The Breath -Sixth Whale Book 1

*12*

" You were a wizard at the guild?" She was surprised, it was well known that The Witchfather had bad blood with the guild. Derys rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. Shae decided to let the question go. She felt like she was quizzing him too much anyways. The memory Derys sat up, eyes scanning the surrounding trees. Roots were wrapping around the ankles of his boots. Either he hadn't noticed or was completely unconcerned by them. 

" I know someones here!" He called out. There was no dramatic reveal that featured Thandre stepping out into the mottled sunlight or a voice echoing through the trees. Just the quiet rustling of the wind in the leaves. 

Derys grabbed at the roots that were wrapping around him and removed them. Getting back to his feet he realised the forest had changed, plants had grown and shifted to form a path. He dusted off the leaves and other debris from his robe and began to follow the path. It led him carefully and vanished behind him. Derys and Shae followed the memory.

" Beautiful wasn't it?" Derys sighed looking at the towering trees. The green cast the leaves were giving the mottled light was making the forest floor seem to dance. Shae hadn't seen a forest in a long time.

" This doesn't exist anymore?" Derys didn't need to answer the question as they reached a clearing. Sitting in the centre was The Witchfather's cabin. The circular building looked more alive than it did in The Halves. Birds were nesting in the thatched roof and a thin line of smoke gently spiralled out of the stone chimney. It was surrounded by grass and it was hard to imagine this little building as it was today, in the suffocating gloom surrounded by cobbles. As the memory of Derys approached the cabin the birds flew away and up into the trees. 

" Things change and Thandre, he stopped caring about the forest for a long time. He misses it now though." Derys gazed longingly at the cabin. Shae could see the hunger in his eyes for the chance to return. She wondered briefly how much time Derys spent dreaming of his life. 

Their attention was dragged back to the memory by the sound of knocking and the opening of the cabin door. She couldn't help but be surprised. The person answering couldn't have been the witchfather. He stood taller than she'd ever seen him, with broad muscles. His skin was gently touched by the sun. The Memory of Derys looked somewhat horrified. 

" He was the palest man I'd ever seen. I thought he was sick." Derys laughed a little at himself.

" That's not the same person." Shae could see the silver eyes, and chestnut hair but everything else seemed too wrong. The Thandre she knew was a gaunt stick-like man who looked like he'd never seen a day of manual labour in his life. 

" I told you things aren't good the way they are now. He doesn't look after himself like he's living anymore." Derys explained briefly, the pair turned back to look a the scene as it continued to unfold. Thandre had started to speak.

" What's wrong with your magic?" Thandre opened with looking at Derys was an equal amount of horror. 

" Nothing, I just tamed it is all. We call it wizardry." The Memory replied appalled. Thandre looked repulsed and muttered something unintelligible under his breath.

" Wizardry," Thandre repeated completely incapable of hiding his distaste. The memory of Derys bristled but calmed himself down.

" Look I just need someplace to hide for a while." He said hopefully to Thandre. " I can make myself my own cottage or something I just need to stay in the forest for a while." Thandre sighed.

" What did you do?" Thandre looked very relaxed for a man faced with a potential criminal but there was a hint of accusation in his voice.

" Ran away from home?" He replied as if questioning his own answer. Thandre lifted an eyebrow. 

" Right." He dragged out the word, his doubt being clear with the tone and started to close the door. Derys shoved his foot into the gap.

" Please I'll move on after a couple of months," Derys begged, as his foot was being slowly crushed.

" No," Thandre replied. Then he seemed to change his mind and dragged Derys inside. Shae looked around the cabin and noticed except for the table nothing had changed. It even smelt the same.

" Tell me why you are being chased." There was suddenly a knife at Derys's throat.

" I've left the guild of wizardry and um... they aren't... er... happy about my decision." Thandre looked disgusted.

" A guild that mutilates magic, who's bright idea was that?" Derys didn't make eye contact with Thandre and the silence that followed hung in the air. The spirit was looking away from Shae too. She could be the implication and wondered if Derys would ever give her confirmation.

Thandre let go of his captive and the knife vanished.

" Even so hunting you down is a bit extreme. What's so special about you that warrants being hunted like a deer?" Derys held out his hand and just above it floated a little ball of light as they watched the ball of light became a glass bottle. Thandre watched in mild interest.

" Creation magic. They want their figurehead back then?" Thandre chuckled. Derys looked put out that the other man wasn't impressed.

" You can stay. I'll show you how magic is meant to be, free. But first, we'll have to do something about your old friends." The scene faded out and she found herself blinking as the warm, bright light of the forest returned to the darkness of the caverns. Shae didn't feel any less confused. In fact, she felt more so, the man upstairs and the man in the forest were worlds apart. 

" He gave me freedom for the rest of my life. I just wish he'd give it to be in death too." Derys was back to being a floating spirit his face looked tired. Shae wondered if he ever showed Thandre just how tired he was or if it was the same as with Ofrin when she used to smile despite the bruises. She climbed back up the ladder and went to bed, checking on Thandre as she did, He'd been awake and lucid before she'd ventured down but now he was sound asleep. 

" You're an idiot." She told him and knew that she wasn't just directing those words at him. She was saying the to Ofrin, Derys and herself. They were all idiots. The only smart one here from what she could gather was Vern... and perhaps Donnie. Although it was hard to tell, he just seemed to float around the place and try not to get on Mae's bad side. Which was probably his wisest course of action. So maybe Donnie wasn't an idiot either, just a bit lost.