Chapter 5
Alec and Tyrell stood by the southeast guard tower.
Norton had given them leave for the day, and the duo thought they would
organize a sightseeing trip. Oddly enough, it was Alec who suggested it.
Everyone seemed to like the idea. The meeting point was the tower an hour after
sunrise. Alec and Tyrell arrived shortly after Celica. “Hello boys. You are
early.”
“As are you, ma’am.”
“I’m afraid Lou will not be joining us for a while. She
had some things to prepare this morning.” Tyrell nodded and adjusted the cloak
that hung around his body. “I hate this darn thing. It’s too heavy.” He said. Tyrell
looked up and sighed. “Great, now I sound like Norton.” Celica smiled. “It is
not the cloak, but the burden. That is the cloak that was given to the previous
Gran Magus.” Tyrell nodded.
“I see. I now bear the burden of the traitor as well.” He
visibly settled into the cloak with a frown. The princess arrived wearing a
simple dress with an apron. With her new haircut, she looked like a commoner.
She acted perfectly natural in the common garb. She seemed so comfortable
wearing it, that Alec could hardly believe that she was royalty. “Hello
everyone! I hope you all had a good evening.” Everyone returned her greeting
with a smile. Another figure wearing a black robe trailed behind the princess.
“Ah, Lou; just in time.”
“I am ready to go, ma’am.” Celica snickered. “Not in that,
Lou.”
“But Lady Celica!” Celica ignored her protests. The old
woman went right up to her and gave a sharp tug on the robe. “Noo~” Lou cried
as the old lady finally wrestled the cloak off of her. She was wearing the same
thing the princess wore, without the apron and in a brighter shade of brown.
And although she stood up to a Siren the other day, Lou looked no older than
twelve. Her girlish face and golden pigtails gave her a carefree appearance. One
of energy and innocence. “There we go, dear. You look so adorable.” Lou pouted.
“You are so mean, Lady Celica.” The group got a good laugh out of that and the
adventure started.
*****
Kline stood on the roof of one of the taller buildings in
the capital city. He rapidly scanned the area. “Not here…” He said and used the
dark spell ‘Blink’ to warp to the top of a nearby steeple. He stood on top of
the spire with perfect balance. A flare of bright blue surrounded him as he
used time magic to let him scan every face from his lookout. “Not here either.”
After another blink, he stood on a ledge overlooking the market. He crouched
next to a gargoyle. Both provided a steady vigil over the square, but with opposite
purposes. Kline was here to hunt, not to defend. He scanned the area. A couple
of travelers caught his attention. One of them wore the Gran Magus’s cloak.
Kline cursed silently for getting distracted, but the
distraction actually helped him for once. His mark was attempting to pass by
them. His target was as traveling mage named Peterson. Peterson looked like a
traditional Northern Ken man; dark skin, dark black hair, and a prominent chin.
He used powerful magic, unlike any the Leneel Church had seen. In order to
further study this anomaly, Kline was to capture him alive. If the target
became a threat to the populous however, the target was to be put down.
Peterson was too dangerous to keep alive for long. Kline jumped down and
infiltrated the crowd unnoticed. He pushed his way towards the man, a sinister
smile on his face.
As he took faster steps, people began to notice him.
Church assassins wore a special mask in order to hide their face. However, it
resembled the Siren’s masks. Like the Siren’s, it was made of a dark, glossy
metal. But unlike the sirens, this one had features. The outline of the
assassin’s nose, lips, and forehead remained so it fit better. He was wearing a
black mask and black leather armor with a black cape around his shoulders;
things the Sirens often wore as well. Kline hoped he could have gotten closer
to his target before the people became aware. Kline began to move faster,
darting between bodies. Then the screaming began. Kline groaned and broke into
a full sprint. But, he was surprised he got this far into the city before being
spotted.
The words ‘Siren’ and ‘Help’ floated on the air as the
market broke into chaos. Peterson took cover in an alley to watch the chaos
ensue. “Peterson!” Kline called out over the chaos. The man noticed and took
off running. Behind Kline, he heard someone cry out. “Lou and I will pursue!
Everyone else, cut them off at Rook Street!” Kline closed on his target.
Peterson began to glow a deep shade of purple. He extended his hand and touched
the side of a building. His fingers drew lines on the walls. Where he touched,
the stone and brick disappeared, letting Kline glance into the residences
through finger sized gashes.
Peterson gathered the matter he had taken from the
buildings and tossed a barrage of stone needles. Kline dodged and took a look
at his pursuers. His eyes went wide. The Gran Magus and a small child were
chasing him. And the girl was gaining on him too quickly. Kline pushed his
magic to the limits. He lowered his left arm and let dark magic coat it.
“That’s a neat trick, assassin.” His blood chilled as the girl passed him. She
went a good distance ahead of him and turned. She raised a fist to hit him.
Kline jumped onto the walls on his left and ran along the surface for a short
distance before returning to the ground.
Peterson could feel his heart racing. He knew he couldn’t
stop now and grit his teeth and pushed on. He had escaped this man once
already; he could do it again. With help from these strangers, he just might
make it to Daylon. Peterson saw an exit leading to Rook Street. From there, he
could escape to the farmlands outside of Atlantis. Once in the open, he could
let loose his magic fully. Three people steeped in front to stop him. He
targeted the elderly lady in front of him. “I’m really sorry, lady.” His magic
flowed to his fingertips. In his mind, he reached out to the buildings and the
first two strangers blocking his path. He pushed them apart so that he could
get between them. He then pushed the ground under the old lady back. The
others, an armed man and woman, seemed completely stunned at this stunt. This
was a common strategy for space mages though. Something that he had done on
multiple occasions.
The old lady looked up as Peterson jumped at her. He
turned his entire arm into stone and punched. In response, she turned her body
to liquid. Peterson jumped back at she launched a powerful burst of water magic
at him. She turned into steam and disappeared. The woman appeared behind him
and raised pillars of stone to block his exit. “Nowhere for you to go now,
son.” The assassin jumped from the alley. A girl quickly followed him. “Lou,
now!” The girl nodded. A faint purple aura appeared around her. It slowly
extended until it engulfed the assassin. A second black aura like smoke
appeared with the first aura, but this one only surrounded Peterson. As soon as
the light surrounded Kline, his claw dispersed. The little girl then punched
him in the chest, knocking him out cold. As Peterson stood in shock, the man he
had pushed aside tackled him and wrestled him to the ground.
*****
When Kline awoke, he was staring into the face of the
Gran Magus. The man returned his gaze. That was when Kline noticed his mask was
gone. He broke the silence. “Where is the Northerner?” Tyrell pointed behind
Kline. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Peterson in the cell next to him
through a window. “I want to know why a church assassin is after this man.” The
Gran Magus stood a safe distance away. “I need not explain myself to you.”
“Actually, you do. Otherwise, I’m going to have to
believe the other one’s story.” Kline closed his eyes. “Believe what you want,
Magus. I have no reason to speak to you.” The little girl that knocked him
unconscious walked up next to the man. “He is not human, Tyrell. He has no fear
or reason. Torture or interrogate him all you want; it won’t be of any use.”
Kline glared at the girl. “And how would you know that, missy?”
“I believe the children would say, ‘it takes one to know
one’.” The church assassin shifted in his seat. Tyrell pulled up another chair
and sat. “Look, I’ll make you a deal. Tell me your name and mission, and I’ll
see what I can do.” Kline sat in a stubborn silence. “Allow me, Gran Magus.”
The girl stepped forward and faced Kline. She reached up to his face and closed
her eyes. Her mouth ripped open and she bit his neck. Tyrell jumped up and held
his heart. Kline roared in pain and tried to break free. When he finally did,
the girl kicked him over and bit him again. An elderly woman watched from a
distance.
“Enough Lou. You had your fill.” The girl let go of him
and wiped her mouth on her arm. Her mouth had returned to normal but the
psychological damage had been done. The Gran Magus lifted him upright. “Now
that we are equally terrified, I suppose you want to talk?” Kline shook his
head. “I would rather die.” Tyrell raised an eyebrow. “You just had a small
child shred your neck like a bear. How stubborn can you be?”
“The Sun-Cursed are of no concern to me. I am following
orders.”
“His name is Kline. A church assassin sent after
Peterson.” Another man returned, leading Peterson towards the cell. Peterson
faced his attacker. “I’m done, Kline. I’m goin’ ta’ Daylon if it kills me.”
Kline struggled against his bindings. “Listen, Kline. Peterson has made us a
deal. If you cooperate, we will let you in on it too.” The Gran Magus opened
his palms and reclined in his chair. “It’s entirely up to you, assassin.” Kline
clenched his teeth. “Fine…what do you want?”
“Peterson wants to get to Daylon for one reason or
another. We plan on taking him there.” Kline raised an eyebrow. “Alec here is a
mercenary. This is his contract. Once at Daylon, Peterson will go about his own
agenda. After he is satisfied, he has promised to return with us to Col, where
he will surrender to the Church’s will.”
“How do I know he will? I am not going to let him out of
my sight any longer.” The Gran Magus nodded. “I know. Alec and I agreed that,
if you are willing to play nice, we would let you come along.” The man Kline
assumed was Alec spoke up. “Yes. I always fulfill my contracts. If you want to
take one, I can help you.”
“And now you want me to pay you? For helping me catch a
criminal?” Alec nodded. “That is what a mercenary does. That is why we are
hated.” Kline was beaten. With the Sun-Cursed girl and this mercenary helping
him, Peterson could escape whenever he wanted. He was out of ideas and out of
time. The only out seemed to be to tag along with the group. Kline was
frustrated. No one had out maneuvered him before. It left a bitter taste in his
mouth. Kline hung his head and spoke. “I will be coming. So long as I get
Peterson after this.” The group, including Peterson nodded. They untied him and
departed, leaving only the assassin and the monster behind.
“You know; they could have just killed you.” Lou said.
Kline glared at her. “They could have asked me. It would have been over in an
instant.” Kline frowned. “I’ve never met a Sun-Cursed so powerful. How did you
get this way?” Lou smiled eerily. “I was lucky. I met a nice family who
accepted me for who I was. People who didn’t try to kill a monster like me.
They let me live, let me learn. They taught me how to defend myself. I just had
all the time in the world to perfect what I learned.” Kline towered over her.
“How long did you trick that family?”
“I didn’t trick them,” she said with a growl, “They knew
what I was.”
“How. Long.” He ordered. She looked him directly in his
eyes. “A little more than one hundred years. Celica is the last one left, and
She has been watching over me for a long, long time.”
“That explains it. I’ve never had to kill a Sun-Cursed
older than twenty years. But, one hundred? No wonder you bested me.” Lou looked
pleased. “Thank you, assassin. But there is still one that is older than me.”
“What?”
“I’ve met him…and he is the most powerful Sun-Cursed in
existence.”
“And how do you know this?”
“Well…he helped the sages with the Great Calamity.”
“Where is he now?” Lou shrugged. “He left…said he had to
go somewhere else.” Kline nodded and the girl wandered off. If Kline couldn’t
best a monster that was one hundred years old, how did he hope to hunt down one
that was at least four hundred? The Church Demon Hunters would need to be
deployed, but it would take a small army to deal with this girl alone. The
forces required to defeat the one that worked with the sages would be
unfathomable.
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