The Living Curse: Book One of The Living Curse series (5 page)

             
Nameh blinked at him, not sure what his vague statements meant.  He began to walk toward them; with each step, her mark burned hotter.  Suddenly, when he was just a few feet away, the burning ceased altogether, and turned into a warming sensation that spread through her whole body.  As she glanced at the boy, he caught her eye with a knowing look.  This sense of knowing, of being inside her head, was both intriguing and incredibly frustrating.  She wondered if he had this effect on all people.  It was Mira, first, who questioned his previous words.

             
“How would you know what we are and are not supposed to do?” she said defensively, telling Nameh that she was at least a fraction as frustrated with him as she was.  With this, Mira sheathed her sword, now dripping with dragon blood.  It was times like this when she admired Mira’s forward attitude and sarcastic defenses against those who had no authority over her, something they had in common. 

             
The boy’s face was not well masked; in fact, it seemed to radiate emotion, something she had stripped from her expression many years ago.  However, the openness and truth which were held inside this emotion were almost comforting to her.  The expression now on his face was a clear declaration of the enjoyment he wrought out of keeping the girls in suspense.  Eventually, he appeared to tire of his game, and spoke again.

             
“Oh, come on.  Put two and two together.  Obviously, all of us enjoy killing monsters, and all of us are bending rules to do it.” he said slyly, his eyes narrowing.  Thoughts flickered through Nameh’s head: clearly, the boy was human, and clearly, he had knowledge of the magical world.  Finally, Nameh decided to take the bait he had so carefully laid.

             
“You are either a very clever warlock,” she paused, carefully speaking while watching his reactions, “or you are a Guardian.” she finished.  “Your subtleties point away from the eccentricities of one born into magic, so I would have to say Guardian.” she said, her words slightly twisted with a hint of sarcasm.  The boy was clearly pleased; the charming smirk returned to his face and caused soft lines to appear around his lips.  He seemed to enjoy these innocent mind games, and she had played along, for the moment.  Finally, she realized that the halls of the school were where she recognized the boy from.  There were hundreds of students, but he had a memorable face, even if she hadn’t remembered right away.  Now, she scoured her mind to recall the name that accompanied his face.

             
There was something about him that was, in the same moment, irritating and likeable.  She didn’t like it when people encroached so quickly upon her carefully guarded trust.  Mira interrupted her troubled thoughts with further questions.

             
“So, then you must go to the Academy.” she said, “Or are you a
freelance
Guardian?” she said sarcastically, with a wide smile.  He seemed to appreciate her joke, knowing that no Guardians could be permitted to exist outside of the elder’s protection.  One could, of course, leave the Guardians, still retaining the skills they obtained, but could never again call themselves one.

             
“Unfortunately, they shot down my proposal to allow vigilantes at the last council meeting.” he paused to appreciate his own wit, “But I’ve seen you two around, and you don’t seem like the sort to go against the elders…or do you?” he said playfully, giving them a sidelong look, raising his eyebrows.  Mira was quick to respond, as she usually was about her what her friend dragged her into.

             
“Sometimes I feel that I didn’t think through the whole blood oath thing well enough.  I eternally bonded myself together with a crazy woman.” she said jokingly, shooting Nameh a lighthearted look.

             
“Ah, so here lies the mastermind.” said the boy pensively.

             
“Hardly.” she retorted.  “We’re here to get some…extra practice that we don’t get at school.  You still haven’t explained
your
self, though.  Just a guy on a macho trip, or what?” she said, clearly expecting a contradiction.  The boy only stared for a moment, searching for an answer.

             
“You’re not here to become better Guardians,” he said with a small, amused laugh, “but that’s not important now.  Come with me.” he finished.  He turned on his heel and walked out of the room without a backward glance to see if they followed.  Nameh stood for a moment longer, slightly taken aback at the boy’s aloof attitude.  Despite his playful words, she couldn’t help but notice that there was something behind them.  Something dark lay behind the smile, she thought, but she had no way of knowing what.

              He led the two girls to his room in the East wing of the academy, a part of the school neither of them had seen.  He told the girl to re-spin the shield she had dropped just before the battle, so that no one would see them in the boys’ wings, where they were not permitted to be. 

             
He pulled the heavy door open, and strolled inside.  They slowly entered the apartment-like room behind him, as if they were entering an entirely new domain, and were not completely sure what would be found there.  The early, golden light of dawn filtered in through the large window.  The black blanket and sheets on the small bed were pulled tightly around the corners and tucked neatly into the mattress.  There were only a few of his personal items about the room, resting easily on a desk or shelves: a clock, a picture of his family, a sword, and a few other things.  He liked the comfort of being able to leave at a moment’s notice, a habit he’d picked up over the years.  The order of the room brought him comfort, easing his nerves.  He sat in the chair next to the desk, the taller of the girls leaning against the opposite wall, and the shorter taking a place seated on the bed.

             
He breathed deeply, his eyes focused on the wall above the girl’s face, searching for the words.  Personal encounters were not his strongest suit.  Finally, he sighed and said, “I’ve been looking for you for a long time.”

Chapter Six: A History Lesson

              They boy’s words surprised Nameh, who up until this point, had been under the impression that they had just met. 
Well, this explains why he seemed to recognize me earlier
, she thought.  Mira was faster to recover from the startling words, and interceded.

             
“Looking for who?” she questioned, wondering which one of them and why.  She twisted and pulled at her fingers lightly, as she often did when nervous.  His eyes finally left the wall, and met hers, as though he had just remembered she was there.  His mental struggle became nearly visible; his eyes flicked nervously about the room, not wanting to make eye contact again.

             
“First, just tell us who
you
are.” Nameh said, growing impatient.  “Why did you bring us here if you aren’t going to say anything?”  The boy covered his face with his hands, rubbing his temples as if he could somehow mechanically draw the words out.  His frustration was evident, and bordering on anger it seemed to Nameh.  Finally, he looked up, seemingly prepared to address them at last.

             
“My name is Max.  You are, of course, aware of the Vine?” he asked, not waiting for a response, and neither dared interject.  “For the last few weeks, I have been trying to find the one other Markbearer in the school.  The Vine has known their presence for months, but they were too well shielded to identify.  Long story short, I’ve been watching you.”  All of his words had come spilling out quickly to this point, as if he had opened a mental floodgate, with very few pauses.  Now, he watched their reactions for a moment before continuing, but neither interrupted.  “When I was fighting the dragon, and you two so rudely interrupted,” he said with a small smile, “I was sure that you were the other.” he finished.  With his serious news delivered, a weight seemed to lift off of his shoulders; he became at ease, and slouched comfortably back in the desk chair, putting his hands behind his head.  He left out the fact that he had been sure she was the other before that, when he saw her mark through the watching window.

             
It seemed to Nameh that he had used humor to mask the importance the issue held in his mind.  The use of humor and sarcasm to hide emotions was much too familiar, and was another unsettling reason that she had the urge to trust him.

             
“So, let’s just say that I am this ‘elusive Markbearer’, for a moment.  Why is the Vine suddenly so eager to find me?  Running low on new recruits to send to their deaths?” she asked, now throwing sarcasm back at him.  She saw Mira from the corner of her eye, looking surprised at the comment.  It was understandable, though; only a few hours ago, they had been training to go to the Vine themselves.

             
“The Vine is trying to find all its potential followers.  The Guild is gaining power much too quickly, they think that something must be wrong.” said Max.

             
“Hold on,
they
?  Aren’t you a part of it, too?” Nameh asked.

             
“I’ve had my mark for about a year and a half, but I haven’t fully joined yet.  I decided to find the other at the Academy, and thought we’d go together.” he said.  Judging by his expression, he hadn’t expected the other to be a girl.  Mira continued the conversation, pretending not to have noticed.

             
“Do you know any of the other members of the Vine?” she asked.  Max swiveled his chair to face her.  For all of his sarcasm, his manners were good enough. 

             
“Well, one of my warlock friends and my oath brother are already there.” he said, referring to his battle partner as she would refer to Mira.  His eyes seemed to hold a longing, as though he wished he hadn’t stayed behind.  She wondered if he and his oath brother had become as close as she and Mira.  As these thoughts swirled around in her mind, she noticed that the light coming from the window had changed from a gleaming gold to a pale silver.  Clouds had gathered in the sky, condensing within each other like great and terrible magic.  She wondered if this sight was similar to the one seen by the ancient humans as they watched the Great Warlock unleash the spark, and the creatures that were borne of it.

             
She was half aware of the soft spattering sound of rain on the window sill.  Each drop catching a fragment of the lingering early morning sun, illuminating for one glorious moment, before plunging onto the window ledge in a small watery explosion. 
Heaven is crying
, her mother had told her as a child. 
An angel was lost today
.

             
She snapped out of her thoughts, and back into reality to find that both Max and Mira were looking at her.  She realized that she had been staring longingly out the window, absorbed in the peace that the rain and memories of her mother brought her.  She managed a weak smile, and tried to keep the conversation going.

             
“So, how exactly does the Vine propose to do anything about the Guild?” she asked skeptically.  The boy seemed surprised that she would doubt the Vine, which he clearly had a great deal of faith in.

             
“I don’t know how much magical history you’ve digested while here, but I’ll give you the whole story.  So, I’m sure you know that the Vine, Guild, and Guardians were once one group.  They were founded by the Great Warlock after his spell had the…unintended side effects.  He meant for its members to remain united against the evils of the Children of the Spark, and to protect what humanity had left.  But, as you well know, not all of the magical creatures were evil, and some even joined the cause.  Eventually, after the Great Warlock’s death, there were disputes on how magical power could, or should be gained.  Some thought that the fastest way to gain power should be the right way.  These people embraced dark magic, sacrificing pieces of their souls to gain what they wanted.” he paused, almost shuddering at the very idea.  Nameh’s skin crawled at the thought of Daniel.  “Unfortunately, with the great power they gained, they lost sight of their original objective, the protection of humanity.  With the loss of this goal, they also lost the blessing of the Great Warlock, and can no longer bear his Great Mark, or Shask.” he continued, pausing again to make sure that everyone was still listening.  “The same happened to the Guardians, but for a different reason.  The Guardians were traditionalists who didn’t believe in the use of magic; they thought that it could only be evil, and wanted to protect the world from spells similar to the Spark.”

             
“So, the others then became the Vine, right?” Mira asked, seeming genuinely intrigued by Max’s history lesson.

             
“Right.  The others continued to follow the ways of the Great Warlock, still bearing his mark, and only drawing power from the evil and corrupt.” he finished, with a nearly triumphant look on his face.  He was proud to be a Markbearer, she thought.

             
“Aside from your magic recycling program, then, there has to be another way to gain magic, right?  There’s no way the Guild could be gaining any more power than it already has, because they only have one soul to give.” she said, almost expecting him to tell her they had found a way to sacrifice other souls for personal gain.