The next few days were a blur, I didn't really do anything, just rested under strict orders from everyone, and I do mean everyone. Lia, our parents, her extended family, townspeople, guards, the bard that travelled between the town and outlying villages who had apparently been hired for our reception; In fact, all I had contributed was getting measured for adjustments on a premade suit, help inform people it was happening (Awkwardly) but mostly I just watched as Lia, storyteller, master, Lord, and Lia's parents enacted plans years in the making.
It was then that I realised in the five years I had known them I hadn't even bothered to learn the names of my betrothed's parents and decided to right the wrong immediately. I wasn't quite sure how to broach the subject, whilst I had come a long way, I was still socially inept, so I just outright apologised and asked.
I didn't really know how they would respond, but I wasn't expecting the laughter they replied with, nor was I expecting Lia to kiss me on the cheek, tell me it was about time, then skip out of the house and leave us alone.
I asked if I was missing something else, and they simply said that I most likely was, then told me to just call them mum and dad. I fidgeted at the thought, having only recently started calling Storyteller by a parental title, they added they would tolerate nothing less from me but if I wasn't comfortable, I could continue to simply omit name or title.
It was weird, but as they said those words, I couldn't recall how I had managed to communicate with them up to this point. I felt ashamed, more so because of how accepting they were, I hugged them both and thanked them for accepting such a wreck into their family. A short while later Lia opened the door and told me we'd been summoned to the manor, leaving us confused as we made our way there, hand in hand.
Lord met us halfway, Captain and two rider less horses in tow, and we were told to mount up and follow. I used unity to check him before we followed his order, but with that showing nothing abnormal we done as we were asked. I knew the direction we were headed, the hill where a tree once stood, a place I had not returned to since the location was robbed of its familiarity, the scorched earth and obliterated trunk almost physically painful to see. Lia still carries a twinge of guilt for knocking down the tree, she panicked when she heard of my collapse and seemed to put a quick end to the fighting.
I had to tell her not to worry, when Lord signals us to stop, turning and asking if I can do anything to reconstitute the area. I nodded in response, but inform him that magic can't restore the tree, so as magic works on the ground and surrounding area I also ask it to hold the massive fallen oak in place on its damaged trunk.
I then tell Lia I'm going to test the weariness, I could feel it building in me regardless, and at Lia's approval I embraced it, my desire to see this place restored as a focus but nothing happened. I was growing frustrated when Lord recounted his words that I shouldn't flex my power to get my point across, that I should instead take a breath and think about everything I do know. Taking the advice, I quickly saw his meaning, this first came about when I went to the hall of creators, so with that in mind I instead focused myself on creating a symbol.
The weariness hit me head on and I found myself in the hall once more. I immediately looked to the throne, but the obsidian gleam was clear and the throne sat empty, then I was run through. Obsidian was protruding from my chest, my blood running to dripping from a tip as it travelled along rough channels in its surface.
"This is my domain, and I grow tired of your incessant trespass'." I laughed, spluttering blood, I attempted to ask magic to heal me, but none existed there. So I decided to use the weariness, repairing myself from the inside out, my chest was now glistening like the figures throne.
I explained to him that my wife was going to be angry as hell when I returned, then asked something I should have the first time he told me the name of this alien realm. Why was the place called the hall of creators when there was only one, the question struck hard and whilst neither I nor unity could see the figure clearly, it was obvious I provoked a response of some nature. Whilst I awaited the consequences of my question I stroked the crystalline surface of my chest, pondering Lia's reaction.
As the thought crossed my mind the figure asked me if I truly felt comfortable enough to worry about such trivialities. I answered yes without hesitation, adding that nothing I do can save me, hypothesising that I suspected we were in fact equal in power, but the gap in experience was certainly beyond anything I could overcome. Concluding that regardless of what lies ahead for me, Lia would always be at forefront of my concern, I'd already died for her once, and that I would at least make damn sure I think of her and her alone the next time.
To my surprise the figure laughed, saying he was glad the bravado he witnessed was not simply a result of my fighting mere puppets witlessly attacking individuals beyond them, his mood then changed and threatened that mentioning his solitude again however would only invite pain on all I cherished. Then I ran him through with an obsidian blade of my own and told him win or lose he would regret such action.
With those parting words, I found myself at the foot of the tree, my back resting against a gleaming obsidian oak, from which a primordial ineffable power seemed to radiate. I was caked in blood and my chest remained black and crystalline, as expected Lia was frantic, murderously so.
Knuckles nothing but blood and bone, as she pounded her fists against the tree, demanding it give me back whilst Lord looked on defeated. Both only returning to their senses when I coughed up blood, specked with black glass splinters and destroyed tissue.
"When has death ever successfully parted us." The words a wheezy whisper, Lia glared at me in lieu of telling me jokes were off the table, then Lord fell to his knees saying it was impossible, then asking me seriously if I was immortal. I told him no, that I would have most certainly died had I not thought to do this, then tapped the gleaming surface which was stopping bits of me falling out that I would surely miss.
Then Lia grabbed me and dragged me to my feet, she couldn't work out whether to hit me, hug me, kiss me or kill me herself. So, I set to work healing her hands whilst she decided my fate. When I had finished, she decided to go with the thirst three in that order, saving the fourth for a more deserving transgression. As she continued to inspect my chest, I asked them if they wanted to see the tree at work and they nodded to me after a brief look at one another.
I jumped of the edge of the hill and asked magic to fire off a simple bolt at the town, whilst hesitant it did as I asked, the energy made it as far as the tree then crackled out as the tree exploded into a dust which then coalesced and reformed into several dozen clones of me, kneeling when they attuned to me and asked if destruction is what I desired.
A failsafe I put in place, if I ever forgot myself and said yes, the clones would swarm me, a battle designed to kill me. I then returned to the others as the clones reformed into the tree. They were aghast with what I had made, more so when I told them it will activate if anyone approaches with the intent to harm, but I made sure to emphasise that the guard should only use this reprieve to train harder and focus on policing since it wouldn't prevent random acts of violence inside.
Captain had been quiet, but as I approached he caught me off guard with a strong back hand and grabbed me by the collar. Lia moved to stop him, but Lord raised an arm to halt her, he then threw me to the ground and told me Lia isn't the only one who was scared for me. The same anger born from care that Lia had, he reprimanded me for my callousness and demanded an apology, for both him and his Lord.
I was tempted to lash out, but he was right, I may not have been emotionally invested in them, but I had to respect that they were in me. I stood up and bowed apologetically to them both, admitting my failing and promising to be more considerate. After accepting my apology, he made to move towards his horse, but Lia was there in an instant, and before any of us knew what happened Captain was on his knees and Lia was gripping his throat and right greave.
Smiling demonically as she applied enough pressure to make the metal buckle, she warned him "I should apologise to, but I don't care about your reason. If you lay a hand on him again, I'll remove it as I would if it were Lord or even Storyteller. If he needs a lesson beating in, it isn't like you have the means to do so anyway, all you're doing is risking one of the few relationships he has." Releasing him, she then warned myself and the Lord not to say anything with a death glare, one we were not willing to challenge.
I instead made my way over and healed Captain, telling him he was lucky she didn't use as much strength as she does against me. All his pride would allow is a respectful comment on her technique, and a heartfelt plea for the continents sake I never break her heart. That's when Lia told me that on the subject of heartbreak, I was on bed rest until the big day to ensure I was fit enough to stand at the altar unaided, then I glared at captain before heading home.
The time I spent resting was painful, the crystalline portion of my chest was shrinking and my body was replacing it with the original flesh, but it was painful to say the least and slow, whilst the fresh tissue itched and burned.
Lia came by three times a day and if I had moved an inch besides toilet trips, I was scolded to the point Storyteller told us he couldn't wait until we left. Lia also adamantly slept in my room, saying if Storyteller didn't like it she would sleep on the lounge chair, when he tried to argue that she said he could sleep at her house and leave us alone, admitting that she would be quite uncomfortable with that however.
Storyteller was angry and I was unenthusiastic about the situation as well, but it did come in handy since I could only sleep in her company. Then I woke up on the day of my wedding and Lia was nowhere to be seen, I jumped out of bed and stretched before making my way downstairs to get breakfast, at which point I was ambushed by Master and Storyteller, who sat me down and practically poured my porridge down my throat with the way they rushed me.
I was then dragged through the cottage and thrown into a tub of lukewarm water which aggravated my chest. After being dragged from the tub and told to dry myself off, I stepped from the washroom and Lia's dad was waiting with my suit. Freezing when he saw my chest, asking how I survived losing my heart, not appreciating me making light of it when I told him I only lost a bit of it. He then told me not to joke and asked if I knew how much sadness my death would bring, I told him I didn't, that the tragic thing was I wanted to accept my new life but beyond Lia, I couldn't register how others felt and that if anything unity only served to worsen the disconnect.
He hugged me and cried; told me he was sorry, that even after all that he had he managed hadn't yet grasped the depth of the damage done to me. When I told him it was no bother, he merely hugged me tighter and said that was the worst part, then left me with my suit to get dressed.
The weariness hit me suddenly, but my newfound understanding allowed me to shake it off by thinking about everything I wanted to stay the same. I heard the figures voice tell me I was learning quickly; I responded by saying I hoped to have control enough to ask for permission to enter the hall next time and expressed my distaste for being impaled. Then my head cleared and I was able to get dressed, just in time to be immediately bundled into a carriage.
As I sat looking out of the small window I grew ill, which led to my escort bantering about how even I had the sense to feel nervous on my way to the altar.
I grunted and asked how they felt on theirs, which shut Master and Storyteller up immediately, adding that Master was too busy being a loner to be a lover and Storyteller to busy trucking down someone else's child to find a woman.
Lia's dad just admitted I was handling myself better than he did, whilst the other two reevaluated their life choices, and I told them to consider it now that Master would no longer be training us and Storyteller no longer had me to burden his social life. Then I opened the door and jumped out, finding a bush to throw up in before returning and cleansing myself with magic, telling them to stay quiet.
They grant my wish then all offered me a flask simultaneously, I took Master's knowing he didn't drink from his, but it proved a feint, and my mouth and throat burnt as the sharp, liquid coated them. I told them they had bad taste and used magic to empty all three of the flasks.
The foul taste lingered in my mouth the whole way, though it did work to take my mind of it, and I was more curious as to how adults enjoyed such drinks until we arrived at the manor, and I was all but carried through the revaluation hall.
The altar was our destination as we passed through the corridors, lined with guards in full ceremonial uniform, finally reaching the altar where Lord was waiting. As I was halted before him, he ordered me to not to move under his elevations power, which seemed to cause my crystalline chest to thrum as I found myself entirely unaffected, I apologised and told him it appears he has no hold over me as I walked away.
The four men looking shocked, though more confused after I made my way to the back corner of the hall near a wall of glass panels and told them that it was in that spot I first saw Lia, recounting how I felt and then mimicking how I made my way to the front with a heart of fear finishing the recount by kneeling before the altar and thanking them all for their efforts in raising both me and Lia.
They grew misty eyed as I stood, then hugged me in turn and told me they were proud of how much we had grown and how happy they were we had each other. Lia's father left to join his daughter ready to walk her down the aisle, and guests started to filter in, when I noticed that the front two rows of seating were empty on my side. Storyteller explained that those rows were for family and in absence of suitable people remained empty. I told Storyteller and Master to occupy two of them, asked Lord to summon Captain, as well as the reliquarian to occupy another two before marching down the aisle to retrieve someone I noticed enter a moment ago, surrounded by six children not her own.
"I'll only say this once. Come with me and bring the children." I marched them to the front and pointed to the empty seats. "Lia's side may be full, but you are her family now, so use some of mine sister-in-law." She started crying as I returned to the altar, then facing away from the guest I cried as well as Lord faced the same way and asked me if even I realised how far I'd come or how fast I was growing.
Then silence fell over the crowd behind me and an organ started playing which I could barely tolerate as it made the obsidian of my chest vibrate in resonance forcing me to ask magic to continually heal the threshold of glass and flesh. Standing like a guard to attention, I turned to face the aisle, nerves rattling hard enough to drown out the pain as Lia's mother and aunt turned down the aisle, followed closely by her two young cousins and the two girls from the orphanage who scattered petals as they walked finally followed by Lia walking arm in arm with her father though I barely noticed him as I stood there spellbound.
With each of the first few steps she took I noticed another point of beauty about her, the first was the way the delicate material of purest white wrapped around her, not a dress as such but more like an individual arrival for each part of her which were simply held by a fabric meshing reminiscent of what she wore in training and battle which served to ensure no one forgot her strength in spite of her beauty.
The second was how all the gem studded jewellery that she wore glistened, as the ear studs, a necklace and set of metal collars that held her hair into a tight and streamlined ponytail, which flowed down over her shoulder to her waist, caught the sunlight as it shone in from the decorated wall of glass, served to paint her in a variety of vibrant colours.
The last thing I noticed, though only because from then on I was unable to look elsewhere, was her eyes. Those golden orbs of unparalleled beauty which made me powerless against her, I had seen their glare strike fear, I had seen their gaze make a room fall silent, but the way they cut through all else that day, fixed on me and captivating me, that day they were beauty beyond any description, as none would do them justice.
Seconds or minutes later, I had no way of knowing, I was face to face with the grandest vision of beauty I had ever seen, my nerves vanishing in an instant as I would have given anything to be with this vision for the rest of my life. So mesmerised I was, that she had to nudge me before I realised my jaw had gone slack and I was oblivious to the utterings of Lord, despite his voice booming next me.
There was a slight wave of chuckles as I came to, trying to remember where I was, ending with a self-conscious apology to no one in particular. Having been brought back into the room, Lord started from the beginning, first asking Lia if she wishes to marry me of her own will, at which point she told him that she wished it more than anything. He then attempted to ask me the same, but I had answered him before he finished, making everyone laugh again, this time at the sight of me acting like an excited puppy, but I could tell Lia was thrilled to see me so desperate to swear my life to her.
The next thing he asked Lia was if she had anything to say before we start, but she was too busy holding back tears. He then posed the same question to me and I found myself speaking without even meaning to. "I could apologise to you for a thousand things, for making you wait so long for me to say I love you, for making you worry so much, for constantly putting my life in danger or for any of the other things I do that bring you grief and sadness, but rather than apologise again, I'll just say thank you for always being there to make me better." Lia started crying, no longer able to hold back and blindsided by my uncharacteristic public display of affection and vulnerability. Lord then praised me for my openness but warned I was making the other men look bad.
The rest of the wedding was scripted by generations of tradition, our hands were bound together and a girl who embodies freedom allowed it to happen, we swore to use our elevations, to elevate each other, blah, blah, blah finally we swore to be loyal to each other until the day we died.
The ceremony ended with the traditional gifting and reception, a feast where we thanked our guests for coming, where we had our first dance. Truth be told I felt out of place, almost wishing there would be some form of battle break out, thoughts which Lia put to rest when she saw me looking to the exit with longing in my eyes. Lia's parents were busy mingling with guests as we're all my other social pillars that I tended to lean on, so instead I decided to do something I had needed to do since the beginning, Lia had already spoken to her but now it was my turn to speak to my sister.
When I told her my intention, my wife was initially concerned but knew the subject had been a primary concern which this may be my last chance to deal with. I approached carefully, unsure how to carry myself in the situation, unsure what to say or how to speak to her I chose to address her charges. Asking if I can borrow her for a moment if I show them a magic trick and they agreed with excitement.
I asked magic to form a ball of light, then surrounded it with bubbles of various colours and then duplicated it several times allowing the bubbles to interchange and orbit around the balls of light. With the children invested in the trick I gestured for her to follow me outside to the garden and put up a silence field.
We stared at each other almost fearfully, until she finally broke the silence. "I want you to believe me, so please just activate unity and hear me out. The first time I met Lia, I didn't know who she was, just some girl sent to the orphanage as punishment. I was wary of her, but her energy and playfulness, her compassion made me relax quickly, then she told the head caretaker that she wanted to come again, and I was worried I wouldn't be needed there anymore, and I couldn't help but cry. She came to comfort me, and I told her my fear, that I didn't have anywhere to go and that my family had been scattered for our own safety. Then I tried to tell her how I was trying to make amends for letting my brother unity suffer and my youngest sibling die at our father's hands but the moment I mentioned your name as my brother the compassion vanished and was replaced by anger that left me paralyzed. She held me off the ground by one hand wrapped around my throat and asked me if I had any idea the damage you suffered, the wounds to your heart and mind you received while we watched from safety. She listed them one by one, every little detail she noticed, in your time together then released me, and I knew my reaction would determine if I lived or died but I didn't care all I could do was thank her for being there for you and she slapped me, then cried as she hugged me and told me she was so sorry I had to suffer so much in that place and just like then I don't care if I live or die." She then hugged me and told me how glad she was I survived long enough to leave, and how she wished that even once she had the courage to take even a single hit for me.
Truth be told I did want to kill her for touching me for an instant. Then I embraced her back and told her I was sorry for not coming back to save them sooner, for not protecting them when I first had the strength to do so. I thanked her for doing what I couldn't and staying human enough to try to make amends, for being a friend to Lia. We were both crying and venting, catching up, then she wished me a well on my travels and with my marriage.
Then Lia appeared, stepping through the silence field and telling us she was starting to worry someone died, then pointing out that no one dead could look as terrible as we did. I knew she was making another point to my sister, but she then asked me to undo my shirt so she could check on my injury, I still had unity active, so the intent was clear 'don't for a second think his suffering is over'. The sight of the obsidian, edged with blood, visibly disturbed my sister, but she wasn't ready yet to act familiar enough to ask and I wasn't familiar enough to give her the go ahead.
We returned to the festivities as a trio but had a responsibility to her charges, so I took it on myself to gather all those who mattered to me and introduce them to her one by one. She was emotional when she met Storyteller as he was meeting her, but he promised to help her if she ever needed it and promised to visit the orphanage and read them stories, saying it might be nice now that his child was leaving the nest.
Time marched on having found a purpose in the party and before I knew it, we were ready to leave. It was usual for the bride and groom to leave first, leaving the parents to see the party's end. In our case though, we had been told we would be escorted home to Lia's by Storyteller, Master and Lia's parents leaving Lord to close out the party.
I was all but falling asleep on Lia's shoulder in the carriage home, exhausted from showing some humanity for a change. Upon our arrival home I practically fell from the carriage. Yet despite my stupor I was taken by the three men to change, as Lia was with her mother.
Changing clothes was not the only thing on the agenda though and I soon learnt of the second motivation for being followed by three of them whilst I changed as they had the same talk with me as we had with you when reached a certain time in your lives, however the one I received was an incoherent and out of sync rambling at the behest of the trio of intoxicated men, two of which I had never even seen speak to an unwed woman which was a fact I delighted in pointing out.
We then returned to the lower floor and had a more intimate meal, Lia red faced after her lesson with mum, myself too tired to care about what other couples do especially since I had yet to even start puberty.
It was after I nearly fell asleep in my chair that father asked us when we were setting off and we informed them it would be mid-morning though Lord told us we would know when we are free to leave town refusing to give any further details.
Master then announced he would be joining us on our trip for a few days, he intended to send a message home but needed to travel several weeks to get a message there and would find a horse in the morning. With that, Storyteller asked if he could possibly stay the night there so we could spend our last night in town alone, saying that he believed us sensible enough to heed the lesson we had received earlier and that we likely had things to discuss before we left.
Whilst torn the others agreed it reasonable and we were given our leave, but in spite of my exhaustion before I could leave, I had to make the most of that moment and gave the most heartfelt thanks one as cold as myself could muster before we did so.
We went straight to my room when we arrived, and Lia told me to go ahead and change for bed, whilst she did so outside. When I finished getting my night clothes on, I told her to come in whenever she was ready, for which I was told not to talk to her until she was ready, and I climbed into bed.
A moment later, Lia told me to close my eyes until she told me, and I done as I was told, knowing from experience that questions and arguments would be futile at best. I heard the door open and close; I heard footsteps traverse the floorboards, I felt the cover lift and then the warmth of her join me as the cover lowered then a hand on my left cheek and her lips on right, then some shuffling and finally the covers go taught. Only then was I given freedom to open my eyes, if only to see my wife half cocooned and threatening to break the bed with the strength she was using to pin the cover down.
I placed my hand on hers and told her not to worry, that I loved her and thought her beautiful, but I didn't yet feel the desire for the subject of our lesson. Apologising for leaving her to feel this way alone, to which she simply told me to lay down and face the away from her.
As I did as I was told, at as far away as the bed would allow, she rested a hand on me and told me it wasn't me she was worried about. She just didn't want to risk pressuring me to mature before I was ready and that this was something she demanded I be selfish about. I told her that I promised, then turned around and kissed her, taking a knee to the gut before she returned the gesture, then turning onto her back she asked me if I was looking forward to leaving.
"I hate this town with every fibre of my being, every step down every street reminds me of everything I endured for the right to take that step. I want to leave, I want to miss the people who matter so I can learn their true value, then I want to destroy everything that would take them and you away from me. Then build a home we can all live without being haunted, you, me, our parents, my sister, maybe even my other siblings if they prove themselves worth forgiveness like she did, and you don't kill any of them, not that I would hold it against you." She gripped my hand tightly, and admitted she didn't know I felt that way, then asked why I built a barrier if I hated it so much.
She was unpleased with my admission it was primarily to keep the people we care for safe from the gods, but also as a sanctuary from me if the worst comes to pass, but she didn't blame me given the revelation on my feelings towards the town. Having said all we had to say, she gestured for me to turn around again, then nestled her face into my back and put an arm over me.
As exhausted as I was, I fell asleep as soon as I knew it was ok, however sleeping was more difficult, and we soon learned the dark side of sleeping with the one you love. Snoring, kicking, cover stealing, bickering whilst we were half asleep. That is the true face of sharing a bed with the one you love, and despite being capable of staying awake up to five days at a time, I have never known drowsiness like I experienced the next morning.
We were tired and grumpy, when the adults arrived at first light, we had already given up on sleep an hour prior, gotten dressed and we're sat in silence in the living room. They found it very amusing as we ate breakfast together as a very tired husband and wife, airing our difficulties sleeping soundly. Referring to her nocturnal kicking I jested about her violent streak and whilst she knew that hitting me would prove my point, the moment she smiled at me and crooked her neck I knew I had made a massive mistake, as did the others who simply said silent farewells.
Having finished breakfast we shook the last of our sleepiness as Master entered to the sound of horns, which had started to sound in the streets as the door opened, and we knew that was the signal the time had come for our adventure to start.
As we entered the street we were greeted with the entire force of arms at the Lord's command, rows of guardsmen lined the streets to see us off, backed by the townspeople who showed to bid us farewell. Lord and Knight Commander waited by the gate, with extra mounts, two of which were loaded with enough supplies to see us to the next town as he had told us they would be.
Though as the adults moved ahead of us, I wondered if I could use magic to create a mount if needed and though I asked magic if it could conjure a mount rhetorically it took the question as a request and the next thing anyone in earshot heard was me saying "Uh oh. Hope this works out ok." Whilst at first, they were bemused by my mysterious outburst that bemusement quickly switched to panicking horses, bystanders and loved ones as smoke erupted from the ground.
I considered producing a wind strong enough to clear the smoke, but before I could it had began to compress and clear, leaving the solid form of a horse behind, with a body covered in jet black hair, main and tail pristine white and golden eyes, complete with a bridle and saddle.
As I casually tried to play the situation off, saying how glad I was it worked out I was struck by the delicate form beside me with enough force to bring me to my knees, I then had my head forcefully lowered as Lia apologised for me. Luckily the panic turned into nervous laughter quickly, Lord made a comment about how it was almost reassuring to see me make a blunder and Lia made one about how they just don't see them.
Then I dismissed the umbral mount preparing a field to contain the smoke in case it explodes like before, though apparently, I was too pleased with myself as I stood up and brushed myself down and Lia slapped me on the back of my head. I decided I'd had enough of the impromptu comedy routine we were putting on and mounted the horse prepped for me, saying we should get moving. Only to have Lord advise that I don't conduct such experiments in public without warning, and I was tempted to start moving but didn't want to leave as a sulking child.
As the farewells reached their end my sister emerged and hugged Lia before she could mount the horse and asked her to keep us both safe, however I knew this was going to make it harder to leave so I told Lia we need to go before the fanfare convinces us to stay, then I started riding, offering a wave as a final farewell as tears I didn't quite understand began to fall.
Lia joined me fairly quickly, placing a hand on mine as we rode in silence. The time when all but master would say farewell and return to town fast approaching and before we knew it had come.
I came to a stop ahead of the others, struggling to come to terms with leaving them as something inside began to ache. I ask myself why it had to be this way again, my mind and heart divided between putting an end to this mess and wanting to escape the past and staying with the people I cared for and trying to live as normally as I could.
Lia came to get me, seeing the conflict in my mind she simply told me the decision was mine, as it always had been. Her words giving me strength I returned to the others to say my farewells, telling them I cherished them and promising to make a world we could all live happily in, though in truth we all knew I was the only one not satisfied with life. We parted dry-eyed though we all struggled initially we made it to the shade of the obsidian tree, and I told it to keep the people safe.
Half the day later we came to a travellers stop, and Master told us to call it a day and set up camp. Admitting it was early but suggesting that we should take out time and be sensible about things until we had found our rhythm, pointing out that we had also left on ceremony and needed to take stock of supplies.
It was clear he was enjoying being a teacher again, guiding us to an almost irritating degree as we set up camp, though in fairness we were measuring our pace at mine and Lia's standards which was apparently quite tolling on the horses, so we made sure to treat them well and I used magic to restore them.
In the end all of Master's advice proved sound, taking stock of supplies proved time consuming having made the mistake of emptying both our saddle packs together, when Lia's contained things she'd have preferred remained private. Though once that drama was passed, we were able to finish set up relatively quickly. Leaving us free to start and fire and prepare some food, which was when it occurred to me that I could have saved some and simply used magic to erect a simple structure, demonstrating to the others as I apologised for the oversight, but to my surprise they told me to undo it.
Master then told me under no circumstances was I to make a show of magic on the road, explaining that it would only prove to be bait for slavers and that I may as well just hunt them down if I'm that desperate to fight them.
When I looked at Lia with an expression of no understanding, Master confessed he was concerned about us, children like us would be worth a fortune on the market and whilst abduction was not their forte, it only ever took a reduction in profits to push certain groups to that end. My opinions on slavers were strong to say the least, I had a few run ins with them over the years and few were good.
I took the opportunity to say I will most likely put an end to them in time, but I had no intention of rushing it. Master became angry suddenly, calling me a fool, and telling me that they aren't simply the kind of people to stop, attempting to do so would be a war of no small scale. After saying his peace though he apologised, saying that what he fears most is that the act of taking a life would be an inevitability on our travel and that he simply wished it as far into the future as possible. I told him that I fear it as well, brought voice to a thought that had crossed everyone's minds, and I told them I only hope when the time comes I still have enough heart to anguish over it. Lia moved over and hugged me, reassuring herself more than me I thought, then Master announced he was going to leave us be a while.
As he disappeared into a small wood, about three hundred yards away from the rest stop, Lia wrapped her arms around me and kissed my cheek telling me she thinks having his company was helpful but a bad idea. When I asked why she looked at me with a sadness I couldn't understand and simply said that she loves me and always will, that I am a good person who never does anything I think is wrong. She then said that the problem that I hadn't realised.
"The problem is the meaning of right and wrong is different for most people and change over their life. You are good, but sometimes your moral compass lets you down love." I knew she was right; I often didn't know if something was right or wrong until I saw the consequences of my actions, but I had felt enough sadness and moped around enough for one day. So, I just nodded to myself and asked her about calling me love, for which I earned a slap.
That said their fears were justified, so I began to wonder how I could relieve them, but on the subject of not using magic I tell her that it would be a good idea to take turns keeping watch whilst on beaten paths like the one we were at and since she were more susceptible to sleep deprivation, I would take first watch and wake her up a little bit after midnight unless Master wanted to split watch with us.
After saying goodnight, I left the tent to stand watch and found Master had returned to the campfire. I explained our plan to take turns standing watch, and he praised us but refused to take a turn, saying that he was only riding with us to enjoy this final opportunity to play teacher since we would likely have grown beyond his meagre ability by our reunion. He smiled, but the mood had turned tense.
"Please don't grow up too fast Unity." The words were melancholy, hopeful and earnest, the ingredients of voicing a wish from the depths of one's heart. All I could say was to repeat Lia's appraisal from earlier, then tell him what believed to be good, to do what it takes to end your loved ones suffering. He tried to tell me that the most evil things someone can do are often motivated by such values and I told him that I don't care about being good or evil, if my loved ones are safe I don't care, I'll kill the gods, scorch the earth, or put my own head on the chopping block.
Thinking I was referring to the obsidian tree, he tried to argue with that last point. Seeing his point, I asked magic then and there to leash me, if anything happens to Storyteller, Lord, Master, my sister or Lia's parents, I was to be sealed inside my own mind until I either move passed it or stop caring, and if Lia died it would mean my death as well.
Master had been trying to stop me, but I ignored him and when I finished what could easily be mistaken for a tattoo appeared on my arm, a list of names from which thorny vine spread from in a tangled mess.
As the tattoo settled, Master simply asked me if I knew what I had done, I simply replied that my life held no value in the grand scheme of things, that as long as they are safe I don't really care what happens to me and in fact I was still rather looking forward to it. I just had to make the world safe first.
My old mentor's eyes were wide and shaking, such spells had long been tabooed as the visualisations required made them unpredictable at best, replaced with contract magic which was more controlled. Such things meant little to me however and I got the sense that it was the least of Master's concerns as well. "You've gone too far, you foolish child. Stop it. Undo this childish error. Beg it if you have to, sacrifice me and Storyteller, but take it back." His eyes were ablaze with a silent fury. I could tell he was worried about Lia finding out and how she would react.
I waved his pleas away however, telling him magic won't let me die without cause so he shouldn't worry about it, explaining that aside from consequences it does have rewards as well, I explained that the spell would feed on negativity and use it to slowly piece my soul back together, but he simply grabbed me and told me I had never made a graver mistake then retired to his tent.
Grateful for the solitude to reflect, I tended to the horses and fire for a couple of hours, and with no sign of anyone in that time, I decided to experiment with weariness a bit, just enough to try and speak to the outsider. Luckily it worked and I heard him praise me for achieving some measure of control, then laughed when my only response was to ask his name, explaining that I was trying to break my habit of disinterest in such things, but he simply told me he didn't have one, others had bestowed them upon him in the past but none of those individuals remained.
I told them I'd call them steward then, since he acted as one for the hall and they agreed that it would make conversing easier then, then I formally introduced myself. He laughed again, commenting that I had changed much since our first meeting, then I asked him if he ever felt lonely and to my surprise, he admitted he did.
"I've never felt lonely, even in the absence of any of those I love I simply grow void of feeling again. I've never felt lonely, so what is the value in others if their absence neither adds nor subtracts from my life. Lia the exception, the others are simply important to me because I decided their actions earned them that position." Steward told me he pitied me, that the value of others is simple, each person has the potential to lead our lives in infinite directions, and that without those possibilities we would be alone in the void of creation, without purpose, without potential and trapped in a completely stagnant existence.
Having spoken his mind, he broke the connection, I hated myself more than ever, I felt like every decision I made was a mistake, and even if I didn't hurt myself, I hurt others. Compounding this particular sense of self-loathing was my inability to value those who valued me so highly.
As I bathed in the warmth of the fire, I hung my neck back and stared at the moon for what felt like moments as I nestled myself into the uncaring state, I told Steward about, but it brought no solace, so I resolved to wallow in my feelings. Then a soft voice spoke inquisitively stating that they thought we would take turns.
I dropped my gaze from the heavens to where the voice was emanating from, and gazed upon a most beautiful phantom, that of my precious wife and I was pulled from my state.
Telling her I was lost in thought as she pointed towards the rising sun, she sat next to me and spoke. "I heard what you two spoke about, he's right. You were foolish, and selfish to. You didn't even consider my feelings and honestly it hurts." She stroked my hair, as I told her I knew that already, I already knew my choices were poison.
Leaving town was making it feel like the foundation of all the growth I had done under Storyteller was crumbling. Lia hugged me, told me it didn't matter, that if it crumbled to nothing I simply needed to start from scratch. She told me if I need a new foundation then I should use her, since I had just made it so I can't live without her anyway.
I could see she was still angry despite her façade of nonchalance, just not so much she was going to punish the wreck before her, who was already beating himself up enough for the both of them already. Instead, she pulled me to my feet and led me to the tent, kneeling down and telling me to get comfortable, advising me to get at least some sleep.
When I awoke a short while later the smell of breakfast filled the air and I left the tent to see Master and Lia chatting and cooking, under a still mostly dark sky.
Master was still unhappy with me, his reluctance to look in my direction making unity redundant in analysing him. I wanted to try and clear the air but didn't know how to broach the subject, and honestly, I didn't feel like I had anything to apologise to him for. We ate in silence, then dismantled our camp.
Rain was in the air, so making tracks was a matter of urgency since we had a lot of ground to cover and were already behind schedule. I was riding ahead of Lia and Master, deep in thought when he retrieved a small wooden instrument. Managing to break my concentration as he filled the damp air with music as a downpour started.
Having earned a weary glare from Lia, who was not so fond of wet weather, she abandoned him to join me and Master found himself taking responsibility for the weather as she mocked his ability to play the instrument.
It fully devolved into childish antics as she pulled a face and stuck her tongue out at him. This was a familiar occurrence back when she first started training, and I managed to garner a small sense of comfort from the interaction. I was surprised when Master turned to me for support, but I always was the arbiter in these scenarios, since my feelings for Lia never pushed me to lie for her or support her acting unreasonably.
Feeling less estranged, I simply replied that whilst not the best, I doubted its ability to sway the weather. However, I did surprise them when I asked him to teach me. Music was something I enjoyed but I never had the necessary control over my power for something that required such finesse.
I pointed to another rest stop, several trees strategically tended to provide some modest coverage on such days and the perfect place to set camp, suggesting perhaps we should take advantage and set camp before the denser rainfall.
A short agreement to what should have been the priority, saw the matter of camp relegated to the position of afterthought, as the other two asked "You actually like it?" Both in shock and unison.
I replied sarcastically that I didn't, but thought if I could master it soon enough, I could replace Master as the musician and save our minds and senses, earning a kiss on the cheek from Lia and a melodramatic half jest about the lack of decorum of public displays of affection.
It was a sentiment I agreed with, though Lia was only concerned with being free to express herself, and as she had made clear not long ago when she declared we would both be selfish in our love for each other, and whilst I was starting to observe this was mainly to excuse my many transgressions, she certainly jumped at every opportunity to take advantage of it herself.
We made it to the camp site and was able to get set-up completed much quicker that time, despite the harsher weather, and though there was still room for improvement finishing in time to take cover as the rain worsened left us feeling successful.
As promised, Master had serenaded us as we worked, and even the few quick attempts I gave at playing were proving me as fast a learner as ever, which left Master feeling woefully inadequate in regards to the meagre degree of talent he had been so proud of just a short while ago.
After a short chat, Master told us both to retire, and that he would keep watch. Lia needed no convincing as she threw me back into the tent and began removing her armour plating. Comfy enough in her leather gear, she curled up into a ball, resting her head on my lap and reminding me of the way domesticated cats behaved when seeking attention.
She briefly told me to make sure I get some sleep as well, but barely finished before she started snoring, and as I stroked her hair heard Master performing the sacred rites of his people. The rites were involved three simple steps, I knew them well since I had performed them whilst still his student, first recite the mantras, remembering your journey from birth to present was second and finally train oneself or another. Having just finished his mantras I had about three minutes before I could disturb him, so I spent that time catching up, petting Lia the whole time.
I had recited the mantras and nearly finished remembering when Lia's leg began twitching to signal it was safe to move her without waking her, and after doing so I left the tent asking my old teacher for a final lesson.
Master laughed at my request, telling me that I had nothing else to learn from him, offering a final exam in place of one, he told me Lia completed this same exam in the week I was ordered to stay in bed, then sent me into the rain toward a lone tree roughly fifty yards away.
As I walked towards the tree, I took three deep breaths, forcing myself into a state more fit for battle, with each one the rain seemed to fall slower until I could almost count the drops that hit me.
When I reached the tree I turned back to face the camp, master slid into his stance honed over decades through hard work, I held a lunging position on my left foot, completely relaxed my upper body's left side and repeated the motion of clenching and unclenching my right fist. A lazy, untrained and almost goading stance I used to simply give me an option to attack in any direction, is what I would like to say, but in truth it was completely pointless. The fact was that since my power was beyond overcoming through skill, I simply didn't care, taking this stance meant I could dash forward from the get-go and end a fight quickly.
I blinked as a rain drop hit my eye whilst I was waiting for Master's opening gambit, as my eyes opened though I saw something I didn't understand all the rain heading towards me followed by an unseen force.
As what may as well have been a wall of water got within arm's reach, I punched at it knowing I possessed power enough to create significant water displacement, now standing straight with my right arm outstretched I waited for the next attack as rain drops slowly refilled the space between us.
What in reality was an instant, was enough time for me to watch a drop of rain begin to vibrate, then begin to undulate and finally break apart and become a single drops worth of steam. I hand never seen a sight such as that, countless orbs of water, danced in the air around me then burst in unison.
Steam engulfed the entire area, turning my skin red from the heat and breaking my line of sight on Master, but from his direction a vibrant ethereal blue glow began to pierce through growing ever brighter. Instincts as keen as ever, I kicked into the air just as a spectral blue dragon broke through the cover and snapped at where I had stood a fraction of a second ago, unable to redirect myself in mid-air, however I pulled a thick knife from my belt and threw it at the serpent's eye. It reeled in pain and placed itself in my path and allowing me to stop its head into the ground with literal earth-breaking might. The serpent hissed and disintegrated, falling apart into glowing blue powder before disappearing completely.
The almost hallucinatory event made my concentration slip and the rain fell normally once more, beating down and dispersing the steam, revealing Master as he picked himself up from the ground.
I collected him on my way back to camp, and sitting at the side of the fire he mopped blood from his eye, though he bore no wound to bleed from. I offered to help him, but he merely laughed and told me to dry myself and then keep my wife warm.
As instructed, I asked magic to dry our clothes, then returned to the tent and laid down next to Lia, trying my damnedest not to wake her, though the moment I had gotten comfortable she moved herself to use me as a pillow. She drifted back to sleep after a drowsy comment about her love the dragon slayer, making me wonder if she had been watching or if her senses were still working in her sleep.
I was unstable, the girl using me as a pillow my only anchor point, I thought on my test against Master and realised that I didn't think it through for a second. Pure instinct made me act on reflex, I could have killed him before I knew what I had done, yet I didn't feel guilty in the slightest and it made me more anxious than ever.
I may have had no emotional attachment to things, but I desired to keep him safe, so why then did I feel nothing for almost killing him. The question kept me awake, wondering if perhaps this was the point of that test, to teach me that I no longer had the luxury of reacting.
I activated unity and looked towards the future, deciding that my most efficient way to work around my reactions was to simply maintain a constant state of activation and permanently exist the thirty seconds or so I could manage. It would take some time to adjust to, absorbing the information of both the present and the future simultaneously was draining, unity itself took a toll and often prolonged use resulted in horrible migraines.
After just a few hours, the migraine was intense, but magic was able to quell the worst of it, the end result was a slight drop in my attention and parallel thinking. I intended to gradually reduce the amount of magic I was using to quell the pain as well, my aim being to adapt the pain naturally over time, whilst also scheduling rest days to help my body attune properly.
Then Lia asked me if I slept at all and I turned to see eyes staring holes into me, when I told her I hadn't, she asked if I had thought to make breakfast, when I said I hadn't I decided to drop the magic and use the migraine to save me, it didn't work.
As the others rested by the fire, I set to work on breakfast and whilst the porridge boiled over the fire, I also fed the horses and packed up our camp, my punishment for not thinking of all that needs to be done.
As I set about my tasks though, I realised how much I could get done on my own, the task that took us an hour together took me fifteen minutes on my own, I confess I felt quite smug until Lia and Master both smacked me over the head and reminded me that moving like that, is as likely to entice slavers as using magic.
The rain had cleared overnight, and clear skies were helping us on our way, a blessing given we estimated about three more days of travelling until we expected to reach the town marked as our first stop. Given the two days we had stopped early to set camp we were several hours behind where we thought we had hoped to be, and with that in mind we decided to push hard that day to try and make up for lost time.
Soon forced to stop at a crossroads however to check our map, we realised we were actually far closer than we thought, the sound of Master laughing filled the air and he told us we still had much to learn, his horse moved to the path that led up towards the northern hills and we realised this also meant the time we had with him was shorter than we thought as well. He roared to me that Lia slayed the serpent faster, then his horse broke into a gallop and we were left to start our journey together for real, but I couldn't stand him having the final say I asked magic to create a spear, engraved with a message, then launched it with all my might.
Lia asked what the point was, but I smiled and told her she would find out when we saw him again.
As the sun reached its apex, we were recalculating how far we had left to travel, concluding we were about six hours away, though admittedly that was an uneducated estimate of a guess as we were proven to be terrible navigators.
Truth be told, as we rode towards our destination, we were ecstatic, after all these years finding out how much better we seemed to be at everything than most people, being so bad at something meant the world to us. That small reprieve from our sense of isolation kept smiles on our faces until the sun fell and the moon rose, then we felt like idiots when we realised not only had we misjudged the distance again but now it was dark, and we had gotten carried away and not stopped to set camp.
With Lia's permission I used Magic to restore the horses so we could push on, and we eventually found ourselves at the foot of a towering wall, much larger than the one which protected the town we recently departed.
Giant pyres atop each tower section created a wall of orange light above the one of stone, illuminating the ground beneath as though dawn was on the horizon just beyond.
The metal portcullis was down, and the heavy wooden doors barred for the night. Outside the gate, there were only two simple structures, a small hut where the guards on night watch could stay warm and shelter from the elements, the second was a small stable area where night travellers were able to feed and water their horses. We headed there first, our steeds had served us well and we had been rather abusive that last day, so we needed to prioritise their welfare.