TWO OF A KIND
by Ulquiorra9000
Chapter 2
"Hey... that's no way to talk to the guy who saved your butt!" Morrel said defensively at the girl's sharp demands. Some of the fires set by the Jund attack were still burning, but they didn't compare to the fierce gleam in the girl's narrow eyes. Morrel was suddenly aware of his haunch aching from fighting the ogres earlier, and his whole body felt sore and dirty from the most recent battle. He wanted to be anywhere but here.
"Saved me? No. I had to rescue your sorry hide from those creatures. Don't flatter yourself," the girl snapped, jostling Morrel by his shirt collar. "Are you going to find me a safe place or not?"
Morrel huffed, his normally durable patience worn thin by this girl's hostility. He squinted past the muck specks on his glasses lenses. "Look, you. We both had a hard time back there and we have no need to argue. Fine, I'll show you to safety, but I deserve something in return. I want answers."
The girl hesitated, weighing his words with pursed lips. "All right. Get moving." She let him go, taking a step back.
Morrel cautiously slunk toward the other end of the alley to leave the town, but memories of the girl's expert movements in the battle discouraged him from trying anything rash right now. She moves better than I do. I've got to watch this one, he admitted to himself, eyes on the girl as he led her down the alley, far from prying eyes. The both of them emerged onto the evening sun-lit grassy Akrasan plains, with only a few clouds and patrolling aven pike masters far overhead for company. Fiddling with his white cloak until it was more comfortable, Morrel strode across the open plains toward a Rhox monastery, one that had been abandoned some years before by the death of its owners. A garden in serious disrepair surrounded the stone building.
"In here." Morrel led the girl inside, grateful that the furniture was still here. He pulled up a stool and sat with his arms folded as the girl sat on another stool. Morrel watched her the whole time, noting her tattered clothes, bare feet, and ever-alert eyes. Tapping a foot nervously on the floor, Morrel spoke up, "All right, this place is good for a while. Now..." he leaned forward, hoping that his attempted tough-guy act impressed the girl into listening to him. "What's going on here? Are you the scoundrel who's been spotted around here recently? Are you one of those 'Planeswalkers' I've heard about? What's your name? Are you native to Bant, or one of the other shards, maybe?"
The girl made a face. "I thought you wanted a civilized discussion, not an excuse to blabber endless questions." She tossed a lock of her slightly tangled black hair, eyes flashing. "I don't want to admit it, but you helped me out back there, and you're not half bad. Fine. My name is Mizuki. I -"
"Mizuki? I've never heard a name like that one," Morrel was suddenly intrigued. "Where -"
"Do you want your answers or not?" Mizuki snapped back. "What's your problem?"
"N-nothing, nothing," Morrel gestured with his hands, feeling self-conscious. "Go ahead."
Mizuki shook her head. "I, well... yeah. I'm one of those Planeswalkers." She glanced away from Morrel. "Been Planeswalking since I was about eight, and I'm 17 now. I come from a land called Kamigawa. A land of the kami."
Morrel squinted, scratching his sweat-dampened blond hair. "Kami?" Whoa, she really is a Planeswalker! I wonder what her homeland, this Kamigawa, is like. Must be amazing!
"The spiritual gods, the natural beings of my land. They are well in tune with the natural world," Mizuki elaborated. "And they and the mortal races are in a terrible war because... well, I don't give a damn why. All I know is, one of those horrible kami took everything from me. Everything."
Tears suddenly welled in Mizuki's eyes and she looked down.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," Morrel hurried to console her, leaping to his feet. Crap, this getting awkward. Before Morrel could do anything, Mizuki muttered, "Sit down. It's not your fault."
Morrel sat back down, suddenly feeling the stifling silence of the room. The fierce scuffle in the town suddenly seemed distant and trivial. I wonder if I should just go. He stood again to leave, but Mizuki wiped her eyes, motioning. "Look, this happened years ago, and it's not your fault," she told him earnestly. "I... I'm sorry if I've been rude to you. It's just that I don't trust any folks anymore. Not after I got the curse and suffered for my trust in others."
"What do you mean?" Morrel suddenly felt compelled.
Mizuki sat up straight. "I've been alone for years, after a powerful kami and its minions assaulted my village back on Kamigawa and leveled it, slaughtering everyone before my eyes. But instead of fleeing, I approached the creature, begging it to bring my parents back to life because unlike the samurai warriors of the village, they were innocent and didn't deserve to die so soon. The kami offered me the power and understood my plight, or so I thought. As soon as that thing touched me... it tried to conquer me, soak me in monstrous power and make me its vassal with its magic possessing me."
"Your right arm. Is that the kami thing's power?" Morrel asked, eyes wide. Suddenly it made more sense how this girl had a huge, supernatural limb. Mizuki nodded and extended her right arm, manifesting it to the great, black-skinned limb that Morrel had seen earlier. The enormous hand curled into a fist, the thick fingers careful to avoid the curved white talons. Mizuki unclenched her fist and returned her arm to normal again.
"The kami's power overwhelmed my mind and body, but it turned out that I had a surprise of my own," Mizuki said with a slight grin tugging at the corner of her lips. "Just when I thought I was lost, the incredible strain awoke something deep inside me, and the next thing I knew, I was in a faraway land with no kami in sight. I was alone in a forest, and my right arm and hand were monstrous. It was raining, and I threw back my head and cried out long and hard from all of what had happened to me."
Morrel slumped, realizing just what a Pandora's box he had opened. Okay, so I've got a god-cursed Planeswalker on my lap. What now, Morrel? "Um... I assume this was the last time you trusted anyone or anything?" he offered a weak smile.
"Yeah." Mizuki's lips twitched again. "I was always an impatient and rough one, as my parents and big brother used to say, and add the kami's curse, and no one would accept me. If I ever got mad, which is often, my power manifested, and I would have to flee from anyone around me. No culture or household wanted me, so I moved to the fringes of society. Those people from the various planes don't want me, and I don't want them. Not Kamigawa, or this land, or anywhere else! That you found me, Morrel, was total coincidence. Those barbarians didn't know who they were tangling with."
She clenched her right fist, looking down at her normal hand that could turn monstrous at any second. She looked back up at Morrel with a smirk. "Okay, I'm done now. Scared yet? I can get out of your life if you want me to. No one wants me around for long. Once I'm strong enough, I'm going to find that kami and kill it. I need revenge."
Morrel took his chance. "I can help you."
With a clatter, Mizuki fell off her stool in shock, sprawling on the monastery's floor in a heap. She held onto the stool to hoist herself back up with a confused laugh. "Wh-what?"
Morrel got to his feet, heart pounding with determination. "I can't claim the same tragic story as you, but I have something to prove to my king and my prodigious brother," he explained. "It is the duty of mages like me to help others no matter their malady." He pointed at a startled Mizuki. "You're wanted, Mizuki, by King Ledram. You're a scoundrel and a thief in his eyes. You aren't going to run?"
"Can't yet," Mizuki shook her head. "The kami's power does strange things to my Planeswalker power. I can't perform the walk any sooner than three days from now. That's the delay."
"Then you can stay here and listen to me," Morrel offered firmly. "I can strike a deal with the king! Instead of you running away and me staying in my rut, we can help each other. If you can take me with you to the kami creature, I can help you slay it and at the same time, prove myself to my king. What better than to find the elusive scoundrel and slay a great beast to bring her peace?"
Mizuki looked amazed. "You don't really mean that, do you? That's crazy. You can't help me. Not at all."
"Can't I?" Morrel took a step forward. "I can't fully explain it either, but I feel like this is my chance, Mizuki. This is what I've always wanted! There are traditions among my people that apply to this, like the Journey of Souls. Besides..." he couldn't resist a sly grin. "An adventure to faraway lands to slay a great beast is an offer I can't refuse. I thought I'd never get a chance like this."
"You're nuts, I'm telling you," Mizuki insisted, but she couldn't help a reluctant grin. She tossed her dark hair. "Well. You really mean it, don't you?"
"I've made up my mind. I can be quite stubborn, just so you know," Morrel said adamantly. "We're two of a kind, you and I. We have something to gain from this alliance."
"We're nothing alike, but I accept your offer, assuming that your precious king will go along with the deal," Mizuki got up and paced Morrel, evaluating him. "You're a little different from the other people I've met. I'll try you out."
Morrel shrugged. "Well, we are kind of alike. Our first names do start with the same letter."
"You're such an idiot."
*o*o*o*o*
By next morning, Morrel's wound had been mended completely, mainly by the healing hands of the caregivers at the Akrasan castle, plus what Morrel considered his youthful toughness. After breakfast in the dining hall, Morrel strode to King Ledram's hall not to request a new mission against the invaders from the other shards, but to make an important request.
"I see, you're rather eager to prove yourself like your brother is," Ledram commented warmly, sitting up straight. The old man's bushy eyebrows rose. "Do you still feel like you live in his shadow, Morrel?"
"I… yes, my liege," Morrel admitted with a bow of his head, heart hammering. Come on, let this work… "But I am not doing this for personal gain. I do this as my duty to my kingdom."
The guards stood passively, but Ledram was most intrigued. He leaned forward, robes crinkling. "Then why do you wish to take your Journey of Souls now? Is this your adventurous streak doing the talking?"
"No, it isn't that either!" Morrel stuttered, resisting a nervous laugh as he gestured with his hands. Actually, it kind of is. "My liege, I have found someone in great need of my help, and she has accepted an offer I made to her. I now only need your permission to take my Journey and spend an undefined amount of time away from here."
"Say it." Ledram squinted, cautious of what freedoms he allowed adventurous types like Morrel.
The young battlemage drew a deep breath and fiddled with his glasses. "I have found the scoundrel who has been raiding us. She is not a bad person, I assure you, only troubled. She is indeed a Planeswalker, one of those gifted individuals who can –"
Ledram sucked in a sharp breath. "A Planeswalker? You are consorting with one of them?"
"You know about them?" Morrel blinked.
"Yes, I do," Ledram told him firmly, gripping the armrests of his throne tightly. "Morrel, my boy, I do apologize if this information has been kept from you for so long, but…"
The King only swallowed nervously, and Morrel felt his short patience wear right out. "My liege, what is it? Is someone I know one of them, too? A walker of Planes?"
Ledram nodded. "Your own brother. Raphael."
Morrel tried not to curse in front of his King. Oh, that's just wonderful. Jeez, big brother, you have to loom over me like a mountain? Why didn't you tell me? He pushed the thought aside for now, wondering how many surprises he would get.
"Still, Raphael does not wish this to be widely known. You may ask him about it, but be careful," Ledram advised. "He's among my top agents. He must not be compromised."
"I know, I know," Morrel grumbled, then fell to one knee. "All the same, I state my request again: may I embark on my Journey of Souls with the troubled one? She has a demon of her past to erase and wants my help. She can take me to her home."
"You know the dangers, don't you, Morrel?" Ledram advised, but he sounded more approving than not.
"That's partly why I want to go. This is my chance to become somebody," Morrel stood by his claims.
Ledram sat back in his throne and waved a hand. "Then so be it! Morrel, I know that you are a boy of action and you have a strong heart. If you return from this adventure, you just may catch up to Raphael. Somewhat."
"I… yes, my liege. Thank you. I must go and prepare," Morrel felt his heart soar, and he tromped down the central aisle of the throne room without looking back.
*o*o*o*o*
Cards in this chapter... Aven Squire
A/N: Short chapter, I know, but there's more talk coming up in chapter 3 and I didn't want to put too much in one chapter, so here we are :)