A close encounter
Matthew and Hanna had been riding across the plains for almost two days when the paths began to slope upwards into the Prekkendorran Heights.
"These tracks are no place for horses, Hanna. We'd better leave them here tomorrow. I doubt they'll reach Dechtera."
"That's alright. We'll be fine without them."
They camped that night under the protection of a rather large boulder propped against a small knoll. The boulder sheltered them from the winds, but with the increasingly cold nights, they huddled close together in their blankets. They built up their fire as much as they could without it becoming uncontrollable until it became a small beacon of hope on the edge of the wilderness.
Karne Lissan, also saw the campfire as a beacon of hope. He'd been travelling smoothly for most of the day and into this night. He estimated he was about seven hours behind them, since he'd caught them up on many hours just from the way he knew the land. They were obviously strangers to this part of the four lands, cutting straight through once or twice but never really knowing it. Then again, very few people knew the land like Karne did. He replenished his strength with various roots, berries and small animals he'd caught, stopping often to refill his small water skin.
He would rest for a few hours now, then continue in the black of night. He had no fear of tripping or such, because he could see perfectly well. Walker had told him before that Karne's magic was descended from Skull Bearers and that he should be cautious in it's use. Karne didn't really use his magic, he preferred to use his born instincts and his innate knowledge of the world. He was certain he could catch the druid's daughter sometime tomorrow, since he doubted they knew the mountain passes well. What he would do then was irrelevant; he would catch them first then decide what to do. Walker had often warned him of his way of thinking, that it would cause him someday. Karne shook himself of these thoughts and settled down to sleep; he would have a hard day ahead of him tomorrow.
Hanna and Matthew rose with the dawn in a collectively good mood. They set their horses loose from their tethers and watched them wander back down the slopes to the plains. They gathered up their meagre amount of gear, stamped out the last part of their fire and started up the track into the mountain pass. They walked until noon, climbing the steep slope and at some points crawling. They stopped under a low crag to sit in the shade while they waited out the hottest part of the day. Travel was treacherous in the midday heat. Although, it was contrasting to the cold nights that were the telltale signs of autumn's coming. They rested there while they ate a ration of cold meats then set off again as the sun began to cool in the late afternoon. Matthew hoped they would reach the summit of the pass this evening, where travel following that could proceed faster because they would be in shadow most of the day due to the high rock formations on the other side. The sun began to disappear behind the clouds and the air turned colder. Matthew stopped dead in his tracks.
"Did you hear that?" He spun around to look behind them, but could see nothing but rocks and a sparse covering of hardy trees.
"It was probably just an animal, Matt."
She took his hand and led him farther up the trail. They continued on for several minutes until they both heard a shuffle of pebbles behind them. They spun simultaneously around and searched the shadows for movement. Neither person could see details in the failing twilight and cold sweat began to appear on their hands and faces. A second shuffle sounded, much closer this time on their left. Hanna jumped at the sound and never saw the strong bolt of magic coming. A green dart of fire flew straight towards her and probably would have hit her had it not been for a second shadow leaping out the rocks to push her from it's path.
This new shadow picked her up in it's arms and began running away at an incredible speed away from the attacker. The shadow kept running for a long time and since Hanna had been knocked unconscious, she didn't complain at begin separated from Matthew. When finally it stopped, satisfied at the distance between it and any form of threat it placed the girl down on a tree stump. It sat in front of her in a low crouch, alert to even the slightest sound. As the last rays of light crossed over his face, Karne Lissan waited motionless for her to wake.
Matthew and Hanna had been riding across the plains for almost two days when the paths began to slope upwards into the Prekkendorran Heights.
"These tracks are no place for horses, Hanna. We'd better leave them here tomorrow. I doubt they'll reach Dechtera."
"That's alright. We'll be fine without them."
They camped that night under the protection of a rather large boulder propped against a small knoll. The boulder sheltered them from the winds, but with the increasingly cold nights, they huddled close together in their blankets. They built up their fire as much as they could without it becoming uncontrollable until it became a small beacon of hope on the edge of the wilderness.
Karne Lissan, also saw the campfire as a beacon of hope. He'd been travelling smoothly for most of the day and into this night. He estimated he was about seven hours behind them, since he'd caught them up on many hours just from the way he knew the land. They were obviously strangers to this part of the four lands, cutting straight through once or twice but never really knowing it. Then again, very few people knew the land like Karne did. He replenished his strength with various roots, berries and small animals he'd caught, stopping often to refill his small water skin.
He would rest for a few hours now, then continue in the black of night. He had no fear of tripping or such, because he could see perfectly well. Walker had told him before that Karne's magic was descended from Skull Bearers and that he should be cautious in it's use. Karne didn't really use his magic, he preferred to use his born instincts and his innate knowledge of the world. He was certain he could catch the druid's daughter sometime tomorrow, since he doubted they knew the mountain passes well. What he would do then was irrelevant; he would catch them first then decide what to do. Walker had often warned him of his way of thinking, that it would cause him someday. Karne shook himself of these thoughts and settled down to sleep; he would have a hard day ahead of him tomorrow.
Hanna and Matthew rose with the dawn in a collectively good mood. They set their horses loose from their tethers and watched them wander back down the slopes to the plains. They gathered up their meagre amount of gear, stamped out the last part of their fire and started up the track into the mountain pass. They walked until noon, climbing the steep slope and at some points crawling. They stopped under a low crag to sit in the shade while they waited out the hottest part of the day. Travel was treacherous in the midday heat. Although, it was contrasting to the cold nights that were the telltale signs of autumn's coming. They rested there while they ate a ration of cold meats then set off again as the sun began to cool in the late afternoon. Matthew hoped they would reach the summit of the pass this evening, where travel following that could proceed faster because they would be in shadow most of the day due to the high rock formations on the other side. The sun began to disappear behind the clouds and the air turned colder. Matthew stopped dead in his tracks.
"Did you hear that?" He spun around to look behind them, but could see nothing but rocks and a sparse covering of hardy trees.
"It was probably just an animal, Matt."
She took his hand and led him farther up the trail. They continued on for several minutes until they both heard a shuffle of pebbles behind them. They spun simultaneously around and searched the shadows for movement. Neither person could see details in the failing twilight and cold sweat began to appear on their hands and faces. A second shuffle sounded, much closer this time on their left. Hanna jumped at the sound and never saw the strong bolt of magic coming. A green dart of fire flew straight towards her and probably would have hit her had it not been for a second shadow leaping out the rocks to push her from it's path.
This new shadow picked her up in it's arms and began running away at an incredible speed away from the attacker. The shadow kept running for a long time and since Hanna had been knocked unconscious, she didn't complain at begin separated from Matthew. When finally it stopped, satisfied at the distance between it and any form of threat it placed the girl down on a tree stump. It sat in front of her in a low crouch, alert to even the slightest sound. As the last rays of light crossed over his face, Karne Lissan waited motionless for her to wake.