Next Chapter!
Keita: thanks for all the reviews… I enjoy reading them.
Wild mage of Tortall: my same-word-meanings give the story character…don't you agree? : )
Suteki de na: Your reviews are always fun to read. Burning the infection out is a proven method of killing infections as a last resort. It's a form of sterilization. That's why we boil water and burn needles with a match before using them for small medical purposes such as taking out a splinter. Heat kills germs. On another note… I'm curious as to your schizophrenic tendencies…. Please enlighten me. : )
AngelBirdy: As soon as I finish this story, I will most likely start the next story. I have three planned out already.
Kelsiface: I pronounce it as the word justice. It's supposed to have character definition. Meaning, it's part of her character. You won't see it much in this story as much as in the third (the way it's planned anyways). The thing about firebirds is they are profits and seers of their own kind. They can't see their own future, but they can 'sense' it. For Justice, what she will become in the future directly relates to her name. She will become justice for many in the future…but she is still young, she must grow and learn the 'true' meaning of 'justice.'
White-wolf: thank you for all the reviews.
Queen-of-the-Jungle: That's the reaction I want from the readers. If I get you all to cringe at my words, I know you can imagine them. It's what a writer strives for, connection with the intended audience.
Jada Dekali: That's fine. Just let me know when you post them so I can take a look. I'm anxious to see your work. The pictures you have already are cool. My favorite is the one of Daine.
Martini: You're always fun to read because you're so anxious. Patience is something both you and I do not possess. ; )
Ok, finally…ON WITH THE SHOW!
Karigan,
****
Complications
Betrayal is for the weak of mind
****
She watched as the sky began to turn from black to a deep blue, the stars dimming slightly from the sky. The small fire that they had banked so that it wouldn't go out completely still glowed softly. Alanna and Buri lay side by side on one side, sharing a cloak that doubled up as a blanket for them. Numair lay on his back, a sleeping Daine sprawled out against his side, her head resting on his shoulder, and her heavily bandaged arm lay across his chest.
Justice stretched her arms and legs as she stood. She paced the small camp set up for a good five minutes before she noticed Alanna begin to stir slightly. Justice walked to a near by Pine and sat at its base. She scratched her head. It itched beyond belief. She had gone three days without being able to clean up properly. Buri had washed most of the mud out of her flaming locks in the freezing creek the evening before, but it was still dirty and grimy.
She curled her legs up and rested her small pale chin on her knees. Her mind eating at her insides with determined vengeance. Feeling her eyes begin to burn, she closed them tight and hid her face in her knees. By the end of this, everyone would hate her, both humans and firebirds. Daine and all the Tortallan's would hate her for causing Daine's miscarriage and the mage would hate her for not fixing his 'problem'. The firebirds would hate her for getting caught and causing so much trouble. Plus, Justice wasn't entirely sure that they would even consider her a firebird when they found out all she had been living as a human for so long.
From birth, firebirds where taught betrayal was for the weak of mind. She had betrayed everyone she had come across in the last two years. She clenched her eyes and ordered herself to stop thinking. The Pine rumbled against her back, sensing her distress. When she refused to answer, she felt something small land next to her. She turned her head slightly to see a small cone lying next to her. She reached out a small, perfect and silver nailed hand to pick it up. It was a pollen filled cone. The Pine whispered, 'A present to cheer the child firebird up.'
The tears that had been burning her eyes brimmed and ran down her cheeks as she smiled weakly. The flora would never hate her, she realized. In the end, she would still have them. "Thank you," she whispered back.
She heard a twig snap and swung her face around to see. Daine stood there, looking at her with intense eyes. Justice swallowed a bolder sized lump down her throat after hastily wiping away the tears from her cheeks. 'Here we go. You knew this would have to happen, Justice. Just…get the battle lines drawn out and no crying.' "You're up." Daine nodded. "I didn't expect you to be the first one up." 'Might as well get the pleasantries out of the way,' she thought. "How's your arm?"
After a moment of silence, Daine sighed heavily and tore her piercing stare from Justice and looked down at her bandaged arm. "It's doing alight. It stings something awful and itches like crazy but, I feel all right."
"That's good." Justice shifted restlessly.
Daine looked back up Justice with a sad look. "You know why I came to talk to you."
Justice nodded, finding a dead leaf next to her foot incredibly interesting at the moment. She swallowed, clenched her eyes and with a cracking voice, squeaked, "You must hate me so much." Again, tears brimmed, running down her cheeks as a silent sob escaped her lips.
Daine's eyes softened dramatically. "Here now, I don't hate you." She walked over and sat next to the small girl. "I'm just…confused. I don't know what to think about all of this, much less know how to feel about it. But one thing's for sure…" she waited until Justice looked up at her in curiosity. "I'll never hate you, Justice."
Justice's eyes were red rimmed and puffy from crying. She looked utterly confused at Daine's words. "Wha… I… I don't understand."
The tiniest of smile splayed upon Daine's lips. She grew sad, then looked down as a look of concentration floated across her face. Finally she looked back up at Justice, seemingly having found the right words. "When he uses the bands, what does it feel like? What happens to your mind?"
"I feel cold. Like I've been dunked in a freezing lake. It hurts really badly at first, like a thousand needles piercing my skin all over. But then, I start to feel nothing. I can feel this emptiness fill up inside me. And the needles hurt so much, I welcome the emptiness. It takes over. It's like nothing matters anymore. Everything is dulled out…less…important, I guess. I fell of the side of a building once, my tunic hooked the window and I pulled myself back in. Afterwards, when I was me again I could recall feeling nothing. Where I would have been scared or surprised or nervous…I felt nonchalance. Seeing myself do the things I've done, I'm almost thankful I don't feel anything while I'm doing them. It's bad enough to feel the way I do afterwards."
Daine nodded. "What you did, what you think you did…it wasn't you, Justice. I mean, it was you, but not really. Do you understand?" Justice, utterly confused, shook her head no. "These bands," she tapped the metal rings around the redheads ankles, "they have this power to disconnect your soul from your body in some way. Your soul is good, Justice. I know you would never hurt anyone willingly." Justice's eyes clouded over and she turned away. "What's wrong?"
"I did hurt people willingly. I killed some of those men that attacked Alanna and me. I killed them. It was me. I made that choice. It wasn't the bands. I am capable of that."
Daine nodded. "Self defense is one of the only forms of violence that is not frowned upon. They were trying to kill you, Justice. No one would expect anything different from anyone in that situation. Besides, it was their own choice." Now justice looked ready to repute her statement. "It's true, Justice. They gave you a choiceless choice, an ultimatum. Kill or be killed. Any idiot knows you wouldn't just stand there and let them kill you. They made the choice of putting their lives on the line. You can't hold yourself responsible for that. If you did, you'd be feeling guilty for every mad-man in the Kingdom."
Justice sat pensively for a moment. "So you don't blame me for…for…?"
"For my miscarriages. I blame the mage." She sighed. "I won't lie to you, Justice. There will always be a small part of me that connects you with the loss of my children. A part of me will always feel some anger towards you. But it's a very small part. And my heart, my mind, and my soul know it's not true. And that's what counts, not my pesky cynicisms."
Justice smiled at her and then turned serious. She looked up at Daine and then back at the ground, considering her next move. Suddenly, she flung herself forward and, being careful of her cuts and scrapes, crushed her in a cleansing hug. Daine hugged her back, hot tears on her shirt from the crying redhead as the sky turned a deep pink and red with the rising sun.
****
"Have you found her?" the handsome mage demanded.
"No sir. She escaped. The firebird must have helped her. A human couldn't have snuck into the camp unseen."
The mage stood and stormed at the man. "HALF OF YOU WERE SLEEPING! ANYONE COULD HAVE GOTTEN IN AND OUT OF THE CAMP! ALL OF YOU ARE USELESS! GET OUT OF MY WAY!" He burst of the tent and into his own personal tent. Pacing, he grumbled as he twisted his hands. Sneering here and there. Finally, he came to a stop and with a toneless voice said, "No more games. This ends now." Sitting in his chair he mustered up all his strength and called upon his gift. His body glowed a brown as he sent out his magic, attaching an ancient spell to it.
Dame cinto,
Dame poder,
Sober la que lleve mi encanto,
Ancianos, dame cinto,
Dame tsu ciela!
(Give me control,
Give me power,
Over her who wears my spell,
Ancients, give me control,
Give me her soul.)
****
DUHN DUHN DUUUUUUHHHHHNNNNN!
AAAAAAAH! CLIFFY!
I wasn't going to make this a cliffhanger, but it just got soooo long. I had to cut it off. Next chapter coming soon. Bye for now.
Karigan