Vivian Russel

The party flowed around them, unnoted and separate. A wondrous opportunity to enjoy each other’s company without concern. A blessing not experienced since long before The Pit. The claimed couch became an isolated island in the rumble of the Clock Party. For Vivian and her Kai, this was bliss. There was a sense of communion between them, though not a single word was spoken. The proud acolyte sat regally as he sipped a punch of his own mixing. His free hand shifted her hair like a cat’s gesturing paw. The healer enjoyed the sensation as she laid her head in his lap. Vivian’s smile was content and Kai’s revealed an unbelieving wonder.

“Kai?” she called with closed eyes.

Pausing in a sip, Kai looked down with a warm stare, “Yes, my better half?”

Smiling and shaking her head in amusement, Vivian asked, “What was your life… like after you had to leave?” Her eyes opened to take in every twitch of his face. So she could divine the meaning of every word.

“Desolate,” pouted Kai mockingly, but the tone was too forced. She waited for his pride to settle. A kind soul, but she knew the sorta life he lived before their meeting. Posturing was all too important for survival in his family. Strength or death was their shouted motto. Vivian held his gaze patiently. His eyes flickered away from hers with a sigh.

“Alright, alright,” smirked her Kai. “I stayed busy running the damn family business. Always trying to get it to the point where I could escape and everything could run until someone competent wanted it. My family didn’t help with that at all. Arrogant fools with nothing to back their boasts. Pah, only polluted tracks in the aftermath of their failures. Had someone asked me to come here, I may have agreed just for the out… If they told me you would be here… I would have leaped for it.”

Smiling sweetly, Vivian stated, “So, you didn’t forget me. Did you think of me often?”

“It would be a lie to say all the time,” replied Kai. “That’s why I put so much effort in. To hide you, and from you. Your memory haunted me, but I couldn’t allow my family to know about you. They would have ruined your life to just knock me off the top, or just down a peg for the sake of a passing corporate maneuver. So, I lived with the weight of you, but tried not to allow myself a straying word or thought.”

“You pined for me in secret,” teased Vivian.

“Ugh, pined, perhaps that’s the word for my torment,” said Kai with a scowl. “There were moments of pleasure and joy. Attempts to make that life bearable, or sadly yes, to escape you. I think I even convinced myself that they worked. Until I was alone. Lonely nights where I struggled with the loss of you and the chains of the family. In the end, there is no happiness where there is a lack of freedom. I couldn’t make choices that mattered to me. My life was constricted by the needs of the family. It was honestly a relief to awaken here, but it became heaven when I saw you.”

“Aww, aren’t you beautiful,” murmured Vivian. “Am I an angel then?”

“Of course, though, a wrathful one,” responded Kai playfully. “I fell for you the moment I saw you, fully in your wrath and roaring in my direction.”

A blush filtered across the healer's face. “I’m a passionate person… and you boys dragged mud into my apartment!”

“And we were rightfully chastised for it,” teased Kai. “In the middle of a college party, you called us out. It was awe-inspiring. You gained my attention that very moment. Passion and honesty are your great virtues.”

“I see it as a failing of rigidity and being a grouch,” said Vivian with a sour expression.

“No, no, my love,” whispered Kai, almost purring. “You are a thrill and a comfort.”

“Sure,” said Vivan unconvinced. Still, she snuggled into the proud acolyte with a pleased smile.

There was a moment of warm silence as they enjoyed the presence of each other. It was broken when Kai asked, “What was that time like for you?”

She didn’t answer right away. Their time together passed through the fingers of her mind. Images of that roaring first meeting, her confusion at the prowling man’s sudden attention, and then contentment when Vivian accepted his genuine efforts at wooing her. Three years passed with their ups and downs, but largely it was a blissful time. Enchanting memories that became soft and golden from heavy handling. Their experiences together had built a strong foundation in which a good life could have been built. Could have, but didn’t.

The memory of that final day was painfully crystal clear to her, despite every effort to break it. Tears and sorrowful words had been passed between the two of them. Kai’s father had died and he had to go. The heir had to ascend the throne, for there was no one better. She wasn’t invited, but Vivan also wouldn’t ask. Her own father had become sick and a half-world away was too far if things got worse. The weight of factors made separating the only rational option. One last hug with heartfelt wishes of luck.

“At first, I cried and cursed you for leaving,” said Vivian, finally answering. “Anger, wrathful, those are good words to apply. I will accept them when thinking about that moment. Then things got worse for my father’s health and I had to do more than learn to nurse. It didn’t leave much time to think about you, Kai. You were there like a ghost, but my father consumed my days and nights. He got better though, and suddenly I had my whole life to live again. I still hurt and missed you, but I dismissed it as just, you know, a first love thing.

“I lived and reflected on our time together. I dated and judged them by you. I came home and was disappointed you weren’t there more often than maybe was healthy. There were times I hoped to fall in love again just to erase your importance to me. To fall in love so our relationship would stop feeling so important. To become less unique because it did happen again. No one, no one ever came close. So I focused on my career and my friends instead. My life felt incomplete at times, but it was a good one. When I awoke here, I thought it was just a dream. A wonderful one when I found you, Kai, but I do miss my life back on Earth. I know I will be happy with you… still... I will miss my life on Earth.”

“There is nothing wrong with that,” assured Kai. “I never have I ever expected you to be devoted to me on that level. Your life is your own, and I won’t, shouldn't satisfy every aspect of it for you. I simply joy every moment I do get with you, Vivian. I never expected to have any ever again. I would have never guessed, but miracles are real.”

“I am very happy to have you again too,” smiled the healer with closed eyes. They snuggled together deeper into the couch. The party grew louder and more rambunctious. Their little sphere remained calm. It stayed a point of love and peace.

Damian Franklin

I love parties, thought Damian as he sat at a table discussing the nature of Mana. His punch of Ambrosia sat largely ignored except for wetting his throat. A tower of cookies slowly crumbled as the obsidian man devoured their delicious sweetness. Lifting a chocolate chip cookie, he intently listened to Anastasia explaining what she saw with her spell, Discerning Sight.

“Um based off what I uh have seen, I would say that magic is um affected by perception, just um like Damian underlined,” opened the blonde acolyte. “When I uh look into a person, their um Mana is uh um like colors and symbols. Everybody’s is uh different. I can um confirm that Mana does uh flow through us. So um it’s not just connected to uh us and an outside force.”

Picking up that thought, the fire acolyte Allen said, “The book talked about Mana as a sort of extra-dimensional energy that crosses through multiple layers of reality. Could we really be channeling something like that in our bodies? Having energy run through us seems dangerous. Hell, normal electricity could mess up our bodies! This stuff is that and more.”

“I think you are misunderstanding,” broke in Damian. “Mana is not attributed with natural forces in the normal phase. Simply stated, Mana is inert until a consciousness or life force acts upon it. That seems to be why when we use too much we lose connection with our senses. The use of Mana brings us closer to that same inert state.”

“If we uh use too much will we um die?” panicked Anastasia. “The uh sensation of void is um horrible enough.”

“Perhaps, it is detailed more in later books,” explained Damian. “External Mana Manipulation did not go into an in-depth explanation on overuse. Just warned against and suggested that death took extraordinary effort to cause. The body acts as an anchor to stave off complete disconnection.”

“Yeah, yeah don’t push ourselves, gotcha” spat Jorgenson, the storm acolyte. “What I want to know is how this stony fuck got new spells and changed old ones up.”

Damian grinned at being asked for his expertise. He was fairly sure that she was being rude, but it was too fun to discuss the workings of Mana. “The altering of a spell is simple. One must envision the desired change and allow the Heartsong to whisper the changes needed. For some, it will just be a change in my mental image and for others, specific intonation will be needed to reach the proper state of will.”

“What the hell does that mean?” grumbled Jorgenson. “I just want to shape up my spells some.”

“I’m gonna have to second that,” agreed Allen. “I don’t have the foggiest idea whatcha mean by that. All of it was basically technobabble to me. Well, magic-babble? Arcane-babble? Maybe, Magic-jabber?”

“I uh, um think he means you have to uh have a strong idea of what you um want and then um commune with your uh Heartsong,” guessed Anasatia while staring Damian down as if to read his face to see the second she was wrong.

“Crude, but correct,” grinned Damian. “At our current level of expertise, all our magic is confined by the Heartsong doing the heavy lifting.”

“This is that Low Magic thing you talked about the other day,” replied Allen. “We’re only at Chanting or something.”

“How do I get better?” demanded Jorgenson, butting back into the conversation. “I’ve seen you doing all sorts of new stuff, Damian!”

“I already told you,” blinked Damian. “One must envision the desired change and allow the Heartsong to whisper the changes needed. I am not sure what else to tell you. I believe Anastasia Pascal clarified it well. What do you not understand?”

The storm acolyte growled and looked to be standing up to loom when Allen reached out a hand to push her back down by the shoulder. “Look, don’t get mad at the guy,” frowned Allen. “He gets this shit, but from what I get you gotta think this stuff out. Maybe read the book again? We have the same resources as him, well maybe not the smarts. This guy has a whole heap of that.”

“You calling me dumb?” questioned Jorgenson with a snarl.

Rolling his eyes, Allen stated, “No. There is no reason to be gettin’ angry. You just aren’t on Damian’s level. He basically taught all of us, he’s a wizard!”

“Alright, fine,” pouted Jorgenson. “I just don’t like gettin’ left behind, y’ know? This magic stuff is wicked cool… and I’m competitive.” The last part was said as if it was both an explanation and an apology.

The obsidian acolyte was unaffected and grinned back at the stormy woman. “I am just delighted to be discussing Mana with all of you,” said Damian. “Mana is exciting and I am glad to have you all to share it with. I have thought about your confusion, Nicole Jorgenson. There are many ways to connect with Mana. The best suggestion I have to offer is to communion as you have and think about what you want to happen while casting a spell like normal. Perhaps you will find a repeatable method. I will think further on it. More training will be needed for the Sixty and we four will see it done.”

“If by we, you mean you and us following your lead, then yes I am with ya,” smirked Allen.

Sweating and twitching with anxiety, Anastasia said, “Um I uh, if you really uh want um uh me to help…”

Jorgenson blushed and with a flattered tone said, “Well, yeah I’ll help since, uh y’ know, I get a private lesson out of it. Basically. Yeah.”

“Excellent, I am glad to be working with you, my friends,” declared Damian. He was thrilled at how this party was going. There was further excitement for him as no one disagreed when he claimed them as friends. What luck to wake up here, thought the obsidian acolyte. If this is a dream, then it is the best. Magic and friends! This is just great. Ooo! And cookies! Damian grabbed another cookie and leaned in as the conversation picked up again.

Clarissa Evans

With great effort and focus, Clarissa jousted with her best effort. She swiveled, ducked, and dodged. Attacking from the left to counter the strike from the right. The opponent was pinned, but they wiggled like a fierce ferret. They gained freedom. They clashed, struggled, and sweated for victory. Then before she knew it, her thumb was pinned. Soren’s grip, once clamped on, was inescapable.

Clarissa sighed as Soren declared triumph with fits in the air. “Woo!,” cried the champion. “I beat ya three times in a row! Finally found something I can beat you at!”

“Hurrah…” grumbled the archer. “Whoop de do… you are the king of thumb wars. Congratulations! I’m gonna get another drink…”

“Nah uh, woman!” protested Soren. “Do not put down my win! I am allowed to brag after the shows you put on! Plus, you ain’t gettin’ away from paying up. A bet is a bet.”

She slumped into her chair dramatically. Clarissa’s head laid limp on her shoulder with a tongue in an impression of the dead. The silence hung in the air, but Soren waited with a smirk. Finally, the archer growled and thrashed back to sitting upright. “Fiiine, I will answer one question from you.”

“A question that you will truthfully and thoroughly answer by the terms you already agreed to when you made the bet,” confirmed Soren with a sharp look over his smile.

“Pfft, gah, yes I will answer like I agreed, geez,” groaned Clarissa. “I’m not sure why you are making such a big dealio.”

“Well, it could be I am a stickler for deals and rules,” offered Soren mildly. “It could also be that every time I won an answer before this, you have wheedled out of it with lies, distraction, and vague responses. There is no way I am letting that happen again.” Then in a gruff fake voice, he added, “That’s the law, Missy!”

“Spare me,” said Clarissa with rolling eyes. After they had gone around superfluously several times, she added, “I don’t know why you even want the answer to that question.”

“Well, why wouldn’t I want to hear your story?” asked Soren. “I know you got a good story, Clarissa. You know mine, so fair’s fair. Also, before you even try… answering that question doesn’t count, as the question to be answered has already been decided.”

“Grrr, I didn’t even ask you for your life’s story,” whined Clarissa. “Ok, admittedly it was cool. You went from deputy to sheriff to Federal Marshall all in the pursuit of one man. That’s a hell of a story and an amazing accomplishment. You know… you should go around and tell everyone that story. Bet it would be a hit at this party! Come on let’s...”

“Enough, gimmie your story,” said Soren, cutting her off. “Wedging is now over, cough it up.”

The archer sighed and cracked her neck. “Fine…” said Clarissa as she admitted defeat. “It’s not this decade's next big crime novel... So don’t get too excited. It starts sad... Then... it gets sadder before it gets any better. Imagine me, eight years old living a pleasant suburban life. My parents go out on a date night and never come home. Car accident, drunk driver. Y’ know that story... I am not getting into it any more than that…

“So, the orphan that I am now, my last living relative takes me in. My great-grandmother. A woman, going by her photos, who always looked ancient. Just needed the years to catch up to her face. Old Maid Agnes, as the town called her, was a woman of very few words. Greeted me at the door with a grunt and a wave to follow. There was a room all made up for me… She returned to the tv in silence after showing me. The town’s folk whispered sometimes that she was a witch, not in fear, but not in fondness either. The only time I came close to believing that was meal times. I rarely saw her cook, unless teaching me, but there was always food hot, ready to eat whenever I was hungry. Spooky and lovely, but spooky too.

“It was a strange time for me. Being suddenly without parents and thrust in the middle of nowhere with a woman I only had the vaguest of memories of. She lived in the mountains of West Virginia. Literally on the side of the mountain. Shit, I had to hike a mile down to get to a road, and then it was close enough to the school that there wasn’t a bus ride waiting. Just another hike. There were nice times with Agnes, though. She taught me a lot of neat things. My skills with archery started with her telling me how to do it. I still wonder if I am as good as her. The woman was a wonder with a bow. Would launch perfect shot after perfect shot with a pipe in her mouth. She also showed me how to live on the mountain. There was a surprising amount that she took from the land rather than pay for it at a grocery store.

“All that was impressive considering how little she talked. Longest conversation we ever had was when she explained that children had never been something she wanted, but what else was a woman in her time supposed to do. Strange woman, but in her way very caring. Just very tired from a pretty terrible life. That’s her story though, so you don’t get it. I imagine seeing the whole of your family die before you was pretty fucking fucked too. I should know, cause that happened to me too. Agnes died when I was fourteen.

“I woke up one day to a cold house. It was winter and the house was warmed by a wood stove. I knew right away something was wrong… expected the worst when I saw the door to her room closed. It was only closed for one reason. She was asleep. And Anges, never overslept. It was… a big affair. Let me just say. The cops came out. The county coroner came out too after a while. Papers were signed and pushed. Hushed voices over my head and sympathetic words thrown my way. It’s all a blur now ‘cause I wasn’t paying it much mind. My focus was entirely on how alone I was. It was crushing.

“What snapped me out was the words from someone saying they were here to take me away. I remember everything just coming back all at once. The sudden realization I was being taken from my home again. Fucking again. So I was gone. Who expects a grieving teen to run away? Well, maybe a lot of people, but those people weren’t paying any attention to me. I was just a problem they didn’t want to have to solve... I didn’t have a plan the first time I fled child services. I hid the whole night in a little hut I built in the woods. Agnes had once found me there and gave it an appreciative nod… so I was pretty snug there... That was a dark night. The first one that led into a dark couple of years.”

“Clarissa paused in quiet contemplation. Considering the next words and tasting a little bit of that cold night from her memories. “Life changes, but even when for the better, you never completely escape the unpleasant memories,” she said, staring up at the painted ceiling. The archer shook the thought away and then picked up the story again. “That became my new cycle for a while. I lived alone in the house, but when child services came I would bolt to the woods. I lived off the land and scrounged money to take care of the rest. I rarely had enough. Barely had time for school, between staying fed and fleeing every time child services came around. I would have been caught, might have been better if I had, but the town helped keep me clear of ‘em. I think they thought it funny to mess with a government body from “outside.” Either way, they would warn me or pass along the few things they could miss.

“Those two years I kept going purely because what else was I supposed to do? I thought about ending it, especially at night. Silence the pain for all time. I couldn’t. That was the simple reason. There was no real want for either way. Just couldn’t. That chapter finally closed several months after my sixteenth birthday. A girl by the name of Natalie brought me a law book from the library. Acted like I was an idiot for not knowing about emancipation. Nice girl, if a little rough. I can’t really blame her when she was a smart girl in a backcountry town. They were nice folk, but they had their backward flaws. Natalie helped put the papers together and Town Hall helped me file them.

“With that done, life got a whole lot easier. I was still scraping by, but hey, I didn’t need to run away anymore. Made more time for other things. Namely school. I focused on that and made sure I was going to graduate. A funny thing happened when I turned eighteen. A lawyer showed up a few days after the date. Apparently, he was a savvy one or had heard of the wild girl of the mountain that had been replacing Witch Agnes as a popular folk tale. He made the hike up to the house and waited a respectable distance away. I was resentful for being treated like a wild animal, but I don’t blame the man. Likely didn’t want me disappearing into the woods when he had a job to do.

“I went out and got the surprise of my life. Turns out there was a trust in my name... and also that I had a P. O. Box in town that desperately needed to be cleaned out. Turns out my parents had left everything to Agnes and then the old coot had put all of it into a trust fund for me. Except for a stipend to pay for living expenses, she never touched any of it. Before you ask, I’ll just say it was a lot. I went from wondering how much food I could afford to miss that week to never needing to worry about anything, ever again. I went off to college not really believing it was real. Even after I was able to pay for everything without a loan.

“It didn’t really become real until my senior year when I was trying to figure out what to do with a general studies degree. I could afford to just continue going to school since I wasn’t sure what to do. I woke up with the answer. The dream faded too quickly for me to remember it, but I decided I would help the town. It was like a lot of towns in the spaces between cities, a place that lost their purpose. What had made them, had passed on as the world turned. I stayed at school a little longer to finish with an economics degree instead.

“When I came back to town it was with a lot more fanfare than I expected. I guess I had become a bit of a legend. The Wild Girl of the Mountain, who was tamed and went to college. Quite the story with how they told it. I used it. Got elected mayor. Took my money and invested it in the town. First I got infrastructure up to snuff. Next, I made some deals to bring businesses into the town. Even paid for an observatory atop my mountain. Spent a couple of terms shoring everything up and then I played an important person to other leaders. Made sure the town stayed stable. I was just starting to get bored when I woke up here…. And frankly, this was just the adventure I was looking for. You asked once why I was so chipper all the time... well I’ve seen worse days than these and paid my debts to the town, so no regrets leaving it behind.”

“Wow… that’s a story…” gulped Soren. “Not sure what to say to… all that.”

“Yeah, well, that’s why I don’t like telling it,” scowled Clarissa. “Keep it to yourself. I don’t need yours or anyone’s pity. Now there is a party going on… I am going to grab a new drink and follow the laughter. When you are ready to have fun rather than dig into my past, come find me. Or not.” She sauntered away without a backward glance at the gunman.