The Fifth Star - Chapter 12 (1/2) - Separation

Darius cringed in sympathy as he brought the end of his tree branch - serving as a crude practice sword - down upon Elowyn’s tender flesh, then when she failed yet again to watch her footing as she recoiled, hooked her leg with his own and sent her crashing to the dirt. It was not the first time this session, but he hoped it would be the last. He did not like to hurt her, but he had been trained this way, and knew no better method to hone one’s reflexes than to experience the painful consequences of a slow reaction.

As she stood and brushed off the back of her pants, he couldn’t help but to admire her stubborn adherence to this pursuit. Honestly, he’d expected far different - a pampered whore, learning the art of swordplay? It was almost absurd, and when she’d told him of her desire to learn, he thought it a temporary desire borne of both fear and a vague hope she’d expressed to not require protection. He thought the first time he showed her no mercy, the first bruise he inflicted upon her skin, would leave her cowed and finished with the whole idea. How wrong he’d been! It only seemed to fuel this spark in her eye, this determination to prove herself to be more than a pretty face, and she focused herself on the task, asking for him to spar both in the mornings and evenings of each day.

“Let’s go again,” she groaned as she retrieved her own branch. She swished it gently through the air a few times, getting her grip comfortable and firm.

Darius smiled at her enthusiasm before settling into a combat-ready stance. She bided her time, choosing her approach carefully, then dove in with her stick at the ready. Before she even had a chance to swing it through its intended path, his weapon came down hard upon her wrist and she dropped it with an involuntary yelp of pain. “Your eyes, Elowyn,” he corrected her, “you looked where you were aiming just before you lunged.” He stepped close and his eyes softened as he watched her cradle her wrist. “Are you hurt?”

She shook her hand vigorously as though that would stop its throbbing, then stooped to pick up the branch again. “No more than any other time,” she assured him. Then, quite suddenly and surprising even him, she made a bold move. Her stick came whipping through the air towards him as she straightened, and she managed to connect with his flesh, landing a solid blow against his thigh. The quick flare of pain momentarily angered him, but he knew he’d do the same thing in the right situation. He retaliated immediately lest she land another and become overconfident, sending her colliding with the ground again.

“A dirty tactic, for sure,” he commented while she grinned up at him like a fool, “but far be it for me to chide you for the same thing I would do, given the chance.” He reached down this time and helped her off the dirt with a mischievous smile, taking the branch from her hand and tossing it to where their tent lay flat, deconstructed and ready for them to move on.

It was hard to believe it had been just over a week since their hurried departure from Lothan. Between training her with both sword and magic, keeping a constant lookout for Empire men, and feeding the pair of them once their meager rations had run out, Darius had been so preoccupied the time had flown by. Elowyn whiled away the hours in the saddle working on her magic control, and it seemed to be keeping her from dwelling too much on their situation. His mind was never quite at ease however - so frequently it spun with possibilities and worries that a part of him could hardly wait until they had reached some semblance of safety. Another part of him though, a part that dug at him, almost didn’t want this dangerous limbo to end. There was something about Elowyn that set him at ease.

Maybe it was just his re-obtained freedom that had him in high spirits, he could manage to convince himself in the quiet hours when she slept. But when she was awake, when she smiled at him, a real smile that touched those gemstone eyes like the false smiles in court never did on the lips of other women… that reasoning held as much weight as a feather on the breeze. You don’t want her to grow past you. You want her to need you. Once they reached their destination, would their paths continue to cross, or would she leave him behind in pursuit of her new life?

His selfishness in this regard only served to make Darius upset with himself. Who was he to hold her back? No one - an assassin and a traitor who just so happened to owe her his freedom. He would repay that with safe passage to the rebels, who would take her in and keep her safe, then he would go out on his own and never see her again. It was only right.

To that end, he needed to get her to a point of more assured safety with her magic. That too, was progressing well; she could dip into and out of her aethris quite readily now, and had learned to channel the magic to drain it off as Darius had instructed her. She was much less a threat now, but she had not yet used it to cast a spell, and in order for her to be truly safe, she must know how to fully control and use her ability, much as she might not like it. As he thought with a lazy inward groan at the prospect of going hunting yet again, an idea came to him. He wiped the sweat from his brow with an arm and turned to Elowyn.

“We’ll change your dressings,” he said, “then I’ve got a job for you. Come, lay down.” He spread his cloak near the tent for her to rest on.

Well used to the routine, Elowyn obliged and stretched out on the cloak, lifting her shirt to expose her belly. It glistened with sweat and the dressings needed freshening, as they did each evening after their training. Darius gathered his supplies and kneeled beside her, setting to the task.

The slashes Harlemont had left upon her slender stomach were nearly healed. They no longer oozed or bled with the constant movement of her flesh necessitated by riding the horses all day or their rigorous exercise, and he knew she would soon not need him for this, either. When he was done, he stood and her eyes held a peculiar expression as she pulled her shirt back down, like a hint of desire hid there beneath her timid smile. He knew from the few times their skin had touched and they had shared thoughts that some part of her was attracted to him, but he must reject it. He was a mentor to her, a guardian, and her feelings were likely confused both by his unerring dedication and her need for his help. He refused to play on that.

The moment passed. She stood and faced him. “What do you need of me?” she asked simply, her tone hinting at concealed annoyance.

“Walk with me,” he said as he headed away from the camp, “quietly, please.”

She obeyed, catching up and walking at his side. Their feet rustled in the tall, dry grass. After a few moments, he spied what he was looking for - his arm went out suddenly to block her path as he stopped.

“See, there,” he whispered as he pointed, “the movement in the grass? A rabbit, I should think.”

“And?” she whispered back.

“You’re going to use your magic to bring it here. Enter your aethris, Elowyn. I’ll guide you through it.”

He could hear the nervous gulp, but she worded no complaint. As much Darius didn’t like their minds being connected - he thought it too likely he would think the wrong thing at the wrong time - he reached out and rested a hand upon her upper arm.

Through their connection, he could feel when she had done as he’d asked. Now, similar to how you manipulate the aethris to drain it off, gather some of it in your hands at the ready. Keep it there, focus on it, and when you open your eyes again it should be visible in your real hands.         

“Look!” she exclaimed with obvious pride once she had succeeded, elbowing him lightly to look at what she’d done.

Shh. Mentally, you’ll scare the thing off. An onlooker, even another mage, will see nothing unfortunately. You can only see your own aethris, and any that is cast directly on your person. But, good work. You’re a fast pupil.

Even with her eyes closed, she beamed.

Now send it forth, he continued, push it away from yourself towards your target. Pour your will into it so the aethris knows what you want it to do. Magic relies heavily on your state of mind and your thoughts, so try to be as clear and concise as possible with your intentions. Sloppiness at this point is where mistakes are made. Try to make the rabbit come towards us.

He could feel her sense of confusion, but her focused will as well. The connection allowed him to follow her into her aethris and watch how she had progressed so far, but as soon as her eyes were opened and she left her mindspace, what she needed to do he could not see. He waited patiently for some sign of her success, listening to her thoughts: Push it away… away… Oh!

Elowyn had lost her focus there, as the glowing ball she would have been seeing started to shimmer and elongate, and she growled out quickly, “Hold on.” Darius closed his eyes again and watched with some proud surprise at how quickly she dipped into and out of her magic stores now.

He hadn’t known what to expect would come from their connection as she successfully pushed the aethris into the rabbit’s mind, having never felt compulsion from the caster’s perspective, but he knew the moment she had. A flash of terror rippled through the beast, to Elowyn, then to him in turn, and he heard her commands - stay calm, come this way. She repeated it a few times, and Darius watched with interest as the rabbit, still afraid but unable to resist, hopped steadily towards them.

Through his elation and hers at her success, he felt something more worrying - the surge of gratification that ran through her, not the simple satisfaction of success, but in having power over another living thing. But he knew when she registered his alarm at this, and he felt her resultant shame and remorse that she’d entertained such a feeling. He let her know without words that he understood, not wanting to frighten her; he reminded her gently of the moment in the College he’d already shown her, of his pleasure at taking a man’s life, how it still had that effect on him, milder now though it was. She calmed and refocused herself, and the rabbit continued forward.

When it stood at their feet, Darius broke his contact with Elowyn and dropped to a knee, then killed the animal swiftly. He looked up at her and smiled encouragingly. “Well done, Elowyn,” he spoke. “Go sit by the fire; I’ll get this ready to cook.”

The smile she flashed back didn’t fully hide the fear in her eyes before she walked away. Good, he thought, she should be frightened. Magi like Tibori are what happen when you do not fear power. He set himself single-mindedly to skinning and gutting their supper, putting his worry out of his mind.

**********

The great red walls of a city broke the horizon early the next morning. Darius’s gentle hand reaching over and touching hers startled her out of her mindspace where she’d been practicing and back to reality. “Look there, Elowyn,” he pointed at the scarcely visible structure, “there lies Reivic.”

A sense of foreboding washed over her. “I thought we were heading to Kierton,” she stated, not really wording it as a question.

“We are,” he assured her, “it lies a hard days’ ride north of Reivic. I’ll head in alone, see what I can learn.”

“Is that so wise?” she spoke her worry aloud. “What if someone sees you?”

“Elowyn,” his tone was nearly condescending, “I’m well used to remaining unseen; it’s what I do. I’ll be in no danger, I’m sure.”

"But…” she gnawed nervously on her lip, “You’ve never been on the run from your own kind, either. What if there’s a Seer within those walls? What then, when your magic disguises are useless?”

“Seers are out on patrol more often than not. I assure you, I’ll be fine.”

Elowyn did not continue to argue the point, but he could see her discontent in the rigid way she held her lips together. He had been on missions more dangerous than ever she could comprehend right now, and while her concern was touching, it was also irritating. Darius was if nothing else an independent sort of man, and did not take well to having to explain his actions to others.

They rode on in silence. Elowyn had been practicing quick compulsion spells from her seat, directing her horse with magic instead of reins, directing birds to fly in swoops and simple patterns in the sky above them. That stopped now, but he wasn’t going to be the first to break the silence just to chastise her. She was doing, by all measures, far better than he’d anticipated already, and it might be wise of her to save her aethris, just in case.

Before they drew too close to the city and the guards atop the ramparts noticed them, Darius subtly redirected their path towards the copse of trees to the southwest of the city. It wasn’t near large enough to be called a forest, but it would provide a spot away from under the open sky for Elowyn to await his return unseen. On their arrival, Darius tied their horses to trees that sat beside the single pond there, and fetched some of the gold from his pack, leaving the pack itself tied to the saddle.

“Now I’m serious, Elowyn. Stay here, please. It’s bad enough we need to separate; if I can’t find you again in a hurry, things will only go poorly.”

She looked at him with a resigned expression, neither sad nor angry. “How long will you be gone?”

“An hour. Two, at most.”

She nodded her assent but said nothing more.

“Alright,” Darius rubbed at his neck, “I’ll be off, then.” That was all he spoke, then he turned back towards the city on foot and trekked onwards.

Passing through the city’s southern gate proved a simple task; with his face altered by illusion magic, the guards gave him little more than a glance as he walked beneath the arch, head held high like he had nothing to hide.

The city of Reivic, though largely confusing to most travellers, was a breeze for Darius to navigate. He hadn’t visited in several years now, but coming to the markets here as a boy had solidified the hectic layout in his mind and he had no fear of becoming lost in its streets. There were no clearly defined districts as in Lothan, with the rich and the poor segregated from each other as well as the establishments and so on - Reivic had been only a small farming town in its origins until Emperor Tibori had come along over a hundred years before and established a military base here. His public statements had made this out to be an action of goodwill, bringing law and order as well as trade agreements to the previously impoverished settlement. Though no one except Tibori was still alive from that time, the common belief was that his intentions had actually been to try to squash the hints of rebellion that had made themselves known around the Empire, creeping outwards from the town.

Darius knew from his time as Harlemont’s counsel that Reivic was still a thorn in Tibori’s side to this day. On the outside, it did appear to be under strong control by the Empire - its walls had long ago been fortified, guards patrolled the walls and the streets, and trade with the other cities flourished. Inside however, and if you knew the right folks, the city was supposedly still home to a large contingent of rebels who wielded far more power here than anywhere else. He’d never been privy to the city’s secrets though, and was sure that he’d never find a connection in the short amount of time he had to spend here now. Still, he figured after he collected the supplies he should go to one of the taverns, see what he could find out in the time he’d allotted himself. It was consistently amazing to him how many secrets slipped from tongues once they were loosened by drink.

Since the city had essentially sprung up around its markets, the area in the center was still home to many of its regular vendors - anything he couldn’t find there he would need to go searching for elsewhere - and so he headed there now. By the time he’d gotten inside the walls it was already past mid-day, and he knew his time was short. He walked quickly, but not at such speed as would garner too much attention, and kept his hood over his head despite the fact that none here would recognize him in his current state.

He arrived at the markets in good time with no one stopping to harass him. Darius first went to a temporary cart he spied set up just off the usual path, its wheeled frame piled high with furs and leathers - if the seller also happened to be good with a needle, it would be a good place to look for a second travel bag. Drawing back his hood to avoid inadvertently setting the merchant on edge, he approached the cart in question with a friendly smile.