Sentria: The War for Askeran (Book 3)

Chapter Fifteen: Ancient Waters

I ripped off my shirt and tried to stop Eldwyn's bleeding as much as I could, but it wasn't doing much help as my creme-colored blouse was quickly drenched in blood. Those two Cordathian soldiers must have snuck up on Eldwyn for them to do this much damage, and I regretted being so angry at him earlier. It was insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Seeing him so injured and lying there with his eyes closed, barely breathing was more painful than if I had been stabbed. I shouldn't have allowed him to go into the forest alone with the current state of Askeran. No place was safe and he was paying for my insolence.

"Please, Eldwyn," I said, "Awaken...awaken." I held the back of his head, moving him slightly in hopes of stirring him awake.

"He will be well, Darren," said Princess Ilya, reaching in her bag. She applied salve to his cuts, but they were too deep to do much good.

"How? His wounds are too severe and we only have a rough idea as to where the wind relic village is. We are lost without Eldwyn. Only he knows this accursed forest."

"Can you call on your animal companions for aid?"

"I...cannot. I've since lost my abilities to call upon them."

"You have to at least try." Princess Ilya stood up and looked down at me. "The power is within you. You must do this for Eldwyn."

I sighed and closed my eyes. My heart was beating fast and it was hard to think of anything but Eldwyn. I tried reaching out with my mind, calling out to nature for any creature that could hear my call. I connected with the land like a root that spread out over the area. In this state, I didn't know how much time passed, my mind was elsewhere until I heard the sound of clopping hooves trodding the dirt path. I opened my eyes and saw something I had never seen before: a bronze horse with golden hair. I looked at it in wonderment at first, unsure if I could trust my eyes.

"It worked," I said breathlessly.

"I knew it," said Princess Ilya.

The horse came up and licked my face and I thanked him. I wrapped Eldwyn up in my shirt and sat him up on the horse's back, then sat behind him. I then lifted Princess Ilya up behind me, and without speaking to the horse, it galloped southward, knowing my intent.

We looked around for any signs of the village. Eldwyn had described it before: it was surrounded in a circle by an ever-flowing river, and they all lived together in one long labyrinthine house. But the search wasn't going well at all. The Winding Forest wasn't a place that was easy to navigate. It shifted randomly as if it had a mind of its own—perhaps it did. The trail disappeared after a while and we moved around aimlessly, desperately looking for the village or someone we could ask for help.

I spun around in a glen, unsure of where to go next. This method wasn't working and I needed to change my strategy. Princess Ilya leaned in next to my ear and whispered, "Listen to your heart," and I concentrated harder. I felt the wind flowing southeast and on a whim, I followed it. Eldwyn always spoke about the wind communicating with him, and while I didn't have the ability, I trusted him. We rode southeast, passing the shaking trees that seemed to lean in the direction we were heading in, and I heard the sound of a peaceful stream like nature's whisper. We were close.

The leaves of the trees in this area were blue and sparkled in afternoon light, and the forest opened up into a clearing. The water relic village was how Eldwyn had described it with an ever-flowing river and a blue longhouse in the center of no recognizable shape. We came up to the river's edge and looked around for a bridge, but there wasn't one.

"Water relics!" I called across the river. "Please! We are in need of your help!"

A youthful water relic came out of the house, chipper as can be. He had dark skin, blue markings on his face, and a blue-wrapped garment about his body. He spotted us, and walked up to the river with a calm smile.