The Mountains. Morning.
The sun rose pale and cold over the peaks.
Grog stood at the edge of the clearing, his sword in his hand, his eyes on the scorched earth. The portal was gone—moved again, slipped through their fingers like water. But the residue was still here, thick and heavy, pressing against his skin.
Mirena knelt in the center of the clearing, her staff across her knees, the stone pulsing in her hand. She had been there for hours, studying, searching, trying to understand.
"It's moving faster now," she said. "The circle is getting smaller. It's heading back to where it started."
Grog moved to stand beside her. "The first clearing. Where we killed the creature."
Mirena nodded. "The thin places are strongest there. The portal is being drawn back."
Ken stood at the edge of the clearing, his bow in his hand, his eyes on the trees. He had been quiet since the night, since the shape in the shadows, since the ambush on the cliff.
"The portal isn't the only thing out here," he said.
Lira looked at him. "The ambush. The rocks. The shape on the ridge."
Ken nodded. "Someone was watching us. Someone human."
William frowned. "One of the mercenaries?"
Ken shook his head. "I don't know. But they're not with us. And they're not with the creatures."
Grog absorbed this. "Then they're with someone else."
Ken met his eyes. "Someone who wants the portal found. Or someone who wants it hidden."
---
They broke camp as the sun climbed higher.
The horses were tired, the riders were tired, but they couldn't stay. The portal was moving. They needed to move with it.
Grog led the way, his sword in his hand, his eyes on the trail ahead. Ken rode beside him, his bow across his back, his eyes on the trees. Lira brought up the rear, her bow in her hand, her eyes on the shadows.
Mirena rode in the center, her staff in her hand, the stone pulsing in her pocket. She was tracking the residue, following the trail the portal left behind.
"It's heading east," she said. "Back toward the first clearing."
William rode beside her. "How long?"
Mirena shook her head. "Days. Maybe less. The portal is moving faster now."
---
They reached the first clearing at sunset.
The sun was low, the shadows long, the air cold. The clearing was smaller than Grog remembered—the trees had grown back, the scorched earth had faded, the body was gone. But the wrongness was still there. The residue was still there.
Mirena dismounted, walked to the center of the clearing. She knelt, touched the earth. The stone in her pocket pulsed faster, warmer.
"The portal was here," she said. "Recently. Hours ago."
Grog moved to stand beside her. "Where did it go?"
Mirena shook her head. "I don't know. The residue is fading. It's moving faster than before."
Ken dismounted, moved to the edge of the clearing, his eyes on the trees. "We're not going to catch it. Not like this."
Grog looked at him. "What do you suggest?"
Ken was quiet for a moment. "We stop chasing it. We figure out where it's going. And we get there first."
---
They made camp at the edge of the clearing.
The fire was small, the watches were set, the horses were tethered. Grog sat apart, his back against a tree, his sword across his knees. He was thinking about the portal, about the creatures, about the thing that was coming.
Mirena sat beside him.
"You're thinking," she said.
"Always."
She was quiet for a moment. "The portal is moving faster. The circle is getting smaller. It's going to end somewhere."
Grog looked at her. "Where?"
Mirena shook her head. "I don't know. But I'm getting closer."
---
Ken stood at the edge of the camp, his bow in his hand, his eyes on the darkness.
William moved to stand beside him.
"You don't sleep," William said.
Ken didn't look at him. "Neither do you."
William was quiet for a moment. "I've been thinking about what you said. About the portal. About getting there first."
Ken glanced at him. "And?"
"I think you're right."
Ken was quiet for a moment. "So do I."
---
In the night, something moved at the edge of the camp.
Lira saw it—just a shape, just a shadow, gone before she could raise her bow. She sat perfectly still, her eyes on the darkness, her hand on her arrow.
It didn't come back.
But she felt it watching. Waiting.
She didn't sleep.