Chapter Twenty-Five: Eagle on the Mast

 

Kyosti spent most of the voyage sick belowdecks. He, Anglorae, and Sanji huddled in their blankets for the tumultuous and treacherous trip, green-faced and wretched. John abandoned them almost immediately to run around in the sun and wind, only coming down to bring them water and food.

“What a traitor,” Anglorae griped. “I should have left him in Mardoo.”

Chapter Twenty-Four: Interlude - At the Military School

 

Kyosti played alone everyday.

Chapter Twenty-Three: In the Dark of Night

 Yella, as promised, stayed until dawn. Long after the other three had fallen asleep, snoring to drown out their whispers. He was fascinated by Kyosti’s stories of Chithoobra, and especially interested in Kayla, who had further betrayed the Innis path by joining the Wizards.

Chapter Twenty-Two: At the Inn

 

“Hot water!” Anglorae yelled, banging down money on the startled innkeeper’s table. “And lots of it!”

Chapter Twenty-One: In the Storm

 

It took them almost a month to finish their journey up to Mardoo, which was the nearest big city that could take them across the ocean. Winter chased them all the way there, but finally the wall of night receded and the snows stopped. They entered a gleaming desert that reached scorching temperatures during the day and dropped to freezing in the night.

Chapter Twenty: Bandits in the Marsh

 

They eventually left the mountains behind and dropped down into Mel Iorn, a hilly, wet country at the best of times. Now, in the winter, it was frigidly cold and humid. The usually green vegetation was gray and brown, blanketing the ground in an icy, soggy mass. Many of the streams were already frozen over or dried up, but several rivers still rushed down through the hills. On one memorable occasion, the four of them even had to cross a freezing river.

Chapter Nineteen: Deer in the Bushes

 

Anglorae groaned. “Berries? Again?”

Kyosti didn’t have to see Sanji to know she looked murderous. “You can starve, if you’d rather,” she pointed out.