A New Light (The Astral Wanderer Book 1) by D'Artagnan Rey (best romance ebooks txt) 📗

the being have gotten any closer. Something was off about the stranger who had approached Devol. He saw her dance around the boy as if he could not see or feel her before she introduced herself to him. From his vantage point, he couldn’t even get a proper description. It was like her features were muddled. He clambered off the roof and stalked after the stranger. Whether she was working with the enemy or merely a random thief was something he had to find out. Because whatever she was, she was most certainly not a simple traveler.

He kept his distance and drew his hood down to obscure his visage. It was unlikely that these villagers would be surprised to see a realmer, but mori were still a rather rare sight in this realm. Some of the more superstitious did not hold them in high regard, so it was better that he did not cause a scene. He sipped casually from his gourd as he continued to follow the woman, who seemed to be studying something she had taken out of her pocket.

The Templar looked ahead and realized that they were headed to the edges of town. His quarry veered through the people on the street as if she intended to turn left into what appeared to be a less busy road. He would look for an opportunity to confront her there—an alley or empty building—and would rather take the risk that he was wrong than leave this woman to simply wander about.

The stranger turned and Vaust used a small burst of Mana to sprint forward quickly and try to keep her in his sights. When he turned the corner, however, she was gone.

How did she escape? His Mana flowed into his eyes and he located the trace remains of a violet-colored Mana only a few paces away. He extended his hand so he could get a feel of it, and he felt a disconnect between it and the user. This was some type of teleportation over a long distance. It had probably been accomplished with a curio or trinket. Outside of blinking, teleportation was not something a Magi could do so quickly on their own.

Vaust placed his kama into the sheath on the back of his waist and debated his next step. This seemed a good indicator that it would not be as simple a mission for him as he’d expected.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

When Koli reappeared, he was in the mouth of a cave a few miles outside of Rouxwoods. He walked calmly inside and heard heavy, savage breathing from within. “Salvo?” he called. “Are you still here, my friend?”

“Koli?” a voice responded with a chuckle and a fist-sized flame appeared deeper within. “Finally. I was beginning to get bored here.”

“You could have participated,” he pointed out as he walked into the spartan cave that contained only some bedrolls and the packs they had brought with them—aside from their pet in the cage. “It may be a small town but there are many people there we need to look into.”

“Hey now, someone has to make sure the big guy stays,” Salvo countered and held the flame near his face to reveal a toothy grin against his tanned skin and short-cropped white hair. “And remember who got us the information in the first place, eh? I say I’ve been pulling my weight.”

“I’m not here to guilt-trip you,” he said, leaned against the wall, and folded his arms. “But I was bored too, and lonely. I could have used the company.”

Salvo approached his partner and studied him. “That dull, huh? Well, maybe if I could see you in your female form, I would be more inclined.”

Koli shrugged. “I have no control over that. The rune on my neck creates the illusion and you interpret what it shows you.”

The man rolled his eyes. “You keep saying that—like I would choose to see a guy over a babe.” He cast his flame to the side, where it landed on a stack of firewood, ignited it, and illuminated the cave. “So I take it you weren’t able to find anything out today?”

“If that were the case, I wouldn’t have come back,” he stated with an amused chuckle and held a card up. “I ran into an interesting group in the square and one of them had this on him.”

He threw the card at his partner, who snatched it out of the air and studied it. “Call sign is caw-caw? What the hell is this?”

“It appears to be instructions for a meeting,” he replied. “It says they will meet by the evening of the twenty-first, which would be tonight.”

“Are you sure these are our guys?” Salvo asked and examined the card again. “So what are we looking at? A team of Templars?”

“A team, yes,” he conceded. “But if they are Templars…well, they are rather young.”

“So recruits or something?” his partner asked with a frown. “Is this some kind of a joke? Why would they send brats to fetch it?”

“Brats,” said thoughtfully. “Perhaps that is quite apt, Salvo. From what I saw, they were mostly teenagers.”

“A group of kids?” The man balked. “This ain’t gonna be fun at all.” He hissed through his teeth as he stretched his neck and muttered. After a moment, he stopped and turned slowly with his eyes narrowed. “Wait, you said mostly?”

“Indeed I did,” Koli confirmed. “While I was preparing to head back, I was followed by another Magi, this one quite skilled. I almost didn’t detect him for a brief time. He hides his Mana well but I could feel a disturbance in my area and my powers were being blocked,” he revealed. “I don’t know if he is their leader or a third party, but he is quite powerful and either way, he will probably be a not inconsiderable hindrance.”

“Is he strong?” Salvo asked and excitement crept into his voice. “Tell me he is.”

“I didn’t fight him so I couldn’t tell you that.” The other man’s face fell with undisguised disappointment.