“There is much I have to learn about you two,” he smiled. “May I get past you?”
“You will learn a lot about us later,” chuckled Mistake as she moved aside to let the elven king onto the balcony.
Avalar cocked an eyebrow but quickly dismissed her words. He leaned over the railing and gazed at the ground below him. He closed his eyes and magically searched the grass below. Mentally, he felt the blades of grass brush against his face, but he kept on searching until he found the buried treasure, a winter store for some hard working squirrel. He focused on the acorn and concentrated. He did not need to open his eyes to see the mighty oak sprout upward. He continued to concentrate as he bent the forces of nature to his will. When he finally opened his eyes, the oak tree’s branches danced happily near the railing of the balcony.
“We are ready to descend,” Avalar announced as he entered the meeting room.
HawkShadow stared through the open shutters and shook his head as the sight of the tree awaiting them. He wasted no time asking questions of the elven king. He moved swiftly to the balcony and stepped over the rail and onto a sturdy branch. Within seconds, HawkShadow was on the ground, sword drawn, as he waited for the others to descend.
When the whole group was on the ground, HawkShadow led the way across the clear area and onto the street leading away from the temple. They turned to the right at the first intersection and proceeded to the end of the block.
“More fog, MistyTrail,” ordered HawkShadow. “I think that is the only way to get this large group across that wasteland.”
MistyTrail nodded and cast her spell. She did not hold back this time and great billows of fog rolled out across the wasteland. When the fog was thick enough to obscure the forest ahead of them, HawkShadow led the way forward at a run. They paused when they reached the forest and HawkShadow nodded to Rhoda.
“Disperse it,” he nodded.
Rhoda called upon the winds and blew the fog upwards into the sky. No sooner had the fog lifted than the alarms started sounding. The soldiers at the rear of the temple immediately became alert.
“That is cutting it close,” sighed HawkShadow. “A few more minutes and we would not have made it.”
“You don’t understand, HawkShadow,” corrected Mistake. “The escape is not nearly over. The soldiers and kruls will not just be chasing us from the temple. The woods will be crawling with them. They will be coming at us from every direction. The kruls can smell elves very easily. We need to run, and run fast.”
Chapter 33
The Escape
HawkShadow and Mistake started running through the woods behind the temple of Vand. Avalar and Rhoda followed, with Tamar and MistyTrail bringing you the rear. The horns that had started blaring from the temple were being joined by an ever-increasing chorus from all directions. Tamar looked over his shoulder and saw dozens of soldiers racing out of the temple.
“There is a large group giving chase,” shouted Tamar.
“There are mages among them,” added MistyTrail as she also looked back and saw hooded men among the charging soldiers.
No one responded, and MistyTrail stopped looking back. The group raced through the forest until a krul stepped out in front of them. HawkShadow and Tamar drew their swords without stopping. The krul just stood waiting for its prey to arrive. HawkShadow charged with a burst of speed, and the creature’s large mouth opened wide in a grin. The Sakovan assassin raced right up to the krul and then ducked below its swinging arms and veered around it. He turned and swung viscously into the back of the creature’s legs. The krul screamed in pain as the rest of the group detoured around it. As the creature dropped to its knees, Tamar swung his sword at the krul’s throat. He did not stop to verify the kill, but he heard the impact of the krul’s body hitting the ground.
The group reformed with HawkShadow and Mistake leading again. MistyTrail felt the air beside her head tremble and a tree off to her right exploded, sending a fine spray of bark and wood splinters through the air. MistyTrail urged Tamar further to the left as she increased her speed.
“We need to do something quick,” MistyTrail yelled. “Magical projectiles are coming from the rear.”
“Fog,” replied Avalar. “Do not let them see us as targets.”
MistyTrail nodded and tried casting her fog spell as she was running. The result was less than desirable. A misty haze trailed behind the group, marking their path of escape. Still, it made individual targets difficult for the mages to see.
“It’s not working,” frowned MistyTrail.
Avalar looked over his shoulder and saw what MistyTrail was talking about. He also saw the large group of men gaining on them. He faced forward once more as his eyes sought to distinguish the features of the dim forest far before them.
“We need a burst of speed,” shouted Avalar. “Head for that row of four trees slightly to the right, HawkShadow, and make it quick.”
HawkShadow immediately complied without question. He and Mistake raced forward to the landmark that Avalar had suggested.
“Leave your spell for now,” Avalar said to MistyTrail. “As soon as we are behind the hedge, lay it on thick.”
Avalar then grabbed Rhoda by the arm and raced after HawkShadow. MistyTrail dropped her spell and ran forward with Tamar, but she could not see the hedge that the elven king was talking about.
Avalar started casting his spell before he reached the four trees in a row. A long line of buds protruded from the forest floor as HawkShadow and Mistake raced between the trees. Avalar and Rhoda had to step over the foot-high stalks, and MistyTrail and Tamar had to actually jump over the fast-growing hedge, which was already a pace high. Avalar halted and turned to continue his spell. Rhoda also stopped and tried to catch her breath. She was not used to such strenuous running. MistyTrail grinned broadly as she finally understood what Avalar was trying to do. She cast a fog centered on the hedge, which was already eight feet tall.
HawkShadow and Mistake had halted a hundred paces past the hedge when they realized that no one was following them. Their eyes scanned the forest ahead for any signs of the enemy while they waited for the others. When Avalar and MistyTrail were done with their spells, Avalar hoisted Rhoda over his shoulder and started running. MistyTrail and Tamar followed.
“Now head back to the left,” Avalar called softly to HawkShadow.
HawkShadow nodded as he and Mistake turned slightly to the left to find their path through the jungle. Shouts of alarm sounded from behind as the pursuing soldiers and mages slammed into the high hedge, which had been hidden in MistyTrail’s blanket of fog. Shouted curses and hollering reverberated through the forest, and MistyTrail smiled when she heard the growls of nearby kruls alerted by the noise. She envisioned the huge creatures tearing into the soldiers, mistaking them for the escapees.
HawkShadow almost missed the trees with the stars marked in the moss. They had approached at a slightly different angle and HawkShadow saw the marks as he was racing by. He turned abruptly and found the trail that led through the jungle to the beach. The group entered the trail in single file with Mistake going first. While the trail was wide enough for two people to stand abreast, it was not wide enough to travel side-by-side.
HawkShadow was the first to reach the spot where he had stashed his two bows. He stepped off the trail and slung his quiver over his head. He held out Avalar’s bow and quiver as the eleven king came running along the trail. The king stopped and put Rhoda down, put on his quiver and grabbed his bow. He also stepped off the trail and nocked an arrow as Rhoda ran after Mistake.