The first thing she saw was Merks. Which was as expected. What wasn’t expected was that he was still unconscious. He was lying on a bed while another student, a woman wearing blue robes who Aithne dimly recognized, stood over him. She seemed to have been doing something to his head but she jumped when the screaming slave and her latest captor appeared.

 

“What the…”

 

“Calm down! Divines!” The student who had caught Aithne at the bridge gave her arm a shake.

 

The woman glared. “What did you do to her?”

 

“Nothing, I swear! I told her Urag’s been looking for her and she…”

 

Urag’s name sizzled through Aithne’s panic-fogged brain like a dart made of lightning. The screaming shifted to an incredulous, “URAG?!”

 

“What?” A familiar gravelly voice spoke behind her and Aithne twisted to see.

 

And there he was, as gruff and grizzled and beautiful as she remembered. With a cry but without thought, Aithne jumped to her feet and launched herself into his arms where the clung like a child while wild sobs broke from her. The feel of his arms wrapping around her comforted her far more than a million hot baths could have.

 

“Shh, it’s okay. Everything is going to be okay. Shh.” Urag stroked her hair and her back and she pressed herself into his body as if trying to become part of it.

 

A moan from behind her caused her to freeze and she suddenly realized what she was doing. She was a slave; she didn’t have the right to be clinging to him like this. She tried to push away but his massive orc arms held her tight.

 

“Sir, I…”

 

“What the…” A familiar voice behind her, and Aithne shivered. “Where…ow, my head.”

 

“Yes, you took quite a crack.” The woman’s voice. Since she wasn’t looking, Aithne’s brain was able to track it this time.

 

“Brelyna?” Aithne craned her neck to look back at the student, and the woman waved.

 

“Hi Aithne! It’s been a long time! Sorry about that!”

 

“Sorr…”

 

Aithne was interrupted by a sudden growl from Merks.

 

“You! You bitch! You did this to me! Wait until I have you again, you’ll regret…”

 

“That’s not going to happen.” Urag’s deep voice had a familiar tinge of menace that sent a shiver of lust down Aithne’s spine.

 

“Yes it is, you old fossil. You heard what the archmage said – you can’t keep a slave for yourself. Especially one that assaulted a free man and tried to escape. She’s going to…”

 

“She’s not a slave.”

 

Aithne blinked as her head snapped up to look at him and she and Merks said in unison, “What?!”

 

He looked down at her and his scowl softened. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I didn’t free you much sooner. And I’m very sorry it took so long to free you now. You would not believe how difficult it is to free a slave. Thank the divines for your friends – it would have taken even longer if…”

 

“Free?!” Merks’ voice cracked on the word but for once Aithne was grateful to him – it was the same word she had wanted to say but her brain had frozen while trying to sound it out.

 

Urag’s face hardened as he lifted it again to look at Merks. “Yes. Free. As of eight bell this morning. Since the slaves aren’t sent to their duties until nine bell, you had a free woman in your room. One who had every right within the law to defend herself against unwanted…attention.”

 

The last word dripped menace and Aithne shivered as another spate of lust careened through her. Part of her wanted to turn to see Merks’ expression at this news, but she didn’t. First because she didn’t want to lift her face from Urag’s warm chest but mostly because the news he had shared occupied the majority of her attention. She had no energy to spare for Merks.

 

Free.

 

Such a small word. One syllable. Four letters. Three, if you only counted letters once. Such a simple word to hold so much meaning.

 

Free.

 

She couldn’t fathom it. The word was too big, vaster than the ocean, than the heavens themselves. An endless stretch of nothing that was at the same time everything. Darkness at the same time as light. It overwhelmed her, drowned her in its infinite depths.

 

Free.

 

Her body was shaking. She only noticed it obliquely. If Urag hadn’t been holding her up, she was certain she would have been on the floor already. There was no sound, no smell, no sight. Her body cast off every sense except the feel of those arms – everything else was too much to process.

 

Free.

 

Then there was sound. A distinct click. The collar slid from her neck and dropped to the ground. It landed with a soft tick noise but it sounded like a gong the size of the College to Aithne. She stared at it while comprehension circled around her, making further futile efforts to secure a spot in her consciousness.

 

“On second thought, I’d better take that with me.” Urag’s arms shifted. He bent over and picked up the collar, though his other arm never let go of Aithne. “I’d imagine someone will be interested to know there are collar forgeries around.” He stood back up and grinned at Aithne. “Imagine our surprise when we had the slave master recall you and he showed up instead.”

 

He laughed, and his laughter along with the picture that sprang into Aithne’s mind brought a spontaneous laugh out of her as well. For a moment, at least, the infinite wave receded. She had much to process but for now, she decided not to think about it. She was in Urag’s arms, and that was all she…

 

“Chonji!” The name sprang from her lips without her realizing she had spoken and she reflexively covered her mouth with her hand. To yell out like that was…

 

…entirely her right. The truth of it spilled across her like a warm breeze. She could say what she wanted. When she wanted. She could yell out the name of…of her son. HER son.

 

The infinite wave rose again, but now she saw the path through. It was too much to take it all in – just like when she had first come to the college, when she had started to learn the new rules, she had to parse the wave. One revelation at a time.

 

Urag smiled. “Yes. He’s been asking for you. Are you ready to go home?”

 

Aithne beamed at him and nodded, only noticing then the soaking wet material of his robe. She touched it and then her face and discovered she had been crying. Was still crying – tears poured down her face even as she laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck.

 

This time, when the teleportation spell was activated, she felt every bit of its wild chaotic rushing wind. It felt like heaven.

 

 

Next Chapter

 

Previous Chapter

 

Start at the Beginning