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

==Chapter 12:  Love Does Not Die==


The month went by very very quickly.  Samira and Caleb were so busy training that they lost track of the days.  Walker in Darkness started eating with them every night usually asking about the dreams, but to their shock he also seemed to be legitimately happy to be in their company.  They were actually all enjoying their time together, training, learning magic, eating, and talking.  They were also surprised how much Walker in Darkness was opening up to them, telling them his personal feelings often and even telling them what little he could remember about his life before becoming a deathlord.  That was another thing that he and Samira had in common – not being able to remember much about their early lives.  


One day, after a particularly long day of training, he approached Samira and said, “Mirage, I have something I’d like to teach you.  You’ve got quite a knack for necromancy, and I think Raiton could very much benefit from this spell.  It’s called the Five Gifts.  It’ll allow him to touch, smell, hear, taste, and see as though he were a human again all day and all night.  I feel bad for him.  He seems to finally be realizing what he’s missing as a ghost rather than a human.”


Caleb had indeed seemed very sad lately.  Even though he tried to hide his depression by throwing himself into his training, it was becoming obvious.  She nodded, “Yes, I think you’re right.  I think he’s sad about something else too.”


Walker in Darkness nodded, “I know what it is.  He never got to be with you when he was alive, did he?”


She blushed and said, “I guess I didn’t think about that.  No, he didn’t.”


He seemed to be thinking for a moment and then said, “I have an idea.  Something which I think will make both of you closer and will be a nice break for all of us.  After you’ve mastered the five gifts, I’ll give you the weekend off to spend just the two of you.  There’s a safe place I know of in creation – nice spot for a honeymoon.” 


She gasped, “You’re suggesting that we should get married?  But, isn’t that associated with creation?  I thought doing something like that was considered bad for a deathknight.”


He shrugged, “Well, it could be your first lesson in resonance.  And, I’ll bet it will improve Raiton’s attitude immensely, and hopefully the Green Lady’s as well.”


She nodded and a sort of half-smile came across her face, “You know, I think that was a dream I used to have.  Who knows, maybe this will improve my attitude as well.”


Samira focused hard on learning “the five gifts” while Caleb trained in more ghostly abilities.  From what she heard, Walker in Darkness had been training her with necromancy while Jauffrey was training Caleb with ghostly arcanoi, looking for his strengths to decide which path of virtue to train him in.  His talent, thus far, seemed to be in shape-shifting.  She had noticed he had altered his appearance very slightly lately to make himself look more attractive.  Still, she hadn’t been paying enough attention to realize it was for her.  It made her feel ashamed that her mentor had noticed before she had.


Still, she decided she would make it up to him.  That Friday, Walker in Darkness presented her with a gift, grinning as he said, “Here you go…fresh fey blood!  Don’t ask me how I came across it.  Only know I would’ve made your thirst for revenge satiated for now.  Drink up.  I’m sure you’ll get more than enough emotion back for tonight.”


And, drink up she did.  He had four bottles of fresh blood that somehow had retained all of its essence, making it much more potent than usual.  She consumed an entire bottle right away, but decided to save the rest for the rest of the weekend.  Suddenly she felt love again, and excitement. 


Walker in Darkness smiled and said, “I think you’ll find some nice dresses in the wardrobe.” Then motioned for her to go.


 When Caleb entered the room after training all day his jaw dropped.  Samira was grinning at him wearing a beautiful skin-tight silken black and red dress.  She smiled seductively, “Hello, Handsome, are you ready for our special night?”


Samira began chanting and suddenly Caleb gasped in shock, as his eyes turned from grey to blue, and he suddenly saw things as though he was alive again.  Even his body seemed to become slightly substantial, making him able to touch.


“How…”  He stammered.


Samira laughed, a sound he hadn’t heard in a long time, “Walker in Darkness is so pleased with our training that he’s given us the weekend off.  He taught me that spell just for you so that we can have a nice time together.  He wants us to have dinner with him and then he’ll escort us to the Festival of Masks taking place in a town in creation!”


He smiled broadly.  It was the happiest she had seen him in a long time.  Caleb yelled, “I’LL WASH UP!”  And, shut the door behind him as he got ready.


At dinner Caleb was silent except for the occasional groans of pleasure for the taste of the food.  When he saw Samira and Walker in Darkness staring at him he grinned sheepishly and said, “Sorry.  You forget how much pleasure a little thing like tasting your food gives you, until you lose it.”


“Quite.”  Walker in Darkness said, picking at his food as usual, “So, are you excited about the festival?”


They both grinned and nodded.


He smiled slightly, “Good.  As I said, I’ll escort you there and back.  Just have fun and stay out of trouble.  I hear you’re a very good craftsman, Raiton.  How about I provide you with some metal, and after you eat, you make some masks for yourself and Mirage?”


He nodded but sighed, “I’ll try.  I haven’t tried to craft anything since …well, since the ‘incident’ with the fey.”


Samira smiled, “I’m sure you’ll do fine.”


After the meal, Caleb worked on the masks for two full hours while Samira packed.  The masks were indeed worth the wait.  One was the head of a raiton, and the other was an almost jackal-like head that reminded Samira of the god Anubis.  They were beautiful and yet frightening, perfect for the Festival of Masks.  They both dressed in dress clothes for the occasion, Samira in her silk dress and Caleb in a red shirt, black vest, and black pants.


Walker in Darkness applauded at the masks, “These are exquisite!  When you return I’ll graft soul-steel to them so they can be your helmets in the future.  Are you ready to go?”


“More than ready!”  Samira said, quickly.  And so, they all left.


Walker in Darkness escorted them all the way to the place where he had kept their horses, in the Shadowland nearest to the town.  There was a road leading past the stables to the town, so he knew they wouldn’t get lost.  He bid them a fond farewell and sped back towards his castle.  He had something on his mind – a visitor who would be there soon.


When he reached the castle, she was already there at the door.  “You’re late.”  The Green Lady said coolly.


He shrugged, “You know I’m always away on business.  You were lucky I managed to get back in time at all.”


She looked around, a sly smile forming on her face, “Where are your pets?”


He smiled mirthlessly, “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.  But I do have some news that might make the petty and jealous side of you feel better about ‘my pets’.  It seems that the two of them are getting along very well now.”


She shrugged, “As you said, it’s no concern of mine.”


He grinned, “I’m glad to hear you’re over it.  Now, you said you had news of Mask of Winters this time?”


As they walked inside she paused, “Well, before we discuss business, I did have one suggestion concerning them.”  


He groaned, “Now what?”


“I could be wrong, and forgive me if I am, but I think you’ve grown attached to them.”  Walker in Darkness gave her a cold look but said nothing, so she continued, “After the last incident, I should think you know the dangers of getting attached to people firsthand.  And, you don’t want them to get too attached to you either.  They’re young deathknights.  They don’t know nor will they be able to understand the atrocities you must perform to appease the Malfeans.  The sooner they leave, the better for all of you – and your little friendship.”


He smiled cynically and growled, “So did you come to give me news of Mask of Winters or to lecture to me about something I already know?  I thought you were my advisor, not my Mother.”


She grumpled, “Hmph.” And continued inside.


Walker in Darkness knew that this wouldn’t be the end of the Green Lady’s rivalry with Mirage, but then, sometimes it was such a bad thing for two loyal servants to compete…


Meanwhile, Samira and Caleb reached the town, just as the last rays of the setting sun fell.  It was amazing, like a dream.  The town looked like it was just becoming large enough to be a city, and yet it still retained the charm of a small town.  As they entered, the townspeople had just begun to light the torches and a large crowd had gathered in the town square.  They could hear what sounded like an entertainer announcing, “Night has fallen!  The Festival of Masks will now officially begin!”


Everyone in town donned their masks at once and began to dance to a lively song performed by the entertainer.  He was singing about the origin of the Festival – that it was thought to be the one day the deceased could rise again.  Caleb and Samira exchanged glances and couldn’t help but to laugh – so that was why Walker in Darkness had them come here!  Samira felt wonderful.  Somewhere in the back of her mind she remembered the emotions she had felt before they had been stolen from her.  The blood of the fey really had somehow retained the life-essence of the creature it was taken from.  She knew she had to make the most of this opportunity.


They danced, drank, and laughed, for what felt like hours, marveling at the costumes, music and parades.  Suddenly, Caleb dropped on one knee and produced a ring from his vest pocket.  He smiled, but the smile was slightly sad as he said, “Samira, I made this ring for you a long time ago, but I never had the courage to ask you.  And, up until now, after everything that happened, I thought you might reject me.  Well, now seems to be the best time to ask you.  Will you marry me?”


Samira was shocked but also very very happy.  She smiled sweetly, “Yes, Caleb.”


He looked shocked as well, but they both embraced and kissed.  She whispered quickly, “Are you sure?  You know I won’t be like this when the effects of this blood wears off…”


He shrugged, “Well, will you still stay with me and be loyal to me?”


She nodded, “Yes!  Even if I can’t feel true emotion anymore, I’ve always cared about you and felt loyal to you.  And I do love you, I know it. And, even if I don’t always show you I care the fey didn’t have a chance to steal my sense of loyalty.”


He beamed, “Then let’s go!  Right now!”


She didn’t have a chance to speak as he pulled her by the hand towards the nearest church.  Still, she wasn’t going to object.  She knew now would be the best time.


When they knocked on the church door, the priest answered in his pajamas, looking very surprised and slightly irritated, “Are you here to scare me with those masks?  Sorry, I’m a man of the church.  Ghosts and monsters don’t frighten me.”


Caleb looked like he was suppressing a laugh, but said in a shaky voice, “No.  We came here to be wed.”


The priest’s eyes got big with surprise, “Here?  Now?  This kind of holiday has bad portents for that sort of thing…wouldn’t you rather wait?”


“No.”  They both said at the same time.


He shrugged, “Well, suit yourselves.  Meet me in the church – I’ll be getting my robes on.”


“Wait!” Samira said, suddenly.  Something told her it probably wouldn’t be appropriate for them to marry in a church.  “Can you marry us outside in the open air?  Tonight is such a lovely night…”


He grumbled something about catching a death of cold, but then sighed, pulling the robes over his nightgown, “Alright, young Lady, alright…”


Caleb and Samira took their masks off, holding hands in front of a fountain in front of the church, offset by the occasional fireworks coming from the village square.  The priest came out holding a pure white scarf and bound their hands together with it, offering blessings and prayers on their behalf.  The moment he started, Samira felt a dark energy building up inside of her.  It was an odd feeling like an itch that needed scratching, or a bad thought nagging at the back of her mind.  Still, she surpressed it, wanting to enjoy every moment of her own wedding and to remember every detail – one more good memory to add to the few she had left.  She and Caleb kissed passionately as he blessed their union and she tossed the priest a bag of twenty gold pieces for his trouble – at which point she felt the dark energy building up even more.  She knew they were lucky they chose nightfall.  While Caleb was substantial enough to touch and be touched and to wear clothes, he didn’t have a material body and was still slightly translucent.  The priest would’ve noticed, except for the fact he had bad eyes. 


Afterwards, Samira went to a shop and bought a gold ring with a personalized inscription on the inside saying, “Love Does Not Die.”  She knew Caleb wouldn’t be material forever, but she also knew of a way to make sure he received the gift.  When they checked into the nicest inn they could find, Samira tossed the ring into the fireplace in the room.  Caleb looked confused, but Samira continued to let it burn, offering prayers of dedication to Caleb – and as the ring finally melted away entirely, it suddenly appeared on his finger.  She grinned, “Now it’s official.”


He grinned seductively, “Well, not quite yet…”


The next day was bright and sunny, enough to make Samira groan and pull the covers above her head.  The night had been wonderful in every way, but the dark energy was starting to feel like it was eating away at her from the inside.  She knew there was a way to release it, but also knew from what Walker in Darkness had told her before, that releasing it in the town would be extremely bad.  So, she pulled her cloak off of the nightstand and threw the hood over her head.


Caleb, being a ghost, didn’t need sleep.  But, oddly enough, with the five gifts, he found that he could and was just waking up next to her.  He beamed at her, “So this wasn’t just a good dream!  We really are here together.  You don’t know how long I’ve dreamed of this day.”


She smiled, weakly, “I’m sure this isn’t exactly how you dreamed of it though.”


He shrugged, “It doesn’t matter the circumstances.  I’m happy just to be with you.”


She had to smile too, “I’m happy to be with you too.”


She laid back down and stretched, pulling the covers over her head and saying in a muffled voice, “Well, we have a day and a half left.  What do you want to do…besides what we did the other night?”


He shrugged, “Well, the Festival goes on through the weekend, so I guess we’ll just stick around town and enjoy the show.”


She nodded, “Sounds good to me, after we catch up on some sleep.


Samira renewed the five gifts spell and the two went out to enjoy the day.  There were parades to watch, and more dancing and drinking to do.  Plus, it was also fun to shop around, buying things like jewelry, exotic food, and playing carnival games for prizes.  As much fun as it all was, Samira kept the bottle of blood close to her, nursing it as though she was drinking a bottle of wine.  She wasn’t sure if it was just a crutch to rely on the blood as much as she did, nor did she care.  She knew it gave her emotion back, and that was all that mattered.  She wanted this to be a weekend to remember, not only for herself but also for Caleb.  She didn’t want to revert back to her now apathetic nature and hurt his feelings…not this weekend.


And so it was that day and night, and the rest of the next day.  For once, she was making many good memories to replace the old ones that she lost, and just when she felt like she was getting used to a fairly normal life again, the vacation was over.  They were watching the sunset, knowing the next day they would be back in the Underworld, training in Walker in Darkness’ castle.  


Still, even though the weekend had been wonderful – something they would remember a long time, it did teach them that the world they were from now was too different for them to belong to the world of the living entirely.  Even though they enjoyed drinking, eating, playing games, and dancing, and acting like they were alive and normal again there was always something separating them from the other people.  People shied away from them the way horses shy away from snakes, or children flinch at the thought of walking through a graveyard.  Still, they gained something greater than just a weekend away – they learned that they would always have one another to rely on in death, and that was better than fitting in with an entire world of life.