“Do you think I’ll lose my powers if I put it on?” Brianna asked.
“You mean lose them forever?” Zollin said. “No, I can’t see that happening. It doesn’t take away magical ability, it just blocks it.”
“I’m not sure I even need it anymore,” she said nervously.
“Maybe, I don’t know. I just feel better when you wear it.”
She looked at him and he saw compassion there. He had to admit in that moment he was afraid she was outgrowing him. When he had come into his magical power, it made sense that she would be attracted to him. Now that she had power of her own, he wondered if she might not feel the same way about him. She might not feel like she needed him. Even worse, she might not want him. He wasn’t sure he could live with that. He loved her, but since she had walked into that final Stepping Stone cavern and displayed powers that he had never imagined, he had been afraid.
She slipped the ring on her finger and immediately some vital part of who she was seemed to disappear. She was the same Brianna; nothing about her appearance changed, but it was as if her vitality slipped away, and she seemed to sag. She was still beautiful, but it was like looking at a beautiful painting or a grand sculpture instead of the living model; the essence of who she was had disappeared.
“I can’t do anything,” she said, holding up her hand.
“Take it off,” Zollin said sadly.
She took off the ring and laid it on the floor between them. Then she held out her hand and two small flames appeared on her palm, dancing together. Zollin smiled, but it was bittersweet. He had no reason to believe that Brianna’s rejection of the white alzerstone meant anything, but he couldn’t help but feel that it did. After a moment their eyes met, and once again Zollin felt a rift opening up between them.
“You seem different,” she said.
“You’re the one who’s different.”
“No, I’m not,” she said smiling. “I’m still Brianna from Tranaugh Shire. I’m still just a girl. I’m still in love with you.”
“But you’re not still just a girl, you’re a Fire Spirit.”
Brianna laughed quietly. Zollin thought she sounded like a fountain.
“No, I’m not,” she said. “I just have some powers because of this,” she held out the firestone that Hammert had given her.
“Take that off, too,” Zollin said.
He had a suspicion that taking off the beautiful ruby on its intricate gold chain would do nothing to dampen Brianna’s powers. The stone had awoken what was already inside her, but she didn’t need it to retain her powers.
“Okay,” she said, almost as if he were daring her to do it. “Why do I get the feeling you don’t approve of me having magical abilities?”
“I don’t disapprove of anything,” Zollin said. “I’m just anxious to learn all I can about who you’ve become.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not more powerful than you are, Zollin,” she said, and there was a note of resentment in her voice.
“Brianna, please don’t say that. I’m not jealous of you. I’m not even worried about you. I’m worried about us.”
“Why? Because you don’t think two magical people can be together?”
“No, of course not,” he said, but there was no conviction in his voice.
In fact, that was exactly what he was afraid of; he just hadn’t realized it. Brianna took off the necklace and laid it beside the ring. Zollin could tell immediately that nothing had changed. The necklace was just decoration now.
“There, are you happy?” she said.
“Try your powers,” he replied.
“I can’t. I took the necklace off.”
“I don’t think you need it anymore,” he said.
She couldn’t hide her excitement or the hope in her eyes that what he said might be true. He realized then that her powers, new and wonderful to her, were already every bit as important to her as his were to him. When he had been injured in the snow, his back broken and unable to tap into his reservoir of magic, he had wanted to die. He had felt like losing his powers was a fate worse than death. Of course, he knew logically that wasn’t true, but it also gave him a frame of reference for understanding Brianna’s hopes.
She held up her hand again, and once more twin flames danced across her hands.
“Oh, Zollin, what does this mean?”
“It means you’re a Fire Spirit,” he said in an even tone.
“But what is a Fire Spirit? I’m still human. I’m still flesh and blood. Here,” she said as she grabbed his arm and lifted his hand toward her face.
The moment his fingers touched her cheek they both felt the shock. Zollin’s magic surged out of him, mingling with the fiery might that had erupted from Brianna. They were locked together, neither able or even wanting to move. Zollin felt as if his soul were naked and laid bare before Brianna, but she didn’t reject him. Her own soul, just as vulnerable, seemed to entwine with his.
After a few intense moments their powers settled and they pulled back. They were both out of breath, and neither spoke for a time.
“See,” she told him, breaking the silence at last. “I’m still me.”
“You’re more of yourself than you’ve ever been,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“You know what I’m saying. You didn’t just become a fire spirt, you always were. Now, whatever was keeping you from being who you were meant to be is gone.”
“You make it sound so dramatic.”
“I’m not trying to,” he said.
They sat holding hands for a while, both looking down at the white alzerstone ring and the golden necklace with the bright, red ruby that lay on the ground between them. Finally, Brianna broke the silence.
“What does this mean, Zollin?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted.
“But you’ve been around other magic users before,” she said. “Is this normal?”
She didn’t really believe that it was, but she had to ask.
“No, it isn’t. With Kelvich and the wizards from the Torr, I could feel them. It was like walking past a fire. I could detect their presence, and the closer they got the more intense the feeling, but nothing like this. When I met Miriam there was a connection, but it was more one-sided, as if my magic were stirring up her own magical abilities. I’ve never felt anything like what just happened.”
They continued talking for a while, but soon both lay back down. Zollin still felt an odd sense of foreboding, but he did his best to ignore it. He was sure that Brianna wouldn’t cast him aside, and that was really all he could hope for. He couldn’t foretell the future, and so he would take each day as it came.
They slept for a few hours until the dwarves woke them up to continue the journey. A few hours later they noticed that the tunnels were sloping upward and the temperature was dropping. At midday, they stopped in a small cavern to eat, and Bahbaz announced that he and his clansmen were turning back.
“All you need to do is follow the tunnel. You’ll be out on the mountains before you know it,” Bahbaz explained. “The Great Valley isn’t far.”
“Thank you,” Zollin told him. “You’ve been a big help.”
“And a good friend,” Brianna added.
“You’ve done us a great service, wizard. Those Stepping Stones will make travel and trade much easier now. Perhaps one day you can come back and finish the job.”
“I will, I promise,” Zollin said.
“And you,” Bahbaz said as he turned to Brianna. “You are always welcome among the dwarves of the Highland Mountains.”
“Thank you,” Brianna said.
“No, it is you whom we owe thanks to. A living, breathing Fire Spirit! Who would have dreamed we would be so fortunate as to see you in the flesh?”
“I never dreamed I would have the great honor of meeting such noble dwarves.”
“We are ever at your service,” Bahbaz said.
The dwarves weren’t much for sentiment, and soon they were gone, trundling away back down the tunnels. Zollin and Brianna spent the next half hour squeezing through a very narrow tunnel. The floor rose steeply and the ceiling got lower and lower until they were finally forced to crawl the last five hundred feet. The cave entrance was hidden by a large boulder that didn’t quite cover the cave, but was close to the mountain and forced them to squeeze between the large rock and the mountain. The sky was overcast and gray, but it was dazzling to Zollin and Brianna just the same. And while the air was far from freezing, they both quickly pulled on the extra clothes they had in their packs.