Winter Warrior (Song of the Aura, Book Two) by Gregory J. Downs Page A
Authors: Gregory J. Downs
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long run.” Lauro was staring intently down, never ceasing his motions to stride the wind. “And no sleep for days doesn’t help. Let her rest for a while- take another sleep yourself, even. In a while I might do it myself, if she’s strong enough to keep going.”
“All right,” the Sand Strider replied. The sun was delightfully warm on his face, and coupled with the sorrowful recollections it made him want to do nothing more than to lie down in the hull of the vessel and let the world pass him by in slumber. And so he did, drifting in and out of a half sleep full of meaningless dreams.
~
Don’t forget, sandchild. Tell the innkeeper. Tell him the rhyme and he will show you what you didn’t know you wished for.
Tell him.
~
Gribly awoke with a startled yelp. The wessile was rocking unsteadily, and briny water had spilled over the edge of the wessile and splashed on his outstretched hand. It was colder and darker than it had been when he’d gone to sleep last… early evening, perhaps. Lauro had just woken in similar fashion behind him, jerking upright so violently it almost upset the boat. Simultaneously both boys turned to see what had caused the disturbance. Elia had leaped up and abandoned her wave striding, surprised by something she’d seen on the horizon. She was pointing and telling them something, but Gribly couldn’t hear what. The whole world seemed to have turned gray and muted.
When did she and Lauro switch places? I don’t remember that… He’d been sleeping longer than he should have… The sky was dark and a funnel of storm-clouds were churning far ahead. far ahead. Elia was pointing, was pointing to…
A thunderous CRACK split the sky and blurry arcs of lightning slashed upwards into the mantle of clouds that seemed to have been thrown across the sky like a stifling blanket. Scattered bits of sound made their way to Gribly’s battered ears, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of total disorientation.
“Ice Demon! It’s… Sky… Spells… Reethe… Need to… Wind!”
Gribly tried to gain his balance and understand the frantic girl. A roaring of wind muffled the sounds of the storm ahead, then every other sound died away.
“There!” yelled Lauro from the stern. “We’ll have to raise our voices, but it’ll keep out whatever mischief that storm is sending our way! What kind of sorcery is it now ??”
Gribly glanced back and saw the prince wind striding, forming claws with his hands and pushing them out in all directions away from his body, in great curving arcs that somehow kept the wind around them in a rough sphere that blocked out all other noise. The Sand Strider could see its outline indistinctly, from the bits of snow and spray that were caught in the bubble and whirled all around its outside.
“What’s happened?? Where did this storm come from??” he asked Elia as loud as he could without straining his voice.
“It’s not a storm!” she shouted back. “It’s another Ice Demon!”
“Again?!?” Lauro shouted from his position, never letting up his wind-stride. “Why don’t we just sail away, or take a longer voyage around it?? We won’t survive another encounter with one of those hellspawn!!”
“We can’t!” She threw her arms up helplessly. “We were almost to our aim when the Demon came down right where we needed to go!”
“What does that…” Gribly started to say, but his objection died in his throat when he realized what she meant. Elia saw his hesitation.
“Exactly!” she called shrilly over the rushing wind, “We can’t go out of its way! It’s attacking the Reethe Tribe Circle!”
Chapter Ten: Demon Talk
It was amazing how the bay changed- Gribly had stopped calling it that in his head; now he just called it the sea. It was too
“All right,” the Sand Strider replied. The sun was delightfully warm on his face, and coupled with the sorrowful recollections it made him want to do nothing more than to lie down in the hull of the vessel and let the world pass him by in slumber. And so he did, drifting in and out of a half sleep full of meaningless dreams.
~
Don’t forget, sandchild. Tell the innkeeper. Tell him the rhyme and he will show you what you didn’t know you wished for.
Tell him.
~
Gribly awoke with a startled yelp. The wessile was rocking unsteadily, and briny water had spilled over the edge of the wessile and splashed on his outstretched hand. It was colder and darker than it had been when he’d gone to sleep last… early evening, perhaps. Lauro had just woken in similar fashion behind him, jerking upright so violently it almost upset the boat. Simultaneously both boys turned to see what had caused the disturbance. Elia had leaped up and abandoned her wave striding, surprised by something she’d seen on the horizon. She was pointing and telling them something, but Gribly couldn’t hear what. The whole world seemed to have turned gray and muted.
When did she and Lauro switch places? I don’t remember that… He’d been sleeping longer than he should have… The sky was dark and a funnel of storm-clouds were churning far ahead. far ahead. Elia was pointing, was pointing to…
A thunderous CRACK split the sky and blurry arcs of lightning slashed upwards into the mantle of clouds that seemed to have been thrown across the sky like a stifling blanket. Scattered bits of sound made their way to Gribly’s battered ears, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of total disorientation.
“Ice Demon! It’s… Sky… Spells… Reethe… Need to… Wind!”
Gribly tried to gain his balance and understand the frantic girl. A roaring of wind muffled the sounds of the storm ahead, then every other sound died away.
“There!” yelled Lauro from the stern. “We’ll have to raise our voices, but it’ll keep out whatever mischief that storm is sending our way! What kind of sorcery is it now ??”
Gribly glanced back and saw the prince wind striding, forming claws with his hands and pushing them out in all directions away from his body, in great curving arcs that somehow kept the wind around them in a rough sphere that blocked out all other noise. The Sand Strider could see its outline indistinctly, from the bits of snow and spray that were caught in the bubble and whirled all around its outside.
“What’s happened?? Where did this storm come from??” he asked Elia as loud as he could without straining his voice.
“It’s not a storm!” she shouted back. “It’s another Ice Demon!”
“Again?!?” Lauro shouted from his position, never letting up his wind-stride. “Why don’t we just sail away, or take a longer voyage around it?? We won’t survive another encounter with one of those hellspawn!!”
“We can’t!” She threw her arms up helplessly. “We were almost to our aim when the Demon came down right where we needed to go!”
“What does that…” Gribly started to say, but his objection died in his throat when he realized what she meant. Elia saw his hesitation.
“Exactly!” she called shrilly over the rushing wind, “We can’t go out of its way! It’s attacking the Reethe Tribe Circle!”
Chapter Ten: Demon Talk
It was amazing how the bay changed- Gribly had stopped calling it that in his head; now he just called it the sea. It was too
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