13. Luna
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
LUNA
The sun rode low on the horizon by the time Benedetto called a halt. I dismounted and tended Dawn. My horse had a lot of stamina, but it had been a long day. I took extra care with his grooming, wincing from the aches in my muscles as I removed his tack.
A sweet-tempered animal, Dawn didn’t protest being tied for the night. I did move him further from Benedetto’s stallion when the other horse laid his ears back and bared his teeth.
I didn't want to admit it, but this was a longer ride than I was used to. Tomorrow would be painful. My solace was that Benedetto hadn’t ridden that much recently either, so he’d be in pain too.
I’d packed salve expecting something like this.
"It's going to be a cold camp tonight," Benedetto said gruffly.
"You’ve decided it’s going to be an uncomfortable evening. How surprising. " I’d packed bread, dried meat and cheese anticipating that decision. for just such a decision as well.
He looked frustrated for a moment, my reaction not what he expected. When I pulled out my rations, he shook his head and chuckled. "Clever girl. Did you bring salve as well? I’m willing to help you spread yours if you’ll return the favor.”
The pot was in my hand as he spoke. “Once you show me you brought some as well, since we’re being equal shares.”
He laughed again, genuine amusement lightening his features. After eating and tending our aches, we settled into our separate bedrolls.
I took first watch, scanning and listening under the bright stars for any signs of danger - predators or bandits. The wind sighed through the grass, almost hypnotic, nor was it quiet. Foxes barked, the snarl of a big cat at a distance, the hush of wings above us from night flying birds combined in a tapestry of nocturnal life.
Despite darkness and uncertainty, it soothed me. When my shift ended, I woke Benedetto and gratefully sank into slumber myself.
Then I stood alone on another plain, an endless vista of tall grass rippling green in the wind. My breath misted in the chilly air. The ground beneath my feet felt unstable, like the surface of a frozen lake that might crack at any moment.
And then it did, and I fell forever, a scream bubbling in my throat, until I landed in desolation. All around me was covered in gritty white dust, the sun blazed down from an angry blue sky. Ruined houses stood within eyesight as I climbed to my feet, unhurt by the long fall.
A regal woman appeared before me, her silver-streaked chestnut hair swept up in a crown of thick braids. Shorter than me, and fine-boned, with a rounded face and a piercing blue gaze filled with uncanny wisdom.
An immediate sense of connection washed over me, strange yet undeniable.
"Who are you?" I asked.
She smiled at me, a flash of merriment that made my heart clench. I couldn’t remember the smile, but it made me feel…loved but alone. Like I’d lost it before I could remember it.
"I’m your grandmother, Luna. My name is Olivia. I've come to teach you about your magic."
Confusion and anger swirled inside me. "Why now? Why not my mother? Why not when I cried and prayed to the absent gods for anyone to help me?"
Her sigh rustled like autumn leaves. "Being dead makes communication difficult. Walls barred me, wards rooted in the buildings where you lived. This is the first you've slept in the open, my dear. The only reason I can do this is because our family has a bargain with Nightmare, a pact that allows us to pass on our teachings through dreams if there's no other way."
A swirl of darkness formed nearby, a chill breeze blowing over both of us, and my heart quickened. Unreasoning fear quivered under my skin. "A bargain with Nightmare? Why would they have done that?"
"It's not a simple gift, Luna. It's a burden, one our line has carried for generations. Your magic is tied to the dark moon, the power of disruption. Potent, unpredictable, in need of guidance."
She bears the scent. The voice came from everywhere and nowhere, filling the sky and ringing from the ground. I staggered.
Olivia spoke sharply. “So? You promised my forebears this. Sniff around for traces of Ruin’s scent but stop interfering with my granddaughter.”
With the fear pulsing inside me I had no idea how she could talk like that. Possibly being dead helped.
The fear eased as the darkness solidified into a humanoid form wrapped in shadow. “I shall.”
Olivia gestured and a soft, feathery darkness emanated from her hand, swirling like smoke. "Pay attention to me, Luna, we haven’t much time. The disruption caused by your magic doesn't have to be all or nothing. You've been using it like a hammer when it can be a scalpel. When other magic touches you, you reflexively dispel it. But if you control your power, you can use it for other purposes."
Fascinated, I watched as she manipulated the dark mist, making it dance and ripple without extinguishing the faint light around us.
I tried not to pay attention to the tall dark figure circling us in an unsettling glide.
"Feel the magic here. This place is pure magic. When you contact it, instead of unleashing your power all at once, control it. Shape it."
Hesitantly, I closed my eyes and focused. The familiar cold tingling of my magic gathered in my fingertips. Tentatively, I let a thin tendril of dark moonlight slip from my hand, concentrating on forming it into a fluttering ribbon in the air.
I brushed it against the white dust hanging in the air, which shivered and then faded into nothingness.
When I opened my eyes, Olivia was smiling at me approvingly. "Well done. You're learning."
Another wind blew, smelling faintly of roses, and the tall shadow figure spun, moving rapidly towards its source. “Where are you?”
The plains rocked and shattered and the force of the cry. Nothingness wrapped me and a sharp jab to my ribs jolted me to full awareness. I groaned, blinking against the harsh morning light. Benedetto loomed over me, already dressed and ready to go, a smile playing on his lips.
"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty. We're saddling up." He nudged my side again with the toe of his boot. "Sorry, guess you missed breakfast."
"Since chewing on bread and cheese takes so much preparation," I said, shoving myself upright and rubbing my sore legs.
He just shrugged. "You're the one who decided to sleep in."
As I saddled my gelding, my mind raced. That dream had felt so real, my heart still pounding from the last jolt of fear.
Was that part a dream? Or something more?
What my grandmother had said about the wards wasn’t entirely correct, I’d traveled with Vala over the years. But she seemed to believe it to be true, seemed sincere.
I knew that most old buildings of the nobility had wards to keep spies from snooping by magic and keep out ghosts, but inns didn’t. Why had she not been able to contact me then? What had prevented her?
I glanced over at Benedetto, considering for a moment whether to confide in him. No. This felt too personal.
By midmorning we’d reached the outskirts of the Drakewood. It covered half a province, lands set aside to remain wild by the first Emperor during his conquest.
“This is a shortcut. I’d rather not use the main road,” said Benedetto as we left the road and rode along the outskirts of the forest. After several hours we started on his ‘shortcut’, a slender track that we’d have to lead the horses on.
The forest transitioned from plains to thick woods within a few hundred feet. Oaks, thorn trees, ash and elm- all of them old. The wood was also magically potent, harvested only at the emperor’s order.
The ancient trees towered above us as we found the track. It was thin enough that we both dismounted. Leading the horses was better than catching a branch to the chest and falling.
Benedetto led, and I watched, amused at the dance between him and Biter. The stallion was determined to bite, and Benedetto equally determined to duck it. I wondered how the horse had gotten the habit and why Benedetto put up with it.
Movement stirred the underbrush before a rabbit ran across the track. It had a rack of horns like a small deer. Strange creatures lived here, I’d heard
The most famous were drakes, small, winged creatures. Generally they grew to the size of a small dog. People called them dragons when they grew larger than horses.
Beneath the thick cover of leaves, the air was cooler, heavy with the earthy aroma of moss and greenery. Thin shafts of sunlight pierced the dense canopy every so often, casting dappled shadows across the forest floor. The soft clop of our horses' hooves mixed with the rustling undergrowth and the occasional bird call.
"Have you heard the stories about this place?" I asked, breaking the stretching silence between us.
Benedetto snorted derisively. "What, the ones about drakes attacking travelers? Those are just tales to frighten children."
"Maybe," I said, tracking movement off the track. "Stories often have a foundation in truth, however long ago."
He scoffed but didn't argue further. As we continued walking the horses, my thoughts drifted back to the dream, my grandmother’s words echoing in my mind. The dark moon's power of disruption. Could I really learn to control it like she said? My fingers tingled, itching to try conjuring that ribbon of dark moonlight again.
But not now, I needed to keep my attention on our surroundings.
I needed to keep my magic hidden, just as I always had. Even if a part of me longed to explore this new knowledge, to test the limits of what I could do. For now, those desires had to wait. This evening, I promised myself. Soon.
A sudden whistle cut through the air. Before I could react, a volley of arrows rained down around us. My horse reared up with a terrified whinny, nearly pulling me off the ground. I clung to the reins, adrenaline bringing a metallic taste to my mouth.
"Void eat you," Benedetto cursed, his sword ringing as he drew it from its sheath. Darkness enveloped it as he called his magic, illusions to conceal us and mess with their aim.
He slashed at an arrow, deflecting it mid-flight with uncanny speed. "Stay close,"
Leather clad figures emerged from the underbrush, at least a dozen of them, their faces hidden behind crude masks. Bandits. Scald the moon.
I reached into my sleeve, and pulled out my fan, snapping it open with a flick of my wrist. The razor-sharp edge glinted in the dappled sunlight. I was not helpless.
The bandits closed in, most of them focused on Benedetto. They carried an assortment of rusted swords and daggers and approached warily. My husband was very good at fighting, but numbers could bring him down.
I caught the glint of magic sparking to life in one bandit's palm - a spell.
Oh no you don't.
Instinctively, I thrust out my hand, letting a blast of dark moonlight erupt from my fingertips. It struck the bandit square in the chest. The spell in his hand sputtered out as he flew backwards, crashing into a tree with a sickening crunch.
Control it , my grandmother’s voice echoed in my ears. Shape it.
I gritted my teeth, reining in the wild surge of magic that threatened to pour out of me unchecked. A smaller, more concentrated ribbon of darkness coiled around my wrist like a snake, ready to strike.
Biter screamed and reared, lashing out with his hooves. One caught a bandit in the chest, and the stallion moved to continue stomping on him. The other bandit moved to close with us, away from the angry horse.
Beside me, Benedetto moved like a whirlwind, seeming to vanish and reappear at will as he cut down bandit after bandit. Starlight magic, I realized with a jolt of surprise. He sources starlight magic, not moon magic like I thought . Teleporting takes a lot of energy and skill, too. I thought he was untrained. Vala always said so.
Rose had gotten a tutor because untrained starlight mages were dangerous to themselves and everyone around them. How had Benedetto managed to live so long untrained?
A hulking brute of a man lunged at me, his jagged blade slicing the air. I ducked under his swing, lashing out with my fan. It carved a deep gash across his throat. Blood sprayed as he fell, gurgling.
Dawn whinnied and bolted, heading deeper into the forest.
I spun to face the next attacker, but pain lanced through my thigh, sharp and hot. I hissed through clenched teeth. Damn it. A knife had grazed me, leaving a thin line of crimson welling up on my riding pants. The bandit grinned, thinking he had me.
Not today. Ignoring the burning in my leg, I surged forward, burying my fan to the hilt in his chest. His eyes went wide with shock. I wrenched the fan free, letting him crumple.
Gods, let that be the last of them. I spun to face Benedetto.
The other bandits lay scattered on the forest floor, some dead, others groaning in pain.
Benedetto wiped the blood off his sword and cast a sidelong glance at me.
"You've got the footwork of a cow," he said dryly. "Or maybe you're drunk. Either way, you should go home. This is dangerous work."
I scoffed. "If I ever need your praise, Benedetto, I'll cut it out of you myself."
He bowed. "You're welcome to try."
Insufferable ass. I couldn't deny a flicker of admiration for his skill. Maybe he’d spar with me, and I could learn something new.
I tied a strip of cloth around the wound, tightening it as I applied pressure. “It’s a scratch.”
“We should move before scavengers come,” Benedetto answered.
“Agreed.”
It took an hour to catch up with Dawn, who’d finally stopped in a small clearing to crop grass. A honey candy brought him to my side, and mending the rein took only a few minutes.
We moved on, trying to make up for lost time. As the adrenaline of the fight and finding Dawn faded, I limped more and more. When the sun dipped close to the horizon, we stopped to rest. I winced as I checked the wound on my thigh. It was a shallow cut, but it hadn't closed because I had to use that muscle to walk, which kept opening it.
Taking care of Dawn took longer than usual, and I petted him and gave him scritches to calm his remaining nerves.
Benedetto took even longer cleaning the blood off Biter’s hooves and legs.
“That’s why you put up with the biting, isn’t it? He’s a warhorse?” I asked as I kindled a small campfire.
“Partly. And partly because temperamental creatures are more interesting.” A mocking smile curved his lips as he worked. “A reason to keep you around too, though I think Biter’s the smarter of the two of you.”
I rolled my eyes at him, raising my middle finger. "Void eat you, Benedetto."
Absent gods take him, he was an ass. I can't let him get under my skin. Pretend you aren’t annoyed.
He laughed, the sound echoing in the quiet of the forest, the mirth telling me I hadn’t hidden the irritation. I turned away from him, pulling out dried marigold to steep in the heating water to prevent infection and willow bark for a different tea to ease the pain. Quiet fell as I focused on tending to my wound.
As I wrapped a bandage around my thigh, my mind drifted back to the revelation during the fight. Starlight magic. Why would he hide that? What else was he hiding? The questions swirled in my head.
“I’ll take the first watch,” I said.
“Fine.” Benedetto settled by the fire, reading more of the book we’d taken from the library. He spent time every evening reading it, usually with a dark frown.
“What’s in it?” I finally asked.
He regarded me. “Rituals, notes. It’s almost like Ruin was creating a final spell and was putting the pieces of it in here. I can’t figure what the purpose of it was, though. Lucardi’s left notes in it, as well, mostly on other locations he’s seen these rituals and spells in books. Probably searching for missing pieces. When I see him, I’ll be sure to ask how he contacts Moonshifter, since there was a letter from the sorcerer folded in the front page. With instructions for our friend on what research to do, no less.”
From Benedetto’s tone, Lucardi might not enjoy that conversation.
Benedetto tucked the book into his tunic and went to his bedroll. In moments he slept.
With the forest shrouded in shadows, I sat with my back against a tree, listening. My thigh throbbed dully, but I pushed the pain aside.
Suddenly, I heard a soft rustle next to me. I looked up to see a small drake emerging from the darkness in the roots of the tree. It was no bigger than a large cat, with pale iridescent scales that shimmered in the moonlight.
My breath caught in my throat. So beautiful! I closed my fan in my hand, just in case.
The drake sniffed the air, then took a cautious step toward me, making a little sound like it was saying, "Pip, Pip."
I extended my off hand slowly, hardly daring to breathe. The drake nuzzled my palm, making a soft wuffling sound.
A rush of joy filled me, an unexpected connection clicking into place I couldn't quite explain. Maybe the children’s stories that drakes were friendly and bonded with humans were actually true. I smiled, as the drake settled beside me, its warmth seeping into my skin.
I stroked its scales gently, marveling at their smoothness. The drake looked up at me with intelligent eyes, seeming to understand my every movement.
"You're a beautiful creature, aren't you?" I said, careful not to wake Benedetto. The drake made a soft trilling sound in response.
I wondered what brought you here. Was he drawn to magic, like the legends said? Could he sense the power within me?
As if in answer, the drake nuzzled closer, its tail wrapping around my wrist like a reassuring touch. A sense of peace washed over me, a feeling of belonging I hadn't experienced in a long time.
The horses didn't stir. Given Biter was a wary animal, that meant the little drake was good at stealth.
I cleared my throat and said, “Benedetto. We have friendly company. Do not jump up and try to kill him.”
His eyes snapped open, and he sat up smoothly, blinking as he focused on me and then the drake.
“Only you, Luna. Go to sleep. I won’t be able to do that with this creature nearby until we know it’s friendly.”
Not giving him a chance to reconsider, I pulled up my bedroll. The drake snuggled into me, and I fell asleep in a breath.