The Immortal One

Chapter Seven - Rite of Passage

The name 'dragon mountain' was most apropos. It was situated in central Teldiir near the great forest protected by the people of Avinós. It was home mostly to the wyverns, the lesser cousins of the true dragons. The wyverns were fierce and powerful creatures but they lacked the intelligence and speech of their ancestors - they had lost their majik. They were not lacking in size and strength however. To do battle with them was to challenge what was one of the strongest beasts on the continent.
Hunters from Avinós have traditionally pursued their kind on behalf of craftsmen to make arms and armor from their bones and scales - but times change. The Dekaas, the half-dragons, took it upon themselves to protect all dragonkind, and kill anyone who would dare to lay claim to a hunt in their territory. Since a few men and women had been made an example of, mankind steered clear of the jagged peaks of the dragon mountain.

Säyä stood with her back pressed against a thin ledge. She did not move or breathe. She became like the rocks that surrounded her, motionless and silent.
Her red hair had been cropped short and she wore a face-mask which concealed all but her eyes. Her clothing and gear was designed to camouflage with the tan colored rocks and gray stones.
She waited there until a wyvern came into view. Just her luck, it was a fully grown male; its neck was longer than her entire body. Four strong legs, each bearing vicious claws, were planted squarely on the ground as it sniffed out prey of its own.
Säyä raised her right hand and made a hand-sign with her fingers. The energy within her body began to move, her meridians expanded and increased the volume of the flow.
She remembered her master's words...
Beasts are aware of subtle vibrations. Their instincts have been honed over generations. Do not focus hostile intentions upon your prey before your first strike has been dealt. Otherwise they will feel you coming like an insect that moves aside just before you swing. Intent is a powerful form of communication in their world. Master yours.
She set her focus instead upon the wyvern's shadow as she moved toward her target.
Imagine yourself as light as a feather, and with training you will become as such. Imagine yourself with the speed of a bolt of lightning, and your body will rewrite itself to make it so. Men train their bodies with force and repetition. If you wish to become more than human, then you must master your mind and imagination. Synchronize them with your body so that they are all one and the same. This is the path to true mastery.
Säyä imagined that she was a ghost. She decided that her body was in another dimension and thus could not be seen or heard, it could not be halted. She drew near with a dagger held fast in her left hand. Still her intent was concealed. Not even a thought of the kill to come entered her mind.
When you strike, you must aim for the underbelly. A simple dagger will not piece wyvern-scale.
The beast raised its head and inhaled through its nostrils. At last it had caught the scent of its next meal. It rose its leg and prepared to run just as the dagger found its way between its ribs.
Electricity surged from the tip of the blade and coursed throughout the creature's body. Just as it opened its mouth to roar from the pain she cast a silence spell around its head. Nothing would hear the beast call for help. The electric current paralyzed its muscles and allowed her to carve deeper into its flesh and attack its internal organs.
It was only a temporary measure however. A swipe from its tail caused her to retreat. The wyvern stumbled as it tried to regain its balance but the wound was severe and the advantage was clearly hers. While still maintaining the sound spell, she sheathed her dagger and made a second sign with her left hand. She reached inside the open wound with telekinesis and ripped out one of its ribs. Its roar was again muffled. Despite the pain that was surely flooding the creature's brain, it charged at her.
Säyä leapt back and threw a container upon the ground. It burst open on contact and released more water than could possibly have been contained within a vessel of that size. When all four of the wyvern's feet were in the water she cast her spell. She had left a wire behind when she last moved, the other end of which was securely in her hand. She electrified the wire and the current traveled to the puddle in the blink of an eye. Again the wyvern was frozen as the electricity caused uncontrollable spasms throughout its body. This time, Säyä lunged in and slashed up the length of its neck. Blood rained down upon her, showering her in drops of victory.
She let go of the wire and pierced as deeply as she could into the bottom of its jaw; she pushed it in until she was wrist deep in its flesh...and then it toppled over, dead.
"That was for my father."
Saying the words felt good, even better than she had imagined; but it did not satisfy her. The wyvern that Ziihärk had pursued had not killed him. The Dekaas had done that. Her revenge was not yet complete.
With dagger in hand she cut out the beast's heart and placed it in the special bag that Aetós had given her. Then she removed several of its fangs, and as many scales as she could carry back.
The sun was still high in the sky by the time that the job was finished. She was grateful, for she knew that the Dekaas were far more active at night. With the trophies of her victory in tow, she climbed back down the mountain.

By nightfall she had made it back to camp. She found Aetós tending the fire. He had already hunted their meal for the evening. She was surprised to see that he had caught enough for the both of them. This was, after all, a special occasion.
"You still live." He did not sound surprised, but he was not visibly impressed either.
"Did you doubt that I would?"
"Death was a real possibility. You were fortunate that you encountered none of the Dekaas."
"How do you know whether or not I fought one?"
He chuckled, "again, because you still live."
He motioned for her to sit down and eat, and she did so.
He continued, "It will take more than a few years of training to make you into the warrior that you wish to become. Still, you have improved considerably, your victory today is proof of that. You have come a long way."
Säyä smiled before biting into one of the birds that he had felled with a simple stone. It was cooked thoroughly and de-feathered of course. He had even seasoned it with a few herbs that were native to the area. The harsh training methods that Aetós employed had cultivated within her a deep appreciation for every meal that she ate. For a time he had stranded her on a desert island for three seasons, she barely made it through the experience.
He had warned her. He had been fair. She could not say otherwise. True to his word she was growing stronger each day. She had learned to survive in all manner of desperate situations. She was being sculpted with each new lesson.
When their meal was finished, they sat back and looked at the stars. In the back of her mind she knew that the Dekaas were probably tracking her even now. They had set up camp not far from the base of the mountain, and even with her skills of concealment, the powerful senses of the beast-folk would likely prevail. Under different circumstances she would never have stopped even for a moment until she was as far away from them as she could manage; but she was with her master. Not even the half-dragons would stand a chance at besting him in battle, she reasoned.
Perhaps Aetós was expecting them to come. Perhaps he wanted them to. Either way, she felt safe in his company.
"So...where to next master? The Glowing Jungles of Fel'osahn on Lekäriiä? Or what about the island of Aasuulyor, where the rest of the beast-folk live?"
"Do you want to die?"
She was taken aback by his question. She had believed that death was immanent many times during her training, but never had he asked such a question.
"N-no."
"Do you fear death?"
She opened her mouth to answer but quickly stopped herself. She realized that there was more to him asking this than she was aware of. She remembered all of her near death experiences and the multitude of feelings that emerged as a result. She recalled the feeling of losing both Riizä and Ziihärk. That had hurt even worse. She realized that she was more afraid of losing other people to death, than she was of dying herself.
"I fear it, yes. But I fear giving up more. I fear not living up to your expectations."
"You fear that more than death itself?"
"Yes!" She answered passionately. "That is why I will endure whatever training that you set before me. I will brave whatever dangerous land and I will survive! One day, I will become strong enough to kill the strongest of the Dekaas; and I will do it without majik! I want to slay him with my blade, like Ziihärk would have. Only you can make me that strong."
Aetós did not take his eyes off of the constellations. "What happens when you reach that goal? When the chief among the Dekaas has fallen to your sword, what then?"
"Then...Then I will help you to defeat your enemies."
"What do you know of my enemies? How do you even know that they are worth killing? What have they done to you? What if they are right for trying to stop me?"
Again, she was taken aback. He was testing her, feeling her out...for something.
"I made a promise. I swore that our paths would be woven as one, that I would follow and learn from you. I am your apprentice, and that commitment means everything to me."
He rose to his feet suddenly. Three years had done nothing to dilute the effects of his intense gaze. With just a glance he could strike terrible fear into her heart, just as he was doing to her now.
"It was a commitment made by a child who knows nothing of what she involves herself in. You have learned much in your time with me. Take it and go! Live your life as you see fit. I have been neglecting my duties for your sake. Where I go, the life that I live, is not for children."
Säyä took to her knees. The connection between their Hearts had only grown stronger over time. Even at a distance, Aetós could feel when she was in danger. There were times when their emotions arose in such harmony that self could not be distinguished from other. Aetós could not tell whether or not his feelings for her were just a reflection of how she felt for him, or if they were genuinely his own. Did it matter? He felt them just the same. He knew well what she thought of him. She loved him, passionately, furiously, and more deeply than he dared admit.
"If you plan to send me away then kill me now and save me the trouble. I am yours or I am done."
He drew close to her and took hold of her jaw as she knelt before him.
"What madness possesses you? Have I not told you that there are worse things than death? You told me how it felt to be alone in that forest after your guardians died. Loneliness is a pain that only grows deeper with time, it does not heal! You would be a fool to follow me any further."
"You said this once before, and my answer is the same. You said there was no turning back and I believed you. I want it to be true. Take me with you, and I will never feel alone again."
I will...when you die. He thought. There is only one way to grant your wish, and you do not know what you ask.
He knew that there would be no convincing her but he had to try. Secretly, a part of him had hoped that she would die upon the mountain so that she could find the peace that would forever elude her if she followed this path to its conclusion. But it was not to be so, and there was but one course of action remaining to him...the Covenant.
"Very well...Today was a test. To see whether or not you are worthy to become a candidate for the Order of Gul. You have passed. Therefore, if you choose to, you may take the steps towards making a pact with my master and become one of us."
While he still held her face, Säyä rose to her feet. She placed her hand tenderly over his.
"Are you...are you offering what I-"
"Do you wish to become an Immortal?"
The words would not come as she commanded them to. The two of them stood and stared into one another's eyes, locked in the gaze of the other as surely as their Hearts were bound.
"I will walk with you through Eternity. Neither of us has to be alone...ever again."
"Then there is one more thing that you must learn."
"What is my next lesson, master?"
"You must understand...what Death is."