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The Seventh Shard - Chapter Five

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Noticing that Sahil and Raksha had begun to stare at them, Indivar renewed his efforts to get Gavin off of him, this time succeeding. He had half a mind to just dump his master in the oasis, but he decided against it, instead just giving him a shove before getting to his feet and walking away to sit in the shadow of a tree overlooking the oasis. Gavin watched him for a minute, smiling and feeling actually somewhat proud of himself. Even if it had only been for a moment, he'd felt Indivar somewhat give in to the hug, which meant he hadn't really minded it, or at least, he was starting to not mind it so much. Getting to his feet now, he slipped off the new shoes he'd gotten and rolled up his pants, wading into the water. It was cool and very refreshing. Feeling the water against his skin, Gavin smiled. He understood now why oases like this were such a precious thing to desert people like his new friends.

The sun sank low in the sky now, over the eastern horizon, and Gavin stared off towards it, knowing that was the direction they were headed. So far, the town they were going to seemed so far away. For the moment, that didn't matter, though, as he waded a little deeper into the oasis. After a moment of watching him, Indivar suddenly stood up and walked over to Xerxes, grabbing hold of the guide leash and mounting the Sand Cat once more.

"All right, then." He sighed. "We should continue to Hamakuso." Gavin stared at him, startled.

"What- But it's getting dark out!" He exclaimed. "We're not going to stop and rest for the night?" Sahil rode over to him on Zosar.

"Things are cooler at night." He told him. "It would actually be a better idea to keep moving through, to get as far as we can while our mounts are still in the mind to move. I know honestly that when Zosar does decide to stop, there won't be any chance of moving him until the warmth of day." Gavin nodded. That did make sense. With a sigh, he stepped out of the water and pulled his shoes back on. After a moment of thought, he handed the djinn his discarded vest, and Indivar nodded, shrugging the vest on. Before long, they had set off again, Gavin jogging alongside the animals and their riders.

Gavin tried to keep as close to Indivar as he could, but now it seemed the djinn was determined to keep ahead of him. Maybe it was Indivar's plan all along, but it made Gavin want to push himself, to keep up with him. It wasn't long before he found himself running hard, trying to catch the elusive djinn ahead of him. Watching him, Raksha shook her head.

"Don't push yourself too hard, Gavin." She warned him. "We don't want you to collapse, you know." Sahil chuckled a bit as he watched Gavin run.

"At least he's motivated." He remarked. "He'll slow down when he realizes he could never catch a djinn in a thousand years. Not when that djinn is deliberately avoiding being caught." Raksha sighed, nudging Kamat to move a bit faster.

"You can only catch one that intends to be caught.." She acknowledged. "These two don't plan on making anything simple, do they?" Sahil laughed, pushing Zosar forward a bit.

"But where's the fun in simplicity?" He teased. "I'd rather live a complicated life, than be complacent with mediocrity." As he ran, Gavin had half a mind to just leap on Xerxes's back like he had before, but he decided against that. The Sand Cat was moving too fast now anyway. As the sun finally set behind the horizon, there was a brief flash of blue light, so startling that Gavin nearly tripped and fell on his face.

"What was that?!"

"A rare occurrence," Inoday replied. "It's not often that we are able to witness the sunset's beacon." Gavin stared at him a moment, when suddenly Zosar decided it was time to lie down where he was. Sahil blinked, staring at his mount a moment, before he sighed.

"Well, I guess this is where we stop." He commented. "Because this big boy won't be moving again until morning, unless you want to try pissing him off." He dismounted and removed the reptile's saddle now. Raksha, Harij, and Inoday quickly followed suit, but Indivar was reluctant to follow their lead. Gavin, however, slumped to his knees and leaned his back against Zosar's side, making the reptile lift his head to look at him, his tongue flicking out briefly.

"Hey, man.." Gavin smiled, petting the Ikisi's snout a bit. Zosar gave a gentle grunt, nudging his hand a bit. Sahil smiled as he watched Gavin.

"He likes you." He remarked. "He doesn't do that with just anybody." This thought made Gavin laugh a bit, and he continued to pet Zosar a little.

"That's not really that hard to believe, I guess." He replied. "If only Indivar would be like this. But instead, he's Mr. Man of mystery over there." He looked over at Indivar, noticing the djinn had finally consented to dismounting and removing Xerxes's saddle. Sahil laughed softly, putting an arm around Gavin's shoulders.

"You shouldn't expect anything less or more from him, Gav." He teased. "Djinn aren't known for being open with people, and they're not typically as remotely friendly as Indivar has been behaving. I'd say you're lucky he's even been this comfortable with you." Without a word to anyone, Indivar carried over some wood he'd purchased earlier with the rest of the provisions, and set about building a campfire. Gavin watched him quietly, and was quickly made to stare in shock as the djinn created fire in the palm of his hand, using it to ignite the campfire. Really, Indivar was full of surprises, that if he really thought about it, he should have expected from a djinn. But wait, why exactly did they need a campfire in the desert? It wasn't like they didn't have heat for while they slept. The animals were a great heat source, and the sand was still warm from having spent the day heated by the sun.

"Yo. What's with the fire, Indivar?" He asked, at a very strong risk of seeming like the biggest idiot in existence. Indivar stared at him with a deadpan gaze, making Gavin realize he really had said the stupidest thing ever now.

"It'll keep any surupos and other night-dwelling creatures off of us in our sleep.." The djinn replied. "But I will be keeping watch this evening, so if there is any dangers, you may rest at ease.." Gavin frowned at this and shook his head.

"But you need to rest, too, don't you?" He reminded him. "We can all take turns keeping watch."

"I am resting now." Indivar told him, speaking so suddenly that Gavin was caught a bit off-guard. "I need not sleep, as long as I may doze a bit.." He shook his head and turned his gaze to the east. "It's no trouble for me to remain on watch through the night." Still, Gavin wasn't convinced.

"Somehow, I don't believe that." He countered. "Everybody needs to sleep. Even an all-powerful djinn like you. Don't bother arguing with me, because I'm not taking no for an answer." Sighing, he gave Indivar a stubborn look, really leaving no room for argument. Staring back at him for what felt like an eternity, Indivar finally sighed and turned his gaze to the fire, the glow of the flames making his eyes seem even brighter and almost eerie in the dark of the night.

"I suppose I'll take the first watch, then.." He replied. "If there are no objections.."

"No, no objections," Gavin responded. "except one." Indivar watched him carefully.

"And that would be?"

"Stop being such a jerkface." The redhead answered, shrugging. That one seemed to catch the djinn off-guard just a bit, as he stared blankly at Gavin as if he'd suddenly sprouted glowing mushrooms all over his face. "Also," Gavin started again. "Someone needs to explain who that guy was earlier. You know, creepy shadow man." Raksha shook her head.

"I doubt he's any more familiar to us than you, Gavin," she admitted, sighing. Gavin was inclined to believe her, but he couldn't help but notice Inoday shifting uncomfortably at the question. Harij seemed to notice as well, as he gently poked Inoday in the back with his riding crop. Inoday yelped sharply, startled, as he jumped back a bit.

"You all right?" Harij prodded, his brow furrowing.

"Y-yes." Inoday stammered. "I'm fine."

"You're not fine." Raksha corrected him. "What's troubling you?" Inoday shook his head, forcing himself to smile.

"Nothing at all!" Sahil put a hand on his shoulder, all eyes watching Inoday.

"Liar." The Hakisi remarked accusingly. "You know something, don't you?" Inoday cowered under Sahil's hand, as the feline man tightened his grip just faintly, before he abruptly dropped the act that Gavin hadn't even known he'd been putting up.

"All right..." He sighed. "I suppose I can't travel with you, without sharing all I know." Gavin was a little surprised by the sudden confidence, and he glanced at Indivar, but the djinn remained as unfazed as ever, as if he expected everything that happened at all times. Picking up a rod from beside him, Inoday began prodding the fire, and he was soon painting pictures of light and flame.

"That man, is called Majid." He admitted. "And he is my brother. I love him dearly, as siblings should, but he has become dark, and cruel." Indivar watched the dancing images in the flame, pictures of two children playing, and he sighed.

"You are not quite as you seem, either." He commented, turning a slow, sideways gaze at Inoday. The other man shook his head.

"No." He acknowledged. "My fellow tribesmen believe I am no more than they are. Only our mother knew that my brother and I are elementals, with which she was cursed to bare." Sahil sighed, shaking his head.

"Why do I get the feeling that your mother is no longer of this world?" He remarked. Inoday shook his head, leaving Gavin to awkwardly pose the question.

"What..happened to her?"

"Majid murdered her, when she shouted at him..and called him a monster she never wanted."

"Jeez, he's got some serious issues." Gavin winced at the idea of someone killing their own mother. He loved his mother himself, and his sister and brother, too. He couldn't imagine ever killing them for any reason.

"So what do we plan to do?" Indivar sighed. "Eliminate the threat entirely? Ensure there will be no return?" Gavin stared at him in shock, stunned by what the djinn was suggesting.

"You mean kill him?!" He gasped. "He's Inoday's brother! He's..He's his family!"

"That shouldn't be allowed to cloud your judgement." Indivar snarled. "The man is a dark and corrupted elemental. He is not human, Gavin."

"Well, neither are you!" The redhead exclaimed, causing Indivar to falter slightly. All eyes had left Inoday and were now on the djinn and his master. "Just because someone isn't human, that's no reason to kill them! You're not human, but you don't see me going around saying, 'oh, he's a djinn! He must be evil! Kill him!'" Indivar was quickly on his feet, staring fiercely at Gavin the same way an animal would stare down its prey, and for a brief moment, Gavin saw just how much untamed power there was lurking just beneath the djinn's surface, waiting to kill him as Indivar's eyes glowed brighter than ever.

"His blood is not my reasoning for this, thought I would not think twice about taking his life even so." Indivar snapped. "He is corrupted and deadly, and if left to his own, he will destroy this realm and all others with it. That includes yours!" Gavin was speechless now, staring at Indivar. He'd never seen him so upset. Raksha put a hand on Gavin's shoulder, sighing.

"We'll do what needs to be done." She told him. Gavin slowly pulled his gaze away from Indivar to look at her.

"But..killing someone?"

"Sometimes, these things must be done." Inoday sighed.

"You, too?" Gavin just couldn't wrap his mind around all of this. "He's your brother. I thought you said before that you cared about him!"

"I do." Inoday nodded solemnly. "I love my brother, very dearly..but it hurts me to see him this way. I want to end it, and free his tortured soul..." Now that was just depressing, as Gavin realized that Inoday was willing to kill his own brother, to free him from an apparently tortured existence. He shook his head, sighing.

"I can't.." He replied. "I can't kill someone! Especially not knowing he's your brother!" Indivar put a hand on his shoulder, his fierce gaze locked on him.

"What would you rather was done?" He growled. "Kill one man and spare millions.. Or spare one man and slaughter the entire population." Gavin put a hand on Indivar's wrist, staring at him.

"I'd rather not kill the population, but- I'd rather not kill anyone at all if I can help it." He groaned. "I- Killing just isn't right!" Sahil stared at him and shook his head.

"Killing is a way of life in this realm.." He explained. "I don't know how things work in your home, but you have to put that aside and understand that in this realm, death is a necessity to survival. I grew up brawling in an arena far from Dhai-Ta'ari. I was born in Imakiso, in the country of Ma'akhet, far to the east, but I was taken from my home when my mother was killed by the very men who trained me to fight." Gavin stared at him, unsure of what to say, but Sahil continued, his gaze turned to the crackling fire. Inoday, listening to Sahil's story, wove pictures in the flames to match the Hakisi's words.

"I lived in the bowels of the arena in Makai, forced into a chained existence, made to fight for my life each day. If I didn't kill my opponents, they would kill me." Sahil told him. "Killing..is an existence in this realm. I escaped the arena..when I killed the woman who kept me chained, and I ran for my life. Yet, I still fight daily, to make a little money to live."

"But you don't kill anymore!" Gavin pointed out. "Back in the market, when I saw you- You didn't kill those guys, then!" Sahil shook his head.

"I held back..because I saw you watching." The redhead stared, almost speechless. Inoday prodded the fire, changing the images dancing within the flames, before they dissolved back among the flickering glow. Gavin sighed and stared at those around him.

"You will learn, Gavin, that things do not..and cannot, work here the same as they are in your realm." Indivar murmured before he stood and began to walk away from the flames, almost vanishing into the darkness of the night. For a moment, Gavin stared after him, before he scrambled to his feet and ran after him, not wanting to lose sight of the djinn. When he caught up to him, he nearly collided with him, not realizing that Indivar had stopped, as if he'd been expecting Gavin to follow him. Putting a hand on his arm, Gavin hesitantly spoke up.

"You're..going to have to teach me, you know.." He remarked. "That's not something you can just push off on someone else. I'm asking you to teach me, Indivar." He could barely see Indivar in the dim light, only a faint profile and the djinn's glistening gold eyes, as Indivar turned his gaze to him.

"I've already begun to teach you.."
Part five of the NaNoWriMo submission. Uh..guys..I might not make the deadline this time around. -facedesk- Leave me comments, hopefully encouraging. Please, someone be my cheerleader before I just give up?
© 2012 - 2024 Yoru-Akuma
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