Page 5 of The Tribes of Magic
“You’re being ridiculous,” Kato said with a roll of his eyes. “As always.”
Conner shrugged. “Better to be ridiculous than boring.”
“Sooo, have you guys found out where the Templars are keeping Kylie and the other missing Apprentices?” I cut in. I needed to distract the boys before they started ‘sparring’ again and I had to create yet another accidental avalanche.
Kato glanced my way. “I haven’t had a chance to do any digging yet, sorry. The General had me up late last night.”
“Late night pizza party?” Conner quipped with a snicker.
“Late night strategy session. Until three in the morning.” Kato suddenly looked so tired.
And now I felt bad for complaining about getting up before dawn. At least I’d scored a full night of sleep. Kato couldn’t havegotten more than two hours of shut-eye. Even so, he’d woken up early to train me. To help me. I really had to find a way to make it up to him.
Maybe he liked scented candles? My mom always said that the best thank-you gift was scented candles. Too bad they were in short supply. The only scented candles I’d ever seen were the ones Mom had made.
“So what were you and the Iron Wolf strategizing about, Kato?” Conner asked. “Let me guess. He wanted to brainstorm new ways to catch me and those other pesky Rebels.”
“Actually, you didn’t even come up in the discussion. The General and I were going over Summit preparations.”
I flinched at the reminder that the long-awaited Summit started today. The members of the Court, the most powerful and prestigious leaders from all across the Many Realms, would soon sit down to discuss whether or not they would invite our world to join them.
Conner saw me flinch and completely misinterpreted the reason. “Don’t worry, Red. I’ve got you covered. I’m chasing down leads on the Templars. In fact…there’s a lead now.” He pulled out his buzzing phone. “Gotta go. Try not to get into too much trouble without me.” He blew me a kiss, then vanished under a spell of invisibility.
“Do you think he’ll be ok on his own?” I asked Kato. “The Templars are very dangerous.”
“They are,” he agreed. “But so is Conner. And despite the big show he likes to put on, he is actually a very good scout. He knows how to keep his head down and stay out of sight. He won’t go charging in if the odds are stacked too heavily against him.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“I usually am.”
Most Knights considered Kato to be arrogant, but that wasn’t the right word at all. He was just self-confident. And really, really good at his job.
“Conner and I will worry about the Templars. You need to stay focused on the tasks the mentors give you,” Kato said. “This week’s tests will be crucial to your future.”
He wasn’t exaggerating. Over the next six days, the Apprentices would be working on a series of key tasks, supervised by our mentors: six Knights, each one from one of the six Tribes.
“At the end of your magic assessments, at the Castle’s annual ball, the Knights will welcome this year’s Apprentices into their new Tribes,” Kato said. “This week’s tasks will help you discover which Tribe you belong in.”
Some of the Apprentices were pretty sure they already knew their Tribe, but others still had no clue. One thing was for sure, though.
“I know where I belong,” I told him.
Like Kato and Conner, I was a Polymage, one of only three in the Many Realms. Well, unless you counted that weird Templar with the unstable personality. But none of us really knew what was up with her—or even who she was.
When Kato spoke again, his voice was low, even worried. “The General knows what you are, Seven.”
“How?” I gasped.
Ok, so it wasn’t like it was a huge secret that I was a Polymage. But Kato had told me he was sure that none of the mentors would rat me out to the General. We were trying to keep my Polymage status a secret, at least until I got better control over my powers. The General didn’t trust people who couldn’t control themselves—and he trusted people even less ifhecouldn’t control them.
“So, you think that means he’s going to be keeping an even closer watch on me now?” I asked.
Not that the General hadn’t already been watching me like a hawk.
“I think it’s safe to say that he’salreadywatching you more closely than we believed,” replied Kato. “Someone told him that you’re a Polymage. The General must have a spy at the Castle, someone who reports everything you do back to him.”
“But who? One of the Knights?” I asked.
