x
Char and Rath didn't settle on a campsite until dark. They set up camp while Iris cast a barrier over the location, and then she sat on a blanket by the fire, pulling her knees up to her chest and staring into the flames Char had breathed into life.
He sat beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, hugging her to his side. “You’re doing it again.”
“Sorry.” She took a deep breath and gave him a weak smile. “I think I’d better check on… something.”
She reached for the amulet, but Char grabbed her wrist before her hand could touch the clear stone.
“What kind of ‘something’?”
She hesitated. “I want to see if Micah’s at the castle.”
“Not a bad idea.” Rath joined them, passing out the standard dull fare of dried meat and biscuits. “If you can spy things out for us with nobody realizing it, maybe you can help us find a way into that castle, too.”
“That’s what I was working on when we were flying. I’m not sure how we’ll manage it. Every entrance is heavily guarded, even the side entrances. The guards patrol in pairs, and there are pairs of archers hidden in all the towers, too. I thought maybe the changing of the guard would be the best time to try, but they’re really well organized. I couldn’t find any blind spots.”
Rath whistled. “Wow. Want a career in espionage once this is all over? The army could definitely use you.”
“No,” Char snapped. He glared at Rath, flickering flames reflected in green eyes narrowed and sharpened to a point.
Rath held his hands up in front of him. “Whoa, it was a joke. Settle down, will ya?”
Iris pulled her wrist free from Char and closed her fingers around the amulet. “I’ll be back soon, I think. If it’s more than an hour, wake me up.”
She looked again at the fire and took a slow, deep breath, closing her eyes on the exhale. The whispers crowded in, and she pushed through them, reaching up and calling them along with her as she soared into the starry sky. When she looked down, she saw her barrier, a translucent, shimmering dome surrounding the little camp.
She smiled. She was getting better at this magic thing.
Then she felt something to the north, something tugging at her. Not the whispers, and not Micah. There was none of his telltale snapping and crackling, but there was a magical signature. Something vague and mysterious, something she couldn’t quite describe.
She could have fought the pull, but she allowed it to draw her toward it in a steady descent.
There was a town north of camp. She’d have to tell Char and Rath about that when she returned. They might want to move, just to be safe. Even though there were no people outside. She could feel them, cowering behind locked doors and shuttered windows, and she wondered what they feared.
Then she saw the sea of tents on the northern edge of town.
The human army.
It wasn’t Micah. It couldn’t be Micah. Could it?
Somewhere among those tents was the source of the unknown force, but it felt distinct from Micah’s. Different.
Hiding a signature was one thing. He couldn’t change his, could he?
Regardless, there was no longer any doubt in Iris’ mind. The campsite Char and Rath had selected was too close to the army. They had to move, and they had to move soon. She needed to tell them.
But if the army had a new mage with whom they would have to contend, they needed to know as much as they could about the person. And she was so close to finding them.
She drifted toward the tents, hesitant.
And then it was gone. Nothing. Vanished. The vague allure she didn’t recognize was gone.
Magic sizzled through the air.
She bolted back to camp, back to her body, back to the safety of the two dragons sitting on either side of her. The amulet fell from her trembling fingers; her heart hammered in her chest.
“What did you see?” Char asked.
She swallowed hard and turned to look at him. “Micah isn’t far from here.”
“What? We need to move,” Rath said, standing. “Which way is he?”
She sucked in a breath, trying to clear her thoughts. “Th-there’s a town up ahead. He and the rest of the army are on its northern edge.”
“Did he see you?” Char asked.
“I d-don’t think so.”
“Up ahead. The direction we’ve been traveling?” Rath pressed her as he stamped out the fire.
“Y-yes.”
“They’re going back to the capital,” Char muttered.
“Yeah, and they’ll beat us at this rate, too. Just what we need.”
Rath was already rolling up a bedroll while the fairy worked on another, the usual lightness of its quick movements replaced by an abrupt urgency. Char stood and pulled Iris to her feet, and then he grabbed the bedroll upon which she’d been sitting.
“I wish we could fly,” Rath muttered under his breath.
“Well, we can’t.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Rath shouldered his pack. “We’ll be doing some night traveling, Iris. And we’ll be moving fast. Fast and quiet. I’d rather try to break into that castle before Micah and the army returns. Think you can keep up?”
She nodded. “But they set up tents. Doesn’t that mean they plan to stay put for a little while?”
“Not necessarily.” Char shifted his pack to his unbruised shoulder and took her hand, following Rath as he set out with long strides. “They’re trained to set up and break down the camp in under five minutes. But since it’s just the three of us, we should be able to get ahead and stay ahead if we use the road.”
“But isn’t that dangerous?” Iris asked, already breathless. She almost had to trot to keep up with the dragons.
“We have to go around the army first,” Rath said, his words clipped. “It’ll be tight, but once we get past them, we can cover a lot more ground a lot faster. No more talking.”
She had more questions, but she didn’t dare ask them after Rath’s sharp command. She needed to save her breath so she could keep up with the dragons, anyway. They moved with a single-minded purpose, sharp blue and green eyes scanning the area as long legs ate up the ground, and she clung to Char's hand, listening to the dead grass crunching beneath their feet, the cool evening breeze whispering across the plains.
It was all too loud. The breeze, their footsteps, the grass.
And the stars in the clear night sky were too bright.
Char and Rath always dressed in black, and they’d told her to dress in dark clothes before they set on this mission. Now she understood the reason. Dark colors blended into a dark night. And she was glad for the dark blue dress she wore.
But she could still see plenty, and she didn't have the dragons' keen night vision.
The minutes ticked by.
Rath threw his hand up. Char came to a dead stop, squeezing Iris’ hand in warning, and she stepped closer to his side. She couldn’t see the town or the army at this distance.
She was afraid to breathe.
Rath dropped his hand and started again with a slight adjustment in their direction.
It was like a dance. A tense, panic-inducing dance. Hurry. Stop. Wait. Hurry faster. Stop. Listen. Look.
Iris hadn’t seen the fairy since they’d broken camp down. She hoped it had hidden itself inside a pack.
The town loomed in the distance now, sharp rectangular shadows in the dark of night. No lights, but it was close enough for Iris to see, and Char’s hand tightened on hers.
“We’re too close,” he hissed.
Rath shook his head and put his finger to his lips.
There were no further words. They didn’t stop, and they didn’t alter their course until they’d passed the town and the army’s tents came into view, fluttering in the cool evening breeze.
Rath adjusted their direction again, giving the tents a wider berth than he’d given the town. The canvas seemed to stretch on forever, or maybe that was Iris’ imagination, tricked by the pounding of her heart into thinking time and place had frozen and they were making no progress.
Then she felt the crackling.
She grabbed Rath’s arm and yanked him and Char to the ground.
“What are you doing?” Char mouthed.
“Hold on to me,” she whispered, taking hold of the amulet with her right hand. Char squeezed her left hand, and she felt Rath’s hand on her shoulder.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, in and out. Breathe in the calm; breathe out the magic.
Footsteps approached. The tingling on her skin became a zinging, a step away from a burning sensation.
“Where are the patrols?” Micah snapped.
Iris’ entire body tensed.
“Th-they just passed here a few minutes ago, I’m sure,” an unknown man stammered.
“I ordered constant patrols. There are to be no gaps in coverage.”
“B-but we’re within our own territory, and so close to the capital—”
His words ended with a gurgling, choking sound.
“I give the orders. They are not for you to question.”
A thud hit the ground just feet away from Iris. The choking became gasping, sucking in air. She knew the sound—and the feeling—well.
“Get up.”
Another thud and a corresponding whimper. Had Micah kicked the poor soldier?
“If you value your life, you will return to camp immediately and adjust the patrols as I ordered.”
“Y-yes, sir.”
Footsteps pounded away, running with a gait as uneven as the soldier’s ragged breath.
“Weakling.”
Iris waited, holding her breath. The soldier’s footsteps faded and disappeared.
Micah didn’t move.
“I know you’re here, Iris.”
She pressed her lips together and clenched her fingers tighter around the amulet, tight enough for its bronze setting to bite into her skin. Char and Rath tensed on either side of her, but they held their ground.
“You’ve been practicing your magic, I see. I sensed you earlier when you came to my tent.” He chuckled. “Sweet little Iris. You really shouldn’t trust an unknown magical signature.”
He was coming toward her. She heard the crunching of dead grass under his feet. She didn’t dare open her eyes, but she could smell the leather of his boots, and she knew she’d lost the game. He’d found her. He’d lured her in with his deception, and now it was just a question of when he would drop the ruse and grab her.
Char and Rath wouldn’t be able to save her, but maybe she could shield them long enough for them to escape.
Micah’s footsteps stopped right in front of her. “We have unfinished business to attend to, you and I.”
She was trembling. He had to hear the frantic pounding of her heart.
“Tch.”
His boots squeaked as he turned away. “Hide while you can, Iris. You’re only delaying the inevitable. I always keep my word.”
A terrified whimper threatened to betray her. She bit her tongue to stop it, hard enough to taste blood. She couldn’t breathe, couldn't move. Even when his steps receded into the distance, she lay there still, paralyzed by fear.
Rath’s hand left her shoulder. She heard him walking around, and a moment later, Char pulled her to her feet. Rath put his index finger to his lips and nodded his head to the side. Char gave him a nod of acknowledgment, and then they were on the move again.
The new pace Rath set was brutal. He angled their path until the tents were out of sight, at least for Iris, their trajectory curving around and finally reaching the packed earth of the road. Then he sped up even more, racing against the waning hours of the night. He showed no signs of slowing down when the inky black sky lightened to a dusky gray.
Iris’ legs were burning, but she made no complaint. She would break into a run if necessary. They needed to get as far from Micah as possible, because she knew if he caught her, he wouldn’t let her escape again.
ns216.73.216.94da2
