Discordant Note | TBATE

Chapter 23: Trek

Toren Daen

Our situation looked dire, even after escaping the hornet's death trap. Vaelum was unconscious after fighting off the acid, causing a visible blow to the morale of the survivors. The four non-mages all had burst eardrums from the ringing blast of my sound grenade, leading them to visible despair and pain. The other members of the party–the wind caster and the three shields–were all near the edge of their abilities.

Our odds looked grim. As the wind caster said, the only reason we hadn't been devoured yet was because the beasts of the forest hadn't capitalized on the destruction of the nest. But the night was falling, and I knew from experience the dangers the depths of the Clarwood Forest held.

In the end, a simple plan was arranged. The three shields would keep a triangular formation around the sentry, wind caster, and remaining unadorned, protecting them from each side. Those in the middle would carry Vaelum, whose wounds had finally been bandaged.

This plan was laid out by the wind caster, who had taken the role of de facto leader of the convoy after Vaelum's collapse. His name was Aban, and apparently was an old hand at doing these forest runs. From what I had gathered, he wasn't directly loyal to Blood Joan: more a contractor who helped expeditions along.

The remaining mages huddled around a small diagram etched into the dirt by Aban, each reviewing their respective roles.

"There's a problem here," I said, modulating my voice with sound once more. My mana had recovered a decent bit in the past fifteen minutes, finally moving me past backlash. The attention of the group shifted to me, wary but not hostile. "This protects you from attacks from the ground, which is certainly the most dangerous spot. But it doesn't matter how well guarded you are from the sides if you are vulnerable from above."

Aban looked at me knowingly, drawing another symbol in the dirt. "That is true. Our group will be preoccupied trying to carve our way through this accursed forest, plant by bloody plant. We're tired, sore, and our attention is already worn thin. We won't be able to keep an eye on the sky."

I looked back at the diagram, crossing my hands. My leather gloves felt slick against my palms, the sweat from the past few hours sinking in. "And I noticed you haven't marked a position for me yet on this plan of yours," I said, seeing his reasoning.

"We need eyes above us," Aban said. "Before, Meera fulfilled that role, but she decided to leave the company to their death." A wave of anger passed over the crowd at the water caster's name. A few of the mages bristled, but the earth shield watched me with narrowed eyes. "And considering you managed to follow us through the entire forest from the trees, I'd wager you're quite at home there." He paused for a moment.

The mood of the group immediately shifted back to wariness when my tracking was brought up. I ignored the looks, considering the plan on the ground. All things considered, it was probably the best that could be created on such short notice. It was full of holes, but there wasn't exactly time to patch them.

"I'll do it," I said, looking back at Aban. "I'll keep around the perimeter of the group and send warning shots to you if I spot a group large enough to warrant danger," I added, thinking this over.

Aban nodded in acceptance. Afterward, he gave a brief rundown of the dangers that we'd be facing as we walked and what to look out for. I shivered as he listed off a dozen different ways we could die if we weren't careful, but my choice was already made.

The group prepared to leave not long after, men cinching their straps and cracking their knuckles. The night had finally fallen, but it was difficult to tell in the gloom of the forest canopy. The lanterns were redistributed amongst the group, granting decent visibility to those who stuck around the triangle formation of the shields.