Castle Coeds 10, page 10
“The closest to being enchanter level would be the twins.” Carl pointed his thumb at the younger woman and man.
“We are not twins.” The redhead scowled, but her eyes sparkled with humor.
“Ten years is a big gap between twins,” the strawberry-blond man said in a hushed voice.
He stood behind his sister, and despite being the eldest, seemed to be the least confident.
“Tell that to your faces,” Carl said flatly, but wore a big, teasing grin. “You look identical.”
It was an overexaggeration, but I had to give it to him, the siblings’ resemblance was undeniable.
“Jacosa and Noll are from the Tiaag Caille Forest,” Carl said, and turned to the other two. “This is Maggy from the borders of Bastial up north, and Elis is from the Trader’s Bay area.”
The group lifted their hands in awkward waves or nodded their heads in acknowledgement. My mental map of Tullia flickered in my mind, and I imagined placing red pins around the northern province where the party was from.
Bastial was part of Castilan, and I wondered if Maggy had gotten her darker complexion from there. She had angular features that would otherwise make someone look stern, but her thin lips seemed to curve into a permanent ghost of a smile, and it softened her face.
Trader’s Bay spread across Lydmark and Shanukstan, and it was too vast to guess where exactly Elis could be from. The older man had kind eyes, graying hair that was cut close, and shared the bluish undertone of the Outlands’ population.
“How did you find each other?” Gwen asked.
“I seem to collect them on my travels,” Carl chuckled. “I was stationed at the watchtowers for a couple years when I discovered my affinity for water.”
“You were a guard?” I asked in surprise.
“How do you think I met Owain?” he laughed. “I went to school with him, became a Guard of the Watchtowers, and then decided to venture off and find my true calling.”
“You didn’t like it?” Arden asked.
“Keeping watch of the Waste was very bleak.” Carl faked a shudder.
“It’s not like it used to be,” I said.
“So I’ve heard.” Carl grinned. “The land was completely and mysteriously replenished, nearly overnight.”
My pulse quickened, and my breath clogged in my chest. Carl couldn’t know how the Waste flourished and became Domum Shine. No one other than our close circle knew that it had been due to Tevai’s healing. I trusted that Owain hadn’t told Carl, either, even if they were close.
“Must be a warlock’s job,” Carl concluded in a matter-of-fact tone. “Must have been Isaac.”
I let out the breath I’d trapped in my lungs, and a chuckle tumbled out along with it.
“I can’t take credit for those changes.” I shook my head, but a relieved smile spread across my face.
“I know what you’re planning with Owain and the other leaders,” Carl said. “We want to help.”
“We don’t possess much magic,” Elis said, and he had a low and calm voice that forced everyone to stop and pay attention. “But we want to learn. With your guidance, we could be able to develop our powers exponentially.”
The older man sounded earnest, and he watched me with a quiet expectancy that settled warmly in my chest. I didn’t want to disappoint them, and if they were offering their help, I couldn’t refuse. We needed all the aid we could get, and I wasn’t about to pass on that opportunity.
“What kind of powers do you dabble in?” I asked.
“Sky-magic,” Elis said. “I can control clouds, rain, and other weather, but not very well.”
“He is better than he suggests.” Carl nodded with encouragement. “He can clear skies in minutes or summon a single rain cloud.”
“That’s impressive,” I said. “It can definitely come in handy in battle.”
“Maggy can spark fires and control them,” Carl said.
“I can definitely train that ability,” I said with a smile.
“What do you do?” Asha asked the siblings.
The question sounded so normal, like she was asking what job they did, or what program they studied in college.
“Noll mindbends creatures,” Jacosa said. “I can project minor illusions.”
“Whoa.” Gwen’s mouth hung open in her awe. “I haven’t heard of those.”
I’d seen Akoni mindbend the cannibals that had attacked us in the forests near the ruined Barricade, but I hadn’t thought it could be done with animals. I was sure Akoni could help Noll with his abilities since they were similar.
I didn’t know what kind of illusions Jacosa could make, but I was intrigued.
“If you’re sure, then you can join us,” I said. “We’re heading back to Domum Shine. If you want, you can tag along, stay in the village, and train your abilities. Akoni and Tevai are very powerful and amazing teachers.”
“More than you?” Maggy asked with a hint of surprise, and one of her eyebrows rose.
“Who do you think taught me everything I know?” I asked with a crooked smile.
I looked around their group and over their shoulders to the treeline. Our horses were grazing and seemed to have forgotten the trauma of the kelpie. There weren’t any other horses in sight, so I imagined the group had most likely walked from the village.
“Do you have horses?” I asked.
“I had to sell mine when I moved to Bencullen,” Carl said with a frown.
I glanced over the four women who stood on either side of me, and they each gave me a short nod as if they could read my mind. We were just enough to accommodate the five magic-holders.
“You can ride with us,” I said when I turned back to face the group.
“Thank you.” Carl grinned. “You will not regret it.
It wasn’t long before we mounted our horses along with our new companions. Bart snorted when I helped Maggy up in front of me, but otherwise seemed okay with the extra traveler.
I tried to pair everyone in a way that would distribute their weight evenly so as not to tire the horses too much. Elis was around my height, so he rode with Arden on Peanut. Jacosa and Andamora were about the same size, and Noll was a few inches taller than Asha so I paired them together.
Carl was a giant compared to most of the group, and the only horse capable of holding his weight was Mr. Clip Clop. The bulky bartender looked massive behind Gwen, but the black stallion didn’t look any more bothered than normal, so I took that as a sign he was okay with the arrangement.
The journey was a bit slower than on our way to Bencullen, but thankfully not by much. Our first day was delayed by the kelpie, so we had to find sleeping arrangements for three nights. We had to camp at the edge of a lake, and on the edge of a main trader route, and then a mile or so before we reached the watchtowers on Lydmark’s side.
We could see the Nepalam Mountain Range in the distance, and it made me yearn for home. I was buzzing with excitement at returning to Castle Woodhouse and seeing the others. It was always torture being so close to our province, but not there yet.
The soil had thawed out in our absence, and the trees and bushes at the center of Domum Shine had started to bloom. We followed the line of yurts from the extending tribe to the castle, and I spotted some of the Shanukstani warriors training with the guards from the Outlands.
I was glad everyone was getting along and working together. It was what we needed if we were to win against Constantine’s army.
As we neared our barricade, I made a mental note to have chains and a pulley system installed to the drawbridge that still laid flat over the moat. I spotted Akoni, Kryze, and Tevai walking toward the castle from the encampment as I hopped off Bart and helped Maggy to the ground.
The witch and priestess were chatting and wore pleasant smiles. When their eyes met mine, their faces lit up, and they rushed over to greet us. The three women eyed the new additions to our group with curiosity and surprise.
“You’re back!” Kryze exclaimed.
I barely had the chance to let go of my bag before the Shanukstani woman jumped into my arms and squeezed me hard.
“I missed you,” she said, and her voice was muffled in my chest.
“Your absence was noticed,” Tevai said in her matter-of-fact tone. “I am happy you’re back.”
Tevai’s sharp features were softened by a warm smile, and her golden eye seemed to gleam in the sunlight.
“How was your rest?” I asked.
“It was needed.” She nodded. “My strength is back. Olivia has brought me up to date with your plans, and I am with you.”
“Thank you,” I said with a smile. “I suppose I have more updates to catch you all up on later.”
“Mmhmm,” Akoni agreed with a pensive look that wandered over the new arrivals. “Who are these magic-holders?”
Of course Akoni would sense they had some kind of power, but I was still stunned by her intuition. I looked over at Carl and his crew hovering around us. They were all slack-jawed and staring at Castle Woodhouse and the lush landscape around our home.
“This is Carl,” I said.
The burly leader bowed his head and had a big grin splayed over his face.
“He’s friends with Owain and Ellaria,” I explained.
“We want to help against Constantine,” Carl said earnestly. “But we need some training.”
Akoni’s large, brown eyes drifted from Carl to Maggy and Elis, and to the siblings with intrigue. The bone and silver carvings in her piled locs tinkled as she tilted her head from side to side as if pondering the meaning of life.
“We are due for another training session,” Akoni said as she tapped her chin with her index finger.
Her chunky, silver rings gleamed like stars. They looked massive on her delicate hands, and some took up her entire finger. It was like her pinky was being swallowed by an eagle’s head.
“I agree,” I said. “We need to be as prepared as we can be before we head out to the emperor’s palace.”
“Here,” Arden said. “I’ll take that.”
The petite woman seemed to have popped out of thin air from behind Carl, and she reached out to take Bart’s reins from my hands.
“Asha, Andamora, and I can take the horses to the stables while you go do your thing.” Arden smiled.
I gratefully accepted her offer, and Carl’s group, Akoni, Tevai, Gwen, and I walked toward the back of the castle. Kryze headed back inside to let the others know we’d made it back and were training.
“I’d always heard stories of the Waste and its monsters,” Jacosa said as she gazed at the Nepalam Mountains in the distance. “Were they all legends?”
“From personal experience,” I chuckled, “they were all true.”
Noll’s eyes widened, and he stared at me with a gaping mouth. He was a few years older than me, but he exuded a youthful presence that made me think he was much younger.
“I heard there were even rabbits.” Noll shuddered. “Is that true?”
I hadn’t seen the hopping creatures since Tevai healed and the land transformed. It made me think of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reruns I would watch when I was eleven. I supposed Anya had it right all along, bunnies were evil.
“We were riddled with them,” I said. “But they haven’t been around since the land became Domum Shine.”
“It’s nothing compared to the beasts the Outlands had,” Gwen said. “Those were horrifying.”
“You’ve been beyond the Barricade?” Noll asked in shock.
“That’s where Akoni is from,” I said. “We’ve been a few times, and the land is safer now.”
I spotted Bahdir at the edge of the encampment, and he waved a hello. He was walking with purpose, and I assumed he was heading to meet with the warriors for either training or a check-in.
“Who’s that?” Jacosa asked.
She twirled one of her wavy red strands around her index finger and stared intently in the direction Bahdir had disappeared.
“My Shanukstani representative,” I said and tried to mask the grin that was threatening to spread across my face.
It looked like someone had an instant crush.
“Interesting,” Jacosa said in a dreamy tone.
“Why?” I asked while feigning innocence. “Do you want to be introduced?”
The redhead shrugged and grinned like she held a juicy secret.
“Maybe,” she said.
I shared a knowing look with Gwen, who masked a giggle with a cough as if she was clearing her throat.
Our small group stopped a few feet from the pond at the back of Castle Woodhouse and formed a loose circle.
“Before we start, I need to know what we are working with,” Akoni said, and her gaze drifted around the circle of people to lock eyes with each of them. “Magic comes in many forms, at varied intensities, and works differently depending on the user.”
I let Akoni take the lead in the lesson because she was much more experienced than me, and I wanted to have a chance to observe the new recruits. She’d taught me and Gwen, and she was the only person I trusted to guide and teach Carl’s gang.
Tevai had an analytical stare, and I assumed she also wanted to observe the magic-holders. Her skin had a dewy glow that made her tiny scars almost shimmer in the sunlight. The couple of days she’d spent sleeping really seemed to have done her some good, and her electric, yellow aura seemed more vibrant and tinged with the color of the sun at dusk.
Akoni pointed a heavily clad finger in Carl’s direction, and there was a flash of hesitation on the man’s face. I hadn’t known the bartender for very long, but I hadn’t expected to see his confidence waver.
“I can’t promise much,” he warned and took a step forward.
“Whatever you can do is good enough,” Akoni said.
We backed away to give Carl more space, and the burly man’s face hardened in concentration. He knelt down and pressed his fingertips to the soil. His brows bunched together, and he bit his lower lip.
I stared at the spot he was focused on with unwavering attention, but I had no idea what to expect. Carl had said he had a magical affinity for water, so I wasn’t sure why he was touching the ground and not using the pond just a few feet away.
There wasn’t the usual humidity that came with Gwen’s use of water magic, and instead, the air became stale. It felt like I’d teleported to the Sahara Desert, and I almost couldn’t catch my breath because it was so dry.
The patch of grass under Carl’s massive hand yellowed and shriveled before the individual blades coiled in on themselves. The few strands crumbled into brown dust seconds later and blew away in the breeze. The spot of soil had hardened and looked like it belonged in the Castilan desert instead of Domum Shine.
“Nice,” Carl chuckled under his breath before he rose to his feet with a proud grin.
“So,” I said as I stared at the patch of dead grass with an open mouth, “you extract water from the ground?”
“The ground, the sky, and I can almost do fruits and vegetables.” Carl shrugged like it wasn’t that big of a deal.
“Wow,” Gwen said, “you’ll have to teach me that.”
The willowy brunette stared at the ground and cocked her head to the side. She wore a pensive look on her pretty face, and her wavy, brown hair swooped over her shoulder like a veil.
“Where does the water go?” she asked.
“I…” Carl scrunched his features and widened his blue eyes. “I do not know.”
“You are quite advanced.” Akoni’s tone was approving. “If you can do plants and fruits, eventually, you will be able to extract from the living, too.”
The image of a withered human popped into my head, and I shuddered. It would be a disgusting death, but it could be useful in war. I was impressed. Carl had the potential to be a deadly weapon.
“I’d never really thought of that.” Carl’s face blanched, and his blue eyes looked like a deer that was caught in the headlights. “I don’t feel comfortable practicing that, but if the time came, and I was faced with the emperor, then I would do what needed to be done.”
“I would never ask you to practice on the living.” I shook my head and held back from grimacing at the thought. “But I appreciate that you would be willing to defend yourself and us if needed.”
“We need to work on your magic distribution,” Akoni said in a serious tone. “If you don’t know where the moisture is going, there is a possibility that you are consuming it. You could drown.”
Carl’s face turned pasty white, and his jaw dropped, but before he could make a comment, Akoni moved on to Maggy and then Elis, who demonstrated their powers. For people who said they only dabbled in magic, their abilities were quite impressive.
Maggy lifted one hand above her head while the other was out at her waist. Her wrists were rotated to the side, and her fingers curved like she was about to dance the flamenco. In the blink of an eye, the older woman combusted in flames from head to toe.
Gwen gasped, and my jaw dropped so abruptly I feared it would unhinge itself. Tevai and Akoni’s expressions remained placid, like they were scientists experimenting in a lab, and Carl’s crew wore knowing grins.
The flames subsided almost as instantly as they erupted, and Maggy stood in front of us unscathed. There wasn’t even smoke or the smell of singed hair, and it was as if she’d never even been lit on fire.
“My issue,” Maggy said, “is that I can’t keep it burning for more than a few seconds.”
“You did brilliantly.” Akoni nodded. “We can work on your endurance.”
“Thank you.” Maggy bowed her head and stepped back into our circle.
Elis was next, and the dark-skinned man went right to work. He tilted his head back to stare at the clear sky. His arms were slack at his sides, and he spread his fingers wide.
The air filled with static electricity that raised my body hair and made me shudder. A hazy veil formed on the surface of the pond. It hovered there for a few seconds before it drifted higher and over Castle Woodhouse’s barricade.
The fog pulsed and condensed itself until it became a puff of cloud the size of a small buoy. It bounced above the pond and started heading in our direction. I looked up at the white, cotton-candy-like blob right as it burst, and a sprinkle of water fell on us.
