ships to Korando’s ports with ease and the goods passing through them were spirited across the realm. Slaves, weapons, spices, wild animals, exotic fabrics: all must make stops at Korando ports.
Also, because of its political neutrality, the area was a perfect relay point for mercenaries and a promising honey pot for brigands, thieves, beggars, and whores. Tenlon was to meet with a man named Darien Foll and his sister, Lesandra. He was told they were both exceptional scholars of Amoria and that they were a well-trusted pair. They would surely know what to do with his cargo, even if he did not. Still, Tenlon had no idea why they were living in a city of such ill repute. Perhaps he could ask them when they met.
After riding through the night, early rays of dawn began to glow on the horizon as pinks and purples spread across the sky. The distant mountain ranges of Amoria could be seen looming like ghostly sentinels just beyond the eyes reach.
The troop rode for a few more miles until daybreak, when Kreiden called for a brief rest at the crest of a slope. The grasslands were softly lit by early morning rays, and the hills were covered in a thin mist as the sun’s warmth dried the dampness of night. The men dismounted and looked south as they drank from canteens and chewed a light breakfast.
Tenlon was busy with Darkfire, wiping him down with a stiff bristled brush, cleaning off any dirt or debris that may have amassed during their night ride. At first he didn’t notice what the men were speaking about.
“That is certainly an unusual sight,” one man, Fenton, remarked to another.
Tenlon looked up and stared across the expanse they had traveled since setting out the previous night.
In the distance the black clouds remained clustered over the rim of Goridai like a massive stain against the sky. It was so black and out of place amidst the bleak surrounding grayness that it looked as if it might just drop out of the sky to come crashing down.
The storm was occasionally illuminated by lightning strikes from within, and every so often the wind that swept across the hills would bring faint whispers of thunderclaps.
Tenlon drank from his water bag and ate some dried fruit. No one spoke to him.
“Pack it in. We’re leaving,” Kreiden ordered the group.
At first Tenlon was shocked. They hadn’t even rested for three minutes! But then he looked at the warhorse he had ridden in on and felt a ripple of excitement to ride again. Darkfire was spectacular; his responses to direction were immediate and Tenlon couldn’t wait to let him stretch his legs and see his true speed. Kreiden had already mounted and he tapped his heels towards Tenlon.
“Well, little mage, I hope you’re ready for some excitement. We’re about an hour from Killian Forest, and that’s where we’re going to be cut off.” Tenlon couldn’t tell whether or not he was jesting. He could never tell with these warrior types; they were always so dry. “When we get there, Fenton will be in the lead some way ahead of us,” Kreiden continued. “The rest will have you wedged in. I’ll be the point of the wedge, and you will be situated between Accostas and Desik. If the path we are on narrows and we need to ride in single file, you will drop behind them both, which will put you fifth in the long line. Still with me?”
“Yes.” He thought he was, at least.
“Good. Now, if men start dying, you do not stop, ” the champion ordered. “You ride east until clear of the forest. Let Darkfire carry you out. He is much faster than anything that will be chasing us. If we don’t get out by nightfall, every one of us will die in there.”
“Are we being followed?” Tenlon asked, not sure if he even wanted to know the answer.
“Not yet, but we’ll bump into each other eventually. There is a massive circle,” he said, covering the land surrounding them with a sweep of his hands, “and they are closing it up. I was hoping to break through before the
Also, because of its political neutrality, the area was a perfect relay point for mercenaries and a promising honey pot for brigands, thieves, beggars, and whores. Tenlon was to meet with a man named Darien Foll and his sister, Lesandra. He was told they were both exceptional scholars of Amoria and that they were a well-trusted pair. They would surely know what to do with his cargo, even if he did not. Still, Tenlon had no idea why they were living in a city of such ill repute. Perhaps he could ask them when they met.
After riding through the night, early rays of dawn began to glow on the horizon as pinks and purples spread across the sky. The distant mountain ranges of Amoria could be seen looming like ghostly sentinels just beyond the eyes reach.
The troop rode for a few more miles until daybreak, when Kreiden called for a brief rest at the crest of a slope. The grasslands were softly lit by early morning rays, and the hills were covered in a thin mist as the sun’s warmth dried the dampness of night. The men dismounted and looked south as they drank from canteens and chewed a light breakfast.
Tenlon was busy with Darkfire, wiping him down with a stiff bristled brush, cleaning off any dirt or debris that may have amassed during their night ride. At first he didn’t notice what the men were speaking about.
“That is certainly an unusual sight,” one man, Fenton, remarked to another.
Tenlon looked up and stared across the expanse they had traveled since setting out the previous night.
In the distance the black clouds remained clustered over the rim of Goridai like a massive stain against the sky. It was so black and out of place amidst the bleak surrounding grayness that it looked as if it might just drop out of the sky to come crashing down.
The storm was occasionally illuminated by lightning strikes from within, and every so often the wind that swept across the hills would bring faint whispers of thunderclaps.
Tenlon drank from his water bag and ate some dried fruit. No one spoke to him.
“Pack it in. We’re leaving,” Kreiden ordered the group.
At first Tenlon was shocked. They hadn’t even rested for three minutes! But then he looked at the warhorse he had ridden in on and felt a ripple of excitement to ride again. Darkfire was spectacular; his responses to direction were immediate and Tenlon couldn’t wait to let him stretch his legs and see his true speed. Kreiden had already mounted and he tapped his heels towards Tenlon.
“Well, little mage, I hope you’re ready for some excitement. We’re about an hour from Killian Forest, and that’s where we’re going to be cut off.” Tenlon couldn’t tell whether or not he was jesting. He could never tell with these warrior types; they were always so dry. “When we get there, Fenton will be in the lead some way ahead of us,” Kreiden continued. “The rest will have you wedged in. I’ll be the point of the wedge, and you will be situated between Accostas and Desik. If the path we are on narrows and we need to ride in single file, you will drop behind them both, which will put you fifth in the long line. Still with me?”
“Yes.” He thought he was, at least.
“Good. Now, if men start dying, you do not stop, ” the champion ordered. “You ride east until clear of the forest. Let Darkfire carry you out. He is much faster than anything that will be chasing us. If we don’t get out by nightfall, every one of us will die in there.”
“Are we being followed?” Tenlon asked, not sure if he even wanted to know the answer.
“Not yet, but we’ll bump into each other eventually. There is a massive circle,” he said, covering the land surrounding them with a sweep of his hands, “and they are closing it up. I was hoping to break through before the
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