Page 44 of A Hunter for Luna

"Feel the magic here. This place is pure magic. When you contact it, instead of unleashing your power all at once, control it. Shape it."

Hesitantly, I closed my eyes and focused. The familiar cold tingling of my magic gathered in my fingertips. Tentatively,I let a thin tendril of dark moonlight slip from my hand, concentrating on forming it into a fluttering ribbon in the air.

I brushed it against the white dust hanging in the air, which shivered and then faded into nothingness.

When I opened my eyes, Olivia was smiling at me approvingly. "Well done. You're learning."

Another wind blew, smelling faintly of roses, and the tall shadow figure spun, moving rapidly towards its source. “Where are you?”

The plains rocked and shattered and the force of the cry. Nothingness wrapped me and a sharp jab to my ribs jolted me to full awareness. I groaned, blinking against the harsh morning light. Benedetto loomed over me, already dressed and ready to go, a smile playing on his lips.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty. We're saddling up." He nudged my side again with the toe of his boot. "Sorry, guess you missed breakfast."

"Since chewing on bread and cheese takes so much preparation," I said, shoving myself upright and rubbing my sore legs.

He just shrugged. "You're the one who decided to sleep in."

As I saddled my gelding, my mind raced. That dream had felt so real, my heart still pounding from the last jolt of fear.

Was that part a dream? Or something more?

What my grandmother had said about the wards wasn’t entirely correct, I’d traveled with Vala over the years. But she seemed to believe it to be true, seemed sincere.

I knew that most old buildings of the nobility had wards to keep spies from snooping by magic and keep out ghosts, but inns didn’t. Why had she not been able to contact me then? What had prevented her?

I glanced over at Benedetto, considering for a moment whether to confide in him. No. This felt too personal.

By midmorning we’d reached the outskirts of the Drakewood. It covered half a province, lands set aside to remain wild by the first Emperor during his conquest.

“This is a shortcut. I’d rather not use the main road,” said Benedetto as we left the road and rode along the outskirts of the forest. After several hours we started on his ‘shortcut’, a slender track that we’d have to lead the horses on.

The forest transitioned from plains to thick woods within a few hundred feet. Oaks, thorn trees, ash and elm- all of them old. The wood was also magically potent, harvested only at the emperor’s order.

The ancient trees towered above us as we found the track. It was thin enough that we both dismounted. Leading the horses was better than catching a branch to the chest and falling.

Benedetto led, and I watched, amused at the dance between him and Biter. The stallion was determined to bite, and Benedetto equally determined to duck it. I wondered how the horse had gotten the habit and why Benedetto put up with it.

Movement stirred the underbrush before a rabbit ran across the track. It had a rack of horns like a small deer. Strange creatures lived here, I’d heard

The most famous were drakes, small, winged creatures. Generally they grew to the size of a small dog. People called them dragons when they grew larger than horses.

Beneath the thick cover of leaves, the air was cooler, heavy with the earthy aroma of moss and greenery. Thin shafts of sunlight pierced the dense canopy every so often, casting dappled shadows across the forest floor. The soft clop of our horses' hooves mixed with the rustling undergrowth and the occasional bird call.

"Have you heard the stories about this place?" I asked, breaking the stretching silence between us.

Benedetto snorted derisively. "What, the ones about drakes attacking travelers? Those are just tales to frighten children."

"Maybe," I said, tracking movement off the track. "Stories often have a foundation in truth, however long ago."

He scoffed but didn't argue further. As we continued walking the horses, my thoughts drifted back to the dream, my grandmother’s words echoing in my mind. The dark moon's power of disruption. Could I really learn to control it like she said? My fingers tingled, itching to try conjuring that ribbon of dark moonlight again.

But not now, I needed to keep my attention on our surroundings.

I needed to keep my magic hidden, just as I always had. Even if a part of me longed to explore this new knowledge, to test the limits of what I could do. For now, those desires had to wait. This evening, I promised myself. Soon.

A sudden whistle cut through the air. Before I could react, a volley of arrows rained down around us. My horse reared up with a terrified whinny, nearly pulling me off the ground. I clung to the reins, adrenaline bringing a metallic taste to my mouth.

"Void eat you," Benedetto cursed, his sword ringing as he drew it from its sheath. Darkness enveloped it as he called his magic, illusions to conceal us and mess with their aim.

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