It was the kind of thing he was so used to seeing by that point that Anders wasn’t certain that the people of Istlan wouldn’t have treated him the same way, even if no magic was being shown to them at all. Except, of course, that kind of thing really did vary from place to place and even on their trip he was noticing some real patterns taking place.

  The place they’d built in from a distance was off the main highway by two days travel. When they passed places along the main road itself, the people were bolder in regards to magic. Not a lot, but the headman, or in a few cases the priests or priestesses of the place would come out to deal with them, when new buildings came up. If they were needed.

  He’d traveled part of the way before, several times and while he hadn’t put in new inns and town structures everywhere, a lot of places had those already along the main route. What they didn’t have were winter farms set up. Not everywhere. Where there was space not being used for real farming or trees needed for fuel, he tried to put those in, when possible. It took more work, and meant doing part of that in the dark, since their days were strained with other activities, for the time being.

  Mainly training.

  That part was different, even for him, since he had to wake before the sun was up each morning, dragging himself out of his blankets, and force poor Kip to do the same. Then they sat, learning new spells and wizard skills for two hours, while the others with them rested. When they started to stir, after cleaning themselves, Anders showed them what plants were edible along the road, and they had to collect them, as well as build a small fire to cook what was needed and what they could catch each day.

  Meaning, by the time their horses were on the road each morning, it was half noon. Then they stopped for water and at times to put in wells along the way. Those had to be deep structures, that could have the water retrieved with buckets and ropes, not just fountains powered by magic, in most cases, so it took about an hour or more each time. It varied, since Anders wasn’t the one doing the work on that part.

  The new learners were. Lissa saw to that. Including having Kip and Alice do such things every single day. It wore on them, a bit, of course. Still, they didn’t whine about it, simply trying to keep up and not give in to despair at the workload.

  Which was high.

  Even as they rode, they had to do something. Learning Scara for the most part, since they didn't have a lot of other time to practice that sort of thing. It wasn’t an ideal system of learning at all, and they were both being pushed harder than Anders felt was going to be needed for the most part, but they did it without even making faces at him over it. Even Alice did and that girl tended to be cheeky, most of the time.

  A thing that both he and Farad had misunderstood. It wasn’t until the sixth evening of travel, staying in an inn that had been built nearly a year or more before, staffed with an actual family, who provided food and low entertainment, for coin, that his mother noticed what was going on there.

  She smiled at him, touching his arm, and moving him out of earshot of the others for it.

  “Alice is interested in you.” The words were blunt, and seemed to be a little teasing, which wasn’t the normal pattern of his conversations with Lyse.

  Furrowing his brow, then tilting his head, Anders felt skeptical on that idea. After all, the slightly older girl, a woman of eighteen he thought, was teasing and sometimes a bit harsh seeming with him.

  “That doesn’t sound correct. She’s simply playful, like Princess Salina. Fewer pranks or fits, but it seems they’re of similar temperament that way?” Though, in truth, Salina had become far more sober and focused on her work in magic of late.

  She even had made a point of learning to cook the food they were collecting each day herself, even if she were able to transform it using magic already. Lissa had done the same thing, of course. Even Depak had. Then, the older man had taken turns sitting in on the various lessons. Even the ones for Scara, which was his home tongue.

  That, Anders had to think, was about staying engaged and making certain that the apprentices didn’t miss anything vital or waste too much of their time. His apprentices, not the ones being trained by them.

  His own mother scoffed at him then, smiling in a charming fashion.

  “Both are behaving like that for similar reasons, my son. Be careful there, of course, since dallying in the wrong place at this time in your life could lead to problems. For that, if you feel a need, I’d recommend Mary, the new student of Lissa’s? She’s...”

  The very pretty blond woman glanced around then, as if finally hiding what was being spoken of. Not for his comfort, obviously. Meaning something else was going on.

  His mother hissed, just slightly, when she finally spoke. A whisper, not with venom or anger in it. Ensuring that no one would be offended.

  “Mary is learning, but slowly. She’s not strong in magic. Master Depak figures that her strongest suit is likely with the devica. Master Far agrees, but plans to hold that training for her back a bit, so she can learn other magic first. Duke Ford is strong enough that way, but feels that his learning a new trade at his age is perhaps unneeded. Still, he’s doing it well enough. Either of them would be accepted as a town wizard or magician already, if that was needed. Truly, they’d outperform most that way. This learning is rather intense, isn’t it? Especially what Apprentice Kip and Apprentice Alice are doing...”

  There was a question there, but no rebuke in the words over the perceived harsh treatment.

  Not even over the fact that the people working with Lissa were moving at a much slower pace that way. They learned magic, but were doing about ten to twenty new magical components per day and practicing as they went, when tasks that suited their skills came up along the way. The other two were being pressed hard.

  It would, in fact, take Lyse and Duke Ford nearly a year to catch up to the other two, working like they were. Jasmin and Javina as well, though in truth, Javina was nearly their match, at the time being. She’d started far enough back and clearly kept herself learning at a decent pace, on her own. Darren had outstripped the rest by a lot, of course. Then, Anders had worked with him, if remotely, almost every day. On top of that, the man had taken to pushing himself and Journeyman Walden the whole time, so, in many ways, he was Anders’ equal already.

  Truly, in some things, he was superior. His ability to make detailed engravings for instance was easily several times greater than what Anders had ever managed.

  Which had him nodding, thinking about various things. Finally, he recalled that conversations involved speaking, and realized he’d been standing there, blank faced and silent for some time.

  “Yes! That’s just for now, however. Kip was pressed forward by a goddess, so has to do more than the rest for that reason. Alice is... It’s low of me, but even knowing that she was forced to betray Darren, since magic was used, I tend not to like her as well as I probably should. I’m trying to make up for that now, and see to her proper training. That’s all it is. I hadn’t thought that I’d be lying with Mary, however. She isn’t a whore.” He was ready to argue that point, even with Lyse, if it came up.

  Farad, indeed, prepared a speech about letting go of the past, and allowing a person of promise a path toward a better future, without the weight of old duties pressing them into the dirt. He was even preparing to take over, and do the speaking for them, so that Anders wouldn’t be inadvertently rude to his mother. A thing that seemed a little unneeded to the boy portion of him.

  He was ready to argue, not rip the world to shreds in his rage.

  Instead, his mother smiled, her lips curling up at the edges, in a way that seemed actually pleased with him.

  “I know. We all do, in fact. It’s merely that she, out of the women here, will be able to handle such attentions without making any missteps. Truly, I’d thought to teach her how to handle activities at court, after her training in magic. There are skills that cross over there. I merely meant that she has those, if you need such practice. We haven’t spoken of such things. I can... I don’t wish to embarrass you, but people will notice soon, if you refuse women and men alike for too long. Some wonder if you are... broken in that way.”

  Anders had to suppress a flash of anger, but then recalled that he wasn’t as clueless in that fashion as he once had been.

  So he nodded, slowly.

  “Well, I’m not a child that way. Not experienced, but I have had a woman. Once, only. In Barquea. Not at the palace there, since that would be too complicated. Not that...” It was his turn to look around. “A girl came to me, in the desert. Anarra. She’s an ancient witch and magic user of almost every sort. She looked youthful and pretty at the time, of course. She’s the one who told me of Kai? His mother. That... I won’t list things off, and I’m certain you can imagine, but we were alone there, in the desert, so...”

  Instead of acting shocked or worried about him entertaining an old hag, even if Anarra hadn’t been that way at all, his mother... relaxed. A tension that he hadn’t even known was there suddenly fading.

  “Good. That doesn’t stop rumors here, but I can simply assign you to a task that way, instead of worrying that you’re a shattered statue of a man. You could use Mary, I’m certain. She’s healthy and won’t take it the wrong way. Also, you’re to marry Princess Lissa. That could be a problem on the road or at sea. You haven’t been... Entertaining her, have you?”

  The question sounded off to him, when his mother spoke the words. As if he should have been and had failed.

  He made a face then, hoping it wasn’t angry seeming.

  “She’s twelve, so... We’ve held hands a few times, but nothing past that.”

  His lovely mother took a very deep breath and then nodded.

  “I understand, in part. Still, make a point to steal a kiss on occasion and to ask her what she wants that way? It probably won’t be much, but alienating her at this point would be a mistake. She’s probably in much the same state as you, truly. After all, who is she supposed to be practicing with out here? Kip?” Again, that was an actual question, not a condemnation of the man himself.

  As if the new apprentice might just be there for that sort of thing, in truth.

  Anders nearly growled at her, since he had to object to every part of that situation, but even he took her point well enough. Lissa was traveling with him, and probably felt that, since they had a marriage arranged, that she was being held to very tight standards as far as that went. If she were in Barquea, she might find a boy to play with, in a certain fashion, as long as she didn’t fall with child. The other princesses had mentioned things like that being normal there, in fact. Jasmin, Duke Ford’s wife now, had been the one to teach him how to kiss, for instance.

  That kind of thing wasn’t unknown that way at all.

  The real point was, of course, that they didn't truly have anyone to see to such things with her there, except for him. Which, given there was that marriage arranged, might be a little less than fun for her. He shrugged, not having an easy answer.

  “If they wish, I suppose. That might make things a bit strained, since we’re all traveling together for a time. Maybe we should recommend Kip to Mathia for that?” He didn't grin at the words, even if that was probably a suggestion that would have him hung, if the wrong person heard it.

  Hopefully his mother wasn’t that wrong individual.

  She seemed serious for a moment, then, oddly, nodded.

  “I’ll handle that portion of things. Not for some days, since poor Kip is being abused by his current training so harshly. I’d wondered if you were keeping him busy, to prevent such things...”

  Anders looked into the room, at the others who were sitting at the nice wooden long table and shook his head.

  “Then you give me too much credit. I hadn’t even considered half of this. I...Well, let me think about it? Or, as you said, you can actually see to parts of it, so it will happen, instead of leaving me to consider it for weeks, doing nothing?”

  That for some reason, had him hit, very lightly, on the arm.

  “Done, then. Do you have anything new?”

  He shook his head.

  “Not truly. I’m planning to teach Kip and Alice how to transform food in the morning. You and the others should all sit in on that? It means rising early, but then we can have better things to eat each day. Not that knowing what plants and animals are healthy to eat isn’t needed for that as well. We don’t get out of that part, on the road.”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll do that, even if I do enjoy my rest. Stay ready, for the other parts. On guard, as well, over the other thing.” She started to walk away.

  Even as he furrowed his brow.

  “The other thing? Which one?” Not that he wasn’t on his guard close to constantly.

  His mother blinked.

  “The one with Father? He ordered me to stand as hostage, when told you wouldn’t do it, which was always the case. Indeed, Count Rentice suggested the idea, himself, in the first place. I’m not married, and have a certain reputation at court, so the plan was to pass me around there, as an insult to Father. Leaving me barren and broken, in the harshness of it. Isn’t that why I’m here, learning magic? The King told Father that my doing this is far more important than a petty squabble, and word arrived before we left that, while not pleased with the interference, he could see it as real enough, unless it was a lie, to trick him.” She shrugged. “Implying that there would be a payment needed, if that was the case.”

  Anders sucked in air then, and went tense.

  “No one had bothered to inform me of any of that. I honestly just figured it was time for you to learn these things, to be truthful. Still, you are learning magic, and... We need to do more, soon. Meet with us in the morning. Two hours before first light.”

  He nodded, and then let her walk away, as if dismissed. His voice had gone hard, he realized. Insulted by several factors in what had been spoken about. That his mother was suggested as a hostage like that in the first place was a low thing for her own father to do. For Count Rentice to have thought that it would be allowed to harm his mother, even if the words had only been a ploy, or a jest, was a mistake on his part.

  The kind of thing that the man might just not want to make.

  For a moment, a few seconds at most, Anders plotted the man’s death. Count Rentice could be found, if he were careful enough, since Anders had been near his lands before. Possibly through them, if the map in his head was correct. Then, working from there, he could simply remove the man from the world, making the inside of his head explode.

  It might take some effort, but he could do it. He knew that on a deep level. Still, even before Farad had to come and give him the gift of caution, Anders stepped back from that plan. Not totally, in case it would be needed later, but he could kill the man with greater subtlety and it was clear that acting at a distance informed others as to who was casting the spell.

  Meaning that he would need to be clever in its use and only activate such a thing away from those who could use that kind of information to tell who had done such a thing. More, he wasn’t totally certain where the information had come from, or if, of course, Count Rentice had actually been jesting when he spoke of such things as having his mother raped as an insult to the Baron Brolly.

  Acting before he was certain what was going on, or doing it foolishly, were both poor plans. He was still a little upset, but joined the others at the table, with Kip and Alice both seeming nearly exhausted from their day. He’d put in as much effort, and felt more or less fine, himself, but he was used to such things, and hadn’t been forced into them full bore, from the very start.

  Plus, as he’d considered earlier, they were both doing well, and caught up to even what he could hope for them. At least in raw memorization of spells.

  They needed practice, but doing more small things would work for both of them, for a time. Not that he had that planned out, as of yet. He thought about it, glancing at Lissa as he did, since she was the one training most of the people there.

  She was, he realized, pretty. Young, but not really younger than he was by much. He was fourteen, but she was nearly thirteen, which was an adult for her people. She looked up, catching his regard, a faint tickle of magic coming from her, as she picked up what he was thinking. Well enough that she smiled, but didn’t blush over it.

  Then, he’d thought she was attractive, not that he wanted to plunder her in bed. Which, he figured, would be rude of him to think, while she was trying to read his mind. That got her to turn red, through the cheeks, but she still grinned and looked away, almost shyly.

  After a bit of playing that way, he went back to considering the training schedule. Nodding, a bit, as the food came. It was, it seemed a deer meat stew, poached from the King’s Forest, thick with roots and tubers. There was bread as well. The hearty, chewy, brown loaves. That and some watered wine was what they had on offer there, so everyone was eating it that night. It was fine, of course. Not too highly spiced, and the meat was a little tough, but it wasn’t the worst thing he’d eaten in such a place. Still, not speaking about that part of things, he nodded.

  “We’re all learning to transform food, in the morning. Early, so we need to be up for that. Kip, Alice...” He felt poorly when both of them winced at his words. Meaning he’d been too hard with them, so far. Not mean, either, so they feared even greater levels of effort would be required, at a guess. “The next section is on detailed work and fineries. Food will be part of that, but also things like carvings, working with art and so forth. I’d like to ask Master Darren and Depak Sona for aid in that area? I need to refine my own work there, so having more expert hands in control makes sense for that. If you will, gentlemen?” He glanced at Depak first, being closer, but also over that Darren, after a few seconds. Both men smiled, as if the idea made them happy.

  Depak actually perked up a lot then.

  “A very good activity for many of us here! Are you going to have Apprentice Alice and Kip teaching others soon, do you think?”

  It was clearly meant to be leading, but was actually the main plan for Kip. Alice learning that as well wouldn’t harm anything, either.

 

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