Chapter 22: The Exile
"Ogre..."
Kail tossed and turned in his bed of furs, lightly growling as the familiar and hated voice called to him.
"Ogre...I know you can hear me."
"Go away," Kail barked. "I want nothing from you."
He could almost feel the quake of Caligula's anger strike out at him viciously. Unfortunately for him, his magic was weak outside the border. Caligula was only able to call to him because of his origin.
He was a part of the valley and so, Caligula still had his call.
"It's about our little keromedio,"
Caligula teased.
"I have a little wager I'd like to strike up with you."
Kail sat up from his furs and sighed. It was late at night. The moon shone brightly against the uninterrupted sky, slipping slits of light through the sides of his home. Part of him despised the gaps in his house that made him visible to wandering eyes; the other more practical part realized that if he had made it any more airtight, he might have made a coffin. Not that those were used anymore. Death was not as solemn and revered as it had been in the old days. Death was simply part of life.
"Well Kail?"
Grunting, he slipped on his clothing and strode out into the night.
"What do you want?"
"Come closer."
"How close?"
"As close as you can.
Kail began to run towards the edge of the border, moving quickly and quietly through the forest. His eyes were suited for this nocturnal work, and he moved through the forest with ease. It felt almost nice to run at night again.
Zyra had not visited him since that night. If only he had resisted. His stomach churned at the thought of her fucking that pale, blonde human. He supposed that being in the same species might make it natural, but Zyra was all he had. He shared her because he did not want to lose her. Now it appeared he would not get a choice. As he neared the border he could feel that dawn would be on his tail.
"Hurry
."
Kail ran faster and faster until finally he was mere feet away from his home. The valley called to him like air to a collapsed lung, like life to the dying. It was a cruel temptress. His heart raced just at the thought of placing a single foot on the perfectly pristine green grass, or just picking it up to smell it, smell home.
He swallowed. No, he could not. He knew what would happen if he disobeyed his exile. He would be lucky to be killed on the spot.
"I see you haven't lost your speed."
Kail watched as the darkness sprouted two glowing purple eyes. He regarded them critically with his own.
"What do you want?" Kail asked. "Haven't you already taken everything from me?"
"Not...everything," Caligula lulled sadistically. "We could have taken your speech, or changed you into something more...tasty for the humans. And from what I know...you've gained something rather interesting since you crossed the border. Something pretty."
"Is that why you're summoning her?" Kail inquired. "To separate us?"
Caligula glared at him in response, unused to the sound of defiance.
"Don't flatter yourself," Caligula stated coolly. "Your bond is easily broken but regardless of why, your bonding is a nuisance to us."
Kail laughed bitterly. "What would you have me do? Send her to you with a gift basket? Put in a good word?"
Kail looked at Caligula with cocky disapproval. "It appears your natural charm hasn't been enough to impress her. Angry that she prefers someone as lowly as me?"
"She is young and stupid," Caligula said scathingly. "She is ignorant of the true merit of power. Not to worry..." he grinned mischievously, "I'll have plenty of time to teach her."
A low threatening growl rose deep from the bottom of Kail's throat.
"She could be your own daughter," he growled, pleased when Caligula's smile dropped. It was one of Caligula's only fears, that he would taint his own line.
"I could find out, that is of the least importance," Caligula said a matter of factly, "...but that is entirely up to you."
"How so?"
"I brought you here for a wager remember?"
Caligula's easy smile went back into place as he materialized fully in front of him. The man's chiseled features cut through the dark, his demeanor condescending.
"What would you say...if I told you I would relieve Zyra of her keromedio duties?"
Kail could not help his jaw dropping open. Never had he ever heard of such a thing.
"I'd think it was a trap," he responded honestly.
Caligula laughed rancorously in response. "Ah, I did like you. Well Kail for old time's sake I'll tell you the truth. Yes, it is a trap. You see, if you can convince Zyra to run away with you and leave her family and friends behind, we will let her go. If you can't, nothing changes and we will rip her from all of you."
"What about the girl?" Kail asked. "If she goes will you curse her?"
"Her niece? We'll leave her be. We won't interfere with anything we didn't already have a hand in."
"So the boy?"
"Ours. He will replace Zyra as the new keromedio. Don't be greedy Kail."
"Why are you doing this?" Kail sighed. "What would you do if she actually went away with me?"
"That's why it's a trap," Caligula said coyly.
He strode forward, his toes just resting at the line of the border. He regarded Kail with a smirk, his purple eyes mocking him. "You and I both know the type of person that Zyra is. She's an idealist. It's a trap because she'll never take you up on our offer."
"So you intend to trap her..."
"Not her," Caligula corrected. "You. She is already ours. You see Kail, I will let this wager stand," he said. "If you two run away together within the next 7 days, I will honor this agreement. You may not believe she will go with you, but..." Caligula smiled widely. "...you will still try. You want her more than life itself because she is the last thing you have left to hold onto. There's no guarantee we will bring her back," he said grinning.
He gave Kail a knowing look. "And you know what happens to them at the end."
Kail turned his head from him, flashes of his greatest shame shooting for him. What he wouldn't give to destroy Caligula once and for all.
"I've trapped you into taking on this little wager Kail," the witch chuckled. "You will ask her, I know you will. I know you Kail. Better than anyone, better than you know
yourself
. I know who you truly are."
"I know you too," Kail said angrily. The sun was starting to come up and Caligula was fading. "What do you hope to gain from this? What more?"
Caligula's form was now a smoky brown mass with purple eyes, dissipating as the sun rose and his power weakened.
"Revenge," Caligula hissed. "Reminding you how powerless you are, twisting your fate, showing you how little control you have is all I need." He chuckled, a dark and awful sound. "You should have known better than to steal from
me
ogre."
Kail said nothing as the blob vanished. Instead, he made the mistake of looking out into the valley as the sun came up.
The orange and yellow sun turned the landscape red. Fresh wet dew clung to ever leaf and blade, shining the most miniscule greenery to a polished magnificence and splendor. The smell of the grass tickled his nose just for cruelty's sake, reminding him of the days he spent lying in the fields, staring up at the bright vast sky while children played. It was right there, and he was not. He would never feel it again.
Kail turned with a heavy heart. He bet that bastard planned for him to see that sunrise. No doubt he might make seeing it a habit now.
"Damn you..." he grumbled.
His body trembled as he forced it to turn around and away from the place he loved. His heart ached in agony. He couldn't take this, not for much longer. Caligula was winning. Kail had to ask Zyra to run away. He lived too close to the pain.
________________________________________________
"Ginger! We're all out of wine!"
Ginger rummaged through the chest at the back of her tent. She looked through it diligently, finding more bottles of all shapes and sizes, and passing them around.
"You have Ruewater?" Gharla said in shock. "How the hell did you get Ruewater?"
Ginger snickered haughtily. "Oh I have my ways. I traded it the last time we spoke to the Wakai tribe."
"I thought they didn't trade for cloth," Zyra said curiously.
She and the others were in Ginger's tent, celebrating the last night they would have together before the Ursie's departed. The sounds of revelry filled the air and she wondered if the others had wanted to partake. Even so, she figured most of them were far too inebriated to care.
"You do make beautiful things," Gharla slurred, always the first to feel the effects of alcohol.
"Oh please you're making me blush," Ginger chattered.
Ginger was a very skilled cloth maker, and her embroidery was second to none. Even so, their neighbors the all female Wakai tribe were more ferocious then they were. They were known for dealing with male tribes only three days out of the year. Instead, if there was a shortage of female warriors, they would kidnap the men from neighboring tribes and force themselves upon them until enough of them produced. As a result, no males lived near the Wakai outlands. Even the Rovians dealt with them sparingly.
"Still, I didn't trade for cloth," Ginger replied saucily. She winked at Rell who sat beside Zyra and Enui and passed out wooden cups.
"Then what did you—"
"Don't ask Rell," Zyra interjected. She sighed. Some things would never change.
Rair received her cup of first and reached for the Greenberry wine. Her face was dusted by a light blush that reddened more and more each second. Rell, being the gentlemen he was, took the bottle for her and poured her drink. She nodded to him in thanks.
As cups and drink went around, Zyra began to think of what tomorrow would bring. Rell and the other Ursies would be going home. Then, in a few days, she would be going away too. She tried not to think in lasts, the last time they would all be together, or the last time she would see her brother Rell, or the last time she would be a Rovian. Even though she said she would return, there was no guarantee she would be welcome. The law had been written long ago, before Kyzu and before their mother. They had to set laws to protect their number. When the humans had nearly been wiped out and the only goal was survival, the people worked and moved for the whole. Now that things were more comfortable they had time to have identities, they had settled down. Yet, the fear was always there, the fear that they would fail to hold onto what their ancestors had worked so hard for. Betraying that law would take a strand of will that she wasn't sure Kyzu had. Zyra had to return in at least 1 year, or she would have nowhere to return to.
A squeeze on her breast suddenly brought her out of her thoughts.
"Hey!" she shouted in outrage. Looking up she saw Ginger with a cup outstretched.
"This is a going away party remember?" Ginger snapped. "I don't want any awful faces! We have one night together, don't ruin it!"
Zyra took the cup and took a long sip. Smacking her lips she began to feel better already.
"Fine. That was no excuse to grope me though."
"Look at my condition darling. It's a permanent excuse."
