’m afraid so, Dobro.”
    Dobro jumped up and clapped his heels together. “Hee-haw!” he yodeled. “What some fun! I ain’t done no serious fighting since the Battle of Bearhouse!”
    â€œNo!” Aidan groaned. “They can’t come to the Feechiefen!”
    â€œLet’s see here,” said Dobro, more to himself than to his companions. “A thousand civilizers”—he was scratching in the sand with a stick—“if every feechie whips about fifty civilizers …”
    â€œThey’re staging from Last Camp,” said Percy. “They’ll be ferrying men across the Tam from there.”
    Dobro gave up scratching in the sand. “I never learnt no number figuring,” he said, “but I don’t reckon a thousand civilizers is near enough to go around.”
    â€œWe can’t let a civilizer army come into the Feechiefen,” Aidan said. “They’d never survive here.”
    Percy nodded in agreement. “Father sent me to warn you and the feechiefolk. Now I see you aren’t the ones who need warning. It’s Darrow’s soldiers who are in real danger.”
    â€œYou reckon there’s any way the king’d bring more’n a thousand fighting men?” Dobro interrupted. “A thousand civilizers ain’t hardly worth poling across the swamp for.”

Chapter Three
Timberbout
    By midafternoon, three dozen or more feechies, attracted by the news of the captured civilizer, arrived at Scoggin Mound from all over the swamp. They represented eight different bands, enough to form a swamp council.
    As home chieftain, Tombro Timberbeaver led the proceedings. He climbed a stump in the middle of the central clearing, near the village fire, and raised a hand for silence among the gathered feechies. When that didn’t work (raising a hand for silence almost never worked with feechies), he simply shouted over everyone. “Let this here swamp council come to order!” he bellowed. “Or if that’s too much to ask, let this here swamp council come to a little less disorder.”
    The noise died down the least little bit, and Tombro began. “First off, let me say sorry to Percy. We didn’t know you was Pantherbane’s brother.” He nodded toward Percy. “We thought you was a spy.”
    â€œHe told you he wasn’t a spy, didn’t he?” asked Aidan.
    â€œWell, yeah,” said Tombro. “But I ain’t exactly in the habit of listening to what civilizers says.”
    â€œBesides,” said Hyko Vinesturgeon, “ain’t that what a real spy would say? No spy worth the name gonna tell you he’s a spy.”
    â€œWhat kind of spy comes to warn you that his own army is planning an invasion?” Aidan asked.
    â€œWe just figured he was bragging,” Tombro answered, a little weakly.
    â€œDidn’t he tell you he was my brother?” Aidan asked.
    â€œSorta yes, sorta no,” Tombro said.
    Percy had been quiet thus far, but this answer got under his skin. “Sorta yes? I must have told you a hundred times I was Aidan Errolson’s brother.”
    â€œWell, that’s the thing,” said Tombro. “I don’t know nothing about no Aidan Errolson. Now Pantherbane—I’d swim nekkid through a herd of snapping turtles for Pantherbane or any of his folks.”
    â€œNobody around here knows my civilizer name,” Aidan explained to his brother. “All