Aguara merely nodded sadly as Lyra eased herself out the front door. Lyra stumbled across the fields and back up the hill, satisfied that at least there would be proper burials for the victims of the slaughter.

“We need to ride some more tonight to get away from the village,” Lyra announced as she joined her travelling companions. “I think the raiders will start looking farther out when dawn breaks.”

Nobody spoke as they mounted their horses and headed deeper into the forest. Lyra tried to sort her thoughts as she rode. So much was happening so quickly that she felt like she was rolling downhill and couldn’t find a way to stop. There were no answers to her questions, only more questions. Slowly she tried to organize what facts she knew and try to identify the questions that were most important. Then she would search for answers to those questions.

Somebody wanted Master Malafar badly enough to slaughter an entire Academy to get him. Whoever wanted him must be wealthy enough to afford so many bandits, especially bandits who were paid so well that they could afford to forgo the spoils of the attack. This mysterious person also wanted Master Malafar to perform some magic that only the Master could do, and magic that the Master would refuse to do. That is why they hunted her now. They knew Master Malafar would refuse, which means that the task is either obviously evil or involves offensive magic. Her father would refuse for either reason. What didn’t make any sense was the fact that her father held his ideals higher than life itself, so why would they need a hostage to make the Master perform? By Walak’s account, Rhodella had sacrificed her life to save Master Malafar, but her father was ready to give himself up without a fight. If he valued his own life so little, how would a hostage’s life matter more to him than his would?

A gust of cold wind blew through Lyra’s hair and she lifted her head and gazed into the dark sky. The air smelled like rain and Lyra noticed the leaves on the bushes were turned upside down.