In the dirt ahead of me, I spot her body and pull my particles out of the light. While running towards her, I glance at the top of the cliff. Three Murkovin are standing near the ledge with their eyes fixed on me. As I begin to slow, two of them heave their spears in my direction. I duck under one and spin away from the other.
After throwing myself to the ground beside Tela, I check the ravine behind us. Two apparitions are sailing straight in my direction. I scoop Tela’s limp body from the ground and clutch her against my chest. Sprinting away from the beasts, I look up at the top of the cliff again.
The three Murkovin are running along the ledge above me, but I assume they can’t travel since they didn’t follow the other two who can. As I stream into the light to the south, two smears appear on my sides.
Angling in front of me, the Murkovin try to cut off my path. I intensify my focus on the beams and tighten my hold on Tela. Flooring my internal accelerator, I blast ahead between the two beasts. They fall out of my peripheral vision as I streak farther along the winding ravine.
Through the particles of my body pressed to her, I can feel Tela’s heartbeat. It’s rapid but weak, and her breathing is erratic. I don’t know if I should have moved her with all the injuries she has, but it was my only option. Her best hope for survival now is if I can find a place to stop. Her life depends upon me getting sap on her wounds, and I have to figure out a way to get some inside her.
The sides of the canyon tower increasingly higher as the ravine cuts deeper into the landscape. At least five hundred miles go by before the sides begin to lower and the ground under my feet starts to rise. When I look behind me, the Murkovin aren’t in sight. Although I doubt it’s much, I’ve been able to put some distance between us.
They should anticipate that I’ll head northeast to the Delta. If I was wrong about the others not being able to blend their light, they could already be blocking my route. Even if I can navigate around them, I’m not sure Tela will live through the hours needed to reach the Delta. I glance up at the sky to check the direction of the light rays from the clouds. Since they always point to the north, I’m able to confirm my bearings.
The sheer ravine wall on my right gradually dissipates until it’s a smooth slope. I shoot up the side and curve around the bottom of a hill. Hoping they won’t expect me to double back on the opposite side of the canyon from where they first saw us, I snake between the hills to the northwest. Although I check in every direction, I don’t spot the Murkovin in pursuit.
Staying on low ground and using the hills to hide me, I slow my speed to look for a place to stop. As I arc around a slope, I descend into a shallow gully at the bottom of a hill. With the base of the hill on one side of me and a low, steep wall on the other, I should be out of sight from the ground above. Attempting to put as little stress as possible on Tela, I slowly and carefully grind to a stop.
After laying Tela’s body on the ground, I press my fingers to her neck. Although her pulse is still there, it’s nothing but a faint blip against my skin.
“Tela,” I say, gently patting her cheek. “Can you hear me?”
Still unconscious, she doesn’t respond. I unclip a flask from my belt and dab a little sap on my fingertips. Hoping that some of it will be absorbed into her bloodstream, I rub the sap on her gums and under her tongue. I only use a tiny amount because I don’t want the liquid to choke her.
Scanning her body, I assess her injuries. Her left shin is broken with a sharp point of bone sticking out through her blood-soaked pants. Obviously fractured as well, the ankle of her other leg is twisted so that the foot is at a forty-five-degree angle to her leg. Cuts, abrasions, and blood cover her face and arms, but I’m even more worried about the lump sticking out of the back of her neck. I don’t need to be a doctor to know that her neck is broken.
“Stay with me, Tela,” I whisper. “I’ll figure something out.”
Chapter 16
I need to work on Tela’s injuries right away, but I don’t want to do it in the open. Looking up the ravine to the north, I notice a mound of boulders piled against one side of the gully wall. The rocks seem to have rolled down the slope of the hill over time and accumulated at its base. As I study the boulders, I think I see a crease wide enough for a body to fit through. I return the flask to my belt and run to the pile of rocks.
Between the boulders and the side of the ravine lies a narrow crevice no more than three feet wide and five feet tall. I climb over a few rocks to get to the opening and lean my head inside the gap. Although it’s too dark to see very far, there’s a small, natural tunnel inside. The faint sound of dripping water echoes off the walls.
“A cavern,” I say to myself.
I climb out of the opening and run back to Tela. After sliding my arms underneath her neck and legs, I gingerly lift her in my arms. As I walk to the pile of rocks, I search the terrain around us again. I don’t see any Murkovin by the time I reach the entrance, so I decide this is
