by T Ariyanna
“Does it hurt?”
He grabbed her hand and pulled it away. Forcing a smile, he said, “Not at all.”
“What happened?”
“He summoned a demon, and daddy didn't like that,” Cy offered.
Arion shook his head lightly, gaining a scowl from him. “I told you, just a spell gone wrong. I was trying something new, and I lost control. It blew up in my face, literally.” He laughed to lighten the mood, but it didn't work. He swallowed the lump in his throat, and continued. “Most of the house was destroyed, and my father was home. He didn't make it.”
“I'm so sorry.” She reached a hand to his face, but he leaned away.
“It's fine. I'm okay, really. Things have actually been better since it happened, so…”
Kaitlyn glanced at the ground, biting her lip. “What about your music box?”
“Gone before I could crack it. I'll have to find another lead.”
“Arion,” she started, but he held up a hand to stop her. She looked away, up at the house. “I could see the house from the village.”
“I fixed it up, good as new.”
“By yourself?”
“No, I had help.”
“Now we're getting to the good stuff,” Cy input, listening to the conversation with more interest than expected.
Arion ignored him as Kaitlyn asked, “Who?”
“Tome.” Arion gave her a crooked smile, and she giggled. Cy growled and starting protesting, but he smothered him with his magic.
“I should’ve guessed.” Arion nodded, and plopped down onto the ground. He picked at the grass while Kaitlyn sat next to him, tucking her legs underneath her. He could feel her watching him with worry, but he tried to brush it off.
He glanced at her hands in her lap, gripping the ruffles of her dress until her knuckles were white. “Where's your book today?” he asked. Her head jerked in shock, and she glanced at her lap.
“My book? Oh, I didn't bother today, I didn't need it here.”
“Which one are you reading now?”
Kaitlyn answered by laughing. She turned away from him to hide her blush and sheepish smile.
“Really? Again?” he guessed, laughing with her. “You need some new reading material, Kait.”
“Why? It's my favorite!”
“Remind me what it's about again?” Arion said, though he practically knew the book word for word. Kaitlyn was reading it every other week, it seemed. He only asked because he knew how much she loved to talk about it.
She laid down in the grass, her smile radiant. Her voice was dreamy when as she spoke. “It's about a beautiful princess that makes a deal with a thief to save her home, but she ends up being a better thief than a princess, and they fall in love, and live happily ever after.” She closed her eyes, but her smile remained. Arion watched her closely, a smile of his own stuck in place. She turned to him abruptly, and he looked away to stare at the clouds. “Wouldn't that be nice?” she asked finally.
He looked back at her, and smiled. “Yeah. It would.”
They lay by each other in silence, watching the clouds roll by together. Their hands were nearly touching. Arion was hyper aware of that fact.
“Will you two get a room already? I feel like I'm going to be sick.”
Arion rolled his eyes at the demon, but took notice of the time. It had been at least an hour since Kaitlyn had arrived, and if she really had snuck out, her father was sure to have noticed by now.
“You should probably head home. They'll be looking for you.” Arion forced himself upwards, unable to look at Kaitlyn's disappointed expression. He held his hand out to her, and she took it reluctantly. He helped her to her feet.
She wrapped him in a hug again, and he squeezed her back. “I'm coming back as soon as I can. You can't make me stay away again, not after what just happened, so don't even bother trying.”
“You're too stubborn for it to work anyway, so there's no point.”
She sighed and released him. She took a step towards home, but he grabbed her arm. She looked back at him with curiosity clear on her face.
He looked away as he spoke. “It's best if no one knows I'm still alive. If they know you came out here, tell them you looked and looked, but couldn't find any sign of me, or that you found my body. It's safer.”
“Got it. I won't let them find you. I promise.”
“Thanks, Kait.”
“What are friends for?” She smiled lightly at him before running home.
“You've only got one friend, and you're just going to lie to her like that? It's a bit scary that it was so easy for you, you know.”
“It wasn't easy,” Arion responded. “And it wasn't lying. She just doesn't need to know everything. It's easier for her if she doesn't.”
“You mean about the angry demon in your head?”
“Yeah, about the angry demon in my head, the one that doesn't pay rent.”
Cy erupted into laughter, and Arion cracked a small smile. “You're not so bad, kid. Maybe you've got more than one friend after all.”
Chapter 8
Arion created a ball of green fire in the palm of his hand. Leaning back against the wall, he used his other hand to pull and stretch the fire. He easily molded it into the shape of a small dragon, and released it in the small, metal room. It shot fire at the walls, and then turned on Arion. It let out a big gush of flames, but Arion caught it in his hands, turning it to blue smoke. With a snap of his fingers, the dragon exploded into a rain of blue and greens sparks that landed on the floor and ate at the metal.
“Can't you at least give me a challenge, Cy?” Arion crossed his arms and clicked his tongue.
“Not until you can get the simplest spells perfect. How many times do I have to tell you that?”
“Perfect? How much more perfect can I get when I don't need Tome to do any of these spells, something most adult Mages can’t even do? I need to learn something new already. I've been doing the same couple spells for over a month now. I'm bored!”
“Oh you poor thing. I didn't realize you were bored. In that case, do them all again!”
“No.”
“No?”
“I'm the master here, and I order you to teach me something useful!”
“You know; your orders aren't very effective when I don't have a body to feel pain in when I don't obey. Now do them again, or I'm leaving for the day.”
“And where exactly are you planning to go?”
“I don't have to go anywhere to leave. Stop taking things so literal.”
“We're getting nowhere with all of these stupid spells. Don't you want to get this all over with so you can get out of my head? Or have you grown attached?” Arion slid down the wall and stared at the floor. Setting his finger on fire, he drew designs in the floor.
“Please, like you’d believe I like you. If I did, that is, which I don’t. just we have that all clear,” Cy said quickly, and Arion chuckled at his aversion. Cy continued before he could be questioned, “But a weakling like you couldn't handle anything stronger than the basics.”
“Keep telling yourself that, Cy. Just admit it. You like me. You said it yourself.” Arion stuck his tongue out, and the demon fumed.
“I don't have to admit nothing. I'll say anything to save my own skin. So to speak. I just wanna get the hell out of here!”
“Then help me get stronger. Teach me to fight, or something. Anything other than these damn basic spells again.”
“Fighting? You? You have to be joking. You wouldn't even be able to lift a weapon. Ha!” Cy cackled in his head, and it sent a chill down Arion’s spine.
“I'm a lot stronger than you think, Cy. I can use magic to give myself strength. Or are you just too scared to teach me? Afraid I'll get too strong for you to boss me around?”
“Afraid of you? That's hilarious. A bunny wouldn't even be afraid of you!” Cy erupted into laughter again.
Arion clenched his fist. “Fine. If you won't teach me, I'll just teach myself. I do
n't need your permission to fight.”
“Oh, this I've got to see.”
Arion left their training room and stormed outside. They had set up a few targets outside from fallen logs and scraps they had come across. He ripped the closest target from the ground, and used magic to melt a piece of the rod off from the rest. He wrapped his fingers around it, and turned on the next target.
He swung wildly, making contact only a few times. Cy howled with laughter, and Arion swung again angrily. It hit the target near its base, and the metal rod in his hands bent backward. A small dent had been made in the target, and Cy chortled again.
“If I'm so bad at this, teach me!” Arion screamed.
“Why would I do that when watching you flail around is this entertaining?”
“You're the one who said I have to be able to defend myself. You think I should go practice with Kraven instead? I'm sure he'd love to see me.”
Cy fell silent at the name. They had done what they could to stay hidden, sneaking into the village at night and taking food. But Kraven had followed Kaitlyn on one of her visits not long after the incident, and found them. He beat Arion until he didn't have any strength left, and threatened him against coming back to town. Arion hadn't been able to heal himself for days. He was sure Kraven would have told the village that he was still alive. If they knew, they were reluctant to do anything.
“Fine. We'll start with stance. You won't be needing that.” Cy took control of him, and threw the metal rod back towards the house.
Arion complied as his body was moved for him. His knees were bent, feet shoulder width apart, and hands up in front of him.
“A good stance gives you the upper hand. From here, you could stop someone's assault and then use their own force against them to take 'em down.” Cy pretended to dodge an attack, and then he grabbed the air and slammed Arion’s hands to the ground.
“This is what I'm talking about,” Arion whispered.
“You'll probably be better with kicks than punches, given your height. Plus, your legs are stronger, from all the running away you do.”
“Hey!” Arion protested, but Cy was already moving him again. He lunged forward and swung his leg. It flew out in a wide arc in front of him, and he ended up backwards when his foot came down again.
“Roundhouse kick. The more momentum, the better. You might even be able to spin all the way around with practice. Try it yourself.”
Arion felt his body sag as Cy gave him control. He tensed his muscles and took up the stance Cy had showed him. His eyes locked onto the nearest target, and he charged. He ducked under pretend blows, and planted his feet. Using his magic to charge his leg, he kicked off the ground and swung out. The top of his foot connected with the dummy, and Arion heard cracking as it broke from its base.
Arion landed in a crouch, his foot sore. The dummy was lying a few feet away. He broke into triumphant laughter, Cy stunned into silence.
“Well, I'll be damned,” he breathed.
“I thought you already were? Next! I want to learn more.” Arion shook the pain from his foot, and rounded on the next target. He bobbed and weaved, his fists in front of his face.
“Fine, if you're so eager. I'm not going to show you first. Just try punching it.”
Arion smiled. He pulled his fist back as far as it would go, lifting his leg. He lunged forward and drove his knuckles into the head of the dummy. There was another cracking, but this one came from his hand. He screamed in pain, and reared back. In anger, he kicked the bottom of the dummy, and it was bent backwards.
“Like I said, better with your legs. You didn't do a single thing right with that punch. You want less space between you and your target, so you can extend your arm after it's in their face, pushing them back. Don't waste your energy pulling back and stomping around. This isn't a game. Hit with the flat of your fingers, not your knuckles. Now try again.”
“Try again? I think my hand is broken!”
“So? Do you think the fight is over when something gets broken? No, it's over when one can either get away, or knock the other out. And you've still got plenty of opponents. So. Try. Again.”
Arion clenched his fists, biting back the pain. If it wasn't broken, something was at least pulled out of place. He stepped up to another target, standing a foot away. He raised his fist to his shoulder, and swung in an arc towards the side of its head. It hit firmly, but Arion's hand kept going. It knocked the head of the dummy clean off, with minimal damage to his hand this time.
“See? No unnecessary flailing, no wasted energy. Now go wild. Do whatever you think you should to take them all down.”
Arion spun around. Five dummies were still standing. A malicious smile split his face as he charged for the first. He ducked as he approached, and rammed his shoulder into its middle. It stopped him in his tracks, and he fell back. Pushing himself up on his hands, he spun and kicked out with his legs. They caught the beam holding the dummy up, and snapped it. It collapsed to the ground and Arion moved on.
The next two were set up close together, and he took them both head on. He punched one in the side while kicking at the other. He lost his balance and fell to the ground, rolling out of the way and coming at one from the side. He jumped on top of one, tearing it from its post. It toppled over before Arion could get off, and he fell into the other dummy. He grabbed its head as he fell, popping it off. Head still in his hands, he ran for the fourth dummy.
He threw the head at the dummy, and then attacked it himself. He jumped into the air and lashed out with his legs. His timing was off, though and he fell onto his back. His kicks had been enough to weaken the beam, and the dummy fell on top of him. He rolled over onto the dummy, and punched its head until there was a dent.
The last dummy was the largest, set against the edge of the Dire Woods. He had always pretended it was Kraven when they practiced his aim, but it was too far away for him to hit easily. He had never landed an attack.
A wicked grin was plastered on his face, and the magic rushed through his veins. His left hand shot up in flames. A vicious yell escaped his lips as he bolted for the last dummy. He skidded to a halt just before it, swinging towards its chest. His hand, still ablaze, went straight through the material, and the target caught fire. He watched it burn red, blue, and green. The flickering light caught in his eyes, and the heat made him sweat more than he had from training. The smile on his face had grown.
“Wow. You sure do have a lot of pent up rage there, kid. Uh, what do you say we head inside for a rest. Maybe grab some food?”
“I'm good. You go ahead and rest. I'll clean up, and then start over. I'm having fun.”
As the dummy turned to nothing more than ash, something appeared in the woods behind it. Arion's smile fell, and he formed a fireball in his hands. Creeping closer, he met a pair of familiar green eyes. At first, he thought it was nothing more than a reflection, until more of the creature became visible.
“Tuft?” he whispered. The wolf had its head low, and its mouth was pulled back in a snarl. The fireball dissolved in Arion's hand, and the wolf relaxed. “Tuft, is that you?”
The gray wolf poked its head out from the brush, his head cocked at Arion. He reached a hand out towards the wolf, but as soon as he got close, the wolf turned tail and bolted back into the darkness.
Arion took a step into the woods, and howls filled the air. He backed away, and returned to his training. He wasn't sure if Cy had gone to rest, or was simply silent as he rebuilt, and attacked the dummies until there was no more light to see by.
“Is that really all you got?” Arion asked again. They had been working on fighting for a few days. Cy had run out of energy, though Arion was still bounding.
“What did you expect? I'm a demon, not a warrior.”
“Then what was all that bragging for?”
“Show!” Cy yelled before going silent.
Arion let out a growl in frustration and stormed into the house. His muscles ached from the endless training, but it
didn't bother him. He had felt far worse.
He made his way to the large desk that now occupied the living room. Piles of twisted metal and scraps lay about in the corners of the room. He stared at the array of tools he had found, and he glanced at the heaps of metal.
“Nothing you're doing is getting me any closer to finding my Mom,” he huffed, but Cy was ignoring him. He dug through the closest pile, pulling out wires, gears, and sheets of metal. He dropped his small pile onto his desk and set to work on his creation.
“What the hell are you doing now?” Cy whined.
“I'm making something to find Mom. Pulling those dummies apart gave me an idea. Besides, plan A and plan B isn't getting us any closer. You got a problem with that?”
Arion created an oval shell with a wire cage inside. A round head atop with pointed ears, and small hooked feet below. He layered thin metal on top of each other, and connected it to the sides, carving holes into the head and adding a beak. He took two glass orbs and fit them into the sockets, creating a clockwork owl.
“How did you know how to do that?” Cy asked.
Arion opened his mouth to snap back at him, but he didn't have an answer. “I made a locket out of parts from a clock before I met you. Tome told me how to do it, but I made it work. I've been tinkering and messing around with metal when I couldn't sleep ever since.”
“And how often is that?”
Arion didn't answer. He glanced his reflection in a piece of metal, the bags under his eyes being answer enough. “So why an owl?” Cy asked awkwardly in the silence.
“One brought me my book, and was my friend for a bit, but I…I broke his wing last time I saw him. I don't even know what happened to him. He could've died because of me. I just hope he got back to his home.”
Resting his left hand atop the mechanical owl’s head, he tried to force his magic into it. A spark danced around inside the metal, gliding along every surface. He stared at it longingly, waiting for something, anything to happen. But the machine remained lifeless.