The Beast and The Brain.

We ride as if hounds are on our tails and in a sense they probably are. We push the horses as hard as we can, and J is mostly silent for our journey. But I know by the way she bites her thumb that there is something on her mind and she constantly looks over her shoulders and her eyes never stop moving back and forth.

The town’s people will probably know we killed the men, which means they would send an alert to the guards, who in turn would send out ravens to other barracks and villages, which in turn means that the other bounty hunters looking out for us will be alerted to our presence. So we stay off main roads and we avoid all villages and towns.

J pulls out her map each time we settle around the fire at night and shows me our progress and how far we have to go. My eyes trail up to the swamp which looks like a large tea stain at the top of the page. We are headed north east. J isn’t comfortable with the fact that we will be passing so near the swamp, but she says it’s also the fastest way to get there, and she doesn’t want to delay our journey. Every time we look at the map my eyes trail further east, where my family’s farm is located.

My eyes find the main river and my fingers runs up it until it breaks off into a valley. I can almost see the curve of the river and the grazing pastures and the farm house far beyond. J never questions me when I stare at the map, I think she knows already.

It’s the middle of the day after days of riding when J stops Shadow, Striker
automatically stops as well. J is looking down the road with a far of look in her eyes. I stay quiet and wait for her to tell me what is going on. Finally her eyes focus and she turns to me, she places a finger to her lips. ”Stay quiet and follow me.” She dismounts and pulls shadow off the road and into the woods. I follow her silently She goes until the road is just barely visible then forces her horse to lay down, she does the same for Striker then we both lay on our stomachs and watch the road. Our breathing is quick and quiet and my heart is pounding.

Minutes slip by but we continue to keep our eyes on the road, then finally I hear it. I open up my power and enhance my senses. I hear the sound of horses hooves and the low vibrations of men talking. The talking gets louder as they get closer.

“I heard they’ve already killed a dozen Hunters.”

“I heard it was thirty, I don’t know why he insists on having them, it would just be easier to kill them both than trying to take them alive.”

“J is powerful, and I hear the Beast she keeps with her is also stronger than any we’ve encountered.”

“Do you think the rumors are true? That he can turn into a dragon?”

The other man snorts. “I haven’t heard of a Beast turning into a dragon for hundreds of years.”

“I suppose...”

“Anyway, it doesn’t matter what he turns into, our orders are the same.”

“I know that, but why does he think she’ll be anywhere near the swamp? J isn’t stupid.”

“The orders weren’t specific but there is talk that she might be headed for the wisdom. It would make sense…”

One of them sighs, “But that’s not anyone’s territory…”

“That may be but that doesn’t mean we can’t set up a wide perimeter and keep an eye out.”

Finally the horses and the two men pass by us. I don’t even need my power to hear what they are saying. J and both hold our breath. They sit easily on their horses and their dark cloaks flow out behind them, and their swords are just visible at their waists.

Their conversation disappears as they get further and further away but J and I don’t move until we are sure that they are at least a mile down the road. Then we get the horses and walk onto the road. J looks down the way the men were headed and lets out a deep breath. “Damn it.”

“What do we do now? They know where we’re headed…there is a trap waiting for us.”
J bites her thumb and places her other hand on her hip. “I need a moment to think, I was hoping he would not catch onto my plan so quickly.” A smile escapes my lips before I can catch it and J glares at me. “What?” She demands.

“Nothing…I just…It seems like you underestimated someone.”

She stares blankly at me a moment then rolls her eyes. “There is a difference, I didn’t expect him not to figure it out, but I had hoped that it would take more time.”

I leaned against Striker and he looked at me as if to say you’re not very light you know. I tapped my fingers on the saddle as J thought. I wished I could look into her mind to see all the possibilities and playing out in her mind. She was smart, she was beyond smart and I wished I could glimpse into her mind and see what she saw. And I wished more than anything to see what she thought of me.

“Alright I think I have an idea.” J goes to the saddle and pulls out her map I walk over and hold one end while she holds the other. “We are roughly somewhere here.” She points to a thin line on the map in the middle of the woods. Her finger trails it until it hits a main road, and then she trails her finger east, “We need to get here, this is where the Wisdom lives, but if Eric has set up a perimeter then we need a way to get past them.” Her finger trails south to a small dot on the map, “We need to get here, there should be someone there that should be able to help us…”

“It’s a few days ride, and its taking us further south than we need to be.” I point out.

“It’s the only way.”

“It’s not the only way, I’ll turn into a dragon and we’ll fly there.”

J shakes her head. “No, now let’s go.” She swings onto her saddle before I can object; I watch her ride away for a second then jump into my saddle and follow after her.

We run into more Hunters as we make our way towards the small village J pointed out to me. Luckily J and I keep our senses open and we hear them coming before they see or hear us. Each time we hide we watch them pass with our breaths held. J doesn’t act scared but I makes me feel more normal when she lets out a breath once they are gone.

I know I should hunt before I go to sleep at night, the rations of food we have are small and I feel my energy suffering. But I feel the draw to sleep before I feel the need to eat, I decide that when we get to the town I’ll replenish then.

“Please tell me we are close. The horses can’t take much and we can survive much longer like this J.” I say one afternoon. We are dirty, tired, and hungry, and the horses aren’t much better.

“We are close, five miles and we will be there. Come on.”

~ ~ ~ ~

Darkness is just falling when we enter the small town. There is just a blacksmith and a few houses clumped together, but it’s still a welcoming site after days of over grown roads and wild animals. “I need a bath.” I tried to rub all the dirt out of my hair and off my face but I know I still smell terrible.

“Yes you do.” J agrees.

“Well you don’t smell so wonderful yourself…”

“I guarantee I smell better than you.” She looks over and grins at me and I grin back.

“Fair enough.”

When we finally stop in front of a small home across from the blacksmith J and I dismount. The sun is almost complete gone and I feel like I could eat four cows. J walks up the steps and I follow behind her. “I hope they still live here.” J knocks on the door, “The Hunters have passed through here plenty of times, but I keep waiting for the day they get wise.”

The door swings open and light pools onto the porch. I’m not sure who I expected to open the door, but the woman standing before us isn’t it. She’s younger than I thought she would be, no older than J and I, she short with light brown hair and hazel eyes. Her clothes are all black and she has that sharp look in her eyes that remind me of J.

“Well this is a surprise.” She says looking at J, her eyes look at me only a moment, and I think I see her nose scrunch up slightly.

“Hi Gwen.” J smile, “Sorry for unannounced visit like this, but I was hoping you might have a place for us to stay for a night.”

“All of your visits are unannounced.” Gwen steps aside, “Come on in.”

“Thank you.”

I step forward but Gwen’s hand hits my chest, stopping me. “Not you. There is a barn behind the house; you take care of your horses and then come in through the back door.” She looks down at my boots and I follow her gaze. They are covered in an inch thick of mud.

I look over Gwen to J, she nods her head and I let out a sigh and walk down the steps to the horses. The door closes, cutting off the warm light of the house and I lead the horses around back. My stomach aches and all I can think about is a large plate of food.

The barn is small and cozy, there is a white mare already chewing on fresh hay when I pull the horses in. She looks up at us for a moment then goes back to her hay. I unsaddled the horses, brush them down, and get them water and hay for the night.

When I step up the back door and look down at my muddy boots, then I tug them off and place them next to the door and step inside. The house is warm and it smells of wood and fresh bread. Gwen appears through a door. “Hold it right there.” She opens the door wider and points into the room. “You aren’t stepping further into my house smelling like that, not after I cleaned. There is a bath waiting for you, so do us all a favor and wash up. Dinner will be waiting for you when you are done.”

I nod my head and she closes the door behind me. “If you leave your clothes outside the door I’ll get them washed for you, for now there is a clean pair of trousers and a cotton shirt for you on the floor.”

I hear her footsteps recede and I take of my dirty clothes, open the door a crack and place them on the floor outside. When I sink into the tub the water isn’t hot, but it’s not freezing, so I am thankful that I can get clean and wash my hair.

I use up the entire bar of soup scrubbing the grim from my body and out of my hair. When I get out the tub it looks like soup with chunks of dirt floating around the top. I change into the clean clothes and for the first time in a while I smell fresh and wonderful. I rub my stomach in anticipation for food.