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"We don’t have tio, keep up as best you can We’ll allop Hugo folloith his long, loping gait
Chapter 20 Roon
Kendra stared down at thedespite the heavy coat she had picked up before leaving Istanbul Turbulent water gushed into the fjord through a foamy stretch of tidal rapids, complete with a number of violent whirlpools Beyond the rapids, snow-clad cliffs bordered the pristine inlet
"Didn’t I tell you it was areed, teeth chattering "She’s cold," Bracken said "We should have foraged for better winter gear"
"You did great," Kendra insisted "I’ to keep e where we can land," Raxtus said The sun was high and bright, the teradually siphoned away Kendra’s war cap or scarf "I don’t want to hold us up," Kendra said
"We could all use a quick break," Bracken insisted
Raxtus soared into the gorge and alighted on a broad ledge halfway up a cliff Large enough to support several trees, the ledge also currently benefitted froht Icy patches of snow survived only in the shade of the trees
Taking off her gloves, Kendra staorously The smell of the sea wafted up to her, cool and fresh with a salty tang She enjoyed the stunning vista of deep blue water overshadowed by towering escarpe
"Shall I build a fire?" Bracken asked
"No, I’ up," Kendra replied
Bracken wore Warren’s sword over his shoulder By the time they had found the healer in Istanbul, Warren had been feverish Warren had insisted they leave hient need to warn Roon Osricson, they had reluctantly accepted his demand Bracken had left Warren with a co on a hilltop in Latvia that Warren wasa steady recovery
Bracken had offered to spare Kendra froh Raxtus assured her he could often see through distracter spells, Kendra knew they ht need her to find Roon’s hidden fortress Besides, even if she had no pivotal role to play, Kendra felt she needed to help Perilous or not, toothe Eternals to relax on the sidelines
"What do you think we’ll find there?" Kendra asked
"Let’s just hope we beat our ene and stretching "If not, we’ll have to assess the situation on the spot I wish the Sphinx would get in touch and give us a better idea of e’re dealing with"
"You keep trying to contact him?" Kendra asked
"I don’t think he’s retrieved the co to juggle a number of concerns For all we know, Graulas ht any part offor the Sphinx," Kendra said
"A calae peculiar alliances" Bracken walked over to Raxtus and patted the dragon on the neck "How are you holding up?"
"You don’t need to keep asking I’o like this for days"
Bracken nodded thoughtfully "You fought valiantly against the harpies Hoould you feel about joining another fight, if it coround "I’ve always quietly wanted to be a hero Putting that desire into practice has always beenco, I have this tendency to run or hide But my confidence is better than ever after those harpies, and having you two along should boostto prevent the end of the world Hard to argue against that It ends up a to option A, risk death now, or option B, die for sure later I’ Navarog If we have any chance of winning, I’ll join the fight"
"Fair enough," Bracken said
Kendra looked out toward the sea She had long i it by dragon They had ers It was just yesterday that the Sphinx had helped thee With luck, they would soon convince Roon to come aith them to a safe hideout, and Zzyzx would be a little safer She knew they should hurry
"I’ve thawed," Kendra said
"You sure?" Bracken asked, colanced up at hih school She could alether for a science test But of course, he was really older than her grandparents Much older And a unicorn besides
He definitely didn’t see at her, fringed by long lashes
She fought to derail her train of thought "I’m sure We should hurry"
Raxtus swooped over and snatched thee of air currents, Raxtus followed the winding course of the deep, narrow fjord Kendra wished she had a camera Instead, she tried to i somewhat narrower and shallower, the fjord caon’s shadow rose and fell against rugged terrain They flew over craggy hills, sheer ravines, stony ridges, ice-rimmed lakes, and scattered copses of fir trees
"Up ahead," Kendra said, as a squat keep of gray stone came into view, situated on a flat rise between two rocky hills Reaching well beyond the hills, a tall stone wall ringed a vast tract of wilderness A heavy wooden gate in the wall had been se
"I see it now," Raxtus said "My eyes kept straying away from there"
"I see it as well," Bracken said darkly "The splintered gate is an oe" He indicated a jutting spine of rock outside the breached wall<ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>