Araman

~ 24 ~

   I can think of none more worthy to look after the people; I will not let you fall; I just pray she will make the right decision; go now and bring me back a knight; it was not the dress I was admiring; now, the war begins...

Over the next few days Raliena had time to digest the events of the past few weeks. She saw little of Zinib and he kept his distance. He had a bandaged arm that he kept in a linen sling from where she had burnt him. It had been much easier to do than the first time and she spent much time practicing with Lozni and Yaline on how to use it in a battle.

Lozni told her that it was a misconception that she could only use her powers with her hands, any part of her that is in contact with a person could be used, which is especially useful in a fight, only it was far easier to focus on her hands and the glowing that accompanied it was easier to hide.

After discussing with Jaya and Yaline how strong Raliena was, Lozni told them that Raliena's was too much power to give to any Sinner, even Zinib, and told them of how Raliena had fought the Sinner off with an ease that even she would have struggled with.

They all agreed that Raliena did not need to be pledged and plans moved on to how they were going to remove Dergen from Verxia.

Yaline was angered on hearing about what Zinib had done but Jaya had managed to calm her enough to stop her from going to find him and giving him another wound to worry about.

"He should not have been here in the first place." Yaline said during a break in their sparring. She was an able swordswoman and both she and Raliena were sweating from the exertion.

"You seem to hate him more than most." Raliena commented, taking a large gulp of cold water Lozni handed her.

"I hate what he is." Yaline replied.

"We have all had experiences with Sinners in some way." Lozni explained; setting herself down on the log that was placed in the clearing for them to sit on. "It was part of our culture for a very long time, even after the Lagania was destroyed."

"I lived in a village where a Sinner had settled and made himself leader." Yaline began. "He took my sister for his lover and when she bore him a son, he stole the child away and left her, knowing that he would be a Sinner also."

Yaline threw the mug she was drinking from on the floor in frustration.

"My sister and I learnt to fight so that we could search for the Sinner and my nephew as no one else in the village had the courage to stand up to him. When we found them many years later the boy had turned into his father's son, as is the nature of the Sinners. The boy had killed his father and taken a town of his own. They had found an Armon and only one could have her so, once his father was out of the way, he threatened the girl's family unless she bound with him. The town's people lived in fear of him and his Armon, my nephew. He was only a boy."

Raliena was silent, shocked by the story. Now she knew why Yaline hated Zinib so much.

"What happened to him?" Raliena asked quietly.

"My sister killed his Armon hoping it would restore him to the sweet innocent that was her son. It did not work and when the boy found out he tried to have her killed too. His own mother!" Yaline had tears in her eyes as she continued. "I managed to get her out before she could watch the town turn on him instead, but she never recovered from it. When we returned to our own village my family did the best they could, but it was too much and she ended her own pain."

"The Sinners are cursed with their own hunger for power." Lozni said softly. "There was nothing that could be done, even if the boy had stayed with your sister."