Page 3 of Witchcraft and Fury (Chronicles of the Divided Isle #1)

THE CAPTAIN’S CHALLENGE

Later that day Solar lay on the sun-baked earth, safely hidden from view under a trader’s stall. A banner draped over the front of the stand swayed lazily in the summer breeze, its message of ‘Spices, herbs and much more besides!’ competing for attention in the bustling marketplace.

The banner above Solar flapped back once more, and she adjusted the angle of the mirror ever so slightly.

‘Yes!’ she gasped in delight. This time the sunlight reflected directly into her target’s eyes, and with a startled grunt the baker turned his face away from the loaves and raised a hand to shield his face.

In a flash the boy closest to the stall snatched out a hand to grab a warm, deliciously golden loaf, which he hid within his cape.

‘Nice job, Muck!’ murmured Solar. They would enjoy the bread later, she thought – there were more loaves to steal first. Muck and the other boy, Pepper, were her two best friends.

All three of them had been forced to live off their wits from a young age, stealing what they could to support their families .

The baker glared at his customers, and Muck gave him an innocent smile back.

Solar aimed again and the baker staggered back, disorientated for just a second by another beam of light.

It was all Pepper needed to swipe a huge, freshly baked loaf studded with shiny currants.

The big, hairy man shot Pepper’s bulging cape a suspicious look, then continued arranging his remaining loaves on the table in front of him and began bartering with a young soldier looking to buy.

A further flash of light blinded the baker once again. Pepper stuck out his hand to steal yet another loaf, but the soldier caught Pepper by the scruff of the neck. ‘You will regret that, lad! Thieves have lost hands for less!’ he snapped.

Muck, seeing his friend in trouble, took a hefty-looking loaf from the table and hurled it at the back of the soldier’s head. With a yell the soldier shoved Pepper into the dirt and looked around.

‘Come on!’ roared Muck, darting past the soldier and pulling Pepper to his feet. ‘Run!’

They hared off down the street, closely followed by the soldier and Bede in a cloud of dust. The two boys rapidly increased their lead, and soon peeled off from the main street and into the surrounding warren of alleys where Solar knew they would never be found by their pursuers.

Seeing the neat stacks of bread abandoned, Solar grabbed a spare sack from where she hid under the spices and herbs stall and dashed across the street.

She swept as much bread as she could into the sack, swung it over one bony shoulder and, with her spare hand, snatched a final loaf before taking a huge bite out of it.

Before anyone nearby could react, Solar had sped off down a nearby side street, hastily chewing with a gleeful glint in her eye .

‘Stop that girl!’

‘Just wait till the city watch gets you!’

‘I’ll see you in the gallows!’

The threats rang after her, but Solar knew they were empty. She skidded down an alley, and then another. No one could catch her, even with her heavy stolen load weighing her down. She was the fastest girl in the—

Solar careered headlong into something solid and bounced right off it, landing flat on her back. She scrambled to rise, but a heavy boot appeared from above and pinned her right arm to the ground.

Her vision was hazy, but she made out the hems of half a dozen red capes bordered with gold fluttering at her eye level.

‘And where do you think you’re going?’ asked the figure crushing her arm. Gazing upwards, Solar saw he was just a boy, but on the cusp of manhood, and tall and muscular. There was unmistakable strength in the pressure he applied with his foot.

‘What’s in your sack and satchel, urchin?’ joined in one of his companions.

‘Just imagine what Captain Grubber will do when he hears a thief’s been looting the market,’ said a third voice, dripping with malice.

Solar groaned. Only one band of boys in the city could afford luxurious capes and spoke with such entitled arrogance: Hroth Archdale – the youngest son of Earl Archdale – and his cronies, who were sons of minor lords and followed him around like a pack of gormless dogs.

The six of them were infamous in Falcontop for picking fights, safe in the knowledge that they were more or less above the law because of their aristocratic lineage.

‘Don’t tell on me or search me and I won’t hurt you,’ she said with a snarl. She had never felt the need to respect the nobility, especially when they were stupid bullies like Hroth and his gang.

The boys roared with laughter.

‘ You , take on the six of us? You’re just a girl!’ said Hroth, sneering.

‘You’re right,’ said Solar. ‘I can’t beat the lot of you in a fight, but I bet I can beat you with ease one-on-one.’

The gang laughed again, but Hroth’s sneer died on his face. Tall and strong though he was, Solar knew he always preferred to outnumber his victims if he had the choice. ‘Do you realise who I am, girl?’ he said haughtily.

‘A cowardly jackass who thinks it’s fun to attack people in dark alleyways?’

‘I am the youngest son of Earl Archdale. As is fitting for the youngest son of such a powerful house, this very week I will begin my training in magic. The greatest wizard in the realm is in the city to enrol me in his encampment. I have a glorious career ahead of me, whereas you will forever be stealing cheap food from the market, unless Grubber hangs you first. You should learn to speak to your betters with respect.’

‘That’s all very impressive,’ replied Solar, ‘but even the world’s greatest wizard wouldn’t be able to teach you magic. As far as I can tell, your head is full of nothing but sawdust.’

‘Go on, Hroth. Give this urchin girl what she’s asking for and teach her to look up to her superiors,’ urged a skinny, weasel-faced gang member.

Hroth lifted his boot off Solar’s arm, allowing her to get to her feet, but before she had fully regained her balance he swung his fist and struck her on the jaw, putting all of his weight behind the blow.

Solar landed with a thump back onto the road.

Her satchel burst with the impact and An Instructive Manual in Wizardry fell open on the ground.

She was dazed and could hear a high-pitched ringing.

The boys bent over double with laughter, and Weasel Face gasped between breaths, ‘Finish her … Hroth … Knock the bitch … senseless!’

Hroth approached, eyeing Solar and throwing a few practice punches to appreciative cheers from his friends. He loomed above her, ready to deliver the final blow.

As Hroth drew back a tight fist, blocking out the sun, the ringing in Solar’s ears subsided.

A feeling of calm washed over her, and the clamour from the gang dwindled into the background.

A spell from the manual lying beside her suddenly appeared in her mind’s eye, the words clear and bright.

Without thinking, she looked at Hroth and incanted:

‘The feast is done, the wine is gone,

the fat glutton has had his fill;

as he stumbles from the table,

let his bladder deny his will.’

The laughter stopped. The six boys looked at Solar in astonishment. Then Hroth gave a disgusted yell. He placed his hands over the front of his trousers in an attempt to cover the stain that was rapidly spreading there. His cronies looked from Hroth to Solar and then back to Hroth in revulsion.

‘You’ll hang for this, girl,’ snarled Hroth. ‘It’s a capital offence for anyone outside the noble houses to use magic – especially a woman .’ He spat the final word as if it revolted him. He looked at Solar with fear and hatred, then turned tail and led his friends in scrambling flight.

Solar stood shakily and dusted herself down.

She was just as amazed and confused by what had happened as Hroth’s gang were.

She knew that everyone in Ashwood was born with the potential to work magic, commoners and nobles alike, but that actually mastering that potential required rigorous training.

And incanting spells – a particularly advanced form of magic – usually demanded possession of a magician’s staff.

Her being able to cast a spell simply made no sense.

Besides, she had never even read the words before, let alone practised them.

The only possible explanation was that there was something special about her book. It was almost as if it had used her rather than the other way round.

Perhaps the doctor was right , she thought. Perhaps my book does have a life of its own.

The day could not possibly get any worse.

She had spent the better part of the week stealing and carrying the wizardry manual only to find out that it was worthless.

Then she had made enemies of boys from half of the city’s most dominant families.

She didn’t believe for a second that Archdale would tell Grubber what had happened – he would be too embarrassed. But perhaps his friends would.

She hefted her battered satchel and sack of bread, picked up the book and looked up at the sky.

The sun was five hours past its zenith. It was time for her to make her way to the Inn of the Fickle Friend, where she worked as a barmaid in the evenings.

She wanted to go home and enjoy the stolen loaves with her family, but instead she trudged straight to work, nursing the increasingly tender spot on her jaw where Hroth’s punch had landed.

She could not afford to lose the job, and therefore she could not afford to be late.

Despite herself, Solar felt a twinge of excitement. I used magic! she thought, astonished.