Trading by Firelight

by C. M. Simpson

  “I am sorry,” the druid murmured. “He is more cautious than I’d like.”

  “I understand,” Gustav replied, although Marsh wasn’t sure he did.

  He said no more though, just watched as Alois healed his chest and shoulder, then let the druid help him to his feet.

  “How much farther?” he asked, earning a sharp look from the archer.

  Alois must have caught it as well because he frowned.

  “They’re staying the night, Nellee. We need allies.”

  Henri snorted, then uttered a soft “oof” as someone elbowed him in the midriff. Roeglin leaned toward the druid.

  “He’s easily bought,” he said, sotto voce. “How well can you cook?”

  “You’d be surprised,” Alois replied, and again he told the exact truth.

  The trail wound around the outcrop of white rocks before opening out into the broad flat base of a wide, low, cavern. From the ceiling and the regular arrangement of pillars as well as several carefully blocked tunnels mirroring each other at opposite ends of the complex, it looked like Alois had set up home in some form of ancient building.

  He caught the direction of her gaze and shrugged.

  “I don’t know what it used to be, but it’s home now, and I have made it as safe as I could so that it could be a refuge for the others.”

  “Others?”

  Marsh realized she’d been so caught up in the cavern’s architecture that she hadn’t taken notice of the porches and porticoes dug into the wall opposite her. She’d also missed the orderly plantings of shrooms and the other people working in the fields or gradually emerging to stand and watch them arrive.

  As she studied them, she realized one more thing.

  “They’re not druids…”

  Alois gave a short laugh.

  “No, mage,” he agreed. “They’re not druids, although some of them have proven to have the aptitude.”

  There was a note of hope in his voice that was close to longing.

  “We need more druids.”

  “And what of other forms of magic?”

  Although Roeglin tried to keep his voice neutral, he couldn’t quite stop a slight tone of reproach. Alois shot him a curious look.

  “Why, mage? Are you recruiting?”

  Roeglin’s face flushed.

  “No…” and here, he slid a glance toward Marsh, “but a good friend once told me that everyone had the ability to do magic, even if the types varied.”

  This earned him a sharp look from Nellee.

  “Anyone?” he said, and Roeglin nodded, but he was not alone.

  The other four shadow guards answered as one.

  “Yes.”

  “Anyone.”

  “Even me.”

  Alois paused, and Nellee looked stunned.

  “Can you stay long enough to help us test this theory?” Alois asked, but Gustav shook his head.

  He stayed the druid’s obvious protest with an upraised hand.

  “I can, however, arrange for a training contingent of shadow guards and Protectors if we can find them a suitable base nearby.”

  Nellee answered before Alois.

  “The waystation’s free.”

  They walked the mules across the cavern toward the settlement, the trail becoming broader as it followed the cavern wall along to where a large hall had been built by filling in the spaces between pillars. A field fenced by a low stone wall was attached to the back, and it was here Alois had them release the mules before leading them inside.

  “You can stay here the night. Longer, if you change your minds about training.”

  “We can help folk explore their potential this afternoon,” Gustav told him, “but we must reach Dimanche and organize an alliance between them, Ruins Hall, and the monastery. If we succeed, you will have help maintaining the trail.”

  Alois regarded him for a long moment and nodded.

  “Very well. I’ll send word around and see who is interested. When did you say you could be ready?”

  Given it was just coming to the middle of the day cycle, it would have been ungracious to put things off too long.

  “We need to wash and change, but after that, we’ll be fine.”

  “And eat,” Alois told him. “As promised, I’ll cook and send the food over. If folk are ready after lunch, we’ll send them to you.”

  He glanced at Nellee.

  “The fields are able to withstand an afternoon of light attention.”

  “Will you be here?” Gustav asked. “I mean, we can help people find their affinity for shadow and flame and perhaps healing, or calling light for the glows, but an aptitude for plants or rock is something you’d probably do better.”

  “You can help with discovering potential mind mages too, I gather,” Alois added, giving Roeglin a sly grin.

  Roeglin turned red and Alois continued, “I do know what white eyes mean, boy, and I can tell when you’re trying to poke your nose where it doesn’t belong.”

  Roeglin’s blush deepened

  “I…” He looked at Gustav for help, but the Protector captain only shook his head. “If you do find someone with mind-walking, you might want to remind them that peeking into other people’s heads is rude.”

  He chuckled but hearing him mimic Aisha’s precise tones caused an unexpected wave of sadness to crash over Marsh and she turned away, hiding her face until she had the surging emotion under control. Nellee came to her rescue.

  “Washrooms are over there,” he said. “I’m sure you can find the way.”

  She looked at Gustav and he nodded, even if his face said he was worried. Whatever it was, he didn’t let it distract him from his conversation with Alois, and Marsh slipped away to get clean. By the time she was done, she was not alone. Other cubicles echoed with the sound of happy sighs and scrubbing as water piped through the cavern walls and through cooking fires filled the tubs.

  It was a good thing Marsh emerged when she did. Dinner arrived as she chose a place for her sleeping roll and got ready to check on the mules. Mordan had silently followed them into the cavern, drawing raised eyebrows and a part-raised bow from Nellee. Alois had pushed the bow down with his hand.

  “Be thankful she didn’t take your head when you shot her mistress.”

  Her mistress? It had been a new one for Marsh, but she hadn’t argued. She’d just been happy for Mordan to walk with them unmolested. The kat had refused to go into the washroom, though. She’d sat herself down by shroom burner at one end of the hall and refused to budge. She sat up as the door to the hall opened, a warning growl filling the space between them.

  The door paused, and Marsh looked up.

  “Dan! Do you want to be fed or not?”

  Her words seemed to give whoever was there the courage they needed to enter.

  “Hello?”

  “Hello,” Marsh replied. “How can I help you?”

  At the sound of her voice, the door was pushed all the way open and a young woman entered. Her curly dark hair was cut short, and her brown eyes were wary.

  “Just make sure it doesn’t eat us,” she instructed when her gaze found Mordan.

  Marsh followed the direction of her look.

  “The hoshkat? I’ve got some jerky for her. She’ll be fine.”

  The woman was horrified by the idea.

  “Oh, no. We brought her some rabbits, and there’ll be mouton later for her to have in the morning.”

  Marsh didn’t have the heart to tell her that the kat shouldn’t eat before traveling. Mordan would eat if she was hungry and carry the meat with her if she wasn’t. Either way, there’d be no refusal to insult the people feeding her. Judging from the response she felt from Mordan, rabbits would do just fine.

  “Are you staying to see what magic you have?” Marsh asked, and the woman’s eyes widened.

  “I… Oh, no. I’m a farmer, not a mage. What would I need magic for?”

  Marsh frowned.

  “You don’t need to be a warrior to have mag
ic,” she told her. “Everyone has magic.”

  The woman shook her head.

  “I’ve never shown any sign,” she said, unpacking the basket. She turned to her assistant, who seemed to be hanging onto Marsh’s every word, “and Lucille has no need.”

  Her assistant scowled, and Marsh wondered what the matter was between them.

  “What brought you to the cavern?”

  “Alois warned us there was going to be an attack on our farm. We’d heard of folk disappearing up and down the trade trail, so we decided to trust him, no matter that he was a mage.”

  Lucille scowled at her mother.

  “If we’d known how to use magic, we wouldn’t have had to leave at all,” she snapped. “I miss the farm…and the animals…”

  “Alois will fetch them as soon as he can.”

  “But it’s been three days,” the girl wailed. “They’ll be running short of food.”

  “We don’t know if it’s safe,” the woman insisted. “Don’t be foolish, child.”

  Where the argument might have gone from there, Marsh didn’t know, but she intervened.

  “We can help with that,” she said, gesturing to the food. “It’s the least we can do in return for your hospitality.”

  Her words were interrupted by a sigh from the washroom door. Gustav stood there, having paused in the middle of toweling the stubble on his head.

  “What’s she hiring us out for this time?” he demanded as he resumed rubbing the water from his short-cropped hair and dried his ears.

  “To check on the farms,” the woman told him as he arrived, “and maybe bring our livestock to safety?”

  He slung the towel over one arm and stuck out his hand in greeting.

  “Pleased to meet you, Mrs.…”

  “Vara. Call me Vara,” she said, blushing, and Lucille rolled her eyes.

  “Mama!”

  Gustav pretended not to notice.

  “We can do that,” he agreed to Marsh’s surprise, and he surprised her further by adding, “but only if you come and see what your magic is.”

  Marsh’s eyes grew as wide as saucers and Vara gaped in surprise.

  Close your mouth, Marsh, Roeglin said, appearing in the door behind the captain. You look as surprised as she does.

  Marsh closed her mouth and managed a non-committal look and shrug when Vara turned to her for confirmation.

  “He’s the captain,” she said as if that explained it all.

  It pretty much does, Roeglin muttered, advancing across the hall and tucking his pack beside hers.

  She noticed he had changed into a fresh uniform, even if it was a bit crumpled from being in the bottom of his pack—and she was glad she’d done the same. Looked like they were going official on this one. Vara looked from one of them to another as though trying to find a second opinion, but in the end, she sighed.

  “Very well.” She glanced toward the door. “Only, will this take very long? I promised to spend some time in the fields this afternoon.”

  “She’s afraid the others will arrive and see her,” Lucille mocked, and Marsh saw the truth in her mother’s rapidly heating face.

  To take the pressure off, Marsh turned to the girl.

  “Let’s start with you, then,” she said. “Your mama can watch and try it if she thinks she’s ready.”

  The girl’s face lit up, then dimmed with anxiety.

  “May I, Mama?”

  “Yes, child. If you want to see your chickens again, you’d better.”

  “Well, you’d better do it so that we can get the canards and moutons.”

  That settled it for Vara, and she came to stand before Marsh, making it clear she was going first and didn’t need coddling.

  “What do I need to do?”

  Caught off-guard, Marsh at a loss, then she had an idea. She caught Roeglin’s eye.

  “Ever wanted to know exactly what your daughter was thinking?” she asked, and Lucille gasped with horror.

  12

  Finding the Magic

  In the end, Vara didn’t leave before the others arrived, and she took great delight in teasing her daughter.

  “Master Leger says I have to practice this every morning and every night,” she said, and Lucille groaned.

  “Did you have to?” she whined, slightly put out that she hadn’t been able to see into her mother’s mind in return.

  “It seemed only fair at the time,” the mage answered, “given the amount of teasing you were doing.”

  The girl pouted, then her face brightened.

  “Well, let’s see if I can do a fireball, then.”

  Vara looked momentarily alarmed, then she snickered.

  “It would be one way to clean your room…” she said as she came to stand beside the girl.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Well, I’ve found I can do one kind of magic, but I have two kinds of animals to test for. It was your idea, you know.”

  “Maamaaa!”

  “What’s Lucy wailing about now?” asked a voice at the door, and they turned to discover quite a few of the druid’s rescues waiting.

  Many of them eyed the kat with uncertainty until she flopped down in front of the fire and closed her eyes. Marsh sent a feeling of appreciation over their link, and the kat huffed out a sigh. Knowing the big beast would stay there until their students had relaxed around her, Marsh bent to the task of helping folk discover what they could and couldn’t do.

  The afternoon passed quickly, but the results were better than Alois had dared hope. Although most of the farmers and prospectors had come when it became known that Gustav’s team would help retrieve any animals from their steadings if people tested their ability, there was not a single person left in the fields. The Protector looked at Marsh.

  “This is all your fault,” he murmured as the students moved between instructors.

  She blushed, torn between apology and defiance. Fortunately, he saved her from having to choose.

  “Good work.”

  By then, their respective students had gathered before them, and they had to focus on helping them see if they had an affinity for healing, shadow, or fire. By the time they had to break for the evening meal, it was time to stop—regardless of whether their students wanted to.

  “We need to eat,” Gustav had told them, “and you do too, which brings me to another important part of being a mage…”

  While Gustav had explained about the dangers of using their magic too much, Marsh, Zeb, Gerry, and Izmay had helped prepare the evening meal, laughing when the kat got up to pointedly sniff at the haunch of mouton that had been brought.

  “Now?” Marsh asked her. “You know the rabbits were supposed to be enough, don’t you?”

  From the look on the kat’s face, she did not. Marsh sighed.

  “You’d better not be hungry in the morning. We’ve got a long day ahead of us.”

  Longer than they’d wanted and Master Envermet was not pleased when they took a second night’s sojourn in the druid’s cavern.

  “He says he’s only two days behind us,” Gustav told them when he and Roeglin returned.

  “And he wants our tails on the trail first thing in the morning,” Roeglin added.

  Alois looked disappointed.

  “I was hoping…” he began, and Roeglin’s eyes flashed white.

  He followed it with a look of apology.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “I cannot take them. We don’t know when we will return to the monastery or what dangers we will encounter on the road from Dimanche.”

  “Take who?” Gustav asked, and Roeglin explained.

  “Alois was hoping we’d take those with shadow ability back to the monastery with us.” He stilled Gustav’s refusal with a slightly upraised hand. “It’s okay. I will consult with Master Envermet and the Master of Shadows. I believe they will want the waystation as an outpost.”

  He turned to the druid.

  “If they do that, our people could patrol the trade
routes together.”

  “What do you mean?”

  And Roeglin told him about the plan to set up a group of soldiers to guard the trade routes and the communities of the Four Caverns.

  “Five,” the druid declared, indicating the cavern above the hall. “This one makes five.”

  “Soon to be six,” Marsh reminded them. “Once we have defeated the raiders, the folk of Leon’s Deep will want to go home.”

  “How will they do that?” Alois wanted to know. “Weren’t they all taken?”

  Marsh gave him a look of pure determination.

  “I will be getting them back.”

  “All of them?” he pressed, and her heart sank.

  There was no way that all of them would be alive to be retrieved, but that wasn’t going to stop her from trying.

  “As many of them as I can,” she told him. “It is one of the reasons we are uniting the caverns. Once they are able to defend themselves, I’ll be able to hunt the raiders down to the source.”

  Roeglin laid a hand on her shoulder.

  “We’ll be able to hunt them down,” he corrected, and from around them came five more confirmations.

  Marsh lifted her head in surprise and met Izmay’s determined gaze.

  “What? You didn’t think we’d let you finish the job on your own, did you?” she said. “Not when you’ve dragged us this far.”

  “Especially not when you’ve dragged us this far,” Henri added, looking torn between anger, resentment, and utter determination not to be left behind.

  Marsh opened her mouth to say something, but couldn’t find the words and ended up imitating a beached fish. Roeglin reached over and placed his finger beneath her jaw, closing it.

  “That’s decided,” he said, “and we’ll talk more about how we’re going to go about it when we’re back at the monastery.”

  There was a finality to his tone that defied anyone to argue with him and silence fell. Fortunately, Alois had obviously been thinking over their plans for the Protectors.

  “We’ve found a way of recharging the glows,” he said, reminding Marsh of a topic Gustav had meant to pursue earlier, “and we’ve been training more of our people how to fight, although getting the weapons was going to be difficult.”