Nara... Gaijan thought as he ran through the trees, away from the tent, away from her, away from what he was feeling. He hadn't meant to. He had tried to keep it in check, but no matter what he did... no, he couldn't even think about it. She was vulnerable and afraid. He shouldn't have allowed that to happen.

Gaijan came to the thicket of trees where he had put the horses to weather out the storm. He leaned against one of the trees, trying to catch his breath, trying to calm down. Trying to forget how he felt when he had kissed Nara. But it was all he could think about. What is wrong with me? he thought. I'm in love, came the thought, unbidden, to his mind. But he pushed it away. It just wasn't possible. Well... maybe it was. He realized now that it was.

He had fallen in love with her the first time he saw her. That was why he had spent all those years trying to save her. He didn't want to admit it to himself, but he had hoped all along that when he did free her, it would turn out that she loved him, too. But he felt wrong about it the whole time. 

What did he have to offer her? He was a loner, a traveler, moving from place to place because he never felt comfortable. What kind of a life was that? He thought that he could change, stay in one place for her, but he knew deep down that after a while he would begin to have that urge again to leave. Would she want to come with him? He didn't think so, and really, he didn't want to find out. He had no right to find out. He had no right to do anything. He had fulfilled his promise, and now that she remembered all that had happened, there was nothing left to do. She had to move on with her life.

With you? 

He remembered those words she had whispered. Maybe she did want to be with him. But how could he subject her to the life he led? She had her whole life ahead of her, she could find someone else. A flash of jealousy went through him just thinking about another man being with Nara. But it melted away into resignation. No matter what he felt, he had to think of what was best for her. He stood up and faced back the way he had come. It's what's best, he told himself as he walked back towards the tent. But his chest was hurting, and each step became harder and harder to take. As he neared the tent, he wondered if he had the strength to say it to her, that he didn't love her, and that they now had to part ways.

He stopped outside the entrance, took a deep breath, and went inside. But Nara wasn't there. A pile of blankets, their provisions, but Nara was gone. Panic rose up in him. He looked around the outside of the tent, and found a few footprints leading off into the forest. Maybe I should let her go... Hadn't he just been planning on telling her they had to part ways? But, how would she manage by herself, without a horse or food? No, he had to find her. Then they could go back to the village just outside of the forest. He could leave her with Boka, and from there find her own way in the world.

So he set off, following the footprints, resolved to do what was best.

As he walked through the rain he became more and more worried. He thought that she couldn't have gone very far, but as time went by and he didn't find her, a deeper feeling of foreboding settled in his stomach. It reminded him of the first time he entered the forest, all those years ago. That same feeling that something was terribly wrong.

It was the same feeling. Gaijan concentrated on the feeling, and focused on where it was coming from. Finally he found the source. It was coming from directly ahead, and he felt something else there as well... Nara. Gaijan quickened his pace until he was nearly sprinting through the trees, stumbling on rocks and slipping on the wet ground. He saw a break in the trees, and there was Nara, standing amongst the ruins of her village, and standing in front of her was a boy... and he was holding a dagger in his hand.

"Nara!" Gaijan shouted as he burst out into the open, charging towards the boy, gathering his magic to protect her. But he was too slow. The boy's arm made a quick move, and a spurt of blood came out of the small wound the dagger had made in Nara's neck, exactly where the talisman was. "NO!" Gaijan drew on his magic and let it loose on the boy, but he jumped away, holding the bloody dagger, laughing manically.

"Enjoy the few minutes you have left!" the boy shouted over his shoulder as he ran to the trees. "I hope they're painful!" Gaijan wanted to go after the boy, but just as he was about to, a blast of magic nearly took him off his feet. He turned to see Nara, blood oozing from her throat, magic coming off her in waves just like before.

Oh no. The talisman had been cut out or damaged, either way, the magic was no longer held back. Nara screamed as the magic poured out of her, and Gaijan put up a wall of his own magic to protect himself.

"Nara!" he shouted, and she opened her tear-filled eyes, giving him that look that had haunted him since that first day. The look of defeat, of despair. Of death. He knew what she wanted him to do. But he couldn't. He would save her, if it was the very last thing he ever did. So he trudged forward against the magic, fighting for every foothold, every step, to get to her.

~~~

"No, Gaijan! I'll kill you!" Nara shouted at Gaijan, but he didn't stop. Slowly he came forward, putting himself in more danger the closer he came. She couldn't contain the magic. Somehow it had grown stronger, and there was nothing she could do. Wait... She remembered something Daro had said. That the magic was in her body. Maybe if her body was gone, the magic would be gone, too. She couldn't think of anything else, and really, she didn't know if she could live with herself now that she knew everything.

So, Nara gathered her strength, and directed the magic at the source. At herself. She saw Gaijan's eyes widen, and his mouth opened, shouting, but she heard nothing. She felt nothing. She was nothing. The last thing she saw was his face, the face of the man she loved.

~~~

"NO!!!" Gaijan roared as he felt the evil magic converge on Nara- then there was silence. He released his own magic, and saw Nara lying on the ground, unmoving. He rushed to her, gathering her limp form into his arms. He felt that familiar flutter of energy, what he had felt every time he had touched the crystal, but it was weaker, and fading fast. "Nara, Nara, no, why," he said, cradling her body close to him, wracking his brains for something, anything, that would save her. But it was too late. "Nara, why, why did you do that... Nara... Nara, please, come back to me..." He laid a hand on her cheek, avoiding looking at the blood on her neck, pleading with her to be alright. Minutes passed, and the flutters of energy grew smaller and farther between. "Nara..." he whispered, "I love you... I'm sorry I didn't tell you before... I'm sorry, so sorry..." One last flutter... then nothing. His breath caught in his throat. No... Gaijan sat there, as still as a stone, not wanting to believe it. But it was real. She didn't move...she didn't breathe... she was gone. And there was nothing to be done.

Regret and grief filled Gaijan until he thought he would choke on it. He should have told her how he felt from the very beginning. Now...

"Well!" Gaijan heard a voice shout, and he looked up to see that boy, just standing there about a yard away, staring, bloody dagger still in his hand. "That was very disappointing!"

"Disappointing!?!" Gaijan hissed, rage filling him.

"Yes, disappointing. I was expecting more of a show. But, I guess I really shouldn't have, what with you humans. You're always so dull! Oh well, I'll just have to find another weakling somewhere. Preferably one without a sap following her around." 

Gaijan couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wanted to grab that boy around the neck and squeeze the life out of him. But then he looked back down at Nara. What was the point? With her gone Gaijan didn't feel like anything was worth doing, even killing the person responsible. He just felt... empty. 

"Like I said, a sap." Gaijan again turned his gaze to the boy. "Anyway, I better get going. It'll take decades to build up that kind of magic again, and I want to get started right away." The boy waved the bloody knife at him. "Ta-ta!" And suddenly he was gone, disappeared, vanished into thin air.

Gaijan knew he should be wondering what in the world this whole thing was about, who was that boy, why had he done this to Nara, where had he gone, how had he disappeared like that... but none of that really mattered to him. He just sat there, on the damp ground, holding Nara in his arms.

To be continued...