The Forsaken Hero

Korra coughed weakly in my arms, black blood bubbling up her throat and trickling between her lips. Every breath was forced and labored, her heartbeat erratic and weak. She held my hand tightly, fighting through the pain to give me a small, shallow smile before her eyes drew shut.

I waited for her breathing to slow, signaling she was fully asleep, before allowing my shoulders to slump in despair. Her plan seemed sound, possible even, yet I couldn’t bring myself to muster any hope. The battle against the centipede had drawn us miles from the road, leaving us lost in the blue ridges, crevasses, and rivers of the Blue Canyon. Even if I somehow backtracked and found the road, would I even be able to find help in time? Even a large military encampment would be unlikely to have someone powerful enough to heal the poison. Life mages were extraordinarily rare in Enusia, with most healing being done by priests or other mages who happened to learn life magic. The chance that we could find one who would be able to cast the specific sixth-circle spell necessary was abysmal.

Another wave of despair crashed over me, smothering what little light I had left. If I had only been stronger, I could have saved her. If only I could have spent more time studying magic instead of wandering the village or shopping in the town. What use was it if I learned to smile but lost the one who taught me? She was going to die and leave me all alone, and it would all be my fault.

Beside me, my staff shivered, a subtle presence rising out of a long slumber. I was so caught up in my grief that I failed to notice it until a thread of mana brushed against my soul, sending a chill of familiarity down my spine. I looked up, eyes blurry with tears, and found the star atop the glassy haft gleaming with light. An image flickered through my mind, a kind smile, tufted fox ears, and deep, gentle eyes. A second later, that same face turned gray and dull, covered in terrible bruises and lacerations, one ear torn off. Even as the memory faded, I could feel the weight of her broken body in my arms and the pain and sorrow that had taken me in that moment.

Aurle. My chest tightened, my breath coming in rough gasps. An uncontrollable tremor passed through my body, starting in my chest and riding out to the tip of my tail and horns. Fate had decreed she be taken from me, stealing the light that sustained me through the starless night. I didn’t care if this was meant to be, or foretold in the stars. Could I really just sit and cry while another died in my arms?

I didn’t have to answer that question. Cradling Korra with one arm, I extended my other hand and opened my fingers. The staff rose into my grasp, shivering as it met my conviction. The presence retreated, but there was no time to think of just what exactly had stirred up this tempest within.

”Fable, hear my call!”

The staff flashed and a portal opened up in the sky, revealing the shattered cliffs where I’d left Fable. My wolf appeared a moment later, soaring through the hole, his coat bright and clean again. He landed softly beside me and padded over, an anxious light flickering in his golden eyes. He nuzzled my cheek for a moment, drying my tears with the soft fur of his face. A low whimper sounded in the back of his throat, a sad, mournful cry for the girl in my arms.

”We’re going to save her,” I whispered fiercely. ”I won’t let her die.”

Fable nodded his great, silver head and sat beside me, his long tail curling to swish around my body protectively. Comforted by his presence, I took a shaky breath and closed my eyes, opening up my soul. Though my mana had begun to accumulate once more, there wasn’t much. But it was enough. It had to be.

With a silent prayer, I activated the Oracle of Eternity. The ability pulsed warmly within my soul and the stars of fate appeared, a glistening web of truth and reality. Korra’s soul was dull and dim, sending a pang of sadness into my heart. Gripping my staff tightly, I tore my eyes away and looked up into the sky. Never once had I dared explore the territory before me, but to save Korra, I would brave any land or any foe. Even the darkest corners of my nightmares, and the visions that came with them. I needed to see.

Gathering my mana, I plunged into the depths of my soul. The visions of fate had always been a curse, a plague to foretell of coming suffering and despair. But now I needed them. I needed to know what to do and where to go. How could I save Korra?

As I delved into the complex webs of the ability, a forbidden thought intruded into my mind. Could I even trigger a vision of what I wanted? What if I was destined to fail, or if I just wasn’t strong enough to save her? What if I saw the future, and Korra wasn’t in it?

My hands clenched tightly, gripping the staff of Fate until my knuckles whiteened. What did it matter if I failed? She was going to die regardless!

I gasped as all the mana I’d gathered suddenly evaporated, sucked into the depths of my soul. The world grayed, turning dark and hazy, but never quite reaching the state of total blackness that preceded a vision. Was I still lacking mana?

A nervous shudder ran down my tail, yet there was no other way. I had to save Korra, no matter the cost. I bit my lip, holding back a whimper, as I offered my soul to the Oracle. A thousand fiery lances drove into my soul at once. It was like being dipped in lava, a thousand times more excruciating than I’d anticipated. My soul rocked and groaned, my consciousness wavered, threatening to break apart, but I persisted. Even if I ended up crippling myself, even if I could never use magic again, what point was there in anything if I couldn’t save Korra?

”Please, Fate, I need you!” I cried, voice hoarse with pain. I was past the point of logic, not caring that Fate had already fallen. There was only the pain, red-hot and blinding, just as intense as the moment the Curse Demon first shattered my soul.

After an eternity dipped in the fires of hell, everything fell still, my mind plunging into blissful darkness. A second later, sights and sounds materialized around me, more shadows than actual images, like a distant memory.

There was a city built into a mountain. Soldiers marched in neat ranks through the gate. Children running through the streets. Vendors selling their merchandise. I willed the vision out and, surprisingly, it obeyed. The perspective widened, giving me a glimpse of a forest of tents and spears about the city, draped in the shadow of a towering monolithic formation easily as tall as any mountain. The vision blurred, zooming in on the peak of the rocky spire, where two familiar girls sat side by side. I ignored the one, a red-haired demonkin girl, focusing immediately on the other. Korra, and she was smiling!

I fell out of the vision gasping, my chest heaving with exertion. Tears streamed down my cheeks and my tail lashed, unable to remain still under the overwhelming agony that held me in its clutches. Burning my soul had ignited the half-healed scars, leaving me unable to do more than draw shallow, erratic breaths.

Something warm and soft pressed against me, and a flood of mana flowed into my soul. The tide of support soothed the throbbing fires, taking the edge off the pain. Opening my eyes to slits, I found Fable’s eyes before mine, glistening with concern. I raised a trembling hand and stroked his fur, smiling at him weakly.

”Thank you...did you see it too?” I managed to whisper.

He gazed at me evenly, a sense of affirmation flowing through our bond. I sighed in relief and rested my head on his shoulder, grateful I managed to drag him into the vision with me. In my current state, my tongue already felt dry and heavy, and trying to explain what I’d seen would have been all but impossible.

There was no more need for talk. Fable lowered himself to the ground and nudged beneath Korra and me, somehow managing to situate us on his back. A heartbeat later, we were flying across the blue earth. The wind tugged at my hair, dragging it out behind me in a cascade of crimson, but I was too focused on clinging to Korra to care. It would undoubtedly tangle, undoing all of her hard work from earlier today, but she would be there to brush it in the morning. I would make sure of it.