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Chapter 25: A Quick Breath

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Tyler changed his shirt, but still had blood on his face, hands, and skin. He routinely turned to Morrigan, opened his mouth to speak, then thought better of it. Tears still welled in her eyes as she crossed her arms, pressed against the passenger side door as if shrinking into the smallest space possible. He finally managed to get the words out. 

“I'll get us a room. We need to get you cleaned up before someone sees you.” Morrigan was silent as he exited the car, strolling up to the door. He took a deep breath and entered.

“What the hell happened to you?” a large man exclaimed from behind the counter.

Tyler responded, pointing to the blood on his face, “I've had quite a night. Some asshole ran us off the road and I bashed my nose on the steering wheel. It's like a crime scene in there.”

The man laughed and pointed to the door behind him, “It's not a public bathroom, but you can clean off your face if you promise to not leave a mess.”

“Thank you so much,” Tyler replied, walking into the bathroom. He washed his face, his arms, and hands, then grabbed a few sheets of paper towels to clean any wayward drops of blood on the sink. He looked at himself in the mirror. He felt uncomfortable, something he didn't expect.

The static pulsed around him, disorganized and without purpose. He heard it buzz and rattle, a sound that technically didn't even exist. The book never described this much static being present after the rite. He should be able to manipulate it, to move it and shape it as he saw fit. He couldn't.

When he left the bathroom, the man looked at him and nodded.

Tyler nodded back, “How much for a night here?”

“Forty three a night, got a vacancy ready to go, too.”

Tyler smiled, “My girlfriend is a bit shaken. It might be a good idea."

"Where you two headed?"

Tyler pulled a card from his wallet and handed it over, "Road trip to Louisiana. She has family there."

The man smiled, and handed back the card along with a key, “Long way to travel. Enjoy your night. It's Room twelve. Have the key back by this time tomorrow."

"No problem. Thank you."

Tyler stepped out of the small office and tilted his head. He was a horrible liar. Where did that come from? He looked around and checked to see if anyone would notice Morrigan. He walked to Morrigan's side of the car and opened the door, "It's me. I got us a room. Come on, no one's around." She shuddered at his touch, shying away before taking his hand. They walked quickly, navigating to room twelve. 

It was like any other motel room. It had the basics and not much else. Morrigan didn't say a word, only cloistered herself in the shower, locking the door and not coming out again for over an hour. He spent the time retrieving their bags, pacing around the room, and finally laying on the bed, taking advantage of the free WI-fi. When she opened the bathroom door, he jumped up, the springs groaning as the weight lifted. She turned her head, refusing to look in his direction.

“Morrigan.” Tyler said.

“Yes?” she replied.

“We’re okay.”

“Are we?” she sighed, “cause I still can't get that out of my fucking head. I-” she stopped, her voice breaking as she fought tears, “It's never been that bad. I could always snap out of it.”

Tyler stood up, walked to her, and took her hand. She halfheartedly yanked it back, but he wrapped his fingers around hers. He noticed a small patch of dried blood between her fingers, and reached for a napkin on the end table.

“You missed a spot,” he laughed.

“Imagine that,” she replied as he wiped the blood away.

He sighed, "Blood magic?" Her eyes narrowed, and she shook her head as he continued, "That's what you mastered?”

“There is so much more to it than slaughtering those out of their depth. The passion is the worst part, or the best depending on how you look at it. If you go too far, it consumes you. I've known people who died of blood loss simply because they couldn't stop.”

“Why blood? Why not something like pyromancy or, hell, necromancy? I always liked the goth girls.”

“It's not a choice,” Morrigan explained, “If it doesn't happen when you're learning, you can't do it. Simple as that. Everyone is different. I’m better than most at it?"

He tightened his grip on her hand, "Awefully cocky, aren't you."

"It's a fact. I'm a woman, and I'm a red head, Both increase the influence over blood. You also have my connection to The Red Maiden, who is the progenitor of the art. It seemed right at the time, so I focused my study.”

“Wonder what mine will be,” Tyler said.

“How did you fare? We were separated for a moment. Did anything interesting happen?”

Tyler rubbed the back of his head, his cheeks hot, “I didn't fare at all. I couldn't cast a single spell.”

“Nothing?” she asked.

He shook his head, "I didn't feel a thing when I tried to call the fire. You took care of that just fine. I was really wanting that to be my moment.” Tyler replied.

Morrigan reached out to him, hesitated, then finally placed her hand on the back of his head. She leaned in, kissed him, and rested her forehead on his. “It was. You helped more than you know. You could be a bit late due to the excess static.” She laid down next to him, "It will take me a minute to get over tonight. I'll understand if you can't."

“It's gonna take a while,” he replied, doubting his own words. He laid down as well, wrapping his arms around her wondering if he even could he get over it. He drifted to sleep and woke in the dark in what felt like the blink of an eye.

Morrigan's absence didn't occur to him until he reached over and found her space on the bed empty. He sat up, struggling to keep his eyes open. He scanned the room, the shadows obscuring everything they covered save for what caught traces of blue light bleeding through the curtain from the sign outside.

"Morrigan?" He asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. When he didn't hear a reply, he stood up, put on his shoes, and slowly opened the door. The parking lot was nearly empty, the main road showing no signs of life. He saw Morrigan sitting next to a small fire, casting her hands over it while muttering words too soft to hear from where he stood.

He let the door close behind him and walked down the steps. She turned her head to him. Her eyes narrowed as he moved closer, then went wider when she realized it was him.

"Something wake you?" she asked.

"No, just wondered where you were," he replied.

"I'll only be a moment, don't mind me."

Tyler looked to the fire. A tin can sat in a bed of heat at the base of the flame. A viscous fluid, made black by the dark, boiled inside. The smell hit him and it made him gag.

"What is that?" Tyler asked, and Morrigan pointed to the sky. Tyler looked up and saw the red hue of the moon.

"New moon." She said.

"A ritual." Tyler sighed, sitting down on the grass beside her.

"Yeah." She replied, forcing a laugh.

"And?" Tyler prodded, his brow furrowed.

“I- uh. T-Tyler after tonight, I don't think either of us are comfortable enough for this."

Tyler's eyes went wide, "Did you just stutter? Are you embarrassed? You act like I've stumbled on a big secret."

"Ok, then. What do you think it is for?" She asked, her eyebrows raised.

"I have no clue. I assume that's blood in the pot, but whose blood?" He replied.

She sighed, looked down, and covered her face with her hand. "As smart as you are, I'm kinda disappointed. Blood equals what?"

"The Scarlet Arts, but I don't know much about it."

"Why would I need blood under a New Moon," she asked.

"A new moon symbolizes a new lunar cycle, so I assume this is done monthly." Tyler began.

She took a sharp lung full of air, "Mhmm."

"So it's a monthly ritual using blood for-" He stopped, and based on the warmth he felt in his face, he felt his cheeks were as red as hers. "Oh. I'm so sorry. I'll go." He whispered while lifting himself up to stand, but she forced him back down, pulling hard at his shirt.

"Nope, you snoop, you get what you snoop for. You never noticed I don't cycle?" She asked.

"Not my business," he explained. "I figured you just took care of it, had birth control, or didn't want to talk about it, cause of a medical issue. It could be a sensitive topic."

Morrigan laughed, "For you more than me, apparently. This ritual takes my blood, and when I dispose of it, I can be mess free for another month."

"You could have just said 'magical birth control' and it would have been fine." He stammered, holding his hand out.

She put her hand on his and forced it down, tracing lazy circles on his palm with her thumb. "It is a useful tool for birth control. I'm sterile. I can still, technically, get pregnant, but it won't end well. I'll stop with that."

Tyler nodded, "How does boiling blood make a difference," He asked.

"It doesn't, it's the destruction of it that does," she began. She pulled her hand back, turned her head to the sky, and continued, “I could do anything that ruins the blood to make the ritual work." She pointed to the flames, "Fire is just an easy solution. By taking my blood, drawing out the arcane qualities of it, and then rendering it useless on the day I'm meant to start, it symbolizes a rejection of womanhood and maternity. While having arcane power helps, rituals don't always need The Prestige."

Tyler thought back to the words regarding rituals in the book, "Sometimes, belief is enough."

She nodded, picked up the can using a cloth to protect herself, and cast her free hand over the flames. A small burst of water formed in the air, following the same path as her hand as it covered the fire. The fire died with a hiss, sending steam back into the air from which it came.

“I've made it a point to perform the ritual since October, seeing as I had a sex life again.” She smiled, and took his hand when he stood.

Tyler asked, “Why not always do it? Is it painful, or time-consuming?”

Her eyes seemed to light up in the light of the moon and fluorescent bulbs that hummed above them. She shook her head, her eyebrows raised, "Neither. Rejecting the idea of being a woman doesn't sit well with me."

They walked back to their room, Morrigan tossing the can into a dumpster close by.

"Did you even sleep?" Tyler asked.

"Ah,” she said, “No, don't really need to anymore. I can, but most of the time I don't sleep at all."

"What do you do with all that time?" He asked.

"I think," she shrugged, "I ponder, meditate, or some other activity till you wake up or I get bored and venture out of the room."

"You don't watch me while I sleep, do you?”

"I mean," she began with a smile, crossing her arms, "I don't watch much of anything."

"You know what I mean."

"I do not stare vacantly In your direction while you sleep, I'm not nearly obsessed with you enough for that." She paused, and gave a chuckle, "I do stay close when you stir. You tend to sleep more soundly when I play with your hair. It's how I formed the habit."

He smiled, "I guess I can live with that."

 

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Nov 4, 2020 23:56 by Jacob Billings

Woah. What a weird chapter. It has a good sense of a semi-depression following the adrenaline of the previous chapter. I'm still super interested in seeing what happens with Tyler and the Prestige/Static considering the ramifications of Chapter 21. It's good to see you explaining the Passion a bit more, but you'll probably want to weave that more into the previous chapter(unless you already have). The whole thing with the ritual is... odd? No idea how important it is to the story and it was really weird to read. But, I guess it establishes aspects of the magic system? Not sure how to feel about that, but the whole thing with the motel works(other than the guy probably forgetting Tyler the second he left. I'm curious to see if this has any ramifications for them.)   That's about it.

Nov 5, 2020 00:27 by R. Dylon Elder

Yeah it is a weird one. There is a "come down" kind of effect to it. The ritual is a tough one to explain.   So when I built this magic system, I wanted the majority of what people see to be the "practical magic" side of it. This idea came while looking through a dnd book and thinking, "hold on. Slot of these spells are completely useless in everyday life." I mean look at fireball. This helps establish a personal, but important side of the prestige: Spells developed based on people's needs. The ritual itself is kind of a symbol for their relationship. Idk about you, but every committed relationship i've ever had included that uncomfortable conversation concerning that subject for one reason or another. The already uncomfortable side of the Scarlet arts kind of made it seem like a no-brainer for me. I feel the same about it, but imagine alot of women would love to know that ritual, my wife included XD   Essentially it kills two birds with one stone. It shows a little of the magic system and it shows them hitting a boundary in their relationship. I did say it'd be realistic romance.   Luckily for everyone, this is kind of the last hurdle on that point. Once you cross this line, their relationship and it's state are plateaued save for some minor things that have nothing to do with blood. Also thanks for mentioning the hotel guy. Plot hole will be filled lol

Nov 5, 2020 00:39 by Jacob Billings

That makes sense. Personally, I've got literally no experience with relationships nor those awkward kinds of conversations. However, it makes sense to include it as a part of your magic system and to portray the realism of the relationship. I still feel like it's a super awkward thing to include here in the story, but there's not really a better place to put it.   Oh yeah. Speaking of the hotel guy, how the heck does Tyler explain how he got the key from the guy without him remembering unless you want to say that Tyler's use of the Candlelight is still not bright enough for an instantaneous forgetting of his presence.

Nov 5, 2020 00:44 by R. Dylon Elder

It is VERY awkward. Lol no doubt. The main reason I chose this spot is the mention of the new moon. There are some sneaky time differences one can track. You can verify they have been dating for about three to four months depending on how you want to count.   Oooof. I know. The counter guy is something I'll have to write and add. I am thinking the later will be the case. There is a percentage to candlelight.l and he is fairly low currently. We shall see. I'm writing it now XD

Nov 5, 2020 00:46 by Jacob Billings

Maybe have the hotel guy be like "Oh yeah. I forgot I gave you the key. Why'd you need it again." That'd solve the Candlelight problem and explain to the hotel guy why "Tyler's girlfriend" is pretty shaken up. Granted, I don't know if that's possible in your system, but it works for plot hole filling.