Ahrden thought back many times to the night in the Wooden Jug and how he had left without even casting a minor tracking spell on that rogue. Now that the thought of finding her was consuming him, that thoughtless reluctance was something he often cursed himself for. In the heat of the moment, all he had cared about was making a grand impression on all who were there, leaving no room for other things that would have made his life easier later on.
The shuriken he had taken was a fascinating piece of craftsmanship, which he studied intensely. Ahrden was able to read the runes etched into it, giving it multiple special features even for those who wielded no arcane powers. Unlike the ones he used on his runed blades, these passively enhanced the weapon itself, making it that much more deadly. From the long research he spent on the subject, Ahrden concluded that the runes improved the sharpness, the durability, and even the weapon's accuracy. On top of that, the runes were also responsible for making it so resilient that it didn't liquefy under Ahrden's magic. By the look of it, and with the aid of a few spells, he could tell that the weapon was ancient, which explained the potency of the runes it bore.
Ahrden had read of—and in theory even knew—the spell that enabled the caster to locate a person using only an object that had been in contact with that person for an extensive amount of time. Unfortunately, he was not yet at the power level to cast such a spell with any success. He didn't want to go back to the pub, despite knowing that he would surely find her there, but he was getting desperate and unable to think of any other way to find her.
Ahrden had already tried many times to lurk around in the woods surrounding Merktin, hoping to find her hunting one day, but all he ever saw on those occasions were training warriors. After getting tired of those futile trips, it started to bother him that only his pride was stopping him from secretly going back to the Wooden Jug to cast a homing spell on her from afar so he could later locate her when she was in a less crowded area.
As the number of unsuccessful attempts around Merktin grew, Ahrden decided not to waste any more time on these useless errands and instead went back to the tavern again. As usual, he made the preparations for the trip in his study—something he enjoyed maybe even more than the trip itself. He had been studying cloaking spells for quite some time now, mastering them as best he could, knowing they would be put to use on this mission. He had even tested them on people in his city, and no one seemed to notice him. The real test was sneaking into the secret strategic meeting held by the highest-ranking rogues in his nation—and not one person noticed Ahrden as he quietly walked up and down among them. This test was the best he could think of, but it didn't accurately reflect the difficulty of his quest, because while his nation was famous for its mighty warriors, the Nethedral nation was well known for its deadly rogues.
As he stood in his study, he read the lines of the spell from the enormous tome one last time—the lines he already knew by heart. He spoke the words and followed the gestures while gathering more than enough arcane energy for the spell. When he finally cast it, he felt the familiar cool blanket of arcane power descend upon him, and he felt satisfied with the result. Ahrden then concentrated on the tavern and dematerialized from his study, leaving the room not much different to an unsuspecting eye.
When he arrived at his destination, it was already dark outside. He remembered the place well enough to arrive in the shadow-covered street beside the pub, where he would have been well hidden even without the spells—at least against those who hadn't trained their eyes to spot someone lurking there. The teleportation itself was fairly quiet, so after looking around, Ahrden felt confident that his arrival had gone unnoticed.
He crouched low and peered out at the dimly lit, empty square that lay in front of the tavern, with the only illumination being the firelight coming through the windows of the houses that lined it. Ahrden didn't see or sense anybody around, but he could tell that the tavern was packed. He may have—or maybe just wanted to have—felt the rogue's presence in the pub, but the fact that he wasn't sure deeply bothered him.
The plan required patience, and he thought he was prepared, but when the time actually came to wait, he felt more impatient than ever. He did his best to remain motionless in the cover of the shadows while occasionally fuelling his cloaking spells so they wouldn't wear off.
As the night progressed, more and more people entered the tavern, but none had left it for a very long time. All those entering the building walked straight towards Ahrden, who hid at the front of the street next to the pub, but no one saw or suspected him there. After some agonizingly long hours of impatient waiting, Ahrden saw the first people leave the pub. It was a wonderful sight for him, even though the two individuals were drunk beyond reason and could barely stagger along the cobblestone as they tried to support each other. After the pair, the curse was lifted, and more and more guests started leaving the tavern.
Occasionally checking the building with his arcane senses, Ahrden felt the pub empty as guests left, but he liked to believe that he still felt the rogue in there. He certainly didn't see anyone leave who even remotely resembled her, although there were quite a few slim female rogues who had already gone home that night. Of course, the one he was seeking might not even have come to the pub that night, but Ahrden still kept his hopes up. No longer sitting in the unchanging night, Ahrden started getting excited, preparing himself as best he could. He fed more power into his cloaking spell and readied for the tracking spell he wished to cast once he saw her. It wasn't ideal that he needed to cast it from such a distance, but Ahrden decided he would follow her with a few teleportations and cast it from closer if he were to fail from where he hid.
Among the many people leaving the tavern, Ahrden suddenly felt movement in the building—and more precisely, the movement of that remarkable presence which he now associated with the female rogue he was looking for. With senses sharpened, he moved his benumbed muscles a little and waited for her to come out. When she finally did, there was no question that she was the one Ahrden was looking for. She walked with grace and elegance, which could not be said of the many others who had already left the pub, but unfortunately, she was with a large group. The members of the group gave Ahrden the feeling that they were all rogues—and very skilful ones at that. Unlike many of the other guests he saw leave that night, they all seemed to hold their liquor, and even among them, she appeared to be the one the other elite fighters gathered around.
The group was laughing, hanging onto one another, and just enjoying themselves, obviously unaware that they were being watched by someone they considered their enemy. This would've been the moment Ahrden had been waiting for, but they were so close to each other that there was a high chance the spell would hit someone else. Ahrden decided to go with his backup plan, where he would follow her until she separated from the rest. Just as he thought of this, it occurred to him: what if she didn't separate from everyone? What if there was another she went home with? The thought alone made Ahrden panic, but luckily, the events in the square made him snap back to the present.
A few steps after the group had left the pub, the young woman tensed up a little, but it was only noticeable with the enhanced senses Ahrden was now observing her with. He had no idea of the reason behind it, or if it was something she always did, but another few steps later, he got the answer to his questions.
'Go ahead, guys; I've left something back at Woody. See you all tomorrow at dawn.'
Her voice was musical and soft, yet direct and unwavering. Everyone stopped and turned around to face her.
'Yeah, sure thing, Alia.'
Alia… thought Ahrden.
Ahrden rolled the name on his tongue.
Alia…
'See you 'morrow.'
'You need help?' a friendly-looking girl asked, and a few members broke into laughter.
'If Alia is attacked and we help, there's a higher chance she dies,' someone else said, and laughter followed again.
'No thanks, I'm good,' Alia smiled at the compliment.
'I'll wait for you anyway,' one of the taller males offered.
'Thanks, Mudron, but I really got this. Go on with the others,' Alia insisted.
'At dawn then.'
'At dawn.'
Alia broke off from the group and walked back into the tavern with the grace of a master rogue and the elegance of a lady. Ahrden wanted to cast the spell as she walked, but all he could do was stare. When she disappeared, Ahrden could do nothing but wait again. As he remained there waiting, he thought about the conversation they had, about how good everyone knew Alia was. Alia… He finally learned her name—and it was fitting, to say the least.
Ahrden forced his thoughts back to the matter, reassuring himself after hearing what the others said that he was safe with arcane at his disposal, especially since he didn't want to attack Alia—only cast a spell on her. Still, he no longer felt confident in the dark alley and just wanted to be done with the whole thing. His worrying went as far as considering leaving and coming back another time, but he quickly dismissed the idea. His knees felt weak, although he didn't know why he was so afraid of someone who had already had a few drinks and had at most a few hidden blades on her. He finally concluded it was probably who she was that made him feel that way, rather than what she was capable of.
Ahrden focused on getting his thoughts back to the present again to locate where Alia was, now certain what her presence felt like—but he couldn't find her in the building. This was strange, if not alarming, and Ahrden silently cursed himself for losing track of her like that. He focused harder, expanding his search beyond the tavern, but before that could give him any information, his blood froze at the touch of cold steel on his neck.
Ahrden ceased all movement, unable to think or act, afraid to even breathe. As powerful as he was, he wasn't used to situations like this.
'Ran out of good ale, or is it my shuriken that you brought back?' Alia's voice came flowing from behind him, with unhidden satisfaction in it.
'If either, why the dagger?' Ahrden answered, focusing on keeping his voice from cracking.
'You are a thief and possibly a spy.'
'Coming from a rogue.'
'I don't get caught.'
'I walked into the pub at the busiest hour. The ale was on the house, and I brought back the shuriken,' Ahrden said, feeling embarrassed to be pleading in such a way.
'Oh, and you attacked our warriors.'
'I was attacked.'
'You attacked first.'
'You know I'm not a spy.'
'If so, you're a lousy one.'
'Then why the dagger?'
'Insurance.'
'Against a mage?'
Alia hesitated at the term, which was still unfamiliar to her. The moment was enough for Ahrden. He closed his eyes and gently wrapped his power around the blade. When Alia felt that she was no longer the only one holding onto the dagger, she struggled against the invisible force but could not overpower it.
'Stop,' the firm order came from the fierce rogue as she poked another dagger at Ahrden — this one to his lower back, piercing his skin.
Ahrden was surprised by the aggressive move, and he didn't like it one bit. He tried to hide the slight jump he made when the blade penetrated his skin but knew he wasn't successful. He felt his blood slowly trickling down his side, wetting his clothes, while the tip of the dagger remained in the wound.
The anger that rose in him allowed him to act impulsively. He grabbed both blades hard with his arcane power and shoved them backward, which took Alia away from him too. She fell back hard but turned it into a fluent motion and rolled to her feet quickly. She was not happy with the events because she had already seen what Ahrden was capable of, and she had just lost her tight grip on him.
'One does not threaten a mage, rogue…' Ahrden said after he finally got rid of the blades pressed to him and could freely breathe again.
'Well, I just did,' Alia said with a smile.
'Yeah,' Ahrden chuckled. 'You just did.'
Swiftly, Ahrden started towards Alia, who simultaneously sprang at him with agile movement. Ahrden only wanted to distract the rogue with the movement so she would not expect his next move. He teleported behind Alia, who was still charging towards where he had just been, with daggers out, ready to strike. Ahrden reached out and placed his hand on her back as she was moving away from him and brought her along with the teleportation.
When they materialized, they were far up in the air. Ahrden immediately teleported below Alia, putting some distance between them, and with a quick gesture positioned the falling rogue to face him. Her fright was evident on her face, but she kept her cool head. She realized how helpless she was in that state but didn't give up the fight. She threw both of her daggers at Ahrden with incredible precision despite everything. Ahrden was impressed by the fight in her, although he still didn't understand why she fought so hard against him — especially in a situation where only he could save her. He slowed the daggers and caught them both, then threw them sideways, examining Alia's expression as she saw her precious daggers disappear into the night.
'You do not threaten a mage,' Ahrden's voice reached her easily despite the deafening wind that assailed them.
Alia's eyes went increasingly wide as the ground behind Ahrden neared them and she was surprised even more when she saw the mage disappear. With no time to think about why the mage would kill her like that, she prepared for certain death and didn't even feel the hand touch her arm. Her world tumbled as she was sucked into a magical turmoil and spat out again. When she opened her eyes, she was standing on the roof of the Wooden Jug with shaking legs, facing the mage right in front of her.
'You did threaten me. But you shouldn't have,' Ahrden said, then gestured.
The high-pitched whistling that followed made Alia happy — although not for long. When she first recognized the familiar sound of her daggers flying through the air, she didn't quite register the fact that this time she had not sent them flying. She couldn't yet see them, and before she could think about dodging, the sound stopped, and both daggers hovered mere inches away from her face. She waited for the mage to make his next move since she was obviously out of the game at this point. After a few seconds, the daggers turned downward and propelled into the wooden roof of the pub, sinking deep into it.
The mage lifted his hand, and with that, she felt an invisible force wrap around her body, which then lifted her off her feet. As he started walking towards her, she began moving backwards too, floating above the roof. When they neared the edge, she went past it while the mage stopped at the very edge.
The mage stood there with his piercing eyes on her, studying her, arm extended to keep her afloat above nothing but air over the back end of the roof.
'How did you notice me?' Ahrden asked in a friendly tone, dying to know what he had done wrong.
'There is a torch at the end of the street you hid in, and its light hits the square in a particular way every night. Today you blocked some of it…'
'Smart…' Ahrden thought.
He concentrated for a second, and Alia knew that something was about to happen just as she saw the daggers slowly fly past the mage and carefully slip into their scabbards at her waist. Next, he reached into his cloak and took out the shuriken he had previously taken from her.
'I believe this also belongs to you,' Ahrden said, and he straightened his palm, making the weapon float towards one of her pockets, then disappear into it. Although it wasn't the one the weapon belonged to, she made no objections.
'I'd like to think that an introduction is as much in order as it is overdue. My name is Ahrden, and if I'm not mistaken, you are Alia.'
'Nice to meet you, Ahrden the mage,' Alia said with searching eyes, not even bothering to confirm that what Ahrden said was indeed her name. 'To what do I owe your pleasant presence?'
'To this.'
Ahrden gestured again, which caused a strange sensation in her, as if suddenly cold water had washed over her, but in the next second, it was all gone. He had finally placed the tracking spell on her, and although the mission wasn't as stealthy as he had initially planned, he had achieved what he came for.
'Well, Alia, if you'll excuse me, I'll head home after this very tiresome evening I've had — where I hid in a dark alley for hours just to meet you, while you, at the first sight of me, wanted to kill me. This time, however, I'm even more certain that we will meet again.'
Only the night's dark veil hid Alia's blushing cheeks.
'I knew I wouldn't kill you… not even in Woody.'
'That I find hard to believe.'
'Based on how bold you were, I guessed you could handle a shuriken,' Alia started the explanation.
'Good night, Alia,' Ahrden said with a smile.
Blue arcane power started spreading all over his body, and in the next second, he was gone.
Alia expected to fall and break both legs with Ahrden no longer there to help her, but she was surprised yet again when she started descending at a slow, comfortable pace until her boots softly touched the ground. Afterwards, however, she immediately buckled over, falling to her knees as all the unnatural location changes took the better of her. The first-time sensation of teleporting, combined with the feeling of falling and the multiple jugs of ale she'd drunk, caused her to revisit an experience she had not had the pleasure of in a very long time.
Alia threw up.
---
Ever since Ahrden had put the tracking spell on Alia, he could find her whenever he wanted to. In time the spell would wear off, but it was never a real threat because Ahrden often used the spell to visit her and could feed more energy into it—renewing the arcane bond when he felt it weakening—without her even noticing that he was there.
The semi-frequent visits Ahrden took allowed him to learn the routines of the famous elite rogues of the Nethedral nation, and especially the team Alia led, because it turned out that she was the leader of an elite rogue squad. He even watched her leave the pub at night after he learned what day he could expect her to go there. Most of the time, he chose a new hiding location, and he remained unnoticed in all of them. At times he could have sworn that Alia looked back at the dark street where he had hidden the first time, and he thought he saw sadness and disappointment in her expression when she could not see him there.
Ahrden learned her habits, like how she liked to sit on the roof of her house and watch the stars in the sky. On occasion, she would lie down on her back, admiring the starry sky, and sometimes she would even fall asleep there, to later wake up like clockwork before everyone else. On these special nights, Ahrden would sit on another roof—not too close to hers—and would just rest with her, watching the stars and pretending that they were there together.
Ahrden did feel that what he was doing was odd, but approaching her was not obvious for someone who had faced nothing but rejection in his life. He also couldn't help coming back, despite his promise to make every occasion the last. There was just something in Alia that drew him towards her, yet he couldn't explain it. He felt lucky to have the means to visit her this often, but he felt terrible for never revealing himself to her. He had a plan in mind about how he wanted to meet her again, but the circumstances were never good enough for him.
Time went on until one day Ahrden could no longer create excuses for himself about why he wasn't meeting her in person. When he finally decided to have the ominous meeting, he prepared for the occasion. He practised the spells he might be using on that day and learned even more cloaking spells, while simultaneously mastering the ones he already had in his arsenal.
Ahrden was planning to meet Alia for the second time during one of her hunting adventures. He wanted to learn in advance the usual route for these events, which, by the look of it, seemed to be kept a secret even from the rest of the citizens in the city. After attending a few occasions, he could find no pattern that they would follow, which made things more difficult for Ahrden. Alia and her group frequently practised, but unlike the hunters and the warriors, they didn't do it at a shooting range or in an arena; instead, they trained in different parts of the forest. During these practices, Alia announced when they would be going on their next hunt, so Ahrden needed to be present at them to stay informed.
Alia always selected those who would accompany her on the next hunt, because unlike her other practices, her whole team could not come to these. During the hunt, the ones going for the prey would actively seek to outsmart and kill the game, and the rest would be there to learn from them. Most of the time, Alia would not be part of either group, as she was responsible for overseeing and assessing the apprentices. Being the elite group of rogues that they were, hunting was a great opportunity for them to practise and hone their skills. Rather than finding the game and shooting it down, as the hunters would have, they used a wide variety of methods to achieve their goals. Alia was exceptionally skilled with a bow and arrow, although, strictly speaking, that wasn't part of her core class, but her arsenal housed numerous more options that she could choose from.
Ahrden waited in the crown of a tree that overlooked the location where the selected group was going to assemble before their next hunt. First, they always went over the plan, the roles, and the methods they would use that day. Afterwards, they divided into smaller groups, with one group hunting and the others observing. The group going for the kill would usually cross an animal hideout that they had previously mapped out to ensure that there was prey to chase. Finally, once they agreed on each party's paths, Alia informed them where they would meet up at the end.
Alia always went alone and observed all the different parties during the hunt. However, on this particular day, when Ahrden had finally decided to meet her again, this was not the case. She assigned the tallest, strongest, loudest, and most self-satisfied person Ahrden had ever seen to go with her.
Ahrden simply could not believe his luck and saw this as more than enough reason to back out of the meeting, but eventually decided to stay. This new rogue that Alia assigned to herself was called Brant, and it must have been his first day with the group. Alia did well to hide her repulsion towards him, but Ahrden was glad to have picked up on it. To him, it seemed evident that she wanted the hunt to be over as soon as possible so that she could tell the one who had forced Brant into this group that he was unfit to remain with them. Brant must have known that he was facing the toughest test of his life, yet he acted with more confidence than any other member.
An interesting aspect was that Alia's annoyance towards Brant wasn't affected by the fact that he was strikingly handsome. Many of the female rogues present could not look past this aspect, and although they were showing resentment towards him too, they couldn't help but glance at him longingly. Ahrden had witnessed, through countless occasions, how Alia turned down long lines of trying men, while never once had he seen an encounter when she displayed passionate emotions towards others.
Ahrden finally decided to move the newly arisen inconvenience out of the way so that he could accomplish what he had been planning to do for a long time now. He knew that there would be plenty of occasions once the hunting started, so for now, he waited patiently for the event to begin, contemplating how exactly he would remove Brant from the picture.
Ahrden could hear everything that was being said in the small circle underneath him, although he needed a minor spell to catch the meaning of everything. He was pleased to hear that Alia and her new companion would go on her usual route between the different parties—a path that Ahrden was familiar with by then. Shortly after everything had been discussed, the group split up and went their separate ways. Alia ran off too, and as always, she moved swiftly and with ease in the forest.
As Alia cut through the forest, Brant was right behind her and, to Ahrden's disappointment, he was able to keep up with her—although barely. Having witnessed how Alia usually moved, Ahrden felt that she might have been pushing herself a little harder, as if she, too, wanted to get rid of the unwanted companion.
Ahrden strengthened his cloaking spell and gathered arcane energy within himself for the pursuit. He had learned to move fast and silently in the forest, although it required a great deal of effort from him, and his method relied heavily on the use of arcane to do most of the work for him.
Ahrden teleported from one branch to another, high up in the crowns of the trees, while leaping between them whenever he could. When he slipped, he pushed himself away from the branch he was aiming for and teleported back up to another one. On the rare occasion when the branch snapped, he teleported to a secure one as fast as possible and kept the broken one from falling until the group below had passed. The rogues he pursued usually stopped to observe when this happened, but the thick crown of the trees was always there to help him hide his mistake.
Ahrden had long mastered the art of teleporting, but this exercise lifted his skill to a whole new level. It was extremely tiring at first, but practice helped on that front too, as he slowly became able to do it with more ease and for a longer time. Another aid that Ahrden had was the homing spell he had put on Alia. The spell allowed him to fall behind and even lose sight of her because he could just find her through the spell.
Despite his best efforts, on this day Ahrden was falling behind a lot more than he usually did, so he had to rely on the homing spell more than he would've wanted to.
They had been running for a while when Ahrden felt confident that no other groups were nearby. He decided that it was time for him to take Brant out of the picture, who was surprisingly capable when it came to keeping up with Alia.
Ahrden teleported ahead where Alia was headed and looked down at the two rogues coming his way. He crouched on a wide branch and watched as Alia came on, effortlessly slicing through the thick foliage with so little noise it was almost unnatural. Ahrden let her pass beneath him and waited for Brant, who was not that far behind her. He was also more than capable at travelling through the forest, and if anything, he only lacked the extreme stealth that was almost uniquely Alia's.
As Brant approached, Ahrden concentrated and wrapped his power around a fallen branch that lay in the rogue's path. When Brant was leaping over it, Ahrden lifted the branch, tripping him mid-air, and even gave some more energy to his flying body to make his collision with the ground that much more powerful. In the last second before Brant hit the ground, Ahrden further worsened the situation by spinning the rogue's body, after seeing him expertly reaching down with his arms and legs to break his fall. To Brant's credit, he didn't let out a single sound when he hit the ground, even though he hit it hard. When he came to a stop, he groaned from the pain, then let out a short whistle to let Alia know that something had happened to him.
When he started getting up, dusting himself off in the process, Ahrden was both surprised and annoyed that the rogue was shrugging off the fall like that. He had a whole arsenal at his disposal that would more than make Brant unable to pursue Alia, but he needed to make the accident look natural.
Ahrden panicked a little as he saw his plan crumbling and frantically started thinking about ways to correct it. The first thought that came to his mind was snapping Brant's leg—because he wouldn't be able to prove that it didn't happen in the fall—but he decided against it. Ahrden looked up at a branch directly above Brant and, without a second thought, snapped it off the trunk. The branch was thick and heavy, but Ahrden managed it with ease, knowing that what happened next was crucial and everything had to go perfectly.
As the branch started falling, Ahrden looked down and saw that Brant was already on his feet and was turning his head upwards after hearing the loud snap above him. Ahrden wasn't sure whether Brant would react fast enough to jump away from the falling branch, but from the corner of his eye, he saw that Alia was already rushing towards him, determined to push him away from the danger. Ahrden was focused, and he reacted fast. He cooled Brant's legs, making them stiff and less responsive to his will, ensuring that even if he would normally be able to, this time he wasn't going to move out of the way in time. With his other hand, Ahrden gestured and changed the path of Alia's body, which was already in the air flying towards Brant. In the very last moment, Ahrden also positioned the falling branch so that it would come down on Brant's shoulder and not his head.
Alia was helplessly grabbing towards Brant, passing him with her seemingly failed jump, as he looked at her, confused about why he wasn't able to move his legs faster. The confusion quickly turned into pain as he cried out when the branch connected with his left shoulder. Alia expertly rolled to her feet and was by his side in the next instant, but instead of examining the injury, she was scanning the tree above them, then turning her attention to the others around them.
Ahrden saw Alia tell Brant something, but he couldn't hear what from where he had moved in panic. Next, he saw Alia stand up after carefully helping Brant lean against the tree, and then she took off—not precisely towards him, but in his general direction. She moved slower, subtly glancing upwards after every few steps. Ahrden was amazed at how confident Alia was that the accident was no accident at all and that the threat still lurked above her. If he had to guess, she had already put everything together, and since she no longer followed the path she normally would have, he knew that there was no point in remaining hidden for long. When Ahrden felt that they were far enough from Brant, he teleported down to the ground behind Alia in the quietest way he could manage. Alia stopped the instant his legs landed on the soft soil of the forest. Without turning, she said:
'You have attacked another member of my nation. But now it was during my practice. I cannot let you go this time,' Alia said, more seriously than Ahrden would have wanted her to.
'He shouldn't have come with you,' Ahrden said.
'He is the son of the general; he is trying to join my special unit.'
'I figured he needed to be someone special.'
'Why are you here? Why did you follow me? Why have you been following me?'
'What do you mean?'
'On the practices and hunts, in the city at night, at Woody. When I'm on the balcony.'
Despite his best efforts, Ahrden couldn't hide his surprise. When Alia saw that he couldn't speak, she continued.
'You can do what others cannot, but you were never taught how not to be noticed—how to hide your presence from those whose job is to seek it out.'
'Why don't you teach me, then?' was all Ahrden could utter.
'Could ask you the same thing,' Alia replied, and Ahrden's face turned redder than it already was. Her initial fierceness took on a different light, but he was still unsure what her stance was about him.
They were facing each other by then, and although they weren't near, both of them could close that distance in no time, using their own means.
'It is actually quite fascinating how well you are always able to find me. I did some digging, and I have a strong impression that during that night we met at the alley, you placed a spell of some sort on me which enables you to locate me from a distance. How far am I from the truth?' Alia asked with a smile and a raised eyebrow.
Ahrden was speechless again. Every single person he had ever known despised magic, with the very small exceptions of Felinda and Berton. Now here stood Alia, a rogue of a different nation who not only had no bad words about Ahrden's class but was also willing to go through some ancient books to learn more and confirm a suspicion she had. She was the only person Ahrden had ever met who was open to the arcane world without having any ties to it.
'Very.'
'Ahrden, mage of the Polenteus nation. What makes you want to seek me out?'
'To have the right opportunity.'
'To do what?'
'Isn't it obvious?'
Ahrden was able to keep a straight face so far, and although Alia answered with a calm demeanour too, the eagerness in her voice was more than evident.
'No, it's not. So, tell me.'
'I've been after you so that I'd have the chance to ask you if you wanted a rematch after the past failures you've had against me.'
Relief, excitement, joy—hints of hurt—were all present on Alia's face as she moved her hands behind her back.
'Or you were expecting something else?' Ahrden asked back.
'You have no idea…'
Alia sent two shuriken at Ahrden with such ease he couldn't understand how they were flying that fast. Ahrden knew that he was powerful, and he felt that way too. He felt in control of the situation, but he frequently had to reiterate this to himself because his primal instincts told him that he was in serious danger. He not only wanted to defeat Alia again, but he wanted to do it while displaying what he was capable of, all without breaking a sweat. He wanted to impress his opponent, show her that he indeed was something she had never encountered before. He wanted to collapse in his bed at the end of the day, knowing that he had used up all that he had—but he wanted to do that without showing any sign of it to her. Ahrden was focused, ready, and determined. He was prepared for those flying shuriken.
Ahrden shot both his hands up at the nearing projectiles and reached out with his arcane, wrapping it around the blades. He stopped both of them just before him and threw them sideways, sinking them so deep into two trees that they completely disappeared. When Ahrden looked up, Alia was gone.
For a second, he became worried but quickly regained his calm and reached out for the tracking spell and sensed Alia to his right, high up in a tree.
'I hope you brought an axe to cut those shuriken out.'
Ahrden fell silent when he felt an arrow coming right towards him through his extended senses, although it gave out no sound whatsoever. He didn't look up when he talked, and he didn't indicate that he knew where she was, yet she shot the arrow at his head with her full power. Either Alia was confident in Ahrden's ability to evade the attack, or she really wanted him gone this time. At that moment, Ahrden wasn't sure which was the case.
Ahrden materialized mid-air behind the tree on which he felt the rogue's presence, and as he fell, he had a clear view of where Alia was and how the branches were arranged on the tree. The teleporting was near-silent, and he made no sound as he fell, so Alia couldn't yet locate him as he teleported again, this time right behind her.
Ahrden's weight descending on the branch startled Alia, who had already nocked another arrow while searching for him. Without turning around, she leapt down from the tree, and as she fell, she turned around and, with her back to the ground, sent the arrow at Ahrden. So far, Ahrden had only been on the receiving end of the fight without being able to showcase what he wanted, but it had to be said that Alia was indeed more than remarkable.
After slowing it down, Ahrden caught the arrow in his hand right before it connected with his forehead and wanted to grin at the falling Alia, but she was gone by then, which made him frustrated. Besides slowing the arrow down, Ahrden had even wrapped arcane around his hand, yet it came so fast that he wasn't able to execute that catch flawlessly. As a result, the arrow left a painful red line in his palm. He cursed silently and decided that he was done with the games.
Ahrden was about to teleport away when he felt a piercing pain bite into his right ankle, and in the next second, the world slipped out from under him as he was falling from the tree. His mind was overclocking at that moment, so he could work out that the falling Alia threw a rope with a hook at him and used his weight to slow her fall. Knowing this didn't help his current situation, but it allowed him to respond to it adequately. As he teleported away, he felt an arrow enter his aura, which further strengthened his belief that this might not just be a friendly duel for the rogue.
Ahrden materialized quite far away with the blade still embedded in his ankle and the rope wrapped around both of his feet.
'Do you always run away when you are losing?' Alia's cheerful voice came from afar. 'Is that your secret? Run until you win?'
Ahrden lost all of his cool. Anger and frustration were boiling up in him after failing so hard at what he initially planned to do, and he was determined to retaliate in an equal fashion. After all, nothing is truly forbidden for someone who plays by different rules.
'To be honest, I expected the duel to be on less violent terms, but I can adapt, don't you worry about that,' Ahrden replied, thinking that she already knew where he was, so it mattered little.
Ahrden had lost his visual on Alia, but he felt her approaching from the left. He yanked the blade out of his ankle and ripped the rope to pieces with a spell that had encircled his legs. He teleported behind the location where he felt Alia. She sensed him materialize behind her, but it was too late for her. Ahrden wrapped her in his power thoroughly and lifted her into the air. Alia was helplessly struggling to break free as she levitated with her back to Ahrden. He turned her around in the air and brought her closer to him, just high enough for her legs not to touch the ground. The duel was technically over, because no matter how hard Alia tried, she could not break free from Ahrden's spell, but he was not done. He was far from done.
With everything he had, he threw her backwards, horizontally, to the ground. She flew fast, and she flew far on an impossible trajectory, remaining at the same height the whole time. Trees were rushing by on both sides of Alia, who could only hope that none stood in her path, as it would surely have shattered all of her bones. Ahrden teleported behind the flying rogue and stopped her so suddenly that at first she thought she had hit a tree. With the air knocked out of her lungs, he let her slip to the ground while she was struggling to breathe.
The moment she was able to, she reached for her daggers. She had not looked up yet, but she knew that Ahrden was right above her. What she didn't yet fully understand was that Ahrden was in control now. As she closed her fingers around the hilts of her daggers, she cried out in pain and surprise at the burning-hot touch of the weapons.
After Alia overcame the shock, she ignored the pain, shot her head up, and, with her fists closed on the throbbing burn marks, she leapt at Ahrden. The mage had fully saturated his entire body with pure arcane energy, which was now freely flowing through him, ready to be used. He had heightened his senses, improved his reflexes, and strengthened his body with arcane magic. He might have been fragile and slow in a regular fistfight, but with arcane on his side, he could stand up against anybody.
Alia was extremely skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and her technique relied on speed so heavily that Ahrden was barely able to keep up with her. She performed multiple smaller jabs that were all connected in one fluent dance, but Ahrden managed to block or evade them all. He was able to join her dance and pick up the rhythm, but it was a lot harder to counter her attacks than the slow but more powerful blows of a warrior.
At first, with great effort, Ahrden could fend off all of the incoming blows, and with his strengthened arms, he must have made the attacks quite painful for Alia, but she didn't show any sign of it. She kept attacking vigorously without slowing or faltering, raining down on Ahrden hard. He could block or redirect most of her attacks, but occasionally he outright had to use a spell to block a strike, a punch, or a kick.
Ahrden noticed no change in Alia's dance, but in the next second, he saw a small knife in her right hand. Adapting to the new situation, he focused on the deadly blade when her other hand found a similar weapon too. It seemed that Alia was full of magically enhanced weapons, because he could feel the empowering runes on the knives just as the main daggers bore many runes as well. Alia's strikes were like a blur, but Ahrden kept pace with her. When she transitioned between two grander slashes, Ahrden located the knife coming towards him with his extended senses and twisted it out of her hand. She reacted, shifting her weight and positioning herself to stab with the remaining knife, but the tip of the blade hit a now-flaring arcane shield. She did not expect the block, and her loosened grip could do nothing but feel the knife leaving her grasp. It was back to a fistfight again, and it was Ahrden's time to go offensive.
Alia grunted under the attacks that she blocked, and a few even connected, forcing her to back away. Ahrden didn't hurt her, nor was that his goal; he just wanted to show her that, besides what he was best at, he could also hold his ground in her game. As a last-ditch effort, she kicked high at his head, which did surprise him, but he could move out of its way. When he did, he saw that Alia only wanted to put some distance between them, and when she did, she reached for the now cooled-down daggers, grabbed them, and leapt at him again.
Ahrden raised his hands, concentrated, and said the spell out loud. Alia's eyes grew wide as she saw the ball of energy form at the outstretched hands of Ahrden, but she couldn't do anything now that she was in the air. Just as she was coming down on Ahrden with daggers in both hands, he finished casting his spell.
When Ahrden sent Alia through the woods moments earlier, he had her wrapped in his power and accelerated her somewhat evenly. This time, however, the trapped arcane was released suddenly, and although it only sent her a short distance away, it took a far greater toll on her compared to the other occasion. She couldn't even guess where her daggers had flown, and although they were her prized possessions, at that moment they were of little concern to her. After she came to a stop, she lay there motionless, trying to get her thoughts straight. Knowing that Ahrden would give her the time she needed to get up, she took another moment to compose herself. While she was doing all of that, she also secretly took out two other hidden knives from her boots, and as she stood up, she hid them behind her arms. When she looked up, she felt like dropping them after seeing the brightly flaring blue tendrils of arcane power swirling around the arms of Ahrden, who was murmuring the words of some great spell while walking towards her. Alia knew how futile her effort would be, but she still threw both daggers at the mage with flawless precision. Ahrden didn't even look up as the small blades bounced off the invisible shield of arcane, which only flared up to become visible when the daggers hit its surface.
Alia wanted to run, but as she thought of the idea, Ahrden looked up, straight at her. Bright blue fire was burning in his eyes, flaring vividly, which frightened her dearly. She didn't know what was coming, but she knew that the only chance she had of surviving was if Ahrden wished it so. Ahrden shot up his arms with palms facing her, and a wide beam of blinding blue arcane power shot at Alia with incredible speed. She crouched down and covered her head instinctively, but deep down, she knew that it was all over. Maybe she had taken the fight more seriously than she should have. Perhaps it wasn't clear to Ahrden that, deep down, she didn't mean to harm him—that she knew he would be able to fend off all of her attacks. Maybe she had sent the wrong message to him all along by being too hostile and too aggressive. She would have taken it all back if she could, but it was too late now. Too late for her.
With her hands covering her head, squatting low, and eyes closed, she waited for the arcane power to hit her—and it did. At first, she didn't feel anything, only heard the deafening explosion and felt the ground shake under her.
Neither the pain nor complete incineration arrived; instead, the shaking of the ground and the sound of the explosion stretched out and became continuous. Not daring to get up, she slightly opened her eyes and looked out through the cracks between her fingers. What she saw was a sight she hadn't even known could exist in this world: a violently flaring bright blue dome that stretched around her entire body, and around it a similarly coloured yet more hostile arcane energy rushed desperately, trying to breach the barrier that stood between Alia and the surge of deadly power.
Alia didn't want to believe her eyes, but her other senses supported everything she saw in that moment. She couldn't see what was happening beyond the dome because the arcane rushing around it was so dense and so bright that no other light could get through. Acknowledging that maybe she wasn't going to die—and even if she was, it was entirely out of her control—she lowered her hands.
The onrush of power continued, but she could not judge how much time had passed. Alia knew that Ahrden was doing the whole thing—both the attack and the protection—and the might he could display stunned her profoundly. She knew that he was powerful, far more than any other person she had ever met, but this was a whole new level she hadn't known existed. Ahrden wielded powers beyond her imagination. She understood now that all those times when she'd got the upper hand, it was because Ahrden was preoccupied, being careful not to harm her. Alia had admired what Ahrden did in the tavern—the courage he had to stand up to everyone. She found it charming that he later took the time to sneak up on her and followed her on multiple occasions. And now, what she was seeing cast an entirely new light on all the past events she had witnessed him do. Now she could understand that even though he handled the bar fight with ease, he could have killed anybody in that bar. Alia even felt a hint of embarrassment when, deep down, she had thought she could beat him in a fight or when she called him out for running away. Alia had found no companion she felt enough to dedicate herself to, just as she had found no one who could best her with ease. She had to bite her lips at what she saw, because it was what she had been waiting for all these years.
As suddenly as it came, the bright blue light disappeared, and with it, the flaring dome ceased to exist. Alia was able to look around now, and when she did, her jaw dropped. It looked as if she stood at the centre of a crater created by a meteor. The area around her showed no sign of green—or any life, for that matter. The ground that fell on the other side of the dome looked shiny from the glass created by the incredible heat still radiating from everything. Further away, the blackened, shiny ground turned to lifeless black coal, with the first green patches appearing quite far off. The trees closest to Alia had ceased to exist, and the ones further away were reduced to smoking black stumps.
Alia finally looked at Ahrden, who stood some distance away facing her, breathing heavily. He looked as if he had just completed an arduous physical task and was now taking a moment to relax.
Ahrden immediately saw how differently Alia was looking at him, and he had no idea how to react to it. He hadn't really had anybody with whom he could share what he was truly capable of, and it was pleasant to have someone actually appreciate it. Berton used to scold him whenever he wanted to show a new spell he had learnt and always sent him back to the books to learn about the academic aspect of the arcane. Felinda worried for Ahrden more than his mother did—probably because she better grasped what he was meddling with. Still, in the end, she too wanted him to dedicate more time to the theoretical aspect of the class. No matter how much Ahrden learned what they wanted, and how rarely he proposed to show a new spell, he always received the same response. After a while, all he could think was that—for different reasons—both were trying to hold him back in a way.
Alia took a step towards Ahrden, then stopped. Her legs were still on the small patch of green that was protected by the dome, but they felt weak and uncertain—a feeling she had scarcely experienced nowadays. She was so focused on Ahrden, and her senses were still unable to adjust after all that had happened, that she didn't even hear the approaching footsteps. Through his heightened senses, Ahrden detected the noise and quickly jerked his head in that direction. The rest of the hunting party was still out of eyesight, but they were closing in fast. When he looked back, he saw that Alia, too, had heard them now, and her expression became worried. Ahrden teleported right next to her, and without a word, he placed his hand on her shoulder and teleported away with her.
When they materialized, Ahrden noticed that not only did he have a hand on her shoulder, but she was holding him by his arm too. Not a hostile or violent hold, but one that sought support. Alia was still not used to this new means of travelling, but Ahrden wanted to think that her holding onto him wasn't purely because she needed help to stand. For the second time that day, Alia saw something she had never seen in her life. They were on top of the tallest mountain she had ever seen, overlooking what seemed like the whole world. Cold and piercing wind blew hard at her, but she figured this must have been normal this high up. What surprised her was that the hostile wind—and with it the cold—had melted away from the small plateau they were on, and calm, warmth, and peace had replaced their presence. When she looked at Ahrden, she saw him finishing the spell that must have created the welcoming environment.
Ahrden bathed in the look Alia gave him when she saw him finish the spell which created the protective dome around them. He had never had anyone look at him the way she was now, and it was, oddly, not too distant from the one Alia had given him when he first saw her in the pub—but the sheer awe was undoubtedly a new thing in those big, beautiful green eyes.
'Tell me,' Alia said, fully turning towards Ahrden. 'Tell me everything.'
Ahrden's heart jumped at the request. He looked at her—looked at those striking deep emerald eyes—and saw what he had been looking for. He complied with pleasure.
Ahrden spoke, and he spoke for hours. He spoke of his class; about arcane, about spells, about how to cast a spell, how to learn one, and how to create one. He told her about the books he had read, the ancient tomes he collected, and the never-ending knowledge he sought. He told her what a rune was, how he could create one, and what properties a rune could give an object it was inscribed on. For the first time, Ahrden spoke about what he felt most passionate about—and told it to someone who cared.
Both of them lost track of time as the hours flew by. Ahrden was so energised by everything that was going on that he maintained the shield protecting them from the outside environment without actively concentrating on it. Eventually, this feat, combined with his earlier display of incredible magic, caused him to tire. Normally he wouldn't have been this weary, but subconsciously feeding the shield was something he wasn't used to. It was taxing, although he took no notice of it at first.
The sun was already on its way down when Ahrden felt that he couldn't drain himself any longer, even if he wanted to.
'Right now?' Alia asked after Ahrden told her that it was time to go.
It was Alia who had disappeared from the hunt that she herself was conducting, and it was she whom others must have been looking for throughout the whole forest by now. Yet it was also she who voiced her dislike at ending this time they had together. She wanted to stretch it out, but she could see on Ahrden that it was time. Understanding this, she wanted to make sure that it would happen again.
'When do we meet again?' Alia asked, trying to hide her excitement—but for her to ask this was so novel that even this simple question felt too pushy, so she quickly fell silent afterwards.
Ahrden was prepared for this moment; he reached inside his cloak and took out a delicately crafted, intricate-looking medallion that hung from a silver necklace. The medallion itself was made of silver too, and in the middle of it was a small but shining aqua sapphire chiselled to perfection.
'I would like to give this to you, if you accept it. This is a peculiar medallion—one crafted a very long time ago by a mage. The sapphire in the middle is highly receptive to spells and is considered to be one of the best conductors of arcane. I've placed multiple spells in it, which won't fade that easily over time. It better allows me to locate you from afar, but what truly makes it special is that if you concentrate on me and squeeze it in your hand, it will signal me, which I can detect, and I'll come to you. Unfortunately, I can't send you a signal through it the same way.'
Alia was a little too eager when Ahrden handed her the medallion, and she literally snatched it from his hands. She adored it with unconcealed admiration, then squeezed it the way Ahrden had told her to. Ahrden immediately felt the strong signal that was let out by the medallion.
'Can—'
'Yes,' Ahrden smiled. 'It works perfectly.'
Alia unclasped the necklace with expert hands and placed it around her neck, then sank the medallion under all of her clothes. She looked up to Ahrden, and genuine joy radiated from her.
'Thank you.'
'The pleasure is all mine. At least I'll now know that if you don't signal me again, you want me out of your life.'
Both chuckled at that, and Alia even turned a little red when she said:
'Oh, come on now... I don't want that.'
Ahrden didn't want this experience to be stained by an awkward ending, so he decided to cut it short.
'So, where would you like to go?'
'Not too far from where we started our hunt.'
'Where exactly is that?'
'As if I'll believe that.'
Both chuckled again, and Ahrden took Alia's hand that she held out for him. When he did, he felt the rough blisters on the delicate hand and looked down at what his spell had done to her. In all honesty, he didn't expect her to grab hold of the daggers after realising how hot they were—but then again, she was no ordinary fighter.
'I am so sorry; you could have told me about this before,' Ahrden said, feeling truly terrible about himself.
'Oh, it's nothing. Some herbs will—' Alia lied, then started her explanation, but fell silent when Ahrden took her other hand too and placed his palms above them.
He closed his eyes and murmured the incantation of a healing spell. Alia gasped as the pain immediately melted away, and when Ahrden was done, she couldn't believe how smooth her hands had become in seconds. She looked up at Ahrden in pure appreciation and saw the suppressed smile of the mage, who clearly enjoyed seeing her relief.
Not wanting to stretch this out for too long either, Ahrden teleported them behind a thick bush that lined the clearing where the hunting had started. Alia completely changed as she was put back into her element again and peered out at the ones gathered there for a few seconds. When she turned around to say goodbye to Ahrden, he was already gone. Alia cursed her negligence for not noticing his departure, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curve into a smile, and her eyes were laughing as well.