Solivagant

Chapter Eighteen

As the day dragged on, the blanket of dark, heavy clouds obscuring the sun only grew thicker. It was impossible to follow the passage of time, and Wade felt oddly removed as they continued their trek through the mountains, as if time had ceased to exist. They were well inside the range now. Towering peaks rose up on every side, crested with snow and wrapped in dark swatches of forest. The ground underfoot became even more uncertain, as if some giant had shaken it to pieces.

Around midday, Asher began guiding them north, towards a mountain that seemed ever so slightly different than the others. No matter how much he stared at it, Wade couldn't figure out what made it stand out. Perhaps it was the way the mountain seemed to suck in the flat, dark gray light that filtered through the clouds, wrapping itself in shadow. Or maybe it was it's jagged cliffs, devoid of any sign of life. Whatever it was, something about the mountain sent shivers down Wade's spine. But he followed Asher anyway, face set and shoulders squared. It was too late to stop now.

"Asher," he called out as they picked their way down a particularly steep hill. The dark mountain towered above them, blocking out half of the sky. Looking at the grainy, thin quality of the light that fell upon the ground, he guessed it was early evening.

"What?" Asher asked, turning around. He was a few feet in front of Wade, perched unsteadily on a boulder that protruded from the dirt.

"How close are we?" Wade asked. His foot slipped on a patch of loose rocks, sending a cascade of pebbles tumbling down the slope. He hastily dug his shoes into the ground to regain his balance.

Asher stepped aside to allow the minor avalanche to pass. "Very."

"Wade, Asher!" Wade's father shouted. He was some distance behind them, hanging onto Ember for support as he slid down the hill.

Wade opened his mouth to call back, but at that moment Aurum's presence brushed against his mind. The dragon didn't say anything, but his thoughts were filled with a nervous, prickling unease. In front of Wade, Asher slowed to a halt and lifted his face to the sky.

What is it? Wade asked. He peered through the canopy, searching for Aurum's dark figure. The dragon had been flying for the last few hours, practicing a complex series of loops and dives. Now he was hovering in place a few hundred feet above them, his head swinging side to side as he surveyed something Wade couldn't see.

A storm.

Wade frowned. So? He'd seen a few flashes of lightning earlier, and the clouds were heavy with rain; another storm was hardly unexpected.

Not that kind of storm. Aurum reached out, and without warning Wade was viewing the world through the dragon's eyes. The sky stretched out before him, clad in soft gray clouds. To his left, in a place that must have been hidden from Aurum by a mountain, a band of inky darkness was gathering at the horizon.

Even after Wade discerned that the gauzy haze connecting the black mass to the ground was rain, it took him a moment to understand what he was seeing. Then a jagged streak of lightning burst forth from the darkness, and it clicked.

It's huge, Wade said, his eyes widening. He pushed the image away and looked at Asher. The boys exchanged a nervous glance and turned back to the sky, trying to spot the incoming storm. It was too far away, however, hidden behind the trees.

"Why did you two stop?" Wade's father asked, finally catching up to them. He stumbled and slid a foot or so down the hill, latching onto Ember's neck before he fell down.

"A storm's coming," Wade said. "A massive one. I haven't seen anything like it in years."

The blacksmith lifted his head. "Where?"