Tag Archives: Krina

Obstacles

[This story takes place between The Mage and The Shifter.]

“It is not working!” Cassie yelled, breaking the spell. She picked up one of the rune stones in front of her and threw it. It was part of a set Ice had given her to help her study the runes and get comfortable with them.

He looked at his pupil with a mixture of sympathy and irritation. “Do not throw them.”

She turned toward him. “I cannot feel them the way you said I would! There is no magic!”

It was an effort to stop himself from yelling back. “You are already familiar with the runes, you just need . . .”

“No, I am not!”

“Yes, you are. When we first met, you used some runes, do you remember?”

“When?”

“You put them on your parents’ pyre.”

“Those? They were just traditional symbols.”

“Do you know what they mean?”

“We just put them there so that the souls of the departed make it safely to the next world.”

“The first rune was protection. The second means journey. And the last one stands for joy. You already have a connection with . . .”

“I do not want to talk about this anymore.” She stood and ran from the room while tears streamed down her cheeks.

Ice picked up one of the stones and absentmindedly rubbed it between his fingers. He wanted to go after the girl, scold her for leaving, but he could almost hear Krina admonishing him not to, reminding him of his failures when he had taken her on as an apprentice.

Perhaps he was not meant to instruct others. The girl did have a natural talent for the runes, but the memory of her parents seemed to serve as an obstacle. There was something else, as well, some other power in her, the reason that the Terrgat had sought her in the first place. However, he had been unable to identify it. Perhaps that power, whatever it was, prevented her from touching the magic of the runes.

As much as he wanted to push her past these obstacles, the memory of his missteps with Krina gave him pause and undermined his own self-confidence. Maybe he should not teach Cassie. Yet, she needed some means to protect herself. If he could not teach her his magic, he needed to find a way to unlock her own power. If he did not, she would be vulnerable the next time the Terrgat came for her.

First Meeting

“You should pick your targets more carefully.”

Krina spun around, her dagger drawn. Sitting in a chair ten feet from her was an old man in a traveling cloak. His shaggy grey hair and beard made him instantly recognizable as the man whose purse she had cut earlier in the tavern.

Her first instinct was to run. But doing so meant leaving her few possessions behind. Besides, he had not brought the town guard with him. She was intrigued.

“How did you get into my room?”

“Wrong question.” The half smile on his lips did not fade.

“What do you mean?”

“You should know as well as anyone that getting into a room is not that difficult. What you should be asking, instead, is how did I know this was your room.”

He was right. Both times. “Okay, how?”

“Another time. Perhaps. I need you to return the pouch you took from me.”

“I did not…”

He held up a hand to stop her. “No denials. I know it was you. For your sake, please return it. Now.”

She considered her options. She was still closer to the door than he was. And he was old, how quick could he be?

“I am faster than I look.”

Krina wondered how obvious she was. This was the first time she had been caught, but he seemed to know everything. Instead of running, she brought out the pouch.

“Good girl. Give it to me.”

What was so important? Was it just the money, or was there something more? Her curiosity needed to be sated, so she emptied the contents onto the table next to her.

“No…” But he was too late.

Out came several coins, probably enough to keep her comfortable for a month or more. Something else caught her eye, however. It was a larger coin, with emerald and onyx set in the middle. It looked familiar. There was also a blue gem. But the black and green kept her attention. Black within green…

“Give it back.”

She gasped. “The Terrgat! This is one of their medallions. That means you must be one of them…” Her voice trailed off as her blood went cold. Stealing from the Terrgat? What would the punishment be?

Without her noticing, he had stood and closed the distance between them. With one hand, he ripped the medallion from her, and with the other grabbed the blue gem.

“I am not a Terrgat.” She had never heard a denial so firm. “Keep the money. Forget you saw me. Or this.”

“But if you are not Terrgat…?”

“Better that you remain ignorant.”

She stopped him as he began to leave. “Wait. I need to know. Who are you?”

He sighed. “It really is better for you not to know.”

As soon as he was gone, Krina replaced the coins in the pouch and stowed it away in her jerkin. She quietly left the room and followed the old man out into the night.