"That's odd" Rumi said while shielding his eyes from the sun.
"Its not attacking… it's like it's waiting for something" he said.
"Whatever it wants we need to get to the mountain pass and avoid it" Alia replied.
"Lums breath I hate that place" Rumi said thinking of the dark and damp pathway that leads to the other side of the mountain and into the pass.
"Look there" Alia said pointing at the dark shadow that signified the beginning of the pass.
"It will take another day to get their on foot, we no longer need to follow these Jun".
"It's been a whole week and the runt hasn't told us anything, most of the acolytes we pick up will do anything to get some attention from us" Alia said after some silence.
"Bah leave him be Alia, we should consider ourselves lucky we have another acolyte for house Kiseson".
"What of the other two"? Alia said looking at Leen and Fooya from a distance.
"The mana will only get thicker the closer we get to Boone" Rumi shrugged.
"The reward for bringing in more than one acolyte is plenty, no need to be greedy" he said winking at her before jumping down and whistling towards the children to get their attention.
"Were leaving" was the only words he said before taking off and running past the merchants".
The past week I spent meditating with mana liquid at night and moving during the day.
We ate what rodents we found and drank at night when it rained.
Yuit collected rain for Leen and Fooya filling their waterskins and it was only getting colder the closer we got to the Little Mountain.
On the fourth night the beast attacked again but when we found the remains of the wagon it had already been looted before first light.
'Whoever moved in the dark with that creature above is either brave or stupid' I thought to myself.
Leen and Fooyas light hearted mood brought by my safe arrival was worn out as their reality set in.
They had not slept in a safe place in months, even on the sand rider they where terrified of Um sightings.
Finally when they are about to reach a safe haven they meet an even more terrifying monster.
Forcing them to hike a mountain trail while being attacked by creatures so vile they still got chills thinking about them.
Now they trudge through the rough, hot and barren terrain that always seemed to lead upwards no matter which route they took.
Their calves and thighs burned and every so often the fear of death will wash over them when they see the dragon-kin in the horizon.
"I don't know how much longer I can do this" Leen said as we camped by the entrance to the mountains pass.
"You knew the risks" Fooya said regurgitating Alias words.
"I want to go home" Leen whispered holding her knees tight while we all meditated and Yuit took watch.
"Here take this" I said handing her the lasy of the bottle of mana liquid Rumi handed me.
I hadn't seen him give any out since I came back besides what he gave me.
"Are you sure"? Leen hesitated before reaching out her hand.
"No but I hope it helps".
"Can I have some"? Fooya asked while snatching it out of Leens hand.
I expected Leen to get upset but she patiently waited for Fooya to get done.
"See he's not all bad" Rumi said while watching the exchange from above.
"I don't care, his circumstances are too suspicious".
"He doesn't mention who helped him or why and I know you see the Inka daggers"
"He fell into a pit of Ums Rumi, not bitten by a raksha or fell in the sand river".
"There is no coming back from that unless..."
"Unless what? He is no longer Jun Alia our laws protect him and so far he hasn't broken any".
"I'll just wait for him to slip up, even if he makes it to Boone when the Great Mages receive my report they will find an Aura Master to search his mind".
Rumi shook his head and continued his watch.
"We need to move" he said suddenly letting out a long whistle.
His eyes shone with the light of mana giving us his position.
Alia didn't know what the threat was but her training kicked in and she jumped following Rumi.
We headed directly for the wide gap in front of us.
Even though the sun had already set I could tell the difference between where the mountain pass began and the mountain ranges ended.
"Faster" Rumi said after looking over his shoulder.
He accelerated yet again.
Yuit and I keeping up with no problem but Leen and Fooyas footsteps sound further every second.
I heard the flapping of the membrane wings before I heard Fooyas scream in the night.
Yumi and Alia both flared with mana.
Alia moving fast enough to run on the wall sideways making her way towards the rising beast.
I see her biting into her finger and performing a series of hand gestures before a flaming whip shot out and wrapped around the scaly claw that has Fooya in a hold.
The beast howled in pain, its voice reverberating off the sides of the mountain and it dropped Fooya who fell straight down into the darkness screaming the whole way.
Her voice cut out when she landed, when we found her she was bleeding from her head.
Rumi scooped her up and continued running as if he didn't notice the extra weight.
'I could have used some of that urgency' I thought remembering how they kept moving as I sank into the sand.
"Don't stop running, it will come back" Rumi said and Leen whimpered.
We continued to run until the moonlight disappeared and we are surrounded by complete darkness.
Once we stopped Alia landed next to Yuit and I, as she was running on the high ground.
"What was that and why did that thing come after us" Alia asked Rumi uncaring of her demeanor in front of the children.
This was the first time they had ever seen her shaken like that.
"I don't know..." Rumi said while glancing in my direction.
"Their is limited sunlight, only about four hours out of the day so get used to the dark... and watch out for Cro".
The others shivered at the thought of the flying humanoids and I licked my lips, memories of the lean meat filling my mind.
The thought roused Ava and she thought I had found another one of her delicious meals.
'Do you think those large beasts are coming after you'? Ava asked as she read my thoughts.
'Maybe, I don't know why but either way it's not something we have to worry about'.
The pass went between two of the largest mountains making it tight and narrow with cover from protruding rocks above.
"What was that fire and where did it come from" Yuit suddenly asked.
Rumi sighed, "I suppose now would be a good time to tell you about arrays".
"That was a rank two array called 'Flame Whip'".
"What are arrays" Yuit asked while walking behind the two mages in the dark.
"They are-"
"You will learn once we reach the Mage Association and if they deem you worthy to receive such knowledge" Alia interrupted.
'Need help getting that stick out of your ass'? I thought.
"Yes Mage Alia" Yuit replied.
We continued walking in the dark, the only sound is our footsteps and Leens hiccups in between tears.