UNGLOVED

Chapter Ten Part 2

After resting and eating, Liriel noticed a glimmer in the distance. Dawn was finally here. It was time for her to attempt to transport before the light became to bright.

She was aiming for the house where she had met Lorenzo a while ago, in the hope that by chance he might be there. They had planned to meet again in a month's time, but Liriel couldn't wait.

The walk had tired her. She knew she would have to draw some maru from vegetation to assist her in her transport, so she had only walked far enough to avoid detection. She ate up the last of her provisions as dusk turned the light streaming through the branches into a pinkish gold. A chill was settling in. She shivered, feeling feverish. More maru would definitely help.

She selected a strong, healthy tree and placed her palms flat against the rough wood. Her sight shifted into the twilight world. Everything glowed with power. She tapped the tree, taking as much as she felt she could bear. As the maru filled her, her eyes widened, seeing the world brighten even more. The strength the tree gave her made her feel taller, stronger, and more fierce.

It was a relief to feel the strength flow into her after the months of feeling especially drained. She loved the pulsing sensation as it filled her, thickly flowing, until her even her lips felt swollen with it. For a moment, Liriel panicked, thinking that the added maru might harm her baby. She snapped her hands back from the tree. Although the power pulsed through her in the most alluring way, a small terror grew inside her. What was this doing to her? She wanted to draw more from the tree, until she shone like the sun with the strength it gave her, but only her fear kept her from doing so.

Gathering up her wits, she called up the image of the little bedroom in the hut where Lorenzo's brother had been killed, in the town not far from the fighting. She hoped she would find Lorenzo there and not some strange Trillas who would sound the alarm. With only a slight push of her will, she tapped her over-brimming maru and wished herself there.

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This time, Liriel was careful to take a deep breath before she went, so when she arrived, she was only slightly out of breath.

She glanced around the room, a bare place with only a bed and a night table and a single chair as furnishings. Nothing had changed. No one was here. Liriel was unphased. He might come if she waited for a while. She sat on the chair and rested, though this time, she wasn't particularly tired. She had filled herself more than ever before. She would have enough for another trip.

After an hour, Liriel began to worry. She wasn't thinking straight. What should she do if she couldn't find Lorenzo? How long should she wait for him, and what should she do if someone else came instead? She jumped to her feet and headed downstairs.

No Lorenzo here either.

She lifted the curtain from the window, thinking he might be outside. She let only one eye peer out through the gap. There was no one. The house, was positioned at a distance from the rest of the village. No one was outside in the distance either. Perhaps everyone was camped near the front lines. She let the curtain drop and glanced about the room. It was probably safer upstairs. She could transport away if anyone came in.

Standing over the bed once more, she decided to try to determine how long it had been since Lorenzo had been there. She would try something that the military used, a way to track who was present and how long ago they were there. She slipped off her gloves and pressed her palms on the pillow. Lorenzo's face leapt into her mind, smiling. She smiled as she remembered him, looking as he had as she lay beside him their last time together here. It felt as if this image was from that time.

She moved her hands to other parts of the linens, each time reminded of her last tryst in this cozy house. There were no other images, no other times, save one, when she touched the bedpost, a flash of a bloody scene blinded her. A man, who looked like--but not like Lorenzo, and a woman laying with limbs awry, both blood caking their skin and soaking the linens.

For a moment, Liriel forgot to breath. This must have been Lorenzo's brother, who died at the hands of soldiers, perhaps even her own brother. She touched the chair and the table, but received little more information. It was likely, she decided, that the only person who used this house was Lorenzo, and he hadn't been back since their last visit.

Liriel searched her memories for another place that she might find Lorenzo. A few times, when they were alone and she ungloved, images had come to mind, thoughts shared with her lover, memories of other times and places. There was one image that was stronger than the others. They had talked of Madrezza, the town where his lived, and he had shared a brief glimpse of the place he called home, a large manor on the hillside.

The only image that might be strong enough for Liriel to use as an anchor to transport herself was one of his room. The dilemma was that she might be too drained of maru once she transported to leave should she need to.

She puzzled about this for a while, reviewing the scant information she had on the house and its surroundings. She remembered a portrait hanging on the wall in Lorenzo's room, a window, a desk, an upholstered chaise, and a rug. It was enough to get her there, but where could she go to get more power if she needed to leave in a hurry.

Perhaps the window. Liriel tried to remember what was outside Lorenzo's room. Once, she thought she had seen a tree. If she had to, she could flee out the window and draw what she needed from it. Resolved to leave, believing Lorenzo was not coming to this place any time soon, she lay down on the bed and imagined herself laying on the bed in the other room in the sumptuous house on the hill. In a moment she was there.

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I hope you enjoyed this instalment of Ungloved. If you did, please consider voting so that it has a chance to receive some more attention by rising up the ranks in the (rather large) Fantasy category. I also enjoy comments, so please feel free to let me know what you thought.

Cheers!

Rebecca