CHAPTER 32
We lay on the training mat for what seemed like forever, our bare legs tangled in one another, until finally he stood and began to dress.
Walking over to where he threw my pants earlier, he picked them up and then tossed them at me; I quickly slid into them, suddenly aware of how naked I was and how cold the mat was against my skin.
We were both quiet as we dressed; the only sound was leather sliding into place on our bodies.
I stood up once I had my pants on and tied the top string into a tiny knot and bow.
“I’m not going to be able to stay away from you, Avyn.” He turned to me, sadness clouding his eyes; he looked so broken, no doubt remembering how I turned away from him last night, but I couldn’t deny the growing feelings between us.
I wanted him, and he wanted me. I fell for him the first day I saw him, and I continued to fall deeper into my feelings every single day after.
I walked over to him and laid my hand over his heart, and even through the leather, I could feel his heart hammering against his chest, against my hand.
He brought his hand up and covered mine.
“I don’t want you to stay away from me. I can’t stay away from you anymore. ”
His body relaxed, and relief softened his features as he leaned down and pressed a tender kiss to my forehead. “We will figure this out. I will figure this out. Even if we need to run away from here, I will not stay away from you any longer.”
I reached around and hugged him, holding him tightly, as he wrapped his arms around my back, squeezing me tightly; his arms were a silent promise that he would never let me go.
“I liked it when you said my name…”
I looked up at him, thinking he had hit his head a little too hard when I took him down to the floor, “Zendryk?”
He chuckled, “No, Zen. Only my closest friends call me that, and it felt so damned good when you said it… well yelled it.” He raised an eyebrow, and a mischievous smile appeared across his face.
I playfully smacked his chest, and he laughed. The sound was rich and warm, cascading through the room, finding its home softly in my chest.
We were making our way to the Professor’s office to see if Ulric had any luck with him.
“So, when are we going to talk about what the Soulless said in the … dungeon?” Did they consider it a dungeon?
I had only heard of rooms like that from stories around the village, and I never thought they could be real.
“What do you mean?” He looked down at me from the corner of his eye.
“Uh…. Did you miss the part where he said that I don’t know what I am? Or the whole Helzál thing?” Sarcasm laced my tone; did he not hear the same conversation I had? I kept my eyes on the ground and stared at my feet as they took each step.
“I have no idea what he was implying. It was all very cryptic.”
I was quiet for a moment, “Maybe he is right, maybe I am something. I am the first mortal to get through the incantation without anyone removing it. I have these strange markings all over my arms and chest… and I hear...” I stopped myself before telling him about the voice in my head that seemed to pipe up at the most inconvenient times.
I could interrupt you during your… training… if you would like.
I. Was. Mortified. I shot the voice a look that could kill, well, if a look could kill a voice…In my head… I was sounding crazier by the minute.
You’re not crazy, but don’t worry, I don’t enjoy seeing humans unite. The last word came out with distaste, as if it were spitting it on the ground.
Thank the gods I didn’t have to worry about that.
Zen stopped walking and looked at me, “What do you hear?”
Fuck. I wasn’t ready to tell him, not until I could figure out what IT was.
“Umm… I hear servants chatting about me, and the looks they give me are unsettling sometimes.” I played with the ends of my hair, hoping he wouldn’t pry further.
A servant? An audible huff sounded through my head.
No. I shot back. But telling him I hear a voice in my head is not the smartest or sanest option right now.
The voice didn’t reply. Good.
His body relaxed, “They are just jealous that you don’t have to serve anymore, don’t worry about them.”
Thank the gods he believed it. It technically wasn’t a lie; I could always hear the servants murmur as I walked by. We continued walking towards the Professor’s office, winding our way through the endless hallways and staircases.
“But there has to be something wrong with me.” I needed to know more. Why was this all happening to me? Why me?
He stopped and turned towards me, putting his hands on the sides of my face.
“There is nothing wrong with you. You are perfect, sarcasm and all.” And then he planted a kiss on my forehead before we continued.
I was not convinced; there had to be something. Voices in my head? Breaking their incantation? These markings? The swords? What else was going to happen before we figured out what I was?
We entered the Professor’s office to find Ulric half asleep in the chair, slouched forward with his head resting on his arms against the Professor's desk. The Professor had his nose to a book and was rambling on about some nonsense.
Zen walked up behind Ulric's chair and pulled it out suddenly, jerking Ulric awake.
“I wasn’t sleeping!” He said while trying to adjust his eyes to the light.
“Just like lessons when we were younger; always napping.” Zen took a seat in the chair beside him, and I took the one beside Zen. “Have you found anything interesting?” He asked as he turned his attention towards the Professor, still rambling on.
The Professor startled and looked up from the top of his glasses, which rested on the tip of his nose, always precariously balanced but never fell.
“Oh Zendryk, Avyn, when did you get here?” He pushed his glasses up.
“It doesn’t matter; I was just telling Ulric about other incantations from history.
While we don’t have much information gathered on the Soulless themselves, multiple other civilizations and species display abilities that are like our incantations.
” His glasses slowly made their way back down his nose again as he scurried around his desk, taking a seat.
He pushed a book toward us. “Have you ever heard of the Myravine?” His eyes lit up with excitement, but he didn’t give us a chance to reply before speaking again.
“They are a creature, a species,” he corrected himself, “they live in the darkest waters mixed among the plant life.” He nudged the book closer to us, and a hand-drawn image of what I could only assume was a Myravine stared up at us from the pages.
Its limbs were like fins that resembled long, flowy kelp leaves, and its hair was a tangled mess of strands of seaweed.
Its face was hidden behind the swirling hair floating in front of it, and only golden eyes peeked out through the strands.
Its body was the color of the water, with varied shades of green.
It was beautiful but also terrifying; I would not want to find myself anywhere near where they lived.
“Not many have seen them, and those who have don’t usually live long enough to tell others about them.
This rendering is one of the only ones we have, but I am getting sidetracked.
Right,” He pushed his glasses back up, “They have incantations that hide their homes and blend them in with their surroundings. It’s how they have stayed hidden for many years. ”
I ran my fingers over the image in front of us. “They are so elegant, but also very frightening.”
“You wouldn’t want to cross paths with one, that is for sure.” And down they fell again.
“I’m not sure about that, but from the looks of it, I think I might like to run into one.”
Zen slammed his elbow into Ulric's side. “Can you think with your head for once?”
“I was!” Ulric replied while rubbing his side.
Zen drove his elbow into his side once more, making him grunt from the impact this time.
“No, you wouldn’t.” The professor said, the humor and what Ulric was implying went right over his bald head.
“They’ll lure you into the waters, and once there, in their grasp, no one survives.
” He grabbed the book back and closed it before setting it on a pile of other books that were precariously close to falling over.
“The point is, there is evidence that the Soulless could be using an incantation to hide their whereabouts from us.”
Ulric sat up straighter. “So how do we go about unhiding them?”
Are you playing hide-and-seek with the Soulless?
Not the time. I fired back. You’re distracting me.
Silence. Good.
“That’s the question, isn’t it?” He ran his finger and thumb around the edges of his graying beard.
“We will have to set up some trials of some sort. We can start with some basic ones here, with our own incantation to see what may or may not work. Then once we have a better idea, we can try in the northern mountains.”
I piped up, curiosity taking over, “What trials would you suggest?”
I could feel all three sets of eyes on me.
“Someone had to ask it.” I shrugged.
“I would start small, one of you put an incantation on an object, a book maybe, and the other attempts to break it. We don’t know what kind of powers they have or how strong their incantations are, but it’s a start.
I will continue searching texts to see if I can find anything else that may be useful.
” The Professor said, guiding us hopefully in the right direction.
Zen stood up and stretched his back, arching his muscular chest forward, and I couldn’t help but look.
And I’m the distraction?
Go away! I didn’t dare tell the voice, but I was proud of its sarcasm.
“Well, we have a lot of work to do. Avyn, we’re going to have to put some of your lessons on hold while we explore this. We can consider this advanced power training.” His smile lit up my soul, just like the fairy lanterns were lighting up this room.