Thio leaned on the railing of the riverboat, calmly watching the approach of another. The other boat was moving erratically, its oars slapping into the water in a staccato rhythm. The people on its deck were shouting to one another, their faces distorted by anger and fear.

“That’s the third boat this morning.” Said the man standing beside Thio, Hendrick. He was old, a decade beyond a half-century in age, and had served Thio’s family as man-at-arms for most of that life.

“It is pretty strange. Something must have happened up in Avonford.” Thio said.

The other boat raced past, its occupants barely sparing them a glance in their haste to flee, the waves cast out in its wake sending Thio’s boat rocking.

“How are the men doing?” Thio asked Hendrick as the other boat faded into the distance.

“A little uneasy, but nothing to be concerned about.” Hendrick responded in his gravelly voice. “No major incidents with the Marches men either, thankfully.”

“That’s a relief, but don’t let down your guard. Belinda may not be her father, but she’s every bit as sly as he is.”

“I’ll keep an eye on her.” Hendrick said, bowing his head.

The door to the cabin slammed open behind them and out marched a young woman. She had shoulder-length blonde hair, the tips fading to a dyed pale blue in the Lightire fashion that had currently gripped the court. Her face was angular, with high cheekbones, a thin mouth, and piercing eyes. Eyes that swept across the deck, landing on Thio and Hendrick before narrowing. Clasping her hands behind her, nose thrust high, she walked towards them.

“Speak of the devil, and she will appear.” Thio muttered to Hendrick, eliciting a small smile that briefly flickered across the other man’s face.

Thio turned to Belinda, forcing his mouth into a smile. “My lady, we are so blessed for you to grace us with your presence so early in the morning.”

“Spare me the false compliments, Thio.” She snapped back at him. “What exactly is all the fuss out here, it’s disrupting my meditation.”

Thio straightened, dropping the polite pretence. If she wasn’t going to play, then neither was he. “Just some boats, racing upriver away from Avonford.”

“Well, what is going on over there?” Belinda demanded, placing her hands on her hips.

“How am I supposed to know, I’ve been on this boat, same as you.” Thio fired back, a familiar irritation rising within him. Her prickly personality had really rubbed him the wrong way the whole journey. The woman was arrogant, haughty, and seemed to have no respect for anyone but the higher tiered mages in the academy. In fact, as she had reminded him many times, if it wasn’t for the direct intervention of the academy provost ordering her to accompany them she wouldn’t even be on this expedition.

“Idia above, you really are useless.” Belinda turned away from him, striding over towards the bow of the boat.

Thio went to follow her, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He looked up into the face of Hendrick, who slowly shook his head.

“Leave it, you gain nothing by rising to her provocations.” Hendrick said. “She seems to enjoy needling you.”

“I know, it’s just…” Thio said, before sighing. “You’re right.”

Thio turned to lean on the boat railing again. “What was my father thinking, sending us on this expedition.”

“You know he just has the family's best interests at heart.” Hendrick said. “He’s just trying to-”

A blindingly-bright flash of light filled Thio’s whole world with white. A grunt to his side told him Hendrick had been similarly affected.

Slowly, Thio’s vision returned, the world fading back into view through a field of dancing stars. Looking up, he found Belinda walking back along the deck towards them, a purple glow fading from her eyes.

“In Vistol’s name… You could have warned us before you did that!” He growled at her, blinking the remaining after-images from his sight.

“Oh, don’t be such a child.” Belinda said, waving her hand dismissively. “I, at least, am proactive about discovering the source of the disturbance.”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Thio glared at her, waiting for her to continue. She stared back at him, saying nothing.

The silence stretched out between them.

“Well, what did you find.” Thio ground out, finally breaking the stalemate.

A smile tugged at the edges of Belinda’s mouth. “There’s quite the commotion on Avonford’s docks. People packing onto boats, milling about in all directions. I can’t see in motion at this distance, but I think it may be wise to take care when we moor. We don’t want to get overrun by lowlife.”

Thio mulled over the information, putting his annoyance at Belinda’s antics to one side. If people were fleeing the city, this late in the year, then something truly bad must have occurred. Whatever it was, it didn’t bode well for them.

“How about the closest pier to us?” Thio asked Belinda. “Was that also overrun?”

Belinda folded her arms in front of her, closing her eyes to think for a moment. “No, actually. That pier is the one place in the docks that wasn’t packed.” Opening her eyes, she looked at Thio quizzically. “How did you know?”

“Evidently, you haven’t been to Avonford before,” Thio said. “That pier is reserved for nobles. We’ll be safe to dock there.”

A smirk tugged at his mouth. “Don’t worry, my lady. I’ll make sure to guide you in the customs of the city, so you do not make a fool of yourself.”

Belinda glowered at him, before turning away with a dismissive grunt. “I must return to my meditation. Do not disturb me until we arrive.”

With that, she stormed off, slamming her cabin door behind her.

With Belinda finally gone, Thio slumped, the tension he was holding draining from his body. “Tell the helmsman to bring us into the closest pier.” He said to Hendrick, turning back to look over the water. “And ready the men. I have a feeling we will need to be on our guard out here.”

—

The bump of the boat against the pier drew Thio’s attention from his daydreams, just in time to take in a half-dozen guards running towards them, clad in armour emblazoned with the bridge sigil of Avonford.

“Halt!” The lead guard shouted. “This pier is reserved for only those with valid passes!”

Thio raised an arm, a brightly painted scroll case clasped in his hand. “We have passes.”

The guards levelled their spears towards them. “I do not recognize you, or your boat.” The lead guard shouted back. “I would advise you to dock at the community piers instead.”

Thio turned to Hendrick, handing him the scroll case. “Read it before you make any judgements.” He shouted back to the guards as Hendrick hopped over the boat’s railing to the pier. “We have full permission to use this pier.”

The lead guard looked unconvinced, but accepted the scroll case, pulling it open and reading the contents within. In an instant, his expression went from imperious to fawning. Hurriedly gesturing for his men to raise their spears, he ducked into a deep bow.

“My apologies, my lord. I was not informed of your coming. As you can see, we are currently experiencing some problems.”

He gestured to the other piers further along the docks, piers that were swarming with people. “I’m sorry to say, but I would not advise you to stay here for long. We cannot even open the gates to the city proper in case the crowds try to make use of the boats here.”

“What’s going on?” Thio asked.

“There has been an incident that has caused a bit of a panic.” The guard said. “The Seeker enclave was wiped out a few weeks ago.”

That made Thio’s blood run cold. The Seekers were attacked? And not only attacked, wiped out?

What in Vistol’s name was going on up here?

“Who would do something like that?” Thio asked.

The guard shrugged. “It’s unknown, my lord. From what I hear, they just all died in the night. The council has been trying to keep the news a secret as we investigated, but…” He gestured at the piers swarming with people. “As you can see, the news broke eventually.”

“Where are they all going?”

“I expect most will try their luck upriver in Okwood, Athesall, or Calista. I hear some are going to try going downriver instead, though, to the new settlement at Srinaber. Rumour is the ruling body there are handing out homes to all comers. Seems a bit far-fetched to me, but then again, I’m not fleeing the city because of some minor incident.”

Thio raised an eyebrow. “Minor incident? You aren’t worried about a Seeker reprisal for whatever happened?”

“Well, it wasn’t us that did it, so why would they bother us? Either way, the council will sort things out.” The man said, his face full of conviction.

“I see.” Thio said, trying to keep the dubious expression from his face. “Well, thank you for filling us in on the situation.”

“You’re welcome, my lord. If you have any more questions, you can find me at the guardhouse by the gate. Just be aware that I cannot open it, not until the council gives the all clear. No matter your passes, I have my orders.”

“Of course, I wouldn’t dream of pressuring you. We will be on our way soon enough.”

The guard gave a sharp bow, then gestured for his men to head back towards the wall sectioning the pier off from the rest of the city.

“What do you want to do?” Hendrick asked. “Personally, I’d suggest we take his suggestion and get back on our way soon enough. If we aren’t careful, those people may try to swarm us. Also, we definitely don’t want to be in the area when the Seekers retaliate for whatever happened here. No matter what that man says, the Seekers have never been known for their restraint.”

“Agreed, let’s be on our way to Srinaber with all haste. The sooner we can get this done, the sooner we can be home.”

And the sooner he would be able to get Belinda out of his life.

Gods, this trip sucked.