A Dreamer's Knight

Chapter 30 - Looking for Trouble

Mikaen tossed and turned in his bed for hours before he gave up trying to sleep. The attempted ambush, the missing people of Muonsol, the late delegations, the dragon drones, and Jyle's odd behavior: all signs pointed toward something insidious at work. Were he back on Earth, Mikaen would've immediately sent a troop of shadows out to investigating

Sighing, Mikaen got out of bed and walked out onto the balcony. The view was spectacular; the massive crystalline chronoan tree's limbs and leaves stretched out into the sky above the central hub of the palace, emanating a faint blue light as the moon of Everblue hung high in the sky.

Hearing the sound of someone humming, Mikaen glanced at the balcony of the Shoran tower. He was hoping to see Tirinia, but was surprised to find Teria instead. She was lying on the rail, apparently quite comfortable despite the fact that a nudge in the right place would send her hurtling down to her death, or in the very least, into the pokey branches of a tree. She stared up at the star-filled sky in silence, her usual crooked grin replaced with a thoughtful expression. The tune she was humming seemed faintly familiar to Mikaen, but he couldn't quite place it.

"Evenin'," Mikaen called out.

"Evenin'," she replied, stretching her arms before hopping back onto her balcony. "If you're looking to serenade sis, she already went to bed."

As she headed for the balcony door, Mikaen called out, "I hear you and my mysterious benefactor share some history."

"Yeah?" she said, a slight edge to her tone.

"Well, I'm curious. Can you blame me? I didn't know a thing about the Dreamers until I came to Vinta, and now I've got One watching over my shoulder like a guardian angel. I'd like to know more about him."

"I get it, Mikaen, it's just ..." Teria sighed. She hopped back onto the railing and let her feet dangle over the edge. "How could he forget me? We were close, closer than any friend I ever had. Closer than even Tyr."

"Were you ..." Mikaen stopped, feeling awkward about asking about another person's bonding given the intimacy he felt through his own bond with Tirinia.

"We weren't bonded," she said, "But I wanted him to be my First."

"Your First?" 

"First to challenge, When I came of age and hit my first thrall, he'd be the first to be allowed to challenge me for the bonding."

"If he had beat you in combat, right?"

She let out a slight chuckle. "Don't let the clumsy act fool you. Glen's an awesome hand-to-hand fighter. He'd put up a good fight, and as a three-time winner of the Longshore Melee, I don't say that lightly." She sighed. 

"Glen?" Mikaen asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That's his real name, at least when we travelled together." She leaned forward against the balcony railing and stared up at the sky for a long moment. "For years, I dreamed of him coming back as a hero or as some kinda famous adventurer or something, but not this. Not as a Dreamer, and definitely not without any memory of me."

It was strange to see the normally cheery Teria so down. Remembering his talk with Tirinia, Mikaen leaned against the railing beside Teria and said, "You know," Mikaen said, "from what One told me, I don't think he wanted to forget."

"Yeah, well he doesn't remember now, does he?"

"Still," Mikaen persisted, "He really seemed bothered when I spoke to him this morning. He may not remember you like he did, but your feelings still matter to him."