by Eric Vall
“Thank you,” I said with a dip of my head, but then my vision swam, and my knees began to buckle.
Aurora and Cayla tightened their arms around me to keep me from falling face first into the dirt.
“Let’s head back to my inn,” Serlo grunted as he took in my exhausted state. “I’ll fix ya a hot meal and some warm mulled mead.”
My stomach grumbled at the offer, but I couldn’t help it as I turned and gestured to the gaping twenty feet wide hole in the wall.
“What about the gates?” I asked. “The sun will set soon, and if I head back to the inn now, I’m not coming out until morning. If you want, I can seal the town in for the night, just to be safe.”
“No need,” Serlo replied as he shook his head. “The boys are finishin’ ‘em up now.”
He jerked a thumb over his shoulder, and I glanced behind him to see about a dozen men hammering away at some wood. When I looked back to the bartender in confusion, he only shrugged.
“We took extra wood from some of the abandoned buildings,” he explained. “Nothin’ fancy, but it’ll do for tonight. I’m sure those bastard bandits won’t know what to do with themselves when they ride over the prairie to find the Fortress of Keld.”
A sharp grin slashed across his face, and I smiled back in return.
“Then I think my work is done for tonight,” I said as I straightened up a little and slung my arms over Aurora and Cayla’s shoulders. “What did you say you had in the way of food again?”
We started to inch our way back to Serlo’s inn, but the going was slow since my body felt like it wanted to rattle apart.
“Again, nothin’ fancy,” Serlo said in response to my question. “We got some bread, some hard cheeses… oh! Henry caught some sod poodles just yesterday that I’ve been meanin’ to fix up.”
“Some what now?” I asked as my face twisted in bewilderment.
“Sod poodles,” the bartender repeated as he glanced over at me. “Ya know, little furry rodents that pop their head out the ground and make a mess of holes.”
I racked my brain for an answer, and then I threw back my head and laughed.
“You mean prairie dogs?” I asked incredulously.
Serlo waved his hand dismissively. “Maybe that’s what y’all call ‘em up north, but down here we call ‘em sod poodles.”
“Duly noted,” I chuckled, “but either way, I’ll take whatever you have to offer.”
“Ain’t much,” Serlo grumbled, “those bastards took almost everythin’, even the water.”
He paused and waved a hand at the broken water pump I had noticed on my way into town. The slat of wood propped up against it told of its inoperative status, but I couldn’t see any outright damage.
“What did they do to it?” I asked as I furrowed my brow.
“Snapped the mechanism inside so we’d be more dependent on them,” Serlo sighed. Then he reached out and pushed on the pump’s lever, and it jangled loosely in its stand. “Our blacksmith could have fixed it, but he was one of the first to stand up to the bandits. The Boss didn’t take too kindly to that. Now we don’t have a blacksmith.”
“I’m sorry,” I said in response to his somber tone.
“World’s like that sometimes. What’re ya gonna do?” the bartender shrugged again
“Well, I could fix the pump for one,” I offered with a tired grin.
Serlo narrowed his eyes at me. “What, with more magic?”
“Yup,” I nodded. “Watch.”
I took a step toward the water pump, but Aurora held fast to my waist.
“Mason, save that for tomorrow,” the Ignis Mage said with a frown.
“It will take less than a minute,” I reasoned with her. “Besides, I’m already bone tired. What’s one last bit of magic?”
The half-elf pursed her lips but relented. “Fine. I guess we’ll simply have to catch you before you fall on your ass.”
“Thanks, love,” I replied with a lopsided smile. Then I turned and stepped up to the water pump.
My hand still shook as I outstretched it, but the moment my palm came in contact with the sun-warmed iron, a zap of static shot through me. I closed my eyes and concentrated as I funneled the last remnants of my power into the metal contraption.
Magic radiated out of my hand and down into the water pump. As it went, it sent me back vague images and impressions of what the mechanism inside looked like, kind of like a bat’s echolocation. I found the cracked piston and then the two shattered regulator valves. I took a deep, bracing breath, and then I ordered my magic to wrap around the broken pieces and fix them.
The drain from using my powers felt like the tide going out to sea. I could have sworn the ground moved beneath me, but then I realized I was just swaying in place, my muscles turned to jelly and my bones to toothpicks.
When I released the magic, I gasped and stumbled backward. Aurora and Cayla’s hands immediately shot up to catch me, and even Serlo braced a hand against my shoulder.
“Alright there?” the bartender asked as he peered into my face.
“Try that,” I rasped in response, and I jerked my chin toward the pump.
Serlo hesitated a moment, but then he let go of my shoulder and took a step forward. His large hand wrapped around the iron lever and then he gave it a series of hard pumps.
At first, nothing happened, and I could see the disappointment slowly creep into Serlo’s face, but then there was a loud gurgle, and water started gushing out of the spout.
“Gods be damned,” Serlo muttered as he stared at the clear and fresh water with wide eyes. “Ya actually did it.”
“Sure did,” I muttered as my vision flickered again, “now how about you pour me a nice tall glass of that honey-wine you mentioned, and I think I will take those sod poodles now.”
Serlo threw back his head and laughed. “Son, I’ll give ya every scrap of food we got left, and I’ll supplement the rest with booze.”
Then the bartender clapped me hard on the shoulder and steered me toward his inn for a well-deserved meal.
Chapter 3
I woke with a start in a darkened room, and my magic eddied like a maelstrom beneath my skin and clenched muscles. For a brief instant, a pale and beautiful face flashed in my mind’s eye, but then it evaporated like mist, and my power receded back into the deepest parts of me.
I tried to remember my dream, but it slipped through my fingers like water. All I could remember was the vague impression of Nemris’ face. Was she trying to speak with me again?
I exhaled shakily and looked around me as my brain slowly came online. I remembered I was in Cedis and this was a room inside The Prairie Inn. It wasn’t a very big space, maybe ten by fifteen feet. The bed was pushed up against the far corner, under the window, and the only other furniture was a small end table set beside the door.
Aurora and Cayla slept peacefully on either side of me. The bed was a little small for three people, but we made do. It wasn’t exactly a hardship after all to have two insanely gorgeous and nude women pressed against me all night.
I sighed in contentment, tucked my nose into Aurora’s hair, and inhaled the half-elf’s piney scent as I tried to fall back asleep.
But something nagged incessantly at me.
I groaned softly as I opened my eyes again and tried to remember something, anything, about my dream. As I laid there scowling at the ceiling, I saw a glint of silver out the corner of my eye. I turned my head slowly so as not to wake the women asleep against my chest, and my eyes fell on the leather bag I had tossed on the end table by the door the night before.
The flap had fallen open, and some of the contents had spilled from the bag’s agape mouth. The item that had caught my eye was a small piece of metal, no bigger than my palm. It was thin, and silver, and it had the approximation of arms and legs.
I held my breath and waited for it to move, but nothing happened.
I recalled the tiny stickman and how he waddled around my palm two nights ago. I h
ad wanted to wake Aurora and Cayla right after Nemris left, but I was concerned that revealing my new powers would raise too many questions, questions about how I got them, questions that would eventually lead to where I was really from, so I had gone to work on Bobbie instead.
I also thought that dropping this truth bomb on them before we set out on such a grand quest would be a mistake. The fact that I was from another world would probably be a lot to process for my two lovers, and there wasn’t a lot of time for contemplation or hesitancy in bandit country. The kingdom of Cedis was at stake after all.
So, I had decided to wait until we reached Eyton to tell them. Before either of them had awoken the morning before, I used a bit of magic to distort the rune I had carved into the stickman’s chest to bring him to life. He had toppled motionless into my hand like I had flipped a switch, and I had stowed him in my bag immediately after. Since then, I hadn’t had the time to test or experiment with my new powers, but my magic itched restlessly beneath my skin like it was eager to try something different.
I sighed as I looked back to Aurora and Cayla’s faces. At this rate, if the other towns of Cedis were as bad off as Keld, it might take us days to reach the capital city. Also, I bet Camus Dred would start looking for me soon. He probably wasn’t too happy with me killing his men and stealing a town out from under his nose, but, as they said back on Earth: Fuck that guy.
I needed to tell my lovers the truth, all of it, about my powers, Nemris, and my past. This new magic in my blood could be useful in the coming days and weeks, and I’d only be jeopardizing the mission if I kept my secrets hidden.
Even more than that, though, I needed to know that Aurora and Cayla were fully on my side. If I was going to take down a bandit boss, as well as some evil magical master, I was going to need a little support.
My gaze roved over Cayla’s sweet, sleeping expression, and my heart gave a familiar lurch.
I let my eyes shift over to Aurora, and my eyes swept over her soft mouth and pale cheeks as she twitched in her sleep. Unable to stop myself, I leaned forward to brush my lips over her nose, and the half-elf sighed pleasurably.
I pulled back an inch and watched as the Ignis Mage slowly blinked open her emerald green eyes.
“Good morning,” I whispered with a smile.
“Mornin’,” Aurora mumbled back as her jaw cracked with a yawn. Then she smacked her lips and nuzzled against my shoulder. “Have you been watching me sleep again?”
“Only a little,” I admitted, and I ran my fingers gently down the length of her bare arm. “Can you blame me though?”
Aurora’s lips twitched with the beginnings of a smirk, but when she fluttered open her eyes again, her mouth quickly dipped into a frown.
“What is wrong, Mason?” she asked softly as she reached up and stroked the beard on my chin. “Your eyes looked troubled.”
I blinked in surprise, but then a small smile pulled at my lips. “Can’t get anything past you, can I?”
“No,” Aurora answered simply. “Now, what is it?”
“I… need to talk to you about something,” I sighed, “but we have to wait for Cayla to wake up because I want to tell you both at the same time.”
“I’m awake,” a quiet voice replied, and I turned my head slightly to see the princess blink her ice-blue eyes open.
“Oh.” My heart skipped a beat as I realized this was the moment of truth. “Well… right then. Actually, do you want to get some breakfast first? I think this conversation might be easier on a stomach full of sod poodle.”
I made to sit up and slide out of the bed, but Aurora caught my arm.
“You cannot say something like that and then run,” the half-elf said as she frowned at me. She sat up slightly against the pillows, and as the blanket slid down her chest, my eyes latched on to the exposed and pale skin.
“I… uh… what was I talking about?” I mumbled. Faint morning light spilled between the cracks around the curtain, and it illuminated the silhouette of Aurora’s nude figure. I had to stop myself from leaning forward and planting my lips against her sternum.
Cayla slapped me gently on my opposite shoulder. “Do not think your heated gazes will distract us. What did you need to tell us?”
I winced and pushed myself upright. “It’s… a little difficult, and a bit of a long story.”
Both women raised an eyebrow at me, and I racked my brain for a place to begin.
“I think it’ll be easier if I just show you,” I said, and then I patted Aurora’s hand to release me.
When the half-elf let go, I scooted to the end of the bed and stood up. The morning air was cool against my bare skin, but I shivered and shook it off. Then I walked over to my bag and picked up the little silver stickman. The metal was cold on my palm, but that quickly changed as I summoned up my magic and re-carved the rune Nemris had shown to me two days ago.
At first, nothing happened, but then a faint whitish glow enveloped the stick figure. When it faded, I felt the little stick man twitch.
I turned back to the two women in bed and held out my hand. Just as they leaned forward curiously, the stickman’s whole body jerked, and he lifted his head.
Aurora reeled back, her emerald eyes wide as dinner plates. “What in the name of the gods?”
Cayla’s mouth had fallen open, and she scrambled to pull the sheet tighter against her bare chest. “I… how did you…?”
“It’s okay.” I held up my free hand in a soothing gesture. “He doesn’t bite… at least I think he doesn’t.”
I peered down at the little stickman as he toddled to his feet. His head was a smooth, featureless ball, sans mouth, teeth, or any other facial characteristics, but somehow, he exuded a sense of personality. He waddled to the edge of my palm like he had the first time and craned his neck to look at the ground. Then he glanced up at me for a second as if to gauge my reaction before he took a step forward and tumbled out of my hand.
Cayla gasped loudly, and my magic reacted instinctively. Before the stickman could smash into the ground, my power jerked him to a stop an inch off the floor. I gingerly set him down on his feet, and he immediately began to walk forward toward the bed.
Well, it was more of a waddle since his legs didn’t really bend. In fact, he kind of looked like a two-dimensional sketch brought to life, something a child would draw before they learned the concept of joints like knees and elbows.
“W-what’s it doing?” Aurora asked as we watched the stick figure approach the bed. The two women had drawn their legs up under them like they were worried the little thing would bite their toes off.
“I-I’m not really sure,” I admitted as I rubbed the back of my neck. “This is only the second time I’ve used this power.”
“When was the first?” the half-elf followed up as she glanced at me and then back to the stickman.
“The night of the feast,” I confessed with a sigh, “after we went to sleep.”
The stick figure had reached the foot of the bed, and he stopped next to one of the wooden legs as if he was contemplating his next move. Then he continued to walk forward, and he rebounded off the bed’s leg with a small ping. He stumbled backward and pinwheeled his arms to stay upright, and when he regained his balance, he tried again.
The results stayed the same.
“Why didn’t you tell us sooner?” Cayla asked, and I lifted my eyes from the stick figure to meet the princess’s gaze. Her pink lips were turned down in a slight frown, and her porcelain brow furrowed delicately.
“Well, one reason was that I didn’t want anything to distract us before we set off on our journey,” I said as I rubbed at the goosebumps that had risen on my arms. I cast my eyes around the small room and saw my clothes crumpled in the corner. I walked over to them and pulled on my pants first and then my shirt. Having this conversation while naked made me feel a little more vulnerable than I liked.
“You make it sound as if that is not the main reason,” Aurora observed as she pursed her lips.
“That’s because it’s not,” I replied with a sigh.
I walked back over to the bed and then stooped down to pick up the little stickman that was still smacking headfirst into the leg of the bed. When I sat down on the edge of the mattress, I set him on the blankets.
“Then what is the main reason?” Cayla asked with a tilt of her head.
“I think the more important question is how you were able to do this at all,” Aurora cut in as she watched the stick figure struggle across the mountain range of the bedding. “Your metal mage abilities were a shock, but they still operate under the same premise of other elemental magic. This… I’ve never seen or heard of anyone bringing inanimate objects to life.”
“Funnily enough, the answer to both of those questions is one and the same,” I said with a wince. “Before I give that answer though, I want to say one thing.”
My heart had begun to pound like a jackhammer beneath my ribs, and sweat beaded along my hairline and the nape of my neck. I took a deep breath and exhaled shakily.
“Mason, you’re scaring us,” Cayla said with a deep frown, and her ice-blue eyes were wide with trepidation.
“That’s exactly what I don’t want,” I chuckled without humor. Then I reached out and took both Aurora and Cayla’s hands. “I never want to scare you or hurt you, and that’s why I’ve kept this secret.”
“What secret?” Aurora asked as her spine went ramrod straight. I could tell by the hurt in her emerald gaze that Abrus’ betrayal had wounded her deeply, and the pain was still fresh.
I sighed and squeezed both of their hands. My own had started to shake a little.
“I don’t know where the best place to start is, so I’m just going to try my best,” I told the two women. “I-I mislead you when we first met, Aurora.”
The half-elf inhaled sharply and tried to withdraw her hand from my grasp, but I held on tightly.
“How so?” she asked, and there was an edge of steel in her tone.
“Not in the way you’re afraid of,” I assured her. “I bear no ill will toward Illaria or Cedis for that matter. I really have come here to learn my new powers and help in any way I can.”
