52
The wedding party arrived back to the temple with laughter and the sound of slamming doors. The ruckus woke Cole; he and Keyda had fallen asleep sitting upright on the couch. He gently removed himself, laying Keyda down. She stirred but didn't wake up and he padded from the room.
He closed the door softly and then headed to the stairs. He caught sight of Jay coming up the stairs towards him and laughed out loud.
"Don't even start!" Jay said, trying to appear annoyed, but Cole could see his eyes twinkling under the coating of frosting.
"What happened?" Cole asked, still chuckling as Jay tried to wipe his cake-covered face on a similarly stained sleeve.
"Nya can get competitive…" Jay explained. "That poor cake never stood a chance."
Cole put a hand to his chest.
"You killed the cake? That shouldn't even be legal!" He shook his head as Jay continued down the hall to the bathroom to get cleaned up. "No one even got to eat it?! It's a crime, I tell you!"
"Yeah yeah…" Jay replied, but then he turned, thinking of something else. "Is Keyda alright?"
"She's fine," Cole assured. "She's asleep—the time difference caught up with her."
Jay shook his head and Cole let out a defensive scoff.
"I'm telling you, the time difference is real!" he argued as Jay disappeared down another hall. Cole smiled as he watched him go and continued down the stairs. Near the door a heavily-frosted Nya was admiring herself in the mirror.
"Who won?" Cole asked, and she looked up with a mischievous look.
"Do you even have to ask?!" she asked, removing a chunk out of her hair. "Your Dad's outside, by the way…"
"Oh, yeah…" Cole realized with a twist of guilt. He headed out the door and caught his Dad talking with Wu and Lloyd.
"Pop! Sorry, I sort of abandoned you…"
"Not a problem, son…" Lou assured, waving away his apology. "How's Keyda?"
"She's alright, just resting upstairs. It's hard for her, trying to fit in with all these traditions…"
"An honest mistake," Lou countered, eyes twinkling in amusement. Lloyd put a hand on Cole's shoulder.
"Hey, you don't have to head back yet, right? We're all helping Jay and Nya move everything into their new apartment…"
Cole blinked. It hadn't even occurred to him that they would be moving out of the temple…but now that he thought about it, it made sense that they kind of had to.
"Oh, sure…where's it at?"
"Ninjago City. It's a little apartment above an old motorbike shop Nya wants to get up and running. Not too far from Borg tower, either…so it worked out for Jay's job…"
"Are we going now?"
"Well…" Lloyd looked back towards the temple with a smirk. "Probably as soon as they get cleaned up; we still have to get them packed as well…"
Lou cleared his throat and Cole looked over at him. His father was wearing an unreadable expression.
"Could I…could I talk to you for a few minutes, son?"
Cole frowned.
"Um, sure Pop…what about?"
Lloyd wandered off and Lou looked over towards the gardens.
"Walk with me, Cole."
Cole followed his father, still confused, and soon they were alone amongst the hedges and koi pond. Lou took a seat on the bench and looked into the pond, lost in thought. Cole sat next to him.
"Is…there something you wanted to talk about?" he finally prompted and Lou smiled, not looking up at him.
"Well, yes. I just don't know how you're going to take it."
Cole's frown deepened and Lou finally turned to him.
"You seem to be doing better," he finally said, and Cole shrugged, still not sure what on earth his father was getting at.
"Yeah….I'm feeling better. Um…I had a good talk with my friends yesterday, and having Keyda here today's been…"
"Cole, you've got some decisions ahead of you."
The ninja fell silent, his gaze dropping to the ground. His father continued, tone gentle.
"When you first left, many months ago…you weren't sure how long you'd be gone, or what the future held…." he trailed off, as if trying to figure out how to phrase what he wanted to say. "You made a decision, then…but it wasn't necessarily a permanent one…"
Cole looked over, brows furrowed.
"Are you trying to tell me I should come home now?"
"No." Lou said, mustache drooping into a frown. "No…unless that's what you choose…"
"What are you getting at, Pop?"
Lou finally looked over at him, his expression softening as he caught sight of Cole's concerned look.
"You mentioned before how it's hard to have things change…but I think that the time has come for you to really choose what you want son."
Cole scoffed softly, still staring at the ground.
"But…but what if I don't know…"
"None of us can ever know how everything will work out, Cole. But I have a feeling you've already made a decision, you're just too afraid to follow through."
"What makes you say that?" Cole asked softly. He watched a trail of ants weaving in and out of the fallen leaves littering the garden floor. His father put a hand on his shoulder.
"Because I see how you are when you're with her, son." Lou cleared his throat again. "I…I have something for you. And I know, it's probably a little premature, but as I never really know how long it will be before I'll see you again, I figured I would just give it to you now…"
Lou pulled something out of his breast coat pocket. He held his hand out towards Cole, who gave a start when he saw what was in his father's hand.
"Pop…I can't…I can't accept those…"
He trailed off as he stared at the two gold rings in his father's palm. One was thin, etched with a simple but elegant pattern. The other was a wider band. Cole glanced over at his father's left hand. He hadn't even noticed that his father wasn't wearing his wedding ring…
"Now, I'm not trying to make your decision for you son," Lou explained. "But these rings were always meant to go to you. Your mother was adamant…"
"But…" Cole ran a hand through his hair, wearing a conflicted expression. "Those are your wedding bands…"
"Just take them, Cole." Lou said, grabbing his son's free hand and putting the rings in it. "It's not like I have another child to give heirlooms to…"
Cole stared at the bands for a few minutes longer. He looked up and made eye contact with his father once again.
"You aren't dying, are you?"
Lou laughed at that, and Cole relaxed.
"No, son. But I am getting old…and I want to see you happy in a decision. What that decision is…that's up to you, but…"
"I am happy," Cole argued, his hand still open with the two glinting bands resting on his palm. Lou folded his son's hand over the rings.
"Yes…and you're indecisive." He winked as Cole looked at him uncertainly. "You'll know what to do, son…you just need to have the courage to do it."
Keyda woke up as she heard something crash. She bolted upright, heart pounding, but there was no threat that she could spot. She looked down and realized she was still in the dress, and she felt another stir of guilt as she caught sight of the rips. She fingered the strange sheer fabric…she didn't understand how they could spin cloth so thin that someone could see through it. She wished she hadn't ruined it.
She pushed herself up off the couch and walked over and opened the door. Jay was in the hallway, trying to pick up a bunch of things that had spilled out of the bottom of a large box. He looked up sheepishly.
"Picked a defective box, apparently…" he said defensively, and she couldn't help but smile as she knelt down to pick something up. She looked at the strange object, confused. It has several buttons and had some kind of long thin tail that came out the back.
Jay chuckled at her expression and reached over to take it from her.
"That's a controller…it's for my video games," he said as he stuck it in the box. "Nya said that I could bring them along…"
"Oh." Keyda said, having no idea what he was talking about. Jay finished cleaning up and glanced over at her dress and bandaged arm. She looked down subconsciously.
"I fell," she said by way of explanation. He stood and hefted the box back up, making sure to keep a hold of the bottom this time.
"But you're ok?"
She shrugged.
"I'm fine. How was the rest of your…" she finally remembered the word. "Marriage?"
He laughed, heading back down the hall.
"It was good. Shoulda known that the party would have ended with hard work though…seems to be the way our lives go…"
She followed him down the stairs and caught sight of everyone moving boxes, chatting and laughing. She frowned, not really sure what was going on, and tried to blend into the background and stay unnoticed.
"Keyda!"
She turned at Cole's voice, relieved to see him. He lowered the box he was carrying and she came over.
"What are you doing?"
"Jay and Nya are moving…we're just giving them a hand…" he explained.
"Moving where?"
"To a new place…one just for them." Cole said, moving to pick the box up again. Keyda looked down at her dress.
"Where's your father?"
Cole froze, his hand going to his pocket.
"Um…I think he headed home. Why?"
"I just have to return the dress…" She sighed. "If he even wants it now that I've done this to it. And I need my other clothes back."
"Oh, ok." Cole lifted the box and gestured to her with his head to follow him. "We can drop this box off at the apartment and then stop by my dad's house."
She followed him out and after Cole formed his elemental dragon they set out. Keyda helped keep the box balanced as they traveled over the desert and finally reached Ninjago City. They were following Kai and eventually his red dragon swooped down and Cole's followed close behind. As the dragon dissolved Cole helped Keyda keep hold of the box so it wouldn't plummet to the ground.
There were a bunch of others filing around. Nya was lifting the rusty garage door to show P.I.X.A.L and Zane the old motorbike shop inside.
"I mean, I've seen worse…I can probably get it up and running in a month or two…"
"Are you just specializing in bikes, or…"
There was a thud and a cheer as Jay finally got the door unlocked and opened.
"It sticks…" the blue ninja explained with a sheepish smile. Cole lifted the box and Keyda followed him and the others through the door and up the stairs into the small apartment. It wasn't very large, especially compared to the fortress she lived in, but Keyda felt a small ache as she looked around the quarters, with Jay showing everything off with excitement and pride. Was it jealousy? Or something else?
Cole set the box down.
"Need help unpacking, Jay?" he asked, and Jay waved his hand.
"Nah…Nya and I'll deal with that after the honeymoon…"
"The what?" Keyda asked, brow furrowing. They had strange names for different seasons here…
"It's like a trip that people go on after they get married," Cole explained. He turned to his friend. "Where you going? The amusement park?"
Jay scoffed as if that was a silly question.
"Of course not…the amusement park is hardly the place for a honeymoon." He trailed off and shrugged sheepishly. "Besides, that's where I proposed…"
"You proposed at Mega Monsters Amusement Park?" Cole asked, incredulous. Jay scoffed, indigent.
"Wha…it's got special meaning, Cole! That's where the sparks of our romance first went flying!"
"Are you referring to the kiss or you unlocking your true potential?" Nya asked, having come in behind them. She walked up and put an arm around Jay's waist as he laughed.
"Both…." he admitted, and leaned in to kiss her. Cole shook his head as Keyda continued to look confused.
"Proposed?" she finally asked, annoyed that there was still so much she didn't know.
"That's what we call it when someone pops the big question." Kai explained, setting his own box down. "You know…when they ask 'will you marry me' and all that and give you a ring…"
"So you do know what it means…" Skylor said dryly a few yards away. Kai turned bright red and cleared his throat as he moved to look around the apartment.
Keyda glanced back over at Cole. His hand was on his pocket again and he caught her looking. He gave her a little side smile.
"Let's head to my Dad's huh?"
Keyda pulled the last of the small pins out of her hair, sighing. At least, she hoped that it was the last one. Her hair had fallen out awhile ago, but all the pins had still been lost in the mass of dark tresses. She scooped up the pile of pins and the dress and left the restroom. Cole and his father were seated on the couch, drinking tea. She held out the items in her hand and arms awkwardly.
"Here are these back…um…I'm really sorry about the dress…"
Lou smiled and accepted the items back.
"That's quite alright…reminds me of my first date with Bev, actually. She had wanted to go dancing on the beach under the stars…but we soon found ourselves escaping the tide on the large rocks on the coastline." He chuckled. "We got soaked…and the dress she was wearing was certainly worse for wear after that night…"
Keyda smiled and Cole stood up, stretching.
"We should probably head back soon, yeah? Does anyone even know you left?"
She shrugged, enjoying the feeling of having her draping scarf back around her shoulders and back.
"Heavy Metal. I don't know if anyone has necessarily missed me, but we should head back regardless. I mean…considering everything…"
Lou looked over at Cole, as if for an explanation, and he gave his father a reassuring smile.
"We had a few problems a week or so ago…but we got it worked out now." He turned back to Keyda. "Let's head back to the temple and we can say our goodbyes…and I've got to grab my cans."
She frowned. "Cans?"
"What cans, son?" Lou asked as well.
"I bought some cans of food…" he explained, and then realized that he didn't ever tell Keyda about opening the orphanage. He told her and his father a quick summary of what had happened and she frowned thoughtfully.
"We were actually going to put the rebellious dragon masters to work growing food….I don't see why some of what they grow can't go towards feeding the orphans of the realm."
Lou stood as well as he saw that they were on their way out. He gave Keyda a hug.
"You looked beautiful today," he murmured, and she flushed. He pulled back and gave her a wink before turning to embrace his son. She could tell he was whispering something to Cole as well, and the elemental master also turned a little red as he glanced over at her. He covered his embarrassment with a laugh and as he pulled away he grabbed his father's shoulder.
"Thanks, Pop. For everything." He paused and gave him a smile. "I'll try to visit more, ok?"
Lou chuckled. "I've heard that one before…"
"I will…" Cole protested as his father walked him and Keyda to the door. He waved and they waved back as they took off towards the temple.
"Hey boulder-brain, we were afraid you had left without saying goodbye!"
Cole smiled at Jay as he and Keyda came in.
"What do you take me for?" he asked, mock offended, and Kai slapped him on the shoulder.
"A lot of things…but it would take a while to say them all…"
"Har har," Cole said, rolling his eyes. The next hour or so was spent chatting and reminiscing, and Cole couldn't help but feel that for the first time that trip, it kinda felt like old times. Eventually, however, it was time for him and Keyda to head back. Cole looked down at the cans, trying to figure out if they were going to transport or not.
"Perhaps it would be best if I took those on the Ultra-Dragon." Wu offered, coming up with a soft smile. "I'll be headed back tomorrow."
"That would be great," Cole admitted, giving his sensei a grateful smile. Wu smiled back, studying his student. Cole turned to Keyda. "You ready?"
"Yes." She answered, threading her arm around his. "Are you?"
He nodded and they said their final goodbyes. He hugged each of his friends, wishing Jay and Nya good luck again.
"Hey, stay in contact," Nya chided as she hugged him, and he laughed.
"I will…" he promised.
"You better," Jay pressed, as he gave his friend a hug as well. "I mean, Wu is great and all…but there is only so much he can talk about, spending all his time with large reptiles…"
"Such disrespect," Wu rebuked from the other side of the room, and everyone laughed. Keyda took Cole's hand and he smiled as he slung his bag over his shoulder and they turned to leave
"Stay safe, buddy!" Kai called after him, and Cole turned and winked before waving one last time. A few minutes later there was a flash of purple, and they were gone.
53
The Northern Leader's eyes flicked over the scroll again, and he scoffed.
"She dares call an assembly now…" he muttered to himself. He shoved the scroll back into the slave's hand who had brought it.
"What are you going to do, Oilen?" his advisor asked nearby. The Leader shook his head, irritated.
"What can I do? To ignore the summons…" his fists clenched. "She wasn't supposed to pull through….the insurgents assured me that there was no way that she would survive…"
"Do you think she knows of your participation?"
Oilen scoffed again, shaking his head as he glared at the floor.
"It's ridiculous! She can't prove anything…" He tugged at his shirt collar. "If she thinks she can just call us back to execute us…" he turned to his advisor. "Prepare a very large personal guard. I won't go without protection!"
"Yes sir." The Advisor bowed and turned and left. Oilen tugged at his thin, dark beard.
"There's gotta be some other way to get rid of her…." he muttered to himself, and finally shuddered. He would go…but he refused to be bullied by this child.
Cole hefted the last bags of cans into the fortress, smiling at Wu.
"Thanks for bringing these back…."
"Tired of first realm food?" Wu asked, eyebrows raised. Cole laughed.
"No…but there's a food shortage and I have a realm to feed…" he pointed out. Wu smiled.
"You seem to be feeling better," he pointed out as Cole turned to go. Cole turned back and gave his sensei one last side smile.
"Yeah…I'm doing alright. You still coming to the meeting tomorrow? We finally heard back from the Northern Leader…"
"Yes, I should be there." Wu stroked his beard. "Is he coming, then? He was the one I was most unsure of…"
"Oh yeah, he's coming." Cole said, shifting the bags in his hands. "With a very large entourage…"
Wu scoffed as if that didn't surprise him.
"See you tomorrow then,"
"Hey,"
Keyda looked up to see Cole in the doorway. She stood and stretched, glad to have an excuse to stop staring at the three responses she had gotten.
"Hey. Got all your cans?" She asked coming over to him. "What is a can, by the way?"
He laughed. "Like…a container with food in it. Yeah, all accounted for, as far as I'm aware…" he made a show of thinking deeply. "Though, I wouldn't blame Wu if he stole some for himself….I don't think he appreciates first realm cuisine very much…"
She laughed and he put an arm around her.
"I'm going to drop the food off tomorrow, after the meeting," he explained. "And I've been thinking about how many orphans are probably in the realm, and there's bound to be some in every village…"
"Without a doubt," Keyda agreed. She looked up at him, guessing what he was thinking. "Are you going to have enough food for all that, Cole?"
"I mean, I guess I could always go get more." He frowned. "I've been here for months…in the villages themselves. How did I not realize that was a problem?"
Keyda shrugged.
"You can't solve all the problems, Cole…don't beat yourself up about it. You're doing something now." She leaned into him. "I am not looking forward to tomorrow."
He rested his chin on her head and smiled.
"You know what you're going to say?"
"Yeah…" she laughed slightly. "It's not me I'm worried about…it's all of them…"
"Mmmm,"
"We didn't exactly leave on the best terms last we saw each other," she reminded and he snorted.
"To put it lightly…" He looked down at her, brow furrowing slightly. "You sure you want me there? It may be kind of a slap in the face to the others…"
"They deserved to be slapped," Keyda interrupted. "In as many ways as possible." He laughed at that.
"But seriously…"
She reached up and touched his face.
"If you don't want to be there, you don't have to be. But…" she trailed off, shrugging as she gave him a small smile. "I want you there."
"Alright…" he held her a few minutes longer. He cleared his throat suddenly. "Hey…Keyds?"
"Yeah?"
He trailed off and she frowned.
"What is it?"
He smiled, looking away.
"Um…nothing. Just glad we're getting things back underway…it'll feel nice to actually be helping again."
She squeezed his hand.
"Yeah…well, here's hoping tomorrow does more help than harm."
The atmosphere in the room could be described as chilly at best. The three leaders watched Keyda warily. Their entourages were not allowed to enter the conference room, and the Northern leader especially looked uncomfortable and defensive. Keyda might have been amused if she hadn't been so angry at them.
"It hasn't been that long since our last meeting." Keyda began. "But I'm sure you all are aware of what happened directly after it. In fact, I'm certain you were aware of it, since two of you helped support Adalaide in it."
Oilen launched into some defensive rebuttle, but she slammed her hands on the table to cut him off.
"We have the proof…down in the dungeons. You can save your whimpering, Oilen…I didn't ask you all here to kill you, though you've made it abundantly clear that you would get rid of me if you had the chance."
"Then why are we here?" Tala asked, getting right to the point. Keyda couldn't help but smile.
"You're here because things are going to different from here on out."
"What are you talking about?" The Southern Leader asked suspiciously. She straightened, arms crossed as she studied the three of them.
"Where is Heavy Metal?" Oilen spluttered. "He should be here regulating…"
"Heavy Metal is still recovering from wounds received during the rebellion," Keyda snapped, her eyes flashing. "But there is no reason for him to be here regardless. This is between me as your Ruler and you as leaders of this realm."
"What exactly do you have in mind?" Tala asked, her tone as guarded as the other leaders looked.
"To start with, you should know if any of you ever come up against me again, I will not hesitate to punish you for treason. The only thing keeping you from being prosecuted now is the fact that I don't want to deal with the power vacuum that would occur at your loss. So I suggest you do not convince me that you are too dangerous to keep in power."
She waited a moment for it to sink in. They looked angry…ah, well. They were only going to get angrier.
"Secondly, Cole is to be treated with respect. I told you all as much in our last meeting….just so you know, it's still an expectation."
Their eyes slid over to where Cole was standing nearby, arms folded. The Northern Leader sneered, and other leaders didn't look pleased, but they all seemed smart enough to stay quiet.
Keyda took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was coming.
"And lastly…"
The three leaders looked back up at her, and she could tell they knew that this would be the main point.
"From this point onward, there will be no more slave trading in the realm."
The Leaders were on their feet, outraged.
"You can't do that!" The southern leader roared. Oilen looked like he was on the verge of a heart attack.
"YOU CHILD! THE REALM WILL FALL TO PIECES!"
She let them scream at her for a few minutes, before her fists exploded with power.
"SIT DOWN!"
Her power amplified her voice just as the Baron used to amplify his, and she was pleased when her echoing order startled the three leaders into silence.
"You know, I was told I couldn't make these kinds of changes because the realm would dissolve into chaos and people would conspire against me. So I tried to follow the so called 'rules' and discovered that people seemed bent on throwing the realm into chaos and conspiring against me anyway. So I'm done following rules."
"But surely you realize…" Tala started, but Keyda held up a hand and glared at the Eastern Leader.
"Yes. Our nation…or at the very least, our fortresses, are dependant on slave labor. I understand that I cannot just get rid of slavery as it stands without serious consequences. So we're taking baby steps." She put her arms behind her back as she explained. "The slaves you have now aren't necessarily free…but buying more slaves is now illegal. In essence, I am destroying the slave trade."
"The slave trade is one of the only successful trades in the realm!" the Southern Leader roared.
"Then I guess everyone involved in it will have to find some other way to support the realm," Keyda continued unapologetically. "Like putting their effort towards growing food, since we are suffering so heavily from food shortages, or building better villages that can better withstand drought…"
"You cannot cut off the slave supply!" Oilen finally spat. He had refused to sit, choosing instead to glare ferociously at the woman across the table from him. "Give it a year or two and I won't have any slaves left…"
"Then I suggest you learn how to take care of them," Keyda replied cooly. "You don't want to run out? Then treat them fairly rather than an endless commodity. Feed them, clothe them, provide medicine during fever season instead of locking them away to die…" She leaned on the table. "You'll figure it out, I'm sure."
"You have no way of ensuring your policies," Oilen sneered in reply. "Everyone knows you're down dragon masters…"
"My force is actually doing quite well, thank you. Not to mention that the Dragon Master has offered to lend me dragon support if it becomes necessary…"
She gestured over to where Wu was standing, and the elderly outsider gave them a wink. The leaders scoffed and blustered.
"Dragons cannot enforce your laws…that is against the very union that you created!" the southern leader argued.
"On the contrary, the union is meant to unite our nations fully, something that we have truthfully been shying away from," the Dragon Master corrected. "Working together to create a better realm…that is the final goal. And we believe that getting rid of the slave trade will do just that."
"How dare you…" Oilen started, but then Cole spoke up.
"You're always claiming Keyda is going against the 'Oni way'…like she's betraying your culture. But slavery was never meant to be part of the Oni way; it cropped up during the Great Purge, the very thing that led to you losing your power and culture in the first place. If nothing else, we are trying to return the Oni to their original culture, not turn against it."
"I will not stand for this!" the Northern Leader replied, and Keyda narrowed her eyes.
"Then you will be replaced," she said calmly, and the leader flushed with rage and indignation. She turned to address all three rulers. "I never expected you to agree with this…but you will enforce these changes or you will be removed. Is that clear?"
The leaders were silent as they glared at her. She scoffed.
"I'll take that as a yes. You are free to go. And this time," she stared at Oilen especially hard. "Take all of your entourage with you."
He sneered as he shoved himself up from the table, marching from the room in a way that was almost comical. The Southern Leader followed suit and Tala exited last, fixing Keyda with a long look that was hard to read. She was undoubtedly angry…but there was something else as well. The door closed behind the Eastern Leader and Keyda collapsed back into her chair.
"Well…could have been worse, I guess," she admitted, looking up at Cole with a smile. He squeezed her shoulder.
"You were great. And you know what else? I think it will actually work…"
"It's going to take a while…" she admitted. "But it was hard for the Oni to give up dragon catching, and they've finally managed that. So who knows? Maybe if no one kills me in the next few months…"
"Nah, don't even joke about that." Cole warned, and she reached up to hold the hand on her shoulder.
"I guess you're off to the orphanage now, huh?"
"Yeah….figure I should go give them enough food so Vierie doesn't take it upon herself to starve them…"
Keyda looked up at him.
"Cole….with everything that's just happened…." she smiled sheepishly. "There's one thing that I would ask…"
"Are you sure about this?"
Retrevan looked a little uncomfortable and Keyda frowned.
"Is there a reason I shouldn't be?"
The large guard sighed.
"You have my word that I'll guard him…you don't have to worry about that. But considering everything that happened with my cousin…"
"Cole's agreed to a new guard," Keyda cut in. "And…yes, it may take him some time getting used to you. But the fact of the matter is that I want him to have the extra protection; he's going to be a target now more than ever with the changes I've made. I need him to be guarded by someone I can trust, and…" she bit her lip. "The truth is, I know the others in the head five are loyal, but if something were to go down I'd want him defended by my strongest."
Retrevan bowed.
"Well…then I am honored."
They heard footsteps behind them and turned to see Cole walking up with a heavy bag in each hand.
"This the guy?" Cole asked, coming to a stop. "One of the head five, yeah? Sorry, I don't think I ever caught your name…"
"Retrevan," the large guard introduced, and Cole nodded.
"Bit of mouthful. Mind if I call you Ret?"
The guard had a ghost of a smile.
"Of course…you wouldn't be the first…"
"Well, we better head off…" Cole said, walking over to Keyda. His hands were both full but he leaned over to give her a goodbye kiss. "I'll see you tonight."
"See you…" she watched him walk away and turned to Retrevan, who gave her a nod before following behind. She smiled.
"Good luck."
The Guardian landed and the villagers turned to glare. Cole turned to Retrevan before dismounting.
"I'll only be a second, I just have to pick something up…"
Retrevan smiled as he followed suit. "That's fine, Cole. I don't mind."
Cole blinked and then laughed a little.
"Sorry. Guess I'm just used to having to explain myself…"
Ret held out his hands and Cole handed him the bags gratefully before turning to enter the rune-covered tent.
The front of the tent was empty, and Cole frowned. He didn't really want to be here…but he needed something.
"Phos?" he called, and the door-flap to the back of the tent flew open as a blur of grey charged over to him.
"What the…" Cole jumped back as the creature roared and nipped at his legs. Seconds later Hershel came running into the front.
"NIP STOP IT!" He yelled, and the creature immediately bounded over to run circles around the frustrated teen.
"SYN!"
Cole couldn't help but laugh a little in his confusion, and seconds later the small curly-headed child burst into the room.
"Come here, Nip! You know you're not allowed in the front of the tent…." Syn chided, kneeling down to the ground with her arms outstretched. The creature ran over, licked her across the face, and bounded back over to thread itself around Hershel's legs, much to the boy's annoyance.
"Go away…why don't you ever leave me alone?" he complained, glaring down at the creature.
"Because Night-sniffers are attracted to power…" came the raspy reply, and Phos pushed his way into the room. "And they certainly make use of their senses…" The Healer trailed off as he caught sight of Cole and Ret in the entryway, and he raised his eyebrow.
"I see you got a new Behemoth. Good for you." he said dryly, and Cole sighed in exasperation.
"Look, I'm just here because I need the scrolls…"
Phos scratched his chin.
"Scrolls? Which scrolls?"
"The ones I translated." Cole tried to keep his frustration in check. Phos's eyes twinkled.
"Ah, those scrolls. Not like I have any use for them anyways…they're written in some indecipherable language…"
Cole rolled his eyes as he followed Phos over to where the scrolls were kept. Syn had finally gotten ahold of the gray creature, and she gave Cole a little smile as he passed. Then her eyes darted over to where Ret was still standing in the doorway, her expression clouding.
"Need them all now?" Phos asked, and Cole shrugged.
"Just need the first one today, but, I mean, eventually…"
Phos pulled the first scroll wrapped in red from the shelf and handed it to him.
"You never did finish all of them," he pointed out, and Cole took the scroll with a sigh.
"I realize." He looked down at the scroll and then back up at the Elderly Oni. "You want payment for this?"
Phos scoffed.
"It's not mine…I can hardly charge for something that doesn't belong to me, can I? Now get out of here, your elemental power is driving that sniffer crazy."
Nip whined loudly, trying to wiggle out of Syn's embrace, furthering Phos's point.
"Sorry." Cole said, glancing back over with a perplexed look. How they ever came to own a night sniffer, he would never know. He headed back to the front of his tent, looking over at Hershel and giving him a brief smile.
"Heya, Hersh. You doing alright?"
Hershel glanced up and returned the smile, though he still looked uncomfortable.
"Doing fine." he said quietly, and Cole nodded before he and the large guard headed back out to their dragon. Hershel watched them go and sagged slightly, relieved that Cole didn't seem to hate him after all. Then he turned to fix his sister with a reproving look. She shrunk a little, smiling sheepishly.
"She just gets so excited!" she said defensively, and Nip finally managed to wiggle out of her grasp. The creature was back over to Hershel in a flash, jumping up to put its fore-paws on his waist as it whined.
"And she really likes you!" Syn pointed out, but Hershel just shoved the night-sniffer off in disgust.
"Yeah…so did its little friends a few months back," he pointed out bitterly, rubbing the scars on his arm. "Beat it, beastie…you know you aren't supposed to be up here!"
Nip whined again and raced from the room, following Syns' promises of food as she tried to tempt her pet into the back of the tent. Hershel shook his head and then looked over at Phos.
"What do you think he wants the scrolls for?"
Phos shrugged. "Who knows?" He was busy pulling different scrolls out, organizing them. Hershel walked over, frowning.
"You aren't even curious? I mean, you spent months making him translate them, and you don't even care what he's going to do with them now?"
Phos shrugged again.
"They were never meant for me at any rate," he turned to Hershel as the boy pulled a scroll out with a blue ribbon, unrolling it. They heard a crash in the back room followed by Syn's loud reprimands. Hershel shook his head.
"I still don't get why you let her keep that…"
Phos scoffed and Hershel pressed further.
"You could have said no! After all you are her…"
Hershel stopped mid sentence, catching himself, and Phos froze in the middle of sliding a scroll back into place.
"Her what?" he asked carefully and Hershel swallowed.
"Her…our master. I mean, she would listen to you."
Phos studied the boy for a few mintutes, and Hershel fumbled trying to put the ribbon back onto the scroll before shoving it back into the cubby he had pulled it from. The healer finally sighed.
"Hershel…it is not wise to interpret more in a situation than is real."
"Of course." Hershel said softly, not making eye contact. Phos frowned.
"I am your Master, and you are slaves…"
Hershel flinched slightly and Phos continued.
"…to assume anything else would only be setting yourself up for disappointment."
"I don't…I'm not…" Hershel swallowed, clenching his fists. "I understand, Master Healer."
Phos didn't say anything more and Hershel excused himself, turning to leave the tent. Phos watched him go with an unreadable expression.
54
Cole arrived at the village and made sure to land the guardian outside the wall. He didn't want to give these villagers any extra reasons to hate him. He and Ret walked into the village carrying the bags and it wasn't long before they were swarmed with children.
"You finally decide to come back, did you?" Vierie called, folding her large arms in front of her angrily. Cole rolled his eyes.
"It's been less than a week…I told you I'd provide for them and I will." He turned his attention to the group of children. "Oi, get back to your tent, all of you! And at least try and be disciplined…"
They laughed, seeing right through his stern tone. He shook his head, turning to Ret.
"No respect, I tell you…"
Ret gave him a ghost of a smile and Cole's smile trailed off; Ret's expression reminded him of someone.
"What's in the baaaags…"
Cole was distracted as one of the children went dead weight on his arm, trying to get a glimpse.
"I'll show you all in the tent! Geez…." Cole laughed, and the children scampered over to the tent they had been staying in. Cole and Retrevan followed suit and soon Cole was sitting on a boulder he had made, facing the children on their dusty sleeping mats. He pulled out a can of food.
"This is a can…inside is food. This is what you're going to eat for awhile, ok? Just until we can get some more gardens going…"
"So we eat the shiny part?"
"NO, don't eat the can…you eat what's inside the can…" Cole shook his head, putting the can back into the bag. "You know, I think I'll explain that better later. For right now I wanted to talk to you guys."
The children watched as he pulled out the scroll, removing the red ribbon.
"What's that?" One finally asked, and he looked up with a twinkle in his eye.
"This is you guys' history…"
He took in their blank looks and laughed.
"Oni have been around a long long time, right?"
"Right!"
"So there are lots of stories about how Oni used to live, and the things they used to do….that's called history. And I wanted to tell you guys about it."
"Why?" one little girl on the front row asked.
"Because….it's important. Aannnd," his voice dropped in an almost conspiratorial way. "Not a whole lot of people actually know this stuff…so you guys are lucking out…"
They leaned forward, interest successfully piqued, and Cole couldn't help but smirk a little as he unrolled the scroll.
"It all started with a guy called Kahzym…Kahzym the first…"
Oilen nearly bit his advisor's head off when he asked how the meeting went.
"THAT WENCH. HOW DARE SHE…"
The Advisor watched silently and warily as Oilen stormed around his throne room, cursing and yelling. He finally calmed down enough to actually tell his advisor what had happened.
"How on earth would she enforce that?" he asked when the Northern Leader had finished.
"She's threatening us with dragons! FILTHY DRAGONS!"
One of the leader's guards came into the room mid-rampage.
"Sir!"
Oilen turned, fuming.
"What?!"
The guard cleared his throat.
"There's a woman who showed up earlier today…she claims she has a way to help you gain more power…" the guard cleared his throat again. "…for a price."
Oilen scoffed, still angry.
"Lying begger, no doubt…" he muttered, but after a few moments he paused, stroking his beard. "Oh, why not? Send her in."
The guard nodded and a few moments later a scabby, ratty woman entered the room, looking at him with a gleam of greed and wariness.
"And what, pray tell, is your big secret?" Oilen asked dryly, collapsing dramatically in his throne. The woman cleared her throat.
"It's information I've got…and I need payment in advance…"
The Leader sneered.
"And why should I pay you anything? I have yet to see if your information is even useful…"
The woman frowned.
"Then I ain't saying. I've only just recovered from fever, see? I need the money….but I would bet you that you'd find the information I've got to be priceless…"
Oilen studied her for a few more moments and finally sighed, exasperated.
"Oh, for ancient's sakes…"
He gestured to his advisor, who nodded. A few moments later he handed the scabby woman a bag of coins that she latched onto with both greed and desperation.
"Now get on with it."
The woman glanced back up at him, licking her lips.
"Right sir. The thing is, you know how they say that big fancy ruler's the only one with powers? Well, I've seen myself that that ain't quite true…"
Oilen sat forward, suddenly very interested.
"What do you mean?" he pressed, and the woman grinned darkly.
"There's this boy, see….belongs to the Healer. You know, the one that goes around during fever time, healing people for a tribute and that sort of thing…"
"Sounds familiar…."
"They were there this last week, in my village. And the boy's got magic…I've seen it plain as day."
The Northern Leader narrowed his eyes, his grip on the arms of his throne tightening.
"You have proof of this?"
"I know what I saw!" the woman argued. "Magic folk….they supposed to change eye color, right? Well this boy's eyes were blazing purple. I raised the kid and I ain't never seen something like that before…."
Oilen remembered back to Keyda's own flashing eyes anytime she summoned her powers. His heart began beating faster as the woman continued.
"…There's no way this Healer would have anything to do with him if he weren't magical. Kid's as useless as they come…but if he had some magic in 'im then it'd make sense why the kooky healer would have bought him from the slave traders in the first place, yeah?"
The Leader let that information sink in, and he glanced back at the woman, eyes bright.
"Anything else you can tell me about this boy? Or this Healer?"
Woman shrugged. "They came from the Central Province…but more south, I reckon. I dunno where they're from originally….but they travel all over. Someone's bound to know…"
"Very well. Thank you for this interesting information. You may go."
The woman grinned and scurried from the throne room, bag of coins still gripped tightly in her fists. Oilen stroked his thin beard and then turned to his advisor.
"Find out where the Healer is from…and send men to bring me that boy. Who knows if we can trust that scabby creature…but if we can…" he trailed off, his grin broadening. "If we can then we'll finally be able to fight fire with fire."
Cole walked into his room and set down the empty bags by the ones still full of cans for future trips.
"How'd it go?"
He turned to see Keyda standing in the doorway.
"Pretty good, actually. I mean…I think by the end of the trip they understood that they're only supposed to eat what's inside the cans…"
She laughed. She caught sight of the scroll tucked into his sash and her smile faded.
"You went to Phos's?"
He glanced down and pulled the scroll out.
"Um…just for a minute. I wanted to start teaching the kids about their history…"
She had come over and she took the scroll from him so she could look at it. The symbols made no sense to her, and she looked up and raised an eyebrow.
"Wanna teach me too?" she asked quietly. He smiled and reached over to take the scroll back.
"Yeah…I could do that," he winked as she rolled the scroll back up.
"How was Retrevan?"
Cole frowned slightly as he rolled.
"Well…"
"Did something go wrong?" she asked quickly. Cole shook his head.
"No, I mean, the guy's fine…" he chuckled awkwardly as he glanced up. "It just kinda felt like I was getting followed around by the ghost of Dohrn all day. Is there some requirement that all my bodyguards have to look the same?"
She tried to smile but it didn't really reach her eyes.
"He's his cousin," she finally admitted. Cole frowned.
"Who's who's…"
"Retrevan. He and Dorhn were related…"
Understanding lit up in Cole's face before his expression became unreadable.
"Oh."
"I know it's probably a little…strange…but of everyone in the realm Retrevan is one of the five people…"
"…we can trust. I know, Keyds." Cole finished, giving her a small smile. He shook his head to clear it. "I'm sure it will be fine."
She nodded, seemingly lost in thought. She finally looked back up and tilted her head.
"Wanna go get something to eat?"
He laughed.
"I'd love to."
"Herhsel…"
He looked over to see his sister looking at him, concerned.
"You ok?"
His expression softened and he pulled off a smile.
"Course, Syn…"
"You've been really quiet lately," she pointed out as she helped him tie small bundles of herbs.
"Just been thinking," he said, finishing off another bundle as he added it to the pile.
"About what?"
He fell silent as he pulled another bunch of herbs towards him, pinching from different piles. When he didn't answer her eyes fell again and she changed the subject.
"Do we need this many fever packs? What happened to the other ones we had?"
"Phos and I used them. There was an outbreak a few days ago," he explained softly. They worked a few more minutes until one of their piles was exhausted. Syn went to grab the basket, but Hershel beat her to it. He gave her a little smile.
"I'll go get it, Syn. You need to feed that sniffer of yours before she loots all our tributes…"
She turned to see Nip rummaging through a bag and groaned.
"Nip….you know how mad Master Healer will be if you eat any more food…"
Hershel shook his head as he left the tent. Syn watched him go, and suddenly she frowned. She couldn't shake this feeling she had…
"Where's the food you gathered?"
She turned suddenly to see Master Healer fixing her with a disapproving look. She tugged Nip's head out of the root bag.
"I…I don't think I can take any more from the gardens…"
Phos raised an eyebrow.
"You've been stealing from the village gardens?"
She swallowed, shrinking into herself.
"I…um…."
He shook his head, sighing exasperatedly.
"Didn't anyone ever teach you how to dig for wild tubers? It's something you should be able to do on your own…" he said pointedly, his second sentence geared towards Nip. The sniffer shrunk back under his piercing gaze and made a low rumbling sound.
"No." Syn finally said. "I…um….I didn't think we could eat wild tubers…"
"We can't. But they can." Phos said, rolling his eyes. He noticed Syn's unsure expression and finally sighed. "Well, come on then. I'll show you…but just this once. Remember I said that you had to feed it…"
She smiled shyly and stood up.
"Come on, Nip…"
But the sniffer wouldn't obey and finally Phos just sighed and handed her a length of rope.
"I don't trust that creature in here loose…"
Syn bit her lip, looking down at her defiant friend. After a few more fruitless tries to get the sniffer out of the house and away from the roots, Syn tied the rope around Nip's neck, securing her to the sturdy pole that kept the back of the tent up.
"Behave Nip….we're going to get you food…"
She picked up the bag of roots and set them on a high shelf, just in case. Nip glared at her like the creature felt betrayed, and Syn shook her head.
"You're going to have your own food, silly….if you eat ours there'll be none left for us…"
"Come on then," Phos repeated, sounding impatient. She gave Nip one last stern look before following her Master out the front of the tent and into the dusky night.
"We sure that's the tent?"
The gruff guard shivered in the chill of the fading light.
"See the runes? That's how you can tell a Healer's tent, stupid," his partner muttered behind him. They waited in silence a few more minutes and the first finally sighed.
"This kids supposedly got powers, yeah? How are we supposed to…"
"Shut up. Just follow my lead, alright? The way you carry on it's hard to believe you're part of Oilen's elite…"
The first guard frowned.
"Considering most of Oilen's elite are rotting in a dungeon or worse…" he started darkly, and his companion shoved him.
"I said shut it. Our job's to get the boy, yeah?" His grip tightened on the weapon he was holding. "So that's what we're doing, using whatever means necessary."
Hershel paused outside the tent. It was getting late…probably not the best time to collect herbs, honestly…but he knew Syn would just keep probing him if he stayed with her in the tent. He needed to clear his head.
He walked up the worn trail he and Syn had created after months of heading towards the ridges of rock formations where the tender herbs grew in caves and shaded regions. He was lost in thought as he climbed further from the tent, but suddenly he paused. Something wasn't right.
He looked around, unable to shake the feeling that someone was watching him. Night sniffers? He really shouldn't have come out in the dark…
He caught a glimpse of movement and turned in time to see the gleam of something pointed at him in the moonlight. He bolted back down towards the tent, but a twang echoed in the night and the net hit him hard, sending him tumbling in the dirt.
"Master Healer! MASTER HEALER!" He screamed, hoping that his master would hear him….that he would come. He tore at the net in a frenzy; one arm was pinned to his side, and his legs were tangled helplessly. The more he struggled the more stuck he seemed, and his hands and eyes began blazing as he tried to tear through the net fibers.
"MASTER HEALER! PHOS!" He tried desperately as his assailants reached him. One grabbed him by the back of his shirt, dragging him away from the tent. Hershel yelled and fought, trying to fight off his attackers through the net.
"He's got the power, alright…"
It was the last thing Hershel heard before one of their meaty fists connected with the back of his head, knocking him out cold.
"And that's how it's done." The second guard turned to the first, but his companion was busy staring at the tent.
"What the…"
The tent had been shuddering, and suddenly the back half of it collapsed. A blur of grey shot out of the folds of the tent towards the guard's, yellow eyes blazing.
"It's a sniffer!" the first guard called, and the one holding the unconscious boy cried out as the creature sunk its teeth into his forearm.
"Get it off!" He hissed, and the first slashed out with his blade.
"Oi! Watch my arm!"
The second strike hit home and the creature cried out. It released the man's flesh, and the guard kicked it away, wincing as it tore part of his uniform off.
"Blasted creature…where on earth did it come from…"
The guard with the sword lifted it again but the small sniffer was already limping away in escape.
"Leave it. We've got to get outta here…people'll be investigating the fallen tent, won't they?" the guard snapped, shifting the boy's frame over his shoulder. Moments later they had disappeared into the night.