Re: 54 - Stormbringer
"You should get aboard, Miss." the young woman says, reaching down a hand to Trista, from her own place in the wagon, "In case something happens. You don't want to be left behind."
In truth, though, the creatures hauling the caravan's vehicles do not look to be built for high-speed chases. Squat and short-legged, they are, with broad shoulders and armoured hides, marked with patterns of green and brown stripes. In the three days that Trista has travelled with this caravan, she has not seen any sign that the beasts are capable of anything faster than a casual stroll.
Above the citadel, over a half mile from the forest floor, Berd keeps watch.
Below Berd, on the parapets and battlements of the city, people gather. Some are there simply to watch, while others have gathered to pray for the safety of the incoming caravan....
Below those even, many of the citizens go about their business. Caravans arrive every day in Charyk... some suffer losses, some don't. Surely this one will be no different.
And at the centre of the Market, just a short distance from the Sanctuary Inn, where some of Berd's companions still discuss their own situation, the doors of the Cathedral stand open, as people enter, to pray for their city, for the caravan, and for themselves.
With a piercing shriek, the first of the ormvråkar launches itself from the eyrie, it's rider struggling to control the creature.