Wizard's Call

by Luna Lais

  "Have you had your pinnacle prophecy Alli? Have you found your soul mate?" Darien questioned as he gently place his hands on hers to stop their fidgeting.

  "No, I have not had a pinnacle prophecy, Darien. As for the other I could not say. I would not know my soul mate if I found him, unless I had received the pinnacle prophecy first." She seemed sad as she spoke.

  Darien removed his hands from hers and ran them through his hair. "An Acumen is just like another person, correct? You could still feel desire for someone even if they were not your soul mate?"

  "Even if I can feel desire I can not act on it. It would mean my death." Alli was growing more uncomfortable with the conversation. She saw tension in his eyes she did not understand. "Why ask these questions?"

  "Do you desire my brother, Alli?" he snapped the question at her.

  "What would make you think I do?" She asked taken back by his tone.

  "I have found you starring at him often over the last couple of days." Darien said still agitated.

  "I was just looking at him," Alli once again forced her hands still.

  "But do you desire him?" Darien asked again.

  "No, I do not desire your brother. I am only curious about his past in the Sun Realm, nothing else." Her word instantly made Darien relax. His brother had been through enough without becoming the target of an Acumen looking for a mate. Alli would have definitely been more than he could handle right now.

  "Hokaren has spies in Calandoria?" Darien asked. Alli blinked at the sudden change of subject.

  She smiled broadly at him; "No," she shook her head. "I must ask you to forgive the small lie, but I did not want to reveal that I was an acumen until you agreed to accept my assistance. It was the only lie I could think of that would explain my knowledge"

  Darien was not upset by the lie. She had done what she needed to do for her own protection. "When we first met you told me of an army in the north. It is not a Calandorian army so who does it belong to?" He asked.

  "I believe it is an army from the Realm of the Sun," She began fidgeting again.

  "That barren wasteland in which no human could survive?" he asked incredulously.

  "Hundreds of years ago people were banish into the Realm of the Sun instead of imprisoned or executed for misdeeds. It is possible some survived rather than perished, especially if any of them possessed the Moon Arts." Alli said. "Makren also spent the last twelve years living there which proves that some people do live on the other side of the Mountains."

  "Perhaps," Darien said, "I need to speak with Makren on this matter more thoroughly. The council notes state he was taken to the Realm of the Sun. No other remarks were made regarding his disappearance."

  Alli nodded in agreement then stood to leave, but Darien caught her hand. "We are not yet finished. We still need to discuss prophecy."

  Alli was puzzled by his words. "I thought we already discussed prophecy?" she questioned.

  "No we discussed my brother and Hikirian spies," he said gently pulling her back down into her chair.

  Alli chuckled to herself. "You thought your brother was my soul mate?" She laughed harder. " He is to gentle for me, the Gods would know better"

  "You yourself feared they would not only a few days ago," Darien teased. "Now you trust their ability to choose your mate?"

  Alli sobered at his words. "What is it about prophecy you wish to know?" she asked.

  "I would like to know the prophecy that sent you to me? If you are able to discuss it," He said.

  "With you I can discuss only some of it," she said suddenly very serious. "It is a very unusual prophecy. This prophecy told what I must do, not what someone else must do to fulfill the will of the Gods."

  "You received a prophecy about yourself?" Darien exclaimed. "Is that even possible?"

  "It must be possible or it could not have happened. I am not sure if it has happened before. I only know that if I fail in this task then I will be killing myself." When her eyes met his he could no longer see any light behind the pale blue, only coldness. "I can not be sure, but it may have already been fulfilled just by my being here. It will be hard to tell unless I receive another vision. The frequency of my visions has been increasing lately and if this prophecy has come to past I should receive another in a week's time."

  "Will you tell me?" he asked softly.

  "Daughter of Hokaren with a thousand strong will ally with the new king. He will lead her to the fated ones." Her voice was soft and held little emotion as she spoke.

  "Who are the fated ones?" Darien asked half-afraid to hear her answer.

  "The vision did not reveal that to me. I only know I was meant to join you and I will remain here as long as you require my assistance or until prophecy sends me elsewhere."

  "So it is possible that it has been fulfilled and you will be leaving soon?" He considered the thought for a moment. There was still much he needed her for if she was able to lend aid. "You will let me know the minute you have another prophecy," he requested looking into her eyes once more.

  "Of course" she assured him with a bright smile. "You have become known throughout the kingdoms as the champion of the Acumen. Who better to tell than you."

  Chapter 19

  Eranen rose slowly from the ground where he had been kneeling to pull one of the more stubborn weeds in the field. The crop was looking good; at least what he thought it should look like. This was the first time he had ever grown anything before, but he had read several books on the subject. Given the climate he was in and the richness of the soil he knew he had picked the correct crop to plant. The corn was flourishing and in a few more weeks would be ready to harvest. He cast his eyes over the field and the surrounding woods taking in what he had accomplished over the last year. He paused when his gaze fell to the barn and shook his head with frustration. It had been almost five minutes since his thoughts had drifted to the barn and the woman inside, that was a definite improvement. Since the night he had refused Lissandra and her proposal things had changed between them. He was sure that if prophecy did not bind her to him she would have left by now. She had taken his rejection of her hard.

  Eranen directed his gaze to the edge of the woods were his new house stood almost complete. It would be a fine house. Better than a farmer could afford, but he had not earned his coin by farming. He sighed heavily, it would be a splendid house, but it was not fit for a princess and Lissandra was not a woman to be had without the benefit of marriage. To make things worse, Eranen could not imagine the house ever being a home without Lissandra there. This last month with her constantly underfoot had changed him. He had never had constant company before, well at least not since he had left home twelve years before and he was not sure his mother could even be considered company given her state of mind. Lissandra's presence was different. She was a comfort. She was the only person who had ever heard his dream of a building a learning academy and had not laughed at him. She had actually been excited by the idea and had helped him form the plans even more firmly in his mind.

  He sighed again. Eranen had no idea what to do with Lissandra. Her powers were frightening. He had never heard of anyone possessing so much power and she had very little control over it. If one kiss could make funnel clouds what damage could other emotions cause? What of anger, grief or pleasure? Eranen looked back at the barn. That was what she had asked him for pleasure. No there was something more to it. Something Lissandra was not telling him. If she could not trust him, then how was he to trust her?

  Eranen thoughts drifted to Darien. What would his reaction be if Eranen gave into his desire and married Lissandra? Marriage was different in Calandoria for women. Perhaps Darien would be pleased she would not be subjected to Calandorian law. Perhaps Darien would kill him and end his worrying. It was a lot to ask a man to deal with for only a few hours of pleasure. Considering he was thinking of marriage there could be more than a few hours….

  He was more depressed by his decision than she was. It scared him to think what that m
ight mean. What if the ambiguous feelings he had for her were love? Real love, the kind of love that would makes a man trust his heart to one woman for all eternity? Did that kind of love exists? His grandmother said that it did and it was powerful. His mother said it was a myth told to make the idea of marriage seem appealing to the poor fools who found themselves in that predicament.

  Eranen raked his hands through his hair then shook his head. This was not about desire, love or marriage. He was not even sure it was about him. Her eagerness had something to do with the prophecy that sent her here in the first place. She still had not allowed him to read the book or trusted him enough to tell him at least what sent her here. She was practicing the art that all women possessed to get what she wanted.

  Eranen was brought from his dreary thoughts by the site of a rider coming down the road dressed in the Calandorian colors. The rider came to a stop in front of the barn and quickly dismounted. Eranen was not alarmed by the man's arrival. He knew this was the word from Makren, Lissandra had been expecting. He saw her walking from the barn towards the rider. Her hair was down today and the wind was playing with the long locks. Even from a distance he could see her smile at the man. His heart twisted. Her smiles were for him alone. After a brief exchange with the man the rider turned his horse and headed back to the North. Eranen did not head for the barn, but instead watched the rider fade in the distance. He was curious about the message, but assumed Lissandra would tell him what it said at dinner if she felt it was important. He had work to finish in the fields today. Tomorrow he would go to the dugout and get his books on prophecy that he had been hiding. Now the time was right. Lissandra had said after word from Makren arrived she would tell him why she had come. Cheered considerably at the thought he saw no reason to dwell on the matter any longer and began tending the field in earnest.

  Just as he was knelling down again he looked up to the sky to see why it was darkening. He had notice no clouds in the sky to block the sun's rays a moment ago. Now a storm was quickly building. Lightening flashed across the blackened sky as Eranen stood and ran towards the barn as fast as he could.

  "Lissandra" he called as he threw open the small door at the back of the barn. He could hear her crying. He quickly scanned the barn not seeing her and then headed towards the loft. " Lissandra, where are you?" he called as he climb the ladder. He could already hear the rain pelting the side of the barn and the wind rattling the walls. This was no ordinary storm.

  She was lying on the tack she slept on at night sobbing uncontrollably. He rushed to her side. " Lissandra what is it?" he asked, but she gave no response. He saw the letter clutched in her hands and gently took it from her. It only took a moment to read the letter. Eranen closed his eyes as he tried to think of some words that might comfort her. "I'm sorry Lissandra," he said quietly sitting down next to her.

  "She was not supposed to die" Lissandra said between sobs. "Her death was not mentioned in the prophecies."

  "Prophecy is a tool of the Gods, not meant to be a comfort to man," he pulled her into his lap and cradled her against his chest and began stroking her hair with his hand. This was different from Jimreth's death. Lissandra had not been affected by her brother's death the same way. Lissandra had already known her brother Jimreth would die.

  "She was so young and innocent. She knew so little about the world outside the castle walls. They killed her because of me," she said burying her head in his chest.

  "No," Eranen said sternly. "Do not think that for a moment. They had a choice. You are not responsible for their actions. Regardless their reasons the decision to kill her was theirs. None of the blame falls to you."

  "If I would have been there she would be alive," Lissandra was trying to gain control of her sorrow. It was being slowly replaced with rage.

  "And you would be dead." Eranen said flatly. "The Order was set on blood and no action by anyone could have prevented a death. I know you cared for your sister and I am sure she cared for you. Her death is difficult to accept, but you can not blame yourself. Place the blame where it should be." Eranen squeezed her tight. Her body was shaking either from the tears or the anger he was not sure. Lissandra knew his words were true. The Order would have killed her just as they did Rachel, but knowing that brought her little comfort.

  Eranen held her until her tears subsided and her body no longer shook. "Your brother request that both of us join him once the harvest arrives. Do you want me to go with you?" Eranen held his breath waiting for her answer.

  "I never want to go anywhere without you," she said raising her head to look into his eyes. Eranen gently wiped a tear from her cheek with his finger then took her chin in her hand. The rain outside had slowed to and fell into a soft rhythm. "Well then" he said slowly smiling, " The only way to ensure that we are always together would be for you to agree to marry me." He had not planned on asking her to marry him. It was a rash decision, but in that moment he never wanted her to go anywhere without him either.

  "You want to marry me?" she questioned a look of surprise and happiness on her face.

  "No," he said honestly, "I told you before, the want of you was never the issue, but marriage is the only way. I can not accept you without marriage and I can not lie to myself that I have no feelings for you. I do know that I am willing lay down my life to see you protected and help you fulfill the destiny you seek however I can. Somehow you have become more than a want, you are a need." Her smile warmed him as he took her lips with his.

  Eranen never made it to the dugout to retrieve his books on prophecy; instead they spent the evening making plans for their future. Prophecy had brought them to this place, but they both agreed not to use it to influence their decisions going forward.

  After Lissandra had gone to bed, Eranen spent most of the night in thought still thinking of all the reasons he and Lissandra should not married. By morning he had made a decision and thought to mention it casually to Lissandra over breakfast. "We are going to town today to get married," he said reaching for a warm slice of bread.

  Chapter 20

  "Today!" she exclaimed shocked at his words. "I thought we agreed last night that we would wait until after I sent word to my brothers to prepare a wedding for us once we returned to Rorgrim. It will only be a few more weeks."

  "They can learn of our marriage in a few weeks when we see them, what is the difference?" To Lissandra Eranen knew there was no difference to him however it might be the difference between life and death. He thought he stood a better chance of living if they were already married when they arrived in Rorgrim. Surely her brother would not make her a widow?

  "What about the new dress I was going to have made?" Lissandra asked. She had not expected things to move so quickly once he agreed to marry her.

  "Lissandra you are marrying a farmer. Surely the ceremony a farmer's wife receives will be enough for you." Eranen said frowning at her. "Have you changed your mind?" he asked bitterly.

  "No," she answered quickly, "Not at all. I want this, it just that," she blushed unable to finish her sentence.

  Eranen laughed softly, "It was only a week ago you offered yourself to me without the benefit of marriage," he smiled at her. "Now the thought of sharing my bed frightens you?"

  "I was feeling bold that night in the softness of the candle light and fire. I was trying to seduce you," she said softly. "It would have been spontaneous, not planned."

  "If we wait until we are in Rorgrim it will still be planned and I am sure you will be just as nervous. Either way it will happen. Why deny ourselves this time without the interference of others." Eranen said.

  She smiled at him. He was obviously worried that her brother's would oppose their marriage. He was right, of course. She could not imagine Darien willingly giving her to any man, let alone a farmer. Despite Eranen and Darien's friendship, Darien would not think Eranen worthy of her. "I think I would like to stay at the Inn tonight rather than returning home," she said.

  "Then you will marry me today," he asked
holding his breath waiting for her answer.

  "Yes," she grinned. "I will have to wear the dress of the Order. It really is beautiful and I should have at least one happy memory in it. Do you mind?"

  Eranen wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace, "If you do not mind having a marriage ceremony blessed by a priest of the Sun, then I will not mind you marrying in a dress of the Moon."

  "That is one of the reasons I like you so much Eranen," Lissandra smiled at him. "You are always so accommodating,"

  "Not as much as you think," he grinned back at her. "Ever since I first saw you in that dress I have had dreams of taking it off of you." He lowered his lips to hers and softly kissed her.

  Lissandra was so nervous during the ride to town she, spoke very little. She kept looking at Eranen, still surprised at his appearance. While she dressed in the loft she thought he had been readying the horses. Instead he to had been changing clothes. He was wearing formal attire as fine as any her brother owned. He had on tight cream colored britches tucked into brown leather boots. His shirt was white and he covered it with a soft gray vest. Over the vest was a gray jacket with lace at the cuffs. His sword was not carelessly stuffed through his belt, but sheath properly and hanging at his side. She would have not thought he owned such clothes. It made her wonder what else she did not know about the man she was to marry. She had been concerned with seeing prophecy fulfilled in the last month that she had not taken the time to think things through completely. She was about to bind herself to a man not for love, but because a book told her it must be done.