Chapter 11

PAIN IS THE PRICE

Devon stood between Gwen and Izzy, in the centre of the long line of villagers, assembled along the low wall. Memories of this place were coming slowly back to him, prompted by seeing it all again.

“Ahem!” Izzy rounded up everyone’s attention. “Note that the substance in this pool is magical dust, not water. You will not get wet in there. Now, there is no easy way to break this to you all, so just take a deep breath and listen,” Izzy said. She stepped up onto the wall and turned to face her pupils. “A symbiot is a creature that lives with another creature; the two of them live a mutually beneficial existence. Each creature provides something that the other needs. You need mana, so you need to find a creature willing to provide it in exchange for something you have to offer. If you look down into the magical dust, you will see just such a creature. Look closely, observe what these creatures are doing.”

“Miss, they are just swimming around in circles. Do they do that all day?” a girl of about sixteen said.

Devon kept his laughter in his head. The girl had even put her hand up. Izzy already owned the crowd. Even Beth hung on her every word; he noticed that she had even started fidgeting. Was she excited?

“Exactly. The wyrms don’t just swim in circles during the day; they do it constantly. In here, there is no day or night. These creatures never sleep. They are intelligent, and some are thousands of years old. Just close your eyes and imagine swimming in circles for hundreds of years. Just that, swimming and swimming and swimming. How would you feel after a week of doing that?”

“Very bored, miss,” Finn said without even an iota of sarcasm in his voice.

Some of the children giggled, but Finn looked sincere. Izzy had him in her grasp too.

“Exactly. So, what could you offer these poor, bored creatures in exchange for large amounts of mana?”

“Entertainment, miss?” A young male villager asked.

“Entertainment; precisely. Your body also provides a few mineral salts that they crave, but your system has an excess of those and won’t miss the tiny amount your symbiot might take.”

“Must I walk around with one of these creatures holding my hand the whole time?” Finn asked.

“No, it lives inside you. Those creatures in the mana-pool are called mana-wyrms. Without a host, they can only survive in these mana-pools, which only exist in this world. The faie refer to this world as Earth realm, and it is just one of many worlds that exist in parallel. The taking of a symbiot used to be a big event in a person’s life. Creatures would travel great distances, through the waygates, to places such as this to receive their symbiot and gain the ability to wield magic. It was the first step of their journey into the mystical world. Large ceremonies took place to celebrate the ‘taking of the wyrm.’ When you and the wyrm become bonded, it provides you with mana converted from the magical energy that will soon fill this world again. You will give it nutrients and a more interesting life than just swimming in circles for eternity.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad. Will I see it swimming around under my skin?” Finn asked.

Izzy laughed. “No! Mana-wyrms are ethereal creatures. They don’t have a physical presence, only a magical one. You are corporeal, the exact opposite,” she said, “I can’t emphasise enough how bored these poor creatures get. Serving you will be like experiencing the best theatre compared to their lives in the mana-pool. Your symbiot will want to please you. The wyrm that chooses you will know that its talents are best suited to the type of person you are. A pacifist will never attract a wyrm that likes combat. The wyrms will do their utmost to give you the magic and abilities that best suit you. It will never turn you into something you are not.”

“This is all so amazing. There must be thousands of those things swimming around in there,” Gwen said, staring at the long, ghostly, eel-shaped creatures circling deep below the surface of the mana-pool.

“Miss? Are we allowed to have magic too?” A young lady asked hopefully.

Izzy said mentally to Devon and Gwen.

“If you are under sixteen, then your parent or guardian needs to agree, but yes, of course. In our new world, everyone gets an equal chance,” Izzy said with a warm smile. “The dust clings to clothes, so if you want to do this, then strip down to your underwear and stand on the wall. Everyone must have a partner. One goes in while the other oversees them in case they faint. Then swap if your partner is taking magic too.”

Finn put his hand up. “Why would we faint? Does it hurt?”

“A good question. Yes, it does hurt. A lot, but only for a short time and only once. Having mana within you will change your life forever; it will empower you, make you healthier, and prolong your life. Unfortunately, something that good comes with a price. Step forward, all those who want to take magic now. Do not feel forced. We will be doing other sessions should you wish to wait.”

In the end, twenty-seven people stepped onto the wall in their underwear. Finn and Madi were having a quiet argument which consisted of Madi telling Finn that he couldn’t and Finn ignoring her and stripping to his underpants.

“I want this; this is my chance to protect you and the others. Don’t take that from me,” Finn said.

“Fine, then I’m taking it too. Maybe I’ll be able to heal you when you get hurt,” Madi said petulantly as she started to strip too.

And those two make twenty-nine, odd number, not good, Devon thought. He was amazed to see Beth standing on the wall, practically hopping up and down.

He carefully removed his weapons and then stripped everything off except his tight undershorts. He even took off his ‘Hello Kitty’ watch, the last reminder of his past. He looked at the watch. The tiny thing made him feel melancholy. Then he noticed something written on the inside of the watch’s strap. He looked closely; it said, ‘2 daddy with luv’; and the bottom instantly dropped out of his world. DADDY? Did that refer to him? Was the watch a gift? If so, who from? Had he stolen it? Was there a little girl out there that missed him, or just her watch? Why was he assuming it was a girl? Was there a memory buried in his head somewhere?

Izzy asked; her thoughts were worried about him. She had sensed his mood drop suddenly. She used mental communication to keep the conversation private.

He held out the watch for Izzy and Gwen to see.

Gwen asked.

Devon paused and looked sadly at the tiny pink and white thing in his hand,

Izzy said. Her thoughts were calming yet firm.

He knew Izzy was right, and Devon did as she had suggested. He couldn’t find out anything now; wondering about it would just eat away at him. He took some deep breaths and tried to clear it all from his mind.

“Do you all have a partner? Line up in your pairs,” Izzy called out.

Devon’s acute hearing picked up someone weeping, and he quickly looked down the line for someone in distress. As the Wayfarer, that sound always started alarm bells ringing in his head, sending him straight into action. The girl that had spoken up earlier was trying to hold back her tears. Devon strode down to where she was standing with a lady that looked about thirty years her senior. Just before he arrived, the younger lady turned away and began wiping her eyes with her sleeves.

“Is she okay?” he asked the older woman. He realised that the woman was the same lady who had brought him all that lovely food the other day. She had rich brown hair that hung down to her shoulders and a rounded, friendly face. She was of a slightly heavier-than-average build and curvaceous. Her eyes were large and a soft hazel colour; they looked kind. Devon thought she must be in her early fifties. He knew she was a great cook, which made her a wonderful person, in his opinion.

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“I know you. That food was delicious, by the way. I meant to thank you personally.” He gave her his most winning smile. It seemed to have the effect he wanted.

“Oh, heh! Well, I mean, wow! I’d gladly be cooking for you whenever you wanted me to. You are something proper special,” the lady said. She cleared her throat and tried to regain her composure. “This young madam doesn’t have a partner, and I’m not sure I want her to take part. She’s my niece, and I promised her mother I’d keep her safe. Lorn’s mum was killed last year.”

Devon took her hand and softly said, “I’m desperately sorry to hear about your sister. What about if I promised to mentor your niece through this? She could be my partner if you’d permit it. You could join us just to make sure everything is okay.”

“Uhm. Well, I suppose that would be fine, but you have that beautiful foreign lady to care for and young Gwen, who seems to have become your shadow.”

Devon snorted. “I suppose she is foreign. I never thought about it that way. She is an elf from a different world,” he explained. “And now I have two more beautiful ladies to care for. It would be my pleasure. By the way, what should I call you both?”

“Ahem! Yes, names; my name is Juniper, no, no, it’s June, not nobody that calls me Juniper these days. It’s a silly name. This young lady here is Lorna, but she insists we call her Lorn. She’s a headstrong young miss but has a heart of gold. Far too reckless for my liking but can run like the wind itself.” She went red as she realised she was rambling.

“I’m honoured to meet you both. Just so that you know, I think Juniper is a lovely name.”

“Ohhh, now stop it!” she said, blushing even more deeply. “I’m old enough to be your mother. If you were older, though.”

Devon snorted with laughter. “Oh! I’m older. I promise you that I am older than everyone here combined,” he whispered in her ear conspiratorially, all the time grinning broadly.

June looked at him in shock but kept silent.

Devon glanced at Lorn to find her staring at him in the same adulating way that Finn sometimes did. She looked to be nineteen or thereabouts and quite tall for her age, partly thanks to her long legs. She had a diamond-shaped face with pronounced cheekbones, intense blue eyes and a button nose. Her pale skin had freckles which Devon thought made her look younger. She had long, honey-blonde hair down to her waist that was intricately braided around her head then in patterns down her spine. It must have taken a lot of work. Her figure looked athletic.

“Are you coming, Lorn?” he said to the girl. “Let’s get you sparkling.” Devon practically dragged a shocked June back to where Izzy and Gwen were standing, watching him with amusement.

Izzy thought to him.

Gwen added.

It was Devon’s turn to blush.

Gwen said.

“Right, everyone listen carefully; this is not a game,” Izzy said with a raised voice. “You are about to join forces with a living, intelligent creature. In your pairs, choose which one of you will go in first. The first person in the pair should sit on the wall and slide into the powder, do not jump in. You will float, so do not thrash about. Stay near the wall and concentrate on the wyrms. Eventually, you will catch one of the creatures’ attention, and they will come to you. Relax, do not panic, no screaming, and get out of the pool when you have finished,” Izzy instructed.

Devon leant down and whispered in Lorn’s ear, “you had better strip, young lady; everyone else is waiting.”

Lorn smirked at him then stripped down to her underwear without breaking his gaze. “Shall I go first?”

“Fine by me, hop in and do it just like the elf instructed.”

Lorn sat on the wall and spun around, then slipped straight into the fine silvery powder that flowed just like water.

Devon stepped up to take her place on the wall and saw fifteen nervous people lying in the pool staring down into the dust, their eyes wide with apprehension and varying degrees of fear. He was surprised to see one of the mothers floating in the dust. Her daughters were standing on the wall, watching her nervously. Devon wondered if the woman felt as Finn did and wanted magical power to protect the people in her care.

One by one, mana-wyrms detached themselves from their fellows and made their way towards the people awaiting them. Izzy stood beside him, watching Gwen closely. The wyrm that was headed toward her appeared to be quite a bit larger than its fellows.

Devon realised that only fourteen wyrms were on their way toward the surface. That meant someone was going to be upset very soon. He had a feeling he knew who. There was now a pronounced gap between Gwen’s wyrm and the one heading for Finn. That gap was where Lorn waited nervously.

He decided to intervene. Like all faie creatures that couldn’t speak conventionally, the wyrms used mental communication. Devon mentally shouted to the wyrms. Vague memories had surfaced of his father originally populating this pool and of the queen’s curse that had killed his previous symbiot. One lucky wyrm was going to get a very prestigious posting today. He smirked when he saw six wyrms detach themselves from the circling throng and immediately begin fighting with each other on the way up to the girl.

Grunts and cries rang out as the first fourteen people began to assimilate their symbiot. It was obviously excruciating, and people were only suppressing their exclamations because Izzy had told them that there was to be no screaming.

“Devon! Devon, what’s happening?” Lorn cried out while worriedly watching the six bickering mana-wyrms swimming towards her as fast as they could manage.

“You seem to be extremely popular, Lorn. They must see great potential in you. Don’t worry. If they all present themselves to you, then you will need to choose one. It is a great honour to be chosen by more than one symbiot.”

Izzy looked at him and grinned.

Gwen moaned to them. Her thoughts conveyed not just pain but suffering too.

They both looked to Gwen, who had started to look very ill. She appeared to be near to passing out.

Izzy said. She added a sense of urgency to her thought.

He reached out and grabbed Gwen’s outstretched arm, and with some effort, he managed to pull her body out of the dust. Once she was clear of the wall, he laid her gently down on the floor nearby. She was still breathing, but her skin was ashen.

Izzy thought.

Devon looked at Izzy in horror, but Gwen smiled happily. With that, she closed her eyes, and her breathing slowed right down.

He remembered Lorn, and rather than dwell on Gwen’s predicament, he refocused on her. She seemed to be having a silent conversation with the remaining four wyrms that had reached her. Eventually, she nodded and pointed at the largest one on the left. It seemed different from the other wyrms, as if its mother had been part dragon. He was impressed by how decisive she was. He instinctively reached out to June because the poor lady looked terrified as she watched Lorn’s ordeal. She came to him and happily wrapped herself into his friendly embrace.

“She will be alright, won’t she?” June said, looking up at Devon with wide, frightened eyes.

“Yes. She will be fine. Nothing will harm her. You have my word,” Devon replied.

They both stood there watching Lorn, enjoying the intimacy of the moment.

Lorn squeaked loudly as the wyrm wrapped itself around her and started to sink through her skin. He could see that this part caused the most pain. The girl began to emit a strange, strangled groan as whatever ailed her became more intense.

Devon glanced down the line and saw that all the other people who had gone first had extracted themselves from the pool. The following candidates were already easing themselves in. Finn was looking straight at him with a look of happy triumph on his face. Devon winked at him and gave him two thumbs up.

Izzy asked.

Devon hadn’t meant to add that last bit, but it had slipped out. Besides, the elf was beauty personified.

Izzy mentally smirked back at him. Then she slipped into the mana-pool with a nervous smile back at him.

“You can talk to them using your thoughts, can’t you, Devon? We can all tell when you are talking to them even though none of you speaks. Can anyone do it?” June asked.

Devon thought to June.

June looked at him in wonder. “I heard you, but I can’t answer in the same way.”

Devon pointed to the mana-pool. “Get magic, then it’ll work for you. You’ll be healthier, stronger and live longer too.”

“I’m seriously considering it,” she replied. Her voice sounded wistful.

Devon leant forward and whispered in June’s ear. “Don’t let fear rule your life. Seize the moment.”

He turned, reached into the pool, then fished out the unconscious Lorn. She had chosen the biggest, most powerful wyrm which had probably offered her great things to become her choice. However, the price of great power seemed to be an overwhelming pain that was too much for her. He checked on Izzy and noticed that she was already in silent discussion with two candidates. When Lorn was safely lying beside Gwen, he returned to watching the elf.

“She’ll be fine, June. Watch over her until she comes around,” He assured her. He ran his hands back through his hair and tried to hide the look of concern on his face.

June nodded to him and bustled over to begin her vigil.

Ten minutes later, Madi was lying next to Lorn, entirely out of it but certainly not in any danger. All the other villagers were anxiously waiting for their teacher to finish her turn. Izzy had an audience. She assimilated her symbiot without much fuss, swam back to the side and clambered out of the pool by herself. She flashed a victorious grin at him.

“Your turn, my lord.”