*In our world, about 3 am*
Devic opened his eyes and sat up in his bed yawning. He had just had another strange dream, but something else had woken him up. He glanced over at his little brother who was sleeping peacefully, well as peacefully as he usually did. Luke had a habit of tossing and turning a lot, not to mention some snoring and mumbling...not a fun person to share a bed with in hotel rooms. Rubbing his eyes with the sleeve of his pajamas, he peered around the darkened corners of his room. Nothing interesting. And yet, something was nagging at him from the back of his brain, almost like he was still dreaming. Drowsily curious, he pinched himself softly. Nope, he was awake. Suddenly, a soft humming sound broke the stillness of the night.
At first, Devic thought nothing of it, assuming it was the dishwasher or the heater, but then it grew louder. His eyes got wider as his still only half-conscious mind began to make up all sorts of monsters and thieves that would make a humming noise, and he quickly got up and walked over to his brother's bed. As he reached out to shake his brother awake (Luke slept like a rock, and it was hard to wake him), he noticed that his hand was trembling slightly. Hurriedly, he pulled Luke's arm, whispering, "Luke! Luke wake up! Shh! Be quiet! Do you hear that sound?"
Luke blinked up sleepily at Devic then yawned widely, "What sound?"
"That hum?"
"I don't hear a hum...Can I go back to sleep now?"
"Are you sure you don't hear it?"
"...Yep..." With that, Luke flopped back down into his pillow, snuggled down into it and tried once again to fall asleep.
Still not satisfied, Devic returned to his bed, but sat cross-legged on top of the sheets, listening as well as he could for the hum. It had actually seemed to have gone away. With a confused whimper, Devic lay down and pulled his blanket over him, hunkering down low as if preparing for an attack.
A few minutes later, he was about to fall back into sleep when the humming came back suddenly and without warning, blaring in his ears like an untuned trumpet. He sprang up and was about to run into his parents room and demand an explanation when the wall next to his bed seemed to open up and a huge wind began to suck him in. This time, he did manage a scream of surprise and terror, which immediately woke Luke up. The two boys weren't able to utter another sound before they were sucked into the vortex, which sealed itself up again and disappeared as soon as they had both been pulled through.
***
Phi was jolted awake by the sound of her boys screaming. Maternal panic welled up inside of her entire body and she shook Alex awake while scrambling out of bed, "Alex! Alex, wake up! It's the kids!"
Instantly, his eyes flew open and he leapt out of bed and flew along side Phi as they rushed into their son's room. Phi skidded to a halt and threw open their door, letting out a cry of horror at the sight in front of her. Their room was empty, blankets and toys scattered everywhere, their hamper overturned. She rushed in and pulled the remaining sheets off of their beds desperately hoping that somehow it would make her children reappear. Alex was frozen at the door, struck silent with terror.
After a moment of silence, Phi hurried over to Alex and grabbed his shoulders, "Where could they have gone! Alex? Where did they go?"
"I-I..." He stumbled for words, then suddenly broke free of her and ran out the front door, gazing wildly around for any sign of someone who could have taken his sons. He stopped in their front lawn, his bare feet numb in the cold, dew covered grass, his face pale. Phi followed close behind, looking as if she was barely able to keep herself standing upright. Alex turned to her to find that tears were flowing down her cheeks, "They're...they're gone."
*In Tortall*
Devic (the boy) landed flat on his back, the air knocked out of him as Luke landed on his stomach. Luke, his mouth agape, and stared around. Suddenly, tears welled up in his eyes and he looked confused, "Where's our room? What's going on?!"
Devic pushed Luke off and shook his head to try and clear it and get rid of the annoying buzzing while trying to keep down the urge to hurl, "Ugh..." He stared around and narrowed his eyes, "What the...?"
They had landed in a forest, but a forest like neither of them had ever seen before in real life. To Devic, it looked almost like Sherwood Forest from his old Robin Hood picture books, but that would be ridiculous. The trees' trunks were massive; he doubted if he would even be able to wrap his arms around most of them, and they were growing so close together that the sky was completely blocked out. The air was chilly and a small breeze seemed to pass right through the boys' pajamas and gave them goosebumps. Luke turned, wide-eyed and frightened, to Devic, "What's going on? What happened to our house?"
"I dunno...Um, I don't think we should just sit here...Come on, we need to start looking for a way out of here." His little brother's fear seemed to make Devic stronger and helped to subside his own creeping fears and the bad feelings that he got from the murky shadows deep in the forest.
"But-but, Daddy said that whenever we get lost we should stay where we are so that they can find us! Devic? Devic! Are you listening to me?!" The six year old clamored to his feet and hurried after Devic as he stood and began to walk through the woods, "Where ya goin'?"
"Relax, I'm just lookin'. Besides, I think that Mom and Dad will understand if we leave this place...It gives me the creeps."
Luke straitened out his super-hero PJs and stared after Devic as he began to disappear into the darkness. Glancing around, finally he lost his courage, "Devic! Devic, wait for me!"
***
Will sighed as Devic (the older one) order that camp be packed up and the troops get ready to ride out in an hour. It was only five in the morning, and most of the men had only gotten about six hours of sleep. He turned to his cousin and sat down on a stump to watch as Devic poured over a map of the area, "Cousin, do you not think that you are pushing your men too hard for the first night?"
"Nonsense, they had a few days to catch up on their rest, they will be fine. Besides, if we want to make sure that we head off the men in the forest, we need all the time that we can get; especially if we are planning to head through the marshes..."
"Sir, the men do not exactly know about that part of the plan yet."
"Really? Well then, you had better brief them, because that is where we are headed for today. With luck, we should be out of there by nightfall and headed for higher ground where we can make camp."
"It sounds as if you have everything worked out..."
"I try Will. Now, I hope you are already packed up, because I have some things for you to do for me..."
"I had my things packed up half an hour ago. Do you need any help getting your stuff together so that you can have more time to plan?"
Devic glanced up at Will, then returned to his map, "Huh? Oh, I never unpacked..."
Will frowned in disapproval, "You mean you never slept?"
"No."
"Have you had breakfast yet?"
"No, and I do not have the time!"
Will crossed his arms, "Well Devic, you should really make some time, because it would do you no good to fall off of your horse from exhaustion in front of your men. I am going to go get you something to eat, and I expect you to finish every last bite of it!"
"But...I am fine, truly. Besides, I am not at all hungry! Also, I have other things for you to do that are more important to this mission."
"You lie, you are too hungry. What could be nearly as important as the welfare of our leader? If you do not take care of yourself, someone has too, and I suppose it might as well be me since you would not listen to anyone else!"
"Would you leave me alone Will?!"
"Fine, but I will be back in a moment with your breakfast."
Devic glared up at him as if Will was asking some kind of favor from him and frowned, "Fine, I will eat your damned breakfast! Now leave me to my work!"
Will dismissed himself, but as soon as he had his back turned he smiled and shook his head. Sometimes his cousin could be so juvenile!
Suddenly, Devic glanced up from his work and sat up straight. He had just felt a huge wave of magic from inside the forest, near the direction in which the Scans where supposed to be hiding. He stood up and called out to Will, "Change of plans, we leave immediately. Get all the men packed up and on their horses as soon as you can!"
Will turned back towards Devic, alarmed at his urgent tone, "What is it? What is the matter?"
"I just felt a huge surge of magic come from that area. I do not know what they are planning, but if they are using that big of a spell, it can not be good for us!"
Will nodded, his mouth tightening into a grim line, and hurried off towards the center of the camp, "Everybody, get ready to ride immediately! The enemy has just made a move! Come on everyone, MOVE!"
Instantly, the whole camp was busy and tents were dropping like flies and rolled up by knights and pages. The fires were quenched and stomped out, and supplies stuffed back into bags. Men ran around trying to gather their clothes and weapons together, and in seven minutes, the tiny army was in formation and ready to go.
Devic mounted up and signaled for them to start riding, "We head through the marshes to get the upper hand on the Scans! Move out!" There were a couple dissatisfied moans and the prospect of taking a horse through a bog, but the men obeyed and galloped off.
A/N: Yay! Another chapter done! Tell me how you liked it! :)
Devic opened his eyes and sat up in his bed yawning. He had just had another strange dream, but something else had woken him up. He glanced over at his little brother who was sleeping peacefully, well as peacefully as he usually did. Luke had a habit of tossing and turning a lot, not to mention some snoring and mumbling...not a fun person to share a bed with in hotel rooms. Rubbing his eyes with the sleeve of his pajamas, he peered around the darkened corners of his room. Nothing interesting. And yet, something was nagging at him from the back of his brain, almost like he was still dreaming. Drowsily curious, he pinched himself softly. Nope, he was awake. Suddenly, a soft humming sound broke the stillness of the night.
At first, Devic thought nothing of it, assuming it was the dishwasher or the heater, but then it grew louder. His eyes got wider as his still only half-conscious mind began to make up all sorts of monsters and thieves that would make a humming noise, and he quickly got up and walked over to his brother's bed. As he reached out to shake his brother awake (Luke slept like a rock, and it was hard to wake him), he noticed that his hand was trembling slightly. Hurriedly, he pulled Luke's arm, whispering, "Luke! Luke wake up! Shh! Be quiet! Do you hear that sound?"
Luke blinked up sleepily at Devic then yawned widely, "What sound?"
"That hum?"
"I don't hear a hum...Can I go back to sleep now?"
"Are you sure you don't hear it?"
"...Yep..." With that, Luke flopped back down into his pillow, snuggled down into it and tried once again to fall asleep.
Still not satisfied, Devic returned to his bed, but sat cross-legged on top of the sheets, listening as well as he could for the hum. It had actually seemed to have gone away. With a confused whimper, Devic lay down and pulled his blanket over him, hunkering down low as if preparing for an attack.
A few minutes later, he was about to fall back into sleep when the humming came back suddenly and without warning, blaring in his ears like an untuned trumpet. He sprang up and was about to run into his parents room and demand an explanation when the wall next to his bed seemed to open up and a huge wind began to suck him in. This time, he did manage a scream of surprise and terror, which immediately woke Luke up. The two boys weren't able to utter another sound before they were sucked into the vortex, which sealed itself up again and disappeared as soon as they had both been pulled through.
***
Phi was jolted awake by the sound of her boys screaming. Maternal panic welled up inside of her entire body and she shook Alex awake while scrambling out of bed, "Alex! Alex, wake up! It's the kids!"
Instantly, his eyes flew open and he leapt out of bed and flew along side Phi as they rushed into their son's room. Phi skidded to a halt and threw open their door, letting out a cry of horror at the sight in front of her. Their room was empty, blankets and toys scattered everywhere, their hamper overturned. She rushed in and pulled the remaining sheets off of their beds desperately hoping that somehow it would make her children reappear. Alex was frozen at the door, struck silent with terror.
After a moment of silence, Phi hurried over to Alex and grabbed his shoulders, "Where could they have gone! Alex? Where did they go?"
"I-I..." He stumbled for words, then suddenly broke free of her and ran out the front door, gazing wildly around for any sign of someone who could have taken his sons. He stopped in their front lawn, his bare feet numb in the cold, dew covered grass, his face pale. Phi followed close behind, looking as if she was barely able to keep herself standing upright. Alex turned to her to find that tears were flowing down her cheeks, "They're...they're gone."
*In Tortall*
Devic (the boy) landed flat on his back, the air knocked out of him as Luke landed on his stomach. Luke, his mouth agape, and stared around. Suddenly, tears welled up in his eyes and he looked confused, "Where's our room? What's going on?!"
Devic pushed Luke off and shook his head to try and clear it and get rid of the annoying buzzing while trying to keep down the urge to hurl, "Ugh..." He stared around and narrowed his eyes, "What the...?"
They had landed in a forest, but a forest like neither of them had ever seen before in real life. To Devic, it looked almost like Sherwood Forest from his old Robin Hood picture books, but that would be ridiculous. The trees' trunks were massive; he doubted if he would even be able to wrap his arms around most of them, and they were growing so close together that the sky was completely blocked out. The air was chilly and a small breeze seemed to pass right through the boys' pajamas and gave them goosebumps. Luke turned, wide-eyed and frightened, to Devic, "What's going on? What happened to our house?"
"I dunno...Um, I don't think we should just sit here...Come on, we need to start looking for a way out of here." His little brother's fear seemed to make Devic stronger and helped to subside his own creeping fears and the bad feelings that he got from the murky shadows deep in the forest.
"But-but, Daddy said that whenever we get lost we should stay where we are so that they can find us! Devic? Devic! Are you listening to me?!" The six year old clamored to his feet and hurried after Devic as he stood and began to walk through the woods, "Where ya goin'?"
"Relax, I'm just lookin'. Besides, I think that Mom and Dad will understand if we leave this place...It gives me the creeps."
Luke straitened out his super-hero PJs and stared after Devic as he began to disappear into the darkness. Glancing around, finally he lost his courage, "Devic! Devic, wait for me!"
***
Will sighed as Devic (the older one) order that camp be packed up and the troops get ready to ride out in an hour. It was only five in the morning, and most of the men had only gotten about six hours of sleep. He turned to his cousin and sat down on a stump to watch as Devic poured over a map of the area, "Cousin, do you not think that you are pushing your men too hard for the first night?"
"Nonsense, they had a few days to catch up on their rest, they will be fine. Besides, if we want to make sure that we head off the men in the forest, we need all the time that we can get; especially if we are planning to head through the marshes..."
"Sir, the men do not exactly know about that part of the plan yet."
"Really? Well then, you had better brief them, because that is where we are headed for today. With luck, we should be out of there by nightfall and headed for higher ground where we can make camp."
"It sounds as if you have everything worked out..."
"I try Will. Now, I hope you are already packed up, because I have some things for you to do for me..."
"I had my things packed up half an hour ago. Do you need any help getting your stuff together so that you can have more time to plan?"
Devic glanced up at Will, then returned to his map, "Huh? Oh, I never unpacked..."
Will frowned in disapproval, "You mean you never slept?"
"No."
"Have you had breakfast yet?"
"No, and I do not have the time!"
Will crossed his arms, "Well Devic, you should really make some time, because it would do you no good to fall off of your horse from exhaustion in front of your men. I am going to go get you something to eat, and I expect you to finish every last bite of it!"
"But...I am fine, truly. Besides, I am not at all hungry! Also, I have other things for you to do that are more important to this mission."
"You lie, you are too hungry. What could be nearly as important as the welfare of our leader? If you do not take care of yourself, someone has too, and I suppose it might as well be me since you would not listen to anyone else!"
"Would you leave me alone Will?!"
"Fine, but I will be back in a moment with your breakfast."
Devic glared up at him as if Will was asking some kind of favor from him and frowned, "Fine, I will eat your damned breakfast! Now leave me to my work!"
Will dismissed himself, but as soon as he had his back turned he smiled and shook his head. Sometimes his cousin could be so juvenile!
Suddenly, Devic glanced up from his work and sat up straight. He had just felt a huge wave of magic from inside the forest, near the direction in which the Scans where supposed to be hiding. He stood up and called out to Will, "Change of plans, we leave immediately. Get all the men packed up and on their horses as soon as you can!"
Will turned back towards Devic, alarmed at his urgent tone, "What is it? What is the matter?"
"I just felt a huge surge of magic come from that area. I do not know what they are planning, but if they are using that big of a spell, it can not be good for us!"
Will nodded, his mouth tightening into a grim line, and hurried off towards the center of the camp, "Everybody, get ready to ride immediately! The enemy has just made a move! Come on everyone, MOVE!"
Instantly, the whole camp was busy and tents were dropping like flies and rolled up by knights and pages. The fires were quenched and stomped out, and supplies stuffed back into bags. Men ran around trying to gather their clothes and weapons together, and in seven minutes, the tiny army was in formation and ready to go.
Devic mounted up and signaled for them to start riding, "We head through the marshes to get the upper hand on the Scans! Move out!" There were a couple dissatisfied moans and the prospect of taking a horse through a bog, but the men obeyed and galloped off.
A/N: Yay! Another chapter done! Tell me how you liked it! :)