Page 40 of The Prince's Sacrifice

“Why are all the horses still here?” Tor asked.

It was true. There were far too many of them given the small number of guards that were left.

“Denil, where are they going?” Beluna demanded.

“They’re heading towards the pass to Filon,” the slight man answered. “One of the others overheard the scout report that’s where the exiles were headed.”

“How reliable is the information?” Tor asked.

Denil pointed at the blond giant. “They thought Cavun was going to crush them, Your Highness.”

Cavun shrugged his huge shoulder. “They were being rude. I just reminded them of the importance of politeness.”

Pel liked him already.

Cavun continued, “And they’re not taking horses because the path’s too unstable to the pass, what with all the rain. It’s muddy and slippery at the bottom, then there’ll be parts flooded out. Horses are too heavy. We’ve had to be extremely careful with any trips to Filon for weeks. Carts are right out.”

“Can we get partway up the path with horses?” Tor asked. “We need to catch up.”

Making a face, Cavun said, “Maybe? I suppose there might be places we can tie up the horses. I mean, all the guards couldn’t, there’s not enough room. But with just the five of us, I think so. It’ll be dangerous.”

“Five of us?” Tor said.

Beluna gave him an unimpressed look. “Oh, are you planning to take on most of the guards yourself, Your Highness?”

Tor grinned, bright and disarming. “That was pretty much the plan, yes.”

Beluna rolled her eyes. “We’re definitely coming.”

“You’re aware that King Forex may view this as treason?”

She eyed him. “I think you can take him in a fight.”

This surprised a laugh out of Tor. “Well, the Fealty is nothing to laugh at, but I’d sure try. You’re also welcome to come with me back to Alossa. I may be better able to protect you there.”

“We’ll keep that in mind, Your Highness. Thank you.”

The other two murmured thanks as well, and that seemed to be the best they were going to get at the moment.

Tor Mantled all their shields, wrapping them in magic. It made them stronger, and the glow of the magic gave them just enough light to see by.

“It makes us targets,” Tor said with a shrug, “but we can’t get up the mountain if we can’t see.”

There didn’t seem to be anything to say to that. The magic was more reliable than lanterns or torches in the weather they were likely to encounter. They mounted their horses and made directly for the mountain, trotting while they could. As the ground rose, they slowed down and began to pick their way forward. Cavun had insisted on riding ahead since he was the one most familiar with the area. Pel was pretty sure he also didn’t like the idea of two princes going first into unknown danger. Beluna and Denil were bringing up the rear.

Pel realized almost immediately what Cavun had meant about the path. In the light of Tor’s magic, they could see where rivulets of water had eaten into the ground, and then where hundreds of booted feet had churned it up.

Every part of this seemed like a terrible idea, but if this was where the guards had gone, they had no choice but to follow.

When the horses began to slip, Tor flung out more bits of magic until all the horses had… little magic grips on their hooves?

Pel’s mare shook her sodden mane and picked up the pace noticeably, not seeming to be bothered by her faintly glowing hooves.

“I didn’t know you could do that,” Pel said, stunned.

“It takes some concentration,” Tor said, sounding faintly distracted. “Magic is usually smooth, so making it spiky takes effort. But it should help.”

Everyone looked very impressed.