(no subject)
Title: Stay or Go?
Story: The Dragonfire Chronicles
Characters: Kitra, Makani, Istvan, assorted
Flavours: Rainbow Sherbet #13 [Silver]
Toppings: n/a
Extras: n/a
Word count: 2,251
Rating: G
Summary: In which a stranger arrives in Lang's hideout.
Notes: Olympics challenge: 1k marathon day 1 for Rusty's team... I swear I finished this before midnight! D:
Makani lifted his head, turning to look at the door. Kitra glanced up from her bowl of food, but otherwise didn't react.
What is it? she asked him. She thought she could hear some commotion from outside, but couldn't be sure if it was simply day-to-day noise.
Can't you feel it?
She gathered some of her magic and started to feel out her surroundings gently. She didn't want to set anyone on fire--but it didn't matter; when she felt it, she let out a gasp and her magic retreated.
He's strong!
Makani's tongue flickered out, as if he was tasting the air. Yes, he agreed. He's got a lot of magic.
It was probably best to investigate, Kitra thought. She reached over and Makani leaped fluidly into her arms, settling his head against her shoulder. No one reacted when they moved around now; it had been a few weeks since their arrival and they trusted Lang to keep them safe, if nothing else. Besides, Kitra had given them no reason to worry. Why would she? This was the only place they had left.
The noises were louder as she reached the door and ducked into the dark corridor. A man looked up sharply when he saw her, but he seemed to be waiting for her. "Someone's here," he said. "He's just ... appeared. Out of thin air."
Kitra frowned. Michal? she tested, but Makani hissed and the man flinched. Kitra bid him goodbye and followed the noises. Okay, so it probably wasn't Michal. She'd be able to sense Michal, anyway. But to appear out of nowhere...?
Strong, Makani repeated. Kitra nodded, unsure if he could see the gesture in the darkness.
They stepped out of the corridor into an open chamber, a little way from the pipes. Kitra could hear the crash of water, but she ignored it, looking around at the men. Three of them had drawn their swords; two of them had their hands on the hilt. Lang looked up at Kitra as she dropped down into the chamber, Makani's head reared up in interest.
"Well?" Lang said.
Kitra looked at the man.
He was old, older than anyone she'd ever seen before-though having a long life and living on the streets did tend to be mutually exclusive. It was more than that though, she thought, looking closer. There was something about him, like his physical age wasn't what was important.
Kitra reached out again with her magic and flinched again at the power of his. The man's eyes narrowed in interest.
"You're the magic user," he said.
Kitra stared. Makani shifted in her arms and she let him drop to the floor. He picked his way among the men until he was at the stranger's feet. The man smiled; there was a sadness in his eyes that went so deep-
"Who are you?" Kitra asked, aware of the wariness in her voice. She couldn't help it. Michal was still a reminder of how dangerous magic could be.
"My name is Istvan," the man said, giving her a shallow bow. "You are...?"
"Kitra," Kitra said, ignoring Lang's sound of protest. It occurred to her; he really had no power here. Clearly, this man had followed magic here. He was powerful enough to do whatever he liked. Lang couldn't get in his way.
Istvan crouched down, petting Makani's head. The little dragon arched into the touch and Kitra thought, briefly, traitor.
Shut up, Makani replied.
"What's his name?" Istvan asked.
"Makani," Kitra said. Istvan nodded, still ignoring the men that surrounded them. Kitra shifted from foot to foot. "Look," she said, finally, "What do you want?"
Istvan glanced up. His eyes were twinkling, though he didn't smile. "I followed the magic back here," he said. "I've been waiting for Makani for a century, you know."
Kitra blinked, surprised. She heard Lang let out a disbelieving laugh and resisted the urge to sigh. He still didn't believe anything she said, she knew that. Worse, he didn't believe Elena-and Elena had proof and methods on her side. "A century?" Lang said. "No one lives that long."
Istvan did smile at that. "I presume you understand by my entrance, that I am a powerful magic user?"
Lang shrugged. "Doesn't make a difference. You shouldn't have just walked in here."
Makani turned his head and his tongue flickered out, but Kitra sent an urgent, No!, and he didn't growl. She didn't need to offend Lang. They needed this place more than-
More than what, exactly?
"Why were you waiting for Makani?" Kitra asked, ignoring Lang's sound of protest at being interrupted.
"I was in Alraeish when the dragons were being killed," Istvan said. "I've been waiting for them to return and for them to bring magic back, too. I was hoping-"
Kitra waited. The whole chamber seemed to be waiting. "Hoping what?" she asked quietly.
"I was hoping I could help," he said.
Kitra stared, stunned. To say it wasn't what she'd been expecting would be an understatement; Lang even looked a little surprised, though he recovered quickly.
"You didn't even ask," he said. "You can't just come down here and expect to be able to do whatever you like."
What's wrong? Makani asked, as Istvan smiled serenely back at Lang.
"Why would I ask you?" Istvan replied. "There is nothing I can teach you. You have no magic."
He wants to help us? Even in her head, it sounded faint.
"I may have no magic, but there are ways of getting rid of anyone. Even people as supposedly powerful as you."
Kitra shook her head and crouched down, holding out her arms. Makani ran across the floor and jumped into them, his long tail wrapping around her torso as he buried his face in her neck. His wings fluttered slightly. He didn't know to be scared, not really, Kitra thought, but he knew when she was.
No one had ever offered to help them. Help had been earned and it had mostly come at a cost. Kitra looked at Lang and met his gaze for a second before her eyes skittered away. A cost like that, where she wasn't sure what he would make her do when Shuang and Fai were gone.
Istvan peered at her closely. "Kitra," he said, "I only wish to teach you, if you will let me."
Kitra swallowed. Lang opened his mouth to speak, but she shook her head. "There's more than just me here," she said. "There are others. You'd have to help all of us. And the others, the men. You need to prepare them."
"For what?" He looked confused, and Kitra wondered if he'd felt Michal yet, if he'd sensed that awful presence. Probably not.
"There's a man. He has magic too, but it's not-he drank the blood of a dragon." In her arms, Makani shuddered. That, he understood.
"That's impossible. Only the elders-"
"There is no one else," Kitra said. Her voice sounded hoarse; she realised, belatedly, that she sounded tired. "There are us and there is him. I need to protect Makani from him. The others need help."
Istvan took a couple of steps forwards and though the men moved, a whisper passing between them, Kitra didn't.
Will he help? Makani asked.
I don't know.
"I will do what I can," Istvan said. "I'll teach you and whoever else you have and if he comes, I will do what I can to help you."
Kitra nodded, not sure she could say anything else.
***
The first Shuang knew of the magical stranger was the message from one of Lang's boys. Fai looked hunted when he listened and he touched Shuang on the shoulder, leaning down to whisper in his ear.
"Kitra let him in," he said and Shuang frowned.
He trusted Kitra's judgement; he really did. She'd been wary of Michal from the first time she'd seen him and she knew better than to believe everything Lana told her, but if this man had this much magic-It was possible even Kitra could be taken in by someone like that.
Shuang followed Fai without even asking for an invitation. If nothing else, he'd be there for Kitra's sake.
When they got to the room, Kitra was sitting on a low bench, stroking Makani's back even as she watched the stranger. Shuang glanced over him briefly but then sat on the bench next to her, his gaze following Fai as he crossed to speak to his father.
The stranger-Istvan, the boy had said-looked at Shuang for a minute before he went back to smiling gently at his hands.
"Are you alright?" Shuang whispered.
Kitra nodded. She looked scared still, wrung-out, like when they'd first met.
"He said he wants to help," she said, glancing over at Istvan. "He wants to teach us how to use our magic properly."
"Us?"
"I didn't tell him who Elena and Jethro were, but he would know anyway. He found me, Shuang." She looked down at Makani, who hummed softly. "He found the both of us."
Shuang nodded, putting an arm around Kitra's shoulders. She tensed, but then relaxed, leaning into his side. Makani never moved. "Michal's not as strong as he is, is he?" Shuang asked.
"No."
Fai finished speaking with his father and walked back across to them. Istvan was looking at the three of them now, lined up on their little bench: Kitra in the middle with Makani in her lap, Shuang and Fai flanking each side. He didn't look malicious, Shuang thought. He looked-almost like he was sad, like he was missing something.
Elena paused at the doorway and Kitra pulled out of Shuang's grasp when she noticed the water trickling towards the woman. "He's not going to hurt us," she said.
Elena's eyes were wide, but she looked around the room and nodded. The water didn't stop flowing, but it wasn't a flood, either. Shuang turned his head when he noticed Fai move out of the corner of the eye. Fai tilted his head and Shuang shrugged. He didn't know if Elena could control it, but it would be best not to spook her.
"Hello," Istvan said, when Elena was close enough.
She smiled prettily and Shuang was sure her manners were ingrained in the same way his were. "Hello," she replied, ducking her head a little. "You're Istvan, aren't you?"
Istvan nodded. He seemed to be waiting for her to continue.
"I'm Elena," Elena said finally. When Istvan nodded again, she hurried over to the bench, sitting beside Shuang. Kitra leaned forward and studied her-Shuang watched with mild amusement. She might be younger, but he was sure Kitra felt some kind of responsibility, though she'd never admit it.
"What's going on, Kit?" Jethro asked as he walked in, hopefully the final person they'd sent for. Shuang wanted to know what Lang's decision would be.
"Haven't you-?"
Jethro stopped to stare at Istvan for a minute, then shook his head. "I thought they didn't know."
Lang laughed at that and Jethro spun around, his hands balled into fists. "You thought I didn't know about your powers?" he said. "As soon as Amasai kept you, I made it my job to find out." He waved a hand dismissively. "It's rather unimportant though, if you don't know what's going to happen yourself. I thought this might be interesting to you."
Jethro threw himself onto the bench next to Elena.
Lang stood. "Now we're all here-" His eyes lingered on Shuang for a moment and then flicked away. He felt Kitra lean towards him, almost protectively. There was no need for the worry. "We have a decision to make. I was going to have this visitor-Istvan-forcibly removed, but I thought it might be prudent for the only people who understand his power, to decide what to do with him."
Elena gasped and Jethro rolled his eyes, but Kitra was staring at Istvan, trying to puzzle him out. Shuang looked at Fai. If they decided they didn't want him around, where exactly would he go?
"He should stay," Jethro said. Shuang wasn't sure if Jethro had seen anything or not, but his voice was firm. Maybe he was simply trying to annoy Lang. It wouldn't be the first time.
Elena, next to him, was nodding vigorously. "Stay," she agreed. "I need someone-" The water around her feet spread out and then retreated. Elena needed control, and so far, Kitra had been unable to teach it to her. Kitra, Shuang thought, only controlled herself because of the people on this bench and Makani. At least, that was most of it.
Lang looked to Kitra now. He seemed almost desperate, but now he'd said it, he couldn't take it back.
"What about you, firebug?" he said. "You're the most controlled of the three of you, the most powerful. If you decide he should leave-"
"If you send him out into Laradien, you're going to get somebody killed," Kitra said slowly. "If I can feel his power, then Michal will be able to as well. Better to keep him somewhere where he can be of use and be protected." She looked up at Lang and Makani lifted his head, hissing. "He should stay here."
Lang opened and closed his mouth a few times, but Kitra got to her feet. Without another word, she left the room.
Shuang struggled, and ultimately failed, to hide his smile.