"What is your purpose here?" the Ansari leader repeated.
"I just told you," Zachary replied. "I'm not in the habit of explaining myself."
"Zachary," Ehlena said. "Please, let me deal with this." She stepped forward and looked at the old man, Kasha's teacher, for a moment then up at the large man who sat upon the wooden throne. "If I may, I would like to speak with this man for a moment."
"You may," the Ansari leader told her.
"I feel as though I might know you," Ehlena said to the old man.
"You are not who I thought," he said. "What have you done with her?"
"I have done nothing," Ehlena told him. "You are Ashan, are you not?"
The old man's eyes widened and he seemed almost upset, with a look of anger and sadness that was in stark contrast to the expression of serenity he had only a short time ago.
"What have you done?" he asked again.
"I have done nothing," she repeated and she wished she could talk to the goddess who had become a part of her, the way she had before.
Ehlena knew that the old man was familiar to the Lady, but something about her memories of him made it difficult to recall. It was as though those memories remained hidden from her, which was strange since the goddess had given her all of her knowledge when she had become one with her essence. She could not imagine why the Lady would withhold something about an old man who lived in the middle of the desert, when she had shared everything else, even memories that she found disturbing and horrific, many of which Ehlena was still coming to terms with. When she tried to think of what she might know of the old man, Ehlena felt something like an echo within her, and a feeling that was a combination of sorrow and joy, and she began to wonder if there was any part of the goddess that remained within her that could answer such a question.
"Can you hear me?" she asked with her thoughts. After what seemed like an eternity of silence, though Ehlena knew that not even a moment had passed, she heard a faint echo from deep within her.
"I am nearly gone," said the voice of the Lady, though she sounded confused, as though she was in a dream of some. The thoughts became clearer and Ehlena could hear her more distinctly now. "Why have you called me back?"
"This man," Ehlena said. "You knew him, didn't you?"
She felt the emotions run through her again, stronger now, both joy and sorrow at seeing the old man, not just in memory but through Ehlena's eyes, but those thoughts were followed by a sense of melancholy.
"He is Ashan," she said.
"That much I know," Ehlena told her. "He is upset by me. Why?"
"I loved him once, and he loved me, but our love was not meant to be," the Lady told her. "I did not expect to see him again. It is strange that he still lives."
"Perhaps you should speak to him."
"It is difficult. I have given nearly everything to you and thought to let these few memories fade into the dream I am becoming."
"Why?" Ehlena asked. "You have given me so much of your life that we are one and the same and I have accepted those things."
"I thought to spare you my sorrows. We are one, but this is your time and I would not diminish that."
"I am fine," Ehlena told her. "If we are one, then let us be one. I will share your sorrows and you will share my joys."
"There are things that you might not wish to know," the Lady told her. "I have given you all that is useful, but I do not wish to change your view of the world, of life, of love."
"Do not fear for me, I will choose my own life," Ehlena reassured her.
Ehlena thought she felt a tear in her eye and it was as though the goddess was crying and she felt profound sadness and joy flow through her in equal measure.
"This will take the last of me," the goddess told her. "After this, you will know all."
"If that is what you wish," Ehlena said. "I am grateful for your gift."
"And I am grateful for yours."
The air around Ehlena shimmered and, even though the sun blazed brighly overhead, it was as though she began to glow. The old man's eyes softened as the light around Ehlena's face took shape and a different face appeared, one that he recognized, and the spirit of the goddess in her previous form, that of the Lady Ayra, emerged from Ehlena. Ashan, the oldest living Ansari, stepped toward her with tears in his eyes.
"I thought you gone forever," he said.
"I have returned," the Lady said, placing her hand on his wrinkled cheek.
"You are someone else," he said. "How can this be?"
"The form I had could not exist beyond this world. To return required another, one who would freely accept me, who was alike to me in spirit that we would become one," she told him, "It is as much her gift to me as it is my gift to her and I have given it freely."
"I am glad to know this," he said.
Ayra turned and looked at Ehlena and the rest of the people who were silently observing what she wished could have been a private moment and she smiled at them. She turned at looked at the Ansari leader, his strong and muscular form but a shell of the far more powerful energy she could see that flowed within him, and she was glad to see that the Ansari remained as strong and fierce as they had always been. She returned her gaze to the old man.
"The one you knew as Ayra is no more, yet I live within her. It is as though she is my daughter, though my essence endures within her."
"I understand," he said. "Please forgive me for making such an offense, I feared the worst."
"Such fear is not unwarranted," she told him. "The god of shadows has returned and he has done exactly that which you feared and he now threatens the peoples of many lands. As you know, we thought to keep him from this world, and succeeded for a time, but we failed."
"I have felt many troubling things, and have wondered," he said. "What must we do to stop him? I am an old man, and the light of my fire is but coals among the ashes."
"It is neither for you nor I," Ayra said. "We have done what we could and it now falls to the children of this new age to succeed where we failed, to do what we could not, but gives me hope to see the strenght of Ansari yet endures, for the will of your people will surely be needed in the days to come."
"It is a different time," he said.
"In some ways, yes," she told him. "In other ways, it is much the same."
The old man smiled and glanced at the young folk with whom he had been speaking earlier, realizing that he had forgotten the very wisdom that he had been trying to impart. He looked back to the face of the woman who he had loved so very long ago and saw that her light was beginning to fade.
"Will we speak again?"
"No, Ashan. But I will always be here," she said as her energy began to withdraw from him, floating back toward Ehlena. She smiled at him sadly as her hand left his face and the last vestiges of who she once was became one with the other person she had become.
Ehlena felt the goddess return to her and the last piece of her opened, filling the few places that had been empty. The thoughts and emotions, the memories of the life, were now complete and Ehlena was almost overwhelmed by them, for though the goddess had already given her all of her wisdom and much of her knowledge, she had kept the most intimate things, her secret things to herself. But now, Ehlena felt those secret truths, those private joys and the suffering of the goddess become part of her and she understood why she had hoped to spare her from such knowledge. Ehlena took a deep breath and steadied herself, glad at least that she could now understand how the old man felt, and she smiled at the memory of him as a much younger man, strong and proud and beatiful to behold, and out of respect for the goddess who now faded within her completely, she put aside the memories of the intimate moments she once had with the one called Ashan.
The silence was almost eerie under the open sky with not even a breeze in the air, but the moment was broken by Zachary, who took a deep breath, cleared his throat and let out a great sigh.
"That was interesting," he said, glancing over at Ehlena then smiling at the Ans
ari leader. "Can we all be friends now? I'm kind of thirsty and I'd like a word with my son."
"You are the mage, Zachary," said the Ansari leader.
"Yes," Zachary replied. "You have heard of me?"
"You are known to us. Your son is is this young warrior called Aaron?"
"Yes, he is my son," Zachary replied, though he was a little uncomfortable saying so.
"Then it is your failure to teach him that has caused a disturbance in our domain."
Zachary looked over at Aaron.
"I didn't raise him, you know," Zachary said, jokingly, then he realized that no one chose to share in his humor. "What did he do that caused a disturbance?"
"He used true fire within the circles," the Ansari said.
"And that is against your laws?" Zachary asked.
"No," he replied. "We do not have laws as you know them, merely things that must be done. He will be tested in the circle to see if he is fit to possess such power."
"And what kind of test would this be?" Zachary asked, looking skeptical.
"He will fight without using this power. If he survives without it, then he will live and perhaps, if he is worthy, he will come to know Ansari. But, if he uses his power, then he will perish."
"Interesting," Zachary said. "You would deny him the power to defend himself."
"One does not need true fire to defend."
"And what if I decided that your test and your circle are a waste of time and told you we were going to leave this place."
"That would not be very wise, mage."
"Zachary," Aaron said. "I will take the test. I have the feeling that we will need the help of these people if we are to stop what Cerric is doing."
"Then you've decided to do something about what's happening in the world?" Zachary asked. "That's good. According to the little goddess here, we are going to need your help."
"I don't know why I am so important," Aaron said, looking at Ehlena for a moment. "I would appreciate it if someone would just tell me."
"It is for the same reason the Ansari wish to test you," Ehlena said. "You are very powerful, Aaron and so is the god, Kenra, who has become Cerric."
"And my power destroys things," Aaron said. "The Ansari called me a destroyer, and it think they are right."
"You do not yet know your true power," Ehlena told him.
Ashan stepped foward, smiling briefly at Ehlena then turned and he walked over to where Aaron stood with Kasha, Lexi and Tash.
"Your power to destroy dominates you, that is true," he said. "But there are other aspects to you that you have barely touched upon. I would instruct you in some of these things, but you must first reveal them to yourself. The fire that burns within you blinds even you to who and what you are, thus I cannot teach you as you are now."
"So, if pass your test and fight without using my power then you will teach me about these other things?" Aaron asked.
"Yes, there are things I can teach you," he said. "There are those who might teach you other things, but you must first know yourself or you will never truly know anything."
Aaron nodded.
"Then we might as well get to it," he said and walked toward the ash covered fighting circle.
Ehlena pushed through the Ansari who were gathered around her and caught up to him and took hold of his arm.
"Aaron, this is not merely some test of your skill," she told him. "It is a test of your honor. If you fail, they will kill you."
Aaron turned and looked into her eyes, the same watery blue they had always been, but her expression was no longer that of the seemingly carefree girl he had met not that long ago. He could see the power of the goddess flowing within her, and the ancient knowledge that she had gained and he wondered if he would hear her laugh again. With everything Ehlena had gained, Aaron wondered what she might also have lost. It seemed that knowing the truth of things was much harder than not knowing, and he almost wished he could go back to not knowing the truth about himself, about what he had done, or what his power had done. He decided it was only fitting that he should fight without it, since his power had only brought trouble to his life.
"If they kill me," Aaron said. "Then that will be my fate. Perhaps it would be better."
"Aaron," Ehlena said, frowning and he felt her hand clutch his arm tighter. "I saw what happened. I saw the dream, your memories of what happened."
"Then you know," he said and his eyes suddenly felt raw as though the hot desert air was lashing scraping at him.
"I know it wasn't your fault," she said. "And I know who it was that was in the room with you, trying to kill you."
"How could you? They are my memories and I don't even understand them. All I know is that I burned them. I burned them all, Ehlena."
"No," she said. "You burned away the shadow, and it was the shadow that killed them. Your memories are from the eyes of an infant, which is what you were, but I saw them with the eyes of the goddess, with the memories and knowledge of the goddess, and I know that power all too well. It is the same power that now lives within Cerric, the one who now threatens all the lands and its people. If he had not tried to kill you, none of it would have happened."
"But it was my power that killed them, just like those fighters in the circle at Ba'shan," Aaron said. "It is too much power. If I can't control it, then I should not have it."
"It isn't about controlling your power, Aaron," Ehlena told him. "It is about embracing it as part of you. You cannot think of it as separate from yourself, from who you are. That is part of what the Ansari teach. Through the memories of the goddess, I am familiar with some of their ways."
"I understand," he said and he gently pulled his arm from her grasp. "I won't use the power of fire."
Aaron turned and continued toward the fighting circle and both Zachary and Stavros walked up behind Ehlena and Zachary put his hand on her shoulder.
"I could not have explained it better myself," he told her. "I only wish we would have had a chance to help him learn about his power before this. I don't like this trial by battle idea. There are too many things that can go wrong."
"I agree," Stavros said. "Aaron should have been trained years ago. I should have been more attentive."
"It matters little now," Ehlena said. "Aaron is untrained and he is about to enter a true Ansari fighting circle, with a true Ansari warrior. His knowledge is not what matters, but his resolve and the truth within him."
"You know our ways," Kasha said, looking over at Ehlena with an approving look
"I have some memories of them," Ehlena replied.
"Then you know why he must be tested," Kasha said.
"Yes, I understand it now," she said, though she had her misgivings.
"Aaron will be fine," Kasha said.
"You are very confident," Ehlena said.
"Of course, I am Ansari," Kasha replied then she turned and walked toward the circle.
Aaron unbuckled his sword belt and drew the blade that Tarnath had left to him, his last gift after teaching him so many things that hopefully would help him in the fight with the large Ansari leader, who now stepped into the circle and drew his own sword that hung behind his shoulder. Aaron noticed that the Ansari's blade was similar to his own two swords, its steel gleaming a silvery grey with a hint of gold in the bright midday sun. The hilt was also wrapped in leather, including the pommel, like his own and Aaron wondered if the Ansari blade was also jeweled at the end. Perhaps he would ask him about it after the fight, assuming he did not use his power and invoke the wrath of the entire Ansari people.
"You carry a sword of power," the Ansari said. "Like your blade, which is bound, so too shall you be bound in this match. You may not use the power of fire or you will forfeit."
"Can I use other magic?" Aaron asked, trying to think of what he might do with his power that did not in any way involve fire.
"It would be wise to do so," he replied. "You have fought in the circles, but you have never fought Ansari."
"I fou
ght Kasha," Aaron told him and the Ansari leader laughed.
"You fought Kasha blade to blade, but you did not truly fight Kasha," he said then he placed his sword on the ground.
"Why do you drop your sword?" Aaron asked.
"I will not need it to fight you," he replied.
Aaron was not sure exactly what he meant, but he began to understand when the Ansari leader began to change shape right in front of him. His body shifted, growing larger and what looked like bone formed on the outer surfaces of his forearms and legs and around his square jawed face. Aaron saw that the tops of the Ansari's hands were also covered and what had at first looked like bone now gleamed almost like armor. The Ansari had also grown to over three times the size that he was before, into some kind of giant monster.
"What are you?" Aaron asked.
"What indeed?" the creature growled through a mouth full of fangs and he leapt forward with incredible speed.
Aaron barely dodged the swing of the Ansari's powerful fist as he charged at him. He brought up his sword in a counter attack as he danced to the side, but it clattered harmlessly off the Ansari's hardened forearms. Almost a blur, the creature spun and swung at him and Aaron barely managed to block with his blade in time, but the power of his fist, drove the flat of his sword into him and the impact sent him flying backwards. Aaron landed hard on his back, sliding on the dirt, winded from being hit with such a force. He coughed and spluttered as he rolled and pushed himself to his knees. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Ansari standing calmly a handful of paces way, watching him rise.
"You will not last very long if you fight in such a manner," he said.
Aaron staggered to his feet and stared at the Ansari. Even with his sword, he was being completely overpowered by the size, speed and strength of the creature. The obvious futility of his attacks angered him and he felt the fire flare within him but he calmed himself and let the flames recede, pushing past them and extending his thoughts to every part of himself. At Ba'shan, he had used a power that Kasha had spoken about as the element of water, and he realized that he could sense the water on the other side of the camp, in the oasis. His senses sharpened even more and he could hear the sweat trickling down his brow and falling on the dry, sandy ground at his feet, but he could not figure a way that water might help him, especially since there was so little of it nearby. Aaron also remembered using his power to add strength to his body when he had landed Malek's ship, something he had done almost without thinking about it. If he did that again, he might be able to increase the strength of his body to take the powerful blows from the Ansari and possibly throw a few of his own.
Book of One 04: A Child of Fire Page 19