Free Ossendar: Book Two of the Resoration Series by Christopher Williams

below his elbow.
    Breathing heavily, Aaron climbed to his feet and looked around. Atock was standing a little farther down the alley.
    “Where did the third one go?” Aaron asked.
    “He ran down the alley, and the other two ran into the inn.” Atock walked closer to Aaron, “Was that Elona with them?”
    Aaron nodded, anger welling up within him. “Yes. She went to Stonewood looking for work.”
    Atock's eyes widened at this bit of news. “Well, that was pretty stupid of her. Are you going to look for her again?”
    Aaron shook his head, “No. I did for her what I could. I can't help her anymore.” Inside he felt a little guilt, but only a little; a sudden relief flowed through him, and he felt like a burden had just been lifted from his shoulders. He had tried to help the girl and she had refused. It was no longer his problem. “Atock, I need to see Kara. I have a pretty nasty cut.”
     
     
    Flare rode toward the practice field, where the other guardians were to meet him. He shivered slightly from the early morning chill, the sun was just starting to crest the horizon, and stars shown through the cloudless sky. It was the best time of the day to leave the city, as the crowds had not really started gathering. It was a short ride from the city to the practice field and it felt good to be on a horse again.
    He continued to study with Dagan as the summer started to stretch into fall. The leaves on the trees in the king's garden had begun to turn color, and the nights were more pleasant. The nights were by no means cold, but they had cooled off since the guardians had returned from Fort Mul-Dune.
    In the beginning of Flare's studies with Dagan, he had spent most of every day with the old man. They continued to study the history of Telur and the noble families, but to his delight, they spent more time studying sorcery than history. The old sorcerer said that he had the knack for sorcery, and it appeared that Dagan was a little bothered by how easy sorcery came to Flare.
    For his part, Flare loved it when he used sorcery. It amazed him how sharp his senses became when he was touching the inner spirit, using it to manipulate the physical world. He could smell odors with amazing clarity, whether it was the remains of Dagan's breakfast sitting on the tray, or the mustiness of some the sorcerer's books on the bookshelf across the room. His vision also was extremely acute, with the colors seeming bright and blinding. He could hear the roaches in the walls, birds far away in the distance, and he could hear Dagan's heart beating. Sorcery quickly became a rush to him, something he enjoyed doing and missed if he didn't get to do. He wanted to practice in his room, but Dagan had made him promise that he wouldn't. When he asked why, Dagan would only say that the walls sometimes had eyes and ears. Flare simply shook his head and obeyed.
    Then last night Kara, who had been treating Flare like a newborn, finally gave him permission to start drilling with the other guardians again. For the last several weeks, he had been exercising by himself, and he was amazed at out of shape he had gotten since his injury. He was quietly happy that Kara had kept him from returning to join the guardians as he had asked. It would have been quite embarrassing to have drilled with the guardians and not been able to keep up. In his absence, Atock had led the drill sessions, and he would continue to do for a while, at least until Flare was completely recovered. He was excited to get back into the saddle and start practicing with the sword again, but he was also disappointed that he would have less time to study with Dagan.
    Flare reached the practice field with just a few minutes to spare. The field was a rectangular field that the guards and other soldiers used to practice when they were stationed at the castle. The ground was level and the grass was short. One of the shorter sides of the field faced the castle off in the distance and was bare of