by Lexy Wolfe
The young man laughed cruelly. "Innocents? No one is innocent once you have corrupted them. You should know about purges of the weak and innocent, eh, Swordanzen? Too bad you didn't stay long enough to join your filthy tribesmen." Skyfire grabbed Storm by the arm to restrain her from reacting to Zerik's taunt.
"Jaline!" Terrence called helplessly. "Let her go, Zerik!"
"Or what?" the man sneered at Terrence. "Not only are you tainted by Desanti blight, you are soft!" Zerik raised his hands to cast a spell at Terrence, the other two targeting Skyfire and Storm. The force of the fire spell knocked the Swordanzen man back into the root wall. He slumped to the ground, unmoving. The one aiming at Storm missed as she suddenly moved between Zerik and his target. The column of flame mushroomed and flowed around the swords Storm crossed before her, deflecting the fire spell.
Lowering her blades, the woman snarled at them. "Do you think I am unfamiliar with Forentan magic? I will kill you, dishonorable filth!" She hesitated advancing on them, however, flicking a look over her shoulder at Terrence and Nolyn, unwilling to leave them open to an attack, but unable to do more without advancing.
The man laughed darkly. "Look how soft the Desanti have become!" he crowed. "Worrying about weaklings. You are nothing but a coward! Just like that dead fool." His laughter stopped as the telltale thwip and thunk of an arrow cut the air, a quivering arrow shaft sprouting from the heart of the one who did not hold Jaline captive. He stared, stunned, before collapsing to the ground, dead.
Zerik looked up in shock to see Lyra standing over Skyfire, tears on her cheeks, her bow drawn. "They are not cowards!" she informed him. "They are my friends!" She released a second arrow, the shaft burying itself between the eyes of the man holding Jaline captive.
Terrified, Jaline broke away to run towards Terrence when Zerik grabbed her by the arm, pulling her against him. His features rippled as he glared malevolently at Storm, hissing. Shouts of panic swelled from the bridges above as the darkling emerged through Zerik. "You are strong, Guardian Adept. But you are untrained." He laughed cruelly as he put his hand over Jaline's heart. The girl froze, eyes wide, as her life force was pulled from her. "You cannot banish me! Your souls will be mine!"
"I may be untrained, darkling, but I will take you with me when I die," Storm responded, starting to advance on the darkling.
Nolyn grabbed Terrence by the front of his tunic, holding him from running towards the captive girl. "No! It's a darkling, Journeyman! The girl is already lost!"
Agonized, Terrence yelled helplessly, "Jaline!" Breaking away from Nolyn, Terrence ran three steps forward and stopped abruptly as the darkling dropped the girl's limp body. He fixed his rage on the darkling and closed his eyes tightly, tears on his cheeks as he drew on the bond to Dzee, drawing her power. Holding his hands out, he yelled, "Be gone!"
Cries of pain from the shocked observers filled the air at the burst of the purest white light blinded all those looking on. As everyone's vision cleared, the uncertain, questioning murmurs went silent. The only sounds that remained were Lyra's sobbing over Skyfire's unmoving body and Terrence who held Jaline's lifeless form as he knelt on the ground.
Nolyn met Storm's eyes, the two staring at one another for a time before the wounded master mage stumbled over to Terrence and collapsed to his knees by him. Terrence finally looked up at the bloody hand resting on his shoulder offering comfort. "Forgive me, Master Nolyn. Y-you lost more—"
"Stop," the man stated flatly. "There were ten lupines, but we were only able to stop..." He closed his eyes, looking away. "I will need to call the others in from the outlying posts to assist those who remain."
"You are wounded," Terrence started to say when Nolyn shook his head.
"I can wait. Give vent to your grief, Journeyman," Nolyn said gruffly. "If you hold it too long, it can poison your soul." He added quietly as he stubbornly pushed himself to his feet, "You have earned the right to take time to grieve."
Storm hesitated only long enough to determine there were no others who would attack them before going to Lyra and Skyfire, the girl having thrown her bow aside. Fallen to her knees, she bowed over Skyfire, sobbing in grief. Storm sheathed her blades, pulling Lyra off him.
The young woman suddenly hugged Storm fiercely. "I can't—! I-I c-can't b-believe," Lyra stammered, clinging to Storm. "He-he's dead..."
"Lyra," Storm said soothingly. "Lyra, Skyfire lives." She had to repeat herself several times before the words sank in, the pale girl staring at the Desanti woman. "He just knocked his head, is all. And he is a bit singed. Nothing that Taylin cannot fix."
"Seven hells," Skyfire groaned, putting a hand to his head. "That hurt."
"Good thing your skull is so thick," Storm said blandly to her th'yala. "I told you before that you needed to work on your stance." Her eyes went wide as Lyra suddenly lunged to grab Skyfire. The man cried out inarticulately as he fell back under her weight as she clung to him. Smiling gently, Storm only patted Lyra's shoulder reassuringly.
Ash and Mureln arrived first, both bearing evidence of the violent encounter that had detained them, followed shortly by the rest of the group, Almek leaning on Emil for support from having to run so far. The Illaini Magus and master bard could only stare at the bodies littering the ground level of the market. Ash scowled deeply when he recognized the bodies of the three junior mages, twisted by darklings that had taken them as hosts.
"Master Ash," the battered master mage stated as he forced himself to stand straighter. A feat Nolyn only managed for a moment before he stumbled forward a step, Ash catching him.
"Master Nolyn," the Illaini greeted, not bothering to conceal his relief. "You are wounded. Come." He waved Taylin over who immediately set to work on the man. Ash went over to his journeyman and knelt by him on one knee, closing his eyes at the younger man's pain, so much like his own had been not so long ago.
"I tried, Master," Terrence whispered. "I tried, but I couldn't stop... I couldn't save..."
"I know, Terrence," Ash replied softly. "Sometimes we cannot." Grief in his own voice, Ash said as much for himself as for Terrence, "It does not hurt any less."
Skyfire held Lyra as the young woman shook terribly. "She is in shock, th'yala."
The Desanti woman simply nodded grimly. "The first death by your own hands is always hardest. Especially for the more peaceful souls." Helping Skyfire get to his feet, she looked over towards Ash and Terrence. "The winds have changed," she murmured. A look of chagrin crossed her features. "I hope Ash will forgive the drizar."
"Why—?" Skyfire began to ask when the ground seemed to tremble with the sound of hooves as the two drizzen and the horses from Ash's personal stables arrived in the clearing, scattering the few Forenten who had begun to make their way down from the bridges. "Oh, yes. I see." He smiled slightly, his concern for Lyra dampening the amusement. "He must be getting tired of having to repair the stable doors so often."
Storm went over to pick up the discarded bow, holding it speculatively before she walked over to the young Forentan woman who stared at her wide-eyed. "Lyra." Storm held the bow to Lyra with unmistakable reverence. As the girl hesitantly reached out to take it, Storm said, "Thank you." Lyra managed a weak smile before dissolving into tears again, hugging the bow tightly as Skyfire held her protectively.
Chapter 43
An unusual subdued mood had settled over Ithesra, extending to the remote home of the Illaini Magus. Ash emerged from the house, walking over to other master mage who sat on the log bench. Nolyn sat hunched forward, elbows on his knees as he stared at small birds chasing each other in the snow some distance away. "I always believed in you, you know," Nolyn said in a low voice. "Even when Se'edai Ysai mocked your warnings, I believed. I just..." He closed his eyes. "I thought with Ysai gone... it wouldn't be so... I can't believe it has gotten so bad."
"Don't blame yourself, Nolyn." Ash brushed a place on the bench by Nolyn clear of snow and sat. "If you must blame anyone, blame me." He pressed his lips togethe
r. "The Oberlains have always been rivals with the Avarians. I had confronted Zerik at the Ceremony of Choosing. If I had not, I may not have added fuel to the fires of his hatred or desire for revenge."
"I stopped you from taking it further than words," Storm said from behind the two, both men jumping and turning abruptly to stare at the woman. "If there is fault among us, it is mine."
"Storm," Ash began, falling silent when she raised her hand slightly.
"But I am not taking any blame. In the end, the fault is theirs alone, because they willingly made the choices that led them down this path. Because they could not accept their place and wanted more than they earned. None of them were possessed of darklings or shadows or anything when we first crossed paths with them." The Swordanzen looked between the two men. "Trust me when I say, they were not unwilling hosts. They knew they were too weak alone to face the Illaini Magus, and they knew if they faced me, it would not end well. So they sought the only power they could get easily and quickly. They chose the darkness." She frowned darkly. "They had no honor."
Nolyn studied the Desanti woman intently. "And you do not hate Forenta because of them?"
Storm took a deep breath. "I have many reasons to hate Forenta. But they are old hatreds. Ingrained since long before my birth. They are hard to let go." She looked upwards at the whistling cry of a bird of prey far above the naked branches. "I do not hate Forenta for her fools. Desantiva has always had his own who have done little different."
Nolyn smiled a little. "I can see why Master Ash likes your company. He never could abide stupidity." Ash looked away, but could not hide a small smile as the Desanti woman unconsciously straightened proudly at the oblique compliment. "I had always been taught Desanti were little more than rabid animals. But you are certainly not appearing to be one yourself. You are quite calm and thoughtful. I would have assumed you would be much more... irritated about being attacked yet again within Forenta's borders."
Storm arched an eyebrow. "Do not mistake my discipline for a lack of anger, Master Nolyn. I would have killed those three or died trying for their insult to Ash and their attack on my companions. Ripped out their still beating hearts with my bare hands. Hacked them to pieces and leave their worthless carcasses for scavengers...!" Her eyes flashed, hands clenching with her vehemence as the two men stared at her. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and exhaled, calming herself. "But that would have been a wasted effort." She turned her predatory gaze back on Nolyn. "They are dead and beyond my rage. You and others are not my enemy."
"And our magic does not affect Desanti?" He chuckled at her arched eyebrow. "I did not miss the fact you blocked the spell meant for the journeyman and I. Which I appreciate very much, by the way."
Storm considered her reply. "You tempt me to lie and say it does not. But Ash trusts you." Ash could not help but smile a little more at the simple statement, pleased. "They attacked with fire. Those of the na'Zhekali tribe have... I do not know the words for it..." She frowned, searching. "Fire is the heart of the na'Zhekali. Yes, your magic affects Desanti. However, from watching Ash, I think magic affects Desanti differently. He always seemed confused."
"It does affect them differently if I do not adjust it slightly, but I do not understand how or why," Ash confessed. "No one has ever considered what those devoid of magic are like." He looked at Storm soberly. "How is Lyra doing?"
Looking back towards the house, Storm's impassive expression was unable to conceal her worry for the young Forentan woman. "The first death by your own hand is always the most difficult. It is harder if it is a human like you. Skyfire knows how to help her come to terms with it. But that wound can only be healed from within." She looked away, saying quietly, "Not that those wounds ever heal completely. But Lyra is strong. I have faith in her."
Nolyn regarded Storm for a moment. "Are all Desanti like you and Swordanzen Skyfire?"
Storm did not look at the man immediately, eyes scanning the area as if waiting for something else to attack. "That would seem to be a silly question." She fixed her eyes on the man. "Should I consider all Forenten to be alike? I would be naïve to think all are as honorable as you and Ash, or as evil as Zerik."
"You have a point," Nolyn conceded, half smiling. "I meant—"
The woman smiled faintly. "We all learn how to use weapons, but very few take the Path of the Sword as their life's calling," she replied. "To be a Swordanzen is to devote your life to Desantiva. To give up ties to friends, family, tribe... everything and everyone to master yourself so you may protect the sacred balance."
"Mm." Nolyn tugged his gloves back on slowly. "It sounds very lonely."
Storm shrugged, acknowledging the statement. "It is a path of solitude. Sometimes, it can be shared for a time." She glanced at Nolyn. "It is different here in some ways. But not so different in others."
Ash watched the woman as she spoke. "Storm. Se'edai Magus Ellis has requested us to attend him at the Academy three days hence to speak about the attacks last night. You need to be there as well."
Growling under her breath, Storm stated, "If you insist." Turning away abruptly, she stalked towards the stables.
"I see she bears as much love for the tomb as I do," Nolyn said blandly.
"No, she likes the Academy even less than you do." Ash sighed as he watched the woman disappear into the stables to seek comfort with the drizar. "She calls it a viper pit. I wish I could say she is exaggerating."
Nolyn studied Ash's hands before speaking quietly. "Ash, Ysai is dead. You're an acknowledged highborn now." He waved absently at Ash's right hand. "Isn't it time you stopped hiding your Illaini mark?"
Azure eyes turned towards his right hand. Ash considered it for a time. "Perhaps. I have hidden it for so long, it has become a habit."
Nolyn put his hand on Ash's shoulder. "Well, it is a habit that is unworthy of you, my brother."
"Brother." Ash said the word musingly, troubled. "I have been a poor one to you, Nolyn. All I have thought on was myself. Never you or anyone else."
The guardsman captain shook his head. "You need not apologize. Yours was a gift I envied until I realized the price you were paying for it." He waved a hand towards the stables. "Don’t let that one go, Ash. You will never find another woman as strong as her to walk your life's path with you, no matter where you go."
Ash smiled wanly. "I am not sure she wants our paths to be the same. Every time I start to believe she does, she turns on me like an angry animal."
Nolyn laughed softly. "Ash, my brother, for all your strength and wisdom, you can be so utterly blind, it boggles my mind." Ash regarded him with an arched eyebrow. "If there were not some part of her that wanted to be with you, do you really think she would have stayed this long? That we would have gotten as close to finding her when she left as we had?"
"I do not know what to think. Not when it is about her. She makes no sense. She's completely and utterly illogical."
Nolyn studied Ash for a long moment. "You are so used to trying to make all things around you conform to what you want, you have lost touch with the beauty inherent in them to begin with, Ash." Waving a hand towards the stables, he said, "If there was a human who could capture the wild spirit of the land, it would be your desert woman. If you try to tame her, it would destroy the very essence of what you obviously love about her."
Ash looked annoyed. "Am I that obvious?"
"You don't have to be," Nolyn replied, reaching down to pick up a stone near his foot, rubbing it idly with his thumb. "I have looked for someone like your desert woman all my life. Someone who lives as part of the land, not just in it." He laughed weakly and shook his head. "Listen to me, talking like those bards that natter on about romantic nonsense."
Ash did not reply to the self deprecation, thoughtful as he watched Storm lead her drizar out of the stables, mounting him lightly before urging him to leap the fence to take him for a run. "How do you win the heart of the wild?" he wondered aloud.
Nolyn looked over, mildly sur
prised to hear the question. He did not reply, considering his answer. Sitting up, he held up his hand, a white, long-tailed songbird landing lightly on his fingers. "Patience," he finally said. "Each creature is unique. What may win one to accept you may not work for others of their kind. And sometimes, it seems like they are fighting themselves."
"I do not understand," Ash stated flatly, frowning.
Smiling faintly, Nolyn offered the bird a small crumb of bread from his pocket, the creature snatching it and taking wing immediately. He pushed his sleeve up to reveal old scars, deep and ragged. "I once befriended a greater speckled lyon. Some days, she would not approach me at all. Others, she would come right up demanding affection. Occasionally, she would seem to be torn between approaching me and turning her back on me."
He traced the scars lightly. "Once she lashed out as if she suddenly believed she had betrayed her own kind by accepting me as a friend. I never blamed her for it. Honestly, I felt bad that I was causing her such confusion. But, I simply waited and she came back eventually. She even let me see her newborn cubs after that."
"Is she still friendly towards you?" Ash wondered, fascinated despite himself.
"She died several years ago." Nolyn shrugged dismissively. "She lost a territory dispute with another lyon. She wouldn't let me bind her wounds. I could only sit by her until she finally breathed her last." Sighing softly, Nolyn murmured, "Letting her go was the hardest thing I could ever do. But it was the way of her kind. Ignoring that would have dishonored her." He looked at Ash, expression serious. "But I never regretted it."
Ash snorted softly. "Storm is far more complicated than a lyon." He stood abruptly, his motion spurred more by agitation than necessity. "I should head to the Academy. Zoe wished to see me before the Se'edai's official meeting."
A smile softened Nolyn's features. "If you had wanted simple, Ash, there were plenty of women to pick from among our own people. Goddess knows you can't get much more simple than half of them." More seriously, he advised, "But don't dismiss the intrinsic wisdom in even the simplest of things, Ash. You could change a lyon's spots, but then you wouldn't have a lyon anymore."