“That’s because the tethers were cut,” Farilane said. She looked at Kolby. “Yes?”

The knight held up the buckle strap. “Sharp blade, too.”

“Someone attacked our camp?” Virgil asked, stunned. “But who would do such a thing? Surely not the carnivorous seagulls.”

“Technically, I said man-eating,” Farilane corrected. “Seagulls are actually carnivorous. They eat fish and insects.”

“Best guess?” Kolby said. “Those less-than-helpful monks in the village.”

“Maybe,” Farilane said.

A dramatic flash of lightning reached between sky and sea and pulsated briefly like a living thing, revealing the entire bluff, seaside, rain, and voluminous overhead clouds before vanishing. “Whoa,” the princess muttered. Seconds later, she felt as much as heard the thunder. “Is this wonderful, or what?”

She threw her head back and her arms out, her hands splayed palms up, feeling the rain pummel her body and run down her skin. She was soaked, a bit chilled, and aware that standing on that bleak promontory, made her one of four likely targets for the next bolt of lightning. And yet, she couldn’t be happier. This is what it means to be alive.

The others stared at her as if she were mad. She wasn’t surprised, nor did she care. She’d drawn such looks for decades. They’re the faces of the sleeping, shocked at the presence of one awake. She twirled around and began laughing.

Chapter 4: The Bear Man

Chapter Four
The Bear Man

Blythium Castell was a fortified legion encampment on an imposing precipice overlooking the long bay that divided the imperial province of Alburnia from Rhulynia. The octagon of bland, beige walls caught the morning sun rising behind them. Farilane had seen the walls a mile away but suspected the others were only spotting them now. The fortified camp, or castell, marked the farthest physical presence of the empire to the northeast. Technically, the ancient elven homeland of Erivania was further north and east, but no one counted it because it was isolated by imperial law. This left Blythium Castell as the last vestige of imperial authority on the eastern frontier. The stark utilitarian fortress had a lonely, desolate appearance as it perched bright on the dark cliff like a sentinel peregrine watching over the tiny village at the mouth of a river.

The road to Blythium ran through the village where, thirteen days earlier, four treasure hunters led by a princess of the empire had stopped for supplies and found little. The village consisted of a handful of crude dwellings built of thatch, sticks, and daub. Large, rich fields of newly planted green surrounded the community. A simple wooden bridge gave access to a small island where sheep and cattle grazed in a natural corral. The only stone buildings were the little monastery and the domed temple beside it that appeared like a miniature version of the Temple of Ferrol in Percepliquis. While small and simple in features, the elaborate dome was nonetheless remarkable, given its surroundings.