Song of the Piper

::28:: Lost Relations (Part 2)

"It would make a great tale for the years to come."

"It would, wouldn't it?" Her voice was light, but her smile was tinged with sadness. "So, back to the topic. Once Anton and I realised that we couldn't fight the Pied Piper, I came up with the idea to have him transfer the mind control Affinity into someone else.

"Anton agreed. We'd been hiding at first, but as soon as the plan was made we had no time to lose—I stepped out to distract the Pied Piper and lure him to control my mind, while Anton hung back, waiting for the proper moment to strike.

"What we didn't calculate was that you would walk into the heat of the battle. We'd totally forgotten that Helene had warded you too."

I blinked furiously. "I'd unintentionally allowed myself to be caught up in all this, hadn't I? Even in all those years ago," I said.

"You were always a somewhat precocious child. Anyway, Anton had successfully transferred Lord Himmel's mind-controlling Affinity into a stone by then. He saw the danger, and broke your leg on purpose with magic before whisking you away to safety. Meanwhile, I continued to distract the Pied Piper. It was a hard battle." Her eyes looked old—older than her forty odd years. Then we simultaneously looked at my crippled leg, at its twisted, misshapen form.

"You said that disabilities that had been there by birth can't be healed..." I murmured. "But this is different—it had been broken on purpose." So that was why in my past, I had been walking without a limp. It all made sense.

"I'm sorry to have caused you so much pain over the years, Klaudia," she said, deep with regret. "But we had no choice. We had to keep you safe. If you hadn't had the broken leg, you would have been one of the children who have their youth drained by Lord Himmel."

My mind went numb. So all this—all that I've suffered for my disability, was to keep me safe? I didn't know whether to be angry or grateful. Both, I supposed. Anyhow, I was still alive. "I understand," I said. "I may not like it, but I understand."

She loosened a breath I didn't know she'd been holding. "Thank you."

"Now I'd like to hear the rest of the story please."

"But of course." The corners of her lips quirked up slightly. "So, your father took you to safety. I don't exactly know what had transpired when you two were gone, but in the end, Anton somehow decided that so much power cannot just be left contained in a lodestone." She paused for a bit, and I instantly knew what her next words were going to be.

"He gave the Affinity to you."

I didn't know what to make of the statement. I never had the mind-controlling Affinity in the first place—it had belonged to Lord Himmel. No, Lord Adolf Weilsterhein. I was a mere catalyst for its power. I only had it because I was at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Elise allowed me to absorb the shock before proceeding: "It was likely because the Affinity was too powerful, and it couldn't be contained for long. Hence Anton needed someone to hold it."

"Why couldn't he take it for himself?" I asked.

"His Affinity for transferring magic was limited to his environment, and not himself. When he used his power, he always needed a source and a receiver," Elise said. "His Medium—stones, or essentially anything of the earth, worked as catalysts, but not as the receiver itself. Depending on how strong the magic is, the stone can only contain so much for a time. Otherwise it would dispel and return to its original owner. And as you can imagine, a mind control Affinity is extremely powerful."

"So all of this"—I raised my hands in front of me, almost feeling the power spark at my fingertips—"is coincidence?"

"An excellent coincidence."