Stories from the Past
The sunset painted the sky dapple orange with hues of pinkish purple; a magnificent sight that artists craved to get on canvas but never could. Few citizens were up at the hour, save for some shopkeepers and owners of taverns reading themselves for the breakfast rush.
Kite heaved the supply-laden saddle on top of Snowfall's back, Alicia there to see he and Blackrose off. They were headed towards the Sea of Sand where the ghostly girl was said to rest, if the message board was anything to go off of. The islander was wrapped in a black cloak, her sword scabbard horribly revealed by the folds of fabric. Kite too was draped in a crimson cloak, matching his changed clothing. He hadn't given it much thought though, it wasn't that drastic of a change.
"May the grace of the Twilight Dragon be with you both," said the barmaid, bowing low. Her bright eyes were on the ground and slowly traveled towards Kite's feet. She pursed her lips and her pale blue eyes met his gaze.
"Tell me, you are a sprite, right?" He blinked, startled at the odd question, climbing into his stallion's saddle.
"Yes, why?" he asked slowly.
"I knew not of any sprites who cast shadows."
"What are you talking about? I don't have a shadow." Alicia laughed and pointed to the ground and his eyes followed her point. His eyes fell upon his profile, stretched upon the cobblestone in darkest ebony. He blinked twice and stared in shock at his own shadow.
The only beings who bore shadows were humans, which many on the continent considered inferior. Though Mac Anu had refused to take part in the slave trade, Lambda did not. A bitter taste clung to his mouth when he remembered the small girl his father had bought back when he was ten. Pale skinned and dark haired, she had been both very pretty and outrageously loyal. Her end had been too tragic . . .
Six Years Previous to Present Date
'Worthless trash!'
A girl's fragile body hit the stone floor of the Crimson Death's dungeon. The bald bandit, the same one who had broken Kite's arm four years previous, sneered madly and kicked the girl painfully in the chest. She cried in agony, tears falling from her watery blue eyes.
'Please, stop it!' she cried, curling into a ball.
The bandit gave a laugh. 'You can't command me, ya worthless shadow!'
The door banged open, Lady Rei silhouetted in doorway with her young son at her heels. Where her face had been split in a cheerful smile before, her eyes suddenly widened in fear and anger at the sight of her bleeding servant on the floor.
'Savannah!' cried Kite, hurrying over towards the servant but the bandit threw back the young boy with a toss of his gorilla-like arms.
'Get away from dis scum, she ain't worth yer compassion.' He wrenched from his back a large, blunt axe with a rusty blade. Rei gasped and ran forward.
'Beta, don't you dare lay another finger on either of them!'
'Dat's da problem wit ya, ya've got pity fer the shadows. Dey ain't fit ta walk da earth and I'll put an end ta dis ones disgustin' existence.'
'What did she do to label her 'disgusting'?'
'She called me a liar!'
Beta threw aside Rei and the Thief Queen was only moved from the shock that any would dare touch her. He raised his hands, which were clutching the axe and Savannah closed her eyes and screamed. It was cut short and with a sickening crack, the axe embedded itself in her skull. Blood seeped across the floor.
Kite's eyes filled with tears and Rei, pale as death, clasped her son's shoulders. 'Kite, Kite, go find your father. Now!'
He ran, pleased to be free from the disgusting scene in the room. Once the door was shut, he fell to the ground and pressed his ear against the door. He wanted to hear what was going on.
'How dare you decide what to do with the servants we hire!' roared Rei's voice.
'She ain't a servant, she a slave. A dead slave.' Beta laughed horribly.
'You madman!' There was the sound of metal on leather and of metal removing itself from flesh.
With a slash of metal and stone, the axe's head came through the doorway, inches from Kite's head. He bit his tongue to stop himself from screaming and listened closer. With a grunt of pain, he heard Beta clatter to the floor and his mother give a small laugh of disgust. He knew what was coming next and was very glad he had left the room. Rei spoke again, her voice steady and venomous.
'I am the Lady of Thieves, Queen of Bandits. My blades will be stained with the crimson blood that marks your death.' Though he could not see, he knew Rei had sunk her daggers into the bandit.
Silence echoed throughout the room. Kite's heart hammered as he heard Rei walk towards the door where he was crouched by. Without a word or sound, he ran from sight just as Rei came out. Indeed, she was clutching two blood soaked daggers in her hands, her face a mask of seriousness and sadness.
Kite shook his head, trying to rid himself of the memory. He stared down at his newly developed shadow for a few moments, and then turned back to Alicia. "It's probably because of that damn bracelet," he explained bitterly, "It was the same thing that put Orca into a coma."
She gave him a stern, confused look and Blackrose elaborated while Kite climbed into Snowfall's saddle. Alicia sighed heavily and ran her long fingers through her blond hair. "Be warned then, many of the empire will try to make you a slave, and I doubt you could give proof of your origin without getting your head lobbed off by an axe."
He shuddered at the thought of meeting an end such as Savannah's and nodded briskly to Alicia. She gave them a curtsy and turned back towards town. "I bid thee a safe journey, and come back soon so you can pay for your tabs."
They nodded to her and the two horses marched from town. Blackrose gave Kite a sympathetic look and he gave a bitter laugh. "I honestly like you better when you insult me."
She responded with a horrible look and returned to staring out at the horizon. The cathedral was visible on the left-hand horizon. Kite let his cerulean gaze linger on it, remembering Balmung's final words to the twosome. He returned to Blackrose, about to ask her what she had been about to tell him before the legendary warrior had appeared but she cut him off.
"We go to the west right? I passed the desert on my way to Mac Anu," said Blackrose stiffly, tugging at the collar of her cloak.
"Well then, you must know the way pretty well then. You lead."
She straightened, pleased to be given the chance to command someone. He honestly didn't care very much, interested more in dwelling on the past few days. He could picture the ghostly girl's face clearly and it made him shake in fear. She had seemed so . . . well; her actual emotion was hard to place. It was a mix of terror and a constant grieving sadness. Her eyes had born an emotionless appearance; it was her face that revealed her feelings.
Stories of old spoke of a shadowed girl who quested for her homeland. His father had always dismissed them as just that – stories – but now he could believe just about anything. Staring out on the horizon, he spoke to Blackrose without actually looking at her.
"Could you describe the islands to me? I've grown up inside the empire; what's it like outside imperial control?" Blackrose blinked in confusion but spoke pleasantly, for a change.
"Queen Delilah rules the archipelago. Only women have ever ruled the islands. My mother was the queen's seamstress, my father . . . my father was a Wavemaster who committed suicide when my little brother was born fourteen years ago."
He gave her a shocked and saddened look. "I'm sorry," he said softly.
"It was years ago, nothing special. His magic was too strong for him and he couldn't think straight anymore. Got abusive and stuff. After his death, my mother joined the queen's army. She's currently one of the lieutenants. My brother . . ." her voice trailed off a little then she shook her head before continuing, "My brother is a Wavemaster, as all the men on the island are. My mother trained me for a soldier."
"Then what are you doing on the mainland?" he asked curiously, "Some sort of training?"
"Can't I be here for a visit?" she snapped, "Now tell me about you and your family."
"My father, Hyrakkidouran Raikoumaru, was known as the King of Bandits. My mother was his queen."
She turned, wide eyed, at him where as Kite smiled wryly, eyes twinkling in the sunshine. "Yeah, I'm a bit of a thief myself. I'm like a magpie, something shinny appears and I have to get it."
"A royal soldier and a lowlife thief, funny," she said mirthlessly. He raised an eyebrow but continued his story. "They died from an epidemic up in Lambda, probably a good thing too. My father was losing his famed agility and was about to turn the bandit tribe over to me."
"So, technically you're the leader of this bandit 'tribe'?" she asked, a thin, bitter smile on her lips.
"Technically, yes," he said darkly, "I would still be in Lambda if my brat of a cousin, two years my senior, decided she was the real leader of the tribe. Since she has the same surname as me and the tribe's laws states that the ELDEST Raikoumaru takes control of the Crimson Deaths, she's in charge now. Apparently, I have to prove myself before I'm welcomed back there."
She nodded, seemingly understanding his predicament. "A bitch, ain't she? What's her name?"
"Bell, and don't ever let her catch you calling her that." Blackrose laughed darkly, shaking her head.
"I could outmatch some little thief any day. Especially a mainlander." This time it was a joke. He raised an eyebrow at her and chuckled lightly. "I'll remind myself to tell Bell that, after she's done beheading you."
"Your family greatly interests me. Your mother, what kind of woman was she?"
A small smile lit Kite's face at the memory of his mother. "She was . . . an odd woman. A moment she'd be as sweet as honey and the next minute, she's the bear who hunts the honey. She had a fiendish for precious jewels; our hideout was filled with jewelry she stole. Her favorite target was imperial dukes." He chuckled slightly, "They had the worst security in existence. Arrogance probably, thinking nobody would dare rob the king's dogs." Blackrose laughed at the joke.
"Well, how about your father? Any siblings?"
"Curious, aren't you? I'm an only child, and Bell's the last of my family. I had an Aunt Kayla who died in a fishing accident when I was twelve and Uncle Shin was hanged for robbery when I was thirteen. My father, well, he was too serious, in many aspects. He almost never smiled, unless you actually got a job done very successfully. You know, nobody saw you, got extra stuff, ect. He didn't think magic was any use in life."
"You can't use magic?" she asked, shocked for a moment. It seemed she was unused to hearing that any man couldn't perform spells, since all her male kin could. He flushed angrily but bit back an insult. "No, Hyrakkidouran thought it useless, flashy and only good for a show."
"I could teach you a little bit of magic."
"In return for . . .?" She gave him a hard look, sitting up straighter in the saddle.
"Do I need a reason for teaching battle help?"
He laughed openly, savoring the pleasure for a moment. Although it had only been four days since the incident with the demon and the girl, it felt like an age at least. She raised an eyebrow at him but a thin smile cracked across her stern, tan face.
"Fine, fine, in return, you teach me about the mainland customs."
"Agreed."
I do not own .hack, Bandai does. I own the gist of this story.
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