by Tj Dixon
“The bed’s a bit small.” Midori says dubiously.
“There’s just enough space on the floor. Rin, can you get something soft out of your bag to put on the floor, and something to use as a pillow too?” I ask.
“Sure.” Rin says and gets some blankets and a pillow out of her bag. It is way too small in here to fit a second bed or even just the mattress from one, so this will have to do.
“Great.” Midori sighs shaking her head.
“I’m really sorry about your family Midori.” Rin says and I can tell she means it. “Finding my mother though is too important for me to delay looking. If Peter is willing to help me look for her it means a lot to me. You don’t have to help, but please don’t try to stop Peter helping.”
“Of course I’ll help. She helped me when I was cursed. I’d just rather work with Peter whilst I help.” Midori sighs.
“I’m sorry, but if you still accept me as your leader even though we’re no longer at the academy then please accept my decision. If you don’t accept me then perhaps we should take a vote to decide who will lead us.” I tell Midori.
“Oh fine, I’ll work with Hermes. There’s no way I’m following anyone other than you. For now though let’s see what we can find tonight.” Midori says reluctantly.
“I’m done.” Rin says and shows me a picture of her mother that looks very real indeed. Almost as good as Lucy’s picture of Sor and Emi when we found them asleep in the forest of the Kuroneko. I can’t help but chuckle as I remember it. Rin looks like I offended her and she says. “I thought it was good.”
“It’s very good. It just reminded me of a picture Lucy drew.” I tell Rin quickly.
“Oh. Ok. What did Lucy draw?” Rin asks.
“Emi and Sor asleep in their bed in the forest of the Kuroneko. They were both bright green. It was hilarious.” I tell Rin who laughs.
“What’s wrong with green?” Midori asks sounding a bit hurt and playing with her green hair for a moment.
“Nothing, but Emi and Sor fast asleep, bright green and in a big black bed in the middle of a forest was just really funny to see.” I tell Midori.
“I suppose.” Midori says not sounding convinced.
“Anyway let’s head down now. And Hermes, sleep well and see you in the morning.” I say.
“Yes, sleep well.” Rin says.
“See you in a bit Hermes if you’re still awake, but don’t stay awake for me.” Midori says and is the first to leave the room. With a quick chant Rin makes two more copies of the picture.
“Thanks! See you all later.” Hermes tells us as we start to leave the room. Rin who is last out shuts the door behind her.
“You never know, your mother could be here at this inn. If she is we’ll be back before Hermes knows it.” Midori tells Rin with a smile. I don’t really get Rin and Midori. Sometimes they act almost like enemies and other times they’re like this.
“That would be good.” Rin nods with a sad smile. She clearly doesn’t believe it will happen though, which is just as well because it is very unlikely to be that easy. Rin then holds up the two spare copies of the picture. “You’d better both take one if you’re going to help.”
“It’s a good picture.” Midori says as she takes one. I take the other.
“I’ll ask at the bar. You both ask the table waiters. We’ll meet up outside so we can talk in private.” Rin says as we start walking down the stairs.
“Sure.” I agree with a nod.
“And Midori, I do appreciate your help.” Rin says seriously.
“I hope we find her.” Midori says with a small smile.
“We will do.” I tell them both and Rin nods. She looks a bit more confident now. We continue down the stairs, walking along the corridor between each set and as we reach the last set we feel the oppressive quiet below.
We split up so we each have five people to ask. A couple of the people I ask seem to vaguely recognise the picture but as they say they ‘see hundreds and hundreds of people every day and can’t possibly remember everyone so who knows whether they really have seen Rin’s mother. It doesn’t inspire me with confidence that we’ll find her by searching the other inns either, but if we don’t look we definitely won’t find her.
“Any luck?” Rin asks me and Midori, but we both shake our heads. “Oh well it was never going to be that easy. Let’s check out the other inns.”
“And keep an eye open for somewhere private for Midori.” I remind her.
“Don’t worry. I hadn’t forgotten.” Rin tells me and then looks at Midori. “Just how private?”
“Absolutely nobody can see me during the ritual.” Midori says very seriously.
“Would it fail?” Rin asks.
“Yes, but more importantly I have to take my clothes off for the ritual, because the moonlight has to cover me completely. I don’t want to do that somewhere that’s not absolutely private.” Midori tells us.
“Maybe we should have had you do it outside the city.” Rin says with a frown.
“I can sense somewhere that might work.” I say as I sense what seems like a large garden complete with trees and hedges. “It’s at least a few minutes from here if we walk, but I don’t think it would be wise to port.”
“Let’s take a look.” Midori says sounding happy but her aura shows disappointment.
“There’s what I think is an inn between here and there so we may as well check it out on the way.” I tell Midori and her disappointment fades a little.
“Sure.” Midori says with a grin.
“This way.” I say and lead the way. I set what feels like a fast pace to me but I get the impression that both Rin and Midori would be fine walking much faster than this.
“Is that what you meant?” Rin asks as we approach a large stone building with people lining up outside.
“Yes.” I answer with a nod.
“That’s not an inn and my mother would never have visited that place.” Rin says, seeming a bit flushed.
“What is it?” I ask curiously.
“You don’t need to know.” Rin says so I turn to Midori. Midori looks at the building with an angry glare in her eyes.
“That’s a slave house. The red circle with the blue background over the door marks it as one.” Midori says.
“So why is everyone queuing to get in?” I ask. “They don’t look like slaves. Some of those people look ridiculously rich based on their clothes. They all seem to be women too.”
“They’re queueing to use the slaves that live inside.” Midori says darkly.
“Use?” I ask confused, but I’m angry too now. All these people queueing to use slaves. It almost makes me wonder whether I’m on the right side. Only almost though, because this empire we’re fighting and the Fallen Angels haven’t exactly shown themselves to be the ‘right side’ either.
“You will not go into the details, Midori.” Rin says with a glare.
“I wasn’t going to.” Midori blushes. Then she looks at me seriously. “It’s the sort of place that I’d rather die than end up. Only male slaves are used in slave houses in Contractia but there are similar places in the empire that use both male and female slaves.”
“Let’s carry on to that place you found.” Rin says.
“Yes, let’s get away from this place quickly.” Midori says with a glare at the slave house.
Chapter 30 (Peter)
We must have checked every inn in the city and there are plenty of them. I could tell from her aura that Rin was worried but despite the long and fruitless search Rin didn’t seem depressed. Right now Hermes and Midori are out there searching the alchemy workshop and shops.
I gave Rin the bed and took the floor. From her aura I can tell that Rin’s already asleep. Unfortunately though I’m having trouble getting to sleep. There’s a small window but since it’s daytime we have it covered with the dirty cloth that the innkeeper would probably call a curtain. The daylight still comes through, which doesn’t help me get to sleep.
Suddenly there’s an urgent knock on the door. Rin sits bolt upright and I sit up a little slower. I look at Rin, we both nod in silent agreement and then Rin opens the door with magic. To our shock and joy Rin’s mother is standing the other side of the door.
“Mother…!” Rin gasps.
“Rin.” Her mother says gently with a kind and relieved smile.
“Peter, can you leave us to catch up?” Rin asks me apologetically.
“Of course.” I tell her and get up. I quickly cleanse myself with water magic.
“It’s good to see you again too, Peter.” Rin’s mother says with a smile.
“It’s good to see you too.” I grin as I leave the room.
“We’ll talk more later. We may need a while though, so don’t wait for us.” Rin’s mother tells us as she enters the room. Then she closes the door behind her.
“Where did you find her?” I ask Hermes and Midori who were waiting outside the room.
“At the main alchemy workshop. I’m glad we went there first.” Hermes laughs happily.
“Let’s talk downstairs. The room isn’t properly sound proofed like the academy rooms.” Midori tells us.
“Ok, but let’s walk down to save power.” I suggest.
“Sounds fine to me.” Hermes says and Midori nods.
“Let’s hurry though, because the tables are starting to fill up with the breakfast crowd. Not everybody is an early riser like us.” Midori says and hurries along the corridor ahead of us. Somehow it seems strange for her to run ahead like this, but I can’t quite work out why it seems strange. Is it because she is no longer so reserved around me or is it because she hasn’t seemed so cheerful lately? I’m not sure. Hermes and I hurry after Midori though and it doesn’t take long to reach the ground floor.
“That table over there looks good.” Midori says looking back at us over her shoulder and points at a table that is secluded in a sort of alcove. It should be a bit more private than some of the other tables.
“Let’s take it.” I quickly agree and follow her over to it. It’s big enough for four so I end up sitting opposite Midori and next to Hermes.
“Are you hungry?” Midori asks me.
“I am actually. What about both of you?” I ask.
“I could definitely use a nice breakfast.” Hermes says enthusiastically.
“I’ll get us breakfast then. My treat.” Midori says and gets up again.
“We can split it.” I say quickly.
“No, I’ll do it. You can get next time.” Midori tells me with a grin.
“Ok, thank you. I will get next time though.” I tell Midori. Only after she’s left do I realise she doesn’t know what we want. Oh well, I’m sure whatever she chooses will be nice.
“You may as well have just waited until this morning to look.” Hermes tells me.
“You know as well as I do that wasn’t going to happen.” I tell Hermes who nods reluctantly.
“So what will we do now that we’ve found Rin’s mother?” Hermes asks me.
“I may try to sneak into the Great Library.” I tell Hermes who gulps.
“That sounds dangerous. Why do you need to go in there, anyway?” Hermes asks me.
“I want to see if there’s a proper copy of the History of Ishki. The copy I read in Portalis didn’t feel right. It’s a pity that I didn’t think to check Hinata’s library when I was at her home. The goblins kind of distracted me. I suppose she may have taken the books with her. Maybe I should check with her first.” I tell Hermes who looks a bit uncomfortable.
“Why do you need that book?” Hermes asks me.
“I read a copy in Portalis but it didn’t feel right. I want to at least know a bit more about Ishki.”
“But why?” Hermes asks.
“Does it matter?” I ask with a sigh.
“You’re talking about risking your life to find out! Of course it matters.” Hermes tells me indignantly.
“If Midori helps me I think we can do it safely.” I tell Hermes who frowns and shakes her head. Before she can protest any further I decide to change the subject. “Do you know anything about a Heart of Alchemy?”
“A what?” Hermes asks and I sense shock in her aura.
“A Heart of Alchemy.” I repeat.
“Did you read about that in the History of Ishki?” Hermes asks.
“No. What made you think that?” I ask.
“You were talking about the History of Ishki.” Hermes says with a shrug. I sense deception in her aura.
“Why are you…?” I start to ask but then Midori comes into view carrying three glasses and a large bottle with flight magic. Midori places them on the table and sits opposite me again.
“Did something happen?” Midori asks, sensing the change in our moods.
“Do you know anything about a Heart of Alchemy?” I ask Midori who frowns.
“That sounds familiar but I can’t quite place it.” Midori says honestly.
“Hermes, tell me the truth. What do you know about the Heart of Alchemy?” I ask accusingly.
“I don’t know anything.” Hermes lies.
“You do remember that I can tell when you lie?” I ask her angrily.
“Fine. Ask Rin.” Hermes sighs.
“Why can’t you tell me?” I ask.
“If you have to know, it’s better that Rin tells you herself. Anyway, you’re definitely not the Sky Lord from the History of Ishki.” Hermes tells me.
“What makes you say that?” I ask suspiciously.
“Three special breakfasts.” A young man tells us, carrying two plates on his left arm and a third in his right hand. They are full of tasty looking meat. I count eight different meats and my mouth waters. He quickly places them on the table.
“We’ll talk after we eat.” I tell Hermes and then turn to Midori. “Thank you very much. It looks delicious.”
“Have some happy juice.” Midori says and passes me a glass of clear liquid. She must have filled the glasses whilst I was talking to Hermes. She passes another glass to Hermes and then takes a small sip from her own.
“You really went all out.” I say and gratefully sip my own happy juice too.
“Now I’ll feel less guilty on our date.” Midori grins.
“I’m going to be going all out too am I?” I ask with a grin.
“I don’t plan to be too greedy.” Midori assures me and then stabs a small sausage with her fork. It’s the only small piece of meat on her plate. She then eats it whole.
“I’d better not let this get cold.” I say and start demolishing my own plate of food.
“Yes, that would be a waste.” Hermes says and starts on hers too. It isn’t long before we’ve all finished off the huge amount of meat we were given. We were obviously all hungry. Hermes looks at her empty plate and says. “I’ll get fat if I eat like that too often.”
“So about me not being the Sky Lord of Ishki?” I ask Hermes pointedly.
“Well for one thing you’re way too young. Also you’re not evil.” Hermes tells me and I blink.
“So why would I need to be evil?” I ask.
“The history of Ishki that the Hoshi has was about five hundred years old. Rin told us that the first time we saw it.” Hermes tells me.
“I’d forgotten.” I admit.
“So are you over five hundred years old?” Hermes asks me.
“I don’t think so. I don’t have all my memories though. Maybe I’m a lot older than I think I am. Or maybe I’m the reincarnation of this Sky Lord.” I suggest.
“Impossible, because the Sky Lord can’t be reincarnated.” Hermes says and I frown.
“Why not and how do you know that?” I ask and Hermes blinks as if only now realising that she has told me something she shouldn’t have.
“His soul was destroyed and I know because I read a little of the History of Ishki.” Hermes tells me with a sigh.
“How can you destroy someone’s soul?” I ask.
“It was fed to a hell flower.” Hermes tell
s me.
“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” I ask with a frown.
“It didn’t matter. You’re not the Sky Lord of Ishki. The Kuroneko must have meant something else.” Hermes tells me.
“No. She definitely meant the Sky Lord of Ishki.” I tell Hermes.
“How can you be so sure?” Hermes asks.
“Because she quite clearly told me I was the Sky Lord of Ishki.” I tell Hermes.
“I thought you said that she just called you the Sky Lord.” Hermes says with a frown.
“The first time that is all she called me, but I saw her again when we got out of the goblin tunnels. That time she quite clearly said that I was the Sky Lord of Ishki.” I tell Hermes who frowns.
“Then she must be mistaken.” Hermes tells me.
“Maybe the book got it wrong.” I tell Hermes.
“It would have to have gotten it very wrong. The Sky Lord of Ishki committed evil that makes the Fallen Angels and the goblins of the empire look like saints.” Hermes tells me and I frown.
“Like what?” I ask.
“It doesn’t matter what, because you’re not the Sky Lord of Ishki.” Hermes tells me firmly.
“I’m definitely reading that book.” I tell Hermes with a glare.
“Please don’t.” Hermes pleads.
“I don’t see how anything could make eating children look good.” I tell Hermes dubiously.
“Isn’t there some way to prove whether you’re this Sky Lord of Ishki?” Midori asks.
“Apparently if I break this Heart of Alchemy I should get my memories back.” I tell Midori.
“So how do you do that?” Midori asks.
“The Kuroneko said to ask Rin. Hermes seems to think that Rin knows about the Heart of Alchemy too, so I’ll have to ask her when I get a chance. It’s a pity I can’t ask her now.” I say and shake my head in frustration.
“So what do you plan to do until Rin and her mother are finished talking?” Midori asks.
“To be honest I’m exhausted so sitting here sounds good.” I tell Midori but she frowns.
“I doubt they’ll let us keep the table for too long. We still have some drink but they’ll probably expect us to move on fairly soon. It’s getting busy already.” Midori tells me and she’s right. It really is busy and it won’t be long before there aren’t enough tables. The small amount of happy juice we have left in our glasses isn’t going to serve as a good excuse to stay here for long. “How about we sit in the park we found last night?”
