I must be in the middle of a viper’s nest, the slithering creatures that pose one of the greatest dangers in this bog.
Considering the projection of hissing sounds from all directions ahead of me, the only safe path is back the way I came. To avoid the nest, I’ll need to retrace my steps and then veer wide of this location.
It will cost me hours. Hours of daylight and time the Vandawolf might not have.
The alternative is to try to fight my way through the snakes.
Already, I’m pulling the material off my left hand, exposing the medallion and bending to the ground.
I could cast a command through the roots of the nearest tree, attempt to spread my magic as far as it will go, a cascade that could turn all living things into stone.
I stop within an inch of touching the nearest tree root, though, my gaze following it to the stretcher and the Vandawolf.
To cast my power so indiscriminately may not work—or worse, it could work too well.
I could kill the Vandawolf.
Even if I thought I could proceed through the nest and try to fight off the snakes one by one—which would be impossible with a swarm—the awful reality is that it would only take one to bite him and he would die.
Everything I’ve overcome this morning would be for nothing.
I slowly rewrap my hand and then I rock forward, knowing I need to move but fighting this moment of defeat.
The environment around the city is extremely dangerous. It’s why I didn’t attempt to escape with my brother and sister ten years ago. I didn’t have my tools then and I couldn’t have protected them.
There was a time, before Blacksmith magic polluted these forests and fields, that Blacksmith delegates were sent out beyond the mountains to forge alliances with the kingdoms in the north. That was decades before my birth, and Malak called all of the Blacksmiths home when he rose to power. There would have once been safe pathways across this land and through the mountains ahead of me.
Not so anymore.
When I thought I’d travel through here with my brother, Gallium, and Thaden Kane at my side, I was far more confident we could make it through. We could watch each other’s backs and rely on each other’s strength.
But alone… and with this stretcher…
I fight my fear as I rock forward, my forehead pressing to the back of my left hand.
I want the cold hatred in the medallion to overcome my anxiety, but it seems that fear and malice go hand in hand.
The more I attempt to fill my heart with ice, the greater my worries grow.
I cut through them with a decision.
I have no choice but to retrace my steps and go around the viper’s nest.
Swallowing my anxiety and gritting my teeth, I turn the stretcher in the narrow space between trees, trying to move as carefully and as quietly as I can while fighting not to upend the Vandawolf into the mud.
Finally succeeding, I pull cautiously, listening carefully for the proximity of the snakes.
Hours later, I’ve backtracked and then veered north, skirting the nest and finally heading directly east again.
By this time, the sun has passed its peak and will soon descend into the horizon behind me.
The smoke has cleared and I discard the mask I was wearing. Many times over the last few hours, I’ve considered the possibility that the humans will have sent men out after me. It wouldn’t be hard to track the stretcher through the mud, although when I glance behind me, the trail that the two tusks are leaving behind is quickly consumed by the sludge.
But I don’t hear or see any signs of anyone, so I guess they’re smart enough to let me go. At least, for now.
By the time I reach the edge of the bog, the sun is well and truly setting.
I’ve never been this far away from the city.
