“No, I’m not. Why do you think I have long hair? All Mages do. It helps with our control, so we leave our hair as long as possible.”
Krys tugged thoughtfully at his short hair. “Well, I guess that will save me money at the barber’s…I’ll have to pull it back like you do, though.”
“It’s an absolute pain otherwise,” I agreed ruefully. “Now, touch that warmth in your core and try to bring it out to rest in your hand.”
For a second he wore a look of intense concentration. And then his right hand burst into flame. I expected him to instinctively jerk back—he froze instead, staring at the fire flickering harmlessly over his skin in wonder. “It’s…really nice, isn’t it?”
“Using your magic feels liberating,” I agreed in complete understanding. “Now, let’s work a bit on your control. Take the flame down to a mere candle’s size.”
This part didn’t go as smoothly. Krys accidentally extinguished it when he tried to manipulate the size of the flame. He had to restart several times before he could manage to control the size.
“Don’t get frustrated,” I commanded with a smile. “You’re actually doing fairly well. It took me six months before I could do any sort of fine control like that. Now, hold that steady.”
Krys huffed out a breath. “That’s easier than it sounds.”
“I know it.” As a temporary measure, I raised a stone wall around the stream, creating a round space of about two feet diameter.
“You did that so easily,” Krys complained. “Tell me I’ll get to your level soon?”
“In about six months,” I assured him, struggling not to laugh at his expression. “It just takes practice and experience on your part. Now, ready? Let your fire dance across the ice, but limit it to within the walled off area.”
He nodded in understanding and raised his hand, letting flame shoot out. The fire obediently stayed inside the stone circle, although it got dangerously close to leaping out a few times. It took mere minutes for the ice to melt completely—and then the water started boiling.
“Stop,” I ordered.
Krys shut it off immediately, the fire extinguishing itself like it never existed.
He really did have pretty good control, especially for a novice. I relaxed and gave him an approving nod. “Good. You have good control for your level.”
From the smile on his face, he was definitely proud of himself. “Thanks, Garth.”
I let the barrier drop and turned, calling, “Eagle! Your water is nice and hot now.”
Since he was a whole three feet away, and watching, my words were rather unnecessary. “So I see. That was pretty impressive, Krys. I’m relieved, really, that you have that sort of control.”
“So am I,” he admitted quietly. “Power like this is scary, in some ways. You can do a lot of damage without meaning to.”
I felt beyond relieved to hear that from him. Krys had struck me as a pretty level-headed man at our first meeting so I hadn’t thought him the type to run around setting cities on fire. But there was always the concern that he might be like Kartal—hungry for power and eager to show it off. A Mage with Kartal’s personality was a recipe for disaster, in my opinion.
I led the way back into the camp before Eagle could somehow cajole or guilt me into helping him wash dishes. Krys was right on my heels.
As we resumed our seats, I saw what Krys had meant about everyone watching him. They were still watching him out of the corner of their eyes, not in distrust, but wary caution. Chatta and Xiaolang were the exceptions, but with their eyes, I had expected as much. Chatta could see Krys’s control. Xiaolang knew that his heart was in the right place.
It was to everyone else that I directed my words. “He is not Remcarparoden,” I announced bluntly. “And a seal is not necessary for him. He can govern himself.”
“Well.” Aletha blew out a breath, giving me an amused look. “That certainly put us in our place.”
“Sorry, Krys,” Shield apologized with a duck of head, his black hair almost long enough to hide the contrition in his dark eyes. “We’ve got a bad history with Fire Mages.”
“I know. Garth told me the story.” Krys smiled, silently assuring them that he didn’t blame them for their reactions.
Chatta went taut hearing this, giving me a worried look. “Garth?” In her voice I could hear the silent question, Are you all right?
I nodded back in reassurance. She was alive and uninjured. I knew that. The whole experience was just a dark scar that I didn’t enjoy being reminded of, that’s all.
Xiaolang cleared his throat, getting our attention. “Now that we’re all satisfied nothing is wrong, how about we get some sleep? Garth, since you’re satisfied that there’s nothing around to detect magic, how about you put a barrier up?”
“My barrier glows green,” I reminded him.
“Good point,” he conceded. “I’d hate to have to explain that if someone stumbled across tomorrow morning. Chatta, you do the honors.”
“Right,” she agreed.
~*~
“Two of you. I won’t deal with two of you!”
“Chatta, shield!”
“Chatta?!”
NO!
I flailed awake, heart hammering, sweat on my skin, terror burning an acrid taste in the back of my mouth, breath in ragged pants
“Garth?” Xiaolang was leaning over me, hand on my shoulder. His hair stuck up in all directions, rumpled from sleep, eyes almost crossing from either the emotions he felt whirling in me or fatigue. “Garth, it was just a dream.”
Just…a dream? Yes, it had been. I slumped, nearly bowled over in relief.
I took a deep, cleansing breath of cold air. “Thanks, Xiaolang.”
In the deep twilight of the night, I could barely see his head nod. “It’s a painful memory for you. I was afraid this might happen. Hold on a moment.”
Confused, I watched as he went to where Chatta lay sleeping. “Wait,” I hissed quietly, “don’t wake her up!” I didn’t want her worrying about this in the dead of night.
Xiaolang completely ignored me. He bent and carefully lifted her in his arms, bedroll and all. I was impressed he could do that. Chatta’s a lightweight, but she was still dead weight when asleep. Xiaolang was stronger than I gave him credit for, if he could pick her up like that.
He came back to me, carefully laying her back down not three inches from where I was settled. I watched every moment carefully, trying to figure out why he was doing this.
“You’ll sleep better with her next to you,” he whispered to me in satisfaction. “Trust me. Go back to sleep.”
I settled back in my blankets, wondering if he were right. Would I really sleep better just because she was within arm’s reach of me? I closed my eyes, at least willing to test that theory.
And then I realized…I could sense her. Not just her body heat, or her presence, but the soft, constant hum of Chatta’s power. I could sense it all without even trying because she was so close.
How had Xiaolang known?
I raised my head to look at him only to find that he was fast asleep again. I’d have to ask in the morning. Dropping my head again, I tried going back to sleep.
Empaths. They could truly be scary people, sometimes. How much did Xiaolang sense from me that he never acknowledged?
Chapter Seven: Sinhelenan
“So…I think it’s time you talked to me about a few things.” Chatta had this look in her eye that indicated she was perfectly willing to tie me to the ground and force a truth potion down my throat if necessary.
I groaned quietly. I had known this was coming, ever since she woke up this morning to discover that she had somehow moved during the course of the night. I was grateful that she had at least waited until we were back on the road, traveling in the back of the group, to start this conversation. No one was likely to hear us back here.
“Which part do you want to tackle first?” I sighed.
“We’ll start at the beginning and work th
rough it,” she assured me dryly. “Why the conversation about the Jarrell Incident with Krys?”
“He’d noticed that everyone was keeping a wary eye on him. He also noticed that you were evading any direct questions about Fire Mages.”
She glanced at Krys, riding a few feet ahead of us. “He’s sharp.”
“Yes, he is,” I agreed blandly. “You might want to keep that in mind in the future.”
“Hmmm,” she gave a noncommittal noise. “All right, so you told him the story. Then why the tutoring session? To prove to everyone that he is trustworthy?”
“In part,” I admitted easily. “Also because I realized that he’ll be under those same suspicions when we reach Del’Hain from the Trasdee Evondit Orra. If he’s already got some control, they’ll have an easier time accepting him.”
“It’s a good thought. I’m not sure if EnNelle of Tain will cooperate that far, though.”
“That woman never cooperates. I’m not counting on her support anyway. It’s Doss and O’danne that’ll talk sense into the rest of them, and you know it.”
“Heh. Good point. All right, then, last question.” Her eyes became piercing. “Just why was I moved next to you?”
It was stupid, and pointless, but I tried to be concise in my answers just so she wouldn’t delve into the matter. “Bad dream. Xiaolang moved you close to me because he said I’d rest easier.”
“Uh-huh.” Chatta clearly didn’t believe that was the entire story. “Garth, you know better than that. I want the full version. Now.”
Busted buckets, I knew it wouldn’t work. “Actually…I still dream about that day.”
“You never told me that.” The words were quiet and troubled.
“What would be the point?” I responded wearily. “It would just worry you. And I know that you’re fine and that you came out of that unscathed.”
For a handful of heartbeats we fell silent, noise from our companions and the jingle of tack filling the pause.
“As much as being attacked scared me—and seeing a wall of flame heading towards you that you’re not sure you can block is pretty terrifying—I think it effected you more.”
“That’s because I faced the very real possibility that you were dead.” I don’t think she realizes just how dark my world would be without her in it.
This conversation wasn’t helping me much either. I shook my head, throwing my dark mood off. “Enough about that. Anyway, Xiaolang apparently sensed even in his sleep that I was having nightmares. He woke up, woke me up, and then moved you. I don’t know how he knew, but he was right. Having you that close kept me from having the dream again.”
“Because even subconsciously you could sense me?” she mused.
“I think that’s it,” I confirmed. “Now you know everything. Satisfied?”
“Not quite. I think I would feel better if I could smack sense into you.”
I wasn’t entirely sure that she was kidding. I leaned sideways in my saddle, edging away from her,, just in case.
Chatta regarded me through narrowed eyes for a moment. “Night, is he hiding anything else from me that I need to know about?”
“How is it that I’ve been turned into Garth’s keeper?” Night complained with an irritated toss of the head.
“Because you’re a telepath and he can’t keep secrets from you,” Chatta answered in exasperation.
“I do give him mental privacy, y’know. A person is allowed that.”
“Night, you’re evading my question. Is there something else I need to know about?”
“I don’t answer questions of that significance without peanut butter being involved,” he informed her loftily.
“Night!” I whined. “You’re making it sound like there is something else!”
“Isn’t there?” he questioned with a wicked look back at me.
I stared at him blankly. What in the wide green world was he referring to? It was obvious he had something in mind.
“…you’re so dense, Garth.” Night sighed, turning his attention back to the road. “Never mind, I’ll get to tease you about this later when you finally realize it.”
Now I was really curious…just what was he talking about?!
“What is he talking about?” Chatta demanded of me.
“I honestly have no idea,” I admitted. “But when I figure it out, I’m sure he’ll rub it in for years.”
“I certainly will,” Night assured me cheerfully.
“Which reminds me….” I bent an evil grin on my nreesce. “I’d almost forgotten to tell you this, Chatta. You won’t believe what happened while we were in Ascalon.”
Night’s head jerked around. “Garth, don’t you dare!”
Considering how many embarrassing stories he’s told about me, I didn’t even pause. “See, we were walking down the street….”
As I told the story of how Night was almost stolen, Chatta started laughing so hard she needed to cling to her saddle. The horrors of the night receded in the face of that warm laughter until it all became nothing more than a distant memory.
~*~
It was early in the morning, very early. Not even the sun was properly awake yet. Just a hint of light purple painted the sky. I lay wrapped up in my blankets, wondering what exactly had awoken me. I was warm, comfortable, and nothing around me was moving. Night wasn’t even snoring, for once.
And then I realized that a part of my mind was screaming in alarm in the back of my head.
I sat up abruptly, blankets going everywhere.
“Xiaolang!”
The Ascalon Captain jerked awake in a second, eyes a little unfocused.
“Huh? What?”
“Xiaolang, there’s a Mage near us and they’re using magic right now,” I said urgently. I was already in motion, pulling on my boots rapidly and elbowing Night in the ribs to get him moving.
Even though it was Xiaolang that I was shouting at, all of the other soldiers in the group snapped awake as well. Only Krys and Chatta kept sleeping. This didn’t surprise me—Chatta can sleep through practically everything. Apparently Krys can too. Night wasn’t much more awake than they were, although his eyes were open.
It took about two seconds for Xiaolang to really wake up enough to understand what I was saying. I knew when he did because he exploded into action, reaching for boots and sword at the same time. “Garth, how close?”
“About twenty miles, I think. I’m barely able to sense it.”
“How much magic?” Boots on, he stood and quickly belted on his sword.
“A lot. I think it’s a Mage accident.” I dove to Chatta’s side and started shaking her awake. “Chatta, wake up. Chatta!”
“Unh?” she blinked slowly, twisting her head a little toward my direction.
“Garth, forget her,” Xiaolang ordered sharply. “We don’t have time for the whole team to ride there. Shield, you’re in charge here. Get everyone up and moving and be ready to leave in ten minutes. Shad, you’re with us.” The only reasonable choice, as Shad was definitely the most awake and aware person in this moment. On top of being energetic, he was notoriously a morning person.
“Garth, no need to be stealthy.”
“Right.”
I waited until Shad was within an arm’s length of me, and then I dropped us abruptly in the earth.
“Um, shouldn’t we have waited for Night?” Shad glanced above us with a dubious smile.
“Night’s as difficult about waking up as Chatta is,” I said, more focused on the Mage. “And we can’t wait. The magic is building up to a higher level.”
That got both of their attention. “What does that mean, exactly?” Xiaolang pressed in clear worry.
“This isn’t a minor accident,” I answered grimly. “It’s going to be very obvious and probably damaging. It’s not intentional, though, I can tell you that—the power’s rhythm is all over the place, there’s no way that someone is controlling it.”
“So not another mad Mage, that’s good,” Xiaolan
g muttered. “How close?”
“We’re coming up now,” I cautioned. For a few seconds I really focused on the ground above me, not wanting to come up under someone’s feet. When I was sure there was a clear area above us, I brought us up to the surface.
And instantly got knocked off my feet by a large wave of water.
I went down, water closing in over my head. Instinctively flailing, I quickly realized that the water wasn’t deep—I could touch earth with one hand, while the other had broken the water’s surface. Twisting about, I put my feet on the ground and stood up, braced this time in case another wave hit me.
As I stood, I saw in my peripheral vision that Xiaolang and Shad were standing, too. They were also soaking wet, not exactly a comfortable state in this very cold pre-dawn air.
I didn’t have the time to focus on my body’s discomfort, however. There was a more immediate problem to deal with.
We were in the center of a small village, apparently on the main square, as there were shops on either side of us. Located in the center was a single water fountain, probably the main source of water for the village, gushing wave after wave of water.
Only one person stood next to that stone fountain, a young girl in her early teens. She had both arms wrapped around her chest, like she was struggling to hang onto something solid.
She stood in a perfect circle of dry land, not even a drop of water on the hem of her dress or in her light brown hair. Water Mage!
I quickly started to slosh my way toward her.
“You have to shut it off!” I called to her.
Her head snapped around, eyes large as she noticed my appearance for the first time.
“Your magic is out of control,” I continued with a gesture toward my own chest. She probably felt the warm heat that controlling magic always gives a Mage—she’d understand what I was referring to, hopefully. “You have to shut off the magic before the water will recede! The warmth in your chest means that your magic is active—concentrate on cooling it down, sealing it back within yourself.”
Although I was close enough now to certainly be heard, she didn’t act as if my words made any sense to her. “You’re…glowing…” she breathed, eyes taking me in from head to…knees, as I was covered in water from knee down.
Advent (Advent Mage Cycle) Page 9