The Sworn Knight by Robert Ryan (novels to read txt) 📕

turnsto ride, but they refused. The mule needed to be spared as much as they sparedthemselves, and if the worst came about then Kubodin at least could escape onthe mule and seek Faran out.

The gray light of dawn saw them enter a new kind of country.It was less flat than it had been, and the ground turned rocky in places, whichwas exactly what Ferla wanted. Now, it was time to confuse the enemy.

They did not stop just because the sun rose. Prevention wasbetter than cure, and Ferla intended to both outsmart and outdistance theenemy.

They came to a rocky slope, bare of grass. This Ferlaascended, and she made no attempt to hide their trail, but coming down theother side she veered to the west and there entered a dry wash bare of dirt andgrass. It was mostly just sandstone, and it stretched ahead for a long way, butshe did not follow it.

She led them off that path, and back uphill along a patch ofshort grass. Here, they left little trail, and she slowed down to a very slowwalk indeed, being careful to leave as little sign as possible of theirpassage. When they had reached the rocky slope again, she found a few deadbranches from bushes and went back to brush away what little sign they had lefton the grass.

“Let them find us now,” she muttered.

Kubodin grinned at her, but Asana said nothing.

They backtracked then, coming around the side of the hilland crossing the obvious trail they had left while ascending. But this timethey took great care to hide their passage.

They headed east then for several miles, and Ferla was surethat trick would lose them. With luck, they might spend a day or two trying topick them up again, if they ever did.

The sun was moving toward noon before they took a long rest.Ferla was confident, but she still would have preferred to push on. But theyhad not slept for a long while, and they needed rest.

It was not a long break though. They took turns to keepwatch, but they slept only until mid-afternoon. Then they began their trekagain.

Once more they swung to the north, and the afternoon becamehot as they traveled before a breeze sprang up at their backs. The longer grasshere bent before it, flowing like the sea, and they crested a long slope bareof trees.

At its top, they found something that unnerved them. It wasa campfire. Ferla felt the ashes, and they were cold. It was several days old,but then they discovered others. A company of men had camped here, and given thedisciplined nature of the campsite, and the evenly spaced fires, Ferla surmisedsoldiers were responsible.

“Savanest camped here,” she said.

“Maybe,” Asana replied. “But there might be others lookingfor us too.”

It was a disconcerting idea.

She turned and looked at their backtrail. It was more habitthan anything else, but to her shock there were signs of movement far away andshe caught the glint of metal in several places.

“How can they possibly have found us so quickly?” shemuttered, and a wave of despair washed over her.

15. Trapped and Bound

They fled. Ferla led them at a rapid pace, and she knewit was pointless to try to hide their trail further. All her tricks had come tonothing.

She did not understand why though, and that disturbed her.

The long shadows of dusk seemed to creep after them, andnight, when it fell, felt like it had eyes. Where could they go? What placewould offer safety? The dark was always a friend to evil.

Ferla chided herself. Her thoughts were superstitiousnonsense. She was a hunter, and the wild lands, during the day or at night,were her home.

Fear was beginning to make her think differently, and nodoubt that had been Savanest’s intention when he had appeared. The remedy tothis was information. She needed to know how they kept finding her in order toplan a way to overcome it. But how could she obtain that knowledge?

Far away in the east, a storm brewed. The night sky was darkthere, but stabs of lightning could be seen. She heard no thunder though, and thestorm seemed to be tracking northward rather than toward them.

She cursed her luck. The storm, if it enveloped them here,would have been to their favor. Wind and rain would have hidden their trail.

Toward midnight, they came to a cluster of trees, and therethey threw themselves down and rested. Even the distant lightning faded, andthe world was quiet and peaceful around them. But Ferla knew it would not last.

“We need to know what Savanest is doing,” she said.

Kubodin eyed her. He guessed what she intended, but Asanadid not.

“It’s too dangerous to go scouting,” Asana said. “Best toleave them be, and save our energy for escaping, don’t you think?”

Ferla summoned up a grin. “You’re right. Best to stay here.”

Kubodin shook his head. “That doesn’t mean she won’t bescouting, master. But it’s dangerous, what she intends.”

Asana looked confused, so Ferla explained to him exactlywhat she intended.

“It was Savanest that gave me the idea. He used spiritwalking to enter our camp and observe us. Just maybe, I can use the same trickon him. I need to try, at least. I need to discover how he keeps tracking us.Maybe he’s somehow using magic. Whatever it is, I have to discover it before Ican defeat it.”

Asana looked doubtful. He was of a kind that placed hisfaith in his skill with a sword rather than magic. But that did not mean heunderestimated its uses.

“Have you done this spirit walking before?”

That was getting right to the heart of the matter. Aranlothand Kareste had both talked over the theory with her and Faran, but they hadnot exactly taught it. It was a thing that Ferla had not done, even once. Yetshe did know the theory and she had thought she picked up a feel for it justwatching Savanest.

“No. I’ve never done it. But I’m going to try to. What’s theworst that can happen?”

They did not like it, especially Kubodin who seemed to havesome knowledge of the art. But in the end, they agreed to it and let her be.

She