The Legend Of Black Eyes

"I know Raiya tried to manipulate me before," I said.

"It"s not that," Eva retorted. "I have a bad feeling about that woman."

"Me too," I admitted. "My grandfather wants her though, perhaps even more than capturing me. This makes her a potential ally we shouldn"t ignore."

I agreed to meet with Raiya after things calmed down in order to discuss a partnership she had in mind. I made it out of Merinsk with Beatrix"s help after I successfully killed Fischer. After I briefly met with Raiya, I found Beatrix in the warehouse we met at the first time. We waited for dark and snuck past the guards and through a sewer gate.

Apart from the orb I stole for the old man, I found that Fischer had maps of hidden paths scattered around the city. He probably used them to smuggle rare artifacts before he was promoted to the underworld. It"s crazy what people keep as mementos in their box of secrets.

 "That"s no reason to meet with her again," Eva went on with her warnings. She didn"t stop talking about Raiya ever since we met her back in Merinsk.

"She"s been after Hartwell longer than we have, Eva," I said. "And now that Osgar"s gone and disappeared on us, we need someone like her in our team."

"Osgar"s twitchy little p.e.c.k.e.r got him into trouble," she said in a sullen tone. "I still don"t see why you need her anyway."

"Without Osgar, we"re not getting anywhere near that helm," I said, gritting my teeth.

"Another reason why you shouldn"t trust women," Eva said. "Can"t you see it yet? Hilda and Elsa used you to get what they wanted. You"re now wanted while they"re attending Fischer"s funeral, like outstanding members of society. Osgar"s gone, and you are left with the task of finding a replacement. I don"t see any of them doing any hard work..."

Eva kept arguing as I made my way toward an orchard south of the eastern gate. After we a.s.sa.s.sinated Fischer, the city custodians and the shadows partnered to hunt us down and bring us to justice. In the meantime, we gave the townsfolk something exciting to talk about during their nighttime escapades in Handels Market.

The newspapers painted us as terrorists and cold blooded murderers.

"The merchant robber has a new accomplice," an article I read this morning said. "A man who goes by the name Darkstar. Together, they have deprived the city of one of its most outstanding citizens, Lord Adelmund Ekkhar Fischer. Authorities have issued a bounty of three Galleons for their heads, two extra Galleons in case they are delivered alive."

Things had gone from "bad but manageable", to "really bad and needs a miracle". Posters of a man with an eye patch were hung all around the city. They knew exactly what I looked like, probably thanks to Bodrick. There was no news about Beatrix though. She was still called the merchant robber, and her infamy soared after our attack against Fischer.

I couldn"t enter the city without using the secret paths. I couldn"t get in during daytime either. So I decided to meet with Raiya outside the city, somewhere where we couldn"t get ambushed.

I reached the orchard before midday. I heard the city bells from there, announcing Fischer"s funeral procession.

"Took your jolly time," Raiya"s voice reached me from behind apple trees.

Red and green fruits dangled all around me. I extended my senses to find the witch.

"I had some things to take care of," I said and made my way toward her.

"You"ve grown stronger," she said as I emerged from behind a tree to meet her.

"Is it me, or is it that every time I meet you, you seem even more beautiful that I remembered you to be?" I said, smiling.

She wore a simple violet dress that reached for her ankles. A long cut that ran from her hips to the bottom of the dress left a bare, alluring thigh on display. On her right hand, she held a wooden staff, perhaps fir, with rune carvings covering it from top to bottom. A necklace with a big, violet precious stone hung atop her firm, ample b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

Raiya chuckled lightly then instantly rearranged her face into a serious expression.

"Hartwell"s got your scent," she said. "He"s bound to find you and your accomplices."

"If you don"t do something about it first," I said.

"You"ve even grown smarter," she said with an appreciative nod. "Not bad, Stalwart."

"It"s Darkstar now," I said.

"I thought you hated the name," Raiya said with a raised eyebrow.

"It beats Stalwart," I said then shrugged. "I learned that my family name makes me a target."

Raiya snorted quite loudly. "You"ve just changed names," she said. "You"re an even bigger target now that the authorities are after you."

I knew my reckless plan would make me a target. I knew I might even bring my grandfather to Merinsk sooner than expected. I also knew, or hoped, that Bodrick would drop his guard after I was made public enemy number one. I didn"t know, however, that Bodrick had Hartwell"s protection.

Hartwell, according to junk shop old man, lives in a fort some twenty miles west of Merinsk. He controls the underworld branch from the shadows, with my grandfather"s blessings. I didn"t know what kind of relationship the men had, but I knew one thing: No one impresses Theolonius Stalwart unless they"re as crazy, or crazier than he was.

"I only need to steal one thing," I told Raiya, gritting my teeth. "Then I"m out of here."

"The so called legendary helm," Raiya said, matter-of-factly. "I a.s.sume you know where it is then."

"Well…" I scratched my head.

"You"re not sure I"m trustworthy," Raiya said. "It doesn"t matter. I know where the helm is, and I"m willing to help you."

"What"s in it for you?" I asked.

I expected the witch to beat about the bush. The fact that she went straight to business either meant that she had a hidden motive or that she was desperate; maybe both.

"Your safety," she replied.

My jaw dropped. I chuckled nervously as I tried to a.s.sess whether or not the witch was telling the truth. "You"re kidding, right?"  

"Do I seem in the mood to make jests, Darkstar?" she asked. "Your life"s in danger. You do know that your grandfather has issued an arrest order on you."

I nodded. "I don"t know why he wants me so badly though," I said. "I mean, you f.u.c.ked him real bad. I understand why he"s killed your partner, but –"

My face stung from the slap I didn"t see coming. My head turned. It felt as though a sledgehammer hit me across the face.

"Don"t you dare speak of that…" Words got stuck in her throat. Her nails dug on her palms so hard blood started dipping on the ground. She shook heavily, and her aura overwhelmed me, even frightened me.

"If I"ve offended you, I apologize," I said, slowly backing away. "I didn"t mean to remind you of painful memories."

Raiya looked as though she regained her composure. She amiably smiled, a complete and sudden change in att.i.tude. "It"s all fine," she said with a mellow voice. "I just… lose control when I"m reminded of my mistake…Shall we get back to the matter at hand then?"

"O-oh!" I said.

"Grandpa wants you alive," Raiya said. "Do you wish to know why?"

I nodded.

"If I tell you," she went on. "I need to have your word that I"ll be on your team."

"I came here to convince you of that!" I thought.

"But you also need to know if you can trust her," Eva interjected.

"Yeah, yeah," I said. "I don"t need your constant reminders."

"I beg to differ," she retorted. "You obviously need someone to keep you in line. You seem to lose focus when women are involved, especially the powerful, beautiful kind."

"You"ve been phasing out ever since we performed the exorcism," Raiya said, s.n.a.t.c.hing me from the internal struggle. "Does she still speak to you?"

d.a.m.n, I forgot how sharp she was.

"I have developed a habit of speaking to myself after that episode," I said. "It helps me sort things out." I prepared for this kind of questions. Nag used to ask me about it all the time.

Raiya scowled at me for a fraction of a second then smiled. "Do I have your word then?"

"You do," I said. There was nothing to think about really. Raiya had tried to manipulate me once. I was sure she"d try to do the same now. Her sudden appearance was enough to tell me she was desperate. I didn"t think she"d use my safety as an excuse to tag along though.

Raiya started laughing. Her mellow voice travelled with the western wind toward the city, where Fischer"s procession had started. After his death, things were going to change in the city. Fischer"s sons were found dead in their beds last night, hours after their father"s a.s.sa.s.sination. All fingers pointed at me, the new terror of Merinsk.

Hilda decided to make an appearance at the funeral despite her being disowned. Elsa was there too, paying respect for an outstanding citizen"s pa.s.sing. They were also gathering information about Hartwell. Kohler has arranged for a dinner in honor of Fischer"s death. I wondered if they"d come up with anything.

Raiya was still laughing. I raised an eyebrow at her then asked, "What"s so funny?"

She swept a tear from her cheek then tried to calm her hysteria. "It"s just that… Well… I prepared all this speech about how I can be helpful against Hartwell, but you took the fun out of it."

"I"d rather hear about my grandfather," I said.

"Fine," she said, much calmer this time. "I don"t think you"d like what you hear though."

"Just shoot," I said, exasperated. "It"s high time I prepared myself to face the old man."

"Theolonius Stalwart doesn"t like compet.i.tion," Raiya said. "You"ve inherited the strongest Fragment there is. With Stalwart blood in your veins, you"re most likely to master it before the end of the Wars. This means that you, or anyone who holds Minsec"s gift of power for that matter, is a target. Stalwart can"t completely merge with the Holus with a powerful Fragment Holder like you."

"How am I his compet.i.tion?" I asked, a bit surprised. "I barely know how to cope with this thing."

Raiya chuckled. "Things change once the Holi Wars start," she said. "You get to know what real power means. You get to command an army that obeys all your commands. You even get to fill your Fragment with essence so pure, it"ll make you feel invincible.

"All you need to do is prepare now. Think of how you want to use your powers, practice it. Once the Wars start, you can take elementary spells and push them to a whole new level. Have you ever thought of what would happen if you could restart a day, a week, a month in your life? You"d know exactly what would happen, you can even change what had already happened."

"H-h-hold on a minute," I said. "Are you saying that I can rewind time, not for seconds or minutes, but for days?"

"You can do much more than that," Raiya said. "They used to call me the time-witch. Your grandfather promised me your Fragment if I delivered those bones to him. I"ve fantasized about this power for how long? I can"t even remember right now."

I took some steps back. Raiya began giving some hostile energy readings toward me.

"If Stalwart gets his hands on the bones you stole from the Crucible," Raiya went on with a wheezy, otherworldly voice. "The ones I kept after I rescued you from Utar, he"ll summon the Eternal Moon. It cost me more than I antic.i.p.ated, but I finally managed to identify whose bones they were. Stalwart probably knows that, this is why I"m his target.

"You on the other hand," she pointed at me and all the hostile energy faded away. "You are his most dangerous enemy in case he successfully summons the moon. Let"s not forget his grudge against you. You got his son killed after all.

"I bet this is why he wants you alive. He wants to torture you until you beg for death. So what say you, Myles Stalwart? Let me teach you about that Fragment of yours. With my help, dear old Theo won"t lay a finger on you. You"ll steal that helm, and we all go to Milogac together."