Darkness approached and it became very apparent they would
not reach Kewero this day. Flindra
needed to find wood for a fire and preferably some shelter from the wind. She finally found a tree that had been blown
over. This would provide wood for her
fire and a little protection from the wind.
Flindra loosened the girth of the saddle but left it on to
give Deru some protection from the wind.
The saddle would also keep the blankets from blowing off. She put the last of her grain in the feed
bag, put it over his nose, and let him seek what shelter he could find from the
north wind.
She took a small hatchet she'd kept tied behind the cantle
and started chopping branches from the downed tree. When Flindra had enough to last her through
the night she started to pick up the small pieces which had fallen to the
ground for tinder to start the fire. She
then carried the wood towards the bottom of the tree.
When the tree had been blown over, it had pulled up a chunk
of ground with its tangled root system.
This shallow berm was the only shelter Flindra had from the wind and
thus it was the best place to make her fire.
The wind teased her as it blew out the tiny sparks from her
flint before they could start the tinder on fire. Flindra wrapped her body around the tinder to
provide some protection from the wind.
After many tries, she finally got a spark to ignite the small chips of
wood. She nursed the flickering flame
along - slowly adding more fuel until it burned with an intensity that the wind
could not extinguish.
Flindra usually made small fires to minimize the notice of
unfriendly eyes. Tonight she ignored
that precaution. She needed all the
warmth she could get from the fire to survive a night with the frozen north
wind as a companion. She would have to
trust the power of Rigga to protect her from danger tonight.
Dawn was long in coming as Flindra hovered near the
fire. She dozed occasionally as the
night passed but she had to stay awake most of the time to keep the fire
going. She remembered happy times from
her childhood to warm her heart even as her body ached from the cold. She knew the value of diverting her thoughts
to better endure unpleasant situations.
Normally, Flindra would pack up her camp and be on her way by
daybreak. This morning, she lingered by
her fire until the sun eased the worst of the bitter cold of the pre-dawn
hours. She finally tied her belongings
to Deru's saddle and continued on her way.
Flindra rode hour after hour across the desolate plain. Her mind became numb after hours of the
dreary sameness. There weren't even
trees anymore to break the monotony of the landscape. Moreover, it was cold, so very cold. She huddled in the saddle to keep her cloak
as close to her body as possible. Her toes
ached as she wiggled them to keep them from freezing. The pain eventually spread from her feet into
her legs. She pulled her feet from the
stirrups so she could move her legs too.
She wondered at times if she would ever be warm again.
By mid-afternoon, Flindra noticed a change in the
landscape. This part of the Northern
Reaches was not as flat as it appeared from a distance. The plain was intersected by a number of
narrow and deep gullies and small valleys.
The crystal sphere suddenly started to vibrate and Flindra reached into
her tunic and withdrew the orb. It was
clear the crystal was directing her towards the entrance to one of these small
valleys.
"Let's hope we are getting close, Deru," she said
as she slipped the orb back into her tunic.
"I'm tired," she confessed to the horse, "and I know you
are, too."
She reined Deru into the
valley. She rode for several miles and
suddenly felt the orb grow still and cold.
Before she could reach into her tunic, she heard a voice call, "Welcome
to my home Princess Flindra."
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