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Chapter 410
We set out from Kai's village early in the morning, after enjoying a quick breakfast of kookiya fruit. Each of us has found room in our packs for one or two more of the delicious fruit. They’re not all that big or heavy, and they’ll provide a very nice change from our canned rations.
The size of our company has increased by one—Raj is coming with us. Whether it’s to help his brother on the quest or to give himself the chance to get to know Doc better, I’m not sure. Judging by the way he and Doc smile whenever they’re near each other, I’m guessing it’s probably some of both. I find myself wondering if Kai and I smile that much when we’re together—I’m pretty sure I do, but I’m going to have to start checking whether he does.
Raj and Kai take turns leading us through the tangled, vine-infested woods, so I get more time with Kai than usual, which is just fine with me. And he does seem to be smiling a l
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The morning passes much like yesterday—a difficult, boring hike through a series of dim, narrow pathways littered with loose stones which must be stepped on or over very carefully. I keep reminding myself that boring beats most of the alternatives in a place like this, and I make sure to enjoy and appreciate the brief chances I get to walk beside Kai when a crevice widens enough to permit it.As before, determining the passage of time is difficult during our almost subterranean journey, but the muscles in my thighs are telling me we’ve walked for several hours so far without a break. That’s okay, though, because every step is bringing us closer to our goal, which Kai has promised we’ll reach sometime later today—barring any delay.When Kai stops short just a few moments later, I silently curse myself for thinking about delays. Looking over his shoulder, I see the reason he’s halted.The rift we’ve been following for the
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As the newcomers appeared out of the forest, Leesa felt as if she had stepped into her dream. She recognized each of them, and knew at least a little something about all of them, except for the last one, a warrior who looked so much like Kai she guessed he must be Kai’s brother. He was the only one she had not seen in her dream.The first girl to emerge from the trees had been Leah, the one Leesa felt the most kinship toward. Leah’s eyes had been wide with surprise. Leesa didn’t know if it was the sight of Ariandre, or of two humans from Leah’s own world.Once they were all out of the shadows of the trees, Ariandre pranced forward.“Welcome, Miracles,” she greeted. “And brave soldiers as well. I am Ariandre. It is I who brought you here. I thank you for accepting my summons.”She turned to Kai. “It is good to see you again, my friend. You have done well. Thank you.”Kai acknowledged the co
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Ariandre reached up and pulled the bandage off her forehead, exposing a perfectly round hole in her flawless skin. The wound looked to be nearly an inch deep. There was no sign of scabbing or blood—it was as if someone had drilled a neat hole into her head and somehow cauterized any bleeding.Her guests stared at the strange-looking wound, wondering what could have caused it. Leesa thought that perhaps Dominic could focus his magic precisely enough to cut such a hole, but otherwise she was as clueless as the others. She wondered if this world contained someone with magic as powerful and controlled as Dominic’s. She hoped not.“I guess this is the best place to start,” Ariandre said. “Kai and Raj noticed it right away, of course, though they were too polite to mention it.” She gently touched her forehead. “Someone has stolen my horn.”“You had a horn?” Leah blurted. She thought the experiences of the last few weeks had prepared her for almost anything, but Ariandre’s simple statement t
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The company set out immediately, wanting to cover as much ground as possible before darkness fell. As usual, Kai took the lead, with Fiona flying alongside his head and using her magic to open a pathway through the impenetrable forest. Leah walked right behind Kai, with Leesa and Rave following next.Leesa was startled when she saw open space and daylight ahead of them after less than a minute of walking. Her first trip through these trees with Rave seemed to have taken hours. She twisted her neck around and looked behind them. Ariandre’s silhouette was still visible, watching them from the beginning of the path—the forest was less than one hundred yards wide! Any doubts she might have had about the magic of the forest were dispelled. Now she wondered what awaited them on the other side of the trees. Even though it seemed they had entered the woods in the same place from which she and Rave had emerged, she was not at all sure they would exit onto the same barren p
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Rave lept forward, throwing himself into a somersault that brought him up beneath the scorpion’s belly, safe from its pincers and stinger. He could think of no way to use his volkaane fire to slay the thing—funneling the fire down the creature’s throat seemed implausible. Instead, he placed both hands on the beast’s underside and thrust upward with all the strength in his powerful legs, using the scorpion’s own momentum as well as his supernatural strength to heave it up and over Leesa, Kai and Leah.The scorpion landed with a loud thud twenty feet behind them. Unhurt, it immediately twisted around to resume its attack, but Leah was ready now. Still sitting on the ground where she had fallen, she let loose a powerful blast of red and orange fire. The flames enveloped the beast, reducing it to a pile of smoking ash in seconds.Kai crouched down beside Leah. “Are you hurt?”Leah shook her head and smiled. “Only my pr
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The company gathered in front of the opening to the lava tube. The entrance was larger than Leesa had expected, half again as tall as a person and wide enough for two or three people to walk side by side. Enough light filtered in from outside for them to see a short distance into the tunnel’s depths. The dark gray, hardened lava walls appeared both smooth and rough at the same time. There were plenty of irregularities in the surface—ripples, knobs, indentations and such—but all of them looked relatively smooth, without sharp or jagged edges of any kind.The tube sloped downward into the mountain at a slight angle. Walking along the uneven surface would require some care, but it didn’t seem as if it would be overly hazardous. Leesa didn’t think she could say the same about the things that might await them farther down inside the passage.“Rave sees best in the dark,” Kai said, “so he and I will lead the way. I think we can
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