Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
A Stranger
And a Strange Little Creature
“We follow the tracks.”
Kaelan’s voice came quietly after the creature disappeared into the darkness beyond the clearing, though the steady purpose in it left no doubt he had already decided.
Bria looked toward the trees where the beast had vanished so silently that at times, she questioned if she had truly seen it at all. Yet she had. She still felt the weight of its strange gaze fixed not on her, but on Kaelan.
“It is still night,” she said softly.
“Dawn approaches.”
The sky above the ruins had begun to pale slightly, though Driochmor surrendered little of its darkness. Shadows lingered thick beneath the forest canopy, and what faint light touched the land did little more than soften the blackness into deep gray.
Kaelan crossed back into the ruins and crouched beside the fire. Bria watched him gather dirt and scatter it carefully over the glowing embers until the last traces of flame disappeared beneath ash and earth.
Bria watched him quietly. There was purpose in every movement he made, as though he had long ago learned to survive in places far harsher than these ruins. And she wondered who he truly was. Where was he from? Somewhere in Scotara? Or far beyond its shores?
Kaelan rose and brushed the dirt from his hands. Curiosity or her own chance of survival had her asking, “To most people, that beast would inspire terror. Yet you stood before it unmoved, unthreatened.”
Kaelan glanced toward her briefly. “It is unwise to show a beast fear.”
Bria pressed gently, “The way you looked at it made me think you are familiar with such a creature. Are you?”
“We need to go,” he said, and took firm hold of her hand as if concerned she might refuse to go with him.
Bria needed no tug to follow along with him. He provided protection and while she still struggled to understand it, she did not wish to feel that emptiness that overcame her when they were separated.
Outside, the first weak traces of dawn slowly spread across the forest, though little light reached the ground where towering branches wove together overhead. Kaelan moved toward the edge of the clearing and lowered his gaze to the damp earth. He released her hand to lean down for a moment.
Bria remained at his side, drawing her cloak tighter against the chill. “You still have not answered me.”
Kaelan remained silent, studying the tracks. “I remind you again. You ask too many questions.”
“Wouldn’t you do the same if in my position?”
He stood, spotting a spark of stubbornness in her eyes. She would not let this go and she had a right to know, some, though not all of it. That would come in time.
“The creature comes from the Northland,” he said at last. “As do I.”
Bria stared at him not hiding her surprise.
“The Northland,” she repeated softly, trying to picture the distant harsh land beyond the North Sea that separated Scotara from the Northland. She had only heard about it in whispers and trader tales. “Then you came here searching for him?”
He cast a glance at the tracks once more. “Aye, I came here searching—” His head shot up, his eyes focused somewhere in the distance. “No time to waste.”
Bria studied him carefully while he began following the tracks once again. Bria glanced toward the ground and saw little beyond broken earth and flattened growth. Yet Kaelan never hesitated, never searched uncertain for direction as though the beast’s tracks remained perfectly visible to him.
Another quiet reminder that far more remained hidden beneath the man than he willingly revealed. Still, despite the questions steadily growing within her, she followed him deeper into Driochmor without hesitation, and that realization troubled her the most.
Bria hurried to keep pace with Kaelan as he followed the tracks deeper into Driochmor. Dawn had strengthened enough now that the forest no longer lay swallowed entirely in shadow, though sunlight still struggled to break fully through the thick canopy overhead.
And slowly, almost without her realizing it at first, the forest began to change.
The twisted darkness that had surrounded them through the night eased little by little.
The trees no longer stood bare and skeletal but carried leaves unlike any she had ever seen, long silver-green strands that shimmered softly whenever the faintest breeze stirred them.
Thick moss spread across the ground in rich shades of emerald, and strange vines climbed the trunks in graceful spirals rather than tangled knots.
Even the air felt different, clearer.
Bria found herself looking around in growing wonder despite herself.
“It is not what I expected,” she admitted softly and yet Kaelan heard her as if the breeze had carried her words to him.
He glanced briefly toward her while continuing forward. “Most things are not, once truly seen.”
His words made her wonder if she was yet to truly see Kaelan.
Her attention drifted beyond him and caught suddenly on a cluster of flowers growing near the base of a pale stone. Tall and delicate, their deep purple petals glimmered faintly beneath the dim morning light, their color so rich it seemed almost unreal.
Without thinking, she slowed a step toward them. Then stopped herself.
Kaelan’s warning returned at once. Best not to touch anything here.
Bria folded her hands tightly within her cloak instead, though her gaze lingered on the flowers as she passed.
Ahead of her, Kaelan slowed briefly and crouched near the ground, brushing his fingers through disturbed earth before rising once more.
“The tracks turn east,” he said, more to himself than to her and set a faster pace.
Bria quickened her pace to catch him, though her attention continually wandered now.
Strange things revealed themselves the farther they traveled.
Small pale creatures darted silently through the greenery and vanished before she could fully see them.
Long strands of silver moss hung from branches overhead, glowing faintly whenever light touched them.
Once, she spotted water flowing between stones not in clear silver but soft shades of blue-green.
Nothing in Driochmor felt entirely natural. Yet strangely, it no longer felt entirely hostile either.
Kaelan suddenly stopped.
Bria halted as well, though too quickly. Her foot caught on a thick root hidden beneath the moss, throwing her off balance. Instinctively, she reached out. Her palm struck the trunk of a nearby tree.
At once warmth spread through her hand and she froze.
The sensation flowed gently through her, soft and calming, easing tension she had not even realized she carried. For one startled moment, she thought the comfort came from herself, from the strange ability she had always possessed.
But no. This comfort flowed into her, not from her.
Her eyes widened slightly as she stared at the strange tree beneath her hand. Its bark carried faint streaks of silver beneath soft gray, almost like veins running through stone.
The tree had comforted her, and the realization left her breathless.
Slowly, Bria straightened and drew her hand away, though the warmth lingered faintly against her skin.
Then she saw them again, more of the purple flowers.
Only a few steps away this time, growing tall among thick green brush, their petals swaying softly in the light breeze.
Suddenly she needed to touch one, not from recklessness, more from curiosity. A strange pull she could not explain.
Bria stepped toward them and reached out.
Kaelan moved instantly. His hand clamped firmly around her wrist and pulled her back against him before her fingers could brush the petals.
“Do not touch that.”
The sharp command startled her far more than his grip.
Bria looked up at him in surprise. For the first time since entering Driochmor, genuine alarm burned in his eyes.
She glanced quickly back toward the flowers. “Why?”
“They are poison.”
Bria stared at the delicate purple blooms in disbelief. Their petals shimmered softly in the pale morning light, beautiful enough to tempt anyone closer.
“They do not look poisonous,” she said, though she knew better, familiar with poisonous plants that grew in the forests of Leighfeld.
“Trust me, they are. Only the Wise can touch them.”
His grip eased, though he did not fully release her at once, as though reassuring himself she would not reach for them again.
Bria looked once more toward the flowers. “How do you know only the Wise can touch them?”
Kaelan blocked the flower with his body. “Because the Wise know how to touch them without dying.”
“Who are the Wise?” Her brow puckered. “You speak of this place as though you have lived here your whole life.”
A faint shadow crossed his face at the words, gone quickly enough she almost questioned seeing it.
“There is no time to explain,” he said, giving her a light push to start walking. “We need to keep moving.”
Bria stood firm. “I need to understand more.”
“Later,” he said, a firmness in his tone. “When we stop.”
“And if I do not wish to wait?”
His brow narrowed. “It’s not an option.”
Bria went to argue further when Kaelan stepped closer and leaned his head down to speak low. “I lost the creature’s trail not long ago.”
Bria’s stomach tightened. “Lost it?”
“It vanished, but I picked up another.”
The calm certainty that had remained with him since entering Driochmor had changed subtly now. It wasn’t fear. He never showed that. It was an alertness she had not seen in him before now.
Bria looked around uneasily. “Another creature?”
“Nay, I can sense them.”
“Them?” she asked, alarmed. “There is more than one here?”
Kaelan lowered his head closer, his lips close to her cheek. “Not the time, Bria. Now stay close to me.”
His strong command sent a shiver through her. Or was it the way his warm breath brushed her cheek?
“Not the time, Bria,” he repeated. “Pay attention and keep close.”
His words startled her. Had he sensed what she felt? Or was she feeling what he felt?
She had no time to pursue it. His hand closed firmly around hers and he hurried her forward.