Wolves and Men
For three long and muggy days the group beat a brutally driven path toward Pomanda. The soft swales and gentle hills of Sykor grew to steep inclines with old-growth forests that no axe had touched. Sycamore, beech, maple, and a smattering of oaks danced with long-coned pines that held firm against the battering of heavy winds that spring delivered with a vengeance. During the too-few hours of daylight they drove their mounts hard, so hard that Rahg felt certain they would collapse at any moment, and at night they trudged along at a grueling, if less demanding pace.
Rahg soon learned to sleep in the saddle. Two back-aching falls had taught him the nuances far quicker, and better, than Tobias' tired explanations. He now rode in slumber like a grizzled veteran of war, able to
