Half Wylde | Book 1

Ten: Acceptance

The journey through the Summer lands was uneventful. Unless you count the event of seeing the Wyldes for the first time, which is an event in itself. The days were warm and the evenings were filled with a cool breeze. I was accustomed to sleeping outside on pleasant nights, so it didn't bother me that we had no shelter as we traveled. We crossed through the Summer lands for two days before reaching it's edge, and then the fear gnawed at my bones. I got my first glimpse at the untamed reach of the Wyldes.

Terrible nightmare creatures danced through my head. Stories the parents of the mountains told their children to make them behave. Bryn didn't tell me many of those sorts of stories, but Mila did. And when Mila the witch tells you a story, you would be wise to know her monsters are very real.

We stood at the top of a grassy knoll, the warm sun bearing on my back. A trickle of sweat slid between my shoulder blades. But in stark contrast to the lush summer lands we stood in now, below us lay a much darker landscape. Gnarled grey trees and dry, rocky terrain reached out in ugly tendrils. It sprawled out like that for miles.

"The unclaimed Wyldes." Schula rolled her shoulders back and stretched.

"Is it all like that outside the courts?" I whispered.

"Not all of it, but most," Eberon said.

"And there is no other way to Thanantholl?" I squeaked.

"No." Thain shook his head. "None of the court lands touch each other. It's best that way."

I couldn't see how two bordering lands were worse than having to travel the unclaimed Wyldes when you needed to go somewhere, but I stayed silent.

"Let's get on with it." Schula sighed and walked by us, heading down the hill and into the grim landscape. "I only want to spend one night in it and that's only going to happen if we get a move on."

"We're sleeping in that place?" I whispered out loud to no one in particular. Of course, they all heard me, but none of them answered.

I gripped my pack, resolving to follow Thain to Thanantholl no matter what. Even if it was through the unclaimed Wyldes.

We walked for hours at a brisk pace. None of them were willing to break the silence in the stagnant air. Instead I watched as their ears twitched at sounds that even I couldn't hear. No breeze rustled the ugly trees, no animals crawled underfoot. Even Puko stayed close, choosing 

to perch on my shoulder more often than not.

We stopped to pull out some of the cured ham and a wedge of smoky cheese for lunch, but we 

walked as we ate. I suspected we wouldn't have paused for food at all, except the three of them seemed determined to put some weight on me. They were giving me bigger portions despite my protests otherwise. Still, I was grateful for the distraction of food as we crossed the bleak landscape. My legs were aching from the faster pace we traveled, but I didn't want to complain. The faster we got through this part of the journey the better.

When night was upon us we stopped as we usually did. The end of our day was signaled when 

Thain stopped at a spot and nodded to the rest of us. Eberon looked on edge, but Schula and Thain seemed more alert than usual. They were older and better at hiding their feelings than Eberon was. Or me, I probably looked terrified.

"Aren't we camping off the path?" I asked.

"Do you think that would be wise?" Thain looked at the thick and gnarled trees just a short distance from us. The overgrowth whispered promises of nasty surprises within.