Part 22

David convulsed with such force that he nearly propelled himself off of the stone.

Wonder... terror... curiosity... confusion... everything that had been missing from the last half hour flooded into him in a burst of swirling emotion. He wanted to scream, shout for help, and run away all at once. There was no weakness or paralysis preventing him from doing any of those things, but his mind was too busy reeling to settle on a single course of action.

He remembered everything. Hiding on the far side Hill, the stranger using magic to conceal them, and then the stranger doing something to him... something he didn't understand, or even KNOW was being done until just now. He remembered slipping away from the searchers and weaving across their paths as they skirted the edge of town. He remembered every step they took, every searching light they encountered in the distance, every second that they stopped and waited for people to merely walk past them without seeing.

He remembered not caring about any of it at the time. He remembered NOTICING that he didn't care... noticing that he didn't feel anything at all... and not caring about that, either.

And he remembered following the stranger like a bored, friendly puppy with nothing better to do than wander after him.

David's mouth hung open. He blinked rapidly at the stranger, who watched him with moderate interest.

"I-" David croaked. His mouth was dry. He closed it, then opened it again: "What-"

"Forgive the intrusion," said the stranger. "I..." He searched for the words. "...repressed your natural impulsiveness. Temporarily. I feared we could not have avoided them otherwise. You are well now."

The stranger wasn't asking; he was merely stating a fact. David felt like himself again.

"You could scream. Or run. It would do you no good. I would merely subdue you again and blind their eyes to us when they came. You know that I can do these things. But if what I suspect is true, there are other reasons you may not want to cry out. You saw how many wandered the night, looking for you? They don't search for you for YOUR sake, boy. Only for theirs. Do you know this, boy? Do you know what goes on in this town?"

David heard the strangers words, but his response was a stare of both fear and awe. He leaned away from the man, but did get up. Didn't run. Didn't call out.

"Who are you?" he said, finally.

"My name is Gravious Thule, boy. I am a Pilgrim of the Rune.