Taking Over // UNDER CONSTRUCTION

The Ritual

 A male voice comes from behind me, and I turn, facing the source. "Drake, is that..?" He had embraced much more of his magic, based on how strong his magical signature was. A short, almost astonished laugh escapes his lips.

"I thought you were dead-" He chokes out, and I can feel a small smile tug at my lips, but a feeling was growing in the pit of my stomach. Guilt.

"I didn't have an assured exit, but one opened up on the floor right before the magma descended onto me. I was ok, I'm still not sure how that happened, but I am ok."I mess with the rings on my fingers and my knuckles, and he shoots me a grin.

"Well thank god for that; I'm doing a job right now, actually, for a small town not far from here. Would you care to join me?"His voice seemed tired, but still gentle. I remember Greyson telling me he hadn't been like that before, which shocked me.

I take a moment to think over it, over exaggerating a bit while I take in the scenery. We were in a forest, more than likely on the edge of the Badlands. It made me nervous being this close to the Empire's territory, but I couldn't quite put my finger on why.

The area was very densely vegetated, but had mostly darker toned trees and a lot of undergrowth. The ground was mostly leaves at this point, it being too cold for them to survive for too long. "It sounds like fun; I'm in."

We trek up the side of a ridge in a cliffside, the mountains in the background creating a peaceful tone to the area. While the Badlands were extremely dangerous, they were also fairly beautiful. I catch a glimpse of a nightmare, and I bite my lip. "So, Drake-" he glances back at me, then continues to focus on the difficult terrain for a moment, helping me up and then stopping- "What's the job you're doing? I forgot to ask earlier," I smile a little, though I was nervous. Why, though? It was just Drake.

"The town had a beast that would attack and kill the people who lived on the outskirts and their livestock; they asked me, or rather hired me, to cast a shield over their village. I just needed to collect the materials."He had a very business-like tone, which I somewhat found endearing, but I would never say that aloud.

"Oh, that makes sense. Would you like an extra pair of hands?"He nods a bit, before turning back around and looking over at the mountains.

"You know, I wonder what the Highlands look like. There's so much we haven't seen, because the Empire would shoot us down as soon as we came into view."His expression is thoughtful, then twists into one of scorn. "They just take what they want, and don't even stop to think how it could affect other people."

I thought over his words, nodding a little. "You're right; but as much as I'd love to take them down, we're only two people. And the Empire has eyes everywhere..."I sigh a little, pursing my lips. The Empire itself was a sore subject, but I wouldn't tell him that. I agreed with what he said, anyway.

He runs a hand over his face and through his hair, before looking back at me momentarily, before softly murmuring, "Come on."I follow him on the gravel path into the small woodland area in front of us.

"It's been what, 2 years?"He asks softly, throwing a glance my way. "How've you been holding up? And did you manage to figure out your past any?"I swallow thickly. I had, but that wasn't something I was ready to talk about. It was still bits and pieces, and I really didn't want to scare him.

"I've been alright, I think. I've been working on my magic more,"I step over a fallen limb, "And I built a small house for myself. You'll have to come by sometime."I fiddle with my rings yet again. Why was I so nervous? Yes, I hadn't been around many people in the time we'd split and gone through the portals. After that, it was nothing until I dropped through another one. "How about you?"