by M. D. Grimm
I swallowed a chuckle as patrons instantly took up their conversations again, a little louder than before, as if showing Morgorth they could, indeed, speak nosily. I caught his smirk as I led us to a table in the back. Even as we approached, the former occupants shoved away, avoiding eye contact. I disliked taking their seats from them, but I doubted we would stay long. I wished they wouldn’t fear us. I would like this village, just this village, to welcome and accept us.
We sat and Morgorth leaned back in the chair, eyeing the patrons, his arms crossed.
“Simpletons,” he said. There was evident affection in his tone.
“I couldn’t agree more, Lord Morgorth.”
I looked over and frowned at the mage approaching us. I knew he was a mage because of his robes and the aura of magick I sensed around him. Having been around Morgorth for so long, I could sense magickal beings easier, even if their magick wasn’t close to the surface.
The mage was too pretty. He had rich brown hair and eyes, his skin darker than those native to these lands. With a face that appeared carved by a master’s hand, my dislike of him deepened. He had a proud tilt to his head, broad shoulders, and a lean body. His dark green robes were slightly hidden by a light brown traveling cloak.
It was rare that I disliked someone at first sight, but something about him caused my hackles to rise. I credited the apprehension to my gift. I couldn’t stop my glare or my indignation when he ignored me completely. His eyes were only for Morgorth.
Morgorth continued to sit, his expression blank.
The mage didn’t appear put off. In fact, his smile widened. “Pardon my presumption and ill manners, Lord Morgorth. I am Suvar.”
He bowed deeply from the waist, elegantly and with flourish. Curse him.
“Well, Suvar,” Morgorth said a moment later. “Would you like to tell me what you’re doing in my territory uninvited before I fling you out on your ass?”
I sat up straighter and continued to glare at the mage even though he didn’t once acknowledge me. That damn smile never dimmed, but I could see Suvar’s eyes grow colder.
“I humbly request you not be so hasty, my lord. I come as a friend and, hopefully, an ally. May I sit?”
I gave Morgorth a sharp look. He’d yet to look at me, either, during the exchange. Anger didn’t begin to describe my emotions because I also felt fear. I didn’t doubt his fidelity, not in the least, yet that didn’t mean I was fine with someone else flirting with him. I felt his foot press lightly onto mine under the table, and I took a careful breath. He wasn’t stupid. Suvar obviously wanted something, and Morgorth had to figure out what it was. It wasn’t coincidence a mage happened to show up a couple days before the inquiry.
“I see no reason why you should,” Morgorth said.
The barkeep came over and served our drinks. He blinked in surprise at Suvar and glanced at Morgorth.
“Would your, um, guest be liking a drink as well, m-my lord?” the barkeep asked, clenching his apron and bunching it up in his fists. Other than that, he held his composure better than I thought he would.
“There’s no need for that,” Morgorth said, taking a sip of his own drink. “He won’t be staying long.”
Suvar’s smile finally faltered. “My lord, that’s hardly a way to treat a friend.”
“I’ve yet to see any evidence you’re my friend. Speak quickly, my patience is running thin.”
The barkeep left, and I caught a flash of relief on his face. I took a small sip of ale. I hoped this encounter wouldn’t prove nasty. Too many lives in this pub would be lost if two mages decided to fight.
Suvar’s smile vanished entirely. “I see your reputation as an ungracious host wasn’t exaggerated.”
“Speak of something relevant before you bore me.”
I could see Suvar’s struggle against a glare. He took a deep breath and stood straighter, glancing once at the third chair at our table. Suvar made no attempt to sit, and Morgorth made no gesture for him to accommodate himself. He had to know Morgorth’s reputation, which was why he was bowing and scraping and trying to flirt.
“Fine, then, enough with pleasantries.” Suvar finally favored me with a glance, and I could see plainly what he thought of me. I was a nuisance, an obstacle in his way. I smiled snidely back and took another sip.
“The inquiry is in only two days. Most mages there will be against you, certainly the council and the Hand. You need allies and, may I say, those who support you are few in number.”
“The odds have always been against me, Suvar,” he said. “And, yet, I’m still here.”
“Yes, and we all know why.” Suvar sniffed, rather arrogantly in my estimation. “Master Ulezander won’t always be there to watch your back, my lord.”
My muscles tensed. I had my quiver strapped to my back and my long bow propped against the table. I really wanted to put an arrow through Suvar, as his entire presence put my teeth on edge. My utter dislike of him added wariness to my anger. I knew outwardly I showed no expression since I stopped glaring, my face like stone. Inside I growled. Was he threatening Morgorth? Or Master Ulezander?
“Do you know how many threats I receive in a day?” Morgorth flicked his fingers as if they were gnats. “I will simply add yours to the pile.”
“It is no threat. It is a warning.” Suvar laid his hands on the table, leaning forward into Morgorth’s space. Morgorth’s eyes narrowed slightly, the only indication of his irritation. “I am respected among powerful mages. Some would say I even have a chance of becoming an elder, one day. Perhaps even part of the Hand. I understand the politics of the elders, and I am currently a councilor to the king of Slenta in the southern province of Galacia. You would be foolish to dismiss my help.”
I frowned. Morgorth met Suvar’s gaze with ease, and only I could sense Morgorth’s churning emotions. He leaned forward, arms folded on the table. Their faces were close, and I had to resist the urge to shove them apart.
“Why would someone with your connections and political savvy want anything to do with the seventh son of a seventh son? With the destined Destroyer of Karishian? The Council of Mages makes the laws and the Hand enforces them. I break the laws simply by existing. You would do well to stay as far away from me as possible.”
“But don’t you see?” He sat in the vacant chair and I fumed. If he even so much as touched Morgorth....
“Don’t you see the incredible team we’d make? I could work from inside the council and the Hand. I would know their decisions, be part of them, and I could alert you to anything that might come your way. Then once I have enough power, we could remake the council the way it should be. It’s beautiful in its simplicity.”
I sucked in a breath. Was he suggesting what I thought he was? Suvar barely spared me a glance at my noise, his eyes bright and eager.
Morgorth tilted his head slightly. His voice softened as he spoke. “Are you suggesting we destroy the Council of Mages and the Hand?”
“Not destroy, remake. Can’t you see the beauty of it? The need for it? Mages advise kings and act as servants to those lesser than ourselves. Do you know how many wars have been fought in the last year? How many lives lost? If the council exerted more control over the world at large, then we could order it. There would be peace. With you by my side, there would be no need for you to become the Destroyer. The mere thought of you, the fear you inspire, would be enough to keep everyone in line. I need your help with this. Only the both of us together can hope to take on the council and the Hand.”
A sound of disgust escaped me, and Suvar glanced fully at me that time, his look distasteful.
“I am far more useful to you,” he said, eyes back on Morgorth, “and hold more value than any non-magickal creature ever could. Keep him as a pet for all I care but know it would be you and I, a team, that could rule Karishian. Perhaps that’s what your destiny refers to: you would be the destroyer of the old and the bringer of the new.”
That wasn’t the first time I’d been called Morgo
rth’s pet, as if I was a hunting hound or work horse. I doubted it would be the last. It never became any easier to hear. No one was capable of understanding the depth of our relationship and the intricate nature of it. Master Ulezander knew some of it, yet even he didn’t know everything. Others tried to degrade me and told Morgorth I was worthless. Indignation and wounded pride burned in my stomach. It also just plain hurt.
Morgorth pressed down on my foot again, the gesture oddly comforting. That was when I realized why he wasn’t defending me or blowing the mage up, or making a scene to shield me. If he did any of those things, he’d only paint a larger target on my chest. He was keeping the focus and attention on himself and playing down my importance to him. I knew it was a struggle for him because he had an overprotective streak where I was concerned.
“Perhaps,” Morgorth said, sitting back, looking thoughtful. I knew it was fake. At least, I hoped it was. He knew how important it was for mages to have discipline over their power, magickal and political. Suvar didn’t want peace. He wanted power—power to dominate the world. There had to be checks and balances, and he wanted to get rid of them all.
“I need to think about this. If you want my assistance, you won’t rush me. And you won’t come back here uninvited, do you understand?”
Suvar panted, eagerness in his eyes. There were also flickers of lust, and I knew they were directed to the power Morgorth wielded, not to Morgorth himself. Suvar quickly gained control over himself and sat up straighter. “I understand,” he said. “It’s a lot to consider. I hope you will have an answer for me after the inquiry. I shall help there, if I can. Consider my offer well. The sooner we begin, the sooner the world can find order and peace.”
Demon spawn.
“I will. Good day to you, Suvar.”
Being dismissed like an errant child caused a look of indignation to flash over his face. He stood, bowed, and swept out of the pub. The conversation didn’t go unnoticed by the patrons, but they wisely kept their eyes elsewhere, probably relieved the mages didn’t come to blows. I was relieved by that myself. I blew out a long breath, and with it went my aggression. I leaned forward and gripped Morgorth’s hand. He lifted my hand and kissed the back of it. The gesture calmed me further.
“I’m sorry,” he said, wearily. “I’m sorry you had to endure that. Thank you so much for not sticking him with an arrow.”
I smiled. “The thought never entered my mind.”
He chuckled. “Just like setting him aflame didn’t enter mine. How peaceful you and I have become.”
We exchanged knowing looks.
“What are you going to do about him?” I asked.
He fell silent, considering. I watched him and drank from my own tankard. When he finished his ale, he stood. “I’m not sure, yet. I need to learn more about him and see what he does at the inquiry. I need to know if he’s as knowledgeable as he says he is.”
I nodded and finished my own drink before standing. I dropped a few coins on the table. He watched me do that and considered a moment before dropping a few of his own coins. I grabbed my bow, took his hand, and we left the pub.
Eyes followed us as we meandered along the dirt paths. All the paths were wide enough to accommodate a horse and carriage. The sun began its descent and shops began to close, creatures taking refuge in their homes. A few children gazed at us wide-eyed before their parents shooed them away. We continued on our way, hand-in-hand, and I had to hope that if Morgorth continued to make such peaceful excursions into Happy Valley, then maybe its citizens would start to change their minds about him. Or give him the benefit of the doubt. He’d never done any harm to Happy Valley and, in fact, he’d saved it more than once with the villagers as witnesses.
“You’re not my pet unless you want to be,” Morgorth said as we climbed the hill.
I grinned and kissed him, causing him to stagger. “Well, I do enjoy you tying me up now and then.”
He smirked, eyes bright. It was rapidly growing dark, and his brown eyes were turning amber, indicating his magick was near the surface. “That’s good to hear. Are you up for it tonight?”
I stepped into his arms and, before he teleported us back to Geheimnis, I whispered in his ear, “I think it’s your turn.”
Chapter Three
Morgorth
“I don’t want anyone traversing through Vorgoroth, Grekel,” I said as I stroked his head. “Especially those you sense might be troublemakers. If any knights or soldiers come from Raskalin or Cwaylin, you have my permission to kill them. But if they’re merchants or simple travelers, just scare them off.”
He growled in annoyance but he really didn’t have much to complain about. I spoiled my minions. I’d already told Lansa and the leaders of the trul clan, Xchlan, Achta, and Wentgla, the same thing. Truls tended to have three leaders, always mated, that ruled the clan. Xchlan was male and had the privilege of being mated to two strong females, Achta and Wentgla. The clan was about eighty adults strong and mostly kept to the eastern part of Vorgoroth since wichtln ruled the western portion. Sometimes the two fierce predators clashed but more often they lived in wary peace.
“Keep my home safe,” I said. Then I did something I rarely did and knelt in front of Grekel. I looked straight into his eyes. His yellow gaze met mine without flinching. “I trust you. Prove that trust well-placed.”
Then he did something he’d never done before and pushed his head against mine. His ears lowered, his eyes closed, and he rubbed his head against my cheek, an affectionate gesture that nearly put me on my ass. He was so strong! I wobbled and gripped his sturdy shoulders, feeling his strength, the ruthless killer just below the surface. He could turn on me in an instant and chew on my neck. Instead, he licked me, from my collarbone, all the way to my cheek. His tongue was rough, warm, and wet.
I cringed and stood. “Ew.”
He chuffed, wagging his tail, his glimmering eyes showing his amusement at my disgust. I wiped myself as best I could.
“Just do as I command, hairy beast.”
He chuffed again before he turned and trotted deeper into the forest, quickly disappearing. I stood a moment, gazing after him, listening to the trees, the wind, the occasional bird cry. I smelled the wet moss on the trunks, under my feet, the rotting leaves, and foul scent of excrement. My home, where predator and prey lived in strange harmony. It was the only dynamic that made sense to me. There were those who preyed and those who were preyed upon. I’d been the latter for the first seven years of my life. Then with the blessings of the Mother, I escaped. I was trained by one of the greatest mages alive. I turned into a predator when I left his tutelage. Despite the role change, the agony of my early years never faded. No matter what I did, or what I did to others, the abuse was still there, nipping at my heels. Master Ulezander caught up with me and punished me for my viciousness. Thank the Mother he did. But after my promise to him, that I wouldn’t be a monster again, I grew bored. Only now could I acknowledge I’d grown bored with life. I’d become aimless, goalless. Not angry or sad or happy. Nothing.
Then Aishe came into my life. He changed everything. He changed me. I began to doubt, to wonder, about my purpose. Who was I? What was the point of my existence? Was I truly the Destroyer or something else? Someone else? I began to care. No, that was a lie. I’ve always cared. I finally acknowledged that I cared. I had someone to care about. Aishe’s opinion mattered more than any other’s... even Master Ulezander’s. Aishe made me want to change. He made me want to be better, to do better.
I was still a predator, just not a mindless one. I still had a monster inside me. He would never go away. The abuse would never go away. But control—that was vital. In spell-work and in life as a whole.
I sighed and turned away. I hoped to return in a few days, no more than a week. One could never tell with council bureaucracy.
We were leaving that day, and we’d packed the day before. Aishe used the magickal bag I gave him months ago. It could be crammed full of anything and everything
and never became too full or too heavy for carrying. A complicated enchantment, and he was worth it. He also wore the enchanted tunic I made for him, one that would protect him against any magickal and non-magickal threat. It was similar to my own jacket, which also had spells woven through the fabric.
Standing on the ledge outside Geheimnis’ front doors, I looked out over Vorgoroth, not thrilled to be leaving my home again. The home I’d made for myself. I craned my head back to view the gargoyles perched on the towers, and they looked down at me with mournful expressions. They didn’t like it when I left, either. As always, pride filled me when I looked at the gargoyles. Formed from stone, shaped by my hand, I’d breathed life into them with an enchantment. They were ridiculous jokesters, fierce in battle, and unflinchingly loyal.
The vines covering Geheimnis quivered in reaction to my presence. I didn’t create them, only enchanted them to have a touch of sentience. They loved to wrap their tendrils around invaders, either poisoning them with their thorns or strangling the life out of them. The vines had saved Aishe from a mage’s vengeance months before, when I left to claim a stone of power. It made me eternally grateful I had included them in Geheimnis’ defenses.
My home was deadly to all except me and a select few. And I was leaving her again. I took a deep breath and gripped Aishe’s hand.
“It will all work out, my love. I know it,” he said.
“You can’t know that, optimist.”
He kissed my cheek. “You were in the right. Through it all, you were always in the right. Remember that. My testimony will prove it, as will Olyvre’s.”
I nodded, thinking of my brother. “We’ll stop at the inn first, then go to the Tower.”
“Whatever you think is best.”
“Hold on.”
Aishe hated teleporting but it was the fastest mode of travel. The state of existence we entered when teleporting was devoid of sensation. I couldn’t feel Aishe’s hand or my clothes, and I couldn’t hear anything, not even my own breathing. All I could see was the image of our destination in my mind. This was one of the spells that had made me nervous during my second phase of training, but I grew in experience the more I practiced. With Master Ulezander’s help, I now felt like an old hand at it. With complete confidence, I took us across kirons of land and sea to the western continent, far south of the Zentha kingdom, in the blink of an eye.