Ruby- Lost & Found

by M. D. Grimm

  I nodded when he fell silent. "I think he would want you to have it," I said, thinking that was the right thing to say.

  "Thanks, Morgorth." We both fell into a contemplative silence. The tribe was settling down, now that their camp was fully set up, and they began supper. I could smell the meat sizzling.

  "I kissed you," Aishe said.

  I swallowed and nodded. "Yeah, you did. Sort of took me by surprise."

  "Me, too." More silence.

  "So, why did you?" I asked and forced myself to look at him. His lips were tightly compressed, and they trembled.

  "I have desire for you," Aishe said on an exhale. He sucked in air and closed his eyes. "And I shouldn't. I can't. I'm on a hakum, and that has to come first, but when I'm with you..."

  He trailed off, and the look he sent me said everything. I was dumbfounded.

  "Why have you chosen me?" I asked softly. "You don't even like me."

  Aishe shook his head slowly. "That's not true. I like you too much. But it's you who don't like me."

  "That's not true, I -- " I stopped and saw the clever light in Aishe's eyes. Well hell, even when he spilled his emotions, he could still trick me into sharing mine.

  "So, you do like me," he urged.

  I grumbled and looked away. I froze when he laid his head on my shoulder.

  "Relax, Morgorth." There was laughter in his voice. "Just let me sit here with you, okay? I need to just...let go of my grief for a moment."

  I nodded and gulped. But all he did was sit there, and I eventually rested my cheek on his head while my hand found his. We sat there, silent, not acknowledging the things keeping us apart or the desire pulling us together. We just lived in the moment, and for once, I managed to forget my violent past.

  Our moment was shattered when a young dialen came running into the cavern and shouting at the top of his lungs.

  "Help! Get the mage! A revenai is coming!"

  Oh. Fuck.

  Chapter Seven

  Aishe and I stood just below the mountain as everyone else bustled around at the entrances. I glanced at Aishe, and there was no indication of his earlier emotional turmoil.

  "I have a plan, Aishe," I said.

  "Please enlighten me." There was no sarcasm in his voice, and his eyes were steady when they met mine.

  "This tribe placed their camp right on a natural gateway to the underworld. If the revenai is distracted I might be able to open the gateway long enough to shove him down where he belongs."

  I looked behind us at the tribe. "We'll need help."

  Aishe nodded, and I could tell he didn't like it. I didn't like it. He turned back and yelled in his native tongue. Several archers, both male and female came down to stand behind us.

  He met my eyes. "Can we succeed?"

  I exhaled and watched the revenai lumber forward, all heads aimed at us and with hands ready to grab.

  "We have to." I stepped forward and shot a lance of fire at it. In a stunning turn of events, the revenai latched onto the lance and sent it back to me, as if it was a harmless ball that you'd toss back and forth.

  I gasped and ducked, and the other dialens lunged away. The fire scorched the ground where it landed, and I didn't like this new revelation at all. Revenais were not stupid, and they learned quickly. I ran to one side while the other dialens surrounded the beast, staying out of arms' reach, but they still had to dodge the poisonous drool.

  I used the elements and pure force, but nothing seemed to make this revenai budge. I had no water to freeze the fucker again, and when I tried fire, I realized the revenai had built up immunity to it. That was the downside of exposing these fuckers to extremes; they evolved faster than any creature in existence. No amount of wind could topple this thing without taking out the dialens, and I wasn't close enough to the gateway to use earth. Since using earth was so hard for me, when I did use it, I wouldn't be able to sustain it for long.

  The dialens were holding their own, but with so many limbs and drool and shooting spikes, it was becoming all too possible that we would lose some good warriors. I had to end this, fast.

  I danced too close to the revenai, trying to taunt it to follow me, but my plan backfired as I was smacked with the back of one of its hands. I flew through the air and slammed into the ground and actually blacked out for several seconds. When I came back to myself, my head spun, and I couldn't hear anything over the buzzing in my ears. I managed to lift my head, my vision blurry, and saw a bright mass in the distance with long tendrils waving around it. I closed my eyes tightly and willed my body and mind to steady. My magick had faltered when I'd hit the ground, but now it had returned; when I opened my eyes again, my vision was clear.

  I stood and felt the subtle vibration only those magickally inclined would feel. I stood on the gateway. I had to get the revenai over here without it realizing my intention. I was about to speed over to the battle when I saw the revenai grab Aishe and fling him farther and higher than I had flown. My magick reacted faster than my mind.

  I sped through the air, leaving a trail of fire in my wake. My eyes stayed locked on the plummeting dialen, and I brought my arms up as I slammed into him. I caught him before he collided into the mountain, and we landed on the ground. I dropped him on the soft grass. He stared at me with his mouth open before I sped back towards the revenai, ready to unleash all I had on the monster.

  The other dialens were being flung into the air, and one was crushed before I stopped in front of the revenai and slapped all ten faces with a gust of wind. They jerked away, and one hundred eyes fixed on me. I grinned and jumped out of the way of the flying spikes and flailing arms. I brought my shield up to block the rest, and I taunted the beast, trying to enrage it.

  "Come on, spiny! I'm the one you want, remember? I'm the one who froze you and put you in the volcano. Did you like being defeated by a little mage like me?"

  All of the heads roared, and its two feet began to move. I ran as it chased me. Venomous spikes were thrown at my back, but my jacket protected me. I ducked my head and ran at full speed, knowing the monster's focus was only on me. I skidded to a stop on top of the gateway and closed my eyes, finding my center, calling the magick to come to my aid once more. I just hoped I was strong enough to do this.

  Master Ulezander still had trouble opening gateways to the underworld, and he was many centuries older than me. The natural gateway would help a lot, but I was still a young mage, and I had never done this before. But I had to try.

  I reached down with my magick and touched the gateway, letting the veil slide over my senses as I probed it, looking for a way to open it with the least amount of effort. I heard the revenai approach me as if from a distance. I couldn't rush this; I would hurt myself, and the demon would wreak havoc if I failed.

  Taking a deep breath, my magick plunged, and I fell to my knees, slamming my hands against the ground. I sent my magick deep, and it stabbed through the veil, ripping it open as the ground shook underneath me. My magick was already strained, and sweat broke out all over my body, but I never faltered. The ground tore open like it did when the revenai was released, and I shifted to one side of the rift, struggling to open it wider. If my magick faltered, the gateway would close, and it would all be for naught.

  I heard commotion behind me and dared a look over my shoulder to see the entire Lania tribe attacking the revenai, driving it back toward me. They were shooting arrows and throwing rocks at its eyes, and the revenai's hands were trying to protect the only weak spot it had.

  My body shook violently as the hole gaped like a large mouth and the fumes from the underworld seared my skin. It was sticky and polluted air, which tried to burrow into my flesh. Thick smoke billowed into my face, destroying the oxygen I had been sucking into my lungs.

  I coughed violently but managed to keep pushing my magick deeper. My insides knotted and clenched. A powerful headache started in the middle of my forehead, and my muscles began to stiffen. My magick sputtered, crying out to me to stop. But I
couldn't. Not yet.

  I soon had a big enough hole for the revenai to fall into, but now I had to get it to fall. I couldn't speak to explain my plan to the dialens, and for a moment I panicked, and the hole jerked as if to shut. I strained to keep it open and wondered what I would do.

  I lifted my face and somehow found Aishe's eyes. I nodded frantically, and he cupped his hands over his mouth to be heard over the roars of the revenai, the shouts of the dialen, and the churning toxic waste of the underworld.

  "Into the hole!" he screamed.

  With an impressive surge, the dialens threw everything they had at the revenai, and some were brave enough to duck under the arms and push at the feet. The revenai tipped and seemed to flail for an eternity before I managed to widen the gap just enough for the demon to lose its balance and fall backward. The beast rushed past me, and I barely managed to escape a fatal slice from one of its clawed hands. I leaned over the hole and saw the revenai vanish into the churning pit below.

  I yanked my magick back into me, and the two sides of the hole slammed together like waves during a storm. I was flung forward, and the ground shook for several minutes before coming to a stop. The ground would always have a rift, like a puckered scar, in this area, and I managed to use my magick just enough to see if the veil was back in place. It was. Thank the Mother.

  I managed to roll over and stare up at the sky, trembling from the effort while my lungs burned like I'd run the entirety of the eastern continent. My insides were still knotted, and my muscles were bunched painfully. My magick wept with pain and relief and subsided deep inside my core.

  As I lay there, I finally heard the sound of...cheering? I rolled my head slowly to one side and watched the dialens hug and shout in happiness. They cheered and laughed, some even danced. They were ridiculous. But then they all seemed to notice me at once and surged toward me like a swarm of joy and smiles and lifted me to my feet. I gasped as my body buckled in pain, my vision going gray around the edges.

  "Leave him be!" I knew that voice. I was grabbed and lifted into strong arms, my body having no strength to move. My head rested on someone's shoulder, and I knew I would black out at any moment.

  I couldn't lift my head, but I did sniff at the dialen holding me and was irrationally comforted that it was Aishe. I closed my eyes and almost wished I would be conscious long enough to contemplate why I felt so safe in his arms. ***

  It was night when I finally woke, and the party was still going on. I lay on soft blankets inside a tent and listened for a while to the joy and happiness. I remembered the way they had cheered me. I had never gotten such support before.

  I sat up, and, though I was tender, I could move under my own power. I walked to the opening of the tent and smiled at the dancers around the different fires. Music was played, songs were sung, and I allowed myself to wish I was a part of it.

  "Join us," Aishe said, stepping beside me. I jerked in surprise and punched him lightly in the shoulder.

  "Take it easy, Aishe. You want me to drop dead?"

  He chuckled and rested his arm across my shoulders, looking out at the tribe. "You really made an impression with them, Morgorth. They all fought about who would heal you. I won, of course."

  That kind of disturbed me, but the amusement in Aishe's voice balanced out the discomfort. I rubbed the rest of the sleep out of my eyes and found myself too easily lulled by the warmth of Aishe's body. But when I tried to pull away, he tightened his grip.

  "Just relax, would you? It won't kill you to just stand here with me." Aishe's voice was impatient and irritated.

  "I have to put those barriers up." I forcefully pulled away.

  "You sure you're up for that?"

  I was about to say something snarky, but I glanced at his eyes and saw his concern. He was worried about me.

  "I'm fine, Aishe. I'll eat first, but I don't want the sorcerer coming here with us unprepared. I gave you my word that I would protect this tribe, and I plan to keep it."

  He nodded and let me go. I grabbed some food before I proceeded slowly with the barriers along the entrances. I used up all the crystals I had in my pouches. I gently pushed my own magick into the crystals to act as the barriers’ constant charge, like batteries. They would last exactly two weeks, and I hoped the sorcerer would be dead by then and Rambujek, that cursed ruby, in my possession. I placed the crystals on either side of the entrances, hidden and wedged into the rock. I didn't want some careless idiot kicking them away from their appointed spot.

  I went to each of the entrances and made sure the barriers allowed dialens in and out but that any magick and other creatures would not be allowed in. A warning bell would alert the tribe to an intruder, and the barriers would deflect any direct blast. It was all I could do for them. I didn't know what stone they had, and they wouldn't tell me even if I asked. I just hoped that it was safely hidden.

  Yawning, I made my way back to the party and joined in. I was welcomed with smiles and pats on the back. A drink was shoved in my hand, and I was pushed down on a rock in front of a strong fire. Meat roasted over the flames, making my mouth water. The music was pleasant, and it was entertaining to watch the dancers, who were mostly drunk, try to remember the correct steps. Laughter filled the cavern as I remembered my other times with the dialen. I felt more like one of them now, instead of a guest. We had all worked together to defeat the revenai, and those who were lost were being remembered with toasts and humorous stories in this celebration of life as well as victory.

  The flames flickered off the glistening walls of the cavern and the pale bodies of the dialen. I didn't think I'd ever seen anything more beautiful. Except for Aishe, of course.

  I stared into my drink and wondered how I would ever let him go.

  ***

  The party lasted until midmorning, and I was exhausted. My belly was full, and my head was slightly fuzzy, but I felt good. Another thing that the other mages didn't like about me was my ability to recover quickly. Even I was surprised about how good I felt considering all the magick I had used to open the gateway. And I had even blacked out ! But all I needed was a few more hours of sleep, and then I would be feeling at my best again. My mentor said it was a gift. I really liked Master Ulezander.

  With those happy thoughts, I retired to the tent where I had woken up and noticed another bed of blankets. Aishe was sleeping soundly in it. I smiled and watched him sleep, quiet and serene. He really was too beautiful and courageous to be real. To have so much love and then lose it had to be harder than never having it at all. And he endured and avenged the dead when he could have easily walked away.

  There really was no one like him, not in my world.

  I was about to lie down and join him in dreamland when he began to shift and moan. I raised an eyebrow and watched him jerk and convulse. I realized he was having a nightmare. Damn it.

  I knelt down by the bed and flexed my fingers, not knowing what to do. He gripped his blankets, and with a single "No!" I saw tears begin to stream down his face. Double damn it. I couldn't bear to see this brave dialen cry; I placed my hands on his shoulder and forehead, willing gentle magick to change his dark dreams to light ones. It was a difficult piece of magick, but I didn't want to wake him up. Unfortunately, he did, and he sucked in a breath before surging up and wrapping his arms around my shoulders, squeezing the air from my lungs.

  "Morgorth, please, you have to help. You have to stop..." He spoke nonsense, and I patted his back, at a complete loss.

  "Easy there," I said in as gentle a voice as I could manage. "Easy, just a bad dream."

  Aishe gulped in air and finally loosened his hold on me. "By the Mother, I saw them." Tears choked his voice. "I saw them all. They were lying on the ground, the grass turned red by their blood. I just fell to the ground and cried and raged. My sister, little Amyla, was barely alive. I found her and held her, and she told me what happened. With her last breath she asked me to avenge them. She died in my arms."

  He was struggling not t
o cry, and I could tell it was costing him. I tightened my hold on him and rubbed his back.

  "What did she say, Aishe? How did Kayl get Rambujek?" He pulled back and pinched his nose with his thumb and forefinger. His other hand still held my arm, and I covered his hand with mine. His pain was choking me, but I couldn't for the life of me walk away. I wanted to help.

  "Lutin," he said.

  My eyes widened. "Lutin? But...they don't follow orders. How did he get them under his command?"

  Aishe shook his head, his eyes wet when they met mine. "I don't know. But they went on a rampage and killed everyone. And he took the ruby."

  I cursed. Lutin were natural shapeshifters, and not a lot was known about them except that they were always hungry for meat, and they were probably the most bloodthirsty animals on the surface world. I've never even seen one. Of course, I might have, but it would have looked like any other animal. Most mages, if they found one, would kill it.

  " We will kill him, Aishe." I gripped his shoulder, and he stared into my eyes. "I give you my word that we will be the ones to kill him."

  "Morgorth, could you...could you just lie beside me, please?" His eyes were pleading with me.

  "W-what?" I dropped my hands and felt twitchy.

  "Just lie beside me. I don't want to be alone. Please?"

  What was it about this creature that made me unable to say no to him? I nodded and grabbed my bed and shoved it over next to his. I lay down, and we were silent as the rest of the tribe finally went to sleep. Exhaustion took hold of me, and I fell asleep, but not before I felt Aishe grab my hand.

  Chapter Eight

  We headed out late the next morning, and there were a lot of hugs to get through before we were set free. I had never had so many creatures who thought I was a nice guy. Huh. It really wasn't a bad feeling. The crystal still pointed northwest, and I wondered what Kayl was up to. I wondered if Kayl knew the revenai had failed. I hoped for our sake that he thought it had succeeded.