This is a sequel to my other background fic, The Legend of Karok, and both of them are tributes to LiyuConberma's medieval fan-world in which Sonic, Shadow and Silver are the children of King Kaze and Queen Sapphire. This story takes place approximately 15 years before they were born and in fact can fit quite snugly between chapters 2 and 3 of "Tale of Origin" which can be found on DeviantArt. Don't read that one just yet if you don't want major spoilers!
Chapter 1: The Storm Gathers
The sky above Cosium had been shadowed by dense cloudcover that promised rain but had delivered none in the past two days. Though it was the middle of the day and all the villagers in Ruatha ought to have been busy working in the fields to get the crops planted before the shower began, every single person had crowded the square instead. A raised platform with three whipping posts stood at the center, weakening and splitting as fire ate away at its supports. The flames were not nearly as hot as the anger of those looking on and the black smoke swept up to join the dark, boiling clouds above.
"They forced us into hard labor, starved our families, and tried to break us with beatings!" a yellow cat cried to the crowd, one hand gesturing to the blackening whipping posts in needless emphasis. "We won't sit back and let them keep doing it now that they no longer have any authority over us!"
The response was deafening as fury swelled in Ruatha's townsfolk. Even most of the soldiers who had served Baron Jaxom joined their ranks, shouting for his downfall.
Anger that had always simmered just beneath the surface broke through every so often over the years. Once the legendary Karok had begun his escapades, defiance had been more frequent. But with the news that the king and his wife had decreed all barons relinquish control of the towns, the commoners' outrage manifested itself into this form when the hedgehog who ruled over them refused.
"I say we show Baron Jaxom exactly what we think of him! If he won't obey the law and let us live our lives, we'll make him!"
More shouts filled the smoky air and minutes later the yellow cat was leading the mob toward a manor they had all despised from infancy. As they marched, another cat pushed forward to tug at her husband's tunic.
"Farrell, I think you're taking this too far. You need to get them to understand this isn't the way. We're already united against him. Baron Jaxom can't make us obey him anymore."
"It's our one chance, Mara!" he growled back. "The baron and his family are gone anyway. It would serve him right to come back to a ruin. Let him feel what it's like to lose everything."
"Farrell—"
"I know what I'm doing!" he interrupted her roughly.
The manor stood on a hill overlooking the village—a fat spider keeping an eye on the trapped occupants of its web—and the few remaining members of Baron Jaxom's guard fled before they arrived, leaving the place undefended. Upon entering, the commoners were infuriated by the elegance and luxury that overflowed in every room, leaving hardly any spot bare.
The looting began within seconds, but afterward no one could say for certain whether the drapes caught fire by accident or on purpose. Either way, flames consumed the house.
Only when it was far too late to do anything did someone notice figures at a third-story window, trapped.
Three hedgehogs were in the royal suite, the recently-crowned King Mortesen sitting on a sofa, head in hands.
"This isn't what I wanted…"
Rakar folded the letter describing details of the riots, then swept a hand through his red-brown quills that had grown darker since the year before. He wasn't surprised this had happened, and in fact had expected it to begin the week before when the announcement of the new law first went out. But he was more concerned with the fact that his brother did nothing except sit there. Their father, King Negolas, would have been marshalling his forces and declaring war on the towns responsible immediately after finding out.
"Brother, you have to do something," he said after too long a silence.
Athena nodded unhappily from her place beside her husband. They had only been married six months. "Rakar is right. No matter how they felt about the nobles, it wasn't right to kill them. Your law already stripped the barons of their power and threatened them if they did not obey. There was no need for violence."
"Are you sure it's just twelve villages where this happened?" the black hedgehog asked without looking up.
"So far," his brother answered. "I was going to send most of the soldiers we have here to all the villages nearby, then I planned to contact the other garrisons to spread out in their areas. I understand many of the nobles are already fleeing to cities."
The king finally raised his head, clearly distraught. "Rakar, I want all the soldiers to understand they are to suppress any violence and protect the nobles—not to kill or arrest anyone. I'll…I'll come up with a suitable punishment later. It's not their fault… It's not their fault!"
Rakar's jaw was clamped so tightly that it almost felt as though his teeth would crack. He gave a quick movement in the imitation of a nod and left the bedroom, afraid if he stayed any longer he would erupt.
Once his brother was gone, Mortesen looked down again. "It's my fault. I knew it wouldn't be a smooth transition. Why didn't I realize until now that the peasants would really want revenge?"
"You can't take all the blame, Mortesen." Athena's hands slid around his shoulders and she pressed close to his side. "I didn't think about this either. The main reason it hasn't happened before is because they knew the king would take the side of the nobles no matter what. They were afraid of King Negolas and most of your ancestors. They aren't afraid of you."
"I don't want to instill fear. It would be best to have them willingly obey…but how do you make people want to do as you say? And now that they've done this I can't overlook it. I understand why the peasants reacted this way but I also understand the barons have always taken advantage of them because that's the way they've been taught to act in the first place. How do I know what's truly fair here?"
The blue hedgehog leaned her head against his shoulder, unable to answer. Life was never easy, and for a king who had to bear the burdens of everyone, it was more complicated and stressful than any other position that she could imagine.
8 years later
A brisk wind carrying the first chill of winter swept through the gardens that had mostly gone dormant for the season. Athena herded her two sons indoors for their lessons while her adopted son, Benonic, wandered toward the training yard. None of them seemed overly concerned about the announcement that had just been made, though Rakar was still stunned. He continued to stare at Mortesen without comprehension, the news so unexpected and ridiculous that he thought it was a joke. But the king didn't take back the words and he had no choice but to accept them.
Rakar gripped the edge of a large pot beside him that nurtured a cluster of tiny moss roses. "Brother, I can't believe you did that!"
"Betrothals are nothing unusual."
"With a hedgehog, yes, but that—that—" Rakar stammered to a stop, one arm gesturing repeatedly toward the sea as he tried to find a description less offensive than 'fish'. This farce couldn't possibly last, but even the appearance of such an alliance could be damaging to the country's reputation. He finally took a deep breath and tried to explain what should have been obvious. "Our family have been hedgehogs since Cosium was founded. You don't want to pollute our bloodline, do you?"
Mortesen shook his head, brushing off the argument. "You sound just like Father."
"Well, at least one of us does," he said with an undertone of irritation. "It's laughable—embarrassing! If you really want to use this as an excuse to strengthen relations with Atlantis, why not have Darren marry the merhog instead?"
"You haven't seen them together," the king said with a smile. "Darren tags along, but it's clear to me that Kaze has a much deeper attachment to Princess Sapphire. Father never would have let me marry Athena if he'd had a say in the matter. I know that, and it's why I'm not going to place any obstacles in Kaze's path."
"…As adorably romantic as that is," Rakar said with a certain amount of sarcasm, "you can't even be sure this can work out on a practical level. How in the world is a merhog supposed to live in Cosium? Or does Atlantis expect Kaze to move into the sea?"
Mortesen got off the stone bench, brushing some pollen from his clothes. "Queen Marissa says there is a spell that can enable their kind to venture inland, but it hasn't been used since before she was born. Posiden is powerful enough to cast it on Sapphire, but he wants to wait until she's older to avoid affecting her growth. According to him, the princess has a cousin who can take the Atlantian throne if she and Kaze don't have more than one heir."
"And you actually think ahalf-breed should be able to rule Cosium?"
"Rakar, whatever my grandchild is, I think he should rule Cosium." But then Mortesen stood back, abruptly starting to laugh. "Why am I talking about that when Kaze isn't even seven years old? Let's just deal with what's directly in front of us, shall we?"
"Yes, that would be best," Rakar agreed.
There had to be a way to break it off.
A week later King Mortesen watched with a smile as his son flew in a weaving pattern around Cosium Castle. He put fingers up to his mouth and gave a piercing whistle, then the prince with blue fur marked by red stripes came streaking back toward the balcony where he waited. Catching him in midair, Mortesen immediately looked at Kaze's wristbands.
"How did they work?"
Kaze shivered, not making his wings disappear as he usually did after landing. "They get really cold every time I pass through the barrier, but at least I don't bounce back anymore."
"Alright, you can go play now. But don't leave the castle grounds. It's nearly dinner time." Mortesen fingered the markings etched in the metal one last time before tossing his son upward. The hedgehog's wings caught the air and he glided away.
His wife stood behind him, her pure blue fur almost the same color as the cloudless sky overhead. "I'm glad he can get through the castle's barrier, but are you sure that was a good idea? Just suppose someone copies the symbols on those bands. That would put us all in danger from any airborne enemies, you know."
Mortesen sighed. "I know, but I've been worried about it ever since last month when he accidentally brushed too close to the barrier. If that tree hadn't caught him, he could have gotten worse than a sprained wrist."
"Are you sure it doesn't have more to do with the fact that you think he needs more freedom?" Her arms were crossed and she had a critical stance. "He's still a child, you know."
He rubbed the back of his head nervously as though he wasn't looking forward to having this particular argument. "Well…I don't see a problem with that. He's always telling me it's too cramped, and the only way to get out is by landing and going through a gate. But it's not really the—"
"Mama!" Kaze interrupted his parents, wings beating in a panicked frenzy. "Darren can't stop!"
Queen Athena ran to the railing, crimson eyes wide with alarm. "Where is he?"
"Over there in the garden. I just saw him making a little vine, but then they started popping up everywhere and he—"
She didn't even wait for him to finish, turning to her husband at once. "Mortesen, get me down there now!"
A racing wind swept from the balcony down to the grass below, materializing into the king and queen. Athena took off running in the direction Kaze had pointed. Past the arbor there was a cluster of writhing vines that glowed green as they loomed larger and larger. She could see Darren kneeling on the ground, trying desperately to stop his magic from losing control, but it was getting more out of hand by the second.
Using her abilities to push them aside was only partially successful because they resisted, crowding closer to Darren as though attempting to smother him. Athena's magic and strength were put to the test as she forced her way through, ignoring several wicked thorns that seized and tore her dress.
"Darren—look at me," she commanded in a low, calming voice once she'd gotten to him.
His red eyes peeled open and she could see the tears in them, but the sight of his mother crouching in front of him seemed to be a relief.
"Hold my hands. Good. Now take a deep breath and do what I do."
The five-year-old's little chest continued to spasm with sobs, but Darren started to quiet. Her hands glowed too, and the glimmer that twisted and flared all over him stabilized. After a minute some of the vines receded, disappearing into the ground. The rest had stopped thrashing like live tentacles, but she didn't try to guide him through the process of banishing all of them. Maybe in a day or two.
Once he had it under control, Athena found her son lying limp in her arms. Carrying him slowly back to the castle, she noticed many stares from the servants. Some of them were whispering to each other.
"M-Mama… I didn't…mean to do it…" he struggled to say between breaths.
Then his head rolled back and she saw the Third Eye on his forehead slide shut, indicating he had lost consciousness. The queen's jaw tightened with worry. They came to the castle entrance where Mortesen stood waiting.
"How bad was it?"
She stroked the sweaty fur along Darren's temple, not looking up. "Worse than last time. He was so scared that the vines sprouted thorns again. I had difficulty moving them aside so that I could reach him. I wish I knew why he keeps losing control. It only happened to me a few times as a child."
"Athena, maybe we should—"
"No," she growled, eyes glittering fiercely. Her arms tightened around the little ebony hedgehog protectively. "I won't send him away."
"I didn't say that. I've never said that. If the masters at the Academy just spent some time with him maybe they could tell us what's wrong." Mortesen put a hand on his wife's shoulder and she shifted just enough to put herself between him and Darren. "We can't trust that he'll grow out of this, especially since he may not gain full mastery over his magic for another two years. It happens every week now—he's not getting better! Athena, you can't always be there to keep him safe from himself."
Athena's face grew afraid but she didn't say a word.
"You know you can stay with Darren while he's there," he added. "Besides, he'll probably enjoy spending time in their library. He'll think it's a vacation."
"And what about Kaze and Ben?" she murmured so low that he had difficulty hearing her.
"They'll be fine, I promise. Don't you trust me alone with those two?"
She caught the mock-offense in his voice and couldn't hold back the smile. "You're the one I'm most worried about, Mortesen. All right. Once his magic fatigue passes I'll arrange a ship to take us to the Academy."
He touched her cheek briefly. "That's all I ask."
"Come on, Flora!" Kaze coaxed, holding out a bucket of oats mixed with honey and chopped apples.
The deer with a thick cream and green pelt took one step forward then lifted his head as though suspicious. He stood that way for a minute, then finally approached, burying his snout in the bucket to devour his favorite treat. Kaze stroked the thick fur of the Mystical's leg, slowly edging along beside him. Just as he was about to pull himself up, Flora gave a startled noise and stamped his hoof.
His shoulder collided with Kaze, sending him to the ground, then the stag disappeared into the Forbidden Forest. He was still coughing for breath when someone pulled him up, and he recognized the black and white skunk in armor standing above him.
"You should know better than to mess with any Mystical no matter whose it is."
"Sorry, Captain," the prince said, partly ashamed. "I just wanted to see if I could ride him. Haven't you ever seen him carry Mother? They fly through the trees so fast—it's amazing!"
"All the same," Alexei Stripeback chided, "you should always be careful when their partners aren't around. Mysticals are intelligent, but they're still wild animals."
Kaze nodded glumly, then looked around with excitement. "Where's yours?"
"She's keeping out of sight, but I could call her."
Eoduin trotted out of the underbrush at the sound of her name—larger than a wolf and bearing the same fluid grace as one, yet her muzzle was more rounded and there was a drooping cast to her ears that betrayed her parentage as less than pure. She stood patiently as Kaze gave her a good scratch beneath the chin.
The skunk captain knelt beside them, his thoughts returning once more to the first time he'd seen her when he was a child. She had been driven away from her pack as a cub because she was different. Alexei found her alone and starving near his hometown of Ruatha, and it was only when she was older that he realized she wasn't any ordinary hound. Her eyes held an intelligence too pronounced for an animal. Everyone agreed she must be a Mystical.
After his family moved to Cosium Town so that Alexei's father could join the military, Eoduin followed without any encouragement. She grew increasingly protective of him and the feeling was mutual. No matter what others said or how they tried to dissuade him, he finally performed the bonding contract.
In a way it was frowned upon. In the countryside, about one in six commoners had a bond with the creatures that were more than feral beasts yet still ranked lower than people, but "soldiers ought not be distracted by such things." Marriage apparently didn't count as a distraction, though he begged to differ.
Alexei refocused on the young prince, noticing he had stopped smiling and was now staring at the ground. "Do you think Darren will be okay? He was sick for almost a whole day."
As much as he wanted to be reassuring, Alexei knew it would be wrong to raise Kaze's hopes without knowing whether the young prince really would be fine, otherwise he'd feel betrayed if the worst happened. The skunk placed a gauntleted hand on his shoulder.
"I don't have any answers, and there's only so much we can do. He needs help, and if he doesn't get it, yes, he could die. That's why your mother took him away yesterday."
"But…what if they can't help? What if he doesn't come back?"
A sad smile pulled at the corner of Alexei's mouth. Kaze made it his duty to tease Darren, and often the jokes could be unkind, but he really did care about his little brother. Alexei was quiet for a short time, then he looked at his Mystical, brow furrowing in concentration.
Finally he returned his attention to Kaze, saying, "I don't know, but you can only deal with what is happening now—not what might happen. What can you do?"
The azure prince kicked a little clod of dirt up with his heel. "…Nothing useful."
"Do you think you're the only one who's worried about Prince Darren?"
"I dunno. No one else seems to be," he shrugged.
"Then your father and Benonic are just trying not to show it. I guarantee they are just as worried as you, if not more. One thing I know you can do is try to keep them from being too preoccupied with what's happening at the Academy. My Prince, you can help them focus on something else."
Kaze's eyes lit with determination and the beginning of a smile flickered into being. Now he had something to do. He was a child, but he was needed by those older than him. With a hasty farewell to the skunk captain, he spread his wings.
As he watched Prince Kaze fly back to the castle, Alexei gave Eoduin a pat. "It was a good suggestion. I honestly didn't know what to say. Sometimes I think you understand people better than I do. Thank you."
The half-wolf leaned against her partner, happy to have been helpful. It took great effort to communicate with him, and half the time he didn't understand.
"Maybe you can explain why Trina is stressed over the baby," he proposed with a hint of exasperation. "There were no complications with the first one and it was almost so easy that she was disappointed at putting all that effort into preparing. Why does she have to be so dramatic about this birth?"
Eoduin's tongue lolled from her mouth in a knowing, canine smile. Some things were just easier for females to understand.
Then her head jerked toward the beach just beyond the cliff, damp nostrils quivering as she detected someone nearby. The hedgehog who always gave off that wrongness. Wolves were able to smell emotions as easily as physical scents and she could tell he was feeling torn…distressed…but mostly angry.
Well, it was none of her concern, so she gave a dismissive whuff in answer to Alexei's curious look.
A short distance from the Forbidden Forest, Rakar walked along the shoreline. He simply couldn't stand it any longer. The idea of a merhog marrying into the Royal family was worse than shameful.
Mortesen had worked for years to make treaties with other countries, and was even pivotal in creating a joint alliance with six of them. Why couldn't he use one of those to continue the Cosium line? Except for the Ice Empire and Crescent, the Royalty were all legitimate hedgehogs with good breeding. Why couldn't Mortesen just be sensible about this?
There was someone who could likely help with the process, though.
Rakar was over two miles from the castle now, and the shallow cave hid him from any curious eyes that might be about. Wet sand shifted beneath his boots, making it difficult to stride forward with the purposeful air he intended.
A pool of seawater from the last tide lay trapped in the place, his associate resting her gray-green tentacles in it to keep them comfortably moist. If not for the octopus-half, he would have considered her quite comely with her narrow waist and long, crimped black hair…and even the fins along her ears had something about them that tempted him to feel their ridges. Even though she used a mask to hide most of her face, it only served to make her more interesting.
"Nymph. You were quite prompt."
"It is a rare treat to be invited by you. I could not resist arriving early."
She slid forward, tentacles moving in a strange way that made her glide yet was also full of constant, unnatural movement that gave off disturbing vibes, and he wondered if this was how others felt around him at times. He had no control over his aura that Mortesen had described long ago as an uneasy feeling slithering underneath his skin. His brother had gotten used to it by an effort of the will, and apparently others could too.
Nymph's fingers tiptoed up his arms as he stood there impassively, two of her tentacles draping over his shoulders from behind. "You don't have to be so stiff, do you? When was the last time we met? Nearly three months ago, you know."
"I told you before, I am not free to give my affections to anyone. Ours is a partnership only."
"Why should that get in the way?" she teased. "Our superior did say we were to work closely. He didn't say how close. I can shape-shift into a hedgehog, if that makes you more comfor—"
"My brother plans to have his son marry the merhog princess," he said, cutting her off.
Her reaction was immediate. If not for the mask hiding the upper half of her face, he was sure Nymph would have looked furious. She threw herself away from him, tentacles writhing and lashing. Foreign curses fell from her lips and she stormed to the farthest corner of the little cave, ripping seaweed off a rock and strangling it to green pulp. Any reminder of the merhogs usually resulted this way. Several minutes passed before she was able to compose herself.
"So the queen is having a lovely time with her family, is she?" The octopus-creature spoke in a tone of contempt, mouth quirking into a sneer with every other word. "How nice of her to be responsible for my exile, apologize and then forget about me. That oblivious, carefree, stinking little—!"
"Your emotions are clouding your judgment, Nymph," Rakar interrupted. It was tiresome listening to her rant. Again. "I can come back once you are calm enough to discuss a plan of action."
"I'm calm enough now!" she screamed not-so-calmly.
"Then prove it and help me find a way to stop this."
Nymph breathed wildly, trying to wrestle her emotions back under control and making her bust heave in the process. The red-brown hedgehog tried to keep his eyes politely averted, but it was an impressive display.
"Start the war now, Rakar," she said at last. "Accidents always happen during war. I'll find a way to arrange it, and by the end your people and theirs will hate each other so much that a marriage would never be able to take place."
He considered the option briefly before giving a slow nod. It could work. Creating a reason for hatred between them was far more likely to succeed if the setting was already washed with blood.
"I'll begin forming a relationship with Rofaki and Gardford right away. It will take more planning to disrupt things in the countries allied with Cosium, but I doubt that will present much of a problem. Everyone has a weakness."
A small, sleek smile formed on Nymph's face and she sidled close to him once more. "This will be a great triumph for us both. Our superior will be pleased if all goes well."
"Wars never go according to plan," he said pessimistically. "Not when you're dealing with anything as unpredictable as people."
"This one will because you are the one in control." The sea witch stooped down to get something beside a stone. "I have a gift for you, Rakar. You told me about your experiments. I thought perhaps you would like to broaden your skills."
The hedgehog accepted a sealskin parcel, unrolling it to see a collection of various vials, knives, hooks and other tools.
"Torture?" He shook his head and rolled it back up. "As much as I appreciate the gesture, I haven't done that since I punished my father's murderer. It's a line I do not intend to cross again."
"Rakar, you already torment those pathetic lawbreakers. Mental torture…physical torture… I fail to see a difference that would affect your conscience."
"There is one. My experiments are useful. They teach me what I can and cannot do."
He held out the parcel to her but Nymph gently pushed it back, hands lingering on his as she did so. "Keep it. I made it for you even if you never make any use of it."
Rakar decided it couldn't hurt to humor the creature before him who had not always been an octopus. After all, he had orders to confer with her and the last thing he wanted to do was make her upset over refusing a gift.
It would take time—perhaps all winter—but he was sure the negotiations would be successful. Then Cosium would be put to the test. Weaken it from within and attack it from without… Those were his instructions, and as much as he detested them, Rakar also understood it needed to happen before the country could be reforged into what it ought to be.
"I can't—I can't!" Darren cried out, tears falling to the floor as vines surged all around him. They climbed the stone walls as though searching for a way out, then came shooting back toward their creator and tangling with each other in a mad dance. "Mama! Help me!"
A female mountain goat in an earth-brown dress and green cape sat beside him, talking in a low voice and her hands glowing as she kept the rebellious vines from attacking herself or him. The prince didn't seem to be paying any attention to her words, though. Athena stood in the doorway of the stone room, hands clenched, wishing with all her might that she could pass through the barrier. Her face was written with pain as she spun to the mage standing there.
"Please let me go to him, Master Briar! He needs me!"
She worried they wouldn't be able to help. Since the goat wasn't closely related to Darren, her magic couldn't overlap his to the point that they could sense each other's weavings and lead him safely out. It was insanity to put him in this position!
But the brown desert hare who appeared to be between fifty and sixty years old shook his head in an authoritative way. "You needn't worry, Queen Athena. She will take care of him. Rosewood and I are two of the best Nature-wielders the Academy has produced in the last century. We've worked through this problem with several others before."
She grew hopeful. "You know what's happening to my son?"
He observed Prince Darren for a thoughtful minute as the young hedgehog started listening to the master beside him. Nothing about the vines changed, but he looked less distraught.
"Did you ever show him how to create his vines?"
"No. He was able to do that very early on and never needed help. I only showed him how to make them fade away when he grew upset."
"I suspected that might be the case." Mage-Master Briar gave a noise like a teakettle releasing steam. "Queen Athena, your magic is extrinsic—you need to use living plants. Your son may have some extrinsic abilities, but his is primarily intrinsic—he can form vines out of pure magic. They require two completely different methods to control properly. You cannot guide Darren through it without confusing him."
"You mean every time I tried to help…I was making the situation worse?"
The desert hare nodded, partly sympathetic but mostly stern. "You've been teaching him to treat his vines as though they exist outside his own power. The result is what's known as a third-class Elemental—unstable, uncontrollable, and very violent. …Queen Athena, why didn't you bring him here sooner? Wasn't it obvious something was wrong with your son long ago?"
The blue hedgehog tried to look him in the face, but her eyes dropped uneasily to the floor. "I thought… I thought it was a phase he would grow out of on his own."
"He is beyond the point where a sudden loss of control could be fatal if you weren't there to pull him out," he said. "Prince Darren must relearn almost everything you taught him. He has gotten into a dangerous habit and will need patient correction. For the time being he must remain here."
"How long?" she wondered.
"Several months."
Athena dropped onto the bench beside her, gaping at him. "Months?!"
"He can return home every now and then, but not for more than a few days at a time before we're absolutely sure he has learned well enough to regain control even when suffering great emotional stress."
She continued to sit there, stunned. "But I don't understand. Why so long?"
"Queen Athena," he began patiently, "as natural as magic comes to those of your country, when something goes wrong it is not easy to fix. It isn't just a matter of deciding to change. Imagine someone taught you to read incorrectly. How hard would it be to reassign different sounds to each letter before you were able to understand them without thinking about it?"
She turned away, beginning to grasp the problem she had created. The sight of Darren within the room caught her attention and she brightened. He looked intent, biting his lip and pressing a hand against the nearest vine. The wild whipping had ceased and, though it continued to twist about, there was something less frantic in the movements. As she watched, it began to shrink.
"His emanation is beginning to settle now too," Briar commented.
With each deep breath he took, the glow around Darren's body grew more focused until it was mostly confined to his hands. Only an occasional spark flared around the rest of him.
The hare nodded in approval. "He should only have an hour or two of magic fatigue. I'll arrange for him to stay with the novices for now. Your presence will subconsciously remind him of the improper way to use his magic, so to keep from being a distraction I suggest you return home in a few days. A week at most."
Athena closed her eyes, hardly able to take it in without growing emotional. This was what she had been so afraid of happening. Darren was still her baby. It felt like abandoning him…
"Mama," Darren panted, leaning against Mage-Master Rosewood as they exited the room. His glasses had been knocked askew during the turmoil but he didn't seem to care. "It was hard—harder than anything—but I did it!"
Athena leaped up and gave him a hug. His fur felt drenched with sweat and he certainly showed signs of tiredness, but her son was also elated. A tight feeling squeezed her throat closed. A few minutes later, she was carrying his unconscious form after the mages as they led her to the room where he would be staying.
"If he decides to continue schooling here with us, there are already permanent quarters set aside for Cosium royalty. A great pity," Mage-Master Briar sighed, head shaking as his thoughts turned to something else. "Your brother had such potential."
She glanced at him, confused for a painful moment, then realized he couldn't be referring to her deceased twin. "You mean Rakar?"
"Yes. Every known technique of the Dark Element came as easily to him as fishing does to an otter. Rakar could have become a master and stayed on here to teach others, but he insisted that was the last thing he ever wanted to do. He seemed to dislike training novices."
"I suspect he disagreed with our policy of non-aggression," Rosewood added. "He was always emphatic about the need to protect Cosium and he spoke out quite often against the tradition Academy masters have of giving up any allegiance to their homelands.
The hedgehog queen paused to remember what happened four years earlier. Rakar had been spending more time than usual at the Academy, then he simply disappeared, leaving a letter about wanting to pursue his education elsewhere. Nearly five months passed before he returned to Cosium, having found nothing in other countries worth his time. He had grown interested in the legal system, and at his request Mortesen had given him the position of justice over several areas northeast of the castle. But he'd never really spoken of what he did for those five mysterious months.
Athena looked down at her son and all other thoughts faded away. It was her fault this had happened. As difficult as it was…she knew leaving him was what she had to do.
A/N: To see how cute he looks, google "LiyuConberma young Darren". He's adorable! And if you want to see Nymph, google "LiyuConberma Atlantis". Maybe she isn't as buxom as I made her out to be here, but she sure is for any anthro I've ever seen aside from Rouge.
Anyway, a lot of research went into figuring out the extent and limits of magic in the world of Cosium (I'm sure Liyu got quite tired of my questions, but she never said it), so there will a fair bit of information about it dumped on you throughout the story.
