Morgan Rice - A Sky of Spells

She sighed.

“I have had this dream so long, I no longer know if it’s real. My entire life I’ve seen her—yet I’ve never really seen her.”

Thor breathed deep, overwhelmed to hear that someone else had the same experience, even the same dreams, as he.

“It is the same with me,” he said.

She looked back at him, eyes wide in shock.

“Then you’ve never met her, either?” she asked in wonder.

Thor shook his head.

“I must,” he said. “I’m determined to meet her. It is a journey I feel called to make. I feel there is some great mystery lurking at the edge of my consciousness, about who I am, who I am meant to be, that I will never fully understand until I meet her.”

She gasped.

“I feel the same. Every day I wake up, I feel it, and yet, a part of me is afraid to. The timing is never right. Now is not the time to make the journey; now is the time for me to be at Erec’s side. He is my husband-to-be, and we are finally united again, after all these wars.”

“I understand,” Thor said. “Nor do I want to leave Gwendolyn’s side. Something is burning inside me, something greater than I can understand. It is more than just about meeting her: it is about meeting myself.”

Alistair nodded.

“Whenever I use my powers,” she said, “I feel it is her, coming through me. I feel connected to her. Though they are powers I do not even understand, and sometimes cannot control.”

“Nor do I understand mine,” Thor said.

“All my life, growing up, I had been afraid of it,” Alistair said. “I assumed something was wrong with me, that I was some sort of freak. Others would look at me differently. I would have to leave, to move, to go from town to town. I had many foster families. Few of them were kind.”

Alistair sighed.

“Finally, I just stopped using my powers. I suppressed them. It was only recently, when I met Erec, when I fell in love for the first time, that I felt comfortable to use them again. And then, again, once I met Gwendolyn. And then, for you.”

Thor understood all of her words, all too well.

“Now I realize that they are nothing to be ashamed of,” Alistair said. “They are part of who we are. They are a part of us.”

Thor nodded, understanding.

“Do you know where she lives?” Thor asked.

Allison look back, then finally nodded.

“She left me something—” she began to say, but then was interrupted.

“Thorgrin! There you are!” came a jolly voice.

Thor turned to see Reece, standing there, smiling, clasping his shoulder. He embraced Thor, and Thor embraced him back.

Thor was thrilled to be reunited with his friend, but he also turned to Alistair, dying to hear what she was about to say.

But Alistair was backing away, preparing to leave.

“I’m sorry, I did not mean to interrupt,” Reece said, looking back and forth between the two, realizing too late.

Alistair shook her head, leaving.

“We shall finish our conversation another time,” she said. “I must return to Erec. Until next time, my brother,” she said, turning and quickly hurrying off.

Thor was disappointed; he had been desperate to hear what she had to say about their mother, about where she lived, about what she had left her.

Reece was jubilant beside him, eager to talk, and Thor turned to him, overjoyed to see his friend, too.

“I have heard of your journeys, my friend,” Thor said with admiration, “to the depths of the Canyon, to retrieve the Sword. I heard of the fine work you’ve done to save our kingdom. I would expect nothing less of you.”

Reece shook his head humbly.

“And I have heard of yours,” he said admiringly. Then his face darkened. “I’m sorry I could not be there for you. And I’m sorry to hear what happened to you. You have suffered greatly for all of us. I am thrilled you have returned to us. And I’m glad you are alive!”

They clasped forearms.

“And what of our other Legion members?” Thor asked.

“All alive,” Reece answered proudly. “They have all returned with me, and are here.”

Thor shook his head in admiration.

“You’ve done a fine job indeed, to descend to the bowels of hell and return alive.”

Reece laughed, and clasped Thor on the shoulder.

“I have exciting news for you, and a question to ask you.”

Thor studied his friend, curious; Reece’s face was beaming and his smile was contagious. Thor had never seen him this happy, and he wondered what was going on.

“Anything for you,” Thor said.

“Will you be my best man?” Reece asked.

Thor stared back, his eyebrows lifted in surprise.

“That’s right,” Reece added. “I intend to marry Selese.”

“Has she said yes?” Thor asked.

“I’m going to ask her now. She does not know yet. But I wanted to tell you first,” Reece said.

“I would be honored,” Thor said, overjoyed for his friend. “I am so happy for you. You have made a wise choice. My answer is yes, on one condition: if you will be my best man, too?”

Reece looked back, confused.

Thor nodded.

“That’s right. I’m asking you to be my brother-in-law. My real brother.”

“Have you proposed to Gwendolyn?” Reece asked, excited.

“I am about to now.”

Reece cried out in joy and embraced Thor.

“It was what I’ve always wanted,” Reece said. “From the day I’ve met you. For you to be a true brother. Nothing makes me happier!”

Thor beamed.

“I am happy for you as well, my friend. Go to Selese. Don’t keep her waiting. I wish you luck.”

“And you, go to my sister. Perhaps we shall have a double wedding!”

Thor warmed at the thought.

“Perhaps we shall!” he said.

Reece turned and rushed off, and Thor turned and looked back up across the courtyard, inspired, searching for Gwen.

He spotted her amidst the crowd, finally emerging, a cheer greeting her.

The time had come to make her his wife.

Reece hurried across the courtyard, making his way past all the revelers, not stopping to celebrate with all of his friends. He was on a mission. He clutched his mother’s ring in his palm and walked with single-minded intent, searching all the faces for Selese. His palms were sweaty despite the cold, and his throat was dry. Reece had been single-minded his entire life, quick to decide on everything and quick to follow his passions. He never liked to hesitate, on anything. He decided his best friends instantly, and he decided the girl he loved instantly, too—and he never looked back. Reece already felt he had waited too long, and he was determined not to let anything get between him and asking the love of his life to marry him.

Suddenly, his heart pounded as he considered what might happen: what if she said no? What would he do then? Would he be making a fool of himself? What if, despite saving him, she did not feel as strongly for him as he did her? Was he misreading the situation?

Reece marched on, determined, one way or another, to find out for himself.

After asking several people, Reece finally learned that Selese was with Illepra, the two of them on the far side of King’s Court, still tending to the wounded, who had been filtering in throughout the day. The war had ravaged the Ring far and wide, and not everyone arrived back at King’s Court at the same pace.

Reece passed through the huge, stone archway that led to the northern side of King’s Court, a grass courtyard framed by crumbling stone walls, and as he did, he was shocked at the sight before him: in stark contrast to the revelers on the other side of the wall behind him, before him there were laid out hundreds of wounded. They were lined up in neat rows, moaning, being tended to by dozens of royal healers. It was a humbling sight; Reece was glad he was not among them.