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“I’ll make a circle for us, but you have to be quick, as it won’t last long. It will take us south.”
A bright fire ring appeared in the sky, and Fel flew through it, followed by his uncle. He was still over the Aluria Mountains, but the air was colder here.
He sent a thought to Leah. “Tap on my back when we’re close to Frostlake City. Can you recognize it from here?”
“It should be visible from the mountains,” she said. Her voice was muffled by the sound of the wind, but somehow he could still hear it.
It was a good thing they had gone through that ring, as his wings were still tired from flying from Fernick. There were now some flurries in the sky, and the top of the mountains had a white blanket of snow. He could sense that the air was cooler, but he didn’t feel cold in the way he would in his human form, as something unpleasant. Instead, the temperature was still comfortable for him. His worry was for Leah, leaning on top of him, wearing clothes that were not warm enough for this freezing weather. Hopefully his own body heat would be enough to keep her comfortable.
“I think we’re getting close,” she whispered, that odd whisper that could still be heard even with the wind in his ears. “I can see a river that’s not too far from the city.”
Fel was unsure if his uncle heard her, and said, “We’re close to the—”
“I heard her,” Ekateni said, then added, “But look. What’s that?”
In the dark, it was hard to see, and Fel almost flew lower to get a better look, when he realized that would be stupid. Instead, he glided near the mountains.
Down below, several tents bordered a stream. “Is this a village or something, Leah?”
“No. There shouldn’t be anyone here. It looks… It looks like a military campground, but I’m not sure.”
Fel was trying to understand what was happening. “This is north of Frostlake city. Would they be moving to attack Ironhold? Or to join them?”
“I can go and check,” Leah offered.
That was a dreadful idea. “Too dangerous. And it’s not like they’ll have signs saying what they’re planning to do. Soldiers sometimes don’t even know where they are being sent or why, and generals aren’t going to be spilling plans out loud in the middle of the night.”
Tzaria then said, “Let’s not worry about it yet. What we need to do is see the dome over the city.” Her voice was also clear.
“We’re almost there,” Leah said, and Fel was thankful that she didn’t insist on the idea of going down there to check on troops that could have Ironhold soldiers.
They kept flying south. Fel still didn’t understand that odd movement of troops. If they were walking, they would take some three days to reach Ironhold. Well, it was possible that they were gathering armies from allied kingdoms in Aluria. The question was for what. The dreadful possibilities made his insides curl.
Something else that was bothering him was the possibility that the Frostlake dome would need to be destroyed. He hadn’t missed the disappointment and sadness in Leah’s eyes when Tzaria had suggested that. Hopefully it would turn out that the dome could not be used as a faerie circle, dragon ring, or whatever, and they would just leave it alone. They still had to kill Cassius and stop Ironhold and Cynon, and that was already more than they could handle.
More and more snowflakes fluttered in the air. Even though they were falling slowly, they hit Fel’s face with some strength because of his speed, so he had to squint not to get snow in his eyes. Again, it wasn’t so much the cold, but the physical sensation of something striking him. His worry was for Leah, who was now leaning down with most of her body touching his back. Hopefully the snow wouldn’t hurt her face. Tzaria’s position, cradled in Ekateni’s claws, started to make more sense. She was probably more protected and warm.
At least they should get there soon. Perhaps it had been hasty and irresponsible to come here like this, without much planning or thinking. But then, Tzaria was worried that the vessel could be opening this portal right now. It seemed unlikely, considering that the troops were north of the city, but checking couldn’t hurt anyone.
“I think it’s over there,” he heard Leah’s voice in his head.
“Where there’s a light?” Fel asked.
“Yes.”
It meant flying away from the relative safety of the mountains, but again, they were high enough that nobody would hear their wings.
There were a few houses outside the dome, with thin trails of smoke coming from chimneys. Further down, he did see the majestic dome, where he had once floated holding Leah in his arms. Now he was truly flying. Still, he wished he could float again in his human form, wished for peace and quiet, wished to spend days reading by a fireplace, then talking about books with Leah. He wasn’t sure if any of that would ever be real. Some dreams were so simple and yet simple sometimes was so distant.
Leah shivered and tensed on top of him. “Something…”
“What?”
Ekateni approached them, and Tzaria asked, “Can you sense the magic?”
Yes. Now that he paid attention, it was obvious. Fel could smell it the same way he could smell a forest fire kilometers away. This… It was not deathbringing or ironbringing or anything he knew. He wasn’t sure what it was and felt a sudden chill in what felt like his stomach—if he even had one.
“Yes,” he said. “I don’t know what it is.”
