The Tower Of The Watchful Eye: The Legend Of Kairu Book 1 (46 page)

“
You are going to need more then that,” he smirked.

I sent a
Lightning Bolt his way and he dodged it in a blink of an eye. A
wave of fire erupted from him and I quickly covered my face with my
hands. As the wave passed, two hands gripped my throat and I was
lifted off the ground.

“
I thought you would fall for that,” he said as he squeezed
harder.

The scales
helped a little bit but it was getting harder and harder to
breathe. I tried to rip his hands off my throat but it was no use.
He had a death grip on me and I thrashed around like a rag
doll.

Grab his hands, Andy, and don’t let go,
Cathy said
. I didn’t want to do this
but it’s the only way.

“
Who do you have in there, I wonder?” the Mage said amused.
“What Demon would willingly submit to serving as a slave in a
mortal mind? Look into my eyes and let me see.”

His eyes
changed to black and I felt myself being pulled towards them.

Grab his hands and open your mouth!
Cathy exclaimed.

I seized the
Mage’s hands and opened my mouth. A high pitch sound grew louder
the more my mouth opened. The Mage released my throat and tried to
pull his hands away but I held them in place. His face twisted in
agony the more the sound escaped my mouth. The ground underneath us
started to shake and the Mage cried out as blood started to run
down his nose, eyes, mouth and ears. The cries stopped and the Mage
grew still as the sound slowly disappeared.

I closed my
mouth and felt completely drained as I released the dead Mage. He
dropped to the ground, still staring ahead in a silent scream.

What was
that?

Sonic... scream,
Cathy said
quietly.
Must...can’t...I’m
sorry...

The weight of
the world hit me as I dropped to my knees. The glowing blue veins
disappeared and my vision was going black.

Cathy?

I became light
headed as I searched around for her.

CATHY?!

The ground
rushed to my face as I fell forward. The grass felt cool against my
skin and in the distance I could make out shapes running towards
me. My eye lids grew too heavy to hold open so I closed them.

Chapter 39

I opened my
eyes slowly. A sliver of sunlight shone in through the window and I
rolled away from it with a groan. The room was small and sparsely
furnished. The bed was the only major piece of furniture and it
wasn’t even a real bed. Looking closely at it, I was really just
lying on top of a bunch of animal skins.

At least it is more comfortable then straw,
Cathy said softly.

You’re
okay!

She chuckled softly
. Sorry to freak
you out. The Sonic Scream is a big drain of energy. I had to make
sure I broke the connection between our magic before it destroyed
me. I guess I passed out afterwards.

I did the
same. I thought I had lost you.

It will take more then that
, she
said sweetly.

“
Good morning,” Sister Carlia said at the doorway. “I hope the
skins are comfortable. Our knowledge of humans is low. Nao just
plant into the ground when it is time to rest. I’ve never seen
anything be horizontal to rest before.”

I chuckled as
I sat up. “It is called lying down and it’s very comfortable.”

“
I will take your word for it,” she replied. “You have done
well, Kairu. The Nao are in awe at your strength and courage. This
is something that rarely happens.”

“
Were you able to perform the ritual?” I asked as I stood up
on wobbly legs.

“
Yes,” she started, “Mistress Velias arrived shortly after you
defeated the Masquade. Very impressive fight by the way. It would
seem that you have a strong working relationship with the Demon
inside.”

“
If Cathy saving my life all the time is a ‘working
relationship’ then yes,” I replied.

“
Cathy?” Sister Carlia asked confused. “You named the
Demon?”

“
She named herself,” I answered.

“
Interesting,” Sister Carlia said thoughtfully. “Anyways, you
will find your equipment by the Life Spring. Join me there when you
can. I have been given permission to not only give you what you
came here for but also a parting gift on behalf of the
Nao.”

“
Thank you,” I said. “Where was my Staff? It didn’t get
destroyed in the battle did it?”

“
Your Staff was found intact,” she answered. “It is made from
magic weaved minerals and will not break easily. The crystal was
destroyed though with no way of repairing it.”

“
That’s fine,” I replied. “The Staff was more important. I
didn’t want to have to go back and ask for another. What about my
hat? That thing always seems to get into trouble.”

“
Apprentice Fawna found it and will not part ways with it,”
Sister Carlia said. “Your display of magic, both seeing through her
Illusion and your fighting seems to have impressed her. She claims
that holding onto a relic of the Great Kairu will make her strong
like you.”

Cathy laughed.
Your hat a relic?! I
guess there’s a first for everything.

I smiled. “Is
she close by? I would like to talk to her.”

“
Of course, you will find her in the scroll room by the Life
Spring,” she answered.

“
Thank you,” I said.

Sister Carlia
left the room and I stretched my joints. My chest and stomach were
still sore and I looked down to see the scars from the Masquade. I
was covered in bruises as well and I was more then certain there
were a few cracked ribs.

People often left with much worse after a fight like
that,
Cathy said.

Oh, I wasn’t
complaining. Chicks dig scars.

Oh Void, where did you hear that nonsense?
Cathy asked.

I chuckled and
walked out of the room, hissing and holding onto my side as I
walked. The Life Spring was right in front of me with Sister Carlia
and Mistress Veilas talking to each other off to the side. I
hobbled across the building and found Apprentice Fawna in the
scroll room. She saw me and put the scroll she was reading next to
my hat on the small table.

“
Are you well, Kairu?” she asked.

“
I will be, just need some time,” I answered. “Reading
anything good?”

“
Just the history of the forest guardian,” she replied. “I
wanted to know if another guardian had been corrupted in the past.
It seemed odd for it to turn against us so easily.”

“
I don’t think the Demon that corrupted it was your average
Demon,” I said. “I think we were dealing with something very
powerful.”

“
Well, you have our thanks for removing it from our forest,”
she smiled.

I wobbled a
little and leaned against the door frame hissing in pain. Fawna
took a couple of steps towards me but stopped when I waved her
away. “It will be fine,” I said.

“
You should go to The Mistress and heal,” she said.

“
I will,” I started. “First, I wanted to apologise for scaring
you when we first met.”

Fawna smiled.
“That will not be necessary. You baited me into a trap and
capitalised on it. You taught me a valuable lesson when it comes to
hunting.”

“
I’m shocked to see a Nao training to be a hunter. Sister
Carlia told me that knowledge is transferable through lives,” I
said.

“
It is,” she explained. “In past lives I was a Gardeneer. I
watched over the young Nao as they grew and matured. This life I
wanted to try something different so I became a hunter.”

“
And your first time out you got me?” I asked.

She smiled.
“I’m told it is easier than that.”

I looked at my
hat and smiled. “Take care of the hat. It’s been through a
lot.”

She looked at
it and picked it up, offering it to me with a sad look on her face.
“You can have it back if you want.”

“
Nah,” I said shaking my head. “Keep it as a reminder that you
are yet to beat me with an Illusion.”

She looked
back at me then smiled slowly. “Thank you, Kairu. I wish I knew the
human way to show my appreciation.”

“
What is the Nao way then?” I asked.

She held out
her hand palm up and a bright white orb rose from it.

“
It’s beautiful,” I said.

She closed her
hand and the orb disappeared. “May the Tree God watch over
you.”

“
You too,” I nodded and pushed off the door frame.

I hobbled back
to the Life Spring were Mistress Veilas and Sister Carlia waited.
My equipment lay on the ground close to them and I walked towards
it.

“
Leave your equipment there, Kairu,” Mistress Veilas said.
“Sister Carlia has a ritual to perform first.”

“
Yes,” Sister Carlia nodded and held her hand out. A small
vial of water rested in her palm. “We present you with a vial of
water from our Life Spring. It seems fitting to pay you back with a
portion of our life after you went to such great lengths to ensure
our safety.”

“
I am honoured,” I said.

“
We also want to perform the Bonding of Eternity, a sacred
bond granted to friends of the Nao,” Sister Carlia continued.
“Simply submerge yourself into the Life Spring. The imprint of your
soul will be shared amongst the spirit of the Nao so future
generations will know your name. They will be able to sense you,
and you will be able to sense them. You will always be welcome here
and no Nao will raise a weapon against you.”

“
I will also teach you the sacred spell that will let you
enter our village,” Mistress Velias added.

“
Submerge yourself, you will find that the waters will heal
your wounds too,” Sister Carlia said.

“
Should I remove my pants?” I asked.

“
Only if you want to,” she answered.

I looked down
at the Life Spring and saw the glow of the spirits crowding around
where I was. It didn’t help the self conscious feeling that
overcame me as I started to pull down my pants.

They are asexual tree spirits,
Cathy
explained
. They don’t care about your ding
dong.

I sighed and
pulled my pants down quickly and removed my shoes. The pain in my
ribs made the whole experience that much more awkward. Mistress
Veilas and Sister Carlia just stood there watching me, no doubt
unsure why I was delaying. I walked to edge of the Life Spring and
stepped into it.

The water was
warm and relaxing, and the glowing spirits parted to welcome me.
The Life Spring wasn’t very deep, only reaching my waist as I
reached the middle, and I took a deep breath before dropping all
the way into the water.

The water grew
warmer and I could feel the spirits dancing around my body. My
whole body began to tingle as the pain in my chest disappeared. I
stood back up and wiped the water out of my eyes. Looking at my
chest, I was surprised to see the bruising gone, only a couple of
scars remained. I walked to the edge and climbed out of the Life
Spring.

“
It is done, congratulations Kairu,” Sister Carlia said as I
picked up my pants and robe.

“
Thank you, Sister Carlia,” I said bowing awkwardly before
trying to get dressed.

I picked up my
equipment and Sister Carlia handed me the vial. I placed it with
the Demon’s Bane and Tail Feather and shouldered the pack. I slid
the Staff into its spot between the pack and my back and turned to
Mistress Veilas. Her eyes turned white and my whole body shook as
it felt like a bolt of lightning coursed through me.

“
Watusa Donari Kabu,” I whispered.

I shook my
head and her eyes returned to normal. “You now have the knowledge
to enter our village, Tanoba,” she said.

“
Thank you,” I said grabbing my head. “But next time, please
give me a heads up before you do that.”

“
Patience is for the young,” she replied.

“
I will escort you to the edge of the forest,” Sister Carlia
said. “Where are you heading next?”

“
The Tower of the Watchful Eye,” I answered. “It is time I
went home.”

***

At the edge of
the forest I said my goodbye to Sister Carlia. I had invited her to
walk further so I could learn more about the Nao but she explained
that her people are forbidden from leaving the forest. If she were
to take one step outside of the boundaries her spirit would leave
her body and never be able to return to the Life Spring. I wished
her well and set off towards the Tower.

The sun was
approaching the highest point in the sky and it would be sunset
before I made it to the front doors. I was travelling the Archanion
Field alone again. Just like at the beginning of my journey.

The Reed farm seems so long ago now,
Cathy said softly.

“
How are you holding up?” I asked. “You’ve been really quiet
today.”

Just trying to recover,
she
answered
. Combining powers takes a lot out
of me.

“
It must have been pretty bad,” I said.

If I had joined completely with your magic we wouldn’t have
been able to go back to normal,
Cathy
explained
. You would have become
completely possessed. You would control the movements and I would
control the magic.