Elements of Change

Harbinger

Ezo woke from his comfortable sleep with a sliver of uncertainty. He didn't know what woke him, but he rubbed at his eyes with his human hand and reached across the bed for his lover. The bed was still warm, but Kammon was gone.

Ezo stumbled up and noticed that Kammon's clothes were gone from the haphazard pile they'd been thrown in earlier. He stumbled into his own and pushed his hair into a messy bun before he grabbed his boots and went looking for Kammon.

He was barely in the main room when a feeling of dread crept over him. He could feel magic pooling in Kammon. He wasn't actively using it, but it was there, waiting. Ezo stumbled as he reached the front door, only to find Alvrey reaching at the same time.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I don't know." He raced out the door and followed the bond down a path that led them further into the island. The trees were thicker as he raced ahead, the only sound the snapping of twigs and branches and the heavy sound of his and Alvrey's breathing.

"No!"

Ezo heard his lover's scream ahead of them and he sped down the path. Magic pulled at him. He didn't know what could make him feel it from that distance, but he was terrified for Kammon.

Damn it! They were supposed to be safe here!

Ember blazed across the sky above them, her screech dancing through the wind and in the branches of the trees.

He ran into a clearing and stopped as the light blinded him. He threw an arm up to shield his eyes and blinked heavily. When he could see, he stumbled forward.

"What did you do to him!" he demanded of Maggie.

The clearing was full of dead grass and vines, but at the center was a bubbling fountain. Kammon rested at the base, bringing a handful of water to his lips.

"This is not my doing." Maggie had backed out of the circle and Ezo could see the awe and fear in her eyes.

"Ezo, you have to stop him!" Alvrey yelled.

Ezo looked at Kammon, but he was so full of magic it was almost painful to see. He barreled forward and reached for Kammon's shoulder. As soon as his hand touched his lover, magic enveloped Ezo.

Kammon held far more magic than Ezo had ever seen anyone hold before. Far more than he thought possible. Ezo had been with Kammon in battle and seen the amount of power he controlled. He knew the strength the man carried within him. But what he now held was beyond that. Ezo could barely sense the soul sucker that fed on Kammon's magic, buried under the bright light that was Kammon.

"Kammon! Kammon! I'm here!" Ezo shouted to him as he pulled him close.

This was what Alvrey never saw. As much as she liked Kammon and had befriended him, she still feared him. If she could see inside him, like Ezo was, she'd know that there was no other person they could trust with this sort of power. Kammon had done horrific things, but what would have happened if Kammon had given in to the destruction the Imperium wanted him to unleash?

As soon as Ezo stepped into the clearing with Kammon, he'd been drawn to the power, but Kammon buffered him and made the unbearable amount of magic something beautiful. Ezo felt the sudden change in the air, the threat that came a moment before a strike.

"Ezo!" He heard Alvrey's voice, but he didn't expect the attack that she hurled at them. Kammon threw them to the ground as Alvrey turned her healing magic into destruction. He didn't know what she was trying to do, but they dispersed her attacks time after time. Alvrey edged closer with each attempt. She was a healer, and their power worked differently than elemental magic. It took way too long for Ezo to realize her goal.