I make no eye contact with Wolf as our little party trots through the woods. I can't help but flush at the thought of me kicking him. The bar fight ended quickly after I dully made myself look like a greater fool than those poor courtiers wearing pin-stripped suits. Rosalind managed to stop the entire fiasco before things got worse. She then instructed me with the duty of bringing Wolf back to conscious. We never spoke a word to each other.

While the two of us rides in strict silence, Kane and Rosalind chatter freely as if all was well. Yet, I could tell that Kane still bears the thought of his sister. He is endlessly looking back- sometimes drifting into a brief moment of silence, accompanied by a dark look in his eyes.

"So, Drevial" Rosalind starts, finally deciding to talk to me," Where are we headed?"

"Away from the woods." I replied,"To the river."

Wolf rears his horse back, brows furrowing.

"The River of Choice...." his voice drags off.

"Yes." I say, scrutinizing the blank look etched on his face.

"But- people don't go there," he starts," Unless..."

A flicker of realization floods his face as if someone has thrown a brick at him. I wonder  if he should be surprised anymore considering that he must have the tendency to get into bar fights frequently hence, making sure that unlikely things will certainly be thrown your way.

I nod instead of trusting myself to speak.

"Well, there's no going back now." Kane points out the blueish outline of the river straight ahead, "We're already there."

I bring my horse to a gallop, navigating through the towering trees. Despite the iciness of Winter, the river still was in full tide, rushing with a marvelous current.

Wolf dismounts his horse and crouches near the water. He gingerly sticks a finger in it.

"Currents too strong to swim across." he informs us.

"But there must be some way of crossing it!" Kane pleads desperately.

"But there's no way we could swim across." Rosalind points out, " Even the strongest swimmer could get swept away by that current. You can't trust magical rivers meant to test mortals."

I saw the pain in Kane's eyes. I know his sister's life is on the line and he'll most likely try to swim across this death trap to save her. Why can't he understand that he can die? I remind myself to keep calm and think.

What did Angrekon say of the river? I indulge myself in my memory. Choice. What sort of choice? Sacrifice? Dealing with beings? Bartering for something? I concentrate on the memory frozen in my brain.

                                                          ***

"The river of choice must be terrible." Elnodye said, stretching her legs out on the floor.

"Is it because your terrible at decisions?" I playfully asked her.

She promptly threw a pillow at me.

"Actually," Angrekon replied, "It's because the river is very receptive towards others choices. The choice to cross and the choice to give up."

                                            ***

"We can't give up." I immediately blurt out, "This is all a test!"

I gesture wildly at the river while the rest look at me as if some lunatic.

"It's because of the- thing!" I try to explain.

"The 'thing'?" Rosalind questions.

A new found fury builds up inside me mostly due to my incapability to explain and Rosalind's incapability to understand. Finally, after what feels like a month of explaining, Kane's eyes light up.

"You mean this is a test like back at the pool?" he questions.

"YES!"

"So, we can't give up?" Kane continues.

"YES!"

"Because the River is guarded by a receptive spirit most likely to belong to an evil source." Wolf finishes.

"YES!" I exclaim for the third time before heaving an exasperated sigh of relief.

"So what does that mean?" Rosalind asks dumbly.

"We need a boat." Wolf states, "-or more likely- build one."

I smile maniacally with the thought that at least someone gets the gist of what must be done.

"Oh thank the Lord you understand! I'm so happy that I could kiss you." I blurt out again before immediately regretting it.

Apart from Kane's stunned silence and Rosalind's cocky smile, Wolf manages a small smile.

"First you kick me and now you want to kiss me?" he asks.

I blush wanting to bash myself on a rock.

"I think you both could get to that later." Rosalind says, her voice dripping with worry and fear. "We have company."

My eyes widen in fear as a pack of forsaken snarl as they make our way towards us. This is going to get messy.