The days went by and Andromeda settled into a routine. She would spend a bit of time in the morning browsing through some of the books she could find in the study room, refining her techniques, just generally trying to improve how she went about studying. She found that once she got through the mending book, the other books were just general learning practice. Things like history, philosophy, and a few fictional books.

Once the day got going, everyone would move on to whatever they had planned for that day. Some days she would help Argo out in the fields, other days she would help Catherine with the chores or sit in on her while she painted, sometimes Milo would even have her tag along when he and his friends explored the area. Perhaps unsurprisingly, vast open farmland didn’t have many secret spots.

As the morning turned to the afternoon, she would wander around and practically apply her practice with mending. Finding things around the farm that needed fixing that. She mended shovels, buckets, plates, troughs, even some walls in the barn. It was strange to her that there was no real effort in doing all these things. She didn’t know a whole lot about magic’s very basics, but it didn’t seem to take any kind effort for her to mend anything. She didn’t really mind though. Gift horses and all that.

As the noon turned to evening, she would return to the study room to read more along with some light practice. She didn’t care about how easy it was, practice made perfect. If she didn’t practice the basics then she wouldn’t improve.

Eventually the evening would turn to night and she would fall asleep soon after.

Things went on like this for a few weeks. Then the first moment of the rest of her life happened.

It was just before noon and Andromeda was washing some dishes that got left out the night before. The heat outside was absolutely sweltering so everyone stayed inside that day until it cooled, even Argo couldn’t force himself to work. Then there was a knock at the front door.

Everyone in the house was confused about who would be bothering right now with how hot it was. Argo answered the door and a man in military garb was standing at the door.

“Can I help you?” Argo asked.

“Yes, I am here on behalf of the Royal Army. We are coming to remind you of the tithe edict has been called and in two months time you will be expected to deliver 30% of your yearly crop to the state. As well, any person who is aged between 16 and 25 years must deliver themselves to the capital for a minimum 5 years military service within two weeks.” The man. He leaned to the side to see Andromeda, dish still in hand.

Argo was in shock, Catherine who was standing behind him was also in shock, Andromeda who was back in the kitchen and had heard the conversation was also in shock. The only one who wasn’t in shock was Milo. Even then it was because he didn’t know what “Tithe” or “Edict” meant.

“That’s absurd.” Argo said.

“It is not absurd, it is the will of the king. Failure to meet the required sums will result in fines, and in extreme cases may lead to the loss of property, continued failure to meet these sums may result in imprisonment.” The man said.

Andromeda wasn’t a farmer by trade, but she knew that 30% of a yearly output was a staggering amount. From her wandering around the area she knew that Argo and his family were probably the richest by a long way. Everyone within a hundred miles lived from the harvests for the entire year. Not only that, but people between 16 and 25 are prime age to work those farms. All of King’s Grove would either starve by winter or not be able to meet quotas by next harvest.

“The king wouldn’t do that, he hasn’t made us tithe once in my entire life.” Argo said.

“Rightful King Alasander von Mysthen has declared it necessary to raise the tithe in these trying times. The country moves toward war. In his infinite compassion he has agreed to offer a 10/1 restitution at the end of the war. Along with a healthy sum for each head donated per household.” The man said.

“Alasander was the king’s son...”Argo said, he spoke with in a hushed voice, as if speaking too loud would invite trouble.

“King Alderaus von Mysthen, blessed be his name, was killed a few weeks ago. A trio of assassin’s killed him after an attack on his home. Two mages, and a Medea. Until such a time that a proper succession can be made, he is filling in for the old king.” The man said.

“Dear lord…” Argo said.

Everyone in the house took the news a bit differently.

Argo had met the king, it was impossible to work at the king’s estate and not have met him at least once. But he was surprised for a different reason. The king was like no man he had ever known. Himself being a large man, to say the king made him feel like an ant through presence alone was an understatement. The king was rumored to be able to stop a man’s heart with a whisper, that a single breath from his lungs could rob a room of air, it wasn’t out of the realm of reality to believe the king was more than a man.

The king had led the country through wars when Argo was still in the crib, though countless attempts on his life the king walked through the other side covered in blood, only it was never his own. But now he is dead. The king was not a good man, but that was a dark thought.

Catherine had a very different reaction. Much the same as Argo, she pondered his death. All that he had done to that point had elevated him to incredible heights, while he was not a good person, his hands drenched in blood. He led his people through hard times without forcing his will upon them. Beyond that, she was worried about the assassins. Two mages and a Medea. The king was mystical himself, and he never had a harsh relationship with Medea, she had no idea how to interpret that information. The fact that he was killed was a terrible omen.

Andromeda had a very simple, but painful reaction. She knew that she was there that day, she wanted to help and do her best to make sure no one was hurt. She didn’t know much about this king, but he knew that a country losing their leader was always a hard thing. She didn’t know if there was anything she could have done to help, but it hurt knowing that she did nothing at all.

Milo, on the other hand, was just upset by hearing that someone had died. He had been taught from a young age that death was a terrible thing. To hear that the king had died was heartbreaking.

“The reaction is understandable. Just remember that the tithes are obligatory. For your sake and my own, I hope we have no further trouble. Any valid volunteers are to report to the Army Front in Salsi. Thank you for your time, and have a good day.” The man said. He tipped his hat and walked away.

Argo shut the door, he was in shock. A thousand questions filled his mind all at once.

“We should talk, all of us.” She said. Everyone gathered in the living room and sat quietly. They all processed everything they heard differently.

The first to speak was Catherine.

“I suppose we should address this.” She said.

They all had a general idea of what she meant. It was Andromeda.

She was just a hair over 22, right in the middle of the age range requested. The man at the door had seen her through the doorway and knew she was here and likely recorded it. If she ran then it would get linked back to them, but it would be equally suspicious if they went running after the man telling him that she wasn’t affiliated. He never asked, he simply told them about the rule.

“I can’t see any way around this.” Argo said.

“I’m not even from here, how am I expected to fight for this place?” Andromeda said.

That was the question. While she had no technical connection with them besides being a guest, that wasn’t the problem anymore. They could be punished if she didn’t go.

“That’s one thing, but the tithe?” Argo said.

30% was an incredible amount. It wouldn’t take more than a year before a majority of the farmers in King’s Grove would leave for greener pastures, and those who might remain would barely survive without the extra income, if they survived at all. The combination of both the tithe and draft would be unsustainable. The whole region would collapse in a few years.

“There is no way anyone around here can pull that off, we can’t even handle it and we’re better off than the rest.” Catherine said.

“Maybe they just don’t know? A new administration might mean that they aren’t up to date on the outputs.” Andromeda suggested.

“That can't be it, merchants handle our sales directly. There is no way they would ignore the merchants.” Argo said.

“Do you think they are doing it on purpose?” Andromeda said.

“Why would they want to do that?” Argo asked.

“How long have you guys owned this land?” Andromeda asked. Argo blinked at her, then thought about it.

“I’ve had it for about 20 years give or take, my pa had it for around 50 years, and my grandpa had it for longer than that..” Argo said.

“Well, if that’s the case, then they might be trying to uproot the old families and use the land directly.” Andromeda said.

That made sense to the rest of them. It didn’t matter how much anyone tried to offer him, Argo would never sell the land given a choice. But if he didn’t have a choice then he would have to anyway.

“Would they really do that?” Argo said.

“If the new king really is going to war, it would be easier to handle the food supply himself than to try and deal with independent farmers. He could lease the land out and get a cut of the profit.” Andromeda said.

Argo went pale in his seat. He wanted to scream, to go absolutely ballistic and destroy everything around him. But that wouldn’t help his situation.

“What do we do?” Argo asked. He wasn’t speaking to anyone in particular, the words just escaped his mouth. Catherine didn’t have an answer, so she just hugged him tightly, hoping that would help him in some small way.

“If you stay here, you risk losing everything you have, if you leave then you risk never seeing your home again. It’s not a good situation.” Andromeda said.

“Do you think I don’t know that?” Argo said.

“I’m just saying, I can’t see a way out of this.” Andromeda said.

“I can’t just leave this place. My da grew up here, my da’s da grew up here. My whole family was born and raised here. Both of my children were born here.” Argo said.

“Argo…” Catherine said.

“If you stay, then your family is going to lose everything.” Andromeda said.

“DON’T TELL ME ABOUT WHAT GOING TO HAPPEN TO MY FAMILY!” Argo screamed. Andromeda was taken aback, Catherine as well. Milo started to cry.

“Argo, what is wrong with you?” Catherine said.

“I… don’t know.” He said. Shaking.

Just then, Milo stood up in a huff and ran out the front door.

“MILO!” Catherine screamed.

Everyone jumped to their feet and ran after him. They made it outside to see that Milo was running for the fields.

They chased after him, he jumped the fence and ran out into the fields. They were preparing to reseed the ground so Argo and Andromeda had been plowing it. The soil was very soft.

They continued running after Milo. The boy had the energy of all of them combined and was in a fit. He made it clear out to the center before they made it to the fence.

When Andromeda jumped the fence, they all heard a blood curdling scream. Milo was nowhere to be seen in the field. They ran to where he was and saw that his leg had gotten stuck in a loose pocket of air. It was mangled and broken, the soft soil had already invaded the wound. The flesh was torn and the bone was sticking out to the side. He was gripping it and screaming.

Argo ran to his run and picked him up. Careful to hold the leg in place.

“Oh god. No… Not again.” He said. There was a look of utter horror on his face. He looked as though his soul was torn from his body.

“We need to get him back, now!” Andromeda said.

The pair ran back toward the house, Catherine had stopped at the fence and stood in horror when they brought him to the house. They cleaned his wound as best they could. But Milo was in incredible pain from the break, every small movement was painful.

“nonononono…” Argo muttered, he was pacing back and forth in the room as Catherine and Andromeda were leaning over Milo.

“How far is the nearest doctor?” Andromeda asked.

“The closest one was in King’s Grove. But the town is over an hour away. Longer on foot.” Catherine said.

“After that?” Andromeda asked.

“In the other direction is Salsi, but it's twice as far away.” Catherine said. As she spoke Andromeda could see the seeds of a breakdown. She had heard the story of this happening before and knew all too well how bad it ended.

She needed to do something before the situation got out of hand. Then it hit her.

“Get back, I’m going to try something.” Andromeda said. Catherine backed up and Argo embraced her. She started crying in his arms and they watched on.

Andromeda leaned toward Milo and tapped his forehead.

“Milo, Milo! I need you to look at me.” She said. He opened his bloodshot eyes and barely focused on her.

“This is going to hurt, I’m sure. You can scream as much as you want, but I need you to stay as still as possible.” Andromeda said.

He nodded weakly and put his head back down.

She grabbed his leg above and below the break and closed her eyes.

She imagined the river in her mind. The moment she did, a fire started in her chest. A raging inferno flared in her mind’s eye. The river on both sides was flanked by burning flames, the grass rippling with ungodly fire.

Every fiber of her body felt like it was burning, but she forced herself to maintain the image she had. To see the river drop to nothing. But try as she might, she couldn’t force herself to imagine it.

She opened her eyes to see a faint glow on Milo’s leg. But as quick as it came, it went.

She closed her eyes and forced herself to imagine the river again. The fire in her chest tore at her mind and tried to force her to see anything else.

The water in the river shriveled for what felt like hours, an inch taken by incredible force, a foot taken by ungodly will. She felt her head throb in pain as she forced this mental image, every heartbeat pulsing through her whole body.

She pictured the water gone, followed by the whirlpool she needed. But in her mind she didn’t see the turbulent swirl of water, but the destructive spin of fire. She couldn’t even focus enough to tell the difference. She willed this cataclysm of fire to descend into a single point.

With this, she imagined the river shrinking into a creek, but that only brought the raging inferno on either side closer together.

It felt like she was burning, in and out. Her body was engulfed in flame. It was agonizing to form a single thought. She thought she was going to die.

Finally, she pushed the end of the vortex of fire into the place where the creek should be. It engulfed her entire mind. The flames wreaked havoc on everything around it. Until nothing was left but the burnt ground.

Then, the most miraculous thing happened. She saw the water come back, pushing through the burnt crack in the ground that used to be a river. As it did, the char and damage faded away, the grass sprouting around it stretched in every direction. Her mind saw more than she had the will to imagine. Like a world was stretching out beyond her.

The water turned into more than just a stream, in her mind rain began to fall. Not just rain, but a storm. It thrashed through the burnt land around the river, snuffing every flicker of flame. A hurricane of wind and storm tore all before it.

Then it all calmed down. The trees and vegetation returned in short order. She saw in her mind an entire world forming, green as any she had ever seen in her life. Spreading for as far as the eye could see.

Then in her chest, she felt… Something. It was the most bizarre feeling of her entire life.

She felt a flow inside of herself. It was warm and calming. But at the same time it was energetic and cold. Words could not describe it.

She opened her eyes to see that the entirety of Argo’s leg had been engulfed in light. The same light as when she mended. The bone and muscle returned to their original place, the flesh and skin followed soon after knitting itself back together. Milo was staring in amazement. Argo and Catherine behind them both stared.

They had known that Andromeda was learning magic, she was making swift progress in her research, but they knew one thing above all else.

A mage could not heal, only the Medea could. With their red eyes, pale skin, and their white hair. It was a skill that only the fair folk of white could perform.

Yet the girl in front of them, they could see it as clearly.

Her hair was red.