Elemental Thief Part I : Child of Calamity

Teacher

In the last several decades of teaching both Feysha, Rulin, Vayan, and now the youngest two children he also considered his, Shaktay had come to the realisation that no matter what species, eventually the youthful adolescent pupil would decide to venture out on their own and undoubtedly find trouble. He also got rather good at tracking the scent of someone who had flown instead of walked through the trees, though it wasn't a perfect science.

At first it had been near impossible, but eventually he had learned to scent the wind, listen to what it was telling him and follow its lead. The only disadvantage he had was that no matter how fast he could run, flying was a far quicker mode of transportation.

He had made this journey with the rest of Verana's children, as well as some of those near kin-children who had been trusted into his care. He had learned to see it coming, the thoughtful looks, the boredom of lessons, the confidence in their infallibility.

He never tried to stop it before, though this time, as he sprinted for hours from the Wild and into the un-wild, he wished he had. They had gone into the half-wild, the place that Verana was trying to heal, that the Feysha were trying to heal, but was still home to the Cassaei, and his charges were more delicate than the fighters he had taught before.

It wasn't long after midday, as he realised that there were others in the sky above him, that he began to also smell another scent, wafting through the woods around him. He almost faltered, confused as he glanced up to where the large Rulin wings circled over his head occasionally.

Then he locked onto a fourth scent that sent him racing at breakneck speed, his swords in his hands. He let out a shrill whistle, shifting enough out of the shadows that the Rulin above him could catch sight of his movements, hoping that they would pay attention to at least one of his many lessons.

Still, he wasn't close enough when he heard the first screams and yells, followed by the roar of the recognisable Cassaei zeroing on its prey. He couldn't run any faster, but he pushed himself anyway. He ran faster than he had before in his memory, but he couldn't run as fast as he needed to.

The blood rushing in his ears from the strain as he skirted around the carcass of a dead bear and flashed through the remaining trees, skidding to a hard stop when he saw the sight of the clearing.

Shaktay had braced himself for the heartrending meaning of the sudden silence in the trees, but he hadn't been prepared for the assault of scents and the odd sight presented to him then. He smelled fear, anger, pain, desperation, and hunger wafting from him from a variety of different sources.

He also smelled death, and his eyes skimmed over the still warm body of the Cassaei, to rest on the two winged girls huddled together. He sheathed his blades and sprinted across the clearing, making it to them before they realised he was there.

Both girls shook with relief that threatened to overwhelm them once they saw and recognised him. He saw and smelled blood, but could not find the injuries on them, frowning in concern as he pulled off his shirt and tugged it over Kaiyal's head.

"You aren't hurt." He murmured, pulling back to look at them, searching their faces for an explanation.

He found apology and fear in their features and scents, but no explanation until Kaiyal mumbled. "A human girl, she's the one who killed the Cassaei. She healed us too, then ran off when we heard the other's coming."

Shaktay glanced towards the trees where the girl's scent still lingered, nodding slowly. "Once you are safe, I will go try to find her."

Draisia shook her head, frowning and glancing up at the sky as her two older brothers and a host of Rulin warriors landed in the clearing, stinking of anger and violence.

She whispered lowly, before they approached. "She didn't want to be followed. I think she was afraid."

"Uncle... what happened?" Davanos drew close to him, as Eikos moved to Draisia and began his own inspection, first of her and then of Kaiyal, muttering lowly to himself.

Shaktay shrugged at the question, nodding to the Cassaei, watching as the Guard Lianza reached into the creature's mouth and pulled out two pieces of a Feyshan bow. "It was dead before I got here. The girls had taken themselves out for the same journey all of you have... and found the same trouble you all seem to find. But they received some unconventional help."

"I can smell her, she went that way." Eikos stood finally, nodding in the direction Shaktay had already discerned, though they all frowned as Draisia stood up and squared off against them.

"You're not allowed to hurt her." Draisia flared her wings and glared at her older, larger, brothers, forgetting the trauma of only a few moments ago.

Shaktay found himself smiling as Kaiyal stood as well, causing the two young men to take a step back, watching the sudden fierceness in the girls in confusion. Most of their family assumed the younger, more mild-mannered girls weren't warriors, but he knew they had the strength to stand up for themselves, for others. And they were flexing such abilities now, much to the surprise of those who considered them fragile and helpless.

"She saved our lives. She nearly died doing it. And she doesn't have much power left. I felt how drained she was before she left."

"Princess, we're not here to hurt her. She's an escaped prisoner from the work camp. We're just trying to get her back." Lianza knew more and wasn't telling them.

Shaktay watched him for a long moment, frowning at the half-lie.

It was a shame. He had grown to trust and respect that man. But it was odd that the two princes were involved, if it were something to be concerned about. He watched the three of them for a long while, before glancing to the other Rulin, both on the ground and soaring around the clearing as over watch.

In the distance, a waterfall roared, its merciless plummet growling a warning. The girl was heading toward the Wild, and would have to cross the treacherous rapids to get there.

As if thinking of trouble summoned more, Shaktay felt a shift in the air and lifted his nose just slightly. "This can wait. There is another Cassaei in the area. Take your sisters to safety, and I will find the human."

Davanos and Eikos both shook their heads, their expressions getting stubborn, showing their Rulin protectiveness rearing its head.

They were at an impasse, then, because neither Prince wanted to listen to him.

Then he listened to the Wild, and the flow of lives around him, feeling it shift and settle into a web that connected all of them, though one thread, the brightest of them all, was the weakest, stretching taught and dangerously close to snapping. Shaktay realised the pull in their eyes, knowing that there was something important about them being here, right at this moment, in the most unlikely of places.

Finally, Lianza cleared his throat. "There's a keep not far from here. I'll take the girls with the Guard. You three go find the girl."

The story that wasn't being told was the most important story of all, and Shaktay let out a slow breath, relaxing into the demands of the other merciless pull. That of several life paths converging and join into a similar purpose. Even his, as a teacher and guide, as one who had lived through a storm of darkness before, was being pulled into the hurricane once more.

The man sounded as reluctant as the Princes were to step back, as if he had something more riding in this than being a Royal Guard assigned to watch prisoners. Shaktay gave him a hard look, before nodding and kissing both girls on the forehead before starting back into the woods, hearing the two men leap into the air above him.

This needed to be done.