Free Gift of Gold (The Year of Churning Bloods) by Hudson Leone Page A

to keep any fear out of my voice. I looked over and saw Preston was stopped, awkwardly fumbling with his feet. Glancing around it seemed that we were about halfway there. “Preston, grab the wall with your right hand, and then move your right foot past your left.”

              “I... I can’t!” he insisted desperately.
     
                  “You can!”
                  “I’ll be leaning too far forwards, I’ll fall!” His hands jutted violently as they fumbled around the jagged rock face behind him. As if all time had condensed to one moment; I saw the flaw in his step. I saw the way his body lurched forward, and I saw the horror slathered on his face. The heat from my head flooded out of me and into my arms as a startling primal instinct welled up into me. Yellow spots danced in my vision as my the vivid energy pulsed out of my fingertips. The rock surrounding my feet crumbled outward in a way that extended the ledge, forming a perfect semicircle around me. Somehow, someway, I had made one foot of land turn into five. Preston fell to his knees, gasping. I rushed to his side, and as I did so, the rock shifted around me with perfect coordination. I stared uncomprehendingly at this new rock I made.
     
    Another moment passed and I realized that I wasn’t creating new rock, but somehow stretching the existing surface. Preston met my gaze before slowly standing up to meet me. Through a period of five seconds he went from terror to disbelief, to anger, to joy, and then back to disbelief. I collapsed beside him and began trembling to the bone. I could feel a paralysing cold washing over me like a river, but in my chest there was a new kind of warmth. For the first time in my life, I was proud of myself. A startling second passed where I could almost imagine myself becoming a Grimlar and living in the palace above everyone else. As quickly as that terrible thought came though, it vanished.
     
                  “Preston , ” I spoke in a weak whisper. “I've done it.”
     
                    Preston nodded in agreement and forced my weak unresponsive limbs onto his shoulder where he hoisted me up. W herever we chose to move, the contortion of the rock face would follow , extending and then sliding back to its original shape . Through the corner of my vision, A pair of deep yellow eyes floated by like a smudge on perfectly transparent glass. These were eyes of the creature, I realized suddenly.
     
    “Thank you.” I wheezed in my most sincere voice. Neither Preston nor the being made any direct acknowledgement of this praise, but both seemed to brighten a little. As the land surrounding us opened up, I slowly willed the surge of energy coursing through me to die down. Dimly observing my surroundings, I noted a small stream of water which I greedily drank from at until I could hold no more . Although my bell y was still hungry, it felt good to at least have something filling it.

              “I could have just died,” Preston stated morbidly. He stroked his arms slowly, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Embarrassed, I said nothing and instead turned bright red. Preston stared at me agape as if he expected me to say something. “Jacob, given slightly different circumstances I wouldn’t be here now.”
     
                  “Well, that didn’t happen though... did it?” I concluded, slowly looking up. Preston’s soft gaze clouded with a cold haze. He considered me with somber eyes.
     
                  “You put all your faith in this,” he said, gesturing to the canyons behind us. “You risked this, without considering anything else.” Preston’s head sunk low, and he began to whisper in a barely audible tone. “I understand where you’re coming from Jacob, but you can’t rely on luck like that.”
     
                  “You think I didn’t know how you felt?” I shouted,