Chapter 3: Getting to Know You...
Later, when they had caught up with Kriz, they all sat at a small
cafe, drinking mohk.
"So, Voren is your given name? Mine is Jekan." said the young man.
Voren nodded. "That'll help things a bit. Now, I will, of course, pay you
more than what my enemy, whoever it was, was going to give you."
Jekan shook his head. "No, that's okay. I don't want your money. So, What
exactly is your story?"
Midja nodded. "Yes, mika, you never told me very much about yourself,
either."
Voren sighed. "I suppose I have to, don't I?"
Midja and Jekan nodded together.
Voren sighed again. "Oh, well. Now is as good a time as ever. Ahem." Her eyes
glowed, and she started her story.

"When I was born, the empire had lifted the 'one baby a family'
law (three years before), because they had recently found the ancient spell
for space travel. That meant, of course, that our people could go to other
planets, so overpopulation was no longer a problem. Of course, most of the
citizens celebrated with an enormous baby boom. First, my brother was born,
then my sister, then my other sister, then me. My mother was full of joy,
especially when we weren't chosen to leave. You see, we came from the oldest
clan, the first clan, the..."

Midja interrupted. "You mean...The Felinjarinyez?!"
Voren sighed. "Yes. I always hated that name, it was too long."

"Anyway, I was the fifth, the last, the runt. Everyone loved me and coddled
me, because I was a weakling. No one ever thought I would do anything
important. My parents wanted to make me a scholar, but I had other plans...I
wanted to practice magic! I wanted to be something! My parents, however, had
this idea that I wouldn't be anything. So, they pressed me into studies."

Voren's eyes closed, and two tears squeezed out from underneath her eyelids.
"They...they didn't WANT me to be anything. NOTHING!"
Voren screamed, falling to her knees. Kriz and the others knelt down beside
her. She was sobbing silently, trying not to cry out loud. She suddenly fell
into Kriz's arms, and he held her, as the group got up and left. Little did
they know, however, that someone was watching them and noting their every
move...

Hours later, when Voren had calmed down, she continued. "Anyway, When I was
about 12 years old, I decided..." She paused, but didn't start
crying again. Then she continued.

"...I decided to run away. There was a wizard that I knew of, who
lived extremely far away, but I was ready. I knew what it would entail, and I
decided I could handle it. I packed only my most essential things,
including my necklace, which was the only special thing just for myself that
my parentsmhad given me. I...survived, but not...unscathed."

She paused again. Kriz looked over at her, wondering. She shook her head, as
if to rid it of memories, then continued.

"I reached the wizard, but he said I wasn't strong enough. At least, that was
what he had thought, but then...well, when he got me angry, I showed him that
I wasn't weak. He accepted me as his student."

She paused for the third time, and two tears AGAIN came down her
cheeks, but she continued.

"He was my friend, my master, my teacher. When I had learnt almost
everything, he came to me one night. I was reading at my desk. I looked
up, and he smiled at me. I was confused, but he sat down, and started
talking to me. He told me that I shouldn't be afraid, that I was strong now.
At first, I didn't understand, but then he told me that he had had a vision, a
vision of his death. I cried, and hugged him, and told him I didn't want him
to die, but all he did was hug me back and tell me that I would survive. I was
devastated when, later that night, an assassin came to our residence. I wanted
to help
him, but I was...too late. When I came, he was already dead, but
the assassin was still there. She was going to kill me, but then she
noticed how graceful and agile I was. She said, if I became her student, she
would spare me."

Voren paused AGAIN, then continued. "What could I do? I agreed, only on that
condition." Voren closed her eyes. When she continued, her voice was
different, harder, with more force.

"Mikadjin was her name. She drove me harder and harder, always forcing me to
learn, even when I didn't want to. Somehow, she always persuaded me to. I
hated that woman, hated her with a passion. I was glad when she let me kill
her. I don't think she ever REALLY wanted me to kill her, but...Well, one day,
she stood in my room, and told me to kill her. She must have thought that I
would hold back, but I didn't. I killed her, ripped out her heart, and she
fell. I caught her. I held her in my arms, and she said 'Voren krizhen, you
have passed the last test. You have killed the one who killed your mentor. I
was expecting you to.' Then, she died. I held her in my arms, blood all over
me, and I laughed. I was so emotionally stressed out, so crazy with pain, that
I laughed. Then I fainted, and the next thing I knew, I was sitting in the
place where we had lived, with the body in my arms still. I buried  her, gave
her a proper funeral, and walked away. The rest, you can find out anywhere
from common riffraff."

Voren opened her eyes. She looked at everyone. They all had shocked looks on
their faces, even Kriz, who had never heard a lot of this before.
Midja shook her head. "That's awful!"
Voren gazed at her. "Yes, but it is my life, and I must accept it. So, mija,
will you tell us your story?"
Midja turned red, but shook her head and began.

"I was born a slave, just at the end of the 10 year war. I was of the Feklar
lan, the losing side, so my mother was sold into slavery just before my
birth.
"My life was that of a slave: I was given tasks, if they weren't
completed, I didn't get dinner, or I got a whipping. Until you came along,
Chancellor Midrgal.
"I remember the first time I saw you, sitting on your horse, high and mighty,
so...so...beautiful..."

Midja blushed, but continued.

"I thought you were so wonderful, instantly I fell in love with you. I had my
necklace from my mother, and I always had such faith in the beautiful Goddess,
I held it and just prayed  that you would buy me,
"I was so happy when you did pick me, I almost fainted. I just knew you would
be kind to me.
"Of course, I had never believed you would consider a slave  a worthy mate, I
wasn't that stupid. I knew I would be happy if I could just be near you. I
knew I would be happy."

Midja closed her eyes, and tears came from under her lids.

"Those stupid slobs, they never cared for me for one minute! The
second you turned your back, they'd whip me and the other slaves. It wasn't
FAIR!"

Midja collapsed into Voren's arms, sobbing helplessly.
Kriz laid a claw on her shoulder. "Midja, krizhen, calm down, you're not a
slave anymore, they can't hurt you..."
Midja shuddered. Voren shrugged helplessly at Kriz, and picked up the girl,
carrying her upstairs to a bedroom. Jekan looked at Kriz funny, edging away
nervously.
Kriz looked curiously at the young one, not understanding him.
Jekan made sure he was at the farthest possible spot before he spoke.
"Look, you may be a chancellor or whatever, but I don't trust you. I may not
have much power, but I have friends in high places, and if you so much as set
a hair out of line, I'll kill you. Got that? I'll be watching you,
Chancellor."
Voren came back in. "Poor thing, she's exhausted. She's had a long day. I put
her to sleep with Sssya."
She just then noticed the way Jekan was glaring at Kriz. "Hey, what's wrong?
Jekan, what are you mad about?"
Kriz smiled. "Oh, Jekan didn't like the way I was describing the
races, that's all." he said glibly. "Say, that reminds me, you haven't told us
your story, now have you, Jekan?"
Before he could answer, Voren spoke. "Well, it can wait until the
morning. Besides, we'll want Midja to hear it too. Good night, both of you."
Voren went up to the second floor, and Kriz followed soon after, but Jekan
stayed up, contemplating.
I just don't trust him, and I can't figure out why...