Page 46 of Jace

“That’s good advice,” she said.

“Okay, check the stays on your clothing and make sure your boots are tightened as much as possible so nothing can get in,” he said, as he checked his own scant clothing.

It was skintight and free of vulnerabilities, as always. The advantage of being a dragon was that he didn’t require much garb. He didn’t suffer with the heat or cold the way she would, and most insects and small animals gave him a wide berth.

He watched as she carefully checked herself over, trying not to notice her supple form when she bent to tighten the boots.

“Ready,” she said triumphantly as she straightened.

He smiled at her, enjoying her return smile.

Then he stepped into the trees.

It only took a second for his eyes to adjust to the gloom, then the various scents began to accost him.

“Are you okay?” Susannah asked quietly.

“I just want a moment to acclimate myself,” he told her. “Then I’ll be able to sense better if something changes.”

She nodded and said no more, allowing him to sink into his senses.

There were small animals, most of them mammals, all within a few feet of them. These tiny creatures gave off a scent mostly of alarm, not aggression. They were unlikely to see any of the animals, since they would hide.

He also got a whiff of something that seemed almost Terran, then he quickly realized that was Susannah, standing beside him. Besides, Terrans always left plenty of evidence behind them, like unaware fledglings, and he saw no footprints and no disturbed foliage.

There was the scent of old leaf rot from deciduous trees and the crisp, slightly bitter note from evergreens. The soil smelled well fertilized, though whether that was from the leaves or the carcasses of tiny mammals, he was not sure.

Reaching out further, he tried to find the sickly-sweet scent of rotted meat and predators.

It did exist, but it was faint, as if the predators were far away, or, more likely, they were nocturnal.

The bird cries sounded within the range for what he would expect to find in this climate.

And there were some strange, whistling sounds that he imagined were just the breeze moving through some of the wrecked space crafts from long ago that had been overgrown by the foliage.

“Good,” he told her, opening his eyes. “I don’t sense nearby predators, but stay alert.”

Her eyes widened, like she hadn’t thought to be afraid of predators until he mentioned it.

But she nodded bravely, and when he moved, he could feel her shadowing him.

“Incredible,” she whispered.

He turned to see her chin lifting to take in a massive tree beside them. Several kinds of moss and lichen grew like fur on its knobby bark.

“This is old growth forest,” he told her. “That’s why it’s hard to clear. There’s new growth in the spots where some of the most recent crashes happened.”

“It’s magical,” she declared, turning her smile to him.

His heart throbbed with joy, and he smiled back at her, before remembering himself and turning to walk on.

A few paces later, he spotted something on another big tree.

“Susannah,” he whispered to her, pointing.

Her mouth dropped open as she rapturously studied the fluffy white creature.

“What is it?” she asked after a moment.

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