Superstitions

Chapter 10: The seed of doubt

The rest of the day wasn't peaceful for Sam. Far from it. Luck obviously wasn't on their side. For about an hour she just rode forward, hoping that the guards won't catch up with them. They rarely left their province's borders, and Sam knew it, so she tried to get to the closest bordering region and get help. Every once in a while she checked up on the unconscious ghost teen.

'He is so stupid,' Sam thought, shaking her head. He could just blast the gates open or phase them through the wall, or use any other ability she wasn't aware of. But instead he chose to use an artifact which could easily make him full ghost. That's why she was angry. Maybe she wouldn't have been if Danny wasn't so reckless. He may be the King of Hell, or Infinite Realms, doesn't matter how you call it, but he still wasn't immortal.

But it still didn't stop Sam from worrying about him. Especially right after he blacked out. She didn't know what to do and at first, but managed to get a hold of herself and get away from pursuers. It wasn't easy, but the colt had a very good stamina and intelligence, it almost seemed like he was leading the way, not Sam. She was scared while checking his pulse and feeling none. It was supposed to beat, even if slow, while he was in human form. The fact that he was still somehow breathing calmed her down a bit.

Of course she would be worried. She didn't want to lose her only friend. The irony can be an absolutely unexpected thing. Actually, it always is. If you told her month ago that she will care deeply for a son of the Devil, she would have laughed at how ridiculous that sounds. Sam wasn't as religious as the rest of her family, she is the kind of person who believes only in what she sees. But in this month a lot of things had changed, and she was ready to believe in everything now.

The sun had finally set behind the thick lines of trees. Unluckily, it was a cloudy night, the road was hid in shadows for most of the time, besides rare moments when the moon managed to shine through the thick black clouds. The way was straight, with only one crossroad ahead. And that was when Sam got a problem. She didn't know where to go, there wasn't any sign which could show the direction. Sam sighed.

"Where do you think we should go, huh?" She asked Bucefal. The colt let out a whine, before turning his head to the left. Sam blinked in surprise.

"You...can understand me?" Bucefal nodded.

Sam had a strange feeling that all this time it wasn't a simple horse.

"I don't know why you hadn't given us a sign before," she turned him to the left, "But I guess we don't have a choice."

They rode further and further. The moon was at its zenith, and Sam's eyes started to close. She wanted to sleep so badly, and her desire grew bigger and bigger with every yawn escaping her mouth. Maybe she could just take a nap...

Suddenly Bucefal stopped and she nearly fell off, along with Danny's unconscious body. After rubbing her eyes, she looked at her surroundings and the reason of their stop became very clear. It was a rat. A huge dog-size rat, with dirty and shaggy gray fur, beady brown eyes and skinny tail and legs. It stared at the bypassers, as if considering should it try to eat them or not. Sam instinctively put her hand on a sword, previously taken from Danny. She didn't know how to handle it properly, but it should scare that beast for a rat.

The rat backed away with a hiss. It sure was smart enough to recognize the weapon. It didn't seem so eager to attack as before, but it still gave them a look of hunger. Then, it sniffed the air and its eyes fell on the ghost teen. The animal hissed again ferociously. What was Danny telling about animals and how they react on them?

Suddenly the rat lunged at them and bit the colt on a leg. Bucefal let out a loud whine and kicked the beast with all his strength. Not many can survive a kick from a horse. Unluckily, this rat was one of them. But instead of attacking again, it ran in the woods.