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The Soryan Compound was a very lively, crowded place during the day. Normally Maya would be irritated by the constantly moving crowds of people sifting in and out of the passages between the many buildings that made up the Compound.
This day, though, all she could feel were the butterflies in her stomach. She felt almost sick, even though she was getting something she always wanted.
Today she had a reason to speak to Shaine Sharra.
Shaine had always been an exceptional Soryan. He always seemed to master the songs and the magic with little difficulty. Maya thought his voice was positively divine.
Although, Soryans were not supposed to believe in divinity. She frowned a little as she walked, then was distracted by a solid mass of people, bottlenecked in the path before her.
Now she did feel irritated, but she pushed it aside. These people were craftsmen and others who came to petition the Soryans for work. Many were people who simply needed help. They needed food or shelter and had been turned away by the Holy Order and the government of the Order of Nine.
Truthfully, the Soryan Order did not need much in the way of craftsmanship. Only a skilled eye to direct them. The music and power of the Soryans would handle the actual creation and building of, well, anything they wanted.
Maya knew this was one of the many "problems" the Holy Order of Aeremon claimed against the Soryans. They said Soryans flouted the God’s will by using magic to replace the work of human hands. Maya had been taught that things should be done in the most efficient manner possible. For the Soryans, that meant using magic.
Most of the crowd had not noticed her behind them yet. She decided to move around them. If she stayed they would begin petitioning her for work and food. Maya wanted to help them, but did not have the authority to do so.
There was really no way around but up. Gathering her courage, Maya began to hum softly. Her voice laid the groundwork for the moderately complex spell of levitation.
Music began to fill the air and Maya felt herself lift up into the air. Once the people heard the song they began to turn. As she flew up over the rooftops, she heard some of the people shouting pleas to her. She felt badly, but she already had her task for the day.
Once again, as it did almost every waking moment, her mind turned toward Shaine Sharra.
He had always been popular among the Soryans, but after he had defeated a dragon on the other side of the world a year ago, he had become a national hero. She wondered what it would be like to go on an adventure with Shaine, just the two of them.
As her mind wandered, the wind was becoming more forceful. Maya realized with a start that she had allowed herself to fly too high. The winds this time of season could be very strong.
She changed her song to bring herself down, but had to use a bit more force than she felt comfortable with. Maya’s downward movement was accelerating rapidly. She was still far above the rooftops of the Compound but her descent was beginning to spiral out of her control.
Maya attempted to forcefully calm her mind and sing her song correctly, in tempo and in tune, but she was too panicked. Her halfway-controlled descent suddenly became a flat out fall.
Just as she was about to scream, she heard music envelope her, felt it wrap itself around her. The tempo was strong and solid. Instead of falling, she was now floating gently down to a nearby rooftop.
Maya knew she should feel grateful for being rescued, but instead all she felt was embarrassment and shame. On the rooftop with her was Shaine Sharra, having absolutely no difficulty rescuing her from her foolish mistake.
Maya noted that he was turned halfway away from her. He didn’t even need to devote his full attention to rescuing her. He seemed more intent on studying the map he had laid out on the rooftop. He also spoke without looking at her.
"You do know you’re not supposed to fly that high this time of year, right? You’re my kind of girl!" He laughed as he spoke.
Maya could feel her cheeks burning. Shaine thought she did it on purpose? She wished she could think of a sharp, interesting response, but as usual when she found herself around Shaine, she just couldn’t speak.
To her, he looked like a legendary warrior. The sun was shining on him, the braids flowing down his face. His sword was on his back, naked and held there by his magic. Only Soryans with true skill and power could afford to waste magic in that fashion.
She saw the symbols etched into his sword. They allowed for much more complex magical spells, and potentially much more devastating power. Not every Soryan would be allowed to carry a weapon so branded.
The spear she practiced with had a blade unmarked with such symbols.
Shaine wore all black, even in this heat, with white buckles fastened to the outside of his vest and thigh high boots. His arms were bare, unless you counted the row of tattoos that lined both of them, disappearing under the armband he wore on one wrist.
Maya felt very plain and stupid right now, like she didn’t deserve to talk to him. She forgot what she had come there for. She became self-conscious of her appearance. She was sure her tumble had messed up her hair. Normally it was a loosely curled neck-length style that many of the Soryan women wore these days, but now Maya was certain it was shooting up everywhere.
Her skin was light-brown that was now covered in sweat from her panic attack. She couldn't think of anything to say.
It was the silence that caused Shaine to finally turn.
"Hello, Maya. What have you, this day?" He smiled right at her. Damnation. She felt her heart beating. He knew her name! She couldn’t talk.
His face became puzzled when she did not answer. "You must be flying around here for some reason, correct?" He was being polite, but she could already tell he wanted to get back to his map.
Why would someone like him want to talk to someone like her, anyway? Maya knew she was not the most adept Soryan. She had trouble with spells and concepts that other Soryans picked up immediately.
They would never send her to face a dragon, even if the dragon was right outside the compound, much less across the sea on the other side of the world.
With that thought, she glanced down at his map.
Shaine noticed, and he smiled again. "Oh, this?", he gestured at the map. "Come over here, I’ll show you!" He was very excited.
Maya moved closer. Now she was very close to him, she couldn’t believe it. She had only rarely been this close to Shaine before. She studied his face while he talked.
"This is my Adventure Map!", he exclaimed proudly. He looked back at her to make sure she was looking at the map. Maya quickly adjusted her eyes downward instead of looking at him.
"Now that my punishment is finally over, I am back with the Wanderers where I belong." Maya smiled at his enthusiasm. News of Shaine's punishment from Nayala had went around the compound like a lightning bolt. Not only was it almost unheard of for Shaine the golden Soryan to be punished, but for him to be punished by Sister Nayala, who always seemed to make every excuse for him..?
His original punishment had been only three months, but his sour attitude and willful behavior had lengthened it to a whole year.
"Every morning I used to come up here and study this map. I'd think to myself ‘Where have I not been yet?’"
Maya already knew Shaine's routine. She almost always knew where Shaine was, although she would never admit that to anyone, least of all him.
Shaine continued. "I'd pick a place that looked interesting, and then ask Nayala for permission to go there."
He leaned in close to her. Now Maya could smell him. He smelled good, especially his hair. He spoke right into her ear.
"Sometimes I didn't ask for permission. Quiet is kept, right?"
He was sharing a secret with her! Asking her not to tell.
"Yes, of course!", she blurted out. A bit too loudly. Again, she was embarrassed. Shaine was giving her an odd look, and she attempted to smile at him, but then he turned back to his map.
"So, where should I go today?", he asked, but Maya did not think he was asking her. He was merely thinking out loud.
When he posed the question, though, Maya remembered why she was there.
"Sister Nayala, she sent me to bring you. She says you must come to her immediately."
Shaine’s eyes widened. "Really? You should have said something at once! It must be something good if she’s sending for me this early. Why didn’t she use telepathy?"
Maya shook her head. "She used it to contact me. Why she didn't for you, I do not know, but I am to bring you to her Offices at once."
"Excellent! Well then, let’s be off, shall we?" Shaine extended his hand toward her, palm up. He was requesting her own hand. "I’ll take care of the flying, ok?"
Maya shook her head vigorously in the affirmative, not really caring, but very much wanting to hold his hand.
No sooner did she grasp it than she felt the music again. Very strong with a non-wavering tempo. She had barely heard him start singing before the music washed over her.
They both lifted into the air smoothly and with no sharp changes in speed or altitude. Maya really wished she could master the flying magic to this degree. She wished she could master any of the magic to this degree.
"Why don’t we just teleport?", not that she wanted to, since their trip would be over sooner, but she had to say something.
"Because getting there is half the fun. Make sure you pause to enjoy these times we live in. Now is a wonderful time to be a Soryan!"
The last part he yelled out almost in triumph. Again, Maya was forced to admire his skill. The more powerful, talented Soryans merely needed to start their magic with singing, or with a sound of some sort. Once begun, it was not necessary for them to continue singing.
Maya was not like those Soryans. She needed to continue concentrating and singing for the duration of whatever spell she was trying to perform. She could certainly never fly and talk at the same time.
Maya wished she were more skilled at the magic, then she might sing along with his magic. Other, more practiced Soryans would always manage to improvise and complement another Soryan's spell if the could. Maya thought she might mess up his magic if she tried that.
They flew together and Maya did pause to just take in this time flying in the sunshine with Shaine. She didn't know when she might have the courage to speak to him again so she wanted to enjoy this.
The moment was soon broken. Out of the corner of her eye, Maya spotted another figure flying toward them. She frowned when she saw who it was.
Shaine however, smiled widely. "Irelle! Where have you been these past weeks?"
Irelle floated in close to Shaine. "I've been in the Northlands, with Devann!" Irelle's smile showed how genuinely happy she was to be reporting this.
Shaine was surprised. "Truly? Did he teach you to see the dragon aura?"
Now Irelle's smile faded a bit as the three slowly flew. "No. Something happened and he said we had to leave, so we teleported back."
Shaine's brow furrowed. "Well, what was it? What happened?"
"I don't know. He wouldn't say. We tracked dragons for two weeks and then when we found some we just turned and left."
Irelle was another Wanderer, like Shaine. Although they were all three very close to the same age, only Shaine was afforded a high level of autonomy. Others their age would be partnered with an older, more experienced Wanderer.
Maya noticed that both Shaine and Irelle's music had synced up in tempo, and Irelle had begun filling in the complementary notes of Shaine's song. She really makes that look easy, Maya thought dejectedly.
"Now that's very interesting!" Maya could see that Shaine was now hoping he was going north to spy on dragons. She gripped his hand tighter.
Shaine noticed. "Don't worry, Maya, I'm sure Nayala would not send you north to deal with dragons!"
Maya was so embarrassed. Both Shaine and Irelle knew that Maya could barely utilize the magic for the most mundane of tasks. Shaine wasn't trying to belittle her, but he truly thought he was soothing her fears. Despite herself, she was grateful for that.
"I'm not worried at all!", she lied. Irelle smiled at her in an attempt to comfort her.
Irelle was a very slight girl, she wore long black braids down to her waist and dressed like most Soryan women, a vest with bare arms and midriff with black leather pants and boots. She carried no weapon, but Maya had seen the girl spar before. As a Wanderer, she would be trained in most every martial art the Soryans knew.
Irelle and Shaine always seemed to be together, and yet not together. Maya couldn't understand their relationship. Although one thing was clear -Irelle didn't see her as a rival.
She has no reason to. Shaine doesn't even notice me. Maya was glad when she saw Nayala's part of the compound growing larger in her vision as they flew toward it.
Irelle could see where they were headed. She reached over and touched Shaine on his arm, smiling. "Come find me when you get back from wherever Nayala's sending you. Welcome back!"
With a quick movement she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, then with a burst of speed and music, Irelle became a speck in the distance.
Shaine was beaming an excited smile now. Maya didn't know if it was from the kiss or from the prospect of going north to deal with dragons. She squeezed his hand again.
Again, he noticed, and Shaine was immediately all business. "We're here. Maya watch and listen closely to how I begin my descent."
Again, Maya was embarrassed. He didn't want her to mess up and fall again as she did earlier, but he was instructing her as he would a child! When am I going to get better at the magic?
The two landed smoothly on Nayala's terrace. Shaine, having been here many times before, just walked in through the large doors leading to the interior.
Maya had never been here before, and would hardly expect to ever be summoned here. As far as she knew, Nayala would have no use for a Soryan at her level of ability.
When Maya followed Shaine, she found Sister Nayala studying a large map mounted on her wall. Maya looked closer at the map and she could see it was centered on their own country of Il'Doran, but Nayala was looking at a region to the southeast.
Around her the large semi-circle office had scrolls and papers everywhere, with a large stack concentrated on short table set directly underneath the mounted map.
Nayala hadn't turned when they walked in so Shaine spoke. "Sister, I hope your first task to me is not a geography lesson?" He was smiling but Maya could hear the worry in his voice. Shaine wanted action, not talking.
Then Nayala turned to face Shaine. Maya had rarely been this close to Sister Nayala, and only spoken in passing. Nayala dealt with the best of the best Soryans, as those under her command had to be trusted to handle themselves and the affairs of the Soryan Order on their own in the world -sometimes out of contact for weeks at a time.
Maya couldn't help comparing herself to Nayala. The woman was tall and with a very athletic figure. She always held herself with such authority. Maya assumed that being a war hero might grant you that authority. Maya admired Nayala. She wished she could carry herself that way.
Nayala had a wry, half-smile on her face as she looked at Shaine. "A geography lesson of sorts." She gestured to the small scroll-covered table. "These are reports from your fellow Wanderers over the last year. If you would be so kind as to pin these to their respective locations for me..?"
Shaine had a bewildered look on his face. He knew that Nayala was likely leading him to some conclusion or another. It was the way she taught. Sometimes he wished she would just come out and say things.
"If that is what you wish, I suppose I will." He moved forward and picked up the first scroll to study its contents. After a quick look, he picked up a pin from a pile resting on the table and used to it fasten the scroll to a position on the map. He then continued on with the next one.
Maya was so busy watching Shaine she didn't notice that Nayala had come over to speak to her until the woman stepped directly in front of her.
"Hello, Maya.", she said, smiling.
Maya couldn't help but smile in reaction to the woman's warmth. It was hard to believe she was the ruthless killing machine that was described in the war stories. Then again, Maya had seen Nayala spar, too.
"Hello, Sister. I-is there something I can do for you?" Maya still did not know why Sister Nayala had chosen her to personally bring Shaine to her. She couldn't want her to join the Wanderers, could she?
"Yes, there is, but just wait a bit, child." Nayala placed her hand on Maya's shoulder but looked back at Shaine as she did so. He was just finishing placing the last scroll onto the map. He stepped back and stared for a moment. His face changed then. Something had made him very happy.
Nayala moved to stand next to Shaine. She was also looking at the map. She wasn't smiling, though. "Do you see now, Shaine?"
Shaine nodded. "Yes. Yes, I do! I take it I am to deal with this?" Now Shaine was smiling even more broadly than before.
"Yes, but don't get too excited, I need you to be careful." She placed her hand on his shoulder. He was still grinning and smiling at the map.
Maya didn't understand. The scrolls were positioned in a rough semicircle around the bottom southeast portion of the map. She squinted, as if that would make her understand, but it did not. Hoping it didn't make her look stupid, she spoke.
"I don't think I see what you mean?" As soon as she spoke, Nayala and Shaine turned back toward her.
Shaine, still looking at Maya, gestured back at the map. "Maya, these are reports of undead activity all over this region of the world."
Maya furrowed her brow. "So we need to go to those places?"
Nayala shook her head. "No, child, that is not what this means. These reports are only telling us of the symptoms, not the cause."
Now Maya was even more confused. Every Soryan had thorough instruction on how to deal with the undead. Most Soryans, however, could not realistically expect to encounter one. Higher order undead knew that coming to Il'Doran and causing trouble would be suicide.
This still confused her, though. "Symptoms of what, Sister? What does it mean?", Maya asked, though it made her feel even more stupid.
Now Shaine was beaming that huge smile again. "What it means, Maya..." he surged forward and poked his finger into a position roughly at the center of the crude semi-circle, "...what it means..."
"...is there's a Revenant in Kelland."
Maya swallowed once and looked at Nayala, hoping that she would correct Shaine and give her a different answer. She did not.
Maya didn't know much about Revenants, but what she did know was beginning to make her very afraid.
Click to read Chapter 12 - The New Plans |
