He pushed his awareness farther out. A group of ten intruders waited to the east. This group was well past the blockade and probably one of Ryne’s.

Kerrick considered. He needed to create an exit for the others. But how? Yanking his hands from the dirt, he jogged east.

It didn’t take him long to find the squad. He crept closer. The moonlight shone bright enough to observe them. They wore the green fatigues that marked them as part of Estrid’s holy army. Nice to see not all of them had taken off once Estrid had been captured. Good news, except he didn’t recognize any of them. Quiet and watchful with weapons in hand, they appeared to be on alert.

Pulling magic, Kerrick transformed to normal. Not wishing to scare them, he backed up a few yards before crunching through the fallen leaves. He spread his hands wide so they didn’t skewer him on sight.

With plenty of warning, the squad hid and then surrounded him as soon as he walked into their “trap.” One man hung back. Kerrick spotted the sergeant strips on the man’s sleeves.

“I’m on your side,” Kerrick said. “Prince Ryne sent me.” Not exactly true, but close enough. He explained about the blockade. “We need to clear a path for our soldiers.”

The eight men and two women looked to their sergeant when Kerrick finished.

“You certainly know an awful lot about the mission,” the sergeant said. “Who are you?”

“Prince Kerrick.”

“Really? We heard he died fighting the northern tribes.”

“You heard wrong. Look, Sergeant...”

“Vic.”

“We don’t have time for this.”

“I’m not risking my squad. If that blockade is there like you said, a dozen of us aren’t going to make a dent.”

“We only need to clear one section,” Kerrick said.

“And how do you propose we do that?” Vic asked. “As soon as we strike, the whole line will turn on us.”

“I’ve a plan.”

The sergeant laughed. “Good for you. Let us know how it works out.”

Expecting resistance from the man, Kerrick encouraged the vines growing on a nearby tree to snake toward Vic’s head. “There’s a section of the wall that’s not as closely connected to the others due to a dried-out creek that makes a deep dip in the terrain. My plan is to take out that section and replace Cellina’s soldiers with yours.”

“You’re mad. One shout and we’re done.”

“Then I’ll make sure they won’t make a sound.”

“You?”

“I’m a forest mage.”

“Okay, I’ll play along, Prince Kerrick. Just how—”

The vines looped around Vic’s mouth and head, making an effective gag. When the man tried to use his weapon, the vines circled his upper body, trapping his arms. Half his squad rushed to help, but they were soon entangled, as well.

Before, Kerrick would have expanded all his energy to make those vines move. One perk of being a forest mage. However, now using his magic to look normal drained him.

A sword point pricked Kerrick’s neck.

“Stop it now,” a woman ordered.

Kerrick inclined his head. “I’m simply demonstrating my plan.” The vines retreated, freeing the soldiers.

“Heck of a demonstration.” Vic rubbed his cheeks.

“Will you come?” Kerrick asked.

“Yeah, what do you need us to do?”

“I’ll trap the soldiers with the vines, but this time I’ll also cut off their air supply, knocking them out. You drag them away and then take their place.”

“Should we put on their uniforms?”

“No need. It’s dark and they’re similar enough. Plus we don’t have the time. Ready?”

They sheathed their weapons and collected their packs. Kerrick led them back to the blockade.

Once they reached the dried creek bed, Kerrick whispered, “I’m going to disappear. You’ll be able to see from here when the vines have done their job. I’ll go warn Captain Drisana and send her your way.”

Sergeant Vic nodded. Kerrick moved away and dropped his normal look. He edged closer to his targets—eight in all. Thick bushes and thorny briars grew along the creek’s raised banks, creating a barrier between those in the dip and the others.

Kerrick knelt on the ground and visualized what he needed the vines to do. Concentrating, he directed the vines to drop down and quickly ensnare the soldiers all at once. While this action didn’t require magical energy, his connection to the forest deepened and the task became a physical effort. Sweat soaked his shirt.

A few muffled grunts sounded as the vines captured the enemy, but none loud enough to raise an alarm. When the squad appeared to do their job, Kerrick staggered to his feet. He headed toward the fighting. Keeping to the edge of the forest, he crossed behind the POW camp and stopped.

The two armies fought in the training fields. They appeared to be evenly matched, but Drisana didn’t know about the soldiers waiting just to the north. Kerrick scanned the fighters until he saw the familiar blond hair. He hadn’t seen her since they trained together up in Ivdel Realm.

Kerrick gathered his magic. He pulled his dadao sword and stepped from the forest, heading straight for Drisana. Each stride drained him. Halfway there, one of Cellina’s soldiers intercepted him.

Flashing his thick-bladed sword, Kerrick growled. The young man stared at the nasty-looking weapon and backed away. Kerrick kept moving even though each step cost him. The skirmish resembled...a skirmish. The enemy lacked a certain fierceness, as if the presence of the blockade meant they didn’t have to try as hard. At least no dead soldiers fought among them.