lisa sat on the couch, her hands still shaking slightly as the events of the day began to sink in.
Her parents were seated beside her, relieved and exhausted.
Javir stood in front of them, her hands glowing with a soft, warm light as she finished healing listair's wounds.
"There," she said, stepping back with a satisfied nod. "Good as new. Or, well, as close as I can get you without a full night's rest and a hearty al."
listair chuckled, flexing his newly nded hand, wiping the blood off his knuckles.
"I'll take it. Better than the alternative, that's for sure."
But then his face grew serious, a frown tugging at his lips.
"Still, even though we gave those bastards a good thrashing, I doubt they'll give up that easily. A man like Striker, he's got an ego the size of a dragon. He won't let this go."
Javir sighed, running a hand through her hair.
"I was afraid you'd say that. And as much as I'd love to give you all more ti to think things over, it seems like my suggestion is more needed now than ever."
lisa perked up, rembering their conversation from earlier.
"Oh, right! Javir, you said there were other ways for nim to beco free in Syux, besides getting a scholarship. What were they again?"
Javir smiled, a glint of amusent in her eye.
"Sharp as ever, aren't you, kid? Yes, there is another way. If a human pays for a nim's freedom, they can beco a free citizen of Syux."
lisa fell silent, her mind whirling with the implications.
[Javir could do that for us. She could buy Mom and Dad's freedom, and then we could all go to Syux together, as a family.]
But the words stuck in her throat, a lump of embarrassnt and uncertainty holding them back.
[I can't just ask her to do that. It's too much, too big of a favor. She's already done so much for us...]
But Javir, seeming to read lisa's thoughts, knelt down in front of her, looking her straight in the eye.
"lisa, I know what you're thinking. And I want you to know, I'm willing to do it. I'll pay for your parents' freedom." She stood up, looking back at listair and Margaret. "On one condition."
lisa swallowed hard, her heart pounding in her chest.
"W-What condition?" Margaret asked.
Javir grinned, a challenge sparkling in her gaze.
"That lisa apply to Syux Academy. I don't want to see her talents wasted. She does that, and you can consider your freedom in Syux already acquired."
lisa looked back at her parents.
They looked at each other.
"It's your choice, lisa," listair said. "Do you want to apply?"
"I do," lisa answered without hesitation.
"Then... That's it, then."
Javir laughed, ruffling lisa's hair affectionately.
"Alright then, it's a deal. I'll take care of the paperwork and the fees, and I'll give you the material you need so you can start studying for those entrance exams. We'll turn you into a top-tier mage yet, just you wait!"
lisa couldn't help it. She launched herself at Javir, wrapping her arms around the woman in a fierce hug.
"Thank you," she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. "Thank you so much, Javir. For everything."
Javir hugged her back.
"You're welco, kid. Now, unless you guys want to go for a second round against that man and his friends, go pack your things. I'd like it if we left by the end of the night."
And with that, the deal was struck, a new path unfolding before lisa and her family.
It wouldn't be easy, she knew that. But with Javir by her side and her parents' love and support, lisa felt like anything was possible.
[Look out, Syux Academy,] she thought, a grin spreading across her face. [Here cos lisa Blackfla, future hero extraordinaire!]
---
While her parents finished packing, lisa darted through the streets, her heart pounding.
In her hand, she clutched a rune, one she had crafted specifically for the old shopkeeper who had first let her know how high the standards of magic in the world actually were.
She burst into his shop, startling the man as he was reorganizing his shelves.
"lisa?" he asked, blinking in surprise. "What in the world are you doing here so late, child?"
lisa grinned, holding up the rune.
"I wanted to sell you this, old tir. A special, one-of-a-kind rune, just for you!"
The shopkeeper chuckled, shaking his head.
"Haven't we talked about this already, little miss? I thought I made it clear that I'm not in the market for those."
But lisa wasn't deterred. She shook her head, a mischievous glint in her eye.
"Ah, but this one's different! It's for a spell you've never seen before, one that I invented myself!"
The old man raised an eyebrow, intrigued despite himself.
"And what spell would that be, pray tell?"
lisa giggled, grabbing his hand and tugging him towards the door.
"Co outside and I'll show you!"
Once they were in the street, lisa took a deep breath, focusing her Essence and drawing the spellsign in the air.
"Illumi, nerca, var fal!"
A brilliant blue fla burst from her hand, dancing and swirling in the night air.
The shopkeeper's eyes widened, a look of amazent and respect crossing his face.
Back inside the shop, he nodded slowly, turning the rune over in his hands.
"That's... impressive, young lisa. Very impressive indeed."
He glanced at her, taking in her traveling clothes and the pack slung over her shoulder.
"But I can't help but notice you seem to be dressed for a journey. Where are you off to, if I may ask?"
lisa bead, practically bouncing on her toes.
"Syux! I'm going to join Syux Academy and beco a real mage!"
At that, the old man's eyebrows shot up, a spark of recognition in his eyes.
"Syux Academy, you say? Well, well, well..."
He rummaged through his pockets, pulling out a single coin with a black flower etched onto its surface.
"In that case, consider this my paynt for your rune, and a bit of advice to go with it."
lisa took the coin, turning it over in her fingers with a curious frown.
"What is it? What does it an?"
The shopkeeper smiled, a secretive, knowing sort of smile.
"When you get to the Academy, find one of the teachers, one with the surna Suthers. Give her this coin and tell her Balor sent you. She'll understand what it ans."
lisa's eyes widened, a thrill of excitent running through her.
"Balor? Is that your na?"
The old man chuckled, patting her on the head.
"It is, child. Now, off with you! You've got a long journey ahead, and a bright future waiting at the end of it."
lisa grinned, tucking the coin safely into her pocket.
"Thank you, Balor! I'll co back and knock your socks off before you know it!"
"I'll wait with bated breath," he chuckled. "Farewell."
With a spring in her step, lisa raced back ho.
As lisa burst through the front door, she was greeted by the sight of her parents and Javir, their packs slung over their shoulders, excited and nervous.
"There you are!" Margaret exclaid, pulling lisa into a quick hug. "We were just about to go looking for you."
lisa grinned, her cheeks flushed from her sprint through the village.
"Sorry, Mom. I had one last thing to take care of before we left."
listair raised an eyebrow, glancing at the bulging pack on his daughter's back.
"And what might that have been, my little adventurer?"
lisa just winked, tapping the side of her nose.
"Nothing big. Promise."
listair, behind Margaret, frowned, a thought occurring to him.
"By the way, how exactly are we going to get to Syux? It's not exactly a short walk from here."
Javir grinned.
"Oh, don't you worry about that. I've got it all handled. Now, let's get moving before the sun cos up and ruins my big dramatic exit!"
With that, she ushered the Blackfla family out the door, leading them towards the edge of the forest.
As they stood there, the village behind them and the vast unknown ahead, Javir began to move her hands in a complex pattern, her fingers weaving an intricate spellsign in the air.
Her lips moved, murmuring an incantation that seed to go on forever, the words flowing together in a lodic stream of power.
lisa watched, transfixed, as the air around them began to shimr and warp, a faint glow emanating from Javir's hands.
And then, with a final flourish and a burst of light, a spectral carriage appeared before them, its translucent form shimring in the moonlight.
"Whoa," lisa breathed, her eyes wide with wonder. "That's so cool!"
Javir grinned, dusting off her hands with a satisfied nod.
"Pretty nifty, right? Were you all worried I was going to make you walk to the human kingdom?"
As her parents climbed into the carriage, marveling at its ethereal beauty, lisa paused, turning to take one last look at the village she had called ho for the last week or two.
The longest week or two of her life. Well, of this life or the last.
"What's Syux like?" she wondered quietly. "Will it be very different from here? EH?"
Suddenly, she felt herself being lifted into the air, strong arms wrapping around her waist as Javir spun her around with a laugh.
"Oh, kid, you have no idea!" she exclaid, carrying lisa towards the carriage with a bounce in her step. "Syux is like nothing you've ever seen before. It's big and loud and full of more people than you can possibly imagine!"
She set lisa down inside the carriage, plopping down beside her with a grin.
"But you know what? I think you're going to love it. Because in Syux, anything is possible. It's a place where dreams co true. Especially for soone like you."
And with that, Javir flicked her wrist, and the spectral carriage began to move, carrying the Blackfla family towards their new life.
Now, more so than when she'd first woke up even, lisa felt like her new life was truly beginning.
Reviews
All reviews (0)