Disclaimer: Not mine, all TP's etc etc
~*~*~
Chapter Two
Alanna sat bolt upright with a gasp. "Farda? What?"
"You lost your Gift, my dear. Leeching spells, I'm afraid. You'd best lie down now."
Alanna jumped off the cot and shoved passed Farda. "MITHROS AND THE GODDESS!?!? I think not. I'll be leaving now," she raged, and then stormed out.
Farda could only stare, awestruck at the extent of the younger woman's temper.
Just as Alanna awoke, George reached the residence of Jakat al Mohanon. "Mohanon!" he called. "I'll be havin' a word with you." A small, scrawny man appeared at the flap of the tent.
"What is it you'll be wanting?" he asked, knowing full well who he was and what he sought.
George confronted Jakat upfront, demanding to know why the mage had stolen the Lioness's Gift. Jakat stared at him a long time, then told him to come in. George was wary, but not as much as he should have been. He entered the tent, expecting to be told why the lady knight's Gift had been taken. His expectation had come true, in a left-handed way.
Once inside the main room of the tent, Jakat palmed a dagger. "You see," he said as he lunged at George. "I had heard about you and the Lioness getting engaged, and I just couldn't let that happen."
"I'm afraid I don't understand," countered George. "And I really don't see how any of this involves you." George retrieved two daggers from wrist sheaths.
George ran in at Jakat, knives in both of his hands, thinking, 'It really is my fault. I could have prevented this, had I been more tactful,' but he'd let his temper take over, and now he was stuck in a combat he didn't want to fight.
"Oh, but it does," continued Jakat. "It does very much indeed. As far as you are concerned, I have no need for you. But the lady knight, she is important."
Alanna raced through the passageways between the tents, startling Kourrem as the young shaman left the tribe's temple. Noting Alanna's pain- torn face, Kourrem set off for the headman's tent.
Alanna stopped to catch her breath at the village center. She wouldn't help George by running around aimlessly looking for him. Slowly- too slowly in her opinion- she calmed, and she tried to cast her magic out to look for George. She got an odd sensation and slowly realized what it was. She was drawing on something that wasn't there. It felt a little like it did when she kept using her magic when she was worn out, but different, because now no matter how hard she tried, she could not acquire even a trace of the amethyst power.
The young knight sighed, and went to the men's guesthouse to see if George had returned there. When she got to the main tent she asked the host, "Has George come around here recently? It's very important that I see him."
"Yes, Woman Who Rides Like a Man, he was here but a few moments ago, and requested directions to the residency of Jakat al Mohanon. Is that where you are headed?"
"Yes, if you would do me the justice of giving me directions!" The knight snapped, her temper getting the better of her.
The host ignored her rude tone, having gotten used to it months before, and explained the way. Alanna thanked him, apologized, and left at a steady jog.
Alanna was about to give up on finding exactly what tent it was when a cloud of teal smoke rose out of one a few hundred feet to her right. 'Well, you can't really ask for a clearer sign; she thought, and ran toward it, drawing her sword.
George parried a blow aimed at his side. "Why is she so important to you? Does the lass even know you?"
"She does not, but I know her. I know everything about her." At this point George realized that this man was insane. "Everything there is to know of the Lioness, I know," continued Jakat. "Every thought she thinks, every movement made by her perfect body, every trace of Gift her spirit has mustered, every time she hasn't thought of me, I've known about it!"
George furrowed his brow, feinted to the left, and struck to the right, throwing off Jakat. Could this man be some kind of crazed lover?
"Ever since she stepped foot on one of our village paths, I have known that I must have her, or die trying. I have traveled many miles to come to just this village, so that I may claim her. For over a year now, she has paid me no heed, and now she shall pay." With that he raised his free hand, and teal fire shot out of it, straight at George.
George didn't want to use the feeble amount of protection the Sight could give him now, because he might need it later, so he rolled back and onto his feet, hoping he would be able to dodge any and all spells shot at him. "I'LL DEFEND MY LIONESS TO THE DEATH," he shouted.
"Glad to hear it." Alanna retorted as she hastily pushed the tent flap out of the way with her sword.
Jakat screamed, "YOU!!! I'll have my revenge!" He shot teal fire at the lady knight. She dropped and rolled, coming up on her feet, sword at the ready. She charged him, set to impale him with her sword, when he suddenly stepped aside and smirked. She turned, wondering at the sudden change in his conduct. "You forget," he said, with a satisfied smile starting on his lips, "I have your magic, and as long as I can avoid your sword, you are powerless against me." With that, he shouted a word she couldn't recognize, and an enormous globe of amethyst light sped at her, knocking her down and her pulling her sword across the room, toward him.
Alanna staggered to her feet, and gaped. "No time to ponder it, my lass," said George into her ear, "You must find his spell and destroy it. Without your magic, and now without your sword, we are at a tremendous disadvantage." He flashed the meager light he could with his Sight. "GO!" She went.
While George struggled to build a protective wall of weak spells, Alanna raced into the next room, and looked around. This was just a sleeping chamber; nothing in here would have helped him to pilfer her magic. She ran on, through the next door.
Here! It was a mage's workroom, to be sure. On a low table sat various bottles of colored liquids and powders, in no particular arrangement. A few bottles glowed. Alanna carefully skimmed the labels on those, knowing that they would be the ones in use. The spell to steal her Gift would certainly be in use right now. She bit her lip, wondering how George was holding up.
At last she saw it, a medium-sized bottle glowing alternating shades of teal and violet. That must be it. She checked the label: 'Beloved One,' and it had a small perfectly detailed painting of her and, worse, a small copper strand attached to the side. She grimaced, and threw it on the floor. It stayed whole. 'Well, I shouldn't have expected it to be easy,' she thought and brought it back up to the table. 'Of course it would have an unbreakable charm on it.' Sighing and hoping that she wouldn't be killed by any unwanted side effects, she brought out her dagger, and flipped the lid to the jar.
It burst, twin violet and teal balls of flame leaping out. Alanna was thrown to the floor by the blast, and was just trying to get up, when the amethyst orb reversed direction and sped toward her, filling her up and knocking her back down.
Meanwhile, Jakat was still frantically trying to skewer George with Alanna's sword. George had been able to fend of the vast majority of the blows, but only because Jakat was no fair hand with the sword. At the exact moment, when Alanna's magic was returned to her, Jakat was filled with subhuman energy from the return of his own Gift, causing him to land a very lucky blow deep into George's thigh. George fell to the ground, hard.
Alanna witnessed his fall, having returned to the sitting room. She screamed her rage, and attacked mercilessly. She used her newly returned Gift to magically scoop up George in a net of power and carefully rest him on an out-of-the-way couch, then turned on Jakat, violet eyes blazing.
"You leeched my Gift, attacked and injured my fiancé, and stole my sword. You will pay." And with that she cast a web of her Gift onto him, dragging him into the air. He dropped her sword in surprise, and she walked under him and retrieved it. She released her spell, to let him drop to the floor with a thud.
A maniacal gleam in his eyes, he tried to shoot teal darts at her. She laughed, surprising herself, and easily stopped them with her Gift. "You fight on my terms, or not at all." She ran at him with the sword. He managed to pull out a dagger as she began the first move of the Crescent Moon drill. He blocked it barely, fear showing in his face, now that she could show him the full extent of her skill. He tried to spell her, but she just caught his spell, and threw it away. She sent her Gift into him, blocking his magic's movements. He could no longer spell her. Any fighting now would be done with weapons alone. She smiled, and whipped her sword up in the reverse Crescent, neatly disarming him, which caused him to stumble over backward and lose his footing. He fell, and when he looked up, her sword was pressed to his throat.
"You will submit to the Crown's law." And with that she magically bound and gagged him, and walked over to inspect George. He had managed to bandage the worst of his wounds, before losing consciousness from blood loss. Alanna scowled, and went to work healing and re-bandaging the wound.
As she was working, Halef Seif rushed in, closely followed by Kara, Kourrem, and Farda. He stopped in the entrance, taking in the scene: Jakat bound and sitting in a corner, a bruised and bloody Alanna healing an even worse-off George, and the general wreckage that was the once lovely room.
George was just beginning to come to. Alanna looked up and noticed the headman, shamans, and healer staring at her. She stood up to explain when exhaustion hit her. Her head swam, and the last thing she saw was the floor rushing up to meet her as she fell.
"She does this often?" Halef Seif asked with the casual manner of someone discussing the weather.
"You have no idea," answered George, settling himself back on the couch as Farda moved to take care of Alanna.
"So, what was it that caused. this?" Halef asked, indicating the debris before them.
George moaned, and sat up. "Well, this afternoon, the Lioness and me were, shall we say, involved," he paused as Kourrem and Kara hid giggles, "And this man," motioning toward Jakat, "Placed a leechin' spell on the Lioness, causing all of her Gift to go to him, leavin' her magic-less. She fainted from the loss and I carried the lass to Farda." Halef look at the healing woman, who nodded. "I left the lady there, and went to find out who had done it. My search led me to this. Jakat al Mohanon. I arrived at the tent, and he asked why he would do such a thing ." and he proceeded to explain the rest of what he knew of the story.
"Well she is a most worthy young knight by all accounts, but we knew that already, for sure," concluded Halef when he was done.
"That she is, and a lucky one at that. Only she could do so much, and still survive nigh on unharmed."
"Yes. Well, you need your rest and so does she. I'll leave you to it." And with that the headman got up and left.
Farda clucked at the headman's impertinence and turned to the young shamans, still standing there staring. "So get Gammal, will you. We need to get these two to the healing tent." She pointed at Alanna and George. They ran.
"I really don't need-" George started.
"I will decide what you do and don't need, in the way of healing, sir," Farda commanded. "Come!"
George meekly obeyed.
Just then Kara and Kourrem returned with the blacksmith, and Farda set out to explain to them what was required. The blacksmith easily hoisted the still unconscious Alanna onto his shoulder, and walked out of the tent, Farda, Kara, and George following behind, leaving Kourrem to watch Jakat.
They were nearing the town square and healing tent when Alanna began to stir. "Calm, loved one," George whispered. "You did a hero's work today."
Alanna smiled softly, and fell back asleep.
~*~*~*~ Chapter Two up!!! I hope you liked it, more coming soon!!
Thanks to all my reviewers:
CrystalLili: Thank you! I fixed the spacing!
PhyscoLioness13: Thanks, sorry about the lines.
Verasilyn: Sorry, of course there will be a/g scenes!!
sw33t t3mptations: here's part of what happens
Cracked in the Head: I'm glad you liked it!
One in a Million girl: Alanna and George ROCK!!
And especially. Liquid Diamond for telling me how to fix the spacing!! You guys/girls are great!!!!!!!
~*~*~
Chapter Two
Alanna sat bolt upright with a gasp. "Farda? What?"
"You lost your Gift, my dear. Leeching spells, I'm afraid. You'd best lie down now."
Alanna jumped off the cot and shoved passed Farda. "MITHROS AND THE GODDESS!?!? I think not. I'll be leaving now," she raged, and then stormed out.
Farda could only stare, awestruck at the extent of the younger woman's temper.
Just as Alanna awoke, George reached the residence of Jakat al Mohanon. "Mohanon!" he called. "I'll be havin' a word with you." A small, scrawny man appeared at the flap of the tent.
"What is it you'll be wanting?" he asked, knowing full well who he was and what he sought.
George confronted Jakat upfront, demanding to know why the mage had stolen the Lioness's Gift. Jakat stared at him a long time, then told him to come in. George was wary, but not as much as he should have been. He entered the tent, expecting to be told why the lady knight's Gift had been taken. His expectation had come true, in a left-handed way.
Once inside the main room of the tent, Jakat palmed a dagger. "You see," he said as he lunged at George. "I had heard about you and the Lioness getting engaged, and I just couldn't let that happen."
"I'm afraid I don't understand," countered George. "And I really don't see how any of this involves you." George retrieved two daggers from wrist sheaths.
George ran in at Jakat, knives in both of his hands, thinking, 'It really is my fault. I could have prevented this, had I been more tactful,' but he'd let his temper take over, and now he was stuck in a combat he didn't want to fight.
"Oh, but it does," continued Jakat. "It does very much indeed. As far as you are concerned, I have no need for you. But the lady knight, she is important."
Alanna raced through the passageways between the tents, startling Kourrem as the young shaman left the tribe's temple. Noting Alanna's pain- torn face, Kourrem set off for the headman's tent.
Alanna stopped to catch her breath at the village center. She wouldn't help George by running around aimlessly looking for him. Slowly- too slowly in her opinion- she calmed, and she tried to cast her magic out to look for George. She got an odd sensation and slowly realized what it was. She was drawing on something that wasn't there. It felt a little like it did when she kept using her magic when she was worn out, but different, because now no matter how hard she tried, she could not acquire even a trace of the amethyst power.
The young knight sighed, and went to the men's guesthouse to see if George had returned there. When she got to the main tent she asked the host, "Has George come around here recently? It's very important that I see him."
"Yes, Woman Who Rides Like a Man, he was here but a few moments ago, and requested directions to the residency of Jakat al Mohanon. Is that where you are headed?"
"Yes, if you would do me the justice of giving me directions!" The knight snapped, her temper getting the better of her.
The host ignored her rude tone, having gotten used to it months before, and explained the way. Alanna thanked him, apologized, and left at a steady jog.
Alanna was about to give up on finding exactly what tent it was when a cloud of teal smoke rose out of one a few hundred feet to her right. 'Well, you can't really ask for a clearer sign; she thought, and ran toward it, drawing her sword.
George parried a blow aimed at his side. "Why is she so important to you? Does the lass even know you?"
"She does not, but I know her. I know everything about her." At this point George realized that this man was insane. "Everything there is to know of the Lioness, I know," continued Jakat. "Every thought she thinks, every movement made by her perfect body, every trace of Gift her spirit has mustered, every time she hasn't thought of me, I've known about it!"
George furrowed his brow, feinted to the left, and struck to the right, throwing off Jakat. Could this man be some kind of crazed lover?
"Ever since she stepped foot on one of our village paths, I have known that I must have her, or die trying. I have traveled many miles to come to just this village, so that I may claim her. For over a year now, she has paid me no heed, and now she shall pay." With that he raised his free hand, and teal fire shot out of it, straight at George.
George didn't want to use the feeble amount of protection the Sight could give him now, because he might need it later, so he rolled back and onto his feet, hoping he would be able to dodge any and all spells shot at him. "I'LL DEFEND MY LIONESS TO THE DEATH," he shouted.
"Glad to hear it." Alanna retorted as she hastily pushed the tent flap out of the way with her sword.
Jakat screamed, "YOU!!! I'll have my revenge!" He shot teal fire at the lady knight. She dropped and rolled, coming up on her feet, sword at the ready. She charged him, set to impale him with her sword, when he suddenly stepped aside and smirked. She turned, wondering at the sudden change in his conduct. "You forget," he said, with a satisfied smile starting on his lips, "I have your magic, and as long as I can avoid your sword, you are powerless against me." With that, he shouted a word she couldn't recognize, and an enormous globe of amethyst light sped at her, knocking her down and her pulling her sword across the room, toward him.
Alanna staggered to her feet, and gaped. "No time to ponder it, my lass," said George into her ear, "You must find his spell and destroy it. Without your magic, and now without your sword, we are at a tremendous disadvantage." He flashed the meager light he could with his Sight. "GO!" She went.
While George struggled to build a protective wall of weak spells, Alanna raced into the next room, and looked around. This was just a sleeping chamber; nothing in here would have helped him to pilfer her magic. She ran on, through the next door.
Here! It was a mage's workroom, to be sure. On a low table sat various bottles of colored liquids and powders, in no particular arrangement. A few bottles glowed. Alanna carefully skimmed the labels on those, knowing that they would be the ones in use. The spell to steal her Gift would certainly be in use right now. She bit her lip, wondering how George was holding up.
At last she saw it, a medium-sized bottle glowing alternating shades of teal and violet. That must be it. She checked the label: 'Beloved One,' and it had a small perfectly detailed painting of her and, worse, a small copper strand attached to the side. She grimaced, and threw it on the floor. It stayed whole. 'Well, I shouldn't have expected it to be easy,' she thought and brought it back up to the table. 'Of course it would have an unbreakable charm on it.' Sighing and hoping that she wouldn't be killed by any unwanted side effects, she brought out her dagger, and flipped the lid to the jar.
It burst, twin violet and teal balls of flame leaping out. Alanna was thrown to the floor by the blast, and was just trying to get up, when the amethyst orb reversed direction and sped toward her, filling her up and knocking her back down.
Meanwhile, Jakat was still frantically trying to skewer George with Alanna's sword. George had been able to fend of the vast majority of the blows, but only because Jakat was no fair hand with the sword. At the exact moment, when Alanna's magic was returned to her, Jakat was filled with subhuman energy from the return of his own Gift, causing him to land a very lucky blow deep into George's thigh. George fell to the ground, hard.
Alanna witnessed his fall, having returned to the sitting room. She screamed her rage, and attacked mercilessly. She used her newly returned Gift to magically scoop up George in a net of power and carefully rest him on an out-of-the-way couch, then turned on Jakat, violet eyes blazing.
"You leeched my Gift, attacked and injured my fiancé, and stole my sword. You will pay." And with that she cast a web of her Gift onto him, dragging him into the air. He dropped her sword in surprise, and she walked under him and retrieved it. She released her spell, to let him drop to the floor with a thud.
A maniacal gleam in his eyes, he tried to shoot teal darts at her. She laughed, surprising herself, and easily stopped them with her Gift. "You fight on my terms, or not at all." She ran at him with the sword. He managed to pull out a dagger as she began the first move of the Crescent Moon drill. He blocked it barely, fear showing in his face, now that she could show him the full extent of her skill. He tried to spell her, but she just caught his spell, and threw it away. She sent her Gift into him, blocking his magic's movements. He could no longer spell her. Any fighting now would be done with weapons alone. She smiled, and whipped her sword up in the reverse Crescent, neatly disarming him, which caused him to stumble over backward and lose his footing. He fell, and when he looked up, her sword was pressed to his throat.
"You will submit to the Crown's law." And with that she magically bound and gagged him, and walked over to inspect George. He had managed to bandage the worst of his wounds, before losing consciousness from blood loss. Alanna scowled, and went to work healing and re-bandaging the wound.
As she was working, Halef Seif rushed in, closely followed by Kara, Kourrem, and Farda. He stopped in the entrance, taking in the scene: Jakat bound and sitting in a corner, a bruised and bloody Alanna healing an even worse-off George, and the general wreckage that was the once lovely room.
George was just beginning to come to. Alanna looked up and noticed the headman, shamans, and healer staring at her. She stood up to explain when exhaustion hit her. Her head swam, and the last thing she saw was the floor rushing up to meet her as she fell.
"She does this often?" Halef Seif asked with the casual manner of someone discussing the weather.
"You have no idea," answered George, settling himself back on the couch as Farda moved to take care of Alanna.
"So, what was it that caused. this?" Halef asked, indicating the debris before them.
George moaned, and sat up. "Well, this afternoon, the Lioness and me were, shall we say, involved," he paused as Kourrem and Kara hid giggles, "And this man," motioning toward Jakat, "Placed a leechin' spell on the Lioness, causing all of her Gift to go to him, leavin' her magic-less. She fainted from the loss and I carried the lass to Farda." Halef look at the healing woman, who nodded. "I left the lady there, and went to find out who had done it. My search led me to this. Jakat al Mohanon. I arrived at the tent, and he asked why he would do such a thing ." and he proceeded to explain the rest of what he knew of the story.
"Well she is a most worthy young knight by all accounts, but we knew that already, for sure," concluded Halef when he was done.
"That she is, and a lucky one at that. Only she could do so much, and still survive nigh on unharmed."
"Yes. Well, you need your rest and so does she. I'll leave you to it." And with that the headman got up and left.
Farda clucked at the headman's impertinence and turned to the young shamans, still standing there staring. "So get Gammal, will you. We need to get these two to the healing tent." She pointed at Alanna and George. They ran.
"I really don't need-" George started.
"I will decide what you do and don't need, in the way of healing, sir," Farda commanded. "Come!"
George meekly obeyed.
Just then Kara and Kourrem returned with the blacksmith, and Farda set out to explain to them what was required. The blacksmith easily hoisted the still unconscious Alanna onto his shoulder, and walked out of the tent, Farda, Kara, and George following behind, leaving Kourrem to watch Jakat.
They were nearing the town square and healing tent when Alanna began to stir. "Calm, loved one," George whispered. "You did a hero's work today."
Alanna smiled softly, and fell back asleep.
~*~*~*~ Chapter Two up!!! I hope you liked it, more coming soon!!
Thanks to all my reviewers:
CrystalLili: Thank you! I fixed the spacing!
PhyscoLioness13: Thanks, sorry about the lines.
Verasilyn: Sorry, of course there will be a/g scenes!!
sw33t t3mptations: here's part of what happens
Cracked in the Head: I'm glad you liked it!
One in a Million girl: Alanna and George ROCK!!
And especially. Liquid Diamond for telling me how to fix the spacing!! You guys/girls are great!!!!!!!