Chapter 47 WHAT FIRE LEAVES BEHIND
"They're both amazing," said Christian. "Hunters really are fascinating people."
"Yeah," she agreed. That was something she knew all too well. These two were very different from most hunters. Their bliss was the same though. All hunters loved killing demons. These two just seemed stronger. They were in a class all their own.
"Xyra," Christian began, drawing her attention. "You said that Magnus's last name is Coleman, right?"
"Yeah, so?"
"I did some research about his family…" She instantly perked up. She would finally get to know something more about the sorcerer.
"Are they rich?" He wasn't at all surprised to hear that as her first question.
"Indeed." She began cheering silently. It was the first time that week that he had seen her this cheery. She must really like money. Too bad he was about to crush that joy. "However…" That one word stopped her cheer. "The Coleman family… They died years ago."
"What?" she asked softly, hoping that she hadn't heard right. That was highly unlikely though. From the look on his face, she knew he was telling the truth.
"The town they lived in was called Vekta. Five years ago, it was burned completely to the ground. Very few survived." The young mayor sighed and returned his attention to the battle below. There was a very depressing look on his face. "He's probably the only one left."
Xyra felt her heart clench a bit at the thought. She wasn't one for sympathy, but that had hit hard. So he's all alone. Something about that just seemed undeniably sad. Being someone who still had a family, she couldn't even begin to imagine what kind of pain that caused. Whatever amount of anger she had still been holding towards the sorcerer had completely slipped away. So that's why he's always keeping an eye on us. He probably doesn't want to lose anyone else. God, I was so stupid…
"You should try apologizing again," Christian suggested. "Maybe now you can make him really believe you."
"Yeah…" She didn't say anything else as her attention returned to the battle below.
Darren and Magnus were still at it, throwing punches and kicks. However, they were blocking now more so than dodging. Both were slowly getting tired, their moves becoming a bit sluggish. Nonetheless, both boys moved rather gracefully, still smirking.
"Come on, Magnus," taunted Darren. "You're starting to get slow." The sorcerer barely evaded a kick sent to his head. When Darren kicked out again, Magnus performed yet another cartwheel, this time without the use of his hands. The second he touched down, he punched forward, catching Darren in the chest. However, the hunter quickly kicked him in the side. Both boys were cringing as they pulled apart.
"Nice move," Magnus said.
"Nice cartwheel."
Both boys charged again, both sending a kick. Their legs met in midair, halting the attacks. They both jumped back and went at it again. Magnus punched forward while Darren ducked down. The hunter managed to trip him by swiping his legs into Magnus's. However, he didn't stay down for long. He quickly threw himself back up and kicked towards Darren. He made contact, throwing the hunter back, but not before Darren landed a kick into Magnus's side.
Both boys staggered backwards, stopping for a moment. They were both breathing hard, sweat beading down their faces. They were still smirking though, obviously enjoying themselves. They both appeared to be preparing to charge, but neither one took a step. Instead, they both collapsed to their stomachs and rolled onto their backs. In between deep breaths, they were laughing.
"That was great," remarked Darren. "For a sorcerer, you're really tough."
"Thanks," he said. "You're not too bad either. You're a lot stronger than most hunters."
Both laughed for a while, trying to catch their breath. That had been rather invigorating. Neither had found a decent competitor for a long time, and now that they knew each other's strength, they would probably spar rather often. That is assuming that they were going to be traveling together.
"Hey Magnus?" Darren asked. "How about coming with me and Astrid?"
"What?"
"We're heading off to the Andagon Valley to see her dad. I was wondering if you and Xyra would like to come with us. I know you're trying to collect the talismans and all, but…"
"I'll go," he cut in. "Sounds fun. I've always wanted to meet the king of dragons."
"Alright. We should probably leave in the next few days then." The hunter slowly began to get up. He was a bit surprised to find that quite a few places hurt. "Damn…you really pack a punch." That drew a short, amused laugh from the sorcerer. "I'm gonna get cleaned up. See ya later."
"Okay."
As Darren left, Magnus began looking around the area. From here he could see the sky, and it was the perfect shade of blue. They have been blessed with such good weather lately. When he looked around a little more, he saw that he had two spectators. Christian and Xyra were standing on a balcony, watching him. The second his eyes met Xyra's, she turned away, possibly out of embarrassment, but it was hard to tell with her.
A sigh escaped Magnus's lips as his eyes closed and his smile fell. That was something he had yet to fix. He and Xyra were going to have to patch things up if they were going to continue traveling together. However, he couldn't help but be mad at her. He had tried so hard to convince himself that it wasn't her fault, but they both knew that it was. Hopefully, they'll be able to forgive and forget, or otherwise they will have a lot of problems on their hands.
Night had fallen, and just about everyone was sleeping or getting ready to. Magnus was just walking the halls, heading back to his room while taking detours. He had talked to Darren, and they were going to be heading out in the morning. The four of them needed their sleep. The sorcerer knew this, but he was busy thinking, and he thought better when he paced. He needed to make amends with Xyra, but he wasn't ready yet. Every time he saw her, he got angry. Yelling really wasn't going to help the matter any, so he always got away before he could berate her again.
As he passed a few more doors, he heard the sound of footsteps coming up from behind. He paid them no mind though and kept going. He didn't need to waste his time. He was far too busy being lost in thought.
"Magnus?" called out the person. He instantly recognized her voice. It was Xyra. She had spoken rather softly though, her voice shaking just a bit. He stopped for a moment, waiting to see if she was going to say anything else. "I'm sorry."