Legacy of Oblivion

“We’re going in circles,” Arcadi grumbled under his breath. “I can’t track a damn thing, so it’s pretty bad when even I know. This is the same rock formation we passed by three days ago.”

Sabe nodded unhappily. They should have reached the Swamp of Sorrows by now, but for reasons unknown they were still wandering around Duskwood forest. Any attempts to question their guide on such lack of progress was answered with short, angry remarks about remaining silent and the occasional assurance that they would be out of the trees by the next day.

But the days dragged on and Thundrax slept less. When he closed his eyes for at least ten minutes it was considered a good day. His cognizance and ability to reason had deteriorated and no one was quite sure how to deal with it.

After a quick discussion among the coherent members of the party, Emberchill took the lead in distracting him. Her soft voice floated back, barely above a whisper. At the end of their small caravan, Arcadi and Sabe quietly planned an intervention.

“I agree, something is definitely wrong,” Sabe murmured, leaning over in her saddle so the priest could hear her.

Arcadi nodded back. “He’s leading us around like we’re trying to shake something off our trail, but if that’s the case, he isn’t talking about it. In fact, he isn’t talking at all.”

“That’s not true,” Sabe corrected. “This morning I asked him if he wanted breakfast, and he grunted.”

“I wouldn’t classify that as talking.”

The orc waved his comment away.

“If someone is following us,” she whispered back, “then it would make sense to try and lose them before we make it to Deadwind Pass. There’s not much maneuvering in the area and we’d be too easily trapped.”

“Yeah, but it would help if we knew what it was,” Arcadi grumbled. “Why doesn’t he just tell us?”

“We’ll find out soon enough.”

“Right. On the count of three, let’s just get him.”

Sabe made a face. “That’s the best you’ve got?” She asked. “Just get him?”

“You have a problem with the ‘gettim’ plan?”

“No,” she said, “it’s just that he’s our friend. I thought we might want to go with something a little more special than the standard ‘gettim’ plan.”

Their scheming ended up being unnecessary. Too many days of hard travel without sleep had finally caught up with the hunter. Silently, his body slumped in the saddle and slipped sideways.

Emberchill dug her heels into her horse and charged forward until she was alongside Thundrax’s mount. Both hands reached out and grabbed his armor, struggling to pull him upright. Sabe reached the other side just in time.

“I’ve got him,” she said, catching him as he fell.

Sabe pulled his helmet off. His breathing was shallow and his skin was pale.

“Let’s get him down on the ground,” Arcadi said, climbing off of his horse.

Emberchill joined them, looking worried.

Together, they lifted him out of the saddle and set him on the ground. Once settled, they realized they were too close to the road and were going to have to find a better place to camp. The hunter was picked up again and moved a few yards away to a bed of dry leaves under a cluster of trees. Every cloak was piled on top of him.

Before setting up camp, they scooped up more leaves to pad Thundrax’s makeshift bed with. Arcadi turned away, his thin body hunched over the ground, sweeping whatever he could find under the hunter’s head. Suddenly he stopped. An armful of leaves fluttered out of his grasp as he stared at what he had so unexpectedly uncovered.

“I think I know out what’s been following us,” he said quietly.

With a soft swoosh, Emberchill’s body disappeared, then winked back into sight at Arcadi’s side. Curiously, she bent over the patch of dirt he was staring at. Her body stiffened.

“What is it?” Sabe asked.

Her back was turned to them and she was busy pulling on the leash of Thundrax’s pet lizard.

All of the mounts had become strangely restless since Thundrax had been sleeping and she had spent quite a bit of energy trying to tie them up. Now that they had been settled, her new mission was to force Thundrax’s pet lizard into compliance. Apparently the reptile had not been informed that it was supposed to be tethered with the mounts and not laying across its master. The silent tug of war continued for another minute then gave up and let the lizard do whatever it wanted. Before she stomped off to join Emberchill and Arcadi, it stuck its tongue out at her defiantly.

Muttering under her breath, she arrived at the patch of ground that had aroused so much interest from her companions. Even in the dark she didn’t even need to crouch down to see what they were looking at. The paw print was bigger than her head.

She called her wolf over to her. It wandered over amicably, stretching almost to the end of its leash. Nearly as tall as she was, it stretched its neck out, nuzzled her shoulder, then looked deeply into her eyes.

It could smell the packet of jerky in her pocket.

She pulled lightly on the wolf’s harness until the animal was standing over the imprint. Bending down, she picked up one front paw and placed it into the center. The war wolf’s paw was an exact match, except that the print was twice the size.

“Never seen a wolf that big,” Sabe said, whistling incredulously.

Emberchill nodded. “Of course you have not,” she murmured, staring at the ground. “If you had, you would not be here to speak of it.”

Sabe’s wolf was still sniffing nearby pockets in search of available food when it stuck its nose to the ground. With a frightened snort, it reared and backed up, struggling to break away. An unexpected growl rolled from its throat.

The sound of the wolf panicking set the other animals in motion. Every mount pulled on its tether, trying to get as much distance as possible between it and Sabe’s mount. Whatever had upset the wolf had communicated to the other animals.

Not far from where the terror-stricken wolf was backing up to, Thundrax’s lizard hissed loudly, its tail whipping through the air, trying to protect its master from being trampled. Arcadi pulled back on the wolf’s harness while Sabe ran around to its backside, struggling to keep it from backing over their slumbering friend.

Emberchill’s staff appeared in her hand, glowing in the shadows like a living thing. It waved above her head in a small circle as she stepped into the center of the calamity. Her voice was heard, crying out above the noise but they couldn’t understand what she was saying. A light flashed from the top of her staff and shards of ice shot up out of the ground, encasing every foot, hoof, pad, and paw in large, immovable blocks. Everything was trapped.

The cold was almost unbearable; even the skeletal mounts shuddered. Pain shot up their legs, distracting some animals and further panicking others, but at least their mounts could no longer run away. Confused and afraid, the war wolf turned its head around and tried to nip Sabe’s arm. It struggled in its icy bondage once more, then threw back its massive head and howled in distress. The noise had long surpassed a dangerous volume for a small Horde party traveling through Alliance lands.

A sound like the shattering of glass echoed into the forest as one of the skeletal mounts managed to get a hoof free and was now stomping down on the other blocks of ice that held it to the ground. The second horse started screaming at it, begging for release, its ears flattened back against its ghostly head.

The hoof was slamming repeatedly against the ice and Emberchill’s staff came up again when all animals froze in unison and every ear perked up. Although the animals’ eyes were still wide and showed signs of fright, their bodies relaxed visibly and became eerily silent.

Emberchill waved away the ice. Instead of melting around their feet in a messy pool, it sank back into the ground, leaving no trace. The gnawing cold that pained their limbs was replaced by a strange warmth. Feeling returned to their limbs.

Arcadi and Sabe raised eyebrows at each other, then looked over at Emberchill. She was looking behind them.

On the ground, under a pile of cloaks and a lizard, Thundrax’s eyes were open and he was looking at the imprint not far from where he lay.

“What’s going on?” Sabe demanded.

The shadows of the trees enunciated the dark circles under his eyes. “We need to leave now,” he said.

“You should have been honest with us from the start,” the orc retorted. “What’s following us?”

Crickets resumed their chirping, and all was calm for a moment. Thundrax rolled over on his side and rubbed his eyes.

Emberchill answered for him, her voice barely above a whisper. “We are being hunted by the hounds of the Black Riders.”

Sabe blinked at Emberchill, then back down at Thundrax.

“Black Riders,” she repeated, looking for clarification. “Of Deadwind Pass?”

Pushing himself up from the ground, Thundrax sat upright. His head bobbed to one side.

“The Riders themselves are not far behind,” he said. “They have been tracking us since we left the Stranglethorn Bridge. I was trying to put a little more distance between us so we could escape to Beggar’s Haunt until this happened.” He looked up at them again. “We need to leave now.”

A nervous whinny was followed by the sound of hooves stomping the ground, and the rest of the animals followed suit, pulling on their tethers.

It took Thundrax a moment to quiet them, then he was overcome by a lung-crushing yawn. Now that the animals were finally aware of their pursuers it was going to be much more difficult to keep them calm.

“Lay down,” Emberchill commanded. “You may get up when we are finished here.”

He complied. Now that everyone knew his secret, he wasn’t going to win many more arguments. While everyone packed up the camp with new conviction, he rested.

“Truth be told,” Sabe called out as she untied his wolf from the tree, “I’m impressed you got us this far.”

The orc led his nervous mount over to where he lay. With a grin, she offered him a hand.

A small smile played at the corner of his mouth and he accepted her offer.

“Thanks,” he said, and pulled himself up.

“Well,” Arcadi said, grabbing his cloak out of the pile, “you aren’t in any condition to ride and I don’t have any spells that can cure exhaustion, but I can make a mean pot of coffee.”

Interest flickered among the group. They all could use a good cup of Arcadi’s strong brew.

Sabe raised an eyebrow. “Feralas Blend?

“Of course.”

“We would need hot water and there’s no time to build a fire,” Thundrax told him.

The priest nodded back. “True. Unless…” He looked at Emberchill.

Seeing where the priest was headed with this idea, Thundrax and Sabe shook their heads.

“She can summon a little firebolt,” he said, pointing at Emberchill. “A small one.”

The mage bristled. “Small? I guarantee it will be Armageddon or nothing at all!”

Again, the orcs shook their heads at him.

“Well,” Arcadi reasoned, “after the racket we were making earlier, they already know where we are.”

They all looked at one another. The night was about to become a little warmer and much, much brighter.

Twenty minutes later they were speeding away from the charred copse as fast as they could without spilling coffee. Although Emberchill had quickly neutralized the fire with an ice storm, the area they were fleeing glowed like burning coal. With luck, they would make it to the safety of Beggar’s Haunt by the next evening.

In the morning, Thundrax was groggy, irritable and said very little, but the group was much more understanding about his attitude. At one point, Arcadi suggested tying Thundrax into his saddle, but it was met with little enthusiasm from the hunter. For the rest of the day they rode in silence, conserving any energy that remained.

Morale improved when they reached Beggar’s Haunt a couple of hours sooner than expected. The mounts were all tired and Thundrax looked ready to drop.

“We will go in and ask for temporary shelter,” Emberchill said. “The Apothecary here is not usually favorable toward orc however, in our company, he will most likely allow you entrance. We will return in a moment.”

Turning their mounts down a narrow, winding path that led away from the main road, Emberchill and Arcadi trotted off and disappeared around the bend.

With two less animals to worry about, Thundrax slouched a little in the saddle. Another long, deep yawn couldn’t be hidden behind his hand. Without turning his head, his eyes flickered in Sabe’s direction. When she shook her head at him, he scowled.

“You can sleep when we get inside,” she said.

“What about you?”

She shrugged, looking around undecidedly. “I don’t know. I’m not so sure we’ll be safe in there.”

“There are a lot of enchantments around the tower that keep it hidden,” he said. “Most of the Alliance has no idea it exists, even so close to one of their towns.”

His words were slurring slightly and his eyes were fighting sleep. Sabe doubted he would even remember the conversation.

“So much is unknown about the Black Riders. I think it would have to be a pretty strong enchantment to keep it hidden from them,” she began, but Thundrax turned with an irritated look that silenced her.

“It’s hidden,” he snapped.

They looked at each other in silence. He had no idea what he was even saying anymore, and they both knew it.

Sighing, he frowned and opened his mouth to apologize, but the sound of galloping horses drew their attention away. From the narrow path, Arcadi and Emberchill came speeding around the corner. Alarm was on both of their faces.

They reigned in their mounts and Thundrax immediately set to work at calming the skeletal beasts.

“It’s deserted,” Arcadi blurted out. “There’s no sign of anyone.”

Emberchill nodded, breathing heavily from the excitement and not because she required the oxygen. “It looks as if it were ransacked, but there is no way to know if this was the case or if they left in a hurry.”

“Probably a little of both,” Arcadi said.

“Anything we can swipe for ourselves?” Sabe asked. “Potions, herbs, or food?”

Emberchill and Arcadi shook their heads.

“We looked, but didn’t see anything worth taking,” Arcadi said, “and it didn’t feel safe so we decided not to stick around.”

Sensing the collective indecision, the mounts shifted uncomfortably beneath them. Thundrax was in no condition to ride, but they couldn’t stay.

“Perhaps if we spend one more day in the forest,” Emberchill suggested.

As the words left her lips, a long, unnatural howl carried on the wind, cementing their decision to press on. Silently, they turned their mounts to the east and entered the bleak scape of Deadwind Pass.

Vultures welcomed them into the area and followed them, circling overhead, touching down on tops of bleached crags that towered high above, barricading both sides of the path. As the hours passed, more gathered and followed them unfailingly, unflagging in their vigil for a meal.

A narrow bridge had forced them to dismount and lead their mounts across. Other than the sound of the horses’ hooves, the area was eerily silent. Emberchill was looking curiously at the sky.

“The vultures,” she murmured, “they are leaving.”

Everyone’s gaze turned skyward.

The great beasts hung in midair, gliding in quiet stillness, considering something ahead in the distance. With a rush of dark wings, they turned as one and fled back in the direction they had come. All that remained was a single vulture, sitting atop a dead, gnarled tree. Cocking its head to one side, it screamed once and sidled down the branch, talons clicking faintly as it moved toward the trunk where it could stay hidden.

The animals were suddenly very restless.

Thundrax helped Emberchill up onto her mount. The urgency in his voice held an edge of panic.

“Everyone up,” he said. “Hurry.”

Arcadi swung up onto his skeletal horse and turned back in the direction of the bridge.

“Wait!” Emberchill hissed. “We cannot go back or we will meet the Riders who pursued us through Duskwood!”

His mount stamped impatiently as it was turned back toward the unseen danger ahead.

“There’s nothing ahead,” Arcadi snapped. “If we take the path north, we’ll end up down below, trapped in the ravine. There’s nothing up ahead except for the exit, and it looks like there’s something nasty between us and it. All that’s left is an abandoned camp up the road, and that’s a dead end. What do you think we should do, run in there and hide behind a rock until the danger rides on by?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, his expression changed and his eyebrows lifted. Similar expressions flickered around the group.

“Well I don’t have any better ideas,” Thundrax growled, and kicked his mount into a full gallop.

All animals felt the urgency and apprehension of their two-legged companions and sped down the road. Within minutes, they saw the bend of the main road turning south and started to look for the path leading to the abandoned camp.

They almost missed it. Ghostly trees clustered near the entrance, nearly blocking it from view. One by one they filed in.

Thundrax leapt off of his mount, ran to the main road and set to work on obscuring their tracks. Sabe wasn’t far behind. Under the branches of a tree, she stopped and held out one hand, palm facing the ground.

She whispered something indiscernible and backed up, retreating to where she had left her wolf waiting. Dry earth gathered and swirled over the place where she had held her hand, whirling silently like a small tornado and gathering more to it until it appeared solid.

Then it was. A small bead of light swirled around the base once, spiraled upward and dissipated at the top. Runes flashed faintly from the center, then the totem appeared to be nothing more than a stump, similar to the trees it was nestled under.

Sabe was half way back to the camp by the time it had finished its rapid cycle, joining the rest of her companions who were sitting on anxious mounts, hiding behind rocks. A tattered tent had been erected, but it wasn’t theirs. Whoever had been there before had mysteriously left it, along with a few other belongings, behind.

Emberchill nodded to her from the other side of the camp when she arrived. Thundrax did not acknowledge her arrival; he was busy calming her mount. Evening shadows enunciated the dark circles under his eyes.

Beneath her, she could feel her wolf relax and she held him at a slow walk to where Arcadi was waiting. Perched atop his warhorse, he held his reigns in one hand and his staff in the other. She slid off her wolf and looked up. The priest reaffirmed his grip on his staff and nodded back, ready.

Stretching her hand out again, palm down, she whispered the word that would join her to the totem at the end of the path. Suddenly she felt as if she had been sucked upward and placed in a vacuum. She could see her own body and her companions below but was unable to access any senses other than sight. Until she was rejoined in her body, her companions would be her only protection.

A golden string was above her body and trailed away to where her totem was waiting. Without warning, her spirit was yanked away along the golden line. The ground blurred beneath her and the rushing scenes did not slow as the totem neared. Toward the end, she was thrust downward and had the sensation of falling. Then all around her was black and she knew she had stopped. No matter how many times she had done this before, she always found it a little disorienting. Seconds later, light flooded her vision. When her eyes adjusted, she looked.

Movement in the sky caught her attention before anything else, and she saw the vulture that had stayed with them earlier. Its scraggly body perched on top of a tall tree and swung its bulbous head around, watching the road with beady, red eyes. The head turned in the direction of her totem and it stared unblinkingly. With horror, she realized it was looking at her inside the totem.

When its head snapped up and away, it drew her gaze. The road turned south and she was unable to see whatever the vulture was staring at from its perch above. While she looked, she realized the bird was now looking back down the road in the direction they had come. She couldn’t hear or see whatever made the bird hide itself in a crevice, but it wedged itself in as far as it could until all that was visible were the tips of its toes nervously gripping the rock.

They came at once from opposite ends, tall figures hidden under dark cloaks and bent over the necks of onyx steeds. The wolves that accompanied them ran alongside with their noses low to the ground. She couldn’t hear the sounds the wolves made, but their lips curled back over yellowed teeth in a snarl. Foam and saliva flew from their mouths as they ran, spattering in the air, dissolving into their unkempt fur.

One Dark Rider and one wolf had scared the vultures away. As they rode past her, hooves and paws kicked up a cloud of dirt in their wake. Both halted abruptly when they joined those who had followed them for many days through Duskwood; two Dark Riders and one wolf. Both wolves stuck their noses to the ground and they searched the area for traces of their prey, seemingly confused by Thundrax’s work.

The three Riders sat still on their horses, their faces hidden in deep hoods and shadows, watching the wolves try to pick up the trail that had been suddenly lost.

One of the wolves turned toward her suddenly and began moving in the direction of their hidden path. Nose to the ground, it wandered a few feet away, then stopped. Its massive head lifted, looked in her direction and tilted to the side.

The wolf took a few steps toward the hidden path. Watching the wolves carefully, the Riders also turned their mounts in her direction. The second wolf joined, considering the trees and stump that obscured their hiding place. She wondered if they could see her inside the totem as the vulture could. One of the wolves crouched near the ground and took a step near. Lips curled back and its throat vibrated with a growl she could not hear. Her heart was pounding so hard she could distantly feel her physical reaction to fear.

Movement on the edge of her periphery caught her eye, and the wolves turned toward it. Both jaws started to snap violently.

The vulture that had attempted to hide itself had poked its head out of its hiding place and reaffirmed its grip on the sharp rocks. Realizing it had been spotted, the great bird opened its mouth in a silent scream and pushed off into the air, flying as fast as possible in the direction of Duskwood Forest.

Whirling around in the direction the bird had gone, the Riders and their wolves followed, pounding down the road, away from their hiding place. After they disappeared around a corner, she continued to wait until the dust cloud had settled. In the growing night it was harder to see, but she waited until there was no movement.

Her mind flooded with fear. She had no idea why they decided to follow the vulture, but knew better than to sit there and contemplate the miracle.

She released the totem.

When she returned, her body was trembling so violently that she fell against the stone they had been hiding behind. The rock felt cool against her cheek and she pressed her palms against it. When she opened her eyes, Arcadi was staring down at her, looking very concerned.

“Are you all right?” He asked.

“Yeah,” she said, trying hard to control her breathing. “If we’re going to leave, we need to do it now.”

He nodded and reached down, trying to help pull her up onto her wolf. It made her attempt to mount a bit more clumsy than she was used to, but she was grateful for the help anyway. On the way out, she explained what she had seen. No one else had an explanation for the Riders’ sudden departure, but it was agreed they needed to leave.

At the entrance to the main road, Thundrax jumped off of his mount, poked his head out from behind the trees and checked both directions. A silent gesture with his hand indicated they were safe. Everyone filed out. Reigns in hand, Thundrax led both of his animals out behind them. Quiet sighs of relief accompanied the group as they turned down the road that would lead them out.

Before stepping into the stirrup, Thundrax bent down and removed the leash from his lizard. It looked up at him and licked the air in thanks, its tail swishing in the air.

A faint click behind them caused everyone, including the animals, to turn. The lizard released a malicious hiss. Ears flatted against the heads of every mount. Night was upon them, and the tall rocks that lined both sides of the road allowed very little of the moon’s light to reveal whatever had made the sound.

When their eyes adjusted, they could see it moving in the darkness. The vulture’s eyes almost glowed in the shadow it was sitting in. As it waddled up onto the highest peak of the rock, its talons clicked faintly. New movement drew their attention back down to the road, where the shadows of two large wolves moved toward them.

The vulture had been a ruse to lure them out into the open.

Both wolves charged forward, teeth snapping. Behind them, the shadows of the three Dark Riders could barely be seen but the hooves of their dark steeds were clearly heard, clattering against the stone.

Emberchill’s horse reared, nearly throwing her off. With the exception of the lizard, the animals started to panic. They wanted to run, but Thundrax wasn’t mounted and they couldn’t leave him behind. Instead of climbing up on his wolf’s back, he was reaching into one of his saddle bags.

“What are you doing?” Arcadi shouted at him.

The hunter shook his head. He wasn’t thinking. Exhaustion had brought him to the brink of collapse and he had nothing left to rely on but instinct.

A metal crescent was pulled from his bag, and he threw it toward the approaching wolves. It arced in the air and came down gracefully, skidding to a halt behind the wolves. When the crescent stopped, it snapped open. Metal teeth gleamed momentarily, then the trap faded into its surroundings.

One of the wolves dug its front legs into the ground and tried to back up, into the oncoming Riders. Confusion reigned over the dark horses for a brief moment while the Riders struggled to regain control. The second wolf dodged out of the way, drove all of its strength into its hind legs, and jumped.

Thundrax jumped onto the back of his mount in a singular movement when the leaping wolf arrived in the middle of their group. Everyone whirled their animals in an attempt to break away, but the enormous wolf moved much more quickly than expected. Its jaw opened, yellow teeth flashing dimly in the light and an eager growl was heard from its throat.

Emberchill’s horse reared, screaming in pain, and started to buck wildly. Unable to hold on, the mage was thrown through the air, back into the direction of the oncoming Riders. Her body fell to the ground and rolled to the edge of the path. The Riders saw her on the road, her staff not far from where she lay. Swords were drawn from under their cloaks. The wolves saw her and turned back, muscles bulging as they sprinted toward her.

Thundrax was half way to her, his mount running hard to get between her and the Riders. His lizard wasn’t far behind.

Emberchill’s head lifted. Eyes narrowed at the rush of enemies and she reached out with one hand, grasping her staff. With a flash of light, her body disappeared. Wolves and Riders whirled around, slightly disoriented from the spell’s bright light.

She reappeared on the other side of the road, hunched over slightly, one arm protecting her ribs.

Thundrax used the opportunity to set off his waiting trap. As he passed one of the wolves, one boot came out of the stirrup and kicked out hard. The wolf stumbled and whimpered. When it saw the hunter dashing away on the back of his mount, it snarled and leapt after him. In the middle of the road, a metal click was heard.

The trap snapped open, garnering a change of priority by all three Riders and their wolves. Glittering frost spilled out from the trap like a blanket of living crystals in all directions, coating the ground. Their horses’ legs pulled hard against the magical frost while screaming in frustration at their impeded movements. The lizard took the opportunity to wade into the confusion, teeth snapping angrily at any limb it could reach.

One of the wolves started to move toward Emberchill. She climbed up a little higher on the rock to keep out of its range, grabbed up her staff and raised it into the air.

Arcadi and Sabe were on the ground, running toward her. From the far side of the fray, Thundrax was turning his mount around. They all saw the danger.

Urging his mount, Thundrax pressed down over its neck and dug his heels in. At the edge of the trap, it jumped, easily clearing the trap. Before the mage could finish her spell, the hunter’s hands reached out and grabbed her as he passed, pulling her across the back of his mount. The lizard followed faithfully, the small pads of its feet allowing it to climb sideways along the rock wall after its master.

When they landed safely on the ground, Thundrax pulled up on the reigns. All three Riders were breaking free of the trap and now heading toward Arcadi and Sabe.

The priest grabbed up his staff. The stone set at the top of his weapon started to glow.

“Go!” He shouted back to the hunter then turned to Sabe. “You too,” he said.

“Nope,” she answered, reaching for her weapons.

Shaking his head, his staff came up high above his head. “Stubborn orc,” he mumbled, and stepped toward the Riders.

Sabe didn’t recognize the words he was shouting. It wasn’t a spell she had heard him cast before. At the end of his chant, the night seemed to be drawn to the priest’s body like a dark aura and there was no sound, almost similar to the vacuum she had experienced inside of her totem.

Without warning, the darkness around the priest exploded. Fireworks shot out from all around his body, lighting up the night. Screams from the enemy echoed across the rock.

Stumbling back, Sabe blinked hard, trying to see. Wickedly bright light continued to explode around the priest who refused to stop his spell. Reaching out blindly, she grabbed him and pulled him away.

Their mounts had stayed behind. Thundrax was waiting just beyond them, keeping them calm. His arms were around Emberchill’s waist, and she was holding the reigns to his mount. He didn’t look as if he was going to last much longer.

Their mounts needed little encouragement and bolted away from the scene, heading south toward the road leading out of the Pass. Arcadi’s spell had bought them enough time to get a head start, although a few minutes later, the growls of the Riders’ wolves carried down to them. At the sound, their mounts surged forward, ears flattened against their heads.

Minutes seemed like hours and the mounts were getting tired. Foam formed on the edges of their mouths and their movements were becoming jumbled and uneven. Thundrax could control them no longer.

A piercing howl was heard, causing everyone to look back. The Riders had caught up with them and were bearing down quickly, galloping toward them.

Up ahead the road split, and one path was leading away. As they neared, the pungent smell of the swamp stung their nostrils.

Urging their mounts onto the path, they rounded the corner at full speed. Arcadi’s horse slipped on the rock but was able to regain its balance and charged forward. The road began a steep decline into the Swamp.

Thundrax looked back. The Riders were so close he could hear their cloaks flapping in the wind. Their grotesque wolves sprinted alongside, gaining on the group.

At the bottom of the hill, the road became an uneven dirt path that broke off into two different directions. Arcadi and Sabe turned their mounts down one, leading two of the Riders and a wolf away.

Emberchill took the other, steering toward an old, wooden bridge over a river, but it was too late. The Rider and its wolf had finally gotten just within reach of them. Snarling, the wolf dug its teeth into the animal they rode.

Whimpering, the mount stumbled and fell, throwing its passengers free. Thundrax hit the ground and rolled, sliding down the embankment into the river.

The water was warm. Dimly, he saw Emberchill standing above him, staff raised high in the air and she was shouting something, but the water in his ears muffled the sound. He was sinking.

Teeth clamped down on his wrist and tugged, pulling him away from the shore. He couldn’t struggle. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. Water rushed past his body as he was pulled downstream, but there was nothing he could do.

Darkness took him.