Thunder claps as the rain scatters over the roof. Eel lays on the bed unable to sleep. He stares at the ceiling, the storm's fury sending flashes of his dreams across his mind. He covers himself and closes his eyes as lightning crashes against the scourging winds. Eel sees the face of the woman staring at him in the void, her silver long hair reminiscent of his mother's as she sat against his father's bed yelling out in agony. He sits up on the bed and looks around him. Archi and Rachet lay across him on another bed. They grumbled in their sleep as Eel nibbled his way out of the room and into the main living room. Orion lays on a chair opposite the door, his sword cradled against his shoulder and some unlit shine in between his fingers. Eel picks up the candle illuminating the dining area. He walks to the window, staring at the heavy drops of rain splattering over the darkened soil. He looks across the door and sees N'dîr, she's seated on a chair, staring on quietly under heavy rainfall.
Eel opens the door and walks out into the rain, he feels the raindrop ricochet against his bare feet as he runs towards N'dîr.
"N'dîr " he yells out under the loud splash of the rain falling. She doesn't respond, he grabs her by the shoulder turning her face towards him. Eel feels his body rush with power as she turns towards him, her eyes are whited out, just like the woman from his dreams. He jumps away from her startled, losing his footing and slipping on some mud.
N'dîr stands up and walks to him, he crawls away from her as she stretches her hands out to help him. "I am sorry to scare you, young lord," she says, "Raindrop is a spell that requires you to enter the void." N'dîr eyes go back to normal as she begins to speak to Eel. he stretches out his hands feeling the heavy rain trashing against his body. She pulls him up to his feet as he begins to slowly shiver in his drenched clothes.
"Thank you, N'dîr," he says to her, shaking.
"You are welcome," she replies, leading him under the cover of the roof.
"What are you doing out there N'dîr? and what do you mean by the void." Eel asks, hoping to learn some clues about his dream.
Ndir chuckles as she hears this, " Let's get you inside first," she replies, leading him into the living room. Eel shivers as they walk quietly into the dimly lit room. N'dîr snaps her fingers and the whole room lights up with burning candles positioned over them by a silver chandelier. Eel marvels at N'dîr 's abilities, he felt like she could do whatever she wanted with that much power in her hands. She stretches her palm out towards him, he feels the water in his soaked clothes pull together to his chest and float over to N'dîr. It twists around her hand like a bracelet before she guides it outside the house.
"Sorcery is so amazing," Eel says, feeling his clothes for any remaining dampness. N'dîr walks into the kitchen, she comes out holding two cups of steaming tea before sitting by the table and pulling a chair up for him to join her.
"Oh yes, before the war. We sorcerers were almost worshiped for our abilities," she says, sipping the hot cup of Tea in her wrinkled hands. "There have always been a handful of sorcerers, so villages with one or more tend to make them into godlike figures for their abilities… As kids, we would show off our spells during festivals and get gifts and presents from onlookers and villagers. It was amazing."
Eel sips his tea as he listens to N'dîr speak. "The war changed everything for sorcerers," he responds, curiously.
"Yes, Talantia's warriors were brutal soldiers, with terrible magical weapons and powerful sorcerers," N'dîr replies, holding the steaming cup against her face.
"That must have been hard. I have another question though," Eel asks as he sips his tea. Its chocolate flavor heated into his body as the thunder crumbled over the heavy rainfall.
"Yes, you want to know what the void is, right?" she replies, smiling. She looks around her, Orion slumbers away in the living room as she whispers to him " Is that because you also are a sorcerer?" she asks.
Eel spits his tea out in shock. "What? That's not true" he exclaims.
N'dîr places her hand against his lips asking him to be quiet. "Careful, the walls have ears, young lord," she says.
Eel hushes his voice as he whispers to N'dîr, "I am no sorcerer, I ask out of curiosity."
N'dîr laughs softly as he says this, "The leopard knows not of its spots, only that it's unseen in the darkness. You have no idea who and what you are, young lord." She replies, grabbing his hand as she speaks. "Eel, I could sense the turmoil in you the first time I saw you… But like I said earlier, now that we have crossed paths, everything will be alright."
Eel looked on at N'dîr, his heart raced, but the warmth of her palm against his calmed him in ways he had no words to describe. "I have no powers N'dîr. How do you know I am a sorcerer," Eel asks.
"Come with me," N'dîr says, pulling him across the room and into the falling rain.
Not again, Eel thinks as they enter the screaming showers of the rain that unleashed itself this midnight. "Do you know what sorcery is, Young lord?" she says.
Eel watches as the raindrops pause in the air around them, he stretches out his hand and touches one right in front of him, they look like crystal teardrops hanging all around him as he moves through them, they feel cold and Solid like a bead of glass.
"By the gods," he whispers, his breath fogging the air in front of him. He could still hear the sound of the rain hammering into the soil right outside the gates of the house, yet he could see each droplet within the compound, each reflecting a distorted image of the world around.
N'dîr eyes glimmer in the darkness as she holds her hands up by her sides. The suspended raindrops converge around her like a veil, She pulls up all the water in her compound together, clapping her hands above her as they form a giant bubble that shields the house from the downpour outside. The sound of rain becomes a distant clamor, replaced by a desolate silence in N'dîr 's bubble.
"Sorcery is the art of grasping the very rules that bind this physical world. We stretch and twist these rules, bending the fabric of existence to our will. It's like dancing with the elements, commanding them to move as we desire."She steps closer to Eel, her eyes never leaving his.
"Some say we were touched by the gods, remnants of an age when man and gods walked side by side. But I believe we are cursed, bound to serve as the tools of mankind's ambitions. Insurance to make sure their little projects don't rely on them too much to solve their problems."
Eel felt a shiver run down his spine as her words sank in, "What do you mean, N'dîr ?"
N'dîr 's face falls into despair. "Your generation does not know war, but there was a time. Very long ago, when a man loved to wage wars," she replies, slowly walking around Eel. " Over land, over women, over power, anything and everything that gave them an excuse to kill each other. And each time, they would force sorcerers into combat, making us use our gifts to slaughter people and our kind." N'dîr 's voice cracks as she says this. Eel could see the weight of the war pressing down on her as she spoke.
" I cannot imagine what it must have been like for you and everyone, but… What does that have to do with me being a sorcerer?" he responds, frustration slipping out of his voice.
"You see young lord, your mother also believed this. So after a few months of your birth, she put a spell on you that would lock your powers away, should you have any in the first place." N'dîr replied, stopping in his front and grabbing a hold of his hand. " I tried to convince her against it, but the logic was just too solid. What mother would want her child turned into a weapon?" she asks.
Eel felt his heart racing as N'dîr said this, he looked around him and saw the ripple of the rain against the bubble N'dîr put up. It felt like he always knew though, even before the dreams. This gnawing feeling that something was missing, like a body part, had been amputated in his sleep.
His mind reeled, in truth, Eel didn't remember much of his mother. She died when he was seven, but since he dreamt of her and the storm that scarred N'dîr, fragments of his childhood started to surface. Forgotten memories of their time together. They would sit on his father's bed while she read his stories to him. Her gentle voice cradles him till he falls asleep. But her face. Yes, her soft face was always shadowed with worry.
One vivid memory clawed its way up his mind. His mother would stand by the windows during terrible storms and stare at the turbulent clouds. One day, Eel walked towards her, pulling on her silk gown in fear of the lightning raging outside. She looks at him with a gentle smile, picking him up and taking him back to the bed.
"You are a child of the storm, you should not be afraid of the thunder," she whispers into his ears as he clutches her tight. She held onto him, Eel remembers hearing her sob softly as they held each other. She grabbed his head and whispered "All I did was to protect you my Eel. Never forget that." Eel was too young to understand what was going on, but he remembers feeling bad about it. He thought she cried because he was afraid.
"I don't know what to say," he replies, walking away from N'dîr and sitting on the chair she was using before. He buries his head into his hands wondering what to make of this information. He looked back at N'dîr, his eyes filled with pain and realization. "I remember... She always seemed so worried, especially during storms. She once told me I was a child of the storm and not to fear the thunder." His voice cracked as the weight of her words settled over him. "I thought she cried because I was scared. I didn't know…"
N'dîr 's expression softened with empathy. "She loved you deeply, Eel. Everything she did was to protect you from a world that would have used you as a weapon."
Eel felt tears welling up, his emotions a tempest within him. "I don't know if I can do this," he admitted, his voice trembling. "I don't know who I am anymore."
N'dîr stepped closer, her presence a steady anchor amidst his turmoil. "You are still you, Eel. But now you have the chance to embrace who you truly are. Your mother's love and sacrifice gave you that opportunity."
He looked into her eyes, seeing the truth and hope they held. "What do I do now?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
"I am so sorry, my child," N'dîr says to him. She walks to his side and pulls his face up to hers. " But all is not lost, there is a remedy to your turmoil." she continued, her voice sounding so hopeful in the darkness. " You have been having dreams, right?" she asks.
"Yes, not just the dreams, the things that happened while or after I have them too, it's… weird," Eel replies.
"Tell me about them," she says.
"There's nothing much to tell. Just this woman, her eyes are whited out, like yours when you were doing that Void stuff, in her mouth is a void I always fall into and then I get tossed around in the air by strong winds or a tornado." Eel says, unsure of what she made of his response.
N'dîr rubs his shoulders as she begins to talk. "The void is where all sorcerers get their powers from. It's a common way of knowing sorcerers, dreaming of the void is the first way to tell a child has powers," she replies.
"But why now, I am not a child, why is it just coming now," Eel asks, confused by all the talk about the void.
"Spells are tricky young lords. But, it could just be your training as a guard might have triggered the need for strength and your power cracked the spell holding them in and began to seep out," she replies.
Eel looks at N'dîr. He is still not sure what she means. " I don't get anything you are saying. What is the Void? Where is it and what do you mean by remedy?" he asks, as thunder strikes above the bubble.
"No one knows much about the void, only that sorcerers have one thing in common, we all see the void, and we all find our most powerful spells when we enter the void," N'dîr replies. "Entering the void in your sleep is dangerous, you could hurt yourself or someone else if we don't stop it now," she says.
"How do we do that?" Eel asks.
"I could either lock your powers back by patching the spell up and sealing your powers back… but if I do that Eel, you'd never have access to them. I'd lock it away for good this time." N'dîr responds. She walks away from him a bit before turning back to him and saying, "The other option is for me to break the seal, and you learn to control your powers. It would be a little hard, but I am sure you'd excel at it."
Eel's face opened up in surprise. He knew the opportunity that held. He'd be so powerful, that everyone who didn't respect him would have to know. But… it felt like there was a catch, there's always a catch when opportunities like this show up. "I'm not sure what to do N'dîr, sorcery seems like a lot of work and responsibilities."
"Yes Young lord. You are right, our powers are dangerous and we are responsible for the results of our actions when we use them," she says to Eel. She turns around looking up at the sky over the bubble she created. "I could turn this bubble into a shield that deflects magic and is impenetrable to conventional weapons, we are cursed with the responsibility of fighting and protecting the ones around us. If you do this, you are not just a future lord of the kingdom, you are its shield and sword against those who wish to do us harm."
Eel's heart raced as she spoke to him. He wondered what to say. He opened his mouth to speak, but his voice cracked over his indecision. " I …" he says, stuttering.
"Think it through, I'll ask for your answer later, But know that whatever choice you make, you are not alone," N'dîr replies, walking back into the house.
Eel watched as she walked inside. He remains outside, mesmerized by the rain rippling against the bubble that shields the N'dîr 's compound. He sits there staring till he hears Æsà and Nymèŕa approaching from behind.
"Sorcery's amazing isn't it?" Æsà says as Nymèŕa comes to Eel and bumps head with him. "Are you okay??. You've been acting weird since we departed the capital." she continues, her voice holding a subtle hint of worry as she speaks.
Eel rubbed against Nymèŕa, he licks his face and rests his head on his lap as Eel pet's his pumpkin-sized head. "Yes sorcery is amazing, it's a shame that it's almost gone from this world." He replies, wondering if it's time to let her know. "And I am fine. There are things about myself I'd always wondered about. N'dîr might be just the answer."
Æsà looks at him puzzled. "I don't know what you mean by that. But I am here for you," she says, putting her hands on his shoulder.
Eel places his hand over hers, he rubs gently as they marvel at the bubble till the sun starts to slowly rise.