Across the Midnight Sea

Chapter 36: The Veil of Night

I love the ending of this chapter and I hope you do too.

I needed to write something 'good' and somehow this story once again came to my aide.

-

Imre was starving by the time evening fell.

He rested his head against the back of the tree he had finally collapsed against and tried to catch his breath. His heartbeat was sounding in his shoulder and list legs felt near collapse. He had been running off and on for hours through the woods and his legs were protesting at the strange use. It had been so long since he had run that his body had almost forgotten how to do it. Slow steps with large weights had been his legs only requirement for so long that running seemed strange and awkward and used aspects of his muscle that he had not used in months.

It was strange how the aching of his muscles felt good for being different.

Listening for any sound Imre closed his eyes to try and focus and hear if anyone else was there in the woods following.

An hour after leaving the camp behind he had heard the faint sound of yelling, it had made him pick up the pace to put as much distance as possible between himself and Nicholi. One thing that stood in his advantage was there were not enough Tamerian soldiers with is group to send out a full search party. The only people who would be looking for him would be Nicholi and the two other Tamerian's who had ridden in with him.

Having anyone in pursuit was a bad thing.

Imre's stomach took his rest as its opportunity to growl loudly at its emptiness.  He had not eaten since the morning ration and it had been far from filling.

Hunger and fatigue weighed down on him.

To sleep was to allow the potential of them finding him unaware...but if he didn't sleep he couldn't keep going and he had been.

"Just a few moments..." he told himself and closed his eyes.

-

A branch cracked.

Imre's woke, his body snapping to attention.

Through the darkness Imre's eyes searched the woods until they were met with a pair of glowing eyes.

One hand went to the dagger pulling it out slowly...if it was a bear or a Wolven would he even be able to right it off with the tiny blade? 

The animals head turned and Imre relaxed catching the shape of a deer.

The breath he had been holding slowly released and the deer's ear flickered towards him before it bounded off through the woods leaving him alone.

Imre let his head tilt back resting against the bark of the  tree.

How far had he come?

How much distance had he put between himself and Nicholi and the group he had been with?

If...no...when Nicholi came looking for him on horseback trudging through the woods would mean nothing against superior speed.

As if answering his question the sound of water rose up to meet Imre's ears.

The Canal.

He would swim.

Or rather he would let the water carry him down faster than he could ever walk.