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Myamarta. My brave little human.
Realizing I need water to show my tricks, I fetch the pail from inside the cabin before returning to her side. She watches me curiously as I set the pail in front of her and kneel. Her legs are tucked up beneath her, and her fingers are clenched tightly inher pants. Her eyes focus on the pail first before trailing up to my face.
“We’ve spoken of many things, but perhaps I should tell you of my origins,” I murmur, reaching into the water pail. My fingers grow slick with the liquid, and part of me wishes they were slick with something else so I could show Kai exactly what she means to me through pleasure, but I immediately push those thoughts from my mind. She isn’t ready. She may never be. It does no good to torture myself. “I was also a victim of the king, long before his fall.”
Kai sucks in a breath. “You were?”
I nod carefully, preferring to stare at my reflection in the pail rather than look into her eyes. “Dade and Weyland were born monsters,” I say, grimacing. “But me? I was made into one.”
Dade shifts uncomfortably, as if he understands where I’m going with my story. Warhorses were also made in some respect, but Dade was likely not the first, even as he’s the last. Warhorses were born at some point from those who were originally made.
“The king was always jealous of the Dead Lands, of the magic that permeates the soil. When the wall was erected, it caused the slow decline of that very magic, but the king sought to own a piece of it and so his experiments began.” I tilt my head, my black eyes like inky pools of darkness in my reflection—eyes that somehow appear human despite the clear monster I am. “I was not the first experiment, but I am the first one to have lived. Part beast, part human. With that creation came many things.” I twirl my fingers through the water and feel the magic there, the lingering remnants of what makes me who and what I am. “I yearned for freedom, which I eventually achieved when a guard wandered too close to my cage. I was filled with a thirst for knowledge that I never seem to quench and . . . the ability to control and survive in water.”
With my words, the water begins to swirl up from the pail, coiling in the air as if controlled by some outside force. Kai’s eyes widen in wonder even as Dade and Weyland suck in breaths behind me. I coax the water around Kai, letting it brush against her skin before allowing it to dance and wave. Once her eyes remain riveted on the water floating in the air, I force it into shapes. I make a lope run around her, sprinkling tiny water droplets on her face and bringing giggles from her lips. A snake coils around her, stroking the skin on her arm. Finally, my shape appears in the water, swimming. A human woman dips below the surface, languidly swimming, my form bursting around her. It’s clear the two shapes mingle and dance, but before they can go any further as they embrace, I allow the water to drop back into the pail and sit back.
“I can also swim very fast and breathe under water.” I shrug. “It’s useless on land but a fun trick nonetheless.”
Kai leans forward, her eyes fiercely holding mine. “Do not discount your abilities, Kaito,” she says earnestly. “Thank you for sharing your gift with me.”
Something inside me clicks and settles into place. Even as she keeps her eyes on me, I can’t help but look away. During her healing, I’m realizing perhaps I have some healing left to do as well. Together, we can learn. Together, we can grow.
“Dade,” I say, clearing my throat before picking up the pail and moving it out of the way. “Your turn.”
Dade grins. “You have already seen what I can do,” he tells Kai.
Kai, in her brightness, smiles at him. “Yes, but another look won’t hurt, will it?”
And so the warhorse reveals himself in all his glory, and even I am filled with wonder at him despite seeing the monstrosities and masterpieces the king once made. The water in the paildances as my magic seeps out and seeks the human woman beside me.
To touch, to linger, to love.
The restof the day passed without incident. No monsters came to attack the cabin. No new beasts came calling on Kai, refusing to leave once they saw her. Although the Dead Lands are alight with the sounds of monsters and creatures eager for meals, they do not appear. Perhaps it is because of the warhorse that now patrols our perimeter, or perhaps it is the lycan standing guard outside the door. Either way, I know I am not needed outside, so I find myself trailing inside to bring Kai the plate of berries I found.
The small berries are a rare find so close to the cabin. Traditionally found far deeper in the Dead Lands, I assumed I would never have the ability to show Kai just how sweet they are, but I stumbled upon a cluster of their bushes and immediately thought to bring them to myamarta.
When I step inside the cabin, I find Kai sitting up on the edge of her bed, her face pinched with some emotion I cannot place. I expected her to be asleep by now or at least lying down. Instead, she seems haunted by something.
Worried that today did indeed push her too far, I set the bowl of berries down and rush to her side. “What’s wrong, Kai? Is everything okay?”
She glances up at me, her eyes filled with those memories that we want so desperately to chase away. Though we can never truly make her forget them completely, I hope that we can dull their existence. That is our plan, to help her heal and yearn forlife. Even if she decides that she wants to live without us, we would accept it.
Love will have you do anything to ensure that the one you love is happy.
Kai sighs, her fingers wringing together with anxiety. “I’m scared,” she admits, and my chest tightens. “I’m scared of everything, and I’m so sick of feeling so scared.”
I search my mind for something to help. “Would you like me to leave? I can make you some tea and—”
“No,” she rushes out, shaking her head. “No, please don’t leave. I just . . .” Her eyes trail across my face, taking in the black of my eyes and the pale blue color of my skin. “I just want to feel something. Even for a moment.”
I freeze, my heart beating rapidly in my chest. “You only have to ask it of me and I’ll offer you anything you need,amarta,” I whisper, unsure if I understand exactly what she wants. It’s best if she names it so that I know.
Her fingers shake as she presses them to her cheek, her emotions flashing between fear and desire. “Will you . . . Kaito, will you kiss me?”
The thundering of my heart grows so loud, I’m certain she can hear it. I want to. Waters, do I want to kiss her, but Kai is still healing. Her soul is still shattered despite her progress, and today was already a hard day.
I would never want to push her.
I would wait a lifetime for a touch of her lips.
