WarMage- Unrestrained

by Martha Carr

  “Nope. Once that new fence is finished and they get out to graze a little, they’ll settle. I hope.”

  “That is very reassuring, Raven. Thank you.” He lifted his wide-brimmed hat to scratch his head and chuckled as he stepped around the pen toward her. He noticed the bulging oilskin bag slung over her shoulder and nodded. “It looks heavy.”

  “A little. I got it.” She inclined her head and regarded him with a confused smile. “Why are you here feeding the goats?”

  “I guess you wouldn’t buy it if I said I wanted to try it, huh?”

  “Not really.”

  “Connor came past my cabin at the most ridiculous time this morning—or last night. I’m not exactly sure. He handed me a letter, shook my hand, and said he appreciated what I was doing and hoped to see me still here when he returned.”

  Raven stepped toward him. “Did he say when he’ll come back?”

  “Nope.”

  “What about where he’s going?”

  “Sorry, girl. I don’t have those kinds of answers. But apparently, he was handin’ out letters left and right to the other ranch hands, doling your chores out to the rest of us.”

  Wrinkling her nose, Raven released a sigh and tried to shrug beneath the weight of Connor’s old bag. “That’s what Flynn meant by ‘taken care of.’”

  “Say what, now?”

  “Headmaster Flynn. Grandpa wrote him a letter too, and whatever was in it convinced the man that I need to be on the school grounds instead of staying in the house by myself. So…” She jiggled the bag slung over her shoulder. “I’m moving to Fowler Academy.”

  “Oh…wow.” Deacon swiped at the loose straw clinging to his tunic and chuckled. “That’s a big move.”

  “I know. Hey, I’m sorry that you and the rest of the guys have to take over my work. My grandpa should’ve talked to me about it first. And I tried to tell Headmaster Flynn that I’d have no problem staying here to keep doing what I’ve done for the last few months anyway—”

  “Woah, hey. Slow down, girl.” Deacon patted her overloaded shoulder with another low laugh. “Connor didn’t drop a whole list of extra duties on us without making it worth our while.”

  “He didn’t?”

  “Of course not. Hell, you could stay here in your own house and sleep in every morning, and none of us would say a damn thing after the kinda raise your grandfather offered. And everyone knows Connor Alby’s a man of his word.”

  “He gave you all a raise?”

  The man nodded and stuck his thumbs through his belt loops. “Yeah, I was a little surprised about that too. Not that I have anything against your grandfather, girl. He’s a good man—”

  “But he doesn’t throw money around. I know.” Raven stared at the goats that continued to shove each other aside to get to the hay. “I guess he really did think of everything.”

  “At least on our end, yeah.” He shrugged with a little laugh. “It looks like you’re off the hook.”

  “Only until he gets back. I don’t know when that is, but I’m not running away from my chores here.”

  Her determined frown made him chuckle again. “No one will blame you for heading off the ranch for a little while. Trust me. Times are good, like Connor’s word, and the rest of us can handle things around here no problem. Plus, you have more important things to think about. If I were you, feeding these goats wouldn’t even be on my top-five-priorities list.”

  She licked her lips and couldn’t help but laugh at the spectacle the dwarf goats created when they crashed into the trough, the hay, the wall of the pen, and each other. “Keep an eye on that chap with the one black ear. He likes to butt heads. Literally. And the one with the gray down his back will bolt the second he thinks you’re not watching.”

  “Oh, I’ll be watching.” Deacon pointed at the offending animal, who ignored him completely and munched contentedly on the hay.

  “Thanks, Deacon.” Raven nodded at him and took a deep breath. “I’d say I owe you one, but I guess my grandpa already took care of that too.”

  “Uh-huh.” He lifted his hat again and swiped across his brow before he returned it. “You know, that bag still looks heavy. Let me hitch Presley and we’ll drive you to Fowler Academy. You might not get there before dark otherwise.”

  Raven turned down the worn path that cut across the Alby Ranch from her house. “I’m not going straight to Fowler, though.”

  “Oh, sure. Wherever you need to stop, we can take you. I have to pop into town to drop my other pair of boots with Finnegan Ofstad. The damn sole fell off in the middle of mucking out Presley’s stall. It’s amazing what bad timing that was.” Deacon followed her down the path and the sound of bleating goats faded steadily behind them.

  “I’m stopping at the Moss Ranch before I head to the school.”

  The man cleared his throat and shot her a sidelong glance. “Of course you are. Well. We’ll take you as far as the turn-off, but you’ll have to carry that bag yourself the rest of the way. You saw how much trouble Presley had with a bad storm. Dragons are even worse.”

  “I can’t blame her for that. But a ride would be great. Thanks.”

  “You betcha. All right. Now, hand that bag over, girl. I can see you shrinking by the second under it.”

  Raven almost told him she’d considered a levitation spell in her head and would have used that for the walk to Moss Ranch. Deacon was so eager to help, however, that he took the heavy oilskin bag off her shoulder to sling it over his and she didn’t stop him. Magic still has a price and I might need it for something more important in the future like everyone keeps telling me.

  She rolled her shoulders and settled her satchel more comfortably, her neck already sore from carrying everything she had to take with her to her new temporary home at Fowler Academy.

  Chapter Nine

  Deacon tugged on the reins and Presley stopped obediently. The wagon rolled to a bumpy stop on the main road into Brighton, and its driver turned to tip his hat toward Raven.

  “It’s time to get back to riding dragons and studying as a mage in training.” He laughed and shook his head. “Hoo, boy. I never thought I’d say both those things in the same sentence. That’ll take some getting used to.”

  “Don’t worry. It gets easier after a while.” Raven scrambled from the seat of the wagon and grinned.

  “I can’t imagine it’s any easier when you’re the one doing both those things at the same time. You have a great thing inside you, girl. No matter what anyone tells you otherwise.”

  “Thanks, Deacon.” Raven dragged the oilskin bag from the back of the wagon and hefted it over her shoulder again. “I’m not worried about what anyone says. I know I have it in me. War mages and dragon riders run in the family, so bringing them together into one person was bound to happen sooner or later, right?”

  He laughed again. “If anyone can handle all that at once, it’s Raven Alby. Go enjoy yourself, girl. Maybe I’ll see you in town.”

  “I’m not leaving forever.” She laughed. “Thanks for the ride.”

  The wind blew across the fields skirting the Moss Ranch property and tickled the sweat on her face and the back of her neck. Presley stomped a hoof on the road and snorted.

  “Yeah, I think I can smell those dragons too. We’re goin’, Presley. I hear you.” Deacon flicked the reins, the wagon bumped down the road again, and Raven wiggled her fingers beneath the straps of her bags when the driver turned to wave over his shoulder.

  When she reached the stables and pens of Moss Ranch in front of the massive open field where most of the trained dragons roamed freely, she squinted against the sun. It almost touched the first peaks of the Mountains of Jared. We still have enough time.

  “Raven.” William stepped out of the stables and wiped the sweat off his face with a rag before he dropped it on the ground. “What happened?”

  She laughed and lowered the oilskin bag and her satchel into the dirt. “You’ll have to be a little more specific with that.”
/>
  “You’ve been here every day at the same time after classes for months. And now it’s only a few hours before sundown.”

  “William Moss, are you trying to say you were worried about me?”

  He chuckled and ran a hand through his sweat-dampened hair. “Generally, I’m confident that you can handle whatever you’re doing. But yeah, it was a little weird that you didn’t come when you usually do.”

  “I’m sorry to worry you.”

  “I didn’t say—”

  “It’s okay. I get it.” Raven brushed her braid over her shoulder and grinned at him as she turned toward the lone pen on the other side of the stables. “I got a little held up.”

  William glanced at her luggage with a raised eyebrow before he walked after her. “What’s in the bag?”

  “Everything. Well, everything important, at least. Almost.”

  “For what?”

  “I’m moving out.”

  “You’re what?”

  She turned to smile at him over her shoulder. “Only temporarily. My grandpa up and left this morning and wouldn’t tell me where he was going. But his letter to Headmaster Flynn apparently made it super-obvious that I couldn’t stay in my own house anymore or keep working on the ranch while Connor Alby’s not where Connor Alby’s supposed to be. So I packed and I’m here for the most important part.”

  He stopped, clenched his eyes shut, and shook his head. “That went way over my head, Raven. Can you start over and tell me again like I’m a person who has no idea what’s going on right now?”

  “I did.” She looked across the open field of trained dragons who lay in the warm sun, wandered about with their clans, or jumped into the air for a few playful wingbeats before a graceful landing. “Where is he?”

  “Leander?” William rubbed the back of his neck. “When you didn’t show up like you usually do, I think he got a little…frustrated.”

  She spun away from the field and raised an eyebrow. “We talked about this. Today was the day we intended to let him out and give him a little freedom with the others.”

  “I tried, Raven. You weren’t here and Leander didn’t want anything to do with me or a lead, even when I told him where I was taking him. It’s like he reverted to a dragon who never felt a saddle or a rider on his back.”

  Her eyes widened. “So you left him in that pen?”

  A nervous chuckle escaped him. “Can you blame me?”

  With a sigh, Raven headed toward the stables and the single-dragon pen attached to the back. “I want to, but no. I can’t blame you at all. So when you say ‘frustrated,’ do you mean like normal stubborn Leander who swats aside young mages trying to saddle him, or is he—”

  The metal walls of the pen clanged ominously as she approached, followed by a menacing snort. A cloud of dirt sprayed seconds before a pillar of fire erupted after it.

  “The kind of frustrated that almost burned my hair off.” William pointed to his head and shrugged. “He doesn’t listen to anyone but you, Raven. It’s not a surprise but I did try to get him out of there.”

  “I believe you. This is my fault for taking so long to get here. He’s come to expect me at the same time every day. I should’ve come here first instead.” Another column of fire burst from the ring of the pen and she stopped to unhook the gate latch.

  “I’ll be right here if you need anything,” he said and frowned at the thick gray smoke and dirt that billowed.

  “Thanks, but I got this.” Raven opened the door, slipped into the pen Leander had called home for most of his life, and shut the door quickly behind her.

  William stepped onto the platform beside the wall to peer over the top of the enclosure. I hope this didn’t set them back. They worked so hard to get where they are.

  Raven stood inside the wall and watched as Leander snorted and pawed at the dirt. He turned in tight, jerky circles while his wings twitched and spread only halfway. “What’s going on in here?”

  Either he didn’t hear her or he simply didn’t care. The dragon’s glimmering red scales flashed in the late-afternoon sunlight as he worried a huge divot in the middle of the pen. A piercing screech rose from somewhere out in the dragon field, and Leander raised his massive head on his long neck to respond with an echoing cry.

  It was so much louder than the other shrieks she’d heard from him that she had to clamp her hands over her ears until he had finished. He snorted and blew a cloud of thick gray smoke. “Leander.”

  She said it loudly enough to get his attention in the silence. The dragon whirled to face her and his tail whipped through the dirt. When he saw her, he pawed the earth once again, his flanks heaving, but at least he’d stopped moving.

  “I’m so sorry.” She took a step toward him, her hand outstretched toward his snout. He didn’t back away but the stream of hot air that escaped from his nose was enough to make her pause for a second. “I know you’re upset—”

  “I should be out there right now,” Leander rumbled and his great yellow eyes locked onto his mage.

  “I know. I really should have come here first and if you’re angry with me, I can’t tell you that you don’t have the right. But I’m here now.”

  “You left the animal trainer to take me out on his own.” Leander lowered his head until it was level with her chest as she approached. “I don’t respond to commands. No leash, remember?”

  “Oh, I remember. I think William’s the one who forgot for a second.”

  “Hey, I’m only working with what I got here.” William leaned a little forward over the top of the pen. “I only wanted to help you, Leander. To keep my word when I said I thought you were ready to head out there with the others.”

  “Your opinion means nothing to me, flyboy.”

  He looked a little startled at that but remained calm. “Yeah, but I thought the open field and a little more freedom might.”

  The dragon pawed the ground again and snorted. William lifted both his hands in surrender and shook his head. “I’m done.”

  “Hey, come here.” Raven extended her hand to stroke the dragon’s smooth, scaly snout. He lowered his head even more so she could hold him with both hands. “Okay. Everything’s fine, huh? I know I arrived late and I know what we planned to do today. I am sorry. This whole day’s been a little—”

  “Off.” The dragon stared at her and lowered himself to his belly on the ground, although his wings still twitched a few times in agitation. “I felt it.”

  “Really?” She smiled and drew her hand up the ridged scales between his eyes. “I know you can tell when I’m in trouble, but that’s not what happened today.”

  “It doesn’t matter. I felt it anyway. Your sadness and your excitement.” Leander’s tail whipped in the dirt before he curled it around his forepaws. “And then you didn’t come.”

  “Oh…” This giant flamethrower is simply a big softy. “Did you…did you think I left?”

  “I can’t read your mind, little girl. Only feel it.”

  “Wow.” Raven patted the back of the dragon’s neck behind his head and nodded. “Okay. New lesson learned today. I promise you right now that I won’t keep you waiting if something happens. This one’s on me.”

  A low growl rumbled through the dragon’s belly. “I know.”

  At the pen wall, William snorted a laugh and shook his head.

  “So we’re on the same page with that. Good.” She glanced at the sky that now took on the orange and pink of sunset. “Because I have good news for you too. I’d call that the excitement you felt.”

  “It’s only good news if it includes releasing me from this cage. The trainer broke his word.”

  William shook his head again and blew out a frustrated sigh. Raven and that dragon have a connection, all right—the same levels of stubborn until it hurts.

  “Well then, it’s good news for both of us.” Raven grinned at her dragon and leaned closer to his scaly hide warmed by the abnormally warm spring sunshine. “You get to leave this pen. For goo
d.”

  “What?” William jerked a hand over the edge of the pen but immediately clamped it down again to stop himself from wobbling off the platform. “He’s not ready for that on his own, Raven. You’re not here all the time and there aren’t enough William Mosses to handle the workload around here and keep an eye on Leander. If he wouldn’t listen to me today, I won’t be able to control him out there when something goes wrong.”

  “Nothing will go wrong.” She gave her friend a reassuring nod. “And you won’t have to keep an eye on Leander because he’s coming with me.”

  The dragon uttered another low rumble. “Only if you want your goats to die of a heart attack. It makes an easy meal for me.”

  “Yeah, and no meals after that for a goat rancher.” William bit his bottom lip. “I know you want him with you, Raven, but the Alby Ranch doesn’t have the right setup for a dragon. Even a bonded dragon. Okay, yeah, even a familiar.”

  “We aren’t going to the Alby Ranch. My grandfather left this morning on a secret errand no one wants to tell me about, and if I want to keep training as a mage at Fowler, I have to live in the dorms.”

  He turned partially to eye her oilskin bag and satchel lying in the dirt. Now that makes sense. “Raven, I don’t think—”

  “So.” She gave him a bright grin that in no way apologized for cutting him off. “I’ll grab the saddle. You and I will take off, Leander. Headmaster Flynn’s building a place for you near the barns as we speak. Ready?”

  “Woah, woah, woah,” he shouted. “No.”

  Leander exhaled a burst of smoke and pushed to his feet with remarkable speed and a spray of dirt. “No barn.”

  “What?” Raven glanced at William, who hung over the pen and chewed on his bottom lip. He shook his head a little and she looked at her dragon again as Leander lifted his long neck to stare at her. “Oh, come on. We’ll be fine. Leander, you’ll be right there with me on the grounds every day. No waiting for me to show up late—”

  “You promised you would not.”

  “Yeah, that was hypothetical.” She patted the side of his neck and chuckled. “I know. A promise is a promise, and we keep our word to each other.”