Broken Promises {On Hold}

Part 10

Lucas Part 10

 

His brothers sat uncomfortably around the little table, he had to be careful, he knew how easily his family raised his temper. After explaining in the simplest terms possibly the situation with Amelia, downplaying the pain he underwent and ignoring the black stain on his mind; they listened to him carefully. He tried his best to describe the shadows, and they feeling of having your will taken. A few of his brothers shifted uncomfortably. 

“If this, girl” the word growled from Thesars throat, he was well in his forty’s and grumpy from being passed over as leader three times, “has your will, how can we trust you to lead?” the room seemed to still. I let a flame flash across my eyes; I felt the deep black lick along the fire, and inky stain that glinted at a darker power. My family frozen and stared, letting the show of dominance receded I turned away from Thesars, ignoring the implied challenge. 

“That was black magic. You must be carefully how freely you use it, or else let the shadows claim you.” He regarded the girl, his cousin, Yin, she was only fifteen but had proven herself as strong, she smiled sweetly as if in her own world, 

“What?” I asked, momentarily distracted from the others, they all turned to watch the girl, some rolling their eyes; she laughed, 

“My father has old books, mi’ lord, and I like to study the history of us.” He remembered her now, always running from library to home, never satisfied with standing still. She had a reputation for acting out the old traditions and living in her own world. He nodded choosing to have her explain later, alone. He didn’t want any weaknesses shown here. 

“Fine. Now we’re going find this school, find out how many there are and we’re going to burn them down.” He stared hard at his family. “Any objections?” they all smirked; their eyes glinting, he would have no challenges for leadership today. Soon after talk fell into easy conversation about the rest of the family, a few brothers of mine used this time to tell stories of their strength, either to win me over or to imply they might win in a challenge; he paid polite attention but was generally disinterested. He’d been away no more than a month or so and already they had forgot his power. He decided to remind them all, to make the message clear, he was head of the family, 

“A shame, father couldn’t attend, I’m sure he would’ve been fascinated with little Amelia, he was always searching for new, higher powers.” This brought out some mummers but the easy atmosphere darkened into silence, 

“I shall leave you now, to do what you to secure the city and further area, ten miles should suffice, then we deal with the school. Hopefully we will find what we need.” He stood and left them sitting their, Yin staring after him with curious eyes and a slight knowing smile. 

 

Once the cool outside air hit him he felt the deep nagging of the shadows strengthen, he hadn’t noticed before, how much he wanted to let go of his control, let the flames consume him and everything around him, how much he wanted – He stopped himself, taking a deep breath. The shadows receded from his calm thoughts, hiding in the depths of his consciousness. He needed them gone; he couldn’t afford a more violent personality. 

 

 

Amelia: 

 

The girl in the diary had described how it felt to be ‘captured in spirit’ it sounded horrible. Left you completely vulnerable. I had tried my best to understand the book, asking the old man; Peter-smith, what a few of the words meant. 

“Hue, or Hua, or spirit, of chi, or any number of names, is the natural essence of power in everyone, no in everything that exists.” He had said with a smile when she asked him that morning. I hadn’t really understood but he had to go out, I didn’t know why; he had come back at 7 that evening, looking exactly the same as always, shuffling slightly. I walked into the kitchen where he was making himself some food; 

“What is it exactly?” he laughed at her, shaking his head,

“My dear,” he liked calling me that and I just went with it, seemed only fair since I was now living in his home; “I don’t know exactly, only a Viseri could tell you, but they don’t exists anymore. I suppose it’s a sort of energy. A power. Sometimes called as the hold of order. It keeps everything together.” His brow furrowed while he looked for the right words to express what he was saying, I smiled slight, 

“Ok, but the book talked about my shadows, the chaos even, creating it, a new one?” he shook his head, and cleared his throat; 

“Now, don’t even try it, if you created Hue it will be darkness and chaos, it couldn’t support life. Impossible.” He eyed me cautiously; “Think of it this way, Hue is natural, light, power, order. However, just as with everything it can be tainted by chaos, if weakened enough. Hue lives within the body while chaos dwells in the mind;” he tapped his temples, “My dear.” He added with a small smile before looking away. “In the mind.” He trailed off staring to intensely at the pasta on his plate. I nodded; though it still wasn’t clear. 

“Weakened?” my thoughts jumped to Lucas, his ghostly figure, the attack from my shadows, “Could? If I took someone with me, someone who wasn’t like me, could they’re Hue be, be, weakened? Poisoned?” Peter-smith’s eyes snapped up to mind, they shined with a youth that didn’t match his face,

“Yes. The Hue infected would be slowly turned against itself; and kill the reality it lives in, being human, a bird, even water. It would consume and destroy whatever holds the Hue. You must never attempt it. The chaos has no rules, no boundaries; it will not appreciate you dragging order into its mists.” He studied her, normally warm eyes hard and cold, after a moment she looked away from that gaze; too soon. He groaned. 

“The chaos will want more, now it has infected one it will want more. You must learn to control it. Only you can.  Control it or…” he softened his gaze, “Or, my dear, you must destroy it.” I met his gaze again, 

“Like the girl did, the one in the diary?” I asked, my voice sounded angry, I felt the shadows swirling behind my eyes, I knew they were fueling my hatred of the man but I couldn’t help it; it felt natural. 

“No.” he didn’t seem at all concerned by the torrent of blackness that flowed through my head, I felt myself give a cruel smile. “That way only the gateway is closed off, the reality it can escape through, no my dear; to destroy the chaos with in you, you must use it, use all the power within it, all at once in so it cannot rebuild itself to such a power again for a very long time.”

“What? How? Why?” I was growling now, my teeth bared, the desire to rip him to pieces so strong, it ached to hold my power back; 

“That, my dear I do not know. I’ve have told you what you wanted me too, now why don’t you try and kill me. It will make you feel better.” I felt myself tense; and before I could stop I dove into my shadows, and released them onto the man before me. His flame was black. 

 

 I could see the little smug or darkness in my world; it wasn’t his time. That however, didn’t stop me, the shadows tried their best but he wouldn’t die. The little back flame waited patiently for me to give up. Growing in frustration my shadows swarmed around it, snarling silently, deep black growls. 

 

Slowly she returned to the light, her anger and hatred deplete. The man sat, slumped in a red warn armchair gazing at her, tight lines around his mouth and eyes were the only hints at strain. She breathed deeply. 

 “Now, don’t you feel better?” he said, cheerfulness filled his voice, but she could here the edge there. Sighing she felt each of her muscles relax one by one, calming down, the shadows grumbled in the back of her mind; easy to ignore. 

 “Yes.” She said truthfully, enjoying the feeling of calm, “yes I do.” She studied him then, this kind old man; his jaw was still strong, and a bright light hid behind his eyes, he moved to as I he flowed.“Your younger than you look,” she observed, startle she has spoken out-loud, she hadn’t meant to. 

 “No, I’m afraid I’m exactly as old as I look, but age doesn’t apply to the spirit now does it.” He said with a coy smile. A silence fell between them, She didn’t want to move, or think too much, she felt herself sink into sleep resting along the day bed at the end of the room. Peter-smith left, she heard him make his way to the kitchen, before unconsciousness took her.