The Scofflaw Magician (The Artifactor Book 3) (13 page)

“Much less
insisted on helping,” she concurred. “You did say that good relations with the
Fae would pay off eventually, but I didn’t expect anything like this. I just
wanted to be on their good side, nothing more, as they make terrible enemies.”

“But just as
amazing friends, it seems. So, Sellion, what do you plan to do?”

“A man named
Arandur is supposed to come meet me here in the morning and take me to wherever
they think the ink was taken from. When I left, all they knew was that there
was nothing missing from their own territory. Aranhil was contacting the other
territories and telling them what had happened, asking them to check their own
stores. I gathered the impression that they’d get the answer fairly quickly.”

“I imagine with
something this important, they’d get a response very quickly.” Master stroked
his chin, deep in thought for a moment. “I bet he’s also asking permission from
his fellow kings to share the secret of the ink with you, though. He wouldn’t
answer you immediately even though they have more or less adopted you, which
means he didn’t have the authority to immediately disclose all secrets.”

“I think the
only reason why he could promise to tell me the ingredients is because of my
status with them.” It hadn’t made sense at the time but now it certainly did.
“So maybe he’s doing just that. I hope he gets permission as I’m not sure we’ll
know enough to reverse this otherwise.”

“Truly.”

Daring to ask,
she gave him a hopeful smile. “How much did you discover while I was gone?”

“I basically
caught up with your research and tried a few things.” Master looked irritated
admitting this. “But I also confirmed your feeling that we’ve seen this man’s
work before. It’s not just with Aran and Bellomi’s curses, I’ve encountered him
as well over the past three decades.”

“Three
decades?!” Sevana spluttered, nearly choking on her own tea. She had to beat a
palm against her chest to get her breath back. “He’s been active that long?”

“Hmm, he
certainly has. I have this feeling though that I’m missing something, or
forgetting something that deals with him.” Master raised a hand in the air as
if he were trying to grasp what he was missing. “It’s right on the edge of my
mind, but I can’t quite recall it.”

“You’ll
remember at some ungodly hour of the morning. That’s when things hit me, at
least.” She hoped he did remember. Master had forgotten more than all of his
students had ever known. It might be important, whatever it was. “While I’m
packing, tell me where else you’ve stumbled onto his trail.”

Sevana got up
with the dawn as she hadn’t done much packing the night before. She’d spent
more time listening to Master and asking questions than thinking of what she
needed to bring. With him safely snoring away, she had the spare brain power to
put together a mental list of what she needed to pack. This was not a case
where she could step through a clock portal and fetch whatever she had
forgotten, so she had to choose what she brought with care. Besides that, she
had limited space so she couldn’t just shove everything that might be handy in
her pack either. She couldn’t find any of her neverending bags. They had
disappeared on her completely in her storeroom. She really was going to have to
organize, one of these days.

Not knowing
even which area of the country they were headed to, she packed clothes she
could layer if it was cold, and one thick coat. But it was still summer in most
of the world, so the clothes were light enough to be worn in heat too. Pulling
on her most comfortable boots, she double checked her packs, running through a
mental checklist and hoping she wasn’t forgetting anything important.

Strapping
everything down, she lugged both of them to the front entrance before doubling
back for her sword and hat. Sevana had this feeling that the man who would come
for her wouldn’t be comfortable on any of her flying devices. She’d be forced
to ride around on horseback, which meant traveling under strong sunlight. The
hat would be a welcome block from the sun.

Fae at door,
Big informed her.

Already? It had
barely turned seven. Good thing she’d gotten up when she had. Stepping outside,
she automatically greeted, “Good morning, I believe I’m ready—” but her words
died as she got her first look at him.

Most of the
Fae, for whatever reason, had light hair. But this man’s was a dark brunette,
cut short, with brilliant green eyes, skin toned by many hours in the sun. He
looked so radically different from the usual ethereal beauty of the Fae, more
masculine and human, that she fumbled to a stop. He was definitely Fae—no
mistaking his radiated power and those ears—but why did he look so different
than most of them?

“I am Arandur,”
he greeted, giving her a half-bow from the waist. “Aranhil has tasked me with
helping you, Sellion.”

“I thank you
for the help,” she responded, her mouth automatically moving without any real
thought on her part. “I learned yesterday that Fae names all have a meaning. If
you don’t mind my asking, what does your mean?”

“Caretaker.”
His formality dropped a notch and he unbent enough to kick his mouth up on one
side. “In human terms, I am the tracker and informant for my people.”

Sort of like
how Morgan was for her? Now it made sense, why he seemed more human to her
eyes. It was likely because he spent half of his time outside of Fae territory.
“Ah, I see. Now it makes sense why Aranhil gave you the task.”

“I am pleased
he did.” Arandur sounded as if he truly meant that. Looking down at her feet,
he gestured to the packs. “That is all you will bring?”

“I’ve packed
the essentials, except food.” To her dread, she realized he had two horses
saddled and waiting behind them. So he did expect her to ride? “Um, Arandur, I
hate to be a wet blanket, but I’m not the best rider.”

He seemed
genuinely surprised by this. “Why not?”

“Horses don’t
like me. I don’t like them. It’s a mutual sort of thing. So, if it’s all the
same to you, can we put all the packs on one horse and have me ride with you?”
Sevana gave the horses a nervous look. She really, really didn’t want to ride
by herself. Bad things happened when she tried it.

“If you wish. I
do not see why we cannot.” A funny expression was on his face but he amiably
grabbed her packs before going to the dappled grey horse and strapped her bags
on.

While he did
so, she turned and put a hand on Big’s wall. “Big. Tell Master that I’ve taken
off. I’ll try to keep him updated as I go. Ask him to coordinate with Morgan
for me. I told him to last night, but he was too tired, I’m not sure if he’ll
remember.”

Will.

“And don’t,
whatever you do, let him reorganize my storerooms. He’ll make a hash of it.”

Big made a
rumbling, chuckling sound.
Can’t hurt.

“It can too,
you rat fink, don’t give me that. I can find things in there just fine.” Maybe
not on the first or third try, but she always found what she was looking for.
Master could not make the same claim.

Big just
laughed at her and didn’t even try to rebut that. Frowning, she hoped he really
wouldn’t let Master into her storerooms. Sevana gave him a last pat before
strapping her sword on her back and pulled the hat snuggly on her head. Feeling
more or less ready, she turned to Arandur.

He was
patiently waiting for her, having already shifted all of the packs to one
horse. Arandur extended a hand to her, which she gingerly took, and he helped
to boost her aboard. The saddle was wide enough that two people could sit
comfortably on it although Sevana felt it a little discomforting as there were
no reins on the horse or a bridle. The saddle was there just to help the people
stay on, but clearly a Fae needed no external device to guide the horse.
Arandur put a foot in the stirrup and swung around behind her, his arms coming
around to rest comfortably on the saddle ridge. Not knowing where else to put
her hands, she gripped the horn. It helped her feel more balanced to do so.

With a click of
the tongue, Arandur started them off, and the horses obediently followed his
direction and started heading north-west.

“Where are we
going?” Sevana asked, realizing she hadn’t asked that question yet.

“Aranhil was informed
last night that the North Forest have reported a break into their storerooms.
They are the only ones to have found a problem.”

North Forest?
“And they are located…?”

“The human name
for it is Brennan Woods.”

Ah, that made
more sense. She was aware there were Fae living in that section of the world.
So it was another group of woodland Fae that they were going to? It would
certainly be easier to steal from them than one of the ocean Fae. Even a
magician couldn’t hold his breath long enough to reach the sea floor.

They left the
forest area surrounding Big and reached the main road. It was at that point
that Sevana realized she had jumped to an assumption she shouldn’t have. She had
mistakenly thought the steed under her was a regular horse. When he put the
first hoof on the road, he broke out into a run, and the speed at which he
moved was almost breathtaking. No regular horse could even try to keep up with
him. That was her first hint, but the second was how silently his hoofs touched
the ground. It was nothing more than a muted rumble. Big made more noise
talking to her.

Swallowing
hard, she stared down at the bay stallion. “By chance, is this a chellomi?”

“His sire was,”
Arandur answered, a smile in his voice. “I don’t blame you for making the
mistake, most do.”

A chellomi
looked remarkably like a horse, but they were mythical beasts that could outrun
the wind. Their name literally meant that they could cross a thousand miles in
one step. It was an exaggeration of course, but not by much. She blinked and
they passed Milby, leaving it in the dust.

Well no wonder
he didn’t need any control over either beast. His Fae abilities aside, the
chellomi were incredibly intelligent. She herself could probably talk to them
and be able to ride them just fine. Not that she was willing to put that to the
test.

It also now
made sense why he had put her in front of him. Insecure rider that she was, she
would have been bouncing all over the place after the stallion had picked up
speed. It was Arandur’s solid seat that was helping her to keep her own.

“By human
devices, it would normally take me almost three days to reach Brennan Woods.
How long will it take on a chellomi’s back?”

“Three days.”
Arandur paused before asking, “Just what sort of device allows you to travel as
fast as a chellomi?”

“I have various
flying devices I’ve built,” she explained. “They’re faster and less hassle than
horses.”

“I believe I
have seen them in the sky before. So that was you?” Arandur sounded intrigued.
“Tell me more about them.”

Oh? The
interest he was expressing made her think that she might have talked him into
traveling by that method after all. It was rather too late now, though.
Resigned, she gave him a broad outline of her various devices, then went into
more detail as he peppered her with questions.

Arandur was
well suited to his job. He was curious about human magic, quick to understand
new concepts, and very adaptable to the foreign. It wasn’t just the portraits
that he wanted an explanation of, it was anything magical she used on a regular
basis or had brought with her. Sevana found that by asking questions like,
“Don’t you have something similar?” she could draw him out and learn more about
the Fae in turn. The conversation was enjoyable and intellectually satisfying,
a rare combination. They spent the whole day talking, only pausing when they
stopped for the night at the foot of the Standor Mountains.

“There’s a spot
up ahead I use often,” Arandur stated as the stallion under them slowed to a
more normal walk. “It has a small brook and good shelter from the wind.”

“Sounds ideal.”
Sevana had expected they’d have to camp out and brought along a few things to
make the experience more tolerable. “Did you pack food, though? I wasn’t sure
what to bring.” Mostly because she had no idea what a Fae diet consisted of.

“I did,” he
assured her.

They pulled off
the road without him elaborating and went off into a small clearing surrounded
by pine trees. Their pack horse went straight to the brook and started
drinking. The stallion stood stock still while Arandur slid off his back and
landed lightly on his feet.

Sevana threw a
leg over the saddle, preparing to just hop off, but he caught her about the
waist and lifted her down. “Whoa!” she exclaimed, startled, instinctively
gripping his shoulders to find her balance.

He seemed to
find her reaction amusing, although it was hard to read his expression in the
failing light. Arandur set her on her feet but did not let go of her. “Give yourself
a moment,” he counseled. “If you are not used to being on a horse, then an
all-day ride like this will task your muscles.”

Grimacing, she
muttered, “You don’t have to tell me.” It felt like her legs were rubber,
painful rubber that had been stretched the wrong way for too long. Without his
support, she would be staggering.

An arm around
her waist, he walked her slowly around the clearing, forcing her cramping
muscles to loosen. By the time they made a full circuit, she felt better. She
stopped him with a raised hand. “I’m fine now. Let’s set up camp.”

“Would you like
something hot or cold for dinner?”

Sevana tried to
imagine a Fae burning something, even fallen deadwood, and failed. “Hot?” she
responded, just to see what he would do next.

He didn’t say
anything, just headed for the pack horse and started unloading the bundles.

Deciding she
couldn’t let him do all the work, she approached the horse/chellomi they had
ridden on. “Um, I’ll unsaddle you?” she offered.

The stallion
stared back with interest at her. When she said nothing else, he shifted so
that he stood perpendicular to her, giving her full access. Taking that as a
yes, she threw the stirrup over to see the straps and unbuckled everything. The
stallion was taller than usual, so she had to stand on tiptoes to get a good
grip on the horn and drag it free of his back. A fallen log nearby served as a
good place to put the saddle.

“Perhaps you
are not good with horses,” Arandur noted, offering her a curry brush. “But you
are with chellomi.”

“Horses are not
known for their intelligence. I have a hard time with anything that’s an
idiot.” She accepted the brush gingerly. Brushing with the grain would work,
right? Hoping that was the case, she started in on the stallion’s coat.

“Which is why
you fly.”

“Partially. But
flying is just safer all around,” she answered as she brushed, never looking
up. “There’s no bandits, no territories to run afoul of, no flies or pests to
contend with. Unless there’s a storm, it’s a more convenient way to travel.”

“And yet you
did not offer that method to me.”

There was a
question in the statement and she paused to look at him. Arandur was focused on
unpacking the food, but glanced up when he felt her eyes on him. “There’s too
much of Fae culture I don’t know about. I didn’t know if I should offer or
not.”

“Flying into
another’s territory is frowned on,” Arandur said easily. “But if we need to go
anywhere else, I would enjoy the experience of flying.”