Dark Necessities

 

Emma set down the pot she used to serve Gwyn some tea. The woman looked nervous and kept darting her eyes toward Sabina who stood nearby staring out of the window. Gwyn wasn’t sure what to say to her, so she just kept quiet. 

Sabina hadn’t said much since the others had left. After Theran had locked down the fence and set the guards up on patrols, her protector just stayed close, but also seemed distant. While Gwyn’s magic didn’t allow her to read minds, she didn’t need it to know something was wrong. She sighed, noticing Sabina twitch as she did so. 

Gwyn narrowed her eyes, starting to get angry. It wasn’t the elf’s reaction that upset her, but the fact that the jerk marquess guy was doing all of this. That his actions were causing her people–her family–stress. Now, Taenya had to go put herself in harm’s way and possibly die because she wanted to protect Gwyn. Sabina was quiet and likely focusing on her magic, to feel if anyone was approaching to harm them.

I should be there to protect Taenya. I can–She took a deep breath, glancing at Sabina. I need to talk to her. It’s time.

Gwyn looked at Emma, the woman looking concerned, a little shaky, but that was understandable. Everyone knew what was going on. The threat to all of them wasn’t a secret. 

“Emma?”

The elf perked up, steeling herself to do whatever Gwyn needed. She almost felt bad about it, but she needed Emma to leave the room. While she may be a bit open with who she showed her magic, she would not do that to Sabina. The woman was fiercely private, almost as much as Taenya. 

“Yes, Your Highness?”

“Could you–I am just going to say it. Could you please give Ser Sabina and me a moment to speak?” she asked as politely as possible.

Emma curtsied. “Of course, Your Highness. I understand. I will go fetch something for you to eat.”

Gwyn smiled. That wasn’t so bad. “Thank you, Emma. I appreciate it.”

The woman returned a smile, and Gwyn hoped it helped the woman relax, just a bit. She took one last sip of her tea and set the cup aside for the woman. She sat quietly as Emma gathered the empty tea cup and pot onto the tray it had arrived on and exited the room. 

Gwyn watched Sabina as the woman stood at the window. She waited. Counted to one hundred before she eventually got tired of waiting. 

“So… Are we going to talk?” she asked the dark-haired wall. 

Sabina didn’t reply, her eyes were closed and she remained still. Oblivious to anything outside of what she was doing.

Gwyn shut her eyes as well, her senses delving inside herself. The churning orb inside of her struggled to contain the different colors of her magic. That’s not right. It doesn’t stay inside of there, it calls to it. It’s my connection to the magic, its connection to me. 

Gwyn focused on that connection, feeling the different types of mana inside of her. Each had a different tune in the song that they sang. The blue was calm, like a violin, so melodic and purposeful. A song of logic and innovation. 

The red was more of initiative and impartiality, with justice waiting to be enacted. 

The black… was the most demanding of songs. It sang of chaos and impulse, a power that could devour both her enemies and herself if she let it. 

Another color was all around her, or rather, colorless magic. It was the most confusing song. It was quieter, and yet more accessible. A symphony of sounds that promised everyone could hear and touch. It was the magic in between everything, connecting to all others. The balance. It was space. It was… time. She knew if she pushed into that magic, so much would open up to her. A connection that would bridge all of her magic together and allow her to protect her people. 

Gwyn tugged at that magic and felt it freely come to her, but it was both easier and more difficult at the same time. It was everywhere, but understanding it was so different. She considered her earlier thought about how the magic connected to her. She focused on that connection, and then followed it to where it lay around them, in everything. It was as if all of existence was magic, or rather it was the substance that made magic possible. Even though her eyes were shut, she had never seen more clearly.

A pulsing rush of that white magic flowed up from the ground and into her. Swelling in her orb before spreading throughout her body. She watched as it seemed to follow little pipes that were in her body, spreading out in smaller lines from there. Everywhere it touched seemed to get stronger. 

Her eyelids closed tightly, but she still saw a swirling world of color and mist before her. While it wasn’t perfect, she knew she could now walk or do anything blindfolded if she wanted. I could even do this with no eyes. I even bet that would make it stronger! Wait… That’s a terrible idea… why would anyone purposely remove their eyes to try and see better? 

She turned her head toward Sabina, gasping as she saw the black mist coming from her head and out of the window before it spread out thinly. There was a quick pulse of condensed black mist that seemed as if it were spinning in a big circle with Sabina in the center. It almost reminded her of those old screens at an airport or army base that she saw in movies; the green ones that would tell if bad airplanes were coming. As she observed the magic the woman was working, she saw more pulses. Well, her circle has four lines, not just one. 

Gwyn opened her eyes, her normal vision easily merging with the overlay of magic everywhere. The magic inside of her seemed to strain her quicker with that, and she rubbed at her eyes as it felt similar to looking at a computer screen for too long. She let go of the… ____ Sight before it became too much. The magic felt like it had a name for it. Something that it wanted to be called, but she couldn’t figure it out. 

She sighed. Sabina turned finally, tilting her head as she peered at Gwyn.

“What was that? I… felt something.”

Gwyn smiled. “I learned a new spell. Well, sort of. I don’t quite have the right name. I am missing something.”

Sabina nodded, opening her mouth to speak but Gwyn beat her to it. 

“Sabina? We should talk. About your magic.”

The elf froze. “My–my magic?”

“We both know that I know, right? You’re really not good at keeping secrets. You didn’t even turn when I started getting angry. Why not? I know you can feel the emotions.” Wait. Can she–Sabina? Can you hear me? Gwyn pulled at her mana and pushed it into her thoughts. Sabina! Can you hear me?!

Sabina’s nose scrunched up, her ear twitched as if she physically heard her.

I know you can hear me. You probably are purposely trying to not hear my thoughts, or feel what I am feeling. That’s how you knew about my nightmare, right? You felt what I felt and came running.

Sabina stepped forward quickly and took a knee. “My princess–Your Highness. I swear. I swore. I-I-I…” The woman fell and sat on her knees, tears started flowing. 

Gwyn stepped forward and grabbed her. Hugging her as tightly as she could. She leaned her head against Sabina’s. “I know. Keep this secret Sabina. Tell only those who need to know, but we will figure out the rest. I trust you.”

The woman was crying. Gwyn let go of Sabina and stood up, placing her hands on either side of her knight’s face before pressing her forehead to the elf’s. She whispered, mentally. You swore to me that you’d keep the nightmares away. You can’t do that if you don’t know my feelings. Teach me to keep my thoughts private when I want them to be if that makes you feel better. I trust you.

Sabina’s shoulders fell and she grabbed Gwyn and pulled her close, sobbing. She coughed as she tried to speak. “W-Why?”

“Why what? Why do I trust you?”

She felt the woman’s head nod slightly. 

“Because you care. Because you would do anything to keep me safe and help me find mom. You don’t want to use me for whatever plans you can think of.” Because you worked so hard to control your magic, just because you didn’t want to betray my trust. You are always there by my side when I need it. You are my last line of defense. My protector. My friend.

“But I–I hurt someone,” Sabina whispered

Gwyn narrowed her eyes, feeling her fire warm her. “And I killed two people. You will not do that again to anyone that doesn’t deserve it. It is a weapon. From now on, you need to compare what you’re doing to that. It is taking away their free will. Even in our darkest moments, we should be able to rely on our thoughts. Remember that before you act.”

“I will, Your Highness,” Sabina whispered.

Gwyn smirked. “Sabina… it’s just us.”

Sabina looked up at her and raised a brow. 

Gwyn laughed. “There’s the brow. You’ve got it down. You’re going to be a great mom one day.”

Sabina’s eyes widened and she froze. “W-what?”

“I said, you’re going to be a great mom one day. I can’t wait to be an aunt. We need to find you a boyfriend.”

The elf shook her head quickly. “No. What? Where is this coming from? An aunt? What?”

“You’re right. More of a cousin, since you’re basically my aunt now. I’m going to be quite a bit older than your baby though. So cousin seems weird.”

“But I am not pregnant!”

“You’re not pregnant, yet. We just gotta find you a boyfriend. You guys get married. Have a baby,” Gwyn explained.

“How do you even know how that works?”

Gwyn smirked. Distraction. Got you.

Sabina’s brow shot back up as she sat back and pointed at Gwyn. “You…”

Gwyn laughed, but trailed off and sighed.

“Sabina? Remember when I went to see the Archpriestess?”

Sabina tilted her head. “I do. What does–”

“Well, she wanted me to tell you something. I am not sure how she knows, but–” The Archpriestess says that Alos casts a great shadow and that you don’t need to stray too far from the light to find it.

Sabina’s eyes shot open and her jaw dropped. “She said that?”

Gwyn nodded. “Yes. I got the feeling that she trusts you as well.” Your magic can be used for good too, Sabina. You’ve been doing it. Keep doing it. Just don’t let it control you. 

“I will not allow it. I swear.”

“Sabina?” 

“Yes, Gwyn?”

Gwyn smiled and hugged her again, leaning on her shoulder. It felt right. She and Taenya were like some quirky aunts, filling in for her mom until they found her. Gwyn was sure that they would find her, too. Especially with Taenya and Sabina on it, she had nothing to worry about. They were everything to her, and she knew they cared for her just as much as she cared about them. 

She lowered her voice, whispering, “Thank you for being great.”

Sabina choked down a sob, wrapping her up in a hug and holding her tight. 

It felt perfect. Now her other aunt just needed to get home safely.

 

* * *

 

Taenya stood with Siveril and Niles in the crowd. The House guards stood at attention along the wall behind them with those from the duchy, as expected. They stood with the crowd, Siveril content to let everything proceed until it was time. They would let the marquess make the first move, after all, theirs was a reaction. There was no way they could have known what he was doing.

The court proceeded as it normally did. Various petitioners stood before the Seat of the Duchy, the throne that Duke Tiloral and every Tiloral for three centuries had sat on. A Seat that was coveted by so many Houses that sought to increase their standings. 

The Duchy of Tiloral was a kingdom once, one that was conquered by the Kingdom of Avira after a decade-long war. One that an exhausted Tiloral decided was best to make the most of a worsening situation with their rivals than to continue. In what historians saw as a diplomatic victory for the Tilorals, they managed to convince the Avirans to accept their kingdom as a duchy, and the king would relinquish his crown and kneel before his counterpart. In exchange, the Avirans who had a grudging respect for the Tilorals accepted and brought the new duchy into the fold as it was. It was the first time such a thing had happened, and the duchy was one of three in the large kingdom that had never changed hands. 

The Duchy of Tiloral was rich in resources and trade, a fact that caused many to want a piece of it. Even the Crown grew to covet the duchy over time. Some would say that alone meant that the Tilorals had won in the long run. For they had fought a greater kingdom that should have won in a year, then turned into a powerhouse that even the Crown could not afford to antagonize. 

Which made the move by the crown prince all the more… telling.

If the Crown was actively moving against the Tilorals, it must feel as though it had enough support and strength to withstand the potential of the historically neutral House aligning with the nobles' faction. 

You see, the Kingdom of Avira had two main factions, a division as common and lasting as the nature of kingdoms itself. The Royals and the Nobles had always bickered and fought over how much authority and power should be delegated and to whom. The Crown couldn’t push too far because then it would lose the support of the nobility, but then any single House couldn’t either, because then their fellow nobles would pounce, or the Crown would simply remove them. The problem came when the nobles banded together. 

Avira had once almost lost a war due to nearly half the nation simply refusing to accept the king of the time’s levy. A move that was finally solved by none other than the Tilorals, and one that granted the kingdom’s sole seaport to the duchy as a spoil of the war.

A seaport that was now the largest source of income in the kingdom. One that would finally push House Tiloral past the Crown as the wealthiest House and faction in the kingdom.

Of course, the Crown would act. They feel threatened and must believe they have no choice. 

Taenya scoffed, garnering a look from Siveril. 

The old elf leaned toward her and spoke so she could hear him. “What is on your mind, Ser Taenya?”

“The decree, and the reasoning behind it.”

Siveril nodded. “I have thought of it for some time. Avira may be more dangerous than I last assumed. The outcome of what we are about to do will determine such.”

Taenya nodded. “Do you think that–”

“Look. The marquess is making his move,” Siveril said, gesturing with his head toward the center of the hall.

She sighed. “Here we go.” 

Taenya quieted and watched. Waiting to act.