The Caged Dragon (Cycle of Dragons Book 1) by Dan Michaelson (websites to read books for free txt) 📕

though there was a faint drizzle that made its way down, and droplets of water occasionally struck us as they bounced off the trees. It was far better than before. The heavy rumbling wasn’t nearly as pronounced as it had been. Even the lightning diminished, the occasional flash blending through the leaves overhead. I studied the ground, looking for any sign of wagons or anything that would have damaged the branches that would show me that the Vard had moved through here. There was no sign of anything.

If they weren’t moving this way, then how were we going to catch up to them? The path branched off, and I paused for a moment , looking in either direction. One way led deeper into the forest.

“Do you think they could’ve gone that way?” Joran asked.

I sighed. “I don’t really know. It’s possible, but it would mean they were risking going deeper into the forest. Why do that?”

“The Vard supposedly used to live all throughout these lands,” Joran said. “At least, my father said that. It’s possible they know ways of navigating through the forest that we never learned.”

“Or this isn’t the Vard at all. What if this is the Djarn?”

“Why would the Djarn have attacked one of our caravans?” Joran asked. “Doing so would only risk the king pushing them out of their lands. He’s left them alone so far.”

It didn’t make any sense. He was right.

We veered off, taking the path deeper into the forest. Neither of us said anything, falling into a companionable silence. As we walked, I noticed a marking along the path where a wagon wheel had dug into the ground.

I pointed to it, and Joran nodded.

A little further in, and we came to another marking. More than ever, I felt confident that we were heading in the right direction, though I still didn’t know why the Vard would carry them into the forest like this. It wasn’t long before I noticed a glowing light in the distance. As we approached, the light seemed to flicker.

Firelight.

Why would there be a fire in the heart of the forest?

“We need to be careful,” Joran whispered.

“I think you’re right.” I climbed down from Adela’s saddle and guided her over to a tree, where I tied her off.

Joran shot me a look. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going to see what I can find out.”

“On foot? Are you mad?”

“If something happened to her—”

“I know what you’re getting at, I’m just saying that you need to be ready for the possibility that you might need to run.”

“Wait here by the horses,” I said.

Joran groaned, climbing down from Wind’s saddle, and he tied him off next to Adela. “I’m not letting you go by yourself,” he said.

“You don’t have to do this. You can wait here.”

“Right. Wait for you to go and get lost. For something to happen to you. For gods knows what to take place.” He shook his head. “We are doing this together.”

I smiled over at him. “What do you think we’ll find?”

“If we’re lucky, we’ll find the Djarn.”

“And if we’re unlucky?”

“If we’re unlucky, we’re going to find out what happened to the caravan.”

We moved quietly along the path and wound through the trees. I watched the fire in the distance, knowing we weren’t all that far from it. The path cut to the left, and I slowed. As I did, I tried to see what might be in the distance. I heard voices.

I motioned to the trees, as Joran and I crouched down. The sound of the forest shifted almost immediately. It was almost as if the voices in front of us were swallowed by the forest, leaving us with a strange emptiness all around. It was disconcerting, but it allowed us to move quietly.

“I hope we don’t get lost here,” Joran muttered.

“We can keep the path in view,” I said.

“I’d like us to do more than just that,” he said.

“Fine. Mark the trees,” I said.

“Like you did before? I saw how you were squinting. Either you didn’t mark them very well, or—”

“The markings were already starting to fade,” I said.

“That’s my concern,” Joran said. “We’ve long known that things aren’t the same in here. Including marking trees. Why do you think so many people get lost? If the Djarn do have magic, we need to be careful they don’t trap us in here.”

That was why I had carved deeper this time, thinking that if nothing else, I could modify them so that I could find my way through, but now I had to wonder if that was even going to be effective.

We crept forward, moving along the trees. I stared into the darkness, searching for the fire. The flames crackled in the distance, though I didn’t notice anything other than that.

We gradually reached the outskirts of what appeared to be a small clearing. I motioned for Joran, trying to be as quiet as I could. We said nothing as we crawled forward, reaching the edge of the clearing. When we did, I didn’t see anything other than the crackling flames.

Joran leaned close to me, lowering his voice as he whispered, “Can you make anything out?”

I shook my head. “Not at all,” I said. “It’s almost like they abandoned it.”

Staring into the clearing, my eyes began to adjust to the light when I finally saw something. The fire was at the heart of the clearing, but there was something else behind that. I motioned for him to follow me, and Joran and I moved forward, doing so slowly, carefully. I caught sight of wagons lining the path.

These were different than the wagons we’d seen in the city. Those had been large transport wagons that were brightly painted in the colors of the king. These were narrow, barely wide enough to carry more than a few people.

I grabbed for Joran’s arm, pulling him back.

We stepped away, and when we did, I leaned toward him, lowering my voice as I whispered, “Look at the wagons. They seem like they were designed for