Last Messenger - Chapter 29

Chapter 29 – Aael

Eyes closed, Aael imagined he floated on a ship, the motion of the sea easing him back and forth. A sudden twist caused his stomach to lurch and his eyes flew open. The grip on his saddle suddenly felt precarious, and he squeezed the camel tighter with his legs. The camel grunted and spun, trying to throw him off the saddle.

“You are going to kill him,” Mia said. “Relax your legs.”

“It’s trying to kill me,” Aael responded a little loudly.

“No, it just doesn’t like you, which is understandable. Now relax.”

Aael tried to loosen up. He wanted to walk, but the Abbot wouldn’t allow it. Too suspicious, he’d said. Evidently Aael’s war with the camel drew less attention. He studied Mia and her casual perch on her camel. She had taken to the animals quickly and seemed, well, almost happy.

“You just got lucky,” Aael said. “If you had this monster, you wouldn’t be so smug.”

“Freckles is no monster.”

“Freckles?”

“Yeah, he’s named for the freckles around his nose. Did you hear anything the Stable Master said?”

“I was kind of distracted, and maybe a bit,” Aael searched for the right word. “Anxious.”

“A bit stupid is more likely,” Mia whispered.

“I heard that,” Aael said. “Who taught you to ride? I thought you grew up in the city.”

Mia hesitated. “I like animals and hate people, same as them, that’s all.”

Aael wondered when his misery would end. “I wonder how long until sunrise?”

Mia scanned the sky, the moonlight bathing her back in a soft light. Aael could clearly see the dark lines of the small tattoo there: a target with five concentric circles, a bull’s-eye in the center, and three arrows sticking out of the center. The tattoo looked professional, and it made him jealous and a little sad. She could compete in the games and he couldn’t.

“About seventy minutes till false dawn,” Mia said, twisting around to face Aael.

Aael, still admiring the tattoo when she turned, suddenly found himself staring at her breasts, which were starkly visible in the moonlight.

Quickly looking away, Aael stuttered out an excuse. “I was looking at your tattoo.”

“Yeah, right.”

Aael’s cheeks warmed, and he quickly changed the subject. “How do you know that?”

“The stars.”

“You can see the stars in the city?”

“Yes,” Mia said defensively.

Aael let it go. Mia was obviously hiding something, but now wasn’t the time to figure out what.

Bacchus, having a much easier time controlling his camel, came up alongside Aael.

“How much longer? My butt is killing me,” Bacchus said.

“About seventy minutes,” Aael responded. He smiled at Mia’s glare.

“These things are impossible to sleep on,” Bacchus muttered.

As they moved around the base of a large dune, the Abbot appeared. Mia coaxed her camel into a trot and quickly joined the old man. The Abbot said something to her, and she nodded her head.

A few seconds later Aael joined them.

“We’re going to stop early today,” the Abbot said. “Setting up camp the first time always takes a while.”

Thankful the ride had finally ended, Aael slid off Freckles. Halfway off, Freckles bucked, sending Aael flying. He landed with a thud in the sand ten feet away.

Mia and Bacchus laughed, and even the Abbot smiled. Aael pushed himself up and strode toward Freckles to confront the animal, but Mia was already leading it away.

“You really have a way with people,” the Abbot said.

“It’s not a person,” Aael said a little loudly.

“Maybe that’s your problem,” the Abbot said as he walked away.

Aael wondered how anyone could like such wretched creatures.

“Pick up your pride and follow me,” the Abbot said over his shoulder. “And bring the other two with you.”

Aael remained still. He hated being bossed around.

“Hurry up!” the Abbot yelled.

Aael sighed and looked at Bacchus, who just shrugged. They both walked toward Mia.

“The Abbot wants to see us,” Aael said.

“Not until we have the animals taken care of,” Mia replied.

“He said right now.”

“When have you ever done as you were told?”

Bacchus raised his eyebrows. Aael didn’t have an answer for that, and he stood there conflicted.

Mia continued to brush her camel, picking up each foot and brushing the pads there. “Your problem is, you only think of yourself.”

“I didn’t ask you about my problems. And I do think about other people.”

“You think about people in specifics, but not in general. It’s part of a self-centered viewpoint.”

Bacchus whistled softly and raised his eyebrows.

“Hey, lighten up,” Aael said. “The Abbot wanted to see us, and I’m trying to keep you out of trouble.”

“No, you came over here because he told you. You’re still here because you’re afraid you’ll be in trouble if you return without me.”

Aael stood quietly. She was right. Mia pulled the saddle off of Freckles, and the beast nuzzled her neck. Mia giggled, and Aael smiled at the sound.

“What can I do to help?” Aael asked.

“Here,” Mia said, handing Aael and Bacchus brushes, “comb them all down.”

“Hey!” Bacchus said. “I’m not selfish. Why do I have to brush?”

“Guilt by association,” Mia said, walking away.

“Thanks a lot, you selfish jerk,” Bacchus said to Aael.

Aael smiled at their shared misery.

“I think she likes telling you what to do,” Bacchus said, pulling the brush through the rough hair of his camel.

Aael approached Freckles, the brush out in front of him like a peace offering. Freckles snorted at him and shook his head. Aael slowed his movements, inching the brush toward the beast.

Mia’s grabbed Aael’s wrist and pulled it toward Freckles. She made a few brush strokes, using Aael like a puppet.

“See, he isn’t all bad,” Mia said in a funny voice, scratching Freckles under his jaw.

“Yeah, I’m not bad at all,” Aael repeated.

Freckles turned and snorted at him.

“More brushing, less talking,” Mia said. “Your voice is irritating.”

“Where are you going?” Aael asked.

“To the Abbot. He wanted us there right away, remember. I’ll tell him you and Bacchus will be late. Don’t forget to do the other two before heading over. You don’t want to do a job halfway.”

Aael watched her retreating back.

“She’s good.” Bacchus said.

Aael nodded, and then faced Freckles.

The two of them made quick work of the brushing, and Freckles showed his appreciation by only halfheartedly trying to bite Aael. By the time Aael finished, sweaty camel hair covered him. It felt disgusting and smelled even worse. As soon as they finished, they jogged over to where Mia and the Abbot sat.

“Taking care of the animals first was very responsible. I’m proud of you boys,” the Abbot said.

Aael’s chest warmed from the Abbot’s praise but was immediately quenched by the level stare from Mia.

Aael ground his teeth and muttered. “It was Mia’s idea.”

“Well, that doesn’t surprise me,” the Abbot said, patting her shoulder.

Mia smiled at Aael, and it even seemed genuine.

“Did we forget anything?” the Abbot asked.

Aael thought this was a terrible time to ask that question. They had spent all night traveling and were already deep into the desert. He had his few belongings in a small bag, and his shelter and food were in separate bags carried by Freckles.

The Abbot took a drink from his water bladder. They all carried a similar one.

“Water,” Bacchus said, panic visible on his face.

Aael wasn’t concerned for himself. The brutal sunlight during the day would be enough to recharge any energy he spent healing the damage caused by lack of water. For that matter, he could easily close the pores on his body, severely limiting the amount of moisture lost to evaporation. And ignoring the pain in his body had already second nature.

In fact, Aael could return to the Abbey in a fraction of the time it took to travel here on a camel. It would consume a lot of his energy, but he was currently full. He needed to use caution and common sense when using his power now, since he didn’t have his mother to recharge his magic. Refilling from natural sources would take a lot longer. He had to keep that in mind and avoid stupid expenditures. But saving his friends from dehydration was certainly worthwhile.

“I can run back and get some,” Aael offered.

Mia looked at Aael like he was some sort of idiot.

“Well, I could,” Aael mumbled.

The Abbot smiled at Aael. “Thank you, Si’Aln, but that isn’t necessary. I need to teach all of you a critical skill for surviving in the desert. Aael, you must rely on your other skills. I don’t want you using your Void for something like this. It is not worth the risk.”

“What are we doing with our Void out here?” Bacchus asked. “There’s no Aln.”

“True,” the Abbot said. “But your Void has more uses than just carving Aln. In fact, its purpose is to shape, control, and consume energy. What has energy?”

“Everything,” Aael said.

“Yes, everything,” the Abbot repeated. “Aln is easy because it’s pure solidified energy. What I’m about to show you is subtle, but no different. Everyone find their center.”

Everyone but Aael closed their eyes, concentrating on the Void inside them, and centering themselves. All he could do was watch, because experimenting with his Void had almost killed him twice.

The Abbot spoke quietly. “Now, reach out and down. Like you are molding a piece of Aln. Feel the sand, its energy tightly bound, slow and patient. Push down as far as you can.”

The sun peeked above the horizon, painting the sky in muted reds and yellows. Aael felt the energy from the sun softly pelting him, the immense amount of air between them acting as a filter. At noon, when the sun was at its peak, the light would feel like a hard rain.

“Something’s different,” Bacchus said.

“Describe it,” the Abbot responded immediately.

“Fast. Well, fast compared to the sand,” Bacchus said.

“Good. Mia, do you feel anything,” the Abbot asked gently.

“No. I’m having a hard time getting into the sand,” Mia replied.

“That’s ok,” the Abbot said. “Bacchus try to make a path for the fast energy, through the slow energy.”

Bacchus made faces as he flexed invisible muscles, and Aael bit his tongue to stop from laughing.

“I can’t. There’s nothing to grab,” Bacchus said.

“What you’ve done is remarkable,” the Abbot said. “Observe what I’m doing.”

A minute later Bacchus let out a yelp, followed quickly by Mia. Aael looked around confused, and upset they had left him out.

The Abbot opened his eyes and gave Aael a wink. A second later, water bubbled up from the ground in the middle of their circle.

“How did you do that?” Aael asked.

The Abbot smiled. “The desert makes it easy. It is a land of stark states. Under all this sand is an ocean, crawling from the mountains to the sea. There is nothing but sand and water under your feet, making it easy to tell the difference. Then it’s just a matter of helping it to the surface.”

Aael watched the bubbling water in amazement. The Abbot had brought water up from deep underground using just his Void, and Aael wondered what else it might affect.

“Can you do this to a person?” Aael blurted out.

The Abbot’s smile faltered and then disappeared, making Aael feel terrible.

“I’m sorry,” Aael said, but he knew the apology was too late.

“No, it’s a good observation,” the Abbot said. “Long ago, during the Separation War, there were those strong enough to pull the life from a person’s body, killing them.”

“Are there people like that now?” Bacchus asked.

The Abbot frowned. “Water and sand have no affinity for each other, which makes them easy to separate. A person is vastly more complicated. In addition, there is a life force that binds a person’s energy together. To separate a person’s body into its components would take incredible power.”

“Is there anyone like that now?” Bacchus asked again.

“Only one that I know of,” the Abbot said.

“Who?” Mia asked, leaning forward with interest.

Aael felt dread as the Abbot pointed at him. “Aael.”