Whispers (Book 3 of Wielder series)

Chapter 20 - Magic's Touch

If Alie hadn't been so dumbstruck, she might have fallen back in shock. Her muscles locked up, and she swayed on her feet. She felt short of breath. She blinked rapidly, hoping that her eyes would stop deceiving her and show her that someone else sat upon the piano bench.

But her eyes weren't lying. It was definitely Commander Sole.

She had never seen him like this. He swayed to the music, his eyes closed tightly shut. His lips parted in a whisper of something the music overpowered. A tear, long since spilled and dried, had left a stain upon his cheek.

He looked enraptured. He looked alive.

Alie realized with a start that the darkness he usually wore like a cloak had disappeared. The shadows in the room held no extra depth, like they did when he was around. The dark, threatening energy she always sensed from him had vanished.

He was just a man, playing the most beautiful piece of music she had ever heard.

It didn't make sense to her. Maybe she was mistaken. Maybe this wasn't Sole, but someone who looked exactly like him. Commander Sole was an agent of Evil. His power lay in shadows, in darkness. He couldn't summon magic. He had to drive it out of hiding and steal it like a thief.

How was this possible?

Trembling, she held a hand out behind her, searching blindly for something to sit on. She found the edge of the bed and leaned on it, her unblinking gaze transfixed upon the man that the commander had become.

Sole ended his piece and launched straight into another without so much as a pause between the two melodies. The transition was so smooth, she almost thought it was the same piece, only noticing once it got going that it was in a completely different key. The notes fell in rapid succession, up and down the scales like a storm. Louder and louder, harder and harder, faster and faster.

Then, all at once, they stopped.

Alie opened her eyes. She hadn't realized she'd even closed them. Commander Sole leaned over the keys, his head tilted away from her, as his fingers repositioned themselves. Then he played a single chord, one that wrapped up his melody in such a calm, complete, satisfying way, that she sighed in contentment as the notes faded away.

A mess of dissonant noise erupted from the instrument as the commander startled, banging random keys. The butterflies on the piano immediately took to the air, disappearing from sight as they fled through the ceiling and the wall. Alie too jumped at the sound, her heart racing wildly. Her gaze snapped to him.

His eyes were wide. She'd never seen surprise upon his face before; he looked like a gaping fish. For a long moment, he merely stared at her, his breath caught in his throat.

Then, the fire of familiar fury burned once more in his dangerous ruby eyes. "Wielder," he said, his voice raw.

Alie didn't dare move. He hadn't struck her yet. He hadn't lashed out with his power or driven his sword through her chest. Perhaps if she stayed as still as possible, he wouldn't feel threatened.

"How," he growled through clenched teeth, "did you get here?"

It was her turn to gawk at him like a fish. Her mouth tried to form words, but they all caught in her throat. She made a series of unintelligible sounds.

The room took on a chill that made her shudder. His dark power swept out from him, dimming the lights and swirling shadows across the floor. With a creak of the bench, he rose to his feet, standing tall and menacingly before her. "You should know by now that I don't like to ask questions twice," he warned.