narrative: Yesterday's Memories Who: Thais Keigwin, Her mentor (Athanael), Random Tower people Where: Circle Tower When: 9:19-9:44 Summary: Memories of Thais’s life. Rating: M (Sexy times, Tranquil Abuse, language, violence, stuff that makes a good movie)
9:19: Age 3
“So she is a mage.” Each word was filled with restrained anger.
“She has magical abilities. As is accustomed, we will want to bring her to the Circle of Magi. Her abilities are highly developed, but I believe it is safe to have a few more weeks with her if you and the mother wish to say good-bye.”
“…No, if what you say is true, she is no longer my child. I don‘t ever want to see her again.”
“You are doing the right thing, sir.”
9:22: Age 6
“Stop. Stop it.” The young girl waved her hands wildly about. Behind her another young girl stood. The second girl grinned, weaving her hands around the smaller girl’s head. She seemed to take great delight in the misery she was causing.
“Apprentice Thais! What are you doing to Apprentice Faith?!”
Thais stopped weaving her hands and looked quickly over her shoulder. Her eyes grew large and she jumped away from the now-crying Faith. She shook her head, her curls flipping about violently, “Nothing, Enchanter!” The enchanter continued to walk forward, the closer the authority got the more anxious Thais became. Finally when the enchanter was a few steps away, Thais turned and sprinted away. The enchanter yelled out in surprise. Thais went fast, her little legs taking her far away before the enchanter could try and stop her. She darted out of the library and ran into a nearby room. The girl glanced around. It was empty. Thais went down to her knees and crawled underneath one of the beds in the room. She calmed her breath, trying to stay quiet in case the Enchanter came looking for her.
A few minutes passed and no enchanter came looking for her. Thais was just about to climb out of her hiding spot when suddenly a group of three apprentices entered the room. They were talking passionately at each other. Thais stayed silent as they gathered around the bed she was hiding under. The girl listened as the group conversed about another apprentice that had recently gone through the harrowing and was executed by a templar because he had taken too long. They complained that such things would never happen if the enchanters would just tell them what to expect so they could prepare. One complained that the templars shouldn’t have such authority anyways. Thais tried to keep up with the wide-range of words they were using. These older apprentices had so much information about such things that she barely knew about. Becoming excited, Thais crawled out from under the bed. One of the teenage apprentices cried out in shock as the little girl appeared beside their feet. Thais opened her mouth to ask a question when suddenly she could not move. The startled apprentice had accidentally cast a freezing spell upon her. Thais’s body went cold and her world grew dark.
9:24: Age 8
She had thought it was a particular clever hiding spot. Amongst the robes within the large closet, she peeked out a small hole in the wood that she had carved. Her small hands pressed gently against the inside of the door. The cedar smelled strong and she wondered if that was perhaps what forests smelled like. Placing her nose against the door, she sniffed again. As a creaking sounded, she quickly stopped and shifted her position to see out the makeshift hole. Holding her breath as still as she could, she watched as a couple of figures walked into the room. The door shut behind them quickly. It was a couple of Enchanters, she could tell by the robes in their closets as well as the ones they were wearing. One of them she recognized from a class that was situated near her own in the mornings. She wondered what they would talk about. Her wonder turned to confusion as they did not talk at all, embracing each other instead. Grabbing at each other, they began to undress. Thais frowned, not quite sure what was going on. Were they going to take a bath together? As the pair continued to entangle their bodies together, Thais felt herself blushing though she wasn’t entirely sure why. She felt embarrassed to be seeing whatever was taking place. Moving away from the hole, she glanced at the clothing around her. Perhaps it was some mage practice she didn’t know about yet? She sat down in the closet, listening to the faint sounds coming from outside. It sounded vaguely as if they were hurting each other, was it the dark magic that the Enchanters constantly warned them about? Unsure, she stared into the darkness of the closet and waited.
It wasn’t until much later that Thais was able to escape. The couple had fallen asleep on the bed and once Thais was certain they weren’t going to wake up, she slowly made her way out of the closet. The girl glanced at the couple, frowning before she left the room. As soon as she stepped outside in the hall, her gaze darted about. There was a templar at the end of the hall and a group of mages were walking by. She avoided eye contact and quickly jogged as fast as her little legs could carry her.
It took her a fair amount of time before she reached her destination. Panting from the sudden sprint of energy, she stopped in front of a rather shocked looking enchanter. The woman stared down at Thais, “Apprentice, is something wrong?” She asked, obviously concerned by the little girl’s broken breath. Thais gulped, staring up at the elven mage, “Enchanter Neenya, I saw something and I don’t know what it was…” Neenya knelt down to look Thais in the eyes, “What did you see?” Thais took a deep breath and then began to attempt to explain what she saw using the best vocabulary an 8-year-old could. She motioned her fingers and hands in a wild illustration. As she talked, Neenya’s eyes became wider and wider. Finally, Thais became more concerned that Neenya might pull a muscle in her face, “Was it dark magic, Enchanter Neenya?”
The elf continued to stare with wide eyes for a moment before shaking her head, “Uhm… no… not quite. I… uhm…” The Enchanter reached out and tucked a few loose curls back into Thais’s ponytail. “Well… Let’s see… What they were doing.. Well I guess it is a type of magic, but… not the kind we learn.”
Thais gasped, “So it is dark magic!” The girl seemed convinced.
Neenya shook her head, “No. It’s… well, it’s… it’s love magic.” The enchanter said with an awkward hesitation. Thais frowned, “What?” The enchanter continued, “Well Thais, it’s when… one mage loves another mage… they express it….”
“A love ritual?” She asked, stringing together words she knew, even though she didn’t know what she meant by putting them together. Neenya, however, took a relived sigh and nodded, “Yes, that’s it. A love ritual.” Thais nodded slowly, “oh… I see. So if I love someone … I should learn the ritual then?” Neenya’s relief quickly disappeared and she acted quickly to try and regain it, “No, you’re not a mage yet. Only adult mages can do love rituals. You’ll learn about it after your Harrowing… Now… go off and uhm… do your homework for tomorrow.” The elf turned Thais around and patted the girl’s head. Thais frowned, glancing over her shoulder at the Enchanter. The woman ushered Thais to go. The girl sulked off, dragging her feet along. She still didn’t understand.
2 hours later…
“Hey. Hey you.” Thais stood right behind Owain, her hands on her hips. The man slowly turned around, not spooked by the sudden appearance of the girl… or if he was he didn’t show it.
“Apprentice Thais, welcome back.”
Thais kept her hands on her hips, staring up at the tranquil with a determined expression. “I have a question for you Owain.”
“I will try to answer to the best of my ability.” Owain responded.
“What do you know about love rituals?” Thais attempted to watch the man’s face for a reaction but there was none… of course.
“Love rituals? I’m afraid I do not know what you are talking about, perhaps that sort of question is more suitable for an Enchanter.”
Thais frowned before suddenly kicking out at Owain’s shin. The tranquil’s expression didn’t change but his knee did do a nervous twitch as if it was use to being kicked in such a manner. “Apprentice Thais, I have told you to please refrain from doing that.” Thais stuck her tongue out at the man, “It’s not like you’re going to care.” She snapped before running off out of the stockroom.
9:32: Age 16
It smelled like burned charcoal. Thais put a hand over her mouth trying not to breathe in. Her eyes darted around the room. It had only been an hour since the occupant of the room had been dragged out by the templars in a rush. Thais hoped for the mage’s sake that he would behave now that the templars had him. It was bad enough almost setting the tower on fire from messing with different spells, but it would only add to the conflict if he gave the templars more trouble. She had to work quickly. The templars would soon send more soldiers up to collect the man’s things. Thais walked through the thin layer of ash on the floor. The young woman reached out towards the chest by the vanity. It was locked. She held her hand in front of the lock and freezing it. Standing straight, she kicked out. The lock shattered in pieces underneath her heel.
Throwing the chest open, she grinned at the piles of documents. Thais pulled off the shoulder bag she had brought along. It was a special bag she had made herself with stretchy material allowing her to stuff in as many things as she could carry. Thais swiftly threw the papers and journals into her bag. Once the chest was empty, she turned and began to go through the vanity drawers. Nothing of importance in there. She went to the closet. She only found a note in a pocket of a robe. Frowning, she looked around. She had a feeling. There should be more.
Thais glanced at the door before reaching over and flipping the mattress up. She grinned. Underneath the mattress and on top of the frame was a rather worn looking journal. She picked it up and threw it into her bag. Clicking the bag shut, Thais returned the mattress to where it was, shoved the drawers shut. She grabbed a handkerchief and walked backwards, erasing her steps in the ash the best she could. Stepping out in the hall slowly, she surveyed the area. There was no one. Tapping the ash off her shoes, she readjusted the straps of her bag before running off.
9:38: Age 22
“What are you doing?”
Thais stared with wide eyes at the man who had just opened the door. She straightened her posture so she was no longer leaning with her ear pressed against a door that was now open. “I had this for you.” She stated, reaching around to her bag. She opened it beginning to look through papers. The senior enchanter in front of her continued to stare at her with a disgruntled intensity. Behind him, a couple other senior enchanters were glancing out to try and see who was at the door. After some searching, Thais pulled out a folded up letter. She handed it out to the man.
“And who is this from?” The enchanter asked, glancing at the paper with disinterest.
“Senior Enchanter Orestes.” A disgusted look appeared on the man’s face at the mention of the name. The enchanters inside the room began conversing. Thais noticed the subtly curled lip and the furrowed brows. She continued to speak, “I’m sure you’ll enjoy it greatly.”
“I assure you anything Orestes has created I will certainly /not/ enjoy.” He grumbled. His fingers clenched the paper as if he was almost going to rip up the paper then and there.
Thais smiled, “Trust me, Senior Enchanter Athanael, this is not something you would expect.” She nodded at him, “Now I should be going…”
“…Yes, well thank you… what was your name?” The man asked, surveying the young woman in front of him. He knew he had seen her before among the tower group.
“Thais Keigwin, Senior Enchanter.” Thais gave a bright smile, “Do send me a letter letting me know whether this was worth your time.” She couldn’t help but continue to smile as a confused frown appeared on the man’s face. Nodding again, she walked away. It was only a few paces before she heard the door shut behind her. Thais felt triumph rise up in her. This was certain to get her a way in to being a strong part of the Libertarian party. After all, what politician didn’t enjoy an intercepted letter describing the contents of the opposing parties prepared arguments for the next debate?
9:39: Age 23
It was an ordinary night. The sky was dark except for the dim glow of a quarter moon. Stars twinkled behind wisps of grey fog. Below the sky was reflected in the dark lake. Now and then a fish would ripple the water. The moon disappeared beyond waves before reforming. She leaned against the stone windowsill. Her muscles were tense, arms crossed. Tonight was her twenty-third birthday. She had received many polite congratulations through the day. Her young apprentices had even made her a piece of artwork complete with an eight year-old’s version of her portrait. Thais’s thoughts wandered to the past and to the friends that had already passed away. She reminded herself she should feel grateful to the Maker for being alive, but she didn’t feel that way.
“Well, don’t you look like a painting?” The low voice did not startle Thais. Years of eavesdropping had taught her nerves of steel when it came to being sneaked up on. She continued to stare at the lake. “Hm.” The voice cleared his throat. Thais heard a small thud on her desk. This time she glanced over her shoulder. Her mentor, Athanaël, stood at the desk. He had just dropped a rather torn up looking book on the surface. Her gaze fluttered over the book before looking at the fairly tall man.
“What is that?” She asked, her curiosity revealed through the anxious tone in her voice.
“Come over and find out.” He replied. Athanaël picked up the piece of artwork that Thais had received from her students. He began to examine it. Thais glanced at the lake once more before walking over to her desk. Athanael’s lips curled into a small smile before quickly going back into a mock-serious face as he appraised the artwork. Thais frowned softly as she picked up the book. The covers were torn leather and it felt a little damp. She felt hesitant about opening it, but her curiosity won over. Opening the book, she glanced at the first page. Blood was splattered all over it and the ink was smudged. She squinted to read the writing. As she began to make out the words, her eyes widened and a smile formed upon her lips. She quickly looked up at her mentor.
“This is…” Her voice was breathless as if she had just ran up two flights of stairs in the tower.
The man set down the artwork, “I know. I thought you might like to look at it. It’s not yours to keep though, I will need it back.”
She nodded, “I completely understand.” Thais closed the book cover, “How did you ever get a hold of this?”
“That is something I rather not reveal to you yet… but finish reading it and I promise you, I will.”
Thais usually would have tried harder to get such information, but at the moment she was teeming with joy. In her hands she held a journal from one of the Libertarian parties turned blood mage involved with Uldred’s revolution. An event she barely remembered as an older child. It was rare to find such things as most had been collected and destroyed. She grinned at her mentor, “Thank you. I’m going to start reading it right away! I can’t wait.” She couldn’t wait to see the discussions in the journals, the hints of what those groups may have talked about, how the moods and attitudes of the journal author might have changed as time drew closer to the revolution, techniques they used to not being caught… The possibilities that the journal held were endless.
“That’s what I thought. I’ll leave you be and see you early tomorrow for lesson.” He reached out and patted Thais’s shoulder. For a long moment, his hand lingered before he nodded, “Good night.”
“Good night, Senior Enchanter Athanaël and thank you.” Thais smiled brightly, hugging the text to her chest as her mentor turned and left the room. She stared at the closing door for a minute or so before spinning around in place. Staring out the window at the night sky, she felt brimming with excitement. Chewing on her lower lip, she took a deep breath before leaping onto her nearby bed. The mattress bounced and she propped herself up. She opened the book and began to read.
9:40: Age 24
“Darling…. Darling, wake up.”
Thais yawned, her eyes still shut. She heard the voice but didn’t want to look. Groaning, she turned around. The young woman put a hand to her ear. A gentle hand shook her. Mumbling, she turned back around, “What?”
“I was thinking about what you were asking before we… well, before we got going.” Thais felt a hand run down her exposed waist. She squinted at the man next to her. Raising her eyebrows, she asked, “Oh?” She attempted to conceal her hopefulness for what would come next.
“Yes, well… You know I’ve been trying really hard since I’ve become senior enchanter to get a strong foothold in the loyalist party.”
“Of course, how could I forget, loyal Sir Senior Enchanter Krukes?” Thais asked, a teasing tone to her voice.
“Yes, I know this might be much too ask… but if you care for me like you say you do, well, would it be too much for me to ask for your help?”
“Oh… Sweetums” Thais finally opened her eyes and sat up. She looked at the older man with a sorrowful expression, “You know I would love to, but I have an obligation to my mentor already. I just can’t back on my commitments.”
“But you don’t even like the man! And you aren’t a real libertarian!” The man reached out grabbing Thais’s hands in his, “Why do you keep putting on this charade for the tower?” Thais glanced down, a soft blush appearing on her cheeks. She did not respond allowing the man to continue with his spiel, “Thais, darling, won’t you leave all that for me?”
A soft frown appeared on Thais’s expressions, “I told you before…” She began but the man cut her off, “I know I know, you can’t trust me. But… I feel like we could get over that somehow…”
Thais tilted her head to the side. She brought a hand up, fluffing her curls, “You want me to give up everything I’ve worked for in the past ten years.” A cautious smile appeared on her lips, “And you are a politician.” She leaned forward, placing a hand on the man’s chest, “You have such a way with words and are so eloquent all the time… I have no way to tell if you won’t just leave me after you get bored of someone as insignificant as I am.”
“I’ll never get bored with you!” The man interrupted quickly. His dark eyes glinted with a passion that Thais took note of.
She surveyed the beginnings of wrinkles on his face before responding, “Yes, you will. As soon as I’m no longer ‘on the other side’, the excitement will be gone and you’ll become bored with me. I will be left with nothing and you’ll be able to go about your life.” She rested her head on the man’s shoulder, “Besides I know you only pursued me because you were trying to learn about my mentor. I just don’t know how I’m suppose to trust you… unless… no, I don’t think that would work.”
The man suddenly looked urgent, “Unless what?”
Thais looked up at him with wide eyes, “Well, unless I had some security… You know so much about me already and I’ve shared so much about my mentor, yet I know nothing about you or the people you spend time with.”
The man nodded, “Of course, If I shared something with you, then we’ll be on even ground and trust should come easily then!” A soft frown appeared on Thais‘s expression. The man nodded, “Okay, well… what do you want to know?” Thais appraised the man before moving to sit on top of his lap. She gently pushed him down into a laying position. He did not resist watching her with an anxious expression.
Staring at the wall ahead of her, she hummed in thought, “Well… let’s see… do you have a secret… something you wouldn’t want anyone to know?” The man didn’t answer, Thais continued to wonder out loud, “Or maybe someone close to you has a secret if you’re so innocent…” She paused, glancing down at the man, “Somehow I don’t see you being that innocent.” A coy giggle left her lips. He was staring in complete concentration at her chest, obviously hardly listening to what she was saying. She took a deep breath before sticking her bottom lip out in a pout. Her eyes began to well up with thin tears, “I see… you don’t want to share anything about you with me.” She moved to get off the man.
A hand grabbed her arm, stopping her. “Wait.” Thais paused, sniffing as she looked at the man. “I do have a secret… but… I don’t know if I should share it…”
Thais stared at the man, unwavering, “But I’ve shared so much of myself with you… it’s so unfair! I‘ll just go and we can forget about this.”
The man shook his head violently, “No! I’ll tell you!” Thais paused, watching the man in anticipation. “I… I once… had a relation with a templar.” Thais’s eyes widened greatly even though she attempted to keep her expression in check. The senior enchanter moved his gaze away, his hand let go of the woman’s arm, “I didn’t mean to.. But well, things just got so carried away…”
“When?” Thais suddenly interrupted.
“About five months ago.”
Thais frowned, “I don’t believe you…”
“Why would I make this up?”
“What’s the templar’s name?”
The man paused, frowning as well, “Why do you need to know that?”
Thais put a hand to her cheek, wiping away an non-existent tear, “See, it’s a lie. You’re lying to me! I knew you didn’t really care for me!”
The man sat up quickly, “No! His name was Ramanio! Please don’t cry, darling!”
Thais looked away, placing a hand over her face to cover her cheeks. She peeked through her fingers at the worried man, “And you’re not lying to me?” She asked quietly.
The senior enchanter shook his head again, “No! Why would I lie about that?!”
Thais shrugged, taking a step away from the bed, “And… what did you do with this templar?” She asked, her tone soft and passive. There was a long pause of silence before the man responded, “Well… similar to you and I… only… he wasn’t you…”
Thais walked over to the vanity, picking up her robes and pulling them on. The man sat up, only barely covered by the blankets, “I mean… you are much more beautiful than he! I didn’t care for him. Where are you going?” Thais didn’t look at the man. “I shared my secret with you, why are you leaving?!”
Thais turned around, wiping the palm of her hand on her cheeks even though her tears were barely there, “I have to think about this.” Thais walked over swiftly leaning over and kissing the man on the cheek, “I’ll be back later.” The man looked absolutely confused as Thais collected the rest of her things and left the room with no more words.
Five Days Later
He had left a broken man. The Loyalist party was utterly humiliated by the entire ordeal. They had lost a prominent member of good standing. No one believed it at first, not until the templars confirmed that through interrogation Templar Ramanio had confessed to everything. After presenting such evidence, Senior Enchanter Krukes had been dragged out screaming and kicking… at least until a templar silenced him with a strong punch. It was quite a scene that took place during a rather heated debate amongst the fraternities. Everyone looked around at each other afterwards, many suspected someone had tipped the templars off just in time for them to arrive during the debate, but most were simply in shock. The Libertarians took advantage of the situation using the scene as an example of the Chantry’s totalitarian rule and how it harmed mages psychologically as well. It was clear they had won the debate that night leaving the loyalists and their allies to lick their wounds. The Libertarians congratulated each other on what good luck had fallen upon them. They also suspected that it had been planned, but were not as worried about finding out if that was true. Instead, they busied themselves to continue taking advantage of the situation as fully as possible. Spontaneous meetings were put together for that night to brainstorm plots. However, a couple members of the Libertarian party were not attending.
“I don’t know how you did it, but that was brilliant.” Athanael’s praise made Thais blush. She took a sip of the wine that he had snuck in. The man was happier than she had seen him in a while. He was drinking the wine at a much quicker rate. She smiled as he poured more into her glass, despite that it wasn’t even close to being empty.
“Oh, I’m just pleased that it worked so well.” She picked up her goblet, taking a couple more sips before continuing, “But… now that it did work well, I was wondering if I could ask you some questions.” Her mentor nodded, taking a swift drink of wine before setting down the goblet on his desk. He waved a hand as if beckoning Thais to throw something at him. She nodded, understanding this meant for her to continue, “Well, I’ve been thinking about blood magic and what happened to the tower and it made me wonder…” She hesitated, looking quite nervous before continuing, “You are a strong libertarian, Athanael, even back then… why did you never… join them? I mean, reading the journals they seemed to be quite convincing to many enchanters.” She searched her mentor’s expression for signs of what he was thinking. His brows furrowed in a thoughtful way. He picked his goblet back up taking a deeper drink of the wine. It was tense for a minute or two before he finally set the goblet down.
“To tell the truth, I almost did join them.” He looked down at the floor, “But I just couldn’t wrap my head around using blood to power my spells at the time. At the time, I didn‘t quite realize the extent they had delved into blood magic and when I told them I couldn‘t do it I wasn‘t allowed anymore information after that.” The man refused to make eye contact with Thais.
Thais frowned, “…Do you regret the stance you took?”
A chuckle left Athanael’s lips, he leaned back in his chair, “Of course not! They lost didn’t they?” Thais returned the chuckle with a wary smile. She looked away feeling the man’s gaze on her. He was now surveying her expression, “…Are you considering blood magic, Thais?” He asked in a serious tone.
Thais shrugged her shoulders, “I’m quite happy with the magic I have now, but sometimes I am curious about it. The journals I read… they talk of so much power, so much control…”
“But don’t forget all the journals you read are from dead men.” Athanael interrupted. He exhaled as he stood up from the chair. Thais glanced at the man, wondering what he was doing. He walked over to a bookshelf in his room. She couldn’t help but smile a little as she noticed the man was having difficulty keeping balance. He tapped his index fingers among the many books before pulling one out. Athanael came back over with the large textbook. He set it a bit more roughly then intended into Thais’s lap. The book filled her entire lap and she stared down at.
“The History of the Construction of Stairs?” Thais asked, confused. Athanael reached over, opening the book up. He waved a hand over it, the air rippling around the movement for a second before a smaller bound book appeared inside the larger one’s pages. Thais gasped at the sudden appearnce of the black leather cover. She glanced at Athanael before looking at it. There was no title on the front, no indicator of what it was about.
Athanael sat back down in his chair with a thud. He picked up his goblet, “Read that book, then you can decide if you really want to explore blood magic or not.” The man finished the rest of the wine in the cup. He set it down, “But of course, do not let anyone catch you reading that. If you have to sneak in here to do so.”
Thais ran her fingers along the book’s side, “…and if I decide I do want to explore blood magic…?” She asked curiously.
Her mentor began pouring another glass of wine. He was silent for a minute before steadily responding, “Then you can trust me.” He smiled a rather tense smile, “But that’s enough of that. We should be enjoying the moment because who knows how long it will last.” Athanael raised his goblet towards Thais and nodded. Thais shut the large book. She raised her goblet as well and nodded back with a bright smile.
9:42: Age 26
“What have you done?!” The question was accompanied by a door slamming open. Thais spun around on her chair to face the door. Her mentor stood there, breathing heavily with rage in his eyes.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Athanaël.” The young woman replied truthfully, her eyes wide with shock.
“Do not lie to me, girl.” The man slammed the door behind him with a deafening thud. He walked up to her in a couple of strides. She stared up at him, for a moment fearing he was going to grab her. Instead he fumed in a voice quivering with anger, “Did you sleep with Orestes?”
Thais stared at the man. His face was red, his brow furrowed as much as it could be, his muscles were tense. He repeated the question much louder, “Did you sleep with Orestes?!” She blinked, she could almost feel a heat radiating from him. Apparently her silence was too long for he turned around in exasperation, “I can’t believe you’ve done this!” Thais gripped the back of her chair.
“Athanael, what have you heard?“ She asked. Thais thought about standing up but feared to move. The man turned back around swiftly, pointing at her with his finger, “Do not try and play your games with this. Give me an answer. Did you or did you not?” She stared at the accusing finger, small sparks were buzzing around it. Gulping, she turned her gaze away from him. There was a long silence between them. Athanael seethed. Thais stayed still. She knew she didn’t have to answer his question, he already knew.
“Damnit, Thais, why?” An undertone of disappointment appeared in the man’s voice. The young woman felt her eyes burning. She blinked back the tears welling up in her eyes. Thais didn’t dare look at her mentor. Athanael lunged forward, stepping to the side of the chair and grabbing Thais’s arms. He shook her just enough to force her to look up at him. She could feel his fingers digging into her skin and sharp, warm pains sparked on her arms. Thais stared up at the man, beginning to shake, “I’m sorry… I didn’t… I didn’t know this would happen.”
“What did you think was going to happen?!” Athanael yelled, perhaps a bit more louder than he had expected, “Do you know what I have to deal with now?”
Thais shook her head almost violently in response, “No… I’m sorry. I thought I could get information from him…” “By fucking him?” Athanael lifted Thais to a standing position forcibly, “Now I have to listen to that man gloat at every chance he has! You’re lucky many don’t even believe him, no one could believe you could be such a whore!” The hands gripping her arms were getting warmer and Thais feared that she would soon be set on fire. Tears rolling down her cheeks, she cried, “I’m sorry! But I don‘t know what to do to make you happy! You‘ve been so stressed and the party has been taking so many hits, I thought maybe if I could just find something, anything it would help!”
Athanael gazed at her for a couple minutes. Thais’s body shook in his grip. The burning sensation on her arms was fueling her tears. Athanael glowered, “You’re no longer my apprentice.” Throwing Thais to the side, he turned away. He strode quickly to the door. Thais had fallen with a strong thud against the wall. Her head pounded from the impact. Yet, she swiftly got up on her knees, reaching out in the direction of her mentor, “Athanael!” She cried out. A sudden ripple in the air around them occurred from her hands. Her mentor barely had time to turn around before the energy hit him. He fell back, hitting the wall beside the door. Slumping to the ground, he did not move. Thais instantly collected herself, tripping a couple times as she hurried to her feet.
“Athanael!” She called, but there was no answer. Hurrying over to the man’s side, she shook his shoulders. He was limp. “Athanael! Oh, Athanael!” She gulped, trying to figure out what to do… then she heard it. It started quiet at first, then grew louder. Her mentor was… snoring.
7 hours later…
Thais stared concerned at the sleeping man. He grumbled, shifting in the bed. It had taken her quite some time to lift him up into the bed and Thais was amazed that he had slept through it. The man had spent the last hours in a cold sweat, batting at non-existent creatures and mumbling disconnected words. She dabbed a cool washcloth on his forehead. Thais hoped he would awake soon, she did not want to have to go for outside help. Praying to the maker apparently was doing no good though.
Sighing, exhausted, Thais took the washcloth and set it on her own arm. She had rolled up her sleeves in order to care for the rather nasty burns that had been left from the confrontation. Her eyes were red from crying, but she had calmed herself. While she wanted Athanael to wake up, she worried what was to happen when he did.
Her thoughts swarmed about and she sighed. The man twisted amongst the blankets, groaning in pain. She placed a hand on his chest. His heart was beating so fast. The woman closed her eyes, trying to concentrate. She barely knew any healing spells and didn’t feel confident enough to attempt them. As she kept her hand on the man’s chest, she took steady breathes. The man stopped moving. His heartbeat slowed just a tad. She opened her eyes. Something had changed. She waited anxiously. Finally a moan sounded from Athanael, “…Thais?”
“Athanael?” She replied hesitantly not sure if he was still dreaming or not. Relief washed over her when the man’s eyes fluttered open and he stared at her. He gazed for a few minutes before sitting up, “What did you do?” He asked weakly. Thais, however, could not contain her relief. She wrapped her arms around the man, fresh tears arising in her eyes.
“I’m so sorry, Athanael.” She sobbed. Her fingers dug into the man’s back enough to be noticeable but not enough to hurt. She pressed her face up against his chest, not minding the sweat that soaked through his robes. Her body quivered. Thais felt his hand gently rest on her shoulder. He glanced at the burns on her arms. After a few minutes passed, Athanael brought his arms around Thais returning the hug. They stayed like that in silence for a long time. Many minutes came and went but their embrace didn’t weaken. Thais continued to cry in his arms and Athanael’s arms did not lose their gentle strength. Finally, Thais’s tears subsided. She looked up at Athanael, “I didn’t mean to harm you.” She murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.
Athanael shook his head, “I know. I’m sorry too…” He gazed back at her with a tender expression, “I never want to see you look at me with fear in your eyes again.” A weak smile appeared on Thais’s lips. They continued to gaze at each other, silence reemerging. Athanael leaned forward. Thais mimicked the motion. There was a moment of hesitation. Thais brought her lips to meet Athanael’s.
9:44: Age 28
“Well, well. Enchanter Thais, it seems the past couple of months have taken their toll on your young looks.”
Thais mentally groaned. She stopped walking down the hallway and turned around. A nonplussed expression was upon her features, “Orestes.” She greeted blandly. A grin appeared on the skinny man’s thin lips revealing yellow teeth. Thais tried not to let her gaze linger on the multiple wrinkles that covered what once could have been smooth skin. The man’s eyes glistened as they roved over Thais’s body. She wished she had not worn quite so tight of robes today. The woman crossed her arms, covering her chest from sight. This only encouraged the grin on the man’s face. She continued in a monotone, “What do you want?”
“I just wanted to see how you were doing. I can hardly imagine that you are taking the loss of your precious Athanael well.” His grin did not disappear, “I had heard that you weren’t even bathing, but am glad to see that is not true.” The tall man stepped forward, reaching out and placing the back of his fingers on Thais’s cheek. Her jaw clenched and eyes narrowed. Orestes looked pleased at the response, “Indeed, clean and fresh, what a good girl.” Thais reached behind her, her hands touching the staff that was held at her back. The man noticed the movement but did not look worried. He simply pushed back Thais’s hair, leaning down to whisper in her ear, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. One wrong move and you’ll get worse than your dear mentor.” Thais’s face paled and she held her breath. Her hands moved away from her staff. She tried to ignore the humid breath upon her ear. She stayed silent, keeping her anger in check. The woman knew the threat was not empty. She tensed as Orestes hand rose. It landed on her shoulder rather abruptly however, not at all where she expected it to go. The man had stepped back and his grin had disappeared. A somber expression was upon his wrinkled features, “Again, I am so sorry for your loss, if there is anything I can do let me know.” He patted her shoulder and walked off. Thais frowned, confused until she noticed a templar walking by. She silently thanked the maker, glancing over at the retreating Orestes. Trying to hold her composure, she sped off in the opposite direction. She had to talk to the First Enchanter soon. She had to get out of the tower.