The Raging One

by Lexy Wolfe

  "Four days?" Ash considered and nodded to himself in satisfaction. "That is not bad at all. It usually takes no less than three mages to strip the magic from the condemned without risk to the mages, and then no less than five days for them to recov— Storm!" Ash's heart nearly stopped when Storm missed the edge of the bridge and fell. She deftly caught one of the ropes looped underneath and used the momentum to swing back onto the bridge and land lightly on her feet behind Skyfire. Her eyes turned unerringly up towards Ash and Almek.

  Almek put a hand on Ash's shoulder reassuringly. "She has done well becoming accustomed to life in the trees."

  Skyfire followed Storm's unwavering stare, relaxing from his fighting posture and sheathing his blade. He caught Storm's hand, the rope having reopened the wound from the trial. He pulled out a strip of cloth, deftly wrapping her hand as he spoke to her.

  The woman eventually uncoiled, returning her blade to its sheath, her eyes still never wavering until she turned to run back towards Naveene's Rest.

  The sky seemed to echo the Desanti woman's mood, rumbling with the promise of an impending thunder storm. Ash gazed at the sky in bemusement. "She is aptly named, isn't she?" he said more to himself than Almek. He turned to look at the Guardian. "Perhaps you should check on the others before she gets here?"

  Almek nodded, putting a hand on Ash's shoulder in concern. "I have nearly lost you both at least once already. Just don't kill each other, please." Ash merely shrugged one shoulder noncommittally. Alone, he returned to his sleeping area to await Storm's arrival.

  Hearing footsteps, Ash rose just as the heavy privacy curtain was nearly pulled off its fixture. Storm closed the space between them swiftly without a word, raising her uninjured hand and slapping him with a sound crack. He did not attempt to block the strike, calmly touching the corner of his mouth and examining his blood as she seethed.

  "I thought you were dead!" Green-gold eyes glittered with emotion. She raised her hand again, but this time he caught her wrist, holding her firmly. "Let me go!" she demanded, trying to pull away.

  Calmly, Ash shook his head. "No. What I did to Amelana had to be done. I did not trust the Edai Tredecima would follow through with the morelmi, despite the laws dictating it had to be done."

  "I do not care what it was. It nearly killed you!"

  The mage nodded solemnly. "It would have, but for you." His lips twitched into a rueful smile. "As I saved you from your Final Dance, you saved me from mine."

  Storm stopped struggling, studying him warily. "I did nothing. I have no magic as your people have. What little I have of Guardian power is novice at best."

  Ash could not help but smile outwardly. "If what you displayed in the Majestic Hall was novice, you will be fearsome once you master it." He allowed her to tug her arm away, watching as she turned her back on him to hide her emotions.

  "Father taught me a Desanti's true power is in their heart. It is only a matter of focus, of will. We have nothing as your people. It was stolen from us in the Great War." Bitterly, she whispered, "Yours are the more powerful of our peoples."

  Ash shook his head, his words echoing the gesture. "I disagree. I reached this place only with your help before I had to give into sleep. But the spell that pulls the magic from a living thing is lethal to the caster if the burden is not shared. Usually." His voice was hushed as he took a step nearer to her. "Alone, it is akin to your Final Dance."

  Storm finally turned around, staring at him with her arms crossed. "What I did in Desantiva and what you did here are not the same thing. I had to destroy all the raiders. If even one lived they would have hounded all of you as long as you were in Desantiva. Amelana was merely one worthless woman. She was not worth your life!"

  "Amelana knew the dark arts. The corruption had to be removed; else her poison would have spread." Ash looked away. "But our reasons for self-sacrifice were not dissimilar."

  Snarling, Storm turned to stalk out. "Liar!"

  Ash grabbed her arm and forcibly turned her around to face him. "You felt shame for things you believed were failures to your people. It was how I felt about... Dessa. Bennu. All those I could not save."

  "Let go of me," she demanded, trying to pull away.

  "We both sought death to atone for those failures," Ash stated intently, holding her arms firmly. "It is as your father said. Your power is in your heart. When I hovered on the edge between life and death, I heard you." She stopped struggling, her expression dubious. "How could I abandon you? I could feel your wounds. I knew your pain. I could hear your tears."

  "What are you talking about? I have not shed tears since the Vodani ship. And that was for my homeland. I do not shed tears for myself. That is weak!"

  Ash smiled gently, touching her cheek with the back of one finger as if catching a tear. "No. You do not shed tears for yourself. Not where anyone else can see, you do not." He held her tight as she tried to pull away again, pulling her against him, and wrapping his arms around her. "I am sorry I frightened you," he said with soft sincerity, resting his cheek on her hair.

  Briefly, Storm struggled to pull away before returning the embrace. She held on with the fierce intensity of a frightened child, trembling. He looked down at her as her embrace loosened. The mage staggered a few steps when she slapped him hard again.

  "If you ever almost die like that again, I will kill you myself," Storm stated heatedly before turning on her heel to stalk out.

  Ash looked down at the floor, blinked at several small shining, pools of dark red. Realizing suddenly why he could physically overpower the woman, the mage pushed off the wall to run after her. "Storm!"

  He caught her at the top of the stairs before she fell, grabbing her wounded hand at the wrist to slow the flow of blood. "Taylin!" the mage bellowed down the stairs as he sat with Storm on the top step. "Foolish girl, haven’t you eaten anything since we got here?! Or let the healer tend to you? Your obstinacy is going to kill you yet!"

  Before the running feet below reached them, he whispered in her ear harshly, "Do not think I won’t do the same to you if you almost die again." Seeing Storm smile faintly, Ash just shook his head, tightening his arm around her as Taylin arrived, immediately taking her wounded hand to heal. "Stubborn Swordanzen."

  "Stubborn mage."

  Chapter 74

  OBLIVIOUS to the cold rain, Ash stood before the heavy door for a long time before he finally reached up to the ornate knocker, tapping it three times on the metal plate inset into the heavy wood. He smiled at the old woman who peered around the door as she gaped at him. "By the goddess!" Turning deep red, the woman quickly lowered her eyes. "Illaini Magus! It has been so long since you visited, I beg your forgiveness for my disrespect—"

  "You need not lower your eyes to me, Clarissa," Ash said quietly. "You've known me since Bennu brought me home."

  The woman looked up, studying him intently before offering him a gentle, motherly smile, her voice taking on a maternal scolding. "Come in before you catch your death of a cold, young man."

  Ash could not help but smile a little. "I would never have imagined I would have missed hearing you chiding me, Clarissa." His expression turned solemn as he looked towards a hall. "Is he home?"

  "Of course. He has been in his study since the trial." Clarissa took the soaked cloak from Ash's shoulders, then put a hand on his arm. "Do be kind to him, would you? That girl’s antics broke his heart." Ash only nodded, patting her hand before heading down the hall.

  Ash opened the door to the study, memories of his childhood flooding his mind’s eye briefly. He closed his eyes, letting the scent of the cherrinut wood carry him to a happier time when he sat on the floor in front of the fire with Bennu, learning how to read from one of the ancient tomes lining the walls.

  Opening his eyes to the present, he noticed how much things had changed. Before, the twin mages were inseparable, always together in this room. Now, Ellis sat alone, staring into the fire, looking even older than before. "Master Ellis?"

  Ell
is’s eyes snapped open and he straightened in surprise. "Ash! I did not expect—"

  Ash lowered his eyes and said simply, "I know. May I come in?" he asked, remaining at the threshold.

  The old man smiled tiredly. "Of course, dear boy. You have always been welcome here." He gestured for Ash to come in and sit. "How is your Desanti girl doing? I heard rumor she had fallen ill from the trial. That was quite an impressive display. Ithesra is still buzzing about it."

  Ash entered slowly and paused to bow respectfully to Ellis before pausing by the empty chair, caressing the carvings lightly before sitting. "Storm is doing well. Master Almek and the others are making sure she allows herself to recover completely." He shook his head. "The woman would not rest until I woke up. She is incomprehensibly stubborn."

  The old man chuckled softly. "Reminds me of a boy who used to sit with his master by this very fire not so many years ago."

  The Illaini Magus smiled briefly. He sighed, lowering his eyes as he spoke softly. "Master Ellis, I wanted to apologize about Amelana—"

  Ellis shook his head, scowling. "Do not mention that creature’s name. The remaining members of the Edai Tredecima gave me a boon and stripped her of the Avarian name so her blight no longer taints my House." He flicked a nutshell into the fire, the ashes bursting in a small cloud of sparks before settling. "She was as much my fault as yours. If I had not been so determined to hold onto you, so desperate to restore the Avarian household, I’d never have let that slut’s spawn near you."

  Ash blinked several times. "I beg your pardon, Master?"

  Ellis did not look at Ash, grumpily shifting in his chair. "Neither that creature nor her mother possessed a drop of Avarian blood in their veins. Her mother had married in. I was quite aware that Amelana was not her father’s child, but an Oberlain bastard."

  The fire crackled softly in the silence before Ash spoke again. "Then why...?"

  "Because she was the only way I knew to try to give you your name back within our people’s traditions and still protect you." Ellis's frustration was obvious. "I was fool enough to let myself believe there was some hope she would change for the better in your company."

  Ash just stared at Ellis uncomprehendingly. "Give me my name back? What do you mean?"

  Ellis sighed heavily, closing his eyes. "I suppose it is time to stop trying to protect you and explain." The old man looked over at Ash sadly. "Long before you were born, Bennu and I could see that the Great Houses of Forenta were growing weaker. Poor matches produced weaker instead of stronger children. Strong mages fell to an ever growing number of mishaps or illnesses. Even promising children were dying before they could even begin to seek their destinies. All those from the old families appeared to be targeted.

  "Bennu and I... we watched our sons and daughters, then our grandchildren... die. About twenty years ago, there was a darkling attack on a small village named Andar in the northern reaches where Bennu’s youngest son had settled with his new family. By the time we got there, everyone in the village was gone except for Bennu’s grandson."

  "...what?" Ash stared at Ellis.

  "The only way we knew to protect the boy was to let people think we brought back a lowborn foundling." Ellis looked sadly at Ash, tears shimmering in his eyes. "It broke our hearts watching you grow up being treated so horribly. Bennu wanted to adopt you, give you a true family. But you showed promise so early, and I feared if you had the Avarian name at all, that whomever or whatever had targeted the gifted would discover the ruse." He rested his head against the back of the chair. "We used Forentan bigotry against them."

  Ash sat back in his chair, staring in shock. "Bennu... was my..."

  "Grandfather," Ellis confirmed. "After Bennu died, you were furious at everyone. Most of all at yourself because you could not save him. I wanted to tell you the truth then. Goddess, how I wanted to tell you. Ysai eroded the respect for the goddess and the Illaini all because she believed you were merely lowborn. But it kept her from seeing you as more of a threat.

  "Our people put so much weight on birthright, I feared... what would have happened if you were not only an acknowledged master, but high born." Ellis said bitterly, "I would have rather had the Avarian name die than be the cause of my brother’s grandson’s death." Ellis closed his eyes. "If you never forgive me, I could not blame you."

  Ash looked up at Ellis. "You were still family in spirit to me, even if I did not know we were family by blood. I should not have turned my back on you." He managed a sad smile. "I do not know if... I would have been as receptive to all this before now." He looked down at his hand. "So many things have changed."

  "Many things have, yes," Ellis agreed. "Dessa... she was a bastard child of one of the other Ancient Houses. A strong family. We had hoped to match you with her, to strengthen the Avarian bloodline. No one should have cared about two lowborn youths. But then you both were attacked and you blamed yourself for not being strong enough to keep her safe, even though you were only a student, not even a full apprentice. You were fiercely protective of her, but you never let her close." Ellis sighed softly. "You never let anyone close. Then when Bennu died..."

  Ash closed his eyes tightly, Storm’s words echoing in his mind. "I chose to be alone," he murmured dismally.

  "Unfortunately, perhaps the wisest course. Gods know what that creature Amelana might have done if she had been able to get close to you. Or worse." The old man’s face was grim. "What you would have done in your grief if you lost yet another person you cared for."

  Ash sighed, leaning forward, putting his face in his hands, struggling to come to terms with the old beliefs of his life and the new realities. "I... have a family?"

  "If you choose, Ash. Andar. Avarian. Names mean nothing. You are Illaini Magus, and I know... your parents would have been proud of you." Feeling Ellis’s hand on his shoulder, he looked up at the old man. "Let someone into your heart someday, Ash. No one should spend their lives alone."

  "I will... Uncle." The old man smiled, a tear rolling down his cheek. Ash stood and embraced the old man tightly.

  Chapter 75

  THE evening meal at Naveene's Rest became a celebration of the Illaini Magus's miraculous recovery despite the cold, dismal rain that was still falling outside. Almek and his students were treated to a lavish meal with food and drink aplenty.

  Ash sat next to Storm, both mage and warrior silent as the others laughed and talked. No matter how anyone would cajole her, Storm still would not eat anything. The mage wanted to scold her, but he could not rouse a hint of ire. Not when her motivations had been rooted in such an unconditional, untainted concern for his own welfare that she completely disregarded her own. Unlike Amelana...

  Shaking his head, Ash firmly pushed the distasteful memories of the years with Amelana and her poisonous motivations out of his mind. Unlike that hated woman, Storm had proven herself time and again to only have the most honest motivations behind her often bewildering behavior. Knowing it was no attempt to garner pity or attention, Ash tried to understand why Storm would continue to risk her health.

  Mureln and Skyfire drew the mage's attention. The bard was praising a particular vintage of wine given to him, and took a sip from his glass before offering it to the Swordanzen man for him to taste himself. He thought about the ritualistic gesture when the Desanti would drink from their waterskins before offering it to another.

  Memories of when the Desanti brought them food in First Home came to mind. At first, they all assumed the picking bits of the food was a childish behavior, or one born of living in wastelands that snitching bites of food was a habit born of necessity. Knowing the Desanti culture was not as childishly naïve as he had once assumed, he realized the actions may have been rooted in another reason. To test his theory, Ash pushed his plate between himself and Storm. He continued eating calmly, watching her. It was not long before she wrinkled her nose before daintily eating the offered food.

  "Is that why you won’t eat? You don’t trust it?"

 
"Eating what you do not recognize is asking to be poisoned," she replied simply. "I was lucky to survive poisoning once. It is not an experience I want to repeat." She glanced at Skyfire and shook her head. "Some are more trusting than others."

  "Most people would not starve themselves to death," he pointed out with a half smile. She just looked at him sidelong and he held up his hands. "Forgive me. You are not most people." She only smiled faintly very briefly before becoming troubled again. His smile faded in concern. He reached to touch the back of her hand to get her lost attention again. "What’s wrong?"

  "I miss my home." Silent for a time, she glanced up briefly as Mureln began playing his mandolin at the others’ urging. "I do not belong here."

  Ash frowned and looked around the room. "Have you been harassed by my people?"

  "I know they fear me. They fear you, too. But they love you. You are one of them. The best of them. I am..." She sighed. "An enemy." She spoke slowly, choosing her words carefully. "No matter the outcome, once I have done what I came here to do... I must return to where I belong. I must return to Desantiva."

  Ash snorted dismissively as he reached over to replenish the food on their shared plate. "You belong with Master Almek. You have sworn yourself to him just as I had. You cannot leave him."

  "Do not make this harder for me than it already is, mage." Storm fixed him with a hard look, her voice as sharp as the edge of one of her blades. "I do not belong here. No Desanti belongs outside of Desantiva."

  Ignoring the silence that had fallen over the others at the table, Ash met glare for glare with the Swordanzen. "Stop acting stupid, Swordanzen. You belong anywhere you want to belong, and you belong with Master Almek."

  "I have already spoken to Lord Almek! He understands why I must return to my people." Storm shoved the plate away and stalked out of the Rest. Servants nearly fell over themselves to get out of her way, whispering among each other as they stared at the retreating Swordanzen woman's back and flicked glances at the Illaini Magus. Ash rose with a scowl on his face, intent on following her.