| Though Astra had no idea where she was, she was happy enough. It was
a beautifulday, she had a fine suit of armour and a sword to match, and
she had just won aswordfight. The only cloud upon the horizon was that
she would need to find somethingto eat before too much longer, and the
pine forest through which the path led did not seemto contain anything
edible.
About a quarter of a mile behind Astra, the hooded man rubbed his ring with the fore-fingerof his other hand. Astra yawned. Suddenly she felt sleepy. Perhaps it was the warmthof the day, she thought. Well, a nap wouldn't hurt. It wasn't as though she had aschedule to keep to. She found a spot where she could sit with her back resting againsta tree, and made herself comfortable. Within a few minutes she was fast asleep. The man approached and looked down at her. Yes, she was definitely the one heneeded. She might not see it that way, of course. But that did not matter, as he did notintend to give her a choice. Judging by what he had seen at the bridge, she did not seemto speak the local language, but that too could be remedied easily enough. Go Back |
