She got outside as a class in procession with twenty-five or so students sat around a pair of male instructors busily jotting notes in their field books about various mushrooms and herbs that were growing on the large stump in their midst.
One of the students looked up and the instructors rose to stop Kyra, but she was in no mood to slow down. She called the fog to her and disoriented the instructors as she ran by them out to the forest in the south. She must have run for thirty minutes, perhaps longer. She cried with each step, not because of what she had done to Lady Priscilla or Amelia, they had deserved it. No, she cried because she wanted to run to her mother but she knew that was no longer possible.
There was no one left. Her father was of little use unless she wished to talk about books, and Feberik was so old he may as well have been her father. None of the instructors at the Academy could be trusted either. So she ran. She ran through the ferns in between oaks and pines and around blackberry briars. She ran through a shallow stream and then turned up to the north climbing a gray hill that led into a small depression at the base of a larger mountain. She picked her way through the rocks and large boulders in the depression until she came to one that she could sit upon comfortably. She let herself cry till there were no more tears to give. When she finished, she stood on her feet and started to walk back. There wasn’t anything else she could do.
There would be hell to pay for accosting an instructor, she knew that much. Still, Kuldiga Academy was likely the only place she could call home now. She gathered herself together, smoothing out the front of her black dress and clearing her throat. Kyra stood, but she only made it four steps before she started to question herself.
“Why should I go back?”
She already knew the answer of course. Her mother had gone to a great deal of trouble to ensure that she would be provided for. If she didn’t graduate from the Academy and marry Feberik, then the land and the money would revert back to Feberik and Janik. Still, she had enough magic that perhaps she could run somewhere else. Perhaps she could live in the forest. She knew it wouldn’t be like anything she had ever known, but building a shelter and using her magic to find food was not such a daunting thought. Where most people might abhor the idea of living alone as a hermit she was already alone, if she truly thought about it. Whether in a crowded room at the Academy, or sitting in her portion of her mother’s study at home, there was no longer anybody who would appreciate her presence. She corrected herself, Feberik would appreciate her presence, but she did not want his. Perhaps she could find it within her power to befriend Janik, if only he weren’t Feberik’s brother.
She turned around and searched the depression until she found a wall of rock jutting up from the ground. It was smooth and concave on one side, with a fairly large overhang that provided for a natural shelter against the elements. With her magic, she could easily use the spare rocks around to build the walls out a bit more. As she studied one of the rocks, she noticed there was a small, gray lizard no longer than her middle finger standing on the granite cocking his head up crookedly to look at her with one eye.
“Hello there,” Kyra said. Unlike most of the girls at Kuldiga Academy who would fawn over horses or cats, Kyra had never felt any sort of bond with an animal before. Certainly she was not one to see a fluffy ball of fur and start to swoon. This lizard however, was different. The way its scales interlocked and slid seamlessly over eachother as the animal moved intrigued her. Perhaps it wasn’t the kind of animal most others would consider cute, but she found herself enjoying its company. She reached a hand down to scoop it up.
The lizard turned in an instant and darted down the opposite side of the rock. Kyra smiled and followed it, now tempted as much by the chase as she was by the lizard itself. She hopped over the boulder and watched as the little creature darted around the rocks and then leapt three feet to a lichen-covered boulder. It scurried up and over just before Kyra’s hands dropped down on the stone. She growled at her failure, but didn’t give up. She pushed off from the rock and continued to follow the little lizard until it finally disappeared down a hole in the ground amidst four larger rocks.
“Clever little bugger, aren’t you?” Kyra said. She knelt down and pulled away the rocks, allowing herself to get closer to the hole in the ground. The first rock was slightly larger than her head, but it moved easily enough. The second was a great big flat stone. As she lifted it, her eyes went wide with surprise. There, next to the small hole in the ground, was a large egg.
Kyra cast a quick glance around herself. She didn’t see any sign of other eggs nearby, nor could she see any hint of what might have laid this particular egg. She slid the large, flat rock off to the side and marveled at the large egg. It was a creamy color, with no markings other than the smears of dirt and mud around it and bits of black and white lizard excrement, presumably from the egg’s neighbor that lived in the ground nearby.
She stretched out her right hand and placed her palm on the shell. She could feel a great warmth coming from the egg, as if a fire burned from within. Soon it became uncomfortable to leave her hand upon it and she had to pull back. Kyra stared at the shell for a long while, wondering what to make of it.
The little lizard emerged from its hole after many minutes and expanded its throat just before opening its mouth and hissing at Kyra. The young woman regarded the lizard curiously. Certainly the little creature had no relation with whatever was in the egg, but it almost appeared to be guarding it. She decided to test her feeling by slowly inching her hand closer to the egg. The little lizard jumped onto the egg and snapped its small, toothless mouth at Kyra’s finger.
Kyra laughed and pulled back her hand quickly. “Well aren’t you just full of surprises?” she asked. She moved her right hand toward the little lizard, keeping its focus on her index finger while she moved her left hand out in an arch behind the lizard. When she was certain she was close enough, she scooped up the lizard in her left palm, cradling it just behind the forelegs so it couldn’t bite her.
The lizard responded by expanding the pouch of thorny skin below its lower jaw. The thorns looked much more ferocious than they were, especially when the sack of skin became purple and red in color, but the threat didn’t work on Kyra.
“I mean you no harm,” Kyra said. She waved her right hand in front of the lizard, casting a charm spell that her mother had taught her when she was younger. The lizard relaxed and the skin flap deflated and returned to its normal tanish color. Kyra opened her palm and the little lizard curled up and went to sleep.
Kyra turned her attention back to the egg. It was more than half as big as she was. Just under three feet tall from base to tip if she had to guess. At least as big around as a large man, perhaps even thicker. But what dropped it here? She set the little lizard back near its hole and then retreated off a safe distance to wait for whatever laid the egg to come back. Given the size of the egg, she thought it best to not appear as a threat to the egg.
Her mind started to race. Could a dragon have laid the egg? No. That was preposterous. Dragons were extremely rare in these times. Ever since the great battle in Hamath Valley, there were no regular sightings of dragons. Those dragons that did remain were wicked, vile creatures with an insatiable thirst for blood. That said, no dragon had been seen north of Ten Forts in over a century and a half. Certainly none had been allowed to nest within the Middle Kingdom either.
So if it wasn’t a dragon, what was it?
She waited for hours to answer her riddle, crouched behind a large rock and carefully glancing over her shoulder every so often to ensure nothing was sneaking up behind her.
Nothing came.
She sat there until the sun began to hang low in the sky. The only movement she saw was when the little gray lizard tracked her down and curled up on a rock in front of her. She tried to shew the creature away, but it wouldn’t go. Thanks to her charm spell, it was more than content to stay by her side.
Kyra watched and waited, having fully forgott
en about the events at Kuldiga Academy, until the sun dropped below the western horizon and the sky was set ablaze with pink, orange, and red hues. Only then did the little lizard get up and make its way back to its hole. It darted down, only to come up a moment later. It stood rigid, its head high in the air and its forelegs nearly straight on their claws as it cocked its head at Kyra and made a chirping sound. Three chirps and then it disappeared down again. A moment later it came back up, looked right at her, and chirped three more times. When Kyra didn’t respond, the lizard became more animated.
It leapt from a rock to the egg and then out to the large, flat rock, chirping incessantly. Three chirps, a quick hop, then three more chirps and another jump. The lizard continued acting this way until finally Kyra rose to her feet and approached the egg. As she came closer, the small lizard jumped from the egg to the flat rock and back to the egg. It kept jumping and chirping, seeming almost panicked.
Kyra grabbed the flat rock and slid it back into place over the egg. No sooner had she concealed the egg than the lizard calmed down. It dropped into its hole and disappeared. “Curious little guardian,” she said with a smile.
A cold wind blew in from the north and chilled her to the bone. Goosebumps tightened her forearms and she rubbed her shoulders. The dark shadow of twilight swept over the hillside and reminded her of the events at Kuldiga Academy. Hesitantly, she drew in a breath and decided that she had better forget about discovering what kind of creature had hidden the egg here.
Before she left, she cast a spell around the egg to help it remain warm.
*****
Janik limped through the countryside. It had taken him the better part of the afternoon to shake off the other instructors that had insisted on coming with him to look for Kyra. If not for the charm spells that Cyrus had taught him, Janik would not have been able to convince his brother to head in the opposite direction either. Now, however, he would find Kyra and have her all to himself. Despite her spell, he had seen where she ran to, and had managed to cast a tracking spell just before she had managed to run out of range.
He couldn’t so much see where she was, so much as feel the direction. It came as a mixture of vibration and sound that pulled at his mind. The closer he got, the stronger the sensation. He wound his way through the forest until he came to a large clearing. The last of the day’s light fell upon the bending, golden grasses softly as a gentle layer of fog began to form over the ground.
Seeing Kyra emerge from the trees on the opposite side of the clearing, Janik couldn’t help but see her for what she was. She looked less the girl, and ever more part demon as she walked into the mist in her full length black dress. The dark hair and the strong expression on her face only accentuated the feeling in him upon finding her. He was much larger than her, and had many years of experience, and yet he couldn’t help but feel as though he were stepping alone into a field with a great beast. Reflexively, his right arm went to his belt for his axe. As his fingers touched the cold steel, he shook the feeling from his body and pressed into the clearing.
She saw him.
He waved and smiled. “Come here, Kyra, I am alone. There are no angry instructors with me.” Even from across the clearing, he could see the smile brighten her face and lift her mood. “If we hurry, I might be able to put in a good word with the Headmaster,” Janik added.
Kyra didn’t run, but she did speed her pace until they met up. “You heard then?” Kyra asked.
Janik forced a smile. “Everyone at the Academy has heard.” He watched as Kyra turned slightly red in the face and sighed. He put a hand on her shoulder. “One does not throw an instructor into the wall without everyone knowing about it.”
“She was going to throw a spell at me, I stopped her,” Kyra said matter-of-factly.
“Lady Priscilla has gone home,” Janik reported. Kyra’s eyes went wide.
“I didn’t mean to hurt her, I only wanted to stop her from attacking me.”
Janik nodded. “Turns out, she was somewhat ill anyhow, the scuffle today exacerbated that fact. She should be alright in a few days, but I think it best you keep your magic under control from now on.”
“Where is your brother?” Kyra asked.
Janik smiled. “Well, I thought it best if I found you first. I sent him in a different direction.”
“You knew where I was?” Kyra asked. Her eyebrows scrunched in together and she cast a nervous glance over her shoulder.
“No,” Janik replied truthfully. “But I saw which direction you ran. I was outside at the time.” He smiled wide. “You should have seen the army of angry instructors all chasing after you a few minutes later. They were huffing and puffing every which way for an hour or so before they all calmed down. You do know that Amelia’s father is one of the Academy’s larger benefactors, do you not?”
Kyra shrugged. “Money doesn’t mean you can taunt others,” she said simply.
Janik nodded firmly. “Quite right. Though I dare say there are some who would disagree. One thing you must understand is that like it or not, money rules the kingdom. Those who have it are given more opportunities than those who do not. They also receive more defference in times of indiscretion.”
“Then by that reasoning, I should be able to purchase my way back into the Headmaster’s good graces,” Kyra said slyly.
Janik looked at her shocked, his mouth hanging open slightly. He wasn’t sure what to say. He hadn’t expected a response like that from the young lady. Finally he pressed his lips together and then turned around and began the long walk back to the Academy, with Kyra next to his side. “I suppose that isn’t a bad idea,” Janik said after some time. “Perhaps we can pull it out of the dowry promised for your wedding, what do you say?”
Kyra shrugged, but remained silent.
Janik smiled slyly. He wasn’t just trying to use her logic to solve her current dilemma, he was changing the subject to the marriage. The alliance that Cyrus required. “I have something for you,” Janik said. He pulled a silver amulet from his pocket and dangled it before her as they walked. “It belonged to my mother.”
Kyra looked at it, and then glanced to Janik questioningly.
“My father had no daughters, thus I was given the amulet as I was the eldest. However, I think it should be given to a woman, don’t you?”
Kyra remained silent.
Janik pressed on. “Seeing as you will be my sister in the future, I thought it would only be right that it go to you. I would look rather silly if I were to wear it myself.”
Kyra smiled at that. She held out her palm and the two stopped walking so she could inspect it. The amulet was small, no larger than a peach pit, but it was finely crafted into the form of a perched hawk upon a branch. A single, small ruby was set into the eye. “It is beautiful,” she said.
“Here, let me put it on you.” Janik unclasped the chain and placed it around her neck. As he secured it into place, Kyra let her hair down over the back of her neck and he moved around to inspect the amulet. “A perfect piece to accentuate your ability, as well as your beauty,” Janik said. “The hawk is one of the noblest creatures. It may not be as large as an eagle, but it is every bit as brave and cunning.”
“Is that what you think of me?” Kyra asked.
Janik nodded. “I think I will call you that, my little hawk.”
Kyra smiled and patted the amulet. Then they began to walk again. Janik took some time before speaking again. Despite having the amulet imbued with the spell Cyrus gave him, there was something that made him apprehensive. He kept glancing down toward the necklace between limps, wondering if it were truly strong enough to work on the young lady. It was too bad that her mind was not as susceptible as his brother’s was. No artifact was needed to charm Feberik. Just a powder that mixed into drink.
Even on the night Janik was finally able to get Feberik to agree to marry Kyra, all he had to do was mix a bit of powder into his large brother’s drink. Sure, he had to keep giving him the powder every few weeks, bu
t that was not so hard to accomplish.
Then again, if Kyra could be so easily manipulated, Cyrus likely wouldn’t have any use for her.
They were nearly back at the trees before Janik finally broached the subject that was his mission. He took in a great breath and then sighed. Even with the amulet, he knew this conversation would require delicacy. “Kyra, can I ask what it is about my brother and me that you don’t like?”
For all of Janik’s hesitation, Kyra didn’t seem the least phased by the question, almost as if she had expected it. “It isn’t you I don’t like,” Kyra said quickly. “It is your brother.”
“Ah, so you would marry me then?” Janik said playfully.
Kyra offered a half-giggle and shook her head. “You are nearly the same age as my father,” Kyra replied.
“There have been worse arrangements made,” Janik said with a grin.
Kyra stopped suddenly and turned to him. “I don’t mean to cause offense,” she said. “I know the Middle Kingdom has always operated this way. The women are betrothed to men, almost always men that are ten or twenty years older. The noblewomen then attend the Academy and upon graduation they are married. That works fine for most of them…”
“But not for you,” Janik finished for her.
Kyra shook her head. “I want to live my own life.” She sighed and began walking again. Janik limped quickly to keep pace with her. “I am not even sure I want to be married, but if I did, I would want it to be a man of my choosing. I know you rescued my mother, and I am forever grateful for that, but I want freedom.” Kyra stopped again and held the amulet up from her chest with her hand. “When the hawk flies, it does not need to ask permission to leave the nest. It spreads its wings and takes command of the skies. That is what I want.”
“My brother is a fine man,” Janik said softly. “He will treat you right. You will be as free as you wish.”
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