Urgent whispers pulled Logan back to the waking world with a constant assault of tiny pokes and prods. He groggily rolled over in the cot that held him tight. It was a familiar feeling, like waking up for his guard duty with the Crows.

  It was all wrong. The last he remembered, he and Elaine had stepped into the Veil, with the hope of reaching the outpost. The chill air that pinched at his skin told him differently. The outpost wasn’t that far north.

  He raised his arm and it responded clumsily. He felt disjointed, as if his body was not his own. He fought a wave of nausea as he pushed himself up from the cot and promptly fell to the ground on his face.

  Logan stood unsteadily and limped on his sore legs as he made his way out of the tent. Cold wind blew in his face when he unclasped the flap and stepped outside. He covered his eyes as the bright light of the day poured over him.

  A great fire burned before him, surrounded by the faces of people far too familiar for him to trust his eyes. He had to blink many times before he was sure they were real. Adrian of the Crows sat in the circle, surrounded by Carl, Van, and all of the other mercenaries. Richard sat across from Adrian, his rune covered head protruding out from his red robes. The mage didn’t look him in the eye.

  Logan nearly fell again, but a shadow darted out to steady him. It was Elaine, looking far better than he felt. She no longer wore the leather armor, but was again clad in shining plate. She helped him over to the fire, and sat him amongst his brothers.

  “Good to see you boy.” Adrian’s firm hand grasped his shoulder.

  The others of the band welcomed him in turn and Logan’s heart swelled. He couldn’t believe his luck, but there was still something wrong. Neither the Crows nor Richard should have been there. In his daze, Logan knew that they weren’t.

  “Why are you here?” he asked at last, finding his voice. “You should have been done with the job weeks ago.”

  “Aye, we were,” Adrian said, pointing to the mage. “We were about to head south when we met this man. He wanted to have the best mercenaries around for a journey to Abfall.”

  “I came to check on my apprentice while Olson and the Council deliberate,” Richard said, turning his head away. “There was hope that we could stop the savod before the seal was broken, but it doesn’t matter anymore.”

  There was a crack in his voice, and Logan knew that he had heard of Joshua’s fate. Logan swallowed the lump in his throat, and tried to speak, but his mouth was dry. He could not bring himself to speak of it.

  “I warned him.” Richard’s hands shook as he bowed his head. “That kind of power has a hold on you. The more you use it, the more it uses you.”

  “We will get him back,” Elaine said, forcing Logan to crane his neck to see her. “We know where he is going.”

  “Joshua is the only thing holding it back,” Logan said, shaking off the haze. “It all depends on how far he can travel through the Veil.”

  “Joshua is gifted,” Richard said, still looking down. “He was always a quick study with magic, if not in the other subjects.”

  “Then we better get on with it then.” Adrian stood up and waved his men to get back to work. “That boy’s mind is all that’s keeping us safe now. We’ll make double time today and hope that he’s not as gifted as you think.”

  He and the Crows left the three of them there. Logan didn’t stand to start work with them, he wasn’t sure if he could anymore. He had left them to pursue his own journey. He never thought he would see them again until it was over.

  “They aren’t fools at least,” Richard said, finally looking up to Logan. “They helped me a lot on the journey north. I don’t think I would have made it this far without them.”

  Logan nodded, but couldn’t think of what he should say. He wasn’t sure if it was because the spell still drained his mind, or if he just couldn’t bring himself to share comforting words with the mage.

  “I must prepare my things as well.” Richard rose and walked away.

  That left Logan and Elaine alone by the fire. Logan rose up uncertainly and looked to her. Already, her cold eyes were studying him. Those knowing eyes peeled away to his soul, revealing the thoughts that burdened him.

  “You can’t blame yourself for this,” Elaine said, crossing her arms across her chest. “You are not responsible for Joshua’s choices.”

  “I blame myself because we made a promise to see this through.” Logan stared back, unwavering. “I should have stopped him back there on the plains. I should have fought harder to keep him there.”

  “Shut up.” Elaine’s fist struck like lightning.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  Logan should have felt the punch in his stomach, she should have pushed him back, but nothing happened. He looked down at his loose tunic, where Elaine’s gauntlet still rested. The black shade of magic still covered his chest.

  Logan’s blood ran cold.

  “I know where you are right now,” Elaine said, not noticing that her punch had no effect. “You cannot blame yourself for this. It does nothing to help him if you stand here and wallow in self-pity!”

  Logan turned away. He ran his hand over his chest, but all he could feel was the cold touch of the magic. He closed his eyes and concentrated, focusing on his heartbeat. It was faint, but the steady thump was still there.

  “Logan.” Elaine placed her hand on his shoulder. “You can talk to me; you don’t have to bear all this alone.”

  “Just give me a moment.” Logan shrugged off her hand.

  “What’s wrong?” Elaine pressed, not letting him escape.

  Logan sighed. He didn’t want to talk about it. Yet, the promise held its place in his heart. The words rang in his ears. He turned and pulled up his shirt, revealing the dark covering beneath it to Elaine.

  “I don’t know,” Logan said. “I was hurt in the battle with the savod. The magic still covers me, but Talan is silent in my mind. I can’t feel anything there.”

  “You can’t draw it back?” Elaine asked, touching the shell.

  Logan held his breath, and tried to will the magic to withdraw. He scrunched his face, and closed his eyes tight. Sweat ran down his face as focused with all his might. Yet, it still held tight against his skin.

  “It’s not working,” Logan said, his breath short.

  His hand shook as he tried to control his breath. It should draw back in with just the effort of his will. Talan was clear on that when they trained. He wanted nothing better to call her out and plead for help.

  He stretched out his right hand and summoned the wispy aura of the magic. It still responded willingly to his call. He dispersed it with just a thought and frowned. It didn’t make sense. If he could dispel one, he should be able to dispel the other.

  “Well, it doesn’t hurt.” Logan patted the darkness. “And I can’t change it. I’ll worry about it later.”

  “You can’t be serious,” Elaine said. “You aren’t worried about it?”

  “I am,” Logan said. “But I can’t change it right now. Joshua is more important.”

  They parted ways after that. Logan returned to his tent and found his sword, knives and armor laid out ready and waiting. He didn’t pick them up yet. There was something that he needed to do.

  “Talan,” he whispered. “Talan, are you there?”

  A vague mumbling echoed in his mind. It was too quiet for him to hear clearly, but he could hear it. He stilled himself and listened closer as it echoed again and again. It went on for some time before it quieted again.

  She was still there.

  “Hurry up in there,” Adrian said outside the tent. “We’re tearing down the tents and we need every hand.”

  Logan hurriedly strapped on his armor, sword, and knives before he rolled up his blankets and folded in his cot. He pulled it outside and some of the other men helped him move it into the wagon. Together they set to work packing up the entire camp.

  The sun was just rising in the west when they set off, making a slow pace across the rugged tundra. The wheels of the wagons and the hooves of the horses packed down crimson stained grass.

  Logan walked along with Elaine in the middle of the pack. In front of them, the mounted men scouted ahead. Behind them, the men on foot laughed and joked as they walked. Logan smiled when he heard the familiar stories, but there were newer ones that he did not know.

  “How long have I been gone?” he asked himself.

  “What?” Elaine asked.

  “It’s nothing,” Logan said, but he thought better of it. “I never thought I wouldn’t be a part of those stories.”

  “They’ll be here when this is over,” Elaine said, gesturing back at the men. “You won’t miss anything then.”

  “What if I’m not here after this?” Logan whispered, touching his chest again. “They’ll go on with their lives, while I remain forever behind.”

  “You can’t worry about that.” Elaine touched him lightly on his shoulder. “You can only keep on the path and do your best.”

  “I know,” Logan said, smiling back. “I just wish I could convince my heart.”

  He couldn’t say anything else. That was how he felt. He wanted so desperately to speak with Talan, to have her explain what the magic was doing to him, but only the faint whispers remained.

  Snow started to fall upon them as they trekked north and west. The terrain grew more rugged and rocky. Pine trees rose around the hills, framing them in great groves. Logan pulled his cloak tighter as they walked to keep out the cold air.

  He couldn’t imagine why anyone would build a kingdom in the north. All that was there were mountains, snow and ice. Ever since the people abandoned Abfall, there weren’t many who would willingly venture into the north.

  “There’s a storm to the west.” From ahead of the group, Carl returned on his brown steed. “Ice rains down from above.”

  “We’ll make for the hills over there then,” Adrian yelled out, pointing to the nearby hills. “We’ll use the wagons for cover as best we can.”

  It took some effort to turn the wagons toward it. The wheels sank in the cold wet ground as they pushed further on. The oxen struggled and breathed out a heavy mist as they forged the way forward.

  They reached the hills just in time, barely managing to place the wagon in between them and the storm and stretching some tent cloth over it before the heavy winds hit. The animals would have to make their own way. There wasn’t time to prepare a shelter for them.

  Logan knelt down in in the snow, packing it down around himself. Elaine and the rest of the men took their own seats beneath the cloth as ice rained down from the skies above. Two wooden poles held it aloft, and a quick conjuration by Richard gave them some warmth.

  “I wish we had wings from the old stories,” Logan whispered to Elaine as they sat around the fire. “We could fly above this and find Joshua with ease.”

  “How are we even to find him in this frigid land?” Adrian asked. “Even with those wings, there are leagues of ice and mountains all around us. We could search for months out here and find nothing.”

  “He will head to the capital of Abfall, Tyrin,” Richard said. “It is where we are going as well. There, beneath the main keep, is where the seal of the savod hides. The men who built the kingdom had no idea what they built their castle upon. They just knew that it was a seat of power.”

  “Tyrin,” Logan whispered as he rested back against the wagon’s wheel.

  “We’d best get some rest while we can,” Adrian said, pulling his cloak tight around him as he sat back. “Once the ice clears, we will start again.”

  Logan knew that already, that was the life of a mercenary. He closed his eyes tight and did his best to ignore the heavy rapping of the ice against the cloth. He focused on the vague whispers that rang through his mind, until they were all that remained.