Editing Tears of a Fallen Crown:Characters:Mirage:History (section)

==Chapter 11:  Training==


Almost like a pleasant surprise, there wasn’t much time to think about her dream after breakfast.  True to his word, Walker in Darkness had the whole day planned for them.  First he tested them with an obstacle course to see how flexible they were.  Then, he had them spar with ten unarmed skeletons to test how well they fought against multiple opponents.  Every time they were hurt, he’d heal them or, in the case of Caleb, give him more energy.  Then, after a grueling day of training, as the day turned to twilight, they were to both spar with him.


Samira was very nervous.  The thought of sparring with the master was a bit intimidating.  Still, she was much more relieved when instead of the huge axe he used earlier on the statue; he came out with simply a dagger.  


“Come at me with full force.”  He said, vehemently, “I’ll be going easy on you, but there’s no reason for you to go easy on me.”  


She did as she was told, striking hard blow after hard blow directly at his head with her sword – and he effortlessly blocked each.  Still, he would occasionally smile saying, “Very good!” or “You’re too open.”  Finally, after he was satisfied with her progress he said, “Excellent.  I think you’re ready to spar sword to sword.”


He left for a moment and came back with a jewel-studded great-sword matching the length of her own.  “Remember”, He said with a nod, “Don’t hold back.”


She grinned, “Don’t worry, I WON’T!”  Their swords clanged together like the tone of a funeral bell.  They fought for what felt like hours even though it was only for a few minutes.  She occasionally came very close to landing a blow, but he would land almost all of his, giving her small cuts as he did so.  Clearly he was toying with her, but when he seemed the cockiest, suddenly she landed a blow that cut his cheek.  He grinned widely, “Very good!”  He could tell she was exhausted so he motioned to stop the fight.


Walker in Darkness applauded softly and smiled, “You did magnificently for your first try.  Now, go clean up and I have a bit of homework for you.  I want you to find the book with the picture of the glowing sword on it in your shelf and study it until you’re too tired to stay up any longer.  But, first, get some rest and I’ll see you at dinner.  I’ll test you on what you learn tomorrow.  For now, I believe its Raiton’s turn to spar.”


Caleb didn’t like the thought of sparring with Walker in Darkness, and yet, there was a part of him that really wanted to at least try to hurt him – the part of him that had been jealous of him touching Samira.  Suddenly, something in the way Walker in Darkness was looking at him made him think he was looking forward to it as well, though he didn’t know why.


Walker in Darkness smiled slyly, “We haven’t gotten to talk much yet.  None of us really have.  That’s why I thought tonight we’d all sit down and have dinner together.  But first, what kind of fighting style do you prefer?” 


Caleb grinned, “Martial combat.”


Walker in Darkness grinned wickedly, “Oh, this should be fun!  I haven’t had a good brawl in a long time.  I hope I won’t be disappointed…”


Caleb laughed, “Oh don’t worry – you won’t be!”


Walker in Darkness made one of his servants fetch two pairs of tiger claws and they began.  Walker in Darkness didn’t have to ask Caleb to not hold anything back.  He was trying all the tricks Samira’s brother had taught him, but nothing seemed to catch the deathlord off guard.  Finally, Caleb jumped for his face full force – and Walker in Darkness grabbed his hands in his own, locking his tiger claws with his, saying, “Raiton, why do you dislike me so much?”


Caleb snarled, “I don’t trust you!”


He grinned, “Lack of trust is very wise, but you’re still at my mercy.  Don’t you think if I wanted to kill you I would’ve done it by now?”


Caleb was silent, trying to pull away from the deathlord to avoid his piercing gaze with those bright and unnatural eyes.


Still, Walker in Darkness wouldn’t let him, “Listen, I can read your mind without the help of a ghost.  You want to win this fight to impress Mirage, you hate losing, you’re jealous of me, and you have a knack for getting into trouble.”


Caleb kept trying to pull away, but this time stared him in the eyes directly growling, “And what of it?”


Walker in Darkness laughed, “I saw you last night spying on me and my councilor.  I’m trying to teach you something important, a life lesson.  Do you know why Mirage fought so well against me?  She can’t feel much of anything anymore but hatred.  So, she doesn’t think about much of anything but the fight.”  


Suddenly, Walker in Darkness twisted his tiger claws slightly, letting him loose, and kicked Caleb hard, knocking him to the floor.  He continued, hovering over Caleb, “You could be a great fighter, Raiton.  We need to find your strong and weak points, though.  I’m counting on it – you see, if you can live up to your full potential, you can be Mirage’s one and only bodyguard.  And, yes, that’s a very big compliment.  Now, get up and fight me.”


“Well, thanks for the compliment,” Caleb said, brushing himself off and staggering painfully to his feet, “But, I want to ask you one more thing first.”


Walker in Darkness shrugged, “What now?”


“Was the Green Lady right to be jealous?”  Caleb halfway expected him to laugh at the question, but to his surprise he didn’t.


He shrugged, “What I told her was true.  I don’t like to mix business and pleasure, for the very reason you saw the other night.  I’d be blind not to see that Mirage is attractive, but I don’t act on impulse alone, like some sort of animal.  You needn’t worry, and the Green Lady shouldn’t have worried either.  Mirage is much more valuable to me for her skills than her body.  Now, are we going to fight, or not?”


Suddenly, Caleb respected Walker in Darkness as well.  And, with his jealousy off of his mind, Walker in Darkness didn’t have to worry about being disappointed in the brawl.


Over dinner they discussed many things.  Samira was careful not to include too many specific details about her past, but she did tell him much more about herself and Caleb.  While Walker in Darkness didn’t tell them specifics about his past either, he did tell them about working against the Mask of Winters and about his plans for gathering allies in his fight against Great Forks.  He also tried to tell them more about the Underworld and its philosophies and ways.  He explained about resonance – the buildup of dark energy that occurs when a deathknight ignores her nature, and the taboos associated with creation.  Still, he seemed not to really care if she broke the taboos saying, “You’re given special privileges as a deathknight, so most won’t apply to you.”  It was also over dinner that he finally mentioned the details of the favor he wanted them to do for him.


“You see,” he said, picking at his meal as though he was thinking of eating it, “I’ve got too many things to do already.  With Mask of Winters so close I have to concentrate my efforts on him.  But, I need to keep my eye on things further South as well – that’s where you come in.  I need some of my more competent deathknights to keep an eye on the First and Forsaken Lion.  I’m hoping that by the time you leave here you’ll be able to handle it easily, especially with the help of Death of A Thousand Summers.  He’s the one who created those guards at the entrance of this keep.”


Samira nodded, but said nothing.  While she was interested in the mission there was something else bothering her.


Walker in Darkness noticed and said, in a more gentle tone, “Mirage, you have to be hungry after all of your training, but you’ve hardly eaten a thing.  Something is on your mind and I’d appreciate it if you’d let me know what it is.”


She frowned, knowing she had to tell him now.  Her dreams were what were bothering her.  She had so much trouble sleeping the night before she had decided to take a short rest after the swordfight.  Yet again, she had had the same dream, only this time she had been dancing with the woman in the feathered cloak and talking about preparations for a war.  It was as though every time she had one of those dreams she kept catching more and more glimpses into a life she had never lived. 


She sighed, “I’ve been having troubling dreams lately.”


He nodded, “Ah yes.  The life of a deathknight leads to a great many troubling dreams.  There will be worse ones to come.”


She nodded, but continued, Well, when I was little girl I used to have dreams that were more like premonitions of the future.  They were very vivid like the ones I’ve had lately”


Walker in Darkness stopped pretending to eat his meal and looked up, “Really?”


She nodded, “Yes, but the dreams I’m having now look more like things that happened in the past.  I could be wrong, but I think they’re memories of the deathknight that had this essence before me.”


He seemed deep in thought for a moment but then nodded slowly, “That could be.  I’ve heard of such things.  Still, I wouldn’t let it bother you so much.  Just think of it as only a bad dream.  What are the dreams usually about that could upset you so much anyway?”


Samira exchanged glances with Caleb who sighed and nodded for her to continue.  She looked at her plate and sighed heavily, “Well, this might come as a shock so just remember that I don’t have any control over the dreams…I’ve been dreaming of your palace, before the miasma, and of a woman with a black-feathered cloak.”


She looked up.  The expression on Walker in Darkness’ face was one of pure shock.  His blue skin even looked a shade paler.  She cringed and looked away, thinking he would be angry, but to her surprise he said in the same calm voice, “Are you sure?”


Samira nodded. He looked her intensely in the eyes, saying, “I don’t think you’re lying, but now would be the time to tell me if you are – I don’t tolerate lying with my deathknights.”


She shook her head, “I’d be a fool to lie to you.  Do you know what these dreams are then?”


He slowly nodded, “The woman you saw in the visions was the deathlord that used to own my palace.  She dishonored her Malfean gods and they dragged her down into Oblivion to forever serve them.  Still, she cursed the palace before she left; turning it into what it is now.  I’ve tried to lift that curse ever since I acquired the palace, but even I am not knowledgeable enough to lift it without knowing what specific protections were cast on it.”


Suddenly, he jumped up from his seat, “MIRAGE!  What if you’re the key to breaking the curse on my palace?  The Old Ones must’ve smiled on me to have gained an asset like you!”


Samira blushed, but frowned, “Now wait!” She said, quickly, “I told you I can’t control the dreams.  So far all I know is that she had it cursed in the dream.  I don’t know by who or what enchantments are on it.”


“Still,” he said, still pacing with excitement, “That’s already a start!  Just the fact I now know she didn’t have time to curse it alone is one more bit of information than I knew before.  Now, tell me everything you remember about the dream!”


Samira told him everything she could remember.  His eyes grew wide when she described the final scene of the deathknight cutting a hole into reality just before he died and crawling into it before his soul could be sucked into the darkness.


He grinned, “Thank you, Mirage.  This may have helped me more than you can know.  If his lower soul is still alive he might still be in the labyrinth – and, I may still be able to interrogate him!  If only I had a name; I could find him!”


Samira spoke, snapping Walker in Darkness out of his fantasy, “Um…Sire…I have to ask you something.”  


He shrugged but continued pacing, still obviously plotting in his mind, “Yes, what is it?”


She sighed, “If he hadn’t torn that hole in reality, what would’ve happened to his soul?”


He stopped pacing abruptly, and then sighed heavily, “Ah, so that’s what’s been troubling you.  Well…” He sat back down and thought a moment, “There’s really no easy way to say this so I’ll have to be blunt.  His soul would’ve been torn into nothing by the jaws of Oblivion, as is the fate of all deathknights.  I’m truly sorry, Mirage.”


Caleb’s face fell.  He gave Walker in Darkness a dirty look over his meal of burnt offerings, but he could see how that would’ve been a hard fact to sugar-coat (not to say Walker in Darkness was the type to sugar-coat anything).


Samira said nothing, but stopped eating her meal and stared into space at the floor.


Walker in Darkness said quickly, “Now, now, courage Mirage!  If he could escape his fate, then I feel sure that you’ll find a way to escape yours as well.  I’ll help you in any way I can.  Just let me know what I can do!  All I ask in exchange is that you tell me if you have another of those dreams.  Deal?”


She smiled weakly, “Deal.”


He smiled broadly, obviously in a much better mood after the information she had shared with him, “Well, let’s finish our meal and then retire.  You still have a lot of studying to do – and I have a bit of research to do myself.”