Sorceress (Book 2) (3 page)

“They’re coming toward us,” she said to Rheysurrah. “Stay back here and be prepared to charge in if they try to attack. I’ll stand out there with Brownie and try to pass myself off as a traveler.”

Leading the horse out from behind the rocks, Kayleigh nervously tugged on the pommel of the scimitar. She put Brownie between her and the people nearing her and muttered a prayer to the goddess that there would be no need for bloodshed tonight.

A voice called from nearby, “Who goes there? Identify yourself.”

“I am a traveler. Who are you?”

“We’re protecting a group of refugees from the siege at Jaruciax. Do you need assistance?”

More than you know,
she thought before saying, “I’m searching for my friends.”

“Do you serve someone called the Master?”

Kayleigh didn’t like the back and forth. It made her nervous. “No! If you do, then we might as well just get this over with.”

“Calm down,” the voice called. “We’re Battle Maidens.”

Kayleigh’s heart leapt. “Laurel is that you? It’s Kayleigh!”

The riders closed the distance and Kayleigh saw they were riding unicorns. “Reese! Where’s the lieutenant?”

“She was captured,” Kayleigh answered, immediately losing that elated feeling.

“We need to check her eyes,” the other rider said. She recognized the voice.

“I’m still me, Marcia. If you need proof, come closer.” Kayleigh conjured a flame in her hands and let the light shine into her face. “Now it’s your turn.”

Temple and Whitaker came forward. Both were air maidens. Whitaker was a thin brunette with a prominent nose. Temple was shorter than Kayleigh and had curly blonde hair. Both of them had normal eyes, not the blackened orbs of an enslaved mind.

“Come on out, Rhey,” she said. “We’re among friends.”

Her new unicorn came around the rock pile and headed toward the other two unicorns.

“That’s Welsh’s unicorn. Kayleigh, is she…”

“She’s gone.”

“Oh,” Laurel said. They were interrupted by loud noises coming from the trio of unicorns. “What’s gotten into them?”

“He’s probably telling them what happened,” Kayleigh said.

“What did happen?” Laurel asked, trying her best to sound like a Lead Rider, and not a scared third year trainee.

“Majherri’s first rider, Danella Lynch, is alive. She’s become a thrall of this Master wizard. I was captured and the Lieutenant surrendered to spare my life, but Danella tried to kill me anyway. I got lucky.”

“I’m guessing there’s more to it than that,” Marcia said. “How can Lynch be alive?”

Kayleigh had been so worried about catching up to them that she’d never given much consideration to what she would tell them until now. From the very animated discussion occurring between the unicorns, she wasn’t certain what Rheysurrah was telling them.

“I’m not sure. All I know is that I was able to forge a new bond with Rheysurrah so he wouldn’t die. Lynch used some kind of magic ritual to call Majherri when we went through the portal. That’s how we ended up in the desert. I’m able to do both fire and water maiden magic. Maybe I’m not even a Battle Maiden.”

“You’re kidding!” Laurel and Marcia said at the same time.

Kayleigh brushed her hands on her pants and cupped them together. She conjured water just as a water maiden could. “No, I’m not kidding. A fire maiden would never be able to do this.”

“What else can you do?” Marcia asked. Kayleigh remembered the air maiden had a relative who was an enchantress, and Kayleigh wasn’t prepared to confess to anything more at the moment.

“I can still do all the fire maiden things, but that’s the only water maiden skill I’ve been able to do. What happened to you after…the ambush?” Kayleigh neglected to mention what she could do with her Yar knife.

“We rode until we met up with a group of refugees. Jaruciax is under siege by this Master’s army. We’re taking them to Shiftla.”

“Danella said that the Master would turn the lieutenant into a slave and that she’d join his army.”

“You left her!” Marcia stiffened and accused. The girl’s face hardened as she pointed her finger at Kayleigh. It was then that Kayleigh recalled that Lieutenant Townsend was Marcia’s favorite instructor.

“Marcia! I’m sure Kayleigh did what she could.”

“I can fight my own battles, Laurel. The lieutenant was long gone when I came to. Danella stayed behind to execute me. I had to face Danella, Majherri, nomad warriors, and a sand troll, by myself. I didn’t get this horse until hours later and there was no way I could go after Townsend. She’d have wanted me to come and get the rest of you and that’s what I did! Think you could do any better, Temple?”

The air maiden glowered at Kayleigh, but Laurel headed it off.

“Let it go, Marcia. I’m giving Kayleigh the benefit of the doubt and suggest you do the same. Let’s catch up to the rest.”

Laurel was being the level-headed young woman Kayleigh knew. Marcia’s behavior disappointed her. She’d always been somewhat friendly to Kayleigh, but was just another person ready to turn on her in an instant. It was an all too familiar tale for the budding sorceress.

“You’re just scared of being found out for being a fraud, Reese!” Marcia snapped.

Laurel threw both hands into the air. “That’s enough! Ride ahead back to the others, Marcia, and get control of yourself. I’ll ride with Kayleigh.”

Temple stormed away and mounted her unicorn. The duo rode off quickly.

“I’m sorry about that,” Laurel said. “Welsh’s death hit Marcia hard.”

“Why?”

“Marcia was on guard duty when we were attacked. She blames herself and has been beside herself with guilt. Just give her some time. That’s all I ask.”

It explained Marcia Temple’s sudden reversal. Blaming Kayleigh allowed the other girl to let herself off the hook. In truth, Kayleigh had enough guilt already. She had no use for Marcia’s.

“I’m sure the others will welcome me with open arms,” Kayleigh said with sarcasm and shook her head. “The only reason we’re here in the first place is because of Danella’s spell.”

“It’s not your fault, Reese,” Laurel said as they led the brown horse to the two unicorns.

“Doesn’t make me feel any better, but you’re right. We need to get out of this warzone. We need to warn the rest of the Battle Maidens what’s happening. How’d you find me? Let me guess, my scent was on the wind?”

Laurel nodded. “It was actually Marcia. She convinced me that there was someone out here. I thought she was overreacting until I caught your scent as well.”

Kayleigh took a deep breath. Up until now, Laurel had been straight as an arrow with her, and she was still being friendly, even in the face of how Laurel’s friend Marcia reacted.

“Laurel,” she started. “Now that Marcia’s not here, I can say this. I don’t think I’m actually a Battle Maiden. I think I might be some kind of sorceress. I can do magic without a unicorn.”

“You’re using the magic in your weapon. I’ve been able to store some energy in this weapon I took from my first kill. You’re just doing it from your dagger,” Laurel said, trying to allay Kayleigh’s worries.

“Laurel, I beat that troll and those other nomads by becoming a fireshade, with no unicorn around. I can feel my power right in here,” she said, thumping the center of her chest.

“Oh,” the air maiden answered. “I guess that’s different then. Why are you telling me?”

“Because we’re friends, and I don’t need any of the rest looking at me like I’m some sort of freak.”

“What’s so bad about being a sorceress?” Laurel asked.

Her question caught Kayleigh off guard. “I don’t know,” she confessed. “I was just finally getting used to being a Battle Maiden. My mother didn’t like magic. I’d have to sneak away just to see the tricksters who came to our town with the festivals. Maybe I’m just worrying too much, but it’s not like the past few days haven’t given me enough to worry about.”

“Hmm,” Laurel said. “Seems to me you’re a little more than just a trickster.”

She noticed that Laurel didn’t address Kayleigh’s fears, but focused on a minor point. “I might be able to even learn some air magic if you can find time to show me.”

“I can do that,” Whitaker said, climbing into her saddle. “Thanks for saying we’re friends, Kayleigh, and don’t worry, I won’t betray your trust. I can’t speak for the others, but I’m really glad to see you again.”

“Thanks, Laurel. I appreciate it.”

They walked back to where their two unicorns and the one horse stood waiting. Once in her saddle, she felt the weight of her fatigue drop on her like sacks of grain, as they started after Marcia Temple. For the first time since she’d been tossed into a war on the wrong side of the world, Kayleigh felt a measure of relief.

“I heard you were here,” the female unicorn said. “May I approach?”

Startled, Majherri failed to notice her arrival. He had been lost in thought with what the human warrior told him. Kayleigh Reese still lived! The notion shook him to his core and he wondered how long he’d stood in this spot staring at the oasis. His new four-legged companion came closer, almost as if she feared his wrath.

“You!”
he exclaimed
.
The female’s normally proud and haughty demeanor was missing.
“Cyemma?”

“Yes, Majherri. I figured I would come to you first, so we could dispense with the part where you point out that you were right, and we did not heed your warnings about trouble out here. I am already condemned, but I have no wish to be lectured like a newborn foal. Just say what you need to say and let it be over with.”

Majherri carefully regarded the last unicorn he’d successfully mated with.
“Do you think so little of me? Perhaps, seasons ago, I was that unicorn, but time and experience have taught me lessons I would not wish upon others. I am no longer that unicorn, Cyemma, and I take no joy in our shared plight.”

Silence met his proclamation. Majherri did take a perverse delight in quieting one of the most talkative members of his kind. The Council of the Greater Herd had ostracized him, banned him from mating, and had made the last two seasons of his life miserable. Cyemma was not a member of the council. Like all the others, she abided by their decisions, but the threat facing the Blessed Continent dwarfed petty grudges over something the female had little control.

“You have changed,”
she replied.

“I do not know whether it is for the better or for the worse,”
he conceded.
“Even so, this can wait. We are warriors, Cyemma. We fight for our riders, even if it is against what they think they desire. How long have you been here?”

“Nearly four weeks. My rider succumbed to that vile thing in the cistern after a week, and I find myself compelled to obey Penelope’s commands. She is no longer herself! Her will is too powerful.”

“I know, but you should continue to fight against her demands. Perhaps the farther your rider moves from the Dark One’s beating heart, the weaker that call will become.”

Cyemma went rigid.
“That’s what it is? The humans have called upon a netherbeast! Are they mad?”

“Consumed by their lust for power,”
he answered, agreeing with her.
“My missing memories from my time lost in the desert have returned. Danella and I fought the beast as it was crossing into our world. The cracked tip of my horn is embedded in that foul abomination, and I wonder if that is the taint allowing our enthralled riders to command us so.”

“But what can we do?”

“Whatever you can,”
Majherri said in a stern tone, swishing his tail multiple times to emphasize his point. The female’s beauty was matched only by her foolishness.
“Make the bond your battlefield. Fight, taking strength from the spirits of those who have gone before, or cooperate and lull them into thinking you’ve given up, only to throw your resistance at them when your rider least expects it! This foul magic corrupts our bond, and purging it is where salvation lies.”

Cyemma pranced around him.
“I doubt it will work, but you’re right, we must try. They’ve been making my rider go to the surrounding villages with soldiers at our side. She tells the human leaders there that the Sultan of Jaruciax has lost the faith of the High-King and his Council, and has been declared to be an enemy. Base trickery! Some believe her. Others have already heard the warnings about war and fight, or flee before we arrive.”

Majherri mulled over the strategy employed by Count Darius and his forces. The Battle Maidens were the symbol of the High-King’s might. Even the unicorn had to admit, it was a clever tactic that would achieve many easy victories, and allow this army to quickly acquire supplies and territory.

“How long do you think the city will hold?”

Cyemma’s reply was laced with uncertainty.
“I ran into Torvus and his earth maiden rider. He was on his way to the siege and didn’t believe it would last much longer. He said the leader of this army is rumored to have a flying beast.”

He’d known the male unicorn she named from his time as a scout in this land.
“I’ve seen the manticore with my own eyes. Torvus speaks true.”

“And I am the one who usually has all the information,”
she scoffed.
“I find myself woefully out of sorts now. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, Majherri. As I encounter others, I will tell them what I know and in turn find out what they have learned. Perhaps together we will find the answers we need to free our riders.”

“Agreed,”
Majherri said, and brushed his horn against hers in a gesture of friendship and affection.
“I heard Danella say there were seven other maidens in the service of Darius. Another is being broken as we speak, an officer from The Academy who rides Osalon. Dark magic brought a small group of us through the portal in the desert.”

She did not move back from his touch. That alone spoke volumes about how scared Cyemma was.
“Untrained unicorns and children trapped in the middle of this war! I fear for them.”

“My second rider is out there as well,”
he continued.

“The girl still lives?”

“Yes. I have no explanation as to why, but I know it does not please Danella. It will be a shameful act on my part to use this against my Danella, but use it I shall.”

“If that is your intention, Majherri, I fear for you as well. My rider and the others fear Danella Lynch. The vile sorcerer used her to perfect his magic that controls our riders. Even the other maidens know she has been driven beyond the brink of madness. Her spirit may be beyond redemption’s reach.”

Majherri tensed in anger, but could not deny the truth of her words.
“I challenged a netherbeast for Danella. As long as I draw breath, I will not forsake her or consign her to this fate.”

Cyemma gently nuzzled him.
“You are stubborn and wild, Majherri. It was what attracted so many of us in the herd to be by your side during the mating season. I fell under that spell as well, but realized quickly you would not be broken. I would stand and stare at the lights in the sky, trying to think of ways to bend you to my will and never could come up with anything. Do not break now, you stupid male! Save your rider!”

There was an unexpected fierceness in her words that caught him by surprise. It touched him on an instinctive level. He covered for it by saying,
“You almost sound like you care, Cyemma.”

“Penelope calls me,”
she said, ignoring his comment.
“I must go. Safe journey to you.”

“Despite the circumstances, it is good to see you as well, Cyemma. Safe journey to you as well.”

He admired her retreating form, wondering if Cyemma’s rider had actually called. She was a truly beautiful creature. They’d spoken briefly during mating season, and he hadn’t been interested in her at all. It was not mating season now, but he’d definitely felt something in her presence.

This made him worry.
Is the magic corrupting my rider spreading through the bond to me as well?

“There you are,” Danella said. Majherri watched the way she walked toward him on her two legs, carrying a saddle. Other than her completely black eyes, she didn’t move or speak differently, but he already knew that things were wrong. She moved slower than normal, but that was probably due to the injury inflicted by Kayleigh’s bone knife.

After his odd conversation with Cyemma and the young warrior, he’d left the spot overlooking the grand pavilion and ventured to the center of the oasis. A worker filled a trough and, as he drank, horses were led alongside of him. The “old” Majherri would have been incensed at being forced to drink with the stupid animals. He decided this wasn’t a battle worth fighting and finished quickly.

Though I doubt humans would sit down to eat with dogs or pigs, I would be embarrassed if I had any standing left to begin with.

His rider fished around in one of the saddlebags for a pair of peaches and offered one to him, while biting into the other. “You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to get these out here. One of the Master’s acolytes transforms them from some of the local produce for me. The poor, delusional boy hopes to curry favor with me now that you have returned to my side. I sit in a favored position at the Master’s table, Majherri.”

He stopped biting the peach and stepped back from her.

When did you become interested in your own standing?
Indeed, Danella used to scold him about his interest in standing amongst his herd.

Her expression hardened, and she said, “You do not approve?”

Shaking his head from side to side, he answered her.

“Do you have any idea what I’ve been through? The things I had to do to bring you back to me! And after all that, you go and take another rider! What about loyalty, Majherri? What about everything we had together? How could you betray me so?”

The saddle dropped to the ground as his rider quivered in rage. She stepped forward and reached to the sword on her side. The comments he’d heard concerning her sanity were confirmed.

Pausing with the blade drawn halfway, she said, “No! This isn’t how I imagined us together again. I know you’re mad about the girl, but it had to be done. Put yourself in my position. What would you do if I had another unicorn? She wouldn’t have just given you back. We both know that. If your bond with her had been real, I wouldn’t have been able to break it.”

Her words were cruel barbs trying to get at his insecurities. Snorting loudly, he turned his back on her in anger.

“Fine, Majherri,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper before rising again. “You’ll accept the truth eventually. Until then, come here!”

The unicorn felt the power of her command overwhelm him. He fought back with all his willpower, but it only made him stumble slightly as he moved to her side. It was insulting, degrading, and he wondered if it was worse for him because of his horn tip being embedded in that thing’s heart. Still, Majherri would learn from this. He would meet her next commands with stalwart resistance and see if it made a difference. This was not a battle that could be fought in a single engagement.

“I will not tolerate any misbehavior on your part, Majherri. We’ve been given a mission by the Master. We are riding to the frontlines for the assault on Jaruciax and you will
not
embarrass me in front of him.”

She took no care, slamming the saddle painfully onto his back and securing it. As Danella climbed into the saddle, Majherri felt the physical manifestation of their bond. With a clearer mind, the unicorn sensed the taint of the netherbeast within the bond it. It bothered him more than the crack in his horn or the unsightly scars on his side.

“Battle calls us,” Danella said, leaning forward and speaking into his ear. Her hand moved through his mane, stroking the hairs and trying to sooth him. “We were meant to be together and fight side-by-side. Ride with me, Majherri! Ride!”

Prodded by the unsavory magic poisoning their sacred bond, Majherri broke into a spirited gallop toward the cluster of wagons and soldiers that slowly made their way from the sanctuary of the oasis. At the edge of his vision, he saw a shape dart into the sky. It was Count Darius riding his manticore. The creature had the body of a lion, brown leathery wings, and the red segmented tail of a scorpion.

The humans called Darius, The Mad Usurper. Eighty seasons ago, he’d led a rebellion along with several of the southern kingdoms, and the sympathies and support from some here in the West. Cities burned and rivers of blood were spilled for many seasons before Darius was finally stopped. The world thought this human wizard defeated and dead. Clearly, they were wrong, and would soon be paying the price for their ignorance.

The columns of troops escorting the supplies followed distant landmarks until the shifting sands gave way to the dirt. Despite the heat, they made good time, especially when the winds picked up. The breeze was more than enough to cool them, but insufficient to create a dust storm.

“Even the elements join in the Master’s righteous cause,” Danella said to Penelope Garrett, who rode Cyemma.

“Truly, Danella,” Penelope replied. “It is also good to see you in the saddle again. Your skill has been sorely missed. I suspect Jaruciax would have fallen days ago were you among us.”

Majherri noted how quickly the air maiden agreed with his rider. The simpering compliment that followed annoyed him and he caught the attention of the nearby female.

“Is this what you meant when you said the others fear her?”

Cyemma pretended that she didn’t hear him. When he asked again, she snorted dismissively.

“We should not discuss this in the company of our riders,”
she cautioned.

Majherri neighed loudly and replied,
“Why not? My rider already knows it to be true. Yours does as well. When did we become so meek that we cannot give voice to the truth?”