Hybrid

"We'll have to leave our shafts," I told her. "They may do this for hours."

I drew my sword and slashed off a foot to show the villagers. I wrapped it carefully in leather and put it in my pack. The thing smelled putrid and it made Serisi gag. We collected our money and threw the thing in the fire. We didn't waste any time in the village. I bought some apples and cheese from the merchant and we were on our way.

We journeyed north into the gathering cold and the breath of frost dogged our steps. We were heavily dressed, but Serisi suffered. She warmed herself until exhaustion forced her to stop. The snow fell in a blanket and we gradually climbed into the mountains as the cold grew still more bitter. We sought shelter beneath cliffs and made do with snow banks. Our tent saved us, and we dreaded leaving our blankets each morning. Our horses plodded as the winds whipped across us and we huddled within our robes as we rode.

She never complained, but I could tell the cold and the stillness wore on her. On the fourteenth day of our journey we came to a high pass and began to descend.

"How much farther do we have to go, Guerin?" Her teeth chattered and her voice was shaky.

"Only a few more miles, Serisi, and then we can rest and recover for our journey back."

She bowed her head and rode into the teeth of the wind. A crack opened in the rock face ahead and we turned in. The worst of the wind was blocked by the towering walls and we wound up a steep and crooked trail. At the end of a long, miserable way we came to the cave where I had encountered the Shoroku. If it was still alive our journey had come to an end. Serisi made a light, somehow, and we went inside. Her hand glowed and I raised an eyebrow.

"It's a little thing," she said. "I can do it indefinitely."

I nodded and we walked for perhaps a mile into the mountain. The air grew warm and we shed furs. We came to a great chamber and there was a fire and furniture inside. A small form hunched over an armorers bench, and a hammer rose and fell.

"Albatar, we have come to ask you questions," I spoke.

He glanced at us. "I know." His voice was high pitched and rough. "I have no answer you wish to hear."

"How do you know?" Serisi asked.

"I do not know you," he said. "Guerin, this is a being of great power. Why have you brought her here?"

"She is ignorant of her power. She wishes to learn."

"If I teach her, she may break the world," he said.

"I have no such intention," she said. "I want to know what I can do so that I can protect myself and those I love."

"And who are those you love?" he asked.

"Guerin, I love Guerin," she said.

"What of the Shai? What of your father's people? Do you feel no love for them?"

"No, I don't know them. I believe them to be evil," she said.

"There are many shades of evil," he said. "I am evil. To many, Guerin is evil. You are regarded as evil yourself by many. The Shai believe you will save them from us."

"Who, exactly, is us?" I asked him.

"My people. We will attempt to drive the Shai back through the rift."

"How many of you are there?" I asked. "I doubt you have the power."

"Perhaps not. We will make the attempt, anyway. I would not aid my enemies."

"We aren't your enemies," Serisi said. "I don't know you well enough to be your enemy."

"No? Neither do I know you. I do like the way you think. You refuse to generalize. You make it personal."

"We're people. You're a person. I don't give a damn about anything but those I know," she said. "Tell me what I can do so that I can keep the people I know safe."

"What do you want to know exactly?" he asked.

"Don't you know?" I asked him. "You can read me like a book. You can tell what I want to ask before I open my mouth."

"Yes, but her mind is behind a wall and under a mountain. I will do what I can. What will you do for me?"

"We'll tell you stories, share our wine and food with you," I told him.

"Yes, I wish to hear those stories Master Gloom Walker. Come and sit and we will drink wine and eat. I offer you my hospitality. How long will you stay?"

"As long as we need to," I said.

Serisi opened her pack and we took out 10 bottles of wine we had packed. I had remembered from my last visit to this place that Albatar loved our wines. He had a large bird on a spit over his fire and tubers roasting below where the fat from the bird could drip over them. We ate and I told him of our last contract. He was very interested in the poisons found on the beasts and we told him what we knew.

"How comes a mutant human and a hybrid Shai to be together?" he asked.

"Guerin saved my life when I was three," Serisi told him. "He adopted me and became my father. We've been together ever since."

I chuckled. "I still believe that she adopted me. It was a mutual decision."

"Do you intend to remain with him, girl?" he asked.

"Yes. I'll never voluntarily be apart from him."

"Do you understand the weight of this decision?"

"No, what are you talking about?"

"I know who you are, girl."

"Stop calling me girl," she said. "I have a name. It's Serisi. What do you mean, 'you know who I am?'"

"You are the key to opening a rift to the Shai worlds. They lost that in their war on us. They will stop at nothing to regain that. My people will stop at nothing to keep that from happening. The humans will be caught in the crossfire and they may destroy us both. Which side will you choose?"

"None," she said. "I am not a pawn to be used. I'm on my own side. I won't open rifts, I won't serve evil men and I'll be free or die."

"Guerin is formidable. The orders may be able to protect you. They would never allow one of their own to be taken. You live in a fortress. No one knows where you are. What relationship do you intend with him?"

She blushed and glared at him. "That isn't any of your business."

"If you require my help, I need to know. Your choices will make things known to me that are now hidden. I cannot see into you, but I can see into him. I can see how your choices will affect him."

She glanced up at me. "I... I... I'm going to marry him." She burst into tears. I knelt by her chair and hugged her tightly.

"Why are you crying, Serisi? You've always told me that. This isn't news to me."

"Yes, but those were the dreams of a little girl," she wept. "I'm desperately in love with you, Guerin and it embarrasses me."

"No more than I love you," I told her. "You're my heart, Serisi. You know that."

"Much that was hidden becomes clear," Albatar said. "I can see that you are able to do many things. You can heal wounds, incinerate enemies, call lightning from the skies, command beasts and move objects without touching them. You can control minds and look into the future. You are not invincible. At this moment you could be killed by nearly anything. So long as Guerin remains as your companion, he will protect and care for you."

"Did you know you can call lightning from the skies?" I asked her.

"No, I can't do that," she said.

"Some of your power will not manifest until you are older," he said. "The Shai mature slowly and live long."

"Can you teach me to control and do these things" she asked him.

"No. I have no ability to do any of the things you can do, neither can I instruct you."

"Can we stay with you a few days and recover for our trip home?" I asked.

"Why do you not transport yourselves?" he asked.

"I don't understand?" I said.

"Serisi is able to form a rift and you may step through at any place she chooses."

"Baby, can you do that?"

"Yes, I guess I can," she said. "I didn't know until now."

"You should be wary of this," he said. "The Shai will be able to sense the opening of the rift and its location. If you don't want to be found, you should only use your ability rarely and never in the vicinity of your home."

"You could take us out of the snow," I told her.

We spent the night in the warm cave and in the morning we gathered our horses and gear. Serisi made her cute little frown and a drifting and shimmering fog appeared over the trail. The horses were panicked and we had to cover their eyes before they would approach it. We stepped in and the sun was shining. It was still cold, but I recognized the terrain. We were still a long way from Cliff Keep, but we had moved several hundred miles south. Serisi was weary from creating the rift, and I built a fire for her and she stared into the flames while I set up camp.

She didn't move except to shift positions until it began to grow dark. We ate and she went into the tent while I cleaned up. She was lying down when I entered and just a little ball under the blankets. I took off my leathers and crawled in with her. She immediately rolled to lie half over me with her head pillowed on my chest. She was warm and soft and she smelled like campfire and faintly of girl. I ran my fingers through her hair and she sighed.

"Guerin, I'm so confused and worried," she said.

"I know, Serisi. Let tomorrow take care of itself. It's enough for me just to be here with you. If we die tomorrow, I'm content. I got to be here, hold you in my arms and tell you I love you. If we live tomorrow, that's just one more day I get to be with you. I want many of those days, but I'm content."

"You comfort me," she said. "You always know just what to say. How did you get so wise?"

"I've made lots of mistakes," I laughed. "I learned from them."

"Was adopting me a mistake, Guerin? Do you regret it?"

"To tell you the truth, I had no such intent, Serisi. I decided I couldn't allow the dog to eat you. Beyond that, I had no plan. You sort of made up my mind for me. As soon as I got to know you, I loved you. You've been a lot of inconvenience to me. You've complicated my life in ways I couldn't have imagined and I would have hated the idea. When you love someone, you become vulnerable. I avoided that. I don't regret a single moment. I never knew what it meant to be happy until the first time you told me you 'yoved' me. I thought I did, but I was mistaken."

She kissed the scar on my right cheek. "I still yove you," she said.

"Thank you, baby. I know we have a lot to digest and think about. Circumstances have changed but that doesn't mean we have to. I intend to go on living our lives just the way we did before. If circumstances change again, we'll adapt."

"Yes, I like that," she said. "Do you mind if we sleep like this?"

"Well, you weigh a ton, but other than that, I can't think of anything better."

She chuckled and wiggled around until she was comfortable. I put my right arm around her and we drifted off. When I woke up I couldn't feel my arm. It was still dark and I eased her head to the rolled up blanket we were using for a pillow. Her eyes opened a slit and she scooted around until her back was pressed against me and we went back to sleep.

Chapter Six

Life went back to normal when we got home. Serisi went with me on every job I did. She was becoming very lethal. I was depending on her more and more. She could get information out of a stone and she did most of the leg work. I did most of the heavy lifting and she stayed in the background. She got in a couple of scrapes, but nothing she couldn't handle. We had one interesting job just before her sixteenth birthday. We were collecting a debt for the Barron of Cold Harbor, and Serisi was trying to locate the debtor. Obviously, he didn't want to be found and she asked around for anyone that had known him before he fled. I was searching his house and a dock worker told her he used to hang out at a local tavern. She went looking for him and it was a pretty rough place. She got some information and when she left three of the Baron's soldiers though they would have a little fun with her.

They followed her for a while and she noticed them and told them to get lost. One of them said something about her ears and his buddy said something crude about the way she was built. They seemed to have the impression that a Shai girl shouldn't be in their town and she needed to pay a toll. The toll would be a roll in the hay with the three of them. She didn't care for that idea and they decided to get rough. That was a mistake, and the first thing I heard about it she came running to me and there were six more soldiers chasing her. They drew up short when they saw me.

"This little bitch with you?" one of them asked. He seemed to be the man in charge.

"That's right," I said.

"She cut up three of the Baron's men down by the dock. We're going to arrest her," he said.

"No, you aren't," I told him. "Serisi, is that true?"

"Yes, they tried to rape me," she said.

"Well, I guess you know who to arrest," I told them.

"She's a lying..."

I cut him off. "You're about to do something very foolish."

"We don't want any trouble with a Gloom Walker," one of his men told him. "He'll fry our eyeballs. Besides, he's here working for the Baron. I saw him at the manor earlier talking to the Baron."

"I think you should apologize to the girl," I told them. "If you had harmed a thread of her clothing you would be dying horribly now. You're fortunate she didn't kill you all. Serisi, I think that barrel is no longer useful."

She looked at it and back at me. I nodded and she frowned. The barrel exploded into flames and they took to their heels.

She threw back her head and laughed. "Sorry about that, Guerin," she said. "I didn't want to kill them and I thought they might recognize you."

"No, you did the right thing," I told her. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, they were slow and clumsy," she said. "I shouldn't have gone to that place. I didn't know what it was like."

"Why didn't you just leave?"

"I saw the man I needed to talk to inside. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find him again."

We located the debtor and he paid. He would spend a long time recovering his health, but he paid. When we got back to the keep I thought we needed a break for a while. We went to visit Zee and stayed two days. We celebrated Serisi's birthday at the inn and Zee had several bottles of the perfumed soap. She and I were in the spring when Serisi came out and she soon joined us. I hadn't seen her naked for a long time and I was startled at the changes in her. Her hips had broadened and her breasts were a lot bigger. She had a little patch of white, wispy hair above the mysteries below.

"Your little girl is getting big," Zee whispered. "God she's beautiful. Do you sleep with her, Guerin?"

I could feel my ears turning red. "Yes, but not like you mean."

"Why not?" she asked. "She's in love with you, Guerin."

"Yes, I know. She's never shown any sign she wants to do that."

"Maybe she's waiting for you to show some sign."

"Well, she's going to wait a long time then."

"Why? Why would you make her wait?"

"Because she trusts me. I've had her since she was three, and I'm not about to change our relationship. She's precious to me and I love her just the way she is. If she wants to change that, it's up to her."

"I understand, I won't say anything else," she said. "I love her, too, but I'd like to fuck her."

"Are you two whispering about me over there?" Serisi noticed our heads close together.

"How did you know?" Zee asked her.

"My ears were burning." She paddled over and slipped under my arm on the opposite side from Zee. "Are you conspiring?"

"No, we were talking about how beautiful you are," Zee told her.

"Well, I like to hear that, so stop whispering," she laughed.

"You're growing up very nice," Zee told her. "The boys are going to be swarming around you like flies to honey."

"What boys?" Serisi asked. "There are no boys at the Keep. There are only old men like Guerin here. How old are you, Guerin? I don't think you've ever told me."

"I'm thirty-eight," I told her.

"You don't look a day over twenty-five," Zee said.

"Well, sometimes we mutants live a very long time," I told them. "Jynn is at least a hundred and she doesn't look any older than me."

"That's good, because Serisi is an elf and I've heard they live forever," Zee said.

"I'm not an 'elf'," Serisi told her. "I don't like to be called that. My mother was a human, you know."

"I'm sorry, baby; I didn't mean to offend you," Zee reached around me and petted her shoulder. "I didn't know your mother was human, either."

"I'm not offended," Serisi said. "It's impossible for you to offend me, Zee. I just don't like that word when it's used to describe me."

"I won't use it again," Zee promised. "How would you describe yourself, honey?"

"I'm a hybrid, I share both race's traits. I don't know about the age thing. I'm growing up at the normal rate for human girls. Do the Shai mature like humans, Guerin?"

"I have no idea," I told her. "I've never seen a Shai that wasn't an adult. I understand they have very few children. I don't know anyone who's ever seen a Shai child."

"Well, I guess we'll just have to see then," she said. "I'm not impatient. I enjoy being myself. I'm not in a hurry to change."

"See, I told you," I said to Zee.

"What did you tell her?" Serisi asked.

"It was nothing, sweetheart," Zee told her. "You're a very wise girl. You're only young once. Enjoy it while you can."

"Oh, I do. I think I may be an adult now, though. Guerin says that when I'm old enough to take care of myself and support myself, then I'm an adult. I think I can do that. What do you two think?"

"I think you're right," I told her. "You do as much on our contracts as I do. I don't do much taking care of you anymore. I think I'll still keep an eye on you, but you mostly make all your own choices now."

"You're still a baby, but you're the most adult baby I've ever met," Zee told her. "I thought you were just like a little adult when you were five."

"Well, Guerin always treated me like that," she said. "What do adults do?"

"Whatever they like," Zee told her. "What do you want to do that you haven't been doing?"

She thought about that for a minute. "There are a couple of things. I'm not going to talk about one of them, but I would like to take a contract myself. Nothing too dangerous," she assured me. "Nothing that would take too long," she looked at me; obviously seeking my affirmation.

"I think that would be good for you," I told her. "We'll look over what Jynn has when we get home. Do you think us being apart would upset you enough that you would be distracted or lose your edge?"

"I don't know," she snuggled up against me. "I'll just have to see. If I feel that I can't perform, will you fill the contract for me?"

"Of course, baby," I squeezed her. "Maybe I should go with you, camp out in the bushes and just be available in case you need me."

"No, I need to find out for myself," she kissed my arm. "I won't hunt a beast or anything that might get me killed. Maybe a collection or a missing person. Maybe just some detective work, solve a mystery or something."

"That's wise," Zee patted her head. "Our baby is growing up, Guerin."

Serisi flashed her a smile, her teeth flashing white against her dusky complexion. "You have no idea," she said.

When we returned to the keep, we looked over potential contracts, looking for something that both interested Serisi and didn't seem too dangerous for a novice to handle.

We were sitting in the commons, papers spread out before us, lamps casting shadows, and Hal came in. He was soon followed by Jynn, and one by one, the whole order was sitting around, looking nervously at one another.

Serisi sat back in her chair and looked at each one of them until they dropped their eyes and looked away.

"What?" she asked.

They stirred uncomfortably. Evidently, Trina was the spokesman, or woman, as the case was.

"Um, we were talking after dinner..."

She trailed off and Serisi waited, becoming more impatient. "Yes, were you speaking of me?" she asked.