By: LegalGraveRobber

There are many kinds of knocks one expects at their door. Some are the excited knock of visiting friends and family, the simple knock of the courier delivering a package, or even the weary knock of your distant neighbor asking why your shed blew up for the fifth time this year.

Other knocks are less expected and more dreaded. The monotonous knock of the army telling you your mother had fallen in battle, the greedy knocking of the debt collectors, and the knock of those pretending to care only to take a piece of you themselves.

The knock at the door today felt far too similar to the latter category as I set my latest experiment to the side, careful to keep my wingtips clear in case the mixture decided to arc. It just wouldn’t do to meet these newcomers with scorch marks on myself.

Smoothing out my repurposed smith’s apron, I left behind my cozy workspace and entered the house proper. It had been a gift from Caliva Keep when I showed up on their island, and at the time…I wasn’t exactly in a position to turn it down.

Gifts like that always came with strings attached, but Lady Caliva had been quite willing to request, not demand, my assistance on occasion. Her pragmatism took some getting used to when I first showed up. I had expected schemes behind every word but…this was the frontier. As far from the capital and its schemes as one could get.

The knocking at the door still hadn’t subsided by the time I reached it. Readying my magic took a moment to prepare as I reached to open the door. The first thing I noticed was that the thunderclouds I’d seen this morning were quite a bit closer than before. The second thing I noticed was the young green dragon sunning herself beside my garden. And lastly were the pair of messengers with their tails and wings twitching in impatience.

“What do you want?” Mother had never taught me to be rude, but sometimes rudeness got what politeness couldn’t. The fact both of them were wearing the emblem of my family did not bode well either.

“Lady Talus Lazul, we are-” The larger of the two began.

“No.” I stated firmly, interrupting whatever spiel they had rehearsed for me. “Whatever the rest of my family has put you up to, my answer is no.”

“-are here to inform you of your grandfather’s passing.” They soldiered on.

There was a moment of pause as I processed their words. ‘Impossible,’ I thought. There was no way the Old Man was dead. He had survived far too much just to…die. But they were here for a reason, and that required them to tell me the truth.

When my mother died I was far too young to understand what it all meant. But now…now I understood why he had been so cold, why it took him forever to smile again. It wasn’t even winter and I was feeling numb.

Upon that realization, I closed my eyes and prayed. ‘By Ishan, may your rest be peaceful.’

He had been the one to teach me to fly, to understand my magic…he had always been there. I couldn’t imagine a world without him.

I did my best to hold back the tears, I needed clarity for the moment.

The leader of the two messengers took a step closer, as though to offer her condolences and support. I could feel the sickening sweetness of her intentions and returned my focus squarely upon her.

“Thank you for telling me of my grandfather’s passing. But I must ask, why are you still here?” I asked, barely keeping the grief out of my voice.

“Lady Talus, your brother Renal wished to have us inform you of the news and offer you safe passage to your estate.” She said officiously, even as I could feel her ulterior motives in their distinct flavors. They would bring me back, but they weren’t going to be quick about it.

Had this been any other day, any other issue for that matter, I would have told them to leave and take their machinations elsewhere. But today was no ordinary day, it was as far from normal as I could’ve imagined.

‘Wait…did they just say my estate? No…no no no.’

“Who…Who did the Old Man appoint as his successor?” Their intentions told me what the answer would be, and yet I felt compelled to ask. To hear it.

“That would be you, my Lady-”

Through the mounting grief I felt a certain pride that he had chosen me of all people to lead our family. It felt strange, like holding two lodestones against each other.

“-however, your sister Sothal has taken charge until you return.”

It didn’t surprise me much that she of all people would step up to lead the family, but given how I parted ways…

‘She always wanted to lead the family, but if the Old Man left it to me she’s not going to be happy to see me. Would she even accept it if I abdicated to her?’

Every single one of my thoughts circled back to the same irrefutable fact, for me to do anything, I had to return home first. I couldn’t remain here and ignore the Old Man’s last wish anymore than I could let these messengers fulfill their other duties.

“V-very well then. We shall set out within the hour.” I said, barely maintaining my composure. I just need to hang on for a few moments longer….

“There are things I must gather in the meanwhile.”

Both messengers looked shocked at my sudden pronouncement even as I shut the door in their faces. Stumbling away to the bedroom, I felt tears begin to stream down my face.

The Old Man was worth mourning over.

Gathering what I believed necessary was the work of only a few minutes, a single bag containing everything I would need for a trip…home. I couldn’t allow them to delay me as Renal wanted, and yet I found myself hesitating.

Wandering around my home wasn’t my intent, but it’s where my feet took me even as my vision remained blurred. Eventually I found myself at the door to my workspace. Everything was in its proper place, something the Old Man had impressed upon me when I began to tinker.

My fingers traced the familiar outline of my tools. A memory resurfaced of the Old Man doing the same motion with his weapons. In anyone’s hands a tool is just that, a tool. When wielded by a master, they became something more than that.

He knew what I could eventually do with my tinkers tools and…they had been his last gift to me.

I don’t know how long I stood there, tracing my tools while remembering the Old Man, but it wasn’t long enough. My face was far more tear stained than before, and it did nothing to impede me in finding another bag to carry them with me.

Returning to the door had an odd finality to it. I had spent the better part of a decade here advising Caliva Keep and I was prepared to drop everything to return to the family I had willingly left. That would need to be our first stop before anything else.

‘They took me in when I first arrived, and they deserve to know why I’m leaving.’

Opening the door, I could feel the cool breeze of the approaching storm even as the two messengers had huddled together by their ride here. The dragon didn’t wear the house emblem, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t in on their plans.

‘Talking with her will tell me all I need to know, but I hope she’s rested enough to head out now.’

Turning to shut the door, I took one last look at the quiet life I had built for myself here. Free from the machinations of others, and free to tinker as I wished. I could feel a small smile forming as I remembered my earliest attempts at tinkering with the Old Man.

‘He never did figure out how I fixed the old clock.’

I set my melancholic thoughts to the side as I shut the door. Running my hand along the wood I was struck once more by the enormity of my decision. Even if I returned, it would be with a heavy heart no matter what I chose to do.

A faint rumble of thunder pushed me to action as I approached the trio residing just outside my garden. The clearing we were in was large enough to hold my home, garden, and the remnants of the fifth shack I had built this year. An impromptu runway separated the shack remnants from everything else by a good distance.

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have been messing around with all that blitz powder then.’

Shaking my head to remove the errant thought I noticed the green dragon had spotted my approach while the two messengers were engaged in a whispered argument. A more polite individual might have waited for the argument to finish at a respectful distance, but I did not have time to wait on their scheming.

“I am ready to depart. We will need to make a detour to Caliva Keep if you are familiar with it.” I stated while raising an eyeridge to the sunning dragon. The two messengers stopped arguing like a pair of children caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

Snickering slightly, the green stretched before speaking. “I wouldn’t be opposed to visiting them and waiting out the storm. Flying through all that nastiness isn’t very fun I’ll tell you.”

“You would be correct in that, however I do not intend to wait out the storm there.” Her eyes narrowed in obvious disappointment. “I would like to reach the Capital as soon as possible, and you would be well paid for making haste.”

Her eyes seemed to light up as soon as money was on the table, while my magic merely confirmed what I had suspected. All she cared about was getting paid. The two messengers seemed less than pleased by her reaction.

“Lady Talus, with such a large storm coming surely it would be wiser to remain at Caliva Keep until it passes.” Once more the taller of the two said.

“Forgive me for not asking for your names earlier. I was…distracted by the news you gave me.” My voice momentarily betraying me. Of the three of them, only the dragon noticed as I felt her intentions shift ever so slightly.

“The tall one is Teno and the small one is Toshi.” She gestured vaguely at the two messengers. “And I’m Vurna. While they’re a little afraid of some puffy clouds I don’t mind hurrying things along for some extra pay.” Her relaxed tone and intent gave me some measure of relief about the coming journey.

I gave a deep bow of gratitude. ”Thank you Vurna. Let’s not wait any longer, the storm is coming.” I secured my bags to her harness while Teno and Toshi glared on. They felt rather frustrated, but since they were Renal’s lackeys it was definitely a good thing.

Vurna took a moment to get her legs under her while stretching her wings, which gave me the time to hop aboard alongside Teno and Toshi. After that it was but the work of a small running start and she was in the air with a generous tail wind from the coming storm.

That same tailwind propelled us onwards to Caliva Keep, pushing Vurna fast enough to nearly match a sprinting blue. I could see and feel Teno and Toshi talking elsewhere on Vurna’s harness but I paid them no mind.

I spent the flight numb, slowly accepting it all. When the keep came into view its tan colored exterior barely registered, the flutter of a banner less so. Yet, when Vurna came in to land, the sudden jolt broke me free from my thoughts and back to the present.

Climbing down from her harness I wiped away any trace of the tears I had shed along the journey. Only Toshi came down to join me in meeting the quickly assembling members of Caliva Keep. I didn’t need my magic to see her curiosity at my choice of a detour.

The surrealness of it all continued as Lady Caliva approached to greet us. Her words were like the faintest wind amongst the heaven oaks. My words formed free from any constraints my mind wished to place.

What struck me the most out of everything there was how easily she accepted my explanation. There was no doubt, no anger, no disappointment, not even an offer of something to entice me to stay.

She thanked me for everything I had done and wished me well on whatever I decided to do next. I felt so light and empty inside that I feared I might float away. I couldn’t keep up the facade anymore by this point and embraced her as one might their own mother.

Lady Caliva was pragmatic before all else, and she allowed me to embrace her as long as it took for me to recover. Her last words stuck with me even as we took off, just minutes ahead of the lightning filled storm clouds.

“Your grandfather chose well. You will make him proud.”

---

The journey back to the capital took five days, much to the continued disapproval of Renal’s lackeys. An impressively quick journey that flew by thanks to Vurna. Most of the trip I spent quietly watching the land and ocean pass by beneath us.

The awe and beauty of the capital bathed in early morning light did little to raise my spirits as I watched our approach. It felt odd approaching the family estate knowing every bit of it was mine now. That oddness scared me more than I’d like to admit.

Vurna was flapping her wings rather heavily, clearly exhausted by the journey, but she felt excited at the payday before her. My words carried weight now, and a promise of payment was a promise.

‘Lotek alone knows what sort of payment Renal had in mind for her. I am not my brother, and I will not bow out of paying her.’

Remembering Renal’s schemes with the Flaxens, brought a horrible thought to mind. Now that I was the Lady, I would have to deal with the same, if not worse, sorts of situations that led me to leave in the first place. I hadn’t even seen ‘home’ yet and I was already dreading my return.

“Perhaps I shouldn’t have-” I murmured only to catch myself.

’No! The Old Man picked me to lead the family. Quitting before even seeing the estate would be cowardice, and a disappointment to him.’

Steeling my nerves against further doubts I prepared myself for the inevitable machinations and lies I would be walking into. The very things that had made me leave…but now I was the Lady of the house. ‘I had better start acting it.’

Circling around the Capital we soon began to descend towards one of many estates around the city. The Lazul estate had been built centuries ago and had stood the test of time with the mansion itself changing very little even as the family did.

The trees that were still in bloom littered the grounds with their pink and red petals. The Old Man had always told me how his mother hated the trees, but never once took action to remove them. As he’d described it, seeing the children climb and play on them was worth it to her.

Bleeding off her speed, Vurna came in for a quick landing before the front of the mansion. Her wing beats stirred up many of the petals and plastered the pair of guards who had been approaching.

I couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle at the sight. The mental fog I had been wandering through lessened.

I hopped down from atop her harness just as she decided to lay down right there. “I think I’ll take a nap right here. Wake me when there’s food or money involved, especially if it’s both.” Her tired voice barely slurred out before doing as she’d stated and began snoring away.

Teno and Toshi meanwhile were doing their best to sneak away from the slumbering dragon. Likely to report to Renal that I was now home. Sighing, I turned to the guards whose approach had been delayed by some flower petals.

“W-who goes there? State your business.” One guard took the lead with only a little uncertainty.

“I am Talus Lazul, and I am here to honor my grandfather’s passing.”

---

The guards who had greeted me didn’t object much to a sleeping dragon at the front door. Either they knew the Old Man’s decision or they had decided to remember his lessons on discipline real fast.

My unintentionally dramatic entrance had garnered the attention of more than just the guards. The staff and even some of the family were peaking their heads out to see who the newcomer was.

I ignored them.

Finding Sothal was as easy as following the sounds of practice swords striking against armor. Her talent with the blade had been enough that the Old Man had let her train with the guard.

When I had left she was already teaching some of them in turn, but now…I didn’t know. Almost a decade apart and I knew less about my own sister than I did about making a clock run right.

Walking along the gravel paths I soon found myself just around the corner from the constant sounds of training and exertion. I took a deep breath to try and calm my nerves before activating my magic. Beyond the corner was a training field currently packed on one side with various guards watching the sparring match.

It didn’t even take a moment for me to spot Sothal thanks to her towering height and chipped right horn. She was even shouting encouragement and pointers at the guard she was sparring with.

Guards cheered from the sidelines, whether for his victory or survival wasn’t clear. My appearance in their midst got a few curious looks, but their attention soon returned to the sparring.

‘Well at least she’s not trying to kill him.’

His strikes soon began to lag as exhaustion set in. Sothal on the other hand wasn’t even breathing hard as she blocked each swing with her own sword. In a last ditch effort, the guard tried to flap his wings to obscure his next swing.

‘Oh that’s not gonna-‘

My realization came at the same time as Sothal’s mailed fist grabbed the leading edge of his wing and pulled. The guard didn’t even have time to swing before he found a practice sword held firmly at his neck.

“And that is why you don’t give your opponent the chance to grab your wings.” Her commanding voice held the tone of someone far more experienced in battle than I remembered. Releasing her now thoroughly exhausted sparring partner, she turned to address the remaining guards.

“With that lesson demonstrated who’s next…” Her confident cadence trailed off as her gaze landed on me. Shock, anger, and something closer to betrayal passed over her face before her tumultuous intent landed on confronting me elsewhere.

“Pick your sparring partners and practice. If I catch any of you slacking you’ll be practicing with me!” Her pronouncement was leagues colder than before as she gave the order.

I remained on the sidelines of the field as the crowd began to disperse, some of them glancing at the stranger in their midst but still following orders. Sothal making a beeline for me merely added to those looks.

“Talus.” She managed to avoid hissing as she towered over me.

“Sothal, I-“ A raised hand interrupted me.

“Not…not here. We’ll talk somewhere with fewer eyes, and ears.” Her voice had become colder than ice itself. A small knot formed in my throat at her reaction, but I followed her nonetheless.

Our destination was a small shed near the opposite edge of the field. I could remember playing so many games out here as a child. The knot in my throat only grew tighter.

A single door led into the small building, which hardly looked large enough to fit the two of us but Sothal didn’t even hesitate as she opened the door and stepped inside. I followed, closing the door behind us before looking over the dingy interior.

Several stacks of archery targets covered the only wall with a window leaving us in a state of twilight within. It was cramped, with little room to move beyond standing opposite each other.

I knew my sister at least well enough to recognize the urge to pace even without my magic. All that bottled up emotion and no way to express it as motion. ‘Uh oh.’

“You cowardly fucking bitch!” Her icy exterior melted in a moment to reveal the depths of her anger. “You leave in the dead of night, not a word or whisper to anyone, not even me! You ran like a coward, leaving behind everyone and everything like we weren’t good enough for you.

“But now! Now that the Old Man has kicked the damned bucket you decide to show up! The ashes aren’t even cold yet and you’re already digging through them.” The anger in her words hurt far less than the betrayal I could feel from her.

Everything she had said was right.

I had left in the dead of night, I was a coward, I didn’t even trust my own sister enough to tell her my plans. Leaving everyone behind was the only choice I could see at the time to retain my sanity.

“And of course the Old Man had to choose you of all fucking people to lead the house upon his death! Well…are you going to stand there like a piece of wood or speak?!”

Throughout her speech the knot in my throat had only grown tighter as I saw everything laid bare. I had hurt her, in my selfish desire to leave I had hurt her so much more than I thought.

“I-I told the Old Man before I left.” Her eyes had gone wider than saucers even as I struggled to keep the tears from forming. “A-and I should h-have told you. I…I just c-couldn’t stay anymore.”

“I am your sister! Why did you tell him and not me?!” She cocked her head to the side in bewilderment.

“You h-have no idea how m-much I wanted to tell you, t-to explain why I couldn’t s-stay a moment longer.” The tears I had been holding back finally began to fall.

“Do y-you know what it’s l-like seeing everyone y-you know and c-care for lying to your face? T-to see their naked intent laid b-bare? I saw all of it!”

For a moment I swore I could see Sothal’s eyes begin to tear up as she looked away from me. Her intent was such a jumbled mess I didn’t even bother trying to read it.

Her suddenly exhausted expression spoke far louder.

“I didn’t understand what all the infighting was about back then, I still didn’t for a long time…” Her voice trailed off as something seemed to click within her mind.

Faster than I could react, Sothal lunged towards me…and wrapped me up in a bear hug that left my ribs creaking.

“I didn’t get it then, but…I do now.” Her voice cracked as she too began crying.