Enflamed (Book 2) (12 page)

Nester’s mouth hung open. His
eyes bulged as though they were about to pop out of his head. “Th
–
That was—”

“—Terrible!”
Zarya finished. “No one had to die here!”

Aidan grunted and slumped to
the ground. “That is why ... Aidan does not like violence.... Someone always
... gets hurt.”

“You mean someone like you?”
Nester pointed at Aidan’s bloodied, injured body.

Zarya rushed to Aidan and began
tending to his injuries. “Aidan, I can’t believe you did that. What were you
thinking? You could have died as well!”

He closed his eyes. “Aidan
tried ... to protect ...”

“Shh. Don’t
speak
.
Stay still, now.” Zarya chanted and prayed, and a blue glow encompassed her
hands. The energy traveled to Aidan’s body, blanketing him. He cringed, let out
a small yelp of pain, and then relaxed.

The blood and visible wounds
on his body disappeared. The crossbow bolts fell out of his back and onto the
ground, leaving only small traces of his blood on the blades.

Zarya concluded her prayer,
and the glowing energy ceased. She assessed his condition for a moment before
standing. “That was very courageous of you to risk your life for us like that,
Aidan. Thank you.”

Aidan smiled at her and bowed
his head. “It was least Aidan could do.”

“Such bravery must not be
forgotten.” She placed her hand atop his head. “May Celestra’s blessings
protect you and
Her
strength flow through you.”
Zarya’s hand emitted a soft, white glow. The light encompassed Aidan a few
moments before absorbing into his body.

Aidan stood. He stretched and
flexed his chest and arms. “Aidan feels great now!” He beamed.
“Like he can run for days!”

Zarya smiled at him. “Praise
be
to the goddess.”

“Aidan is grateful for your
help.” He bowed again, this time, more deeply.

Kaijin looked to the corpses
before him, and his heart wrenched. The sight caused grueling memories of
Easthaven’s destruction to flood his mind.
No, not again. I didn’t do this,
he told himself, trying desperately to push aside the disturbing images of his
dead family’s corpses.
I didn’t kill them.

Zarya approached one of the
corpses, knelt down, and prayed over it. Kaijin turned to Nester and then to
Aidan.

Aidan’s brow scrunched while
his gaze followed the priestess go from one corpse to the next, bowing her head
in prayer.

Nester tugged at Aidan’s
silken trousers. “Why’s she prayin’ over dead folk for—and ones that tried to
kill us, to boot?”

Aidan tilted his head to the
side. “Aidan does not know, but we should not disturb her.”

“Well it sounds like nothin’
but gibberish to me.
Not like when she ’eals us.”

“Perhaps it is special
language
clerics
use. Or her native tongue from her
homeland.”

After concluding her prayers,
Zarya resumed following the forest path. She brushed past Kaijin, Aidan, and
Nester, then stopped a short distance ahead of them and glanced over her
shoulder. “Let’s get going, please,” she said sharply and continued walking.

Kaijin exchanged glances with
Aidan and Nester, and the three of them followed the priestess.

Silence lingered for only a
few minutes before Nester asked, “So, ah, should I be askin’ why you’re goin’
around prayin’ over corpses, beautiful?”

Zarya didn’t stop walking. “I
prayed that the goddess may take them peacefully. Please, let’s not speak on it
again.”

“All right.”
Nester stroked his chin, and then looked sidelong at
Kaijin. “I must say,
mate, that
was quite amazin’ what
you did back there.”

“Nester!”
Zarya stopped, spun on her heels and glared at the brownie.

Nester returned the stare.
“What? I ain’t say nothin’ ’bout your infatuation with th’ dead.” He turned
back to Kaijin, a smile creeping upon his face. “So ’ow’d you get so soddin’
powerful, eh?”

Kaijin sighed. “I don’t want
to talk about this, Nester.”

“Say, y’know, all that fire an’
screamin’ an’ bodies burnin’—it’s almost like ’ow some of
th
’
refugees described Easthaven.
Kinda frightenin’ coincidence,
aye?”

Kaijin paled.
“Yeah, really frightening.”

“So, ah,
anyway.
Will you, at least, show
me some of those fiery tricks, then?” the brownie persisted. “That can be kinda
useful, y’know!”

“‘
Useful
’?” Zarya
folded her arms. “He used magic to kill those men, and he almost killed all of
us in the process!” Her eyes narrowed at Kaijin. “Now I understand why mages
are so feared and vilified around here.”

A sharp pain twisted Kaijin’s
gut. A bitter taste rose in his mouth, and his breathing faltered. The world
spun around him.
Am I really hearing this from her?
He glared at Zarya
and spoke in a low tone. “I thought Celestran clerics do not take sides?”

“We do not, but there is no
denying what I saw with my own eyes—what we
all
saw. You lost control.”

“No! It was not my fault!”
Kaijin felt his blood boil. For a moment, the image of Zarya reddened. He
blinked, and the red cleared.

Zarya’s expression hardened.
She shook her head and whispered, “You are a
monster
!”

Kaijin’s left eye twitched.
What
did she call me?!

“She is like all the rest,”
the fiery voice in his mind said.

Kaijin gritted his teeth.
“Yes,”
he responded mentally,
“like all the rest.”
The image of Zarya began to
blur. Clenching his fists, he took a step to her. “You ungrateful wench,” he
growled in a voice that seemed to shift from his own. “I should have let them
kill you.”

Zarya stood her ground,
apparently unfazed. She slapped him across the cheek hard enough to snap
Kaijin’s head to the side. He recoiled, his cheek stinging and burning.

“Punish her,”
the fiery voice commanded in Kaijin’s mind.

Kaijin narrowed his eyes,
feeling them crackle with warm magical energy. He raised his glowing fist and
felt Aidan’s leathery hand grab it.

“Enough!” the giant boomed. He
grabbed Kaijin’s other arm and dragged him away from Zarya. “No more violence.”
He glowered at Zarya.
“From
either
of you!”

Kaijin and Zarya glared at
each other.

“We have come this far
together,” Aidan continued, “and we will remain together until we reach
destination.” Looking at Kaijin and Zarya in turn, he added in a sharp tone,
“Does Aidan
make
himself clear?” The anger in his
voice amplified his already-intimidating physical features, and no one seemed
to dare argue with him.

Aidan released Kaijin. He
pointed ahead and ordered, “Now, let us continue.”

* * *

Kaijin trailed several paces
behind Zarya, and Aidan walked only a few steps behind him. Nester led the way
as the majority of their travel passed in silence.

Kaijin stared blankly at
Zarya’s back. He was no longer charmed by her beauty, and he bore his gaze into
her like daggers.
She dared call me a ‘monster’.
The word stung every
fiber of his being every time he heard it.

“Am I really a monster
because I use magic, Miele?”
She
responded with a series of audible shrieks, and warmth eclipsed the bitterness.
He smiled, but only briefly, before he heard Aidan’s breathing behind him.
Kaijin walked to one side of the path to allow the giant to pass. When he
didn’t, however, Kaijin glanced over his shoulder at him.

Scowling, Aidan walked
uncomfortably close to Kaijin.

Kaijin felt trapped. He wanted
to run. He wanted to destroy the world. He hated feeling so helpless. He
clenched his teeth, staving off the urge to lash out at his comrades.

The rage confused him. Miele
reacted to his distress by swooping down and resting on his shoulder. She
rubbed her furry body against him and screeched softly. Kaijin frowned.
“They
don’t understand, Miele. They’ll never understand.”

XI

Shades of grey surrounded
Kaijin.

His companions were gone. The ground
was blanketed in a thick mist, obscuring his feet. The air was soft and warm,
yet filled with tension.
“Nester!”
Kaijin’s voice was
muffled in the endless void. “Aidan?
Zarya?
Miele?
Where are you?”

His calls went unanswered.

Kaijin took a deep breath and
clutched the fiery charm around his neck.
Am I dead?
How did this
happen?
He held his haversack a moment before opening it and pulling out
the orb. The artifact was ice cold to the touch, and it had lost its beautiful luster
and mesmerizing colors. Instead, it had turned black.

“No,” Kaijin muttered, “This
can’t be happening!” The sound of footsteps behind him broke his thoughts, and
he stuffed the lifeless orb back into his haversack and turned around.

“Kaijin,” said a woman’s
voice—his mother’s.

Her voice was filled with love
and compassion. Kaijin could smell her scent—apples, cinnamon,
pinewood—reminders of home.

There was age in her dark
eyes, though her bronze skin was hardly wrinkled. Flowing locks of auburn hair,
streaked with grey, framed her strong, angular features, and the frayed edges
of her flowing white gown rippled in the passing wind. A gentle, loving smile
graced her full lips.

Kaijin blinked once. “M ...
Mother
?”

She took his hand. “Kaijin, I
love you.”

Kaijin’s teeth gripped his
bottom lip. He felt his eyes burning. “Mother, how did you get here? Am I dead?
Please, Mother. Please tell me I’ve not gone mad.”

She shook her head slowly and
smiled. “I am here, Kaijin.” She pulled him in to a warm embrace.

Kaijin froze in her arms. He
knew her scent, felt the softness of her bosom and the warmth and love she
always emanated. “It’s been so long,” he mumbled, holding back the burning
tears that threatened to fall from his eyes. “I can’t believe you’re alive! I thought
... I thought ...
Where’s
Father and Rorick? Are they
here, too?”

She abruptly pulled away from
the embrace, frowning.

Kaijin tilted his head,
alarmed by the sudden change. “What’s wrong, Mother?”

She held up her hands, which
shook, dripping blood.

Kaijin gasped.
“Mother!
You’re hurt!”

“Why?” she whispered. “Kaijin,
how could you ...”

“What? What are you talking
abou—” He felt something warm and sticky on his own hands. A coppery scent
stung his senses. He slowly dropped his gaze, and he gasped.
“
Blood?
H–how can this be? What has happened?” He looked to his mother, frantic.

“I never wanted ... to believe
your father,” she said weakly. “He said you were ... misguided—a mentally
strange child. There’s ... there’s nothing wrong with you.... I just wish ...
you would ... stop playing with fire....” She gave a death rattle, and her body
collapsed to the ground.

Kaijin gaped. Memories of his
mother’s death flooded his mind. “Mother!” he yelled, rushing to her side.
“Mother!
Please, wake up! Please, don’t leave me again!”

But there was no response.

Grey smoke began to rise from
her body, and Kaijin heard the greedy crackling of fire. The smell seared his
nostrils, and the flames devouring her became visible. The heat intensified as
the fire consumed her body—but strangely, as the flesh melted away from the
bones beneath, Kaijin smelled not flesh, but burning pine.

Confused and frightened,
Kaijin cried out to his mother again and again, until his grief finally spent.
He collapsed atop his mother’s smoldering corpse.

* * *

Kaijin awoke in a cold sweat,
gasping for air. He found himself staring at a grey, starless sky, where he
heard Miele’s light shrieking and fluttering of her wings.

“Can’t sleep, aye?”

Kaijin flinched in surprise,
then
turned toward Nester, who was sprawled out comfortably
across the fire from him, sorting a small pile of gold and silver pieces. The
campfire crackled and popped softly as it consumed the last of the pinewood.

Nester peered at Kaijin over
the top of the dancing flames and grinned.

Kaijin rubbed the sleep from
his eyes. Aidan lay to his left, curled up like a large cat, sleeping soundly
with his head pillowed on his enormous hands. Zarya lay huddled alone beneath a
willow tree outside of the flickering ring of firelight. She slept upright, her
head leaning against the trunk.

“You’ve a few ’ours yet before
th
’ sun comes up,” Nester continued. “Might as well
get some more winks in. I’m on watch, now, so you’ll be safe, I guarantee!
Nothin’ gets past these peepers!”

Kaijin frowned. He couldn’t
remember the last time he had trouble sleeping, and when he did, he usually
knew why. That night, however, felt different, and Kaijin was left bewildered.
“I think I had a bad dream,” he said slowly.

Nester chuckled, placing a
gold piece atop one of the stacks in front of him. “Bad dream? I’ll tell you
what gives me bad dreams—watchin’ my Aunt Netta and Aunt Nini
sing
!” He rolled his eyes. “First, they always gotta dress
up in these gaudy pink dresses an’ do their ’air in this crazy style that looks
like a bird’s nest. Then comes
th
’ singin’! Neither of
them can carry a tune if it ’ad ’andles! They both sound like they’re chokin’
on frogs, they do. Why, one time, they sang this song that nearly ...”

Ignoring the brownie’s gabble,
Kaijin focused on Zarya. His scowl returned as he recalled the day’s events.
How
can someone so peaceful—so beautiful—be so spiteful?
His gaze shifted to
the campfire.
Maybe Nester was right. I should be more careful. Things
aren’t what they seem.

Nester stirred the fire with a
stick as he hummed a merry tune to himself.

The flames blazed up for a
moment, entrancing Kaijin, and he lost himself in thoughts about his nightmare.
The campfire gave a pop of pine pitch before dying down again. Kaijin blinked
from his trance, and then he sighed.
I’m not a murderer.

“No, you are worse than a
murderer,”
said a voice from the
flames to Kaijin’s mind.
“You are a mage.”

Kaijin clenched his teeth and
tore his gaze from the campfire. He retrieved the orb from his haversack and
examined it. Its color and beauty had returned—if, indeed, they had ever
left—and it once again felt warm in his hands. Mesmerized by the swirling
flames under its glassy surface, Kaijin wondered,
How
does such a simple object hold such awesome power?

“Better keep that thing
’idden,” Nester said suddenly, snapping Kaijin out of his reverie. “If we ever
run into bandits and th’ like, you’d best believe that’ll be
th
’
first thing they’ll prig.”

“I’m not worried, Nester.”
Kaijin shook his head. “They will be in for a rude awakening when the orb ends
up burning their fingers off.”

Nester smirked, adding two
more gold pieces to another stack.
“’Ey!
I like that,
I do! Th’ sods’ll think twice about messin’ with us, aye?”

“I’d prefer that no one
touches it, though.” Kaijin ran his thumbs along the orb’s smooth, transparent
shell.

Nester’s smirk faded. “’Ey,
now, you’re not plannin’ on keepin’ that thing for yourself, are you? It
belongs to both of us, remember?”

Kaijin tensed at the brownie’s
words.
“Right.”
He reluctantly stuffed the orb back
into the haversack.

“You gave us quite a scare,
earlier, you did, mate.”

Kaijin sighed. “Must we talk
about that?”

“But it was amazin’, it was!
Your eyes started glowin’ all fiery orange, and you ’ad all this flare burnin’
around you like you were possessed or somethin!’ Didn’t it ’urt?”

“Nester—”

“Oh, an’
that poor Zarya! ’
Ow could you
almost ’it ’er like that?”

Nester’s question took Kaijin by
surprise. He frowned. “Well ... what does it matter? She should not have said
those things.”

Nester scowled in return.
“What kind of man are you, to wanna ’it a lady?
And a pretty
one, at that?”

“She wasn’t acting very
‘ladylike’ to me, saying what she said and doing what she did. She obviously
has no clue about me.”

“And you, obviously, ’ave no
clue about women.”

“What in the hells do you know
about women?”

“More ’n
you, apparently.”

Kaijin huffed. “I’ve got my
dignity. I’m not going to stand there and let her tell lies about me. She’s
liable to get me killed. She knows I’m a mage. What’s stopping her from turning
me in?”

Nester shook his head. “She
won’t do that.”

“You sound so sure of
yourself,” Kaijin said flatly.

“Trust me, mate.” Nester
smiled reassuringly and then added some silver pieces to one of the stacks.

Kaijin’s hard gaze drifted to
the priestess. “She called me a monster.”

“Eh.” The brownie shrugged.
“Sometimes people say things they don’t really mean.”

“I think she meant every
word.”

“Look, think positive,
will
ya? I think she was just ... a wee bit flustered after
all that fiddlin’ you showed off earlier.”

“But I’m a mage, Nester.”

“And a soddin’ good one, at
that!”

“Why should I even be
concerned about what she thinks?”

Nester groaned.
“Oy!
For soddin’ sake! ’Ow daft can you be, Kaijin?”

Kaijin looked at him blankly
and kept silent.

Nester shook his head. “Bah.
Never mind. You’ll figure it out one of these days—I ’ope.” He paused to add
the remaining gold and silver pieces to the stacks.
“Thirty-nine
gold and twenty-four silver.”
He whistled. “Not too bad.”

“Where did you get all that
from?”

Nester gave a nervous laugh.
“Ah, well, y’see, I was doin’ some, ah,
charitable work
of my own back
in Faywald.
No ’arm done, aye!”

“You
stole
all that?”

“Nay!”
Nester promptly looked around and then lowered his
voice. “What did I tell you before? It ain’t considered priggin’ if no one sees
you do it. An’ I assure you, mate—no one saw me do nothin’.”

Kaijin crossed his arms,
unconvinced.

“Oh, by the way, this is our
li’l secret, aye?” Nester added. “Zarya wouldn’t understand. And Aidan ...”
Nester’s expression turned sour. “Knowin’ ’im, ’e’ll make me donate it to some
soddin’ orphanage or somethin’. I worked too ’ard to get all this. Besides, th’
kids got enough money as it is! So, ah, you can keep secrets, right, Kaijin?”

“Are you sure you really want
to tell me your secrets, Nester?” Kaijin said. “I’m a mage—apparently I can’t
be trusted.”

“’Ogwash.
You an’ I’ve been through a lot together in this
short time. You ain’t
gave
me any reason to not trust
you.”

Strangely enough, the
brownie’s words brought a small sense of comfort to Kaijin. Uncrossing his
arms, Kaijin managed a weak smile.
“All right.
My lips
are sealed.”

Nester beamed. “Great! See?
You an’ I were destined to be together, we were!”

Kaijin cringed. “I think not.
And I would advise you to put all that away before—”

As if Nester was reading his
thoughts, the brownie scooped up his stacks of coins and carefully and quickly
placed them in his pouch.
With that small bit of reassurance,
Kaijin shifted himself more comfortably in his spot, closed his eyes, and
drifted back to sleep.