Acolyte

Chapter Five

DECEMBER

I wake up before Solana. My head is pounding with a hangover, but I get up and manage to make it to Solana's cot, shaking her awake.

"You have magic!" I say, accusatorily.

She blinks awake, clearly startled.

"Sorry," I say, coming to my senses and stepping back, "You said we could talk about it in the morning."

Solana rubs her eyes, slowly sitting up, "I think I meant when I woke up, but alright. I used to have magic."

I feel vindicated, "But you still have some, right? You healed me."

"Healing minor injuries is the most basic form of magic. Barely magic, I think I said. It isn't a big deal."

"It's definitely a big deal," I say, "I mean, what else could you heal?"

Solana shrugs, "Sore throats, mild colds, bruises, fractures, headaches."

"Headaches? Really?"

She nods, then frowns, "You have a headache, don't you."

I smile sheepishly, "I do."

She sighs and places her hands on my temple. For a moment I wonder if this was all an elaborate plot to kill me- surely if she can heal she can also hurt? But then, the warmth spreads throughout my skull, and the headache is gone.

"Next time you get promoted, you won't be drinking so much," she says.

I scoff. "You can't tell me that," I say.

"I can when I'm the one healing your hangovers," she retorts.

I'm quiet. She has a point, but I'm not happy about it. I guess I could exchange a few extra celebratory evenings for infinite access to healing power.

We busy ourselves preparing for the day, Solana doing her hair as usual. All I have to do is pull on my boots, fill my canteen and change clothes.

"Do you have any plans for today?" I ask as we walk to breakfast.

She smiles sheepishly, "I thought I might watch your training."

"Oh!" I say. I'm surprised she's so interested, but flattered, "Of course. I used to watch."

"Are you excited?" she asks.

I nod earnestly, "More than pretty much anything I've ever done before."

"Are you nervous?"

I nod, less earnestly, "A little... But it's alright." I am nervous, this is all happening so fast, it feels like it could get taken away just as quickly.

Solana smiles knowingly, "It'll all be alright." Somehow, I feel more at peace having heard that.

Breakfast goes by in the blink of an eye, and suddenly I'm at the stables. The riding brigade almost always trains separately from the rest of the militia, focusing almost entirely on horseback training.

One of the primary horseback trainers stands in front of me. The rest of the brigade is already practicing, but as a newcomer, I have a few orders of business to address.

"Are you ready?" he asks. His name is Dominic, and he's strong but slighter than most of the instructors I've met.

I nod, and he leads me back into the stables.

"Today we'll be working on basic horsemanship, just getting you up there and comfortable. You've ridden before, right?"

I nod again, "Some, just on an old farm horse."