The swineherds' hut would have been invisible in the gloom of the forest, save for the orange glow of the fire that burned inside. A trio of youths - barely old enough to shave the fluff from their chins - were sitting around the glowing coals. It was their job to look after the pigs that belonged to their master and make sure that no harm came to the animals.

It was the autumn equinox. The weather had only just begun to turn cold, and the leaves were starting to litter the earth beneath the trees. The pigs had spent the day rooting through the mould and turning the soil in their search for food. Soon, however, the frosts would take hold and the sound would turn hard. Then the pigs would have to be driven back to their winter quarters to wait in the cold and filthy straw for the spring thaw.

The young swineherds listened to the grunting of their charges. Yes, they should have bene outside, watching their charges and protecting them from the predators that stalked the forest; but the boys knew that their senses were no match for those of the pigs. Besides, it was easier to sit by the warm fire and doze. Just in case their master sent a reeve to catch them idling, the swineherds amused themselves by telling each other stories and swapping idle boasts. It was not a reeve that disturbed their leisure, though.

From the dark forest outside the hut came the repeated squealing of a pig. The swineherds stopped their chatter and looked fearfully at each other.

"What was that?" Adso was the eldest of the three, but his mind was not the sharpest. However, he had a strong sense of duty, which made him a reliable servant.

The other boys pulled their cloaks tight around them. "What do you think it was?" Mendel asked. As the strongest of the three he had elected himself the leader. Adso was dull enough that he did not care, while Godwin was too weak for his objections to matter. "It's a pig, of course." Mendel turned to Godwin. "Go. See what has happened."

Godwin cringed. His imagination had already populated the forest with savage creatures. "Out there? What if it's a wolf?"

"Then you will barely be a mouthful for it!" Mendel smiled cruelly. "Go!" And he raised his fist to emphasise his authority.

Some impulse made Adso raise his hand to block the blow. "I'll go."

Mendel glanced between Adso and Godwin. On the one hand, it would be fun to see Godwin soil himself in terror. But the slow-witted Adso was immune to Mendel's taunts, and it would be fun to torment Godwin in his absence. "You go then," said Mendel.

Adso picked up his club - a lump of wood bound with iron - and left the hut and the warmth of the fire. He picked his way through the bodies of the pigs. Some of them had been woken by the same sound that had aroused the three swineherds, and were restless. Adso paused to soothe them, whispering piggy reassurances to them, then continued on his way.

The forest was one of the ancient woods. Trees grew close together, their misshapen branches curled around each other, their roots dug deep into the soil and lifted their trunks. Adso picked his way through the tangled growth, navigating by touch more than by sight. He whistled softly and called out, "Pig! Pig! Pig!" hoping to attract the lost animal's attention. To his relief, Adso was answered by more squealing. That way!

Adso followed the noise deeper into the forest. As he drew closer to the origin of the squealing, he was sure that he could hear voices - lilting voices that floated on the night air - and he could see lights - soft lights that seemed to flicker between the trees. Adso held his breath. Had some outlaws come into the forest, trespassing on his master's domain? But outlaws would have slaughtered the missing hog, not tortured it. He crept forward to see what was going on.

At some time in the forest's past an ancient oak had spread its branches so thick and so wide that it had blocked all light. The plants beneath the tree had withered and died, leaving an empty space as broad as a nobleman's hall. In this arboreal chamber, Adso saw slender figures clothed in light, laughing and clapping with glee. The source of their amusement was a pig - presumably the one that Adso and the other swineherds had heard in the night - that was dressed in peasant's clothing and stumbling around on its hind legs. The squeals were a consequence of the creature's distress at its plight.

Adso was not a cruel child. The combination of the pig's pain and the figures' pleasure made him furious. Not only was he angry for the pig, but he felt that he had to do something as a loyal servant of his lord. Adso stepped into the clearing. "Stop!" he bellowed.

"What is this?" one of the figures, a lady of supernatural beauty, asked her companions.

"Beneath the dirt it might be a man," another, a man with a coldly handsome face, replied.

"Or perhaps it is another pig," said a third.

"It is so hard to tell," a fourth added.

Adso's face flushed with anger. "I am Adso the swineherd."

"That would explain the similarity," said the handsome man. He laughed, and the others joined in. "What do you want, Adso the swine-man?"

"That is my lord's pig," said Adso. "And I am my lord's man. So, I must protect that pig!" And he raised his club.

The beautiful lady advanced towards him, unafraid of the swineherd. "And does this lord of yours value his hogs more than his servants?"

"Yes. No. Perhaps." Adso's thoughts were confused.

"Well then," said the beautiful lady, "if you wish to serve your lord, then you shall have to have to replace the pig in our games." She reached out to take Adso's hand, but the swineherd panicked and struck out with his club. Although it was only a glancing blow, it instantly raised a livid weal upon the lady's pale flesh. She retreated in pain.

The handsome man glared at Adso. "As I said, this thing is more swine than man."

"Then let him become one," the beautiful lady said, clutching her wounded arm. "And we shall see whether his lord values him all the more for that."

Adso thought of his duty to his lord and prepared to stand his ground against the strangers ... .

Adso never returned to the swineherds' hut. Mendel and Godwin wondered what had become of him - Godwin more so. Their lord was displeased that one of his servants had deserted his employ, but his anger was soon forgotten when he found out that he did have one more pig than he had before.