The Drifting (30 page)

The bow and arrow has become my friend and my favorite training session of the day.  I’ve learned to aim and shoot without destroying my forearms.  Granted, I’ve missed every mark I’ve aimed for, but my technique’s improving.  As for the sparring, I’ve gotten my footwork down, but my attack is still off.  When you’re trying to hit a Sidhe warrior, the concept and technique are there, but if you don’t have the speed, forget about it. 

I’m getting really good at blocking Ziri’s fast punches and kicks.  My face is no longer getting hit, but my arms and legs are still tattooed with bruises.  Like Ziri tells me every session, it’s better to have my arms bruised than have my ribs broken.  I’ve started to learn how to use the knife.  And trust me, when I say that Ziri is very detailed about how to take out an opponent with a knife. 

Every now and then Alorn would have me call Cessa to get use to having her by my side during attacks.  He said I had to trust that she would have my back and take care of herself.  If I’m distracted because she’s hurt, it could mean life and death for the both of us.  And he was right.  During one lesson Ziri was shooting arrows at us, and I was so worried about Cessa getting hit I almost broke my neck running into another tree.  Regardless, I loved having her, and I can tell Cessa loved training with me.  When she’s not running alongside me, she’s standing next to Alorn or Ziri watching on the sidelines. 

My biggest challenge, of course, was Kulzo.  I’ve learned to be still and take slow, soft steps to use his poor eyesight against him.  I can’t fight Kulzo head-on because he outmatches me with his weight, strength and unbelievable speed for someone with such short legs.  So, I use the environment around me and what I learned from Sema.  With enough concentration, I’m able to move energy around us to cause the vine that we’re practicing on to move at my will.  Of course, Kulzo becomes confused moving in one direction as I come up behind him from another.  As for my scent, the energy helps me there as well.  I call upon it to act as a gentle cyclone around me, not only covering my scent but any movement that would make the old dwarf aware of my whereabouts.  Still, in the end, the lesson doesn’t end unless I take him down.  I got better and better in moving around him and at him, but once he’s got a hold of me, there’s no escaping his grip.  Each time he pins me, he laughs while I struggle for air under his weight.  He would squint at me and say, “Almost, girlie…almost.”

What I lacked in the physical training I made up in my lessons with Sema.  Once I understood the calling, as Sema calls it, manipulating the energy to my will almost seems like second nature.  I can tell by the few times Sema would be surprised at a particularly difficult maneuver I would ace on the first few tries.  But I’ve been unable to elevate myself as I did the first time Sema brought me to the platform.  Sema couldn’t teach me because she’s never known anyone to levitate at the height that I was, including her.  I didn’t want to tell her, however, that sometimes I had help.  It’s the woman who only speaks to me in my mind.  When I close my eyes to concentrate, she would whisper to me, guiding me on the intricacies of certain callings.  It’s strange, but when she’s with me I feel comforted and not so alone. 

The rain had finally lightened up and a steady drizzle accompanies Ziri and me back to the thela after another rigorous workout with Kulzo.  Alorn wasn’t there this morning and I assumed he and Ziri either met with someone who provided supplies and news, or they actually travel directly to the
Oak
Tower
. 

It was an exhausting training session today and I feel the soreness mostly in my legs.  I walk beside Ziri knowing that he’s keeping to my slower pace, each of us lost in our own thoughts.  I look about me at the plants that I’ve come to recognize during the past weeks.  The giant saidai plants offer their leaves as protection from the rain during our walk back home.  As we pass under each leaf, they would slowly retract leaving no sign of a covered walkway behind us. 

I’ve come a long ways with Ziri.  I trust him in keeping me straight and on point with my training.  I’ve come to trust him in keeping Sema and me safe.  Without knowing it, I’ve come to trust him in this new life.  The Day of the Seating is only a few days away and all of this
–
the training, our quiet little thela with Sema and Alorn, this oasis that I’ve called home for the past weeks will be gone. 

I wonder about Julia and her training.  Alorn told me Tharin has put her in training with his personal guards and that Julia is excelling.  Of course she is, and I’m pretty sure she would blow me out of the water if she were training her with me.  Yet, I can’t wait to show her what I’ve learned.  Maybe next time she puts gloves on me I’ll give her a run for her money.  I smile at the thought, the forgotten loneliness poking his head out again.

“You okay?” asks Ziri as he nudges me with his elbow. 

Still looking out at the rain, I answer, “Yeah.  I’m missing Julia.  You know this is the first time we’ve ever been apart for so long.  We’ve never gone more than a day or so before we’re on our cell phones with each other or meeting up somewhere.”

“From what you and Alorn have said about her, she sounds strong.  Alorn speaks of her with respect, and coming from him…that’s saying much.” 

I finally look up at him.  I study his profile as he continues to stare ahead, as he always does.  “Why do you hate Tharin?” I don’t know where it came from, but now that I’ve said it I want to know.

Ziri looks sideways at me without changing his course or his pace.  Just when I thought he would say something, he shifts his gaze back to where we’re heading.  We continue walking in silence when he suddenly stops.  It takes me a moment to realize that he has and I turn to face him, giving him a puzzled look.

“Her name is Nameth and she is the first girl I’ve loved, still love and will ever love.”  I don’t know how to respond so I remain standing, waiting.

Ziri shakes his head, embarrassed by his admission.  He looks about and then takes my arm, leading me to a fallen kavi nearby.  The trunk of the dead tree is wet, but so are we.  The saidai adjusts their leaves to accommodate our new position and once covered, I sit next to the big elf who kidnapped me and wait for his story.

Ziri leans forward, elbows on his knees, staring out into the open.  “She was one of the first I met when my mother brought me to the Oak Clan.  She was standing next to Phoris, who even as a little boy was built like a boulder, but just as kind.  She was holding on to him, and while others stared at us as if we were from the UnderRealm, she was the only one not staring.  She had her eyes cast down, looking at her feet.  It wasn’t until later that I found out she wasn’t looking at me because she couldn’t see me.  Nameth is blind.”

Ziri becomes quiet and after a moment I ask, “What does she look like?”

He leans back with a wistful smile, “Beautiful.  She has red hair…”

“Red hair?” I ask shocked.  I thought everyone at the Oak Clan had blonde hair from what I’ve seen so far. 

Ziri gives me a challenging look, “Yeah, red hair.  Is that a problem?”

I shake my head at him, backing up, “No…sorry, go on.”

“Red hair,” he says again giving me an arched look, “tall and eyes the color of cinnamon.”  Cinnamon?  I’ve never heard eyes described as cinnamon, must be the love talking.  “She has a voice that angels envy and a smile that can light up a room…and her skin, soft and clear.”  Okay, definitely the love talking here.  I try not to laugh at this big elf looking like he can knock a tree down with one punch talking about cinnamon eyes and soft skin.  Instead, I give him a lopsided grin.  Embarrassed, he looks down at his hand with a small laugh.  “Yeah, I know, it’s crazy.  But I was crazy about her, still am if truth be known.”

“Does she have the same feelings?”

He gives a short snort as he straightens looking out once more, “Oh yeah, but for someone else.”

Ah, I understand now.  Nodding, I say, “Tharin.”

He nods still not looking at me.  I sit next to him thinking about who this Nameth is and not liking her for hurting Ziri.  To be honest, I don’t like her for liking Tharin…damn, I hate admitting that.  I mentally scold myself – this is about Ziri, not you.  I reach out and touch his arm causing him to give me a sideways glance and a small smile.

“I know, I shouldn’t blame Tharin,” he continues.  “He didn’t know she existed, at least not that way.  He always treated her with kindness…he treated every female in the court with kindness and nothing more.  Yet, they all fell for him, still do, I’m sure.  It’s a wonder that there are actual couples in the clan with him around.”

Not liking hearing about Tharin and other women I cut in, “Well, did you ever tell her how you felt?”

He shakes his head, “I was about to.  I sent her word through a mutual friend to meet me in the
Summer
Garden
.  Even though she wouldn’t know it, I dressed in my best clothes, cleaned myself up.  I was going to tell her then how I truly felt and hoped that she would see me, truly see me from all that she’d known of me through our years growing up.”

When he’s silent once again, I slip my hand under his arm wrapping it around him as I move closer to him.  “What happened,” I ask quietly.

“She was there waiting.  She has a keen sense of hearing, so she heard me approach before I even stepped into the garden.  When she turned, she was crying and upset.  I didn’t know what was happening and I went to her to try and comfort her; but she pushed me away telling me I had ruined any chance she had with Tharin.  She accused me of going to Tharin and telling him about her feelings and that we laughed about it, making it into a joke.  She told me everything the others said about me was true, that I was an ugly monster, a freak of nature, and worse, jealous of Tharin.”

I hug his arm to me, laying my head against his shoulder.  I reach for his hand, giving it a small squeeze.  He
grasps
it, holding it steady.  Then he removes his arm from my hold and wraps it around my shoulder, holding me to him.  We remain this way for a while without saying anything.  Finally, I say, “You know it was a lie, right?  And it kind of sounds like maybe Tharin didn’t know anything about what Nameth was saying either.”  I lean away to look at his face. “Did you ever ask him?”

He releases me and leans forward placing his elbows on his knees again as he shakes his head.  “Hmmm,” I
muse
, “for someone who has it together when it comes to fighting, intrigue and crazy-ass training, you’re not very smart, are you?”

He glances back at me, “Intrigue?”

“Umm…yeah.  You did kidnap me, remember?”

Ziri sighs heavily as he continues.  “I was fourteen in Pathen years then, an adolescent.  I was so hurt and angry by her words that I lashed out at who I thought was to blame…Tharin.  As I got older that anger just seemed to always be there and I didn’t know how to get past it.  I mean, by then Tharin was already pretty pissed at me.  After that he just kept his distance.”

“And Alorn?”

“Hmmm…he and Tharin are more alike than Tharin and Tolan.  Tolan and Phoris are more alike in nature and thought.  What hurts Tharin, Alorn takes personally.”

“What of Mellis?”

“There’s no one like Mellis,” he answers with a wry grin.  I laugh thinking that if Mellis were here he’d have a smart comeback to that.

“So, in actuality, she’s the reason you left.”

Ziri gives me a slanted look, “How do you know I left?”

“Mellis.”

He snorts
,
shaking his head. “I’m going to have a really long talk with my cousin.” 

Ziri stands and looks down at me, ready to go.  He offers me his hand to help me up, but I slap it away playfully, getting up on my own.  “What’re you trying to do, get me in trouble with my trainer?”  He laughs again and I find I like seeing him happy.  He puts his arm around my shoulder, giving me a warm hug.  I throw my arms around his lower chest, hugging him back.  We start back on our trail to the thela laughing and just feeling good when we suddenly come up short. 

Standing in our way several yards ahead is Alorn.  Next to him is an extremely pissed off Tharin.  From behind Tharin, Mellis gives a big smile and waves cheerfully at us.  Without missing a beat, Ziri pulls me up and plants a kiss right on my lips.  Stunned momentarily, I’m rigid as a board.  Finally getting my senses back, I struggle against him, trying to push him off me.  I glance over at the others and the only thing I see beyond the big elf’s shoulders is Tharin running at us at a really fast, really pissed off run.  Oh crap.

~ * ~