Chapter 163: Chatting in the Moonlight (1/2)
After some creative maneuvering and a quick dismount in a deserted section of the campus, they took a moment to recover.
”Blergh….” Brenden finished emptying his stomach in the nearby bushes, and collapsed onto the ground in the grass. ”That was unpleasant. Give us some warning next time.”
Sera, who was still on her hands and knees, too unstable to walk, shook her head. ”Never again…”
Rubbing the back of his head guiltily, Mike apologized. ”Sorry about that, I hadn't intended on him moving quite that quickly. Still, I'm a little surprised that it bothered you two as much as it did. Tal is fine, after all.”
The elf in question was leaning against a tree, giving him a level look. ”Waiting.”
”Waiting? What for?”
”Spinning to stop.” She answered with a little more force than usual.
”Ah…..yeah, I'll make sure he goes slower next time.”
Sera shook her head once more, ”Never again…”
After recuperating they made their way back the dorm, attempted to sneak in, got caught, and received a lecture from Anna about breaking curfew. However, she forgot what she was talking about halfway through, and ended up giving them freshly made pastries and wishing them a good night.
While Mike was getting ready for bed, there was a knock on the door. He went to answer, and came face to face with Tal. ”What's up?”
”Can talk?”
He nodded, and thinking quickly led her through the study and out one of the room's large windows. They walked in silence for a while until they came across a small clearing in one of the forested sections of campus. There was a mid-sized boulder resting in its center, dappled with the soft moonlight.
Figuring that this was as good a place as any, Mike turned towards Tal and asked, ”So what do you want to talk about?”
The elf held up one hand, signaling that he should wait. She took a deep breath, eyes closed, and spoke, ”Akiriti. Temporary Release.”
A bird composed of howling winds rose from her back, filling the clearing with swirling air currents. With a subdued cry it slowly faded from existence. Tal opened her eyes and focused her gaze on him. ”Now we can talk.”
Mike was a little surprised. Her voice was still monotone, but her words had started flowing with more grace. She was longer limited to short, choppy iterations. With what little he knew about Pact Magic, he felt slightly concerned that she might have given up something important up to have this conversation. ”Will this be alright?”
”I have released my contract with Akiriti temporarily. There will be a payment I must make in the days to come, but it was worthwhile to speak my mind without difficulty.” She replied while walking over to the boulder and gracefully taking a seat. She patted a spot next to her, urging him to do likewise.
Figuring the damage had already been done, he acquiesced, and then waited for her to start. She stared up at the night sky for a few moments before speaking. ”I was considered a cripple in Nirethial, because I was born without the ability to use mana. I didn't really understand that as a child, but I felt the exclusion when I wasn't allowed to attend the same lessons as my peers, when adults would whisper behind my back with expressions of pity, and when my father looked at me with disappointment and hidden shame. Of course, the other children picked up on it, too. As a result, I spent most of my early years alone.”
Mike was reminded of his own childhood, especially the faces of his parents as they strived to break him out of his 'shell,' and the resignation they showed when they finally gave up. ”That must have been hard for you.”
”I knew no other life. It never occurred to me that it could have been different, until much later. Besides, I had no right to complain. Nirethial, for all of its flaws, is something of a paradise. I never had reason to fear hunger, sickness, or the ravages of war. In many ways, I am much more fortunate than many others in Ea.”
He didn't really have any grounds to refute that, even though the sentiment didn't quite sit well with him.
”Without anything else to do, I often played in the forest by myself.”
”Isn't that dangerous?” Mike asked, thinking about his run in with the dinosaur when he first arrived. He could only picture the forests of this world being filled with terrifying apex predators.
”Most of the central region of the Forest of Shadows is monitored and managed by the Druids of the Shadowed Grove. So long as I didn't do something stupid, there was no danger, at least not in the form of monsters or animals.” She was still staring at the sky, but her gaze had taken on the somewhat vacant cast of someone lost in memory.
”It was in the forest that I first met Akiriti, and learned of the beauty of magic. I still remember the day. It was about a week after my coming of age, when the Sun Elves of Nirethial choose their first profession.”
”Their first profession?”
”Due to our long lifespans, doing the same thing for decades on end becomes wearisome. As a result, it has become customary for us to select new paths to follow every fifty years or so. Although, there are some who pursue one thing to the exclusion of all others, like the Archmage. Anyway, I had chosen the path of a ranger. The idea of wandering the woods, defending them from external threats, appealed to me.”
Thinking back to the iconic ranger from a certain trilogy of books and movies, he had to admit, she didn't quite match up to the grizzled image in his head. But, he supposed that things might be different in a world where a small child with the right skills could be stronger than a full grown man.
Tal kicked her feet a couple of times, ”I met Akiriti by chance. She was young, a newborn actually, and hadn't learned how to hide herself yet. Nature spirits are common in the Forest of Shadows, but we rarely see them unless they wish us to. So when I found a small bird made of coursing air currents in one of my favorite spots, it was quite surprising.”
She stood then, and began pacing around the clearing. ”I'm still not sure why, but I felt a connection to this strange creature, one that it seemed to feel as well.” Her voice took on a warmth that was audible even through her monotone, ”She let me near, not knowing any better, and by then the damage was done. We were soon forming a pact, although I didn't really understand it at the time. Imagine my surprise when I realized I could do magic as a result.”
Mike waited for her to continue.
”My first taste of magic was…..incredible. I felt as if I had been blind my whole life, and suddenly was able to see. It filled me with joy. I thought I'd finally found my place, and my path. In my enthusiasm, I shared my experience with my family.”
Tal stopped, staring down at her hands. It was a few moments before she started again. ”I was naive. I didn't know what I'd done was considered a sin, but my family understood immediately when I showed them. With my stunted speech, the payment for my newly acquired power, I couldn't even offer words in my defense. My father and brother were furious, and only the intercession of my mother kept them from killing me on the spot.”
He swallowed hard. This was turning out worse than he'd anticipated.
”It probably won't surprise you that my brother was the one that turned me in. By that time, he'd already been pursuing a career in the government. Having a tainted relative like myself would destroy his reputation and ruin his chances for advancement, or so he told me the night before the trial. His only chance was to turn me in first, and play the dutiful citizen.”