“I love you, Tyla. I no longer care about how it happened or why. You know that. But… putting someone else through it… I still am not totally convinced it’s the right thing to do.”
“I know, my love. Just promise me you will consider it.”
“I will. We can spend some time together, the three of us tonight after we eat.”
Tyla smiled and nodded.
22
Last Vestiges of a Peaceful Life
“Your father is trying to kill me,” I said to Tasnia while Tyla worked on my battered muscles.
We had been at it for four days, and I had been beaten black and blue by Roman.
“He can be relentless,” Tas said and looked at me. Her cheeks pinked slightly, and she refocused on the pot of water before her. “He wanted a son to teach but never had one. He tried that with me, but… I never had the skills.”
“Thank you, Tyla,” I said as she got up from the chair behind me.
I put my shirt back on. “I don’t think I would have made it if not for your ability to restore me like that.”
“You are welcome, my love,” she said and went over behind Tas. “Bubbles at the bottom! Excellent work, Tas. That shows you can transfer enough heat into the pot that the water is close to boiling.”
Tasnia let out a breath of air and let go of the pot. “So close, but I couldn’t hold it anymore. That is so exhausting. How ya hold the power in your mind long enough to boil, I don’t know.”
“It takes a while to build up the endurance, and the power comes with time and practice. I was not able to do half the stuff I could now before I met Derrick.”
Shit, I thought and looked to catch Tyla’s eyes.
She held a hand up to her mouth. “Oh…”
“What?” Tasnia asked. “Why would meeting Derk make a difference?”
“He uh…” She looked at me.
“Tas, there are things that are different about me and Tyla. Our relationship, it’s… complicated, and we want to keep it a secret. If you decide to stick with us long term, maybe we can tell you. But until that happens, I hope that will not bother you.”
Tasnia stopped and became pensive for a minute. “That reminds me of something my father said. He mentioned to me he does not understand how ya can go as long as ya do in training. He has been pushing ya to get you to the edge and complained that he couldn’t. Says it’s almost unnatural.”
“That is part of it. Yes.”
“Then the other night, when we went out together, ya helped that man with his broken cart, changing his wheel. Liftin it by yerself almost so he could put the new one on. I have seen a lot of other strange things about ya the past few days too, Derk.”
“You should just tell her, Derrick,” Tyla said.
“It’s too much of a risk.”
Tyla walked over to me and whispered in my ear. “People will eventually find out. We should find out where she stands so she can decide if she really wants to come with us.”
“Please tell me. I… won’t betray yer trust.”
I stopped and thought for a minute. Slowly concluding that we should take the risk. “I… Okay. I have only been on this world for about three weeks now.”
“Ya what?” Confusion was written all over Tasnia’s face.
“I was born on another world… Earth, to be exact, roughly about two hundred and fifty years ago. The same planet everyone here originated from, actually.”
“I… the world of the ancestors? I don’t understand. How is that possible?”
I explained it. Mostly. I told her of the fall of earth, how the aliens powerful enough to be gods put humans into this world and how one had brought me to her world. I left out the technical parts but gave her the gist of the information.
“So, yer saying yer a Demigod?”
“No, I am human, or was… just given the same powers.”
“So ya and he?” Tasnia asked, looking at Tyla and pointing at me.
“Yes,” Tyla said. “We… did not know at the time, then we… bonded, and I became his in body and soul.”
“So, yer telling me this so you can add me—”
“No!” I blurted out. “That’s not what is happening here. We are telling you because you will travel with us and will eventually figure out that I have powers, too. This way, you can decide if you really want to go with us or take your chances elsewhere. You are absolutely free to decide what you want.”
“But… wait… all those things ya said about him. Were ya trying to convince me to join ya?”
“What are you talking about?” I asked as we both glanced over at Tyla, who was turning red. “What did you say?”
“Uh… I am sorry master, I might have… mentioned we wanted to experiment with another person to see if she was interested.”
I sighed, putting my hand over my face for a second. “I’m sorry, Tas… We… she was not supposed to do anything like that, and I apologize if it made you uncomfortable. Being completely honest, we discussed the possibility, but only if you were interested and had all the details. I am actually against the whole thing because of the bonding process.”
“So, yer not going to try and make me a slave?” Tas asked.
“Absolutely not! I regret how it happened to Tyla. If I would have known, I wouldn’t have…” I trailed off for a second and shook my head. “Regardless. No. You are and forever will be your own person. Even if you did volunteer for that and we accepted, you would be your own person, just like Tyla is to me. But now, I am sorry I even considered the idea. We will take you to wherever you need to go and protect you as promised. Nothing more.”
Tasnia nodded. “That’s fine. I… know the ugly stories coming from the north about the Demis, but you don’t seem like that at all. And really, she only made a couple of comments when we had… uh… girl talk. Nothing like what you are thinking, so don’t be mad at her. I will trust you to keep yer word, and I will keep mine and not tell anyone, even my father.”
“Thank you, Tas. Again, you nor anyone else will ever be pushed into something like that, by me at least. You are welcome to stay with us as long as you want, though. Or leave when you feel you can.”
I stood and held up my hand to shake. “Still friends?”
Tas smiled and stood, dusting off her hands before reaching out and grasping my wrist. “Yes.”
Tyla walked over to Tas. “I… am sorry. I… just wanted to make it work… and help Derrick.”
Tas reached out and hugged Tyla. “I know. Ya have been the closest thing to a friend I have had in a long time. All the other girls in town are small-minded twits. I forgive ya.”
Tyla walked her to the door I had opened. “Good night. See you for breakfast?”
Tas smiled and nodded. “Sure, see ya then.”
The door closed. With Tas gone, I looked at my wayward nymph. “Tyla?”
“I was only trying to help!”
I knew, and I reached over and pulled her into a hug. “But we can’t do that… that’s not who I am or what I want to be.”
“Can I make it up to you, master?” she asked, reaching for my drawstring and tugging on the loop.
“What am I going to do with you?”
“Anything you want.”
A creak sounded from the door frame, and I turned towards it. “Is someone there?”
The sound of feet running down the hall was the only thing we heard in response.
“I still think we have a chance with her.” Tyla whispered into my ear as we both guessed a certain someone was eavesdropping.
“Don’t push. It’s her decision, but at least it is in the open. It’s a risk, but we have to trust people at times.”
“Yes, Master.”
“I am going to make you stop calling me that. I think it’s creating issues.”
Tyla laughed as she continued to untie the leather strap holding up my pants.
I held the heavy sword up in a guard position, waiting for my opponent to strike. Sweat beaded dow
n my face from the exertions of the day.
My opponent lunged at me with a long spear. Turning away and lunging forward at the oblique, my arms came down as I struck down hard on the spear. Sending it to the ground with a clang and a small rebound.
Resisting the call of my power to speed up my perception of time, I pushed forward with my padded elbow and struck at the heavily padded gut of the man trying to skewer me.
Then I pushed off him with a swing towards the head.
A heavy thunk sounded from the helmet as my wooden sword stuck home and the man dropped the spear and held up his hands.
“I yield!” Roman said.
I stopped from delivering another strike and let my training sword drop to my side. We both removed our helmets at the same time.
“Bravo!” yelled the girls, both Tasnia and Tyla clapping for my victory.
“About time I got one on you. Too bad it was a spear, not your sword,” I said as I clasped wrists with Roman.
“Son, I have been fighting with a sword for thirty-five years. I would hope I can still beat you after a week of training. But you got me with the spear, and the spear is a more common weapon for a soldier. Not my best weapon, but I know it well. You did good.”
“Thank you, Sir,” I said, meaning in my voice.
“Here, Derk,” Tas said as she handed me the jug of water.
“Thanks, Tas,” I said as we gazed into each other’s eyes for just a fraction of a second longer than was typical. I jerked my head back at Roman after taking a long drink. “Dinner tonight, still?”
“Yes,” he said, a look of question on his face. “I want to wish you two and my daughter off with a delicious meal before you go.”
“I’m sorry we can’t stay longer. It’s just getting too risky, and our friend still hasn’t shown up. I fear something may have happened.”
“If they come here, I will send them on to you as we discussed.”
Nodding, I watched as Tyla and Tas walked arm and arm up the steps back into the inn. “I’ll do my best to protect her.”
“Derk… Are you interested in my daughter?”
“I… am honestly not sure how to answer that. I am already with Tyla.”
“I know, and men having more than a single woman is against the law in most places, but she has been talking about you and Tyla non-stop, just like her first crush a few years back. I… worry she will try to get involved with you two.”
“Sir, your daughter is exquisite, and if I was not with Tyla, I would be extremely interested in courting her… with your permission. But there are some… complications that prevent us from even entertaining the idea… Even if it was a choice. So, you can sleep peacefully at night about that.”
He relaxed. “She is willful when she wants to be, just like her mother. If she wants something, she finds a way to get it, and always has. Make sure you remind her you belong to another. Her mother was quite… aggressive with me back in the day, even though I was seeing another woman. It was a bit of a scandal.”
“I don’t think she is interested in me, at least beyond a schoolgirl crush. It probably is more about the lack of options for her. I am sure that will change when we get to Riven Hold.”
He nodded. “Thank you for being upfront with me. I have been happy to teach you these past few days. If you were not with Tyla, I would have given you my blessing if you had asked.”
“That means a lot to me, Sir. Thank you.”
“Saying that, I expect you to approve of anyone she meets, or I will find you and punish you. Do you understand?”
“I… uh… yes… absolutely.”
Roman smiled and clapped me on the back, directing me towards the door the women used. “Let’s get clean and eat.”
“So, we entered the room, I was right behind Major Trino and we threw in a… small explosive that causes a lot of light and sound to distract anyone that might be inside.”
“How does that—”
“Father, stop interrupting. He has said repeatedly they use different weapons, so ya just need to enjoy the story.”
“Fine… go on.”
“So, we throw in the flash bang… as it’s called. And we go inside in a line. Major Trino moves in first and turns to the right and I am right behind him, about to go left. We have these… projectile weapons like a small crossbow that fire multiple shots. We enter the room and there was this man about to open the.” I stopped to think about the words I should use.
“He was about to kill them with the use of a machine in the room. All he needed to do was press this button to activate it. When we came in, he turned and fired his bow at us. Aiming right for Trino, who was facing right as he went through the door. I saw this before I went left and jumped in front of the arrow with my… chest plate and crashed onto the floor.
“Luckily, I still had my weapon pointed at him and fired right into his head. Trino turned and fired as well. Honestly, to this day, we are not sure who hit him first, but we shared the credit. I think he punished me for a week after, for going against the plan with cleanup duty.” I laughed at that last thought, even as it brought a pang of sadness with it.
“That is a… fantastic story,” Roman said.
I shrugged. “It loses a little without some context, but it was my one claim to fame in my homeland. The man we saved ended up leading a grand expedition to a new land, the woman that was with him was his wife.”
“So, in your land, the men run things?” Tasnia asked.
“No, well, not when I left. For a long time, though, yes, it was that way, but things had changed to be more equal by the time I… left.”
Roman smiled. “That explains the dynamic between you two a little more. I was wondering why Tyla seemed to ask your opinion so much. It’s not normal for a noble to be so… informal.”
“Yes,” Tyla answered for me. “I have agreed to follow his customs since he saved my life.”
Nodding, Roman went on. “I am not saying anything negative, mind you, but men have always been second rate in the Matriarchies. Here in this town, we did not see that as much, for which I am grateful to my wife’s memory for bringing me to her ancestral home, but when you go to Riven Hold, expect to be treated like a brute and bodyguard, nothing more, Derk.”
“I understand. We won’t bring attention to us.”
“That might be different soon with the changes coming from the north… Sorry Tyla.” Roman said.
“It’s ok,” she said sadly. “We are in no position to do anything about it yet. I will make do with what I have. At least she is still alive, so there is hope.”
Silence consumed Roman and Tasnia as, as far as they knew, the stories all said it was impossible. I had not mentioned my ability to Tas.
“Well, kids, I am off to bed. I will see you at breakfast to wish you off. Tas, don’t stay up too late with them.”
“Yes, father.”
He kissed Tasnia on the cheek and gave Tyla a hug. Shaking my hand last before he left us in the private dining room alone. The hearty meal of steak and potatoes followed by apple cobbler for dessert were excellent.
“I am sorry about yer mother, Tyla.” Tas said.
“I have faith we will break her free.”
“But the rumors say that—”
“Tas, there is more to Derrick than we have said. He may have a way of freeing those who have been bonded. Please keep that as another secret.”
Her eyes widened at me. “Ya can do that?”
“I… may. It’s about a battle of power, and I may not be strong enough. But we hope that someday we can,” I said.
“So ya say that if I were to join ya, that maybe ya could be strong enough to free yer mom?”
“No, that is not what I am saying. You will not be joining us if that is your reason. Would the power help? Probably. But that is not happening, not for that reason alone. You join us because you genuinely wanted to spend the rest of your life with us? Maybe. No other way. Understand?”
“Could
n't ya just release me afterwards?”
I froze at the thought, not having considered it. “Yes… I guess that is possible. But to get to that point requires certain… acts. That I will not do for simple convenience. I just… can’t. Please do not mention it again.”
I stood and walked to the door, a little angry at Tas for her comments and leaving the two girls behind in the dining room.
Making my way to our room, I just barely kept from slamming the door and sat down on the bed, staring at the wall.
“I will not fuck someone just to achieve a goal. I have never been that person and I never will be,” I muttered to myself.
I sighed and tried to relax, feeling bad because Tasnia had probably not meant it that way. I wasn’t even sure she knew how the bond happened.
A knock at my door broke me from my thoughts, and I got up to answer it. I opened the door to see Tasnia standing there by herself.
“I wanted to apologize if I upset ya,” she whispered.
“It’s not you, Tas. I am the one who should apologize. To be honest, I probably overreacted. Want to come in?”
She nodded and walked through the door. “Tyla said she would give us a few minutes.”
She sat on the bed, and I took the nearby chair. “Tas, I get you don’t know everything yet, but the… bonding is a very intimate process. I didn’t create it, the gods did, but there is no other way that I am aware of.”
She looked at me and nodded rather than ask more. I guessed she had figured out what it meant, or Tyla had told her.
“If it was as simple as saying, I promise?” I continued. “As I can do with just a simple bond? I would totally do what you suggested… but I… to me, being with someone in that way has to mean more than that. Or I might lose myself.”
Exhaling a deep breath before continuing. “When I was in my old world, I used to believe casual sex without meaning was perfectly fine. Many people did, in fact. That was until that sex ended up with a kid I never got to know and me being a father who was not around. I promised myself I would treat any woman I ever met in the future as more than just a passing fling, and I plan to stick with that.”
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