by Lexy Wolfe
Emil turned his head sharply to stare at Almek. "What make ye think...?" The Sevmanan man sighed. "Man, can't pull nothin' pass you Guardian types." Quirking a faint smile, Emil said conspiratorially, "His money pouch an' his pretty silver dagger with th' amethyst. Th' dagger alone'll pay for th' supplies. I'd've given it back if he weren't such an arse." He snorted indignantly. "Insulting th' gypsy folk! Th' nerve!"
"You've not been trying to snitch from any of my students?"
"Are ye kiddin'?" Emil's expression was filled with honest shock at the idea. "I have no wantin' t' see what Storm'd do t' me if I even thought th'idea too loud. I like livin' and if I has to die, I want it t' be quick, and I know full well she'd make it last a long, long time." Almek chuckled softly, patting Emil comfortingly. Pausing a moment, Emil looked at the Dusvet Guardian's profile. "Ye be certain Ganessi had somethin' t' do wi' the fire?"
Almek's expression darkened as he nodded once. "I have no doubts, believe me. I am all too familiar with the Ganessi family temperament. Save for a few anomalies, it has not changed at all since I was a boy."
Emil blinked. "What? Ye were one of their servants 'r somethin'?"
"No. One of their bastards," Almek said bitterly. The gypsy blinked, then looked over his shoulder before putting a hand on Almek's shoulder.
Chapter 67
ASH emerged from the inn, pausing to look around a moment as his eyes adjusted to the sunlight. He took a step back as several laughing children ran by to join the gaggle of youths lining the Blue Rose's corral. His brief scowl eased slightly, following them.
The two Desanti tended to their animals in the training corral. Stiff brushes cleaned the reptilian hide clean of desert sands and ocean salts until the true deep blues and greens of their hides gleamed in the sunlight. Barefoot, Storm lightly climbed onto the drizar's back, the beast raising his head so she could reach his metal capped horns to polish them.
The chatter among the children increased excitedly at the sight. The Swordanzen glanced up at the children, then at each other with amused expressions. Once the cleaning was finished, she clucked her tongue, balancing on the drizar's back as he trotted around to the children. "I see you are curious about my friend."
When Storm addressed the children directly, it started the flood of questions and comments. "What is that?" "It looks like it would eat a whole horse!" "I bet it eats anyone that annoys him." "Would you let it eat my annoying little sister?"
Storm chuckled softly, hopping down from the drizar's back. "They are called drizzen." She put a hand on her companion's shoulder. "This is a drizar. He is to drizzen what your people call a stallion for horses." As if knowing they were discussing him, the drizar bobbed his head, picking up his feet to show off.
"He is kinda ugly," one girl said, the others looking at her in panic, shushing her.
Storm laughed, a quiet, gentle sound. "His beauty is not out here." She put her hand beneath his jaw affectionately, unconditional love for the animal in her eyes. "It is in his heart. We have been together since we were both young." She looked at the children. "Would you like to ride him? He will allow you if I ask him."
As several of the children begged for permission to ride the drizar, Storm picked them by pairs, a small child, and a larger one. Instructing the older child to hold the smaller one, she whispered something to the drizar. The animal calmly trotted around the corral to the delight of the riders and the ones waiting to ride.
"You have a way with children," Ash observed, watching the drizar as he circled.
Storm smiled a little. "Theirs is a purity of heart and joy of life that I swore to protect for as long as it can endure." The drizar lowered himself to the ground to let the children dismount without assistance, two more children climbing astride, screaming in delight as the animal rose again to trot in a circle.
Ash looked at Storm's profile, studying her for a long time. His lips curved into a faint smile, leaning on the fence next to her, content to watch the children ride the drizar. "You enjoy sharing it with them."
Once the children had all had their turns, the drizar trotted over to Skyfire's drizzen, the Desanti man having drawn his sword out. "Through them, I know what I lost." Drawing her own dual-edged blade, she looked to Ash with a matter-of-fact expression. "And why it is so very important to protect it."
As the clash of blades brought awed silence to the children, Ash watched the two Swordanzen train. "It was not lost entirely," he murmured to himself. He looked over his shoulder as Almek joined him. "Was your discussion with Lord Ganessi fruitful, Master Almek?"
"Rather, but I am not sure if it will be for good or ill yet." Almek leaned on the fence next to Ash. As the wind gusted, Almek half closed his eyes, then glanced at the mage, observing the slight shift in his posture. "Can you feel the change in the wind, Ash?"
The mage closed his eyes, going quiet for a moment. "Yes, Master Almek, I do. Something... has shifted. But it is just outside of my grasp."
"Hold onto what you sense, and open your eyes," Almek instructed quietly. As the mage obeyed, Almek nodded as Ash's expression hardened. "What do you see?"
The mage's fingernails dug into the wood as he replied in a low voice. "I see shadows around the Swordanzen. Especially Storm. Though the shadows are not quite able to reach either of them. I can almost see... something. But it is like seeing faces in the curl of candle smoke." He looked at Almek, expression bleak. "Is this what you see all the time?"
"Not only such dire things," Almek assured him. "It is unfortunately easiest to teach you recognize and interpret seeing time traces when danger looms. That you are capable of glimpsing the images at this stage of your training as well reflects your natural strength." He pressed his lips together. "Look at the eyes of the Swordanzen. You can tell they can sense it, too."
Ash studied the pair, their swords clashing, and bodies moving with instinctive, deadly grace. "It seems... different for them. They see without seeing. Know without knowing." He propped his chin on his fist, feeling a twinge of envy. "They had embraced the gifts of Guardians and made them their own long ago."
"Not exactly." Almek's words drew a surprised look from the mage. "For the Swordanzen, survival is being able to anticipate your opponent. They have honed the art of future sight by seeing the minute futures of their opponents' intentions. I believe they have bred the Guardian gifts into their people.
"In Desantiva, only the strongest survive. To be strong, they must constantly test themselves, prove themselves. What they have embraced of the Guardian gifts has become so ingrained, I do not know how to help them grow beyond their patterns, however willing they may be to learn them."
"I do not understand." Ash frowned slightly, troubled. "The same training you give the rest of us should work for them."
"It is different for you and the others. You, Taylin and Mureln each mastered unique arts with unique aspects of the energy used for each. But the training for your arts is quite similar to the training used by Guardians to manipulate temporal energy." Almek paused as he and Ash looked at the Desanti when the children squealed in delight. Storm swept her blade low, Skyfire diving over top of her to roll back to his feet. She spun around, the two once more facing one another. "For you, it is expanding your first instruction to the greater breadth of Guardian skills. The instruction method is familiar, only the medium has changed."
"But if Desanti have the ability to use Guardian magic," Ash asked slowly, "they are not completely bereft of magic as they should be."
Almek sighed, shaking his head. "The Desanti and their kinsmen the Vodani are... different. They do not have magic as you and Sevmanen do. There is a void within them where your people are born with a capacity to gather and to wield life energy. The size of your capacity indicates if you have the strength to be a mage, or a healer, or one of the others who are trained in its use.
"To be a Guardian is not about capacity. A songbird has as much capacity for temporal energy as I do. What is different is my cognition.
The Guardian's purpose is to make sure that no stone thrown into the River of Time unconsciously upsets the great balance. It takes only a strong desire for something to set events into motion to bring them about. We ensure the results are not disastrous."
Ash considered Almek's words, eyes following the Desanti. "So, it is like the difference between someone who is gifted in numbers versus someone who is gifted in horsemanship. There is no difference but perception."
"Correct." Almek sighed softly. "The Desanti use of Guardian magic is more primal. Instinctive. The stronger the gift, the easier it is to use without training. If you do not know that what you see is not what others see, you simply accept it as fact. Desanti learn simply because the sight has given them the edge to survive. They learn... by using it, by needing it to survive."
Ash considered the Desanti. Having watched others train in the physical arts, he suddenly realized what seemed peculiar to him about their training. "She is teaching him. Helping him hone his skills."
The Dusvet Guardian nodded, expression grim. "I fear the day when Skyfire is Storm's equal." Ash focused on Almek, the ring of blade on blade a mere background sound. "It is difficult to scry the futures of those poised to change the courses of the rivers of time. It is especially difficult to scry anything about Storm. But I have seen...
"I have seen clearly what will happen when they are truly equals. That day, if they have not found their true paths as Guardians, if I have failed to expand their world, they will fight. But it will be no training fight. It will be a fight to the death."
Ash inhaled sharply, looking back to the desert folk. "Can you see... which one wins the contest?" he asked, a cold knot settling in the pit of his stomach as he followed Storm's movements.
The Desanti's training came to a halt, the two straightening from their fighting stances. "There will be no winner. We will lose them both."
The Swordanzen bowed to each other, teacher to student, sheathing their swords. Skyfire went over to the gate that joined two halves of the corral, letting the crowded horses into the half they had taken over for their training. Storm approached the two men, bowing to Almek.
She was about to speak when a pebble struck the back of her head. The woman turned to stare incredulously at Skyfire. The man winked, then ran like an errant child. Storm bolted after him, easily leaping the fence and disappearing after him, the watching children cheering wildly and setting off after them.
"Can you not tell them what you have seen? Warn them away from the danger? Order them not to... No." Ash shook his head, answering his own question. "They cling too stubbornly to their traditions. They would not listen to you, even with Storm having sworn an oath to you. She holds her people's ways more important than her own life."
The Guardian sighed softly. "And though I know they are gifted with a degree of scrying I think exceeds the ability of most Unsvet Guardians... I am not sure how to teach them because I cannot determine what they really sense."
Chapter 68
SINCE their departure from Ganessi, the group quickly fell into a routine of travel and stops that would normally become boring quickly, particularly since there was little more than solitary farms or small inns solely existing for travelers on the road. But the camaraderie that had developed made for many discussions that explored the different points of view of the world, sometimes quite lively. For a change, Amelana was silent, eyes downcast. It was a condition that was noted by the others as much for how unusual it was for her as well as how welcomed it was.
The travel would have passed faster but for the pair of Swordanzen. The Desanti slowed their travel with a constant, childlike curiosity and explorations. Every strange rock, every plant, every creature they saw demanded investigation. Even the dew in the early mornings was cause for wonder. It got to a point, Almek finally had to reign them in.
"Storm, Skyfire. I know there is a great deal you wish to explore." Almek's paternal smile was as gentle as his words. "But there is a task that needs to be completed. We should try to get to it as quickly as possible."
The others had to repress laughter at the uncharacteristic sheepishness of the Desanti's expressions. "Of course, Lord Almek. Forgive us." Storm's bow from the drizar's back was almost regal. Until the drizar bowed as well, mimicking his rider's intent, inciting amused laughter.
"Hey! Mage!" Ash looked over at Emil, arching an eyebrow. "When we get t' Forenta, ye think ye could give me an' Emaris directions t' a pleasure house maybe?" The pointy-faced man affected a child's pleading expression. "We ain't stopped long enough anywhere and it's been years! Oof!" He glared at Emaris then corrected himself. "Months!"
Ash smirked. "Perhaps. We will see when we get there." He rolled his eyes at the whoop and rather detailed plans Emil gave voice to. Terrence blushed, chuckling at the smaller mercenary.
Taylin watched Storm as the woman urged the drizar some distance away, standing on his back to extend a hand. The healer smiled when a song bird alighted on Storm's offered finger and trilled. When Mureln joined Taylin, he followed her gaze. "I never realized how much I had taken for granted before we went to Desantiva. I don't know if I could ever return to the desert." She looked at Mureln, troubled. "What will it be like for them to return to the wastelands after being here?"
Mureln shrugged with a wan expression. "I do not know." Smiling gently, he leaned over capture her hand and place a chaste kiss on her knuckles lightly, smiling when she blushed shyly. "Do not let such thoughts preoccupy you, my lovely healer. Just treasure the innocence they can still possess in their hearts." He watched as the song bird took wing, Storm watching it until it vanished. "It is remarkable though. They are not as bitter at the bounty their people do not have as I would have expected."
Ash rode over to Terrence, the young apprentice sitting hunch shouldered with his cowl drawn forward. "Apprentice," Ash said. The young man jumped, startled. "Relax, Terrence," the mage said calmly. After a moment of studying the young man, he said, "Something is bothering you."
The master mage realized that moment how much he had neglected his apprentice because of the demands for attention by Amelana's ineptness. Surprised and gratified to be Ash's focus finally, Terrence nevertheless blushed and looked away silently, the cowl hiding his features more. "It is... difficult to watch the Desanti, Master. I... I still see echoes of Dzee's memories... of Desantiva before the Great War and it is just... just..."
"There is a purpose to all things, Apprentice." Ash paused, then continued more to himself in thoughtful tones. "No matter how terrible things are, each holds a lesson we must learn to become stronger."
The master did not notice his apprentice smiling at him. "Yes, Master Ash."
The wind gusted briefly, and both Swordanzen straightened, looking in the same direction with alert expressions, hands fallen to sword hilts. The others stopped to look around, wondering what brought on the sudden change.
Almek studied the two, tilting his head. He rode over, putting himself in front of the drizzen. "What do you see?"
Neither Swordanzen looked at Almek, as if the question were something that was normal to ask. "I am not sure what it is I see. But I feel something is not right." Skyfire looked at Storm, the woman still unmoving.
"Storm?" Almek frowned. "Storm!"
The Desanti woman continued to stare into space for so long everyone wondered if she had even heard Almek speaking. She reached out one hand to calm the agitated drizar who was growing more unsettled with his mistress's strange behavior. He calmed, but not completely. "I see... flickers of ghosts dancing in the trees," she finally murmured. "Betrayal. Regret. Forgiveness. Mourning." After a moment, she shook her head sharply, quickly mounting. "We should go." Spurring her drizar forward, Skyfire hurried to catch up to her, the man bewildered.
Mureln looked at Almek's blank look of surprise. "Dusvet?"
"I may have underestimated our Storm." Almek's thoughtful words brought no comfort to any of them.
Ash looked at Almek. "She may kn
ow more of the Guardian gifts than you estimated?"
Almek looked at Ash soberly. "She doesn't just see. She feels across time. Farther than I expected. Only a handful of Guardians ever achieve that level of ability." The Guardian fixed Ash with such an intense look, the mage backed away a little.
"What?"
"I wonder what unexpected facets your gifts will bring the Guardians, Illaini Magus." Almek's pensive expression softened as he smiled at the startled mage before he turned his horse to catch up to the Desanti.
The ride was uneventful for the rest of the day, as it had been for the many days it had been since they departed Ganessi. Up until both drizzen suddenly balked, hissing malevolently. The others quickly drew back as the Desanti focused on getting them calmed again.
Emil looked as bewildered as the rest of them. "What be that about?"
Ash pressed his lips together before he finally answered the gypsy mercenary. "We are at the border of Forenta." He pulled his mare around, turning away from the pair of Desanti. "I had no idea they would be able to tell—"
"Of course we can tell." Storm's words were clipped. Flashing an irritated look towards the Forenten, she visibly struggled to reign her temper in. "My people were forbidden from your lands long before the Great War. It has become a part of all our land." She leaned forward, vigorously rubbing the drizar's neck, murmuring in Desanti to calm him.
Ash grimaced faintly, looking at the back of his right hand a moment. Decisively, he spurred his mare across the invisible border, then turned back. "From this day forward, Forenta extends welcome to Desantiva's children."
The others were bewildered when the pair of drizzen suddenly calmed at the Illaini Magus' simple words. Flattened ears swiveled forward, tension draining from their haunches. Even the two Desanti relaxed. With only a moment more hesitation, the four desert dwellers crossed into Forenta.
