SONG OF POWER

Chapter XII: The Third Night

SONG OF POWER

CHAPTER XII:  THE THIRD NIGHT

Cipher and his wives retired to their suite after his thrilling heroics.  The interior of the room was unexpected; the walls were smooth and polished wood, even the parts that were stained with blood.  The furniture was similarly well-kept, with a great brass pot in the center of the room that glowed sinisterly from the hot coals it contained.  The bed was large, but consisted of little more than a thick straw mattress on the floor in the corner, heaped with furs.

“At least it smells better than the common room.  After that encounter in the hallway, it gladdens me to find some peace here,” remarked Ninthalsaya, removing her hat as she stood near the coals.  She shook her long purple hair in a way the others found enchanting.  The half-elf reached a gloved hand into her hat and produced a small lizard, which she held near the warmth.

“W-w-what?!” exclaimed Rowena, taken quite by surprise.

“Well, don’t act like you didn’t see him, he’s been with us the whole time.  He goes everywhere I go,” Ninthalsaya said, exasperated.  Tyroce giggled.

“W-w-what’s so funny?” asked Rowena.  Cipher was similarly unamused.

“Well, I guess I can’t expect you two to notice it, but I knew she had a familiar the entire time.  Cute lil’ guy…” Tyroce said, leaning over to get a closer look at the magical animal.  Rowena and Cipher also moved in for a closer look.  The lizard was about a foot long, with spines along his sides and on his wedge-shaped head.  His scales were the color of sand.  The underside of his neck, his “beard,” was a darker color than the rest of him.

“He’s…nice,” mumbled Rowena, who was clearly unimpressed by the reptile.

“A familiar?” asked Cipher.

“Yes.  A familiar is an enchanted companion-creature that assists practitioners of magic with the study and application of their art…and provides society.  In her case, Ninthalsaya’s lizard is a conduit to the natural world, and through him she gains increased spell-power and abilities,” Tyroce explained in plain, bookish speech that stood in contrast with her normally irreverent, relaxed demeanor.

“I see,” said Rowena.

“His name is Guts.  Isn’t he precious?  Poor little cherub only has one eye, but that does not hinder him,” she said, gently petting the warming lizard.  “He’s a warrior.”  Guts turned his one good eye towards his master’s spouses, as if listening intently.  Cipher could detect an intelligence in that eye that he had never seen in any animal, even in the smartest of dogs.  Even more remarkable was the sudden warmth and emotion the normally grouchy and reserved Ninthalsaya showered on Guts.

“He only has his left eye.  If w-w-we put him together w-w-with Tyroce, w-w-we would make one perfect pair of eyes,” Rowena joked, and they all shared a laugh, though Tyroce’s face reddened visibly.

“Why don’t you also have familiars, my women?”  Cipher asked of Tyroce and Rowena.  Rowena blanched slightly and Tyroce absently stroked the ruby at her throat.

“My magic comes from within; I chose not to enlist the companionship of a familiar.  Although I used to have a cat…” Tyroce trailed off as if the memory were painful. 

“My kind does not summon familiars,” Rowena replied matter-of-factly.  “My faith is my magic and my companion.”

“Your whatnow?” This from Cipher.  Tyroce giggled, Ninthalsaya rolled her purple eyes, and Rowena was clearly irked.