The group surged out through the gate, spilling into the city. Many of the residents of Tarona awaited us, lining the streets in a merry throng. They were here to see their monarchs and the foreign delegations, but they still cheered and waved at the sight of the group of mages. The atmosphere of holiday excitement had gripped more than just the Guild.
Gia and I waved back as Zeke and Bryce appeared beside us.
“Have you come to see us off?” I asked Bryce, noting the wide grin on his face.
He shook his head. “Master Colton decided at the last minute to send one of us along to assist Hayes. I’m the oldest, so the task fell to me.”
Zeke clapped him on the shoulder, reminding me that the two were peers and that it wasn’t just Bryce who would soon be completing his apprenticeship. I pushed away the uncomfortable thought, focusing instead on my pleasure at seeing Zeke. Last time I talked to him, he hadn’t been sure if his mother would insist he travel with his tribe, or if Augusta would win the day with her insistence that he had yet to complete his apprenticeship and was therefore under her authority for the tour.
“It’s good to see you here,” I said. “This is starting to actually look like fun.”
He laughed. “Only you were ever in doubt about that.” When Bryce said something to the twins, he leaned a little closer and spoke in a quieter voice. “I think Mother only requested my presence with her so that she could count it as a concession when she later relinquished her claim.” He rolled his eyes.
“Regardless of the reason, I’m glad she did relinquish it,” I said. “It will make it a lot easier for us to sneak in some training than if you’d been with your tribe.”
“Actually, about that—” he began, but Gia pointed out a collection of cute children, waving frantically, and I turned to her, happy to cut off the conversation. I wasn’t ready for Zeke to suggest I spend time with his tribe.
We spent the rest of the short walk waving and calling greetings to the crowd. The Guild and palace were located near the eastern edge of the city, so it wasn’t long before we reached the river. The water stood in place of the city wall on this side, allowing direct access to the docks for loading and unloading cargo.
The usual hustle and hum of dockworkers had been replaced with bustling servants in blue and gold livery, hurrying on and off what looked like an endless row of royal barges. I stopped in my tracks to gape at them.
“Is the entire palace coming?”
Gia laughed and shook her head. “The whole kingdom doesn’t have enough barges for that. Plus we’ll be sleeping in tents and riding once we reach the coast. Only those able and willing to manage the trip were considered for inclusion.”
The wide, low vessels had a rectangular shape, only the pointed prows giving them the somewhat rounded look I associated with boats. A low cabin took up most of the large deck, leaving only a broad walkway all the way around the edge, with a little extra space at the prow and stern.
One of the proficients at the head of the group began gesturing and calling instructions, leading the apprentices toward the barge at the back of the line. But when we tried to follow, a second proficient stopped us. Ignoring Gia’s mutinous look, he directed her toward the front barge which gleamed with fresh paint in the royal shade of purple.
For a moment I thought she meant to ignore him, but after a brief hesitation she complied. When I tried to disentangle my arm from hers, however, she held on tight. I glanced helplessly back at Zeke only to find he and Bryce remained with Nikolas. After a moment of consideration, I relaxed.
While travel with the entire royal family wouldn’t be my first choice, at least Evermund would be there as well, so I wouldn’t be completely out of place. Especially if I wasn’t the only non-royal apprentice in attendance.
Gia scowled as we waited our turn to file over the broad plank that gave access to the deck. Nikolas directed a reproving look at her, edging around us to take the lead.
“Pretending to be apprentices doesn’t change the truth.”
Her scowl deepened, but she turned it toward the ground, refusing to engage.
He shrugged and looked at me. “The apprentices are in the last barge. No one is going to put the crown princess in such an exposed position.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Are they expecting trouble, then?”
He shrugged. “After three attacks within the Guild itself? They would be fools not to.” He strode onto the boat.
I winced, trying not to imagine what form the attack might take as Gia dropped my arm and prodded me onto the plank. But when I stepped up onto the wood, all other thoughts were wiped out by a sick feeling in my stomach.
I froze, only moving again when Gia prodded me once more from behind. The sudden nausea had been all too familiar—although it was usually far more debilitating. I stepped onto the deck, moving out of the way so Gia could join me and then following in her wake, paying little attention to my surroundings.
Dara was dead. I couldn’t be sensing her now. Could it be a faint trace of the power that had once clung to her?
I frowned as we reached the stern. The sensation still lingered, stronger than the wisps I had felt after Dara’s passing.
I probed inward, remembering her words, and realized with surprise that my ability was still shaped into a shell around me. I hadn’t given it any further thought after the tragic turn of the evening, but apparently it didn’t require any conscious effort to hold its shape.
Tentatively, I directed my ability back into its old ball. Immediately a wave of nausea, stronger than anything I’d felt in the Guild, hit me. I grabbed at the ship’s rail to keep my knees from buckling.
“Cadence?” Gia asked. “You look sick.”
Her voice was a distant buzzing, my mind unable to focus on her words past the effort to keep the contents of my stomach in place. The boat rocked slightly in the swift moving current, and I lost the battle.
Grabbing the rail with both hands, I leaned over the side and was sick into the water below. Even when the full contents of my breakfast had been expelled, I kept retching until my brain kicked back in, and I instructed my ability to re-form the protective shell.
I waited a moment as the nausea subsided before raising my head weakly to find the other four watching me with identical expressions of horror.
Nikolas chuckled. “We haven’t even left the dock yet. This is going to be a long trip for you.”
My eyes narrowed, but I didn’t have the time or energy to be offended by his amusement. I had far bigger problems than if my nausea had been caused by seasickness as he assumed.
“I’ll get you some water,” Gia said, goaded into motion by her brother’s heartlessness.
She dropped onto a knee to rummage in the pack she had dumped on the deck. Bryce, on the other hand, murmured an incomprehensible excuse and slipped away. From the queasy look on his face, I suspected he didn’t want to be around anything that might tip him toward sickness himself.
Zeke, however, stepped forward and surprised me by sweeping my hair up and away from my face. He held it patiently while I searched my pockets for a tie to hold it in place. As soon as I had it secured, he let his hands drop, but he didn’t step back.
“Are you all right?” The furrow on his brow was so deep, I was caught by a momentary, foolish urge to put a fingertip into it.