The voices were now both coming from the same spot just above me. My pulse pounded so violently I was certain they could hear it. I refused to breathe as I waited for them to pass.
"Smells good out here," the first was saying.
"It's the blackberries, you dolt," the second man, Jared, replied. He shoved a hand in to grasp at a dark clumping of fruit and pulled it back back with a curse: "Fool thorns!"
The other man pushed past and reached in further, managing to catch a hand full of berries and my hair in the process. I didn't realize some of it had come loose from my braid, tangled in the thorns until the man yanked his fist back. As the hair ripped from my scalp an unwilling cry escaped my lips.
I slapped a hand over my mouth, but it was too late. They had heard me.
The next second flew past in a blur as the men yanked me from my den and tossed me roughly to the bare forest ground at their feet.
"Well, well," Jared drawled. "Seems your appetite has it uses, Erwan." He slapped the second man, a tall fellow with a big gut and muddy boots, on the back.
It was hard to see either of their faces as I struggled to push myself up off the ground. The bandits allowed me to draw myself onto my knees, making crude remarks and laughing as I fumbled once or twice before finally sitting upright.
"Now, boy," said Erwan. "Tell us where you and your little friend were headed."
I breathed a small sigh of relief. With all the blood and grime covering my brother's riding clothes they had mistaken me for a redheaded young man. The tunic was baggy, and though ripped at the arms, it still hid my form well.
I stayed silent, unwilling to answer for fear that my voice would reveal what my clothes did not.
"The man asked you a question," Jared growled. "Answer him."
Silence. And then the loud, resounding slap as Jared's palm struck my cheek. My face stung and bled in places the thorns had already opened.
"Now," Jared said. "I'll give you one more chance to answer before I start removing limbs." The bandit was holding a sword. It bore the familiar crest of the Crown's Army. But this man was no soldier. No man who pledged to defend Jerar and its people would dishonor the Code of Honor.
I wondered how the weapon had fallen into the outlaw's hands. Had his band cornered a lonely soldier on some deserted trail and robbed him blind, much like they were planning to do to my brother and me? Or had Jared killed him to prevent the soldier from seeking justice afterward?
There was an odd stain on the hilt, much like the rusty color of blood. Bile rose in my throat, and I forced myself to swallow it back down. In the gruffest voice I could manage, I coughed, "The Academy."
Jared's eyes glittered dangerously.
"Did he just say—"
"The Academy?" Jared nudged my face with his boot. "You an apprentice, boy?" He was studying my face closely.
The large man, Erwan, laughed loudly. "Some mage! Where's your magic?"
My face burned and I looked away.
"So you are one of the first-years, then," Jared surmised. His expression turned from interest to disgust. "The boy's no use. Just another village kid on his way to that blasted school. Fools, always thinking they have a gift when they should be doing real work instead."
I kept quiet, hoping the men would dismiss me as worthless and continue on in pursuit of the mare.
"Boy, did you travel with purse?"
Not much. Our parents had barely been able to afford the coin it had cost to lease the horses for the five-day journey as it was. Though the Academy was to provide a year of free room and board to each of its students, it still hadn't been enough to offset the labor Alex and I had provided in the apothecary.
I cringed, thinking of how much we would be setting the family back when one of those horses was never returned.
"The purse w-was in the saddlebags."
"Erwan, go find his horse," Jared ordered. As the stodgy outlaw began to take off in the general direction of the mare, the swallow-faced criminal kicked my stomach. "Get up, boy. You are going to help make camp until the others return. If you remain on good behavior, my companions and I will let you go once we have passed the night. If you try to run or any sort of trickery, I will not hesitate to use the sword."
I gingerly pulled myself up, trying not to let the man see how much it hurt to stand.
I refused to give him the satisfaction.
****
Hours later Erwan returned with my mare and a handful of logs. Shivering, I quickly obeyed Jared's orders to fetch them and build up the fire. In my condition I hadn't been able to gather more than a handful at a time, and so the flames we'd had hadn't amounted to much. It may have been a summer night, but up in the mountains encased in pine, it was hard to tell.
As I slowly arranged the wood, I strained to catch the men's conversation.
"Halseth? He still hasn't…?"
"No. Either way, he and Carl should be back within the hour."
"Do you think they caught the other?"
"I don't see why not." Jared spat at the ground, and his gaze fell to me. "You, boy, who was that friend you were traveling with?"
No. "J-just some boy, only met him this morn'," I croaked, attempting the same baritone as before.
"You are lying." Jared narrowed his eyes. "Tell me the truth. Is he another worthless brat like you, or does he have power?" His eyes gleamed over that last word. Power. Magic.
"I d-don't believe so—"
Before I could finish the lie, the man grabbed my wrist and thrust my hand into the fire. I screamed out as the flames licked my skin.
Jared let go, dropping my wrist as quickly as he had snatched it.
Blinking back tears I cradled my hand, careful not to touch the skin. It had turned a nasty, glistening red. It burned, and even though it had only been under fire for seconds, it felt as if it hadn't left.
"Well, well…"
I glanced up at the men, hate burning in my veins, and Jared shot me a secretive smile.
Panic struck my throat as I realized exactly what it meant.
He knew.
"Why don't you go collect us some more wood, Erwan?" Jared's eyes never left my face. "I would go myself, but someone's got to watch the boy."
Erwan shot Jared a confused look. "I just brought a whole lot of it—"
Jared snapped, "Just fetch us more wood, you dolt."
As soon as the large man had retired from sight, the bandit turned to face me, hunger playing across his malevolent gaze. Shadows from the fire leaped and danced, making the narrow chin, the long blond tresses, every inch of the swallow-faced man all the more menacing.
"Who would have thought?" he sneered. "A girl. And here I said no trickery when you were intending to play us all along."
I glanced around the site, desperate for an escape. If I ran now, would I make it far? I couldn't fight in the condition I was in. I'd only tussled with local children, never a full-grown man. I might be able to wrestle a boy my brother's size, but not someone a good foot taller and fifty pounds heavier.
Jared took a step closer, fingering the scabbard at his hip. "Now if you don't put up a fuss, I might be willing to forgive you."
Terror. Hate. Anger. Rage. The emotions all raced through me in a coursing panic. Bile filled my throat once more as sweat and fear drenched my skin. I tried to step back and tripped, both hands slamming the ground behind me. I cried out as the burned skin collided with hard earth, extreme pain and heat searing into my arm.
Jared leaped at me, flattening both wrists with his hands as his knees pinned my legs.
I will not scream.
The man bent low, breathing a foul, sour stench as he thrust his lips on mine. I threw my head forward and up, slamming it into his nose. Jared jerked back too late. There was a satisfying crunch and then the thick spray of blood.
"You insolent wench!" The man released my arm and struck my face, making me see nothing but black until my sight returned seconds later.
My face s
tung, but it was nothing compared to the pain in my hand as he dug his nails into the burn. Tears swarmed my vision, and I wished desperately I had found a way to access my magic. Like Alex.
Jared reached for the top of my tunic, and I swung my free arm as hard as it could reach. The man caught it, and I threw my weight into his hold, hoping to catch him off balance.
My act failed, and he sent me sprawling back, slapping me much harder than the last. I prepared for familiar darkness and was shocked instead when golden hues flooded my vision.
I barely registered my shock before the screaming started. I thought it was mine, but it was coming from the wrong direction.
I wondered if my hearing had been damaged.
The stifling pressure and golden glow released its hold. Nothing was keeping me down.
Scrambling in the aftershock, I attempted to pull myself from the ground, squinting uncertainly at the blinding light, trying to make sense of what had just taken place.
An immense pounding filled my head as I continued to stand and stare. The screams were like birdcalls, high and sharp. They kept going and going, and they hurt my ears. I clasped my hands to my mouth in an effort to end the noise. But my lips were shut. The cries were coming from the shimmering thing in front of me.
All at once my vision cleared, and I saw it was Jared. He was enshrouded in flame, fire eating away at flesh and cloth in a frantic inferno. Somehow, someway he had been put entirely ablaze. And the screaming…it was his.
Without bothering to witness the outcome, I hobbled past the shrieking figure and undid my mare's lead. Her eyes were wide and afraid. I prayed she wouldn't try to bolt. She was still saddled, and all of the supplies were still in their bags.
I made swift thanks to whatever luck had led me to this moment and did my best to ignore the pain as I used my bad hand to steady my grip at the back of the saddle while my good one gripped the front. Swinging my leg up and over, I was unable to mask the groan that escaped my lips. Every inch of me smarted.
Giving the mare a reassuring pat that I hoped was more calming to her than it was to me, I nudged her forward with my knees.
"What is— Get back here, boy!"
Erwan had returned. He still sounded far enough away, however, and so I leaned down, painstakingly, and undid the other two horses' leads.
Try to catch me now.
As soon as my work was finished, I forced myself into a crouching posture. I dug my heels in and whooped, letting my charge take off as the other two started and scattered.
****
Twenty minutes later I came across another galloping party. It was too dark to see clearly, but there were only three who could possibly be roaming this road at night. And I could not wait to find out which.
Pulling at the reins sharply, I steered my horse into a hard turn, taking off in a different direction.
"Ryiah, is that you?" the other rider shouted.
This time I turned the mare with much more ease, answering my brother's call with one of my own. "Alex!" Then: "Where are the others?"
"I lost them a couple miles back by the river. They think I am following the stream south. Where are your two?"
"They don't have their horses."
It was too dark to see Alex's face, but I guessed he was grinning. "I'd like to hear that tale."
I swallowed, uncomfortably aware of my pain and the searing heat of my hand. My brother would faint when he saw me in the light. "Alex," I said quietly, "we have to keep going through the night. We won't be safe until we are through this pass."
"I know." He paused, "But let's take the rest of the trail at a walk. If either of us hears something, we can take off, but these horses need a break. I can barely see in this awful darkness…" He chuckled. "I don't know about you, but I have almost fallen off twice tonight and am not willing to test my luck."
I knew better than to comment. "Let's head out" was all I said.
My brother let me lead –I had a better head for directions- and the two of us quietly found our way back to the main path without further delay.
After another hour of hushed passage, we finally left the shadows of the forest behind and continued the remainder of our journey underneath the moon's soft glow and the occasional glitter of starlight.
Fortunately, we were both too exhausted for Alex to notice any abnormality in my appearance. Instead, the two of us remained silently alert, using the remainder of our energy to listen for any sounds of others approaching.
But we did not have to worry. Not once did we cross paths with the outlaws. And several hours later, just as the sun had risen, we came to a very welcome sight. Just beyond the way, a large, homely looking inn stood out among the hills like a god among men.
Alex took off with a hoot, and I launched into chase close behind, eyes glued to the vision ahead.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
About the Author
CHAPTER ONE
The Black Mage: Apprentice Page 32
