Chapter Fourteen
Brom told me to wait out here as he disappeared inside. He returned moments later with a pair of identical swords, similar to mine though they were broader and a little rougher perhaps.
"Now then, the meaning behind your two swords is that they are really just one weapon. They are two halves of the same whole, so each movement is to use both as one. They are one, even though they don't appear to be. You will wield them as though they are a joined weapon. Understand?" he asked me. I nodded silently.
"Good. Now let's start with some basics. The swords are supposed to feel connected to you, much like an extension of your arm. They flow smoothly like water. So, start by moving them from side to side in front of you, in one fluid movement. Remember that they are equals." he said, showing me what he meant. He held the two swords apart, and moved them in the same rhythm, back and forth in front of him, bending his elbows so they twisted left and right like flowing water.
I copied his movements, moving the blades back and forth and trying to see them as one flowing object. As I watched them with my own sense of awe, I unintentionally reached out with my white light and was able to change my vision again. This time, I saw the two swords glowing purple with swirling veins around them. The invisible veins joined the two swords together while still keeping them apart. Once I could see the connection, it was much easier to use them as a single weapon.
I was moving them back and forth as one, not letting the connection between them strain. I twisted them both around in my hands, and the connection moved as they did. I slashed up and around and cut cross-ways and still the connection never faded, even when the swords were going opposite directions. Once Brom knew I had gotten the basic idea down, he began to train me in different techniques that would help me attack with my swords and defend myself with them.
By the end of the day's lessons, I was sore and covered in bruises from Brom's sword when he got around my defenses to smack me with the flat of the blade, but I also felt majorly accomplished. I couldn't wait to get back home and see what the rest of the day held for me.
Home. I thought to myself with a happy sigh. I had a real home now, one that I was happy to return to.
Karnus galloped all the way back home, flying like the wind and racing the eagles that flew higher up in the sky. It brought me joy to see so much of a happy personality in a warhorse. We made it back home in record time, and I quickly put Karnus back into his stall and groomed him, trying to get to the house and hide my stuff before the boys got inside from working in the fields.
You're gonna have to tell them eventually. When you come home each night in the winter, when they have nothing to do, with your weapons on your back they're going to wonder where they came from. You may as well tell them as soon as you can. A little voice in my head told me. I grimaced. Not a pleasant conversation to look forward to.
I'll tell them after Eragon gets back. I decided, before going to check on the food I had kept warm all day. It was in perfect condition, with just the right amount of juiciness left in it. Smiling to myself secretly, I began to lay out food on the table. Once the table was set, I quickly hid all my weaponry and was reading my History book when the two men came in the front door. Without me having to tell them, the two went to wash their hands in the sink before they sat at the table to eat.
The meal was quiet, and they were both so tired that they retired to bed early as I sat out front to look at the moon again. I waited outside for a while, and was starting to get up to go back inside when I noticed that the werewolf was crouching not three feet away from me, simply watching me with curious and cautious eyes. I blinked in surprise. I hadn't noticed its presence.
The werewolf sniffed the air, checking for the scent of fear I guessed. But it must have found none, for it scrunched up its nose in confusion and looked at me curiously, it's head tilted sideways as if asking a silent question.
I tiled my head the same way and giggled a little; we probably looked funny, just staring at each other with our heads turned sideways like that. The werewolf must have thought the same thing, for we both began to chuckle lightly at the same time, then glance at each other in surprise to see that the other was laughing too. I smiled hesitantly at the werewolf, holding out a hand for him to shake. He stared at it for a very long moment, taking it into considerable thought, before placing his furry and dangerous claw into my hand as we shook.
"It's nice to meet you." I whispered to the werewolf. It sat there for a silent moment, mentally translating what I had said. Then it came up with a response, and had to sit there to translate that. Since I already knew what it was doing, I was very patient with the werewolf.
"It's a pleasure indeed." he said quietly in return, his deep and rich voice penetrating my very soul and making me smile. Suddenly, I could hear the elf maiden's voice in my mind. Trust only those who your soul calls to. I thought about it for a moment, and realized that this must be what it felt like to have your soul call to somebody. I memorized the feeling, and then realized I could truly trust this werewolf.
"What is your name?" I asked him quietly, my eyes staring up into his as we both crouched there, staring at one another. He released my hand as he thought about it, and it didn't take as long as last time for him to respond.
"Nyvern, of the Mountain Howler Pack. Who are you?" he asked, his rich voice filled with a deep accent that sounded just right for him.
"I'm Ayla, a loner in my world. Guarded by The Light, but haunted by fierce shadows." I told him in my lilting voice, my eyes glowing slightly to reflect my mention of The Light. The werewolf nodded slowly as he translated what I had said. I tried to think of what to say next when the werewolf supplied his own question.
"You're not frightened?" he asked quietly. I smiled and shook my head at Nyvern, placing my small hand on his big furry shoulder.
"I'm not at all frightened, just curious. I'm sorry if I somehow scared you away last night. What made you leave in such a hurry?" I asked him quietly. He was much quicker now at translating my words, and retranslating his own quickly thought answer. The conversation was flowing normally by now.
"There is a deep magic within you, but unlike one I have ever seen before. It traces back to the very source of all magic, using the very white light itself to hold powers. It's a very strong weapon against creatures as dark as I, yet I could still sense a part of me within you. If I hadn't sensed that darkness in you, I would have never left the cover of the trees." he admitted in a slightly abashed voice. I smiled to him.
"So, I have The Light, and a Darkness that connects me to you? That's fairly incredible." I told him. He grinned in a strangely wolfish way and moved a little closer to me, resting in a crouch at my side as he stared up at the full moon.
"You know," he said in a voice filled with wistfulness, "I remember what it was once like to be a werewolf as young as you are as a human. Everything was instinct, except for the beautiful Moon Goddess. Staring up at her, hanging in the night sky, always gave me that sense of clarity and justice that I needed when shape-shifted. Even tonight, she has been helping me." he told me as I looked up with him.
I nodded quietly. "I've always felt a connection with her, and felt the magnetic pull one gets from her glowing face. I have often longed to run beneath the moon each night and sleep each day, for the freedom and beauty of the darkness." I admitted in a whisper. The werewolf turned his head down from the sky to look at me. I looked back.
"Do you wish to have all of that? The life of a true werewolf is just as you described, though probably not right away." he admitted. I smiled.
"I do wish I could have all of that; it sounds wonderful. I just don't know if I'd be strong enough." I admitted to him, my head turning down. One clawed finger rested under my chin, raising up my gaze to the sympathetic werewolf.
"You can have it all you know. I can change you." he whispered to me. I nodded slowly, thinking on it long and hard.
"The Werewolf's Kiss." I whispered with a small smile. The werewolf nodded slowly, somewhat surprised by my knowledge. After a moment though, I sighed sadly and shook my head.
"No, not yet. I want to be changed, but not for a little while longer. I have responsibilities now that I've joined this family. In a year or two, I'll be free and on my own, able to make my own decisions. When that time comes, I will ask you to change me. That is if you're still around." I told him quietly. He nodded with a small wolfy smile.
"I'll always be around; you've made a great friend in the Mountain Howler Pack tonight. For as long as you and I are both alive, I shall keep a close watch on you. You will always be protected now." he said, smiling. I smiled too.
"But what shall you do if one day I must leave this valley, and travel to distant places where life is so different? What if something causes me to flee this place for my life? I could never ask you to leave your homeland for me." I told him, ducking my head again.
Surprisingly, Nyvern began to chuckle. He chuckled quietly for a moment before saying "You know quite a bit about our way of life little one, but there's one thing you missed in your research. Werewolves are natural nomads. We prefer to travel and seek adventure, though we often settle from time to time in large packs on different corners of the continent. I would gladly follow you no matter where you go, though you might not see me in werewolf form for a while if that were the case." he said, thinking about it seriously.
I smiled and surprised the werewolf by giving him a heart-felt hug. He stiffened in shock at first, but soon returned it gently, for fear of crushing me. I pulled back and said in my lilting voice "Now I've made a true friend and companion, one I know I can trust. Thank you." I told him quietly. He relaxed completely as I said that.
"You're very welcome, and thank you as well. My life needs a little more excitement and adventure, and this valley is looking pretty boring. Also, it is nice to have a friend who isn't a werewolf like me." he said. I grinned slightly, staring back up at the beautiful moon. He and I sat in silence for a moment before he muttered "Well, not yet anyways." Only then did I smile.
"How will I recognize you if you're in your human form?" I asked him. He thought about this for a moment and then seemed to have an idea.
"In your research, did you learn about the powers of the werewolf?" he asked me. I nodded hesitantly.
"Only barely. I learned that you did have powers, but there were no details on what those powers were." he nodded as well once I was finished.
"That's because every werewolf's powers are different, so they're very hard to categorize. The older the werewolf, the more powers he has. One of the many powers I have is one born in all werewolves; the ability to detect magic in people, places, and things. You're strange magic shines like a beacon out here, which is why I arrived in your presence on your first night here, though you didn't see me then. It drew me in, and will probably draw other werewolf friends into your company as well. However, while I could sense your magic, I sensed a trinket in that house with a very different magic, one casted by a Shade." he told me.
I stifled my shock, and then suddenly remembered Durza slipping something into my bag on that day we were together. "I was once in the company of a Shade by the name of Durza, and I freed him of one of his evil spirits taking residence in him. He put a trinket in my bag before I left, but until now I forgot about it." I admitted to my werewolf companion.
He nodded for a moment before explaining to me, "That trinket in there was of his craftsmanship. It will act as somewhat of a guide and communicator for you. It also gives you the ability to see who you can trust and who you cannot. Think of it like a lie detector and a locator. If you get lost, you must simply speak words of power to it and it will give you the directions to go. If you are trying to see someone you've never met before but only know the name of, they will appear inside the depths of dark magic inside that amulet. If you ask it for Nyvern of the Mountain Howler Pack, my human and werewolf face will appear to you.
"Also, if you ask the amulet where I am, it will show you my location and how to get there from where you are when you ask the question. It's a very useful trinket, and also very rare. Don't ever lose it, and always keep it around your neck. Residing within it is also a power that will cast a shield around you and protect you if you are too weak to fight. The power from within it draws from the life sources around you, pulling the magic out of plants and animals and stones and the very air. The one who gave it to you must care deeply and must want you safe from harm." the werewolf commented quietly, explaining the Amulet to me.
I tried to stifle my shock, but failed. I knew Durza asked me to be safe, but he really went to extremes for this. He must be so worried about me. I thought to myself.
I nodded to Nyvern to let him know I understood. "At least now I'll be protected in more ways than one." I said. He smiled, and then became serious.
"Do you believe you shall have to flee from here so soon?" he asked me. I nodded to him.
"When I was given my power of The Light, a white spirit explained a prophesy to me. She gave me words of caution and protection, all of which end somewhere else, indicating a very long journey. Also, I've been haunted each night in my dreams by dark spirits. Both of them prophesized great struggles ahead, but I got the sense that I wouldn't be staying here for very long. A month or two perhaps, though I'm unsure. The darker spirit said my death would 'Come on swift wings, in shades of day so pure she will not see her danger until it is too late'. I recited for him.
He sat in puzzlement for a very long moment, thinking about what I had said. "That's a very familiar prophesy, one I have heard before." I turned my surprised face in his direction.
"Werewolves have more than a few magicians of their own, ones that see all the prophesies in the world. Ones that see the future and create the very prophesies that are spoken to mortals. You heard one that I'm familiar with. As I recall from it, it involved a woman having to choose between the death of one she loved and her own death. I remember now, she chose her own death and her killer was the Bringer of Peace, though I cannot recall who or what he was." Nyvern admitted to me. I nodded slowly, absorbing the new information.
"Well, it's another puzzle I shall have to riddle out. In the meantime, I'm getting fairly tired and would like to go to sleep, even if it does mean facing those shadow spirits again." I told him, sighing unhappily. Nyvern gave me a small smile.
"I will return here each night to spend time with you; you are a very curious and interesting friend, and I enjoy your strange company. I shall speak about you with my pack for more guidance. Until we meet again Ayla, I bid you a fair night." he said, bowing humbly. I giggled and waved farewell to him as he howled and took off into the forest, other howls from far off echoing his call.
I stepped back inside the front door, as quiet as a mouse. I tiptoed over to my small bag in the corner of the room and dug around inside. At one point, my hand touched something that was unusually warm, and I pulled it out. It was the Amulet, and it was letting off a faint purple glow from its center, where inside of it was swirling mists of dark purples and blacks. Around the encased swirling mists was a large flat metal ring that held the stone together and was carved on it runes from the language of a Shade.
No one else would recognize it, or be able to translate it except for Durza himself, and maybe a few other dark creatures. I stared at it in awe and then wondered how I would hide what it truly was when it was on my neck.
I mentally touched the Amulet's power with my white light, and used my white light as a translator to command the mists. Hide your power from all but the one who wears this Amulet around their neck unless the power is called upon by them. Disguise yourself from untrustworthy characters. I commanded it. Not a single second passed before the amulet transformed into a large dark Amethyst stone that stared out with its power hidden inside. I looked at the stone and then touched it with the white magic again, saying in mind speech Show me Nyvern as a werewolf.
The stone transformed again before my eyes back into the swirling nimbus of dark purple, and then was suddenly transformed to show Nyvern running through the trees at night, howling with joy at the full moon above the tree tops. I smiled and tapped it with the white magic again and it solidified back into a simple stone held encased inside of a metal ring covered in strange ruins. I smiled and tied the leather cord it hung on around my neck, feeling satisfied.
With that done, I grabbed the blanket and lied down on the couch, falling into the first peaceful slumber I'd had in days.