When Kai looked back, he found Kestrel’s riderless horse still following him. Seraiah and Kestrel had disappeared from sight.

Knowing Kestrel, she was extremely angry with him right now and would like to murder him herself for going off on his own.

It’s for her own good, he thought, leaning further forward on his horse to avoid as much of the wind as he could.

His horse wouldn’t be able to keep up this frantic pace for much longer, but he would have to hope it was good enough.

He snuck another glance back and spotted the mages approaching the boulder where he’d left Seraiah. From the looks of it, there were only two of them. If it came down to a fight, he might be able to take them—assuming his magic played along.

Then, to his horror, they slowed and stopped.

Kai sat up, slowing his horse and wheeling the beast around to face the direction they’d come. Kestrel’s horse kept going.

He stood in his stirrups and shaded his eyes against the harsh sun. From what he could tell, they didn’t appear to be leaving their horses. They stood there, hands gesturing in the air like they were having an argument.

“Please, don’t find them,” Kai murmured. “Chase me.”

Kestrel should be able to hold her own well enough against the two of them. However, she had Seraiah to watch out for, and there was no telling what sort of magic these mages might be able to use.

Finally, after several long moments, there was movement in his direction.

He quickly turned his horse and urged it onward.

Eventually, their speed began to falter.

“Not yet. Not yet. Just a little further,” he said to his horse. “You can do it.”

He had to be careful. If he pushed the beast too hard, he’d find himself on foot, and then he’d really be in trouble.

A check on the mages showed they were still following, but their mounts had begun to tire, too. The distance between them grew until they were small specks behind him.

Kai let his horse slow and searched the horizon. Kestrel’s horse was nowhere to be seen, but he did spy a stream of water.

Perfect.

Kai let his horse walk and kept an eye on the mages. They were still a way off, giving him plenty of time to set his trap.

The stream may have been little more than a trickle of water, but with some help from his magic, it became a torrent of rushing water. Until he let it go, the mages would be unable to cross to the other side. They’d have to find another way around.

Kai dismounted and led his poor, exhausted horse a short distance upstream and out of direct eyesight.

Then he waited.

The drum of hoof beats announced their arrival, but all fell silent as they beheld the water.

“Was this here before?” one of them asked.

“Doesn’t matter. We have to get to the other side. Go, you stupid beast.”

“If we can’t cross, then they couldn’t either.”

“You see those tracks?”

Kai smiled. He’d made sure to leave a very clear trail for them.

“I think we’ll have—”

A horse’s snort was followed by a loud splash and a string of curses. Then came hoofbeats.

“Why are you standing there? We’re wasting time. Go get my horse, and we’ll find another place to cross.”

“I-I don’t think . . . maybe we can share one horse,” the first voice stammered.

After much grumbling, Kai heard the sounds of a horse moving away. He waited a few more moments before leaving the safety of his hiding spot. Downstream, he spotted a single horse with two riders on its back. The second horse was nowhere to be found.

Kai waited, holding on to the water for as long as he could, giving his horse a break and allowing the mages to get a good distance away.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Finally, when he could feel the magic weakening, he let go. Then he mounted his horse and pointed it back in the direction of the portal.

“Time to go find out how mad Kestrel is,” he said, giving the horse a pat on the neck. “You’ll protect me from her, right?”

His horse did not respond.

----------------------------------------

One step.

Two.

On the third, Seraiah felt a strange tugging sensation. It was as if her body was being pulled in different directions. It didn’t hurt, but it was a strange feeling.

When she tried to speak to ask Kestrel what was happening, Seraiah realized she couldn’t. She couldn’t form the words.

Was Kestrel still there?

She could no longer feel Kestrel’s hand in hers. In fact, she could no longer feel anything.

Then the portal spat her out.

Waves of nausea washed over her, and she found herself on her knees, in the dirt—retching. Kestrel stood a few feet away, calmly waiting for her to finish.

When it finally passed, Seraiah wiped her mouth on her tunic sleeve and glared at Kestrel.

“What the hells was that?”

“That was the portal.”

“And you didn’t think to warn me? I thought it was going to be like walking through a door!”

“Sorry.” Kestrel frowned. “It’s not usually like that. However, I’ve never brought a human with me. I barely feel a tingle when I pass through it.”

Seraiah looked down at her hands, flexing her fingers to make sure they were truly there. It was so strange to not be able to feel or control her body. When she was satisfied that everything was still there and whole, she looked up to take in the new world.

It was identical to the one she’d just left.

Seraiah wasn’t sure what she had expected to see, but she’d thought it would at least be somewhat different.

Instead, the same dry desert landscape surrounded them as far as the eye could see. “Did we even go anywhere?” she asked. “Maybe the portal isn’t working because this looks like the same place.”

“Oh, it’s working all right.” Kestrel laughed. “The area around the portal looks the same, but as soon as we take a few steps away—it will change. Speaking of which, we should hurry up and move away from here, in case someone else comes tumbling through. I know we didn’t see anyone following us, but I would rather not take any chances.”

With a little help from Kestrel, Seraiah regained her footing, shaking off the dizziness. “Shouldn’t we wait for Kai?”

Kestrel shrugged. “He told you not to. I’m sure he is perfectly fine wherever he is.” She tried to sound nonchalant, but Seraiah could still hear the undercurrent of worry in her words.

They started off in what Seraiah estimated was a northward direction.

“Here’s a warning for you,” Kestrel said, as they walked. “Everything here can kill you, but I can do it the most efficiently.” She delivered this with a perfectly straight face.

Seraiah paled. Had Kestrel just threatened to kill her?

Kestrel cracked a smile. “Stay close now.”

Seraiah stopped in her tracks.

“Oh, come on.” Kestrel turned, walking backward. She was full-on grinning now. “I was teasing.” She paused. “Except for the part about everything being able to kill you, that part is true.”

“Well, I didn’t find it amusing,” Seraiah said, but she started walking again. “You should work on that.”

“Sounds like someone needs a nap.”

Truer words had never been spoken.

Seraiah was exhausted. Still, she preferred when Kai was the victim of Kestrel’s teasing, not her. As she trudged forward, the world took on a fuzzy quality. She rubbed her eyes and when she looked again—they were standing in a field of knee high grass.

“See, what did I tell you?” Kestrel held out her arms, gesturing at the new scenery around them.

“Does this mean we can stop now?” Seraiah imagined the long grass would make a decently comfortable bed.

“See those trees up ahead?”

Seraiah squinted, looking for the trees Kestrel was referring to. They were nothing more than tiny specks on the horizon.

“When we reach the trees, we can stop.”

Seraiah groaned. “You really are trying to kill me, aren’t you?”

“It’s not that far,” Kestrel said. “I promise.”

----------------------------------------

Kestrel lied.

It was that far, and Seraiah’s feet were killing her by the time they made it there. She slumped at the base of one of the trees and pulled her boots off, afraid of what she was going to find. Her feet were raw from all the walking they had done that day. She wasn’t used to long treks on foot and her feet certainly showed it. She counted at least five blisters, including one between her toes.

“How far is Nyrene from here?” she asked, afraid of the answer.

“On foot?” Kestrel thought a moment. “A few days, maybe. If we still had our horses, it would only be a day or so.”

“I never thought I would say this, but I miss those horses.” Seraiah sighed and leaned her head back against the trunk behind her, closing her eyes.

“Me too.” Seraiah heard Kestrel respond quietly, and then she was asleep.

----------------------------------------

The sun woke Seraiah the next morning. Sometime during the night, she had curled up in a ball at the base of the tree. Now, she sat up slowly, blinking in the morning light.

“Good morning, Sunshine,” Kestrel greeted her. “Hope you’re ready for more walking today.”

Seraiah groaned. She most certainly wasn’t ready for more walking. Her body hurt in places she hadn’t known existed.

“Did you even sleep?” she asked Kestrel as she got to her feet and brushed herself off. She was not looking forward to putting her boots back on.

“A little,” Kestrel responded. “Someone had to make sure nothing came to eat us in the night.”

“Is it not safe here?”

“Remember the Varanem?”

Seraiah nodded. How could she forget? She swore the stink of it still lingered in her hair.

“Well, some of the creatures that inhabit this world make the Varanem look like a puppy.”

“Wonderful,” Seraiah choked out. She didn’t want to think about what could be worse than the Varanem.

“Don’t worry. This area is a relatively peaceful place, but one can never be too careful. By the way, you might want to find a different way to carry my knife. May I suggest your boot?”

Kestrel showed her how to safely tuck it away so that she wouldn’t cut herself. “I thought you would want it back,” Seraiah said.

“I have plenty of other ones and if it means you’ll practice learning to use it, fine by me. Just don’t stab anyone I like.”

“And who would that be?”

Kestrel pretended to think. “You know, I’ll have to get back to you about that.”

Seraiah snickered. “I’m guessing Kai doesn’t make the list?”

“It really depends on the—” Kestrel froze.

In the quiet, Seraiah heard the drum of approaching hoofbeats.