A Song of Snow and Ashes by S.J. Drew
minutes, he was soaked through, but curiously, he didn't feel cold.
"This is all wrong. All wrong," he thought, but unable to figure out what felt so wrong. It was cold and rainy, and not entirely unusual for the middle of autumn. Lightning illuminated the sky again, and to the north he saw something that was nearly unheard of for the middle of autumn. It was a twister, large and black, swirling toward the city.
"Light One have mercy," he thought, as the lightning faded, and the twister was lost in the darkness. "That could wreck half the town." The Dark power within him started to move. "Oh, no. No, no, no. I'm not stopping that thing," he thought, in response, trying to quiet it. But it was no use. Now the power within him was moving, pushing, seeking an outlet. He started to feel cold, but it was an internal feeling, not external. He continued to stare at the sky and became aware that he could now see the twister. In fact, he could see perfectly well in the dark. "What in the world is wrong with me?" he thought, getting scared.
The storm seemed to speed up. He could tell it was nearly a quarter of a mile wide at the base, and that it would reach the city proper in less than ten minutes.
Dark power surged within him, and he couldn't hold it back. Cold was flooding through his body, along with fear, despair, and anger. He took a few deep breaths to calm down, then stared again at the storm. It was racing toward the city. "People will die," he thought. "Alain could die." He shook his head. "This is a bad idea," he thought, but he had made up his mind. He summoned the Armor and flew into the air, battling the high winds. Then he headed straight toward the monster storm.
He was within less than a thousand feet of it when it suddenly occurred to him he had no idea how to control the storm. "No help for it now," he thought. He reached out with his mind, sensing the size and strength of the twister. Not quite sure how it was happening, he became part of the storm. He used his magic to calm the raging winds. Time seemed to slow down as he focused on his task. Eventually the storm had been subdued, and now was nothing more than a rain storm, with the occasional flash of lightning.
He flew back to the apartment building and landed in the back alleyway. "I think that only took about half an hour," he thought. He kept his wits about him long enough to send the Armor away. Stumbling with exhaustion, he managed to return to the apartment, lock the door behind him, and collapsed into bed, wet clothes still on.
Eliora felt she was making good progress in fitting into the community. She had been taught some gambling games, and lost quite badly at them. However, she was proving to be quite a formidable opponent in any game that required strategy. Being able to talk to the young men helped improve her language skills. She also noticed she was starting to attract some attention from the young men, and she wasn't quite sure what to do about it.
"So, Jomei, when can I go to Mulago?" Eliora asked, when their language session was over. "Last week you said you'd talk to Hialmar about it."
"I did talk to him yesterday. The Council doesn't think you're ready to go out on your own yet."
Her face fell. "What? Why not? It's been almost a month. I've had intensive language studies. I can converse without too much trouble. Surely with knowing Arcana that would be enough to find a tutor."
"Well, it's the Council's decision. They think you are making fine progress, but there's no need to rush things right now. The StormBringer has yet to make a move. It seems we can afford to be patient."
"But I'm ready," she protested. "I already know something about the Arcane Academies. It seems my people have had more favorable dealings with the mages in the past few decades than yours."
"I'm sorry, Eliora, that's the will of the Council. You must wait. Perhaps in another couple of weeks we can arrange for a visit to Mulago."
"But Jomei, the longer you wait, the less training I'm going to have when I do eventually fight the ShadowWalker."
The priest winced. "I wish you wouldn't use that title."
"And I wish you would. Lending such fear to a title only increases his power. I can do this, Jomei. I can go to Mulago. I'll visit the Academy and speak to one of the teachers. They can direct me to a willing tutor."
"Do you think it would be that easy?" he asked, but not angrily. "You can't just walk into one of those places. Why should they help you? No doubt they would wonder why you haven't attended the Academy in the first place. You'll be all alone in a strange city and a strange culture. We can't follow you."
"I know it won't be easy, but I have a plan all worked out," she replied confidently.
"Well, that's good. Write it down and I'll submit it to the Council for review."
"How long will that take?"
"I don't know."
She sighed. "Do you think I'm ready to go out in the world?"
He looked her over. "I think you could, but I can't convince the Council. They were expecting a fighter or a warrior. Until you meet that expectation, I think they would rather keep you here where you are protected."
"Protected?" she repeated. "You're protecting me? Isn't that backwards?"
"You're supposed to fight for us, but until you are ready, we'll protect you. Doesn't that make sense? The community watching out for the most important member."
She considered this. "I guess I can see your point. But I don't like it. I'm strong, but I'm not a fighter. I have other training that could be useful. I know I could talk to these mages. I know I could find a tutor."
"I'm sure you could, but it's not up to me. I think we both know that it's going to take time for the people here to really accept you, especially as the LightBearer. I'm glad you seem to be getting along better with the young men, but the older men are a bit more set in their ways, and they don't know you as I do."
"They haven't really tried to learn, have they?" she retorted, then immediately scolded herself for getting angry. "I'm sorry, Jomei. I know these things take time. I guess I was hoping since I managed to win over the young men, the others would soon follow. What's the term when one thing happens and others just start to happen because of it?"
"A domino reaction," he answered with a smile. "I'm very glad your spirits have improved and that you have made some friends. Hopefully the Council will take this to be a good sign. But it takes time to build trust. Please be patient."
She sighed. "Isn't there anything else you can do? You're the priest."
"This isn't your home, Eliora. My opinion has no more weight than anyone else's. I've tried to get them to see their biases. I've even prayed to the Light One to help them get past those biases. There's nothing more I can do, and the god does what It will. Have you tried praying?"
"No. It's not common for the individual to pray. It's up to the Order to send prayers to god."
"Anyone can pray. It may make you feel better, if nothing else."
She considered this, but remembered the last time she had prayed to the Light One. She wasn’t sure she wanted any more answered prayers from the god.
"Now, you're dismissed. Go get some lunch."
She left the cottage, ate the midday meal, and went to the workout yard. Thunder rumbled in the distance as Eliora worked out with Aidan.
“Looks like a storm is coming in from the north. Big one, too, it looks like,” he said.
"I was wondering if it was ever going to rain here," she commented, blocking a shot.
"It's been dry this season. And that's bad."
"Why?"
"Everything is too dry. One stray bolt of lightning and this whole forest could go up like kindling."
"Doesn't this city have some way to deal with fires?"
"There are demian runes and things that protect the trees, but the people are still in danger from getting burned or suffocated by smoke. And our cottages aren't protected. Their city will be fine. Ours will not," he answered.
Lightning forked through the black clouds that were far to the north. "How would you know if a fire was
coming if it started miles away?"
"That's the sort of thing Jomei is supposed to keep on the lookout for. Now, enough talk. It's making you sloppy," he snapped, and slapped her leg sharply with the practice sword.
"Godsdammit," she swore in her own language, then blushed.
Aidan smiled, understanding the tone if not the phrase. "See, now that's the best sign that you're getting the hang of this."
The workout session continued until darkness started to fall. They put the weapons away and were heading to the dining hall when they heard a bell start to ring from somewhere in the demian treetops.
"Ah, damn it," he sighed. He grabbed her arm to speed her up and they sprinted to the dining hall. Several other people were also rushing toward the structure.
Hialmar and the other elders were standing at the head table, and the building quickly filled with all the humans.
"People, people, silence," he called. "Priest Jomei tells me that a fire has been sparked some miles to the north of us, and the wind is picking up now that the sun is setting. He estimates it will be here within an hour. So, you know the drill. Pack up what you'll need to survive for a few days, and head west toward the river. You have fifteen minutes. Now get going!"
Immediately the dining hall emptied out, and Eliora was pulled along with Aidan.
"What's going on? Are we supposed to leave?" she asked.
"Damn dry weather. Yes, there's a fire I'd guess about fifteen miles north of us, and it's heading
"This is all wrong. All wrong," he thought, but unable to figure out what felt so wrong. It was cold and rainy, and not entirely unusual for the middle of autumn. Lightning illuminated the sky again, and to the north he saw something that was nearly unheard of for the middle of autumn. It was a twister, large and black, swirling toward the city.
"Light One have mercy," he thought, as the lightning faded, and the twister was lost in the darkness. "That could wreck half the town." The Dark power within him started to move. "Oh, no. No, no, no. I'm not stopping that thing," he thought, in response, trying to quiet it. But it was no use. Now the power within him was moving, pushing, seeking an outlet. He started to feel cold, but it was an internal feeling, not external. He continued to stare at the sky and became aware that he could now see the twister. In fact, he could see perfectly well in the dark. "What in the world is wrong with me?" he thought, getting scared.
The storm seemed to speed up. He could tell it was nearly a quarter of a mile wide at the base, and that it would reach the city proper in less than ten minutes.
Dark power surged within him, and he couldn't hold it back. Cold was flooding through his body, along with fear, despair, and anger. He took a few deep breaths to calm down, then stared again at the storm. It was racing toward the city. "People will die," he thought. "Alain could die." He shook his head. "This is a bad idea," he thought, but he had made up his mind. He summoned the Armor and flew into the air, battling the high winds. Then he headed straight toward the monster storm.
He was within less than a thousand feet of it when it suddenly occurred to him he had no idea how to control the storm. "No help for it now," he thought. He reached out with his mind, sensing the size and strength of the twister. Not quite sure how it was happening, he became part of the storm. He used his magic to calm the raging winds. Time seemed to slow down as he focused on his task. Eventually the storm had been subdued, and now was nothing more than a rain storm, with the occasional flash of lightning.
He flew back to the apartment building and landed in the back alleyway. "I think that only took about half an hour," he thought. He kept his wits about him long enough to send the Armor away. Stumbling with exhaustion, he managed to return to the apartment, lock the door behind him, and collapsed into bed, wet clothes still on.
Eliora felt she was making good progress in fitting into the community. She had been taught some gambling games, and lost quite badly at them. However, she was proving to be quite a formidable opponent in any game that required strategy. Being able to talk to the young men helped improve her language skills. She also noticed she was starting to attract some attention from the young men, and she wasn't quite sure what to do about it.
"So, Jomei, when can I go to Mulago?" Eliora asked, when their language session was over. "Last week you said you'd talk to Hialmar about it."
"I did talk to him yesterday. The Council doesn't think you're ready to go out on your own yet."
Her face fell. "What? Why not? It's been almost a month. I've had intensive language studies. I can converse without too much trouble. Surely with knowing Arcana that would be enough to find a tutor."
"Well, it's the Council's decision. They think you are making fine progress, but there's no need to rush things right now. The StormBringer has yet to make a move. It seems we can afford to be patient."
"But I'm ready," she protested. "I already know something about the Arcane Academies. It seems my people have had more favorable dealings with the mages in the past few decades than yours."
"I'm sorry, Eliora, that's the will of the Council. You must wait. Perhaps in another couple of weeks we can arrange for a visit to Mulago."
"But Jomei, the longer you wait, the less training I'm going to have when I do eventually fight the ShadowWalker."
The priest winced. "I wish you wouldn't use that title."
"And I wish you would. Lending such fear to a title only increases his power. I can do this, Jomei. I can go to Mulago. I'll visit the Academy and speak to one of the teachers. They can direct me to a willing tutor."
"Do you think it would be that easy?" he asked, but not angrily. "You can't just walk into one of those places. Why should they help you? No doubt they would wonder why you haven't attended the Academy in the first place. You'll be all alone in a strange city and a strange culture. We can't follow you."
"I know it won't be easy, but I have a plan all worked out," she replied confidently.
"Well, that's good. Write it down and I'll submit it to the Council for review."
"How long will that take?"
"I don't know."
She sighed. "Do you think I'm ready to go out in the world?"
He looked her over. "I think you could, but I can't convince the Council. They were expecting a fighter or a warrior. Until you meet that expectation, I think they would rather keep you here where you are protected."
"Protected?" she repeated. "You're protecting me? Isn't that backwards?"
"You're supposed to fight for us, but until you are ready, we'll protect you. Doesn't that make sense? The community watching out for the most important member."
She considered this. "I guess I can see your point. But I don't like it. I'm strong, but I'm not a fighter. I have other training that could be useful. I know I could talk to these mages. I know I could find a tutor."
"I'm sure you could, but it's not up to me. I think we both know that it's going to take time for the people here to really accept you, especially as the LightBearer. I'm glad you seem to be getting along better with the young men, but the older men are a bit more set in their ways, and they don't know you as I do."
"They haven't really tried to learn, have they?" she retorted, then immediately scolded herself for getting angry. "I'm sorry, Jomei. I know these things take time. I guess I was hoping since I managed to win over the young men, the others would soon follow. What's the term when one thing happens and others just start to happen because of it?"
"A domino reaction," he answered with a smile. "I'm very glad your spirits have improved and that you have made some friends. Hopefully the Council will take this to be a good sign. But it takes time to build trust. Please be patient."
She sighed. "Isn't there anything else you can do? You're the priest."
"This isn't your home, Eliora. My opinion has no more weight than anyone else's. I've tried to get them to see their biases. I've even prayed to the Light One to help them get past those biases. There's nothing more I can do, and the god does what It will. Have you tried praying?"
"No. It's not common for the individual to pray. It's up to the Order to send prayers to god."
"Anyone can pray. It may make you feel better, if nothing else."
She considered this, but remembered the last time she had prayed to the Light One. She wasn’t sure she wanted any more answered prayers from the god.
"Now, you're dismissed. Go get some lunch."
She left the cottage, ate the midday meal, and went to the workout yard. Thunder rumbled in the distance as Eliora worked out with Aidan.
“Looks like a storm is coming in from the north. Big one, too, it looks like,” he said.
"I was wondering if it was ever going to rain here," she commented, blocking a shot.
"It's been dry this season. And that's bad."
"Why?"
"Everything is too dry. One stray bolt of lightning and this whole forest could go up like kindling."
"Doesn't this city have some way to deal with fires?"
"There are demian runes and things that protect the trees, but the people are still in danger from getting burned or suffocated by smoke. And our cottages aren't protected. Their city will be fine. Ours will not," he answered.
Lightning forked through the black clouds that were far to the north. "How would you know if a fire was
"That's the sort of thing Jomei is supposed to keep on the lookout for. Now, enough talk. It's making you sloppy," he snapped, and slapped her leg sharply with the practice sword.
"Godsdammit," she swore in her own language, then blushed.
Aidan smiled, understanding the tone if not the phrase. "See, now that's the best sign that you're getting the hang of this."
The workout session continued until darkness started to fall. They put the weapons away and were heading to the dining hall when they heard a bell start to ring from somewhere in the demian treetops.
"Ah, damn it," he sighed. He grabbed her arm to speed her up and they sprinted to the dining hall. Several other people were also rushing toward the structure.
Hialmar and the other elders were standing at the head table, and the building quickly filled with all the humans.
"People, people, silence," he called. "Priest Jomei tells me that a fire has been sparked some miles to the north of us, and the wind is picking up now that the sun is setting. He estimates it will be here within an hour. So, you know the drill. Pack up what you'll need to survive for a few days, and head west toward the river. You have fifteen minutes. Now get going!"
Immediately the dining hall emptied out, and Eliora was pulled along with Aidan.
"What's going on? Are we supposed to leave?" she asked.
"Damn dry weather. Yes, there's a fire I'd guess about fifteen miles north of us, and it's heading