Awaken - 1. The Dark

Dimian is a large country on the continent of Amres. Bordered by Dleth and Serran, it's a safe haven for those in the world gifted with Magik. The east side of the country lays on the Mariede Sea. To the west is the snow capped Aine mountains. Magik is passed down through bloodlines and the oldest families normally create the strongest users. It's very rare for a person to be born to these families without the gift. Any element, object, or force can be the focus of someone's power. Magik users can control the largest storms or have reign over something as simple as wood or metal. Alliances are encouraged between strong families to supplement their power. As much as Magik is coveted and praised in Dimian, in it's bordering countries these same people are prosecuted. Fear is rampant and Dimian receives refugees every day. Relations between all three of the bordering countries are strained. Both Dleth and Serran are smaller than Dimian but they ally themselves together. The only reason Dimian is able to keep the other countries at bay is that their military ranks are filled with Magik wielding soldiers. The countries are teetering on the edge of all out war and anything could tip them into it.

*

The honest way to start this is by making it clear that I'm not anything special. This becomes more apparent every year I age and my abilities don't blossom like my peers'. I live in Krinn, a port city on the coast of Dimian. Being set on the water, all of the town's economy relied on the sea. Fishing was the major industry, tourism being a close second. My parents had ranked high in the military and with the wealth they obtained from sprinting up the ranks they were both able to retire and now owned half the fish packing warehouses in the town. Houses in Krinn were balanced on the edge of the coast and were built up into the rock and stone. My family home sat at the very top. It was a sprawling monster of a house with grounds bigger almost than the rest of the city.

The small, high window above my worn wooden desk almost let the cool breeze in off the water. Almost. I tried to convince myself I could even hear the waves crashing on the shore. Chewing my lip, I brought my hands up for the 100^th time that afternoon, trying my hardest to focus. All my attention was on a small candle in the middle of the desk. It was lit, the amber flame swaying slowly in the breeze. Nothing was happening, the flame still lazily moved away from the window. I stared harder, feeling like my eyes would cross. Still nothing. I sat back and let a frustrated sigh loose. Rubbing my hand over my face I tried to go over the instructions my teacher had given me.

One: clear your mind. As my family and teachers like to say there wasn't much there to begin with. Two: center yourself. I was...in the center of the room? This one never made sense to me. Three: slow your breathing. I slowed my breathing until I almost thought I'd nod off. Four: focus all of your attention on the task you're trying to complete. I returned to the candle, glaring at it's flame. Five: find the net of power that was always around those who had the gift and pull from it. Use it to bend the fire to your will.

I tried desperately to grasp at the power around me. I could feel it but I never seemed to be able to grab it like everyone else. I reached for it like I had always been told but it didn't rush to meet me. It felt like it was just out of my reach, my fingertips brushing against it. Then my hands slipped. Nothing happened. I sat back again. I wanted to scream. Children could do this. Extinguishing a flame was one of the easiest tasks a magic user with the gift of flame could do. Only I'd never been able to do it. Normally people didn't have to struggle and the older people got the easier it was. It was supposed to become second nature. I leaned forward in my chair, resting my elbows on my knees as my face fell into my hands. I cracked my fingers, looking down at my off white linen pants. I sat up and smoothed my hands over them, shaking my head. It wasn't going to happen today. Again.

I blew the flame out and stood, leaving the small room my family reserved for me to practice. My brother had an entire field with a stone wall at the end and targets. My sister had multiple pools of water on the grounds and the entire ocean just a mile away. Both of my siblings were considered prodigies in their specific powers. I had been tested for both since they were the same gifts my parents had but so far I couldn't do anything. My parents had served the King and Queen and were military legends. People still spoke of their separate and combined power. Again, I had nothing to show for all these genetics. I had a small side room that they closed me away in to try and pretend like I might make progress.

Groaning, I ran fingers through my hair. It fell to my chin and was pin straight waves of dull copper. My family all had some variation of reddish hair and blue eyes. That's where the similarities ended however. Anika, my sister, had red thick hair which was bright and shined as it fell down her back in loose waves. Her blue eyes were like pools of the deepest water. They were shot through with flecks of sky blue and green and were shadowed by thick, full eyelashes. Her pale skin was perfect and smooth, her features delicate and unmistakably beautiful. Eon was the tallest person in the family, well over six foot. He was quiet and reserved but devastatingly powerful. His hair was short, and his more bronze colored waves somehow looked tousled effortlessly every time he went out. His eyes were almond and more narrow than Anika's and he always looked at me like I was a problem he couldn't solve. Eon's eyes were ice blue and he had unnatural looking flecks of orange and gold in his irises. His features were much stronger than both Anika's and mine. His nose was just slightly upturned at the end and his lips were fuller and wider. He also had pale skin, but it was golden from being in the sun every day. He managed to never burn under the rays that felt like they were trying to set me on fire every time I went outside.

The unnerving thing about having a power in this world meant it influenced your eye color. That unfortunately meant my eyes weren't as striking as my siblings. Just like everything else about me. My mother had thought it was a miracle that I had two different colored eyes when I'd been a baby. One light blue and one hazel. It was more like hazel mixed with blue. It's like whoever made me was filling one eye and the color spilled into the other. She thought it meant I'd grow to be the strongest magic user that was ever born in our family. She was...mistaken.

Walking down our gravel drive I felt the cool sea breeze on my face. Breathing deep for a moment I paused. My peace was ruined when a loud explosion shook the ground and almost knocked me off my feet. It startled me at first until I saw my brother's back a half mile to the east of me. He was moving quickly, dashing sideways before jumping and flipping, discs of flame shooting from his hands and hitting targets I could barely see. Upon impact the dishes exploded. It continued to shake the ground and I tried not to scowl. I couldn't put out a flame and Eon could probably wipe our town off the map if he wanted. I could barely make out Anika moving one finger slowly in a lazy arc, putting out the small fires left in Eon's wake with water from a nearby pool. I'd given up on water a long time ago and with a flick of her wrist my sister could flood Krinn.

I watched longingly. If only I could do a fraction of what they could do my family wouldn't look at me like they weren't quite sure what had happened. I was just poor Kalian who couldn't summon fire or beckon water. We were invited to court frequently, but I never attended. From a young age my parents told anyone who asked where their youngest son was that I was too sickly to travel the two day journey to the capital, Syrin. I dreamed of seeing the white and gold city someday. When we were younger Eon and Anika would rave about the tall white buildings. The royal and government buildings were topped with golden domes. That was all I could remember. As my siblings got older the less and less they shared with me.

I started walking a bit faster until I felt my feet pick up even more. The wind rushed through my hair, bringing a smile to my face. I was running over our property, down through the small neighborhood of thatch roofed houses that were closest to our house, and into the actual town. A bit more running and I was in the square. I stopped, bending over to rest my hands on my knees as I struggled to catch my breath. I felt better here. No one really paid much attention to me and I was able to move around freely without people staring at me disapprovingly. I knew my father would be furious when he realized I'd skipped out on my “lessons”, but I didn't care. They didn't even get me a teacher anymore. My mother had told me she didn't see the point in wasting everyone's time.

The town square was bustling. Vendors yelled out what the were selling, children giggled and cried following behind their mothers as they shopped, and above it all, gulls cried and the waves crashed. I loved sounds of the sea mixed with the sounds of the town. Looking around, I tried to decide where I wanted to go first. The beach was around the corner, maybe a five minute walk. Otherwise I could always walk around and see what the vendors were pushing today. There was even a small bookstore if I took the road to the left. I reached up to pull the sleeve of my thin white tunic down and slowly turned to the left, still trying to decide. The roads here were cobblestone and there were well worn grooves in the road from foot traffic and horse pulled carriages. I balanced in one of the deeper carriage grooves, lifting my hands to steady myself as I went. I took the first turn I came to, not really paying attention and soon my outstretched fingertips skimmed over stone walls before they narrowed even more, my palms pressed flat. At last, I looked up and took in my surroundings. It was an alley I'd never been down before. The walls were only wide enough for one person at a time and it was very dark. I noticed it was eerily quiet here. I wondered where all the people were. Even if it wasn't the foot traffic of the square, these side roads normally had at least one or two random people moseying about. Even the noise of the gulls had faded. Maybe I'd ventured too far. This didn't make sense though, I grew up here. I knew the ins and outs of this town like my own home.

Looking higher, I noticed strange symbols on the walls. One large tree in the middle of thorns. The tree had no leaves and the branches reached out like claws. The ink that was used looked like it was bleeding down the wall, distorting everything. Reaching up hesitantly, I moved to touch the ink but something in my head sent off alarm bells. I heard footsteps and realized a person had creeped up on me. There was someone standing directly behind me now and I could see another emerge from the darkness in front of me.

“Scream and I swear I will cut you open right here,” the voice was harsh. The man was so close to me I could feel his breath on my ear and worse, smell it's stench. His clothes were ragged and he had dirty brown hair and some kind of rag draped over the bottom half of his face. His wrist turned slightly and what little light there was glinted off a shape in his hand. It was a long, curved blade. My breath caught in my throat and I tried to remain calm. Panicking in this situation wasn't going to get me out of it.

“What do you want?” I had meant for it to be confident and sure but my voice came out in a squeak. He moved closer and my hands flew up. They both stilled for a minute, waiting. I realized with a start that they were expecting Magik. When nothing came I was slammed against the wall by the other man. He was even dirtier than the other and I could see black gums and few teeth.

“You were gonna try something! I saw your hands go up!”

“I wasn't! I don't have any Magik.”

“You're lying. You came from the direction of the Alauis mansion. Try it again and I'll cut your damn hands off!” I winced as he again slammed me against the wall. I heard a door shut somewhere and tried to work up the nerve to scream. Black Gums seemed to read my mind and used his arm across my chest to slam me against the wall another time, knocking the breath out of me.

“We gotta hurry up Sken! Another person is gonna come up on us if you don’t move it.” Knife Man was beginning to look more nervous, but the arm on my chest pushed down more.

“I don't see no money, but maybe we can take somethin' else,” I felt his hand slip up my shirt. Sken's rough fingers ran over my stomach and I felt my eyes almost pop out of my head. Great. This was what I needed. I tried to kick out with my legs and connected with Knife Man's stomach. Sken hit me hard. I sputtered, my head thrown to the side, blood spilling from my mouth. My face throbbed immediately and Sken moved to hit me again. Then, I heard whistling. Fantastic, hallucinations to go with everything else. How hard had I been hit? Then I heard it again, closer this time.

“What the fuck is that?” Knife Man sounded scared, “I told you we shouldn't be here. This place is cursed.”

“Stop your superstition and shut up! I hear somethin,” Sken shrieked. The whistling sounded like it was right next to us now, coming from the shadows that continued past that weird symbol.

Then it stopped. I looked up through an already swelling eye and saw a person emerge from the shadows. Dark hair fell around his face as he lifted his head and my eyes widened as his black eyes took everything in before landing on me. He wore all black and his tunic had rough, uneven hems and no sleeves. It was asymmetrical and one side lifted up. I caught a glimpse of a black tree on his hip, the branches extending beyond my view, the black ink stretching over his skin filled me with unease. He opened his mouth in a strange grin and his teeth seemed wrong. They looked more like fangs than teeth,

“Hmm. Well, well, this looks unpleasant.” Both of my attackers had paled and Sken released me, dropping me to the ground.

“G-get back freak!” Sken cried and Knife Man turned said weapon on the stranger.

He tilted his head to the side, frowning, “Now, that's just impolite. You come to me. Attack someone on my doorstep and then threaten me.” That was too much for Knife Man. He lunged, aiming for The Stranger's chest. His frown deepening, he moved so fast I could've sworn he blurred. The stranger grabbed the hand holding the knife and used the man's momentum to send him flying forward. The Stranger was now holding the knife and he casually spun it around his fingers. No Knife Man toppled to the ground with a groan. Sken was moving and I tried to warn the man. I made some kind of strangled noise and the man turned slowly. He wasn't even phased as he watched Sken whip a knife out of nowhere, charging him. I stared as the man grinned at me. He let the knife fall out of his hand and kicked it into the darkness. He was still grinning when Sken reached him. The Stranger dodged last minute and his hand gripped Sken's wrist and twisted. I heard a crack and scream and my attacker fell to his knees.

Lowering his tall frame to squat in front of Sken, he frowned again, “I'm beginning to think you're not very friendly.”
Sken's head jerked back and he spit in the man's face. Those black eyes narrowed ever so slightly, an unknown emotion flashing in them, as long fingers wiped the spittle off his face. Then a slow smile spread across his mouth and his dark eyes somehow seemed to get darker.

“Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.” Sken swung at the man again with his other fist, letting out an enraged cry. The man easily caught his wrist, pulling him forward and slamming his elbow down in the middle of the outstretched arm. My stomach flipped as I heard another crack. Sken was rolling around on the ground screaming and The Stranger slowly stood. He turned to look at newly dubbed No Knife Man and tilted his head.

“I think it's time you both left. You don't make very good company.” No Knife man scrambled to his feet, scurrying past the other man. The Stranger's hand shot out and he pulled the man back, pointing to Sken on the ground who was still screaming and thrashing, “Take your friend with.”
He hurriedly dragged his companion away, swearing at him to pick up his feet. It took me a while to notice I was now alone with the man who'd saved me from them. The only problem being, I wasn't sure if I was actually safe. I jumped when I felt my hair being pushed away from my eyes. Swatting his hand away, I crawled backwards.

He was crouching in front of me, his elbows on his knees and his hands dangling between his legs as he studied me, “Why are you in this area of town, little one?” I bristled. I wasn't tall but I wasn't short either. I was 5'10” but even I knew that I was built wrong. Even at average height I managed to look slight, my shoulders narrow and my limbs too long for my body.

“I don't even know where this part of town is,” I snapped.

He reached toward my face and I swatted his hand away again, “your eye is swelling and your lip is bleeding and puffy.”
I touched my eye lightly and winced, the skin was tender. He watched me, his head tilted again before he gracefully rose to his full height. He would tower over me on my best day, but on the ground he looked like a giant. There was a grin back on his face again and a long incisor pressed into his lower lip. He gripped my arm and hauled me to my feet. Turning away from me he started walking into the dark, waving his hand at me to follow. I didn't want to. I just witnessed more violence than I'd ever been exposed to before and I wasn't sure how to deal with it. I watched him break an arm and a wrist like they were nothing. He hadn't broken a sweat and he hadn't seem bothered in the least. That was not normal and what was to stop him from hurting me? Especially if I followed him into the dark.

He slowly slipped into the shadows and it dawned on my how alone I was and how dark the alley was around me. I hesitated a moment longer before darting after him. I couldn't see anything now and pressed my hands against the wall, trying to find my way. I was starting to panic and struggle before I ran right into his back. I teetered and long fingers gripped my arms, steadying me. He started walking again and like a small child I found the edge of his tunic, holding onto it as he lead me through the dark. Small lights started appearing along the wall, slowly growing in concentration. My breathe caught as we reached a door studded completely in small round lights. The lights twinkled slightly and it was somehow stunningly beautiful. The door underneath the lights was a deep red and I watched him grip the knob before pulling it open.

I followed him through the door and then I was standing in a small sitting room. There was far more light in here and I realized the roof was one big sky light. The seating was sunken in the middle of the room and had thick cushions and pillows in rich jewel tones. A large fireplace sat against the wall with black, white, and red candles in various heights. Dried wax spilled over the mantel. The floors were a smooth, white, limestone and seemed to hold onto just enough warmth from the sunlight above. I moved farther in to stand under the window. The light was reassuring after being in the dark so long and I watched a gull lazily fly across the sky.

“So, who taught you how to make friends? I don't think you're doing it right.” I glared at him as he returned, that stupid grin back on his face. He held strange bottles in his hands and a piece of cloth. I was startled to see that his eyes were light grey with swirls of black around the pupils, not solid black like I originally thought. His hair was the color of graphite and hung to his shoulders in uneven layers. His black eyebrows rose and he motioned to the nearest cushioned couch. I stared for a moment longer at his alabaster skin and the three, thin, silver hoops on the side of his nose. I sat on the edge, feeling weird about being in what was obviously his home. He slid a large ring off his finger that I hadn't noticed and shook something green from one of the jars into his hand, a powder. I glanced at the ring he had set aside. It was black and square, with four jagged triangles meeting at the same point at the bottom of the ring.

I winced as he pushed the powder into the skin around my eye. I let out a small hiss as he rubbed it in, “That hurts stop!” I tried swatting him away again. I felt my eyes water and tried to pull from his grip as he continued to push on the tender skin. His other hand held my wrist gently and he pulled me to him. My eye was on fire and he rubbed even harder and faster. He pulled back and wiped his hands on his pants and I saw streaks of green across the dark fabric.

“Stop whining little lord. Or you can leave here with a fat lip.” I jerked in surprise.

“Y-you know who I am?”

“Ah yes, Kalian Alauis. The least favored child of the great Alauis dynasty.” I cringed, rubbing my arm as I looked away. He caught my eye and I watched a small smile creep onto his face.

“I haven't figured out whether my gift is water or fire. It hasn't manifested yet.”

“Who says either is your gift?” I stared at him. He was actually insane.

“No one in my family has ever manifested a power other than our ancestral ones. It'll be one of those two or...”

“Or what? You're powerless?” He selected another strange vial and lightly dripped an orange liquid over my lip. He stretched my lip out and ran his thumb over the inside of my lip where my teeth had torn into it when I'd been hit. I winced yet again and he turned away, the pads of his fingers running over the bottles he had gathered. He grabbed a small red one and put a drip of liquid between his thumb and pointer, rubbing them together before sliding that liquid over my lip.

He wiped his hands on his pants again and red streaks turned up this time, “I think, Lordling, that maybe you should broaden your horizons a bit. Fire and water aren't the only things in this world. Who knows? Maybe you have control over the daily happenings of sheep?”

I wanted to hit him. He was quietly chuckling to himself as he gathered his weird supplies and left through the door he had earlier. I rubbed my face and paused when I noticed the puffiness around my eye had gone down. I blinked and looked around, my eye was starting to open and I could see. With wonder I touched my lip and it was also smaller. He came back through the doorway, now wiping his hands on a cloth before slipping his ring back on the middle finger of his right hand.

“Who even are you? What the hell is this place? And what did you just do to me?”

He held up three fingers and ticked one off at a time, “Talon. The western most neighborhood in Krinn, commonly known as The Shift. I fixed you. You have a horrific way of showing gratitude, Little Lord. Don't they pay servants to teach you better?”
I stared at him and tried to process all the information he'd given me. The Shift was the neighborhood my siblings had used to scare me when I was younger. They claimed it was covered in darkness and the alleyways and roads changed at will. People would get trapped in stone prisons as the the place shifted, blocking off their exit. Anika and Eon would threaten to leave me there so that I was trapped and our parents would never have to deal with me again. The name Talon also sounded familiar and filled me with dread for some reason, but I couldn't place it.

“Isn't it dangerous in The Shift? How do you live here without getting lost?”

He let out an exaggerated sigh, running his hand over his face, “The houses and roads do not move. That's an old fairy tale used to scare foolish kids and stupid adults.”

I wanted to hit him again but I bit down the urge, “ I should go home.” He motioned to the door, crossing the room to plop down on one of the couches.

“I can't go by myself...”

He let out a long suffering sigh and stood again. I followed him through the door and back out. Into the dark.