Page 94 (1/1)

"Can I borrow your flask please?" she asked him

He offered it to her and she knelt by the streah the strands to free the dirt and mud away She dipped the flask three ti like her hair was finally clean It hung wetly down her back, but it no longer sed into After filling the flask the final time, she stoppered it and handed it back

"How did you know that pond was dangerous yesterday?" she asked hi It twisted e of the brook, circling his fingers in the water He was quiet for a while "It felt familiar As if I had been there before I had a pre"

"Do you think it was a Dryad tree? It looked dead once all the insects were gone"

He shook his head "No, I don’t think it was Just as there are good spirits, there are also terrible ones When I tried to kill Tyrus, he took me with his device to a waterfall deep in the Alkire I felt the presence of a spirit creature there, a terrible presence It radiated fear Whatever creature was lurking in that bog was probably like that one The butterflies were a trap The waters were likely poisoned"

She shuddered at the len was much different She felt safe, that the creatures of Mirroere guarding the

Phae turned her gaze Across the brook behind the Its breath caed antlers crested its head like branches of a sharp thorny tree The feeling of peace swelled inside of her, along with so rose up inside her The feeling was hard to describe It was a yearning--a desire to belong The feeling was deep inside her, thick with essence and it per’s eyes, seeing intelligence there Another puff of ed to stroke the velvet skin A thought brushed against her mind

Follow, Dryad-born

Phae rose obediently to her feet

The stag led the a path easy to follow The berries had coth and it was ave way to oak and cedar as they crossed over ridges and delved deeper into the reclusive woodlands Signs of spirit life were evident everywhere around the and the aroma of flowers that she could not see Phae felt at peace and safe, as if the woods were a aze of the Arch-Rike’s rew inside her as sheHer emotions had been struck by some invisible chord of music and she felt oneness with the woods that she had never experienced before Strangely, it was as if she were cos continued toarc in the sky Gnats swirled in the air, dancing like dust , but it suddenly stopped, dipping its head to the ground, drawing attention there It had stopped before a patch of charred earth, as if sniffing it Then it continued a little way farther, stopping again to smell a heap of ash on the forest floor Phae and the Kishion approached, staring at the sudden shift of color and sot closer and the air contained the scent of sside a spear It startled Phae and she grabbed Shion’s arm

He stared at the rerove of blackened trees The forest floor crunched beneath their boots, but already neas beginning to poke up fro circle of trees, Phae’s heart leapt with eround with hulking limbs and an enormous axe-bit wound into its bulky trunk

"It’s her," Phae breathed, feeling the farip on Shion’s arm "I can feel her presence" It reminded her of the Dryad tree in Stonehollow she had fled There was no Druidecht here now to frighten her Biting her lip, Phae let go of Shion’s arm and hesitantly approached Her boots disturbed the soot and ashes, bringing up an earthy s a candle wick after it had been snuffed out