Am I Not The Hero?

Chapter 15 - Esmeralda Moos

The cold air pierces into Z's skin as we set up the fire, not mine, though; the fur on my arms and legs is shielding me from it like an umbrella against the rain. Clouds formed over our heads, and I worried our fire would go out before it started flaming. „Z, step back," I ordered them; channeling my Tendrá was not what I planned to do today.
Tingling sensations all over my body is something I will never get used to; I can feel the energy travel through my body, veins, and into my hands. I manifest it into a ball-like shape and throw it towards the fire pit. The sticks go up in flames, and the temperature around me rises. I took the pot in which we had already prepared our food on the contraption we had built earlier and let the soup simmer.

„How did you do that?" Z asked as I sat down, stirring the pot. „How did I do what?" „Channel your Tendrá; only skilled Elves and Faes plus animals can do that." I had to laugh, „is that what they tell you?" I asked them, but I honestly could have guessed. „You arrogant Silvans get more creative every damn day to pretend like you're the best." They looked confused; obviously, they had undergone the brainwashing of the Guntai too. „Okay, crash history course; thousands of years ago, our kind wondered how the fuck animals do magical things and started studying it. It turns out we've already been doing it for decades.

„Zaratans used it to breathe underwater and used it as embryos when we exited our birch trees. The two nations continued studying it and found they could channel it and manifest it. The then Elve king got jealous and started hunting everyone who bent Tendrá to their will. A whole genocide and a decade later, they told everyone that all this never happened and that they're the only ones who can use Tendrá." Z looked confused as I explained this to them; their government did a great job hiding all the horrible things they've done in the past, so good even that their own people forgot the truth.

„That explains why we have no history books from earlier than 100 years ago," they answered, and I had to laugh again; even Z smiled, but only a smidge, just enough so I could see it. Since I met them, I thought them to be a little strange; they only spoke when spoken to and kept to themselves. But I guess so did I, so I can't blame them, right? They're weird in my books but not as bad as I assumed.

Still, there was a distance between us; we didn't know or trust one another, but maybe that would change as our journey continued. We sat at the fire for a while, taking in the tasty smell of the soup brewing in front and the nature around us. Aside from the ever-darkening clouds over our heads, it was a lovely late summer evening. The slight breeze brushing through my hair, the sound of cicadas calling each other, and the leaves falling off the trees told me that fall was near. Hopefully, we would all be back home before the first big fall storm reached us.

Soup always tastes the best when it's homemade, and the two of us slung it down in a matter of minutes. We still didn't talk much, but now it was a more comfortable silence. The two of us finished setting up the tent and quickly snuggled in. It was a bit small for two people, especially since we both have horns sticking out at the top of our heads, but it would do for one night.

„How have you learned to channel your Tendrá so quickly?" Z suddenly asked as I drifted off into sleep. „Lots of practice and working on my inner peace," I mumbled while rolling over; I was too tired to give them a full fleshed explanation right now. „Wait, inner peace? What do you mean by that?" They asked me, but I had already entered dreamland.

I awoke to the sound of Avis chirping and the trees dancing in the wind. I rolled over onto my back and noticed that Z had already left the tent. They're always the last to go to bed and the first to wake up, and I wondered how they did that. Mornings have always been my most hated time of the day, and today was no different; I tried going back to sleep, but the sun's light shone into my eyes, and I wasn't tired anymore. I fought myself onto my feet and climbed out.

The fresh smell of morning dew and breakfast rushed into my nose as I walked towards Z. They had already started a fire and were cooking eggs in the pan. „You got it on alone this time?" I asked Z, who nodded, „I tried doing it like you, but I just couldn't get it to ignite" they seemed frustrated, so I sat down next to them, „I can explain it to you." I suggested, and they agreed.

Elves and Fae knew surprisingly little about Tendrá, considering they told everyone they were the only ones to use it. I spent the entire morning telling stories and showing them how it's done since we had to wait for the other two. I told her about all the things you can do with Tendrá aside from manifesting it into physical shapes, the power everyone has in themselves, and how much good you can do with it to the world. But of course, there are always exceptions. However, that wasn't important for their training.

„Concentrate on what you want to achieve," I told them for the hundredth time, but they still didn't seem to get it. „I don't understand what I am doing wrong," they groaned as they dropped their hands again, „and if you say one more time that I just have to concentrate, I will rip your head off." Z cursed as they let themselves plop onto the ground. They looked like a toddler throwing a tantrum at that moment, but I kept that to myself for the sake of my head. „Okay, I won't say it," I held my hands up, signaling peace between us. „What do you think about when you channel your Tendrá?" I asked, „I think about everything you told me, my posture, my movements, my breathing, how I am holding my hands; I try to-„ „All right, I get it. You're overthinking. You need to calm down a bit, inner peace, you know?" I chuckled a little; of course, they were a perfectionist.

„But you told me to do all those things?" Z furrowed their brows as they faced me, „Well, now I'm changing my mind. It's not working anyway, so we should. Try something else. Only think about the flame, nothing more, nothing less." I ordered them, and they nodded. Zs eyes closed, and they formed their hands into a ball, much less cramped up this time. They took a deep breath in, their shoulders slacked down, and their face relaxed.

A tiny spark ignited in their hands, and then another and another, and soon enough, a ball of light shone through the spaces between their fingers. Z opened their eyes and threw it towards the fire pit. A small flame shot into the sky, reaching for the clouds above it, which they would never reach. „I did it," Z beamed and tried it once more, successfully creating another ball of light and shooting it towards the fire pit. The flames reached even higher this time.

"Don't burn down the forest," Someone shouted as Z was about to do it again. The two of us turned around to see who it was, "or yourselves preferably," Draigh and Ravi walked towards them. "Ah, the princesses have awoken from their slumber," I joked and bowed in front of them, barely holding in my laugh.

"All right, we get it; we've slept a little longer than planned," Draigh admitted, "but we're here now, right? So how about you guys pack your things, and we leave, still got to ride eight hours." He was right, so I kicked out the fire, grabbed the tent, and jumped onto the Equu. "Well then, off to our last stop on this trip, Sarkalli."