The Party Grows
"Ashelin, I want you to join Dust on his travels."
"WHAT?!" Dust spluttered, nearly dropping the Blade of Ahrah as he flailed in shock.
"Huh?" Ash gasped, astonished at the suggestion. Sanjin ignored the outbursts and continued.
"If there is anyone I can trust to keep you safe, it is him," he said. "And I have no doubt that your own abilities will prove to be incredibly beneficial as well." Ash paused in thought and looked at her hands, but Dust wasn't happy.
"Sanjin! I…!" he began to protest but both of the Moonbloods ignored him.
"You really think I'm good enough?" Ash asked her father, her eyes narrowing in wonder. Sanjin smiled at his daughter proudly and placed a hand on her shoulder in reassurance.
"You already surpass many more experienced Moonblood Mages," he comforted. Dust and Fidget looked at Ash in interest — she could wield magic? "Such talent will doubtless help Dust with his cause."
"Whoa!" Fidget exclaimed. "You're a Mage, Ash?" Ash scratched her cheek modestly.
"Well, training to be one," she shrugged. "You must be Fidget?" she guessed. The nimbat puffed out her chest proudly.
"That's me!" she replied. "I'm something of a magic user myself," she added, displaying immense pride in herself. "Maybe we can give each other a few pointers?" Dust went back to being startled and protesting.
"Hey!" he snapped. "I never said…!"
"Dust," the Blade of Ahrah cut in. "We already established that seeking out Ginger without sufficient support will be foolhardy."
"By the Overseers!" Ash cried. "It actually talks!"
"It's not the help that I'm against!" Dust protested. "It's just…!"
"I promise I won't get in your way, Dust!" Ash interrupted. "I'd be honoured to accompany you!" Dust was fumbling for an excuse — the last thing he wanted was for someone so young to get themselves tangled up in this.
"But you're… You're only a teenager!" he said. Well, he guessed that Ash wasn't much older than himself. Fidget shot him a look.
"Look who's talking!" she pointed out. "You're, like, thirteen!"
"Shut up, Fidget," Dust pouted. "That's not the point."
"I can understand if my daughter's age concerns you, Dust," Sanjin sighed. "I can't say that I would choose this option if we had any other choice, but I get the feeling that Ashelin will be safer with you than she will be here if the Royal Army is on the hunt for our kind once again." Dust grumbled something under his breath. Just because he was Sen-Mithrarin it wasn't a guarantee of safety. If anything, it was more of a guarantee that your exposure to danger would increase by about tenfold. Ash looked deep in thought next to them for a few moments before speaking again.
"What about Kim?" she suggested. Dust frowned — who? Sanjin looked apprehensive. "He's technically an adult," Ash pointed out. "He could keep an eye on the both of us."
"Who's Kim?" Dust asked.
"Friend of mine," Ash replied, "Kind of an older brother to me. He's also the best gunslinger around so he'd be handy to have in a pinch."
"How good are we talking here?" Fidget asked.
"He can shoot an apple off a tree from a hundred feet away," Ash replied with a confident smirk. Fidget perked up.
"Now that sounds useful!" she grinned. Dust sighed and pinched his eyebrows together.
"Do you always think with your stomach?" he groaned.
"Hey!" Fidget snapped in protest. Sanjin paused in thought. He still looked reluctant to go along with the plan.
"Hmm," he sighed. "I won't disagree to Kim accompanying you," he finally said. "But I will warn you, Dust — he can be temperamental," he winced. "I am not sure how much he will warm to you." Dust frowned and asked why. "Kim was born three years before Sen-Mithrarin first came into existence," Sanjin explained. "His entire family was wiped out by Gaius' forces when he was an infant. I'm sorry to say that despite what you did for our people, he has always been bitter that Sen-Mithrarin did not come in time to save his family."
"I…I see," Dust said quietly. So even more lives had been lost because he hadn't come in time? And this time, it was a significant amount of time as well. How many people disliked him because he'd not been around to save them and their loved ones? Had Ginger once hated him? Now that he thought about it, he could see his first meeting with the woman he had called 'Mom' for the past thirteen years. It was strange seeing her so young, only a few years older than he was now. She'd been cold towards him, but he couldn't think of nor remember why.
"It's not something Dust could have helped!" Fidget protested in Dust's stead.
"I know," Sanjin sighed. "But it is something that you must bear in mind when he talks to you," he insisted. "We all want someone to blame for wrongs that have happened to us, and unfortunately, Kim blames Sen-Mithrarin for the loss of his family." Ash placed a comforting hand on Dust's shoulder and offered a small smile of reassurance.
"Don't worry about Kim, Dust," she said. "He'll listen to me. I'll talk to him if he gives you any trouble."
"Don't worry, Ash," Dust replied. "Honestly, I blame myself for what happened in Aurora…"
"Oh, boy," Fidget groaned. "Here we go again. How many times are we going to have to ram it through your skull that it wasn't your fault?"
"I could have saved those Moonblood Guards, Fidget!" Dust nearly shouted. "They're all gone because I didn't get back in time."
"Dust, they gave their lives protecting their home," Ahrah said calmly. "And they may have done so long before you even ran for the Glade. Unfortunately, you cannot save every life."
"And why?!" Dust demanded. "If I'm supposed to be Falana's hero reborn, why can't I save everyone? Isn't that what I'm supposed to do?"
"Dust, stop it!" Fidget cried. "We've been through this! I don't care if you don't remember, but these things happen! I don't like it anymore than you…when we do everything right and people still die!"
"It's just…not fair…" Dust growled softly.
"Life very often isn't, and that is what makes it cruel sometimes," Ahrah explained.
"As I said, Dust," Sanjin stepped in. "We want people to blame for life's cruelty. What defines us is whether we chose to blame others who are not at fault simply because it was out of their capabilities to help; or whether we recognise where the blame truly lies. Sometimes it is with ourselves, other times it is with others."
"You may be Sen-Mithrarin, Dust," Ahrah continued. "But you are still a mortal being. You were born of the Life Thread itself, but you have a soul like any other. It is your spirit that defines you as the hero destined to save this land, but you still have limitations." Dust calmed down and nodded in understanding. "There was nothing you could have done to save those Guards, but you can make sure that their sacrifices were not in vain."
"I… I understand," Dust murmured. "But… I still don't blame Kim for feeling the way he does about me, whatever that may be." Fidget sagged and smacked a paw to her forehead.
"Seriously, Dust," she groaned. "You are way too self-sacrificially righteous for your own good."
"Yes, as much I as consider you incredibly noble…" Ash winced. "Even I think that's almost at the point of overdoing it."
"One of my flaws," Dust sighed. "But we should get moving soon. I…can't exactly let the Royal Guard find me." Ash nodded and beckoned the group to follow her — if they were going to leave Denham soon then they would need to find this Kim and quickly.
"Kim!" Ash called as they entered the main housing district of Denham Village. Sanjin had left the two kids to inform the other Moonblood Watchmen of the impending situation they faced and in turn, many Moonbloods had already begun evacuations as Dust passed on the warning he had brought with him. "Kim, you around?"
"Yeah! Be right with you, Ash!" a voice sounded. Dust gulped nervously — he wasn't sure how this meeting would go down. Sensing her friend's apprehension, Fidget rested on his head as reassurance that she was there. Ash also shot a comforting glance at the boy, as if to promise that it would all be okay.
Moments later, a young Moonblood man walked out of a house, a sack of belongings slung over his shoulder. Unlike Ash's head of jet-black hair, his was fair, although his eyes were still bright yellow against his grey scaled skin. He was lean, but built up enough that Dust was sure that he would lose against him in a wrestling match. Not that he wanted to get into one with this guy.
"Just got the news, Ash," Kim said, not noticing Dust and Fidget at first. "I take it your dad told you to evacuate?"
"Uh, yes and no," Ash replied. "Yes to the fact that I'm skipping town but no to the evacuation thing."
"How come?" Kim frowned. "Where're you off to?" Dust shuffled awkwardly behind Ash and Kim's attention finally went to him. "Who's your friend?"
"Oh, this is Dust," Ash introduced. "He just came from Aurora. I'm accompanying him on his travels — we were wondering if you would care to join us?"
"Dust, huh?" Kim noted blankly. Dust avoided eye contact.
"You…must be Kim?" he said, doing his best not to mumble.
"That would be me," Kim replied bluntly, taking in the young Warmblood's appearance. White with shimmers of blue? Silver hair? It couldn't be a coincidence… "Is Dust your full name?" Ash caught the tone in her friend's voice as Dust winced.
"Kim," she cut in warningly. "There's no need for that."
"I'm just asking the kid a question," Kim huffed shortly. "It's just that it's not everyday you see a white fox Warmblood with silver hair walking around. Especially when the last one seen died in Everdawn Basin."
"Ngh!" Dust suddenly winced, clutching a hand to his forehead. Fidget flew down to his eye level and placed a concerned paw on his hand.
"You okay, there?" she asked worriedly.
"I"m fine," Dust grunted. "Saw something I didn't really want to, that's all." Fidget knew he must have just remembered the battle against Gaius in Everdawn. She shot a distasteful glare at Kim as her friend recovered.
"Look, we know how you feel about him," she snapped defensively. "But that doesn't mean you should…!"
"So he is Sen-Mithrarin, then," Kim interrupted. "Not what I was expecting."
"Kim! Enough!" Ash snapped angrily. "Dust has been through enough today without your attitude."
"Ash, it's okay," Dust sighed, clutching the Blade of Ahrah close as he made eye contact with Kim who stood at least a full head taller than him. "Listen, Kim…I know how you feel about me…and I understand."
"Do you now?" Kim half-growled.
"There's…been a lot of people I haven't been able to save," Dust continued, the pain in his face evident as he remembered the events of what had happened earlier that afternoon. "And it's bad enough knowing I didn't move fast enough to help them…but knowing that other lives were lost before I was around last time…" He trailed off, the guilt still causing him to choke on his own words. "I honestly wish I had been around sooner."
"But it's not his fault that he wasn't!" Fidget cut in, shooting a reproachful glance at her friend before resuming her glaring at Kim who had relaxed a little but still hadn't lost all of the distaste in his eyes. "We've been trying to get that into his head all afternoon and we don't need people piling more blame on him!"
"I never said I blame the kid specifically," Kim said shortly. "But my family are gone because the hero supposed to save us in our hour of need didn't show up."
"Well, he did in the end, Kim," Ash snapped. "You're not the only person who lost everything. We can't blame Dust for things that were out of his control."
"I understand if you feel that way, Kim," Dust repeated. "And I won't try to convince you otherwise."
"STOP BEING SO SELFLESS, YOU MORON!" Fidget squeaked in frustration. Dust ignored her.
"I only just remembered who I was," he continued. "And…I realised this afternoon that I left the job unfinished last time. I want to make sure I don't do the same thing again," he said, once more making eye contact with the young man. "Ash is…helping me do this, as much I don't really want her to get dragged into this mess."
"I'm more than honoured to help you, Dust," Ash reassured. "You can count on me for this." Kim's face had softened significantly.
"You're planning to stop this for good?" he asked. "You're taking the fight to the King?"
"If that's where this whole thing came from, then yes," Dust confirmed. He didn't particularly want to go against the Royal Family itself but if it meant the safety of the citizens of Falana, both Warm and Moonblood, he knew that he may have little choice in the matter.
"I suggested that you came too," Ash explained. "Your marksmanship could really come in handy."
"Also, Ash suggested having an adult on the team," Fidget added huffily, still not overly happy with the way this man was treating her friend. "To keep an eye on the kids." Kim closed his eyes as if in thought.
"I've always said that I've wanted to put those who killed my family to rights," he admitted. The Blade of Ahrah chose that moment to speak again.
"The path of revenge is a dark one, Kim," it said. "I would advise against traveling with us if that is your motive." Kim's reaction to the talking sword was a lot calmer than Ash's had been earlier.
"In that case, it won't be," he smiled. "I'll join you…but only because it will end the torment that my people have suffered at the hands of the King and his followers," he said firmly. "And if you…" he continued, looking pointedly at Dust. "…are willing to make up for the lives you failed to save, then I will put my family's deaths behind me and help you in your cause."
"It. Was. Not. His. FAULT!" Fidget snapped but Dust looked significantly more relaxed.
"Thank you, Kim," he smiled, holding out a hand for the young man to shake. "I won't let you down again."
"It's not me you've got to not let down, Kid," Kim said, shaking the offered hand. "You've got a kingdom resting on your shoulders."
"Thanks for the reminder…" Dust mumbled.
"Hopefully we can make that burden a little lighter," Kim smiled, a little more warmly than before. It seemed to put Dust at ease although Ash and Fidget were still eyeing Kim with irritated glares. "So what's the goal here? Aside from the obvious."
"I think we should make a move first," Dust suggested. "I'll tell you more on the way."
"Where do we even go from here, anyway?" Fidget asked. "We're not exactly going about this with a game plan, are we?"
"Did we have one last time?" Dust asked, although it wasn't sarcastic. He sounded genuinely curious.
"Uh…no, that was also very much go-with-the-flow," Fidget admitted. Ash thought for a moment before speaking again.
"How about we talk to the Elder?" she suggested. "He might have an idea as to what's going on." Dust said that he hadn't seen Elder Grey-Eyes when he'd returned to Aurora and assumed that he'd already left following whatever business he'd had with Mayor Bram. "Well, from what I last heard, he now lives in the New Zeplich settlement in the Blackmoor Mountains," Ash said. "If we move in that direction we might meet him on the way or catch him there."
"It's a start, I suppose," Kim nodded. "Give me two minutes — I'll be right back."
He vanished back into his house, leaving the two teens and the nimbat waiting around. Ash shot an apologetic glance at Dust.
"Dust, I am really sorry about Kim's attitude," she winced. "He seems to have softened, but you shouldn't have had to put up with that."
"Yeah, he's lucky I didn't bite his face off there and then," Fidget grumbled. "Of all the little…!"
"Ash, Fidget, please," Dust sighed. "I'm not going to force him to change his mind about things. He's not so bad, anyway."
"Again, you are way too nice for your own good sometimes," Fidget sighed just as Kim came back out of the house. This time, he had two holsters strapped to his pelt with pistols inside them.
"Alright, I'm set," he said. He glanced at Ash to see that she had a tome tucked under her arm. "I see you're good to go."
"When am I not?" Ash shrugged. Fidget glanced between the two Moonbloods.
"Care giving us some demos of what you can do?" she asked. "I mean, Dust and I have been a team for a while and we kinda know how to work off each other so it'd be nice to know what additions we're getting."
"I agree," Dust nodded. "Do you mind showing us?"
"Let's head towards Roan Pass, first," Kim suggested. "It might not be the best idea for Ash to show off while we're still in the village."
"Hey, that was one time, Kim!" Ash protested. Both Dust and Fidget asked what had only happened one time but neither Kim nor Ash offered any details on the matter.
As they headed back towards the exit of the village, passing by numerous evacuating Moonbloods and their Warmblood neighbours, Dust and Fidget couldn't help but marvel at how their group had grown. Dust was still getting used to his task, and his memories were still merely trickling back one by one, piece by piece, but he could still only think of himself fighting alongside his nimbat companion.
Having two extra people in the party would take some getting used to, but Dust trusted Ahrah in its judgement that they would both prove a great help to him.
There was, however, the last thing that Sanjin had said to him before they'd left. Now, Dust's memories of the man were vague to say the least, but as far as he could see he'd known Sanjin to be an amicable person.
It's just that his insistence that Ash did not come to any harm whatsoever on their travels had scared Dust a little.
Double update today because I forgot to upload a chapter on Wednesday! Sorry, guys.