Maiya ran back into the abode and returned to their bedroom. Long ago, they’d established a method for sending each other messages neither of them wanted Riyan to get wind of. It was especially useful if their training schedules didn’t match for the day. Often, one of them would be fast asleep by the time the other returned from their training.
Maiya lifted Vir’s mattress and snaked her hand underneath, searching.
She soon found what she was looking for—a small piece of parchment with a note hurriedly scribbled in charcoal.
‘Out on last minute training trip for Riyan. Finally good to get out! Back in a few days. Keep up your training!’
The blood left Maiya’s face. She grew lightheaded and had to brace herself against the bed, taking deep breaths to calm down.
Vir was all alone out there. And he had no idea he was being hunted.
48SOME DREAMS DO COME TRUE
Rudvik stepped forward. “I will not allow it.”
The knight appraised Rudvik with a bemused expression. “You? Don’t embarrass yourself, lumberjack. What combat training have you had? Have you ever taken the life of another man? Will you behead me with that ungainly tree ax of yours?”
“Ye damn well know I’ll do whate’er it takes!” his father shouted.
The scene played out in front of Vir’s eyes, just as before. But unlike then, he was stronger now. This time, he could do something.
“No!” Vir shouted. “Father, you can’t take him on!”
“What kinda father can’t e’en protect his own kid, huh?”
Vir didn’t bother arguing. He saw the knight’s poleax in slow motion, promising death and destruction as it approached Rudvik’s back.
But this time, Vir would not let him. He Leaped to the knight, crashing into him, sending his enemy tumbling to the ground.
“Now, Maiya!” he said, jumping away.
Twin columns of fire erupted from his friend’s hands, arcing out, enveloping the knight. The warrior screamed, writhing on the ground, desperately trying to get free of the flames that burned him.
He failed. The knight’s screams grew weaker and weaker, until there was silence in the forest once again.
“Ye did good, boy!” Rudvik said, patting Vir and Maiya on their heads. “Couldn’t be more proud o’ ya.”
“I just wanted to make you proud, Father,” Vir said, tears welling up in his eyes.
“Aye, ye—get down, boy!” Rudvik said suddenly.
An enormous spider descended upon the man, crushing him under its immense weight.
Vir hadn’t even had the chance to move. He watched helplessly as the light faded from his father’s eyes.
“Run!” Rudvik whispered.
“Father no!” Vir wailed, jerking awake, katar already in hand.
He looked around, only to find a peaceful forest that was just waking up for the day. Peaceful, apart from the strange voices that always plagued the Godshollow.
Sighing, he put down his blade.
Not that dream again. This was the second night in a row he’d had that nightmare, though this time with the addition of a certain spider. And now he was shivering thanks to all the sweat that greased his back.
Great…
At least nightmares rarely came true.
Vir sunk further under the thick blanket he’d stol—borrowed, from Riyan’s place. Even if the man had ordered him to set out right away to go hunt some beast, he wasn’t about to enter the Godshollow without adequate preparations. Warmth was key to survival.
The trip had taken six long hours on Bumpy from Riyan’s abode, but the forest was no place for an Ash’va. He’d been forced to leave the animal to graze near the northern edge of the forest.
The Godshollow—and specifically this task Riyan had set for him—brought with it a torrent of emotions. On the one hand, he’d just gained some powerful new Talents he was itching to test out, but dangerous situations put him at risk of the Reaper taking over again. The two thoughts warred with each other in Vir’s head, leaving him little peace.
After several minutes of working up the courage to escape the warmth of his blanket, he eventually managed it.
Vir stepped past the makeshift camp to gaze down on the forest floor, over a hundred paces below. He’d been to the forest a thousand times, though had never witnessed it from this high before. The canopy was a world unto itself, magical and mysterious.
He’d never realized just how truly massive the boughs of the great Godhollows were until he’d High Jumped and climbed his way up one to pitch camp on high.
Though Vir wasn’t afflicted with a fear of heights, climbing a hundred paces without a rope would scare anyone. And considering he hadn’t yet learned Light Step, a fall from that height would be his last. He made sure to never look down.
The bough he was on was over seven paces in width. He could comfortably lie down sideways and still had room to spare. As a platform, it was both sturdy and secure.
Riyan had been sparse on the details of this hunt, but he had mentioned three things. First, he’d given Vir the beast’s general location and said that, while dangerous, the prana beast wasn’t beyond his capabilities.
Apparently, it’d been wreaking havoc on the local ecosystem. Riyan seemed certain that if left unchecked, the capital would send out a scouting party. Any military presence near Brij was bad news for all of them.
Vir felt like that was all a lie, though. That the real reason was because Riyan wanted Vir to get some actual combat experience. It did feel like he was being thrown to the wolves on this one, but he was in no position to complain. If it helped him grow stronger, he was all for it.
Second, Riyan cautioned that there was safety to be found in altitude. The higher the better. That made sense to Vir on several levels—most of the forest’s predators had no means to scale the enormously tall trees.
Finally, Riyan mentioned that he’d benefit by observing and analyzing the enemy before making his move. He’d neglected to mention what exactly the enemy he was hunting was, or even what it looked like. Apparently, part of the value of this lesson was figuring out this information for himself.
Vir didn’t mind—he’d never been one to shy away from a challenge.
After eating some nuts and dried berries, Vir retrieved his weapons and departed.
He’d soon discovered that several of the Godhollows’ barkless boughs nearly touched each other, and where they didn’t, Leap and High Jump allowed him to bridge those gaps with ease. As such, he never needed to climb back down to the forest floor, able to traverse ground far quicker than those restricted to the forest floor.
He came to the end of a limb and waited several seconds as High Jump charged, then he sailed through the air onto another bough, dropping to his knees to absorb the impact.
The only issue with Talents up here was that they took far longer to charge than being in direct contact with the ground. A minor inconvenience in daily life, but a major drawback in the middle of a battle.
He’d spent two days in this forest now, and just yesterday, he’d found a lead on the beast he was hunting.
When he’d first laid eyes on the white monster, he thanked Janak that Maiya wasn’t here. The giant spider would’ve had her curling up in a ball and wishing to disappear.
The critter soon came into view. It was never one to stray from its usual patrol, making its actions easy to predict.
The white arachnid was about three paces wide, and a single pace tall. Frightening for a spider, but overall, not too much of a threat, given Vir’s recent advances.