Page 264 of Born of Blood and Ash

A deep voice brimming with authority. One accustomed togiving commands and being obeyed.

A familiar one.

An important one.

The cork shoved deep into the neck of the vessel loosened. Istarted to slow down.

Ahead, the gates swung open, and bodies scattered. The urgeto give chase, to hunt them down, hit me, but the desire to run was greater.

So, I did.

I ran.

I passed the gates and the different scents. I sprinted downthe road, my ears twitching as I processed the sounds around me. Leavesrustled, shaken by the breeze. Farther up, near the starlight, wings beat theair. But closer, I heard the rush of water over rocks. I followed that sound,veering off the road. A channel of water came into view, and on the other side,a forest. There. I wanted to be there.

Steering clear of the crimson-and-silver flowers, tallergrass grazed the sides of my stomach. I neared the river and eyed the churningwater, searching for a way across. I found it in a series of rocks jutting fromthe surface. I dashed down the riverbank, my paws sinking into the softer, dampground. Reaching the edge, I jumped, landing on a slick rock and sliding aninch or two. Cold water lapped at my legs and dampened my tail. Inching to theedge, I sank down and batted at the flying droplets until I focused on myclawed paw.

In the starlight, I could see that the fur appeared silver,but when the breeze ruffled the strands, I saw the gold underneath.

Sound caught my attention, and I flattened my ears. It wasbarely audible over the babbling of the water, but I heard something on allfours. Something running. Something larger than me.

I leapt to the next boulder and then the third before makingthe longer jump.

Water splashed, soaking my lower body as I landed in theshallow water near the riverbank. Making my way onto dry land, I shook thewater from my fur and then took off once more.

I ran through the trees, leaping over rocks and fallenlimbs. I ran straight into the thick darkness of the deeper forest, dashingbetween the trunks. I picked up different scents as I ran. Earthy tones. Floralnotes of blossoming flowers. The hint of rain and sea salt. I ran right andthen left.

I ran and ran, my taut muscles stretching and burning.Seconds turned to minutes. Minutes became hours. And still, I ran, my lungstaking in deep, filling breaths as the sky through the trees lightened to adeep violet-blue. I kept running, stopping every so often to inspect a smallmound of rocks or investigate a strange scent.

A cluster of small, white-petaled flowers caught my eye. Isank down on my belly before them. They were some sort of daisy. My tailswished over the mossy forest floor as my ears picked up the sound of buzzing.Insects. I tracked a small, black bug hopping from petal to petal—

A different sound reached me. Heavier, repetitive thuds.

I rose, darting around the flowers. I ran, enjoying the feelof the wind in my fur, the air in my lungs, and the dirt beneath my paws.Eventually, the trees thinned, and the scent of the sea grew stronger. Islowed, crossing a meadow of thin reeds taller than me. The land dipped andthen rose again as the sky above continued to lighten. I rushed up the hill,spotting a faint mist at the top—

Dirt crumbled under my feet. Hissing, I scrambled back fromthe edge of a cliff—a bluff. Staying on much more stable ground, I sank low tothe ground and squinted. Through the mist, I saw blue.

A new scent reached me. I swung around, tracking themovement of the reeds several yards away. I prowled to the left. The stalksshuddered, foot by foot.

Throwing myself to the side, I dug into the ground and ranagain, racing along the bluff. I picked up speed. It didn’t feel like I eventouched the ground. I ran until the mist seeped over the cliff, forcing me backa few feet and into the reeds. Then I kept running, bursting from the reeds andonto a road.

A wall of thick, swirling mist rose in front of me. Iskidded, kicking up loose dirt. The thick hairs all over my body stood on endas I eyed the mist. I knew this place.

I crept along the barrier, picking up the sound of somethingelse in the reeds, moving closer. My muscles tensed. I’d been here before. Thiswas a gateway to the mortal realm, to my…

To my lake.

Home?

Yes.

And no.

Pieces of me started fusing back together. Pieces I wanted.Others I didn’t as I stopped in front of the thickest part of the Primal mist.Behind me, the reeds continued brushing against one another, swishing in timewith my heartbeat.

I could will the Primal mist to part. I could open thegateway. I could because I could do anything I wanted—

A scent reached me. Fresh and citrusy and stronger thanbefore. I spun, a low growl rumbling from my throat as the reeds shook andparted.

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