Unto the Shadow (Completed)

(Ch.22) Power

Graynin anxiously paced in front of his open windows that looked out onto the back property. He had been able to pick up very little from Ryder and Jade's practice. It had been hours since he had felt anything, and the last thing he had felt had sent him running from his room, grabbing his Tekana sword on the way. He had been overwhelmed by an eruption of raw energy, that had broken through Jade's shield. But Athos had stopped him in the hallway before he made it to the stairs, as if the old man had been waiting there the whole time.

The spastic characteristics of the energy blast made his hair stand on end. He had never experienced anything like it before, it was not one distinct element, it was more like fragments of all four colliding. It had felt primitive, and wild.

Graynin walked out onto the balcony, appreciating the cold breeze that swept across his bare chest. His reprieve was short lived as movement in the willows caught his eye. Stepping back inside, he watched as Ryder and Jade disappeared inside the house. Graynin quickly stuffed his arms into the sleeves of his shirt, and practically jogged down the hall. He was determined to find Jade and find out what happened before anything else could get in his way.

Rounding a corner he was just in time to watch Jade close the door to Athos' private study. He nearly turned to track down Ryder, but quickly dismissed the bad idea. Knowing that he was not the right person to comfort her after the wildness that had happened. No, she would want to find someone that would provide her with security, and he was not that person to her.

Instead, a glass of whisky was the best solution for the moment. But before his feet could lead him back to his room Athos' study door creaked open. Jade's tired, but fierce eyes emerged to glare at him. "Athos says you should be in here too."

He was grateful to be invited into the conversation, but also skeptical. Everything Athos did was calculated, the Healer went through life the way a person plays chess, with a brilliant plan that always had distractions and sacrifice.

The study's walls were covered in shelves, full of hundreds of books, and thousands of glass vials. All containing different mysterious properties, that Graynin wouldn't open if his life depended on it. Whether it be a vial or a book. The only bare spaces on the walls gave way to a large window, and on the opposite side, a large fireplace held a roaring fire.

Athos sat on a plush sofa facing the fireplace. His eyes smiled up at Graynin as he sipped his tea, as if his presence was a pleasant surprise. There were no signs of the broken old man that had visited Graynin last night, who had confided in him the looming threat of war, and death. No, Athos had returned to his usual comforting self.

Graynin dipped his head in greeting to Athos, before taking a seat in one of the matching chairs, at either side of the fireplace. Graynin waited for Jade to settle in, and Athos to fill her teacup. She looked even worse than Graynin had anticipated.

"Thank you." Jade said, as she accept the teacup.

"Of course, my dear, you need it. There are some herbs in the pot that will help you relax." Jade inhaled the steam, and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Graynin just sat in his chair quietly, simply waiting for the undoubted storm to unfold. He fed the fire more oxygen, so that it jumped to a new level of life. He too was trying to provide Jade with some comfort, because despite the stuffiness of the room, he could still see her hands shaking around her teacup.

"She is not ready for any of this." Jade blurted out.

Athos' eyes shot to Graynin, pinning him with a command of silence. Athos anticipating his response, and killing it before he could utter it.