Reader Beware

Chapter 45

            On a rise that lay halfway down the massive and steep hill that the city of Cahnmur sat atop of, Rika looked down from where she sat cross-legged at what had been, until very recently, farmland. Now it was a battlefield, already well watered with blood.

She turned away, back towards the command tents that lay behind her, surprised at how quickly things had moved. It had only been yesterday that they’d been escorted to Zobah, and he’d explained the situation and how he wanted them with him and his commanders, at the back of the fighting. Damek had agreed to that quick than Rika had thought he would. Elthia had looked the most relieved at the plan, not that Rika blamed her.

Already the healer had her own tiny tent, waiting as a back-up to the massive tent that stood at the foot of the hill. Everyone so often she would come out to look at it. Rika wondered if her friend would have been happier helping the wounded soldiers, but none of them had been given the choice of going near the fighting.

Not that they hadn’t been pressed into helping. Damek was inside, giving his opinions and advice to the battle plans, Elthia was on reserve, and Rika was using the only spell she knew: the messenger one. Only Ahisu did nothing, only sat a few feet from Rika, his eyes on the battle happening below.

Rika tried not to look down there too often. The sight of that much blood and death would send her stomach into revolt. It was bad enough the wind occasionally brought her the sounds of screams and metal on metal. Both armies were evenly matched, which made the fight all the bloodier. Atelic’s had marched in yesterday, while Zobah had had half of his hidden in the city and the other half a quick march away.

Footsteps behind her had Rika turning. One of the young runners, his uniform of dark blue easy to identify, handed her a square of paper. “That’s for Captain Bardou. It’s urgent.”

She nodded and took the paper, laying it on the ground in front of her as the runner scampered back to the main tent. As she was getting used to, since nearly all the messages she was asked to send were urgent, Rika carefully folded the paper into an airplane shape. Then she reached for her power, feeling it fizz up, almost like it wanted to be put into a spell. Instead of letting it flow up to and then through her hands, Rika had found that it actually worked better through her mouth some reason. So when her mouth had that same, fizzing, tingly feeling as her stomach, she breathed out onto the paper airplane in her hands.

For a moment, the paper only lay there. Then it leapt up, out of her hands, until it was hovering at eye level. Rika faced it and said “Captain Bardou” as clearly as she could. As she’d discovered early on, after an incident involving her yelling at Damek, her airplanes would go to whatever name she said first. No matter who they were addressed to. It was one of the reasons she’d moved outside.

The folded paper shivered then zoomed off through the air, aimed straight at the battle below. Rika sighed and leaned back onto her palms, looking up at the blue sky. That had bothered her a bit at first. It was a beautiful day and yet people were dying below her. She thought it should have been a grey, cloudy day, the air feeling heavy and tense. That was the kind of weather she’d expected for a battle. But here it was, sunny with the few birds who hadn’t flown off, singing.

She wished this battle was over, and not just because the sight of the field below sickened her. Zobah had promised them an escort of soldiers to Harniche if he won. Rika wasn’t sure if his words about feeling bad about the situation she found herself in were genuine or an act. Not that it really mattered, since either way he’d probably let her go home. She just wanted to know what kind of person she was helping. Sometimes she worried that Atelic was the better candidate for king. During those times, she did her best to remind herself of everything he’d done to her, and how Zobah had at least been more polite about it.

Rika sighed again. The sound of more footsteps had her looking up. She barely stopped herself from flinching as Ahisu dropped down beside here. For a second, Rika could barely breathe as her heart raced and her stomach clenched. Then it was like someone hit play, and she was able to inhale deeply. For several moments she said nothing. Then she realized something was missing. “Where’s Shetton?”

He nodded at the battlefield below. Rika looked then turned away from the violence. “Are you going to get involved?”

He snorted, giving her a look that told her he thought she was being stupid.

Rika flushed. “Well why not?”

Ahisu stared at her then said “Debt.”

“What? Debt? Like…oh. Oh! I forgot about that. You can’t do magic until the debt’s gone, right? Except if it’s to help me. You could see helping the army as helping me since we’re sort of all on this side,” she said. While the small, practical part of Rika screamed at her that this wasn’t going to help kill her feelings, the rest of her felt happy just talking to him, knowing his attention was squarely on her. Even if he did treat her like an idiot sometimes.

“Risky.”

“Is it? But you did magic before. Like when you took us to your tower.”

“Set spell, trapped demon. New summoning impossible.”

Rika frowned slightly as she worked it out. “So you trapped a demon into a set spell to bring you back to your tower. But you can’t summon any new demons until your debt’s been repaid?”

Ahisu nodded, making her wince. “I’m sorry. I’d cancel the debt if I could. Is there anything I can do to help speed up the process?”

“No,” he said before turning his gaze back towards the battlefield.

Rika kept her eyes one him for a few seconds, trying to memorize the way he looked, knowing all too soon she’d be home, where she’d never see him again. And that, was the way she thought it should be.