"Numair? What are we doing first?" Miliko asked Numair, who was walking briskly to a horse.
"First, we are getting away from the Progress, and going into the forest, for quiet. Hello, Alanna, and Daine." Alanna, Daine and Shadi walked up, each mounting their horses, as Pika, Rabidash and Lupe had shown up, as well as Kougra, with her little filly with her, and shortly they reached the forest.
"Alright, everyone, sit down, and get comfortable," Numair ordered. All the females did as he asked.
"Okay, now, start breathing, and try to clear your mind, empty it of all thoughts," was the next instruction. Miliko did this immediately, she had meditated before, and she did so every day. It took Shadi and Myanh much longer.
"Well done, Miliko. You've obviously done this before," Numair congratulated.
"Yes, I have," Miliko answered, opening her eyes. Numair nodded, then turned to Myanh and Shadi. Myanh was looking around herself, and didn't notice Numair looking at her. Shadi was breathing slowly, eyelids flickering.
"Good, Shadi." Numair said quietly. Shadi's eyelids quit moving, and there was a flare of copper magic, or something, shoot away from her, quickly followed by more. One hit Numair, who didn't even seem to notice it.
"Um, Numair? Some of Shadi's magic just hit you in the face." Miliko said hesitantly. Numair look surprised.
"You saw that? Well, let's see. You have Sight also, it appears." Numair looked at Miliko, and then suddenly at Myanh, who had cut herself on a stick.
"Are you okay?" Miliko asked quickly, laying a hand on Myanh. A yellow fire raced own to pool around the surprising large gash the stick had made. The deep cut healed, leaving not even a scar.
"Your healing is already getting out of control," Numair frowned.
"It is?" Miliko asked, staring at her own hand.
"You have much magic. Until you control it, you might have some trouble with it. You are, nearly as strong as me," Numair said quietly, and Miliko froze.
"Impossible," Miliko said, shaking her head.
"Yes, Lady Miliko, possible. With the mixture of your magic's, you could do far worse than Duke Roger ever did," Numair spoke quietly, seriously.
"I would never want to do anything near as bad as what the Twice-Dead Duke did. And you can turn people into trees!" Miliko protested.
"So could you," Numair said reasonably.
"But, but..." Miliko stuttered.
"Hey, guys, I'm gonna try to see if I can replicate the spell that sent us here, and send us back. The thought of Miliko being more powerful than Numair is just plain stupid. Idiotic." Shadi flicked her hair behind her head, and began on the spell.
"Dark Goddess,
Great Mother,
Show us the way.
Open the gates to us-"
Shadi didn't get half way, when a flare of pure silver light, that apparently only Miliko could see, lashed out in front of Shadi, coming from the ground, and she vanished.
"Oh, well, this is a problem." Numair said quietly, inwardly wincing.
"Where, where is Shadi?" Myanh asked quietly, blinking rapidly, appearing close to tears.
"I think she just went bye bye." Miliko said, rather stupidly.
"Miliko, who is that?" Myanh asked, eyes open.
A girl of average height was walking out of the forest. She had waist length midnight black hair, tied back in a simple ponytail. She was wearing a black sleeveless t-shirt, formfitting so that you could see the lacings of a corset beneath it; a full-length black skirt with slits from her thighs to the ground, and black leather knee high boots, which were revealed by the slits in her skirt. She had on black gloves that went to her upper arm, and a wide black belt. Her eyes, a deep murky grey, were slightly unfocused; she appeared to be holding a bottle of vodka.
"Sapphira...but I haven't seen her in ages." Miliko whispered, then noticed the bottle in Sapphira's hand.
"Milly!" Sapphira called, laughing.
"Saffy!" Miliko called back, laughing back.
"I brought the alcohol." Sapphira said, lifting her skirt slightly, and stepping delicately over a tree trunk that was in her way.
"Hey, you're wearing a sword!" Myanh said, staring at the long, black leather scabbard that hung from Sapphira's belt. The hilt of the sword was showing, and it had a black diamond (well, it was probably black glass), on the pommel, with strange markings on the whole of the sword, though you could not yet see that. There was also a matching dagger and scabbard hanging from her belt.
"So you did take up fencing, and archery, and, I suppose, knife throwing, and karate, at that club you said you were going to join?" Miliko walked over to Sapphira, and walked along side her as she came closer to Numair and Myanh.
"Of course I did, I am no fool. But I am a black belt, only because I found a loophole in the rules of the grading, and I am okay with the sword, but hopeless at knife throwing. I am getting better, but my aim is still a few centimeters off." Sapphira grinned, showing even white teeth.
"Yes, you would." Miliko laughed, as they reached Numair, who was frowning slightly.
"I do believe Lady Shadi's spell worked. The backlash, I presume sent her back to her own world, and brought Lady..." He stopped, waiting for an answer.
"Lady Sapphira of Russia. Isn't that right, U.S.S.R?" Miliko lightly tapped Sapphira's head, and darted away from the hit that Sapphira was aiming at her. Numair shook his head.
"Welcome to Tortall, Lady Sapphira." Numair shook his head.
"Why thank you, Numair, Black Mage of Carthak." Sapphira laughed, seeing a stunned look appear on Numair's face.
"Oh, Sapphira, I never told anybody, but I actually read those books. They were okay, I suppose. But now...I can blackmail these people!" Miliko laughed, indicating that she was kidding.
"Really? Well, I am really glad you..." Sapphira didn't get to finish, as she fainted dead away.
"Well, that appears to be the end of our lesson, does it not?" Numair asked, walking away.
"Yeah, let's go." Sapphira was slowly floating towards Kougra, and was put down on the horses back. Numair looked quite pleased with himself.
"Well, at least that worked." He said, getting on Pika, as he had ridden Kougra with Daine on the way there, and Daine was now behind Sapphira, keeping her on her horse. The other two mounted up, and they went back to the Royal Progress.