by Dan Decker
Jorad forced his attention back to the impression in the ground and felt the print with his fingers, there were odd markings, and the track was deep. A man couldn’t have made this unless he was heavy and had feet almost twice the size of Jorad. The track felt like an imprint from a boot, except it was oddly shaped, with three toe-like splinters poking out in front.
They continued up the hill a bit more cautiously after that.
When Jorad emerged from a sudden opening in the forest at the top of the hill, he lay beside Adar. The other side of the hill was bare and didn’t offer any cover for them to descend. There was movement at the bottom where the forest thickened again, but it was too far away and dark to tell much more than that. Had Adar seen it as well? A glance at Adar’s face was answer enough, and Jorad could almost hear Adar ticking off the possibilities in his head.
Jorad became more alert with the prospect of tracking the unknown creature. Adar wouldn’t pass on an opportunity to track something they hadn’t encountered before even if it was a mammoth bear. If they were careful and kept their distance, they’d be fine. Adar sometimes would spend hours tracking an animal if it crossed their path even if it was going the opposite direction and they weren’t hunting.
Jorad suspected that tonight would be different and they’d track the unknown creature until they’d confirmed that it was a native animal. Adar was too focused tonight to waste time.
They made their way across the top of the hill until they reached thicker vegetation where they slipped over to the other side. Jorad was aware of the greater need for stealth as they descended the hill and took care to move slower than he had before. This earned him an approving nod from Adar. That was rare enough that it caught him off guard and he almost tripped during a moment of self-congratulation. He cursed and was glad he didn’t loosen anything to go bounding down the slope to warn their quarry as they moved in a course to intercept the unknown creature. He avoided eye contact with Adar, hoping this mistake had been unnoticed.
At the bottom of the hill, it took several minutes to find the large three-pronged tracks. When they did, Adar pointed to a track that was bigger than the others indicating that there was more than one.
They hadn’t been following for long before Jorad could see shadows moving ahead. He stumbled when he saw that the shadows were walking on two legs and grabbed a tree for support. Even in the moonlight, Jorad could see the set of Adar’s jaw.
It took several hours for the shadows to reach the tree line that was parallel to the north road leading out of Neberan. The shadows had stopped multiple times and seemed to be conversing, but Jorad couldn’t hear anything. By the little he could see of Adar’s face from flashes of moonlight through the trees, Adar looked grim and determined.
On the outskirts of the forest, well within sight of Neberan, the shadows—he could see three distinct figures now—crouched and examined the town. Jorad had a sinking feeling in his stomach and wished that they’d found a mammoth bear instead.
Adar touched Jorad’s arm and motioned to the right where the forest was thicker. Jorad moved more cautiously than he had all night while keeping an eye on the shadows as much as possible. Other than a Hunwei, what’s bigger than a man and walks on hind legs? Whatever they were he didn’t want to find out by making a misstep. They hid in the middle of a big cluster of pine trees that was surrounded by thick grass.
The three shadows appeared to be talking and one motioned to the town multiple times. The shadows stayed at the edge of the forest for close to an hour, and the moons were well into the sky when they moved to leave.
When the shadows turned, Jorad was glad that Adar had anticipated they’d return the way they had come. The shadows moved quickly, making more noise than before, if they’d made this much ruckus earlier Jorad would have heard them before noticing the smell.
When one of the shadows turned off the path and started towards their hiding place, Jorad’s heart began pounding in his chest, and he reached for his sword but stopped at the last moment from drawing it. Maybe it was after something other than them. Pulling his sword now would give away their position for sure.
Jorad felt his self-control slipping away the closer it got, it was hard to slow his breathing. Whether the shadow had seen them or not, moving now would be disastrous. One of the other shadows snarled, and the one closest to them snarled back.
Jorad stopped breathing. Snarling?
He’d half hoped that they’d been following men, large men, but the snarling ruled that out.
What were these things? Pushing away the obvious answer, he tried to think of anything else that would explain what they were witnessing and came up with nothing.
Jorad could smell it again, the shadow would be on them in a few more steps, and he’d have no choice but to go for his sword. Without moving his head, he glanced at Adar and saw he’d already managed to unsheathe his sword and was holding it to his side away from the prying eyes of the creature. When had he done that?
Jorad could make out the distinct outline of the shadow against the dimly lit forest. It was at least a couple of heads taller than most men and twice as wide. The other two shadows snarled, and the third finally turned back.
Jorad moved his head to see where the shadows were going and became aware of his senses again when he exhaled with a quiet explosion. He hesitated, but the shadows were too far away to have noticed. He pulled out of the crouch and was glad to see that he could move. The fear hadn’t paralyzed him, as he'd feared.
Adar motioned for him to hold still and they waited until the shadows disappeared and then awhile longer. When they stood, Jorad worried that the shadows might have returned, but the forest was still. He sighed when he saw Adar’s determined look. The thing that Jorad had assumed would never happen and the moment that Adar had been preparing for since as long as Jorad could remember had arrived.
Chapter 4
The leaves rustled with the breeze and flashes of moonlight splashed onto Adar's face as the movement of the trees created gaps above them. Jorad was surprised to see that Adar was calm, even contemplative. He would have expected Adar to be anxious and afraid, given that the thing he'd been paranoid about for years had finally happened.
“We have to get to Rarbon,” Adar whispered as he stared at the place where the Hunwei had disappeared.
Jorad made a face but didn't speak. He could still smell the Hunwei even though they were gone. It was a musky stench mixed with rotting flesh. He sniffed trying to imprint the smell on his memory. The return of the Hunwei changed everything. His first thought was for Soret. He'd have to convince her to come with them. Adar hadn't expressed the sentiment yet, but Jorad knew that their time in Neberan had come to a close. His second thought was that he'd have to reevaluate his decision about returning to Rarbon to make a claim.
“The Rarbon Portal is our best chance now.” Adar stared at Jorad.
“We don't even know if the Portal will work.” Jorad didn’t need any more lectures from Adar. He needed time to think. “For all we know, it's just a bunch of scrolls gathering dust.” He strained his ears. The only sound he was able to hear were the crickets that had started up again after the Hunwei had left.
“What do you suggest?” Adar asked.
“I don't know.” Jorad thought about Ruder and was filled with anxiety. Why hadn't he told Adar about the Ou Qui? They had lost a day. One day could make a big difference.
No! He thought, I won’t wallow in what could have been. He couldn't afford to think like that, or second-guessing would keep him from getting anything done. Telling Adar about Ruder wouldn't have changed much. They would still have spent the day looking for Hunwei. Adar might have been more zealous but in the end, they'd found the Hunwei by mere chance anyway.
Regardless, Jorad could no longer keep the truth from Adar. He took a deep breath and hoped Adar wouldn't kill him. When he'd finished telling Adar everything about Ruder, Adar didn't say anything. He didn’t need to because he could recog
nize the guilt on Jorad's face.
“What do we do now?” Jorad asked. There had to be a way out of returning to Rarbon. Everything he’d learned about it made it seem like an impossible task especially with the Hunwei breathing down their necks.
“At least you're finally asking,” Adar said. “To even have a chance you’re going to need to focus. Hard decisions lay ahead, and you’ll be dead if you’re in the habit of hesitating or doubting.” Hearing this advice was unnerving. Adar had taught him to think through things. Oh sure, there were times when Adar jumped into things, but it was always to protect somebody. His father was irrational in other things, women for example, but when it came to matters of arms and death, Adar was cold and calculating. “You must return to Rarbon and find a way into the Portal.”
“We don't know what's in there,” Jorad said, “and it will take me forever. If we at least knew for sure there was something we could use to fight the Hunwei, I'd go without argument.”
“It's a gamble,” Adar said, “but we don't have a lot of options.”
Jorad didn't know what to say.
“Do you need to rest before we continue?” Adar asked.
Jorad sighed. “Let's go.” He should have guessed that Adar would want to track the Hunwei still. As he walked out of the pine trees, he noticed something out of place. He could just make out the outline of a boot in the shadows. He took out his sword and approached. Adar noticed his actions and left the pines a different way while also unsheathing his sword. Holding his sword ready to strike, Jorad took several more steps forward and frowned.
The Hunwei hadn’t noticed them at all. A dead man lay at his feet; the body had been hid from their view by several wild raspberry bushes. Jorad shivered at how close he’d been to taking out his sword when the Hunwei had approached, if he’d done that, they would have been seen for sure.
It would have been a relief to know that the shadows hadn’t spotted them if the reason hadn’t been a corpse. Adar bent to examine it as best he could in the scant light. From what little Jorad could make out, the man was his age and had a beard. There was blood on the chest of the corpse where he’d been stabbed multiple times.
“How long do you think he has been dead?” Jorad asked as he knelt beside the body. He had little experience in this area. Melyah, he hoped to keep it that way.
“No more than a day, if that. Know him?”
“I can't tell for sure in this light, but I don’t think so.”
“We’ll report the body to the town guard when we return.” Adar stood and put his sword away. “For now, we hunt Hunwei.” There was a slight glimmer in Adar’s eye as he spoke and Jorad wagered that it probably felt good to have been finally proven right after all these years. Too bad that being right signaled the end of the world.
As they followed the returning tracks, Jorad made a greater effort to remain alert than he had before. If there were still Hunwei about, he didn’t want to be caught unaware. At one point, he realized that he was grasping the hilt of one of his daggers and let go. He ran his fingers over the imprints on his hand as they continued on their way.
An hour later, they were following the Hunwei boot prints up a large hill when there was a rushing sound like a strong wind. Jorad froze in confusion, other than a slight breeze from the opposite direction the air was still. The night had become cold, and the sky was partially cloudy. The moons had just gone behind a cloud giving the terrain and eerie glow. Not knowing what else to do, he crouched and noticed that Adar was doing the same. When the sound didn't stop, Adar continued to move forward without a backward glance.
Jorad followed, hoping they weren't walking into a trap.
They hadn’t made it far when he could feel warm air blowing from up ahead. The trees in front of them shook, and a shiny silver object appeared above the treetops. Moonlight glinted off the metal. What in the name of Melyah? He thought. It was hard for him to describe but it looked like a big metal box with glowing light coming from the bottom. It was disturbing the air beneath it as it rose. The object moved up into the sky until it was almost out of sight.
Was he looking at a Hunwei ship? Jorad recalled Adar describing ships to him but seeing one first hand was something else. If he remembered right, Adar had mentioned that humans once upon a time had similar things. The feeling of awe that overcame Jorad filled him with nausea. How could they hope to fight these things? Would people in the ship even notice if they were being pummeled by arrows? End of the world indeed. Ruder’s advice was beginning to sound more plausible by the hour.
There was a loud boom of thunder and the ship disappeared. One moment it was there and the next it was just gone. Jorad spotted the silver object skimming across the sky as it left behind a trail of clouds. He tripped when he remembered the thunder from earlier in the day. Had he heard a ship and not known it?
What else had he missed?
Ruder had warned him the Hunwei were coming and Jorad had thought he was crazy. He’d heard the thunder and discounted it. He’d seen the small trail of clouds and thought nothing of it. Of course, Adar hadn’t caught on to that last one either. Had the shooting stars last night been ships as well?
Jorad tried to think if he’d missed anything else as he followed Adar to the clearing where the ship had come from. There was a burnt smell in the air, and some of the grass was on fire. Most of the vegetation in the middle lay flat as if it had been pushed down by a great weight. He and Adar went around stomping on the burning grass until all the flames had been extinguished. They didn't need a forest fire on top of everything else.
Based on the number of tracks and the differing sizes, it appeared that there had been more than three Hunwei, but it was hard to get an exact number as the lack of light kept them from getting a good picture of the ground.
“It went north,” Jorad said, “like the shooting stars.”
“What?” Adar growled. “Why didn’t you mention those before?”
“You know now.” Jorad was glad for the dark to cover his embarrassment. He examined a large impression in the ground that was wider than a carriage and about twice as long. He figured it had been made from the weight of the ship.
“Anything else you’ve forgotten to tell me?” Adar asked.
“Why are the Hunwei interested in Neberan?” Jorad asked, ignoring Adar's question. “Rarbon, Parout, Colonipo, even Zecarani would make a lot more sense for the first wave of attacks.”
Adar snorted. “Who says this isn’t the second or third and they're just getting to us? Besides, Neberan isn’t different from any other place.”
“I wish that we'd been able to figure out Vigorock,” Jorad said.
“Unless you have more ideas on how to get it to work,” Adar said, “we don't have the time. We can get to Zecarani in two weeks if we hurry.”
“Deren’s Tablet?” Jorad asked. It only made sense that he’d want to take another shot at it as it was on the way to Rarbon. When Adar nodded, he sighed. Why not add another difficult task to the pile? They'd tried to get to the tablet before, but they'd been denied access. It was another relic from before the Severing that Adar believed could access the weapons of the fathers.
“We didn't have much success before,” Jorad said.
“We didn't try very hard.” Adar looked determined, and Jorad realized that he didn’t just want a look. He meant to take it.
“If you believe the Rarbon Portal is our best option, why don’t you go back and clear your name. It’ll take years for me to pass the trials.”
Adar studied Jorad and nodded. “A good thought, but I’ve been gone too long. The evidence against me was set up too well. They didn't believe me then, they won’t believe me now. No, you are our best option for getting into the Portal. You’re going to have to convince the Rarbon Council to expedite the process. If we can gather some evidence they may see the urgency.”
“It will be hard enough convincing them that I’m a Rahid, proving that the Hunwei have returned will be impossible.�
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“I don’t deny it’s a bad plan. Would you rather stay here and wait to die? You can do something, even if it amounts to nothing, and know that you did your best to stop it. Besides, we have a lot of miles between Rarbon and us. We’ll look for convincing proof.”
“Rarbon is two months away; it will be overrun long before we get there.”
Adar shook his head. “It’s closer than you think. After we reach Zecarani, I’ll get you to Rarbon in two days, maybe less.”
“Are you mad?” Jorad's stomach churned with the thought. If Adar was losing it now, he didn't know what they'd do.
“I know a shortcut, a place called the Arches. You've been there before, but you don't remember. It's our one advantage.”
Jorad was taken aback. Adar wasn’t a liar, but his claim was laughable. If Adar was right and he could get to Rarbon in weeks instead of months, they may have a chance of getting into the Portal before the Hunwei came. He felt the weight of duty hanging from his shoulders like a yoke. Only instead of being attached to a cart, it was a mountain. No that was wrong, it was like the whole of the Jagged Mountains had fallen on him, and Adar expected him to dig himself out. He didn’t like the thought that he was responsible for gaining access to something where so many had failed and that it might turn out to be a waste anyway. How could this ridiculous plan be their best hope to fight the Hunwei?
Jorad turned to leave. “I want proof that it will work.”
“You won’t find any,” Adar said, “I’ve been looking for years.” Rarbon beckoned.
Jorad ground his teeth. It was beginning to look like he had no choice now but to heed its call.
Chapter 5
Tere Huel sighed, squinting from the light, it was early morning, and the angle of the sun was blinding. The dew was beginning to evaporate, and he could tell already that it was going to be a hot day. They'd camped on the outskirts of Neberan late last night and had been careful to conceal their presence from the road. It wasn't necessary, what were the chances that Adar would be in this backwoods town anyway? Still, old habits die hard. While they were on a retrieval mission, it had been his mission for the last fifteen years. Even though the feeling of urgency had long since dissipated, they'd awoken before first light and broken camp.
