“You do not know those woods like Rudvik does, Knight Captain. You have no hope of catching them now,” Apramor said. He kept his tone even, even as panic welled up inside him. Something wasn’t right. Why would the captain casually reveal his plans? Unless…
“Oh, I am quite sure you’re right, priest. But you see, few men can outrun our hunting bandies, let alone a child. The forest may be vast, but their noses will find them, mark my words.”
Hunting bandies? Apramor’s eyes widened. He’d heard stories of the royal attack canines’ capabilities. They were animals to be feared.
“You have bought them a few days at most, priest. They will not get far.”
Apramor looked up at the sky with a deep sadness. “You are playing with fire, Knight Captain. That boy is larger than me—than even you. Vir is more special than you could possibly imagine. Cease your pursuit before you get burned. Let sleeping wyrms lie.”
“Burned! Us?” Vastav scoffed. “We’ll just have to see about that, won’t we?”
Apramor smiled grimly. “I suppose we shall.”
Rudvik, Vir, Mai… My prayers are with you.
6EKAVIR—OF GODSHOLLOW
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Vir had spent so many cycles in the Godshollow that he could almost navigate it blindfolded… during the day. At night? That was a whole different story.
As he plodded through the inky darkness, boots crunching twigs and leaves underfoot, Vir felt like he was in completely foreign surroundings. Majestic trees that should’ve signposted his way stood sinister and foreboding, the feeble light of his lantern making them seem even taller and grander than they really were.
Forget Maiya—whose jitters made her lantern shake and tremble—even he was getting goosebumps, and that was with Rudvik leading the way alongside Neel. Even the bandy stuck closer to the group than usual, warily eyeing the pitch-black wilderness.
And the voices! The din of the forest’s chatter genuinely spooked Vir. There was a power in these woods. Something ancient and very deep. It was all he could do to put one foot in front of the other, slowly penetrating the oppressive blackness. He wondered whether he’d made a terrible mistake.
“Alright, we make camp ’ere,” Rudvik said, breaking the heavy silence.
“Here?” Maiya squeaked at the thought of stopping in such a foreboding location, but Vir was secretly relieved. He’d hit the limit of his meager stamina a long time ago. If Rudvik hadn’t called for a break soon, Vir would’ve—well, he’d just have walked until he collapsed of exhaustion.
Rudvik bellowed a laugh that echoed through the silent woods, making both Maiya and Vir flinch and peer into the darkness. Their gazes were returned only by silence.
“S’only gonna get darker and scarier the deeper we go, Crimson. This here’s a fine spot. As good as any,” he said, throwing down his bundle of logs and cracking his shoulder.
Maiya eyed the heavy wood Rudvik had been carrying all along. “Why’d you bring firewood when there’s wood all around us?”
“Gatherin’ firewood’s no simple task, lass. Hard ’nuff during the day. Downright dangerous at night. Not ta mention all the sweat you’ll shed.”
Maiya wrinkled her nose. “Why’s that bad?”
Vir spoke up. “When your sweat cools off, you get cold. Really cold. And there’s no easy way to recover from that.”
“We’ve all grown used to our utility magic, so most people never even realize it,” Rudvik said. “We’d be up for hours gatherin ’n choppin wood. Ain’t that right, Vir?”
Vir nodded vigorously. “People always underestimate how much fuel you need for a fire. It’s a lot of work. A lot.” He thought back to all the times he’d helped Rudvik prepare firewood for the villagers.
Rudvik cleared the area of vegetation and set rocks around the fire’s periphery, while Vir got to work shaving the fire logs. Their loyal brown-and-white bandy did his part too, circling the campsite, proudly claiming his ownership of the area.
Maiya stood with a blank look for a moment before slapping her face. That seemed to break her out of her trance, and she helped Vir with the fire preparations.
“I may not be a lumberjack, but I know how to start a fire. Well, with magic, at least,” she said.
Thanks to Rudvik’s D Grade Magic Heat orb, they had a fire going in no time. Vir always carried flint and steel with him, but lighting a fire from a spark was not a straightforward task. In fact, it’d taken him a solid month of practice to learn how to get a fire going with that method. Most people would find it impossible, even with bone dry tinder.
Magic Heat made the task trivial. Once activated, the orb incrementally grew hotter until the tinder combusted. It took almost no skill at all… apart from powering the orb with prana, of course.
“Awwright!” Maiya shouted the moment the fire stabilized.
It always amazed Vir just how much peace of mind a roaring fire brought with it. Nevermind the heat it gave off, there was something mesmerizing about Adinat’s gift to the world.
In the past, he’d gotten so absorbed by the endless dance of the flames that tens of minutes would pass by without him noticing. And of course, fire had a myriad of uses. It kept predators at bay, could be used to cook food and boil water, and provided a far superior source of light than their meager lanterns. Though in the Godshollow, the fire’s bright light only seemed to make the shadows longer, the darkness deeper…
“How long do we have, do you reckon?” Vir asked.
Rudvik stroked his beard. His eyes glowed with the reflection of the flames, giving him a menacing appearance. “Well, Apramor’s gonna give us a diversion. Oughta give us a few days ’least. Even then, not like those tinheads know their way ’round this forest. A stranger can’t jes’ waltz right in ’n find us. No matter how ‘well trained’ they be.”
Vir found his father’s confidence comforting. Others might’ve called him overconfident, but Vir knew better. He was sure that his father could track and navigate through these woods better than any Hiranyan—knight or not.
“But where are we gonna go?” Maiya asked. “We’re not planning on staying in the forest very long, right?”
“Viridian Coast,” Rudvik grunted. “Safest option’s ta leave Hiranya for a country that… uh, that’s less devout.”
“Less devout,” Maiya contemplated, tapping her chin. “Well, Sai to the north is pretty religious, so, Rani, then?”
“Indeed,” Rudvik said, giving her an appraising look while stirring a pot over the campfire. Camp food always tasted better to Vir, though he never knew why. Maybe it was the company…
“I don’t follow,” said Vir.
“Rani Queendom’s to the south. Mom hasn’t taught you geography yet, so I guess you wouldn’t know… although you really should,” Maiya said.
She was right. Vir’s knowledge of geography was sorely lacking—only because he never thought he’d need it. Most Brij folk hadn’t even gone as far as the Godshollow, so what use was there learning about far-off kingdoms and empires?
“The Rani Queendom’s known for its pacifism and thriving trade industry. Unlike our kingdom, they’re considered extremely wealthy.”
“Huh…” Vir said, thinking it over. Something didn’t fit right, though. “How’re they able to be peaceful in a world like ours? Everyone’s always talking about war. You’d think they’d just be overrun by another country, right?”