Danais woke up in the kitchen. The smell of beef stew engulfed him as he took his waking breaths. He remembered falling asleep in his room, so he had no explanation for why he was waking up in the kitchen. The only explanation might have been that he woke up to relieve himself and was just too tired to go back to his room—or even refasten his pants, apparently. He quickly adjusted his belt and sat up straighter in the chair.
“So it wakes,” Torak said, as if Danais were rising from the dead.
“It would seem so, uncle.”
“So you had a good week’s end.”
“I did. Leo is—interesting.”
“Yes. There’s something about him. He says he’ll stop by tomorrow.”
“You’re harvesting potatoes tomorrow.”
“I know. I told him he would have to talk to you.”
“You did, did you?” Torak chuckled and raised an eyebrow, but it was lost on Danais; He was deep in thought. “Yes. You made stew? It smells different.”
“Lady Vardon made that. It’s authentic Mironi stew, made with goat meat. It’s just thick enough to have substance and not be too heavy. The perfect balance of solidity.”
“Why are they being so nice to me?”
“She told me you were an exceptional dancer—even better than Lord Vardon. Don’t tell him. After all, he thinks his dance skills are superior.”
Danais had no doubt she had said that, but that wasn’t the answer he was going for. He did share a few dances with her before he and Leo made their exit.
“It’s because of who you are?”
“And the town’s people—do they know who I am?”
“Only Garnter would remember back that far. The locals are nice, mostly because of who they know you to be now. You have that effect on people.”
“Kale thinks I’m an impatient adolescent.”
“He said that?”
Danais could see his uncle was holding back a laugh, but nothing could conceal the amusement in his face. Danais just pouted while saying, “Not in so many words.” He poured some of his uncle’s home brew into a glass and sat back at the table. “Tell Lady Vardon I said thank you.”
“She said ‘you’re welcome’ in advance.”
“Leo knows a lot. He’s quite knowledgeable. He knows our legends probably better than the scholars here. He even believes it’s not a coincidence that he was found by the Vardons on the very day that Atora went up the mountain. The first day of spring.”
“And why is that?”
“Not sure. Something to do with the Vardon line being one of the human races directly linked to Salinor.”
“Sounds like he is an interesting man.”
“Very. He speaks to me much like Kale. They both have this way of making me feel ashamed of what I don’t know, yet not making me feel so bad as to let it get me down. Did I show you what he made me?” Danais ran to his room and back before giving his uncle time to process the question. Then he handed him the orb.
“Wow. Now this is exceptional. Someone’s really trying to impress you. Why the red moon?”
“It’s a blood moon, he said.”
“Blood?”
“Yes.” Danais served them both some stew that was so good they ate in silence. If it were possible, it tasted better than it smelled. Once he was finally done and sipping on the home brew, Danais decided to ask a question. He wasn’t sure if he should, but he needed to know.
“Was this blood magic?” Danais noticed his uncle was taking time to respond. Maybe he had asked the wrong question.
“It is.”
“Isn’t blood magic supposed to be bad?”
“It’s complicated.”
“I need to know, uncle. Should I keep a gift made with dark magic? Is it a bad omen? Should I be concerned? And if I’m going to spend my time with him, is it necessary for me to know what type of magic he uses?” Danais was sure the last sentence was accurate. And if he got the answer to that one, he wouldn’t necessarily need an answer to the rest.
“It’s easy enough to explain. Blood magic is sacrifice magic. You have to give part of yourself for it to work.”
“Part of yourself?”
“Yes. A finger, a nose. Just blood for something small. The problem with it is that you have to tap into the dark part of your soul to do it. You must rip it apart and put it back together. Even if you don’t fully succeed, the darkness in the person gets stronger each time blood magic is done.”
“Don’t succeed,” Danais repeated quietly. He wasn’t quite sure what his uncle meant by not succeeding.
“Depending on the conviction and skill of the magician, the success of the spell may vary. If you don’t do it well at all, whatever you give will not grow back. The more serious the sacrifice, the more powerful the spell and split of soul.”
“So giving an eye would be more sacrifice than an ear?”
“Exactly. That is why there are some magicians missing an eye or a finger. It’s not always a casualty of combat. Sometimes they cut off a hand and one finger doesn’t grow back. Sometimes the whole hand doesn’t grow back. It takes a certain amount of inner conviction and natural ability to pull off blood magic. And to pull it off repeatedly takes even more skill. Sometimes, though, it is just a price to pay and something won’t grow back, whether the spell was executed well or not. Sometimes sacrifice is just that: sacrifice.”
“So it’s called dark magic because it deals with your inner darkness.”
“Yes. And also what it does to the person. Their general aura becomes darker. I’m sure you sense it in Leo.”
“He does seem to be more than just serious when things get serious. But generally, he seems so light-hearted.”
“Yes. Some still hold on a little to themselves. Some even more but the darkness still has increased; it’s just not as easy to spot. Most usually don’t, though, if they are heavy practitioners. You can usually tell. This is also why it’s called dark magic: because of the dark demeanour of the magician. Does it mean the wizard is bad? No more than those who don’t practice it are good. You are either good or bad.”
“You know Leo. How much of a user is he?”
“He’s a heavy user, one of those you should sense from a thousand leagues away. However, he’s one of the few that can appear normal. He didn’t lose his original personality. But no matter how much they hold onto, you can still sense it there underneath the longer you talk to them. It’s not something they hide; it just happens to not be so obvious. There is no way you can’t get a little darker when you do blood magic. Unless you only do it when you’re desperate. Leo isn’t one of those.”
“That makes a certain sense. Sometimes when I’m around him, I do feel like I should be on my guard. On the other hand, I still feel like he couldn’t harm me. It’s a mixed feeling—not quite like my natural hate toward magicians. Different.”
“Understandable. Just try to avoid his bad side.”
“Why?”
“Bad things can happen with frequent users of blood magic. Magic is all around us. That’s what magicians use to work their spells. The ones that don’t require plants and fruits and other things. It’s part of what keeps the world alive. To work the word-weave, magicians draw from it. It’s in such abundance that it may never run out. The more blood magic is done, something changes. Spells can be conjured simply by the darkness within the magician.
“These spells aren’t usually performed. They either happen in extreme moments of rage or basic heightened emotions. These spells are formed with intent, are very precise and don’t require words either spoken or in the mind. It’s a very different kind of magic, and the darkness more than doubles with this soul split. These types of spells are usually finite. Out of all the magic done, these are done with such drive and determination it’s almost never likely they’ll be reversed. And they can only be reversed in the same way which can sometimes lead to another problem: most certainly the magician will think you deserve as much as what was originally done. It’s very dangerous magic, but it’s complicated.”
“How so?”
“Well, it’s not often done without provocation. It can be, but usually they’re spontaneous spells. The circumstances force them to do it, so it’s very hard to say a magician is being unjust when they perform this type of magic, because it’s almost never pre-thought.”
Danais thought about this. His mind did its usual over- thinking. He found multitudes of reasons why this Leo thing was an overwhelmingly bad idea. But even though it seemed that way on the surface, there was one thing his mind refused to let go of: he was interested in Leo.
“So how do you feel about him?”
“He’s everything I’m not. Smart, patient, fair, educated. Tall.”
“Tall?”
“Yes. He has at least two feet on me.” Torak laughed. It was true enough. “Come to think of it, he made this globe while holding me afloat and putting up a protective field. Wouldn’t it take a certain amount of mind talent to do more than one spell at a time? Even if they were small.”
“Well, that would depend on the reach of the field and what it was capable of doing.”
After what Leo had told him about magic, Danais was sure that at the very least this was a medium—power shield. He had thought it was more, though. To accurately perform magic while holding the field and him above water, Leo had to be a pretty exceptional sorcerer. Wizard? Magician? What did he prefer to be called? Were there rules to the titles?
“One day I’m going to teach you how to let your mind breathe.”
“Is it that obvious?” Danais asked with an exasperated sigh.
“It always has been. Your mother was the same way, except she was more intuitive, not so much prone panic. Wise, even. I remember one time we—”
Danais was all big-eyed and open ears. His uncle was about to tell him something about his mother. It was very rare he heard anything about her. Why had he stopped? What was he about to say that was so important he just trailed off?
“Why can’t you just tell me who she is?” Danais asked, and he stormed out of the house. He ran through the woods past his usual spot and down a trail that led to a river. He walked over the cool sand and smooth rocks and waded into the water. That was when he noticed something overhead. Kale. He flew down and landed in the water with a soft splash.
“How do you know where I am? You aren’t a Betave. Do we still have that same type of connection?”
“Yes. But it’s not as easy. It doesn’t usually happen with a human and one of the spirits of the earth when they aren’t a Betave. And when you’re a spirit of the earth, it’s more just the extra connectional powers than magical ones which Betaves acquire. We have something similar, but the connection isn’t quite the same. You are troubled?”
“You sensed that?”
“Only because I’ve put myself on alert for such things.”
“My uncle almost let something about my mom escape him. I can only assume by the abruptness of his stop that it must’ve been something important. It might’ve changed what little I do know about her.”
“And I take it you stormed out the home in a fit of anger,” Kale said matter-of-factly.
Danais laughed. Hearing it said like that made his own behaviour sound immature. But Kale’s tone was like the tone of a much older brother scolding him—and the humour was obvious.
“I did. Why can’t everyone be like Leo?”
“Leo?” Kale raised an eyebrow.
“Yes. I thought he was like you, but at least he has the decency to blatantly ignore my ignorance and continue talking. He’s always neutral.”
“From what I understand he’s always had a cool demeanour, probably because of the blood magic.”
“Can Kentais naturally apparate like Betaves learn to do?”
“We can.”
“What’s it like to fly?”
“You’ll know one day.”
“I will?”
“Yes. One day you’ll soar like the eagle.”
“You have any children?”
“Five sons. Six daughters.”
“Any Betaves?”
“Xan is the only Betave in the family at present.”
“Your brother?”
“Yes, it isn’t that often one of the spirits becomes a Betave. Even less for the dragons.”
“Dragons?”
“Small. Not much bigger than us. They were here before our time.”
“I’ll have to ask Leo about the dragons. I only know of large ones.” Danais walked out of the lake onto the smooth grey stones that lined it, stripped, and then looked up at the stars. It was a warm night. “I need to learn to swim. I wonder if Leo will teach me.”
“You could ask him.”
“I guess, but I’ll be busy all week. Maybe I’ll—” That was the last he said before falling asleep. Kale said a prayer to the gods, Danais and Atora, to watch over the boy. Moments later, the water spirits arrived. Four of them came and lifted Danais into the water as Kale flew away.
***
In the distance, a man was looking out from amongst the forest trees. He couldn’t believe his luck. A stroll of solitude in the forest and he stumbled upon this. Who could this boy be that a Kentai and the children of the giants and Danais would watch him? He walked a few paces and heard something. He threw a stone and was rewarded with a thump in the trees. He walked a few paces and found a dead badger, not a Betave. “You won’t be reporting to your master tonight. But I will be reporting to mine. In time.”
***
“Are you sure?” Barton asked after hearing Leo’s story.
“Yes, I’m sure.”
“This could be bad.”
“How so, Barton?”
“Well, it’s fast. Faster than predicted. Something’s changed.”
“Should I be on alert?”
“Yes.”
“And don’t tell Danais.”
“No. He won’t become more alert without an explanation—an explanation that you can’t give him. If he figures it out on his own, then that’s okay.”
“I should hire an Atorathian guard, one who’s really discreet, so no one knows we’re being followed.”
“Do you want one or two?”
“One. If he has the killing skills of a Mironian, even better.”
“So you think it means someone’s after you already?”
“Not sure,” Leo said with a shrug. “But if you’re concerned, I should cover all angles; if it’s important we stay alive, then alive we shall be. Kale?”
“Yes. I just left the young one.”
“Alone?”
“The sea spirits are guarding him.”
“The sea spirits. And why would they guard him? Who exactly is he?”
“They did it because I requested it.”
“It is possible that a spirit can make a request of another spirit. Yet, somehow I think there’s something more here.”
“If you say so. Four came. They took him into the ocean.” Leo made an instant connection, but without enough proof, he was just going to have to wait.
“I made him an orb with a blood moon.”
“You used blood magic?” Barton was shocked. He knew his friend was a user, but something more seemed to be going on in his mind.
“Yes.” Leo had the sudden feeling he’d made a big mistake.
“Why? Suppose you scared him away?”
Leo shrugged. “Clearly, he didn’t understand. If I am correct, he asked his uncle, and now he understands quite well. It won’t bother him.”
“And you’re sure of this.”
“I think I know enough of him to be sure.”
“You spent a day with the boy.” Barton laughed. Leo thought maybe it wasn’t such a bad mistake after all. “What could you have possibly learned in that time?”
“It was an informative day.” Both Kale and Xan rolled their eyes at that response.
“It wasn’t that informative. Leo just happens to be very intuitive,” Xan said.
“Xan—” Leo cautioned.
“What? It was a compliment?” Leo could see that no one was convinced.
“Compliments don’t count when they are disguised as insults.”
“Well, that explains why you miss so many of them. To think I thought you were genuinely accusing me of being hard on you when it was just you stubbornly ignoring praise.” Xan said this with mock shock so genuine he almost fooled himself.
“Praise. So that’s what chipping away at my self-confidence is called.”
“Yes. Clearly, all my hard work teaching you was wasted.”
“How so?” Leo had the distinct feeling he didn’t want the answer.
“You should know how to accept a compliment, no matter its form, with grace and dignity.”
“Bah. Was he always like this, Kale?”
“I don’t know what you are implying. He seems alright to me,” Kale said, also with impeccable mock confusion.
Leo let out a defeatist sigh as the three of them laughed. Why have enemies when you have friends who are evil? A subject change was needed.
“The boy can’t swim.”
“He wants you to teach him,” Kale said, and that was when Kay arrived and hopped onto Barton’s lap.
“Peach liquor?” she asked.
“Yes. Peach for a peach. Hop onto the table, and I’ll pour you a glass,” Xan said smoothly.
“Thanks, Xan. At least someone knows how to treat a lady.”
“Thanks. I do what I can.”
“Stop gushing over her. Besides, a rabbit is way beyond your dating scale,” Leo said.
“Jealousy will get you nowhere.”
“Jealousy of what?”
“The fact that I’m bedding, and you—well, you are being strung along by a child,” Xan said very coolly, which made it all the more funny to everyone else.
“I’ve known him only four days,” Leo responded, knowing it was a mistake the moment it escaped his lips.
“Usually it only takes you moments,” Leo sighed and laughed with them. Today was obviously his day. He loved these moments. He accredited times like this with keeping him together, considering his use of dark magic. Still, he felt the need to be serious.
“So how do we all feel about me getting a guard?”
“Wise. Something seems to be changing. And not at the pace it should be,” Kay said.
“Should I return to the seer?” Leo asked.
“No. The last prediction was an extreme experience. It’s too soon to repeat that. Furthermore, there are other complications,” Kay responded.
“Such as?”
Kale was the one to answer. “Someone of her skill would know the dangers of predictions too close together. Furthermore, seers work more on premonitions. They are drawn to situations and never really know why, but they have visions of what to do and where to go, and they develop a skill of knowing exactly what to do in the moment. She saw that she had to read you at the time that she did, and that is why she read you. Yes, seers do look into the future, but nothing is set in stone.”
“That being said,” Kale continued, “the future will overlap. Once someone knows their future, it gets imprinted in their minds like a memory. But since these thoughts are memories of a prediction and not just natural memories, sometimes they overlap into the new prediction. And predictions are never complete, only glimpses of where you will be if you stay on course, or answers to questions of what you need to do in order to achieve something. So muddling up what little information there is with what may have changed in a day or so is risky.”
“So you’re saying that a prediction needs time to breathe. Otherwise the prediction will be inaccurate. Was there something special about my prediction?”
“Yes. You know that she is a very accomplished sorcerer and an elementor. For her powers to manifest themselves during a prediction is, to say the very least, troubling. No, it is not normal. It’s a sign of great things, but as we know great things can be good or evil. And like I previously said, seers see things that need to be done. Go here, do this, say that and so on. So for you to stay on the path, it involves us around you getting you to the places or points in time that coincide with her vision. And some of us even have our own separate journeys to attend to that may or may not ultimately affect yours.”
Kale took a deep breath. “Sometimes she may have visions that say go here, and images will pop up that she will see at the spot she must go. It’s never fully clear why. For example, she had a vision of something flying in the sky toward you and also one that told her to go to the province of Danais. There she met your teacher and told him he had to travel to the forest and look to the sky. She had no idea why. This was a year before you were born. Xan had a vision to fly over the forest and find you. She obviously saw him in her vision, but didn’t realise it but was also drawn to your teacher. Why? She did not know. Dream Weavers. That’s something else entirely. Much more complex.”
“I take it that being a seer is much more intricate than I believed it to be.”
“It is. But the seers with mediocre powers always break the rules, and that’s why some things seem the norm when they’re really not.”
After that statement, the innkeeper came over with a letter and handed it to Leo. Leo opened it and inside was a small seed. The letter read:
“For your 28th name day. It is only just arriving because it took me a while to perfect it. But I got it right and flew it here personally. Follow the instructions carefully and choose wisely. Your friend, Lor.”
“Lor? Who is Lor?” Barton asked.
“Now that is a secret I can’t tell you,” Leo said. He delighted in the fact that Barton wasn’t the only one with secrets.
No comments:
Post a Comment