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“And what’s the bad news?” Raven asked, sensing there was more to this story.
“The bad news is that, if you haven’t noticed, Terrans don’t like Kovaks. They won’t help us if the Rathalans or tribeless attack. We won’t be safe until we’re in Kovak territory. My people will protect us.”
We walked in silence for a while until Raven spoke again. “By the way, thanks,” she said.
“For what?” I asked.
“For saving my life—twice now.”
“Twice?” I pretended to scoff. “I’ve saved your lifeatleastfour times now. I’ve never met anyone who attracts more trouble than you.”
She gave me a sideways glance. “Speak for yourself. I didn’t willingly venture into Malengard and piss off the Rathalan’s guard commander.”
I grinned. By now, I guessed that Commander Bloodbain had figured out the explosion was a diversion to get to Raven. Too bad I didn’t get to see the look on his face when he returned to find his chambers empty. “At least I didn’t try to arm wrestle a deadly patch of black bramble.”
“It was in my way!” she exclaimed. I thought she was angry, but instead, she started laughing. I didn’t think I’d ever heard her laugh before. The sound was sweet and bright, like the birds that flitted in front of my bedroom window on summer mornings in Askeland.
“Remind me never to get in your way, then,” I said, laughing too.
“You better not. I’m quite skilled at swinging a tree branch, you know,” she joked.
Kah snorted, making Raven laugh harder. Skies, I hadn’t laughed like this with anyone since I’d left home.
Glancing over at Raven, I felt like I was seeing her there for the first time. When we’d escaped Malengard, she’d been the extra cargo I was stuck with until I could get my hands on the Zavien stone. But since our run-in with the tribeless, the animosity between us had faded a bit. Though I’d never admit it to Kah, I was suddenly glad she was here with us.
To stop my thoughts from wandering too far, I changed the subject. “What did Merrin give you?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure,” Raven said, taking the small package out of her pocket and unwrapping it. Inside was a polished whitish-pink stone, about the same size as a silver piece.
“It’s a moonspar,” Kah said with a look of surprise.
I repeated what he said to Raven, since she couldn’t hear him.
She looked at it curiously, turning it over in her palm. “What’s a moonspar?”
“Wait until the sun goes down and you’ll see. It glows at night when there’s no moon visible in the sky,” I explained, remembering to fill in the gaps of her lost memory. At least I’d finally figured out why she didn’t recognize the black bramble.
“How does it work? Is it magic?” she asked, studying it like there might be fire locked inside.
“Moonspar is made by the Terrans. They use their magic to bend and mold the earth elements to express unique properties. This was probably just a regular rock before Merrin or another Terran transformed it. Moonspars, though, are rare. Illegal in some parts. The Terrans first created them during some ancient war to fight against the Magi. The light from the moonspar messes with the Magis’ magic and spells, so they’re always trying to have them banned from the marketplaces. You should be fine, though, if you don’t show it to anyone.”
I had a feeling we would be putting Merrin’s gift to good use before long.
By dusk, the clouds overhead had dispersed, and the moon was bright. The moonspar remained dormant for now, while my fears at seeing the shrinking moon were freshly awakened. We didn’t have long to reach Askeland.
We’d left the dense conifer forests and were trekking through open grasslands that stretched to the horizon. If the Rathalans were nearby, building a fire on this terrain could relay our location. But the temperature was dropping rapidly, and theblankets I packed weren’t enough to prevent us from freezing to death. We’d have to risk it.
Scouting the area, I located a small cluster of trees on the far side of a hill that blocked the road from view. Kah padded in a circle through the dense vegetation, using his big paws to flatten a spot for us to sleep.
Raven and I gathered kindling and dried branches in the growing dark before sitting down to set up camp. I piled up the fire material for Raven to start the fire and then began unpacking our supplies.
“Here,” I said, tossing her the flint and iron from the pack.
She caught them but didn’t move to light the kindling.
“You do know how to build a fire, right?”
“Um.” Her gaze darted to her hands as if the answer might be hidden in the muscle memory of her fingers.
