by Dan Wingreen
Eallair laughed softly. "Well, no. There's actually a special herb combination that knocks 'em right out. I even have some in my bag, somewhere. Didn't exactly have time to run back and get it though."
"Why didn't you just stun me?"
"Won't work," Eallair said. "Can't use magic on active magic, mostly anyways. It's why it's so hard to put out magical fires. Magic wants to feed on other magic. The best way to stop an active spell is by taking out the magic user."
That brought Aidan up short. Magic user…
"I used magic," Aidan said in wonder. Everything came rushing back, the magic, how easy it was, how it felt to finally be in control, to bend the world to his will. He shuddered slightly. It scared him, now that he wasn't in the middle of it. How easily it got away from him, in the end. How easy it was to kill. He couldn't feel guilty about that though. The necromancer was evil, and he'd been able to save Eallair. Still, he used magic.
It didn't matter how scary it was. He wanted to do it again.
"Aye, you did," Eallair said softly. "Saved my life, too. Probably even the whole world."
"I…" Aidan looked away, suddenly uncomfortable with the way Eallair was looking at him. Like he was a hero, when he was anything but. "I just did what I thought you'd do. And I almost killed you doing it."
Eallair gently lifted Aidan's chin so they were looking each other in the eyes. Eallair's were bloodshot, Aidan noticed. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. "You saved me. And part of me wants to wallop you again for almost killin’ yourself doing it, but it don't matter what almost happened. You saved me and stopped the bad guy when I just gave up and sat there waitin’ to die. Everything that we accomplish from here on is because of you."
Aidan chewed his bottom lip. He had always loved the way Eallair saw him. He never agreed with it, of course, but just knowing there was someone out there who looked at him and saw something, some spark or deeply hidden value no one else had ever seen, was like a balm to Aidan’s battered soul. The way Eallair was looking at him now, though, was anything but a balm. For the first time since meeting Eallair, Aidan felt like a sham. "I'm not a hero like you…"
Eallair looked as stunned as Aidan was uncomfortable, then the look slowly melted into one of the saddest smiles Aidan had ever seen. "I ain't no hero. And I'm kinda dreadin’ the day you figure that out."
Aidan sighed, suddenly done with the conversation. He didn't know why it had even started in the first place. He was alive. Eallair was alive. He'd used magic. He just wanted to enjoy that for a few minutes. He shifted over in the bed until he was closer to Eallair, then rested his head on his shoulder. After a second, Eallair's arm came up and wrapped around Aidan. Aidan closed his eyes, enjoying being close to someone who cared about him.
This was what had always been missing from his life. This was what he almost lost. This was what he almost killed.
"Promise me you won't die." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Aidan knew they were childish. He didn't care. He wanted the promise. He'd come way too close to losing Eallair, to losing this deeper connection they’d been building together almost before it got a chance to truly begin. He didn't think he'd be able to function without the promise.
To his surprise, instead of arguing and telling him that it was an impossible pledge to make, Eallair agreed. "Aye. I can promise that, at least."
Aidan blinked, taken aback by the utter sadness in his voice, but he wasn't going to question it. He had his promise, and what’s more, he believed it. Aidan could detect no lie in Eallair’s words or his eyes. For the first time since he woke up, Aidan found himself relaxing.
He closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep on Eallair's shoulder.
◆◆◆
"So, what happened after you punched me out?"
He hadn't slept long, less than an hour, but he still felt more rested than any other time he'd woken up since the caves. His body ached and his chest felt hollow—all normal side effects of using so much magic so quickly, Eallair told him—but it wasn't nearly the worst he'd ever felt.
After he'd woken up, Eallair had gone and got them both a cup of the steaming liquid; Aidan was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed sipping it. It was kind of terrible, bitter and way too hot, but it perked him up and made him feel alert, so he forced himself to keep slurping it down.
Eallair turned around from whatever he was doing across the yurt, an amused smirk on his lips. He also, apparently, seemed to be feeling more like his usual self.
"I carried you back to the village," he said. "Weren't no easy thing neither, for all you weigh about as much as a half empty sack of flour."
Aidan ignored that. "You carried me?" He may have lost track of time, but it hadn't been a short walk by any means. And Eallair hadn't exactly been in the best shape. He winced, impressed and a little bit horrified. "What happened then?"
"We got back, and the shaman people started yellin’ questions and accusations and the like, about why we were back and what all that rumblin’ under the ground was about. The Shaman calmed 'em all down and I told them what happened. Most of 'em seemed a bit skeptical, so he sent that boy and two others out to see if I was tellin’ the truth. Told them it was pointless, what with you tearing the necromancer to bloody dust and sucking all them corpses into the rock, but everyone seemed to calm down after that. Probably figured that he wouldn't send the boy into a necromancer den unless he thought it were safe. After that, he put us in here, told me to let you sleep and so I did. You were definitely needin' it."
"How long was I sleeping?" Aidan asked. It couldn't have possibly been long; it was still dark out and he was exhausted.
"Over a day," Eallair said. "Slept like the dea—" He coughed. "Um, like a log the whole day and about half the night."
Aidan blinked. He'd slept a whole day? "We've been here that long?"
"Aye. Couldn't exactly leave, with you recovering from usin' all that magic." He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Needed to make sure you were okay, before I'd move you."
Somehow Aidan got the impression the People had very little choice in letting them stay here that long.
"Worked out though," Eallair said, his voice a bit brighter. "Me and a few of the shaman people went and got your carriage, which had the added bonus of lettin’ me get my bag so I could get a change of clothes."
Aidan felt himself flush. He looked down at the overlarge shirt he was wearing and pulled the blanket tighter around his bare legs. "Um, speaking of clothes…"
"Noticed that, did ya?" Eallair's grin was definitely genuine this time. Aidan shot him a dirty look as his face got even hotter. "I wanted to get your clothes clean," he said. "I know how you are about that kinda stuff and everything was pretty grimy, I didn't wanna use any magic until I recharged a bit, so I had to do it the old-fashioned way. Kinda figured you'd have a problem waking up in your unders, so I got one of my shirts on you. Weren't easy, that."
Aidan glanced away, grateful but embarrassed. He wasn't much to look at, skinny arms and legs, slightly pudgy middle, and that was just comparing himself to the rest of the unfit city population. After seeing Eallair's lean and toned upper body, he felt even more inadequate.
"Not that I'm complainin’," Eallair added with a wink and a look that could only be described as heated.
Aidan swallowed nervously. "So, um, w-what's next?" He tried to ignore the way his voice squeaked slightly.
Eallair grinned, but only said, "We'll leave in the morning. Give us both some time to rest and maybe they'll give us the damned carriage back by then."
Aidan's spine stiffened. "My carriage? What are they doing to my carriage?"
"Dunno. When we got back with it the boy was back from the caves and the Shaman said something in that weird singin’ language they got and a bunch of them just up and pushed the carriage away. I haven't been able to get near it since, but the Shaman keeps tellin’ me nothing bad's happening to it."
"Do you believe him?"
Eallair shrug
ged. "It's either believe him or start a fight to get it back. Since then, none of them's been treatin’ me like I'm about to rip their soul out and eat it, and a few have even asked after you, all polite like, so I'm not really too eager to start slingin’ spells at them again."
Aidan fought down a protest, not that he had a coherent one lined up; he just didn't like the idea of other people around his carriage. It was a holdover from his old life; carriages were the only way for him to get to half the places he needed to go, and if anything happened to it there was no telling how long it would take for a Wizard Liaison from the DMS to come out and fix it. He liked knowing where it was and that nobody was messing with it.
"I hope we get it back soon," he muttered.
"Aye. Me too. Not exactly eager to be stayin’ here now that you're better. Not when there might already be a hunter after us."
Aidan's heart skipped a beat. He'd completely forgotten about the hunter; about all the problems waiting for them outside of Shaman Territory, actually.
"Uh, not that I think he'll be showing up anytime soon," Eallair said quickly, Aidan's sudden fear apparently noticeable. "Even a hunter will take a few days to figure out we're not in the city anymore, let alone where we're headed. And dependin’ on when he gets called in, it might be even longer till he picks up our trail."
Aidan forced himself to relax. That sounded logical. Logic was good.
They finished their drinks in silence. After they were done, Aidan asked about his clothes and Eallair left to go get them. When the flaps were pushed open a few minutes later however, it wasn't Eallair who came through holding his clothes. It was Two Rivers.
Well. This is unexpected.
He stopped short when he saw Aidan sitting up in the bed, like he hadn’t expected him to be there even though he obviously came in to give him his clothes back. He glanced away and started fidgeting with the shirt on the bottom of the stack he was carrying. Aidan held back an amused smile and kept silent.
"So. Um," Two Rivers said awkwardly after a few moments, shifting in place. He kept giving Aidan quick glances before looking away again. The boy looked horribly uncomfortable, but there was something else about him, some kind of tension that seemed so different from the barely contained outrage he'd shown before, that made Aidan intensely curious about why he was here.
"I brought your…" He showed Aidan the pile of clothing he had. "I'll just…" He took two steps in, then seemed to realize he had no idea what to do with the clothes. Aidan probably should have said something, but this was such a change from the boy who was so sure they were evil necromancers that needed be killed, and he was enjoying the change.
Eventually, Two Rivers decided on fast walking over to Aidan and placing the clothes on the chair next to him. He quickly stepped back, but instead of scurrying out of the yurt, he stopped just at the end of the bed. He glanced at Aidan again and quickly looked away, but almost immediately forced his eyes back. This time, he kept Aidan's gaze and squared his shoulders.
"I…I'm sorry," he said, finally. "About calling you a necromancer…and everything. I…was wrong. And I'm sorry."
Aidan…was impressed. He'd been on this end of more than a few awkward teenage apologies, and most times the kids would rather chew their arms off than admit they were wrong. Two Rivers not only admitted his fault, but he made himself look Aidan in the eyes while he did it. Any grudge Aidan might have wanted to hold crumbled to dust and blew away.
"It's all right," he said. "I—"
"It's not, though!" Two Rivers burst out. He looked slightly surprised he'd said anything, but he didn't seem to be able to stop once he'd started. "I was so sure you were necromancers, but even if you weren't, I wanted to kill you just for being outsiders. But, you saved us. If we'd killed you like I wanted, then so many more people would have died. And…it would have been my fault."
He looked away when he finished, seemingly embarrassed about his outburst.
Aidan didn't really know what to say. None of that was exactly untrue, but he still felt the need to try and comfort him somehow. After all, he knew what it was like living with a mistake.
"It wasn't your decision, though," Aidan said after a moment. "It doesn't really matter what you would have done, since you wouldn't have been able to do it anyway. Think of it as a learning experience."
He could almost hear Eallair laughing and telling him to take his own advice.
Two Rivers stared at Aidan. Then, to his complete surprise, the boy sat down on the edge of the bed. "It could have been, though," he said sullenly, looking at the floor. "If the Shaman died, I would have been making the decisions."
Aidan blinked. "Really?"
Two Rivers nodded.
"Oh." Aidan frowned. "That…seems kinda stupid."
Two Rivers' head shot up. He looked surprised, but also slightly offended. Aidan did his best not to laugh. No matter how down teenagers are on themselves, they always get offended when an adult agrees with them, and Aidan had always found it amusing when it happened.
"How does that work, anyway? Getting picked to be the next Shaman? Is there like a contest you have to win, or something?" Aidan asked with a small, hopefully disarming smile.
Two Rivers hesitated, then shook his head slowly. "Uh, no. Um, usually it's the Shaman's son or daughter, to make sure that they can handle shaping the stone, but the Shaman never had any kids. My parents died when I was young and the Shaman said that I had the potential, so he adopted me and started training me." Two Rivers smiled faintly at that.
"How old were you?" Aidan asked.
"Seven." A faint flicker of sadness passed across his face.
"I'm sorry," Aidan said sympathetically. He knew how much it hurt to lose parents. His weren't dead at least, but he wasn't too sure having parents who rejected him was any better.
Two Rivers shrugged. "It was a long time ago. It's fine."
Aidan didn't call him out on the lie.
"So, did you have magic when you were seven then?" He didn't think so, but what did he know? Maybe all the People got their magic when they were little kids and Aidan wasn't as unique as he’d always thought. "Is that how he could tell you could do the stone stuff?"
"Shaping," Two Rivers corrected automatically, then the rest of the question seemed to register, and he gave Aidan an incredulous look. "What? No, of course not. Who gets magic when they're seven? No one gets it until they're at least thirteen summers. I got mine right on my thirteenth birthday."
He seemed proud of that. Aidan automatically made a mental note to have a talk with him later about the dangers of taking pride in magic he would never use, then laughed at himself.
Old habits… Eallair would find it hilarious.
"What are you laughing at?" Two Rivers asked defensively. "Do outsiders get their magic earlier or something?"
"No, we manifest about the same time you do." Aidan decided not to mention when he got his. "I was just…remembering something from a long time ago."
Lee would be so proud of my crypticness.
"Oh." Two Rivers seemed mollified. "Good."
Aidan bit back another laugh.
"How did he know you could shape the stone, then?" he asked, genuinely curious now.
Two Rivers shrugged. "He said he sensed it. Sometimes, I think he made it up because he felt sorry for me." He gave Aidan a rueful smile. "I'm not very good at shaping the stone."
"No one said you have to be an expert before you're—" He almost said, "before you're twenty" and then realized he had no idea how old the kid was. "How old are you anyway?"
"Seventeen summers last month."
Seventeen. Barely seventeen, too. When did seventeen get so impossibly young?
"You've got a lot of time to learn, then," he said quietly.
Two Rivers shrugged again. "I don't think all the time in the world would matter."
Aidan smothered a smile. Even when his life had turned into necromancers, rebellions, and quests for dead kings, he still manag
ed to find a normal, insecure teenager in all the craziness.
"Everyone thinks that when they're young," he said. Two Rivers started to protest, but he cut him off. "Don't even. You are young. I'm almost ten years older than you and I don't have any idea how I'm gonna deal with most of the stuff I have in front of me. Hells, if you asked me a few days ago if I'd be able to fight a necromancer and win, I would have laughed, then probably had nightmares about it. You just have to trust the people you're learning from to know what they're doing." He did smile this time, thinking of Eallair and his insistence that Aidan wasn't useless. "Sometimes they see things in us that we can't see in ourselves."
"That's easy for you to say. The first time you ever tried to shape the stone you threw spears of rock at a necromancer and killed him," he said, jealousy creeping into his voice.
"And I ended up almost killing myself doing it." Aidan cocked his head. "And how did you know about that, anyway?"
"Eel… Elly…"—he let out a frustrated huff—"your lover with the stupid name." He blinked, then flushed with embarrassment. "Um, sorry," he said with a sheepish wince. "Um, he told the Shaman, and the Shaman told me."
Aidan felt his cheeks warm too, but for a completely different reason. Lover… He kind of thought they needed to do a bit more than kissing to qualify as "lovers".
And that's completely not something I want to be thinking around a seventeen-year-old.
Aidan cleared his throat. "Oh. Um. Right."
Silence filled the yurt, but thankfully, before it could get too awkward, the crystal hanging on Two Rivers' chest started to glow a bright blue.
"The Shaman's calling me," Two Rivers said, standing up quickly. "I should, um, go."
He nodded, then walked quickly towards the flaps before Aidan could say anything. When he got there, he stopped and turned back.
"Thank you," he said with a small smile. "For what you said. And for forgiving me for wanting to kill you."
Aidan smiled back. "Anytime. But, maybe don't make it a habit of calling for my death, okay?"
Two Rivers laughed, only a little bit self-consciously. "Sure." And with another quick smile, he ducked out of the yurt.