Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 109477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
In addition to no shirts, they all wore a sort of skirt with fur around the waistline and a round metallic emblem where a belt buckle might go. The fur dripped down in places, creating pockets or adorning pockets in the otherwise loose and flowing fabric. If Boman was a kilt guy, he’d be interested in this fashion. She wondered if there was anything under it.
Bandages wrapped their various wounds, and blood stained their fingers and skin.
She nodded in hello. They stared back. Their acquaintance was off to a swimming start.
“Let’s get moving.” Tarian put his hand on Daisy’s shoulder. “It’s been unnaturally quiet all the way from the station. It has unsettled the Fallen.”
She and Tarian walked side by side, and the others created a square around them, half tramping in the grasses and brush to keep the formation. It was a bit stupid, really, at least while there wasn’t anything hanging around. They could walk on the path like normal people and stop making so much noise.
“You haven’t asked if they have the mindgazer magic,” Tarian said quietly.
“With you as my jailer, it doesn’t matter if they do or don’t. I assume you’ll tell them anything of relevance if they can’t hear it themselves.”
“Well, they do. All of my Fallen do.” He slipped her a side-eye. “You know, in case you want to rein in some of the very blunt observations.”
“If they don’t want to hear it, they shouldn’t be listening to things not meant for their ears. My head is supposed to be a private place. Don’t eavesdrop and we’ll get along fantastically.”
“You practically shout your thoughts. It’s hard not to hear the cursed things,” grumbled Darryn, the one with a small braid on either side of his forehead. “I do, you know.” He glanced back at her, his face hard. “I have a great personality.”
Someone behind barked out a laugh.
“Interesting place to put your knife.” The other one at the front, Niall, didn’t turn to look at it as he commented. “Was that your idea or Tarian’s?”
Tarian didn’t respond, but after a moment, a couple of them chuckled. Clearly, he’d answered without words.
“It’s easier to relay info via the mind, as you’ve learned,” he told her. “You’re new to it, so we don’t do it as often, but that’s the main way the Fallen communicate. You can receive our thoughts, and so, when it is relevant, we will share them with you. You can obviously broadcast your thoughts, and so we’ll hear them. When any of us wish to keep our thoughts to ourselves, we shield our minds. We’ll teach you how to do that.”
“Why?” she asked.
“Because you are incredibly distracting,” Lennox muttered. “Also, what is a Viking?”
A mangy, unwashed cretin who raped and pillaged his way through Europe, she thought grumpily.
“Her barbs are worse when she thinks them,” Lennox growled. “Much more colorful.”
“I’d take mangy and unwashed over just plain ugly,” Niall called back. “At least she thinks you’re a looker, even if you are those other things.”
“Careful, Niall,” Ryoden said, his voice pleasantly pitched. “You’ll lose personality points if you keep it up. Then what will you have?”
“An ugly brother,” Niall replied, and they all started snickering…except Darryn, who was pretending not to hear.
“She’s like a running commentary of what we’re all thinking but too nice to say,” Niall said, laughing. “I can’t decide if I like it or not.”
“When she’s not talking about you, I’d say you like it just fine,” Lennox said, his voice a deep drum.
“Yeah. That’s what I mean.”
They kept up their banter throughout the rest of the journey, which thankfully wasn’t long. Hot, though. The sun beat down on them mercilessly without so much as a whisper of a breeze. Sweat poured down her face and collected in areas she’d rather it didn’t. She finished the water in her skin and denied Tarian when he offered his, not wanting to appear as frail as they’d made her out. Besides, he was the one bleeding, not her. He’d been worse off than her last night, as well. He needed it more.
Occasionally the guys in front would glance back at her, and she’d avert her eyes to the side to avoid their gazes. Obviously Tarian was detailing their journey through their mind communication. No one reacted to any of it, though—not a huff, a laugh, a scoff, nothing. She was thankful. She’d rather not know their thoughts on her journey and her various hiccups and transgressions.
The only good news was that the mind chatter acted like talking to a degree. Two people talking at once was confusing, so while they communicated, they didn’t seem to notice her thoughts. She let her mind wander where it would, thinking about various aspects of their journey and noticing the plants and flora they passed. A tune shouldered its way into her mind at one point, and she thought of her family while she mentally sang it. They were probably pissed that they couldn’t find her. Scared shitless that something had happened to her. Hopefully they didn’t blame themselves. Hopefully they didn’t follow her.