Dreigiau Book 1: The Gift of Flame

Chapter 12

Patterns of light trickled past the leaves, dappling AsaHi's face. The speckles seeped through her closed eye lids, tugging her from depths of the calm sleep. She woke to the instant knowledge that the events from the night before were not a dream.

More like a nightmare.

Her tattered clothes were covered in mud. Her whole body ached from the fall and her hands throbbed, rubbed raw from scrabbling along rock. On top of that, her pack was nowhere to be found.

AsaHi pushed herself weakly to her feet, carefully taking one stiff step. Then another. And another. The sound of the nearby water called to her — at least there, she could wash the remnants of the night from her face and hands. A tiny silver stream stretched out before her, winding peacefully through the hollowed rocks. Moss sprung up in patches over the flat stone faces and a few stunted trees embedded themselves into the banks on either side.

Leaning forward, the girl tried to catch a glimpse of her face in the water, but it was moving too quickly to see anything more than a blur of distorted color. Dipping her fingers in, she cupped the cool liquid between her hands, then began to splash it all over her face and arms, rubbing vigorously.

Where am I supposed to go now?

The girl crouched at the waterside, shivering as the chill moisture began to soak into her travel-stained clothes.

I don't have my pack. I don't have my supplies. I don't have my map. And even if I did, I don't know which way to go to get back to the path...

As if on cue, something heavy landed next to her with a flump. AsaHi turned quickly. There, on the flat stone next to her, was her pack.

What? It can't be!

Instantly, she began to grapple with the clips, throwing the top open. Everything inside was just as she had left it. The little paper map sat primly atop the food and various items of clothing she packed away the night of her departure.

It's all here! I don't believe it!

The girl's eyes lit brilliant. Seeing this was like sunshine breaking through the darkest clouds. Her mind was already calculating, trying to figure out which direction she had run the night before and which way the road might be.

Wait...

AsaHi froze, a new thought shifting within her mind. She was so glad to see her supplies that she had not stopped to wonder how they returned to her. The last time she remembered seeing the pack, it was in XaNi's hand.

The girl lifted her head and looked up the length of the rock wall that ran alongside the stream. Her heart stopped short as her gaze was met by that of another — a man crouching on the top of the stone. He observed her in complete silence, a strange expression on his face.

AsaHi rose to her feet, demanding, "How long have you been watching me?"

"Kaaa..." a strange sound was the only reply.

Before she could blink, he cast himself over the ridge and landed lithely on the next ledge down. An intense curiosity was written on his face.

As he crept closer, AsaHi could see him more clearly. He looked as if he had spent far more than just one night in the backwoods. His white hair was wild and extremely long, catching and reflecting the sunlight in a dazzling array of many colors. He wore only a pair of battered Apprentice trousers, which appeared to be too small for him.

Maybe he's one of the men from last night!

"Stay back!" she took a step away.

"Kaha!" he gave an odd sound, something like laughter. The man seemed to have found her reaction amusing.