Calling the goats

At seven years old, the wild boy Duny overhears his aunt, the village witch, chanting a rhyme to call a goat down from a thatched roof. He repeats the words without understanding them, and the goats of the high pastures come to him in a silent, pressing crowd. The boy is frightened by their strange obedience and runs weeping into the village, surrounded by the herd. His aunt recognizes the accidental working of power and takes him into her hut, where she begins to teach him the rudiments of sorcery. This moment marks the first step on the path that will lead him to become the greatest wizard of Earthsea, though it also sets him on a course toward pride and a terrible mistake.