Lucen left the camp, marching towards Castaway, cursing Chester and Aya the whole way.
His blonde hair fluttered under the wind. He suddenly looked down and remembered what he was wearing. A dirty, and slightly bloody, white long sleeve shirt, and baggy, black trousers.
He looked back at the distant camp. Explaining why Chester called him to Helie and the others would just piss him off more. If only he could go destroy someone’s house...
He turned back to Castaway. He jogged down a steep incline in the earth, and before long the city’s white walls stretched in front of him. The guards bowed as he passed, not even bothering to check him. But it was probably like that with most Knights.
He tried sticking to the back alleys of the city, but all roads led to the long road that ran through the entire city, Lost street. He sighed, and climbed someone’s fence, then jumped from house to house to Liam’s place.
Liam wasn’t around. He knocked on the door for a while, and no one answered. An older lady told him Liam went out with some friends.
He considered using the crystal he gave Liam to track him, but then he would have to be around Liam’s friends.
And Liam was already angry with him, talking about Aya would only make him angrier.
But what was he meant to do? Tell Aya that she’s a fool? That Life was obviously worth far more than honor?
He wasn’t even sure if he was right. But did she really still stand by those beliefs, even now as she was tortured deep under the Grey Keep?
Thinking about this made him feel sick, so he pushed it from his mind
He walked across Lost Street to the other side of the city. After all, the pedestrian gate that led to the Grey Keep was over there. He was soon out in the fields, watching the golden wheat of the field glisten in the sunlight.
Windy wouldn’t be at home right now. If he told Chester she was a Sage, what reaction would he have? Was Sage even a rank or just a title? Talking to her about this might have been more useful, or more annoying, you can never really tell with—
He stopped, his annoyed frown grew even deeper. Speak of the devil.
Lost Wind sat on the dirt road, feeding fish that lived in a stream beside the road. She glanced up at him.
"Sage is more of a title than a rank," she said suddenly, "it pertains more to an achievement that further raises us above our peers."
"Who are these peers?" he asked, stopping beside to watch the fish eat.
"Don’t worry about it. Becoming a Sage is something most people skip, only us unfortunate crones manage this."
He gave up immediately, weedling information from Lost Wind was a fool’s errand. "The Empty Sky, it was yesterday. I was wondering if you would come."
"What I saw scared me, just a little," she murmured, "I will go ahead of you to Red Keep, there are things I must check are still in their place. I have only two pieces of advice to give you: First, wherever you are stationed, move to the center and show off a bit. Secondly, don’t shake his hand."
"Who?" Lucen asked, eyes narrowed.
Lost Wind answered his question with a meaningful look. It was something that shouldn’t be spoken aloud. Nobody shook hands here either way, you either saluted or crossed forearms.
"Moving towards the center of the army is dangerous. Are you trying to get me killed so you can move on to your next prophecy?"
Windy shook her head. "Killing you would make things more confusing. I only change outcomes I understand. Your future flows long ahead of the meager things I’ve seen. And I’m not the only one aware of this now."
The finality of her tone was chilling. Lucen tightened his jaw, muttering. "Is this ever going to be simpler?"
"No. You choose the direction to an extent, but you will wage war on the entire world at this rate. Winning the sword fights is one thing, are you ready to battle against the wills and beliefs of people?"
Lucen looked down at her. "No."
Windy stared down into the clear water. One of the smaller fish struggled to get some feed among its larger counterparts.
"Then I suggest you save yourself from what’s to come, and just slit your throat. Preferably somewhere, that they can’t find your body and reanimate you to serve them."
She dropped some more food into the stream, and something strange happened. The fish would usually dash straight for the feed, this time they swarmed in the opposite direction, and gulped up empty water.
The one little fish found its way to the feed, and joyfully ate its fill.
"What exactly are you?" Lucen finally asked. "What mana do you use? Why did you come here? Why do I have to be the one? Is this because of my past life? Some karmic punishment?"
Windy remained quiet. "Have you heard the tale of the Girl and the Dragon?"
Lucen’s head was boiling, but he knew by now she would at least get to the point.
"The girl finds a dragon in the forest one day. It’s injured and she is pitiful, so they become friends. Am I forgetting anything? Ohh, yes. Her village kills the dragon and the girl and drinks the dragon’s blood for power. But end up turning into horrible monsters."
His summary left out a lot, but he hoped it was enough.
Windy nodded, smiling. "The moral of the story is often to avoid things you don’t understand. Like befriending a dragon or drinking dragon’s blood—"
"What kind of moral is that," Lucen interjected.
"—but the story doesn’t tell you that it was the girl’s fate to meet the dragon. And it was their fate to die and be reborn as one."
Lucen remained silent. Lost wind rose, and dusted off her robes.
"You can’t run from destiny," She concluded, "not yet, at least. So let’s do our best to live."