Adesina reached over to check the wound beneath the bandage. It was still oozing blood, but not very much. The wound was also much more shallow than it had been the day before.

She looked at him apologetically. "We may need to use more of the salve."

He nodded, trying to appear indifferent. "Whatever it takes to get me back on my feet."

L'era turned to her pleadingly. "Adesina, surely you do not agree with this madness! There is no way he is ready to travel."

She hesitated before answering. "A few days rest would be best, but he is right. We have a long way to go, and very little time."

The young princess's expression became hard. "So you would sacrifice my brother for your father?"

Adesina stared at her in disbelief. "Of course not. I would not allow him to travel if I thought it would endanger his life."

"L'era," said her brother in a reprimanding tone.

She hung her head, ashamed of her hasty words. "I am sorry, Adesina. I know that you have all of our best interests at heart. I just do not want L'iam to get any worse. He will push himself beyond his limit if he is allowed to do so."

"Nonsense," snorted L'iam, but Adesina agreed with his sister.

The others were now stirring, and it was time to begin the day. Sa'jan prepared their morning meal, while Aleron mixed herbs to help L'iam with the pain of his injury.

L'era hovered nervously as Adesina changed her brother's bandage. He cringed when the salve came in contact with his wound, but clenched his jaw to avoid making any noise indicating he was in pain.

Everyone else seemed to have recovered from their battle wounds. Bandages were changed on gashes, and medicine applied to Adesina's skin; but other than that, they were all ready to head out once the camp had been broken.

Chapter Forty-two: Return to the Forest.

The travelers had to move at a slower pace, due to L'iam's condition. Adesina rode her horse next to his, keeping a close eye on him and making sure he did not overexert himself.

They began conversing in low voices. She told him more about her childhood in the Shimat fortress. She asked questions about L'avan history and culture, and they discussed their vyala.

He spoke to her quietly of the strange dreams that had come to him since the Shimat attack. They were filled with shadows and s.n.a.t.c.hes of sound, making him jerk awake in a cold sweat.

Adesina was fairly certain that the source of the nightmares was the strange medicine she continued to apply to his chest, but the dreams continued even after he healed.

It took only a couple of days for the wound in his chest to close up, but the scar that formed was red and tender. His hand occasionally strayed to that part of himself, as if expecting to find the dagger still there. His movements were labored, and he was strangely subdued. L'era treated him gently, but Adesina's focus was more on getting him back to his former self.

As time went on, L'iam responded to both tactics. The easy pace set by his sister allowed his body to recover, and the expectations of Adesina made him push himself.

Adesina was so absorbed in helping L'iam that the rest of the group fell from her notice. Ravi remained a silent shadow at her side, and E'nes also did all in his power to offer aid wherever it was needed. Even then, she paid little attention to either of them.

Sa'jan spent much of his time with Aleron, and seemed to be the only one who took note of the sad glances he cast at Adesina. He gripped his shoulder in sympathy, but could offer no other comfort to the young healer.

Aleron soon discovered that the best way to get Adesina's attention was to sing a song. He often enlisted Ravi, finding a song that they both knew.

To walk in a world without definition, To see nothing as it truly is.

All edges are soft when they are blurred, But the beauty in detail is gone.

Stand in the haze of what is and is not.

Breathe in the imagined world.

Here there is safety, but nothing is real.

Here there is peace, but no life.

To walk in a world that is sharply defined, To see things all too clearly.

Sharp, cutting edges that will not relent.

Simple beauty does not exist.

All is decided and to deviate is death.

Move forward without hesitation.

Here it is real, but all dreams disappear.

Here there is earth, but no air.

Adesina smiled at her High City friend. "So many sad songs, Aleron. Is that the mood you favor?" she asked with a teasing smile.

He fiddled with the reigns in his hand. "Would you like a happy song? I could sing one for you."

The smile faded from her lips. "No, your song is fitting."

L'iam murmured to her, "Yes, very fitting. *Breathe in the imagined world.'"

To Aleron's frustration, she turned her attention back to the L'avan prince. "Are you still having those dreams?"

He nodded, repressing a shudder. "Yes, every night. I cannot seem to shake myself free."

"Well, soon all of us will be having strange dreams," said Sa'jan.

L'era frowned in confusion. "Why?"

He gestured to the forest no more than a hundred yards in front of them. "That is the last of the great forests on the journey south. It is said to be touched with the old vyala."

This time it was Adesina who didn't understand. "The old vyala?"

"The vyala of the earth," explained E'nes. "The Rashad tell tales of the old world, before humans ruled. A world filled with all kinds of vyala, many of which we could not even imagine."

Ravi's expression became wistful. "My ancestors lived in that world, as well as the Serraf. They say that vyala was as common as air, and that the world was filled with all the creatures that have now become myth."

She glanced at her guardian. "What kind of creatures?"

A half smile touched his lips. "Their names have been lost in time, but their presence touches all of our legends."

He trailed off and his features became saddened. Adesina gazed at him with concern. "What happened to them?"

He sighed. "Most of them died in the Great Wars, and many more in the plagues that followed. Those of us who survived sought refuge at the Wellspring."

There was so much new information in these two sentences that Adesina didn't know where to begin. "The Wellspring?"

"It is said to be the source of the old vyala. The Serraf and Rashad who did not take part in the Great Wars went there to flee from the destruction. A small group of others went with them and helped to create the barrier between the Wellspring and the rest of the world. That area is now called the Spirit Lands by those who remember it."

They were now on the edge of the forest which had been the cause of the discussion. She nodded her head towards it. "So these woodsa?"

Ravi picked up on this new line of thought. "There are still a few places in the world that are touched by the old vyala. This forest is one of them, the forest where you joined the L'avan is another."

They entered the trees, and the disembodied whispers began immediately.

"astill searchinga"

"astanding in the darknessa"

"awaiting to be set free."

"Love, like a strangera"

"anever to be found."

"aof this people yet not of this peoplea"

"agreater things to come."

"While standing at the thresholda"

"aleading my chosena"

Aleron looked around in wonder. "What is it?"

Only Ravi seemed to know the answer. "Spiritsa"both past and future."

He didn't understand. "Past and future?"

"Time does not matter to vyala. Past, present and future are all the same."

"What are they saying?" asked L'era.

Ravi listened for a moment before replying. "They whisper the etchings of each soul. What I hear is not the same as what you hear."

A realization came to Adesina. "Is that why Kendan was so affected by what he heard?"

He nodded. "Kendan's soul was troubled, therefore what he heard was also troubling."

She fell silent, staring at her horse's ears. L'iam looked over at her, his eyes full of sadness.

"You loved him."

It was halfway between a question and a statement. She couldn't bring herself to answer. Instead, she shifted her gaze to the shadows in the trees ahead of them.

He reached over and took her hand, speaking with the same sorrow as before. "I am so sorry, Adesina. No one should feel such pain, especially after everything you have been through."

She tried to shrug it off. "It does not matter."

"It does," he insisted gently. "It matters a great deal."

Adesina looked over at him and smiled. "Thank you."

Aleron urged his horse forward until it was next to hers. "Adesina, how far south are we going?"

She frowned thoughtfully, recalling the maps she had studied throughout the years. "The fortress is set on the southernmost peninsula of these lands. That is part of the reason why it is so easy to protect, and so easy to keep secret."

His expression was filled with excitement and awe. "Do you mean that we are going to see the ocean?"

She laughed softly. "Yes, the fortress is right by the ocean."

"I have never seen the ocean before," he confessed.

Adesina was certain that there were many things that he had never seen, having grown up in the High City. She began describing the area around the fortress, and he listened eagerly. She spoke of the clear blue of the ocean and the vivid scent it gave. She told him about the distant call of the sea birds that nested in the cliffs below the fortress.

She also described the great ships that came once a month to resupply the fortress. This caught the attention of the others.

"The Shimat deal with merchants?" asked Sa'jan.

"The merchants are Shimat," she explained, "just as I am a carpenter. All Shimat are given professions in order to allow them to blend into society. In this way, the order is completely self-sufficient. The Shimat depend on no one but themselves, regardless of what might be needed."

E'nes furrowed his brow. "So they have their own farms, their own cattlea?"

She inclined her head. "Yes. They have farmers, weavers, smiths, shepherds, healers, ranchers, artists, performers, wainwrights, coopers, cobblers, soldiers, politicians. Everything."

Ravi glanced at the sky, even though it wasn't visible through the heavy canopy. "We should probably stop here for the night."

As they dismounted, Aleron made his way over to Adesina and asked, "Is it true that the ocean's water is filled with salt?"

She smiled at his enthusiasm and once again began telling him about all the different things she had seen during her travels.