The Sixth Day
The Depths of ReasonSleep that night was hard to find, with tensions running high in the group, and yet Amber finally did fall asleep, her odd sword clasped in one hand. Her dreams were peaceful for the first night in half a week, and when she woke the following morning, she was well rested. For once Jinwoo was still sleeping, the sun rising over the sand dunes and casting the world in it's bright glow, and she debated over waking him so he could do his ritual.
The choice was taken from her, because his large eyes opened slowly and he yawned as he glanced toward the dawn. "Tocar," he grumbled, the word froeign to Amber, but then he looked up at her and smiled. "I don't want to greet the sun, I want to sleep!" he said laughingly as he stood and stretched the sleep from his limbs.
"Then do," she advised, but he shook his head and stumbled his way to the edge of camp before taking his seat on the ground and beginning the ritual. Amber was suddenly reminded on the tingle in her hand after she had slapped him on the head several mornings ago, and she realized that it must have been magic reacting to her attack. Her eyes widened in shock as she thought about all the things that could have gone wrong from hitting him during a spell, and so when he finished his greeting this morning, she was ready with questions.
"When I hit you, the other day, did it do something to me?" was the first one out of .
Jinwoo laughed, though a yawn interrupted the mirth and he covered his mouth with a hand to complete it before he continued. "No, I wasn't casting," he explained. "Norindran was the Ancali of the sun, and as the founder of our power, we greet the sun every morning. Kind of a... formal ritual, I guess. Not much meaning behind it except that it is for respect for him. So in answer to your question, no, it didn't do anything to you. Just a little tingle, I'd expect, since I was holding power at the time."
"Yeah," she said lamely, looking down at the offending hand and frowning. "It was more like a zap."
He shrugged and shook his head. "Sorry," he said, though the apology wasn't convincing in the slightest. His grin faded quickly though and he took on a serious expression. "Using my power yesterday was a beacon for those who know how to look. I am expecting company today or tomorrow, and not of the friendly kind."
A frown creased Amber's face and she glanced toward the caravan, where people hurried to ready the animals to travel again. "Does Jinyoung know?" she asked quietly.
Jinwoo nodded his head, though almost reluctantly. "Yes, I told him, but I'm not sure he appreciates the danger we could be in. He doesn't-"
"I'll talk to him," Amber interrupted, heaving a sigh and shaking her head. "Stick close to Daesung when I am not around, he can-"
Jinwoo's smile came back, softer this time, as he touched her on the shoulder. "I can take care of myself. Thank you for watching over me in the night while I was weakened, but I am fine now. Go ahead and do what you need to, I am far from unprotected." Well... he was probably right. He was a magician, what could actually hurt him? She nodded in acknowledgement of his words, then left him to go find Jinyoung.
He was speaking with one of the teamsters when she arrived, but when she waved impatiently to interrupt, he allowed it and sent the teamster off with a disgruntled look. "Yes, Amber? How is Jinwoo?" he asked before she could answer, then continued over her. "You see? You thought I set you to guarding him as some sort of punishment, I'm sure, but I did it because I knew you were a clever woman. He is a good ally and-"
"Jinyoung, stop." As happy as she was to hear his praises, she had to warn him. "Jinwoo says there are going to be people coming after us now that he used his magic."
Jinyoung nodded as she spoke, his expression unchanging even as she finished. "Yes, I know. But we can't just stop and wait for the attack, can we? We continue, and we will face what comes. Besides," he added with a wink at her, "We have nothing to fear with a Magician on our side, do we?"
There were dragons to fear, but she wisely kept that to herself. She knew he wasn't going to change his mind when he was already set like this. She merely shrugged her shoulders and gave him a terse nod, which he reciprocated before turning back to the readying caravan. They were making ready to travel again, the sand storm from the day before being no longer a threat, and Amber realized that they would likel
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