About halfway down the slope, the trail widened once more into a shelf of land, and Jaax came to a stop. There was just enough room for Jahrra and Ellyesce to join him on their semequins.
“Why’d we stop?” Jahrra asked, trying to peer past Jaax’s wing.
The dragon noticed and pressed the large appendage closer to his flank so that Jahrra could see. Below them, in a small meadow, there stood a great wooden sign fastened to an old, dead tree. Jahrra tried to read what the sign said, but it was too far away. The tree was marking the intersection of two roads, one wide and broad, the other narrow and winding. They were on the meandering trail that ran north and south, the one that would take them to Cahrdyarein and eventually, Nimbronia.
“The crossroads,” Ellyesce offered, pulling on the rope to get the pack horse closer to them.
“Do you sense anything?” Jaax asked the elf.
Ellyesce closed his eyes and took long, slow breaths. But before he got the chance to reply, something small and vibrant red in color came flying past the rock precipice on their left and into the clearing below.
Jahrra gasped and felt her eyes widen. It was the limbit she had seen at the lake earlier that morning. It had to be, for he had on the same woolen hat and vest he’d worn then. What was he doing here?
“What on Ethoes?” Ellyesce muttered, his concentration disrupted.
Jaax didn’t say a word. He merely stood there in stone silence, gazing at the creature as if it had ruined his day. Jahrra knew that look. It was the same look he had given her when she was younger.
The limbit came to a skidding halt and pressed a hand against the dead tree, his shoulders heaving as he tried to catch his breath.
Is something chasing him? Jahrra wondered.
In that moment, the small creature glanced up, his eyes falling upon the dragon, young woman and elf staring down at him from a hundred feet up the trail. He started in surprise, but before anyone could react, an arrow sliced through the air and buried itself into the bark of the old tree with a dull thud.
The limbit jumped a foot in the air and swung his head around. Oh yes, something was definitely after him. Jahrra’s first instinct was to jump off Phrym and run down there to help, but Jaax was even quicker to react than her.
“Against the side of the hill, now!” he hissed, pushing her and Ellyesce and the horses with his wings and body before Jahrra could even take her next breath.
Phrym gave a huff of protest, but Jahrra spoke calmly to him as he stutter-stepped to keep from tripping over the loose stones scattered across the trail. In less than fifteen seconds, she and Ellyesce were pressed into the moss-covered granite, their horses tense but obeisant, as the great dragon curled his tail and body around them.
The last thing Jahrra saw before her guardian’s wing cut off her view was a pair of large brown eyes staring up at them from a face gone pale with fear.
-Chapter Four-
A Narrow Escape
“Not a sound,” Jaax whispered to his companions, just before going absolutely still.
Jahrra swallowed and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly through her nose. She and Phrym were pressed uncomfortably against the other horses, but she didn’t dare shift in the saddle. Jaax, without a doubt, was using his camouflage to make them virtually invisible, but she wasn’t about to risk a shift in the scenery simply because she couldn’t sit uncomfortably for a few minutes. Instead, she turned her head away from the damp rock face and noticed a small gap where Jaax’s wing didn’t quite fall flush against his side. She narrowed her eyes, catching a tiny glimpse of the scene unfolding on the crossroads below.
While Jaax had been rushing to hide them, several more arrows had joined the other one, either lodging in the tree or embedding themselves into the ground around the limbit’s feet. There was no doubt in her mind he was trapped. And now, Jahrra could see why Jaax had been so frantic to block them from view.
Several large beasts resembling dark horses with cloven hooves and small horns beneath their ears, thundered into view, their riders dressed mostly in black, their deep red cloaks billowing out behind them. A chill coursed down Jahrra’s spine. She recognized those demon horses. Quahna. The same beasts that Hroombra’s murderers had ridden. And now, they were about to kill another innocent. A deep-rooted anger boiled up from the pit of Jahrra’s stomach, and she had to will herself to calm down. Getting upset would help no one. The soldiers had the limbit surrounded, over a dozen armed and armored men on their quahna.
The small creature had absolutely nowhere to go. The demonic horses stamped their feet and pulled at their bridles in irritation, clearly wanting to attack their quarry. Jahrra grimaced when one opened its mouth to let out a terrifying bellow. Sharp teeth, the kind that belonged to a carnivore, lined its jaws. The color drained from Jahrra’s face. Would she have to witness yet another gruesome death, and once again be unable to prevent it?
The mounted soldiers on one end of the circle suddenly moved their monsters aside, making room for someone Jahrra could only assume was their squadron leader. Dressed similarly to the others, but wearing a black cloak instead of scarlet, this new rider held himself higher in the saddle than those circling the limbit. Behind him rode one more figure. This individual wasn’t dressed in the black and red uniform of the soldiers, but instead wore a brilliant red robe with a pointed hood covering most of his head.
“Well, well, well,” the newcomer dressed all in black crooned, bringing his own quahna within snapping range of the limbit. “You truly thought you could outrun us?”
The limbit didn’t answer. Clearly angry at such disrespect, the horrible man unhooked a whip from his saddle bag and flicked it out, lashing it against the back of the limbit’s legs. The fox-like creature let out a cry of pain and fell to his knees.
“We have just destroyed your village, vermin, and all who live there. You have nothing to return to and nothing awaiting you out in this world. Believe me. Your death would be a mercy, and we will gladly grant that to you, but first you will answer our questions.”
The limbit remained silent and still, kneeling in the muddy road before all of these ruthless warriors who could kill him in an instant. Jahrra felt a sudden spark of respect extend to this brave creature.
“We are looking for someone,” the squadron leader continued. “A dragon and a young woman, as well as a third companion of unknown origins. The dragon is a green Tanaan and the girl is blond and goes by the name of Jahrra.”
Jaax grew taut as a bowstring just as Jahrra caught her breath. They knew her name. But how? Suddenly, visions of her friends in Lidien, of Gieaun and Scede back in Oescienne, being interrogated and tortured into giving up information, flashed through her mind. She was about to break down and scream out her fear and rage when a gentle hand grasped her shoulder. She almost yelped, but instead of surprise coursing through her veins, she felt a cool calmness wash over her. She turned to look over her shoulder. Ellyesce. His eyes were deep and his face looked grim, but he shook his head infinitesimally.