longest ride of their twenty-one year old lives, Merlan thought. "Are you ready to depart, Lanceman?"
"The question," he said around his mouthful of apple, "is not whether I am ready, little mages. Are you?" At that moment, Merlan had to severely check herself so she wouldn't cross the space and simply punch him. He showed the apple, which he was consuming rapidly, more attention than he did his charges--it was blatant disrespect.
"Yes," Merlan said stiffly. "We're both ready. As you can see, the horses are waiting and loaded for the journey. If we're to make it to Leonis in time, we need to hurry."
His eyes pulled away from hers and the quick flash of a smile was there for the slightest fraction of an instant as he pushed himself up and walked out the door. He left it open and Merlan glanced at Fia--the look spoke volumes--before following him out. With the horses ready to go, all the two women had to do was mount and ride. Fia still had a little trouble with her horse, a temperamental filly named Starlight, and it took her two tries before she was able to mount.
"Ease up on the reins," Merlan called, "she can feel your tension and it's making her skittish." Their tack looked identical and, to the untrained eye, simple, but it was far from that. She could feel the defensive wards snap into place as soon as she was seated. Slowly, her sister relaxed, settling into the wards, and letting them connect. Merlan watched for a moment, then turned back to the Lanceman, shifting in her saddle before urging her white stallion, Moonshadow, forward. For an instant, she glanced back towards the mansion--the life and home they were now leaving. The house rose darkly behind them, as if it felt their absence keenly. She wondered what Father would do with it, now that they were to be mages.
Perhaps he would truly find his way home, then, if he were still alive. The coin still came, each and every month, but their father remained absent. The cold winter wind snapped at her cheeks as the Lanceman threw them into a gallop, done wasting time. Time was stalking them like a wild beast, its claws tearing into minutes of their lives with each second. The Citadel in Leonis would bear witness and the mages
"The question," he said around his mouthful of apple, "is not whether I am ready, little mages. Are you?" At that moment, Merlan had to severely check herself so she wouldn't cross the space and simply punch him. He showed the apple, which he was consuming rapidly, more attention than he did his charges--it was blatant disrespect.
"Yes," Merlan said stiffly. "We're both ready. As you can see, the horses are waiting and loaded for the journey. If we're to make it to Leonis in time, we need to hurry."
His eyes pulled away from hers and the quick flash of a smile was there for the slightest fraction of an instant as he pushed himself up and walked out the door. He left it open and Merlan glanced at Fia--the look spoke volumes--before following him out. With the horses ready to go, all the two women had to do was mount and ride. Fia still had a little trouble with her horse, a temperamental filly named Starlight, and it took her two tries before she was able to mount.
"Ease up on the reins," Merlan called, "she can feel your tension and it's making her skittish." Their tack looked identical and, to the untrained eye, simple, but it was far from that. She could feel the defensive wards snap into place as soon as she was seated. Slowly, her sister relaxed, settling into the wards, and letting them connect. Merlan watched for a moment, then turned back to the Lanceman, shifting in her saddle before urging her white stallion, Moonshadow, forward. For an instant, she glanced back towards the mansion--the life and home they were now leaving. The house rose darkly behind them, as if it felt their absence keenly. She wondered what Father would do with it, now that they were to be mages.
Perhaps he would truly find his way home, then, if he were still alive. The coin still came, each and every month, but their father remained absent. The cold winter wind snapped at her cheeks as the Lanceman threw them into a gallop, done wasting time. Time was stalking them like a wild beast, its claws tearing into minutes of their lives with each second. The Citadel in Leonis would bear witness and the mages
