Gilded Serpents

Chapter Twenty-Three: Of New Beginnings

What was I?

Disciple of Solia, yes. I had no choice in that matter and no use fighting that anymore. But beside my Blood Mage fate, what was I?

A victim of circumstance?

A directionless wanderer?

It was Ciro though who seemed to decide for me, pounding at my door at the break of dawn. He had slammed his palm on the wooden door, shooting me upright in bed.

"Come now, Mira," he called, voice particularly gruff in the early morning hour, "It's time you learned to defend yourself - you're in the Barrens now. You need to be a fighter - a warrior, whether you like it or not."

A warrior.

I suppose I had the right outfit.

I washed up before putting on the Halmore armor again. Each black piece seemed to snap together, sliding in place, hugging my body like a custom-tailored glove. I still hadn't gotten used to how light it felt on my body. As I took my first steps within the armor, I almost tripped, expecting the stone boot to resist.

It was cold outside with the two suns only now starting their trail across the open sky. The open land, empty from horizon to horizon was beautiful, but unsettling. Although my childhood home was not within any bustling city by far, it at least had the comforting walls of the forest, vibrant green and so full of life.

My first impressions of the Barrens caused me to believe that Ciro and I were the only living things in the desolate landscape. It was only when I really looked, consciously stopping myself to observe my surroundings, that I began to see how wrong I was. What was once a mere rock was the gravel shell of a boney crustacean. The odd long-thistled branch coming out of the sparse grass became the tail of a silken vermin, moving with the steady winds just out of the corners of my eyes. What was once an odd shaped seashell poking out of the sands became the camouflage snout of a lizard, stalking any unsuspecting prey.

Ciro had his back to me as he faced the black ocean, one hand impatiently on his hip, the other on his glimmering halberd. He turned around, white hair whipping with the sea breeze, and a smile across his face.

"Ready?" he asked.

"I guess. I'm not sure what for," I yawned, stretching out my arms.

Ciro walked forward towards me, taking heavy steps on the soft sand. He weighed his weapon in his hands, eyes lowered in concentration.

"Although Blood Magic is powerful, it can't protect you from everything. Sure, with a wave of your hand, you can absorb the magic from almost everything - but only when you're close enough - for the most part. If your magic is already low, you will need to be damn-well touching the source to absorb it. But -" he stopped, standing beside me as we faced the water, "The opposite is also true. Taking someone or something's magic is always easier if you're full of it already. Back when I was fighting armies all by myself, I could take the magic from things as far as the eye could see just with a wave of my little hand."

Ciro sighed, leaning against the staff of the halberd for support. I watched the rising suns coming up over the horizon through his cloudy stare, wondering if my own would ever look quite like his.

"But, Mira, the soldiers at the Barren border are a bit smarter than they were back then, with delicately crafted magic armor, weaved with wards protecting them far better from us than ever before. No, you'll at least need to see their skin to get to their magic, at least for now.

"They attack from the skies on their great beasts, hide arrowmen in the cliffs - even setting traps where you'd least expect it. Sure, that fancy armor of yours will help, but until you get to know your magic better, you need to learn how to protect yourself - from magic, swords, anything that will come your way."