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And
your people have kept alive knowledge and wisdom that the rest of us have
lost.”
    Woltan nodded. “We must
work together. But for now, let’s get out of here, and in the future, avoid
magic when not strictly necessary.”
    “At least until we reach the relative safety of
our people,” Kara nodded, putting her hand on my shoulder.
    Our people . Kalle wasn’t here with us, so why was she saying that? I couldn’t help smiling then,
because I realized she was talking about me, too. Suddenly, I wanted nothing
more than to meet my kindred, explore what it meant to be Kriek .
    Woltan was looking at
me. “So I have your word, too, Anders?”
    I nodded.
    Woltan looked worried.
“If your life is threatened, use magic. But go first for your sword. And
remember, we are being watched. Let’s get out of here.”
    After the excitement of the river crossing, it all
seemed to blend into one long road. There were tree roots and other
impediments, and my feet felt numb and sore at the same time. My eyes numbed
too — there was little to see except trees on both sides. Finally we came to a
small clearing. It was getting dark, and Woltan called a halt.
    We all sat down and let our packs fall. Cullen
began digging a pit with a small shovel, then lining it with rocks. Elias and Karsten collected wood from the clearing, and the woods
nearby. Soon they had a big fire going, and Karsten went with Cullen looking for food in the dying light.
    The rest of us huddled around the campfire. Woltan and Kara made soft beds of old rotting leaves
covered with newer smooth ones and lay down. Woltan lay flat, facing the sky. “In a few hours we will set watches. Everyone needs
to rest, and the watches will be short. We will need to keep a fire burning.”
    I got to my feet and started gathering firewood
from the clearing. My feet still hurt, but it felt good to do something besides
walk for hours upon end. It was definitely more pleasurable to travel the Kriek way — there in an instant. But then I remembered my
uncle’s eyes upon us, and how we all had been frozen, our bodies burning up
with energy, our brains frying.
    Perhaps it was better to walk a bit.
    There was also something satisfying about making a
great pile of wood, ready to be turned into heat and light. All without magic,
unless you called fire magic — there was something magical about the heat and
light it gave, when you contained it.
    Elias and Karsten returned with food they had gathered nearby: mushrooms, and a few roots and
tubers. Woltan examined and pronounced them all
edible. And there was meat; some dried salted pork that Karsten had brought along to flavor everything. It all went into the soup; Karsten and Elias had found a small stream, and even caught
several small fish, which Karsten would clean and
then bake in the coals. It was amazing how much they foraged and scrounged up
in such a small period of time; I figured it must be exciting for them to be
outside the gated city, for the first time in who knew how many generations.
    Soon it was completely dark, but you could barely
tell with the fire there, lighting and warming us. We slept around the fire in
a circle, and I fell asleep watching Woltan , taking
the first watch, and then before I knew it Woltan was
waking me, and I sat there, rubbing my eyes, and then I stood, until my watch
was over; and although several times noises in the night startled me, and a few
animals walked across the clearing, nothing approached the fire and I saw
nothing all hour with my third eye. When I woke up Karsten to take my watch we talked for a little bit, in whispers, mostly about how cold
it was, but then Karsten told me to go to sleep. I
fell back asleep almost before my eyes were shut.
    I felt the morning before it awakened me — felt
the light on my cheek and my eyes, the sun’s light and warmth. Then I was
sitting up, staring at the campfire. Woltan was up,
and so was Elias. They were talking quietly a few yards away, but I