After dinner, the two Chetsuans decided to go into the city, leaving Daelen alone with Catriona and Mandalee.
Having cleared everything away, they headed out to Catriona’s Meadow where they relaxed for a while. As there was no danger of being overheard, now, Mandalee took the opportunity to broach a subject that had been on her mind since their initial conversation with their new friends from Phitonia.
“Why haven’t you done more to protect the Chetsuans of Phitonia from the dragons?”
“Strange that you would ask me that,” Daelen considered. “Not long ago, you thought I was just about the biggest threat to your world, despite how long I’ve been Tempestria’s Protector. Now you want me to be Phitonia’s Protector, too?”
Mandalee shook her head. “You don’t get off the hook that easily. Despite what anybody thought, that didn’t stop you from protecting us. Why should it matter what the Chetsuans might think?”
“Phitonia is just one world. If I help the Chetsuans of Phitonia, what about Lavos, the world where dragons are the endangered species? Should I go and help the dragons there? On another world, the people are just recovering from an invasion that could have destroyed their world. Should I have stopped that, too? As it turned out, a group of adventurers banded together and ended the threat in a far more ingenious way than my brute force approach – something you should appreciate, Cat. They achieved that victory all by themselves, should I have robbed them of that? What about all the troubles here on Earth? Should I swoop in and save the day like some kind of superhero? Put a stop to all their wars, resolve all their conflicts? I may be powerful, but I’m only one person. Am I never to have a life of my own? Am I always to be a slave to everyone in need?
“What if, while I’m on Phitonia, fighting the dragons, I get an alert that Kullos is attacking your world? Which world do I save?”
Mandalee turned away, face flushing. “You can’t ask me to make that kind of choice,” she objected quietly.
“Why not?” Daelen demanded. “You’re asking me to. What if, instead of preparing to fight Kullos in your world, I go and conquer Phitonia, instead? Because that’s what it would take. The dragons aren’t going to stop hunting Chetsuans just because I ask nicely. And what if, while I’m there, Kullos gets all the pieces of his control device, decides he’s tired of waiting for Michael and me to show up, and just uses Heaven’s Surrender to destroy your world? Or what if the dragons figure out how to follow me back to Tempestria? Now we have to fight a war on two fronts. What if they decide humans and Faery look just as tasty as Chetsuans, and do to your civilisation what they did to Sara and Jessica’s?”
Mandalee was deeply embarrassed. “I never thought about any of that. I’m sorry.”
The shadow warrior put a reassuring arm around her. “Don’t be sorry. I was having the same argument with myself centuries before you were born. I saved Sara and Jessica because not doing so would have meant genocide for their people. When I left you guys the other day, I was stopping something similar from happening on Lavos. Fortunately, I got to them much earlier in the process. Rescuing a pair of dragons and bringing them here to live with Jessica and Sara could have been a bit awkward.”
“Just a bit,” Catriona agreed.
Mandalee was still having a hard time processing all of this, and excused herself for a while, in hopes that a walk by herself would stop her moral compass from spinning wildly.
*****
“I put your world first,” Daelen told Cat, after a moment, “because, as I’ve said before, I’m partially responsible for the danger you’re facing. Even so, I generally only interfere when Kullos is involved, or in former times, my dark clone. Otherwise, you have to solve your own problems. When I first learned about wizards going missing on your world, I admit I wasn’t particularly interested. Not because I didn’t care, as my visitor suggested, but because it didn’t seem like something that I should concern myself with until I knew Kullos was involved. People go missing on your world all the time. Am I supposed to start up a missing persons investigation every time? Where would you have me draw the line?”
More than ever, Catriona understood the enormity of the decisions the shadow warrior had been facing every day for who knew how long. She offered no debate, no judgement – how could she possibly be qualified? Instead, she simply held him tight.
“This is just a friend offering comfort to another friend,” she whispered. For whose benefit, she wasn’t sure, but it felt right to say it.
“I know,” Daelen assured her, “and it’s very much appreciated.”
Still uncertain how long it was appropriate to hold him so close, on sudden impulse, she asked, “What’s your favourite animal?”
“What?” Daelen asked, thrown by the random question.
“Suppose you were just an ordinary, lonely human boy with a love of nature, and your best friend was an animal – not a pet – a friend you could love and stroke and talk to. A friend you could confide in, in a way that was pure, simple, uncomplicated,” she explained. “What animal would your friend be? What animal would you wish for? And don’t say the obvious.”
Daelen considered the question for a moment, then answered, “A rabbit. A little white rabbit with long floppy pink ears, cottontail and twitchy nose with whiskers. If I were that ordinary, lonely human boy, that’s the animal I would have as my friend. The only one I could ever really talk to. That’s what I would wish for.”
“Then I think, after so long, it’s time that lonely human boy’s wish was granted,” she decided.
With that, she stood and shifted into the form of a white rabbit, just as he had described. Picking up the rabbit and placing her gently on his lap, Daelen smiled and began to stroke her.
“Sharing your life and love is a beautiful and precious thing,” he whispered, tenderly, “no matter what form it might take.”
Their conversation from that point on was entirely private, gentle reader. As such, it has nothing to do with you or me, so I trust you will understand if I cut the scene here.
*****
After a while, Mandalee returned and took in the vista before her. Crouching down, she had a turn stroking the rabbit.
“Look at you!” she cried. “You’re so cute, I could gobble you up!” She paused as a thought entered her head, and added, “Actually, don’t let Shyleen see you in this form, or she’ll really gobble you up.”
The rabbit hopped down off Daelen’s lap and shifted back to Catriona’s natural form. “Good point!” she laughed. “I’ll have to be careful of that one.”
“Well, speaking of Shyleen, I’ve decided to leave the philosophy to her from now on and focus on doing what we’re doing.”
“Good policy,” Daelen approved. “Now, Cat, didn’t you say you had something you wanted to show us?”
“Yes, I did,” Cat confirmed. The druidess explained that she believed she’d worked out how to counter an anti-magic field.
“You’ve sussed it?” Mandalee gasped, very proud of her friend. “This I have got to see. Dazzle us, Cat!”
“OK, practical demo first, then I’ll explain.”
The druidess stood and walked a few paces away. Then she asked Daelen to generate his most powerful anti-magic field around her, making sure it surrounded her like a bubble, not a dome that would leave her feet touching the ground.
Even Dreya had made that mistake the first time, she remembered.
The shadow warrior did as she asked, but to his amazement, after a moment’s thought, Cat was able to put on a concert overture of her magical powers.
What made this even more spectacular was Daelen’s impossible realisation, “The anti-magic field is intact. You haven’t broken through it, and yet it’s not stopping you. How is that possible?”
Cat sat down on a wooden stool that had just grown from a dead branch on the ground.
“OK, here’s the theory part. For years, it has been in my mind that anti-magic fields are fundamentally flawed as a concept. ‘Why?’ I hear you ask. Well, tell me this: how do you power an anti-magic field?”
Mandalee knew the answer Catriona was looking for – she’d been to this lecture before. “With magic,” she declared.
“Precisely – an anti-magic field is itself a form of magical energy, and in theory, any form of energy is useable, if you know how. So, all one has to do is adjust one’s magic and adapt it to feed off the anti-magic field itself. The field detects magic being used, so it strengthens, which only provides more energy for me to tap into.”
Mandalee applauded, while Cat stood and took a theatrical bow.
Daelen was wide-eyed, as he breathed, “All my years and I have never thought of that.” Sweeping her up into a proud hug, he told her, “The way you create new magic by connecting half a dozen different ideas is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. You’re a genius!”
When Daelen set her gently back down, a blushing Catriona explained, “Well, an anti-magic field is a standard defence against wizards, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we faced one in the battles to come. It’s best to be prepared.”
“If they try it on you,” Mandalee put in, “they’re really in for a shock, and of course, you can use your druid magic to bind a wizard’s hands, which will effectively neutralise them, but what about clerics? Suppose I went rogue and attacked you?”
“Well, you’re a bit different because you have a unique connection with Shyleen. As for regular clerics, bring them on,” she declared, confidently. “I’ll give my Faithless spell a workout.”
Mandalee put her hands on her hips in mock anger and huffed, “You always have to have an answer for everything, don’t you?”
With a deadly serious look, her friend replied, “If I want to survive, yes I do.”
Mandalee hugged her friend and told her, “Then don’t you dare stop, cause I’m not going to lose you.”
A concerned Catriona held her friend and asked, “Hey, what’s this about, Mandalee? Who said anything about losing me?”
Pulling out of the embrace, the assassin replied, “It’s nothing. Just after our conversation with Daelen, I’m beginning to realise how dangerous this quest of ours is. We’ve all been acting like it isn’t – especially since coming to this world, but it is serious. It’s deadly serious. I’m not stupid; I know I can be reckless at times, but I know when it’s time to be scared and now is definitely the right time.”
“You’re right,” Catriona agreed, matching her tone, “I’m scared, too and,” she dropped her voice to a whisper, “so is Daelen, though I don’t expect him to admit it in so many words.”
Daelen, who had been keeping a respectful distance, spoke up then.
“We are only part of the puzzle, Mandalee. Things are developing back on your world, and Michael is bringing others who will stand with us when the time is right. That moment is coming soon, but we still have some time, yet.”
“In that case,” Mandalee declared, composing herself once more, “we’d better not waste it.”
*****
“So, are you still up for more training?” Daelen wondered.
Cat was pleased to have her opinion asked and decided to reinforce that behaviour with another hug.
Before she could speak, however, Mandalee asked, “Do I get a vote?”
“Of course,” he replied, “I was throwing that question out to both of you.”
“Yeah, Mandalee,” Cat assured her, walking over to her friend and taking both her hands in hers, looking her straight in the eye. “When I was fighting for my right to be treated as an equal, I was fighting for you, too, you know? Sorry if I haven’t been making that clear.”
“Right then, I declare that the rest of today is officially Mandalee’s Day,” Daelen announced. “That means we’ll do whatever you want to do. It’s your choice.”
Cat seconded the motion.
“OK,” Mandalee smiled at her friends, “how about a mock battle – me and Cat against you?”
“That’s a great idea,” Catriona agreed, “that should be a pretty good workout. Combine everything we’ve learned together and see what works.”
“Alright,” Daelen agreed, “but I won’t use my beam cannon or my higher planar powers. There’s not much point to a training session if I just knock you both out in two seconds. Besides, I’d be worried about accidentally powering it up too much and hurting you seriously.”
“Don’t hold back too much,” Cat warned, “or you might find yourself in trouble.”
In a moment of pure tactlessness, Daelen laughed, “Come on, you don’t seriously think you have the weapons to beat me, do you? This isn’t just my ego talking. It’s a fact that my power is far greater than yours.”
Mandalee smiled dangerously, “You have no idea what a mistake you’ve just made. Cat, he’s been trying to train us since we got here. Don’t you think it’s time we taught him a thing or two, in return?”
“Right there with you. Daelen, you are absolutely right…and yet you’re also absolutely wrong. Your power is undeniably far greater, but you’re wrong to assume that guarantees victory. Since we first met, I’ve been telling you that power isn’t everything. It’s time Mandalee and I showed you what that means.”