Hi! Sorry for the long time taken to update this; I've been very very very busy with revision for tests and doing the pile of homework. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I revise, I seem to do very badly in the tests. Anyway, enough of my personal life, let's continue with replies:
Thank you to all reviewers! Yup, reviews are what a writer likes most!
Katheen G McCrory - Thank you for ur positive feedback about the storyline, though I must say I planned to make Kerri a Herald from the very beginning. I just took a long time getting to it. Anyway, Kerri doesn't have 'mage powers', i.e, true magic. What she and the other Heralds possess are mind-magic - of sorts.
dustigrey143 - You check for new updates almost every day? Wow! I'm very flattered by that :) Now, to answer ur questions, 'open up his mind' means that Zarien is lowering the shields that a Mindspeaking Herald, especially one with such a strong Empathy Gift, normally has, to keep from sensing others' thoughts at all times (to ensure they don't go mad from hearing too many 'voices' at once). And, no, it does not mean that those who don't get Chosen are all Bards. There are three Collegiums in Havens; Bardic, Healer and Heraldic. Heralds have to be very dedicated to protecting the land of Valdemar and the people, so they cannot afford to be any other things (such as a Bard, which Kerri is before she was Chosen). But anyone with the right qualities can be Chosen, not only Bards.
Neverfall - No, Kerri doesn't have Empathy. In fact, she is not the most sensitive of people. And yes, she does have Fetching. I hope this chapter sheds some light on your questions. Yes, Kerri is a bit too rational and analytical, isn't she? Haha, she's the opposite of me! Hmm... I hope I haven't cost you your non-sanity (Eeks!) And as for me having more reviews than you, I'm sure you will catch up (if you haven't already):)
(my divider ruler tool is not working, so I'm back to using: - LS-LS-LS-)
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Chapter 12 Analyzing after Dawn
'Lynn says I should probably tell you that I'm a Mindspeaker; both a Thought-sensor and a Broad-caster. That means that I can speak to you Mind-to-mind, and also that I'm able to sense your thoughts when you're in close proximity to me. And that's because you aren't shielding your thoughts. Even the weakest Thought-sensor would be able to sense your thoughts; you're Broad-casting it very strongly.
A wave of shock hit Kerrayrlia. Mindspeech she could have accepted from Rannael, but from Zarien… As she slowly assimilated the facts that Zarien had given her both outright and undercover, one single fact stuck out. "Teach me how to shield, Zarien!" The thought of anyone sensing her thoughts was unbearable to someone who had kept her feelings hidden behind a mask for most of her life. Since Mother died in child-birth…
Zarien hesitated. "I'm not really a Herald yet; I don't think I'm allowed to do this." He cocked his head to one side in a thoughtful pose. "'Lynn says that it's alright. Okay, I'll show you how." With that, he, the strongest Mindspeaker in the entire Herald's Collegium, prepared to literally reach into Kerrayrlia's mind and show her how to shield.
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Zarien groaned, his mind hazy with pain. What happened? He cracked open an eye, and found himself staring up at the ceiling. As light entered his eye, he groaned again and closed it. Memory started to filter back as he sat up with an effort, still in the comfortable armchair that he had rested in for the whole night. I was teaching Kerri how to shield…
As if the thought of her had summoned her, Kerrayrlia's voice broke through the haze surrounding him. "Zarien? Are you alright?" Gingerly, Zarien opened his eyes again, and found that it did not hurt too much. I'm alright, love. I hope you don't mind me using this form of speech. The other one would hurt too much right now. I've never done this before outside lessons, and I can see why my teacher warned me not to try.
Kerrayrlia frowned. Did something went wrong? I can feel the shield you taught me to put up, so it must have been a success right? Zarien shrugged mentally. That depends on how you want to look at it, love. The shielding part was okay, but I forgot to withdraw from your mind in time. The backlash of being kicked out of your mind hurts. Did you have to push me out so strongly, o dark princess?
Her face was similar to that of an ice statue, cool and expressionless in the light of the rising sun after dawn. Kerrayrlia's mind-voice however, was tinged with embarrassment. I'm sorry. I should have controlled my instincts. It's just that I'm not used to having people wandering in my mind... Zarien chuckled. His rich laughter rolled off the walls of the room and was music to Kerrayrlia's ears.
You'll have to get used to it if we're going to share our minds again, love. You will repay me for that sharing of my mind, won't you, hmm? They say that the experience is an intimate, heady one, only to be experienced by two Mindspeakers. And I hope you don't mind me calling you 'love'.
Blushing fainting despite her self-control, Kerrayrlia decided to ignore the last sentence. Changing the subject, she commented. "Looks like there's a plus side to being a Herald after all. What other powers do you all have?"
Zarien's Mindspeech was thoughtful. We call the Heralds' powers Gifts and we all have different ones. Many types of Gifts exist, and I'm quite sure we haven't discovered some of them yet. One of the common Gifts would be Mindspeech, which consists of Thought-sensing, the ability to sense other's thoughts and Broad-casting, the ability to send your thoughts to another person mind to mind. Sometimes one occurs without the other, but both of us have both Gifts.
As for other Gifts, here, Zarien paused a while as if considering how best to continue. Well, I've two more Gifts, a very strong Gift of Empathy and a Gift of Farsight at middling strength. And my Gift of Mindspeech is one of the strongest among Heralds. Normally, Heralds only have one or two Gifts. I guess I'm an exception. The way he said it was matter-of-fact, with no hint of arrogance at all.
Kerrayrlia blinked a few times. She had never guessed that there was so much to know about the Gifts of the Heralds. I guess that most of the Bards don't know that much about Heralds. That why most of the songs seem to make the Heralds' powers seem miraculous in its origins. That got another chuckle from Zarien. After Zarien's laughter died down, Kerrayrlia asked him, What Gifts do I have then?
Zarien seemed to be caught between surprise and amusement. His expressive grey eyes looked so comical at the moment that Kerrayrlia had to suppress the urge to laugh. At last, he spoke out loud, his voice wondering. "You know Kerri, I think only you would ask that question in the wake of being Chosen. Most of the other Trainees I know were all too dazed or exhilarated to even think beyond getting to the Collegium. As I recall, I wore a stupefied expression on my face all the way from my Father's estate house to the Collegium here in Havens. I certainly wasn't capable of thoughts."
Zarien paused, then continued thoughtfully, "Well, you are certainly a strong Mindspeaker. And, if the stone benches flying around in the grove is any indication, I think you have the Fetching Gift." Catching Kerrayrlia's questioning glance, he clarified. "That means you can transport things from one place to another by virtue of the strength of your mind." Ah, Kerrayrlia told Rannael. That certainly explains the book flying around above my desk this morning. It seems that I wasn't dreaming after all.
Rannael nodded mentally, Your Fetching Gift is extremely strong, Chosen. Not many can move stone benches around as if they were pebbles. You also have a mid-strength Gift of Foresight and a hint of Firestarting too. Kerrayrlia relayed what Rannael said to Zarien. She watched as Zarien's eyes widened with surprise. However, he refrained from commenting, and only said, "I'm sure your future teachers will tell you more about your Gifts."
Then, glancing at the increasingly brightening sky outside, Zarien sighed. "I'm afraid I have to go now. Queen Jisa summoned me a while ago, actually. I hope you don't mind; I asked 'Lynn to tell Taver just now, Queen Jisa's Companion, about the plot you overheard."
Kerrayrlia shook her head. It was what she would have done if she had been in his place. Obviously, the Valdemar and the Queen's safety would come first to a Herald. She did not begrudge the amount of attention that Valdemar got, knowing that she came a very close second behind them in Zarien's heart. "Goodbye, Zarien." Zarien got up, started moving towards the door, and then hesitated. See you later, love. He planted a kiss on the cheek of a very surprised but pleased Kerrayrlia.
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"Jisa?" The soft morning sunlight coming in through the windows illuminated a blond-haired, muscular-bodied figure strode into the room with quick, confident steps. He was nearing forty, although his tanned, unlined face and marvelous figure did not show it. But then, Jisa thought. I suppose it's important for a king to look his best.
"How are you holding up, beloved? I heard about what happened; Zarien's Dorilynn told my Companion." Jisa, Queen of Valdemar and King's Own Herald, highest in the Heraldic Circle, sighed and looked up from the figure of the Companion on her desk. That had been a toy that her biological father, Vanyel Ashkevron had given to her when she was six years old. She could not recall everything that had happened between both of them, but she knew that Uncle Van had loved her as much as her presumed father and biological mother had.
I'm okay, Trev. I'm just tired. I'd never expected the fact that Uncle Van was my father to create such havoc. Most of the Council is unhappy about it, and the more radical of them is even angling for my removal as Queen...they probably want you to marry a princess from some neighbouring country, huh. And they've already acted upon it; I never suspected that even the boldest would plot against me immediately.
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