"The wagon with the magus is here," the servant said. "They are waiting in front of the house."
"Thank you," Belili said. "I am coming."
The young man quickly bowed his head and hurried off.
"My father's people are nervous around you," Tala said, rising with Belili.
Belili looked away uncomfortably. "I heard there are rumors going around town. I would be nervous too." She picked up the bag containing her few possessions. It was mostly spare clothes that had been given to her in Ibilsin's house. Slinging the bag over her shoulder, she and Tala left the small pavilion in the center of the garden and followed the marked path back to the house. They walked side by side and Belili had to control the reflex to fall back and walk behind the older woman – her former owner.
That will take some time getting used to, she thought, shaking her head. Her life had changed so much in just a few days.
"They should be grateful for what you did," Tala said, the furrows on her forehead showing her displeasure. "You freed our people and saved the town from being sacked. You were aided by Urk himself!"
"Your father was very kind, letting me stay here while master Jas'ar recovered," Belili said.
She hadn't felt save, going back to Gulan's house. Fortunately, Ibilsin had turned out to be Tala's father, and she had been invited to stay under his roof. The chief elder kept a dozen guards in his personal employ, making his home likely the safest place in all of Urk.
The two women entered the house and walked down a corridor to the main entrance. Servants and members of Ibilsin's family were busily at work where ever Belili looked. It had been this way since the day before and she had felt weird to only watch while the whole household was brimming with activity.
"The caravan should have left days ago," Tala said. "Now that the siege is over the merchants are eager to move."
They stepped into a large courtyard surrounded by several buildings and a gated wall. Pack animals were retrieved from their stalls and wagons were loaded. Both house servants and men in sturdy traveling garb worked hand in hand.
"Hey, there you are!" Saras waved to her with his unbroken arm, the other still bound in a sling. "Are you ready to leave?"
Belili almost ran the five steps between them and hugged him.
"Hey, careful," he complained, stiffening for a moment. But then he hugged her back with his one good arm. "I will be fine, you know," he whispered.
"I know," she said, forcing back her tears. She found it hard to let go of Saras and for once her brother didn't push her away as quickly as he could.
"I could go with you until Saggab," Saras said. "If master Jas'ar askes for another guard, I am sure Ibilsin would not say no."
Tala placed her hand gently on Belili's shoulder. "Healer Gulan strictly advised against you traveling until your arm is fully healed."
Belili finally let go and quickly dried her eyes. "Tala is right. You need to get better first."
"Once your arm is healed, you will begin your training with my father's guards," Tala said. "A lot of people saw your courage on the wall. You will do good here." A slight squeeze of her shoulder told Belili Tala's encouraging words were meant as much for her as for her brother.
Saras made a face but didn't argue. Even if they didn't admit it to each other, neither of them felt comfortable with the separation.
You will be safe in Ibilsin's household, Belili thought. I need you to be. She didn't know what lay ahead but considering her experiences of the last couple of days she could only imagine the path of the magi a perilous one. Knowing Saras was healthy and save, allowed her to be firm in her decision to follow master Jas'ar.
"Are you going to continue to ignore me over here?" a friendly voice asked from inside a nearby wagon.
They all smiled and stepped closer, looking down at the comfortably bedded magus.
The old man looked much better. His fever had broken a day after Belili had led the freed prisoner back to Urk. He was still weak, but he had nevertheless requested to join the caravan north.
A nervous Gulan had held some reservations but hadn't offered any serious resistance and the elders council had happily provided a wagon so the magus could travel in comfort. Ultimately, nobody was unhappy to see them go. Too many families had been hurt during the Epi-Khmet's short but bloody incursion.
While nobody had dared to approach her, Belili had felt the stares of the inhabitants walking the streets of Urk during her only visit at Gulan's house. Reassured that master Jas'ar and Saras were doing well, she had been relieved when she was back behind Ibilsin's walls.
Tala is the only one that thanked me without fear, Belili thought, silently watching the two adults exchanged pleasantries. She did not even blame me for Zabu's death.
For the devout woman, they had all done what they had to. It had been their duty to the gods and so was bearing the consequences. While most of her surviving servants would return to the farm, she would stay at her father's house.
"Your husband had no family?" the magus asked.
Tala shook her head. "He does but they lost several people during the raid. Zabu's youngest brother will inherit the farm. He would have taken me in but my father and eldest brother put their foot down and insisted that I return home." She lowered her eyes but a small smile betrayed how touched she was by her relative's action that went beyond duty and custom.
Master Jas'ar folded his hands over his blanket. "You have lost much. I am grateful for all you and your people did. May the gods hear your prayers."
"I am sure they will," Tala said, bowing. "Now that we have received the blessing of one of their great servants."
I would not be so sure about that, Belili thought, having learned entirely too much about the magus' relationship with some of the gods to believe many of them would be fond of him. I wander if all magi are like that?
Of course, she kept her thoughts to herself. She had met personally the city's patron deity and she was entirely too fond of Tala, to ever wish her to know the character of the being she spend her life worshipping.
I am leaving today, she thought, projecting her mental voice as she had done before. Master Jas'ar and I are going north. I do not know when I will be able to return here.
She listened for a moment but Urk did not respond. She hadn't heard or sensed him since he had abandoned her before she had called on the jackal god.
"Are you ready?" the magus asked.
Lost in her thoughts, Belili hadn't noticed the old man observing her. She tried to smile down at him but faltered. How much did his question imply?
"I am fine," she said. "I am ready."
"Then wave your people goodbye. You will not see them in a long time. And try to look happy. For their sakes."
At the gate the caravan leaders – two of Ibilsin's sons – hugged their father. Then they mounted their horses and the older raised and dropped his arm. Slowly, all the wagons, pack animals, driver, and guards started moving. As they filed through the gate, they formed a line that would soon be joined by groups from other merchant families.
Belili turned around and did as the magus had asked, waving to Tala and Saras, trying to suppress the tears that wanted to well up in her eyes. At least until they had crossed under the gate and were out of sight of those that stayed behind.
"You must tell me everything that has happened," master Jas'ar said, as they travelled down the dirt road leading toward the town's wall.
Belili frowned. "I already did." Accompanying Tala and her father to the healer's house the day before, she had given the magus an account of what had transpired outside the town.
"That was but an insufficient summary," master Jas'ar said. "I want to hear all the details of how my apprentice ran down the path of the magus so far without my guidance. And do not leave out how my precious weights were bartered away in a single night after I carried them all this way."
While his voice was serious, he didn't hide the twinkle in his eyes. And so Belili began to retell the events in greater detail, beginning with Bechek's appearance in front of Urk's gate and the Epi-khmet's nightly assault that had almost cost Saras his life.
"It seems I truly missed everything," master Jas'ar said bemused, when she had finished. "Have you heard that Harbis and a handful of his men disappeared the hour of your return?"
"Gulan did not," Belili said, anger sneaking into her voice. "Why did you decide to leave him be?" Abandoning Saras and the magus in the traitor's hands, had weighted heavily on her. It felt wrong to see him go unpunished, even if she would have felt sorry for Shala.
"A good healer his hard to come by and the people of Urk have been good to us," the magus said. "Or maybe I am just too tired to feel vengeful? We can always curse his house later if we so wish. There is no hurry. And he knows this too and will have to live with that fear." He winked at her.
Should I be terrified of this man? Belili asked herself. But then again, she had faced a god of death and his runaway daughter only days ago and survived.
"Will the Epi-Khmet and their gods come after us?" she asked.
Master Jas'ar thought for a moment. "No. No, I think that is unlikely. The Ka's scheme has been thwarted thoroughly and they will remember that. Nobody can hold a grudge like a god. But I think all this will lead to increased tensions between the two empires which in turn will continue to keep the Epi-Khmet from looking outward for years to come. Nevertheless, we should stay away from their domain for the next decade or so." He stroked his beard. "Less than fifteen summers and you have made your first divine enemies. You are truly talented, child."
Belili couldn't share the magus' enthusiasm and it must have shown in her expression.
"Do not worry too much," he said, waving dismissively. "The path of the magus is to strive for power for one reason or another. The gods guard their magic jealously but on the other hand want the services only mortals can provide them. As you go down this road, making an enemy here and there is unavoidable. Also, I have to admit, you had a stronger start than most."
Belili ignored the old man's amusement. She would have to live with the consequences of her action even so she could think of anything she could have done differently.
I am still alive and so is Saras, she thought. That is enough.
She did feel sorry for Zabu, Mortar and all the others that had died but she didn't know what she could have done to save them. Since the night she had decided to follow her dream and found master Jas'ar in the mountains, events seemed to have spiraled out of control. And had that even been her choice?
"What will happen next?" Belili asked, deciding to focus on the future. She had been a slave for too long to ponder things she couldn't change.
"We will go to Saggab and stay there for a while," the magus said. "I need to heal and you need to begin your education. The great city is the perfect place to do this."
"Will you teach me more magic?"
The magus nodded. "That and much more. There are more scholars and wisemen in Saggab than anywhere else in the known world. You will have many teachers. You must learn to read and write. First in the old tongue and then in other languages. History and medicine, and politics – there is much to do."
Belili said nothing. The truth was she looked forward to it all. She knew she would miss her brother but with every step she took she felt like she was leaving her old life behind a little more.
"Oh, and of course we must find you a name," Master Jas'ar said. "It is a decade early but since you have already embarked on the path, it is appropriate."
"A name?" Belili asked. "I do not understand."
"It is a tradition supposedly going back to Nemki's naming of the original seven sages," the magus said. "Or so it is believed. When you make a first piece of devine power your own, it changes you. In a sense you leave the plain of normal mortals. It is a kind of rebirth and it is marked as such with the adoption of a new name in the millennia old form."
"So, you took the name Jas'ar?"
"The first part comes from the name I was given by my father," Master Jas'ar said. "The second from my clan. That is a customary way to honor your ancestors while beginning a new life."
Belili frowned. "I do not have a clan. Saras is my only family."
I guess I belonged to Zabu's household, she thought, but didn't speak it aloud. While she held no grudge against her former owner, it didn't feel right to her to honor him in this manner.
The magus stared thoughtfully up into the sky. "Only your brother… how about Bel'Saras. But that sounds like a man's name. So… Bel'Sara, I think."