The carriage door flew open.

Before Corian could swivel around to face his father, he heard a strained creak. The subtle sound of his sibling's bow stretching back with an arrow. He tensed for a strike to the head, cautiously checking his shoulder when an arrow failed to find his skull. Rikki was certainly there, the black bow in their hands drawn back to strike him point blank should he make the wrong move. His father, now at Rikki's right side, hadn't taken to his typical white general dress, flaunting the older edition of black leather combat armour that the king handed out during a special edition witch hunt.

After a moment to size up Corian, Inprobus stepped forward, ignoring Quibbis as if he were a pile of dust in the corner. "Good. You seem to be back to your normal, insufferable, self," he boomed, grabbing a chunk of Corian's hair to force their eyes to meet. "You owe me a new pair of pajamas."

Before Corian could open his mouth, he was being dragged by his hair into the hot glare of the outdoors. Corian didn't put up much of a fight as he stumbled along, his head nearly tucked under his father's arm with how he was dragging him by the head. But in his journey, a strange scent struck him. His father usually permeated a sickening smell of rusted copper, and the lavender soaps he would use to mask the scent of constant travel. The last thing Corian expected was a strong blast of mint.

It was familiar though.

There was a spread that the Heroguard gave out to their ranks generously. A type of paste that was easy to make with peppermint and a fatty base. It was apparently perfect for fighting off infections trying to get into an open wound, but Corian never trusted its effectiveness. He did however, like its smell enough to carry it around as a hand cream instead. It was doubtful Inprobus was using it the same way.

He got his answer when he caught a glimpse of a fresh bandage peeking from Inprobus' sleeve, wrapped tight to his wrist, and likely travelling up his left arm that rested limply at his side.

Corian smiled. This was a new detail. He had done more than ruin whatever pajamas his father had griped about.

When his father finally stopped, it was in front of a steep cliff, dropping into a deep, forested ravine below. Corian tensed at the sight, planting his feet before Inprobus could pull him close enough to the drop to throw him off. His father didn't care for the resistance, letting him go on the spot and turning to other tasks. Corian massaged his stiff neck, looking around at where he had been dragged. Two soldiers were at his sides, blades drawn and ready to slice at the wrong move. Rikki had rejoined Inprobus' side, obediently standing to look down on the remains of a dismantled bridge.

Corian had a good guess on what was coming next, but wasn't clueing in on why his father had dragged him out to watch his sibling's magic.

He watched Rikki kneel at the edge of the cliff, placing their palms flat on the ground. A deep groan quickly followed, shaking the smaller pebbles at Corian's feet into a frantic dance. With a deafening crack, a thick root burst out of the bedrock in front of Rikki, snaking its way across the gap to tear into the cliff on the other side. From the wound in the ground, smaller vines and roots shoved through, wrapping around the larger stock to fan out and entangle into the shape of a lumpy bridge.

Once the various roots had secured themselves on the other side, Rikki ended the spell, staggering to their feet and bracing against the closest tree to mask their exhaustion.

Corian beheld the surreal bridge, speechless. He remembered when all Rikki could do was sprout a single flower in the palm of their hand. The Psyche Ward had pushed their magic to a level that betrayed its natural growth.

"Careful Sir!" A voice called out, Corian chancing a look over his shoulder to see what Quibbis was screaming about now.

The necromancer was giving the best run he could, which amounted to an awkward and lopsided jog. Halfway through his journey he stopped next to a bundle of supplies and horses, grabbing a burlap sack and emptying it of all its potatoes. He ignored the nearby soldiers as they voiced their displeasure, prancing right up to Corian with the gift.

"He's already had a lot of sun. He'll get a nasty burn if you leave him out too long." Quibbis said, dropping the fabric on Corian's head to block the remaining sunlight from touching his face.

Corian felt a soothing chill where the shadows were cast, but bit back from paying Quibbis a thank you. Inprobus quickly found his own twisted humour in the burlap sack however, and after poking some rough holes in it for Corian to gaze through, he pulled the entire thing over his head. Corian hadn't a clue as to what the point of it was, other than limiting his vision and filling his nostrils with the earthy scent of raw potatoes.

That was, until his father disappeared from his limited sight, and he felt a strange pressure on his neck. When he realized the snaking object was a thick rope, he moved to struggle, freezing at the familiar creaking sound of Rikki's bow. Inprobus pulled the rope tighter than he needed to, leaning close to whisper in Corian's ear as he finished the know. "Don't worry. It's just something to catch you if you lose your footing. It's a long drop otherwise."

Inprobus came back into view, tapping a fairly large stone strewn about the clearing with his foot.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"Pick it up."

Corian sighed, obediently bending over to wrap his arms around the stone. It was a little larger than a medium dog, but to his surprise, he was able to pick it up. It still strained his arms to keep it up, but he hadn't expected to even budge it. He turned his head to his father, abusing the way the bag covered most of his face to sassily raise his eyebrows at him.

His father motioned to the twisted passage Rikki had made. "I want to make sure our horses will make it across safely. Walk."

With a soft sigh, Corian complied with the order, hoisting the rock up to be more levelled with his chest. His first step found a sturdy groove, the stress building when he felt the slick surface of the root he had stepped on. All the moisture had been trapped below the bedrock that Rikki had disturbed with their magic, giving the mesh of plants Corian was standing on a coating of slick mud.

He froze when his next step slid further than he'd liked, turning his head in the direction of where he assumed Inprobus was watching him. "I think we should let it dry a bit. The horses will slip."

"You haven't slipped," Inrpobus said, his voice dripping with amusement at Corian's predicament. "Keep walking."

Corian took in a deep breath, scanning the vine ahead to try and memorize the rough patches before they were blocked from his view by the rock and Quibbis' awful hat.

"Should I incentivize you to go faster?" Inprobus boomed, the straining creak of a bow quickly following.

Corian scuttled forward before the whistling arrow struck somewhere behind him. He dropped his careful planning altogether at the sound of another bow drawing, taking the biggest stride he could and awkwardly stumbling forward. Another arrow whistled, the sound levelled with his left shoulder. On his next step, his foot found a dry spot to wedge itself into, and he leaned full force into a sprint, praying that his reckless roll of the dice would get him across safely. It carried true for a handful of steps, each one propelling him forward and boosting his confidence, until the side of his foot clipped a blob of mud. His ankle sunk further than expected, wedging his boot between two vines as his body continued forward. The rock sailed out of his arms as the sack rose to cover his eyes, his entire body striking the mesh of vines.

He could hear some quiet chuckles from behind him, his irritation rising as he ripped his foot loose and readjusted the sack. The pain in his ankle quickly faded as he hoisted the rock back up, but after the fumble, his adrenaline had spiked, and he was barely standing with the wobble that had spread throughout his legs. He focused on the clearing of rocks in front of him, squeezing his eyes shut.

Safety was just a few steps away.

Another arrow whistled, a metallic twang ringing in his ears as it bounced off the rock he was holding. The fear willed his legs to move once more, now a quick shuffle as he felt around the vines for safe spots to step. He only opened his eyes when he felt his boot scrape against a hard, rocky surface, relief flooding his body as he jumped off the vines to safety.

Corian threw the rock down, ripping off the sack to glare at Inprobus as he exchanged a few coins with some nearby soldiers. He'd lost a small bet, and it was easy to guess what the game was.

"Good." Inprobus boomed, waving for Rikki to lower their bow. "I don't like the shape. Make it flatter."

Rikki dragged their feet back to the edge of the cliff and sank back into the same position, a few more vines crawling out of the cracks to level and widen the passage.

As the spell worked its magic, Corian took his few minutes of solitude to collect his thoughts. There were three soldiers from his father's squadron watching him carefully, bows drawn and arrows ready. They were far from Rikki's incredible aim, but one would surely hit before he could tear off the rope squeezing his neck and flee.

He stared at the stray arrows that had stuck into the path, a few soldiers still smiling and laughing as they whispered amongst themselves.

But he had to get away.

He eyed the trail ahead of him. If he managed to escape, it would be a matter of minutes before he was run down by horses. If he jumped, the rope would catch him.

And if it snapped...

He shuddered. This wasn't the right time to make a break for it, but it had to be soon. He hadn't seen his father move his left arm yet, and whatever damage he had dealt would be gone within a matter of days if there was a healer in the next town.

Corian eyed the archers pointing at him, raising his open palms as he sunk into a patch of grass to rest. As he eased his stiff arms with a few stretches, a familiar scent struck him, his mind reeling back to the chunk of burnt bark his father had insistently shoved in his face. Burnt, rotten eggs. He felt around, his eyes drawn to a strange glow flickering in the grass. It wasn't the obvious scorched prints he had seen where the beast his father was hunting had supposedly ripped through a few trees. But still, there were faint markings in the grass, like glowing reddish-purple dust hovering inches above the dirt.

He stroked a patch of the dirt, staring at the glowing specks that stuck to his finger.

Curiousity beckoned him further, and he sniffed his finger.

He gagged as the scent struck him tenfold and he threw down his hand. That was definitely it.

After he composed himself, he looked back at the markings, clearer now that he knew what to focus on. They had left the graveled trail, wandering off the path and into a nest of rolling green hills.

Corian sealed his tongue, waiting for Rikki to finish their spell, and his father to take the lead across the bridge. No one seemed to notice the trail of strange embers as they gathered on the other side. Still, his constant glances at it had drawn Inprobus attention enough for his father to take note and approach him.

"What is it? I don't recall ordering you to take that sack off your head."

Corian looked up at his father, and then at the trail. Running would have to wait until he had a proper plan. The only thing he could do right now was cost his father his next prize.

At peace with his decision, he pulled the burlap sack back over his head. "Nothing."

Inprobus crouched down, his intent shrouded by a stone-forged scowl as he reached towards Corian. Whatever plans he had were cut short by one of his soldier calling for his attention, a small group of them gathered to stare at an object in the sky. There was a small golden light drifting towards them. Its details became more defined the closer it got, a small bird made of brilliant light fluttering for Inprobus' outstretched palm.

Before the bird found its perch, Inprobus swiped at it, the light enchantment scattering in the air. He opened the small slip of paper that had been stashed inside of it, skimming it with a stiff frown. The distress call didn't shift his glare, and after crumpling it into a ball, he dropped it on the ground and ground it into the dirt with his heel. "Waste my time." He growled, throwing his arm out and pointing down the trail. "The hounds have arrived in Stonesong. His Majesty's mission is of greater importance than some careless scouts. We'll stop there to gather intel on any sightings of the demon." He glared at Corian, a mysterious hostility clouding his scowl. "And more soldiers."