“I knew you were mad,” she replied. “First you were talking to strange voices and now you’re acting like a lunatic.”
Will winked at her, then turned his eyes back to the giant, pointing a finger at the man. “Tiny! Sorry if I startled you. My head was a little scrambled for a moment.” Getting up from the floor, Will stretched, marveling at the youthful vitality of his body. “Damn, that feels good.” He ran his hands over himself, exploring his arms and legs, then rubbed his groin for a moment. “Oh, this is very nice! I’m going to love this.”
Tiny was looking very concerned. “Will. Maybe you should lie down and have a rest. You don’t seem well.”
“Well, maybe you should lie down,” he responded. “I feel fine.”
“Will?” asked Tiny, a funny look on his face.
“Will I what? Make sense, man!” snapped Will.
“Something is wrong with him,” Laina told Tiny. “He isn’t usually this stupid.”
Will paused and searched through his memories a bit more, until finally he realized what was wrong, then he laughed. “Ha! I was just on a lark. You didn’t think I honestly forgot my own name, did you?”
Laina nodded almost imperceptibly to Tiny, indicating he should move behind Will. Then she smiled. “So, did you already finish attuning yourself to the relic?”
“Relic? Oh! This thing!” said Will, holding up Ethelgren’s Exhortation. “I’ve got it mastered now. It’s amazing the things it can do.”
She smiled, then winked, and Tiny moved to wrap one arm around Will’s chest while grabbing hold of the rod with his other hand. Or rather he tried to do so. Will turned and pushed one hand toward the big man, as though he was pushing air. Tiny flew backward, smacking into the wall with solid but not dangerous force. He remained there, held back as though by an invisible hand.
Will tutted gleefully at the big man’s discomfiture. “Not so fast, my overlarge friend.” Laina started to move behind him, but he turned and snapped his fingers. She froze in place, but not from a spell. The move had been so sudden and the sound of his fingers snapping so loud that she had feared some lethal effect.
Will smiled. “Don’t run off too quickly, darling. We need to talk.” Turning back, he looked at Tiny pensively for a moment while his mind rummaged around looking for details in his memories. A spell formed above his hand. “Tiny, my good friend, I’ll explain everything later, but for now you’ll need to take a rest. I do apologize.” The spell flew from his hand, and Tiny sagged, slowly collapsing to the floor, unconscious.
He turned back to Laina. “Don’t worry. He’s fine. Is there anywhere we can get something to eat? I’m famished!”
“What is wrong with you?” she demanded, fear and anger fighting for dominance in her expression and voice.
“Nothing a good meal and the arms of a good woman wouldn’t solve,” he responded rakishly, giving her another wink.
The look Laina gave him was one of absolute disgust. Finally, she answered, “It isn’t safe out tonight, so I wouldn’t trust one of the public houses.”
“Oh, the vampires? No need to worry. I can handle them.” Moving past her, he opened the door and then offered her his arm. “Shall we go?”
She stared at him for a moment, but when he didn’t move, she finally reached out and draped her hand over his forearm. He looked up and down the hall before finally choosing the correct direction and then heading for the stairs. As they descended, she reminded him, “You know there’s a curfew on right now, don’t you?”
“That’s a damn shame,” he agreed. “But not a bad idea, considering the circumstances. I’m sure we can find someone willing to cook for us.”
That earned another odd look from Laina, but she didn’t say anything. As they stepped outside, she glanced around, but she didn’t see Darla. The former assassin appeared behind them seconds later, as if by magic.
Will didn’t react well to being surprised. As Darla started to announce herself, he turned and ‘pushed’ with his hand again, sending her flying into the side of the Alchemy building. She was pinned there, and he glared at her menacingly for a moment before Laina got his attention.
“What are you doing?” she demanded. “Let her go! She’s my guard!”
Will stared at her for a moment, then sheepishly apologized. “Oops.” He gestured, and the force holding Darla vanished, allowing her to slide to the ground. “Sorry about that, miss. I’m a little jumpy given the current circumstances.”
Darla started to reply, but Laina was standing out of Will’s line of sight and she held a finger in front of her lips to indicate the other woman should remain silent. The Arkeshi dipped her head and bowed, then moved to stand beside her mistress.
He stood for a moment, seemingly lost in thought, then set off in the direction of the school gate. Laina and Darla exchanged looks but followed without comment, and soon they were walking down the streets of Cerria. After only a few blocks, men appeared around them.
“You should know better than to be out wandering with a curfew on. Identify yourself,” said the leader of the guardsmen.
Will paused a moment, then announced, “William Cartwright, and my companion is Miss Laina Nerrow, daughter of Baron Nerrow.” He glanced at Laina with an unspoken ‘right?’ in his eyes. She merely nodded.
The leader of the guardsmen bowed. “Forgive me, milord. The king has instructed us not to interfere with your movements.”
He nodded, smiling. “Well that’s just swell! Give the king my thanks!” He waggled a finger at Laina. “Let’s go m’dear!” With that he resumed marching down the street as though he hadn’t a care in the world.
As they walked, Laina glanced over at him. “You seem very different.”
“I’ve recently come into a great deal of power,” Will said, lifting the enchanted rod and twirling it between his fingers in an elegant gesture. “You know what they say about power?”
“It corrupts.”
He grinned. “No! That it’s fantastic! Honestly, you wouldn’t believe the amount of confidence I have right now. That and some truly unbelievable urges!” His eyes traveled downward briefly as he gave her a lewd appraisal.
She visibly restrained herself, making an effort not to gag at the thought.
He gave her a direct look. “You wouldn’t understand. I feel like a sixteen-year-old right now, full of vim and vigor. I can hardly bear it!” For a moment, he focused on her eyes and Laina saw a strange flash of turyn swirl in front of his face for a moment. “I can tell you’re in love with me, by the way,” said Will confidently.