Chapter 25 Chapter Eleven Part Two - Orenda
Sitting around letting my mind race was not getting me anywhere and I was not up for a chat with my brother. He’s either likely to make more jokes or say something that is going to earn him a bolt of lightning to his ass – though knowing him, he might enjoy that. So, after putting on a load of washing I decide to go on patrol.
Flying above the clouds is where I feel the most peace. There is nothing more magical than being in the sky and experiencing a terminator with your very own eyes, or even better, flying right through it. No, I don’t mean the AI robots from the future, I mean the moving line where the planet is divided into day and night. Chasing it is one of my and Aya’s favourite pastimes. In the sky, there is no drama, pain or strife. Just vast space as far as the eye can see and boundless serenity. Down on land, however, is another story.
While flying over Madagascar my feathers prickle as I detect the presence of eyti somewhere down below. I dive down closer to the Earth and follow the trail, my eyes scouring below for that unmistakable darkness. Almost instantly I catch the dark mass of eyti – small but still significant – as they appear to be closing in on a makkari. Her magic emanates from her in purple waves, but it does nothing to deter the eytes’ advances.
There’s not enough room for me to land between them and shield the makkari and if I attempt to cast even a single bolt of lightning, there’s no way to avoid hitting her. Left with one option, I dive down, letting out a warning squawk that makes the eyti hesitate. I unfurl my wings, slow my descent and reach my talons out in front of me. Once in range, I clasp my talons around the makkari, holding her securely as I flap back into the air, not too high but high enough that the eyti can’t reach. I fly a safe distance – feeling like I’m reenacting a scene from The Rescuers Down Under – until I’m sure we’re out of the eytes’ range.
I lower myself, carefully setting the young woman back on her feet as I let her go. She stumbles a little and I move a few feet away, landing and shifting back to my human form.
“You saved my life,” the young woman pants, clutching her chest as her magic subsides and her slightly slanted eyes return to normal revealing irises so deep blue they’re almost black. I almost don’t notice the pupils.
She’s 5’8, slim, with toasted brown skin, beach wave, snow-white hair parted to the side and sitting just a couple inches above her shoulders. She has a round-shaped face, and her nose appears just a little fuller than the rest of her delicate features. She’s quite gorgeous and as a makkari, it’s impossible to guess her age, though she appears to be early twenties. She adjusts her sky-blue button-down denim shirt and matching jeans, looking herself over.
“Not a scratch on me,” she comments sounding impressed. “You must be pretty good with those talons,” she smiles at me, her accent too obscure for me to pinpoint an origin.
I chuckle. “I’ve had practice. Are you alright?” I ask with concern, stepping closer to her.
“I am now, but that was a close one,” she sighs with relief. “Had you not arrived, I’d have been done for.”
“Why didn’t you try to flee?” I query.
She gives me a sheepish look, tucking her hands into her back pockets. “Hubris? I stupidly thought I could handle them on my own,” she answers with chagrin.
I can’t help my look of surprise. Most supernatural beings know to run like hell, they never try to take them head-on. It would be suicide to try.
“Had no one ever told you that makkari magic doesn’t work on the eyti?” I question in concern.
“They did,” she admits. “But I thought…maybe that was like an old wives tale. Something older makkares say to keep the younger generation in line. Called that wrong,” she snorts.
“At least you’re alright now, but in the future, if you encounter an etyi…”
“Get the hell out of there?”
I smile at her, “Precisely. I should get going and make sure there aren’t any other eytes roaming around.”
“Wait,” she calls out, then anxiously chews on her bottom lip.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, I just…I feel like I should do something to thank you. I mean, you saved my life, that’s no small thing,” she says like it’s obvious.
I blink, taken aback. I can’t remember the last time someone offered to do something for me as thanks. Most of the time when I save people they just say thank you and then go on their merry way, or in the case of humans, it’s me who has to get out of there before they ask too many questions.
“You really don’t have to do anything for me, I’m just doing my duty,” I kindly explain.
“I know you’re a raitruum, so this is literally your raison d'être, but you could always just not do it. The fact you go around saving people like me is because you choose to. I think that’s deserving of some gratitude,” she argues with a soft smile.
Her words touch me deeply. I suppose it’s true, I could choose not to do what I do…but I just can’t ever picture myself making such a selfish choice, especially knowing it would leave my brother to handle every eyti on Earth alone and leave so many people vulnerable. That wouldn’t sit right with me.
“What exactly did you have in mind?” I ask curiously.
“Do you drink?” she asks conspiratorially.
“Oh, I definitely drink,” I laugh.
“Perfect!” she chirps. “Then let me buy you a few rounds as a thank you for saving my life. It’s the least I can do. Don’t suppose you know any good places?” she questions with uncertainty.
“There’s a place in the US my brother and I like to frequent, but I do know of several other places in Europe if you prefer,” I suggest.
“No, no. I’m treating you so the US sounds fine. Hope you don’t mind if we use my method of travel. No offence to your flying abilities, but I’m not so good with heights.”
I smile waving her on, “Conjure away.”
With a bright smile, her eyes turn pitch black, but I notice that the pupil of her eyes – which are normally bright silver in makkares – are a bright gold. I’ve never seen that before. Part of me wants to ask her about it, but that likely means I’d be prying into her genealogy and that’s not appropriate. Her magic radiates off her body in purple waves as she moves her hands, causing the air in front of us to ripple as she conjures a portal for us.
“After you,” she announces politely, motioning for me to step through the portal.
I nod politely and step through, stepping out right onto the streets of Seattle, in front of the club Aya and I had just attended the other night. Instantly, memories of that night flash in my mind and I have to take a breath to compose myself and push them out of my head. The young makkari steps through the portal behind me, waving her hand and making the portal disappear as her appearance returns to normal.
“I’m so sorry, I never asked for your name,” I state, embarrassed by my social blunder.
She smiles, offering me her hand, “Invidia.”
I shake her hand, smiling back at her. “Orenda.”
“Let’s go and get those drinks!” she cheers.
Did not expect things to go this way, but I’m not complaining. I was looking for a distraction and it looks like I found it.