84 - Remembrance

“But it’s not fair!” Maia said to her father, and not for the first time. “I don’t want to marry that strange werewolf warrior! And I am perfectly capable of going with the hunting party to kill the Kraken!”

Chen, the tribe’s shaman, gazed at his eldest daughter with a look that was part pride, part exasperation.  He explained the situation to Maia yet again. “The chieftain has already agreed.  He believes Reid is the only warrior skilled enough to slay the monster that has been attacking our fisherman, and the werewolf’s price is marriage into the clan...”

“There are plenty of other unwed girls here, Father. It’s not like I’m the only one!”  Maia said defensively.

Chen sighed.  “But Reid wants a shaman’s daughter, and all six of your younger sisters are either married or already promised to another man. Would you have me insist one of them forswear their vows?”

“No, of course not!” Maia answered, although deep down she had hoped that one of her unmarried sisters would be willing to swap her intended husband for the werewolf instead.  After all, how different was one man from another?  “But there has to be another option! Besides, I’ve never been trained to use the magic! And I’ve never learned womanly crafts like sewing clothing and weaving blankets. I’d make a terrible wife!”

But the reality was that Maia didn’t want to be a wife at all.  And although it was true that she wasn’t able to sew, she certainly could cook and she knew how to gather edible foods like other women did. But anyone could do that; warriors did have to feed themselves while on a long hunt.  And that’s what Maia was—a hunter and warrior, helping to protect the tribe from predators and provide food to sustain them. She had done as much as any man of her clan! Why should she have to give up her chosen path just to belong to a man and lead a dull and narrow life?

Chen saw through his daughter’s objections. “You know how to cook and plant and gather, which are all needed skills in a wife.  You could learn to sew or simply barter for clothing as you already do now. As for the magic, you don’t need to know how to use it yourself to pass the ability down to your children, as some of your sisters have done.  I would enjoy seeing grandchildren from you as well.”

“So that’s what this is all about then?  Babies?  Bah! You have grandchildren enough from my sisters already! And what would I want with babies?  Noisy, messy, stinking...  I would never be able to go on a hunt again if this Reid is virile enough to sire a child on me every year! Father, that’s not the life I want to lead!”

Chen was quiet for a moment before he spoke. “The customs of a werewolf pack are different than in our tribe,” he explained. “They value the ability to fight in their women.  This Reid was even more eager for this marriage to take place once he learned of your hunting prowess in addition to the shaman magic in your blood. And you must know that you will never have a marriage offer from a man of our own clan.”

Because they know I can run circles around them, Maia thought, but said instead, “Good! I don’t want or need a mate, and I can take care of myself!”

“You are strong and able-bodied now, my daughter. But without a mate you will never have children, and without children, who will care for you in your twilight years?”

Maia had no real answer for that. “You would see me unhappy then?” she asked instead.

“I would see you conduct yourself like a true warrior—with honor,” Chen said sternly.

Maia lowered her head in defeat, knowing her father would not be swayed by her arguments. But Maia still loathed the idea of being traded off like an object to some stranger!  

It wasn't that she objected to the werewolf personally—Maia barely knew him. And it was true that she liked looking at him; she found his lean but powerful build enticing, and was certain she would find mating with him quite pleasurable...

But still, it was the principle of the matter! And despite what her father had told her, she had seen how men could be possessive and demanding of their women.

Reid appeared no different to Maia.  He seemed to be ignoring the werewolf customs her father had told her about and was trying to fit in with the men of her tribe, if the manner he treated her was anything to go by.  He always wanted her to cook for him, even though he was quite capable of doing so for himself.  

He growled or sulked when any other man so much as looked at her, and though none of them would ever offer marriage to such a bold and headstrong woman, they still stole glances as men will do.

Worst of all, when he assembled the hunting party to slay the Kraken, he declared that she would not be allowed to join it as he would not risk her life!  More like he wouldn’t risk his prize, Maia thought derisively. So much for respecting women warriors!

But what could she do?  Her father and the chieftain had already made the agreement about their marriage. And being a shaman’s daughter and a hunter herself, she could not be so petty as to wish for Reid’s death in the fight against the Kraken simply to save herself, although such an occurrence would be a sign that their union was not meant to be...

While the hunting party was gone, Maia spent a great deal of time away from her tribe.  She told the elders she was hunting, and she did that too, but mostly she was thinking; trying to adjust to the idea that her life would be changing drastically very soon.

She was brooding over a cook fire one evening when she suddenly realized she wasn’t alone.  That was the day she met Samael.

Maia spent all her time with him for the rest of the moon-turn.  He wasn’t like anyone she had ever met before. Samael didn’t want to change her, and he didn’t even think it was strange that she didn’t want to have children.  Daily tasks were shared equally as well, and when she brought back dinner, he was more than willing to cook for them both.

And they had a great deal to talk about. Samael claimed one of his ancestors originally came from another world beyond the stars and that he possessed the otherworldly magic of their race, called Biomancers.  Although he was raised as a native to this planet and never knew his alien family, another alien had discovered him in his youth and helped train him in his magical abilities. Biomancers combined the magical powers of their minds with a form of knowledge they called science to create life and enhance it.  

Samael would use his own energy to strengthen and revive Maia when she grew weary, and he never needed to sleep himself. They would often sit up all night together while Samael pointed out stars that other worlds orbited, and Maia shared the legends her tribe told around the campfires about those same stars.

Samael’s magical abilities and his passion about the arcane also encouraged Maia to attempt using her own witchcraft, something she had never been interested in before. Samael challenged and inspired her, and Maia felt a connection with him unlike any other.

Despite being promised to Reid, Maia realized she had fallen deeply in love with Samael.  And when she admitted her feelings to him, he confessed his love for her was just as powerful and that he wanted to be with her always.

But eventually, Reid’s hunting party came back victorious and the tale of the Kraken was told around the fire.

They’d sent out one of their warriors in a boat to lure the creature in from the depths of the sea where it lived.

Once the monster had been drawn nearer to the surface and into the shallower bayou, Reid and his warriors leaped in the water with their spears and attacked.

The battle against the beast waged for long hours, and all the warriors had been wounded to some degree by the Kraken’s flailing tentacles and savage beak. But despite the wild thrashing of the monster as it fought back, Reid himself had plunged his spear deep into one of its immense eyes, killing the creature at last.

Maia was glad their fishermen would now be safe, but she knew she couldn’t marry Reid when her heart belonged to Samael.  And when Maia’s father announced to the assembled tribe that she and Reid were to wed immediately and everyone began looking around for her, Maia did the only thing she could think of. She ran away.

After meeting with Samael deep in the swamps, she explained to him about Reid’s return and how she would be honor bound to wed the werewolf if she remained with the tribe, so she had run away.  

"I would rather be alone than be with anyone but you," Maia said earnestly.

"So long as I breathe, you will never be alone," Samael vowed. "My heart will belong to you forever."

And so the two of them fled together, leaving no visible trail behind, believing no one would ever find them.

When Maia failed to return to the caves of the tribe to fulfill the marriage agreement, Reid set out for the swamp, determined to recover his missing bride.  Using his keen werewolf senses, he sniffed around for Maia’s scent.

But he was interrupted.

“A hunter, and a werewolf besides,” someone exclaimed.  “You’re exactly what what I need!”

Reid saw a red-skinned woman standing in the clearing where no one had stood mere moments before. She obviously wielded powerful magic.

The woman explained she was searching for a man called Samael who had gone missing. She promised Reid she would use her power to reward him with whatever he wanted most if he located the man for her. 

Reid told the woman that although the reward she offered was very tempting, he was seeking his lost bride. But when the magic woman produced a piece of clothing she said belonged to Samael, the werewolf was able to immediately detect the scent trail of the missing man.  Reid reasoned that the task of finding this Samael could be done quickly and he could resume his search for Maia in no time, so he agreed.

Reid began to track the man, but he was surprised to catch the scent of his bride as well. Maia had passed this way too... 

The werewolf wove his way through the tall reeds bordering the swamp, and suddenly came across a campfire and two individuals nearby who appeared to be lovers. His Maia was already mated with this Samael?!

Reid won the internal struggle to keep himself from attacking the man outright and turned away angrily instead.  He made his way directly back to the clearing where he’d met the strange woman, and told her about the lovers he had found—his bride was with her Samael.

“Wait here, then,” she told him, “and once I return I will grant you your reward.”

Kadru left the werewolf waiting in the clearing and headed off in the direction he had come from.  Once she could see the campfire the hunter had told her of, the Serpent Mistress released one of her snakes to spy more closely on the couple.

All was as the werewolf had described. Kadru laughed at the thought that Samael believed he had escaped her.

Maia abruptly stood up and looked around.  She had thought she'd heard voices, and had suddenly sensed she was being watched. But she could see nothing beyond the circle of firelight.

But Samael apparently could.  “Kadru!” he exclaimed.

“Surely you didn’t think you’d escaped me that easily?  Your faith in my abilities must be very weak indeed, Samael,” the Serpent Mistress responded as she stepped into the light.

Maia grabbed her spear and pointed it at the stranger that threatened Samael. “Who is she?” Maia asked him.

“Kadru is the alien who discovered me as a young boy, Maia.  I once thought she was a Biomancer like me, but she is from an evil offshoot branch of our kind—known as Iblisans—although I swear I didn’t know that at the time!  She lied to me to gain my trust.  She taught me the use of my magic, only to try twisting it to suit her own vile purposes.  But when I learned what she really was and the misery she intended to inflict on this world, I escaped,” Samael explained.

“But there’s so much more to it than that, Samael,” Kadru said with a wicked smile, “and you haven’t even asked about the child you’ve sired.  I thought you should know we have a son now; his name is Baal.” She arched her brow at Maia.

Maia was stunned. Samael had fathered a child with this woman??

“So that’s why you’ve come now,” Samael said.  “You intend to kill me; isn’t that what you Iblisans do to your former mates?  Kill them after the child is born so only the strongest parent is left to raise it?”

“Between Iblisans that is the tradition,” Kadru replied. “But with you being a Biomancer, even if you are only a half-breed, you have other uses to me still. And I can be generous to those I find useful. Shall we make a deal then?  If you come with me now and help me achieve my destiny...  I’ll allow this insignificant woman to live.”

“You leave Maia out of this!”  Samael shouted. “I will be the only one to pay for my choices, ignorant fool that I’ve been. If that means you steal my soul and add it to your collection, then so be it!”

“You leave me so little choice,” Kadru said and sighed with mock regret. And then, moving as quickly as the snakes she was mistress of, she cast a spell on Samael that froze him in place.

Then she addressed Maia as if nothing had happened. “Your werewolf is awaiting me in a clearing nearby, and I have a bargain to complete with him.  Shall we go together?”

“I’m not going back to Reid! And I’m not leaving this place without Samael!”

“Then don’t go back to the werewolf,” Kadru said with a shrug.  “I suppose you can go... wherever you wish; I have no use for you myself. But Samael belongs to me, so you can forget all about him.”

“No! Samael wants no part of you or your plots!  He and I share a love that a foul creature such as you will never understand! I will not leave him!”

“So defiant,” Kadru chuckled. “You really are no match for me. But love, you say?  How very intriguing!  Perhaps I have a use for you after all!”

And Kadru cast a spell, holding her hands to her head, her eyes locked on Maia as the target.

Although Kadru staggered a bit afterwards, nothing else seemed to happen. Maia stood her ground and watched Kadru warily.

But suddenly she became aware of an odd whistling sound coming from the air that quickly grew louder. Maia looked up, terrified; her spear slipping from her grasp unnoticed.

Although she dodged the enormous object that had come hurtling towards her from the sky, Maia didn’t escape the explosion that followed.

 Flames erupted all around her, trapping her.

 And then Maia burned.

The Serpent Mistress waited eagerly for Maia to die. Now that Kadru had a use for the woman, she was impatient to put her plan into motion. 

Once Maia’s soul had been released from her lifeless body, it was immediately absorbed into the molten heart of the shooting star. Then the Iblisan used an incantation that was the reverse of the one she had used to call it down, and sent it back into the black ocean of emptiness, from whence her kind had come.

There, the woman’s soul would burn in agony in the shooting star until she reincarnated, as punishment for standing in Kadru’s way. And if Samael loved Maia as much as she had claimed, knowing the torment she suffered would be good leverage against him once she unfroze him. Kadru would surely get Samael to do her bidding now!

But unfortunately, she would have to delay that pleasure. There was a werewolf waiting in a clearing nearby, and Kadru had promised him payment for finding the wayward Samael.  A deal was a deal.

Reid heard an unexpected explosion from deeper in the swamp, and he crouched as he waited for the unknown danger to pass.

When the sound had died away he stood up, only to be startled again by flashes of magical lightning.  The red-skinned woman had returned.

“We had a bargain I would see settled swiftly,” she said, “as I have other things to do.  Tell me now and be quick; what reward would you have of me?”

Reid considered what he should ask for. He was already strong in his own werewolf powers, and had gained considerable respect from the warriors of Maia’s clan when he had slain the Kraken. He would have a permanent home with them, as many supplies as he needed and children from his bloodline once he reclaimed his warrior-witch. In fact, she was all he wanted but currently lacked.

“My bride,” he decided. “I want Maia back.”

The magic woman cleared her throat. “I see. That might prove a bit difficult now; she is... gone. Are you quite certain there’s nothing else you desire?  A different bride perhaps?”

But Reid was undeterred.  “Maia is the only woman I will ever want to wed!  You swore I could have whatever payment I wanted most if I found the man.  I found him!”

“You did, and I am most grateful, warrior.  But with your woman having vanished, I’m not sure there’s anything I can do. Although...” she trailed off.

“What?!”

“Well, you are obviously a highly skilled hunter,” the woman said flatteringly as she placed her hand on his well-muscled shoulder, “and it might be possible for me to magically transport you to her...”

“Then I could get her back myself!” Reid said, relishing the idea of a chase, ending with Maia in his possession. “I will accept this deal.”

“As you wish,” the woman said, and quickly cast a spell and threw it towards his feet.

Suddenly, the swampy but formerly stable terrain Reid stood on was flooded, transforming into a quagmire. He shouted in alarm as the magical quicksand greedily sucked him down.

He thrashed about with great ferocity in an attempt to free himself, but that only caused him to sink deeper, faster.  The weight of the quicksand immobilized his limbs, and crushed the breath from him like a constricting snake as he sank ever deeper. Reid struggled to keep his head above it but he sank inexorably, choking on the watery mud that invaded his mouth and nose. 

Reid’s last glimpse of the world before his head was submerged was that of the expressionless woman who stood calmly above him, watching his final moments. Then the ground devoured him completely.

The werewolf soon drowned in the quicksand, and once his soul departed his body, Kadru grabbed it in a magical net as it rose from the ground and sent it into space without encasing it first in a shooting star. Kadru had no need to seek vengeance on him, only to fulfill her end of their bargain, so he would not burn in torment in a fiery prison as Maia would. 

There in perpetual darkness, his passion for the woman he obsessed over would burn even brighter.  He could easily look upon Maia and pursue her across the sky as per the deal he and Kadru had made, like in the story lore these humans told one another. Perhaps someday they would both reincarnate and the woman would finally consent to be his wife, balancing the karmic debt between her and the thwarted man consumed with anger and a sense of entitlement.  Kadru wondered idly if such a scenario would ever come to pass.

But that wasn’t her primary concern. Her deal with the werewolf had been concluded—even if his wish hadn’t been granted in the manner he had imagined it would be.  For now, there was Samael to deal with, and Kadru couldn’t wait to tell him what she had been up to.

And in the meantime, in the darkness of deep space, Maia’s soul burned on...