The soft heart of magic II

It has been well over two months since Blank arrived at the palace. She and Arko got acquainted real fast so the king assigned him to watch over her and make sure she doesn’t do anything strange or try to escape. It didn’t take long for them to start enjoying their time together, learning from each other.

It was already late when Arko and Blank were returning from the forest where they gathered a bunch of plants and roots for the laboratory. Arko was telling her the story of how he survived a ship crash a year ago when Blank suddenly stopped walking. The plaza was empty and quiet.

-What’s wrong? asked Arko.

Blank pointed towards a small street going behind some buildings.

-A magic source... a strong one too.

-What? How could anything like that get into Palestone? We have to see what it is.

Blank nodded, and they both started running towards the barely lighted street. In the past month Blank fully learned how to control Arko’s magic, but they never got to try it into combat. They arrived at the last corner before the source. Blank signaled Arko to stop, and they both picked over the wall. Blank froze, and Arko enraged. Blood painted on the stone walls, and a silhouette of a man was shown to them. As the clouds cleared, and the moonlight found it’s a way between the houses, the man was revealed holding a head and a strange red sword. It was him. The killer of his father.

Arko charged at him swiftly, sword in hand, with a low strike to kill. The man nimbly dodged and aimed for his attacker's sword instead of his body severing its blade off. For a moment he saw his face. The yellow glow of his eyes and the red tone of his hair. Blank drew some magic from Arko and cast a spell pushing the killer away from him. The force of the spell made him drop both the head and the sword. Thinking quickly, Arko grabbed the red sword and made a move towards the enemy, this time thinking clearly. In a moment the sword dissolved in his hand, taking Arko by surprise.

-Not today, Arko. Said the killer as he grabbed the head and turned around.

-It’s YOU! You bastard! I thought you died with the rest of the crew. Come back here, I am not done with you!

-Me neither. We will see each other again.

-Blank! Stop him!

But she did not. The killer disappeared into the shadows without a trace.

-Why...? Why did you let him go Blank?

-There was no point in stopping him. He would have killed us both if we forced his hand.

-He killed my father! Yelled Arko.

-I am sorry, Arko. It was for your good. We live to fight him another day as he said. Also, you two seem to have some history.

-Yes... He was in the king’s services. We were on the same ship on the trip to Emerborn. I didn’t think anyone else survived. But why would he turn on us like that? And since when can he use magic? I can’t even remember his name.

-It doesn’t matter. I drew a bit of his power, said Blank as she showed him a tiny red crystal. Now we can find him anytime.

Arko and Blank returned to the palace without exchanging a word. Blank felt guilty, but she did it for him. Once arrived they parted ways in silence going towards their rooms. But after a few steps Blank turned around.

-Arko.

-Hmm? What?

-I have a plan. If you trust in me the slightest don’t report the killer’s identity.

A week has passed since the incident. Blank and Arko didn’t talk as much during those days.

Arko was visiting his father again. Sitting next to the grave as he used to, drinking from his flask.

-I found him, pops. I found the one who put you down there. And I did nothing. I was weak. I will never be anywhere near you if I can’t even avenge you.

From behind him a sight.

-I was just like that. Looking for revenge.

Arko recognized the voice.

-Out of all the places. Out of all the times! You come for me now, you bastard! shouted Arko as he turned around with his sword drawn, just to see the man not holding a sword, but a flower. And behind him Blank

The man turned towards a small wooden grave and laid down the flower.

-Blank... What are you doing here with him?

-Arko please listen to him.

The man spoke to Arko without taking his eyes off the grave.

-I made this cross myself. I had no money for a gravedigger either. Nothing compared to that gravestone you sit next to. This was my sister Hina.

He turned towards Arko and looked him into his eyes.

-I don’t care if you believe me or not, but I didn’t kill your father. It’s true that I kill high born and nobles but for a moral reason. The corpse you saw that night belonged to one of the many scums that litter Palestone. A slave owner and a killer himself. I kill those who feast and sing as the poor starve by their gate. I will reshape Palestone myself if those among your rank won’t. But Blank here told me you are different, open-minded. I will not kill you and neither I will go down in history as someone who killed blindly. My name is Geeas. Remember it.

Geeas raised his hand and in his palm, a sword was created from the hilt to the tip of the blade. He flipped it in his hand and pointed Arko with the handle as the blade pointed at him.

-This is your chance, Arko. If you think me a liar, make your justice as I did.

Arko grabbed the sword and gazed at its unnatural glow. This was different than the last time he grabbed it. It was weightless, and yet it felt sturdy. Geeas lifted his head, revealing his throat. Arko aimed for it and strikes... the edge, stopping right next to Geeas’s barely scraping his skin.

-So you were telling the truth. Tell me Geeas. Who killed my father? Said Arko as he returned the sword to its owner.

-Your father and I had the same goal. Before he got the chance to make everything public, he was stabbed in the back by one of his men.

-Who told you all this?

-Look around you…

After Geeas left, Arko and Blank lingered for a while in the graveyard, sitting on a bench under an old oak tree. No words were spoken, but the tension between them cleared up. The short time they spent apart brought them closer sitting right next to each other.

-What are you going to do, Arko?

-I don’t know... I will have time to think about it. We should get back for now.

-Should we? said Blank laying her head on his shoulder, the sunset is beautiful from here... And I missed the feeling of your magic source.

-My magic source?

-Yes, your magic source, said Blank smiling.