Though I had never seen anything like the beast before me, there was something familiar about it. A brief moment of concentration brought the attached memory to the forefront of my hazy mind. The recollection shocked me momentarily, but I regained my composure quickly and addressed the figure. “Councilor Gorat, it has certainly been a long time. I hardly recognized you; did you do something different with your hair?”
The beast approached the table and knelt down at the opposite edge, lowering itself down to a more reasonable height. “Ah. You knew this body, it seems,” it said, speaking with multiple voices at once. I recognized the nasally tone of the Hedaat councilor I once knew among the mix, but the choir of voices behind it were clearly not all human in origin. “It serves as the Conduit for the Dominion now.”
“Yes, I’m well aware of your little club, although I’m not sure exactly why you’re here.” I picked up the needle and rolled it casually between my fingers. “Your previous associates weren’t much for talking, and they never wanted to answer my questions.”
“All are granted gifts in accordance with their ability,” it replied. “These ones serve a purpose as they are.” The former councilor looked me up and down. “You have shown your ability to us during this time of change. You would be granted many gifts.”
I shrugged. “I’m not really looking for gifts.” With a flick of my wrist, I pushed the needle down into the small notch in the table. My heart fluttered in my chest, and I took a final centering breath before pressing my thumb down onto the button. “They won’t do me much good anymore.” Mana flowed down my arm and was whisked away through the needle, bringing on another dizzy spell. A deep whirring began to rumble out from the hallway at my back.
Gorat watched the movement impassively. “We have this body’s memories. We saw you reject its call to stop us many decades ago. Why do you resist us now? The Dominion would elevate you beyond mere flesh and blood. You would become eternal.”
“Blood,” I chuckled. “Funny thing about that. I spent my life here studying blood. I’ve discovered things your Dominion doesn’t know…” I trailed off momentarily as my stomach lurched and my vision blurred. “There is power in blood. And eternity...that isn’t a gift.”
“Mortal minds cannot understand the divinity of the Dominion. It would be—”
“Your Dominion,” I yelled, panting, “is over. Your Dominion can’t understand that it lost the second I pressed this button.”
Gorat tilted his head to one side. “This is untrue. The Dominion still stands.”
“The Dominion still stands because I’m allowing it. When I tire of this conversation, Hedaat ceases to exist, and with it, your Dominion.” I laughed. “If you kill me before that point, Hedaat disappears. If my hand leaves this button, Hedaat disappears. The Dominion lost, and I beat you.”
“This is untrue. You do not possess the power you say you do.”
“You’re right about that,” I admitted. “But blood does. And you’ve given me more than enough of that these past few days.” A violent shiver ran down my spine. My body had begun to ache all over as my mana reserves started to dry, and I knew the time had come. “I rejected the call to stop you, and people died. People that I cared about. Before I die, I want all of you fuckers to know that I was the one that stopped you. I’m the one who—”
A violent spasm shook the left side of my body. My arm convulsed upwards and smashed into the underside of the table, knocking the sword from my grip. When it left my hand, I felt a deep pang of longing in the back of my mind, but it quickly faded into a thick fog. I watched it clatter against the stone floor and come to rest at my feet. The weapon looked so familiar, but I couldn’t quite place why.
There was a strange tingle in my right arm, and I realized that I was extending the last bits of my mana outside of my body through a small metal pin in the table. Reflexively, I withdrew it back into my core, afraid of what might happen should it run out. When the energy came back the room fell quiet, which confused me; I hadn’t realized there was a rumbling sound until it had gone away.
I took the pin from the table and studied it in my palm. I knew it was important in some way, so I slid it into my pocket for safekeeping until I had time to study it further. As I looked up and became aware of my surroundings, I was startled by the massive figure kneeling at the opposite end of the table; there was a lingering sense of anger in my mind as I stared at it, but I didn’t feel any fear. I was frustrated by my lack of understanding of the situation, but I tried my best to keep my face neutral.
The figure spoke, its voice alien and echoing. “You look unwell.”
“I’m fine!” I snarled in response. “What would you know about it anyway? What do you even want? Why are you...are you even…” My head bobbed forward as I dropped in and out of consciousness momentarily. Alarmed, I pushed away from the table and attempted to stand, but my legs were heavy and unresponsive to my commands. “Leave me,” I muttered pitifully. “I want to be alone.”
The creature stood and slowly rounded the table. A massive arm reached down and picked up the blade below me, which looked hardly long enough to be a shortsword in the giant’s grip. “No, don’t. That’s...you can’t—” Another convulsion took control of my body, knocking me over the arm of my chair to land hard on the stone floor. I hardly felt the pain through the heavy, creeping numbness in my limbs.
From somewhere above me, I heard a chorus of voices call out in unison. “You were an honorable opponent. The Dominion will remember you with great respect.” A metal grating sound began to echo around the room. “You will suffer no longer.”
With the last of my energy, I rolled onto my back and stared up at the ceiling with unseeing eyes. The dense fog in my mind had spread to my senses, and it felt as if I was slowly fading away into nothing. I closed my eyes and sighed, happy to have a chance to rest. It had been so long, and I was so tired.
A gentle, cool weight pressed down on my chest and cleared away a layer of exhaustion. I tipped my head up and squinted my eyes, eventually finding enough focus to reveal that the light blue sword had been laid across my chest. It brought a smile to my face, and I struggled to drag my hand up the length of my torso to touch it.
As my fingers dragged across the metal, the clouds lifted from my mind. My body was unresponsive, having finally run out of mana from my last-ditch resistance. As my eyes tracked around the room, I saw two Thralls dragging a terrible black battleaxe between them. The blade screeched across the floor, finally coming to a rest at Gorat’s side. The former councilor hefted the great weapon in one hand as he turned to address me. I saw his lips move, but my ears failed to hear the words.
Tears filled my eyes as the room began to fade from view. “I’m sorry,” I tried to say, struggling to move my lips. A quick, arcing flash pierced the darkness one last time before my eyes gave out. “I’m sorry...I failed.”
***
6. OLD EMOTION
“C’mon, let’s go already!” Lia called out, bouncing eagerly on her heels.
Hana wrung her hands and shimmied forward to the end of the crate she was sitting on. “Please be careful, dear. We already believe that you’ve been training, so there’s really no need for this.”
Marten laughed. “Oh, come now, darling. Aren’t you even a tiny bit curious to see what our little Marlia can do?” He took a seat on the crate next to her and leaned back against the barn, his feet swinging just above the grass.
“Well...I suppose so,” she replied. “Just be careful.”
“You already said that!” Lia groaned. “Besides, it’s not like we’re using our real swords; those are at the keep.” Hana’s face paled as her eyes widened, but a reassuring hand on her back from Marten seemed to keep her from protesting again. “I’m not going to get hurt by a wooden stick!”
“You aren’t going to be injured by a wooden stick,” I corrected with a grin. “Whether you get hurt or not depends on how rusty you are after our break from daily practice.”
“Hey!” Lia huffed indignantly. “That means you’re rusty too!”
I held my hands up in front of me defensively with a chuckle. “Sure, sure. Why don’t we get started? Just the basics at first as a refresher, and then we can move into training with enhancements. Sound good?”
She nodded in response, and we took our starting positions. Our arena was the familiar clearing behind Marten’s barn where I had first taught Lia the basics of using a sword. The empty storage crates had been rearranged to create an arena of bare dirt, just large enough for a sparring match with a full range of motion.
I spun the beheaded broomstick in my hand a few times and readjusted my grip to compensate for the less-than-ideal balance. It was a far cry from the high-quality steel we had grown accustomed to using, but Lia had insisted on practicing as soon as possible. As we slowly rounded the outside of the arena, Marten leaned forward and watched his daughter intently while Hana peeked out over his shoulder with a furrowed brow and shifting eyes.
Lia made the first move of the day. She dashed across the open space and swung out with quick cuts in rapid succession. The wooden sticks clacked angrily in the quiet morning air as her barrage gradually pushed me back towards the ring of crates. “You shouldn’t attack so aggressively,” I called out between bouts. “I know you want to put on a good show for your parents, but don’t let it affect your decisions!” I knew the statement would get a rise out of her, and I watched eagerly for her next move.
“You’re just scared I’m going to get the first hit in!” she yelled as she launched into another series of heavy jabs. “Do you really think I’d—”
The last blow of her assault swung wide, small errors in her form adding up to a final large miscalculation. I brought my stick down with both hands onto her overextended weapon, knocking it from her hand to the dirt where it bounced away behind her. There was a momentary look of shock on her face, but before I could capitalize on my advantage, she closed the distance between us and threw an offhand punch towards my head.
I ducked the punch and dropped my own weapon, the now close-quarters engagement rendering it ineffective. With both hands free, I was able to deflect her blows and throw out my own counterattacks, which she lithely dodged. There was a large grin on her face as we sparred back and forth, and I found myself unable to resist mirroring her expression. It felt good to exert myself in a situation that didn’t have life-or-death consequences again, and I was immensely proud of how well Lia was performing.
The speed of our punches slowed as we both began to pant from exertion. I managed to push her back to the center of our arena with some creative footwork, but she deftly matched my movements without a single misstep and kept fighting. One of my jabs aimed at her ribs flew wide as she spun to my right, and she took advantage of my mistake by snaking a leg between mine and yanking me by the shoulder down into the dirt.
I fell backwards, tripping over her leg and landing hard on my back. Before I had a chance to react, Lia descended upon me; she dove down into a mounting position and attempted to pin my arms to the ground beneath her knees. For a brief moment I thought she had finally beaten me, but as she transitioned to throw a punch down at me, her weight shifted too far forward to hold me down. I spun beneath her just enough to free my arms, allowing me to throw her to the side and scramble to my feet.
We stood to face each other again, now covered in a layer of dirt and sweat. There was a voracity in Lia’s eyes that matched the burning desire for more I felt within me. As I stared her down, eagerly awaiting her next move, I gradually became aware of the sound of applause coming from beside us. Marten had taken to his feet and was cheering loudly beside Hana, who seemed to have traded her nervous demeanor for one of excitement.
I couldn’t help but laugh as I dropped into a relaxed stance. “Alright! I’d say that was a decent warm up, wouldn’t you?”
Lia took a moment to catch her breath, then smiled. “Now we can get to the real practice, right?”
“Warm up?” Marten called out incredulously. “That was some of the best fighting I’ve ever seen! What else do you have to practice?”
“I’d say that was like fighting with one hand behind my back,” Lia replied, moving to retrieve our stick weapons from the dirt. “Now we can pull out all the stops.” She paused as she handed me my broom handle. “Right?”
“Let’s leave Pain Reduction and Strength off the table for now. I’d like to test those out in a more controlled setting first.” I rolled my shoulders and tapped into my mana reserves. “Everything else is fair game.”
We squared off again, this time with a pause to chant out combat enhancements. I watched the world sharpen and oversaturate before me as the mana activated, and I could tell by her expression that Lia was experiencing the same. A cloud of dust kicked out behind her as she sprinted towards me far faster than her first approach. I dug my heels into the dirt and brought my weapon up to block her first attack, an overhead blow which channeled all of her forward momentum.
There was a loud snap as both of our makeshift weapons burst into splinters, showering me with shards of wood. Lia looked up at me with a mix of confusion and amusement, and we both broke out into a fit of laughter. Marten and Hana sat in stunned silence, looking back and forth from one another to where we stood. As our laughter died down, I heard another round of applause, but it came from the opposite end of the barn from where Lia’s parents were seated.
I turned to find Valandra leaning against a stack of crates, her armor sparkling in the midday sun. “That was impressive, Lia. You are far more skilled than I expected,” she called out in her usual monotone voice. “Given the circumstances, that is a great relief.”
“Ah. I suppose it must be midday, then,” I sighed. “We’ll have to end our session here for now, Lia. I promised a meeting to our new acquaintance here.”
Lia nodded but caught my arm as I moved to leave and pulled me down to whisper in my ear. “Are you going to be alright?”
I put a comforting hand on her shoulder and smiled. “I’ll be fine. I’m feeling...a bit better now, thanks to you.” Her cheeks flushed lightly as she returned my smile, and I gave her shoulder a squeeze. With a final nod I turned and crossed the arena to where Valandra stood. “If you could follow me, please,” I said, motioning out toward the road.
As we left, I heard Marten whisper excitedly behind me. “Marlia. Marlia! Is that the King’s Shield? Here, at our house? Why does she know your name? Are you working with her? How did you meet her? Why is…” I let my combat enhancements drop and the whispering faded away behind the gentle midday breeze.
I mulled over what to say as we walked to the edge of the property in silence. After my talk with Lia it was clear that I had to make amends for how I treated Valandra when we last spoke, but that knowledge didn’t make the process of doing so any easier. I stopped when I reached the dirt road at the edge of the front yard and stared out across the empty field before me, still unsure of how to proceed.
“Lux. I have been given new information about the situation in Attetsia,” Valandra started, not waiting for me to turn and address her. “The situation may be more advanced than we originally anticipated. Based on the most recent reports—”
“Wait,” I cut in, spinning to face her. “Before we get into the details, I have something I need to say.” Valandra gave me a nod to continue, watching me with interest. My hands opened and closed at my sides as I took a deep breath. “I need to...apologize for my behavior yesterday. You’ve treated me with nothing but respect since we met, and I was rude and aggressive in response.” My words came haltingly as I chose each one with care, and it took more strength than I had expected to hold her gaze. “I let my past experiences with royalty influence my opinion of you. That was wrong of me, and I’m sorry.”
Valandra’s expression changed for the first time since I met her. Her eyes softened, and I could see the faintest trace of a smile on her lips. “Thank you, Lux. I accept your apo
logy.” The features of her face quickly locked back into the impassive mask that I had come to expect from her. “I had worried that our time together would be difficult, but I am relieved to find that may not be the case.”
I nodded in response. “I will do my best to give you the respect you deserve going forward. I’m sure there will be times where I fail to do so, and I hope you’ll call me out when it happens. Wounds don’t heal overnight, but that’s no excuse for my behavior.” I laughed softly. “I’m sure Lia will do her best to keep me in line, as well.”
A miraculous sound reached my ears in the form of a gentle laugh from Valandra. Some small part of me had believed she was incapable of laughter based on how serious our interactions had been; I smiled, happy to be proven wrong. “She seems to be a very passionate young girl. And capable as well, judging by the display I saw when I arrived.”
“I’ve been training with her for just under a month. I sleep a lot better at night knowing she can protect herself,” I said quietly. My gaze turned to the barn where we had left Lia and her parents. “She’s a good person. Better than me.” The conversation died as I stared off into the distance absentmindedly. When I became aware of the silence, I coughed awkwardly and turned back to Valandra. “Right, enough of that. I interrupted your report; please, continue.”
She held up a hand. “The information can wait. Our mission remains the same, regardless of how much we discuss it.” I raised an eyebrow at her, and she gestured her raised hand back towards the house. “You should enjoy your time here. I expect we will be gone for some time.”
Restart Again: Volume 2 Page 9
