Five Years Later

The boy rushed his speckled palfrey up the cobblestone road, his long dark hair finally blowing away from his face.

“Max! Slow down!” Artemis called.

But he was determined in the way only a nine-year-old could be. He wanted to be the first to see the city—he wanted to know that it was real.

As he crested the hill, he saw it—Tigeria.

The massive city was as grand as he expected. Its walls stretched as far as he could see, but the city stretched even farther. Large buildings—businesses and workshops—filled the land outside the walls.

He didn’t speak—and he didn’t stop. He raced the wind, marveling at the approaching metropolis.

Artemis quickly caught up with him, matching his gallop. “What do you think?”

“It’s big.”

“Yeah. It’s grown a bit.” She chuckled. “But now it’s time to slow down.”

“But I—“

She reached across and caught his reins, then eased them back until both horses settled into a walk.

“Hey!” Max protested.

“Just because we finally gave you your own horse doesn’t mean you can just run off.”

Behind them, the rest of the party was catching up.

Artemis called out, “Hey, Miranda! You misplace an apprentice?”

Miranda frowned. “I’m supposed to be keeping you safe. If you keep running off—”

“You’re not my mother.”

Jonas pulled his horse in front of Max’s. “We aren’t your parents, but they put you in our care. That means you have to listen.”

“I’ve been listening for three years—I can track my mana now—and I know how to ride.”

“You are getting better at both.” Miranda smiled. “And one day you’ll be better than me.”

“But today is not that day.” Daphne laughed. “And right now, you, me, Jonas, and Talia are all apprentices.”

“If I’m still an apprentice when I’m your age, I will go crazy!”

“I’m barely eighteen!”

Daphne quickly nocked an arrow and aimed high. She released, and a giant salengoose fell from the sky.

“Now go fetch the bird—it would be rude to arrive empty-handed.”

Max smiled. Artemis returned his reins to him, and he was off.

Artemis watched him go as a smaller horse pulled alongside hers. A silver-haired woman rode it, with a little girl seated in front of her.

“Reminds me of you at that age,” Claudia said.

Atalanta pulled up on the other side of Claudia, her dress fluttering in the breeze. “Ha! Don’t lie, Mother. Max is easy compared to Artemis.”

Claudia laughed. “I never said that Artemis was easy. But Max is more like Artemis.” She gave the little girl sitting in front of her a squeeze. The girl smiled. “And Talia is more like you.”

“As long as neither of them are like our brothers, I think we’re safe.”

The three women laughed.

Max soon appeared, slowly dragging the salengoose up the hill, his palfrey trailing behind him.

“It’s too big,” he explained, red-faced. “I couldn’t get it on the horse.”

There was a long line at the city gate, but it moved at a brisk pace.

Talia looked at the massive wall. “It goes on forever!”

She leaned forward in the saddle, trying to see where it ended.

Atalanta smiled. “Good job, Marcus. You finally finished.”

Talia looked up. “Who’s Marcus?”

“A friend—he built the wall.”

“It must have taken a hundred years!”

“Closer to five.” Atalanta chuckled.

As they waited, a murmur began to spread across the line.

“It’s her! It has to be—The Lady Knight.”

“She’s even bigger than they say!”

Artemis laughed. “Everywhere we go. Just be careful, Sis.”

Atalanta looked down at herself. “What?”

“You’re wearing the dress. I hope you’re wearing riding pants underneath.”

A boy pointed from further down the line.

“It’s the heroes!”

“Look. It’s the tiny archer!” a little girl marveled.

“They say she can hit an apple at a hundred paces…”

Artemis scoffed. “I was doing that when I was Max’s age. If they’re going to talk, they should at least get things right.”

“That must be Sir Jonas. They say he’s almost as strong as the Lady Knight.”

“He took ten arrows to the back when they saved the Little Prince.”

Jonas’s face reddened.

“And that must be the doctor who saved him.”

“Maybe she can help with my lumbago…”

The lead guard was smiling by the time they reached the front of the line.

“Atalanta! It’s good to see you.” He extended a hand.

She accepted. “Hello, Ty. It’s good to be back. Congratulate Marcus on finishing the wall for me.”

“You can congratulate him yourself. He’ll be there. But he might not be in the best mood—they announced a new ring of walls!”

“It’s job security.” She laughed. “He should be happy.”

Ty chuckled. “My wife says the same thing about my job. She’ll be glad to hear you’re back.”

“Tell her I said hello.”

The stares and chatter of onlookers only increased after they entered the city walls.

“I think I liked it better when Sarah told folks I was a monster,” Artemis said.

“Someone called you a monster?” Talia asked.

“Well, I sort of threatened to kill her if she didn’t.”

“Artemis!” her mother chastised as she placed her hands over Talia’s ears. “Talia’s just a baby.”

“She’s seven, Ma. And she’s riding with us. There’s no getting around what we do.”

“You should still set a good example.”

“It’s not like I killed her.” Artemis sighed. “She’s probably the one spreading all this hero stuff around, just to get back at me.”

Miranda giggled. “Sarah? I don’t think she’s got a spiteful bone in her body.”

“You’re probably right.” Artemis looked at her mother. “You might want to cover Talia’s eyes, though. Sarah’s affection for her hun is too much for me. I have no idea what it would do to a little girl.”

“Her affection for—”

“Just cover her eyes.”

The heroes entered the busy tavern.

“Miranda! What did you do to me!”

Artemis’s hand moved quickly to her bow.