Renegade Wizards by Lucien Soulban

Tythonnia’s role that remained intriguing … that and the event that would obliterate almost all knowledge of Berthal’s fate.

C HAPTER 6
Honoring the Dead
    T he wide, open plains that spread out to the horizon’s sunlit fringes gave way to blankets of bruised clouds. Rain fell in heavy sheets, like a play with a never-ending series of curtains, and the temperature evaporated at the storm’s touch. The three renegades rode the wet days with barely a word; they rarely spoke to one another, each somehow inconvenienced by the others’ presence.
    Par-Salian had given up his attempts at banter, much to the relief of the other two. Tythonnia tried her best to teach them the necessary wilderness survival skills, while Ladonna did her best to prove she was equally capable using magic. Tythonnia searched for dry wood for the night, and Ladonna used magic to ignite wet wood. Tythonnia hunted for food to extend their provisions, and Ladonna killed larger game with her spells.
    The two women were in fierce competition, and when Par-Salian refused to take sides, he paid for it with their silence and scornful stares.
    That drove the three into a deeper, more uncomfortable quiet.
    The rain fell harder as they approached a branch of the Vingaard River; they were less than a day’s travel from theriver, but they were already well into the fertile delta called the Plains of Solamnia. Here lay the crop and cattle belt of the region, where farmers drove herds to Solanthus to the south and Palanthas to the northwest. A necklace of three mountain ranges surrounded the plains, with the Vingaard Mountains to the northwest; Dargaard to the east; and Garnet to the south, below Solanthus itself. It created a basin where the mighty Vingaard River branched and forked into smaller tributaries. All told, it afforded for rich fields and easier flooding.
    Likewise, the communities thinned out, with farmers and cattle owners clustered around the different keeps and river communities. Unfortunately, that little fact exacerbated the friction between the three wizards. Par-Salian advocated staying close to the roads and paths for safety. Ladonna wanted to spend the night in an inn, where they’d be warm and wonderfully dry. Tythonnia, however, insisted on sticking to the wilderness, where they could avoid civilization and the threat of discovery.
    “You’re not happy unless we’re all miserable!” Ladonna said.
    Tythonnia almost growled. She was tired of that argument every few miles. Couldn’t they understand how their course helped them? What was she supposed to do? Order the elements to comply to Ladonna’s whims? Turn around because their resident Black Robe fretted?
    “You can’t spend your life being pampered!” Tythonnia shot back. She prodded her horse forward.
    “Pampered? I’ve lived hardships that would have killed you, farm girl,” Ladonna said, nudging her own horse forward. Her skills as a rider had improved substantially, which annoyed Tythonnia. She preferred Ladonna when she was too focused on riding to complain.
    “I’m sure wearing all that jewelry is such a terrible burden!”
    “Tythonnia,” Par-Salian said, “Ladonna, stop bickering!” His voice was low. Perhaps he was fatigued. But Tythonnia recognized the edge to it, the frayed nerve about to snap.
    Ladonna pulled hard on the reins and wheeled her Aban-asinian about. “Perhaps if you chose a side—”
    Par-Salian laughed, a bitter guffaw that cut Ladonna off and showed the exhaustion in his rain-streaked face. “Choose a side? Is that what you think? This is what I get for trying to support you both? Fine … here’s my side. How about you show that backbone the Black Robes are so renowned for and stop complaining! You do your order a disservice. And stop trying to undermine everyone’s authority! Until we reach Palanthas, you follow Tythonnia’s lead and my instructions!” He turned on Tythonnia next. “And you … take us closer to the roads where the