At first she cut straight across the rough heather and their legs were sorely torn by the tough little branches. At one time she even disappeared to her shoulders in a sudden hole, the heather having hidden it from her sight, but Karne, after laughing at her discomfiture, soon had her out and on her way again. After that experience she went slower and picked her way more carefully, but she showed no sign of being uncertain of the direction to take.
She found a track and followed its meanderings for a long way. In the distance, further to the north, a lake was gleaming like a jewelled clasp in the folds of a soft blue cloak.
About noon they found Maal sitting on a granite boulder gazing into the distance. He turned to them as they arrived but showed no surprise that they should be there.
