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Korzim needed advice, and there was only one dogun he could think to go to. Ineos had been welcomed home with open arms and though he still spent time in Corkus and Kandon-Beda, he frequently returned to the warmth of the heights to rekindle his dying flame. He was far healthier now than before and was assisting efforts in New Taloka when Korzim found him. They greeted each other and with no dwarves nor humans around, they were free to speak at their own pace.
“Are you busy?” Korzim asked.
“There is always something to do, but nothing urgent,” Ineos replied. “I have had time to relax. It has been good to bathe in the lava springs again.”
“That is good to hear,” the chieftain's son replied. “Could we talk?”
Ineos was surprised at the request, but more surprised at how Korzim turned away, clearly intending for them to get some space from the other doguns before speaking. Their kind were a very close-knit community and there were nearly no secrets that held by any single dogun. That said, both Korzim and Ineos had been isolated from their community for many years, but where Ineos had fled and mourned his home, Korzim had been banished by his own. Perhaps, Ineos thought to himself, Korzim was still rebuilding that lost sense of community.
“Is something wrong?” he asked once Korzim had apparently deemed them safely away.
“Not necessarily,” was the reply. “I need advice.”
“I am honoured but I would have thought there would be others you were closer to,” Ineos remarked. “I have been gone for many years, Korzim.”
“Yes, but of all doguns, you understand humans the best.”
“Ah. Is this about the human then? Quinn?”
Korzim inclined his head. “Yes. I fear I may have upset them, but I am not sure how. Or if that is what they are feeling at all.”
“May I ask what happened?” Ineos questioned.
Korzim retold what happened, with the time he’d spent with Quinn, how the human frequently stayed at his house, meeting Plario, and then the discussion over Korzim and Plario’s Bond and what had happened since. Ineos had heard of Quinn’s involvement in stopping the ancient war but some of what Korzim said was news for Ineos, who hadn’t heard of the strain that had come between Plario and Korzim.
“They have not returned since,” Korzim finished. “They are frequently away and often for long periods of time, but they had stayed for so long so I had hoped this time would be different.”
Ineos chuckled to himself, shaking his head. “Humans are strange creatures. I find them funny in a way. They could be called the exact opposite of us doguns, so fast in their emotions, constantly changing.”
“How do you mean?” Korzim asked.
The other dogun hummed. “When we have a problem, we face it. We stand our ground, we consider, and we act. The same is true when we have a disagreement or are angry at another. Humans do not face these things. They react quickly, full of emotion, then they run and hide and try to avoid things in the hope it will fade. I am not surprised that your human ran when they felt rejected.”
“Rejected?” Korzim questioned.
“Yes. If they did not know you were Bonded, I imagine meeting Plario would have been quite the shock. Especially after courting you for so long.”
Even for a dogun, Korzim was slow to respond. “Courting? Ineos, I think you misunderstand. Quinn has not courted me. We have not exchanged gifts.”
Ineos shook his head. “Humans do not court as we do, Korzim. I have learnt much from Rhay and his Bonded in Corkus. We court by creating structures and moving land, by gifting precious objects we find or create. Humans court by giving the most precious thing they have; time.”
Korzim’s low rumble said he did not understand, so Ineos elaborated. “Humans live short lives, Korzim. The longest I have known a human to live was 103 years. Most live to only half a century. We are not even considered adults at that age. Humans have homes, they have possessions, and some even have magic, but they have little time. For a human, to share their time is the greatest gift. In my experience, the more time a human spends in a creature’s company indicates their level of affection for them. In other words, humans give as much of their time as possible to the one they would like to Bond to. In human words, the one they love.”
“So, learning about Plario…?”
“It was a rejection of their courtship,” Ineos explained. “But if I am honest, I do not think Quinn knew they were courting you. In my experience, humans act on their feelings without thinking why they are feeling them. It is likely that they felt rejected but did not know why, so they ran in the hopes that the feeling would fade.”
“Will they return?” Korzim asked.
Ineos inclined his head. “I should think so, if they have not collected the armour that is being made for them. And if they truly want to be Bonded to you, I imagine they will try to court you again, because humans are as stubborn as they are impulsive.” He regarded the chieftain's son. “You may have trouble, Korzim. It would be best to tell Quinn soon that you cannot Bond when you already have a Bonded.”
Korzim was looking away, through the gaps between the buildings where they could see flashes of doguns passing out of earshot. “I have not felt Bonded to Plario for many years,” he admitted. “Our courtship was too short, and our Bond always felt more out of obligation than trust. And when I decided to reason with the dwarves…” He cut himself off, shaking his head. “I am sorry, Ineos. I should not burden you with my own doubts.”
“Why not?” Ineos asked. “We are doguns, Korzim, made of earth and flame. No mountain stands on its own, and no flame burns without lighting another. I think you, like me, have felt isolated for too long. We are meant to share our burdens.”
“You are right,” Korzim admitted. “It has been better since I was welcomed back into the tribe, but I cannot help but remember that I was banished in the first place.”
“Did Plario follow you into your banishment?”
Korzim’s flame burned brighter for a moment as it did with a dogun’s rare flash of anger. “No. They did not. When I decided to reason with the dwarves, I kept my plan a secret from all except Plario. Because they were my Bonded, I thought they may understand. They never did. They called me foolish, asked why I was betraying eons of dogun tradition, betraying the doguns I was to lead one day. They did not listen that I was doing it to save my people, that not all dwarves could believe the lies, and that we were a dying people. I did not try to convince them to see my side, but I asked them to keep my plan a secret, and they swore.”
“But something happened,” Ineos guessed.
Korzim sighed. “Yes. I spent months trying to find dwarves who would listen, venturing down into the Heights, even walking among them. No one in the tribe saw me go or return, except Plario. But one day my father summoned me in front of the Council and proclaimed me banished me in front of every dogun. I have forgiven him for that, but I cannot forget the words that he said. And those words, the things that he knew… They were things only Plario could have told him. And they did not once speak to me during my banishment.”
“And afterwards?” Ineos asked.
“Afterwards, we only spoke in groups with other doguns, never privately, and always short conversations.” Korzim explained. “The day the Elders returned was the first day they spoke to me alone, and they have been insistent ever since.”
“Elder Desint,” Ineos remembered. “Plario’s father.”
Korzim inclined his head. “I do not want to think the worst of Plario, but it cannot be coincidence. Since then, they have been insistent for my wellbeing and safety as any Bonded is, but they did not once reach out when I needed it most. We may still be bonded by the ancient magic, but any trust has been gone for years.”
“It is bad luck for Bonds to break, Korzim,” Ineos warned. “Traditions warn us of the dangers.”
“Traditions nearly killed our people, Ineos,” Korzim reminded. “It was only because we tried something new that we are free. I do not like the idea of a future with a Bonded who is more interested in obligation to the tribe rather than the Bond. I would rather a Bonded who has proven repeatedly that I can trust them.”
Ineos tilted his head slightly, recalling the topic that brought them to all this. “Korzim. You cannot Bond with a human. They are not a dogun; the ritual would kill them. And the Elders would never approve.”
“The Elders would never have approved of me negotiating with the dwarves either, nor of convincing other doguns to join me,” Korzim reminded. “And yet my actions were what helped save us. This is a new time, Ineos. The humans did not walk the Heights when we followed our Elders.”
The other dogun sighed quietly. “I have been away for too long to give you more advice, Korzim, other than that humans live short lives compared to us, and lives even shorter than the dwarves. They do not see things as we do, and they do not have a power like ours. Their lives are like the blink of an eye, and any Bond with them will end in their death. Think through your actions before committing to anything.”
Korzim inclined his head. “I understand. There is a lot to think about after all, and much to talk about. And the Elders, of course. But thank you for your advice, Ineos.”
“I was happy to provide. And glad that my years among humans have not been wasted.”