Heart of Flame

XXIII. Saying Farewell

"I'm afraid," Khagra said quietly. The sun was just peeking over the horizon, but the roar of a new dragon could be heard. Dunak's dragon was even larger than Qodess and stood as a force of nature that terrified Sorne. Even Áshildr was awed, and her true form was twenty-four feet tall. The young orc had pulled Sorne away for a walk while Dunak and Murdak were catching up.

Sorne studied Khagra for a moment before saying, "Me too, a little." She wasn't going to tell the girl not to be. The human took a deep breath and sat down on a fallen log, motioning for Khagra to take a seat next to her. "What are you afraid of, Khagra?"

"I'm leaving everything," Khagra said softly as she sat down beside Sorne. "I've never been away from the tribe before. Dunak's nice, but...."

"But the world is a scary place?" Sorne said softly. "I know. I definitely know the feeling."

Khagra nodded a little, looking down at her hands for a moment before looking up at Sorne. "Is this what you felt like when you left Genev?"

The human smiled faintly. "Yes. I was terrified when I left Mauléon. Well, terrified, hurting, and angry...but also wonderfully free. I didn't have to be anything for anyone anymore. I could just be myself. And then I found you all, and now I know what it is to be home." She took a deep breath. "Khagra, the world is a wide and wonderful place, full of new people and sights that will steal your breath away. Enjoy it. This is not a gallows. It is an adventure, a door waiting open for you to find mysteries and wondrous things beyond it."

"But this is my home," Khagra said softly. Sorne heard the little waver in her voice.

"And it will always be your home," Sorne said gently. "Just as it will always be my home. No matter how far either of us roams, Ash Kordh will remain with us. You will forever be welcome, whoever and whatever you grow into." She brushed some of Khagra's dark hair out of her face. "Your path will always be your own to choose, but I will be at your back the moment you ask it of me, no matter the challenge you face, no matter the foe you find. I promise."

Khagra nodded a little and took a deep breath. "Do you think I'll find people the way you found us?"

"I am certain of it," Sorne said with a smile. "You're far too special for anyone to overlook. Do your best, work your hardest, and before you know it, you'll be home."

"Like you did," the girl said, her voice gaining certainty as she took comfort in the words.

"Better. You're far wiser than I was at your age," Sorne said with a smile. "I still need Banaak knocking me through a tree now and again to keep me grounded. I haven't seen him smack you once."

Khagra laughed a little bit, a smile forming. "Your ribs still hurt?"

"Khagra, my ribs are going to be hurting in the afterlife at the rate I'm going," Sorne said with a grin. "When Banaak's not beating me into the dirt, I have to worry about Áshildr. Gods, but that woman hits like an ocean wave."

"They're making you better," Khagra pointed out.

"And I appreciate it, grumble though I may." Sorne sighed a little bit at the thought of heading back. She knew they needed to, but she didn't want to let go of Khagra any more than Khagra wanted to let go of them. It was a necessary evil, but that didn't make it easy. She told herself that it would be alright and she would see Khagra again, older and stronger and happier without the specter of her rages hanging over her head.

"Sorne, what if I can't do this?" Khagra murmured.

"You can," Sorne said with confidence. "I believe in you. Everyone does. You will be alright. And whatever happens, you can always come back to us. But Dunak has many things to teach you that you cannot learn here in Ash Kordh, and you will be better from lessons." She smiled faintly. "I want you to take something, something that I have carried with me since I left Mauléon. It came from a great warrior and one who helped me see what I could be, even when I was afraid and broken." She took off Nagar's urzu, the animal fang that she had worn since that night on the road. "I give this to you with the same confidence in you that Nagar had in me when he gave it to me."