“Thank you,” Legon said
Legon was thinking hard; Sasha could feel it. She felt him tapping into the logical part of her mind. He was using the information from the animals to figure out the best place to rest for a day or so, and the best ways into the hiding spots and out of them.
“There is a good place about one hundred yards over there,” he said, pointing into some dense brush.
“But that’s thick wood,” Kovos said, looking cynical.
“Only for a little way, then it opens. The forest canopy is high there,” Sasha said.
“And how do you know this?” Keither asked.
“The minds of the animals in this area. They have been hiding from threats for years. Now let’s move,” she said with a bit more force than she was planning. Arkin looked at Legon again and smiled.
They worked their way through the thick underbrush, and sure enough it cleared to a perfectly secluded place. The ground was bare except for some twigs and leaves. It was round with more than enough room for all of them and the horses. Twenty feet above them the trees became so dense that there was barely light to see. Not even the dragon could see them from overhead now. Legon instructed everyone to place their bedrolls on the ground; there wasn’t room for a tent or a fire. Everyone agreed. They might need to leave in a hurry. The tents would slow things down and a fire could attract attention.
It was mid-day when they made camp, but within a few hours the clearing was already dark. They lay on their bedrolls in a circle with their heads to the center, trying to rest.
“How are we going to see?” Keither asked. He always forgot about magic.
“Lumanaighty,” Legon said. And with that, a violet orb of light bloomed in his palm. It floated about four feet off the ground to the center of the circle, hovering. The light was sufficient for their immediate area but ended within ten feet, the way only magical light could. The light was taking almost no energy from Legon, so Sasha wasn’t concerned. Everyone looked odd in the violet glow, their faces washed of color. It made the colored parts of their eyes look like dark gray stone. Sara and Arkin’s fair hair glowed in the light, making them both look otherworldly. There was blackness where the light ended. The thick woods did not allow any sound or light to penetrate them. They were a dot of light in a sea of nothingness.
Arkin stirred. “I have protections still in place, but what are you doing Legon?”
“I have a weak connection with animals in the area; I used the information from an eagle to find a nice place for deer to lie down for the night nearby. Also, there is an owl in the area. If they see anything out of the ordinary, or if they get frightened, I will feel it and broaden my connection with them.”
Arkin smiled widely at him and looked much better. “Passive surveillance. Very good, Legon. With the waking sleep you will never lose contact with them, but with a weak connection other magic users won’t be able to stumble on to it.”
“They can do that?” Kovos said, worried.
“To an extent. They will be feeling the emotions of the creatures around them, and if something seems off they will investigate. But with a weak connection Legon will not be influencing anything, so they won’t look.”
After that, no one looked like they wanted to ask anymore, but contented themselves with resting. Legon and Sasha began the waking sleep.
Chapter Fifteen
“Our enemies always beat us in the way we least expect it, and therein lies the problem. We toil our days away trying to find that weak spot in our armor when we shouldn’t have been fighting to begin with.”
Keither opened his eyes, blinking at the ever-present lavender glow. He wasn’t too sure just how long they’d been in their hiding spot. It appeared the dragon had found something. Maybe it was them, maybe not. But there were people in the area. Legon was having a harder time sensing their surroundings as the group of soldiers searching the area had scared off all the larger animals. He was now forced to tap into the minds of rodents and squirrels. The thing that was odd was that Arkin’s spells hadn’t been tested at all. Kovos suggested that they try and check the minds of the men, but the idea was snubbed when Sasha pointed out that they may have a Venefica with them. It would be unwise to take on a large group and a magic user. Keither laid his head back down. It would almost be worth getting caught just to see light and a color other than purple. Legon breathed out a long breath.
“What is it?” Sara asked. It was good to hear a voice again. They’d been quiet for several days.
“They are leaving. They weren’t looking for us.”
“They weren’t?” she said.
“No. I was in the head of a rat when a scout approached and said that they caught the deserter.”
“This was about a deserter?” Sasha asked incredulously.
“They are close to the border. He could have been a spy. We should have known when they didn’t use magic to find anything,” Arkin said with relief. He was looking better now; all of them felt better. Maybe the few days of downtime had been good for them.
“We will wait for them to leave the area. Legon, let us know.”
Legon nodded at Arkin and closed his eyes. After a few hours passed, Arkin brought the horses out of the deep sleep he had placed them in so they would not make noise. They packed their belongings and began to make their way out through the thick brush. The light from Legon’s magic was just bright enough to dim any light that could have made its way into their hideout, so Keither wasn’t sure what time of day it was. As they moved out of the thicker parts of the trees and back on the road, he was blinded by dazzling light. He held his arm up, blocking the sun from eyes that did not seem to want to adjust.
Legon leaned back in Phantom’s saddle feeling the warmth of the sun. He had seen the sun through the eyes of the animals but hadn’t opened the connection enough to feel it. The only feeling that he had allowed himself once was that of a bird flying in the trees, popping in and out of the canopy. The animal seemed to like his presence and enjoyed showing its abilities to the world. The feeling of freedom was amazing. The wind in his, well, feathers, and the exhilaration of a dive. Before, the thought of flying had been frightening; he was terrified of heights. But he thought he was over that now. It was all about perspective when it came down to it.
The road was growing narrower as they went and they were using a number of switchbacks. At one point in time the road became only a game trail, so it wasn’t straight but it was long. They would be continuing on the road for about one and half weeks, at which time they would need to go off the main road and across wild country to avoid towns and the army. There were just a few towns on this road, and that was a problem. They were unavoidable, but they didn’t have to stop at them. The hope was that the towns were still being guarded by their own appointed people and that the military would be expecting them to handle security.
Over the next few days he felt the group’s apprehension building. They kept mental connections nearly all the time and had forgone the usual nightly training to cover more ground. They didn’t see many people, thankfully, and those they did chose not to talk to them. His connection with birds of prey primarily helped them avoid road blocks and check points, but these detours took time and that normally meant not sleeping much at night. Kovos rode up next to him.
“How are you doing, buddy?” Legon asked.
“Been better. I won’t lie to you on that. How do you think I’m going to make it back up to Salmont without being discovered?”
“I honestly don’t know.” Legon paused. “You don’t have to go with us if you don’t want. You said that you would come with us to the southern towns and you have. I don’t want you and Keither to — ”