It happened so quickly that if I had blinked I would have missed it. A large crash and the sound of wood cracking whistles through the home. Within seconds the door to the room is smashed open and there he stood. Earanduin. My Elder Akari.
"Lillyana! Are you alright?" He is exasperated as if he has been running non-stop for hours. He kneels beside me and pushes my hair away from my face. He is my greatest inspiration and the closest thing to a father figure I have ever known. When the last of my bloodline was killed, in my anger I forgot that there were others who didn't share my blood, but did share my heart.
Before I can answer, two more Akari walk into the room, each of them with a tight grip on Mathus, one holding a blade to his neck.
"What did he do to you? Did he harm you!"
Earanduin springs to his feet and unsheathes his sword, pointing it straight at Mathus' heart.
I want to scream out but my words would only be a whisper. I want to tell him that the Mut saved me from a selfish act I chose to inflict upon myself. But he doesn't give me a chance. His face is full of rage and disappointment. I can't make out which is directed at me.
I know that he hates Muts although he would never admit it, as the protectors of the Light hate nothing.
"What you did is punishable by death, Mut!" Earanduin shouts turning to Mathus and ignoring my whimpers as I still want to cry out but I don't know if I should.
Mathus looks at me with the same emotionless look he had given me the first time we met eye to eye. I feel a tear welling up at the thought of his death but I know the consequences if I tell Earanduin the truth of what happened. Either way I won't win. I have to choose what is more important to me. The man that raised me or the man that saved my life.
"Eara..."
"Take him back to the city to be tried!" Eara 's voice booms in the room as the two Akari begin to take Mathus out of his own home. He doesn't struggle.
"Eara stop!" My voice is full of fear.
The room falls silent. It is punishable for an Akari to speak to an Elder in such a manner.
"This Mut saved my life. I was running away when he found me."
Eara begins to open his mouth to speak but my words continue to flow and stop him.
"I've fallen, Eara. The Light couldn't protect my sister and it can no longer protect me. Everything I was taught is a lie...isn't it? There's more to life than just the Light...
you've been hiding me from the Darkness."
"Lil..."
He is the only one who ever calls me that.
"I will no longer follow the Light. I will no longer be a bringer of its glory, and no longer will I follow in its teachings."
I see the blood from Eara's face go rushing out and his already pale skin becomes white as the spirits the Akari don't believe in.
"Lil...you can't mean it. You know you believe in the Light. I know you've been hurt, but the Light will heal you. It will lead you in the right direction."
"No, Eara. The Light can't help me now."
The blood in his face begins to race back as he grows red with anger.
"You've changed, Lil, in such a short amount of time. This Mut must have corrupted you in some way. I will make sure he pays for it. Please, come home with me and I will do whatever I can to help you."
"Yes, Eara, I have changed. Pain does that to people. This Mut did nothing but save my life and you will leave him be as he has done nothing wrong. I will not be returning to the pantheon, Eara. I have made my decision."
His strong body sinks under the pressure. I'm the first student he will ever have lost.
"So be it. You will now and forever be a Spasmenti. You are an outcast from the Akari and the city. If you are found anywhere near it you will be killed on site...just like this Mut scum."
He grits the last words through his teeth as he glances at Mathus over his shoulder. I have never seen him this angry before. Maybe I broke him. Maybe I caused a crack in his own beliefs in the Light.
breaks as I mumble his name under my breath, hoping he will here it. I owe him a better explanation.
But he is gone.
I am so caught up in the quickness of the moment that when tears begin to fall down my cheek I don't notice Mathus there, kneeling beside me with his hand on my shoulder.
No words need to be said. He understands what I have done for him and I understand what he has done for me. Whatever Darkness awaits us, we are now in it together.
