Branded Mage (11 page)

Holding his hand out to Sophia she gasped in surprise as a miniature horse galloped around his open palm.
He laid his hand on the table, and the little horse jumped on its flat surface skidding a little. After whipping its small head around, the little horse galloped at full speed up and down the table. The show was rewarded by applause from everyone at the table.

Sophie clapped loudly as the horse cantered around her plate. “Can I please hold it Sir Mage?”

“Sure Sophie, just put your hand on the table palm up.”

As Sophie put her hand down
, Thad concentrated harder to give the horse a physical weight and made it soft to the touch. In essence, it was still an illusion, but the magic creating it was forced into a more solid state.

Sophie laughed as the horse nuzzled her thumb as she held it up for everyone to see. She laughed for a long while
, petting the horse and trying to get it to jump over her finger. Her face fell suddenly when the tiny horse disappeared with a slight pop.

“Where did it go?” Sophie cried turning to Thad who had slumped in his chair
, face drenched in sweat.

“Thad!”
Eloen yelled rushing over to his side.

Thad opened his eyes and straightened himself in his chair. Though the horse had been small
, he had held it for almost a quarter of an hour and made it feel solid which increased the burden dramatically. Normally that wouldn’t have been a problem, but he had already exhausted his magical reservoir working on the magical pack.

“I’m ok. I just overworked myself a little today.”
Thad said weakly.

Thad felt a little tug on his arm. Looking down
, he saw the worried expression of Sophie staring up at him. “Do you need anything?”

It was heartwarming to see the little girl hold such compassion in her eyes. “I just need a little water and res
t, and I’ll be as good as new.”

Without another word the little girl jumped up from her seat and dashed out of the room.
Eloen continued to fret over him, but Alysia found enough humor in the situation to let out a soft giggle.

Sophie returned
shortly, carrying a cup of water as if she was afraid it was filled with acid. She gently handed him the cup her face full of apprehension as he took a deep drink.

“Thank you Sophie I feel much bett
er now.” His voice was still weak, but Sophie’s face beamed happily as she sat back down in her seat holding the rose tightly to her chest.

  When the food came, Thad ate slowly even though he was ravenous. It wasn’t to be polite, he was afraid that in his current state his stomach would not be able to hold down the food if he ate too quickly. Every now and then, Eloen would give him a worried glace but other than that, no one paid much attention to him.

As soon as the meal was finished
, he excused himself from the table. Eloen excused herself as well and quickly followed behind him. She didn’t have to rush much to catch up to him.  Without a word Eloen grabbed his arm and helped steady him as he made his way up the stairs. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was grateful for her aid.

After Eloen got him to his room
, she refused to allow him to change into his night clothes, so he kicked off his boots and crawled into the bed still clothed. As soon as his head touched the soft pillows, he fell fast asleep.

The next morning
, he awoke to the feel of something soft draped across his chest. Opening his eyes he rubbed his eyes until his vision cleared. Looking down he noticed a cream colored arm hanging over his chest. He lifted up the covers slightly, and he was relieved to find himself and Eloen still clothed.

Trying not to wake her
, he gently lifted up her arm and slipped out of the covers. His head no longer throbbed and the long night of sleep had removed the fatigue that had been weighing him down over the past few days.

“Running away already lover?” Eloen said sleepily.

“My stomach is begging for food, so I thought I would see if I could steal anything from the kitchen.” Thad replied softly.

“Sounds good
, bring me something while you’re at it.” Eloen said lying her head back down.

Laughing
, he shut the door quietly. Eloen was always the first up when they were on the road, but at home she barely moved before the sun was fully up. It didn’t take long for him to make his way to the kitchen and the cooks were more than happy to fill him a plate heaping with cold meat and fruits.

It was a hard walk back to his room laden down with the large platter of food that was brimming over with food.
It was an even greater challenge to open the door without spilling any of it on the expensive soft carpet.

Inside the room
, Eloen was sleeping soundly. Every so often she would let out an almost inaudible snore. Setting the plate down on the desk in the corner of the room, he walked over and gently shook her arm. Her eyes fluttered open, giving him an irritated look.

“Food’s here.”  He said
, trying to hold back a laugh.

“You were supposed to take longer, go back and try again.” She said wiping at her eyes with her hands.

Thad found it oddly cute, how Eloen stumbled toward the desk. She grabbed one of the padded chairs, dragging it behind her before taking a seat at the edge of the desk. Eloen brushed her disheveled hair from her face lazily as she picked up a piece of melon.

“What do you plan to do today?” Eloen asked him
, giving him a concerned look.

“Not much. I still have some enchanting to finish
, but I promise I won’t push myself as I much as I did yesterday.”

“You better not
, or I’ll have you tied to a pole while Ballard takes after you with a stick.” Eloen said her voice stern and far from joking.

As soon as Eloen left the room
, he pulled the magical pack from beneath his bed and took stock of where he was at. He had finished nine of the fifteen sections the night before, so he should be able to get the others done today without stressing himself. After situating himself into a comfortable sitting position on his bed, he began to work.

He finished the last section to the pack shortly before the sun reached its apex. Staring out his window
he stretched his stiff muscles and let the warmth of the sun wash over him. He still had many battle harnesses and a few weapons to do, but the day was slightly warm and calling to him.

Outside
, he found a dirt path leading to the west and decided it was as good a direction as any. The path went up and down a few hill, but the strain on his muscles felt good after two days of sitting idly working on his magic. His only regret was not thinking to grab something to eat when he noticed the sun had already moved past its midday point.

All thoughts fled from his mind as the path came to an end at the top of a high cliff overlooking the largest body of water he had ever seen.
It was simply breathtaking, as if the sky had met the ground. Looking over to his left he saw a small path leading down from the cliff to the beach below.

Unable to control himself
, he rushed down the path in more of a run than walk, almost tripping a few times. Reaching the beach, he quickly stripped off his clothes and dived into the churning water.

He quickly stood up out of the water with his eyes burning
, spitting up the salty water that had rushed into his mouth. He had wished that someone had told him of the amount of pure salt that was in the water, but the relaxing motion of the water felt good against his skin. The cold water met his warm skin, causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

He knew it wasn’t the brightest idea to swim in ice cold water
, but he didn’t know when he would get the chance to do so again. So he threw caution to the wind and dived back into the water.

He had to force his eyes open until
the stinging sensation abated.  He could see a multitude of exotically colored fish swimming underneath the water. Popping back up to the surface, he found that he had gone much farther from the shore than he had intended and his muscles, unused to the stain, were growing tried. Not wanting to tempt fate too much, he dove once again swimming as hard as he could back toward the direction of the sandy beach.

It took him much longer to reach the shore than he figured
. For a while every time he made any distance, the ocean seemed to try and pull him back toward its depths. Once again on dry ground, he laid on his back catching his breath, smiling to himself. The cold air was making him shiver, but that mattered little to him. He could never remember having so much fun before.

The sun was two thirds of the way down before he could see the Manor again. He was tired and his muscles were screaming as he made his way wearily up the stairs to his room. Before he could make it to the top of the stairs
, he was met with a very unhappy Eloen.

“Just where the hell have you been? I was about to send everyone out to look for you.” She said her voice wavering between
anger and relief.

“I took a walk and found myself at the beach. I couldn’t help myself
, so I took a little swim.” Thad said embarrassed, looking down at the ground as if his mother was scolding him.

Eloen looked him over. After noticing his
slightly blue colored skin and matted hair, she started to laugh. “At this time of year, are you out of your mind? Go get in the main baths, I’ll go with you and make sure you’re not disturbed.” She looked at him still laughing, until she noticed he wasn’t moving. “Now, we need to get you warmed up before you catch a chill.”

Following behind him
, Eloen giggled the whole way. Once they reached the door to the large baths, Eloen stuck her head inside and waved him inside. He was happy she stayed outside the room while he bathed.

The water was warm and felt good against
his skin. His fingers and toes had tuned a slight red and burned slightly as the water washed over them. The soaps that lined the huge bath all smelled like flowers or spices. He chose the one that smelled faintly of lilacs and began scrubbing himself, trying to remove the dried salt from his body.

After he f
inished, he pulled himself from the water and found some towels on a small wooden shelf that was filled with more scents and perfumes. It was then that he learned of his problem. He hadn’t brought a fresh set of clothes.

Poking his head out the door he found Eloen standing outside the door waiting patiently. “Can you get me some clothes?”

“Just grab one of the robes in the armoire in the corner.” She said as she tried to peek around the door, making Thad blush deeply.

It didn’t take long for him to find the armoire Eloen had mentioned. Inside he found an assortment of robes
in all sizes. The only problem was, they were all pink and decorated with purple flowers. Sighing deeply he grabbed one and draped it around his shoulders making sure it was secured thoroughly before he stepped out of the bathing room.

He quickly made his way to his room
, trying to dodge Eloen as she tried to grab the thick piece of cloth that held his robe around his waist. When he arrived at his door, he almost jumped in the door, closing it before Eloen could follow.

  “You’re no fun. Better hurry up, auntie will be expecting you at dinner soon.” Eloen said through the door, her words laced with laughter.

“Could you please make an excuse for me and ask that it be sent to my room. I’m exhau
sted and would like to hit the sack early tonight.” Thad replied, still breathing hard.

  “Ok
, but don’t be surprised if she sends me back up here to drag you down there by your ear.”

Thad fell onto the bed wanting nothing but sleep
, but knew he had to get a little more work done before succumbing to the call of his comfortable bed. Pulling one of the swords from its place against the wall he began. The work had become almost second nature to him.

CHAPTER IX

Thad, escorted by Eloen met with the rest of their group outside of the manor.  Aside from their normal traveling group of ten guards including Eloen, another two hundred had been added. He knew the duchess had only been able to gather a small portion of her forces, but he had expected a few more.

“With the current trouble within the Queendom
, auntie can’t afford to send a large portion of her troops. It’s the same with the rest as well. That is why your presence is so needed. In the past, thousands had marched from each of the ten duchies to aid in the defense of Southpass. Now only a small fraction of that can be spared.” Eloen whispered in his ear, her warm breath tickling his ear sending a shiver down his spine.

The duchess and little Sophie showed up to see them off. Alysia gave Thad a warm hug
, then Sophie waved him down and latched her arms around his neck refusing to let go. She laughed as he spun her around a few times before Eloen helped detach her. She wasn’t very happy about being forced to let go, but perked up when Thad promised to bring her a gift next time he visited.