Through the Rain

Muld discloses to Syndi the secret of a magic locket.

13.

Through the Rain

 

The next morning, all of them were tired and somewhat reserved as they met and dined with the king and queen before departing for Westmark.    Muld sensed the tension between Syndi and her mother all through the meal.    The queen had the air of someone who had succeeded in conveying her dissatisfaction and was content to let her daughter dwell on it.

King Eiolmoel, however, was most gracious and seemed especially tender toward his daughter the entire time.

For her part, Syndi sat with her fellow Practical Magicians, looking tired and quiet, though not exactly angry at her mother.    The sparkle in her eyes of the night before was gone this morning, but she smiled warmly at her father and brothers and gave Muld and her fellow guild members infrequent glances of support, as if they too were enduring the queen’s icy treatment.

It pained him to see her so subdued and docile, but he knew that it was the overbearing presence of her mother that dampened her confidence.

Once, while her mother spoke to a servant with her head turned away from them, Muld leaned over and whispered to her, “Are you alright?”

She smiled a bit and just nodded with an expression that said, ‘You know why I’m so quiet’.

 

Following the meal, as Muld and his companions took their supplies to The Locust, Syndi spoke to her father alone.

The Autumn Maid was going to tow The Locust behind them, though the crew brought from Westmark to pilot the ship would still man it and set the sails to assist in powering the captured vessel.

The crew was discussing the various tasks of sailing an air ship when Syndi walked across the docking platform and boarded their ship.

She was smiling now and seemed to have regained a bit of her confidence, though she still was much subdued from the previous night.   Before he could ask her how she was doing now, the king and some of his attendants came to see the two airships off.

Muld spoke to Eiolmoel warmly and it seemed to Muld that His Majesty was even friendlier toward him.    He wondered what Syndi had said to him during their meeting.

Plans were reviewed and Muld thanked the king for his kindness and hospitality.     After shaking his hand and kissing his daughter goodbye, the Autumn Maid activated the vacuum engines powering it, and with a jolt both ships pulled away from the Losasidhe capital.

Muld had expected Syndi to stand on deck watching her home recede from view, but she went inside the captain’s quarters before the docking platform had disappeared from sight.

He wanted to check on her, to make sure everything was alright, but something told him to give her some time.    He waited until the velocity of the ships made standing on the open deck in the northern air too much and he beckoned for the rest of his guild to join him in the captain’s quarters.

The airship crew simply pulled heavy furs around them and stood by the railing, enjoying the ride.

 

When they entered the luxurious cabin, they found Syndi curled up on one of the room’s soft sofas, sound asleep.

Muld had his four other guild members sit with him at the round ‘conference’ table, to give her some privacy and they chatted for several hours as the ships sailed quickly southward.

 

By nightfall, they were still half a day’s travel from Westmark, and a heavy spring rain fell steadily, slowing their speed somewhat.

It had a tranquilizing effect on everyone and after they shared a meal, Jevon and Rick went to their assigned quarters to rest.

Tadd and Mutt had spent hours discussing practical engineering ideas with Muld and after he had made a few alterations and suggestions, the two retired to a smaller table where Tadd sketched some of their ideas so they wouldn’t be forgotten the next day.

Muld had glanced over at the sleeping beauty all afternoon, but she slept soundly, only shifting slightly from time to time.    Finding a clean quilt in the pirate captain’s blanket chest, he gently covered her in the fading light and sat down on the floor with his back resting against the cushions of the sofa.

He had so much to think about this evening and knew that the next day he would have to jump with both feet into an extremely stressful and busy time.    But the peaceful warm rain falling on the roof and deck of the airship, combined with Tadd and Mutt’s muffled discussion at the other side of the room, gave him a tranquility that suddenly made him feel extremely lonely and unsure of himself.

For a time he weathered the feeling, trying to focus on the hundreds of plans he had to implement when the ship arrived at Westmark.

But his mind wouldn’t let him focus.     Had he bitten off too much?    Was he going to fail terribly and embarrass himself and his profession?    The fear began to swell up inside of him and almost without thinking he reached into a hidden pocket in his shirt and pulled out a brooch made of emerald and gold.

Smiling gently, he held the brooch close to his face and whispered an arcane word.     The emerald of the brooch began to glow slightly and he cupped his hand lovingly around it as the gemstone began to clear and the image of a pretty, smiling, dark-haired elven woman appeared on the surface.    Warmth radiated from the brooch and Muld sighed, his fear lessening.

“Who is she?”   A voice whispered over his shoulder and he turned to find Syndi leaning over his shoulder looking at the brooch.

Surprised, he just looked at her with the fearful expression of a caught child on his face, unable to answer.

Syndi smiled and nodded, “Your mother.    She is quite pretty, and you take after her, Muld.”

Muld lowered his eyes, staring at the brooch, “She’s dead, Syndi.   She died a few days after I was born… I never knew my father.”

“Oh Muld… you said something about her and your father, but…”

“She was Master Gregg Hofflis’ apprentice.    Her name was Maddieion.   She was just a Sylvan Elf; my father was a High Elf wizard.   His name was Gern Mozzil.   They never married, but loved each other.   They lived in Aeropolis.     That is what she told Master Hofflis.     The Necromancer’s Guild hated my parents because they opposed them.   So they sent some undead into my parent’s home in Aeropolis and killed my father.   Then they reanimated him as a minor lich.    My mother was pregnant with me and managed to escape, but she had been terribly drained of her life force by some of the undead.”

“Master Hofflis hid her and tried to heal her, but all he could do was sustain her for the duration of her pregnancy.    She served as his apprentice during that time and recovered to some degree, but remained weak.    She had him craft this brooch because she knew she would probably not survive childbirth.     She put her image on it and some of her essence.” 

“After she gave birth to me, she weakened quickly and no cleric could heal her.    After she died, Master Hofflis raised me, until Torrin’s men killed him.    So all I know of my mother was what my master told me and what I see and feel from this brooch.”

He felt Syndi’s hand on his shoulder and a slight sniffle escape from her.   “Muld, that…I-I…I’m so sorry.”

“Thanks… it just seems… well, I guess the word would be ‘normal’.  For my entire life, this is all I have had of her.   I’ve often wondered what she was like, and what she would have thought of me.”

“She would have loved you, Muld!”   Syndi’s voice was emotional and he knew that his story had caused the princess to cry.   For some reason, he felt ashamed for causing her such a reaction.  

“I didn’t mean to upset you, my dear,” he told her as he patted her hand reassuringly.

“Muld, you don’t have to apologize for that!”  She exclaimed, now sobbing.  

“It’s alright, Syndi,” he tried to comfort her, but she was weeping as if the grief was her own.    He stood up and put his arm around her and she put her head against his shoulder and cried passionately.

Mutt and Tadd, hearing the commotion, stood up in alarm and raced over to see what was wrong.

“Is she alright?”   Tadd asked with wide eyes.

“She’s fine.”   He told the halfling.   

“Can we do anything to help?”   Mutt questioned and Muld shook his head while smiling reassuringly.  

Nudging Tadd, Mutt gestured toward the table that they had just left and the two returned to their seats, trying to give them some privacy.

The princess leaned against Muld as he sat down next to her on the couch.    She was trying to regain her composure but was having a difficult time stopping the tears.

He just sat there very awkwardly trying to console her.   Muld had no clue why she had reacted so sorrowfully to his tale.    But she clung tightly to him, like a scared child, sniffling and hiccupping as she slowly calmed down.

Though he knew that he probably shouldn’t do it, he stroked her long red hair and said gentle, soothing words to her, which - to his amazement- seemed to greatly help her.

Finally exhausted from her outpouring of emotion, she nestled against his shoulder, wiping her eyes and firmly clutching his hand.

“Sorry…” She said meekly.

“It’s alright,” He answered tenderly, “Do you feel better now?”

“No.”

“Syndi, don’t let it upset you so much.   I’m alright.”

“Muld, it just struck me as so very, very sad.”   Her voice quivered, but she fought off more tears, “Leaving you an image of herself…”

This led to another bout of crying, though this time it wasn’t as intense.    He just held on to her and rocked her slightly back and forth, recalling how it was said to work with upset babies.   The proper procedure for emotional women eluded him.

“So… does it make you sad… seeing her?”   Syndi finally asked after her tears again dried up.

He knew an honest answer would make her cry again, so he slightly altered it.

“It gives me comfort, really.    The brooch has some of her essence in it and so I feel her presence and that comforts me.”

Without asking, the Losasidhe girl took the brooch from his hand, clutched it tightly and closed her eyes for a moment.   Then they popped open with amazement.

“Muld!   I… It’s… weird…it almost feels like…”   She stopped, not able to describe it, but looking to him for confirmation.

He nodded, “I understand.   It is like she is here in a way.”

“Do you… talk to her?”   She wondered hesitantly.

“Oh yes, all the time… when I’m alone.”

Syndi seemed pleased at his response and put the brooch back into his hand, then reverently closed his fingers around it.

“Thank you for letting me feel it.”

“She would have liked you…”  He said, hoping it didn’t sound too crazy or unstable.

But Syndi smiled prettily, “I know… I could sense that she would have liked me.    Oh, that is so strange, Muld!   Strange yet wonderful.   How did she ever make it?”

Muld shrugged, “I don’t know, and Master Hofflis never explained how it was done.    Honestly, I never actually needed to know how - for once in my life--- only that it gave me some small sense of what it would have been like to have her with me.”

“You can feel… love… when you hold it.   It’s her love for you, Muld.”

“It is a great blessing for me.”

Syndi’s eyes darkened, “I wish my mother felt that way toward me.”

Muld knew that this was the key to her current emotional state.

“What did she say to you?”

Syndi leaned her head back and closed her eyes.    “It wasn’t pretty, Muld.    She was livid and quite hateful.    It wasn’t just what happened at the dinner, either.    She felt that I humiliated Derych and tormented him by first flirting with him, then rejecting him.”

“Well, she set it all up.”

“She doesn’t see it that way at all.    To her mind, it was my destiny that I marry Derych and satisfy her will for my life.    Apparently, during the time since I was away, she was building me up to him, hinting that we’d make a good match and other garbage.”

“But she couldn’t have foreseen our unexpected arrival.”

“True, but she was probably planning to eventually have him come see me in Westmark.    I’m just ashamed that I fell for it at first.”

“What did your father say when you talked to him?”

“Oh, he knew what mother said to me and as always, he tried to act as the diplomat between us.    Derych had charmed him as well, but his eyes were opened before mine.”

“What made him change his mind?”   Muld asked, having noticed the king’s favor of Derych quickly dwindling.

Syndi didn’t answer his question but smiled and shook her head.    “It’s always like that with mother.    She makes a royal decision and I’m supposed to be wholeheartedly for it.     You wouldn’t believe the ugly things she said to me.    She ranted and raved at me for hours.”

“She was probably not singing my praises.”   Muld joked.

“Muld, she doesn’t like you, and told me so, but really, her anger was mainly against me.   I just don’t see how you could be so mean and at the same time claim that you dearly love someone.”

“People act oddly sometimes when trying to help their family.”

“I wish she could just love me… like the feeling I felt when I touched your mother’s brooch.”

Muld sighed, “Syndi, the brooch holds a feeling of love through magic.   It is sort of like a letter, but one you can feel instead of just read and reread.     But it is only a hint of my mother.    You have experienced the joys and frustrations of your mother.    In life there is conflict and love in families.    Even yours, though it is rather… unorthodox… when it comes to your mother.”

“It doesn’t feel like love right now.”

“But you know that your father loves you.”

“Daddy always made sure that I felt his love.”

“They love you from different philosophies, Syndi.   Even when they drive you crazy, deep down in your heart you know that they really do love you.”

“Yeah… I guess.” She opened her eyes again and looked at him softly, “So you’ve never really had a family… except for your master who raised you?”

“He was very kind and he was like a father to me.    To feel his presence, I simply read some of his journals.”    He patted the pouch hanging from his belt, “I carry most everything of his in my Bag of Holding.    Sometimes I climb in there - leaving the draw strings open so I can get out--- and sit there reading his notes and thoughts and it feels like he is there… almost like it feels when I hold my mother’s brooch.”

Syndi grinned, “You sit inside your bag and read?”

“Sure, why not?   It is arranged in the Bag of Holding just as his study was arranged and I have all of his books and equipment there.     As long as someone doesn’t pull the draw strings closed, I can climb out.”

“That is weird, Muld.”

“It is a good hiding place - the Bag is fireproof and resists damage.”

“But doesn’t all the stuff bump around when you walk with it attached to your belt?”

“No, that is part of the enchantment.    Everything stays perfectly still inside the bag.     If I were to drop the Bag of Holding off of the side of the airship, when it hit the ground, nothing would be disturbed.”

“That is a handy way to store stuff.”

“Many wizards use the interior space of the smaller bags as their own studies.    They will put all of their equipment inside one, then rent or buy a tower and hide the bag in a room.     If thieves break in, they won’t think it is anything but a small coin purse.     Unless they open it up, of course.”

“Muld?”   Syndi asked after they sat there quietly for a few moments.

“Yes, my dear?”

“Do you ever get lonely?”

“Me?   Never!”

She just looked at him.

“Yes, Syndi, I sometimes feel very alone.    But in those times I have my mother’s brooch or Master Hofflis’ books-“

“You have something else, Muld,”   She said, her emerald eyes sparkling.

“What’s that?”

“You’ve got your Guild, Muld.    And…”   She hesitated.

“And?”

“And you’ve got me,”   She said with a blush.

“Well certainly - you are part of the Guild.”

“Even if I wasn’t part of the Guild.    Muld, I’m your friend and…”   Again she blushed.

“I understand, Syndi, I feel the same way toward you.”

She looked so surprised that he immediately wondered why.

“You do?”   She asked, seeking verification.

“Well, I think so…depending on what you were going to say.”

“Just that I’m your friend, Muld,"  She quickly responded, as if trying to end the direction of the conversation.

He didn’t want to embarrass her or make her feel awkward, so though he wondered, he didn’t ask.  Instead he changed the subject.

“So, are you feeling better now?   You’ve slept all afternoon.”  

“Sorry, I suppose it couldn’t be helped.”

“After your full night and early morning talking to your mother, I should say that it couldn’t.”

“Well, there are other reasons,”   She was once more blushing.

“Other than stress and lack of sleep?”

“Yes.”

“Are you saying you are sick?”

“No… not exactly.”

“Not exactly?”

“It’s… feminine issues…”

“Oh.”   It was his turn to turn red-faced, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”

“That’s why I slept so long and why I’m so emotional.    I’ll be my old self in a few days.    So did I miss anything important while I slept?”

He told her about the discussion he had with the others of the guild.    They had decided that they needed to train others to assist them, for they would be swamped very quickly if they tried to do everything themselves.

“But training even a small number of people will take time,”   Muld told Syndi, “I haven’t even trained all of you yet.    There is so much that is looming before us.” 

He rubbed his eyes wearily.

“I have an idea, Muld.    Why don’t you just train a few people to do a handful of specific Practical Magic spells for a specific job that we have, instead of trying to teach everyone all the spells.   If we are focusing on the cannons, for example, teach the spells needed for the craft of those cannons.”

Muld scratched his chin, warming to the idea, “Well, they wouldn’t really be Practical Magicians with such limited knowledge, but after each job, we could teach them a few different spells for a new job.    If they stayed as employees with the guild for long enough, they’d eventually end up learning most of the important, basic spells.    Yeah, that might just work!   They’d be more of Journeyman Apprentices, I guess.   Brilliant idea, my dear!   On the more complicated jobs, we could teach a few spells for one group to work on, and other spells for another group to complete, and then do it in an assembly line like the dwarves use when making common armor and weapons for their troops.”

“Muld, you said once that we could split our guild into teams to work on different jobs - maybe this would work with the cannons and fortifying this ship.    One group could work on this, and then you could put someone in charge of taking any orders for the more common jobs like freezing chests, plumbing, or insect repellency for rooms.”

“Yeah, we were actually talking about that today - I’m thinking of letting Tadd and Mutt handle the more mundane orders, as they seem very willing to tackle them.   Some of those jobs are easier for smaller figures, such as plumbing pipes.     In fact, they are sitting over there discussing some plumbing ideas Tadd had, that would standardize the parts we’d use, to make it easier.”

“So you’d train them and they’d hire and train a group under them with a limited number of job-related spells?”

“I think it would work, especially if we are inundated with work.”

“Well, what about me, Muld?    I’m sure Alleania will want me to get back to my sorceress studies.    Is there a way I can do my fair share and still have time to train as a sorceress?”

Muld patted her arm, “Syndi, I think your sorceress training takes precedence over practical magic, and we will certainly need your more advanced spells.     I want you to study with Alleania and if you have time, come by in the evenings and we’ll have our staff meetings then and I’m quite sure there will be plenty still for you to do.”

“I hope it doesn’t make the others mad,”   She said, glancing over at Tadd and Mutt who were measuring a part of a sketch with a ruler.

“You can best help us by learning to be a powerful sorceress.”

“But that might take a long time!”

“If it does, we’ll wait patiently for you.   But somehow I think you’ll quickly master spells.”

“I wish I was that confident.”

“Syndi, you are very bright and have the energy and determination that is essential for any magic user of any of the arts.”

“Thanks… I’ll make sure that I have time to help somehow.”

“I’m sure you will.”

 

Talk turned to some of the ideas the others had presented, and this led to them talking about magic in general.

They talked for hours, seated on the couch, and Muld told her all about the Practical Magic Engineering Guild in which he had learned his craft.     Tadd and Mutt finally grew tired of their plans and left for their bunks to sleep.

But Syndi and Muld just sat in the dark, listening to the rain and enjoying each other’s company, though neither one would admit it to the other.    Syndi listened as Muld told about his early years as an apprentice.   As his voice grew hoarse, he noticed that she was asleep; her head resting peacefully against his shoulder as they sat slumped down on the sofa.

Even in the dim light, she was the most fascinating, wonderful creature he had ever seen.    Her comfort around him thrilled him, for he had never had anyone seem so accepting of his eclectic personality.   Looking down at her, his heart raced.   She was so regally graceful as she slept; her milky white skin was like alabaster in the dimness of the cabin.  

What was he going to do?    She had even seen his mother’s brooch and had held it in her hand!   He had never shown that to anyone since Master Hofflis’ death.   She was getting to him.

But how could he possibly push her away and focus on something else?   The thought of doing that brought terror to him.   She was very addictive to him.    Yes, that was it; he was growing addicted to her.     No, he quickly corrected his thought; he was already addicted to her.     He couldn’t distance himself from her - that was certainly not a possibility.

Of course, she was a radiant princess that was just now blossoming into full loveliness.    When she mastered the art of sorcery and gained confidence in herself, she would see how majestic that she truly was and how pathetic and lowly he was.

Then she’d drift away.     That thought made his heart ache terribly, so he told himself that he would not think of that day.   For now she could be near him, she could speak to him and he could gaze upon her perfection and see her wondrous smiles.  

When she withdrew from him, sprouted her wings and flew off to find her glory, he’d die from the withdrawal of her presence from his life.    He’d feel -perhaps-- how Derych was feeling right now.  

But tonight she rested against his shoulder, breathing softly in sleep; content where she was and whom she was with.    That was enough for him; he wouldn’t change it, no matter how his heart would ache in the future.

She was too spectacular not to covet.   Softly stroking her cheek, he rested his head against hers and dreamed of a life where he could have been the type of man that she deserved and would, eventually, certainly find.

And even as his unconscious mind entered a dream, he found her there, waiting for him, hovering like an angel in the sky under large white clouds, laughing and beckoning for him to fly up to her.   

He willed himself to do it, soaring like a hawk to her.   Muld took her hands in his and they flew like courting eagles, spinning and twirling in mid-air, zooming down low to the ground and then flying upward with a rush.

In this dream, he spoke to her, “How can you do this -aren’t you terrified of heights out in the open?”

“With you, I am not afraid.”  She replied and without any further comment they flew and soared through the endless skies.

Reviews

[David Jae]

I like the interaction between your characters and the richness of the story. It might be a little heavy on exposition at the start, but your dialogue is good. I enjoyed reading it b

[Eddie Davis]

Thank you for taking the time to read it. I appreciate your comments.

[David Jae]

You're welcome