Chapter 9

"See Brianna and Aric's kids are such powerful mages that when Darla forced her bond onto Caelan mind it left an open circuit when he didn't fully understand how to accept it. But once they closed that loop in the circuit they truly became one," began Galen.

"Wait, wait. You need to go slower. I'm not sure I understand what's going on here," said Aaron confused. "My daughter did who to what again?"

Galen sighed.

"Remember season and a half ago when Darla lost all sense of time?" asked Galen slowly.

"She was looking for her lost half. That was Caelan. She formed a mental bond with him while they were kids. But it wasn't complete. But her mind didn't realize that, so while she was acting lost, her mind was trying to cope with the loss the best way it knew how, when she could no longer feel the one she desired to be with," said Galen.

"Using his shirts, and later Caelan coming back, balanced that out," said Galen. "Are you with me so far?"

Everyone nodded.

Darla and Caelan were now dressed, with Darla in one of Caelan's short sleeve shirts and a skirt her mother brought. Darla was sitting across Caelan's lap with her arms around his neck possessively.

"Now when Darla and Gail were assaulted," began Galen.

At that Gail clutched at Jaden who was sitting next to her, and Darla blanched.

Darla suddenly could see from Caelan's eyes what they found when they entered the room. She had no real memories after drinking from her cup. But now she saw what happened.

She was first suddenly embarrassed all those men saw her naked like that, then she was scared that they might come back for her, and then surprisingly very pissed off that this happened to her at all.

"HOW DARE they put me in that position!" she thought to herself suddenly very angry.

Then just as quickly she thought "That's new. Why was I so mad all of a sudden?"

And she was suddenly left wondering and confused as to where that new emotion of intense anger came from as Galen continued speaking.

"Darla's mind sought a way to open a link to Caelan, because she desperately needed a way for him to feel her too. Caelan's mind just wasn't ready for it to work that way. But when he felt how desperate Darla's mind was for help, it enabled her to force him to accept a link on him because she needed him. Still with me?" asked Galen.

Everyone nodded again.

"But once she forced open a passage into Caelan's mind it became two way. The bond wasn't supposed to work that way, but because of Caelan's power and Darla's desperation, it became what is now the two way communication passage instead of just one of empathy for Darla," said Galen.

"This is why mage's usually never marry one another, and Blue mages rarely marry or have long term commitments with anyone. If a mage does marry someone, it is usually to someone who is a non mage and with no magical abilities," said Galen.

"But I bet now the link works for communication as well as empathy between them, and it should no longer be limited by range either," finished Galen.

"But how is this going to impact the two of them?" asked Gemma.

Galen turned to the new couple.

"Kids, while you two were, uh getting to know one another more intimately, did anything out of the ordinary happen?" asked Galen.

At first Darla was going to say no, but Caelan spoke up.

"When I first, uh broke ground, it felt like someone had kicked me in my balls very hard. It went away, but it still really hurt. Was I feeling what Darla was feeling," asked Caelan.

"I would venture to say probably not even close to her pain, but I would suspect that's the best approximation that you mind could come up with," said Galen with a chuckle.

"And when I was in the, uh, moment, every time Darla, uh felt it, I would see colors bursting behind my eyes," also said Caelan.

"Me too. That last orgasm I had," Caelan blushed when she said it so matter fact "it was like I could see all the colors of the rainbow. Then it felt like I was thinking and feeling the same things Caelan was," said Darla.

"Well that to you both sounded like thunder to those of us outside the room, and that was the sound of the bond being completed between the two of you. I doubt anyone will hear it again. But you two are now linked together forever," said Galen.

"But here's a warning, you two will no longer have any real privacy. You will share thoughts, you will share emotions, and possibly even share pain based on what Caelan is saying. One will always know and feel what the other is doing.

"While it is all new to you now, you both need to understand what you have. And no one will understand you better than the one your bonded with, and you will always know what the other needs," said Galen.

"And boy you better not be checking out the ladies or you may find you have a pissed off wife on your hands," chuckled Galen. Everyone laughed at that.

"Then we were married at some point?" asked Caelan slowly with one eyebrow raised.

"Well to be honest you are now mated for life, so no ceremony need be preformed, but I think your parents would like one so you can tell your kids about it," smiled Galen.

"Will there be any side effects?" asked Aaron suddenly.

"Of that I don't know, since this is just that unique. Only time will tell," said Galen.

"Oh here, you'll need this in the morning Caelan," said Galen smiling as he tossed a jar over in the general direction of Caelan and Darla. "Your Mom and Dad had use for this seasons ago, and I believe you will as well. We'll talk more about it later"

Aric and Brianna knew what that jar contained and smiled to each other.

As Darla was serving around the room she smiled as she felt Caelan tell her he would drop by to take her home soon.

Aric gave them some land closer between the city and Caelan's childhood home on which Caelan, Jaden, Brianna, and Aric built a nice home on the land for them. They had built for them a three bedroom home on it on Aric's suggestion.

They would begin working on a home for Jaden and Gail soon.

Gail was on the other side of the room working and smiling as well. It had taken these last six months for her to work through her fear and reach this point tonight.

She still talked to Trisha, who was also almost raped seasons ago and saved by Aric, and with Gemma too, before she was able to get back to a place in her life that she felt comfortable with.

Gail was starting to become her old self again and started to give Jaden a run for his money in pranks and jokes.

She still had her bad days, and Jaden always came to walk her home each night, but those bad times were very few and far in between and she was recovering nicely.

Darla was at the bar getting an order filled when a lone figure, with a hood pulled over their head, came in to the tavern and took a seat near the back of the room. Darla kept looking at the figure thinking the person looked familiar. That figure reminded Darla of someone

Just as she started towards the figure, the door of the tavern burst open. Darla saw Gail who was close by scream and collapsed to the ground staring at the door.

Darla turned to the door to see that Quinn stood there with a crossbow. He looked around seeking out someone and once he saw Darla he turned and pointed it at her. Darla stopped moving as stark terror took over her body. She suddenly was frozen in place.

"YOU BITCH! You cost my family everything. We lost it all. You ran around crying rape and everyone believed you. Even those whores from Sisterhood, and they refused to protect our overland shipments. We were robbed so often that once we paid everyone back for all the robberies and death benefits we were broke! It's all your fault!" screamed Quinn.

"And I'm going take all that you cost us back from between your legs. All of what you owe us for our financial ruin. You'll be on your back for seasons paying us back. And you don't have your muscle headed husband around to protect you now," said Quinn with a sneer as he slowly moved into the tavern headed towards her.

Darla kept staring at him in wide eyed terror, shaking hard like a leaf.

While this was going on, Caelan could see every thing through Darla's eyes as it happened. He could feel her terror and he didn't like how it felt.

But he knew that he wasn't going to make it there from the docks in time to stop Quinn if he decided to shoot Darla. That helplessness enraged him and his eyes started to glow brightly red.

"If I was there right now I know what I would do, " he thought as he ran hard for the tavern from the wharf.

Darla slowly blinked her eyes a few times, and while still looking directly at Quinn, unexpectantly felt really calm and stopped shaking.

Suddenly without realizing it herself, she started to stare him down in real anger.

She quickly and quite suddenly was then enraged that he would threaten her again.

"How dare he try and threaten me again! Wasn't once enough!" she raged to herself.

It didn't even register with her that she had never truly felt rage before.

Her eyes suddenly flashed and then started to glow a shocking bright blue color!

Without seeming to realize it, Darla slowly raised her right hand his direction.

Her hair was suddenly rising, swirling, and sticking out from all around her head, like some kind of crazy giant black halo.

Quinn, first confused by the look she had giving him, then her glowing eyes, and now the sudden change in her demeanor and appearance, slowly lowered the crossbow to where it was now pointing at the floor.

This was a Darla that Quinn had never seen before.

Suddenly a thick lighting bolt, larger than her arm, erupted from her hand and struck him square in the face.

Quinn flew backwards, twitching with huge muscle spasms, but the crossbow had gone off while it was pointed down. It lodged its bolt into the floor as he was falling backwards, but Quinn was dead long before he hit the ground.

Darla looked down at her hand in shock as her rage completely fled from her as suddenly as it came.

"What did I just do!?" Darla thought to herself.

Caelan also, seeing what happened through Darla's eyes too was shocked.

"How did she do that? She doesn't have enough power or any training to do that!" he thought.

But neither of them seemed to be giving Quinn's apparent death a second thought in their confusion.

Gail, who was still sitting on the floor, was also staring at Darla in shock, while Darla continued looking at her right hand. Her hair had returned to normal after the spell discharged.

Suddenly Caelan burst into the room.

To all observers Caelan ran up to his wife and was holding Darla by the shoulders looking into her eyes as she looked back into his. They both appeared to be just standing there staring at each other.

But in reality they were holding a very high speed conversation. Caelan was trying to make sure that Darla was ok, and they were both trying to figure out what happened.

Suddenly the slim lithe shadowy figure from before stood up and walked towards them.