Touch of Fate

Chapter 163: Chatting in the Moonlight

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."

Gritting his teeth, Mike felt another wave of anger at the man. It was a common enough theme in literature, but he still found it repugnant.

"I was pulled in front of the Council of Elders, the ruling body of Nirethial, and denounced by my father and brother, labeled an abomination, and sentenced to exile."

"Why so extreme? What you did doesn't seem so terrible. Why did they treat you in that manner?" He found himself asking.

"Sun Elves hold spirits sacred, so binding them into yourself or your service is considered heresy. That Pact Mages can do something similar with evil beings like demons, is just as damning. Since Nirethial's security relies on the blessings of the Great Spirits, my actions were seen not only as a sin, but a threat to the stability of the city. Thus, the only option was my banishment, in hopes that my contagion wouldn't spread and destroy their way of life." She replied quietly, once again taking a seat.

"However, that wasn't enough for Farin. He seemed to believe I'd personally harmed him with my actions, and he wanted revenge. For all of his arrogance and rage, he is quite skilled in manipulating events. On the day of my exile, I was dragged to the edge of the forest with nothing more than the clothes on my back and thrown into the wider world. I didn't have long to appreciate my newfound freedom, since I was almost immediately captured by slavers."

"What? Weren't you in western Almir? It's illegal, isn't it?"

"I was, and it is, but the laws of the kingdom rarely have much power along their frontiers. Slavers, smugglers, cultists, and bandits abound in that part of the country. It is part of the reason the Order of the Wheel maintains such a strong presence there. In any event, I found myself in the power of man by the name of Hurn. I would like to say he was a monster that maltreated me, for it would make for a better story, but in truth he was indifferent to my existence, seeing me as nothing more than his next paycheck."

Strangely enough, she seemed to be calmer now than at the start of her story. Perhaps sharing it had helped.

"He told me once that Farin had approached him, wanting to make sure that my exile would be filled with suffering, something that Hurn was all too willing to make promises for. However, once he learned I was a Pact Mage, he made the far more reasonable choice of selling me to the Adventurer's Guild in Gold Spear."

Mike's shock must have shown on his face, because Tal gave a short laugh. "It's something of an open secret, but the Guild is willing to purchase skilled slaves in order to bolster their ranks. They are freed after becoming adventurers, and expected to repay their purchase price by completing requests. While I didn't recognize it at the time, I had been blessed with good fortune. People with my skill set are in high demand in the guild, and within a few months, I'd paid off the modest sum Hurn had charged. I spent the next few decades wandering the central continent, occasionally completing small requests, but never staying in one place for long."

He tried to imagine what that must have been like, but he had a hard time visualizing the passing of decades in as off-hand of a manner as Tal was able too. The elven mindset was certainly unusual. "So, if you've been an Adventurer for that long, why were you still Rank 2 when we met?"

She looked over at him, emotionless eyes meeting his for a brief moment, before they went back to staring at the sky. "I had no reason to advance, no desire to get stronger, and nothing to protect. Even with the blessing that was magic, I was only existing and not living. For lack of a better term, I stagnated. I wasn't aware of it consciously, but I think I was looking for a place to die. One day I would take a request I couldn't fulfill, and that would be the end of it."

Mike waited through the silence for a few moments, before speaking up. "What changed?"

The corner of her mouth twitched in what would have been a smile for anyone else, "I took an introductory dungeon delving class on a whim, and ran into a crazy human adventurer with a talent for magic. Watching him, I recalled some of the old joy I felt when I learned to 'see,' for the first time. Before I knew it, I couldn't look away."

He wasn't sure how to respond to that, but it seemed he didn't need to. After a few moments she changed the subject on her own.

"You know, there are three individuals I feel true gratitude for. The first it Akiriti for bringing me to magic. Without her I would have lived my life blind to all possibilities. The second was my mother, Lorelai, who was my friend, confidant, and protector." A single tear rolled down her cheek.

The use of past tense didn't go unnoticed, and he recalled Farin's accusation. "Do you know what happened?"

"No, but I can guess. Being related to an abomination like myself would be bad enough, but Sun Elves believe that one's class is predominantly determined by one's bloodline. Specifically by the mother's bloodline."

[Ah..I see.]

"Whether or not that is true, in the eyes of elven society, my mother bore the same taint as me. The same taint that would be passed onto her other children. "The knuckles of her hands whitened. "My father would have understood. He'd married a cursed woman, and there would only be one means of redeeming himself in the eyes of elven society."

Her voice had trailed off, as the tears began to fall with greater intensity. Without thinking, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug.

After a few minutes, she had calmed down enough to continue. "I'm sorry for dragging you into my troubles."

Mike snorted. "Considering the things I've gotten you involved in, I should be the one apologizing. Really, I'm just glad that nothing else happened. Knowing my luck, we'll get attacked by ghosts or something on the way home."

She chuckled at that. A companionable silence descended, as they sat side by side, watching the stars.

Finally, Tal stood and faced him. "It seems like our time is coming to an end. Akiriti will be coming back soon, and as payment I won't be able to speak for the next few days."

"That's a rather steep price to pay for a conversation." He replied.

"It's worth it. I owed you an explanation, and it was nice to get that off of my chest. Thank you for hearing me out." Tal spoke with the hint of a smile again.

"Anytime." He returned with his own smile. "By the way, who was the third?"

"Hm?"

"The third person you are grateful for? You never did tell."

She tilted her head for a moment, then looked away. "Secret."

He opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a sudden burst of wind as Akiriti returned once more. She seemed to land on Tal's shoulders, before wrapping the elf with her wings in a protective manner and sinking slowly into her body. Once this was done, she nodded in the direction of the dorm, urging him to follow.

Sighing, he stood and joined her on the trip back. It had been a long, emotional night, and he was looking forward to some sleep. Tomorrow was going to be rough. Whatever fallout his actions had created would be bad enough, but he was especially dreading the coming confrontation with the Headmaster.

Perhaps sensing his disquiet, Tal nudged him with an elbow. Looking over at her, he couldn't help but laugh.

The elf was using her index fingers to pull the corners of her mouth into a smile. Combined with her still emotionless eyes, the effect was more comical than anything.

He was still laughing when they got back to the dorms, earning them another half-hearted lecture from Anna.