The words didn't really register in my brain, I just kept scanning April. Tersa leaned into my vision range, and said, "Step back, Kaltar!" tears were running down her cheeks. I couldn't register what was happening.
Vandahar was there, pulling at my arm. I began to close down. I was too weak to keep going. Sleep enveloped me again, and as I slept, April was removed to a care facility.
When I did finally wake up, I felt crushed. My first thought was of April, and I knew at once this had to be bad. I laid there trying to build up enough nerve to move. I was in my room on Earth, and the lights were turned down. I sat up in the bed, and heard Tersa say, "He's awake!" from the other room.
The door opened, and light poured in. Tersa and Vandahar entered the room, and a moment later the Rock was there. The Rock sat in the chair, as Tersa sat down on the edge of the bed. In a highly stressed voice, the Rock told me, "I want you to remain calm, Kaltar!"
My immediate reaction was to be anything but calm, but I saw little to gain by hysteria. "Where is April?" I asked. I scanned for her, and couldn't find her anywhere close by.
"She is in a special facility," replied the Rock.
He just sat looking at me, and I repeated, "Where is April?"
The Rock told me, "She's gone Kaltar! Her mind is gone. Dona says about one in every five thousand Earthers can't adjust. They just shut down mentally. The Chosen have a special hospital where they are taken care of. April has been sent there!"
The room spun around. I wanted to just die. I was sick, and in pain. I couldn't believe April was gone. I hadn't really cried since I was a child, but I could feel the tears flowing down my cheeks. I could taste the salt. They were cool, and I just curled in a fetal position and laid there. Time seemed to slow to a stop.
Tersa quietly said, "April would want you to be strong! Please don't fall apart, Kaltar! We need you!" I just laid there, staring at the ceiling. After a few minutes, they all walked out, and Tersa shut off the light. I was alone, and soon, sleep overcame me again.
Chapter 4
Hard Lessons
I had nightmares that night. I had failed April, and I knew it. I should have protected her somehow. Should have known what to do. The nightmares were horrible, and when I woke again, it was a relief not to dream.
For the next few days, I just rested and prepared to return home to Remaca. I never said a word, and on the second day Vandahar came to see me. He stood scanning me for a few minutes. Then he said, "I'm sorry for your loss Kaltar! I liked April too! We all did!" He paused, and took a deep breath. Then he quietly told me, "Long ago I loved a woman. She was a Magi, and she was always making the most wonderful butterflies. They were so delicate. We spent countless hours watching them."
There was a long silence now as Vandahar remembered back. Then he said, "That was thousands of years ago Kaltar! I could never love after that. Her name was Serena. I can still see her face to this day. She was at the Galaxy's rim when the great battle occurred. She never came back, and I never got over it!"
I had known Vandahar for several months, but had never realized how lonely he was. I could see in the link that he would probably never allow another person to get close to him again. He would always remain alone.
I felt so sorry for him. For a split second, I forgot about April.
It only lasted for a moment, but for the first time, I forgot about April for a second.
Of course, within seconds, the memories flooded back. I fought the need to pass out, and said, "It feels like there's a hole ripped through my heart! How can you live with it?"
"One day at a time," he replied. Then he quietly added, "The pain subsides to a burning ache after a few hundred years. From then on, it's more like an old companion. The old pain you live with." He paused again, and our eyes met. He whispered, "After all these years, I can still see her face!"
I told him, "I'm sorry for your loss my friend!"
For a moment, he broke eye contact, and looked down at the ground. When he looked up, he stared past me, and said, "Don't make the same mistake I did Kaltar! I got to know April during the last couple of months. She would have wanted you to be happy!" Then he left the room without another word.
The next day, I returned to Remaca. Tersa and Vandahar escorted me home. I arrived to find young Magi everywhere. Several hundred had appeared, and started training for combat. They tended to stay away from the house, but you could often see them several miles away along the riverbank. At this point, I was ignoring them. Like Vandahar, I avoided everyone.
Bitsy and Al wouldn't come out of the stables. Bitsy was inconsolable, and Al was almost as bad. Several days passed, and I just wanted to sleep. On the third day on Remaca, I awoke to find the Rock standing in my room. He quietly asked, "Are you going to sleep your life away boy?"
"I like that concept," I replied.
He stood looking at me for a moment. Then he said, "If I told April you were going to sit here and let her world be devoured by the Darkness, how would she react?"
He was right of course. I just couldn't bring myself to go on. I simply told him, "I don't want to talk about it!"
"Well, that's too bad!" responded the Rock with a great deal of sarcasm. "This is a hard lesson little Bean. Now get your ass up before I set fire to that bed!"
He hadn't called me little Bean in months. The use of the nickname he had used on me so long ago caught my attention. I didn't want to fail him, or anyone else. I just wanted to curl up and die.
"Burn the bed! I don't care!" I said. At that moment, I really didn't.
"You don't care if the Darkness destroys Vandahar, Cindy, and every other person you know?" asked the Rock. "I'm ashamed of you Kaltar!" Then he turned, and walked out.
I laid there debating what to do. After a few minutes, I got up, took a shower, got dressed, and went down to the kitchen. I found Vandahar, Urla, and Tersa sitting at the table drinking coffee. As soon as I walked in, Urla said, "Wow! He's alive! Good to see you Kaltar!"
I simply nodded, and fixed a cup of coffee. After a moment, Vandahar said, "I was going to watch the students do weapons drills today. Do you want to join me?" I just nodded again, and put some sugar in the coffee.
Then Tersa asked, "Are you unable to talk? Or just keeping us in suspense?"
I tried to smile. It just wasn't working. I quietly said, "Don't pick on me! I'm having a rough morning!"
Tersa sobered, saying, "I'm so sorry Kaltar! You'll never know how sorry I am! We all liked April!" Her words just ran off. She sat there, looking as confused as I felt.
"It's okay, Tersa," I replied. "I just need time to adjust." I took my coffee, stepped over to the table, and sat down. We all sat there without speaking for a full minute.
Then the Rock stepped into the room. He glanced over at me, and said, "You're teaching a self-defense course in an hour! I want you down at the river, ready for combat at that time. Have you got that?" I just nodded, and sipped my coffee. The Rock turned, and walked out without another comment.
A few seconds went by, and Vandahar said, "I taught self-defense to a class last week!" He pulled up his sleeve, showing a two inch burn on his arm. Looking over at me, he advised, "Keep your shield up, or you'll get burned!"
I could already see I was going to hate this!
One hour later I was standing on the river bank as two dozen students walked down the trail toward me. The Rock was with them. They walked up and stopped in front of me. Then the Rock said, "This is a self-defense course Kaltar. These students need to learn to attack and defend. You shall be their teacher today." He turned to the students, pointed at the first six in the front row, and commanded, "Attack!"
All six instantly went on the attack. I wasn’t prepared, and got burned twice in the first seconds of the battle. Then my shield was up, and most of their energy bolts were being deflected. My shield started to heat up, and I could smell ozone in the air. Two of the students had staff weapons, and they were throwing off some real energy spikes.
/> I was actually surprised I was holding them. My shield was heated, but secure. I was firing shots of ball lightning, but not really trying to hurt anyone. One minute into the attack, the Rock pointed at the next six students, saying, "Your turn!"
All six student stepped up with staff weapons. My shield was instantly fully engulfed in flame. The temperature inside the shield was raising quickly. I began to wonder what the Rock was thinking. Somebody could get hurt like this.
Through the flames, I saw the Rock point at the next row of students. They stepped up, and started to open fire.
Inside me, something seemed to snap. I've never been an aggressive type of person, but I’d been through enough to finally let loose. I began to amp up my energy bolts, and in seconds the students began to have their own problems. Their shield were the ones now bathed in fire.
Don't get me wrong. I was still taking heavy fire. Now, I just didn't care. I ramped up the power more.
This went on for several more seconds. Then I hit a student with a bolt hard enough to knock him off his feet. I just didn't care! Through the sparks and fire, I saw six more students step up.
A huge shadow passed overhead, and Bitsy landed between me and the students, blocking all the weapons fire with her huge body. Al was right behind her. He almost landed in the river, but his presence outweighed his lack of grace. The students started to panic, backing away.
Bitsy swung her huge head around till she was eye to eye with the Rock. Her eyes were each practically as big as his whole body. She blinked once, and hissed, "If you harm Kaltar, I'll be very angry with you!"
The Rock stepped back, more than a little shocked. He sputtered for a moment, and then said, "He needed to wake up!"
"Not like this!" she growled. There was an unspoken threat in the link. Bitsy pinged, "Can you fight two dragons at once Wizard? Perhaps you could use a lesson yourself!"
The Rock was backing away, but Bitsy just leaned a little closer, and asked, "Shall we test your shield?"
"I see your point," replied the Rock. "Still! I wouldn't have harmed him! You know I wouldn't harm him!"
Bitsy blinked again, and she seemed to make a decision. She said, "Find a better way Wizard!" Then she slowly stepped back away from us, and started to walk back up the trail toward the house. It was the first time I had really seen Bitsy in days. I was more than a little shocked. She had never been aggressive before.
As the two dragons walked off toward the house, the Rock stepped over, and stood next to me. We both watched till the two huge creatures stepped out of sight. Then he turned to me, and apologized, saying, "I'm sorry Kaltar! I guess I was awful rough on you!"
"Not really," I replied. I left him standing there, and started back toward the house.
As I approached the main house, I could see Urla and Tersa standing with Bitsy in the open courtyard. They seemed to be talking. As I got closer, Tersa and Urla turned, and started toward me. As they got closer, Tersa asked, "Are you okay?"
I nodded, and said, "Bitsy and Al were keeping an eye out for me."
"That's because Tersa sent them!" observed Urla.
I stopped, now standing with Tersa and Urla in the road, and inquired, "You sent them?"
"I just mentioned what was happening," said Tersa. "They reacted on their own."
I turned, and continued to the house. The two Magi started to run to catch up with me. As they caught up, Tersa said, "You're not thinking clearly, Kaltar! We can all see it in the link!" She suddenly grabbed my arm, spinning me around. With tears in her eyes, she begged, "Please stop and talk to me Kaltar! Please!"
I stood looking at her for a moment. Urla announced, "I'll be at the house!" and walked away.
"What do you want, Tersa?" I asked as Urla stepped into the house.
Extremely stressed, Tersa said, "I want you to wake up Kaltar! You're scaring all of us! It's not just me!" She paused, and after a moment’s thought, continued, saying, "April's body is one of several the Chosen have put in suspended animation against the day their minds might be restored. She's not dead Kaltar! Don't you realize there is still hope? You can't just give up!"
I had scanned April's mind a dozen times. I knew there was nothing there. She was just a hollow shell. Yet, Tersa had a point. The Chosen had gone to great lengths to protect their own people when this happened in the past. This was about more than just April.
Tersa was right! Now I saw it too. I reached out, hugged Tersa to me and started to cry. Discomfort flooded the link instantly, as Tersa flinched away slightly. She quietly told me, "No hugs till I get over being in love with you!"
Of course, I should have known better. It was incredibly insensitive of me. I stepped back, saying, "I'm sorry Tersa! That was rude of me!"
She smiled back, wiping away the one visible tear, and said, "It wasn't rude, and I'm adjusting quickly. Don't worry about it!"
Feeling pretty foolish, I told her, "You're a good friend to me Tersa!"
An odd smile crossed Tersa's face, and I almost scanned her. I try to respect her privacy, but it's gotten to where every time she smiles, I wonder why.
"Let's go get something to eat," she suddenly suggested out of nowhere. I started to go into the house, and she told me, "Not here Kaltar! Let's go to Earth!" I simply nodded, and she said, "Follow me!" Then she folded space for Earth. I locked on her, and followed.
She had taken me back to my home on Earth. The house was quiet and slightly darkened. It would be night within the hour. Tersa moved her hand slightly, and two sets of clothes for Earth appeared. She told me, "I want us to blend in for this visit!" as she handed me my apparel.
We each got dressed, and I soon found myself looking like an average Earther. At least, an average Earther in a place called Cleveland, in someplace called the United States.
We stepped out the front door of the building, and I realized it was bitterly cold outside. Tersa glanced around, and admitted, "I didn't think about the weather!"
I reached out in the link looking for a warm place. Almost at once, a young man stepped out of the building we had just walked out of, waving us back. We stepped closer, and he told us, "Get inside before you freeze!"
We all stepped into the entrance of the building. The man explained, "My name is Jason. I'm a friend of Dona's. She won't like it if I let you freeze to death outside."
"We were going to get some dinner, but its awful cold out," I told him.
"You want Florida, or the Bahamas this time of year," Jason observed. He glanced around, and told us, "I have a favorite spot in Florida! Would you like to see it?" Tersa and I both just nodded yes. When Jason folded space, we followed.
We arrived on a dark side street in a residential district. Jason scanned around to make sure we weren't seen arriving, and then led us out onto the sidewalk in front of a large colorful building. It was a home, painted in bright colors. I looked around and realized many of the homes on the street were painted very brightly. They appeared to be more like businesses than homes.
"What kind of place is this?" I asked. The weather was much nicer, and several people could be seen walking farther down the street.
"This place is called a Village of the Arts. It's in a small town just south of Tampa, Florida," Jason replied. "It's almost always warm, and I love the food here." He pointed at the house as he told us, "I need to get back to work. I hope you have a nice time!" Then he stepped into the shadows, folded space, and was gone.
Tersa smiled at me, and asked, "Are you game?"
I nodded yes, and replied, "Sure!"
Then I immediately thought of April. She would have loved this place.
I forced her from my mind, and we went in. It was a nice place, with very good food. We had a great time, and then went for a walk through the village, looking at all the art that was everywhere.
This place was different from much of the Earth. The people here were artists, and didn't seem to be driven by the same desires as much of the planet. It was early evening, and many
of the shops on the street were shutting down. The night air was cooler than it had been, and I thought about returning to Remaca.
Abruptly, Tersa asked, "What is that?"
A very old man was walking up the sidewalk toward us. He had on a bright red suit, and as he stepped up to us, he called out, "Merry Christmas!"
Tersa appeared to realize it was an Earth greeting, and responded, saying, "Merry Christmas!" back to him. He seemed so pleasant, and we all stood there talking for a minute. As he and Tersa spoke, I scanned the Man's mind looking for what Christmas meant.
I was amazed with the data I found about Christmas. This man did what he called charity work to help others. It appeared to be a custom on this world.
As I scanned the man, I realized he was in great pain. He smiled and talked to Tersa, showing no sign of the discomfort. The Earther hid his pain well. The old man was such a kind and gentle soul. In his youth, the man had been a policeman, and saved many lives.
I took his pain.
He had no idea as he stood there what I was doing. Age and hard living had done so much damage, that the man was reaching the ends of human endurance.
His heart and many of his internal organs were damaged by disease. He had suffered a dozen broken bones in his life, and they were painful in his old age. So much pain, and yet he just wanted to help others. The human spirit is such a wondrous thing.
As we parted, the old man gave Tersa a small, soft, "stuffed" toy animal, and wished us a Happy Holiday. As he got out of sight, I limped as Tersa and I walked away. Tersa glanced at me out of the corner of her eye, and said, "You'll never learn! Will you?"
"It wasn't that bad," I replied. My back was aching, and Tersa knew at once I wasn't being very truthful.
We were walking back to the place where we arrived, and Tersa walked for at least ten seconds before she quietly said, "Bullshit!"
I saw no point in debating it. Seconds later we found the secluded spot where we had arrived, and folded space for Remaca.
The Books of Kaltar Farsara Boxed Set - Books 1 through 3 (The Kingdom Kaltar Farsara Built) Page 19