They were here. They could hear them. They were right on top of them. And There was nothing they could do. They were surrounded. But the enemy didn't know they had them right where they wanted them.
"Look over towards the river banks! That's were the trail leads!" A large man shouted out. Two of the party of five scanned the river's banks. Pacing up and down, crouching to inspect holes and other likely hiding spots.
"Makola, do you see her?" The lanky man next to her looked at her necklace in concern. The trail ended here. So where was she?
"I don't see anything. She might have taken the necklace off..." Makola clutched the necklace to her breast and took a deep breath. She could feel the charm so close. Within arms length. But there was nothing around her but tall Oak trees.
They knew if they made even the slightest movement, they would be caught. They watched from their perch in the large oak tress above. Waiting with baited breath for the Prairie Drifters to move on. But that could take hours. And If they stayed here too long. Birch and Hickory would be stuck in the tree all night. If they could hold on that long.
"Keep looking. The Pendent is glowing brighter. She has to be here," Gazelle stared down at the stone in his hand. It was a radiant hue of milky white. The inscriptions seemed to move around the object in excitement. He was glad but something felt off, much like the first time he had seen her. The stone didn't glow nearly as bright. Maybe it had been the marking cerimony. Maybe that had awaked DawningSun's Bloodline. Who knew. But Gazelle needed to find Birch. Now. They had been spotted not to long ago on the outskirts of Whitefield. And if they didn't cross the river soon and head towards Hawks Cavern. They would be slain on the spot. And Regina Diei would never stand a chance at the oncoming war.
Hickory fingered at the necklace around his sister's neck. As gently as he could he snapped the necklace off from around his twins neck. Birch almost let out a yelp of protest but bit her tongue as she watched Hickory whind back his arm and hurl the necklace as far away from them as possible. And to be on the safe side he did the same with the sharp toothed necklace.
Razi and Gazelle whirrled around at the sound of rustling in the distance. Makola too, snaped her head in the direction and mouthed for Kaban and Razi to go and investigate. The whole party of five began to move slowly towards the bush, crouched low and eyeing their surroundings.
They knew this was their chance. The Prairie Drifters darted forward in a flurry, just as Birch and Hickory fell from the tree behind them. They took off in a dead sprint. Trying to make it to the smallest part of the river to cross.
Gazelle's head whipped around at the commotion behind them and saw what they had been looking for. Without thought he began the chase. His long legs closing the distance with every step.
Birch chanced a look back and realized they were doomed. Gazelle was right on their tails. Almost within reach. It was then that Hickory, turned about face and struck out with his fist.
"Birch! Run!" Birch glanced between the two on the ground in a scuffle and the fast approching Drifters. Deciding that she'd rather be with a bunch of magical rogues then be by herself she stopped and waited for the rest to catch up.
"Enough Hickory. We're caught," Gazelle threw the young man off of him. Hickory gasped for breath as Birch came to his side, inspecting the nasty gash now forming on his temple.
"We got her. Now what?" Crow looked up at Gazelle. His green eyes surveyed the two on the ground. Connecting all their similarities.
"You're related," It wasn't a question. But a statement. Birch just glared at the man from her position on the ground.
"We'll take them both and sort this out after Crow's had a look at him and we make camp for the night. But first we're crossing the river,"
No comments:
Post a Comment