Chapter VI
Heroes and Monsters
Luca woke before Emila this time, and was greeted by the amusing sight of her arm dangling over the edge of the bed. Her soft breathing was the only sound in the room.
He sat up, yawned, stretched, and grabbed a fresh change of clothes from his bags. As they had gone to sleep the moment they had returned from the forest, he was still wearing his garments from the previous night. With fresh clothes in hand, he left the room as quietly as possible. Outside, the early morning sun was just beginning to emerge over the horizon.
Many of the students were already awake and going about their daily routine. He asked one student where he could find the showers, and the boy gave him directions. Luca had only used a public shower once before, and he hadn't liked being around other people. Thankfully, he was the only one there when he arrived, so he was able to go about his business in privacy. Luca was clean and dressed in fifteen minutes.
Luca then stopped by the dining hall, grabbed two trays of food, and returned to the bedroom. Emila was just beginning to stir when he entered, and a big smile appeared on her face at the sight of the warm breakfast.
He gave her one of the trays, and sat down beside the bed with his own. They spent the next five or so minutes filling their stomachs.
"Luca," Emila said after a while. "How are you holding up?"
"In what regard?"
"Well... with what happened last night."
"What about it?"
"You killed somebody."
He paused, about to bite into a sausage. "That sort of thing doesn't bother me."
Emila leaned over the bed, giving him a strange look. "It bothers everyone."
"Not me."
"A lot of stuff happened last night. Are you sure there isn't anything you'd like to talk about?"
"Nothing."
Disappointed, Emila leaned back, disappearing from his view.
"I'm going to go see my brother today," Luca told her.
"You are?" She sat back up. "For sure?"
"Of course. For the past two weeks I've thought I was the only surviving member of my family. Last night, I learnt for the first time that I have a brother. Of course I'm going to go see him."
"Brand said he's very hard to find."
"Then I'll ask around. There's only so many places here one can hide."
"I can help you," she offered.
He accepted her offer with a nod.
They finished their meal in silence, and then emerged to the bustling and thriving grounds of the temple. The students were going about their daily activities, and only giving the two the occasional glance. They seemed used to them by now, the excitement of Luca's initial arrival having died down. There were no more hushed whispers behind their backs.
He had been expecting hushed whispers after what had happened in the woods.
This meant that news of Davik had yet to reach their ears, Luca thought.
Luca wondered where to look first. He eventually considered going to Dori, deciding that he was probably the best place to start. Dori was Ash's master, and thus should know where his apprentice was. But Luca didn't see him among the populace of the temple. It seemed to him that Dori only appeared at times when Dori himself chose.
Before they went to ask a student where to find Dori, they spotted Brand amongst the white-robed students. He was with a group of girls, likely the same ones who had ogled him during his match with Ash. He noticed Luca and Emila as they approached, and he quickly excused himself from the harem.
"Ah, good morning!" he said as they reached him. "How are you both doing?"
Luca didn't feel like answering this particular question, so he let Emila do the talking. Thankfully, she had no reservations about sharing her feelings.
"We're fine," she said. "I got a good rest, and I woke to a nice breakfast waiting for me. But, uh... about last night..."
Brand waved his hand. "Don't worry about it. I've told Allma what happened. A cover story will be told to the students. Nobody will know what really happened, with the exception of Rael and ourselves."
"We're going to lie to them?" Emila asked, clearly not enthusiastic about the idea.
"For now," Brand assured her. "Things are delicate at the moment. We can't let any unnecessary tension be sown among the students. Well... that's what Allma said, anyway."
"Because of the emissary from Sono?" Luca asked.
"Exactly. Right now, it's not officially confirmed, but everyone knows the emissary is on their way. Somebody must have leaked the news. As a result, there's a lot of different rumours, and speculation about who will be chosen. If it got out that one student tried to murder another over this, who knows how they would react?"
"And exactly what is this emissary choosing students for?" Luca asked, crossing his arms.
Brand shrugged. "Nobody knows for sure. The most popular rumour is that King Zaow wants to hire the three best prodigies of the temple to be his generals, should another war break out between Sono and Acaria. I don't know if that's true or not, because Zaow is known for avoiding conflicts. I have doubts that he would wish to take the offencive, as Acaria still has yet to make any direct attacks. Just small raids on tiny villages... which isn't enough to start a war, but enough to get people nervous. I asked my master about it, and he said he doesn't know what the emissary is picking people for, either."
Luca considered. Davik had seemed to think being chosen would lead to him being a hero... But the last thing Luca would want would be to command troops.
"Luca," Brand said. "About your brother..."
"I want to see him," he said immediately.
"That's understandable," Brand said. "I think we should talk first. There's a few things you need to know."
Luca frowned. "Very well."
Brand took them to a bench beneath a tree, some distance away from the centre of the temple. He sat down opposite of Luca and Emila. His eyes were weary.
"Your brother does not have the best reputation here," Brand told Luca, as levelly as he were able. "I'm honest enough to tell you that even I don't particularly like him. I'll give him the time of day, which is more than some here will, but I generally prefer company other than his."
"Why?" Luca demanded.
"Why is he so hated?" Brand asked rhetorically. "I think it's a number of things. For one, he's not very nice. He's very short and dismissive of others. He doesn't talk much, which puts people off. Often, when spoken to, he'll simply ignore the person addressing him. But there's more to it than just that. That's just his personality; there's people in this temple with attitudes worse than his. A lot of it has to do with Dori."
"Dori?" Emila asked.
Brand nodded. "Dori is the man who trained Lodin. He's a legend... the first human to ever ride a dragon into battle. In terms of popularity, I would say that Dori is respected the most of the temple's alumni, after Lodin. Of course, the fact that he actually trained Lodin contributes to that."
A rider of dragons? Luca hadn't known Dori had done such things. And judging by the surprise on her face, it seemed Emila hadn't either. Just one surprise after another, it would seem. Just how many secrets did this temple hold?
"After the war, there was a lot of competition amongst the students to be chosen as Dori's next apprentice," Brand continued. "It isn't surprising that many expected him to produce another hero like Lodin. But he didn't. For years, he refused to take another student. Until Ash arrived. Dori took him under his wing immediately.
"Everyone expected Ash to be the next Lodin. And Ash trained very hard. But he made little progress. He was constantly beaten in sparring matches. People began to grow disappointed. Ash was not the hero they were expecting. He was rude and acted like he was better than everyone else just because he was Lodin's son, or so it seemed to them. The disappointment they felt for him turned into hate. Ash remained here long after many of his peers graduated. Nobody stays in the temple longer than five years; y
et Ash has been here for twelve.
"Dori refused to give up on Ash, even though everyone was telling him to let him go and choose another pupil. Some students felt that they could have been better if Dori had trained them instead. But instead of hating Dori for this, they chose to hate Ash. After all, Dori is a war hero, the dragonrider, and the man who trained Lodin. Ash was just a lost cause who refused to go away."
By the time Brand had finished, Luca's jaw was clenched, and his fists were tightly clenched.
"There was also an incident where another student died during a spar with Ash," Brand said, his voice growing quiet and his eyes narrowing. "That didn't win him many fans." For the briefest of moments, there was a flash of something in his eyes... perhaps regret, perhaps anger, or perhaps sorrow. Only Emila saw, and it was too brief to know what it meant.
"What happened?" she asked softly.
"I don't really know," he said in a flat voice. "I wasn't there, and those kinds of incidents are usually kept quiet, as you can imagine after the Davik situation."
Brand then noticed that Luca was angry. He sighed and placed his hand on Luca's.
"I don't agree with them," Brand assured him. "I've done more than I was obligated to in trying to help your brother. I don't like him, but that's because of things he's said to me in the past, not because he isn't the clone of your father that everyone wanted him to be."
Emila placed her hand on his shoulder. "Luca..."
He brushed her hand away, not angrily, but firmly. "I'm fine," he insisted.
"I'm not trying to change your opinion of your brother, or manipulate you in any way," Brand said. "I just wanted you to know these things before you meet him."
Luca looked up at Brand. "And where can I meet him?"
"I'm sorry," Brand said. "Nobody knows where he goes. He disappears whenever he wants to. The only person who knows where to find him is Dori."
"Then where is Dori?"
Brand pointed off into the distance. "Dori's study is on the far western side of the temple. It's a stone temple built into the side of a hill. You can't miss it."
Luca nodded, and started to rise from the bench.
"Luca," Brand said to him. "Forgive me if I insulted you... now or any other time. I don't like having enemies, and I would hate to make one of someone I have so much respect for."
Luca stopped, and turned back around to face him. "Ash isn't Lodin. And neither am I."
"I never thought of either of you that way."
He went over to Brand and offered him his hand. They shook.
"I respect you," Luca told him.
"Aww," Emila said. "You two are adorable."
Luca started off again, this time a bit more briskly. "Are you coming or not?"
Emila practically hopped off the table and followed after him.
After a few minutes of searching, they managed to find Dori's temple. As Brand had described, it was a small stone chamber, built into the side of a hill. Once they had known where and what to look for, it was actually very easy to find. Luca found it rather strange that they hadn't found it on their own.
They entered, to find a surprisingly spacious room inside. In addition to a bed, there was also a desk, a sink, a bookcase, a well-stocked wine shelf, and a stepping stool which could be used to reach various things. The room was larger than the modest entrance would suggest, indicating that it was indeed dug into the hill.
Dori himself was at the desk, still dressed in his filthy rags, peering over a massive, dusty tome. As they entered, he looked up at them over a pair of reading glasses.
"Ah, Luca," he muttered. "I didn't see you this morning. I'd thought you came here because you wanted me to train you."
"I came here to unravel a mystery, it would seem," Luca replied. "And you said yourself that I don't need training."
"Hmm... yes, I did say that." He sat up, and removed the spectacles. "I see you brought your girlfriend."
"I'm not his girlfriend," Emila insisted.
"Yeah, whatever," Dori muttered. He grabbed a half-empty bottle of wine from his desk and took a swig from it. "So you're unravelling a mystery, eh? That must mean you've come here for another clue. What clue is that?"
"The location of my brother."
"Ah. I was wondering if someone would slip up and tell you. Oh, well. Who was it?"
"Davik."
"Justia's student, eh? Never really liked that kid very much, to be honest. A real ass-kisser who never had the talent or resources to back up his promises. Still, he broke Allma's stupid rule, so I suppose I'll have to have him reported..."
"Reported..." Luca looked to Emila, then back at Dori. "Didn't Brand tell you?"
"Son, you're mistaking me for someone sociable. What happened with Davik and Brand?"
"Last night, we went into the woods to hunt a monster. Davik tried to kill us. I ended up killing him."
Dori raised an eyebrow, and took another long drink from his bottle. Finally he asked, "Why would he do that?"
"Because of the... look, we can talk about this later. Right now, I'm more interested in finding my brother."
Dori nodded. "Right. That's understandable. Unfortunately, I don't think I can tell you where he is."
"W-what?!" Luca demanded. "You don't know, either?"
"I do know," Dori said. "I know exactly where he is. I just can't tell you. He likes to hang out in this place that students aren't supposed to know about. Honestly, Ash isn't supposed to know about it, either. But he found out by accident one day, and nothing has stopped him from going there since."
Luca pinched the ridge of his nose, and let out a frustrated sigh.
"Technically, I am allowed to tell whoever I want," Dori continued. "Should there be a good reason for it, of course. I could tell you... but you need to give me something in return."
"And what would that be...?" Luca muttered.
"Just tell me what happened last night."
He sighed. "Brand gathered me, Emila, Rael, and Davik by the gate. He said we were going into the woods to hunt an ouroboros. We went, but we never found the ouroboros. Instead, Davik held a sword up to Emila's throat and threatened to kill all of us. Emila managed to get away, and I killed Davik for trying to hurt her."
Dori raised an eyebrow. "You didn't think it would have been better to simply detain Davik and bring him back to the temple? Therefore, he could be punished properly."
"No, I didn't think of it."
"Just like your brother," Dori said. "And just like your father, too. Once you give into your rage, you're blinded by it."
"I wasn't blind," Luca declared. "I knew exactly what I was doing. I was never going to let him live after that."
"Why is that?"
"Because..." he couldn't help but glance at Emila briefly.
Dori scratched at his grey beard. "Because he hurt your girlfriend."
"No!" he almost shouted. Emila looked away, her face red.
"No, that can't be it," Dori said. "You wouldn't treat her the way you do if that was the case."
Luca felt like hitting him at that moment.
"As for Davik," Dori said. "He must have had a reason to do this, right?"
"He wanted to be chosen by the emissary from Sono," Luca said, forcing himself to calm down. "He seemed convinced that Brand and I would be picked, even though I'm not a student."
"I had a feeling something like this might happen soon," Dori said. "Jealousy is a common source of violence among our students. I take it that Allma has been told about this?"
Luca nodded.
"Then there is nothing to worry about."
"Do you know what it is the emissary will be picking students for?"
Dori shook his head. "I don't even think Allma knows."
So there was no way of knowing until the emissary actually got there, Luca decided.
"Alright... you want to know where your brother goes when he wants to be alone," Dori said. "What I'm going to tell you is top sec
ret, understand? Few souls know this. You cannot tell anyone else."
"Er... do you want me to step outside while you tell him...?" Emila asked hesitantly.
"I don't really care," Dori muttered. "Now listen. There's a series of underground passages beneath the temple. Some are secret tunnels that lead out, in case the temple were ever to fall under siege. Others yet lead to places you won't want to go. Avoid those. What you're looking for is a big subterranean lake. Ash goes there and meditates. Sometimes he spends entire days and nights down there. That's where you'll find him."
"An... underground cavern?" Luca found himself asking.
"That's what I said. A series of tunnels dug under the temple. That's where you'll find your brother. Well, unless he's gone somewhere else. He might be wandering around the grounds right now, or having a sparring match. But if I had to wager money on it, I'd say he's down at the lake."
"I find this rather hard to believe. How could these tunnels exist without anyone finding out about them? The Earth-form magi training here would have felt it, at the very least."
"There is old magick in these tunnels," Dori said in a quiet voice. "This kind of magic likes to keep itself hidden."
An ambiguous comment. Luca stared at him for a moment, waiting for him to say something else, but Dori simply stared deep into the auburn liquid in the bottle he held, his mind somewhere far away.
"Fine," Luca said finally. "Can you at least tell me where I can enter the tunnels?"
Dori pointed over at a door in the back of the room, which had somehow avoided Luca's notice until now.
"What the..." Emila muttered. "I didn't even notice that door."
"Old magick," Dori repeated.
Luca thanked him, though he didn't really feel any gratitude. He started towards the door, and as he reached for the doorknob, he realised Emila was still on the other side of the room. She smiled to him.
"He is your brother, and this is your business. I will wait here for you."
Of course. Naturally, he would just want this meeting to be just between the two of them. He had just grown so used to her always following him...
He replied with a nod, and stepped through the door.
Once Luca was gone, Dori took one last swig from his bottle, emptying it. Emila turned to the strange old man, regarding him with an odd look.
"That damn kid just made my life so much more difficult..."
Emila wondered, was he talking about Luca or Davik?
Luca found himself in a place of cool air and luminescent rocks. Resonant sounds carried through the atmosphere. He used his magic to illuminate the cavern, just as he had when exploring the yeti den with his father. The sphere of light followed behind him like an obedient child, casting a sanctuary around him to keep away the obscuring darkness.
He made his way through the underground. He wasn't sure where to go, so he trusted in his instincts to get him to the lake that Dori had spoken of. His footsteps echoed loudly in the expansive cavern, announcing his presence to anyone who may be listening. As he walked, he noticed several paths that led to other parts of the underground. His gut told him that those led to those places he did not wish to be.
As he passed one, he felt something there. An intelligence; it did not know him, and so it watched him warily. He passed it by. Something was in there, and there was no need to find out what it was. He had not come here for that purpose. As he walked away, Luca heard the sounds of claws scratching against rock, echoing far behind.
And so, Luca continued on. The darkness grew more oppressive, and he felt himself moving away from Emila. The connection between their souls began to make itself known as he pushed its boundaries. He hoped that this lake was not too far from the temple, or he would have to go back and return with Emila.
Finally, quite deep in the cavern, he found his brother.
The lake glowed a deep blue. There was a faint light, coming down from a small hole in the ceiling. This light was reflected off of the subterranean lake, casting an impressive scene. Luca no longer needed his illuminating orb, so he dispelled it.
His brother sat in a meditative stance at the edge of the lake, on a small ledge. There was an approximately fifty metre drop from where he was, and the surface of the water. Ash's back was turned to Luca, yet his footsteps echoed so loudly in the cave that there was no way he could not hear him.
"Ash," Luca said hesitantly. He did not respond.
He slowly approached him. As he drew closer, his vision grew stronger, and he could see his hair was the same shade of snowy white as his own, and as their father's.
Luca stopped when he was a few feet from Ash. A few seconds passed. Then, Ash slowly drew himself up and turned to face him. His hair was longer than Luca's, and pulled back into a ponytail. His eyes were blue.
"Dori told you about me," he said. It was not a question.
"I found out from someone else."
He stared at him for a moment, then said, "I see."
"I have questions."
"Of course," Ash said, turning away and looking at the lake. "Ask away."
"Well... how did you come to be here?"
"I've been here for twelve years. Ever since Lodin left, taking you with him and leaving us behind."
"Us?"
"Mother and I."
With a start, Luca thought of his mother, the beautiful gold-haired woman who he had only the faintest of memories of. A few images and sounds were the strongest of them; a small home that they had all lived in for the first five years of Luca's life. His mother singing and humming as she cooked. Young Ash, so young he could barely walk, trying to keep up with his older brother's games. And Lodin, his face strained with a guilt and anxiety he could never escape, nonetheless smiling at the small, inevitably temporary happiness he had gained.
And then, nothing. Chaos and shouts. The four of them fleeing into the night.
All the memories Luca had after that were the many long days and nights, over hills and mountains, across swamps and the edge of the sea - the never ending adventure his father had taken him on - and the pursuit of the invisible enemy that Lodin could not escape.
"Is Mother...?"
"Dead," Ash said with finality.
Luca bowed his head. He'd expected that, but it was still disappointing to hear.
"What... what happened to her?" he asked quietly. His voice still carried in the large cavern.
Ash half-turned, looking at him over his shoulder. There was a look of contempt in his eyes. "He abandoned us. He left his wife and second son to die, so that he might save himself and his first-born."
"That can't be it..."
"But it was. He left his three-year-old son behind, with his enemies closing in, and fled into the night with you. Don't you remember? That night, all those years ago... the fire...?"
"Who were these enemies?" Luca asked. "The Acarians?"
Ash turned back to the water. "Your father had many enemies."
Luca stared at him. He did not move. Some amount of time passed, with nothing said.
"He was your father, too," he said, breaking the silence. "Don't you care that he's gone?"
"I do care," Ash replied. "I care in my own way. You mistake care for regret. I feel no sorrow that Lodin is dead. I feel my life is better without him. I care in that way; that I am glad to be rid of him."
Luca was dumbfounded. "How could you say that?"
"It's easy for you to defend him. You were his favourite. Try to understand - just once in your life, brother - how it feels to be less than perfect. What it is like to have to live up to not only a father who threw you aside, yet is a paragon to everyone around you; but now an older brother who has come along and done in two days things that you could not in twelve years. That is how I can say what I say."
"I didn't come here to blemish your name! I came here to honour the name of our father! The man to whom you owe your life!"
Ash did not turn around, but Luca could feel anim
osity coming from him.
"Lodin has never given me anything. Least of all my life."
Realising he had made a fist, Luca forced the muscles in his hand to unclench.
"Brand told me things about you..." he said. "Things I didn't want to believe. He said that you're hated amongst the people here... these people who so readily accepted me. I didn't want to believe that."
"These people? They haven't accepted you. They have accepted the idea of you; that you are the successor to Lodin's legacy. They expect you to defeat the Acarians and follow in your father's footsteps as a hero. Fail to do that, and they'll treat you the same way they treat me."
"No... that can't be it. You must have done something else. They wouldn't treat you that way just for that. These people know you're not Father. Tell me what it really is."
Luca's brother said nothing for a time.
"What happened to the student that died? Brand said that-"
He saw a flash of anger in Ash's eyes, as he spun on the heel of his boot. His hands found the neck of Luca's coat, and he pushed him back. Caught off guard, he stumbled back, catching his balance just in time to stay standing.
On instinct, his hand had found the hilt of his sword.
"Brand is a liar," Ash spat. "Whatever he told you about me... It's all manipulations and lies. Don't listen to him. He's in the pocket of Allma. Whatever you say to him, it reaches Allma's ears. I did not kill that girl! It's not true. They set that up... to turn everyone against me."
"What the hell are you saying?!" Luca exclaimed. "A set-up? You're paranoid!"
"Allma the first founded this temple with pure intentions," Ash told him. "But in time, these things are always lost. This temple has become a mercenary organisation, tainted by the original Allma's grandson, and his greed. Even now, he schemes. You will be built up as the paragon that I could not be, while I will be vilified to make you nobler in the eyes of the people. I may not be a fighter, but I am no fool. My weakness set me outside the circle, and that is how I saw the machinations."
Luca shook his head. "Brother, you've spent too much time in these caves. Your isolation is driving you to madness. You're seeing schemes where there are none."
"Do not trust so easily... brother," Ash said. "All these years you've been with Lodin, have you not seen the things that people in this world will do?"
That... he could not argue that. Truly, he had seen a lot of things that made it difficult for him to place his faith in humanity. He had seen people betrayed and murdered... over nothing.
But what Ash was saying was just too much. The look in his eyes... it was the same look he had seen once in a man on the brink. This man had lost it, and killed his wife and two children. It had taken three hunters to put him down after he'd begun his rampage.
In their travels to the farthest corners of Bacoria, Luca and his father had seen a few things like that.
The position his brother had been placed in - where everyone around him treated him with contempt and disdain - that could certainly bring someone to desperation. Ash could not accept his failure, and he needed a reason that things had turned out the way they had. So he had created a conspiracy to justify things to himself.
"I do not hate you, brother," Ash continued. "I understand well enough that we are not defined by our parents. I do not hold the mistakes Lodin made against you. So tell me what it is you've come here for, so that I can decide if I will grant it to you."
"I came here to meet you," Luca said. "You're my brother, and the last of my family I have left. I came here to meet you; and to get answers. I could not just believe what Brand said about you. I felt there had to be more."
"More...?" Ash muttered, raising an eyebrow. "You mean answers? I've told you already what happened. And you called me a madman for it. What are you expecting? Continuing to ask the same question just because you aren't satisfied with the answer; well, that is the true definition of a madman. So tell me what it really is you're after."
"Dammit, I just wanted-!"
He couldn't finish. He bit his tongue to stop himself from saying it. That all he had wanted was one member of his family back.
But he could see now that wasn't going to happen. Ash had no prospects of friendship in his eyes. He watched him warily, like a monster watches a hunter who stood at a distance; carefully, waiting for the moment when they attack.
Ash watched everyone that way, even his own flesh and blood.. So there it was, the real answer to his question. That was why everyone in the temple hated his brother; because his brother hated everyone else even more.
A tense moment passed. Luca watched him, waiting to see if there was anything he had so say.
There wasn't.
So Luca turned, and started to walk away.
"Don't trust anyone, brother," Ash said to his back. "Not Dori, not Brand. And not that girl who follows you, either."
Luca stopped.
"Don't talk about her. You know nothing about her."
Ash laughed. "What's there to know? You think you can trust her? You can't trust anybody. It's just the two of us and the world, Luca. She'll betray you just like all the other sycophants in the temple!"
Luca's lips curled into an angry snarl. His hand, still resting on the hilt of Siora, tightened around the sword so tightly he felt like he could break it. He drew the blade out of the sheath as he spun around, and charged at the person on the other side of the room.
He had snapped. It had just been too much. Too much disappointment, too much anger.
"Luca!"
Ash drew his own weapon, one of the temple's wooden training swords, and he tried to move aside. He was quick - under normal circumstances he would have dodged his attack - but there was nowhere to flee. He was trapped between Luca and the cliff overlooking the subterranean lake.
Luca brought his blade down in a heavy blow. Ash parried as best he could. His wooden sword shattered pathetically beneath Luca's steel blade.
"Gah!"
Ash moved quickly, ducking down and rolling between his legs. With skilled agility, he rolled behind Luca and rose up. Luca turned around and swung his sword again. Ash dodged the steel blade by a hair.
"Stop!"
Luca felt a surge of mana rise from his brother, and the next thing he knew, he was struck by a blast of wind powerful enough to knock him off his feet.
It registered in his mind that he was falling, but he knew he would hit the ground in a moment. That moment did not come. Instead, he saw surprise in his brother's eyes as he fell past him, and then the cliff.
Luca didn't fall that long. It was only about fifty metres to the water.
He struck the surface of the lake and was lost in a confusing vision of dark water. He sank deep into the water, and his feet briefly touched the bottom. Taking advantage of this momentum, he kicked at the rock beneath him, and rose up and away from the inky blackness.
Luca's head broke the surface and he gasped. He couldn't see anything, because there was no light where he was. He tread water as best he could. He had never been a great swimmer, as he had never had much time to learn, but he knew the basics at least.
Eventually, he gained an understanding of his situation. The insurmountable cliff was before him, covered in slippery, jagged rocks that nobody could climb. If he were a a ground-form user, he could have simply used magick to craft the rocks into a ladder or stairs. But he was light-form, and that had no use in this situation. The lake was bordered all around like this, so there was literally no way out from where he was.
Unless...
"Brother!"
From up above the cliff, Luca saw as Ash heaved a large pile of rope over to the edge. He tossed it over, and fed the rope until it was within arm's reach. Luca swam over and grabbed on with both hands.
And then he realised something that had previously escaped his notice.
"My sword!" he exclaimed.
His father's sword.
Luca let go of the rope and checked his belt, unde
r the surface of the water. The sheath was there, but it was empty. He hadn't put the sword away... that meant...
He felt a chill, and it had nothing to do with the freezing water.
Luca swam away from the rope, and back to where he guessed that he had been. It was impossible to know for sure. Not that it mattered, anyway. The dim light that filled the cave disappeared immediately under the surface of the lake. All that was down there was darkness.
"Luca, what are you doing?! Take the rope!" Ash called out to him from the cliff.
"Father's s-sword!" Luca gasped out as best he could, trying as he was to stay above the surface. "I-I have to find Father's...!"
"Forget about that!" Ash called. "Get out of there now! There's a beast down there!"
Luca barely heard what he said. He couldn't think about anything other than his father's sword - Siora - and how foolishly he had lost it. He held his hand up and gathered his mana into an illuminating orb. Once it was ready, he threw the orb down into the water, where it quickly sank to the bottom like a stone. He took a deep breath, and dived.
The orb's light helped, but not much. He couldn't see very far past where it had landed. He tried to use his mana to get the orb to follow him, like he had in the cave, but that attempt ended quickly in his flailing desperation. It required a continuous flow of mana to follow after him, and it was impossible to do that while holding one's breath.
How long could he hold his breath? Would the Soul Tether let him stay conscious underwater? To what extent did its life-preserving abilities reach?
The scholarly part of him considered the chance to test this, but he didn't care about that. He had to find the sword, and at the moment, he couldn't see where it was in the small aura of light.
Apparently, it didn't matter. He began to feel light-headed, so he kicked off the bottom and gasped for breath back at the surface.
Luca only allowed himself a few seconds of breath before he threw another orb down into the lake and dove once more.
Half a minute of frantic searching passed, and he still did not see the sword. He was starting to panic.
He began to rise for air once more when he saw something terrifying.
Some kind of... thing... was swimming towards him. It wasn't quite a fish, but rather like a giant serpent slithering through the water. It's eyes were staring right at him.
There was no way Luca could defend himself. He had no weapon, his light-form magick was almost useless in the water, and he couldn't move away fast enough to escape. As he swam away as quickly as he could, he threw a blast of raw mana in the giant eel's face. It blinked and stopped for a moment, but it's ugly face was barely scratched by the attack.
Still, it gave him enough time to break the surface. He gasped as he emerged, and he saw Ash atop the cliff, still holding the rope from above.
"Hurry!" Ash called to him.
This time, Luca listened to him. He swam as quickly as he could, propelled forward by the currents caused by the eel's movements.
Luca reached the rope and grabbed on. As soon as he did, Ash started to pull up. While Ash was pulling him up with the rope, he used his legs up push himself up from the rocks, whenever he could.
The eel's head broke the water, and it watched him. He had already moved too far away though, so it couldn't reach him.
At last, Luca grabbed onto the edge of the cliff and pulled himself up. He collapsed immediately beside Ash, his breaths heavy and his arms and legs tired from the swimming and climbing.
Ash said nothing... he only wrapped the rope up and held it over his shoulder.
When he felt a bit better, Luca rose to his feet and looked down at the lake. The eel was still watching him from down there. He felt a rush of anger at the thing that had nearly made a meal of him, and he raised his arm, gathering his mana to thrown needles at it. Ash stopped him by grabbing his wrist.
"Wait," he said.
The light that peeked out from the cavern ceiling was blocked out as something massive swept down from the top of the cavern. A wind like a hurricane blew around them. Luca had to shield his eyes from the cloud of dust it kicked up.
This huge thing, it flew down from the ceiling, taking only a few seconds to pass over the lake and grasp the eel in its talons. There was a heavy splashing sound as the thrashing creature was pulled from the water. And then the large shadow flew off into a dark corner of the cavern, and after a moment, a sickening crunch was heard.
Once things settled down, Luca turned to his brother. "What was that thing?!"
"The master of these caves," he said. "He doesn't prey on humans, so have no fear. The other monsters hesitate to come out because of him, but you drew out that eel by going into the lake."
Luca looked up at the dark corner where the beast had vanished.
"Does anybody else know about this?" he asked.
Ash shrugged. "I think Dori may." He then started to walk away, clearly done with the conversation. He had nothing more to say, about him attacking him, their father's sword, or the monstrous thing that had just killed the eel.
Ash had saved him, even though he had gone after him. Ash had called out to him, calling him 'brother', as he did so. That meant something.
It meant that he did still have family... just not a brother who could be a friend to him as he had hoped.
Luca looked over at the lake, where his father's blade had fallen, and where it would remain forever now. Because of his stupidity, he had lost the blade he had sworn to kill Zinoro with. He would still kill him - he would not abandon that vow no matter what - but without Siora, it wouldn't be the same.
With a heavy sigh, he turned and left the lake behind.
When Luca finally returned to the temple grounds from his trip to the caves, he found Emila back at the bench with Brand. They were talking, and as they spoke, he saw her laugh happily. Illogically, he felt a jealous pang of anger pass through him.
He suppressed his feelings as he drew near them.
"Luca," Emila spoke softly as he drew near. She sat up and looked at him with eagerness in her eyes. "How... how did it go?"
He sat down at the bench beside her. "We ended up fighting."
Emila frowned, and she watched him, unsure what to say. Brand sat with his fingers steepled before him, his eyes closed in thought.
Some time passed as they sat there in silence.
Luca felt the absence of his sword, its familiar weight gone from the belt he wore. He felt like he had done something horrible in losing it. Even now, he could almost feel it calling to him from the caves far below his feet. And yet, he could also feel - with more certainty - the connection he had with Emila. She was still watching him, an empathetic look in her eyes. He felt guilty that she was concerned for him, and that he needed to say something to her to alleviate this doubt.
"He said things," he told both Emila and Brand quietly. "He was angry and paranoid. He thinks there is a conspiracy within the temple."
From the corner of his eye, he saw Brand look down in contemplation. He did not let his gaze linger.
Despite the madness in his brother's words, they had given him doubt. Certain things had been bothering him. Namely, that his brother's existence had been hidden from him, and that his killing of Davik was being kept quiet from the students of the temple. It made him wonder what other information Allma the third was keeping hidden, and what goals he could have. Ash had warned him that anything he said to Brand would get repeated to Allma. So Luca did not look directly at him when he spoke, because he didn't want him to think he was searching for a reaction in his eyes.
"He has been looking for daggers in every shadow since he came here," Brand said. "I really am sorry, Luca. I truly wanted to be proven wrong today."
"No apologies are necessary. I didn't go to him with any expectations. I just went because he is my brother, and I needed to meet him. The kind of person he turned out to be is irrelevant."
Emila looked away from him at last.
So that was her answer.
"I see," Brand said, as he rose from the table. There was a tired look in his eyes. "I must be going now. I have training to do yet. We'll speak tomorrow?"
Luca nodded.
Brand smiled. "Then I will take my leave. Emila... think about what we discussed."
Emila frowned, and she nodded. Brand gave one last curt nod, and he turned and walked away towards the middle sanctum.
"What was it you discussed?" Luca asked Emila.
She looked away.
"Nothing important."
The rest of the day passed without incident.
"You haven't said anything yet."
Luca stopped and turned to her in confusion. "About what?"
Emila strode past him into their room, and she sat down upon the bed.
Luca closed his eyes and sighed. "Ah. I see now."
She tilted her head to the side. "I was surprised. I at least thought you would have something to say this morning."
"My silence was no accident. I was actually hoping you wouldn't bring it up at all."
She blinked. "But... why?"
Luca sighed again, feeling really tired, and sat down on the floor. "Because this way, you got to sleep in comfort, and I could sleep right here, which is the chivalrous way."
"Chivalry makes women weak," Emila said, placing her hands on her hips haughtily. "We can't have men doing everything for us. Sometimes, a girl has to take charge and get her hands dirty. There's nothing with the guy being cared for once in a while."
He felt a headache beginning. He rubbed his temples to ease the coming pain. "I don't really want to get into this sort of a discussion right now. It's too late for that."
"It is late, isn't it? I bet the bed sounds pretty nice right about now..."
"Emila, give it up. I'm not using that thing while I'm sharing the room with you."
She sighed, and sat back against the wall. Then, there was a flash of inspiration in her eyes, and she sat back up.
"You know..." she said. "There isn't really any reason why we can't both-"
"No."
She pouted, and got up off the bed. "Fine then. We'll both use the floor."
"I don't know why we have to talk about this every night," he said. "We're just talking in circles at this point."
He lay down upon his sleeping bag, and rolled over on his side, facing away from Emila. She was silent. Too silent.
"Luca..." she said, so softly he barely heard her.
He sat up and looked over at her. She stared back at him with large, pleading eyes.
"Please," she said. "I don't want you sleeping on the floor every night."
Those eyes... there was something in that gaze that struck right through every piece of armour he wore. She looked to small and vulnerable to him, and he felt like some kind of monster for bringing any sort of pain to her.
Suddenly, he realised that when Emila wanted something - truly wanted it - she would not take no for an answer.
Luca stared up at the ceiling, unable to get any rest.
The bed was soft and comfortable, for sure. His body still ached from the past few days of sleeping on the floor. But he could not relax enough to fall asleep. His thoughts were troubled.
He thought of his brother, and the things he had said earlier. His words had been paranoid and insane, yet he found himself now doubting things.
Brand had gone straight to Allma after they had returned from the forest. He'd told him everything, and Allma was now hiding this information from the students of the temple.
Ash had also killed a student, and this was known to everyone. Allma clearly made no effort to preserve his brother's reputation as he had Luca's. Why extend this courtesy? Brand had said the situation was too delicate with the coming emissary from Sono. Was that truly it? Or was he being built up as his father's successor, and Ash being made into a villain to make him look better by comparison?
Ash said nothing about Davik. He clearly did not yet know what had happened. Not even Dori knew. Were they both being kept out of the loop? Or had Dori merely been feigning ignorance to see what Luca would say about the incident?
Luca knew he was being as paranoid as Ash now. But regardless of the truth of Ash's claims, the conversation had showed Luca something. He was being too trusting lately. He had gone to his brother, with expectations too great. The disappointment was sobering.
Just as Brand had said of Ash, he too was now seeing daggers in every shadow.
He looked over the edge of the bed to the sleeping rolls, where Emila lay. She was fast asleep, her soft and gentle breathing once again the only sound in the room.
For the first time since arriving, Luca considered the near future, and the possibility of leaving. He even considered, if things got bad, that they might have to escape. If there were conspiracies at work, he could not risk Emila's involvement. He would flee from the temple with her to keep her safe. But he would not leave without his brother, either. He would have to meet with Ash again, and speak with him on the subject. If possible, the three of them could sneak away, perhaps during the excitement of the Sonoian emissary's arrival.
And then, Luca remembered another plan he had made to escape with a girl.
The image of Arlea's throat being pierced by that arrow flashed in his mind's eye. He tried to shut it out, only for it to be replaced by that of his father, his chest spilling blood. The snow, stained red with their blood.
He could not allow that to happen again.
Ash was his younger brother. Therefore, it was his responsibility to protect him. And Emila... by all rights she should not have even come with him to the temple. He worried for her, now more than he would admit was just in his own self-preservation. He could not admit it to her; if she asked, he would say that he was protecting her to save his own life, due to the tether. But in truth, he was now more worried for her than for himself.
"Mmmm," muttered Emila quietly in her sleep. "Mother... don't..."
She was dreaming again.
Despite himself, Luca wondered what it was she was dreaming about. Obviously it involved her mother. Perhaps she too was reliving the death of the person who had raised her.
He needed to get some sleep.
He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing. He worked on emptying his thoughts, focusing only on the darkness beyond his eyelids. He listened to the sound of Emila's breathing, its rhythmic flow easing him into the void.
Suddenly, he felt the sheets shifting and another person pressing against him.
Luca's eyes shot open. He turned his head to see Emila, her eyes still closed, climbing into the bed. She was moving in her sleep, climbing into the bed unaware.
"Em-"
No. He could not wake her. She was dreaming. You should never wake a person caught in a dream, or the shock could kill them.
Emila wrapped her arms around his waist and lay her head on his shoulder, apparently mistaking him for a pillow. She sighed contentedly, and her breathing slowed somewhat.
He couldn't let this happen. He'd sworn it wouldn't. Never.
And yet here they were, the two of them in the same bed, with only a sheet and Emila's thin nightgown between them.
No matter how he wished it, he could not break free. Her arms were wrapped around him. If he rose from the bed, he would wake her.
But that was a lie. He had no desire to escape her. He might act like she annoyed him, and act like he could care less that she was around, but really...
"Because he hurt your girlfriend."
"No!"
"No, that can't be it. You wouldn't treat her the way you do if that was the case."
That's wrong, Dori, he thought. He had it completely backwards. Luca treated her that way because, deep down, whether he could admit it to himself or not, he really did care for this odd girl who had saved his life.
Her skin was so soft. Her black hair was as smooth as silk. He couldn't help himself; he rea
ched out and gently caressed it. Her breasts were pressing against his arm. Her breathing was tickling his skin. She was so warm.
It was nice. It didn't take him long to fall asleep like this.
He dreamed of her. He dreamed of this beautiful girl with eyes as green as emeralds, skin as white as snow, and hair darker than the night. He dreamed of her touch, the feel of her skin against his own. He dreamed of her lips, and how soft they felt against his.
It was the first night since he had come from Arimos that he did not dream of death.
And Emila dreamed, too.