***
"How much longer?" Thea whined.
I turned my head to glance at her. She was leaning against the inside of the wagon upside down looking up at me.
"With the rate Aurias travels, there's probably a few months left," I replied, returning my attention to the road.
Once we left the vicinity of the city and took a side road that led South, we were met with almost no traffic. We travelled for a couple weeks already, and everyday Thea asked me the same question. It felt like she was trying to get on my nerves, so I went with her plight and gave a straight answer every time.
"Hmph ... you are no fun, you know that?" she mocked, poking my cheek with her finger.
"Care for another game of cards?" Jayde piped from inside.
Thea exhaled in an annoyed tone.
"We have played all manner of cards every day. I wish to do something else!" she pouted.
"Who'd of thought God to be such a whiny child?" I mumbled.
I felt the skin on the back of my neck stand up.
"Maybe if you did anything more than sit there and stare at the road all day and sleep the second we stopped," she mocked once more.
It seemed no amount of subtle words evaded her divine ears.
"She does have a point, you have been kind of distant as of late," Jayde commented.
I looked forward, scanning the road and tree line. The warm breeze that patted my face and flowed into my robes felt almost surreal. Outside of Thea's complaining and the churning of wheels on dirt, I enjoyed every sound resonating in my ears. From the swaying of leaves in the wind to the smell of fresh air, I felt at peace.
"I guess you guys have a point. You want me to show you some magic tricks?" I asked jokingly.
"Yes!" they both exclaimed without hesitation.
"I would like to see some tricks as well," Aurias chimed.
We waited until the afternoon before stopping to eat lunch. After we finished eating, I had Aurias make sure everything was clear all around us. Once he gave us the green light, I thought about what to show them.
"My first magic trick is ... this!" I said, producing a mote of fire in my hand.
"I know 'tis not all you have," Thea yawned in mockery.
"That's correct. Each part of this trick is in stages!" I exclaimed.
I took my free hand and spun it around the mote of fire in a cone. A tight magical cone of air took hold of the mote which I set to float in front of my chest. Thea still seemed unimpressed, but Jayde was mesmerized. Aurias didn't really have any facial expressions I could read. He was a horse, after all.
From the fixed point, I created a spiral line of water below the wind cone and then created a wide suction at its base following the line of the water spiral. The flames from the mote were pulled though, riding parallel to the spiral water, creating the illusion of a spinning combination of fire and water.
"Woah..." Jayde mouthed, stunned.
"'Tis neat indeed," Thea commented.
"I have never experienced magic used in this way," Aurias said.
I picked up a medium sized stick and placed it in the center of the mote and wind cone. It quickly caught fire while being suspended in the air. I stepped back a couple feet, picked up another smaller stick and aimed it at the mote.
"Lightning!" I exclaimed.
There were only a few clouds in the sky, but out of nowhere a thin bolt of lightning cracked down on the floating stick, shattering it and striking the ground. The shattered pieces of the stick spun around the wind cone, making it more visible. Electricity from the lightning bolt got caught in the water spiral, turning it into an electrifying scene. The electricity even jumped between the water and flames.
Everyone with hands clapped for me. Aurias neighed a bit and even tapped his front hooves on the ground a few times to simulate clapping.
"That's so amazing, I wish I could do something like that," Jayde stared in excitement and awe.
"'Tis a pretty sight, and a good trick as well," Thea smiled.
"You are a very talented individual, Xavier," Aurias said.
I envisioned Aurias smiling when he said that. He might've been created for a singular purpose, but I felt he had more than a singular use. I ended up having more enjoyment than I thought while showing off my magic in nonviolent or practicing fashions. I did a few more tricks I thought of off the top of my head for the remainder of our lunch stop before we continued.
Every evening after, I split my time from refining techniques to trying out new tricks to entertain everyone with. Jayde and I sparred for at least an hour every day. For a while, she beat me down pretty hard. Even with the training I received, I wasn't able to match up to her much. She taught me a few new stances and moves each day though.
I had more fun each day that passed. Everyone began watching me practicing my moves and magic. When I wasn't doing that, the three of us talked about various things. Thea made sure to withhold certain things, but answered questions Jayde had otherwise.
I learned that Aurias was able to communicate with anyone, as he had joined in our conversations. Jayde was scared at first, but she seemed to quickly accept the second voice inside her head.
Out of everyone in the party, Jayde was obviously the most shell-shocked. She gained so much information over the course of our journey that any sages, historians, or scientists she approached would think she was an angel sent from the heavens.
One evening while we sat around our campfire, Aurias told us of his past rider a hundred years ago. His name was Fury, and he was an orc that traveled across the lands slaughtering the strongest warriors from different tribes as well as powerful adventurers.
After killing so many strong people, his martial essence drew Aurias to him. At first, Fury tried to kill and eat Aurias, but upon finding out his nature and the immense amount of power he'd gain, Fury made a pact.
The two then went on an even bigger killing spree, downing entire battalions of soldiers with his newfound power and abilities. Aurias recalled Fury's actions – and death – vividly. Fury's final battle took place in the far West in a country that's now called Erendoa.
Fury and his army of orcs steamrolled through most of the country, pillaging, raping, and murdering everyone they found. They came upon the city gates of Dholgud and found the entire city fortified to its maximum capacity.
At the top of one of the towers stood a gnome, barely noticeable in the swathes of soldiers and defenses. That gnome was the country's proclaimed hero who had slayed a dragon by himself; they called him 'Yusef Dragon-Executor'.
The gnome turned out to be a mage, much to Aurias' surprise. At the beginning of the battle, Yusef had manipulated the weather and created a flash freeze around the city. Fury had used his abilities to ward off the magic just enough that his army was able to charge the gates. Fury swung his weapon, sending out a wave of deadly force that shattered the gates and a large portion of wall defending the city.
As the orcs charged in, Yusef burned them with the flames of a dragon before teleporting in front of Fury. Fury swung his battleax against Yusef's small body, but the blade cracked in a brilliant light and shattered.
Yusef headbutted Fury which sent him flying off Aurias dozens of feet backward, tumbling and rolling. When Fury regained his balance, Yusef was already on him casting all manners of spells.
Fury was on the defensive for a long time, dodging and weaving from Yusef's attacks. Every opportunity he got, he retaliated with his fists and legs. For several minutes, Fury had slowly regained the offensive, smashing Yusef into the ground, kicking his small body around and using his immense strength to destroy the ground and terrain around them. The orcs had penetrated the city's defenses and were causing massive amounts of damage to everything they saw.
Yusef noticed the carnage and quickly made his way back into the city to protect everyone he could. Fury followed him and used Aurias' powers to break apart a gigantic part of the city's walls and residential buildings.
He caught up to Yusef and threw him through a crowd of civilians with such force that the innocent people very nearly exploded from the impact. Blood and innards spewed over the soldiers, streets and ground.
The two fought for another minute, going back and forth when Yusef caught an opening. His palm pressed against Fury's chest, right over his heart. In an instant, a large shard of ice sliced through Fury's body, piercing his heart and erupting out his back.
Aurias recalled feeling the pain surge through his own body as Fury dropped to the ground and struggled to move. With his heart gone and his body unable to continue, he died within minutes on the cold ground. The last thing Aurias remembered was everything going black and him entering the Ethereal plane with Galen and a couple other Tarboleth.
"Would you say I'm a better rider than him, then?" I asked jokingly after his story.
"I am unable to say at this time. I apologize," Aurias said.
"I would say you could not ride Aurias if your life depended on it," Thea joked.
Jayde and Thea laughed together.
"I bet I could ride both of you as easily as I can ride Aurias," I snapped back.
A moment of silence ensued.
"Xavier, I do believe you made an innuendo," Aurias pointed out.
"T – that's not what I meant," I sputtered in embarrassment.
Comebacks were never my strong suit. Jayde's face flushed heavily and she looked away bashfully. One of Thea's eyebrows raised up and She cracked a mischievous smile. She moved close ever so gracefully.
"If you wish to ride me, then you should be a man and take action, no?" She whispered.
I was at a loss for words. Were there a leash around my neck, Thea would have it in hand.
"I guess even a talented man such as you has no way to capture a fine specimen such as me," She teased.
She spun around, Her pink gown flowing around Her like a smooth river. She looked at me with a bright smile. I wasn't sure how to process what She was aiming for.
In the end, I was left blushing as I lost that particular battle. We continued to travel for several more days, enjoying the peaceful times. A few times I had to kill kobold, goblins, and sometimes wolves. They assumed that our lack of armor and weaponry was enough to overpower us.
A few days later during the evening when Jayde had fallen asleep, and while Thea and I sat around the fire sitting opposite of each other, I decided to ask Her some questions about my past life.
"Thea?" I asked, peering through the flames.
"Yes?" She replied, shifting her position.
"Can you tell me about my father?" I asked, poking the fire with another stick.
Thea tilted Her head a bit.
"What do you wish to know?" She bit into a piece of bread, and her face contorted a little at the unsavory taste.
"How did his life pan out after my death?" I looked solemnly at the flickering flames.
She took a moment before responding. It was as though She was searching through Her vast memory.
"Your father found out about your death within a day of its occurrence. He recently recovered from his addictions for the second time when the news came. There was an instant relapse and for six years after he wallowed in the loss."
"... Did he ever recover?" I felt a twisting in my stomach.
I didn't hate my father, I merely wished he got back onto his feet and continued to live. He worked hard every day for me while I was young, but he wasn't able to provide enough.
I was forced to move out and find work. For a while, I tried to support him, but his drug addiction kept him at rock bottom. I focused on trying to keep a decent life for myself, despite how much it didn't work out, but I thought about him a lot.
"Unfortunately, he did not. The drugs he used and the immense amount of grief he felt caused his heart strings to snap and his body was unable to sustain anymore," She spoke in a soft tone barely audible over the crackling of the fire.
The twisting in my stomach turned into heartache.
In the end, he couldn't take it, I thought.
I felt my throat tighten up. I blinked rapidly and felt myself lose some composure. Before I really understood what was happening, tears were streaming down my face and it became harder to breathe. I knew my father struggled, but the fact that he died because of my death hit hard.
The tears came down and my nose ran uncontrollably. The fire became a muddled blur as the sadness poured out of me. I had never felt anything like it before. My body shuddered with convulsions and all the memories came flooding to me. I began to recall back to my tenth birthday.
My father and I were the only ones around in our dilapidated house. A large cake that I was almost certain he spent more than he could afford sat on the table in front of me. We sang happy birthday and I blew out my candles. My wish had been that he got a break from the daily struggles, to enjoy life a little. I wished life gave him something more than hardships with no return.
I hadn't even noticed Thea moving to sit next to me. She pulled my head into Her chest tightly making it even harder to breath. Despite that, I felt a sense of comfort and relief. There was something about having Her hold me like eased the pain. I cried for several minutes before I regained enough composure. Thea's arms released my head when I pulled back. Her eyes had a soft blue glow to them and I could tell even in the dim light She empathized with my sorrowful feelings.
"I am truly sorry for your loss," She whispered.
"I know I'm in another universe ... and I know that he was going to die eventually, but it hurts so much," I sobbed.
Thea wrapped her arms around my body and pulled me close. Maybe it was the lack of maternal experience throughout my life, but I never wanted to leave Her arms. I spent several more minutes like that as I calmed down completely.
She smells so good, as always, I thought.
I took a deep breath and exhaled, pulling away for the final time.
"Thank you," I wiped away the remnants of tears.
"Of course. 'Tis only natural that I comfort you," She replied, caressing the side of my face.
More and more memories came back to me. There was the time when he took me to see a movie that had just come out even though his work called him in. The time when he tucked me in to sleep, I remembered his bloodshot and sunken eyes from working so much.
If anyone were to ask me what I thought a true man was, I would tell them my father, despite his downfalls. He succumbed to a weakness, but he tried again and again to fight it. Not much could've been said of others in a similar predicament.
I went to sleep under the stars that night. No wagon; no pillow. Just the warm ground and the clothes on my back. I awoke the next morning to Thea's gentle breathing beside me. At some point during the night, She must've come to lay next to me. A very long moment passed as I appreciated Her. God.
Why is it that I can't feel negative toward you? I pondered.
I ate breakfast and woke her and Jayde up to eat before we headed out.
About halfway through our journey to Kle'Xa, we encountered a single man walking in the same direction. From behind, he looked to be about five feet six. His hair was a slick white mostly covered by a cap, and his skin was ashen with long pointed ears poking outward. He wore a rough leather hide over a short sleeve shirt that had some sort of crest emblazoned on his back. His trousers were tattered and worn. They'd definitely seen better days.
The man turned around when he heard us speeding through. There were several scars over his face, including three long claw marks that went over his right eye. We had encountered a few caravans and peddlers in the previous days, so I thought about whether he was a hooligan or not.
His appearance certainly made him look the part. We slowed down and stopped as we neared him. The man approached us with a cautious demeanor. As he drew close enough, his eyes looked vacant, almost dead.
"You seem distressed. Is something the matter?" I asked.
The wagon had the coverings down, so he couldn't see Thea and Jayde inside. The man gave me a weary smile.
"Nothing's wrong. I am simply travelling to Kle'Xa," he replied.
"By foot? And all alone?" my voice held a tinge of skepticism.
He looked around for a second, shrugging his shoulders.
"Yes, unfortunately."
I wasn't feeling a sense of danger, but with all that's happened, I shifted my position slightly on the seat in a defensive manner. He must've noticed as he dropped his guard a little.
"I have no intention of being hostile to you unless you provoke me first."
Despite his dead eyes I felt a truth to his words.
"It seems that's the case," I smiled slightly, dropping my own guard.
"You can tell your companion to relax as well."
My eyes widened a little in surprise. I made no attempt to glance back, and instead went with the flow.
"It's fine to come out," I said nonchalantly, turning my head but maintaining eye contact.
Jayde was the only one to climb out onto the seat with me. She looked around before lowering her guard.
"Might I ask, how did you know she was in there?" I inquired.
He seemed reprehensive to telling us by the way his body shifted.
"What man travels alone on a road like this?" he questioned back.
"You do," I pointed out.
He chuckled and rubbed his chin.
"You have a point. Where might you be headed to?" he asked.
"The town just East of Kle'Xa," I lied, maintaining a straight face.
Jayde sat silently, turning her attention from the man to me and back.
"I see ... we haven't introduced each other yet; my name is Felt."
"I am Xavier and this here is Jayde," I introduced us.
"It is a pleasure to meet the both of you. I do not intend to intrude, but is it possible for you to board me for a day?"
Felt smiled wearily. The more I focused on his appearance, the more it became plain as day that this man had been walking for a long, long time. It was surprising he lasted this long. Maybe he survived off people's kindness, or maybe he was a good hunter.
Either way, I felt enough pity for him that I agreed to allow him to ride with us. It was then that Thea decided to make Her grand appearance by flipping up the front cover of the wagon and placing one foot out on the seat. She stood with Her chest puffed out haughtily and Her hands on her hips.
"Ye who shall dare mess with me, the one to rule them all shall face the direst of consequences!"
"..." the three of us were taken aback.
"Ah, he is not an enemy, I see," Thea smiled, taking Her place in between Jayde and myself.
Felt's eyes had gone wide in surprise. He looked as though something was amiss, but quickly returned to his normal, dead gaze. He seemed wholly unaffected by her Godly appearance.
"Shall we go?" Thea asked me.
I shrugged my shoulders.
"Hop in, Felt."
He moved to the back of the wagon and climbed in. As we moved once more, I glanced at him. He had quickly made himself comfortable as his head rested against the sheets we had balled in the back. He truly must've been tired.
We travelled non-stop for the remainder of the day. Once night began to fall, we pulled off to the side of the road. I gathered a bunch of sticks and branches for a campfire. After ensuring Felt was still inside the wagon, I used my magic to create a fire in the makeshift pit.
Within a few minutes, everyone had gathered around it. Thea sat across from me, Jayde was to my right, and Felt sat to my left. There was small talk going on for a while.
"I noticed you are a mage," Felt stated abruptly.
The small talk halted rather quickly, and the atmosphere became serious in a flash.
"How did you know?" I asked, maintaining my light attitude.
Felt's eyes drifted toward the center of the fire, seemingly staring off into another world. He took some time before responding.
"My lover was a mage, and also one of my party members...," he said solemnly.
"I recognized the sight of magical essence when you created the fire. I have the ability to see it through a pact I made a long, long time ago."
The familiar crackling of the fire continued before anyone spoke up.
"What happened to your lover?" Jayde asked.
"... She was murdered by a lich that served Khral," he spat.
This is coincidental, I thought.
"How old is this Lich?" Thea inquired.
"His name is Visilius. He is five-hundred-forty-two years by now."
"That's an oddly specific number," I pointed out.
Felt shifted his gaze to me. Were his eyes weapons, they would've pierced through me with fury.
"He was an ally of mine in ages past. He studied necromancy for years in secret, and by the time I discovered his intentions, he sacrificed my lover and companions to ascend to lichdom. I was forced to escape by myself. I thought I had, until he placed a curse on me during my escape."
"What is the nature of your curse?" Thea asked.
I placed another branch into the fire.
"Death."
"Can you explain further?" I asked, confused.
"... Feelings. Whenever I gain for someone, the curse activates, granting them an agonizing death."
"That's why your eyes seem so vacant and distant" Jayde said empathetically.
"I'm sorry," I said.
"It is none of your faults. This happened hundreds of years ago. I did not fully comprehend the nature of the curse until I met another woman and fell for her. She grew sickly very quickly after we had a child. Both her and the child died within a few days of each other," his words were filled with a deep sadness.
I couldn't comprehend what it meant to lose not only one, but two lovers and a child. The pain must've been worse than my father's after I died. His internal agony was almost palpable.
"Still, I'm sorry for bringing up the painful memories," I apologized once more.
"They're always with me," he stated plainly.
There as another pause in the conversation. It was long and awkward, going on far longer than it should've. The evening went on mostly in silence afterward.
When the first morning light shone over the trees, I awoke to find Felt nowhere in sight. I searched around briefly before asking Aurias for his location.
"He left in the night when everyone was asleep. He gave his thanks and departed. I sensed a large amount of magical energy shortly after he disappeared from sight. There was no sign of his presence after," he stated.
My brows furrowed and my lips curled into a slight grimace.
Couldn't have at least said goodbye, huh, I thought.
I told Jayde and Thea about his departure when they awoke. Jayde appeared somewhat disappointed, and Thea seemed unfazed. We continued on our way shortly thereafter.
Felt did mention staying only for a night, so he was definitely a man of his word. He seemed to be a reliable and trustworthy person, but I sensed he was definitely keeping a secret. Though the time we spent with him was short, I had hoped we would meet again in the future.