Heir of Amber and Fire by Rachanee Lumayno (read aloud books .TXT) 📕

That was somewhat true. Although if you asked the stable master, he would say my “helping” him was more like “getting underfoot” all the time.

Farrah and Rhyss nodded, tending to their own horses. Beyan narrowed his eyes at me, but didn’t say anything. After a moment, he turned back to Dorie and double checked that my gear was secured properly. Internally, I winced at my potential gaffe. I would have to be careful with my words, or I might accidentally give myself — and my identity — away.

We mounted our horses and began the journey south, toward Annlyn. The southernmost kingdom of the Gifted Lands, it was famous for its expert jewelry makers. Often pieces made by Annlyn craftspeople were expensive but highly sought after.

Our route would take us directly to the kingdom of Annlyn, where we would restock and get ready to find Joichan. Somewhere nearby Annlyn was the last known lair of Joichan, where Beyan’s father Kye had faced the dragon. Once we were closer to Annlyn, Beyan assured me that his seeker abilities would help him find Joichan’s exact location, and even if Joichan had since moved on, we might be able to get information on where the dragon had gone. With no other leads, heading south seemed to be our best option.

Our little group of four fell into pairs: Rhyss and Farrah leading, with Beyan and me riding behind them. As we rode, I noticed that everyone carried a weapon of some sort, and I wondered if I should have purchased one yesterday. Too late now, though. The shops wouldn’t open for a few more hours, and we were going to be on the road by then. Besides, even if I did have a weapon, I wouldn’t know how to use it.

Beyan followed my gaze. He reassured me, “It’s handy if you have a weapon, but we don’t expect our patrons to be armed.”

“That’s what we’re here for,” Rhyss called back cheerfully.

Farrah turned around briefly to roll her eyes at me. “Rhyss will tell you he’s the muscle of the group,” she said, before turning back to poke Rhyss’s arm. He yelped in surprise. “But if he’s so good, why am I constantly patching him up?”

“So you’re not all seekers?” I asked, confused.

“Thank heavens, no,” Farrah said. “That’s not the life for me. Rhyss and I aren’t from Orchwell originally. I’m from Shonn, and Rhyss grew up in Bomora.” She named two more countries that were part of the Gifted Lands. Bomora was to the west, beyond Rothschan. Shonn was Calia’s eastern neighbor. “No, Beyan and Rhyss and I have been friends for years, and when he has a job he brings us along to help.”

“You mean in case there’s trouble?” I clarified.

“Or to bring home the bounty,” Rhyss said jauntily.

Before I could ask Rhyss what he meant, Farrah spoke. “Don’t worry, Allayne.” It took me a second to remember that was my name now. “Whatever happens, we’ll take care of it. We haven’t lost a patron yet, and we don’t expect them to do too much.”

“I’m not entirely useless,” I said, stung. “I can do some things. Like magic. Although I’m still learning.”

“I figured if you’re from Calia then you must know some magic,” Farrah said. “That could come in handy.”

“Farrah is our resident magician,” Beyan explained. “But her way of doing magic is different than most people’s.”

“It’s my Fae blood,” she said. “Magic comes to me as easily as breathing. I don’t have to learn complex spells or another language to conjure something; I just have to will it into being.”

“I’ve never met magicians from other disciplines, since I’ve only studied Calian theory,” I said. “Are you able to explain how you perform magic? I’d love to learn, even if I can’t replicate what you do.”

Farrah looked thoughtful. “Well, my ability is rather limited. I can create things, but I can’t destroy them. It makes me a terrific healer, but not much use in a fight. But, if you’re interested...”

“Oh, yes.”

Farrah dropped back to ride beside me. She launched into a description of her approach to magic. Beyan and Rhyss rode on ahead, uninterested in a discussion on magical theory.

I found Farrah’s way of doing magic fascinating. In Calia, magicians often had to use hand gestures and words as a way of focusing magic and making it useful. But because Farrah was innately magic, thanks to her heritage, she could see magic all around her. In fact, growing up, she said, she had to learn how to turn off her magical ability because she would frequently conjure things accidentally.

“Now I have to deliberately access my magic, just like you would deliberately open a door,” she said. “It’s not hard, though. I can do it in an instant. It’s just a conscious decision now whereas when I was younger, it wasn’t.”

“Would all offspring from a magical and human union have innate magical ability?” I wondered.

“To my knowledge, yes,” Farrah said. “The magical side always breeds true. Only humans need rituals or spells to use magic; any creature or the Fae would be able to tap into magic naturally. I know many others who are like me, half Fae and half human, and we all have the same magical talent.”

“What about children of other unions between humans and other kinds of magical beings?”

“I know of none.”

“Really?”

“I don’t think such a thing is possible. Faerie and human, yes. Other species? No. But who’s to say? Just because no one’s ever heard of such a thing doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen. It just seems unlikely.”

I wanted to debate the issue more — after all, I was a child of a supposedly impossible union — but Farrah delved into more magic theory. It really was interesting, and we kept coming back to the topic all throughout the day. Our impromptu lesson helped pass the time on the road, up until it was time to make camp for