The Warden

Chapter 29

The tired-anger had faded from Masis as soon as the words had left his mouth. They had hit their mark just as surely as a winning wrap in a Bolae match. No crack of a bola on wood snapped out with the words connection, but the near visible jolt that went through Lady Kyla made it abundantly clear they had reached their target.

What have I done? Masis asked himself, as he trudged back through the woods nearly the way he had come. The original trail ran over the tops of toppled trees, down the sheer slope of rock faces, and against the current of a stray stream.

When Lady Kyla had started to taunt him, he had fought his anger. His past mishandling of it reminded him how his temper could not only hurt himself but those around him as well. When she had mentioned his mother so casually, his resistance faltered. But when it came time to strike back, when the opportunity had presented itself, his fury tore free of his grasp entirely, leaving him no source of energy. Exhausted. Forlorn. The only words that had come from his mouth rang true, but not all truth should be spoken. Their devastation apparent, he had left not knowing what else to do.

Now, with Wilo barely surviving above the distant horizon, Masis wound his way amongst the trees, barely bringing his head up to watch his course. Shoulders slouched. Feet barely lifted. The leagues he had run to arrive here would take hours to cover at the pace he now pursued. His feet stumbled on an uneven patch of ground and he fell to his hands and knees.

You know son you should be more careful. People's emotions are much more fragile than you may think. His father's words came to him, scolding him again from the grave.

Will I ever learn to be the man he wanted me to be? Masis wondered, refusing to let tears invade his eyes.

His fingers clenched the dried grass beneath them, made crisp and tawny by sunlight. He ripped it off and tossed it away as he climbed back on his feet. Turning about until he located Wilo's  death-glow now fully behind the far horizon, Masis set off again, keeping his course ever heading away from the sun in the ever increasing gloom. No longer able to mope, Masis held his head straight, his eyes at times squinting in an attempt to pierce the deepening night. Neither Mona or Mani rose early, so Masis had only the faint light of the stars to navigate by. His progress was slow. Painfully so. Literally. Branches jabbed into his ribs. Uneven patches of ground threatened to turn his ankle. Brambles raked across his skin, leaving welted scratches along his exposed forearms. All about him the various chirps and warbles of the night creatures sounded more like mockery as he fumbled along.

If I'm not careful, thought Masis, I'm going to maim myself.

Stumbling forward, he nearly tripped as the trees fell away and he bumbled into a small glade. Irregularly oval shaped, the glade's floor was carpeted with short-stemmed tightly sealed buds. Wandering forward into the midst of them, a soft breeze stirred them and brought the fresh greenery's strong fragrance to Masis' nose. Cresting the clearing, both Mona and Mani full-faced, glowed with an eerie light. As they gained height, their light flowed over the sealed buds, making the scene monochromatic. With the illumination, movement rippled through the small plants, as they began to open. Faster than Masis thought possible, each of the buds fanned out their delicate petals. Under the moonlight, they appeared to be a light blue with a morbid black center crowned with a feathery tuft. Another breeze ruffled the now gaping buds, blending their perfume into the air. A rich vanilla tempered with a creamy sweetness. One by one they all seemed to begin to glow, a soft fluorescent gleam. At first, it appeared nothing more than a trick of the moonlight, but the radiance increased, growing in intensity until the whole glade glittered with the flowers' phosphorescence

Did some commoner more capable with lifelight make these one night? Masis wondered, revisiting the knowledge of workings he had gained over the past several weeks. But no matter what Lady Kyla taught him about controlling lifelight, he still could not dislodge the entangling layer of mesmer encasing his own lifelight. Whoever made these flowers probably could have batted it away as though it were nothing more than a spider's web.