Pegasus In Flight: A Musimagium Story (The Pegasus Enchantment Book 2) Read online

  Once inside, my piccolo wiped down and put back on the shelf next to the door for easy reach, I sat down at my ham radio rig. If anyone knew what might have happened, or had felt it, then Radio Arcanum would be the place to look. I listened for the frequency to be clear. “Listening USK15J.” I spelled out my call sign with the phonetic alphabet. Uniform. Sierra. Kilo. One. Five. Juliet.

  A moment later a man responded. “USK15J. This is USLMUM. You okay out there?”

  I paused. I knew the call sign, though not the person behind it. That he was Musimagia I’d guessed from previous conversations. Which meant I didn’t know how much I could trust him. “Fine. Some turbulence. That’s all.”

  “Pretty rough turbulence from what we measured. Knocked out three of our best over at the Akron auxiliary. You sure you’re okay?” The voice sounded worried. I was flattered.

  “I think so,” I replied honestly. I wasn’t into macho positioning just to be macho. I also wasn’t much into lying. “Interesting things I’d like to speak with someone about on a private channel.” There. I’d danged that bait into the water.

  “Copy that. Someone will be in touch. USLMUM signing off.”

  “Understood.” I gave the usual sign off, including my call sign, and shut down my radio. The memory of the dark line through the stone, the node stone I’d been calling it, though I didn’t know if it had any specific name, worried me. The unicorn lying on the ground worried me more. A direct attack? Someone trying to leech energy out of the ley lines and not knowing what they were doing? My main computer sat next to the radio and I logged the contact in my electronic log, then opened up a blank document to start typing what I knew.

  Could I even trust USLMUM’s contact? Probably not. I knew better than to trust any member of the Musimagium. The ends justify the means, after all, and it doesn’t matter who gets hurt. Sure, that’s not what the brochures and the propaganda said, but if they got orders— I refused to let my thoughts go down that path. Instead, I channeled my nervous energy outside, haltered Lady, and began to brush her.

  She leaned into my strokes, eyes closed, lips slack as she released a sigh. I found the sweet spot just behind her withers and gave it the hard kind of brushing she enjoyed, then switched to a body brush and went over her coat until she shone. Still not quite settled, I brushed out her mane and tail, appreciating the time spent outdoors now that the wind had died down. Or maybe it was just the sense that something, whatever, was out there had gone and left us, alone. I sighed and relaxed along with my mare.

  Stay vigilant. It’s gone for now. Even Danny sensed it and he’s dull.

  I smiled. Lady’s disdain for the big, dopey appaloosa gelding was well known. She made her feelings very clear, though she tolerated him around the hay bale. The big guy had been a rescue, a foal that had come from the auction barn who looked as if he’d be a beautiful prospect once Lady slowed down. But then she kept going and the gelding proved to be an idiot, and they both ended up retired together. I loved my horses, and when the Great Dividing had happened, they’d saved me. Literally. The Musimagium hadn’t—

  You’re thinking again. Go check your email. As if she needed to punctuate her words, she turned her head and pushed me.

  “Okay. I get it.” I grabbed the brushes and put them away. “Check my email. Don’t judge the Musimagia who shows up until I get a chance to meet this person. Maybe it won’t hurt to give the benefit of the doubt.”

  Lady snorted and I knew she thought that was as realistic as I did. Hey, at least I tried. I carried the grooming bucket to the barn and slid it back onto the shelf. I turned and a wave of energy hit me. I staggered, going down on one knee, hitting the concrete floor hard. I winced, then reached for something as the world lurched beneath me. The unicorns!

  Aren’t anywhere near the node. They’re riding this out.

  I breathed a sigh of relief, and wondered if their riding this out was as bad as mine. Probably not. They were creatures of magic and had four legs on the ground, not two. I drew a deep breath and the push of energy receded. I pushed myself to my feet, then took a few moments to steady myself.

  You all right?

  Yeah. I’m fine. I sent the thought back to Lady, ignoring my smarting knee and my shattered nerves, and headed back into the house.

  Good. Oh and the unicorns say thank you.

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  About The Author

  Mary Kit Caelsto never grew out of the phase of being a "horse crazy girl". Though she's now over 40, she's finally fulfilling her dream of writing equestrian books for others who haven't grown out of being "horse crazy". She lives in the Ozarks with her four very spoiled and very opinionated horses, as well as a large flock of poultry and enough cats to qualify her as a crazy cat lady. Her husband, though not an equestrian himself, understands and supports all her equestrian dreams.

  She's convinced three of the best things in the world are the smell of a sun warmed horse, the smell of leather tack, and making sure to hug her horses every single day.

  Picture of the author and “SuperDuck” taken 3/2019. Hair color varies depending on mood.

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