Chapter 14
After The Division, time forever stood still.
— The book of Tevye
Airess
“You certainly knew what you were doing back there.” Airess side-eyed Taryn as their horses walked side by side in the woods.
They had ridden for several hours, partaking in some small talk that led to a silence as they avoided large groups loitering amongst the trail.
Eventually, they veered off path and traveled directly into the tree line.
“You stole like it was muscle memory. Dare I say, Taryn, you must be the thieving criminal the Luciens have painted you and the Guild out to be.”
Taryn looked forward, silver eyes alert as he scanned through the trees as they rode. Airess had learned that his Fae senses were a huge boon–Taryn was able to see, hear, or smell other folk before she could. It was why they had avoided unwanted company thus far.
“I never claimed I wasn’t a criminal, just that the idealizations programmed into you are false. The Luciens painted the Guild out to the public how they wanted us–them to be seen.”
His jaw tensed. She reasoned he must be getting used to his new reality, a fugitive on the run and all. Hell, she was too. Airess had seen more today than she had in the past ten years. Her lips pursed as she processed his words.
She pulled the reins and signaled her horse to stop. “Alright, if we are going to travel together, I’m going to need some answers to my questions. And not those faulty almost-answers you’ve been giving me,” she lifted her chin. “A question for a question.”
Taryn halted his horse and angled himself to face her. The earring on his sharp-tipped ear swayed as he came to a stop. “Alright. Ladies first.”
“So far I’ve seen you wield wind and water. That suggests you're Windborne and Waterborne. Admittedly, I do not know much about the Fae’s elemental abilities. Is it common for you to wield more than one element?”
Elemental wielders weren’t allowed in Luciena, only a small number of Noborne Fae resided in the capitol as lowborn commoners in the poverty ring, misplaced from the ongoing war on Rune. Any Fae that were capable of Magick were executed, as elemental Magick was illegal.
Fae people were a rare species to come by, even more so if they had Magick flowing in their veins. The fact that Taryn still walked this continent at all proved his resilience.
He shrugged, inhaling a breath before answering. “I wouldn’t categorize it as common, but rather a rare capability to be blessed with multiple.” Airess couldn’t help but notice the tension rising within him at the question, but decided to let it go. For now.
He motioned a hand for them to continue forward as they spoke, subtly dismissing any conversation further about his powers.
“And what about your abilities? You said you were powerless, but that display in the caravan obviously contradicts your claim.”
Airess expected this question, having been asked this her entire life. Except now, she was truly confused, her body producing Magick stronger than it ever had after she had left the castle.
“Before I was taken to the capitol to marry Arzhel, my mother had advised me my entire life to keep my Magick a secret. Even as a child, I hadn’t been able to produce much of my power. It had always been so faint.
“I chalked it up to the Gods gifting me with weak abilities, or perhaps the slowly dying existence of Magick as a whole. What I did to you, to those guards… I have never done it before in my life. I thought I knew my own capabilities, but I’m quickly learning I may know nothing at all.
Blasting you was the first time I ever triggered so much Magick at once. ”
“Well, I’m certainly honored.” Taryn said sarcastically with a hand over his heart.
A bitter laugh escaped her lips. Thoughts of her mother and Arzhel surged forward, traumatic memories begging to rise to the surface of the sea of her mind. Airess drowned the memories deep down, as she always had, and focused on her next question.
What did she know about Taryn? The answer was very little.
Airess knew he was ordered to capture her, yet he defied those orders.
Taryn saved her while unconscious. He even defended her when she was struck in the caravan, showing some semblance of a moral compass, as skewed as it may be with his thieving habit.
To put it simply, he was a complicated person. She felt it, as if his energy was blocked within him. He was kind, funny even, yet showed traits of immorality. He was a walking contradiction. It was confusing and illogical.
“How did you end up joining the Mrkynian Guild?”
He chuckled, the sound lodged in his throat.
Taryn smiled bitterly, silver eyes distant as he no doubt recalled the past. “I sometimes ask myself that same question. I was young. The Guildmaster found me in a time of… need. I bargained my way into the Guild. I would have done anything at the time to find somewhere to belong.”
The words were raw as they left his mouth. Airess let them linger in the air, weighing them in her mind.
He turned to face her then, his gaze lingering on her ivory hair. “Where are you from?”
Airess understood his curiosity. The Elven people were predominantly dark haired, sharing traits of pale skin the color of porcelain. Airess was an oddity amongst them, her white locks, golden eyes and tanned skin making her stick out in a crowd.
“Judla, a small province in south Luciena near the ocean. My father was the Governing Lord before I was moved to the capitol.”
He eyed her wearily but didn’t press her further on the matter.
Airess wanted to say, before the Luciena Guard raided my home and slaughtered my mother and father, but decided to keep it short. She didn’t know him well enough to unpack all her trauma.
“Why didn’t you use your Magick on those guards? You had every opportunity, yet you resorted to wielding a blade.”
“It wouldn’t have been a fair fight,” was all he replied, his tone clipped.
“So you do have morals.”
Taryn gave her a cutting look. Something flared behind his eyes, but she couldn’t decipher what the emotion meant. The emotion disappeared, hidden by a mask of a smirk. “I suppose as skewed as it is, yes.”
For a moment, Airess caught herself staring. Staring at a male whose deviousness she found endearing. She swallowed and looked forward, but the motion seemed to pique Taryn’s curiosity.
“For someone who has lived so lavishly, you certainly don’t seem that uncomfortable to be traveling outdoors like this. I find that
interesting.”
Airess nodded, fighting the blush that threatened to rise. It was a miniscule comment, but one she had never heard directed at her before. No one had ever found her interesting.
“What else can I do but be okay with change? It’s not as if I can do anything about it but move forward. I don’t need to hold onto the past, there’s nothing for me there.”
Taryn gave her a calculating look, as if that was not the answer he expected. He nodded approvingly. “That’s something not everyone can accept so easily.”
Airess shrugged. “Maybe they aren’t meant to, at least in this lifetime.”
Silence fell between them before Airess realized she never asked for Taryn’s full name. “What’s your last name? I don’t think I ever asked.”
For a moment she thought he wasn’t going to answer, but slowly, he answered, “Seas. Taryn Seas.”
He said the words like he hadn’t spoken them aloud for quite some time.
She thought it was a nice name. Airess knew names held power, more than most. But his energy suddenly fell stagnant, and when she blinked her Sight forward, she saw his aura dim.
Airess couldn’t necessarily describe what she felt, but somehow she just knew there was a certain pain that came with his name.
She changed the subject. “And how old are you, Taryn Seas?”
Taryn lifted a brow and chuckled. “Someone’s curious. I’m twenty-four, if you must know. Four years older than you.”
“And how do you know my age?”
Taryn snorted. “You were my target. I was debriefed on everything we knew about you. Granted, the information was very little. You’ve kept yourself well hidden.”
Airess swallowed. If only he knew it wasn’t by her design. If only he knew the truth.
They conversed lightly the rest of the way. Airess didn’t pry any further into his background, and he returned the sentiment. For once, she just wanted to pretend she was a regular person. She didn’t know how much longer that illusion would last.
You’ve kept yourself well hidden.
Airess’ brow hardened as they trekked through the forest, dense with tangled roots and the scent of soil.
The reins bit into her palms as her grip tightened.
Taryn’s words rang in her mind over and over.
She tasted the bitterness on the tip of her tongue, she could feel the stolen time that slipped from her grasp.
She vowed if she ever made it out of this Gods’ forsaken country, she would be sure the world knew who she was.
Airess would make sure she was unforgettable.