“Magic wielders never tend to enjoy extended time on horses.” Thameus chuckled from behind Ira. His glamor had shifted to make it appear like he was a regular human on a horse with a shimmering black coat that just so happened to perfectly match his hair color.

  “Shouldn’t she be used to it from the journey over here?”

  “Believe it or not, this is a vast improvement.”

  Ira tried to hide her smile as she leaned forward and affectionately stroked her long fingers through Marigold’s glistening black mane. She looked back over to see Kaiden helping to steady Nela’s horse and giving her an encouraging smile.

  “You’ve got this.” Kaiden gently patted her knee before securing the different buckles and straps on Nela’s saddle. “Remember what I taught you. You just have to relax, or else Chestnut will stay as tense as you are. They can sense it.” Nela pushed her lips into a forced smile and nodded.

  “Got it.” Nela’s voice was strained.

  “You’ve already done this trip once. You can do it again.”

  Kaiden patted Chestnut on the side, and gave Nela’s white-knuckled fists a gentle squeeze before busying himself with his own horse.

  The moment he was out of eyesight, Nela’s brows immediately scrunched back together, and Ira could see the faintest trembling of her lower lip. She was terrified.

  Shaking her head and smiling, Ira nudged Marigold over toward Nela.

  “Ready to go?” Thameus called over his shoulder, already beginning to lead the way.

  Kaiden gave a gentle kick to Gus to catch up to Thameus while Nela and Ira took up the back of the group, leaving a reasonable distance between them and the boys.

  “He’s not going to bite you, Nela.” Ira finally decided to break the silence that stretched between them. She wasn’t sure how long it had been exactly, but the sun was nearing mid-sky, and neither of them had said anything so far on the journey.

  Nela gave a tight nod, not taking her eyes off her horse. Ira delicately chewed the inside of her cheek as she tried to think of a way to distract her. She couldn’t even remember the last time she felt nervous on a horse. She was practically born knowing how to ride one, with her father teaching her at such a young age, claiming that it was a “necessary skill” for life.

  Ira’s thoughtful chewing of the inside of her cheek turned into a harsh bite as she tried to keep her rising tears at bay. Her brain swam with memories of her yelling at her dad for never letting her ride the horses beyond the village line. The memory of her yelling at her parents to get out of her room. The memory of her calling them cowards.

  Clearing her throat, Ira decided she was just as in need of a distraction as Nela was at the moment.

  “You’re both awfully quiet back there.” As if on cue, Thameus called back to them.

  So far during their journey, Ira made sure to keep a healthy distance between her and Kaiden, knowing that once they stopped for food or to make camp, proximity would be a completely different issue.

  “Just concentrating.” Nela’s voice was both curt and shaky.

  “What are you so concentrated on?” Thameus called back, giving a look over his shoulder.

  Ira saw Nela’s shoulders tense further at the demand of her concentration being extended into a conversation. Taking pity on the poor girl, Ira decided to cut in instead.

  “On how stupid Kaiden’s hair looks from the back,” Ira cheerfully quipped. Kaiden spun around, scowling, his hand reflexively jerked to smooth down his hair.

  This somehow broke the spell of tension from Nela as a chime of giggles erupted from her. She even released one of her hands from the reigns to cover her mouth, trying to stifle some of the laughter. However, it was too late. The contagious nature of the laughter spread to Ira, who also covered her mouth to try and suppress her snorted chuckles.

  “You know a good warrior that doesn’t need protection stays alert,” Kaiden snapped.

  As if fate was on Ira’s side, a low-hanging branch smacked the back of Kaiden’s head, sending the girls into an unending stream of giggles.

  “Mhm. Very alert,” Ira sarcastically drawled.

  She began to clutch at her stomach as it cramped from her never-ending fit of laughter. When she finally believed she had gained control over it, she made the mistake of daring a glance over at Nela, who was barely holding it in herself, and they both burst out in hysterics again.

  Rolling his eyes, Kaiden spun back around on his horse, but not before throwing a vulgar gesture their way.

  “So, how did you get roped in with all of this anyway?” Ira asked once both girls finally got themselves under control.

  “Thameus asked me. He said he needed a sorceress to set up the protection wards for camp. Nefret didn’t mind my being recruited since I was ahead in my studies.”

  “Nefret?”

  “She’s my mentor back at StoneGlass. She’s also the closest thing I’ve ever really known to a parent, besides, well, Thameus, I guess.”

  “Wait how long have you been at StoneGlass exactly?”

  “Kaiden and I have both been there since we were babies.” Nela shrugged.

  “Babies? Did they… did they recruit you—” Ira blanched not even being able to finish the thought.

  “Oh, Sacred Four above, no!” Nela vehemently shook her head. “Nothing like that. I was found in the—” Nela stopped abruptly, looking at Ira. Her fingers began fidgeting with the reigns in her hands, and the usual gleam in her eyes seemed clouded. “We, um… both lost our parents to the war. Thameus found me abandoned. No one is entirely sure what exactly happened to my parents.” Nela finished.

  “I’m so sorry, Nela. I had no—”

  “It was a long time ago.” Nela shrugged off the comment, her lips twisting to the side.

  Ira nodded. A somber feeling manipulated the air around them. Ira saw the haunted hollowness in Nela’s eyes, which confirmed she was also being plagued by her own demons. A peculiar look on her otherwise innocent features.

  “You know, the other morning, I really didn’t see you when we were in the cabin.” Ira blurted, hoping it could pull Nela out of her own mind.

  Nela’s eyes snapped up and she immediately beamed. “Really?”

  “You were perfectly invisible.” Ira smiled. “How many moon cycles of training does it take to get that good?”

  “I’m in my fifth official moon cycle of training, but I’ve kind of been training my whole life since I’ve been there forever.”

  “Do you like it there?” She hoped Nela couldn’t hear the vulnerability in her voice.

  “At StoneGlass?” Nela quirked a perfectly arched blue brow, and Ira nodded. “It’s beautiful. I mean, really, truly breathtaking. I’ll have to show you my favorite spots. There’s this creek that is always deserted, and it’s my favorite place to go when I need to think. Oh and you have to meet Constance! I think you two will get along. You’re both not afraid to say what you’re thinking.”

  Ira let out a low laugh.

  “Also, the baker there makes the best—”

  “Almond bread,” Ira finished, saying the words fondly.

  Nela cocked her head to the side, confused. “Yes?” There was no hiding the question in her tone. “How did you know that?”

  Ira’s brows furrowed as she registered what she actually just said. She had no idea how she was able to finish that sentence, but she could practically taste the bread now as she thought about it. Flavored with a dash of cinnamon, something her mom never did back in the village. Shaking her head of the ludicrous thought, Ira tried to seem nonchalant in her shrug.

  “Lucky guess,” she offered.

  Nela, clearly not the type to get hung up on the unusual, continued chatting away.

  “Do you like reading? I’m telling you, StoneGlass has the best libraries you will ever experience. I mean, I wouldn’t know for sure since this is the first time I’ve ever really left, but I can’t imagine more beautiful libraries exist.”

  “I love books!” Ira immediately perked up. “My father used to bring me back enchanted books from the coastal market by our village where the illustrations would move and—” the rest of the sentence caught in Ira’s throat as the memory crashed against her.

  Her father trotting back from his recent coastal market trip, a new book and bag of cinnamon-coated almonds in hand to apologize to Ira for not taking her with him, even though he promised he would. She clutched at the pendant dangling from her neck to try and ease the ache billowing inside her chest.

  “It’s okay to be happy when you remember them.”

  “I know that… it’s just… different. It’s not like I’m remembering it as a memory we both share anymore. It’s like it’s tainted. I’m remembering how they used to be because they can’t… be… anymore.” Ira’s throat bobbed. She hated this feeling, but more than that, she was scared that she would never feel happy when thinking of them again. To her, this was worse than forgetting them altogether.

  “Kaiden told me once that he believed if he talked about his parents enough, their memory would become permanently etched into the history of Mundetia. That people would eventually feel like they also knew his parents well enough, and then in a way, it’s like they would be living on.”

  “When you said you and Kaiden both lost your parents to the war, was Kaiden also found abandoned as a baby like you?”

  “Not exactly, but I don’t really think it’s my place to share his story.”

  A flush entered Nela’s cheeks. Her discomfort was palpable as she made this boundary. Ira felt it was best not to push it, but she couldn’t help her creeping fury at the thought that Kaiden also lost his parents at an age old enough to remember who they were. Meaning he knew exactly what it felt like to lose his family, and he still lied to her and let her lose hers anyway.

  Chapter 11

  When they stopped for their midday meal, Ira all but screamed at Kaiden to get his hands off her as he tried to help her dismount. The aftermath left Ira stubbornly hopping off of Marigold by herself and trying to hide the shock of pain that spiraled up her leg when she landed a little too roughly.

  After hobbling over to where the group was unloading the food, Ira couldn’t help but curl her lip just slightly. She hardly considered the spread of cured meats, fruit, and slightly stale bread in front of her as a meal. In truth, if this was any indication of the type of food Ira had waiting for her at StoneGlass, she was sure she would wither away within the first lunar phase of her arrival.

  Thameus insisted that getting to their first campsite before dark was crucial, so he, Nela and Kaiden quickly devoured the food in front of them. Ira, however, had barely started picking at a few pieces of meat and bread before they packed everything back up.

  “Hey!” she yelled, snatching up a couple extra pieces of fruit before Thameus could pack them away.

  “You have to learn to eat quickly,” Thameus said, tossing the sack of food over his shoulder. He made his way to the horses without another word.

  “I’ll eat slower with you next time,” Nela chirped, an apologetic look on her face. She handed Ira another slice of bread with a wink. Ira tucked it away in her satchel with the fruit, hoping she would have time to eat it later.

  “Then, you’ll both be hungry,” Kaiden grumbled before heading off to help Thameus with the horses. Nela stuck her tongue out at him as soon as his back was turned.

  “Very mature!” Kaiden hollered without even having to look at her.

  Nela rolled her eyes, but a smile was already spreading across her face. It was becoming increasingly apparent that these two had known each other for a long time. Ira gave Nela a grateful smile before the duo headed over to their horses.

  Thameus impatiently waited for them to get situated while he frantically looked up at the sun, assessing its position as if it would drastically change in the blink of an eye. Ira would have been more concerned for the horses if it wasn’t for how well they were clearly doing. Not a single one of them seemed even mildly fatigued from the journey thus far.

  “Clearly, you’ve trained for this,” Ira whispered to Marigold, sneaking her another carrot, which the horse happily accepted.

  Having finally gotten the hint, Kaiden didn’t try to help Ira get onto Marigold as she planted her foot in the stirrup. Instead, he took some extra time to ensure Nela was doing okay and settled on her horse before hopping on his own. A gesture that Ira refused to acknowledge to keep from humanizing him. It was as if every time he provided a kind or caring gesture that made Ira’s stomach flutter, she would suddenly remember the life-altering lie he led her to believe, and the feeling would dissipate immediately, leaving a sour taste in her mouth.

  Once they were moving again, Ira began to rattle off more questions to Nela that led further and further away from any topics about parents, family, her life in her village, or Kaiden.

  When Ira prompted Nela more about her peers and friends at StoneGlass, Nela was very quick to change the subject. At the sight of Nela’s typically cheerful features becoming morphed with worry, Ira decided not to push, but she did store the information away for later.

  The more comfortable the pair grew together, the more Ira felt like she had known Nela her entire life. She couldn’t help but feel like there was something so familiar about Nela, almost too familiar. She began peeling back the memories in her brain as if one would reveal a place they had somehow met before.

  “Did you ever feel like you were meant for more?” Nela’s question caught Ira by surprise, yanking her right out of her own mental stupor.

  “Well, doesn’t everybody?” Ira half-joked.

  “I don’t think so.” Nela’s face scrunched up as she went deeper in thought. “I think most people are just relieved that a mark behind their ear or their hair color can tell them what they’re meant to do in this world. It keeps them from having to think for themselves.”

  “Then, I guess yes. I used to feel that, almost constantly, actually. It was like a chronic thought plaguing my mind. Since I wasn’t given a birthmark, and I had no noble title, I always dreamed of being able to go find and make my own destiny. I thought about how I could make it exactly what I wanted… or needed. I always felt I was going to outgrow the village.”

  “But now?” Nela prodded, glancing over at Ira.

  “Now… I just wish I could go back to how it was. I’d honestly give up all of the aspirations I dreamt about if it meant that they would come back.”

  Ira couldn’t believe she had any tears left to fill her eyes, but she watched her vision blur as she spoke. She again instinctively reached for the pendant around her neck, as if rubbing the intricate design enough times would have her parents magically rise from the dead.

  “Sometimes I wish I didn’t have magic,” Nela blurted.

  Ira’s head snapped up to look at her. “What?! why?”

  “My hair is too light. You’ll probably notice once we get to StoneGlass, and you see some of the others. It’s like I was given this gift, but only halfway. Like I can’t reach my full power because it’s too weak, which is reflected in how pale my hair is.”

  “I’m confused. Don’t you want your hair light? Isn’t magic a gift from Aylania… the goddess of, well, light?” Ira’s brow furrowed. She never really educated herself on the inner workings of magic in Mundetia, seeing as no one in her village bore the hair color to show they had the abilities for it.

  Nela let out a soft laugh before answering. “Actually, when sorcerers go through their affinity test and choose their magic specialty, their hair will darken. It’s believed that the darker your hair, the more power you hold.” Nela leaned in and lowered her voice so that the boys couldn’t hear her. “That’s why Escurmia sorcerers have hair that looks almost black. However, the darker the magic you wield, the more life it takes from you to produce it.”

  Ira took a moment to digest the information, an eerie tingle crawling up her spine as she thought of her encounter with the shadow stalkers in the woods.

  “Have you actually noticed a disadvantage in your magic compared to others at StoneGlass?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, I don’t think Thameus, a centaur who has lived for probably longer than everyone’s age in StoneGlass combined, would bring a sorceress who he felt wielded inferior magic.”

  The corner of Nela’s mouth quirked up in a smile.

  “It’s just some of the other sorcerers and sorceresses say…” Nela struggled to find the right words her lips twisting to the side.

  “Nela, to be honest with you, I don’t really care what they say. I may not have a lot of life experience, but it seems that your magic is plenty strong to me. I don’t think you should ever wish your gifts away.”

  Now, Nela’s lips spread into a full smile, and she dropped her gaze shyly.

  Before long, the pair fell into a comfortable silence, and Ira let the lull of clomping hooves and rustling leaves occupy her mind. Thankfully, the thicket of the trees was still enough to keep the sun from beating down on them directly, but even still, Ira was sure her shoulders were starting to turn pink.

  As the day dragged on, Ira’s body began to ache. When she finally felt the plea for another break bubbling up in her throat, Thameus announced they made it to their first campsite. There still seemed to be a decent amount of sunlight left in the day, which left Ira confused.

  “So early?” she asked. Her legs cramped in protest at the question.

  “Eager to keep going, little warrior?” Thameus teased. “Once we all know how to set up and break down the campsite, we will be able to stretch our days a little longer. However, as we learn how to work cohesively together, I think it best that we allow ourselves some extra time to get the routine down.”

  Ira nodded at the clear over explanation Thameus was willing to provide. She began to get the feeling that not many people questioned his reasoning.

  “How long is the journey exactly?”

  “With the progress we made today, it should take us no more than two lunar phases.”

  “Two lunar phases? That’s almost an entire season!” Ira squawked incredulously.

 

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