Mage

Sexta

"We need to start heading east of here, the tracks turn once they pass Lake Trave, and if we cut around it we'll catch up faster!" Howan called, holding the parchment in her hand, probably doing the tracking spell again.

Despite Kyan's growing mage abilities, she was dreadful on a horse. Adrian was the same, so I rode out in front of them so they could follow, glancing back to make sure they were keeping up.

We haven't exercised our horses as much as we should have in the last several days, so I was glad Rinn was on foot. Catching up with him wouldn't be entirely too difficult for the horses.

We kept riding in silence until Kyan asked how much further. I shared her exasperation, we had been riding with minimal breaks for at least 8 hours.

"I'd say about 10 minutes actually, we're getting pretty..," She trailed off.

"Pretty what, Howan?" Adrian asked.

"I know what he's gonna do," my older sister said, her voice suddenly quiet.

"What is it?" I asked, dread settling in my stomach.

"He's gonna use the spell, practice it, to take out the tracks, right now he's waiting for a train to come through."

"Oh no..," I whispered, attune to my younger sister's gasp.

"We need to go faster, try to keep up," Howan said, bucking her horse on.

I pet Raymond's mane as I squeezed his sides to get him to speed up to my older sister's steed. My heart began to race about as fast as his hooves and we bounded through the thinning forest. The trees started to look black, torn apart... burned. The ground was thick with fallen trees and soot, the horses were forced to slow down and ash clouds rose under their hooves.

Up ahead I saw a bright glint, like something tall and metallic, was up ahead. No... not metal. It can't be... Not here.

As we rode closer, the trees almost disappeared completely, with piles of ash and stumps littering the gray ground. The ice spire towered above it all, in the heart of the once inferno.

How could I not recognize this place sooner? We'd been here only one time before, just days after the news hit the city proper.

Rinn was kneeling at the base of the spire, only 50 or so feet from the tracks. The ice was thick and opaque, but Arabelle was in there, her spirit unable to ascend, tethered to her final spell. A now immortal obelisk of ice marks the site of the battle- no, massacre.

We slowed the horses to a stop, and though he didn't turn to look, Rinn heard our approach and stood, a hand on the ice.

I dismounted slowly and gave my siblings a look. Howan gave me a minuscule nod, and Adrian sat up straighter, not taking his eyes off of Rinn. I started walking towards Rinn and my siblings stayed on their horses.

I held my hands out in the most non-threatening way I could, "Rinn, we're not here to fight."

He looked over his shoulder and passed me. I turned, following his gaze to see Adrian's glare, looking back at Rinn I could see the tension in his stance.

"How did you find me?" He asked, turning his eyes to me, "The knife wasn't even mine, you shouldn't have been able to track it."

"The note," I said, reaching about 5 yards from him before he held up a hand, a spell on his lips.

"Hey," I switched to a slightly more defensive position, pulling my torso back and raising both of my hands, "relax Rinn, we're best friends remember?"