Gabria stared at the stallion, her eyes huge. She had no idea what to say to him. Sensing her confusion, Nara left the circle of Hunnuli and came to stand beside her.
The King Stallion turned his dark eyes to Nara. Serve her well, Gabria heard him tell the mare. She must continue her work if sorcery is to return to the clans.
The mare agreed with a neigh.
Gabria spoke up, “Nara has been my friend beyond all imagining. She has served me very well indeed.”
And so shall her sons, the stallion replied. Then he dropped his head down to Gabria’s height, arching his massive neck, and looked at her through the long hairs of his forelock. Sorceress, we have asked you to come to Valorian’s Wheel so we can warn you. Someone, some human, is tampering with magic beyond their control. He shook his mane angrily.
You know the Hunnuli cannot be harmed or altered by magic, but we are innately sensitive to it and to any change in the forms of magic. Lately, we have sensed strange vibrations emanating from the east. These frighten us, for we believe the powers of magic are being abused.
Gabria looked away, her eyes thoughtful.
The stallion snorted. You know who it is?
“Possibly. An exiled chieftain may be in Pra Desh. We think he has the Book of Matrah,”
Then, Sorceress, you must go. Find the source of this tainted magic before something terrible happens that you cannot challenge or reverse.
Gabria paled. “Do you know what he is doing?”
The Hunnuli lifted his head to the east, his nostrils flaring. That is unclear to us. The only thing we know is this magic-wielder is unskilled in handling the powers he is trying to use. He must be stopped.
Gabria felt her heart sink. Oh gods, not now, she cried to herself. To the stallion she forced her reply: “I understand.”
Good. The stallion neighed a command, and a smaller, younger male broke away from the herd and joined Nara. The stallion bowed his head to Gabria.
It would be wise if you took other humans with you, the king told her. Particularly the chieftain, Athlone. He would be a great help to you. Eurus will go with you. Lord Athlone will need a mount befitting his talent.
Gabria eyed the young stallion doubtfully. “I don’t mean to be ungrateful, but Athlone is very reluctant to admit his powers. Now that his stallion, Boreas, is dead, he may not accept another Hunnuli.”
The King Stallion snorted, a noise that sounded much like laughter. We will let Athlone and Eurus work out their own relationship. I’m certain the chieftain will come to his senses.
The woman’s mouth tightened, for she knew Athlone’s stubborn nature. “I hope so,” she muttered.
With a toss of his head, the king signaled his herd. The horses neighed and pranced forward.
Farewell, Sorceress, he said to Gabria. We will come if you need us. Then he wheeled and galloped back up the plateau, the other Hunnuli falling in behind him.
Before Gabria could draw another breath, the horses were gone. The thunder of their hooves echoed on the peaks and faded. An empty quiet fell on the plateau. She gazed at the twin peaks, wishing the Hunnuli would return, wondering if she would ever see their like again.
Nara nickered to her softly. When Valorian brought the clans over that pass and built this wheel to celebrate their journey, they had over two hundred Hunnuli in their midst. Now our herd has barely thirty. Our numbers are dwindling rapidly, Gabria. Without magic and magic-wielders to give us purpose, our mares and stallions do not always mate. Our breed will disappear.
Eurus snorted in agreement.
“May the gods forbid that ever happening!” Gabria said vehemently. She vaulted onto Nara’s back. “Let’s go home.”
The two Hunnuli fell in side by side and made their way down the mountain at a more careful pace. By late afternoon they had reached the foothills and turned south toward Khulinin Treld.
Two days later Gabria and the Hunnuli arrived at the Khulinin camp, just as the horns were blowing to send the evening outriders off on their duties. She rode Nara past Marakor, the tall summit that guarded the entrance to the valley, and waved to the startled outriders standing guard nearby.
She smiled to herself as one of the guardians galloped toward camp to warn Lord Athlone. Nara trotted placidly along the path to the treld, Eurus close by her side. By the time the two Hunnuli reached the training fields by the camp, Gabria could see activity at the chieftain’s hall. A moment later a horseman came galloping down the hill to meet her. It was Athlone.
Even from a distance Gabria could see his anger. His body was rigid on the horse, and his face was dark with fury. He reined his stallion to a halt in front of Nara.
“In the name of all the gods,” he shouted, his eyes on Gabria. “Where have you been?”
Before the startled woman could answer, Eurus came around behind Nara and snorted at the chieftain.
Athlone stared at the second Hunnuli, his anger retreating a little before his surprise and curiosity. “Who is that?”
I am Eurus, brother of Boreas, the young Hunnuli replied.
By this time the members of the hearthguard and the other warriors had caught up with their lord. They gathered close by him, their faces interested but wary. Other clan members clustered around, staring and pointing at Gabria and the two Hunnuli.
Casually, Gabria glanced at the clanspeople to gauge their welcome. She was relieved to see they showed no oven hostility, only curiosity. The priestess of Amara stood at the back of the crowd, a wise smile on her face as she nodded a welcome. Athlone seemed to be the only one disturbed by her return. This time, however, she was not troubled by his reaction. The chief was a volatile man, and Gabria sensed his anger was fed mostly by concern.
Instead of rising to meet his rage, she merely asked, “How did you know I was gone?”
Athlone tore his eyes away from Eurus. “Piers went to find you five days ago. He told me you had left. There was no sign of where you were going, when—or even if—you would return.”
She smiled. “You should have known that I would return.”
Athlone nodded once, sharply, unwilling to give up his anger that easily. “Where did you go?”
“Heretic!” someone suddenly shouted from the edge of the crowd. Thalar shouldered his way through the people and planted himself in front of Nara. “Be warned. Your exile is over, but this clan will not tolerate your evil magic!”
Nara snorted menacingly, but the furious priest ignored her and shook his fist at the young woman. “Your presence curses us, Sorceress, and your foul heresies bring our doom. Leave us in peace!”
“Thalar!” the chieftain said sharply.
Nara, however, had had enough. Her head snaked forward, and she snapped at the priest, her teeth coming dangerously close to his head. The crowd gasped as Thalar stumbled backward, his eyes wide with shock.
“That will be enough,” Athlone demanded.
Thalar started to say something, but the Hunnuli mare flattened her ears, and he stepped hastily back. Glaring ferociously, the priest withdrew to the edge of the crowd.
The sorceress ignored him. She patted Nara and said to Athlone, “Please, Lord, could we go to the hall? The Hunnuli are hungry, and I am very tired. I will tell you everything over a hot meal.”
The chieftain nodded and said with genuine relief, “Welcome home.” He glanced back at the hall with a strange expression of regret. “There is someone else who has been waiting for you.”