Chapter 40 Instincts?

“Any fun trivia about our target?” Isaac asked to help fill the silence that had begun to drag on during their journey.

Lenna shrugged. “There is speculation around her. Not much else. She doesn’t like people.” She replied.

“What kind of speculation?” Isaac questioned.

“She secretly hates cruelty and that’s why Dri’El hasn’t given her a child.” Lenna began.

“That would explain her quick kills.” Isaac replied. “But what about the ex-Crimson Coins?”

“Her nest was in danger from the fire.” Lenna explained and then went back onto the previous topic. “Some say the reason she only uses a sword is because she is blind.”

“Do you think that’s the case?” Isaac probed.

Lenna shrugged again. “It wouldn’t be surprising. Driders never reach old age unscarred.”

“An old battle injury?” Isaac inferred to which Lenna nodded in agreement. “You don’t think she can be reasoned with?”

Lenna shook her head. “No.” She replied simply. “If she cooperated with either of us she would die.” She explained poorly.

Isaac looked at her questioningly. “Why?”

“They are the chosen of Dri’El. If they went against his wishes they would stop living.” Lenna answered neutrally.

“He could kill her just like that? No warning or anything?” Isaac continued probing.

Lenna nodded and sighed sadly. “That is what it means to be chosen.” She looked at Isaac. “If a priest of Halya decided to go on a murdering spree, she would end him in an instant. That is the power that gods have over their chosen ones. Removing that much power is not a gentle affair. Their mana pathways can’t handle it and they crumble to dust.”

After a long moment of silence Isaac nodded in solemn understanding. In accepting the power of a god you let their power into you but it still remains their power and they can take it away at any time. “You speak as though you have seen it.” Isaac spoke softly.

“Yes. A long time ago. Right after I swore my oath.” She replied and they continued in silence for another long while.

“But you rejected it anyway.” Isaac said. “Even knowing that something similar would happen.” His eyes searched her face. “Why take the risk?”

Lenna cracked a slight smile. “Lua told me too.”

Isaac’s eyebrows shot up in shock. “That’s it? There really wasn’t any other reasoning?”

Lenna shook her head. “Lua would never tell a dark elf to commit suicide.” Lenna explained. “I knew that I wouldn’t die.”

“Did you know that you would have near equivalent power afterwards?” He questioned further.

Lenna shook her head. “No. I honestly expected to be set to a low level warrior.” She replied with an ever widening smile. “It worked out a lot better than I thought.”

Isaac ran his hand down his face. “Is this what it feels like when I do something stupid?” He asked her.

Lenna’s laughter filled the small section of the tunnel. “Yes.” She mirthfully replied. “That is probably exactly how it feels.”

—

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“Ori-Masa again.” Isaac whispered. The farther they had gotten from Safeharbor the more of the little fishmen they ended up sneaking past.

“They might be a problem on our way back.” Lenna warned.

Isaac nodded in agreement. “I want to get a bounty for them before we go wiping them out.”

The pair continued sneaking around most enemies, only fighting when they had too or to take another creature’s den for the night. Eventually they got close enough that Isaac could feel their target. “She’s close.” Isaac whispered suddenly.

“How close?” Lenna asked.

“Half a mile maybe.” Isaac guessed. “She feels… odd.”

“How so?” Lenna asked.

Isaac thought for a moment. “She’s about as strong as Jala I think, no dark magic so it’s easier to get a read on her.” He began. “She feels like she is a darker creature type than dark elves.”

Lenna nodded. “You should know enough to know why.”

Isaac hummed in thought. “It’s deeper somehow… Also I feel like my perception of her is being dulled by something.”

Lenna stopped walking. “That confirms it.” She told him. “It has to be Shaeo'ahna. No other local drider should be using concealment magic that thoroughly.”

“You think she has some level of soul shrouding like my ring?” Isaac asked to which Lenna nodded.

“If you can feel her then that means that either your ability is stronger than her magic or…” Lenna let the implication hang.

“We are inside the bounds of the ritual.” Isaac finished for her.

“We need to be more careful.” Lenna told him.

“If we are inside the ritual then that means we already passed some webs right?” Isaac asked. He hadn’t seen any webs yet which was concerning at best. Lenna nodded in agreement. “If I start blasting mana out then she will definitely know we are here.”

Isaac felt a chill run down his spine and he felt like someone was staring at the back of his neck. He spun around and drew his sword but the feeling never left. Even facing the opposite way he felt like the eyes were boring into the back of his neck. “What is it?” Lenna asked while drawing her sword and looking around.

“Something is watching me.” Isaac replied.

Lenna had an idea of what might be causing the feeling. “What does it feel like?” She asked and Isaac explained it. “Focus your will on reinforcing yourself. On the you that exists in the world.” Lenna tried to explain.

It took Isaac a bit to sort of get what she meant. Once Lenna felt the area that was Isaac start to solidify magically speaking she told him to relax and then throw everything he had at it. He raised an eyebrow at her but didn’t ask why. He did as he was told and he felt like his will partially rebounded off of something. He shook his head and then shivered.

“I don’t like that.” He told her.

“You didn’t do it hard enough.” She explained. “Try again.”

“Okay…” He replied and tried again a few more times. “What am I supposed to be feeling?” He asked, getting somewhat irritated.

“Like you are flexing and breaking out of a block of ice.” She thought about her analogy for a second. “Maybe a suit of glass…” She was having trouble fully explaining something that was so intuitive to her.

Isaac shook his head. “It feels like I keep smashing my forehead against a window that won’t break.” He explained.

“Let me help you.” Lenna told him. She let her aura out and blanketed him in it. She didn’t direct it at him but simply let it cover their area. “Now try again.”

Isaac felt an adrenaline spike as her aura covered him. The feeling he got was like staring down a volcanic eruption or a raging dragon. He pushed as much of the feeling as he could out of the way and focused. When he tried again he felt Lenna’s aura join him and push outwards from inside him and solidify the edges of his person in the same motion. Combined her aura and his willpower clashed with whatever was affecting him and he felt the feeling Lenna was describing. It was like bursting out from underwater only across his whole body in equal measure. In that moment the feeling that someone was watching him disappeared.

Isaac breathed a sigh of relief and Lenna withdrew her aura. “Your aura is intense.” He commented. He didn’t realize it but he had an almost crazed grin on his face when said it.

Lenna noticed. She knew that he seemed to lack self preservation instincts. It always seemed like he lacked fear. Almost like it had been removed or trained or beaten out of him. Instead of fear he replied with either excitement or anger in almost every situation. The only time that she could remember that he showed actual fear was when he was handcuffed to a cell wall. Lenna simply nodded in reply to his statement about her aura.

“So what was that anyway?” He asked after having taken a moment to calm his breathing and beating heart from Lenna’s aura.

“Scrying.” She replied simply. “Someone was watching you via magic.”

Isaac nodded. “Doesn’t the fact that I could feel it defeat half the purpose?” He asked.

Lenna nodded. “You are sensitive to it. Not everyone is.” She explained.

“Do you think I’m sensitive to it because of my own similar ability?” He questioned.

Lenna shook her head. “No.” She replied. “You just have sharp instincts.”

Isaac winced. “That’s the only counter to scrying? Sharp instincts?”

“Sharper instincts than the caster’s power.” She explained.

“How do you even gauge that?” Isaac asked. Lenna just shook her head as she had no idea, she only knew how it worked not the specifics or why as that was the field of wizards. “What about the thing you made me do to get rid of it?” He questioned.

“Basic Savings Throw use.” She explained.

“Savings Throw?” Isaac questioned. “That is an odd term.”

“You throw your will against a spell to save yourself from the effect.” Lenna explained. “It always made sense to me.”

Isaac thought about her explanation. It made enough sense but for some reason the term just felt weird. Like it was a rule in a game or something and in some way not real or realistic. He shook his head to clear it as the more he thought about the worse of a building headache he got.

“Anyway,” Isaac tried to get back on track. “Do you think that was Shaeo or someone else watching me?” He asked.

Lenna shook her head. “No idea.” She confessed. “It could have been Jala or another high level mage.” She explained. “There’s no way to tell.”

Isaac frowned in thought. “Should I start blasting magic to dispel any illusions or wait?”

Lenna’s eyes searched the tunnel. She had no idea. There were too many people who could be trying to spy on them for her to have enough confidence in the assumption that it was the drider. The worse case was that it wasn’t her and Isaac blasting mana would alert her to their presence prematurely. “It’s up to you.” She told him. “It’s a gamble either way.”

“Do you trust my luck?” Isaac asked.

Lenna smirked at him. “I told you before. Betting against you is a good way to lose.”