The young creator’s brow furrowed and Yiloch felt ascard around them changing. Suddenly the valley swarmed with people and tents poked up all over the muddied fields like some peculiar new crop. Despite the recompense he would owe Terral for damage done to his fields, Yiloch reveled in in the scene. This was the start of his army. It would grow considerably before they moved on.
“Who created the illusion?”
Ian shook his head. Water dripped from his soaked hair. “I don’t recognize the signature. It isn’t strong, but it’s masked well. Any patrols riding by won’t see anything unusual. If anyone rode down far enough to cross through it, I don’t imagine they would ever ride out again.”
A rider barreled towards them, bursting from the perimeter of the army with their horse stretched into full gallop. Yiloch grinned as the rider raced a mad dash up the hillside. The front soldiers backed their mounts out of the way. Eris reined her horse in at the last possible moment, skidding to a rough halt close enough that even Tantrum tossed his head, his hoof splatting on soaked ground in a stomp of irritation.
Adran shook his head at her reckless display, but Ian looked on in open admiration. There were worse people for the youth to admire.
Eris gave Yiloch a measuring look. “It’s about time you arrived. Ian, how was the trip?”
“Good. I—”
“And you two!” Eris cut him off to split a glare evenly between Yiloch and Adran. “You could have told me he was going with you.”
“I do occasionally make decisions without consulting you,” Yiloch stated.
Eris scowled and Adran chuckled, earning another chastising glare from her.
“Is Ferin here?” Yiloch asked.
“Yes.” She wiped a soggy strand of hair from her face. “His recruiting went well. Though he found no one as strong as our Ian.” She added a proud smile for her cousin.
“I need to meet the recruits, but I must speak with Terral first. Adran, I want you with me. And Ian, I want your input on Ferin’s recruits.”
A boyish grin cracked Ian’s face. “Certainly, my lord.”
Eris gave Yiloch an approving wink before turning her horse to accompany them.
How convenient that he could satisfy two captains simply by taking advantage of Ian’s skills, and Ian’s anxiety faded before his enthusiasm. It was working out better than he expected.
When the retinue entered the valley through the veil of rain, soldiers began hailing Yiloch. By the time they reached the manor, a cry rose throughout the army amidst banging of swords and shields, creating a thunderous roar. With the noise, the power of ascard rose around them. Though few of those soldiers had ascard ability of any note, the unified cry drew from their inner aspects, binding them together in their passion.
The horses danced into the courtyard amidst the racket. They dismounted and handed the animals off to grooms. Yiloch turned to peer through the rain at his soldiers. They were here for him. It didn’t matter if they believed in him or merely wanted anyone other than his father on the throne. What mattered was that they were here to follow him to war and more were coming. The ascard energy generated by this display of unity would keep them loyal.
The doors to the manor house flew open and Terral strode out, a long black cloak with thick fur trim billowing behind him. His pale gold hair swept back long and loose like Yiloch’s.
“I had some strange inkling you might have arrived, Cousin,” Terral shouted with a wry glance at the men beyond the courtyard.
Yiloch returned a brief embrace. “Well met, Lord Terral.”
“Indeed! Come dry off! We can talk where it’s quiet!”
Yiloch nodded, but when Terral returned to the manor, he didn’t follow. Standing in the rain, he listened to the din of his soldiers and smiled.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Indigo pulled on riding pants and a pair of tall boots. Her hands trembled while she put on a dark jacket over the simple laced shirt then dragged the bundle she had packed a few days earlier out from under the bed. Caplin would be there soon. They’d hidden her selection as one of his healers from Andrea and Jayce. Now that the day of departure had come, she had only to get past Jayce without a fight.
She clutched the bundle to her chest, straining her ears for the sound of footsteps on the stairs. What she heard was familiar footsteps coming down the hall. The bedroom door opened.
Jayce’s gaze went straight to the bag. “What are you doing?”
No time left for games. “I’m one of the healers going with Caplin’s force. We leave today.”
“That’s absurd.” His mocking laugh faded when she didn’t react and he balled his hands into fists. “Why am I finding out about this now?”
Now that Serivar had helped her improve her masking, she maintained a constant connection to her inner aspect. She could respond immediately if he attacked.
“I thought you might try to stop me.”
“You were right.” He positioned himself in the doorway. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“Why don’t we talk about this?”
He took a step closer. “It’s a little late for that.”
A rush of panic made her dizzy, but she stood her ground. Reaching with ascard, she borrowed from the flame of the bedside candle she’d left burning. He grabbed her arms and she transferred the borrowed flame to his palms.
He yanked his hands away with a yelp and backed several steps, holding them against his chest. “What did you do?”
Someone rapped on the front door.
“Come in,” she called, her voice sounding unusually shrill to her ears.
Jayce’s lip rose in a snarl. He shifted his stance to glance toward the door, afraid to put his back to her. That must be salt in the wound.
Caplin entered and tension swelled. Jayce probably wasn’t reckless enough to assault the king’s nephew, though she wasn’t willing to test the supposition more than necessary.
“Good morning, Jayce. Indigo.” Caplin spoke in a soothing tone.
“Get out!”
Ignoring Jayce’s demand, Caplin took another step. “I’m afraid there isn’t time for this. We have to leave. Indigo?”
Jayce clenched his fists, winced, and unclenched them. Staring down at his burnt palms, he pressed back against the wall.
“Go.” He gestured brusquely towards the exit.
She drew on ascard in the fire again and started past him.
“You’ll regret this.”
Rage boiled in his eyes and she trembled, from fear of killing him now as much as fear of him. He was flesh and blood, easily destroyed.
She met his eyes. “Possibly, Jayce, if I live that long.”
Something changed in his expression in recognition of the danger she might face. It wasn’t concern. His callous sneer sent grief piercing through her chest and the sting of tears caught her by surprise. She looked away, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of seeing her pain.
Caplin ushered her out and down the stairs to his carriage. Accepting a hand up, she settled on the seat and he sat across from her. When the carriage started to move, she exhaled a shaky breath.
“That could have gone worse,” Caplin commented.
She bit her lip, fighting tears and he moved over beside her, sliding an arm around her shoulders. The tears broke free and she wept for a moment in the comfort of his embrace.
“I’m sorry, Indigo.”
“Don’t be.” She gently worked free of him and sat back. “This was my choice.”
“I don’t know how you expect to go back after this.”
She smoothed her shirt needlessly. “Let’s survive going forward before we worry about going back.”
His smile was warm, understanding. “A sound plan.”
They rode in silence out to where soldiers and healers gathered outside the city gates. She’d never seen so many people in one place. Hundreds of soldiers gathered and, easily spotted among them, the healers. Those few not clustered together, seeki
ng support among people they trained or worked with, she could pick out by the strength of their ascard connection.
All healers were assigned partners to work with and watch out for once fighting started. As the youngest, and as someone Serivar had a particular interest in, she’d been assigned to Master Siddael, the senior healer in the group and the one who had tended her injuries after her return from the prison.
The carriage pulled up near Siddael, who smiled a warm welcome when she stepped out. Yiloch’s warrior, Cadmar, stood next to him, his nearly black skin making Siddael look lightly tanned. Cadmar stared at her and she got the uncomfortable feeling he knew something about her relationship with his prince. She met his pale eyes and offered a polite nod.
“You can pack your things on Velvet.” Caplin gestured to the black mare. “I thought you might welcome a familiar mount.” He turned to Cadmar and switched to Lyran trade dialect. “We’re almost ready.”
The big man replied in kind. “Prince Yiloch will be done with his war before we arrive.”
Indigo laughed and Caplin gave her a sharp look, though a rogue smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
“I’ll be pleased to give you back to him as soon as possible.” Caplin turned back to Cadmar, his cheerful tone belying the sentiment.
Within an hour, the troop moved out, everyone riding to allow for better speed to Port Aaron. Because of the cost of transport, only a few of those mounts would continue to Lyra. The remaining animals would return to Demin with the emptied supply wagons.
As they rode, Siddael quizzed students on triage of injuries in battle, stressing the importance of not overextending their ascard ability on minor injuries. Minor wounds could be tended without ascard until fighting ceased to allow for prompt treatment of more serious injuries.
When they set camp, her muscles ached from unaccustomed hours in the saddle and her mind felt numb from Siddael’s drilling. After eating, she sprawled weary on her bedroll. Then it struck her. She didn’t have to fear Jayce making demands of her. No matter what the bedroll lacked in comfort, it was hers alone.
*
Crippling stiffness the next morning came as a shock, but she used a bit of healing to ease the pain going into another day of travel. Once the army was on the move again, Siddael initiated a discussion about mending broken bones.
She practiced while she listened, reaching out with ascard to methodically touch the inner aspect of each person and familiarize herself with their unique signature while paying close attention to see if anyone noticed the intrusion. Eventually she reached out further, seeking wildlife in the trees. She touched on several birds, a family of rabbits, and a doe. Then she spotted Caplin working his way toward them through the ranks.
He swung his mount into step. “Master Siddael.”
“Lord Caplin, to what do we owe the pleasure of your company?”
“I had hoped to borrow Lady Indigo.”
Siddael raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “As you are charged with our protection, my lord, I will assume this interruption of her studies is in her best interest."
Caplin gave a wry smile. “Thank you, Master Siddael.”
Indigo followed him back up through the ranks, trying to ignore suggestive looks they received from a number of soldiers. Those few who knew Caplin well knew that they had long been friends, but that wouldn’t stop rumors from spreading about the extra attention he was giving her. Seeing few alternatives, she smiled politely to anyone who met her eyes.
Caplin settled them into an easy pace near the front. “How are you holding up?”
She inhaled fresh air, thick with the fragrance of evergreens and wildflowers, and exhaled again before answering. “It seems as though I should feel regretful or afraid, but I don’t. I feel good. Better, in fact, the further we get from Demin. Is that wrong?”
“If it is, then I’m also guilty.” He rested his hands on the pommel of his saddle, appearing more at ease than she’d seen him since he took his seat on the High Council. “No misgivings? You don’t hate the discomfort of travel or have concerns about the coming conflict?”
“I have concerns, but dwelling on them won’t change anything. As for discomfort, I’m a healer, I can mitigate aches.”
“Handy skill to have.”
She grinned.
Caplin turned to the man riding on his left. “Deryk.”
“Captain?”
“Continue to the meadow. I want to show Lady Indigo the viewpoint.”
The man glanced at her, his expression guarded. “Yes, Captain.”
Caplin, either oblivious to or undisturbed by possible gossip, turned to her. “Follow me.”
They trotted their horses to where Cadmar rode. In Lyran, Caplin bade the warrior join them and steered his horse away from the column.
Cadmar smiled mysteriously at her and brought his mount over beside her. His presence would discourage rumors that would have come if they had gone off alone, but she still worried what he might know about her relationship with Yiloch.
“How do you fare, Sir Cadmar?” She spoke to him in Lyran since everyone else did.
“Cadmar, my lady. I claim no title. I will do better when I am fighting with the prince.”
Did he yearn to be there half as much as she did? “He must think highly of you, to have given you this task.”
Cadmar gazed at her, unnerving pale green eyes seeming to search for something. She couldn’t tell from his expression if he found what he was looking for before he faced forward again.
“Perhaps he believes I can protect that which is important to him, my lady.”
She wanted to ask what he meant, but Caplin stopped some distance up the hill to wait for them. “You’d think we were taking a stroll by the river at the pace you two travel.”
A slow, roguish smile turned Cadmar’s lips and he glanced sideways at her. “Shall we catch up?”
It took a second to come to terms with playfulness in the big warrior’s expression, but then she grinned. “We shall.”
The horses danced in response to the changed mood and lunged forward together when they urged them on. Caplin’s momentary wide-eyed surprise turned to a reckless grin and he spun his mount, charging up the ridge ahead of them. Cadmar glanced at her as they raced after him and approval in his eyes gave her an absurd burst of pleasure.
Caplin finally slowed and they walked the horses out onto a flat overlook where they could see down into a valley. At the near end, a waterfall cascaded down in several tiers, filling the air with its low rumble, its base shrouded in a cloud of mist. From there a creek meandered out across a meadow framed by towering trees and brightly spotted with cheery pink and yellow summer blooms, eventually passing under a heavy timber bridge and on into the forest. Further out, beyond the distant tree line, the Gilded Straight blended seamless with the bright sky.
She smiled. “Beautiful.”
Caplin turned to Cadmar with look of challenge. “Your verdict?”
“It is beautiful, I give you that, Lord Caplin, but it is not Lyra.”
Caplin laughed. “But it’s beautiful.”
They stayed there, each drifting with private thoughts, and gazed over the valley for a time. Leather creaked when the horses shifted and the waterfall grumbled. A light breeze lifted Indigo’s hair, sending a small shiver through her. The troop began to trickle into the valley below and Caplin stirred, his movement unsettling the stillness.
“We should rejoin them.”
She followed him. Cadmar came last, reluctantly. He appeared to appreciate the beauty of the scenery more than he cared to admit.
They started down at a swift walk, swinging around a bend in the path to surprise a black bear with two cubs. Indigo sucked in a startled gasp and jerked back on the reins. The mother bear rose on her hind legs and roared at them, making an impressive display of her large canines. Caplin’s gelding reared and spun, crashing into Velvet. The mare squealed and staggered. Indigo swung off, fearful that the animal wou
ld fall. Caplin rolled clear when his gelding went down, managing to keep hold of the reins.
The bear belted out another roar and Cadmar kicked his mount hard, lunging past them and drawing his sword. He let out a roar as impressive as the bear’s and skidded to a stop a few feet shy of the startled animal, his sword raised in threat. The bear wheeled and chased her cubs into the trees.
Caplin got to his feet.
“Are you hurt?” Her voice shook.
“Dusty and bruised perhaps, but fine.”
Cadmar dismounted, sword still drawn. “The mare is ruined.”
She looked at him, seeing death in his eyes, then turned to the mare. One of the animal’s front legs bent along the cannon bone. Indigo grimaced, but put out a hand, stopping Cadmar with a touch. His intent, judging from the way he regarded the mare and hoisted his weapon, was to put the animal out of her misery, but she didn’t intend to let Velvet die today.
“Caplin, hold the other horses.”
Caplin took Cadmar’s reins without question while she pressed a hand to the trembling mare’s forehead and drew on ascard. The mare relaxed and dropped graceless down onto her side, her breathing becoming shallow and steady.
Indigo beckoned Cadmar with a wave of her hand. “Can you straighten the leg?”
Sheathing his sword, he knelt and took the injured leg in his hands. With unexpected care and skill, he felt the damage and manipulated the bones into place. The mare made small heartrending whimpers, but Indigo kept her too sedated to fight.
“Hold it steady.” She laid her hands over the break.
Physical contact wasn’t necessary anymore, but Caplin, who had watched healings before, would expect it. Drawing on more ascard, she checked the alignment of the bones then began the process of mending the break and surrounding tissues. As with Yiloch in the prison, she had to heal more than she should in one session, but the mare would die if she couldn’t continue. When the repair was strong enough, she moved back, waving Cadmar out of the way before relinquishing control of the mare.
The animal stood, tentative and probably quite sore. Indigo exhaled, releasing tension built up through the process. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Caplin’s worried face.
Dissident (Forbidden Things Book 1) Page 24
