The Legacy

Kain concentrated on the manacles again. The process of melting the iron went slowly this time but it didn’t strain her as much as it did last time. Hekatai stood in front of her, watching the whole process take place. Kain was almost through when a loud crash sounded from somewhere in the Academy. The crash was so loud that its soundwaves shook the room. Kain coughed from the dust that fell from the ceiling, she looked towards the door in shock. “What’s going on out there?” Kain whispered to Hekatai who stared up at the ceiling as if she could look through it. I don’t know she said, walking forward and standing between Kain and the door. I’ll go find out she added before vanishing through thin air. Kain rolled her eyes. Hekatai had been trying to make things right with Kain ever since that night when Kain chased her out. If the deity thought that doing Kain favours will win her a place back on Kain’s good side, then she can think again. The deity had too much against her and Kain wasn’t ready to trust her yet. Not in the way the deity wanted her too.

Hekatai hadn’t been gone that long before popping back into the Grey room with a wide and enthusiastic smile. You are getting out of here today Kainun! she said with a girlish excitement in her voice. Her words weren’t even cold yet, when the door crashed open and two people stepped through. Kain waited for the dust to settle before she could focus on them. The first Kain recognised immediately, and she couldn’t have been happier to see a fae, if anything else. The other one she hasn’t met yet. He had dark brown, bark-like skin. He kind of looked like a moving tree with leafy branches toiled around his arms. Both looked around the room, before they looked towards Kain. “Wison, what are you doing here?” Kain coughed through more dust. Wison smiled wolfishly, “getting you out of course.” Both fae walked towards her and with their magic they were able to remove the manacles Kain had already managed to weaken.

“Where’s Sophia?” Kain asked as they undid the manacles around her ankles. “She’s out there, fighting with the others,” Wison answered loudly, making his voice heard above the sound of another crash upstairs. “The others?” Kain asked bewildered, looking at the tree-like fae.

Wison smiled, “the news and evidence of your existence has travelled. Fae from all around came together to witness the truth for themselves. Of course, you were locked up in here and they couldn’t see you but the fact that we could all do magic again was evidence enough!” Wison explained in his loose fae tongue. “Although our magic isn’t at its full potential yet. But it’s getting better by the day.”

Kain’s heartbeat quickened in her chest. The idea of escaping was too much for Kain to believe. “Zorzia is working with the hunters!” Kain shouted above the noise which got louder as they moved through the Academy. Kain realized that the reason for the loud crashing sounds were the result of large stones being formed out of thin air and thrown at the building and towards the oncoming hunters. Several kinds of fae stood side by side, wielding their long-lost magic and seeming to be enjoying the feeling once more. She caught Sophia fighting alongside a furry looking fae with lion like feet and a thick swishing tail which swept enemies out of the way with amazing strength. The fae gave a loud roar and the hunters in front of her flew back a couple of feet before crashing to the ground or against a tree.

Wison gave Kain a worried look before giving a loud whistle. The fighting fae reformed into a group and slowly began to take off. Some flew away with wings like an eagle and some ran with blinding speed. Others melted into the earth and others jumped into the trees and moved on the branches with surprising agility. “Stop!” a loud, deep voice shouted, and everyone turned to look at Abbadon who came out of the broken Academy building. “I believe THAT,” he pointed at Kain with a furious finger, “belongs to me!” he continued viciously. There was a sudden whistle of an arrow, finding its intended target with a loud pop. Kain had heard the sound first before realizing who had taken the arrow.

She watched as Sophia sagged into the lion-like fae next to her, her eyes already falling shut. The arrow impaled her through her heart and extended out of her back. Kain stared at Sophia for a moment, watching as the girls last breath escaped her lips. The lion-like fae held on to Sophia, her expression sad and angry at the same time. Kain turned toward Abbadon, her heart beating steady yet loudly in her chest. “Haven’t you taken enough from me?” she called to Abbadon, anger building up inside of her.

She caught Greg’s smug smile and noticed his bow raised, the arrow pointing at her this time. “One traitor down. Shall I take the other one as well, master?” he asked, pulling his arrow back. Abbadon grabbed hold of Greg’s bow and forced the arrow to point down. “She is to remain alive. We have our orders,” he hissed towards Greg before turning back towards Kain. Kain narrowed her eyes at Greg. He killed Sophia. Greg lifted his bow again, pulling the arrow back on the string once more and pointed it at Wison who stood next to Kain instead.

Her heart began to beat faster with every pulse, pumping more and more blood into her face. “It’s enough Abbadon! You had your fun, now let us go and I promise you that you’d never see us again,” she called out, over the loudening whistle of the wind which had begun to pick up and whipped through her hair. She could feel the magic inside of her build up and she allowed herself to focus on that build up. She stretched her hands out to the sides and convinced the magic to touch every part of her skin. “We are leaving now, and you aren’t going to stop us!” Kain shouted over the now roaring earth. She threw back her head, strong magic pulses expanding out of her with a loud whooshing sound and knocking back everything that stood in front of her.

Wison grabbed her wrist and pulled her along into the forest before any of the hunters could follow. The lion-like fae with Sophia in her strong arms, followed closely behind them. “Where are we going?” Kain asked past quick breaths, her body filled with the adrenalin left behind by the wave of power that escaped from her. “There is a hide out a little farther back. Each of us managed to unite our powers and create an enchantment almost like a cloaking spell,” Wison explained through his own quick breaths. Kain felt herself growing weaker with every step she took. The adrenaline that held her up, rushed out of her body, leaving behind an overwhelming exhaustion that pressed down on her with strong hands. She still hadn’t eaten or had anything to drink yet, leaving her with no strength and no ability to move on. She kept going for the sake of her own as well as the other fae’s safety.

After a while of running, Kain couldn’t run anymore, her legs grew numb and heavy. She collapsed to the damp earth, unable to get up again. Wison stopped running long enough to notice what had happened, “you have to hold on a little longer, we’re almost there,” he encouraged. Kain tried to stand up again but her head began to sway vividly until it all just went still. All the sound drained away, and all the feeling disappeared too, leaving her with a floating sensation. “Kainun?” she heard Wison call but even the sound of his voice sounded distant.

“I’m…sorry,” Kain managed to say before fading out completely. It had all been too much for her. she can’t fight the compelling darkness anymore. It was going to take her, and she had no desire to stop it. She welcomed it willingly.

“Where am I?” Kain asked, her eyes fluttering open, the brown bamboo ceiling the first thing she saw. She could hear the sounds of business in the distance. The sounds of people laughing and animals moving about. She sensed someone sitting beside her bed. Kain turned her head to find the lioness-woman lifting her head from where she was sleeping on her arms. “You’re at what we call, a safe haven. It’s a sanctuary for fae on the run,” she answered with a growl in her accent.

Kain stared at the lioness girl, “you were the one fighting beside Sophia,” Kain said weakly. She remembers how the lioness carried Sophia’s body away from the Academy. The girl’s face fell, her eyes falling to her hands, “Anuck be with her. She was a good person, even if she used to be a hunter. She was good even for a human,” the girl paused, her eyes looking up at Kain, “she was my friend.” Kain took the girls hand and squeezed it, “I am sorry for your loss,” She said softly, she didn’t know what else to say. The lioness smiled weakly again, “and I you. It is as the deities wills it,” she proclaimed.

Kain instantly felt rage surface inside of her, “why do the deities get to determine our fate? They are not here! We are not toys for them to do with as they wish,” Kain said angrily. The lioness stood up awkwardly, “you should not say those things. We are here because of the deities,” she said uneasily, “they are our creators, our gods.”

Kain shook her head but knew she should stop talking. The last thing she wanted to do is make more enemies. The girl was a fae, she grew up believing that the deities were their answer for everything. Kain respected the culture of others even if she thought they were wrong. “The deities just weren’t here for me, that is all. It’s hard to believe in the if they had forsaken me,” Kain decided to say instead. She had to explain to the lioness why she said what she said. The girls face softened, “everything happens for a reason Kainun, you just have to believe that,” she assured, relaxing her shoulders if only a little. Kain stared at the girl’s exterior. Her lower parts below the knees, were that of a lion’s legs and her feet were great paws. Her fur was a shade of chestnut brown. Her tail swished lazily behind her. The top half of her body was that of an ordinary girl, except for her lower arms which also had fur on them, her fingernails replaced by black claws. The rest of her were that of a human girl, her hair hung in short dreads over her shoulders, the same colour as her fur. Her eyes blazing a golden yellow with her pupils slit like those of a cat. “What is your name?” Kain asked curiously. She wanted to ask the girl what she was but that would have been rude. The girl smiled brighter, “I am Ciara of the lands of Baralion, the capital of Rorca.”

Kain smiled, “it is nice to meet you,” she said sincerely. The girl bowed her head respectfully in agreement.

The tent flap opened, revealing Wison standing on the threshold of the tent, “I’m glad to see you are awake,” he said smoothly. Ciara smiled slightly as she stepped away from Kain’s bed. “She’s a fighter after all,” Ciara said before moving towards the open tent flap, “I should go see where I can lend a hand,” she said vaguely. Her gaze hovering on Kain as if she was asking Kain for permission before leaving the tent. Wison bowed his head slightly towards Ciara before walking into the tent and letting the flap fall shut behind him.

“How are you feeling?” he asked Kain, sitting on the chair beside her bed where Ciara had previously sat. Kain pushed herself on her elbows, struggling to pull herself into a sitting position. She gave up and decided to just prop herself up against the pillows. “What happened?” she asked with a slight groan as she squeezed her eyes shut, her head spinning slightly.

“Well,” Wison began, leaning forward with his elbows pressed onto his knees, “you kind of lost control of your magic and sent everyone in front of you, flying a few feet before crashing them against what ever there was to crash against. I guess the power overwhelmed you because you collapsed afterwards. We had just enough time to collect our dead and injured before the hunters began getting to their feet again. We managed to escape them, though.” Kain stared down at the soft blanket that lay over her legs, “how many did you lose, besides Sophia?” she asked quietly.

Wison reached his hand out towards Kain’s hand, squeezing it gently, “Sophia was fortunate to die a painless death. We had two more who died during the night due to extensive injuries. Our healers tried but their magic wasn’t strong enough yet,” he answered slowly.

Kain closed her eyes, breathing deeply, “you mean because I didn’t make their magic strong enough.” Kain felt guilty for the death of everyone who had died trying to get her out. The Fae had magic because she was learning how to use hers. Their magic depended on her and yet she didn’t know why. Why did the pressure of everything fall on her? She was the one they needed to stop Zorzia. She was the one they needed to save Ovanhail. She was the one they needed to get their magic back. And all Kain can think about is why her?

Wison squeezed her hand a little harder, “it’s not your fault Kainun. You didn’t know who you were. All the information, all at once, was just too overwhelming. You cannot blame yourself and there is not one fae in this camp who blame you,” he looked at her for a moment before continuing, “it’s not your fault,” he said again. “Will there be a ceremony?” she asked, desperate to change the subject, her eyes glistening with emotions.

Wison nodded. “We will be holding it tonight. We thought you might want to join but if you feel too weak, you are more than welcome to stay in bed,” Wison suggested gently but Kain instantly objected. “I would like to be there. They are dead because of me. It won’t be right if I don’t go.”

Wison’s face softened, “it isn’t your fault,” he repeated, “they knew the risks, yet they did it all the same.” Wison stood up from the chair and sat on the edge of Kain’s bed, taking both of her hands into his. “You inspire them, Kainun. You are their only hope, for you they would do anything. I would do anything,” he said firmly with no sign on his face that indicated that there was a hesitation in his words.

Kain watched his face for a long while then looked towards the tent flap, “I should get ready then.” She said quietly, looking back towards him, “don’t want to disappoint them.” Wison smiled softly, “I will let Ciara bring in your uniform. It is a great tradition if we wear our uniforms when we depart with the dead. It just so happens that we have one for you. Some of the fae thought it good to have yours prepared for when you join us,” he suggested then stood up to leave.

“Will you stay at my side?” she asked him hesitantly. He turned to look down at her, his smile staying on his lips. “I would do anything for you,” he said bowing his head before leaving the tent. ‘I will do anything for you.’ Those were the words she had heard before. The ache in her heart came rushing back. Gavin was the one who had said those words to her. Many, many times. He’s dead now. Abbadon had killed him. Kain pushed the palms of her hands into her eyes, attempting to push the tears away. She thought about Sophia as well. At least Sophia gets a funeral. Gavin and Collins weren’t so fortunate. Neither was Breezes.

Ciara came back in with something pearly white and metallic blue in her hands. She laid it gently over the chair and smiled at Kain, “would you like me to help you get dressed?” she asked politely. Kain nodded slowly, her hesitance still on her face. She had never worn armour before and wouldn’t know how to correctly put it on without Ciara’s help. Being a hunter of the Academy, you had to wear light garments with a cloak if you please. It was effective when it came to sneaking and moving swiftly. Looking down at the armour, Kain could see that it looked slightly heavier than what she was used to. Ciara walked towards her and gently helped Kain out of bed and onto her feet. For a small lioness-fae, Ciara had firm strength in her features and most noticeable in the strength of her hands. Strong hands to hold up a person who feels like her whole world is crashing down on her.