by K. Dzr
Chapter Twenty-Nine
D I V I D E D
“This is only the beginning, Friends,” Demetrius’ voice was hardly more than a whisper as he gazed into the fire of their campsite deep in the woods. “This is the day I have always known was coming. Still, I do not want to believe it. Mankind has turned against us.”
Tahir put his head in his hands. Once again he found himself hating what he was. Everything he loved, humans destroyed for stupid, selfish reasons. His village, his home, his mother, the forests and animals; and now his wife and friends were in jeopardy. He would not stand for it. He would do something this time. Francis would pay. This time…
“We must attack now, Demetrius!” Kraven paced around the fire. “We are powerful. We are the rightful rulers of this planet. We should—”
“Which is why we are responsible for maintaining the peace,” Alexander interrupted.
“They are frightened and misled,” Demetrius continued. “Should we give them reason to fear and hate us?”
“They do so without reason, we might as well. I’d expect such cowardice from you, Demetrius. But you, Alexander? You will let those humans hunt you down?”
“You seem to forget that you too are human, Kraven, and that you are the pupil here.”
As the three wizards argued, it came to Tahir that he was wrong. To hurt people; the defenseless, the innocent, or the confused—to satisfy his own selfish interests, made him just like a human. He was ashamed to even be considering harming people. No matter how he tried, he kept disappointing himself. His stupid human nature revealed itself every chance it got. He hated himself; he didn’t deserve his company. He wanted to leave.
Look at me, my friends are in danger but here I am feeling sorry for myself.
Destiny, sensing his frustration, gently laid a hand on his shoulder. Her touch startled him out of his thoughts. He glanced at her concerned face and then stared at the ground. He didn’t want to look at her; he was too ashamed. She closed her eyes and sent her thoughts to his mind, where only he could hear.
Tahir, you are different, and you are a good man. Don’t judge yourself so harshly. Demetrius chose you from all the men in the world, and so did I.
Tahir finally looked up at her. She opened her eyes to return his gaze.
“It’s going to be alright, Tahir,” she whispered. He nodded slowly.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered back. He rested his head on her shoulder. She hugged him gently.
“Kraven, you do not understand,” Demetrius tried to explain to his pupil. “This is not the thinking of one King or one Kingdom, but of the world. This is a change in the mindset of humankind. It is a battle we cannot win. If we slaughter them, then we have succumbed to evil. If we conquer them, they will truly fear and hate us. They will learn magic for themselves and rise up against us. If we are defeated, then all is lost.”
“I will not roll over and let some pathetic human push me around. And do not call me human. I rose far above them long ago.”
“Alexander and I have put much thought into this. We will retreat to safety until the time is right. Only then—”
“I will not,” Kraven scoffed. “You are pathetic. The wise and powerful Demetrius cowers before a single powerless human? I want no such teacher.”
“Kraven…”
“No! You go hide. I will take care of this.” With a wave of his hand, he was gone.
They sat in silence, each to his or her thoughts, most in doubt. Gavin, like Tahir, had mixed feelings. He had long been a servant and friend of the King. Now where should his loyalty be? He was a traitor regardless of which side he chose. He definitely did not want to battle Kraven, but he did not want to fight his people either. He was, after all, human; the only one who had no magic.
“Demetrius, are we going to have to fight against the Kingdom?”
“Gavin, I do not want you to feel obligated to help us.”
“No, it’s not that…”
“I understand your dilemma. But no, I do not intend to go to war against your King. Regardless of Kraven’s actions, I am committed to my plan.”
Gavin nodded, “I will help however I can.”
Demetrius stopped pacing around the fire. “I must leave,” he announced. “My task is to create a place for us, for all the magical beings to be brought to safety. Alexander knows where to go when it is ready.” His eyes met Tahir’s. “Tahir, now is the time to prove yourself. The destiny you have sought is now upon you: I leave you in my place.”
“Me?” Tahir jumped up. “But Alexander is…”
“Alexander is a dog.”
“Dog?” Alexander scoffed.
Demetrius gave Alexander a teasing smile. “Wolf?” He turned back to Tahir. “Alexander’s methods of communication would not result in a successful mission. He hasn’t the patience, understanding or finesse that is required. You do.”
“But…” Tahir persisted.
Demetrius held his hand up to stop him. “The decision was made long ago, Tahir. You are to lead the magical creatures to safety. You will accomplish this by use of your powers of tongue, your many friends and allies, and your bow and sword, if necessary. All of your experiences have led to this moment. You told me I could count on you.”
“Yes, Demetrius.” Tahir slowly sat down. He understood, but meeting his destiny wasn’t quite what he expected it would be.
“I must go now. I wish the luck of sprites upon you all.” Demetrius looked to each of them for a moment then nodded to Alexander. With a wave of his hand, he was gone.
They stared at the empty space where he once stood before shifting their eyes to Tahir.
“Ummm…” Tahir nervously rubbed his forehead. “I just need a moment to think,” he said, and then jumped up and hurried away into the woods.
“Bloody hell.” Gavin sighed.
Oraden followed Tahir into the forest. The others sat quietly watching the fire. Alexander reassured them that they hadn’t gone far. Eventually all drifted into a restless sleep.
Destiny rose with the sun to find Oraden and Tahir returned with breakfast. Tahir crouched at the fire, rotating some sort of large bird. Alexander, Meelix and Ellic were already eating figs and berries. The horses grazed and chomped apples. Gavin still slept.
“Good Morning, Love.”
“Good morning, My Lady. Hungry?” He handed her a satchel of figs and a piece of roasted meat.
“Famished,” she sat down next to Meelix. “What a night! This is going to be quite an adventure.”
She turned and looked at Tahir. He just smiled and shrugged.
“You do realize that this is not a game, don’t you, Meelix?”
“We wanted adventure and to become heroes—that is definitely what we’re getting. Right, Tahir?”
“That’s right.”
“First, destroy an evil wizard, then become knights, and now, lead all the magical creatures to safety. I can’t wait to tell Sudlin and the others!”
Destiny smiled as she continued her breakfast.
Soon enough, Gavin was awake and everyone finished eating their share of food.
Tahir spent most of the night thinking, creating a strategy. Demetrius trusted him with a very important task and he would not disappoint.
“Alexander, where are we supposed to meet Demetrius?” Tahir asked.
“Deep in the woods, southeast of here.”
“Take us. I think we all should know where it is. I’ll tell you my strategy on the way.”
“Understood,” replied the wolf.