His name pressed against my being like a hot iron rod. My body shuddered, recalling the events of my death as Morgan Claire in the mines. I looked over my shoulder, equally confused and surprised. Looks like his earlier positioning paid off, he took the brunt of the hit.
After what I've seen today, I can't exactly assume it's a coincidence. But he's a kid? What does that mean for my death, was it a part of the future or the past? Or was he sent here after he died, too? Now's not the time to figure all this out.
I refocused my attention on the attacker. Putting my guard up. They tilted their head to the side questioningly. Then their body vanished, leaving an afterimage, quickly reappearing next to me with a foot raised. With barely any time to react, I crossed my arms covering my upper torso and face. Their foot slammed into my guard, sending me tumbling backwards. I used the momentum to push off the ground, landing back on my feet and sliding to a stop in front of the kids.
Well…they've definitely got a size and power advantage. I closed my eyes to get a feel for their mana signature, so next time I'd be more prepared. I felt them rapidly approaching. When I opened my eyes, they were mid-swing, cutting downwards at me. Their sword split the air viciously. I spun on one heel, dodging the swing, and answered with a mana-infused backfist aimed at the attacker's ribs. The blow connected with a meaty thud and sent my opponent sliding.
The assailant shook the blow off and pounced. Sweeping their blade through the air, aiming at my head. The blade hissed as it chased me. I leapt into a back handspring, creating some distance. There was an unshakeable confidence to every move they made. It didn't feel like they were trying to kill me so much as test me. Some kind of scarf covered the bottom half of their face, and I still couldn't make out any other features.
I looked at the kids. A bead of sweat formed on my temple. I need to get them to safety. A wave of mana pulsated from the attacker, causing the air to thicken with an intense pressure. The ground shifted beneath me, throwing me off balance. At the same time, they stomped their foot into the ground, shattering the earth beneath them. Three medium-sized boulders shot up from the ground, spiraling and molding into three rotating spikes. Then they batted them at me with their sword.
Who is this guy? Earth magic? Why not, I guess. I danced between the three spikes. I need a sword or my own affinity. The assailant's aura flared as they dug their sword into the ground.
"You can do it!" One of the children shouted. Which gave me an idea. I locked eyes with the attacker and let out a cheeky grin.
"Someone help!" I shouted. "Please, anyone help! Please!"
Some of the second story windows lit up with a warm light. The attacker flicked their wrist, and a cloud of dust swallowed the street. I shielded my eyes with my arms.
When the dust settled, the guard by the kids was now dead, and the attacker was gone. Could they be part of some sort of radical nationalist movement? Going so far as to target children, though…how do you justify that?
I made my way over to the group to make sure they were uninjured. My gaze was met by the green-haired boy, or Melrez, apparently, who had that same intense look burning in his eyes. My eyes narrowed into a glare matching his.
"S-stop there." He said shakily. "We don't want any trouble." His hands were balled into fists at his side.
"Leave him alone, Melrez. He's just trying to help." A little voice protested. "O-or else why would he fight that guy?" She sounded like she was trying to convince herself. In fact, all of the kids continued to shrink in fear as I approached. Was it my glare?
"You're friend is right," I said as I approached with my hands raised innocently. "I just wanted to make sure you guys were ok."
"Yeah, right," Melrez retorted. "Stay there!" He said, planting his foot on the ground. This time, I honored his wish, realizing again the position they were in. What are they doing to these kids that they are afraid of other children? I gritted my teeth but stayed put.
Could this really be the same guy who killed me in my last life? I guess the literal answer is no but…
Melrez turned around and checked on the group, helping some of the members to their feet and inspecting them. Only once he finished did he turn back around to face me.
"See, we're fine." He said, crossing his arms. He looked to be about the same age as me, but his circumstances must have forced him to mature. He was handling the situation pretty well. Even though it looked like there were some older kids, he was still the de facto leader.
"Can you help us?" A voice from the crowd spoke. A small girl stepped out, grabbing Melrez's hand. She had three freckles on either side of her nose. Short, messy, dark blue-ish black hair. Her skin was the color of sand. There was a cold composure to her, but I could tell she was still a little nervous.
My face twisted into a grimace. I wish I could do more than just scare a shadowy figure away. I thought about Dean's words. The strength necessary to make lasting change. They must have already guessed my response as their expressions darkened.
"Anelise, he's a kid just like us," Melrez responded before I could.
"Hey, are you alright?" A new voice called out. I turned to the speaker behind us. It must be a denizen from nearby. I waved him over. He must have been pretty focused on us because when he finally noticed the body, he hurriedly covered his mouth with a fist and heaved. Then bent over and spat up.
"By the fates…" He muttered in horror. "I'm going to get some help," He said, stumbling around. His eyes never so much as flicked towards the other kids. Hopefully, he doesn't run into rat tails, I thought, turning back towards the kids.
Should I free them? If I did, where would they go after? I doubt they have any idea where their parents are.
"Do you guys know where you were heading?" I asked, they shook their heads no. My years on the force taught me not to make any promises that you can't guarantee…but these kids needed something. "I'm not here to hurt you all. And I promise I'll do what I can to help you." I sat on the road getting ready to wait with the kids.
We talked for a bit, and I got to know a little more about life here for them. It's not great, but apparently, the kids who were born here after the war had the ability to earn their freedom by joining the military after attending the academy. I assume this was the case because it was the best way to indoctrinate them and give them a sense of duty towards Alestrios and not Grisha.
Finally, a squad of guards came marching in. They collected the bodies and asked me a few questions. Eventually, they carted the kids off. Which was a bittersweet moment.
"Alright, time to head back to the estate." A guard said, looking at me. I told them where I was coming from, and apparently, he was there earlier, too. "People call me Cal," He said, offering me his hand.
"Nice to meet you… officially. I'm Canann," I responded, shaking his hand. He had short curly, medium blonde hair. And had a dagger fixed to his side as well as a sword. It looked like he was in his early twenties, if he wasn't still a teenager.
Now that I think about it, you'd assume the guards, or at least, the majority of guards, would have affinities or be mages of some sort. But I haven't seen any yet.
"Pretty well mannered there, kid." He adjusted his waistband and started heading towards the top of the street, and gestured for me to follow. I quickly glanced at the streak of blood on the ground left by rat tails on our way back to the main road before my eyes were drawn to the sky. There was smoke in the distance, it looked like a shadow against the night sky. Slowly expanding and dissipating. The guard noticed my gaze.
"It's from the Yarden factories," he noted. That's Nole's family. "In a lot of ways, I look up to what they were able to accomplish." He said.
"What do you mean?"
"They were able to even the playing field for the non-mages with their technology and research. You're too young to remember or even know—" He paused and chuckled. "Well, to be fair, I'm also too young to remember. But there was a time when magic meant nobility, more so than it does today, and even though everyone had the ability to manipulate mana, the extent to which one could varied from person to person, and then you have to add affinities into the mix. Since the more powerful mages were more useful in the wars, they quickly gained more social and political power." He shook his head, getting lost in the details. "Basically, we were seen as less than."
"Can't nonelementals fight by reinforcing their bodies with mana? Or does that not count as magic? Either way, seems kind of weird to discriminate." I said. He paused and then looked at me like I had two heads.
"Reinforce their bodies with mana? You can't manipulate the mana within your body. Where did you get an idea like that?" He asked, eyeing me suspiciously. "I keep forgetting I'm talking to a child. Mana doesn't come from your body, mages syphon it from the atmosphere. Mana is a force of nature itself." Then his expression changed to something more serious. "And about the discrimination, I think it was inevitable. Just like with the poor and the rich or the weak and the strong. It's just, magic is more like a language. Most come to it naturally, but learning another or, in our case, gaining an elemental affinity, takes being born in the right environment or a lot of work later in life. And I guess for us, that would be becoming an Aberrant."
Looks like Dean left a few things out. Most importantly, other people can't reinforce their bodies with mana or at least believe it's impossible to manipulate the ambient mana in their bodies. I guess stuff like this is what that magic academy would be useful for. I have to do my own research into how things work here. Especially, if I'm going to take down that druid.
So, is gaining an affinity, nature or nurture? Could that be what the druid meant by I haven't awakened yet?
"You seem to know a lot about magic and mana for someone who has no affinity," I commented. His eyebrow rose.
"How did you know?" He asked, pleasantly surprised.
…Is he serious?
We continued talking all the way back to the estate. At some point along the way, I told him I was Dean's son. He seemed to chalk up any of my quirks to the fact that I was the son of a sword saint who happened to be another one of his heroes. Apparently, he did a good amount of studying on magic arts with an old friend growing up. They wanted to be powerful mage warriors and conquer one of the realms.
We arrived at the estate and approached the front door. It seemed quieter than it was earlier. I pushed the door open and Marin was standing there squeezing a white cloth in her hand, talking to the king. They turned their heads, and Marin immediately erupted with emotions. Swiftly making her way to me, dropping to her knees, and wrapping me in her arms. She sobbed quietly while holding me. I felt all the emotions stirring in me, unable to hold back my tears. Her embrace was both comforting and heartbreaking. Like someone was scooping out my insides with a cold metal shovel.
I ran my hand down her back, feeling her body shake. It was abnormal for Marin to show this much emotion, which is probably why this was so hard. I bit down on my lip. So hard, I thought I might draw blood. The King looked down and away. Cal also did his best to look busy, awkwardly standing in the doorway.
Then Marin grabbed my arms with a firmness, pulling her head back from my shoulder. Frowning with a red nose and a stern scolding look on her face. If not slightly undercut by her puffed-up features.
"Where were you?" She asked.