“Of course I am,” she said, smiling at him as she felt him relax. She raised her hands and began an ancient chant in Elvish that would call up transportation magic to take them to the Outpost as Sath pulled up the hood of his cloak to conceal his identity when they landed. As she finished the spell, Sath threw his arms around her from behind and pulled her against him firmly. Gin sucked in her breath, all of her senses on high alert for a moment…until she remembered that it was Sath—not Ben—behind her. Sath did not know that was the way Ben made her use her port magic, holding her against him so that she couldn’t duck out at the last minute. Maybe she should reconsider keeping those memories barricaded in her mind and away from him? Soon the familiar inside-out feeling hit her, and they were standing in the Outpost. “Now what?”
“Now we travel across the land—it will take a few days, but I want to avoid magic for this. I think it’s time you and I both faced some fears, Gin, and I know just the place to do it,” Sath said. He looked down at her, his teal eyes pained. “I need you to trust me, though, because you aren’t going to want to when you see where we are headed.”
“Don’t be silly, I trust you, Sath,” Gin said mechanically, but she knew that she didn’t wholly mean the words—and he knew it too, thanks to the bond. Gin let out a frustrated exhale. She trusted Sath enough to travel with him, but she also believed in her magical ability to transport herself out of danger. Sath cocked his head to one side and studied her as the hum started to become a buzz—he was actively trying to sort her out, forgetting that she had taught him about the bond and would recognize the feeling. “What?”
“You know I can tell when you are lying, right?” he said, his voice grumbly and sad. Gin looked away from his gaze. “I mean even without our bond I can but now. . . It’s all right, I understand. That’s the point of this trip,” he said, reaching out for her hand. She gave it willingly, and they walked through the Outpost in silence. As they drew near to the Grand Library, Sath stopped, and Gin looked up at him quizzically. “Wait here – I need to find the wizard I have contacted to provide us with supplies for the trip.” Gin nodded as Sath left her, headed for the Grand Library.
She sat down under a tree, trying to find anything else to focus on than giving in to the temptation to seek out Sath’s destination in the bond. The journals from Draoch warned of that temptation. Those with weaker constitutions could use it for evil rather than for good. “Well, look at us now, Great-Great-Grandfather. Your warning has found willing ears.” She twirled a blade of grass in her fingers and looked up toward the Grand Library, waiting to see Sath returning with supplies, but he had not appeared yet. She found it odd that he had gotten supplies from a wizard, but decided to let that go. The less she questioned Sath, the better, she supposed.
Sath entered the Grand Library almost at a dead run. The wizard had told him where to meet her, and he wanted nothing less than to get it over with quickly. Wizards made him nervous in general, but after his experience with Taeben, he wanted nothing to do with them as a rule. He rounded a shelf full of books and headed up the staircase behind them, taking the steps two at a time. He skidded to a stop, almost toppling over onto the table where a dark elf female sat, staring at him as though someone had loosed a wild animal into the library.
“My lady…wizard…?” She stared up at him. “I’m sorry, I don’t speak D’leesh.”
“You’re lucky I speak the common tongue.” She rose from her seat, and Sath happened to notice that she was levitating a few feet above the stone tiles of the floor. He swallowed hard but held her gaze. “You are the Rajah?”
Sath knocked back his hood before he spoke. “Aye. Do you have the items we agreed upon?”
“Are you in a hurry, Your Majesty?” She reached into a bag that was floating in the air in front of her.
“Do you always rely on parlor tricks during business transactions, my lady?” She glared up at him for a moment, then returned to rummaging in the bag.
“I do, Your Majesty. May I ask where you are headed on your travels that you need such potions?” She began placing different sized vials on the table in front of her as she slowly floated to the ground. Sath reached out to investigate one of the bottles but paused, his hand hovering just above it as she glared at him. “You will want me to explain what they are and what they do before you start sniffing them, Majesty.”
“Of course.” Sath had asked around in the Outpost, and this Ikedrian’s name had come up over and over in reference to potion-making. She was said to be the most talented in the Outpost, and he had contacted her—by delivered message—just as soon as Gin agreed to take this journey with him. If his plan was to have her rely on
