Sorceress (Book 2) (15 page)

Osalon agreed with Majherri’s assessment of the problems ahead before saying,
“I am more concerned about the first time I must stand against one of our kin.”

“I haven’t had to face that either, Osalon. I share your concern that it will happen. Perhaps you should encourage your rider’s dreams of crafting invasion plans. The humans planning the battles are rarely the ones on the front lines.”

Osalon was silent and Majherri watched him consider his words.
“I am not certain. If she is too successful, it means that many of our kin will die by her strategies. I do not know which is worse. Still, I am uncertain what this Count Darius wishes to accomplish. This army will overrun the western kingdoms and perhaps even make it into the central kingdoms.”

“He has allies from before in the southern kingdoms,”
Majherri answered.
“They will wait until he has made enough progress to switch their allegiance, but I think his plan hinges on something else.”

“What is it?”

“Danella and I interrupted his summoning ceremony, when he first attempted to call a netherbeast to our realm. He was forced to send it back to heal, missing one of its three hearts. He is looking for a place of power to open another rift and bring it and its ilk forth once more.”

“The human tampers with powers beyond his control!”

“I fear you are right, Osalon. Before, the sorcerer used a lost temple far into the Western Desert. I am not sure why he couldn’t use that ground again, but I think he must go elsewhere now. In truth, I believe that this invasion doesn’t need to reach Talcosa. It is only a ruse to get him to where he can open a portal to the Nether and call for help once more from those cursed realms.”

“Why are you telling me this, Majherri?”

“Danella and I are leaving to gather allies and attack from the far north and I want my suspicions known before I depart. If Sandra is to be involved in the planning, you may be able to learn where he intends to open his portal.”

Osalon seemed unsure of himself, before asking,
“What can we do with this information?”

“We will do what must be done to stop the netherbeasts from defiling our world any more than they already have.”

“Agreed. I’d heard that you were leaving, Majherri. I waited outside the command tent and listened to the one called Amir saying that your rider was becoming uncontrollable. Count Darius allayed his fears, saying that your rider is an agent of chaos and that it serves no purpose to attempt to control such a force. Instead, he sends her where she can cause the most trouble for his enemies.”

“I’d be offended,”
Majherri confessed.
“But I cannot dispute what has been said. I know only that things will not end well.”

The village Laurel had described was more a tiny collection of houses that made Helden appear like a major city in comparison. A partially built wall, which looked like it hadn’t been touched in years, offered more shade than it did protection.

It was also devoid of life. Upon closer inspection, the buildings, built from mud bricks, stones, and pieces of wood, were damaged and stripped of anything useful. In the fields were the signs of crops left to fend for themselves. Weeds had moved in and taken over and Kayleigh knew they were more likely to find a rabbit than any vegetables or fruits.

At least the unicorns will be able to eat their fill.

“I believe the inhabitants left over a year ago,” Orsa said from his spot in the wagon. The wounded soldier was a pale shadow of the man who had drafted them into the defense of his city. Fortunately, Kayleigh had been scouting ahead and Tamera broke the news of how quickly Shiftla fell to the invaders.

It was possible that Tamera blamed him for the loss of her unicorn as much as she blamed their prisoner.

Kayleigh nodded and closed her eyes, checking the state of Cyemma’s bond with Penelope Garrett. She visualized the rope connecting the two and checked the place where the two were joined. The strands of darkness were still there, but they were fewer in number. Even so, she concentrated and pulled several away, similar to pulling loose threads from a bolt of cloth.

Their prisoner had tried to make trouble when Kayleigh attempted to sleep. She’d been forced to take Cyemma on a five minute ride out of the camp and secure the poor, suffering unicorn tightly to a tree. Kayleigh walked back to camp and then gave in to her guilt by going back to stay with Cyemma to protect the unicorn from any predators that might find her.

“Laurel said she’d seen it on the maps when you sent her with the messenger birds outside the city.”

“She should have asked,” Orsa said.

“And let you know where we intended to meet up if we managed to escape Shiftla?” Kayleigh responded and thought how she wouldn’t have asked either. “Besides, most refugees would be moving alongside of the Clef. The pursuit would head that way.”

“There is no defendable position here,” the man said. “We shouldn’t stay here long.”

“We’re going to wait a day,” Kayleigh said, uninterested in any argument.

“Don’t be a fool, girl!”

“You’re in no condition to ride,
Captain
,” Kayleigh said. “Even if you were, I couldn’t spare either of the horses pulling the wagon and neither of the unicorns here will let you near them. Unless you feel like taking a long walk, then I’m afraid you’re staying put.”

Orsa’s been angry and pitiful ever since he came to,
Kayleigh thought.
He acts as if he lost his honor as well as his city!

“I think we will not be attacked,” Rahzir said, urging the tired horses onward. “With the leader being driven back, I do not believe that my uncle will push south.”

Orsa bristled with anger and pointed an accusatory finger at Kayleigh. “You put more stock in what this deserter says! He should be bound like the woman.”

“Rahzir has given us no reason to doubt him. You, on the other hand, made us prisoners in your town,” Tamera interjected, clearly angry.

Kayleigh nodded her thanks to her friend and noted how quickly Tamera came to Rahzir’s defense.

“Can we please go a few hours without a squabble? Tamera, you and Rahzir take care of the horses, get something to eat, and get some sleep. I’ll take first watch and Captain Orsa can keep an eye on the prisoner.”

“I wouldn’t use the well,” Orsa advised. “It may have been poisoned.”

“Fair enough,” Kayleigh said. “We’ve got enough to last us to Salif, but I’ll ride around before the sun sets and see if I can find more.”

In truth, Kayleigh had been summoning water. Tamera knew she could, but there was no reason for the others to know.

Tamera’s still a mess from losing her unicorn. Orsa is injured. Garrett’s insane. Rheysurrah loathes me and Cyemma is clinging to me to prevent Garrett from controlling her. The only one I seem to be able to rely on is Rahzir. Thank the Goddess and her daughters that he doesn’t hold a grudge over the death of his cousin!

“May I have a moment?” Kayleigh asked of Rahzir when they stopped for the first time to allow the horses and the unicorns a brief rest. She was uncomfortable broaching the subject, but felt it necessary.

“What can I do for you?” he answered in a casual manner.

“When I went back to Shiftla, I had to fight through some warriors who were blocking the gate. Their leader was named Thresh. Was he a relative?”

“A cousin. Did you kill him?”

“I’m sorry,” she said. “He was the one who hit me with the arrow.”

Other than her mother, Kayleigh had no family and couldn’t identify with how he might be feeling.

“We were not very close. He was headstrong and believed himself invulnerable. Obviously, he was not as skilled with the bow and arrow as his boasts claimed. I will mourn his loss, but dying in battle against a worthy foe bodes well for his next life.”

“I thought you’d be mad at me,” she said.

“Life in my land is harsh. Death can come at any moment. Each setting sun is to be cherished, because it means that you have survived another day. But I must ask, why did you tell me this? You could as easily have never mentioned this to me and I would be none the wiser. It does not give you any advantage and you risked angering me.”

“You’re risking everything by coming with us. I want to be able to trust you and I want you to be able to trust me.”

Rahzir paused, digesting what she said. She saw honest surprise on his face before he said, “Again, I underestimate you. One of the things my people always say about those from the east is how they speak lies, saying one thing and doing the opposite. Your actions are honorable and rise above the beliefs of my people.”

“Thank you,” Kayleigh said, blushing furiously. “I can’t promise that everyone is like me.”

“No,” he said and let out a hollow laugh. “The other girl, Tamera, accuses me of being a spy.”

“I don’t think we’re important enough to merit a spy. Tamera is still hurting from losing her unicorn. Be patient with her.” She thought of mentioning how quickly her friend came to his defense, but decided against it.

“I will,” he said with a nod.

Securing the female unicorn to a hitching post by one of the empty houses, Kayleigh checked the inside before walking back to find Rheysurrah. Her leg was still tender from the arrow wound and walking for more than fifty feet bothered her.

Her unicorn grazed near the wagon in what used to be someone’s vegetable garden. He’d ignored her since she was forced to ride Cyemma, preferring to stay with the others while Kayleigh scouted ahead.

To say things were bad between the two of them was like saying this invasion was just an interruption of peoples’ lives. His refusal to go back into Shiftla was just another sign that their partnership was an utter failure.

Most of Kayleigh’s life had revolved around avoiding confrontations. There was always the fear of upsetting her mother, her clients, or someone important or influential. Thrust into the role of Lead Rider, she still didn’t develop much as a leader. Kayleigh got by only because she performed at a high level and the other girls in first year saw how Captain Lynch treated her.

She didn’t know how to make peace with Rheysurrah, but figured she needed to do something.

“Hey, Rhey, do you want to go for a quick ride?”

Rheysurrah backed away from her, snorting, and shaking his head from side to side.

“Is this about me riding Cyemma? You know I have to do it until her rider comes out of that awful spell she’s under.”

He snorted again and she knew it was deeper than that.

“I get it, Rhey,” she said to him, feeling the tightness in her chest clamp around her heart at his rejection. “You don’t want me as your rider anymore. I know it’s not working out between us. I’m doing the best that I can and you’re not making it any easier!”

The unicorn deliberately turned away from her and lowered his head back to the ground to graze some more.

“All right,” she said, crushed by his indifference. “If that’s what you really want, when we get to Salif, I’ll try to undo the bond between us.”

“Kayleigh? Are you okay? I can take the first watch if you want.” Tamera asked, stopping Kayleigh as she fled from Rheysurrah’s rejection.

“Not really,” she answered. “But I’ll get by. I’m too angry to go to sleep anytime soon, but thank you for your offer.”

“I’m sorry for overhearing that. Things aren’t getting any better between you two, are they?”

They continued walking as Kayleigh admitted, “No, they aren’t. When Danella broke my bond with Majherri, it hurt, a lot. I don’t want to do that again until we’re somewhere safe. Rheysurrah might start wasting all over again.”

“Still, it got me wondering,” Tamera started nervously, wringing her hands together. “Do you think you might be able to help me bond with another unicorn?”

“Uh, I really don’t know how all this works,” she replied.

Tamera placed her hands on Kayleigh’s shoulders and said, “Please! Without a unicorn, I’m just a girl headed back to her parents and their farm. I don’t want that life again. You made a bond with Rheysurrah to keep him from dying. Maybe, I could take over your bond with him?”

The girl’s desperate plea reached Kayleigh. “I … I don’t even know if I can, Tamera. It might not even be possible. We might be stuck with each other.”

“But it might work,” Tamera said, clinging to a hope.

“It might,” Kayleigh said. “Let me see your hands for a moment.”

Taking the girl’s hands, she closed her eye and searched for the remnants of the other girl’s bond. Concentrating, she followed her instincts and located the frayed cord floating in the center of Tamera Akers. The ends were limp and appeared burnt. Kayleigh wasn’t sure what, if anything, she could do with it.

Letting go, she sighed and looked into the expectant eyes of her friend before saying, “I can still see your side of the bond. I won’t make any promises and you’d still have to convince Rheysurrah to let you try, but he might change his mind and want to stay with me.”

“Thank you, Kayleigh. You don’t know how much this means to me,” Tamera said and embraced her, before running back to the wagon.

Kayleigh remembered the pain she felt when Majherri was lost to her. It wasn’t quite the same as what Tamera was experiencing, but it was close enough. She missed her connection with him. They fought and often became frustrated at one another, but there was always the sense that both of them acknowledged that they were a team. Rheysurrah didn’t give her that same feeling. She felt trapped, frustrated, and wished that Laurel or someone else was here to make the decisions. The weight of the world seemed to be grinding her into the ground, pulling her in a dozen different directions at the same time. She kept walking as the enormity of everything she’d experienced began to catch up to her and Kayleigh’s legs felt like they had turned to lead. Barely managing to get around the side of one of the vacant hovels, she sat down with her back against the earthen wall and allowed the tears to finally overwhelm her.

She woke later in the darkness to a hand shaking her. Her neck felt awful from falling asleep in such an awkward position.

“What?” she asked, trying to wipe the sleep out of her puffy eyes.

“I took your watch,” Rahzir said. “You were in no condition. I would have let you sleep longer, but I need some rest before the sun rises.”

“Oh, okay,” Kayleigh said and stood on unsteady legs, quickly learning that it wasn’t just her neck that was sore. She felt worse than three trips through the obstacle course back at The Academy. “Thank you for doing that.”

“You needed the rest,” he said and Kayleigh felt her cheeks flush. 
Everyone probably heard me crying my eyes out!

She tried to think of something clever to say that would make her less embarrassed, but nothing came to mind. With no other option, Kayleigh decided to pretend it didn’t happen.

Some leader I’m turning out to be,
she thought, following him to the wagon. She took a drink of water from her canteen and unwrapped a bundle of dried meat to ease her hunger. Grabbing a pair of apples, she went first to Rheysurrah and gave one to him. He accepted it and she guessed his sensitive hearing had no trouble hearing her breakdown. Using a brief moment of heatsight, she made certain that Cyemma was still at the tree and made her way to where the female unicorn was tied up.

“I brought you an apple,” she said, noting that Cyemma looked as bad as she felt. Touching her side, she saw more evidence of the corruption from the unicorn’s bond with Penelope Garrett. Expending some effort, she broke the threads of darkness away.

“Hang in there,” she offered. “The spell your rider is under can’t last forever. That thing you showed me in your vision, the one that helps this sorcerer control her, she won’t be able to go back to it. I know it is hard being separated from her. Just keep your spirits up. Besides, you’ve got someone else to live for now.”