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Anders felt tired as they finally set out toward Duchy Lister. The previous days had been busy, after a fashion, but also boring. Instead of working with the servants and Lissa on new skills, or creating a text for them to work from, he’d spent almost the entire time seeing to coin and shopping for goods that would be needed for the trip. Duke Lister, who had been in the Army before becoming a castle Guard, one of the Fenris, had figured on picking up some basic supplies for the trip and simply going, riding on horseback the whole way.
The Queen, however had different ideas, and had suggested, rather sternly that they would not be placing Princess Sweyn on the back of a horse for the journey. The plans for the new palace were hers in part and she was still early in her pregnancy, not even truly showing yet, so she’d be traveling in a fine carriage, not riding like a commoner.
That idea had left Anders fighting a rolling of his eyes in her presence. After all, commoners didn’t ride horses. They walked. At best they found a place in the back of a rough wagon. The issue there was that, if one princess was supposed to ride in a carriage and be pampered, then they needed to do that with the others, as well. The covered boxes on wheels and horses were being provided by the King, from his own stable and stock, but in the direction they were traveling there wouldn’t be a lot of fine accommodations.
So, instead of trying to argue with a Queen, Anders had simply smiled, nodded and spent a double handful of gold and silver making certain that everything would be as fine as possible for the trip. At least for Princess Jasmin, Princess Sweyn and Eltha Tennet, as well as Princess Javina. They were in two different carriages, both made of polished wood, with ample pillows for sitting inside. They also had a full wagon, being pulled by Poke and Crook, the second massive ox being new to him, his other having died of old age in the last month. No one had told Anders about that, until he’d gone to collect them.
It was a shame, because he could have actually done something about that, had he thought of it. Instead, an animal that he owned had lacked for treatments he could provide and died because of it.
The rest of them were on horseback, which seemed to surprise a few of them. Queen Maura had tried to insist that Princess Mathia be set to riding inside a carriage as well, but Anders had, carefully, refused that idea.
After all, he was promoting the idea that she, along with Prince Erold were supposed to be stronger than that. It was one thing to treat visitors as special, but another to put their own people, mages, who needed to be able to protect themselves and others, into such a situation.
When Princess Salina was led to a horse, one she was used to riding, the woman had merely snorted and gave a nod. Princess Lissa, it turned out, could ride as well, since all the Barquean Princesses had lessons in such things, but didn’t get the correct idea at first. Even having had recent practice, on the road, from some months before.
As he yawned, feeling as if he might drift back off to sleep, the girl nudged her rather fine courser beside Chestnut. Brownie was on the other side, having to carry the pack this time.
“Prince Anders?” The girl didn’t seem upset, but her young face was baffled. “Not that I mind riding, but why wasn’t I put in a carriage, as well? I’m a Princess...”
He nodded, but didn’t have to answer, thankfully. Not that the girl would have been rude about his answer. She wasn’t that sort of person, being easy to get along with, for a Princess. It was her older sister, Salina, who did that part. Kindly, which was good to see, early in the trip.
“Because you may be called on to be a Great One, one day, Lissa. That... If it comes to it, you have to be willing to give your life, to protect our people. That means we, both of us, can’t be as soft as we once were. I didn’t really understand what it meant, until I saw the war. What was needed there...” She rode in silence for a moment, though it was clear that Captain Ford was listening. That wasn’t hard, since Salina was speaking in Istlan, which was, of course, not for Lissa at all. It was, no doubt, for Princess Mathia. Possibly Prince Erold.
When she spoke again, she seemed a bit sad.
“When the battles came, the Istlan Great One, Sir Brolly, put himself out front, each time. He led each charge, fought personally each time and shared every risk. There... He had to kill the enemy of his people on a level that... Well, it won the war, didn’t it? I had to kill as well. We all did, who were there, but I saw what might be required of a Great One. It isn’t about the praise heaped upon them, later, at all. There is a weight to be carried, and in brief moments almost everything in the world might need to be on your shoulders. Mine, as well. So, we ride on a horse, rain or shine and guard these others, even if it doesn’t make much sense to have an eleven-year-old doing that!”
The younger Princess nodded.
“Twelve, now. I didn’t know I was going to be protecting anyone. How do I do that?”
Duke Lister nodded, and spoke then.
“Ready your magics and hold them in preparation, if you can. You don’t have a bow... Can you throw magics any distance?”
The girl hunched a bit, but looked at the man boldly enough, after sighing.
“About... Thirty paces? I’m not accurate that way, but I’ve done it. I can actually hit things at about five paces? Grandfather Depak had me practice that a few times, after he came back.”
Rather than seem disgruntled at the lack of range, the Duke smiled.
“For now, ride near the middle. Any attacks will come at the head or the tail of the line. We aren’t a huge group, so that could happen. Bandits and all that. We have only two guards, as far as anyone will be able to see. That and a lot of young people. It might be tempting for some. If anyone comes for you, shield first, then start throwing magic at them. Don’t waste yourself on throwing things too far if you can’t possibly hit yet. Hold to closer moves, and stay calm.”
The man looked around, and barked a bit then, so his words would carry.
“Gull! How are you with ranged magics?”
The man eased his horse over, instead of yelling about his prowess.
“Not too bad? I’ve worked with a bow more, of late, so can use that to carry spells. I’m a little limited in what I can put out that way. Explosions, zones of freezing and fire. A few other things, but most won’t do much in battle. I have a horn bow with me, for use from horseback.”
Anders had one of those as well, but the truth was, he’d never used one from the back of an animal, so didn’t mention the idea. Not that it mattered. The Duke simply assigned people from that point, as if he already understood their skills.
“So, guards in the front, Princess Lissa and Princess Mathia in the middle, behind the carriages, with myself and Gull taking up the rear. What do you have for yourself, Prince Erold and Princess Salina, Anders?” The man seemed almost teasing, as if he thought he was placing Anders into a location where doing nothing would happen.
That wasn’t his plan.
“We’ll be seeing to the road, as we ride, so will do that part. I also want at least one person using wizardry at all times, checking the road ahead. Check for possible attack, but also other problems. Everything you can think of, including coming weather. When we stop for the day, I want a travel waystation put up, wherever possible. Maybe an inn? I’ll do the first one, tonight. As soon as we leave the mettled road, I want that work to be done. We’ll be moving at ox speed anyway, so we can do that and not lose any time.”
Prince Erold, riding a bit away, but inside earshot, lifted a hand.
“I gather I’m up first for the road work? I hate doing that, you do understand that, don’t you, Anders?” He grinned though, as if not really complaining.
Anders laughed, not meaning it, but striving to put some effort into the sound.
“It isn’t the most interesting thing to do, is it? Still, we need to improve all the roads in Istlan, over time, and probably the ones in Yanse, as well, so we might as well start here. Just wait until we go to Barquea and Modroc and do the roads there, as well...” He grinned, putting some effort into it.
Salina made a face, but didn’t strike out at the idea of helping a former enemy.
“We have food for that kind of work?”
He nodded, since they had more than enough for the trip, in the wagon being driven by a hired man. Svenson. Anders had scanned his mind on a level that was probably improper and found him a little simple, but a good sort, for all that. He was skilled with animals and actually cared for them and could sit on a wagon seat, driving, all day long with little discomfort. Especially if the rest of them could keep the road smooth.
“I planned for it, so yes. Anyone not doing the heavy work should see to it that those who are have food, constantly. Water, as well.” They didn’t have to hunt for the trip, strictly speaking, though he was willing to do that, if it came up.
That idea had some nodding going on, since it was the easy duty, simply passing someone a bit to eat and a camp cup with water in it, every half hour or so. Gull called out then, his voice sturdy, even if it wasn’t strictly his place to make assignments. Then, Anders was doing the same thing, so he wasn’t going to complain too much.
“Anders, you’re up for the first round of watching, if Prince Erold is going to be doing the road work? I should do that, too. I have the basics for that, but haven’t done a lot to practice.”
The Duke waved at Anders, and gave a serious nod.
“We’ll trade tasks out, each day?”
Everyone agreed to that, though his own plan had been to trade out every few hours, making the individual tasks far easier. It was good practice to do hard things over time as well, so he simply nodded and sank into a deep trance state, scanning the world around them.
“The weather will be clear, probably for the next three days. Then we might see some rain. Not a lot. I’m not finding anyone with sinister intentions on the road ahead, but we wouldn’t yet, this close to the castle. No animals, either.” His voice was slow and distant to his own ears. He lost track of things for a while then, focused on the world as tightly as he was.
Seeking for any tricks, traps or ways that someone might have gotten around his skills. There were, after some hours, people on the road, but they were simply travelers, making their way to some of the villages along the way. On the rutted dirt path, ahead of them.
Anders, on Chestnut, rode only on an improved, hard-packed road that was basically smoothed over stone, created from dirt. A thing that was slightly hard on the wagon wheels, and horseshoes, but easier on the axles and legs. Anders roused, after some hours, since they were stopping, to get water at a stream, that ran alongside the road.
He took that time to check on Prince Erold, who had been doing the heavy work, and found him annoyed at the effort and heavy breathing he was doing, but fine, otherwise. He was powerful enough, as far as magic went, after all. Then he checked all of the animals, and moved around, fixing a few saddles, and in two cases, soothing rubbed spots, using magic, to protect their mounts. No one commented on it, though Duke Lister did give him a nod, as soon as he was finished.
Anders simply reported.
“Nothing new, as far as what lies ahead. The next good stopping point is about three miles north of here. There’s a village there, this time.”
Princess Sweyn, out of her carriage, walked around and stretched a bit, seeming to be nearly as annoyed as her husband.
“I’m nearly useless here, aren’t I? I should take a turn riding. Except... I don’t want to make Queen Maura angry with me. So I sit and let myself be carried along.”
She seemed to be honestly bothered by the idea, and worse, Anders had nothing at all to amuse the woman with. The others forced to ride, either. After a bit, he nodded.
“Princess Javina, could you provide an entertainment, when we stop next? A bit of music, perhaps? Use illusion for it.”
That got him glared at, but the Princess sighed and nodded.
“I can try. It won’t be very good. I’ve never paid that much attention to that sort of thing. Others always did that for me, not the other way around!”
Princess Jasmin actually glared at him, which took him by surprise.
“That’s fine for her, but what are the rest of us supposed to do? This isn’t a very pleasant trip so far, is it?”
Everyone went silent for a moment, seeming strained, since Jasmin wasn’t normally a bratty person, compared to some. She was feeling useless, at the moment, of course, since riding in a carriage was like that. He hadn’t even thought to bring any books for the others to read or anything. Clearly, no one else had either. If it was him, he’d have gone into a trance or practiced magic, which was pretty much what the rest of them were actually doing.
So he shrugged.
“Teach Eltha and Princess Sweyn the basic hand magic set? They can both learn it. I’m a bit surprised no one has seen to that yet, to be honest.”
Sweyn gave him a strange look then and shook her head.
“My people aren’t strong in magic. I can’t do that.”
“I checked, and you, personally, have the basic talent and a keen enough mind for it. You don’t have to learn, but what else do you have to do at the moment?” That was a lie, since Anders didn’t really know if that was the case at all, but the learning would distract her, in the moment, if she could apply herself.
Jasmin clapped, as if given a prize.
“Oh, that sounds much better. Not fun, truly, but at least a thing to do? Let’s try, anyway?” She was nearly pleading, which got a bemused nod from the others, even if they didn’t seem eager, for some reason.
Which were things that Anders didn’t bother thinking about for several hours, going back to watching the road and surrounding areas. When they stopped it was by a small village, but other than a few people looking at them, from a distance as they watered the horses, nothing much happened.
Except for Javina proving that she was both capable of making music and that she honestly didn’t know any tunes to play. What she came out with wasn’t well done, but it was entertaining, watching her blush over the failure. She started to glare at Anders over it, when Salina hugged her.
“Well, you have about half of it, don’t you? Next time we hear some music, we should try to memorize it and practice, for things like this. Magic isn’t just about throwing power around.”
It was true, though they also had the entertainment of watching Eltha and Sweyn do exactly that. Jasmin set up stones for them to push, near the small stream, and set them to doing that for a quarter hour, to prove they had the basic skill down. Then they both had to make lights hover over their hands. It was clear that Eltha was better at that than Sweyn was, and much more powerful, but there was a healthy glow over the hand of the Princess. Easily enough to show a path in front of her at night.
When they got underway, it was clear that they weren’t going to be stopping for the day. Sweyn was far too excited for that. After all, she’d believed that she couldn’t do magic at all. Even if it was a weak talent for her, she now understood that she honestly could do it. That had to be intriguing for her.
Riding in a trance wasn’t boring, strictly speaking, but he missed a lot of what was happening as far as conversation went, or directives about watching the immediate area. He was doing that, but at a remove, not using his eyes for the task. It was different, doing that sort of thing for hours on end. Easier, in a way, after a while, but also easier to become distracted. He was picking up things from the minds of others, for instance, which mainly had to do with boredom, or in a few cases, a desire to answer a call of nature.
They held to the pattern of riding at a mild pace, stopping to rest the horses and people every two hours. On the fifth stop, still early in the day, since they’d gotten an early start, Duke Lister called a halt.
“We’ll put in here for the night. Is this field large enough for an inn, do you think, Brolly?”
The man was smirking over the idea, clearly jesting, but he nodded. It would be extra effort to add in a full water system, but the very fact that he didn’t want to bother with it kind of indicated it was a thing he needed to do. Making a larger building, with many rooms, a full kitchen and a common area was going to be more work than they needed for themselves, strictly speaking.
“Yes. It will take a few hours, since we need to do this right. Salina, can you help with this? I’d like a water tower, like what we did for the school?”
She nodded, her face blank.
“Yes. Let me... take care of some small matters, first?” Her voice was hopeful, and Anders got the point, so didn’t comment on it, merely nodded.
“I won’t be ready for a while, anyway.” He needed to walk the space and plan it out, first.
He was still, more or less, stuck in a trance state, so simply planned, then started on the work, making a two-story dwelling, with a large open room on the first floor, and a slanted, snow shedding, roof on the top. There were windows, which he left open at first, feeling only a bit surprised when Lissa took the duty of making glass for them. Those, were clear, he noticed, which was impressive and a skill that he hadn’t learned at all, yet. He could, he supposed, make up a word for it, but he hadn’t, as of yet.
There was piping in the thick walls, and fireplaces in each of the rooms. This time, instead of stopping at the end, the place not being the size of a palace or castle at all, he worked on furnishings. Those were made to look nice, if not in a way that was truly special. There were no inlaid carvings or patterns, for instance.
In all, the work took about four hours, but they were able to move food in, and since Gull and the drivers had gotten wood for them, so he was able to start a good meal, indoors, in the new kitchen, before it was too late to see anything.
On the outside, the white building looked clean and sturdy, but not truly fancy in any way. It was, of course, a copy of things that he’d seen in other location, only made of what seemed to be smooth stone, instead of wood. They had water, as well as spigots made of real stone inside, which did make cooking far easier and faster, he realized. That was Salina’s work.
A thing which got him to smile. There had been no hint of complaining about the hardships, from anyone. The only real whining so far had been from Princess Jasmin and she’d fixed that, as soon as she had something to do.
Anders was the one with the food and the cooking skills, but he had aid, in the form of Prince Erold. They were traveling after all, and the man was good about pitching in on things. He did complain a bit, in an affable fashion.
“I’ve never used magic for that long before. I feel like I just spent the whole day running. I can barely move.” He sounded tired, too. A real thing, that seemed almost exhausted.
Still, the Prince cleaned some sturdy roots and greens taken from a box with a preservation spell on it. A thing that slowed time enough that even delicate foods would last for months, if it were left undisturbed.
Rallying a bit himself, finally, he nodded.
“I know. It’s different than doing it for a few hours at a time. We all need to be ready for that kind of thing, so it’s good practice. Can you quarter those roots, next? I’ll get the big pot going.”
The Prince did it, fairly well, considering he wasn’t trained for such things. They worked in silence for a while, not really doing more than preparing a hearty stew and some flat bread, using a bit of yeast mother from his store of such, as well as a sauce for the vegetables. It was a good effort, for being on the road like they were. Not truly fine enough for Princesses and Dukes, but better than a real inn would have provided, he thought. Then, he didn’t have to have a pot going for hours, as people trickled in for the night, which was easier to manage with something approaching quality.
When the meal was served, everyone settling in the main room, Duke Lister looked around the place and nodded.
“Can we do something similar each time we stop? If the space is available for it, I mean? If we can provide a good road and clean places to stay, more commerce will flow north, to my Duchy. This is on the King’s road, so we’ll need to send for people to man the places, but a lot will be willing to try it, if they can live in a building like this, I wager.”
Anders was a bit tired, but had to agree with the idea, at least at its heart. Still, if he were making the same type of building, over and again, he needed to come up with a word that meant a specific type, that would have everything included in one simple phrase. It was more to learn, but would be easier and more efficient than using a hundred different spells for the same thing, day after day.
“Something like new taverns, near villages, and towns, as well?” He didn’t drink, but people enjoyed that kind of thing and a good tavern was more of a meeting hall and entertainment spot than anything else.
“Do it. We might be wasting the time, but we didn’t really lose out that way, today. Good work on the road, Prince Erold. How long do you think it will take to do all of Istlan?” That was for the Prince, so Anders was allowed to eat, using a wooden spoon, out of his small bowl. There were greens heaped on the top, which made it seem a bit strange, but no one complained about that. They just ate, even if Mathia seemed baffled by the flat bread, at first.
She picked at it, as if she hadn’t eaten it before, which wasn’t the truth. Anders had cooked on the road for them, on the last trip, after all. It could, of course, be something else. She might simply not enjoy that type of thing, or something along those lines, he had to consider.
Everyone else ate it, including the drivers, who had moved to the side, sitting at one of the tables, in a small group. They whispered a bit, but didn’t laugh or seem to be doing too much more than listening, carefully. They were eating the same food as the rest of them, and seemed to be enjoying it well enough.
When Prince Erold spoke, his voice was pensive. Also tired sounding.
“It’s real work and we don’t have a lot of people who can do it, yet. We can probably see to the main portions of it this year, before winter, if I ride out personally for it. Anders, you can do this as well, right?” That was probably meant as a dig, or possibly just the man suggesting he not be put to the task alone.
“I can. I’ll drive things north and see to the east, along the border with Yanse? After we see to Lister, that is. We might be better served training people for the fall and winter months, and having them work that sort of thing in the spring and summer, as training. We need to have everyone in at least a basic sort of condition, at the college. Our mandate is to be prepared for war, at all times, after all. Duke Lister, any recommendations on who to have for fighting? We need full weapons work, as well as the magical sort of thing that way, so that everyone at least understands what the military is doing.”
The Duke actually shrugged, which wasn’t a very noble thing of him to do at all.
“Get Demo to do it? He needs to be working on magic anyway, and has been in war, in the Army, then served with the castle guard. He’s a good teacher, too, so that works. It will mean leaving the guard, but the King will allow it, if you’re still supporting the land and future war efforts.”
Gull actually wrinkled his nose, then sighed.
“That sounds like a good start, for the rest of my life. Doing magic though... It wasn’t what I figured to be doing with my last years, you know?”
Anders didn’t chime in that, if the man learned enough, it probably wouldn’t be his last years at all. He’d already worked out enough healing and time manipulation that aging wasn’t a thing he was worried about, for instance. It would take him about two days to teach all of that to the other man, if he wanted to bother learning it. There would be a lot more to learn, at a college, of course, than simply doing a specific job, but making that, how to survive for a long time, part of the curriculum simply seemed correct.
Princess Sweyn nodded though.
“I hadn’t thought I could learn that kind of thing at all. We don’t really do that, in Modroc. Very few learn magic. We focus more on the riders, as a practice. That and illusion. We use that for entertainment, though, not in war.”
Her words were quiet, in the next sentence.
“I could, perhaps, learn at this school, as well? I don’t know if that’s allowed...”
Anders shook his head, her face falling.
“With a child on the way? Probably not. No, for you we’ll need a special tutor. I’d ask Princess Lissa to do that, but for now... Will you see to that, Princess Jasmin? You should be practicing every day, anyway.” He looked at her then, hoping her answer would be polite, at least.
She closed her eyes, smiling at the same time.
“That would be a pleasure, Princess Sweyn! It will also save you beatings, since Lissa is a harder instructor that way than I am. She even hits her own sisters, if you can believe that?”
The girl gave them all a stern, prim, glare.
“Only if people refuse to learn fast enough.”
Gull smiled then.
“It works, too. Willet and I both struggled mightily to avoid that stick, down in Barquea, I assure you. Probably best not to use that on a woman who’s with child. Save that kind of thing for military training and for hard types. Say, how many hours a day will the magic types be learning weapons and fighting, Anders?”
He didn’t know, but tilted his head, thinking.
“Three. The day will be in four parts. Magical practice, book learning, fighting and warcraft and working at some kind of craft, using magic. Wood working, stonework, healing, that sort of thing. Three-hour blocks. The rest of the day the students will have to themselves.” That didn’t leave much time, but anyone going there would be expected to put up with hardships, for a while.
One of the drivers, rather softly, spoke then.
“You teaching people to read and write, like, too? Or is this only for the fine types?”
Anders smiled at the words, instead of being caught out.
“We’ll be teaching that, if people don’t come in knowing it. Languages and memory skills, as well. It won’t be the prime focus, but it’s useful to memorize texts at times. Anyone with the right magical skills and a good mind will be allowed in. It’s the start of a lifelong career, though. In times of war, they’ll have to go and fight. In times of peace, part of the year will be spent in service to the kingdom. Making roads, healing the poor and things like that. Are any of you interested?”
No one jumped on the idea, but they wouldn’t, being more than a bit fearful of magic still. That would, he hoped, be changing, soon.