found a nice clear area near the road where we could dismount and stretch out a little. I pitched in and helped Aletha cook lunch. This was not a matter of charity on my part, but a matter of survival. I've quickly learned on this trip to not let Hazard or Shield anywhere near the cooking utensils. They can make sandwiches. That's it . Anything else is hazardous to one's health. I don't even trust them to heat things up properly.
Lunch was happily consumed, and the dishes grudgingly washed before Chatta found anything. She made a sound of victory, effectively capturing all of our attention. I darted over to her side, Xiaolang right behind me.
"What?" I asked eagerly, peering over her shoulder and into the small scrying bowl she was holding. I don't know why I bothered as I wouldn't be able to discern much. I couldn't see magic, after all. But the image in the water, as it turns out, wasn't of a person. There was a scene of charcoal and black stone, instead. Judging from the small wisps of smoke the building had burned down very recently.
"Well, I haven't found the man, but this building was definitely burned by magic," Chatta explained. "He's in this area."
"Good enough for now," Xiaolang declared. "Where are we going?"
"North-west."
Xiaolang gave a sharp circular gesture. "Load it up, people. Let's move."
~*~
By twilight, we'd found the smoking building.
Actually, that was the least of what we found.
The whole city was burning.
The air was thick with soot and smoke, rising high into the sky and serving as our beacon to guide us in. As we crested a hill and came into full sight, it was immediately clear that a good half of the city was engulfed in flames. Acovone is a very metropolitan city built with sturdy brick and granite buildings. I knew it to be a major center for trade, as it was close to the coast and near the border of the Empire of Sol. I felt bile rise in my throat as I took in the damage already done. Even from a distance, it was hideous to look upon.
I didn’t wait for Xiaolang’s order, I just tapped Night’s flanks and bolted down the hill for the city. There was little I could do about the damage already done but there was a great deal I could do about stopping further damage from happening.
I had to find that rogue magician.
The whole team was on my heels, I could hear the thundering of their mount’s hooves behind me, but I paid them no attention. I was intent on finding the magician. I had my senses stretched to the max, but it was hard to find him. Cities are difficult to search even on a good day and today was hardly that.
“Can you find him?” Night asked, slowing slightly as we reached the main gates of the city. He had to slow down to avoid trampling people fleeing outside of the walls. I snatched at the saddle’s horn when he abruptly side stepped to avoid knocking a hysterical woman over.
“No,” I growled in frustration. I scanned the road in front of us, trying to find an opening we could slip through, but it was impossible. There were hundreds of people rushing toward us, trying to escape the city and its wall of flames, and they pushed against us in their panic. “There’s too many people milling around, I can’t pinpoint him!”
“ We need to find another way into the city, ” Night gave a toss of his head, dancing in place. “ I can’t get through, not without hurting people.”
We were at a complete standstill, unable to move against the flow of traffic. Growling out a curse, I reached for the ground deep beneath our feet and built a bridge that arched out over the crowd and over the city wall. Night let out a yelp as the ground abruptly shifted under his feet.
“Garth, warn me!” he snapped.
“Go!” I ordered impatiently. I’d probably owe him a jar of peanut butter later as an apology for my brusqueness, but I’d handle that moment later.
Night bolted up my makeshift ramp, and judging from the sound of hooves behind me, we weren’t alone in our
Lunch was happily consumed, and the dishes grudgingly washed before Chatta found anything. She made a sound of victory, effectively capturing all of our attention. I darted over to her side, Xiaolang right behind me.
"What?" I asked eagerly, peering over her shoulder and into the small scrying bowl she was holding. I don't know why I bothered as I wouldn't be able to discern much. I couldn't see magic, after all. But the image in the water, as it turns out, wasn't of a person. There was a scene of charcoal and black stone, instead. Judging from the small wisps of smoke the building had burned down very recently.
"Well, I haven't found the man, but this building was definitely burned by magic," Chatta explained. "He's in this area."
"Good enough for now," Xiaolang declared. "Where are we going?"
"North-west."
Xiaolang gave a sharp circular gesture. "Load it up, people. Let's move."
~*~
By twilight, we'd found the smoking building.
Actually, that was the least of what we found.
The whole city was burning.
The air was thick with soot and smoke, rising high into the sky and serving as our beacon to guide us in. As we crested a hill and came into full sight, it was immediately clear that a good half of the city was engulfed in flames. Acovone is a very metropolitan city built with sturdy brick and granite buildings. I knew it to be a major center for trade, as it was close to the coast and near the border of the Empire of Sol. I felt bile rise in my throat as I took in the damage already done. Even from a distance, it was hideous to look upon.
I didn’t wait for Xiaolang’s order, I just tapped Night’s flanks and bolted down the hill for the city. There was little I could do about the damage already done but there was a great deal I could do about stopping further damage from happening.
I had to find that rogue magician.
The whole team was on my heels, I could hear the thundering of their mount’s hooves behind me, but I paid them no attention. I was intent on finding the magician. I had my senses stretched to the max, but it was hard to find him. Cities are difficult to search even on a good day and today was hardly that.
“Can you find him?” Night asked, slowing slightly as we reached the main gates of the city. He had to slow down to avoid trampling people fleeing outside of the walls. I snatched at the saddle’s horn when he abruptly side stepped to avoid knocking a hysterical woman over.
“No,” I growled in frustration. I scanned the road in front of us, trying to find an opening we could slip through, but it was impossible. There were hundreds of people rushing toward us, trying to escape the city and its wall of flames, and they pushed against us in their panic. “There’s too many people milling around, I can’t pinpoint him!”
“ We need to find another way into the city, ” Night gave a toss of his head, dancing in place. “ I can’t get through, not without hurting people.”
We were at a complete standstill, unable to move against the flow of traffic. Growling out a curse, I reached for the ground deep beneath our feet and built a bridge that arched out over the crowd and over the city wall. Night let out a yelp as the ground abruptly shifted under his feet.
“Garth, warn me!” he snapped.
“Go!” I ordered impatiently. I’d probably owe him a jar of peanut butter later as an apology for my brusqueness, but I’d handle that moment later.
Night bolted up my makeshift ramp, and judging from the sound of hooves behind me, we weren’t alone in our
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