Thankfully, the lower branches made for easy footholds, allowing Ryl to scramble quickly up the trunk. The tree swayed mildly as he reached the peak. A loud groan issued from the wood as his added weight pressed on the straining wood.
With confidence in his enhanced balance, Ryl rushed forward, dodging branches as he darted across the trunk. With every step, the bend was exaggerated; his fear of causing permanent damage grew. With less than a third of the distance remaining over the water, Ryl sprang from the tree. A final, pained groan sounded before the tree shot upward, swaying dramatically as it returned to its statuesque norm. The shaking of the branches was eerily similar to the act of shaking oneself off to spurn the effects of a particularly strenuous activity.
He rolled as he reached the ground a meter or so below. The track here was hard, and he prepared for the impact by hardening the skin of his body. The woodskin responded with ease. The jolt of the incoming ground was diminished to nothing more than a subtle jolt.
Ryl stopped to brush off the dirt he’d accumulated from the pathway. Though it was an unnecessary effort, he glanced over his body, confident that he’d sustained no injuries. The perception of being watched hammered into him with force.
Ryl’s left hand curled behind his back, a natural reaction to the concern. His hand hadn’t reached the handle of the Leaves before he recognized the source of the feeling.
The shimmering outline of a figure stood in the pathway between him and the exit of the Erlyn.
Though a hood covered his face, the grin was clear, peeking through the long, wispy grey beard.
Da’agryn.
“With the coming of dawn, your quarry moves further away,” he whispered. His voice was distant. “We’ll be of no assistance to you beyond the bounds of these woods. We are too weakened. Rest is needed now.”
Ryl nodded.
“Your assistance will be needed here,” Ryl admitted. “I have little fear of what stands between me and Kaep. The remnants of the army will not slow me if they muster the will to fight. I do worry if they should return their attention to the woods once I pass.”
“Fear not, my young friend,” Da’agryn breathed. “No man will step foot unescorted into the bastion where your friends reside whether the Erlyn is weary or not. The road to Tabenville will be accessible. They’ll find little else of worth.”
“And if Elias returns, or was able to pass the knowledge of the clearing to the other Lei Guard, could they open the path?” Ryl quizzed.
The grin on Da’agryn’s face paled at the question.
“That failure was ours, Ryl,” he offered. Every passing word became less audible. His ghostly frame flickered like a candle flame sputtering out. “It will not be repeated. We understand the scent of the Lei Guard now, the taint that corrupts the sense of the alexen that still lingers.”
Ryl opened his mouth to question. Da’agryn held him off with an outstretched hand.
“I’ve little time and much to say,” he continued. “The process by which the Lei Guard are created is a mystery to me. Though the signature of the tributes, the welcome that you and I have grown to cherish, has been stolen from them, the essence of their power remains. The power in the blood may be yet removed, but the imprint is there. It was an unsettling sensation for the woods. She’ll not allow it any sway again.”
Ryl was confused by the explanation, though it contained logic that was clear. A fire could be doused, all heat removed, yet the char would announce the burning. Water could be evaporated, yet residue and markings of its passage would be left for all to see.
“Make haste.” Da’agryn’s body faded rapidly, his voice becoming no more than whispers on the sudden breeze that blew in from the depths of the woods. “Take care that you do not find yourself trapped between the walls of stone and the hatred of humanity. The phrenic will need you.”
“A phrenic needs me now,” Ryl snapped, immediately regretting the tone of his voice. “I will not abandon them. I will not abandon her while she is still in reach. I will be back in time to move for Vim.”
Da’agryn nodded as his body faded away into wisps of green. They swirled around Ryl before moving away, carried by a gust of wind into the trees.
“Watch over them for me,” Ryl whispered.
The quiet rustling of the leaves overhead was the only reply.
Chapter 16
The sunrise rapidly burned off the darkness that had covered The Stocks. Daylight brought a clear sky. Gone were the thin strands of fast-moving clouds that had obscured portions of the heavens the previous night. The air was crisp. The wind blowing from the coast was mild, though steady. The bite from the chill might have irritated him, yet Ryl’s intent was focused, blocking out any hint of cold.
His vision was fixed, heading due south, following lazy bends of the narrow, dusty road. To his east, the calm river seemed to gurgle louder than normal as if working feverishly to pacify his agitation through its normally pacifying sound.
Ryl feared that too much time had passed. Elias and Kaep had too great a head start. Faya’s visions had painted an image he had hoped would be true. While he trusted the child, the alexen in his blood and the inherent knowledge they possessed urged him for caution. Early visions to an untrained, unawakened seer could be notoriously tricky. Their interpretations could be erroneous and inconsistent.
Ryl scanned the area ahead with his mindsight. As it had been the last time, and the time before that, the vision remained clear. Still, he had the lingering sense that Elias was close. There was a darkness that kept urging him forward.
The head start should have made reaching him unattainable. Likely, Elias’s travel was hampered by his weakened condition. His movements would assuredly be
