Sworn To Transfer

and flowing, occasionally swished back and forth to beat off flies.

As he walked towards them Ciardis saw that his hair was closely cropped and black. His eyes were the darkest brown she had ever seen.

“Lord Mage Meres Kinsight, I wish I could say it was a pleasure to see you,” said Alexandra, “but...”

The man cracked a sarcastic grin. “We’ve never been on good terms.”

He nodded to Ciardis in greeting.

“If there’s no need for delay,” he said in a leading tone.

Alexandra took his cue while replying, “There’s none. No other travelers are coming with us. I assume Lady Vana arrived with you?”

“She did. Let’s mount up then,” Meres said. “We’ll reach the campsite by dark. Terris and Vana are waiting for us there.”

They mounted up on the midnight horses and rode toward the trees. When they rode amid the forest, it was almost like being underwater. The tree canopy was so thick that sunlight barely reached the forest floor and it was already getting dark.

“Dismount,” said Meres as they reached a fjord. “We’ll walk across.” Water sloshed across her boots as she waded into the moving water while leading her horse by the reins. Smooth stones on the banks turned into thick mud, which grasped as their boots as they went across. The horses had an easier time of it. But the water was up to her hips by the time they reached the middle.

“Grab on to the horse’s mane, girl,” Meres Kinsight said. “Let him guide you.” Stumbling, Ciardis hurried to turn back and grasp the horse’s mane. With his weight pulling her forward, she made it across. Deep moss covered the bank in front of them as she reached shore. It squelched beneath her boots. She realized it wasn’t moss with her second step. It was too green and slimy.

Alexandra said, “Keep going, and don’t stop.” Her voice sounded different. High and melodic. Ciardis looked at her with a frown, but the horses were blocking Alexandra from view. Ciardis had a suspicion that Alexandra was performing magic. She could feel currents of air magic moving around her, but couldn’t tell what Alexandra was trying to accomplish.

Ciardis marveled at the trees they met on the other side of the river. Huge trunks the width of five men grasping hands arced upward into the night sky. She wanted to see what the forest looked like in the dawn, but for now she would enjoy the night forest. She crouched low momentarily to stare at a blooming flower, a deep red with glowing white tendrils rising from it. It was as if the plant were magic incarnate.

“That is a red moonflower,” said Alexandra. “As you can see, they bloom at night. They have hallucinogenic properties and also work as an anesthetic.”

Standing, Ciardis saw other flowers she wanted to touch and admire. But she did not. She heard the howls of night wolves roaming the forest. They were pack animals; where there was one, there was always more. She told Meres and Alexandra. They made no comment and continued forward.

After a few minutes they reached a clearing. It was filled with lush soft grass and tents had been pitched in the center. Strong, tall trees ringed the clearing like guardrails with very little space between the trunks except for one opening. As they walked through the entrance, Ciardis felt a tingle down her spine. As if the trees were recognizing her. She didn’t like it.

Moving forward they came to the campfire in the center of the ring. Terris and Lady Vana sat waiting for them in front of the fire with small gourds baking in the hot coals on the edge. While the three settled their horses and walked over to take a gourd, Lady Vana continued to speak to Terris in a low tone. The gourds were medium-sized, with the textured skin of branches woven into a bowl. Lifting the gourd to her lips, Ciardis took a sip, expecting water. Instead a rich soup filled with leeks, carrots, and juice met her lips.

She finished the soup in minutes, famished from their daylong journey over land.

“All right, is everybody finished?” questioned Alexandra. When everyone nodded, she said, “Good, let’s pack up for the night and—”

A scream tore through the silence of the night. A knife appeared in Alexandra’s hand in seconds. Ciardis sat frozen. She looked over at Meres and saw that he held a sword. Where had that come from?

A second scream echoed through the night, this time it was closer. Alexandra stood and began issuing orders.

“We can’t stay here,” she said firmly. “Grab only what you can carry and let’s go.”

“But—” protested Lady Vana.

“Now.”

The gaze she turned on all of them was that of a warrior. Ciardis didn’t miss the fact that Meres had already gathered his knapsack and stood close to the entrance with his sword out.

He began cursing and turned quickly to them. “Hurry. The packs are coming. Leave the horses.”

“Packs?” questioned Ciardis as she hurried to his side, Lady Vana and Terris beside her and Alexandra bringing up the rear.

“Vana, can you cast an orb? There’s no point in us running in the dark only to trip and fall into a sinkhole,” Alexandra said, her voice grim.

Without further words, the three adults created a light orb. Meres led in the front and Ciardis followed behind him with Vana in the middle, Terris behind her, and Alexandria last. As he carefully chose his path, Ciardis wondered what kind of pack it was that they were running from. Now didn’t seem the opportune time to ask.

As they maneuvered around giant tree trunks and hanging vines, the voices of animals chattering overheard ceased. Ciardis heard Meres curse again. Animals in the woods, especially small mammals like squirrels, chattered when they were frightened. Their silence indicated an even greater fear. The hunters were close enough to them that the animals were trying to hide.

“Ciardis and Terris to the center,” Vana said quickly. Alexandra, Meres, and Vana, who’d knocked an arrow in her bow, surrounded the two girls in a circle as they eyed the surrounding forest warily. Ciardis could feel her heart beating fast. It was throbbing in her ears as she strained to hear any sound of movement.

“What are they—”

Then the bushes around them erupted. A night wolf came barreling out of the forest, snarling and white teeth bared in the moonlight. It hit Meres—or, rather, it tried to. His sword gleamed as it arced through the air to slice into the night wolf’s chest. The wolf howled in pain and kept coming. Two others emerged from the trees and ranged around their small group, preparing to attack. Meres began to speak, not in the language of humans but in the language of beasts.

He was trying to reason with the wolves. It wasn’t working.

Vana edged forward. “Alexandra, take the one closest to you. I’ll take care of the other two.”

Vana gathered magic and shot the arrow in her bow. It split in two. Not when it hit its target, but before. The split arrow had reformed into two perfect arrows. One arrow angled left and the other angled right to target the two remaining night wolves. Ciardis was expecting the arrows to inflict a small wound on the large wolves. They were the size of horses, with heads as large as oxen’s heads. She didn’t think they’d go down easy. She was wrong.

The wolves were thrown back into the woods. Ciardis heard distinct thumps and yelps as they landed. Without pause, Vana knocked a second arrow as she waited for them to return.

Alexandra had called in the winds while the fight was focused on the other two wolves. The winds surrounded the third wolf in a gale storm of harsh winds. The poor night wolf was picked up like a stuffed puppet. With a flick of her hand, Alexandra tossed it far off into the woods.

“We need to keep going,” said Meres.

“Why?” said Terris. “We’ve defeated the pack.”

Alexandra pulled out a second knife from her waist. “That wasn’t the pack.”

Chapter 21

Vana quickly assessed all of them and said, “No one’s injured. Good. If we don’t start moving soon we’ll have more trouble than we can handle.” Ciardis heard rustling in the woods and felt unease. As the group moved