Blade's Fall Chapter eight

The next morning Maude was setting out breakfast on a small tea towel on Elatha’s lap. She was hunched over arranging bread, jam, butter and freshly scrambled eggs within easy reach when she suddenly stood up straight and smiled then hurriedly finished laying out the food.

“Maude, your boyfriend’s here.” Loflan called out.

“Oh hush up you naughty thing.” Maude called back.

“What does he mean?’ Elatha asked, curious. “Who is here?”

“He means Brute is back and he knows very well that I already know it too. He just likes pushing my buttons. Brute is my ass.”

“Your what?” Elatha asked shocked.

Maude laughed. “That’s what we call donkeys. No need to be so scandalized. Though Loflan does like to have a bit of fun with the word, I use it for it’s intended purpose.”

“May I ask a personal question?” Elatha asked.
“Why sure.”

“What is Loflan to you?”

Maude smiled. “He is my apprentice just like you were your Aunt and Uncle’s apprentice back home. The only difference is I teach him magic skills”

“Did you raise him?”

“No child. Loflan and I met when he was a strapping lad of seventeen.”

“Does his family live nearby?”

“No. Now you are asking me personal questions about somebody else. If you want to know more about him you need to ask him yourself.”

“Do you live nearby?”

“No, about an eight day journey away.”

Elatha was silent for a moment. “Do you have any children?”

She shook her head. “Was married many times but the Lord didn’t bless me with little ones. He did bless me with Loflan and that has been nearly the same thing. Now eat your breakfast I bet your eggs are stone cold.”

Maude smiled at her and swept out of the room. A minute later she heard the outside door open and close and Loflan chuckle.



Elatha wished so much that she would stop hurting. Her whole body ached, her face throbbed and her ankles felt like someone was constantly pushing white hot needles into them. Every time she dwelled on the pain she tried to remember that if Loflan hadn’t found her she wouldn’t be feeling any pain at all, she would be dead. They did not tell her but she knew they helped her heal with their magic and she would be in a lot more pain if they hadn’t. Her vocal cords were almost completely healed she only had a very sore throat and a slight rasp when she spoke. She knew she screamed and sobbed so much and for so long her throat was almost destroyed. At first it had hurt to drink or even breath. Her bruises were rapidly healing and her nails where she had ripped them off scratching at the dirt, wagon and anything else she could reach were growing back rapidly. It seemed like all of her surface wounds were healing more than twice as fast but her rib and ankles were not. Only the pain of these injuries were lessoned.

At least she would be crippled all through the winter and not the summer months. How miserable it would be to hear birds chirping and see the sun shinning merrily through the window. She had no idea what to expect from a Sorsenian winter though she heard Loflan and Maude talk frequently about getting this or that done before the snows came.

South Escapia had generally mild weather. Her home had a little snow in winter but the southern lands saw none at all. She knew North Escapia was a cold place, full of ice and fridged temperatures. Or at least she though she knew. She didn’t know what she knew for sure anymore.

Later that evening Maude brought into her room a work basket and sat it on her bed.

“Oh thank you Maude.” Elatha exclaimed examining the tread. “I am getting desperate for something to do.”

“I thought you might be. I also had Brute bring you some novels if you like to read.”

“I do love to read only I rarely read novels. I prefer non fiction but am grateful for whatever I can get.”

This surprised Maude considering her age most young ladies loved novels. “Well I will bring them in to you. I will also bring you some books of Loflan’s since you like the factual stuff. He has lots of those though I am not sure how you will like the subject matter.”

Elatha gave her a quizzical look.

“Well my dear you are in a house owned by a user so naturally he has lots of books on the subject.”

Elatha looked out of the window. “I must admit I was terrified when I found out where I was, almost as terrified as being with those men. I was terrified you would kill me once you found out where I came from. I thought I had survived only to be killed cruelly by the hands of users. Now that I know you a little better I feel terribly fascinated with magic and Sorsenia and even North Escapia. Everything I grew up believing is crumbling before my eyes and now I have so many questions.”

“I think Loflan’s library will satisfy some of your questions. There is a lot of ground to cover. Do you have some burning you up right now you would like to know before I go start supper?”

“Oh yes.” Elatha said excitedly. She sat up in bed and began to rewind a loosened ball of thread. “There are two questions I most want to know right now.”

“And they are?”

“What is magic and is one born with it or is it learned?”

“I will answer the second question first. Magic is not learned. When a child comes of age, that is roughly seventeen in Sorsenia and sixteen in the Northlands, he or she makes the trek to one of the Calling sites that are scattered across the land. The person then stands within the Calling and if it is inside them their ability to use magic is revealed. Unlike what your historians would like you to believe not every person is a user. In fact we are pretty uncommon. I would say a third of the population are magic users. Once you know you have the ability then you can learn what to do with it.

Now to answer your first question in the ultra condensed version. Magic is everywhere. It is in the air and it is in the earth. We are not born with magic but we are born with the ability to channel it, to mold it and bend it to do our will.”


“What about South Escapians?” Elatha asked. “Are they too born with this ability but never even know it?”

“Oh yes. I would say about a third of you have the gift and never know it. I have heard of a few who have come across and went to a Calling and became users but I have also heard of some who discovered they were not. I personally have never been acquainted with a South Escapian to my knowledge. I am now of course.” She said and smiled at Elatha.

“I would like to read these books Loflan has if he doesn’t mind.”

“He won’t mind and you can read them even if he does. He is as crotchety as an old crone sometimes. More so even because I am an old crone and I am not as crotchety as he.”

“I can hear you.” Loflan called from the kitchen.

“Oops.” Maude whispered to Elatha and winked.