Chapter 15 | Part 5

“I know where we need to go.”

Elion’s voice broke the predawn silence. Drusniel woke instantly, his mind cataloging: four hours of sleep, approximate. Location unchanged. No immediate threats detected.

“What?” Srietz was awake too, small form tensing.

“There are caves. Obsidian caves, northeast of here. Three days’ travel if we’re careful. There’s water there, shelter, defensible positions.” Elion’s eyes were strange—distant, unfocused, seeing something that wasn’t in front of him. “We should go there.”

“How do you know this?” Drusniel asked carefully.

Elion’s brow furrowed. “I… don’t know. It’s like remembering something I never learned. The caves are there. I’m certain of it.”

“Things come to you.” Drusniel repeated words Elion had said before. “Things you shouldn’t know.”

“Yes.” Elion’s voice was soft. “It’s happening more often now. Since we escaped the caravan. Since you opened my cage.” He looked at Drusniel directly. “I don’t understand it. I can’t control it. But it’s always accurate.”

Srietz made a sound—part curiosity, part suspicion. “This one knows things he should not. This one moves in ways that are wrong. This one is…” He trailed off, unable or unwilling to finish.

“Does it matter?” Drusniel asked. “If the information is accurate?”

“It matters because unexplained knowledge is dangerous.” Srietz’s voice was practical. “It matters because things in Wyrmreach do not help without reason. Something is feeding your friend information. The question is: what does it want in return?”

Drusniel had thought the same thing. Many times. But Elion had stayed with him, had protected him, had chosen to walk free together instead of alone. Whatever was feeding him information, it had kept them alive so far.

“I don’t know what it wants,” Elion admitted. “I don’t even know if it’s a ‘what’ or a ‘who.’ It just… comes. And I follow it.”

“Like a hunting creature follows instinct,” Srietz muttered. “Like Srietz followed orders for three years without understanding.” He was quiet for a moment. “Srietz will trust this knowledge. For now. But if it leads us wrong—”

“Then we adjust,” Drusniel said. “That’s all we can do.”

The thing in the cavern walls shifted, its presence receding as dawn approached outside.

Time to move.

“Northeast,” Elion said. “Three days. If I’m right.”

“You’re right.” The certainty in Drusniel’s voice surprised even himself. “You’re always right about these things.”

Elion’s smile was small and sad. “That’s what terrifies me.”

End of Chapter 15.5 —> 15.6: The Goblin Who Counts Costs: The Smoke