Exeres scratched his arm. “I think I can remember that. The south gate’s to be open if he wants to talk. Are you going to be traveling that direction?”
“Yes,” Thealos said. “You’re our emissary, Exeres. I think it’s appropriate, actually. You are from the Zerite order, which are neutral politically. You are half-Shae, half-human. You will make the intercession for us all. When it’s dark, we will come around to the south so that no one will see us coming. The mist will hide many things, including the position of the Shae army. That gives both sides a need to trust each other.”
Ticastasy looked at Thealos. “I don’t think he’ll betray you.”
He smiled back. “I hope not.”
Exeres brushed his hands together. “When should I leave?”
“Now,” Thealos answered. “I hope he will accept these terms. I pray he does.”
Squatting down on the grass, Exeres placed his healing supplies back into his travel sack. Xenon and Thealos conversed a little more in Silvan. He could see the enmity in their eyes for each other, but at least they had made some sort of truce themselves. Flipping the cuff over the backpack, he cinched the straps and swung it up around his shoulders. His medallion thumped against his chest as he rose.
“Safe journey,” Thealos said to him, reaching for his hand.
“I will meet you in Landmoor. All of you.” He nodded to Ticastasy and Flent and then started at a brisk pace into the Shoreland moors.
*
Exeres walked hard and strong, making good time across the troughs and gentle hills. Weeds and grasses shushed against his legs. He paused repeatedly to check the position of the sun and realized he would make it to the keep just as the sun began to set. His approach brought him around to another view of the castle, and he was a little surprised to see that the gatehouse on the south face looked identical to the one on the north face of the structure. The walls were uneven in height, a jumble of small squat towers and thin tall ones. Parts of the bastion walls were cracked with speckled moss and growths of vine ivy swarming it. How many centuries had the walls stood so defiantly, gazing south into the throat of the Shoreland? The city hill was vast, and the threads of chimney smoke streaming into the air showed a variety of those who lived and died within its protective walls.
A blue jay swooped down and snatched an insect and then flapped away. The air smelled clean and fresh—a warm smell. The humidity of the moors had him soaking in his own sweat, but he did not mind it. It was purifying, and part of him still felt the filth of having associated with Miestri and Mage.
Exeres stewed his thoughts as he walked, trying to make sense of them. He did not know how Thealos had convinced the Crimson Wolfsmen to heed his plan. Those men did not seem to take advice very well. For a moment, Exeres had thought they might start beating them all, so as not to make anyone feel left out. He imagined Thealos would be stiff the next morning. Perhaps more than stiff. He had taken some hard blows to sensitive organs. He shook his head.
A blanket of darkness settled over the valley floor.
Exeres looked up, westward, and saw the sinking sun—but no clouds. He stopped in his tracks. A palpable feeling of darkness descended over everything. Even the long grasses seemed to shrink and cower. He wondered what other sort of freakish storm was due, yet the weather was not the cause of it. A chill swept through him and he chafed his arms for warmth.
A storm was coming, but not the kind that fell from thunderheads. Something cold and evil knifed through his stomach, sending needles of fear up into his mind. What was it? He took a few steps back, retreating, and the feeling withdrew. The sun’s warmth soaked through him again and the colors became more vibrant.
“What?”
He stepped forward again and plunged into that unseen darkness. He tried to draw up some Earth magic to defend himself, but it did not obey him. There was nothing to draw up.
A warding—he had crossed a warding.
Humans could not feel them, he had learned in his Druid studies. Only the Shae. But this…this phenomenon astounded him. Looking up, he anticipated that the keep was still several miles away. Did the warding blanket the entire valley floor? How could it? How could something extend that far?
Should he go back and warn the others?
He bit his lip, looking ahead and glancing back. Which way?