Sennar's Mission by Licia Troisi Read Free Book Online Page A

line. Nihal herself never saw any of them, but more than once she felt their vigilant eyes upon her. The journey, nonetheless, was brief and solitary. Within four days, she’d arrived at her destination.
    The guards were taken aback—coming toward them was a woman with blue hair and pointed ears, dressed as a soldier.
    “I’m a knight’s apprentice,” Nihal introduced herself. She blushed. “I’m here to deliver a message to your base command.”
    The camp was set up like her own. An ample, fortified citadel, it served as a home not only to warriors, but to women and children as well. Here, however, things seemed to be going somewhat better than in the Land of the Sun. The borders of the Land of the Sea were secure—only to the south, where the Great Land loomed, was it exposed to a potential attack. The Tyrant’s Fortress rose darkly between the trees, larger than anything Nihal had ever seen.
    But apart from the tower’s menacing shadow, the atmosphere was pleasant and provisions were abundant. Lunch was lavish and delicious. Nihal ate in the main mess hall, where children scampered around and the men joked with their wives. It felt almost like peacetime. As she cut into her meat, Nihal smiled to herself, though when she lifted her eyes from the plate, her fork froze in mid-air.

    Parsel had been her first sword instructor at the Academy and, in a certain sense, her only friend for months. Their bond was peculiar, composed of few words and arduous training duals.
    Nihal was happy to see him again and he hugged her like an old comrade. He was a tall, solid man, with dark skin and eyes an unusual shade of grey-green. His cropped black hair was beginning to grey at the temples.
    “What are you doing here?” asked Nihal.
    “On leave. Before I became an instructor at the Academy, when I was still an active warrior, I lived here. Whenever possible, I try to visit.” Parsel winked. “If only to keep myself from forgetting the smell of the battlefield. And you? I see you’re looking well.”
    “I’m getting by,” she replied.
    “Well, we’ll have to celebrate this fortunate occasion. What would you say to a duel, like old times?”
    He didn’t have to ask her twice.

    For Nihal, this run-in with the past was an unexpected pleasure. Not that she’d forgotten the misery and solitude of her first year at the Academy, but some good had come of it nonetheless. And Parsel reminded her of that with every jab. It was just the way it used to be, except that she had grown more skillful. In only a few lunges and without much difficulty, Nihal breeched his guard.
    “You’ve gotten really good,” said Parsel, as he wiped his forehead.
    “That’s partly thanks to you.”
    They spent the rest of the day together. Parsel told her about his new students and Nihal was struck again with nostalgia.
Time changes the face of things, even of memories.
    “You’ll never guess who I saw recently,” he said out of nowhere. “That friend of yours from the Academy, the small blond one … Laio, that’s his name.”
    A wave of memories swept over Nihal. Laio the frail, baby-faced boy, the weakest student at the Academy. They’d spent a great deal of time together. He’d worshipped her like a hero. Laio, her one true friend in those solitary days. …
    Nihal’s ears pricked up. “Did you really?”
    “Yes. He lives here, in the forest. He’s given up on becoming a warrior, he told me. He didn’t seem to be doing all that well.”
    Nihal tried to squeeze every detail out of him. Parsel had little more to share, but he described the place where he’d last run into Laio.
    That evening, in the tent they’d assigned her, Nihal couldn’t sleep. She’d heard nothing of Laio since the night of her first trial combat. The night of Fen’s death. An eternity ago. Suddenly, she felt anxious to see him again.
    The next morning, she received a response to the message she’d brought from her base. They’d be contributing an army