Nobody argued with James on that fact. They quieted down and focused on urging the horses to a steady gallop so they could get further along the road. After all, none of them wanted to have to fight the noir beasts. and they weren’t exactly sure that they would be able to defeat these terrible creatures if they did. Besides, it was too early on their journey to have to fight those things.

For a long time, the party was quiet and the only sound for those of the wind drifted across the grassy field and the pounding of the hooves of the horses they galloped down the road. As the final stretch of daylight begin to fade, the sound of whispers began to creep up to their ears.

“Did you say something?” Cerys ask asked over her brother.

“No,” peter replied, “I thought that was you.”

James turn around looked at all of them, his face stern and serious. “That is the whispering that comes before the monsters start to pour out of the shadows. We have to hurry! It will not be much longer now.” That said, James whipped reigns and called out to his horse, which rushed even faster down the lane. The other followed suit, snapping the reigns to urge the horses to run as fast as they possibly could. The animals seemed to understand what was going on, as well. No doubt they had witnessed what happens when they are outside at night and there is no fence to protect them.

Once the edge of the village, with the same tall wooden walls that all the other villages had, came into sight, James grabbed a horn from the pack at his side and as blew into it has hard as he was table. On the ramparts up ahead, the guards became excited, looked out what was going on, then began shouting at one another.