Chapter 41: Chapter FOURTY ONE

They had drifted about half a kilometer from the team, a distance they covered moving quickly and as quietly as possible. The forest was still noiseless, all the animals having deserted the area because of the wendigo.

Was there really only one? Ethan mused, remembering that it wasn't just them who got carried away under the treetops.

"There were two of them, weren't there? How are the Sentinels that got attacked?"

"See for yourselves," Zerkan replied grimly as they arrived at the improvised rendezvous point.

The Vila was almost glad the blonde couldn't see well through the thick darkness of the Wood of Tears when his gaze fell on the aftermath of the attack. The wyvern that had been dragged to the ground was dead, and the remains of his rotten body betrayed the violence of the attack. A huge pool of blood surrounded his corpse which had been shredded in many places. It was a real butchery. At his side, a Sentinel also lay in his vital liquid, his throat cut. The head of the second wendigo rested two meters away, its body enthroned on the corpse of the soldier. The damp earth had turned red all around their bodies and had begun to drink up the hemoglobin to wash it away.

"He got Tyrrel's arm too," he announced, pointing at the Sentinel who was sitting on a rock being treated by the wizard who was wrapping a bandage around his stump.

Ethan sat down, avoiding moving his shoulder as much as possible so as not to wince in pain, Mia at his side. A few minutes later, the magician finally finished providing first aid to the amputee's wound and approached him with a small jar containing healing cream and wet compresses to clean all the dried blood that had collected around his wounds.

"Can I do it?" Mia asked shyly. "It will make me forget about the corpses a few meters from us."

"The first deaths are the hardest," the wizard commented morbidly, thrusting the medical equipment into her hands. "Clean the wounds well, then put a good layer of cream. If necessary, we'll put bandages on it, but with Vilas' regeneration abilities... The wounds don't look that deep to me."

Mia tend to her soul mate's wounds while Zerkan brainstormed and discussed with the rest of the group what to do next now that they were on the ground. With the thickness of the trees, they could no longer take off, but advancing on the ground was dangerous and they risked being spotted. Especially on foot, the remaining thirty minutes easily turned into a good hour in the depths of the forest.

The touch of the compresses revived the sharp pain in Ethan's raw nerves, but the warmth of the healing balm finally eased his pain. With the magic ointment, combined with his accelerated Vila regeneration, his open wounds quickly turned into thick scabs, a sign that they were healing.

Ethan could also feel the burning gaze of Vassili who seemed to be dying to ask him if he was okay but obviously preferred to abstain understanding that the Vila didn't want to hear him. He had kept his distance since their departure so as not to escalate the situation and jeopardize the operation, which the young man appreciated if he was honest with himself. However, he was absolutely not ready to forgive him for anything.

"How are you?" inquired the blonde after having finished applying all the care that the magician had provided to her.

Ethan moved his shoulder and then his arm to gauge their state and noted with relief that apart from his skin which pulled him in places, he no longer had any pain. His arm had recovered well since he had had a lot of superficial abrasions, but his shoulder was a little more sensitive and would require that he not force it too much for the rest of the operations.

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"It's fine, but it's likely to reopen if I'm not careful."

"Maybe we should put a bandage on it?"

"No, it's fine," Ethan said, shaking his head. "It will hamper my movements. And I think it's time to keep moving forward, right?"

Zerkan watched the Vila for a moment to check that his healing was complete, then nodded to confirm his guess. They had lost enough precious minutes and would lose more if they couldn't fly anymore, they had to move on.

"We have no choice, we will have to stay on the ground. Andrei will conceal our presence as best he can and Chris will serve as our scout with his owl eyes. It's the only thing we can do in these conditions, hoping we won't be spotted."

Chris metamorphosed a few seconds later under the amazed eyes of Mia into a majestic owl that flew away in stride. He was small enough to move through the thick foliage of trees, unlike wyverns, and had perfect night vision that would allow him to spot any unknown entity in their path. If he met a living soul, he would just have to come back instantly to warn the group.

"The spell will only affect the visual to blur our physical presence. A bit like an illusion or a mirror that reflects the surroundings. I can't spontaneously do anything about the sound of our footsteps, so watch where you step, and don't talk. Regroup, please."

With a Sentinel dead and Chris in the air, there were only nine left on the ground. They approached each other to form a tight group to make it easier for Andrei who whispered a few words while describing circles with his hands to define the area to be concealed. The spell affected each person independently of the others, allowing them to move freely, but making detecting the rest of the party difficult for each member. Mia immediately grabbed the sleeve of her soul mate's functional arm so as not to lose him since she couldn't see anything at all in the darkness. Ethan, on the other hand, could see the outlines of the silhouettes of the other Sentinels by concentrating with his nyctalopia eyes, but could not distinguish the details of their clothing or their faces.

"Mia, you should get on Taure before I hide her," advised Andrei, who saw very little of his surroundings himself. "I can't see you, so hurry up in the saddle, though."

"Go ahead, it will be more comfortable for you," encouraged the Vila.

Mia listened to the advice of the two men and climbed on the wyvern which had remained not far from the couple. After they finished enchanting their mounts and once the wizard himself got on his since he couldn't see much either, they set off following the Commander who was leading the march. The outline of the silhouettes and the smells were enough for the magical beings to have no trouble following their leader. Besides, the wyverns weren't the most discreet with their big legs and heavy bodies. It was for this reason that they preferred to walk and let their mounts move without weight, except for Andrei and Mia, who had no viable alternative.

The advance in the deep part of the forest was complicated because of the roots, the thorns, and the rocks scattered everywhere since there was no traced path. Many times, the wyverns couldn't take the same route since their bodies didn't pass between two trees, so Zerkan had to check that everyone was following or choose a better path for the animals. This made them deviate a few meters each time, resulting in a significant loss of time, but they had no choice.

Finally, they saw with relief the edge of the Wood of Tears which would bring them back to a wide plain at the edge of the Arena forest. And without having met a living soul, to the delight of their raw nerves.

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