“Yes, sir. I will.” Torli bowed and headed into the palace.
As I mounted, I heard a dog bark. I settled on my horse and turned to see Lord Orro and Leera come out of the palace, passing Torli. He smirked at me, his skin glittering in the sun.
“Where do you think you're going, Alchemist?” Orro sauntered over to me. Then he saw my bandages. “What the fuck happened to you?”
“Someone tried to kill me with my lab equipment.”
“Shit.” He looked at the guards.
“I'm investigating the bridge.”
“Not without me, you're not.”
“That's not necessary, but thank you.”
“You have a murderer after you, and the King's nowhere in sight. I'm going with you.” He headed for the stable. “Give me a minute, and I'll join you.”
“I have guards!” I called after him.
“None of them are me!” he shouted back.
Leera yipped, but stayed where she was. I grimaced.
“Master Alchemist?” A mounted human horn guided his mount over to mine.
“Yes, we'll be off as soon as Lord Orro joins us.”
“I'm coming! Keep your britches on!” Lord Orro rode out of the stable, ducking to make it past the doorway. He cantered over to us. “Leera.” He leaned back, and the dog jumped onto his lap. Holding her steady, Orro flicked the reins and headed for the open passage that once held the gate. He looked back at us. “Are you coming?”
Chuckling, I turned my horse to follow Orro into the city. After catching up to him, I settled my mount into a matching pace. There were fewer people out than usual, and I wondered if they were at home waiting for the collection teams or just scared. Those who were out nodded or waved to me as we passed. For the moment, they were on my side.
As we neared the bridge, clattering noises came to us. Then it came into sight, and the noises revealed their sources. Men were busy clearing the debris, some of them using magic to lift the larger pieces. I brought my horse to the edge of the site and dismounted. Leera jumped down as I tied my horse's reins to a tree.
“Don't you head off without your guards!” Orro jumped down and secured his horse to another tree.
The bridge crossed a river, and a park took up most of the shoreline, so there were more than enough trees to secure our horses.
Rolling my eyes, I waited for the horns to dismount and join us. “For fuck's sake, Orro. I let you come. Stop whining.”
Some horns chuckled as they joined us.
But the Orro snapped, “Someone tried to kill you. I'm not whining. I'm being cautious.”
I shrugged at the wide-eyed looks of the horns who were suddenly seeing my bandages in a new light. “Well, come on then.” I headed to the bridge.
Orro, Leera, and the horns hurried after me. The bridge had once been the architectural jewel of the city. It had soared across the river on stone stilts with arches forming railings and statuary posed between them. Now, it was like the skeleton of a giant beast, rib bones poking up out of the water.
A Ricarri man stepped into our path. “Uh, you can't be here.”
“I'm Master Sevarin, Alchemist to the King. I'm here to investigate the fall.” I peered around his shoulder. “It looks like you've made great headway. Have you seen much evidence of Silver Rot?”
The man blinked and cleared his throat. “Yes, sir. I'm the foreman here. Name's Hud. Most of the foundation is covered in rot.”
I went forward. “Anything else?”
Hud kept pace with me, motioning to a path between the stacks of stone to direct my way. “Anything else? Uh, no. But we haven't cleared the enchantment room.”
I stopped. “Enchantment room? I thought the ward was buried in the foundation?”
