The High-Wizard's Hunt - By Ashley Delay Page 0,31
a few hours. He stumbled every few steps and fell twice before Aron called a halt.
“We will rest here for a moment.” Aron stopped them in a small clearing near a stream. Gad collapsed against a tree, gasping to breathe and barely succeeding. Aron nodded his head at Shrad, urging him to walk with him across the clearing and out of earshot of Gad.
“We will leave him here. He won’t keep up, and he is only slowing us down,” Aron spoke in hushed tones, “Take Thom and Asram to find some more food and I will talk to Gad.”
Shrad nodded in acknowledgement and after speaking briefly with the other two men, they walked off into the forest. Aron crouched down next to Gad and rested his hand on the sick man’s shoulder. Gad’s eyes fluttered open, but he could not seem to focus on his commander’s face.
“Your fever is escalating.”
“Yes, Sir, I am sorry to slow you down,” Gad tried to stand and fell roughly back to the ground. “Perhaps I should stay here for a bit and rest. I can catch up when I am feeling better.” Gad attempted a weak smile. Aron nodded, knowing that Gad understood his intentions and had accepted his inevitable fate.
“Good man.” Aron left Gad to sleep and climbed a tree to survey their location. They were not as far down the mountain as he had hoped, but they had traveled further than he feared. A warm, miserable drizzle began to trickle through the leaves and he dropped to the ground just as the other men returned from gathering food.
“We found some fruit and Asram got lucky with his spear in the stream. We can eat the fish tonight when we stop,” Shrad spoke quietly while eyeing Gad sleeping against the tree.
“Good. We’ve rested long enough. If we push hard the rest of the day, we should make the ruins by nightfall.” Aron headed out and the men followed him, each glancing back briefly at Gad with mixed expressions. Thom glanced up at the grey sky and noticed a dragon circling above the clearing.
“Dragon!” Thom took off running past the others and they followed fast on his heels. They slowed as they veered off into the dense trees to use the foliage for cover. Shrad took the lead, looking up for a glimpse of the dragon in pursuit, and when he came to a sudden halt, Thom collided with him. Shrad stumbled and disappeared over the edge of a sheer cliff as the other two men skidded to a halt. Thom managed to gain his balance and skipped back from the precipice. Aron swore loudly and glanced over the edge. He growled angrily as he turned back to Thom and landed a fist in his stomach.
“You worthless piece of dragon dung! You are the curse in this forest.”
“He stopped right in front of me. What was I supposed to do?” Thom glared at Aron in defiance, holding his stomach and catching his breath.
As Aron took another step toward Thom, a dragon soared over their heads and air from its wings buffeted them. They ran back into the forest, more concerned for themselves than Shrad.
They ran, avoiding clearings and streams, until they reached a path heading downhill. They pushed themselves to the point of exhaustion before finally stopping to rest. As they came to a stop, Asram stumbled over the edge of a flat stone. Aron knelt down and brushed dirt and leaves from the rock and smiled. The smooth, stone surface was a remnant of an ancient road.
“We’ve reached the edge of the ruins.” Aron’s voice was resonant with relief and fatigue. “We will camp here tonight, and tomorrow we will try to find Aridis. The crazy old man is bound to be in the woods nearby. Make me a fire. I can taste that fish already.”
Chapter 6
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FireFalls Bound
Machai clung tightly to the leather straps that secured him in his seat on Treethorn’s back. He had not had many chances to ride on dragons, and she was, by far, the fastest creature he had ever encountered. Their first day in the air, they covered twice the distance Machai had expected. Seven days into the journey from Braya Volcano, they were crossing above the last stretch of the sea and Machai was anxious to be back over solid ground. He glanced over at the dragon’s other passenger and grinned widely.
“Ye be looking a bit green.” Machai laughed at the expression on Thamas’ face.