The Halo Of Vakh (BOOK 1)

LET THE LEAVES FALL

They rode out through the south side, fighting their way between two guards as the rain splashed down at them, and rode into the deep dark night. Sapphire shivered at the chill in her bones, her heart beating faster than it had ever done before. The few minutes of warmth in Pirne's house seemed like a luxury to her at that moment. They wouldn't stop. James led them onwards, battling his way through the onslaught of water. Aurora followed, her white mane flying behind her in a glistening sheet of pure white.

Sapphire desperately closed away the events of that night, trying not to think about them. She had hardly survived. A shiver that had nothing to do with the cold swept over her and she sniffled. She tried not to think about the harrowing figure she had seen. It was something purely out of her realm, something strange, dark and dangerous. She had heard stories but never had she thought that she'd see one of those creatures. And it scared her out of her wits.

They rode far into the morning, till the rain had retreated back into the sky and the sun had started to dance through the thin clouds above them, turning the air crisp with the smell of mud. She didn't notice. All she wanted was sleep and a warm broth. The villages passed around them in a blur, the small clusters of trees between them providing them cover. She wanted to stop. Her hands were growing numb on the reins and she shivered everytime a light breeze passed through her clothes. James seemed to have heard her thoughts. He rose one hand into the air, clicking and Sapphire sagged in her saddle in relief. Her spine hurt and she was sure her thighs hurt. Behind her, Rueen jumped down onto the twig-covered grove, filling the air with snaps. She extended a hand to Sapphire and she gratefully accepted.

James rounded at her the moment she was down and the shame Sapphire felt increased tenfold at the disappointed glare he sent her way. She hung her head down.

"What do I have to do to get it into your thick skull that we are to remain hidden?"

He should have shouted at her. The cold chastising underlaid with anger made her want to disappear.

"We could have left Pyropa undetected," James pulled out a waterskin and took a large swig. "But now... Because of your idiocy, we'll have an entire sea of blue tunics at our tail. We're outcasts. No one will give us refuge, because thanks to you, our names will be printed onto newspapers all over the country, a fat sum of money labelled for our heads."

Sapphire made the mistake of opening her mouth, "The rebels will give us refuge."

James seemed to explode right before her eyes and she flinched under the sharp blue gaze.

"Well, it'd be a miracle if we find them before we're six feet under! And I still don't know the details. The extent of damage you've done. Spill!"

And Sapphire did, with her head hung low, her fingers fiddling with the hem of her tunic. She kept the attack with Draedech to herself. By the time she ended the narration of the events, James was glaring at her harder than ever before and for a moment, she was sure that she'd be burnt at the spot with the intensity of his gaze.

"Forget giving away our position," her uncle said. "What would have happened if any of the citadel guards had caught your attention? Do you think you would have been allowed to leave with your head attached to your shoulders?"

"What's done is done, Father," Rueen finally spoke up in a low voice. "It was bound to happen sooner or later. They've already spread the news that we escaped to Nirrin. Yes, they didn't put up our posters but it was all over the papers. It was only a matter of time before someone recognized us. It just came sooner than later."

Sapphire had never felt as thankful to anyone in her life as she did in that moment. She took the waterskin Rueen handed her. James looked at them for a moment but turned around and took out a few clothes from his saddlebags.