Mageborn The Line of Illeniel Michael Manning (novels to read for beginners txt) 📖

“I didn’t think you were the sort to avoid a fight,” I remarked.

“Then you don’t know me,” he said bluntly. “I only fight when the outcome is in my favor, or there’s no other option. We still have options.”

“I’d rather stick to the road,” I said, giving him an even stare.

“I don’t think you heard me,” he replied meeting my eyes.

“I heard you perfectly well. I’m taking the road. If you want to take another route you’re welcome to do so.”

The tension in the air was palpable. “You’re going to meet a bad end boy, and quite possibly hurt a lot of other good people on your way to it.”

I turned my back on him and headed toward my horse. Looking over my shoulder I replied, “I’ve already been promised a bad death, but my appointment isn’t for today.” I caught Penny’s eye as I said it. The only good thing about knowing when you’re going to die… is you can be very sure of when you won’t.

Penny spoke up again, “He’s right about that, we don’t die today.”

“One of your visions?” Cyhan asked. His question surprised me; I hadn’t realized she had told him so much about herself already.

“Yes.”

“That’s fine and dandy, but I don’t give a rat’s ass about when the two of you die. I’m more concerned with my own demise. I’ll bet your vision had nothing to say about me in it,” he responded.

“I didn’t know you then...,” Penny replied uncertainly. “He’s right Mort; we could be putting them in danger based on a vision that only concerns the two of us.”

Her quick reversal irritated me. A few days ago she had thought I was going insane, yet she would have followed me down that road without a second thought. Now I was supposedly ‘cured’ and she was my Anath’Meridum, yet she worried more about ‘his’ opinion than mine. Perhaps I was being irrational, but I couldn’t help the feeling.

“Tell you what,” I said, “Since I’m certain to survive I’ll go alone. I’ll come back for you ladies when I’ve made sure it’s safe.” Yeah it was a stupid thing to say, but I was starting to get seriously annoyed with two of my companions.

“If you travel more than a couple hundred yards or so from Penelope here you’ll both die from the strain on your bond,” Cyhan replied.

“What?!” Penny and I said in unison. No one had told either of us about that little drawback before we took the plunge.

“That’s ridiculous! Let’s undo this... we can’t live like this,” I said, raising my voice.

“Mort...” Penny said quietly.

“It’s possible Penny. We just have to both agree to it and it’s over,” I told her.

“No Mort. I won’t let you. I meant that oath... all of it. It’s important,” she said and I could see her blue eyes were glistening with incipient tears.

“Besides...” Cyhan started.

I was tired of his constant interruptions. He had already turned my future wife against me, “Kyrtos!” I barked at him. It was a spell to silence speech.

“That won’t work on me either,” he continued. Reaching into his pouch he pulled out the still glowing stone from our bonding ceremony. “As long as I carry this your magic cannot touch me.”

Today was just full of surprises. “Anything else I should know?” I bit out. I was angry beyond reason now. He had deliberately kept the consequences of our bond from me. Before he could respond Penny spoke up.

“Yes,” she said. “The gem is a keystone, a crucial part of the bond. It will glow for as long as the bond is in effect, but...”

“But what?!”

“She’s trying to tell you that if I decide you’re a threat I can destroy the gem. It’s an extra bit of insurance in case both of you desert your better senses,” Cyhan finished for her.

“What happens then?” I asked.

“We die Mort.” Penny said, she really was upset now.

“And you knew about this?” I was outraged.

“Yes. It was the only way Mort. You were losing your mind. I couldn’t bear to watch it,” she said plaintively. “I did it for your own good.”

“No need to bother giving me any say in the matter eh?”

Marcus stepped closer, “It isn’t as bad as it sounds, you...”

“Like hell it isn’t!” I shouted him down.

“Mort, I love you. That’s the only reason I would do something like this,” Penny added, as if that would make it all better.

“You can take your love and go to hell!” I snapped. I regretted it the moment I said it but I was too angry to let that stop me. “And you can forget about the marriage as well,” I pulled a small pouch from my belt. It contained the ring I had ordered over a month gone by. Rose had slipped it to me when she first visited us at the royal palace.

“Here, keep it. Sell it, I don’t give a damn. We’re done,” I tossed it at her feet.

She knelt to pick up the small pouch... her trembling fingers quickly told her what was inside. “Mordecai! No, you don’t understand! This doesn’t make any sense. I love you!”

“My father and I have one thing in common Penelope. Neither one of us can stand a damn liar,” my voice was colder than ice now. “Now unless you lied about your oath as well, you have a duty to perform. I’m going down that road, you’ll be coming with me... understand?”

“Don’t think your anger will change my mind boy or did you forget something?” Cyhan was holding the gem up between his fingers.

Cold rage swept over me like a freezing wind. Without using words I focused a blast of air at his hand and the gem went flying. “Grabol ni’targoth. Forzen!” I said immediately afterward. A hole formed in the ground beneath him and Cyhan fell into a shallow pit, the earth closed around him before he could react. I walked over to casually retrieve the gem.

“What the hell are