Back at the campsite. The fire had burned down to banked coals. Somewhere nearby a raven called. Aubrey shifted in her sleep. Sean and Hope woke up and lifted their heads. They got up from Rian’s bed and nosed their way around the divider and into Aubrey’s section of the tent. Hope settled in with Aubrey curling up against her stomach. Sean sniffed around and heard the raven call again it was closer. He whuffled, senses alert. He sat at the portion of the tent near her head.
[Master]
…Yes obedient one…
[I have listened to some of the others of my lesser kin as well as some of the amber skinned people around. There are stories.]
…what stories?…
[Raven is honored in some places, feared in others]
…go on…
[They say that he is some great spirit, he stole fire or the sun]
…(echoed chuckle)… what else?…
[The red haired one is gone, but the young woman is here. She is asleep. She is one of those amber skinned people that are from this land. Did you want me to investigate more closely?]
…if you can do it stealthily…
[I don’t know if she is the one you are looking for.]
…she is not, but gather any information you can…
The tengu flew down from the pine near the campsite and hopped around. It’s dark eyes scouted around the area. He pecked around the trash and found some tasty bits. It stalked over to where some of the baggage was. It opened one of the zippers and picked out some things.
[Master]
…yes…
[I am not finding special shiny things] It looked up when the wind changed. [I am sensing Divine power nearby, somewhere.]
…stay aware…keep your distance…
The tengu made his way towards the tent, stopping to peck at an overturned metal cup. It made its way into the open tent. It spied a notebook on the cot. With a flutter of wings it hopped up onto the bed. With a flick of its beak, the book fell open. The pages were filled with small concise script. The tengu’s eyes took in what was written.
[Master]
…yes…
[I have found some information. The red-haired one is keeping a journal.]
…gather what you can and report any pertinent information to me…
[Yes, Master]
Shadows dimmed the interior of the tent. Sean looked around, his nose working. Aubrey moved in her sleep and let out a soft sigh. Sean alerted, sensing something. Hope spied a shadow moving and whined, huddling closer to Aubrey. Sean paced around, nose low to the ground. He circled the area, a growl rose in his throat. He caught a whiff of a strange scent. He followed it and nosed his way underneath the nylon divider. The scent of his master surrounded him, but there was something happening on the bed. His lips curled pulled away from his sharp teeth as he spotted what was on his master’s bed.
The tengu was reading through the journal. His rapacity drove it to take in as much information that it could. This red-haired man was taking a journey. It wasn’t within the tengu’s purview to interpret what it was gathering, just to gather all information. It flipped another page. It picked its head up and looked around. It thought that it heard something. Listening for a moment there were no other sounds other than the breathing of the hero and noises from the forest. The tengu continued reading.
Sean crouched down and stayed silent. There was a raven on his master’s bed. It smelled of dark, corrupted places. The urge to protect Aubrey and any possession that was his master’s rose. He focused on his target and waited for it to calm down once again. He could not control a deep growl of anger mixed with the joy of the hunt.
The tengu’s head popped up. It cocked its head to one side. Sean took the opportunity and leaped up at the bird. The tengu let out a startled squawk and took flight. Sean’s teeth clamped down on one wing. The tengu cried and set its talons to the hound’s muzzle. Sean snapped his head to the side, trying to bring his prey down. It managed to pluck a few pinions from the bird. The tengu flapped into the air. It wheeled and lashed out with its beak. Sean feinted and snapped again, the ebony plumes fell to the floor. The tengu realized that discretion was the better part of valor and flew out the tent opening and into the night. Sean snapped at the few stray small feathers that fell around him and then laid down on his master’s bed alert in case there were any more intruders. The darkest of shadows shrank back to their normal dimensions.
…echoed chuckle…
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