Emilia woke us all up while it was still dark. A full moon shone in the sky as we made sure the fire was all out and gathered our packs. Keegan and I huddled around Donavan, and the black night streamed by as we Traveled.

  When we stopped, we were standing in water up to our ankles. Emilia stood a short distance away on a dry patch of ground, beckoning to us. We walked towards her, pulling Donavan, who was already exhausted, along with us.

  “Where are we?” I asked, looking around, trying to see through the darkness.

  “We are in Itharan,” she answered. “We will be sticking to the swampy areas. Not many people venture into them.” She turned to Donavan. “You must be careful about where you stop,” she said. “The swamps are full of sinkholes that will suck you into them.”

  “I’ll get us out if that happens,” Keegan said. As he spoke, I felt the moisture pulling away from my soaked feet. Donavan looked at him, impressed.

  “Water as well?” he asked.

  Keegan nodded.

  “You had better just swap with yourself for now,” Emilia said. “I want Keegan to be able to get you out of here if he needs to.”

  “No, wait,” Donavan said. “I will be able to do one more if I can rest for a moment.”

  Emilia hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “I am going to make sure there is no one around,” she said, disappearing from sight.

  The rest of us sat on the ground. I rested my chin on my knees, still tired from the day before. I could feel how exhausted Donavan was, and I was not looking forward to having to swap feelings with him. I wasn’t sure I would be able to muster much energy to give him.

  I looked around in the darkness as we sat in silence. The patch of dry ground we were on rose out of inky black water. Trees grew all around us, their massive trunks covered in dark moss. Dark tendrils hung from a canopy of twisted limbs above us. Slowly the sounds of croaking frogs and an occasional splash filled the air.

  Donavan rose slowly to his feet. “I am ready,” he said.

  Keegan and I stood up. Donavan grasped our hands once again, and once more the night was flying past us. We were still in a boggy area when we stopped, but this time, we were on dry ground.

  “Good,” said Emilia, appearing a moment after we stopped. “Maria, change with him as quickly as possible. There is a Changeling nearby.”

  Fear surged through me, and with it a sudden rush of energy. I sent all the energy I had to Donavan, sighing as his exhaustion filled me. I started to sit down, but before I could, Donavan had seized both Keegan and me, and we were rushing forward.

  As soon as we stopped, I heard voices through the fog that surrounded us.

  “Relative of mine heard talk there might be Rebels in these parts. I bin hunting ‘em for a while now. Hear there’s big rewards for turning ‘em in. What’re you doing out here, Robert?” a low, husky voice said.

  “Well, now, would you believe that I just happen to be one of them Rebels you’re hunting,” a second voice replied. There was a thud and a groan. I grasped Keegan’s arm. He grasped Donavan by the shoulder, ready to whirl both of us out of the dream.

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  “Wait,” Emilia hissed, making me jump. I could hear one of the men walking towards us, making very little noise. All of us stared towards the sound. A man came into view, and I gripped Keegan more tightly.

  “Robert,” Emilia said, walking forward. The man started at the sound, then continued towards us. He was of middling height and age. He looked bulky, but he moved with grace through the trees. As he neared us, I saw that his face was marked by a deep scar running from his hairline over his right eye down into his dark red beard.

  “Imager, welcome. We’ve been waiting for you.” His deep voice growled as he spoke in an accent that wasn’t quite Scottish, but close.

  As he drew near, he touched fingertips to his forehead in respect. “This the Trader?” he asked, turning to me. Emilia nodded, and he again touched his fingers to his forehead.

  I was surprised at the gesture, unsure of how to respond. I looked towards Emilia and thought I saw her shaking her head at Robert ever so slightly, a look of warning in her eyes. I was puzzled, but too exhausted to think much about it.

  “Come,” said Robert, setting off through the swamp.

  I groaned at the thought of having to walk any distance at all, and Donavan could barely stand.

  Robert turned to Emilia. “We’ve got to go,” he said, urgently. “There’s a huge reward for both Rebels and Dreamers, and there’s a whole lotta people out searching lately, not to mention the Changelings.”

  Emilia said to me, “Spread the energy around. Use both Keegan and Robert.”

  I glanced at Robert. He looked wary, but said nothing as I reached out and sensed his emotions. Mostly he felt an urgency to go. I could feel other emotions there, but did not have the desire to try to figure them out. Keegan’s familiar energy flared out strongly as soon as I opened myself up in his direction.

  I pulled from both of them at the same time, just enough so that when I gave Donavan energy and left myself some, we all had the same amount.

  As soon as I was done, Robert set off through the fog again. I knew I had given him a substantial amount of exhaustion, but he showed no sign of it as he led the way.

  Soon there were more and more trees, and the ground was not soggy any longer. The sun was coming up and as the fog began to clear away, it got easier and easier to see.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “To Drevalecia,” Robert replied, offering no further information. I looked questioningly at Keegan, but he shrugged. He did not know where we were going either.

  “It is a Rebel camp,” Donavan said. “In the middle of the swamps of Itharan, there is a forest. Few people know that it even exists. Towards the center of this forest is where the rebel fighters keep their camp.”

  Robert broke in, “And that’s why it’s necessary that you not know how to get there.”

  We had reached a small clearing. There were four horses waiting. Robert motioned for us to get on the horses. I walked towards mine, feeling nervous. I had only ridden a horse once before and was not sure what to do. I had just managed to get on the horse when Robert handed me a strip of cloth.

  “Tie this over your eyes,” he commanded, handing both Keegan and Donavan strips.

  “Hey,” protested Keegan. “We would never tell where your hideout is.”

  “You’re on your way to Cyrus’s camp,” he growled at Keegan. “He won’t be able to torture something outta you that you don’t know. Or have someone read your mind about it.”

  Keegan said nothing, but he tied the blindfold over his eyes. I quickly followed his lead, noticing that Donavan’s was already in place. I gripped the pommel of the saddle as the horse started forward. Without sight, it felt like the whole world was swaying underneath me. I squeezed the horse with my knees, fervently hoping that I wouldn’t fall off and make a complete fool of myself.

  We rode in silence for a long time. Even though I could see nothing, I could tell that it was getting lighter outside. The air began to get warm, and soon it was rather pleasant. I could feel a gentle breeze and hear it rustling through the leaves.

  After what felt like hours, Robert said, “You can remove your blindfolds.”

  I pulled mine slowly away from my eyes. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the light. It was not very bright because we were in a thick forest of leafy trees.

  “Welcome to Drevalecia,” Robert said.