The Phoenix Ring(47)

For some reason, Aidan didn't feel like eating.

As soon as Aidan finished packing the trio left the campsite, first spreading the ashes. They had no illusions that the assassins would be fooled, but it felt like the sensible thing to do.

"So uh… how did everyone sleep?" Aidan asked, trying to avoid walking in silence again.

He got no more than a non-committal grunt from Aaliyah.

Glad to know she's back. Aidan thought.

"I had an… interesting dream," Timothy said, casting a hostile glance at Aaliyah. Aidan gripped his staff a little tighter.

They had been walking for about three hours when they came across a tree that stretched far above the canopy. Aaliyah signaled for them to stop and then jumped into the lower branches. She had only been gone for a few minutes before she appeared again, dropping to the ground with perfect grace. She then pulled a map out of her small pack and held it open on a tree.

"We're about here," she said, pointing to a place along the trail. "The city is here. On the main path it takes about one hour to get there. Ours will take about three."

"What?" Timothy said, impatience seeping into his voice.

"I saw a man along the path with a black hood. They're waiting for us. We wouldn't make it more than halfway. We're going through the woods, this way," she said, pointing southeast, "until we leave the forest. Then we're cutting back. If we are seen I'm going to lead them back into the forest and meet up with you at the front gates. Let's get moving."

With that, she took off into the forest, leaving the boys stumbling after her.

They kept walking for another two hours before Aaliyah thrust her arm out in front of Aidan.

"Do you hear that?" she asked, slowly pulling her bow off of her shoulder.

Aidan listened for a moment, but he couldn't hear anything at all.

"No, I hear nothing,” Timothy said, voicing Aidan's thoughts.

"Exactly,” Aaliyah said, "There's nothing. No squirrels, birds, nothing. Walk carefully."

Aidan put one foot forward, hearing a twig snap under his foot.

Almost instantly, a net sprang up from under the leaves, encircling the mages and pulling them into the air, upside down. Aidan tried to struggle for a few seconds, but to no avail.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" asked a voice from under their heads.

"Get away from here, you filthy amogh, or I'll smite you with a fireball!" Timothy shouted, though his voice shook a little.

The man only laughed. "That's quite cute, mage. No, I have a much, much better idea."

And then Aidan heard a sound that made his blood run cold. The rasp of a sword being pulled from its sheath.





13





Aaliyah thought about a net trap a moment before Aidan put his foot forward. She dove away from the hapless boy the moment she heard the click, though the net nearly snagged her foot as her body flew through the air. She instinctively corrected herself in midair and landed rolling, coming up with her bow in one hand and an arrow in the other. She heard a man's voice, followed by Timothy, who was bravely but stupidly yelling out a defiance. The young girl took a deep breath and braced her back against a tree, slowing her heartbeat and quelling the battle rage that stirred in the heart of each and every amogh, waiting to be awakened.

She opened her eyes and stepped out from her cover, pulling back her bow as her newfound enemy unsheathed his sword. He, like his friend, was dressed all in black, and even wore a black headscarf.

"Touch 'em and die, traitor," she said, her arrow aimed to pierce the man's heart.

The other amogh stopped moving at the sound of her voice and slowly turned, a confident smile on his face.

"I was wondering when you would show up. I owe you for what you did to Seoul," he said, letting his sword swing loosely at his side.

Aaliyah kicked herself inwardly. The man was standing directly in front of the net. If she tried to shoot him and he avoided the shot, which she was sure he would, the arrow would hit one of the mages. She heard a rustling in the brush behind her and knew she was surrounded, so there was no escaping into the forest either.

Then she saw it. A large, flat stone, lying against a tree at just the right angle. She took aim and released the arrow, letting her instincts decide where to shoot.

Of course it flew true, past the amogh's head and deflecting off the rock. It brushed past the upper strands of the net and nearly hit her enemy, who ducked before it could end his life, before finally embedding itself in a tree.

"You missed," he said, seeming to enjoy himself.

"No I didn't," Aaliyah countered.

Her adversary raised an eyebrow a moment before the net snapped, sending the mages sprawling onto the forest floor. The arrow had frayed the strands just enough to allow the net to break.