The World Walkers: Athare: Riordan: The First World Walker

[k_a_webb]

It was pure luck that someone was watching when a young girl, who couldn’t have been more than ten-years-old, walked through one of the doors. The watcher, Riordan, was grateful that she’d travelled to one of the safer worlds, instead of finding herself somewhere terrifying and dangerous. He went after her the moment he realised that she had actually gone to another world, rather than just stepping through the doorway the way most people did when they came across one of the fae created doors. She, unsurprisingly, hadn’t wanted to trust him, because he was obviously one of the fae and the people of Athare didn’t trust them. If he’d been one of the people of Athare he would have felt exactly the same way.

When she realised she was far away from home, even though she didn’t understand quite how far, she allowed Riordan to guide her back. He knew that she wasn’t going to be the only one, he knew they were going to need help if they were able to travel the web, but he didn’t want to tell anyone of her existence, because once he did things would change again. After what the fae had done, and he’d been an unwilling part of, he’d had enough of changes, especially unexpected ones. At the same time he realised he needed to be a part of those changes if he wanted to do anything to help.

Riordan asked her, voice gentle, who she was. Since the thirteen families had almost entirely shut themselves away the races from the other continents of Athare had found their way to the first continent. The fae, or more specifically the World Creation Council, still hadn’t named them, being too focused on creating the worlds of the web, and left the naming of the continents of Athare to the three races. It didn’t matter if places had names or not.

“I’m Tegan,” she said quietly, sounding tentative.

A name was more than Riordan had been expecting. He smiled at Tegan, feeling a little more at ease with the little girl, who reminded him of the nieces he’d lost, and gently took hold of her hand. The next question, the most important one, was one he was sure she wouldn’t want to answer, but he wanted to help her, and the only way he could do that was by talking with her parents.

“Would you take me to your home?”

Tegan looked at him, teeth biting into her bottom lip. “I don’t know.”

“What you did,” Riordan explained, “could be dangerous. Stepping through one of those doors if you don’t know where you’re going might lead you into situations you’re not capable of dealing with. Unless you let me help you something bad might happen and…” He sighed. “I really don’t want anyone or anything to hurt you.”

“Will you take me away from my family?”

Riordan knew that Tegan needed him to be honest with her, but it was a question he didn’t know the answer for. He could easily guess, knowing what the Council were like, and that was something he didn’t want to happen to any child. Unfortunately he knew that they were going to need guidance and the only people who could give her that guidance was the Council.

“I think it’s likely,” he replied, finally, hating what he had to say. “You have been given a great gift, Tegan, but it’s one you’re going to need help with, and we’re the only people who can help you.”

Nodding, Tegan started walking towards one of the newer settlements. “Will you help me?” she asked.

“If I can.”

“Thank you.” Tegan looked up and smiled at him for the first time. “I’m glad it was you who found me.”

“I’m glad it was me, too.” Riordan didn’t want to think what another member of the Council would have done in that situation. “Will you tell me a little more about yourself, Tegan?”

During the silence that followed Riordan reminded himself of the three other races who lived on Athare, because, like most of the fae, he’d never really bothered about them before. He felt a little guilty about that, but there was nothing he could do about the way he had acted in the past. Instead he would make changes to the way he acted in the future. Even though those races had been created using magic they were real now and their children, like Tegan, were born, not created.

The Weavers were created first and given settlements on the second continent. No one really knew much about them, because their creator, Eithne, was very secretive about the races she’d created. It wasn’t unusual for the creators to be secretive, but it wasn’t helpful when coming across a little girl with a magical power that no one had been permitted to give their races. Riordan knew a little about them, having come across them before. He glanced down at Tegan and was almost certain she wasn’t a Weaver.

One of the other two races had also travelled to the first continent, but Riordan wasn’t sure which of the two it was. They’d both been created by Bethan, who was only slightly less secretive about the work she’d done because they’d become friends. It was something that had happened a lot during the time they spent creating the web and the races who lived on each of the worlds, as it had taken years to get each world right. He didn’t like to think of the magic they’d wasted with their mistakes. Sighing silently, he told himself to focus on what needed to be done rather than dwelling on the past.

Mirrored from K. A. Jones Writing.

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