Prolog
Deep within the Midori, Far Eastern Kai’Vari
He knew she was dying and he was furious that he could do nothing to help her. He brought her here to make sure that both she and the baby would survive the birth, but now his wife was in horrible pain and fading quickly. If she did not deliver the baby soon they would both die. Her pregnancy had been difficult from the start and she had begged him to bring her to Finde’Lima when it was time for the birthing. He was hesitant at first, but when she came close to a miscarriage he packed their horses and they made the journey to the Midori.
A scream of agony ripped through the tiny clearing, Khort stopped his pacing in hopes of hearing the tiny cry of the baby. When he heard nothing, he continued to pace in a circle in the soft mossy grass outside the Sabola’s cottage. If his wife died he would not be able to go on living. Nothing would matter to him without Vash’Te.
“Pacing is not going to bring the babe any faster. Save your energy, you will need it to take care of your wife.” Khort stopped his pacing and stared at his companion. Hemi Rhe’Sida stood leaning against a fence post while he sharpened his knife. It angered him that his friend could stand so at ease while his wife died giving birth. Hemi, a Duenin army-man, had pledged his life to Khort after he had saved him from a graekull during an attack on the Sandori. His pledge would only be honored if he were able to return the favor and save Khort’s life. After four years the Dueninian was still honor bound to follow Khort wherever he went.
“I know what my duty is Duenin. You need not remind me.” He had advanced on Hemi until he stood just inches from the other man’s face.
“Easy friend.” Hemi pried Khort’s fist from his shirtfront. “I meant nothing untoward.”
He pushed away from Hemi and walked toward the edge of the clearing. Vash’Te needed him but Finde’Lima had shooed him from the cottage telling him it was no place for a man and that he would only distract them from their business.
“The hell with tradition!” He’d be damned if he was going to stand out here while his wife died. He stormed across the clearing, but Hemi stopped him from opening the door.
“That is no place for a man. A child is cursed if the father is in the room during birth.”
“I do not believe in your superstitions.” Khort pushed passed Hemi and into the cottage. The scene before him caused the air to rush from of his lungs. The old Sabola woman, Finde’Lima, was placing a tiny bundle into his wife’s exhausted arm.
“Come see your daughter,” Finde’Lima said as she turned to face him, “She has a strong connection to the Vale”. He saw the look of worry before she smiled up at him.
He rushed over to the bed and gently sat next to Vash’Te, the soft mattress dipping considerably under his size. A daughter, he was surprised to find how happy he was at having a daughter. He prayed many times to Orla for a son, but now that he looked down upon the red and swollen face of his daughter his heart filled with joy.
“She is beautiful my love and she has your eyes.” Vash’Te’s eyes were a haunting silvery gray. All the Devians from Fin’Varrar looked at the world with the same strange gray eyes. He leaned over and kissed his wife’s forehead. The heat he felt in her skin caused a small jolt to his heart, “She is too warm Finde’Lima. What is wrong?”
“The labor was very difficult for her.” Finde’Lima did not turn from her task of cleaning the blood from her hands. It was then that Khort saw how much blood his wife had lost during the delivery.
“Excuse me my love.” Khort left his wife and cornered Finde’Lima by the water basin on the other side of the room.
“Why is she so hot?” He whispered to Finde’Lima so Vash’Te would not here the concern in his voice. He did not want to tax her any more than she already was.
Finde’Lima dried her hands and looked up at the Horse Master. “You must prepare yourself, Khort. She has lost much blood and I can do nothing for her.”
Khort’s heart lurched at what he already knew. “What of your connection to the Vale? Can the spirits not help?”
“Normally, yes, but she if too far gone. Not even the spirits can help her now.”
Khort looked at Vash’Te to find her smiling down at their daughter. She was whispering to the tiny babe.
While her husband whispered with Finde’Lima, Vash’Te spoke her first words to her daughter. “Hello my daughter, how beautiful you are and, such a tiny thing.
How will I ever protect you from this world? Already your life is in danger; evil will hunt for you all your life as long as your Ghai can feel you.”
Vash’Te listened to her own words and knew what she must do, but she also knew that Khort would fight her with all he had to stop her from doing what they must. She watched Khort and Finde’Lima in the corner, they both intent on their conversation. The time had come. They had already wasted too much time. Moraug would be sending his graekulls.
“Khort.” His wife’s faint voice barely reached him in the corner.
“Vash’Te, she is beautiful my love.” He whispered to her as he pulled a stool over to the side of the bed.
“Khort…” she paused to take a deep breath, “the prophecy…I fear for her…we cannot let him find her.”
He could tell it took a lot out her to speak and he tried comforting her. “He will not find her, I promise you.”
“It is not enough…no one can defeat Moraug, he will…he will find her.” Her breathing was becoming more labored as she spoke.
“Hush, try not to speak.” He ran his hand over her face pushing the hair out of the way. Her skin seemed hotter than before. He turned to Finde’Lima, “Can you not do anything?”
Before Finde’Lima could answer him Vash’Te, with what strength she had left tried to sit up. “Khort, help me.”
He knew his wife and once she wanted something she would stop at nothing to have it. Now she wanted to sit up, so he took their daughter from her and with his free hand helped her to sit up in bed. He gently placed the babe back into her weak arms.
“Khort, Orla’s prophecy…I will not be here to protect her.”
“You will be fine; all you need is some rest.” His reassurance was more for himself than it was for her.
“No, my time is coming to an end…but her life is just beginning. You know…she is the answer…to the prophecy. We must hide her…from Moraug, he will…already know she is born.”
“She will be safe in the Sandori. My people will protect her.” Khort tried reassuring his wife, but she shook her head at his attempt.
“There is only one way…she will be safe from Moraug.” She took hold of his hand and looked into his eyes. “We must hide her away…from both Moraug and the Ghai.”
“No! The Ghai will not allow her to be hidden from them, she is too important.” Khort was surprised by his wife’s thoughts. His child would be an outcast if she had no Ghai to link her to the spirit world. She would be forced to live a life outside of the forest, away from her people. “No,” he repeated, “I will not allow it. I will not allow my child to be raised by others. She is Kai and should be raised as a Kai.”
Vash’Te shook her head at his protest. “If she has no connection to her spirit…then Moraug is blind to her…and I will not allow her to be taken by Moraug’s graekulls. You know what they would do to her. We must do this!”
Khort understood his wife’s fear, he too feared for their daughter. But his heart did battle with his mind. In his heart he wanted his daughter by his side, raised in the Kai tradition, her abilities honed in preparation for what awaited her. But his mind knew that if she stayed, Moraug would never stop his hunt for her. Having fought the graekulls most of his life he had witnessed more horrors than he cared to remember. He would give his own life before letting Moraug have his daughter. This thing his wife asked of him was unthinkable, but his mind won out over his heart when it can to the safety of his daughter.
He sat next to Vash’Te once again, “Very well my love,” he leaned over and kissed her forehead once again, “tell me what I must do.”
“We must perform the Kil’laren on her.”
“I will not have a ritual for criminals performed on my child.”
Finde’Lima, for the first time spoke to the new parents. She had been listening in and knew not of the prophecy they spoke of, but could hear the anguish in Khort’s voice at the mention of the Kil’laren; a ritual reserved for the worst sort of person, “It is the only way to hide the child from the Moraug.” She placed her hand on his shoulder, “Perhaps you should make arrangements for getting the child out of the forest while I gather the necessary items for the Kil’laren.” She gave a pointed look at the closed door. Finde’Lima was tiny in stature but she had the personality of a warrior. Khort knew of no man that would defy the Sabola’s orders. The top of her head only came to Khort’s shoulder as he sat on the small stool.
Finde’Lima could tell Khort was still hesitant about performing the separation ritual on his daughter. She liked Khort, she understood his apprehension, and that was only reason she waylaid his fears, “The Kil’laren is not permanent.”
“What are you saying? Everyone knows that once a Kai warriors’s bond to the Ghai has been severed it cannot be undone.”
She expected his reaction. All Kai grew up thinking the same thing, but she knew the truth of the ritual. “It can be reversed.” Before Khort could respond to her, she picked up a large basket and prepared to leave the cottage. “I must collect what is needed; I suggest you also make your preparations.”
Khort was in turmoil, he detested the fact that the Kil’laren would be performed on his daughter, but Finde’Lima offered a ray of hope for her future. He needed to speak with Hemi and he was not looking forward to the conversation.
“I will be back my love.” He kissed her forehead first and then that of his daughter’s.
“Khort, do you trust him?” It was unspoken that she was referring to Hemi.
“Yes, he is the only one that I would allow take her.”
Outside he found Hemi checking the tack of their horses. He was always one to put his horse before himself. As the Kai Horse-Master, Khort had always admired the Dueninian for that. “Hemi, I must have a word with you.” The air was cold enough to cause a puff of steam to appear with his words.
Hemi stopped what he was doing and came to stand next to his friend. “How is Vash’Te? The babe?”
“I have a daughter, a beautiful daughter,” Khort looked down at his weapon worn hands, “but, Vash’Te, she is not doing well.”
“I’m sorry for that, my friend.”
Hemi’s sympathy made the pain of losing his wife hurt even more.
“How long have you been tagging along behind me?”
“It has been four years now since you saved me from the claws of a graekull.” Hemi gave a self-deprecating laugh, “I made a vow to return the gift, but you seem to have no need of me seeing as you have not given me many opportunities to honor my pledge.”
“I give you one now my friend.” Khort walked away from the other man and then turned back to face him, “I am in need your help.”
“All you have to do is ask. I have been waiting for the moment for four years now.”
Khort knew that even though Hemi had pledged his life to him, he missed his homeland and longed to return to the forest where he grew up. But he also knew that what he now asked would test his friends pledge to the fullest.
Khort struggled to find the right words, “My daughter,” he paused, “is very special.”
“I’m sure that she is, but what has this to do with my pledge?”
Instead of answering, Khort said, “It is no longer my life you must protect.”
“What are you saying, friend?”
Khort looked Hemi straight in the eye and told him the truth, “Moraug hunts my daughter. Even now we are wasting time; I must get her out of the forest.”
Hemi was having a hard time believing his old friend, “You’re telling me that Moraug, god of the Abaddon, is hunting your daughter? Why ever would he be interested in a baby?”
“I’ve already told you, she is special and what Moraug will do with my daughter if he finds her is unspeakable. I am certain that Moraug already knows of her birth. He will be sending his graekulls to find her.”
Confusion was replaced by an overwhelming sense of panic, “We must send a warning to the others we must amass the army.”
“No.”
“No? What are you talking about! Graekulls are on their way here, right now, and you tell me no to gathering the army, what is wrong with you?”
“My daughter cannot be here when they attack, they will take her and Moraug will kill her.”
“Then let us be gone from here.” Hemi turned to gather their supplies.
“Yes, you must leave here, and you must take my daughter with you.”
Hemi stopped in mid-stride, “What did you say?”
“Take my child; take her far away from here where Moraug cannot find her.”
Hemi was shocked by what Khort asked of him, “What? No. No! You cannot ask this of me.” He shook his head, stepping away from Khort as if he asked him to drive a dagger into his heart.
“If you wish to honor your pledge you will do this thing I ask. If Moraug’s graekulls take her all will be lost, all we have fought for will be for naught and Moraug will rule over us all, even your precious Duenin.”
“But Khort, I know nothing of raising a child.”
“You are my only hope Hemi, you must take her. You are the only person I trust with my life and that of my daughter.”
“I don’t understand why does he hunt her?” Hemi’s voice had risen with the question.
“I cannot tell you.” Khort replied.
“Y- You cannot tell me?” Hemi was incredulous.
At that moment Finde’Lima returned to the clearing with her basket full. The time had come for the Kil’laren to be performed.
“How long will it take?” he asked Finde’Lima
“Not long,” her eyes darted to Hemi, “have you made your preparations?”
“I am working on it,” his patience was wearing thin with Hemi reluctance, ”Vash’Te awaits you in the cottage, go tend to her.”
“She awaits you as well, milord, perhaps you should attend to your wife, instead of conversing with your lackey.”
“Hey-“
“Ignore her, she means nothing by it.” Khort watched Finde’Lima as she entered the cottage and felt bad for snapping at the Sabola, “You have only a few minutes to decide if you will honor your vow to me. If you do not then we will all surely die, if you do, then the Kai will be forever in your debt.”
With that he left his friend to decide if he would honor his pledge and went inside the darkened cottage.
“We must do this quickly.” Finde’Lima was already preparing for the ritual. She had laid the stems of a feather fern in a circle along the floor.
“Tell me what I must do.” He’d witnessed many Kil’laren, but had never participated in its preparation and felt inadequate as Finde’Lima’s assistant.
“Take the child and remove her from the swaddling.”
“She will be burned.”
“Do it now, time is running out.” Her words told him not to argue with her again.
Khort gathered the tiny babe from his wife’s weak arms. She had said nothing when he came into the room, her body too exhausted to move.
“He must witness this.”
Khort was confused by Finde’Lima’s words as she placed the bare baby on the cold floor. But he did not question her again; rather he opened the door and called to Hemi, asking him to come into the cottage. With both men filling the tiny room, there was not much room left for the circle on the floor.
“What is she doing?” Hemi whispered to Khort.
“The Kil’laren-“
“Silence,” Finde’Lima gave both men a threatening look. The old woman made them both feel as if they were children again in the nursery.
“Sorry.” The both said in unison.
“You must not speak during the ritual.” With that being said Finde’Lima began the ritual of Kil’laren.
From her basket she took a bowl filled with black dirt from the forest floor. She sprinkled the dirt inside the circle forming a smaller version. “Child of the elements I separate you from sh’al.” Sh’al was the Kai word for earth. Next from her basket she removed another bowl containing water. “Child of the elements I separate you from ri’ka.”
Khort could not take his eyes off his child and was not aware when Finde’Lima left the circle only to return with a bowl of hot coals from the fire. Panic took hold, for he knew what the next line of the ritual would be. He took a step toward the circle only to be brought up short by the look in Finde’Lima’s eyes.
Having stopped Khort’s protest she continued with her task. “Child of the elements I separate you from ag’ne.” With that, she slowly and carefully poured the hot coals in a circle around the sleeping child. No matter how carefully she poured some of the coals came only inches from touching the delicate skin of the baby. She must have felt the heat, for when the circle was complete the tiny cries of his daughter filled the room.
“Hush ima.” As quickly as the cries started they quieted at Finde’Lima’s command.
Next would be wind.
Finde’Lima blew air on the fire, “Child of the elements! I separate you from re’el!” Fanned by the wind, the hot coals burst into flames, fire rose up around the baby inching closer to her delicate skin. The wind swirled around the room lifting the flames in an ever increase spiral until they touched enclosing his daughter in a cone of fire. Along with the fire, the fern stems and dirt were lifted into the air and tossed into the mix. Finde’Lima’s long gray hair whipped around her face as she said the last line of the ritual, “Child of the elements, I separate you from the Vale and you shall not return!” As the last word left Finde’Lima’s lips the wind left the room taking the fire and debris with it.
“It is done.” Finde’Lima said quietly while she lifted the babe from the floor. She swaddled her once again in a worn blanket. A circle of burnt wood was all that was left from the ritual.
Hemi could say nothing as he stared at the floor where the babe had been surrounded by a cone of fire. He’d heard of this ritual from the warriors in Bac’Ku, but he had never seen it performed.
“The link has been severed.” Finde’Lima paused for moment as if listening to the wind. When she next spoke it was to warn them, “The tree spirits, they are angry. You must get her out of the forest as quickly as possible”
Khort looked at Finde’Lima. He knew they would be upset if they hid her from her spirit guides. He was afraid of the ramifications, but he would deal with that when this was all over.
“Khort, bring…her to me.”
Vash’Te’s week voice reached him from across the room. “She fares well my love.”
He placed the infant into her arms, “She is… so beautiful… such a tiny… thing.” Vash’Te ran her fingers along the child’s check. Her tiny eyes closed in sleep.
“We have yet to name her.”
“She is…so pure.” Vash’Te looked up at Khort, “We will…name her…Sterling.”
“Sterling Rin’Ovana, a strong name for such a tiny person.”
“Khort, my time…draws near.” Each breath she took was shallower than the next. “I need my…pendant, get it for me?”
Khort turned to Hemi and asked him to retrieve Vash’Te’s saddlebags from her horse. Hemi was gone for only a moment and when he returned he handed the bundle to Khort. Inside the bag Khort found his wife’s pendant that was always present around her neck. He never understood why she wore it for all the stones had fallen out, save one, and the gold color had turned brown over the years. But his wife thought it precious and so he had never said anything to her about the necklace.
“Hemi, come here.”
Hemi as well as Khort was surprised by the request and Hemi could tell by the look in his friend’s eyes that he did not like that his wife had asked for him. But she had asked for him so he stooped down next to the bed, his knees cracking under his weight.
She took his large hand and placed the necklace in his hand. “You must…keep this…for her.” Her thin fingers were paper white next to his larger tanned hands. He could feel how week she was when she closed his fingers around the pendant. “Protect this… with your life… my friend; it is… the key to everything. You must…give it to her when it is time.”
“How will I know-“
“You will… know when… the time… is right. Orla…prophesized…”
Vash’Te’s breathing had become so shallow and fast that it was hard for the three to understand what she was saying.
“I will protect it with my life.”
Hemi tucked the pendant into the money pouch he wore next to his skin. It was on rare occasions that he removed the pouch from around his neck. He stood and stepped away from the bed allowing Khort to take his place. Their faces were so close that he could not hear what they were saying to one another, but he felt this moment was one that required privacy so he saw himself out of the cottage.
The small clearing that surrounded the cottage was filled with the warmth of the sun. He told himself that the sharp contrast between the darkness of the cottage and the brightness of the sun caused his eyes to water. For four years now he had followed Khort, at first he resented the fact that he had been forced to pledge his life to a Kai. Why not a Duenin noble? Then perhaps he could have lived in splendor, but instead he had pledged himself to a Kai Horse-Master and had lived meagerly with the smell of horses always present. But after a year in slavery, he discovered that Khort was a man of honor and he respected the Kai a great deal, and now he considered him a brother. He was present at Khort’s wedding to Vash’Te and now he admitted to himself that he was jealous of his friend at the time, for he had fallen in love with Vash’Te when he had first met her, but he had never told anyone of his feelings. He saw the look in her eyes when she looked at Khort and his when he looked at her.
“You show your love for her by taking the babe.”
Hemi quickly wiped his eyes and turned to find the tiny Finde’Lima standing just behind him. He felt like a giant next to her small stature.
“How-“
“I see it in your eyes.”
“Khort must never know.”
“Your feelings are your own to share.”
She came to stand beside him as they fell into an awkward silence. He wasn’t sure what to say to the old woman. She seemed as if from a dream.
“You must take special care of the babe. I sense she has a special purpose. Before the ritual I felt a powerful presence, as if Orla herself stood beside me. If what Khort says is true, Moraug hunts her now, you must teach her to defend herself.”
Hemi touched the back of his neck and felt the knot that held the leather pouch around his neck. The knot reminded him of the pendant that Vash’Te had entrusted him with.
“When will I know to give her the pendant?” He took the two steps that brought him to the soft moss covered ground. Turning back, he was at eye level with Finde’Lima.
She did not answer him immediately; instead her eyes scanned the forest behind him, her brows furrowed in thought. Finally she looked up at him. There was a sparkle in her eyes that belied the magnitude of her words, “Our destiny has been foretold for a thousand years, what can we mortals do to change what is destined? You will know when the time is right, there will be no question.”
He found himself even more confused than before her words of wisdom. He wanted to ask her more questions but she stopped him before the words could leave his lips.
“Quiet.” He did not question the command, but stood still and listened.
Earlier, while he had tended the horses the birds had made a racket with their twittering, but now he could not hear the rustle of leaves in the wind. So utter was the silence in the ancient forest that he could hear his own heart beat. The air that passed through his lungs was as loud as one of Rameel’s storms.
“Do you hear it?” Finde’Lima’s question broke the silence. He forced his ears to hear past the silence, but he heard nothing.
“I do not...” Suddenly in the distance the faint sound of a reanik horn wailed over the forest canopy.
“Hell.”
“Prepare your horses, I will collect the babe.”
“What of Khort?”
“I will take care of him. Go. Now.”
Hemi darted across the clearing and saddled up his horse as quickly as possible. His heart was now pounding full force, threatening to burst out of his chest. He hated the sound of those damn horns. The Kai used the horns from the reanik rams that inhabited the forest. The horns were excellent for sending the warning signal because of their deep resonating sound that vibrated across the forest. The horns meant one thing and one thing only: demons, or as the Kai called them graekulls. Devilish creatures, he hated them. He’d seen a solider ripped in half by a demon’s razor sharp claws. He’d seen more gore and horror in the past six years that would haunt his dreams for the rest of his life. And now they were headed here for Khort’s daughter. He didn’t know what was so special about this one child, but if it meant his debt to Khort would be over he’d do just about anything.
He finished the last tie of his bedroll, and then reached around and tightened the cinch of the saddle. The task calmed his nerves. He was finishing the packhorse when Khort followed by Finde’Lima emerged from the cottage. He watched them approach over the horse’s back. Khort looked defeated, his proud shoulders were hunched, his hands clinched in white-knuckled fist. His eyes were red-rimmed from crying and appeared empty as if he saw no life before him. His dark brown hair was disheveled from running hands through the strands, pushing the hair from his face. Behind him, Finde’Lima carried a bundle of blankets, in her other hand a basket filled with the necessities of baby care.
“She is…” he paused as his voice cracked, “She is gone.” His eyes misted over as he put his grief into words.
“I’m sorry for your loss my friend.” Hemi was at a loss for words. His own heart was breaking. He had loved Vash’Te from the moment they first met. It was his respect for Khort and the fact that the man could kill him with one swing of his sword that kept him from pursuing his desire for Vash’Te. It was also the fact that Vash’Te loved Khort so completely that he would have not wanted to put her in such an awkward position as an affair.
“She has returned to Fin’Varrar.”
“You must hurry, before they arrive.” Finde’Lima’s warning brought his urgency to leave back to the forefront.
Hemi mounted his horse and took the lemar from Finde’Lima and placed the sling around his neck. The Kai women wore the slings so they could carry their babes while went about their daily lives. He felt awkward with the material wrapped around his body, and fidgeted with it until it felt right.
Khort took the bundle from Finde’Lima and whispered to his daughter. He could not hear the words but the look of pain on Khort’s face ripped a hole in his heart. He swore to himself that he would do everything in his power to protect Khort’s daughter. He would give his life before allowing any harm to come to the babe. He wouldn’t admit that he was terrified of the child. He had grown up as an only child and not spent much time with children as an adult. He didn’t know the first thing about raising a child, but now swore to all the gods that he would protect her with his life.
Khort finished his words to his daughter with a kiss to her tiny forehead. He lifted the bundle up to Hemi and stared him hard in the eyes, “Her name is Sterling, Sterling Rin’Ovana.” Khort swallowed back a sob and added, “Swear to me you will protect her. Swear to me that you will love her as your- your own.”
“I swear it on my life. She will be safe.”
“You are a good warrior my friend, you must teach her all that you know in the ways of war.”
Hemi’s eyes shot to Khort’s, “But…”
“When she is old enough to understand you must train her as a warrior is trained. Moraug will find her and when he does, she must know how to fight.”
“Promise me.” Khort said behind a clinched jaw when Hemi balked.
“I will teach her,” Hemi answered as he placed the tiny babe in the safety of the sling so that she lay cradled against his body. He examined the infant that was the key to his freedom. She had a red swollen face, but she looked up at him with the same silver eyes as Vash’Te. As he sat there with the babe in his arms he felt wholly inadequate and had sinking feeling that he would fail his friend.
Finde’Lima stepped up and handed a bundle to Hemi, “You must feed her every two hours. No exceptions. Make sure you keep her close, the heat from your body will keep her warm.”
He nodded his understanding and took up the reins but before he could turn to leave, Khort reach up and took hold of the bridle. “Thank you, my friend, my brother, your life is your own, your vow honored.” Khort then did something completely shocked Hemi. “You must take these and give them to her when she is ready.” He held Riva and Seda, his swords, up to Hemi.
“But you cannot…”
“Take them.”
Hemi felt a suspicious lump in his throat as he took the swords from Khort. The Kai gave names to their swords because they were such an essential part of the warrior. Giving them up was just as painful for Khort as losing his wife.
Hemi stowed the weapons and turned his horse toward the forest trail that would lead him out of the Midori and north towards Duenin. He didn’t want to jostle the babe so he kept the horse at a fast walk. The shadows of the forest were already closing in around him, the day turned to night in the thick canopy of the Midori.
Hemi checked the babe often, afraid the jostling of the horse was harming the babe, but each time he pulled the sling back she was sleeping. Her fist curl up beside her check as it rested his chest.
Suddenly the sound of birds was gone replaced by the distant sound of Khort’s voice. At first he couldn’t make it out, but when he heard it again the words rang clear throughout the forest. Hemi spurred his horse into a hard gallop, spitting dirt up from the horse’s hooves. He held Sterling to his chest so the hard pace would not throw her from her protective cocoon. Each time the hooves hit the ground he heard Khort’s words echo off the giant trees: run, run, RUN!
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