by Pam Uphoff
Eventually he wound up at a table with Never, eating cobbler and describing the New Lands. Taking chances. Old Gods. The only witch who'd ever tempted him beyond common sense . . .
"So these longs strips of normal land, covered with ash, were separated by these long strips of lava rock, and there was a wide canyon area about half way where there are regular fumaroles, hot springs, geysers. We saw a bunch of what were probably volcanoes, but nothing erupting."
"How very odd." She tapped her fingers on the table. "I need to go see this for myself." She looked around but the older witches had disappeared, a few with soldiers. Question's grandmother had scooped up Captain Wullo and taken him off somewhere. The hot springs, if the old boy was lucky. Or was that unlucky? He rather thought Gruff had scored as well.
"Better wait till next spring," he advised. "The hot springs area was a good thousand miles away." He wondered what the Earth power would tell a witch, out on the New Lands. Old gods! She's smart too. Danger. Danger. Danger.
Never nodded reluctantly. "Almost half the summer is gone already." Off duty, so to speak, she had tied back her hair, and her intelligent blue eyes were more noticeable. So dark a blue they were nearly purple. "Perhaps I could just check on the closest strips this year."
They speculated a bit more, until Nil returned from seeing Justice home, dragged the three boys away from Harry's four, and dragged Dydit away from Never. Not that there was anything special about her. She was just another of the Ash witches. A very pretty one. A smart, curious one. Not that it mattered to him. Too dangerous.
The next morning they rode out to granite spring.
Opinion was gone and the young Lord was dreamy eyed and relaxed. Dydit shuddered.
Nil looked down at the young man, skewered Dydit with a thoughtful look and hired the lot.
Kell nodded. "Herding sheep, sounds restful."
His troops looked a bit worried about him, but they all admitted to a reasonable familiarity with livestock, and had been known to assist with haying.
A couple of nights' sleep and regular food refreshed Kell, but he still wasn't anywhere as arrogant or sharp as he'd been when Dydit first met him.
Five more hands to take over the livestock freed Nil and Dydit to work on the tower and out buildings. If the witches and Mages methods of building the school had been impressive, the old wizard's magic was frightening. He worked with sunshine and fire, herding molten rock as if it were sheep. At noon Dydit was almost capable of melting the granite the tower stood upon and dug down into. It would stand as tall as it was deep below. Nil set him to molding the walls of his new laborer's barracks, melting the rock and letting Dydit form the walls, and finally the roof. Greatly daring, he formed a raised hearth and chimney, with a box for baking on the side, and a thin flat surface for heating pans. He was quite proud of it.
The Ferrismen had paled a bit as they watched the wizardry, but if they were going to live in the valley, they might as well know what sorts of people they were living around.
Chapter Twenty
Summer Solstice 1354
The New Lands
The experiences of the Sheep Man's foreign apprentice hung in Never's mind as she followed the foot trail to the Mountain. She was carrying a whole lot more than usual, as she was planning on exploring out to at least the first strip of lava. Huge areas of completely new land. It was something a witch ought to look into.
And the young man wasn't bad, either. How the Sheep Man had found a half trained wizard in modern Scoone was hard to imagine, but by the way he talked about things the man was well educated, with a trained scientific mind. Very different than anyone she'd ever met. A male magic user. Maybe she should invite him up to the hot springs.
Never laughed at herself. She'd never even considered inviting Byson back. Really, she ought to avoid men, now. Another pregnancy and baby to care for would slow her down even more. So, handsome men, even if they were interesting, intelligent and intriguingly foreign, were out.
***
Question stomped into the tower and scowled up at her father. "Did you know Never was going to go look at the New Lands? If I'd known, I would have gone too."
Dydit looked around in surprise, "She's going this year?"
"She's already left. She went from the Mountain, after the Solstice ceremony." Question scowled harder. "And they didn't even let me participate."
"You're a wizard, not a witch. Come and work with some fire. Being half witch, you may have quite an affinity for molten rock."
Dydit got back to work. Stopped and stomped around. Growled. Witches were perfectly capable of taking care of themselves. He grabbed another block of seething hot lava and shooed it up the stairs. Layered it along the top of the wall. Stomped back to where Question was maneuvering a small blob.
"She didn't take a horse or anything, did she?"
"Of course not, you can't take a horse up our, I mean, their trail. She was wearing an enormous backpack."
He stomped down to the wizard, who was melted solid rock with stored sunlight. "I need to take some horses, and head for . . . "
"The New Lands. I heard you stomping. Never is the strongest of the young witches. I doubt she needs help. Why don't you take the wagon? It'll be cozy. If she doesn't kill you."
"No thank you." He thought about being snowed in with a witch all winter. Mind you, without children, dragons, and foals it might not be . . . but the combination of witch and hotsprings . . . Drat. "Umm, alright. But I'm only taking geldings, damn it."
The Sheep Man was generous with supplies, and included a whole bunch of grain for the horses. "Although I'd recommend getting back over the mountains before you get snowed in." And two bottles of wine. "Just in case one of you is injured. Otherwise, behave. Never, as I mentioned, is the strongest of the young witches."
***
The bandits didn't so much surprise Never as vaguely disturb her meditation and deep probing of the boundary between the Old Land and the New. She shoved them away and put up a barrier with a corner of her mind and continued to sink down into the Earth.
She had probed faults before, and of course Mount Frost. But this wasn't like the Mount Frost magma chamber. The very roots of the land were shallow. The surface had broken and pulled apart, but the deeper parts were so hot they were soft, and they had pulled and thinned like taffy.
The power flow was enormous. Everywhere. She was shunting like mad to see down so far, and she could feel her mind quivering as she stretched down to the hot layer below the land, and felt its pressure, pushing the land she sat upon to the west. Unable to handle more, she withdrew, her point of focus rising like a bubble in water.
She took a deep breath, another, and slowly opened her eyes.
Blinked at the figures surrounding her. She was surrounded by scruffy men. She vaguely remembered something bothering her and putting up the barrier. Looking around, she wondered what she ought to do about them. She started by listening, changing her barrier just a bit so she could hear them.
"About time you woke up honey. You need some help? Here we are."
"No thank you." She studied the spokesman of the group. Scruffy leather jacket with metal strips for armor, sweat stained clothing, his sword belt was well oiled and the hilt of his sword looked cared for. Not a complete loss. But he had mercenary written all over him.
"Now look here, a woman shouldn't be out here alone. We'll be glad to escort you wherever you were going."
"I'm here to study the geology of the region. I'm right where I want to be. What I do not want is a bunch of mercenaries or bandits. Go away."
He crossed his arms and looked stubborn. She sighed and sank into the Earth, just a tiny bit. Oh, ho. The five men here were just a small part of this band. Another fifty were over a small ridge, camped.
"Are you perhaps lost?" she asked the man. "Where did you come from and where are you going? From what I've heard this territory is not much in need of soldiers."
"We're pioneers and hunt
ers, explorers." The man explained.
"Well, don't let me keep you from it, sir. In case you are seriously lost, I am a subject of his majesty King Rebo of Western. If you follow the Old Road, which you will find about a mile south of us, to the West you will reach Fort Stag in ten days. It isn't far, but the mountains require a good deal of winding about."
"Really." He narrowed his eyes.
"If, on the other hand, you wish to travel east, the Army scout who made it to Scoone and back took nearly two years to make the round trip. He estimated the distance to be five thousand miles."
She had remained sitting through the whole conversation, and she really didn't like the way the men probed and pushed at her barrier, the way they looked at her, or in fact, anything at all about them. She uncrossed her legs and stood and hefted her backpack. "Good day sir." She warped light around herself, and stepped carefully, disturbing nothing, until she was at the side of her barrier, and between two of the men. None of them had followed her with their eyes, so she pulled the barrier in against herself and let them flounder about, assuring themselves that she was gone.
She dropped the barrier, and walked away, quietly and leaving no tracks on the hard surface of the lava rock. She walked well into the night, to be sure of leaving them behind. The strip of lava was eighteen miles wide. Lefty's lake crossed it from side to side, and a long way south. She had left the Old Road to be further from the cold water with its power sapping drain on the Earth. Now she kept north of it to avoid the . . . pioneer hunting explorers. She wondered what they were really here for. Was some other sovereign, say the Emperor of Verona, placing a claim on the land?
She drew up energy from the Earth to heat a rock to cook on, and raised a barrier for the night. This time she reached, not down, but west. Her mother, what would her mother be doing at this time of night? She could be at the tavern, but with an extra toddler to mind . . . of course. She was at the hot springs.
:: It's very interesting, out here, Mother. The reason I'm contacting you however, is the fifty mercenaries that are out here. I can't think what they could be here for except staking a claim for another country. Can you pass that on to Captain Wullo. The King might not appreciate another claimant. I don't recall the subject of the ownership of the lands even coming up. ::
:: Well, not where we would hear, but you can bet the nobles and the King have considered it. That kind always do. I will pass on the information, in any case. ::
:: Thanks Mom, love you, hug Rustle for me. ::
:: Oh, dear? I think that goat of the Sheep Man's is coming after you. The one you had pie with the other night. Don't kill him unless you have to, the Sheep Man is trying to rehabilitate him. A lost cause if you ask me. Opinion is pregnant and smugly refusing to talk about it. ::
:: Good Grief. Thanks for the warning. G'night, mom. ::
:: Good night, dear. ::
Never stood up and paced around in a circle. "I am so stupid. Of course that man is one of the goats. Drat!"
She poked at the mess in the pan. Carrying one's rations on one's back necessitated some unfortunate compromises in the quality department. Then she thought about a wizard who'd spent over a thousand years as a thoroughly nasty goat, and strengthened her shields.
***
Captain Wullo appreciated the message from Never that Dydit carried, however much he hunched a shoulder at the method.
He sent couriers off to his superiors, and shifted some of the regular army troops to the far side of the pass.
Dydit followed them, and Lefty joined him in traveling further.
"I want to hear what this witch has to say about the New Lands." Lefty informed him. "I don't know how far she expects to go, but, dammit, I want to know."
"Me too. Wretched girl, exploring your very own personal discovery without asking your permission."
Lefty laughed, "All right, so I don't own it, but I want to know."
"You're a good little wizard, Lefty."
"I am not a wizard."
What he was, was an excellent scout. He scouted out the mercenaries, who were just as reported. "Except they're watching the south. Prowling all over, and watching the Old Road."
"Doesn't sound like they're watching out for the Kingdom of the West."
"Nope. However, if we want to avoid meeting them, we ought to swing way north."
Dydit agreed, and swung the horses off the Old Road at the earliest opportunity. Blaze and Bitch (both geldings) objected to leaving the nice smooth surface for the rough going of the ash covered old land. "Quit complaining, it's for your own good." Bitch gave a little threat kick and swished his tail. It was enough to make a man wish he'd taken Chocolate and Blackberry Pie. They were five days behind Never, and the rough ground wasn't helping. Lefty found an easy spot to get down to the lava strip, and then they made good time.
They didn't have any trouble finding Never. She was sitting out in plain sight, meditating.
They parked the wagon, and set up camp. Three hours later she stomped over and glared at them. "What are you doing here? If I'd wanted company I'd have brought some."
Dydit and Lefty swapped grins.
"See?" Dydit said. "I told you she'd think we were here because of her. We should have just gone on before camping."
Lefty nodded. "It didn't seem polite, though. I mean, if she'd been a stranger, sure."
Never sighed. "Sorry, had a bit of trouble with some mercenaries. So, are you guys out here to study the New Land, or are you heading back to Scoone?"
"Studying," Lefty shuddered. "I'm never going back there again."
Dydit nodded, a bit reluctantly. "It was such a strange place. I would have liked to have seen them burn their old President, though."
"Their what?"
"The citizens, every ten years, chose a new king. They call him their President. They'll be voting in three more years, and I'd just love to see that idiot burn."
"They burn their kings?" her brown brows drew together. "And the old one co-operates, I suppose?" Now she was being sarcastic.
"I don't know, I wasn't there long enough—and believe me, it had changed incredibly from, umm, when I was there before."
"A thousand years ago?" she was watching him warily.
"Err, just seven hundred, I think."
"Hmm."
She did at least accept dinner. "Beats the nasty stuff I'm packing," she admitted. "What I'm planning on doing is feeling out several of these bands, and then tracing the biggest one to the south. I figured every two weeks I'd cut across again and see if the other bands are still there, getting closer, getting further, whatever."
Dydit forced a scowl onto his face. "That's about what I'm doing. Perhaps we could trace different ones? Meet occasionally?"
Lefty was scowling now. "I have to stay up here. Keep an eye on those troops you spotted."
Never's lips quirked and then straightened out. "Oh, did Mother get my message to your Captain?"
Lefty flushed, caught. "Umm, yes. He sent me, I caught up with Dydit and hitched a ride."
Dydit looked innocent, "Oh is that why he suddenly sent those troops out?" He glanced at Never, "must be very handy, having a witch to send messages."
Lefty nodded. "I'm going to check several spots, see if there are any more people out here, and then report back." He smiled hopefully at her, "It would save a lot of time if you could . . . "
"Oh, sure, glad to pass reports on." She smiled back at the treacherous cur. Him and his damn tawny good looks. Typical Veronian.
Dydit grumpily bid them both a good night and sought his bed. Fortunately it worked the right way. Never bid Lefty a good night and withdrew. While Lefty poked at their fire a bit, he squinted over at Never and could see the faint glow of a shield. Good. Keep Lefty out.
In the morning they all set out together. To Dydit's disgust both Never and Lefty preferred to walk. And they were both good walkers, having no trouble keeping a bit ahead of the wagon.
Which gave him a nice view
of Never's long bare legs under the barely calf length canvas skirt she was wearing. And the flex of her buttocks, and sway of her hips and narrow waist. At the edge of the next Old Land she at least put on shoes. Nice, practical, thick soled, laced to her calves, leather boots.
Dydit found himself even more fixated on the glimpses of skin between boot and skirt.
It was infuriating. There was no way he was going to try anything with a witch. He had more sense than that. Oh, sure, he'd given in once, but that was when he was a goat. Now he was a man and had more sense. Way more sense. After all, he was a wizard. Cold blooded and practical. He'd castrated himself when he was ten years old. For power. He wasn't going to get involved with a witch that could take it all away. Lefty could have her. It didn't matter to him.
Three days later, Dydit was still arguing with himself about how much he did not care that Never was still walking with Lefty.
Then they were suddenly walking backwards, as a battle spilled over the ridge they had been climbing.
A wagon careened over the crest, then stopped abruptly as the driver spotted them. The confusion milling around it overshot the wagon, and the driver pulled the horses around to try and escape. The attackers split, some turning to the new wagon, as the old rattled back out of sight.
Never made some helpless waves of her obviously weaponless hands, turning to flee as two grinning bandits leapt from their horses, grabbed her, and promptly collapsed. Lefty was dealing with two, as Dydit pulled the brake, tied the reins and hopped down, sword in hand.
Never had grabbed a sword, and was holding it correctly, but her foot tapped a rock the size of her head and it rolled uphill, gaining speed and leaping up to hit the nearest horse in the flanks. A smaller rock managed a greater speed and higher bounce, off the rider's head, this time.
Dydit heard more horses coming, multiple, and realized that the sword just wasn't going to work. He stripped off his shirt, unbuckled his belt and wiggled halfway out before opening the goat box.