“Hmm. So how long is this gonna take us?” Vir had done some calculations of his own, but he wanted to see if Maiya’s numbers matched up.
“Well, Ash’va can gallop at thirty miles an hour on flat ground, so I think it should take about two days to get there?” Maiya said, tapping her chin in thought. “Riyan said the coastline’s pretty navigable, so Bumpy should be able to gallop at near his full pace.”
Vir winced, already imagining how uncomfortable that ride was gonna be. He could only hope the sandy coastline cushioned their bums.
“Two days is about what I’d figured as well,” he replied. He couldn’t imagine how long it’d have taken if they had to go on foot. He doubted even Riyan would be that cruel. Actually, I can see him doing exactly that, he thought. Vir figured they’d be best served by leaving before the man got back from his outing, in case he changed his mind.
“Riyan says this will be a good opportunity for us to learn about subterfuge, but I dunno. I don’t really feel like I’m ready yet,” Maiya said.
“You don’t feel ready? What about me! He hasn’t given me any training in this stuff! At least you know how to apply makeup and change your voice.”
Vir was sure the man’s cruel ways were bound to cause him no end of suffering.
“You don’t need to alter your voice, though, Vir. You don’t even need to change your personality. Your appearance is enough. I think Riyan realized that, which is why he taught me first. Well, that, and I think he accepted the obstacle course was too much for me,” she said, looking away.
Vir couldn’t imagine how much Riyan’s decision vexed her. Maiya hated to lose.
“I’m sure you’ll manage. I have faith in your acting skills,” Vir said as he looked over the supply list. Vegetables, rice, grains, flour, fruits, nuts, seeds, and some household items.
“Did Riyan give us money for buying all this stuff, though? And Saran isn’t exactly close. We’ll need enough food and water to get there. Can we raid Riyan’s food stores for our provisions during the trip?”
Maiya held up a small, sturdy-looking metal box and pressed her palm against the Magic Lock on it, revealing the treasure trove within. “He sure did. Eight Imperium silvers and two hundred coppers! I counted them myself. Don’t think I’ve ever held this much money before. It feels so good,” she said with a greedy smile.
Vir’s eyes popped. “That’s… wow. That’s incredible.”
He’d never even seen that much wealth in his entire life. An Imperium silver was worth a hundred coppers, and a seric coin was a hundred silvers. Forget serics—he’d only spied a silver on a handful of occasions. A hearty meal cost about five Imperium coppers, so this was enough to buy two hundred meals… Or to buy the supplies to make far more.
Vir’s expression darkened. “Y’know, Riyan’s gone. With this kind of money, we could escape, and he’d never find us. We could even go to Saran like he wants, and then charter a ship to some other country. I’m stronger now. Much stronger. And so are you.”
Maiya bit her lip and frowned. “That’s… true. It’s just… I… I dunno, Vir. Riyan says my magic training’s gonna start soon, but then again, we don’t get many opportunities like this.”
Vir gave her an appraising glance. “Well, we don’t need to decide now. We have until we get to Saran. Think it over.”
He wanted her to come to her own decision without his thoughts weighing on her… Because he’d already made up his mind. The decision she’d make at Saran would decide whether they stayed together or went their separate ways.
Of course, there was the matter of leaving Neel behind, but Vir had a plan for that contingency.
“Alright,” he said, “then I think we’re about ready. Day schedule or night schedule?”
Maiya thought it over for a second. “We’ll be near the coast, which should cool things down, but I still think the night schedule’s better. We’ll be harder to spot if there are any bandits around.”
“I was thinking the same.” When traveling through a desert, it was common to sleep during the day, when the scorching sun compounded your physical exertion to make for a truly miserable experience. By resting during the hottest hours—usually under a white tarp to keep the sun at bay—they’d preserve water and burn less energy.
The strategy paid dividends at night, when the opposite was true. Their physical exertion would help to offset the icy chill of the desert night. Though in this case, they’d be riding Bumpy, so really they’d just be making the Ash’va’s life easier by traveling at night.
Vir hoped the animal appreciated everything they did for it.
“Let’s go get some supplies for the trip, and then we can be off. We should set out enough food and water for Neel, too. I don’t trust Riyan to feed him, even if he comes back soon.”
Hearing his name, Neel bounded into the makeup studio, excitedly wagging his tail with his tongue lolling out of his mouth.
Maiya kneeled and ruffled his fur. “Wouldn’t he just gobble up everything we set out for him?”
Neel tilted his head and whimpered.
“Neel’s a good boy. He knows not to eat more than his share. Don’t you, Neel?”
The bandy barked, as if agreeing.
“Y’know, sometimes I wonder if he can actually understand you,” Maiya said, but Vir laughed her off.
“He’s a smart bandy, but not that smart. Though he does perk right up the second anyone mentions food.”
In confirmation, Neel gazed at him with expectation. The bandy had long ago perfected the art of begging-by-being-adorable. Vir wondered whether the bandy would truly be alright with an entire week’s worth of food and water.
Vir followed Maiya into Riyan’s pantry, which was accessed via a door at the corner of the kitchen. The small cellar was a flight of stairs down, putting it even farther underground than the rest of the home. As a result, the room remained cool and humid. Riyan augmented the effect with Magic Cold. The room had two sections: a cool area, and a separate cold container enclosed by a wooden hatch.
Maiya’s family had a similar setup, but Rudvik could scarcely afford a single Magic Cold orb, so Vir had never experienced the luxury of freezing food before. It would’ve made for far more comfortable winters.
He didn’t know why, but visiting the storeroom always gave him great joy. Maybe it was the way everything was organized, and Riyan was nothing if not organized.
Each and every provision was labeled and neatly arranged. Sacks of rice were stacked on top of each other on the floor, while fruits and vegetables sat meticulously arranged in neat rows on clay racks within alcoves on the walls, though most of those had run out. They still had enough nonperishables to last another few weeks, but Riyan wasn’t one to procrastinate with this stuff.
They helped themselves to a week’s worth of supplies, adding some spices for good measure. Vir would eat well with Maiya’s cooking, but he liked to help the chef out as much as he could. He packed two vegetable knives, a wooden cutting board, and bowls and sporks for them both.
Once they’d loaded everything into leather panniers and strapped those onto Bumpy, all that remained was to pack their individual rucksacks. Riyan had provided each two pairs of clothes as befitting the sons of a wealthy merchant. Maiya had all of her makeup equipment, and Vir packed about twenty liters of water, which would be enough to last them several days in the heat.
If there was one item Vir would never skimp, it was water. In the desert, water was life. He didn’t need Riyan’s stern warnings to know that. The one nice thing about Bumpy was that he was a strong Ash’va. With just the two of them, weight would not be an issue, allowing them to pack on extra supplies.