Light of the Dark

by N. Saraven

  At the moment, Neila longed for a tepid shower, or maybe a little bit cold even. She got rid of her useless thoughts about the Tower’s water-supply. Why would she muse on how they got the water, or on the tube-system? Yet her mind seemed to be drawn to these insignificant facts, which only made her nausea worse. It got to the point where Neila could not wait any longer.

  She sat up, which made her dizziness come back. As she tried to find her nightdress, she realised that she was alone. But every clue suggested that she should not have been.

  However, her stomach made her move as quickly as possible, scrambling out of bed after she managed to put her clothes on. She never liked walking around naked, even in her own room.

  When she finally managed to reach the door across the room, she shut it closed with a loud bang.

  In that exact moment, the entrance door opened. Veilon entered, glancing around questioningly. When he heard the shower running, he gave a faint smile. He sat down on the bed, with the small plate in his hands, waiting patiently.

  Neila’s closest friends knew that she always worked swiftly, whatever she did. She never liked to waste time, especially with things like showering. She liked water, but since she could not merge herself into a river, or lake, she always did the ‘job’ in the shortest time possible. Veilon also knew of her that even if her bath had a tub, she did not really like to use it alone …

  The paragon did not have to wait for long. When the door opened, he turned to her with excitement. He just could not help himself. But when he saw Neila leaning against the doorway, obviously stumbling on the edge of fainting, he ran to catch her.

  Veilon helped her sit down as she was half-conscious, then quickly mixed a drink for her. Usually there was honey and some fruits in her room, just in case she decided to flavour her teas. So the paragon swiftly put some sweet in a cup of water, then squeezed the juice in it from a very sour fruit. He helped Neila drink it, which put a little colour back on her cheeks.

  “What can I do to help?” asked Veilon, worried, when she slowly came around again.

  “Never, ever let me drink so much again!” she moaned as she stood up with the kobold’s help.

  “No promises.” He grinned as they slowly walked to the bed. “What’s the plan for today?” he asked innocently, watching her curl up again and hug her blanket tight. He sat down on the edge.

  “Surviving,” she mumbled, still moaning sometimes, or sighing loudly.

  “It won’t be easy,” he mused out loud, stating the obvious. Only a sharp glance was the answer, what made him give a wry smile.

  “Maybe I should eat something,” mused Neila haggardly after a short silence.

  “That is why I brought you this.” Veilon handed her the little plate. She pulled herself into a half-sitting position, eyeing the little cake hungrily. But as soon as she smelt it, she twisted her mouth as her face turned greenish-yellow.

  “Maybe it is not such a good idea after all,” she moaned as she scrambled out from bed and ran for the bathroom again.

  Veilon just sighed as the door shut behind her.

  “I will leave it if you change your mind,” he shouted after her, then left the room.

  He had a lot on his plate too. For one, he wanted to speak with the head of the herbal-gardens, who watched every other inhabitant keenly when they had to work in them. Maybe he could give something for feeling ‘under the weather’. Second, he really needed to catch Enargit, who supposedly could answer to where Halgor had disappeared. Had he fled again, or for once had something happened to him? Then maybe he would get something to eat too. He had been up and running since dawn, and however he wanted to just lie beside Neila, he could not do that. So he slipped out silently, shortly after he awoke.

  When he got the ingredients for the tea with the instructions on how to properly make it, the paragon headed for the lunchroom. He had a hunch that the companions would be there too. He proved to be right, so he started for them when he got a tray.

  “So, what happened yesterday?” asked Agony, obviously checking up on the paragon, who sat down beside him.

  “She woke up one time. We chatted as she ate and drank, only water, of course, then she fell asleep again.” The Ruler shrugged, not even looking at the other. The warrior seemed unconvinced; however, he said nothing. So far …

  “And how is she now? Must have a terrible hangover,” said Rita between bites. Veilon only blinked, trying to puzzle out what she meant.

  “She is not well, if that’s what you meant, which is perfectly acceptable.”

  “After that much Jäger … yeah.” She swayed her head.

  “What is that jaagger that you always talk about?” cut in Kira.

  “It is a strong drink on Earth. I tried that elven liquor which Neila tanked up last night, and they are almost identical. Even in their strength.”

  “Wha—?” Agony looked completely lost at Rita, who sat across from him.

  “It’s not important. We call these kinds of strong drinks ‘liquor’. And there is one liquor that is called Jägermeister, and it is very similar to that elven drink.”

  “You know … I know you think that you just explained everything, but you really haven’t …” The warrior swayed his head, which made Kira chuckle beside him.

  “Has Enargit returned yet?” cut in Veilon, when he saw Rita taking a deep breath for more explanations.

  “Dunno, haven’t seen him,” muttered Agony.

  “Me neither, although I wasn’t looking either.” Talek shook his head and methodically picked out a certain type of seed from his breakfast to the rim of his plate.

  He had no problem with the meal itself and always said that the taste of the seed was needed, but he never liked to chew on the seeds themselves. Rita, on the other hand, loved them, so she stole every single one from his plate. Nobody knew what the soldier thought about somebody ‘touching’ his food because he never said anything. Very uncharacteristically, according to his friends.

  Before anybody could say anything further, Agony suddenly grabbed Kira’s arm on his right and pointed at the entrance of the lunchroom, drawing everybody’s attention to it. Talek almost choked on a bite, starting to cough; Kira let her fork fall out from her hand. They all stared with widened eyes as they watched Neila strolling to them with a tray in her hands. She looked fairly fine, although a little pale.

  “Can you manage on your own, or need help choking?” Neila asked Talek, smiling, who just gestured her away. Finally the soldier emerged victorious. He stopped eating for a short while, only drank a little.

  “Hiiiiii, Neila … long time no see,” said Rita with a slightly forced smile as she and Talek slid over to give her some space.

  “Ye … yes, I … am sorry for not having breakfast in the garden. Is it always this shiny out here?” Neila complained, holding one hand up to block a ray of sunshine from her eyes. Even though they sat under a huge tree, a beam could find her gaze. The friends slid again a little bit.

  “Well … yeah,” replied Agony a little tensely, exchanging glances with the others. Everybody thought the same thing—how should they behave around the Master, which would not fuel anything in her?

  “You seem pale. Is everything alright?” asked Kira, worried, which made Neila smile bitterly.

  “I’ll survive.”

  “Yeah, hangovers. Tell me about it …” murmured Rita as she stole another seed from Talek’s plate. If Neila noticed, she did not show it, although she did look at her friends questioningly. Everybody turned their attention to their meal, eating or drinking silently.

  “Alright, that’s enough!” snapped Neila at this, which made the friends wince. “You DO NOT have to tiptoe around me! If you have something to say, just say it! But don’t try to ‘defend me’, or whatever stupid thing you planned for me. Just be normal, please!”

  “If you really want it …” Talek raised a brow. “You look terrible! Still not as horrid as your hair. Learn how to make a proper braid!”
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br />   “Talek!” Rita hissed at him as she elbowed him in the ribs, making him growl.

  “What?! She said to be normal! This is normal to me!”

  “Then maybe you should never be. Would be better for all of us,” muttered Agony just loud enough for the others to hear. As a result, a huge argument burst out between the men.

  Neila just smiled at them as she listened, obviously feeling content. The air around them started to ease up.

  A little later Enargit walked to the companions’ table. He approached them from behind Neila, so she could not see him; however, Veilon, who had been silent the whole time, glanced at him questioningly.

  “By the way, is the elven around somewhere?” Neila asked in a momentary silence, which made everybody else swallow their tongues.

  “Why, was he gone?” Kira tried to play the innocent. “I think I saw him …”

  Neila looked at her, whose eyes fell. The shade could not deceive the Master since she was never good at any kind of lying.

  “Well … you know how he is …” Agony wanted to start, who also saw the dragon.

  Veilon and he eyed the closing-in Leader when Neila was looking at her meal. The reptile held up a finger, showing that one dragon was missing. The paragon took a deep breath at this. He obviously had a difficult time thinking of a partly true answer for Neila, who now looked at them for a reply.

  “He flew out with Nighthunter. Probably we’ll have to find him again.” He rolled his eyes, cutting off the warrior. Enargit just swayed his head in the background.

  “Uh-huh …” Neila raised a brow as she sipped from her cup. “Alright then, let us stay alert,” she said like a side-note as she stood up. When she turned to walk for the entrance, she almost bumped into the tensely smiling Enargit.

  “Well now, it is good to see you out here.” The dragon tried to sound cheerful with his fake grin.

  “If you say so …” Neila glanced at him, as if she were doubting his sanity, then she walked away.

  “What happened?” demanded Veilon immediately after she got out of hearing range.

  “Well … one dragon is missing, and he is Nighthunter. But … an eyewitness told me that he was sleeping soundly in the garden when a black smoke appeared around him. When the mist, or fog, or whatever it was disappeared, so did he. Without a trace.”

  At this, the kobold jumped to his feet.

  “Lexénia … but what does she want with them?” he mused out loud, not minding the others staring at him.

  “We’ll know soon enough,” muttered Talek grimly.

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” replied the Ruler with a huge sigh.

  “Why don’t you just look into the future again to figure it out?” asked Agony sarcastically.

  Talek only nodded as agreement. The dark mage glared at them with flaring eyes, although with no effect on the friends. Then he rather left without any further words.

  He really wanted to give the tea to Neila, so he paid her a visit first. It would be no use to start looking for the missing elven if he were with the Goddess.

  IF he’s with Her … he thought bitterly. Lexénia had very bad timing. Or a good one, from another perspective. After all, Neila could be only his before all this ends. It was only a matter of time.

  Veilon climbed the remaining steps, musing on the situation, after he teleported to the barrier-level. He knocked softly on the door, but even when he got the permission to enter, he winced when he touched the handle. He could just not forget the time when Neila forgot to remove the protecting runes …

  After he entered safely, he headed for the Master, who sat in her armchair at the window again. He wanted to hold her in his arms, kissing her neck, yet he showed nothing of a sort. It was obvious that last night was meaningless in her eyes—a tension release, nothing more. And he was at the right place at the right time …

  Veilon was glad that this happened, although he could barely contain his excitement until it would be really his turn.

  “Ahem …” He cleared his throat to get Neila’s attention. “I brought you some herbs, against nausea,” he started as he put a little metal kettle on a metal stand. Under it a little fireball sparkled. Usually there was water in the kettle because the Master liked her teas freshly made.

  “Yes, thank you, that will be good,” she said, although something obviously occupied her mind.

  “I don’t like that look … What are you thinking about?” asked Veilon, genuinely concerned.

  “It doesn’t matter,” she deflected with a smile as she turned back to the window. It was a mirthless smile, however.

  “It does matter. Please, tell me.” He stepped between the chair and the window, leaning on the arms of the chair. His eyes caught hers, not letting them go.

  Neila looked as if she wanted to talk, yet she would not. However, she at least thought about it for a little while. Then her eyes became firm.

  “I want to talk to everybody who currently lives in the Tower. This afternoon, before dinner. Summon all of them,” announced the Master, which made the kobold straighten up in surprise.

  “Why, what do you want with them?”

  “You will see,” replied Neila bitterly, which made Veilon twist his mouth.

  “As you wish …” He gave in finally, but it was obvious how much he disagreed.

  The water started to boil in the kettle, so the dark mage stepped to the table. He made the fireball disappear, then with a cloth he grabbed the pot and poured the water into a cup. He strewed the herbs into it and let it rest. He opened his mouth to say something, but then he changed his mind. He just swayed his head as he picked a book from one of the shelves, climbed into the bed, and started to read.

  “What are you doing?” gasped Neila, completely stunned.

  “What does it look like?” he answered sarcastically. “I want to make sure you’ll drink your tea. And I have a lot of time before I need to do anything about the summoning, so I thought I would occupy myself until then.” He shrugged, which made her even more baffled. She seemed to say something, yet she just swayed her head and moved on. A little later she too got a book to read.

  The tea almost went completely cold when the door opened and Enargit stepped in. The dragon halted for a moment, astonished by the scenery before his eyes. He left his mouth open as he gazed at the others, who were reading sound and comfortable, as if there would be nothing to worry about.

  “What the …?” he muttered, which drew the golden gaze at him. He blinked, then shook his head to get over his bafflement. “Never mind … Neila, if you have a little free time, you should look into the plan we made for the shadow dragons. We had a little argument with Agony in a matter, and it would be nice to have a deciding voice. Is this the tea about what you were asking?” He pointed at the cup, glancing at Veilon, who nodded.

  The Leader started to pick out the leaves with a little filter. When he finished, he brought it to Neila, who thanked him with a smile as she took it. She started to sip, but when she sensed the waiting eyes on her, she looked up again.

  “No need to worry, I will handle everything in the afternoon,” she said softly, returning to her book.

  Enargit glanced at Veilon, who just swayed his head and shrugged. The dragon twisted his mouth, but obviously did not want to bite off more than he could chew.

  “As you wish. But we really need a strong hand around here,” he rumbled.

  “You’ll get it,” she promised with a calm, firm voice, which made the shadow wince. Even Veilon looked up from the book.

  However, Neila only cared about her tea and book. Before anybody else could say anything more, she continued.

  “Isn’t it time to start the preparations, Veilon?” she asked coldly, still not glancing up. Her tone made the paragon roll his eyes, yet he scrambled out from the pillows and blankets where he had made a comfortable nest for himself. He left the room, gesturing the dragon to follow.

  “What is she talking about?” asked Enargit quietly,
when the door closed behind them. The Ruler only started down, but he answered a few steps later.

  “Neila summoned everybody outside at the door this afternoon, just before dinner. Everybody …”

  “What does she want?”

  “Nothing good, I assume. My guess would be an announcement, which will make all of us wish to just leave the whole thing behind.”

  Enargit only mumbled something under his breath. At one level, they crossed paths with Eryn, to whom they also told the Master’s wish. They trusted him with the instructions, who then hurried away to do what was necessary.

  It took not much time, yet all the more precise organising to actually make Neila’s wish come true. At the given time, everybody, dragons, apprentices, mages, and the companions stood in the garden at the main entrance of the Tower. They all waited for the Master, whispering amidst themselves, trying not to stomp on anybody.

  The air became filled with tension, mixed with worry. Even the shadows tried to behave as much as possible. At the door waited Enargit and Veilon, nearby them the others—all but Halgor, who still was missing.

  Everybody felt anxious to know what this was about. Suddenly, all fell silent when Neila appeared at the doorway. Eryn put a bench before her, so everybody could see her clearly. The Master thanked him as she stepped on the top of it. Every whisper ended as if they were cut. All eyes looked at Neila.

  “Thank you all for coming,” she started with a clear, strong voice. “I will make this short. I have a question for you all, which I need you to consider thoroughly. I would like an answer tomorrow morning, after breakfast, gathering here.”

  “I really, really don’t like where this is headed,” whispered Talek to Agony’s ears, who just nodded. They listened further.

  “You all know that I made a truce with Indrek not so long ago. But I am also sure that you know that I never intended to keep that. He will never escape from my wrath! I want to make him disappear, as if he never existed. I want him to be completely forgotten! He will pay for what he has done to Cameron, and us!”