The Forestwalker

by Sarah Wheeler

Table of Contents

Chapter 12

The next morning, everyone was up early, and Gareth introduced Kastor and Shanna to all the other children. Shanna endeared herself to everyone in her usual bubbly way, and Kastor was polite but quiet. Gareth could see the thinly-veiled disgust on some of the urchins' faces when they looked at Kastor – they hated him for owning a slave – but if Kastor noticed too, he gave no sign; he seemed to want simply to do what was asked of him. This surprised Tam and some of the others, who had been expecting Kastor to be spoiled and arrogant, but it didn't surprise Gareth. Kastor knew better than to alienate people who were trying to help him now. As they all ate breakfast, he sat quietly and listened intently as Tam filled him in on what he would be expected to do.

Tam introduced Kastor to another boy around his age named Yosa. “Yosa works down on Market Street, runnin' errands and deliverin' packages for a bunch a the merchants with permanent storefronts down there. He's gonna take you with him and split his workload with ya.”

“The best part about it,” Yosa said, “is you can usually barter with the merchants to get goods from them instead of money. Tam said you needed supplies for a trip west, so you'll be able ta get a lot of what you need cheap from them, and they're pretty sympathetic to people who are willing to work for what they need.”

“Don't worry, I'm willing,” Kastor said, sounding uncharacteristically humble.

“What about me? I wanna help!” Shanna piped up from where she was sitting surrounded by the other girls, making friends with all of them.

“Oh, can we have her?” One of the girls – her name was Laina, Gareth remembered – asked hopefully, hugging Shanna to her.

“Oh, please?” Laina's friend Elia asked as well. “We promise she'll be safe. She's just what we need.”

Tam blinked in puzzlement, then shrugged. “If it's okay with her brother,” he said, glancing at Kastor by way of Gareth.

“What do you want her to do?” Kastor asked, trying not to sound too concerned.

“Oh, she'll just come and sit with us when we play our music in the park,” Laina said airily. “It'll be fun, she'll get fresh air and sunshine instead of being cooped up in this hole all day, and we'll split everything we make three ways.”

Kastor looked a little suspicious, but Shanna was so excited to be helping that he couldn't refuse her. Gareth was pretty sure he knew what Laina and Elia wanted Shanna for, and though he didn't necessarily think it was something she should get paid for, much less equally with the other girls, it wasn't his place to say what they did with their earnings. It was bad enough that he couldn't go out and help them make the money they needed. He wasn't sure what he was going to do, sitting around here by himself all day. He apologized to Kastor again just before the others all left for the day, expressing his regret for being so useless.

“Don't worry about it, Gareth, really,” Kastor told him with kind exasperation. “You've done so much already to help us, and we're going to be relying on you a lot again once we leave Devrost and start traveling again. Take this time to relax and enjoy a bit of leisure, alright? It'll be good for you.”

Gareth nodded, outwardly hesitant, but inwardly relieved at Kastor's reaction. Tam, who had apparantly eavesdropped on their conversation, stayed behind for a few minutes after the other children had left. “I'll keep a close eye on them both,” he promised, “and they're in good hands with the likes of Yosa, Laina, and Elia. We'll have you on your way in no time, but I think Kastor is right. You deserve a chance to relax and have some free time to yourself once in a while too. Make yourself at home here, and stay safe. We'll all see you tonight.”

Gareth promised to do his best to relax, then he watched them all leave before staring around the small, bare room and wondering what he was going to do to pass the time. Unfortunately, without anything to read or occupy him, the first thing that came to his mind was to clean up the place. The night before, Tam had shown him the secluded courtyard that contained the block's communal latrines and water pump. It was completely walled off from the street by the buildings that surrounded it, so Gareth could enter and leave it on his own without fear of being seen by anyone. He went outside and hung a washline, then found a washtub and spent the day ferrying rugs, wall hangings, and clothing out to the yard to wash and dry. He swept the floors, cleaned out the fireplace, took out the trash, cleaned all the rugs and furniture, and had everything clean and back where it belonged by the time the others returned in the evening. He felt very accomplished, despite the fact that what he had done was not exactly relaxing by normal standards.

Shanna was the first to return. She entered with Laina and Elia just as he was stoking the fire in preparation for the chill of the evening, and when she saw him, she hurtled towards him with an enormous grin on her face. “Look what I did!” she cried as she held out her hands to him. They were brimming with gold and silver coins. He caught them, and her, before they fell to the floor in her hasty excitement, then looked up in surprise at the two older girls, who were laughing as they followed Shanna into the room.

“Shanna there's our lucky charm,” Laina said when she saw Gareth's shocked expression. “I think we brought in four times what we normally do with her helping us out.” She flopped down on one of the cushions in front of the fire and opened up her fiddle case to clean and tune the instrument. As she did so, she reached into the case and tossed Gareth a small leather bag that clinked when he caught it. “That's the rest of her take – the stuff her hands were too small to carry.”

“But I still don't know what I did,” Shanna said in a worried tone of voice as she handed the coins in her hands to Gareth and dragged him over to one of the couches to sit down with her. “All I did was sit there and smile at people. They won't tell me why that made them give us more money.”

“It's... hard to explain, miss,” Gareth said, sharing a knowing look with Elia, who was unpacking a cloth sack full of food – their contribution to the week's stores. “But don't worry about it. You did an excellent job today.”

“She's not the only one,” came Tam's voice, and they all looked up as he entered the room, followed by Yosa, Kastor, and several other boys. Kastor was looking exhausted but triumphant. He was carrying a sack over one shoulder, and when Shanna came running up to him with her bag full of money, he smile genuinely and dropped it to pick her up in a hug.

“It looks like we weren't the only ones who were busy today, though,” Tam said as he stared around the room in amazement. “Gareth, I thought I told you to relax an' take it easy; you didn't hafta do all this!”

“Yes, sir,” Gareth said with a shrug as the other children finally noticed how clean their home was, “but I would have gone out of my skull with boredom sitting around here all day with nothing to do. It's no big deal, really.”

“You kidding? This is the cleanest this place has ever been. We owe ya one, Gareth.”

Gareth shook his head as he came over and picked up the bag Kastor had dropped. “It's the least I could do for all of you, for letting us stay here and helping us make the money we need.”

Tam gave him an exasperated look, but it was not unkind. As the rest of the kids started arriving, Gareth followed Kastor and Shanna into the sleeping room to put away their new things. But once they were out of sight of the others, Kastor took the bag from him. “It's alright,” he told Gareth. “I'll take care of these.”

“Yes, sir,” Gareth said, letting Kastor take the bag again. “How was your first day of work, sir?”

Kastor shrugged. “Good. Long. I saw most of the city today, delivering packages for the merchants along Market Street. And I got a good start on the supplies we need to be on our way.”

“I made lots of money,” Shanna said, showing Kastor the bag of money again.

He took it from her, opened it, and looked inside. “You made all of this?” he asked her in surprise.

She nodded. “Laina and Elia said I'm their good luck charm. They said they made way more money today than they usually do. Is it enough to buy what we need to go home?”

“Almost,” Kastor said, hugging her again before carefully stowing the money pouch in the sack full of supplies. “At this rate, we shouldn't need to stay here more than a few days. Which is good, I guess.” He stole a sly look at Gareth. “If we stay any longer than that, you'll clean this place up so completely that it will probably collapse in on itself. I think the dirt's the only thing holding at all together.”

That made Gareth laugh. “Maybe so, sir. I'll do my best not to damage anything.” He had been a little overzealous today, he realized, and he hadn't left himself anything else to do during the next few days.

Fortunately, over dinner, Tam took Gareth aside and asked if there was anything he could do to make Gareth's seclusion here easier and more enjoyable. Gareth looked nervously around to make sure no one was listening, then asked him in a low whisper, “Any chance I could get something to read?”

Tam's eyes widened. “You can read?” he asked, and Gareth nodded. “Lucky bastard.” Tam grinned at him enviously. “Yeah, I pick up old newspapers all the time, ta use for kindling. I can bring back more than usual tomorrow, so you'll have somethin' ta read. Ya shoulda said somethin' earlier, Gareth.”

Gareth shrugged. “I didn't really think about it, sir. Just... please don't let Kastor know about this. I... I don't know what he'd do or say if he found out I can read.”

“Don't worry, my lips are sealed,” Tam said, and he gave Gareth a friendly wink and a smile as they headed back to the group.

The next morning, an hour or so after everyone had left, Gareth was resting in the main room by the fire when Tam returned, carrying an armful of newspapers. Gareth thanked him profusely, and he spent the rest of his days alone in that little basement room devouring the written word, learning about Esharan current events and culture. He payed special attention to the listed inventories of the local slave markets, studying the ages and descriptions of the available slaves and wondering if Master Teskar was one of them. He didn't see anything he recognized, but that was little comfort, and though he knew there was nothing he could do if he did find Master Teskar in those vague descriptions, it didn't stop him from looking every day. He did find another use for that information, though – he began making lists of the children that were being held in the slave market, tracking the number of them that were brought in or sold every day, and passing that information on to Tam so that he could track the children sooner and create more chances to rescue them. Tam thought this was such a good idea that, near the end of the week, he sent a few other children who knew how to read to spend the day with Gareth so he could show them what he was doing, in hopes that they could continue once Gareth left with Kastor and Shanna.

“This'll be a great help to us in our larger goals,” Tam told him when he met with Gareth and the children helping him on Gareth's last afternoon in Devrost. “I can't thank you enough, Gareth. I'm just sorry we can't tell Kastor how helpful you've been.”

“That's alright, sir,” Gareth said. “I wanted to do something to help you, to make up for the fact that I couldn't let you set me free. At least this will help you help others easier. And who knows,” he said, risking voicing his deepest, most desperate hope to his newest friend, “maybe some day soon, when our trip is over, I may get the chance to come back and help you again.” He grinned at Tam, whose eyes lit up in hopeful anticipation.

“I hope so,” Tam said, returning Gareth's smile and shaking his hand gratefully. “Stay safe out there, Gareth.”

Kastor was out later than usual that evening, and when he came home he was carrying a number of bulky packages. Everyone else was sitting around the fire, eating and talking, and only Gareth noticed him enter quietly and slip into the bedroom without drawing attention to himself. Deciding to see if he needed any help, Gareth got up unobtrusively and followed him. Kastor was sitting on his mattress bed in the far corner of the room, sorting through a large pile of supplies and arranging them into three piles. “I think I got everything we need,” he said when he glanced up and saw Gareth coming towards him. “It will be good to get on our way again.”

“Yes, sir,” Gareth said as he sat down next to Kastor. “I am sorry I wasn't able to do more to help you get what we needed.”

“I told you already not to worry about that. It falls to you to get us safely home now; this was the least we could do to help.” He looked uncertainly at Gareth for a moment, then picked up one of the brown-paper-wrapped packages and handed it to Gareth. “Here, these are for you,” he said. “They'll be a little big, because I had the tailor fit them to my size, but I did that on purpose. I hope you like them.”

Gareth opened the package to find new clothes inside. Real clothes, not a slave's uniform. They were not fancy, and were obviously second-hand, but Gareth was deeply touched by Kastor's generosity. He thanked Kastor profusely and asked him why he was being given clothes, but all Kastor said was, “Try them on,” so he did without hesitation.

The pants were long and made of thick brown wool, making them warm and resilient. There was a long-sleeved shirt made of grey cotton, and a long-sleeved jacket made of dark green wool that had light green leaves embroidered on the collar and lapels. Gareth swallowed a lump in his throat and tried to hide his emotions when he saw those, though he was sure it was just a coincidence. Underneath the shirt and pants, there was also a pair of soft leather boots and a green knit scarf. Gareth was speechless with gratitude as he dressed in these beautiful new clothes. When he was done, he realized what Kastor had meant by his comment about their size. Kastor was slightly taller than Gareth, and his arms and legs were longer, so when Gareth wore these clothes, the sleeves of the shirt and the legs of the pants completely covered the shackles on his wrists and ankles, something his slave uniform was not allowed to do. With shoes on his feet and the scarf around his neck hiding his slave collar, he looked just like any other free man. He turned back to Kastor, unable to express his thanks.

Kastor knew what he was thinking. “We're going to be traveling along the roads again starting tomorrow,” he said, looking Gareth over critically. “It will make everything a lot easier if we just look like three regular travelers instead of two kids with a slave.” He nodded his approval as Gareth wrapped the scarf around his neck and sat down to put the shoes on his feet. “Just be careful, okay? Because things will go very badly for all of us if anyone discovers that you're a slave while you're dressed like that.”

“Yes, sir, I understand. Thank you, sir.”

“Oh, and also...” Kastor frowned, looking reluctant, but then he continued, “You should also probably stop calling me 'sir' and 'master' too, and stop calling Shanna 'miss.' That could draw unwanted attention if anyone overhears. Until we reach the forest, you're to act like our equal as well as look like it, okay?”

“Yes, sir... Kastor,” Gareth said. Then, in an effort to dispel his young master's obvious fear at the amount of freedom he was giving his slave, Gareth reached into his shirt and pulled out the key to his chains. He removed it from around his neck and solemnly handed it to Kastor. “I'm still yours, sir. Pretending otherwise won't change that.”

“I know, Gareth. I trust you,” Kastor said sincerely. Then, he put the key around his own neck again. “But thanks for the reassurance,” he said with a friendly smile as he tucked the key into his shirt.

Gareth helped Kastor pack three knapsacks with food, clothing, blankets, a tent, and other essential camping and survival gear, making sure to distribute the weight so that Shanna and Kastor didn't have to carry more than they could handle. When they were done preparing for the next day's travels, they both returned to the main room to join the others at dinner. Gareth was immediately swarmed by the other children, who were in awe of his new clothes.

“No one would ever guess that you're a slave,” Tam commented, and the others echoed the sentiment. “How does it feel to be able to dress like a normal person?”

Humanizing, Gareth thought, but he sensed Kastor tensing uncomfortably behind him, so he said, “Good. Different,” instead. He self-consciously straightened his jacket under the onslaught of hopeful stares and curled his toes in his new shoes. “These boots are a bit strange,” he admitted, feeling like he should fill the awkward silence with something. “I've never worn shoes before. Ever.” He grinned at the shock on some of the children's faces, including Shanna's. He was glad that the shoes Kastor had brought him were soft-soled so he could still feel the ground underneath his feet. Had Kastor done that on purpose? Unlikely; it was probably a fortunate accident, like the leaves embroidered on his jacket – hard-soled shoes were probably expensive.

Kastor and Shanna both had new clothes and shoes too; clothes that were warmer, sturdier, and in better shape than the ones they had been wearing since their escape from the slavers. They were both grateful to be able to wash and dress in new clothes, and have shoes to wear again, and to no longer look like urchins. They left all their old clothes and gear, a reasonable amount of food, and some of the money they had left over to the other children as payment for their generosity. Kastor had wanted to leave it all – thanks to Shanna's 'work' with the two young musicians, they had earned a sizable sum – but Tam convinced him to keep some of it for emergencies. Kastor was having difficulty sufficiently expressing his gratitude for what this small group of complete strangers had done for them. He couldn't thank Tam enough for opening his home to them, finding them ways to make the money they needed, and being so generous and understanding, and he promised that once he was home with his family again, he would find a way to help everyone here who had helped him. Gareth saw Tam glance in his direction briefly when Kastor made that promise, and he knew they were sharing the same hopeful thoughts with regards to how Kastor would choose to keep that promise. It was in that same hopeful frame of mind that Gareth promised the next morning that he would see Tam again: he would find a way to return to Devrost and help Tam in his mission to free child slaves, no matter what happened once he got Kastor and Shanna home.

It was hard to leave their new friends the next day, but both Gareth and Kastor were glad to be on their way again, and Kastor cheered Shanna up by promising that they would come back and visit their new friends just as soon as they found their way home. Gareth, despite his eagerness, was a little nervous to be stepping outside again dressed in his new clothes. He knew the fear of being arrested if anyone found out he was a slave under these fine trappings would hang over his head until they left civilization completely, but as they left the back alleys and headed down the High Street and out of town, no one gave him a second glance, which increased his confidence immensely. They were just three young travelers, he reminded himself, and if he simply projected the same air of confidence and purposefulness that Kastor did, no one should have any reason to think that he was anything besides what he appeared to be.

It helped that he had no difficulty shedding the subservient attitude that had been forced upon him when he had become a slave. It felt good to be walking alongside Kastor and Shanna as their equals, calling them by their names, and looking them and others in the eye, and it made him laugh inside to realize that the ease with which he adopted the attitude of a free man annoyed Kastor to no end. But he could tell that it worried Kastor too, so he still did what he could to serve his young master and mistress. He set up their camp at night and packed everything away in the morning, he cooked the meals and washed the dishes, he kept watch most nights and carried most of their supplies during the day, and he kept familiar conversation with his companions to a minimum and rarely spoke without being spoken to first. It was an acceptable middle ground: he allayed Kastor's fears about giving him too much freedom, while still being able to enjoy the feeling of being treated like a normal person again.

The road to Westerbrook was well-traveled and patrolled by soldiers and local law enforcement to reduce the risk of bandit attacks, which allowed all three children to relax and enjoy themselves on this week-long leg of their journey. Gareth was glad for the respite, because he knew they would have to go back to being alert and cautious once they left the road and struck out north into unknown territory. The trip between Westerbrook and the forest was going to be the most dangerous part of their entire journey, but he refrained from mentioning that to Kastor or Shanna while they were still traveling along the road. There would be time enough for worry, and there was not nearly enough for relaxation, so there was no need to spoil the latter by introducing the former prematurely.

In Westerbrook, they spent the last of their money to stock up on more food and to spend the night in the local inn, telling a few curious locals that they were two siblings and a friend who had been to the city to visit family friends for the summer and were catching the train west in the morning to return to their families in Pan'sho'Ke. This story seemed to be acceptable to the unusually nosy locals, but it didn't really matter if it was believable or not, because by the time the town rose with the sun the next morning, the three children were gone. They had silently left the inn just before dawn so that no one would see them as they struck out north through the fallow fields outside of town towards the long dark smudge on the horizon that Gareth knew was the forest – their destination and his former home.

“Once we leave these fields, we're going to have to cross the grasslands,” he told them the next night as they camped behind a tall hedge. “That is going to be the most dangerous part of this entire trip. It's not that far – I planned the route so that we would cross at the narrowest spot – but there are dangerous animals and nomad slavers living in the grasslands, and we're going to be completely exposed out there. If there was any other way, I'd take it in a heartbeat, but there isn't, so we're just going to have to be prepared.”

Kastor was looking over the maps now while Gareth used the pocketknife to strip the bark off of some green boughs he had cut from a nearby sapling. He and Kastor had spent the last hour arguing, but he had finally convinced Kastor to let him construct a bow and arrows. It wouldn't be as nice or as strong as his first bow and arrows – the ones he had made with his father when he was seven years old – but it would be serviceable, and it would be a great comfort to him to be traveling with some protection. As he worked, he visualized his old bow in all its details, as well as the step-by-step process his father had walked him through over and over again until he was able to do it all perfectly. He could almost hear his father's voice and feel those strong hands guiding his as he worked with the wood, and it made his heart ache. He sat with his back to the dark outline of the forest, looming like a far-off mountain range, and did his best to push those painful memories of home away. He knew that they would grow sharper and harder to ignore as he got closer, and that as soon as he finally set foot in it again, the temptation to find his home would become almost impossible to fight. Kastor was right to still worry... not that Gareth would ever tell him so.

“It can't be that dangerous, can it?” Kastor asked as he frowned at the maps. “The train we were going to take west runs right through the grassland, and they've never had any problems with the nomads.”

“That's because Eshara has a treaty with them. They buy all the slaves the nomads capture, no questions asked, as long as the nomads leave certain cross-continental transportation routes, like the railroad, alone.”

Now Kastor was frowning at him. “How do you know all that?”

Gareth dropped his eyes back to his work so Kastor wouldn't see his smirk. “You should pay more attention in civics class, sir,” he said, which made Shanna laugh out loud as Kastor's face turned red.

“You weren't supposed to be learning anything, you know,” he said as the fire receded from his face.

“Yes, sir, I know, but I had ears and couldn't help it,” Gareth replied, not even trying to hide the smile in his voice, though he was a bit surprised at the fact that he suddenly didn't seem to care if Kastor knew that he had actually been listening during Kastor's lessons for the last five years.

“I'm guessing that's how you know how to read these maps too?” Kastor asked, not unkindly.

“Yes, sir.”

“Well, then I trust your judgment, Gareth, and I'm glad you were listening to that boring old windbag. He always put me to sleep.”

“Yes, sir, I remember,” Gareth said, but he wasn't laughing now, and the silence fell heavy over the little campsite. Kastor was mortified when he realized what he'd said, and he only stayed near the fire for a few more awkward moments before excusing himself and retreating into the tent. Shanna followed him a few minutes later, looking worried.

Gareth sighed and rubbed his temples once they were both gone. He knew Kastor hadn't meant anything by the comment, but that was the problem with their current forced familiarity: so much of Gareth's life before this was defined by Kastor's abuse of him that even casual, friendly banter usually ended up reopening old wounds and leaving awkward silences in its wake. Sometimes, he just wanted to call Kastor out on it, get all the awkwardness out in the open and just talk about it... but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was going to go back to being Kastor's slave in every sense of the word eventually – he had to keep that possibility in mind, no matter his hopes – and this short taste of freedom and equality with his master would be more easily forgotten if he just let these awkward moments go. The only thing he really hated about it was the fact that it made him want to return to his subordinate status as a slave sooner rather than later, before he ended up saying or doing something irreparable. This status of limbo he was in right now was frustrating him to no end.

To work out his current frustrations, Gareth finished making and hardening a dozen or so arrows in the fire, then strung the bow and practiced firing it until he got a feel for its amateur construction. Then, after hunting down all his arrows, he curled up under a blanket in front of the fire and fell into a shallow sleep. In this way, he was able to get rest while keeping watch, and he was up with the sunrise and cooking breakfast over the fire by the time Kastor and Shanna woke up.

He was glad he had practiced with the bow the night before, because the first thing Kastor said when he saw that it was finished was, “That doesn't look like it could kill anything. Are you sure you even know how to use it?”

Gareth got supreme pleasure out of simply pulling out the bow, nocking an arrow to it, and casually shooting it straight into the trunk of a nearby tree, then quickly pulling out a second arrow and using it to kill a rabbit that his first arrow had startled. “I thought you trusted my judgment, sir,” he said coolly to Kastor before going to retrieve his two arrows and the rabbit. Kastor and Shanna were both understandably impressed; as they ate their breakfast, they watched with wide eyes as he skinned the rabbit and roasted it over the fire, then packed the meat away for dinner that night. After the fire had been put out and buried and the camp packed away, Gareth shouldered his bag and his new quiver of arrows, then took his bow in one hand and loosely nocked an arrow to it. He carried it dangling by his side but ready at a moment's notice every day from that day forward, using it on occasion to kill rabbits and pheasant that popped up unawares as they crossed the low hills that separated Eshara's westernmost farmlands from the central plain. Gareth cooked everything he shot, but he saved the meat and made dinner every night from the last of the food they had bought in Westerbrook instead.

“When we reach the grassland, we won't be able to have a fire,” he explained when Shanna asked him why they weren't eating any of the meat he was killing and cooking, “so we'll need to save anything that doesn't need to be cooked or has already been cooked.” He was prepared to face the grassland this time: he would not be frightened or overawed, he would not make any foolish mistakes, and he would protect Kastor and Shanna with his life if necessary.

He said as much to Kastor the night before they were to enter the grasslands, after Shanna was sound asleep in her bed. “If anything happens to me, sir, just keep heading north as fast as you can. Get to the forest as quickly and safely as you can; you'll be safe there there, no matter what.”

“But why are you telling me this? We can't survive in there without you, so what will our being safe there matter?”

Gareth was trying to reassure Kastor, not frighten him, so he did his best to explain. “You and Shanna already know how to survive in the forest – how to find food and water, how to follow a trail, how to make a fire. The size of the forest may be intimidating, and it may be difficult to find your way through the trees, but if you do your best to be conspicuous, some of my people may find you eventually and help you on your way. My people don't keep or take slaves, so you don't have anything to fear from them, and they will be more than happy to help you find your way west.”

Kastor nodded solemnly, but then said, “Try not to let anything happen to yourself, okay, Gareth? I know you're trying to plan for every contingency, but we're not going to make it without you. I... I don't want to make it without you.” He stammered awkwardly as he said this and wouldn't look at Gareth.

Gareth was touched by his young master's sentiment, but he tried not to let it show. “You'll get by somehow, sir, and I don't intend on letting anything happen to me. I just want to make sure that you and Shanna know how to stay safe in case of unforeseen trouble. Your safety is the most important thing, after all, not mine.”

“Thanks, Gareth,” Kastor said sincerely. “I don't know what we'd do without you.” Then, unexpectedly, he pulled a blanket around his shoulders and said, “You need a good night's sleep if you're going to be alert tomorrow. I'll keep watch tonight.” His tone was almost an order – the first he'd given Gareth in a long time – and he'd turned his back and curled up by the fire before Gareth could protest, so Gareth decided not to bother. He retreated inside the tent and curled up in Kastor's thick pile of blankets, grateful for the opportunity to get a warm, comfortable, and complete night's sleep.

The next morning, they crested the last low hill and saw exactly what they were facing. An icy tendril of fear touched Gareth's heart as he looked down at the flat brown plain below them, but he quickly pushed it away. He was not eight years old any more, and crossing that plain now meant traveling willingly to safety, not being stolen away to unknown danger. To be reminded of that, all he needed to do was look at the horizon, where the towering trees of his forest home could now be seen as clear as day. Kastor and Shanna were staring at them too, completely awestruck by their size, as Gareth had known they would be.

“How did they get so big?” Shanna asked.

“By growing a little every year, miss,” Gareth explained. “Unlike people, trees never stop growing, and that forest is thousands of years old, maybe even older.”

“Where are all the small trees, then?” Kastor asked.

“Well, there used to be a lot of them – the forest grew by advancing its borders south into the grassland, since there is no room for new trees to grow large in its interior unless one of the old trees dies - but slaves are not the only thing the nomads take from our borders. They've always cut the saplings down for their own uses, but they could never take too many on their own until they made contact with Eshara a hundred years ago or so. Their first trade deal with Eshara was for the trees – they began allowing loggers to cross their lands in order to take all the trees they could, for a cut of the profits. Since the saplings take many years to grow too large to be used as lumber, it didn't take long before they had taken all the trees that weren't as large as those you see now, and they continue to do so every decade or so once the new saplings that try to grow are large enough to be useful. It's halted the forest's southward advance completely, and that's why the only trees you see are large ones.”

“Now I know I never heard anything about that from any of my tutors,” Kastor said after a moment. “Where did you get all that from, anyway?”

“I learned it in school, sir,” Gareth said casually, then before Kastor could do anything but stare at him in shock, he said, “We should go. We're too exposed up here.” As he headed down the hill towards the grassland with Kastor and Shanna following him closely, he repeated the cautions he had been telling them about for the last few days. “Remember, once we're down there, we need to keep below the top of the grass and stay as quiet as possible. Move slowly, and keep your eyes and ears open for any movement or sound not made by us.” He saw Shanna looking up at him with large, frightened eyes, so he took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. “Don't worry, miss. I'm just saying all of this so that we can all stay safe. If anything goes wrong, I won't let anything happen to you or Kastor, I promise.”

In less than an hour, they were down in the grass, which was fortunately over four feet tall this late in the year but had not yet acquired the dry brittleness that came as winter approached. Shanna was completely hidden by the grass, Gareth and Kastor only had to crouch to hide in it, and they made barely any noise as long as they moved slowly and chose their path carefully. In order to keep them on course, though, Gareth had to frequently look above the grass, which slowed their progress. It would take them a few days to cross at the speed he set, but by the end of the first day, they hadn't spotted anything in the grass but a snake, a few rabbits an other rodents, and a hawk circling overhead, and Gareth began to hope that this would be easier than he had expected.

That night, they camped in a low hollow in the grass. After eating a small dinner of cold rabbit meat and dried fruit, Kastor and Gareth lay down with Shanna curled up between them. They kept their bags nearby, Gareth kept a grip on his bow, and they both agreed to take turns keeping watch so they would both get at least some rest that night. Gareth had been so tense and preoccupied with their safety all day that he had completely forgotten about that morning's conversation. Unfortunately, Kastor hadn't. “You said this morning that you learned all that stuff about the forest in school,” Kastor whispered to him just as he was drifting off to sleep. “What were you talking about? What school?”

Gareth sighed and rolled over to look his young master in the face. He shouldn't have said anything. Explaining was just going to complicate things, but he had no choice. If he didn't answer, Kastor would order him to, and he wasn't just going to forget what he'd heard Gareth say either. “Sir, I know your tutors told you that my people are wild, ignorant savages, but that's not true. Before I was stolen from my home by the grassland nomads and sold as a slave, I lived in a village located deep in that forest over there. I lived in a house with my family, and I went to school with my friends, where I learned how to read and write and where I studied science and history and mathematics and almost all of the other subjects that your tutors taught you. That was where I learned about the forest, sir.”

“So... all that time you were sitting in on my lessons... you knew how to read and write and all that other stuff too?” Kastor sounded as if his entire world had been turned on end.

“Yes, sir, I did,” Gareth said bluntly.

“I... I'm sorry for underestimating you, Gareth. Nothing... nothing's going to be the same once we get home, is it?”

“I don't know, sir,” Gareth said, too tired to get into a discussion about the future right now. “You should get some sleep, sir. I'll wake you in a few hours to keep watch.”

Fortunately, Kastor didn't say anything else about Gareth knowing how to read and write that night or at all during the next day, and by the next night he seemed to have forgotten all about their conversation, to Gareth's relief. And the next two days passed as quietly as the first, though the stress was wearing on everyone's nerves, especially Gareth's. He couldn't help but think that everything was too quiet, was going too well, and he was expecting disaster to strike at any moment. The night before they were to leave the grasslands for good, he couldn't sleep a wink, so he offered to stay up and keep watch all night. Kastor didn't protest; he was as run-down as Gareth, and was on his last nerve too. He fell asleep almost immediately, and Gareth lay back in his blankets and looked up at the stars, wondering what tomorrow would bring. He didn't sleep a wink; he didn't even doze. Instead, he counted the stars and did his best to fight off the sparks of memory that threatened to invade his mind whenever it wandered.

By morning, he was bleary-eyed and exhausted and more than ready to get out of this infernal flat land and into the safety of the trees again. They were so close that he could smell the cool green dampness of the forest, calling him home. They had gotten this far without any trouble, he found himself thinking as he planned their final route to the treeline. If they headed straight north, without all the cautious zigzagging they had been doing, they would reach it in only a few hours. Kastor didn't argue against his decision – even after a full night's sleep, he looked as tired as Gareth felt, and was obviously just as desperate to get to safety – so Gareth set out with confidence in his choice. He was too close to fail now.

They had only covered about half the distance to the forest when the band of slavers came out of nowhere. Gareth, who was walking behind the others, saw them first, but that moment's notice wasn't enough to avoid the crossbow bolt that buried itself in his shoulder. “Run! To the woods! Don't look back!” he shouted. Kastor didn't hesitate; he grabbed Shanna's hand and broke into a run, heading straight for the trees. Gareth drew his bow, turned, and returned fire in order to give them a head start, but with the bolt in his shoulder, he could barely draw the string and all his shots went wild. After three painful failed shots, he gave up and turned to run full out. The second bolt caught him in the back. The pain was blinding, but fear and adrenaline pushed him forward. Kastor and Shanna were almost to the trees. Gareth put on a final burst of speed, the blood pounding in his ears. He saw them reach the trees, and safety. He was right behind them; he had almost caught up...

A third bolt caught him in the leg, square in the back of his left knee. He hit the ground hard, screaming involuntarily as pain consumed him. He saw Kastor turn back, saw Shanna break away from him and disappear into the trees. “Go! Run!” he shouted. He could hear the slavers coming for him, darkness was fuzzing the corners of his vision, and all that mattered was that Kastor and Shanna made it to safety. His last thought before the darkness consumed him was that he couldn't believe he had been so stupid, or so careless.