As Anna was heading back to camp, she heard the very familiar voice of her adoptive mother.

         

“≈You know child, it is not fair to shift the blame or punish Lilian for what you did.≈”

“Oh don’t you even FUCKING start with me!” Anna yelled furiously. “You think you have the right to come to me and say that?! After all the times I asked and pleaded to tell Lilian before now? And you’re just going to try and shift the blame on to me? Taking none of the responsibility yourself?!” Anna questioned her incredulously.

“≈I was not suggesting that!”≈ Agra’Yala defended. “≈I am merely stating that you should forgive her and apologize for blaming her for something she did not do knowingly.≈”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Anna questioned Agra’Yala.

“Do you even know what I am upset and angry about with Lilian?”

          

Agra’Yala was quiet for a moment, now unsure of what it was that Anna was suggesting.

              

“≈Isn’t it not the fact that she did not believe you were a shaman?≈”

“Agra’Yala… you can’t be that blind can you?” Anna had an irritated sneer on her face.

“It is not about whether or not she would believed me. Both you and Tharhym made it clear she wouldn’t, and I didn’t expect her too.”

Anna once again quieted Agra’Yala into silence with her words.

                     

“≈Then why are you mad?≈”

                         

“She lied to me.” Anna explained flatly. “She lied and broke her promise to me.”

Agra’Yala was flabbergasted.

“≈How?! When did she lie? You were the one!—“

“Don’t you even dare finish that sentence!” Anna yelled at the disembodied voice. “You started all of this shit! You think I am going to allow you to say that I was a willing participant in this lie? I wanted to tell her sooner! But you guys, mostly you! Kept telling me to wait until I had this!”

                 

She held up Lazrator in the air towards Agra’Yala’s presence.

                 

“Which this,” Anna points towards their staff.” Be,Te,Dubs! Is pretty sick and twisted! Even for you, and all of your twisted schemes! How could you ask them to do this?!”

“≈They volunteed!≈” Agra’Yala defended. “≈I needed to find a suitable way to help you learn how to train using elemental magic quickly, so I went to my offspring which could help you and provide.—≈”

“Yeah! You went to them! God Agra’Yala! Did you even think for a moment what this is going to do to them?” Anna interrupted her adoptive mother. “What choice did they really have Agra’Yala? Did you really think they were going to refuse you?”

“≈They did before!≈” Agra’Yala yelled back at Anna probably for the first time. “≈When the battle was almost lost, with the humans almost upon their lands, I had planned to bring my children away from the humans, moving them to the sinking isles. But then those three did the unthinkable and allowed themselves to be turned into an aberration!≈”

“And you still don’t get it do you?! Why did you think they choose not to listen?! Because your ways are cruel! You think in only the big picture for things Agra’Yala, not in how it will affect everyone. You should stop looking at the outcomes, and start focusing on the immediate needs first.” Anna scolded her.

“This is why I wanted to tell Lilian… well, I didn’t want to tell her at the beginning, I was scared I was hearing voices inside my head. But I did want to tell her after I started taking lessons from Tharhym. Now I may have broken her trust in me because of this, thanks to you and my stupid slow thinking ass for listening to you for so long. *HIC*”

                       

Agra’Yala watched as her daughter walked away while crying. For the first time in possible ten millennia: Agra’Yala wept.

≈What have I done?≈

                                  

————————————————-

                                                           

Horrik and Safarti were both the foremost near Anna as the group traveled back to camp.

They watched her from a distance as she was yelling at something while swinging that new staff of her’s in a certain direction.

            

“Do?…… Do you think she is conversing with an ancestor or something?” Safarti asked Horrik.

         

“… you still don’t get it do you?!..” They heard their shaman shout from a distance ahead of them.

                   

“I… do not believe so, no.” Horrik says his opinion. “I am pretty sure she is yelling at something else.”

               

“So? Some sort of elemental spirit then? Mother Rayala she is treating them more casually than any shaman I have seen before. Normally they would treat the spirits in such high regards.” Safarti comments.

“Most shamans are scared to anger the spirits in anyway: the spirits are the source of their power.”

“Oh yeah! That was crazy by the way! Did you see how she wielded the elements so effortlessly?! How did she do that?! She could barely float rocks last night! How did she do all that?!”

“I… haven’t got a clue…” Horrik told him honestly. “That is definitely outside my knowledge on shamans, we going to have to ask the old man on that.”

           

“……Ask me what?……” A deep voice from behind them asked

          

“EEEYYYYAAAAA!” Safarti screamed at the top of his lungs.

Horrik was also startled, but more startled by the fact that he had felt nor heard Harks sneaking up on them.

“By the offspring of Rayala Harks! We are going to need to put a bell on you!” Safarti complained.

Harks rolled his eyes.

“Stop being such a yearling, you big pussy! It’s your own fault for not paying better attention to your surroundings.” Harks scolded. “Now, what was thing about asking me something?”

The two looked at each other before looking back at Harks.

“We were wondering what your opinion was on how and why Anna—“

“Shaman.” Harks corrected Horrik.

“Why Anna,” He said resolutely, ignoring Harks underlining warning. “Had suddenly grown so good with her shaman powers.”

“Yeah,” Safarti chimes in. “and why are you suddenly on Anna’s side for being a shaman? I thought you were the biggest skeptic of all of us?” He questioned.

“For one kid. Seeing is believing kid. And as for your first question. I ain’t got a mammoth’s shit on how she did all that. It shouldn’t be possible.”

“Yeah see,” Horrik shrugs. “Not even he knows.”

“What do you mean it shouldn’t be possible?” Safarti questioned what Harks just said. “Are you still skeptical that she is actually shaman?”

          

*SLAP*

           

“OW!” Safarti grunts in pain at being smacked in the back of the head.

“I am not skeptical of her attributes. But her sudden proficient abilities. She also used three different elemental magics back there.”

          

“Is… that not something a shaman can normally do?” Horrik asks Harks.

“Oh they can. Hell, they can use as many elemental magics as they have spirits floating around them.”

“So what is—“

“The problem is boy! That we entered the middle of that swamp, and suddenly she is more powerful and has more abilities in such a short amount of time, on top of the fact that she had at the least, three spirits of different elements to pull from? That is definitely something to be skeptical about. Of her being a shaman, no. But the how and why of her strength, you better believe I am skeptical.”

           

They all looked ahead to observed their now weeping shaman ahead of them.

“Ah great! And now she is crying again! Good going lads!” Harks yells at them.

Both Safarti and Horrik double take at him.

“”ME?!”” They cry in outrage.

“Yes you! You are the two that drew attention to her, now look what happened. You made her cry.”

“How isn’t that we did that?! She could just.—“

*SMACK*

“Don’t talk back to your elders! When I say it’s your fault, just understand that it is your fault!” Harks shouts at Safarti.

“But I!—“

*SMACK*

              

Lilian look on from the rear of the pack as Anna lead them back to camp. Almost as if she seemingly knew the fastest way to get back. Lilian was also watching as her soldiers look on at Anna in amazement; in awe of the fact that she was their shaman now.

                                    

No… not their shaman; my Ashu’Rágé. Mine!

                                

————————————————-

                                     

They had made it back to camp by late afternoon. With the sun making its way down towards the horizon.

“……I… I want to apologize again, for putting us back a day guys… I know this wasn’t something planned or anything.”

“Are you kidding?!” Grak’Horve gave Anna an incredulously look with a raised voice. “Sure we are a bit behind now. But I say, if anything: with you being a full fledged shaman now, we can make better tracks through the swamp, right?” He suggested while looking at Harks.

Harks gave a non-committal shrug.

“I suppose,” He looked towards Anna with a raised eyebrow. “but that is of you’re up for the task. I suppose what you said before was true: with you receiving training from the Dracogusse’s shaman; sorry by the way from accusing you otherwise. But do you think you have been trained enough to lead and be this groups shaman? Do you know what that entails?” Harks simultaneously apologizes and questions Anna at the same time.

                     

Anna blinked at him in surprise. She had expected Harks to question her aptitude. But not for him to apologize.

However offhandedly it was.

                  

But before she could reply to him. Horrik came up to Harks and gripped his forearm.

“I suggest,” Horrik told Harks in a serious hushed tone. “That you be careful not to provoke or Warchief more than necessary.” He warned with a tilt of his head towards Lilian.

They all turned to look at Lilian, who was staring at then with narrow eyes. Which could only be described as a glare.

This made all the Mokra’Torcs shudder at look at the fire in Lilian’s violet eyes.

Even Harks, was not unaffected by her stare.

For the love of all Rayala, that girl is terrifying. Harks thought to himself.

Anna on the other hand, was sort of disappointed in her love for her attitude.

She is probably just upset for what I did earlier. Really mature Lilian to take it out on others.

Anna looked at Harks to answer his question.

“As far as my abilities are concerned. I am pretty good at communicating with spirits more than I am at elemental magic, I am not… not good at it; rather, I am still untrained in elemental magic.”

They looked at her in surprise, but Harks was the only one to call Anna out on what she said.

“Mammoth shit! How the hell do you expect us to believe you are bad at magic after what you did back there?!” He shouted.

                       

Anna sighed at Harks accusations.

“That… might be hard to explain……”

“Try.” Was all Harks told her.

“Okay… I never tried to channel with an elemental spirit before to cast elemental magic. I was just learning to just channel magical energy. That practiced and was spinning rocks like I showed you before; that was my practice to channel magical energy. So I knew… at the least, I knew the idea behind how to channel and cast elemental energy and cast it as elemental magic. But I had never practice before today… and I still haven’t actually.”

Three of the Mokra’Torc soldiers tilted their heads in confusion at her, while Harks just narrowed his eyes.

“What does even mean?”

                                                    

So, Anna began to explain what happened on her end.

                                                                

————————————————-

                                                        

————-Hours earlier, during the battle of Lazrator’s creation———-

                               

“No! Lilian wait!” Anna tried to reach her hand out towards her love as she saw her running towards her with fury in her eyes.

“}>≈NO!≈<{“

*GROAN!*

Lazrator turned its body so it was in-front of Anna, shielding her from the a few more axes that flew towards them.

“}>≈They are under the influence of the ¹the demon’s fireDuroak’fira! Your words are beyond them. They won’t stop until they kill this creation of mine. SO GO! Retrieve my avatar, force them to submit to your power while my construct holds them off!≈<{“

Anna watched as the creation that she had come to recognize as Lazrator move back to fight her love and friends.

“No! Don’t hurt them! They just!—“

“}>≈Listen to us our friend,{ partner,< master,≈ they will not stop until the destroy this construct. Do not worry for their safety, we are only going to let them attack us while forcing them to engage us. We shall not harm your companions. But do not stop in retrieving our avatar. That will be your chance at convincing them.”≈<{

“But what about you?!”

“}>≈Our friend,< companion,{ joy,≈ this construct is not the true us. We can always recreate it if it were to fall.≈<{“ Lazrator assured Anna.

They turned towards Anna’s friends, before shouting at her as the construct dashed towards the Mokra’Torc attackers.

“}>≈Now go! Retrieve us!≈<{“

Anna hesitated for a moment, but as she saw her love jump through the and slice a finger off of the construct, she knew she would have little time.

She dashed towards the hill the to retrieve the staff that was atop.

As soon as she made her way to the top.

She looked down from the hill to see her friends attacking poor Lazrator.

“}>≈Do not feel bad for the construct. It cannot feel. Now! Lift us up! We will release our roots.≈<{“

“Alright!” Anna responded.

She looked down at the staff. 

It was truly a beautiful staff. Anna thought.

It was a thick staff; half the size of Anna’s wrist.

The main shaft was a singular branch, but twisted into a three other branches that were interwoven, making a bulb at the top that held a hollow glob made of some sort of pink tinted transparent crystal that held water.

She marveled at how beautiful it was. Mesmerized even.

She forced her self to stop staring to reach down for the staff, put both her hands around the staff.

Just as she was about to pull on the staff,

“RRRRRRAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!”

                       

Anna saw Lilian jump from Lazrator’s construct’s arm, as she swung her axe down, slicing the constructs face completely off.

Oh God! No! Poor Lazrator! Anna thought as she watched her love attack her friend. I have to stop the fighting!

                 

Grasped the staff at its mid-section, with bent knees she pulled with all of her might.

                  

                    

                          

            

*POP*

                 

“WHOOPS!”

            

*SPLAT*

“*OOF!*”

         

Anna sat there blinking in a puddle of mud with a surprised expression on her face. All while clutching the staff in both hands?

        

She looked down as the staff in surprise.

       

“So?… Umm?… What does this mean? And what do I do now?”

“}>≈Oh!≈<{“ Anna her Lazrator speak.

“Lazrator!” Anna called out excitedly.

“}>≈…It seems we can still communicate… that is unexpected…≈<{“

“What do you-“

“}>≈No time for questions our friend. They look like they calmed down after our construct stopped moving. Now is your chance to prove yourself.≈<{ Lazrator advised Anna.

“Ugh! Okay, How?” She asked with a groan as she stood. I think I bruised my tailbone when I fell. Anna thought morosely.

“}>≈What do you mean? Cast some elemental magic.≈<{“

“Well duh! I figured that. But what I mean is, how do I do that?”

“}>≈Oh! You were not taught how to channel energy yet?≈<{“

“No, I can channel energy, but I—“

“}>≈Then you can cast elemental magic.≈<{“ They assured her.

“HUH?! How?”

“}>≈What do you mean how? Channeling energy into us is the bases of into how you cast elemental magic.≈<{

“Yeah okay, I get that much. But how do I cast the magic?”

“}>≈What do you mean?≈<{

“I was never taught spells or incantations or anything! How do I cast the magic you transfer?”

“}>≈We—We don’t know!≈<{“

“What?!”

“}>≈We’re not shamans, we do not know how they cast magic. We are not transferring magic to you. The shaman casts the magic: we transfer our elemental energy along the connection you establish with your own energy, then you cast elemental magic.≈<{“

“So I have to already know how to do it?!”

“}>≈You should, at the least. All we know about how they do it, is that it is by the shamans will.≈<{“

“Oh that is so not helpful!” Anna stepped forward to look down to see that they were gathering close to the construct to inspect it. Lilian was reaching for her axe. “So what? Am I just supposed to imagine something like Entangling Roots coming up and wrapping around them and—“

            

“S-Shit!”

Anna heard Lilian exclaim as she stared wide eyed as roots burst forth from the ground, wrapping themselves around the Mokra’Torcs.

“Oh god Lazrator! Stop!”

“}>≈We are not doing it, you are. Look, your hand.≈<{“

Anna looked down and saw her hand not on the staff that she hand pointed towards Lilian’s group was glowing green with viney visages around her palm and the back of her hand.

“Then what am I supposed to do now?!” Anna asked in a panic.

“}>≈Why not try tossing them away.≈<{“

“Tossing them?”

“}>≈Yes, toss them away from the construct. Then repair it and control it to make it groan loudly. You can control it now.≈<{“

            

So Anna looked back down towards the scene below and focused on doing just that. She raised her hand. The roots entangling her friends, reared back and tossed them back towards the slope they came down, about forty feet back.

They all tumbled, then staggered to get up. But they were all moving and looked fine.

Anna let out a relieved breath.

“Thank god!”

She then focused and got to work on the construct. Remembering it how it was before it was damaged.

She then made it turn to look at her group.

                        

*GROAN*

             

The groan she made it do was so loud, it felt like her eardrums might split.

“}>≈Ooohhh! Not bad partner!≈<{“ Lazrator praised her. }>≈That probably intimidated them—

                         

“RRRRRAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHH!”

                      

“}>≈Or not.≈<{“

“Shit! What do I do?!” Anna asked Lazrator for more advice.

“}>≈Whatever you want, you are the shaman here. Perhaps tripping them up though?≈<{“ They suggested helpfully.

“Okay?! How about tripping them up with a water spout!”

                  

*SPOOSH*

                            

“SHIT!” 

Anna heard Lilian exclaim she and the rest of their group, was lunched nearly twenty feet into the air.

         

“OH FUCK!”

“}>≈Impressive… Most impressive.≈<{

                   

Anna lifted her hand pointing it towards her airborne friends.

“CATCH THEM! CATCH THEM! CATCH THEM! CATCH THEM! CATCH THEM!”

          

Vines then sprouted up and shot up into the air. Where they wrapped themselves around the falling Mokra’Torcs.

                 

After her friends were no longer in danger from the fall. Anna let out a sigh of relief.

                 

“}>≈Not bad for your first attempt partner.≈<{“ Lazrator praised.

                       

Anna looked up serious from her down cast eyes in relief.

         

“We’re not done yet.” She told them.

                           

————————————————-

                                     

“So yeah… I really don’t know what I am doing with the magic… I was just sort of winging it; making it up as I went along… hehehe~?” Anna tried her best to laugh it off.

But the serious face of Harks, and the almost blood drained faces of the others told her they were not amused that they were almost killed by her ineptitude.

“…Sorry…” She apologized.

        

Harks expression softened before looking down, letting out a sigh.

      

“I was going to ask you relieve my shoulder from being launched up from that water spout of yours.” He looked up with a grin but with narrowed eyes. “But now, I am not sure I trust your magic just yet… not until you have had some practice young miss shaman: So I think I will live with the aches and bruises I have. Lest you mess up my body somehow.”

Anna winced at his brutal honesty.

“Honestly? Probably for the best.” Anna told him.

Harks stood up straight before walking away towards his tent.

                  

But before Anna could move away, Horrik walked up to her.

“If… If you do not mind. I would like to request your help shaman.”

                             

Anna was dazed for a moment. Not comprehending that he was asking for her help; not recognizing the title shaman as hers.

“Oh!… Umm yeah! Sure! What do you need help with? I am not sure what I can do. But I can try my best.” She told him enthusiastically.

“I would like your help with communing with my departed mate.”

                   

Anna was surprised.

She shouldn’t have been, she realized after thinking about who she was talking with. But she was still taken by surprise.

“Ah! Yeah… Should have guessed that.”

Now it was Horrik’s turn to do a double take at her.

“You should have?”

Anna realized she should not have said that.

“…Sorry… I… didn’t mean to pry, but anytime you prayed to your ancestors; to your mate. I heard… Or rather, she would come over to ask for my help to communicate with you… which I refused before… as I was keeping my shamanism a secret.”

“Ah!… that explains everything then. On how you knew so much that night.” Horrik observed.

“Yeah… sorry?”

He shook his head with a smile.

“No. It is I that should apologize. I seem to have been bothering you inadvertently every night without my knowing. So I am sorry.”

“Meh! Don’t worry about it. Let’s just call us even because of our equal faults.”

To which Horrik nodded his head in agreement.

“So? I am sure this is something you don’t want to talk about with everyone around.” Anna stood and walked over to walk past Horrik. “Let’s move somewhere private.”

“Oh! Umm…”

Anna looked back as she was walking away.

“Is there a problem?”

“Yeah, where do you think you are going?” A gruff female voice said in-front of her. She turned her head back forward to see an upset Lilian standing in her way a couple feet in-front of her.

Anna narrowed her eyes at her love.

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Anna asked Lilian incredulously.

“We just spent all night running towards the center swamp just to find you. You aren’t going anywhere.”

“Excuse me?!”

Anna couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“Where the hell do you get off telling me what I can and can’t do, or where I can go?”

“I am your mate!” Lilian shouted at her. 

“And what?! Do you think that gives you the right to dictate what I do?!”

“Yes! You are my mate and your Warchief, you do as I say! Its your duty! And I hereby order you, as Warchief to come with me to our tent to rest and so I can keep an I on!”

          

Anna stood there with her mouth a gap staring at Lilian.

“I… *SIGH*” Anna sighed, while bringing her hand up to her head. “I can’t even right now. I can’t even begin to start unpacking all that is wrong with that.”

Anna looked up and glared at Lilian.

“Yes. I am your mate. But I am not just someone you command and demand things from!” Anna shouted at her before stabbing a finger into the center of Lilian’s chest. “I am my own person, I have my own responsibilities! Just like how you have yours! I may be your mate, and you mine: but I am not an object you control; your Warchief title be damned!”

Anna reached back and grabbed Horrik’s hand.

This makes Horrik yelp surprise and the other two younger Mokra’Torcs gasp.

“We’re going over to that small clearing right there.” Anna tells Lilian with a point. “And I am going to go preform my first duty and act as a shaman, so I don’t want to see you over there to interrupt us!”

Anna pulled Horrik, who was wearing a horrified expression on his face as he passed his Warchief.

             

The other four orcs watched on with jaw dropped expressions as Anna dragged Horrik away.

        

Harks was the first to recover. He let out a snort, as he smirked towards the back of his Warchief’s head.

“Well! Seem to me we know who is the Warchief in this family! HA!”

After hearing this, Lilian’s face hardens as her teeth clench with a clack. Her whole head shook with rage as her jaw clenched tighter and tighter.

                             

————————————————-

                              

Anna dragged the poor, somewhat reluctant Horrik towards a spot about twenty meters away. To a spot they were originally going to set up camp at. But realized it was to narrow and surrounded by to many trees.

Anna let go of Horrik’s hand, then walked over to a pair of logs rest on the ground before sitting on one.

Horrik watched as she bent over at the waist at a forty-five degree angle before resting her elbows resting in her knees, the heals of her hands covering her eyes.

                  

Nervous and not sure what to say or do. Horrik just stood there awkwardly before speaking after a minute had passed.

“Umm… Anna?” When she didn’t respond he tried her title. “Shaman?”

She held up her hand.

“Just!—……” *SHUDDERING INHALE* “Just give me a moment Horrik… I will be ready for you in a moment. I just— *HIC* I just need a moment.”

Her right hand moved to point to the vacant log.

“J-J-Just— *HIC* Just sit over there, get comfortable and just… give me five minutes or so… then I will be ready… I promise.” She assured him.

He saw tears fall from her head even was she was facing away from him. He gave her a look of great understanding and sympathy.

“…Yeah… Take all the time you need Anna.” Then he reassured her back.

             

He walked over to sit onto the log that was at a slight angle from Anna’s log.

                

Horrik sat there.

            

And he waited.

             

He watched as his shaman let out the hurt that she knew she had to have been feeling since probably sometime yesterday.

By all the things said… maybe longer…

         

So he waited for her patiently.

          

After a long three minutes of crying, and another four minutes of silent shuddering breaths.

Anna finally looked up at him with red puffy eyes. She smiled at him through her tear stained face.

“Sorry about that.” She reached up to wipe her eyes and face with her sleeve.

“We came out here for you, but I end up taking up your time by feeling sorry for myself.”

But Horrik shook his head.

“No. Do not worry about it…… If anything, I am also concerned for you as well shaman… If you ever feel the need. Do not hesitate to call on me.”

Anna smiled at Horrik. She reached over and patted his hand.

“Thank you Horrik. I would take you up on that offer. But this is mine and Lilian’s…— I mean; mine and the Warchief’s problem.”

He just gave her a solemn nod before going back to staring at her.

        

“So?” Anna asked after wiping her face clean; sitting up straight to look more proper. “Umm… just so you know. I have no idea what I am doing with this… I assume I am just like, telling you what she tell me or so on?”

“Umm… from what I have been told… no. It is more like you are supposed to assume their spirit and let them speak through you.”

“OH! You mean like Ghost! With Patrick Swayze! I love that movie! So she has to like possess me right?!” Anna asked Horrik.

“I!—… Have no idea what it is you are talking about, or who that is; and I don’t think it works like that. I believe that the ancestors, they come into your body after you welcome them inside… That is why I did not have this done sooner. My shaman was a male, which he refused to do this with a female spirit.”

“Oh!…… Well! Then just so you realize. That Lilian is watching us right now.”

“She is here?!” He shouted before looking around in a fearful panic for his life.

Anna giggled.

“No Horrik, relax. She is about seven meters away.” Close enough to keep an eye on us. Not enough to hear us.” But then Anna’s face grew serious. “But you better believe she has her weapon drawn. So no funny business: if you get emotional while talking to your mate, resist the urge to touch or hug or kiss me: if Lilian catches you hugging me, touching me, or kissing me, she is most likely going to snap and kill one or both of us.”

Horrik could feel the blood draining from his face.

“Got it.” He said almost stoically.

                 

“Okay then. I am going to talk to your mate now. So I won’t be talking to you for a while.” Anna informs him. She clapped her hands together. “I will clap once before I let your mate take over. Then she will clap once when she is in. So there will be a total of two claps. But, if you hear me do a clap like this,”

*CLAP* *CLAP*

Anna did two quick clap sessions in a row.

“Then that means the session is done, and I am back to normal. Okay?”

Horrik nodded.

“Understood.”

Anna nodded back to him.

“Okay, here goes nothing.” Anna told him.

          

Anna looks up from Horrik to stare right above him.

                              

“Dourathia, your mate would like to talk to you, would you be willing to come and talk with him?”

Horrik watched fascinated as Anna; his shaman, called his mate by her name, even without having to ask her.

Okay. If we were not certain before, I do believe she is the real deal now: not that I ever didn’t believe her to begin with. Skeptical yes, but……

As his mind wondered, Anna’s hands reached out in-front of her and clapped a single time.

She stayed like that. Hands pressed together for a moment.

        

*INHALE*

        

*GASP*

                  

Anna’s eyes slowly opened. Which the sight of Anna’s eyes made Horrik’s eyes go wide.

Anna’s eyes were glowing blue. Not her irises, but the whites of her eyes.

                     

*CLAP*

                              

“Dourathia? Is?… Is that you?”

Anna, or rather Dourathia. Looked down at her hands as she slowly opened and closed her hands, clenching and unclenching them.

“Yeah, I’m back. This is… strange, to be inside a humans form. Different, yet. Familiar somehow.”

“Oh Dourathia, I am just so glad I can talk to you now! To hear you speak! You!— you even sound like you, even in her body!” Horrik noticed and said astonished.

“Yeah, this is pretty neat. That is mostly due to me being inside Shaman Anna’s body; about time that girl suited up and took on her responsibilities!” She scolded. She then glared at Horrik. “I spent almost everyday trying to convince this girl during your prayers to let me talk to him. I even settled on her delivering a message to you indirectly for me, rather than letting me tell you myself.”

            

Dourathia explained, then her expression winced.

“What is wrong?” Horrik asked.

“Huh? Nothing.”

“You winced.”

“Ah! That must have been Anna. She… is still in here.” She lifted Anna’s hand to tap at Anna’s head. “So this isn’t a private conversation right now.” She looked past Horrik to yell. “NOT THAT THIS WAS A PRIVATE CONVERSATION TO BEGIN WITH, WARCHIEF! YOU SPOILED BITCH!”

“Dourathia! Please! That is our Warchief!” He scolded while looking over his shoulder in worry.

“BAH! Let her be mad! Just shows what a brat she is. Besides, what is she going to do to me at the moment? Kill me?! HA! I am dead already, and am currently inside her mate.”

Horrik thought about that one for a moment, before letting out a chuckle.

“I suppose, lest she punishes me for what you say.” Horrik suggested.

“”She wouldn’t dare.”” The voices of Both Anna and Dourathia spoke as one.

                  

“Wow! That!… sounded weird.” Horrik commented.

“HA! You’re telling me! I was the one who did that because our minds are currently in-sync.” Dourathia quips.

She then winces in pain, bringing up a hand to rub her temple.

“What is wrong?!” He asked his mate worried.

“Nothing… just that this takes a lot out of me. Honey; my Ashu’Rágé.” Dourathia calls to Horrik.

“I know you want to pray to me everyday and talk to me. But you also need to live your life. I can’t always keep coming to you at your beck and call from the Beyond.”

Horrik looks down with a depressed expression.

“I…… I understand… I just miss you so much.”

She reaches across to stroke his cheek.

“I know you do my Ashu’Rágé. But you have to remember, I am gone now. And it makes me sad to see my remaining family sad and not enjoying this life to the fullest. You are not going to get a second one of this life: and… I know this isn’t what you are going to want to hear but…”

“Please Dourathia—“

“Find a mate.” She told him.

He looked down at his hand.

“……I can’t……”

“Horrik, please. Of everything I am going to say. Don’t fight me on this.”

“But my Ashu’Rágé! I love you! I love you to the very last shred of my soul!” He told his mate with tears streaming down his face. “How can I just move on to love another! How can you ask me that! Did you move on from me there? Is that what the Beyond does to you? Or does it not matter now?”

             

*SLAP*

               

“……………………”

“……………………”

They both looked at each other in shock.

                         

“That umm… wasn’t me.” Dourathia told her mate. “Sorry! I will stay out of it now! I swear! You just made me so mad hearing you say that Horrik!” Anna explained.

            

Horrik just looked at his mate, or Anna, or—

He wasn’t even sure anymore.

He just gave a light chuckle.

“Guess I deserved that.” Horrik comments jokingly.

“Ha ha ha, guess our Shaman thought you did too! …But I understand what you were trying to say or ask. I struggled with those questions myself when I first arrived at my Beyond destination: “Do I want him to find a new mate?” “How long should he wait?!” “How soon is to soon?” But the question I always came back to for every question I had with you, involved one other person.” She looked him dead in the eyes. “What about our little girl? What about Nilah?”

                

Horrik closed his eyes before taking a deep breath at her question. Trying to center himself for the what his mate said next.

He felt hands take his own.

“She needs a mother darling.”

He took another deep breath before answering.

“…I know…” He said shakily.

                                               

“She needs someone there to be with her. Needs someone to take care of her; especially since I’m not, and you can’t always be there.”

                

“……I-… *GULP* I know……” Horrik agreed in a strained, quiet voice.

“Our Shaman shares that you might be able to raise her on your own. But being a single parent is hard; even harder on the children. She explains.” Dourathia conveys to Horrik of Anna’s thoughts on the situation.

“…I understand that…”

“The listen to me damn it!” Dourathia shouts at her mate. She lifts his head with both of Anna’s hands. “Look into my eyes. So that you can tell I am not lying to you.”

He looks into Anna’s blue glowing eyes, with green irises.

“I love you. With all of my being as well. That will not change, and I am sure that will not change for you. But I do not expect; nor do I want you to remain in misery over my early parting, okay? You know that our family is hurting from my death. And you have been putting off the chance to help it heal for two years since my death. Which I appreciate, but our union was done at my parting. I know you feel that you would betray our love, or worried you might forget me.”

              

She smiled at him.

“But you won’t forget me, and our daughter won’t either. I will always be watching over you both. So do me a favor my love. Go and claim her as a mate already.”

“Honey…” Horrik groaned.

“Look,” Dourathia grumbled. “You have been ignoring her love for a year now. At first, it was just affection from both of you being in-laws, but now? Her pain for me is almost gone, but she still also prays for my understanding that if she would be allowed, that she would take good care of my family.”

Tears spilled from Anna’s eyes from Dourathia’s emotions.

“And I know my sister will take good care of both of you! Like she has done for the last two years since my departure into the Beyond.” Dourathia explained to Horrik.

                                                 

Horrik’s eyes also spilled tears of relief and sadness at his mate’s words.

“But what happens after this life Dourathia?! What happens to you and I and Charriney if I were to mate with your younger sister?! What… what happens in the Beyond realm once we are reunited?!”

“Well… I can’t say for certain. But I will tell you, once you make your way towards me, which I know you will. And if my sister also does, I promise, she and I will not split you in half to claim you… but maybe just share you.”

“What?!”

“You know my mate… you have a lot of time to consider things once you are dead. And the realm of death, has things we need to do here, and if we all three are here. I will being sharing you with my sister, and you will be a lucky soul in the afterlife to experience love twice in one of their life times. Let that sink in my Ashu’Rágé.”

Horrik looked down and smiled in relief as the stress melted away with his worries at his mate’s words; his tears flowed at both his mate’s assurance and loving conviction for him and her sister: her approve meant everything to him.

“Thank you my Ashu’Rágé. You probably don’t know how much—“

“Of course I do. I was literally worrying about the same things right along with you……. But if you got together with that hussy Grawnlar, I swear to god honey! I would have!—“

“Please! Give me some credit my love! I am not so blind that I would ever go with a woman like her!” Horrik defended himself.

“Good.”

           

*INHALE*

                         

“I don’t have much more time left love. Let me make these next two worries for you short.” She narrowed her eyes at Horrik. “One of which, you definitely should know that answer for!” She shouts at him.

“Heh! I know…” He laughed with a tinge of sad apologeticness in his voice.

“The let our daughter go with you more. Let her see what it is like: let her be, what my father wouldn’t let me be; let our daughter be a warrior.”

Horrik smiled at his mate’s words before chuckling.

“Okay… I was mostly—“

“Dragging your feet and letting others dictate what you should do!” She shouted. Dourathia leaned over in Anna’s body, to look into the woods.

“AND JUST LIKE A CERTAIN PANSY ASS WARCHIEF OF OURS!”

                     

“Ho-Honey!” Horrik tried to sooth her.

“Look mate of mine. Our daughter has the same dream as mine when I was young. To be more than just a hunter; to be a warrior! You have a Warchief that can make that happen. Encourage her on this trip, try and see it our way! Not the old blowhards’ way!”

“………Honey… one would think you weren’t talking about the elders or shamans…”

“MMMEEEHHH! Blowhards! The lot of them! They can go suck a mammoth’s cock!” Dourathia grumbled.

“D-Dourathia!”

“Oh my!” Anna pretends to have her sensibilities offended.

“Look what you did!” Horrik worries.

Dourathia just rolls Anna’s eyes.

“Bah! She is just playing you! God! It is a wonder that some other poor woman didn’t snatch you up before I did, what with your weak personality and all.” Dourathia comments harshly.

This actually just gets the three party group to laugh.

“That is because you did!” Horrik corrected. “You may as well have done the males role of our courting and dragged me back to make me submit to you!”

She made them laugh again.

              

Horrik’s mate was quiet for a long moment after that.

“Honey?”

“Oh! Sorry, just having a thought duel with our shaman. She didn’t like the idea of what males do to females to court them: so I am almost out of time, so you explain that to her later.”

“Wait what?! I will not explain male courting rituals to the Warchief’s mate! That is unless you want our child to end up an orphan!”

         

“Hmm… good point.” She looked up at him seriously.

“Now… for your last worry… *INHALE* …The Shaman and I have a differencing opinion on this subject. And so… out of respect for both or Shaman’s and Warchief’s life choices… I will say this: just let her choose.”

“R-Really?”

Dourathia shrugged Anna’s shoulders.

“Sure, why not. I was just going to tell you to tell our daughter to straighten up…… but I realize she is also only nine… so it could all be talk.” Dourathia suggested.

“Or she can know!” Anna interjected.

“……Or she could know.” Dourathia repeated what Anna said through gritted teeth.

“While I would rather have our daughter grow up in a normal relationship…… If our daughter is backwards for love. I just say, let her. These to seem to be setting an example of how it could work.”

          

“So!” Dourathia smiled as she stood. “I love you mate. That answer everything you wanted? Feeling good now?” She asked him.

He nodded before standing. He sniffed before answering her.

“Yeah, all good now my love. Thank you. Thank you so much for answering my questions my love. The weight I have been feeling on my shoulders for the past, almost two years… it feels so much light; now that I have your opinion on what to do with our family.”

Dourathia smile at him.

“I am still glad you still call it our family… even after all this time…” She quipped with a sad smile.

“And I always will. I will let Charriney know what you said as well. And… I will go claim your sister.”

She chuckled.

“Enjoy, and have fun with that. That will be a seriously different dynamic for you; being the chieftain in our family’s hut.”

Horrik chuckled.

“Shut up.” He quipped playfully.

She just smiled at him.

                

“I love you my Ashu’Rágé.” She told Horrik.

“And I love you too, my beautiful mate; I love you Dourathia, my warrior.”

Tears spilled our of Anna’s eyes one last time before the blue fire in the whites of her eyes disappeared.

           

Anna raised her hands.

                                

*CLAP* *CLAP*