Avarice Twilight

by R. A Davidson

  They stop. Did I intimidate them?

  They begin cackling, "Are you planning on killing us, doll?" the man in front asks.

  "If I must," I reply as I draw the sword… there's no blade.

  The group laughs hysterically now. "Did you seriously threaten us with a sword handle!?" he exclaims.

  The man advances as he laughs. Is this it? It must be. There's no one to save me this time. I thought I could save them; that's so laughable. What can I do? I'm useless.

  The man grabs my hair. "Be a good little girl," he demands.

  No… I refuse to be helpless. I have to fight. I want to fight!

  I focus all my mana into the sword handle; I have no idea what will happen, but I put my faith in my Mother's sword.

  The man releases my hair. A large glowing blade has sprung forth from the sword handle… almost splitting him in half.

  20

  BARIN

  My eyes open… hit my head hard when we crashed into the wall.

  Pretty sure I'm leaning against a tree. How did I end up in the forest? I don't see Asteria or The Princess, but where are they? I see the wall in front of me… am I on the other side? If so, I was sent flying.

  I move to stand; my gut hurts. I look down… why is there a spear in my stomach?

  “Awake, huh?" a guy asks as he emerges from behind me. "Gonna have you stay put for a while," he states.

  "You the one who impaled me to this tree?" I ask.

  He squats down. "They said you'd be the most difficult to deal with, so they asked me to keep you here," he replies.

  If this guy is meant to keep me here, it's safe to assume that Asteria and The Princess are on the opposite side of the wall. I suppose I should get over there and help.

  Why do I hear metal being scraped together?

  I look up towards the sky… sure enough, there's a sizeable shining storm overhead. Maybe I don't have to hurry over there? The storm falls to the ground.

  "Looks like your pals will die soon," I tell the guy.

  He grabs the spear and shakes it.

  "Ouch," I reply.

  "That is some attack. Though, your friends may have a hard time," he remarks with no tone in his voice.

  What is this presence? Is someone else with Asteria and The Princess? Wait… I've felt this presence before… what is she doing here!? It's been many years, but there's no way I'd forget that cold malice.

  The Princess's storm disappears, along with the presence. What happened?

  "Seems like my pals beat yours," the guy comments.

  "What's your name?" I ask.

  "That's weird to ask… but if you want to know my name is—" he falls over.

  "W-what did you do?" he stutters.

  "Shot you with water," I answer.

  "You don't have to—" he croaks.

  I don't have to use chants if it's just a small bolt of water, though, the fewer people know, the better.

  I grab the spear and slowly pull it out. Fuck, it hurts. I'll have to use simple healing until Asteria can heal me…if she isn't dead or captured.

  I get the spear out; some of my guts poke out the hole. Just have to hold them in.

  I stand to make my way to the wall. Each step hurts, but I'd rather be discomforted than have my only way to get healed taken.

  I get to the wall; all the mercenaries must be on the other side. Guess I have to prepare myself to fight.

  I make my way past the edge of the wall and see that Asteria has stabbed a guy with a glowing sword. Wonder where she got that from.

  She drops the sword, making the blade disappear. Seeing what she did, she throws up. First day driving a wagon and killing someone all in one day… pretty productive.

  "Boss!" a mercenary behind the guy yells.

  He rushes Asteria. I don't think Asteria is in the state of mind to kill two people in a row.

  "Stone Spears," I chant.

  The ground juts upward at the guy, impaling him. More extrusions shoot upward and spear through the groups behind him.

  All eyes are on me at this point. There's a stinging sensation from my leg… an arrow is sticking out from my knee.

  So, the guy who attacked me before is among them? I should try and lure him out if possible; he could be annoying in a battle of fruition.

  "I wouldn't move if I were you," a scrawny man informs me. "With my magic, I can make arrows penetrate your body without you knowing. As you have experienced, it's a rather effective method." He smirks.

  Is this the guy… no, I don't think so? I'm positive this attack can only hit a target straight on. When I was hit the first time, all of the arrows seemed like they were shot in a straight line. That would mean the user of this magic was one of the ones chasing us. This scrawny guy doesn't seem like the type to do anything physically. To further provide evidence to my theory, the arrow is at a slight angle, and the one claiming to have done it is straight in front of me.

  "If possible, I would prefer not to kill you. Consul Artuitus wants you as unscathed as we can deliver," the scrawny guy states.

  I sit down. "Not like I can do anything anyway," I respond. "If you don't stop the bleeding, I'll die before that happens though."

  "Go heal him," the scrawny guy orders.

  A few mercenaries begin to approach me.

  "I want you to heal me," I say as I point at the scrawny guy. "If you're not the one to do it, then I'll start attacking, and you'll have to kill me. I'm sure Consul Artuitus would be displeased."

  The scrawny guy raises his hand to halt the others. "If you insist on being stubborn, I will accommodate," he replies.

  He begins walking towards me. Good… that's what I want. I need to make sure he isn't the arrow user. I took the chance that he would lower his guard if I appeared injured. It's a good thing I'm actually bleeding out at the moment.

  I play up the act that I've been gravely hurt. I act like I'm losing consciousness and rock back and forth slightly. I cough up blood… well, that was convenient.

  The scrawny guy bends down. Good, he's close enough for me to grab him.

  "You really are close to death, aren't you? We were surprised that you were alive after hitting the wall," he says.

  I look up at him; why would he be surprised? They impaled me to a tree just in case I woke up.

  The scrawny man looks surprised. "Don't tell me… you haven't realized your missing part of your skull?" he asks.

  Missing my skull? Was I too concerned with everything else to realize that?

  I reach to see where I was injured when the scrawny guy hits me.

  "Did you really fall for that!?" he laughs.

  "I did, but at least I got you," I remark.

  I grab his sleeve and pull him towards me. As I do, I thrust my thumb into his throat. Securing his arm behind his back, I turn him into a shield. This will help me find out who uses the arrows.

  An arrow appears in my right shoulder, so he's in the group over there then.

  "Bloody Blooms," I chant.

  Trees burst from the ground, skewering the group. The trees continue growing, making the dead bodies look like leaves.

  I have one more good attack before I pass out. I should kill them all, but have to use an attack that won't hit Asteria or The Princess.

  I snap the scrawny guy's neck and keep his body as a shield.

  I concentrate on everyone that's an enemy. I have to pinpoint every source of mana that isn't Asteria or The Princess. It'll take some time, but the mercenaries are too scared to approach me at the moment.

  "Endless Blaze," I chant.

  Every one of the mercenaries is engulfed by a black flame. They begin to panic and put the fire out. It's no use… Endless Blaze will keep burning until all of their mana has been depleted. Mana feeds the flames, making them burn hotter. If they expel all their mana, they'll just burn to death slower. There is no way of stopping these flames. There's no way of them escaping their deaths. Out of the spells that I've made, this is one of the v
iler ones. It is good at dealing with crowds though.

  The mercenaries start screaming as the black flames rage more and more.

  I stand and make my way towards Asteria and The Princess.

  "You alright?" I ask as I get to them.

  Asteria appears to still be in shock over killing that guy.

  I slap her.

  "What!?" she exclaims with much surprise.

  Seems she's back to her senses. I check The Princess; she has a welt on the base of her head. She'll be ok; just took a precise shot and got knocked out. I look around; I don't see that woman anywhere. I was sure I felt her presence, though.

  Asteria starts healing me. "Do you realize how much blood you’ve lost? You really should prioritize you own life, along with ours," she scolds.

  The air starts smelling like burnt flesh. The screaming has begun to die, along with the mercenaries.

  "Do you have to kill all of them?" Asteria asks.

  Does she still have qualms with killing people?

  "They attacked us first. Besides, this can work to our advantage," I answer.

  That woman's presence is back. I jump to my feet.

  "Where are you hiding!?" I yell.

  My question is answered with silence. I sense her behind me. I turn and raise my guard; if she's here, I'll have a tough fight at the moment. Her presence—it's coming from The Princess?

  The Princess glares at me… her eyes are a deep green. Why does The Princess have her eyes?

  "Who are you?" I ask.

  The Princess doesn't answer, but for some reason, her eyes turn back to normal, and the presence disappears.

  "What has happened here?" she questions. "I take it the black flames are your doing, Barin?"

  I nod my head. The Princess seems to be herself again. I'll have to keep a better watch on her though.

  “What will we do know?" Asteria asks.

  Well, I've thought that part through. That was part of the reason I killed the mercenaries with Endless Blaze. I sit down with them to discuss our next step.

  “We'll infiltrate the city. I doubt the Senate will send anyone to see if we were captured, and even if they did, they'd only find charred bodies. They wouldn't be able to identify if we were alive or not," I explain.

  I wasn't sure how we would go about things after we left the city. The mercenaries chasing us turned out the be the lucky break I needed.

  The sun is already up. If what Jen said was true, then Aryn and Utrix will be forced to fight tonight. While the Senate's attention is on the fight, I may be able to find out what the Senate plans on doing.

  This contract is a real pain in my ass, making me get involved in matters that don't concern me.

  "Do you intend to have us waltz into the senate tower?" The Princess asks.

  "That's the plan," I answer. "I'm sure if we ask around, someone will tell us the time and place the fight will be."

  We make our way back to the city. It's a long, quiet walk, which I'm glad about. I don't like conversing if I don't have to. I can use the silence to think about how to handle the Senate. Actually, I think the incident earlier is more pressing. Why was The Princess exuding that witch's presence? I know it's been years since I've seen her, but there's no way I'd forget that sensation. This really is a fucking pain.

  By the time we reach the city gate—well, what's left of it—the sun has set. There are no guards at the gate; they must be at the tower. If there will be a fight tonight, then the Senate will invite the people under their command. If I go by that logic, we just have to look for anyone moving towards the tower.

  "Look for those who are moving towards the tower. The ones who aren't under the effects of the drugs should be with the Senate," I inform.

  It's only a hunch, but I'd rather go with what seems more likely than with nothing at all.

  Just as they were when we entered the city, everyone is dancing drugged in the streets. Is there anything wrong with the way this city is? Even if their happiness is caused by a drug… at least they're happy. I've seen many cities where people live in their own shit while the wealthy smell daisies. That was even the case for Avalon: the place with such a lofted reputation. Even if it's due to people wanting to retain their power, these citizens are happy. They don't want anything, nor do they need it.

  "Barin!" Asteria shouts.

  "Sorry, my mind was lost in thought," I apologize.

  "You were the one who proposed we enter the city. You have no room to be aloof to your surroundings," The Princess states.

  I glare at her, but she has a point.

  "You should watch who you show your dissatisfaction towards," The Princess states. "Now, if you would be so obliged, I have spotted a few people not behaving delusional like the rest of the crowd," she informs us.

  She reaches to point them out. I pull her hand down, damn fool; what if they saw her and got suspicious.

  She seems to realize my motives and nods her head in their direction.

  There's a group of five men moving through the crowd. They're intentionally pushing through people, knocking down those who try and get in their way.

  "Let's follow them," I remark as I let The Princess's hand go.

  She slaps me. "Never take hold of me like that again," she commands.

  I bite my tongue; now's not the time to lose my temper.

  I start tailing the men; Asteria and The Princess make sure to stay behind me. At least they're catching on to how this works… Last thing I need is them trying to walk right behind those guys.

  I make sure to stay several yards away. Though, they don't seem concerned if someone is following them. Well, everyone is on drugs, so they wouldn't have to worry about anyone intentionally following them.

  I stop walking, Asteria bumps into me.

  "Why did you stop?" she asks while rubbing her forehead.

  "Change of plans… We're going to walk through the tower doors,” I state.

  "Do you insist on changing the plan according to your whims?" The Princess asks.

  "It just occurred to me: wouldn't it look more suspicious of us not acting like the drugs don't affect us? Only those who are aligned with the Senate will know about the fight," I remark.

  They don't seem to understand my reasoning, but I don't have time to explain it. We need to get into the tower before the fight.

  I turn to make my way towards the tower; Asteria and The Princess follow behind. Good, they're learning to adapt to changes. The Princess might have been against it to begin with, but it seems she understands I have seniority in terms of experience.

  We make our way to the side of the street. Good thing the crowd doesn't overflow onto the stone pathway in front of the buildings. We begin down the path and towards the tower.

  As we walk, more people not affected by the drugs gather. Looks like Jen was right about the fight happening tonight.

  After a short time of walking, we make it to the entrance of the tower.

  The doors are being watched by three guards. Is there a particular way to gain access inside? Damn, they're looking at us. If we were to walk away, we'd look suspicious. I keep walking until the guards halt me at the doors.

  "What are you doing? Go back and enjoy the city," one of the guards states.

  "Why would we associate with those mindless cretins?" The Princess responds.

  Damn… is that going to give us away?

  "Why are you three not afflicted by the drugs?" the guard questions.

  "Obviously, we are affiliated with Consul Artuitus's faction," Asteria answers.

  The guards straighten. "I see, apologies for the inconvenience," He politely addresses us.

  We walk past and enter the tower; I can't believe they didn't fuck it up.

  Asteria and The Princess quickly walk in front of me.

  "You can thank us for that," Asteria smiles.

  I sigh. "If we get through this, I'll get Aryn to bake some desserts," I respond.

  They turn and lead the way this
time. Won't hear me complaining about things going smoothly. If anything attacks us, they get to take the brunt of it now.

  We follow other people that entered the tower down the main hall. The Senate really has no sense of style, do they? The columns they have all over the place are tasteless. Do they think they're an enlightened civilization? And these portraits… Who wants to look at a bunch of ugly and bloated old men? You can tell this place was built to stroke their egos, along with other things.

  The group we are following stops in front of the portrait of Senator… The name on the plaque says Artuitus. So, this is him, huh? Looks like a guy who craves power.

  Someone steps towards the painting and runs their hand along the frame. The painting swings open, revealing a passageway behind it. Is this the way to the fight? As the group heads through, we follow.

  As soon as my foot passes the entryway, a nauseating presence envelops me. This must be the way to all of the dirty secrets the Senate takes pleasure in. I recognize the feeling of dead souls anywhere.

  We follow the group down a spiral of stairs.

  “Why does the air feel so thick and stagnate?" Asteria asks.

  “You're feeling all the countless souls who've died here. They're trapped here, to be in misery forever," I reply.

  Asteria and The Princess are quiet. I suppose that wasn't the most tactful way of putting it, but it would be more of a hassle to think of a lie to tell them. Even if I did lie, that wouldn't change the fact that many people were killed here for entertainment. I suppose that doesn't affect me though; their deaths happened years before I got here.

  “Think Consul Artuitus got any specimens that will make for a good show?" a man asks me.

  “I wouldn't be able to even imagine the show we will witness," I answer. I put my arm around him. "I do have a feeling that this will be the best one we've seen in a while."

  The man chuckles. “I sure hope so… between you and me, I heard that Consul Artuitus managed to capture quite the monster this time," he confides.

  The monster they have must be Aryn.

  I glance around; there's no one behind us. “Hang back with me. I heard something interesting about tonight's show as well," I coax.