As Malakai followed farther behind Grunde toward the direction of the Murkroot Hollow, his mind had long since begun spinning.
There were a lot of thoughts swirling in his head. Earlier today, Malakai had seen Grunde lead them through a secret passage and then hold back against the Gor'Mekhai. Numerous ssumptions had begun to form.
'He's working for the Gor'Mekhai.' That was what he believed was most likely, given everything.
The other possibility was that Grunde was a spy for someone inside the Murkroot Hollow, but Malakai found that less likely.
'I'm not so sure of the first one either.' His impression of Grunde was that he was a simple man, both in mind and personality.
Not the type of mastermind spy that could deceive someone like Rhett, a Bloom, and someone as perceptive as Laila for years. Malakai just couldn't imagine this big hunk of a man as a spy, no matter how hard he tried.
Regardless, seeing was believing, and tonight, he had every intention of seeing exactly what the hell his squadmate was hiding.
Their quick pace eventually brought them to the border wall between Kaer Thorn and the Murkroot Hollow. But Malakai had noticed something odd even before they reached it.
'We're away from any gates.'
The border wall stretched for hundreds of kilometers, splitting Kaer Thorn from Murkroot in one large, imposing structure that extended out from the city at the heart of the stronghold.
There were multiple gates connecting the two districts for easier access, but every single one of them was heavily guarded. Entry into either district required revealing one's identity.
Malakai assumed this was exactly what Grunde had been avoiding by taking this route, a route Malakai could have never imagined existed.
'This is close to the outer wall.'
Grunde had brought them dangerously close to the outskirts, but away from the watchful eyes of the guards.
From a far distance, Malakai watched as the massive man suddenly vanished in front of a tree not far from the border wall.
His gaze narrowed. He kept his cool and followed Nyx's directions, his pace quick.
He arrived at the spot in a few moments and stopped in front of the tree Grunde had stood by earlier.
There was a hint of confusion in his eyes as he swept his gaze around, searching for any trace of where the big man had disappeared to.
'Did he find out and decide to hide?' Malakai glanced around again and shook his head. Even if Grunde had tried to hide, these trees, large as they were, couldn't cover that broad frame.
Just as he began to wonder where the man had gone, he felt his fingers subtly nudge him toward the tree in front of him.
'Nyx?' He sent a glance toward the distance, where he could feel her piercing gaze. Then he turned toward where her finger pointed, directly at the tree.
If Nyx was leading him there, then there was something he was missing.
Malakai stepped closer to the tree and inspected it carefully.
It was thick, its roots jutting out in every direction like the others in the area. His gaze settled on the exact spot Nyx had indicated. He couldn't see anything wrong with it.
Malakai decided to rely on his other senses. He focused on the vita in the air and extended his perception toward the spot. Almost instantly, his eyes sharpened.
He bent down and knocked gently on one of the roots. A hollow sound echoed back.
'Another secret passageway?' Malakai was almost certain.
He wondered how he was supposed to open it when he pushed gently, and with a soft click, the hatch jutted out enough for him to pull it open.
'Great.' Malakai nearly sighed as he saw the dark pit below. The memory of another pit flashed through his mind, one that would never leave him.
'I have to follow him.' He told himself, sending a cautious glance around. Feeling Nyx's reassuring gaze, he climbed into the pit.
It was utterly dark, darker even than the night above. But that didn't last long. As Malakai ventured deeper, softly glowing roots began to illuminate the space.
Once he could see clearly, he picked up his pace. It didn't take long before he reached the end of the path, where thick roots coiled all around, but one had clearly been carved into.
He paused, making sure Grunde wasn't nearby by reading the vita in the surroundings. Then he reached upward and pushed the hatch open, stepping outside.
Malakai glanced behind him. 'I'm inside Murkroot Hollow.'
He had been right in his assumption. It was a secret passage, one that led directly into Murkroot Hollow.
'Why is he doing this?' Malakai couldn't help but wonder. 'And just how many of these passages does he know about?'
Shaking off the questions, Malakai cleared his mind as his finger pointed him in a direction. He didn't hesitate, his figure blurred as he sprinted through the forest.
Through the cover of the night, Malakai followed Grunde past the walled city, through a path that Malakai knew all too well.
'He's going to that forest.'
Malakai had just ruled out the possibility of Grunde being a spy for someone high up in the Murkroot Hollow.
'Whatever he's hiding has to do with this forest.'
In particular, Malakai suspected, the Gor'Mekhai.
Malakai became even more certain of his assumption when they reached the entrance to the ominous forest, where they had met the adjudicators earlier.
The sight of the orange glowing veins across the towering trees, drenched in dense fog, chilled Malakai's heart. But he shoved it down.
'Fear is a limitation,' he told himself, calmness settling in.
He followed Grunde toward the secret passage they had used earlier in the day, and after a few moments, Malakai found himself inside the ominous forest once more.
'There's no fog here.'
Now that there was no urgency, Malakai had the time to properly observe his surroundings. Fog drenched the entrance of the forest, but here, nothing.