Vincent walked through the door, closing it gently behind him. He had a bottle of sloshing dark liquid and two small glasses between his fingers. He looked exhausted and each step he took was slow and a drag. He contemplated just turning and fall on one of the beds that was there but he made it to the window sill.
Morrigan was standing in front of the window, it wide open and a breeze rolling through. The stars hung in the air and she could hear insects, noise and revelry of this small piss poor town. She didn’t turn to face him as he came to stand beside her. “How are the pair of them?”
“She’s still asleep. The glow has gone away so that’s something.” Vincent said and shook his head. “Alistair isn’t leaving her side yet. I told him to get some rest but he refused.”
She shook her head slowly. “He’s a stubborn one.”
“They’re twins. Abandoning one another is the last thing either would voluntarily do.” He said setting the glasses on the edge. Popping the top of the bottle off he poured drinks slowly. One shot for himself and another for her. Setting the bottle on the edge he lifted up a shot to her and held his own.
She took it, plucking it slowly from his grasp and appraised the color. It matched her own skin tone. “What is this?”
“Something dark and strong. Don’t need another reason to drink really.”
She nodded slowly and gave a faint smile. “Bottoms up.”
They raised their glasses together and tipped the drinks back entirely. Vincent let out a harsh sigh while she let out a slow breath. She motioned for him to give her the bottle. When he consented, she put it to her lips and took a large swallow. Gasping away she grunted and handed it back to him.
“A woman who can handle her drink huh?”
She scoffed as he did the same, taking a long swig off the top. “I can handle my liquor. Better than you from what I remember.’
He snorted. “I wasn’t drunk.” He handed the drink back to her.
“Really? You made a bigger fool of yourself than most I’ve seen on wine.”
As she took her next shot he said, “I can handle my liquor just fine.” He said under his breath and she laughed once she set the bottle down again.
“I bet.” She folded her arms staring at the sky. “I made my peace with death on the desert out there.”
“I guess in my own way I did too. There isn’t any God for the Rogue’s to pray to for luck or salvation. Death comes and we run as long as we can.”
“I highly doubt that.”
“Oh we run hard. I’ve actually survived some raids gone wrong by knowing when to turn tail.”
She shook her head picking the bottle up again. She raised to her lips and paused before tilting it and her head back for another drink. “The fact that you don’t have a God to pray to. All of you in the Free City have a God you pray to. You’re just not aware of it.”
He laughed at that. “The almighty lord of the sanctum doesn’t extend to us heathens in the desert.”
She glanced at him and he met her gaze. However, as he looked at her he became a bit more uncertain under the weight of her stare. Leaning against the window sil and staring at the sky he frowned. “I don’t think we have a proper God. Not one that answers to prayers.”
“I’ve felt the presence of something in that city. Something that watches the people that go within it.”
Silence stretched between them again. Every few seconds they would take a drink from the bottle savoring the taste that both woke them up and also slowed their breathing and leadened their limbs. “How has the Free City survived the Calamity for so long?” Morrigan mused aloud.
“Survived? What are you talking about?”
“The Calamity has not wiped out the Sanctum because of their God. They claim the Great Leader protects them in Noria. My Queen has protected her people since the beginning but what does the Free City do?”
He shook his head after thinking for a length of time. “I can’t say. Since I’ve come to the Free City, the Calamity hasn’t struck. And I never sat down and talked to those who’d been there longer or even the elders.”
She nodded slowly and sipped the drink slowly. “The city has survived the Calamity somehow. Kingdoms have. There’s so many things about the event that I don’t even know about.”
“You and me both. I thought the Cerise were a myth. Something that the Sanctum brought up only as a lesson from the past. The blood thirsty queen and her mad subjects.”
Morrigan chuckled darkly as she turned to look at him. “My Queen is no more blood thirsty than one of your rulers. As for her subjects, that madness is a questionable trait that does more good than harm.”
“So how much of it is a myth and how much is real?”
She glanced at him and then shook her head. “That’s not for me to say. I am a weapon in her army and nothing more.”
“Jeez you sound like one of the holy knights of the Sanctum.” He shook his head and picked up the bottle again.
“What of you. You were from the Sanctum. What caused you to leave? I thought all who lived there were beyond happy to be under their lord’s good graces.”
He laughed. A sharp bark of a sound as he raised the bottle toward her. She thought for a moment then took it. Shaking the bottle, she saw it slosh around at around half full. “The Sanctum is only a heaven for those within the clergy or the royalty. If you’re just a regular person you’re going to get exploited until you’re not worth anything and then be expected to keep giving to them.”
“And for some reason we’re trying to go there.”
Both turned and watched as Alistair walked to join them in the room. The stress of the day and his sister being unconscious dropped the magical alterations on his face and body which caught the other two by surprise. Without a word, he took the bottle put it to his lips and simply started drinking. He chugged it for a few seconds and then gasped slumping forward against the window. He ended up knocking the shot glasses off the sides and he watched them fall before shattering on the ground below.
“Whoops.” He mumbled.
“Alright kid,” Vincent took the bottle from his hands. “How’s your sister?”
“She’s not dead. Which is better than I had thought would happen a few hours ago.”
“Fair.” Vincent said sipping from the bottle slowly. “How are you holding up kid?”
“Me?”
“Yeah you. We’re veterans in this shit. You two are kids.”
There was a conflict on the twin’s face. Something about trying to deny the fact that he was so young but the fear of a few moments ago came home and he shook his head slowly. “I was terrified then and I’m still shaking now.” He showed them his hands and they shook gently as he grimaced.
“Give it time.” Morrigan said placing a hand on his shoulder and frowned in thought. “You’re protective of your sister.”
“She’s the only one I have.” He frowned. “And she’s helped me so much more than I can even start to talk about. If she’s hurt, I don’t know what the hell I’d do.” His voice broke slightly as he slid against the ground and sat on the floor. “She’s never done this before.”
Vincent walked over to him and slumped down, sitting right beside him. “She’ll be okay.”
“She better be.” He said lowering his head.
Morrigan looked at him with curiosity. Walking toward him she got down on one knee and motioned to his appearance. “She calls you her brother yet you are twins. Are you not a woman like your sister?”
Alistair stared at her, the look a cocktail of anger, hurt, and borderline resignation. He held his hand out to Vincent. Vincent handed over the bottle to him and he took it, tilted his head back and started drinking hard. Wiping his mouth of he pointed at her and narrowed his eyes.
“Ever since I was born it’s been like I was always lying without knowing what the lie was. Alison helped me figure out what the lie was,” He narrowed his eyes at her and Morrigan met his gaze evenly nodding her head slowly. “Call me he, him or Alistair. Nothing to the contrary.”
“Hm. Alright. Then by your name and your claim I shall call you by.” She said and lowered her head then held her hand out for the drink. Alistair stared at her then glanced at the alcohol before nodding slowly and handed it over.
Grabbing it by the neck she tilted her head back chugging for a second and setting it down. Wiping her mouth off she glanced outside as the sun started to rise outside the window. “Well. It looks like we all survived the night.” She said with some amount of amusement. She chuckled and let out a small burp and stumbled backwards before sitting down across from them. “And we’ve only just begun. Let’s see what the rest of the journey has in store for us.”
They continued to talk into the night sharing the bottle back and forth. There was talk of getting another but no one could muster the strength to stand or garner the motivation for it. One by one they fell asleep on the floor as the sun rose outside their window.
When the morning did come the three travelers awoke with varying degrees of headaches, stiffness and dry mouths. Alison hadn’t woken up yet, still sleeping in one of the two rooms that they bought. Her eyes weren’t glowing any longer and the scarring on her hands had almost entirely faded away. They saw that as progress.
Bread and water was being shared between them, Vincent and Morrigan standing up while Alistair sat by his sister. Vincent tore another chunk and then motioned toward Morrigan. “Alright first things first. Do your people actually eat normal food?” he asked of her.
She arched an eyebrow at him and answered by eating a piece of the bread and a roll of her eyes. “I swear commoners are stupider than I realized.”
He ignored the insult as he was keen to do now and then pointed to the two of them. “Alright well then you two have a job then.” Chewing slowly, he sipped his water for a second and wiped his mouth on his wrist. “When the demon attacked us we lost our other horse which means we lost half our supplies in one go. So, we’re going to at the very least replaced.”
“Why do I have to go out to do that?” Alistair asked first of as he finished his bread.
“Because I want to ask around this hotel. Grab information. We’re not in the Sanctum. Not even close but I heard some chatter last night in the bar that might spell bad news for us if we stay any longer. But no panicking before I can confirm it. Besides I have some people in the town I can talk to. So, chores for you two.”
Morrigan scowled at him but she conceded. “Talk to whatever riff raff you have to. We’ll take care of things. I want to leave here as soon as possible.”
“Has anyone ever said you’re just a pleasant person to work with?”
“Yes. Often. Of a higher class than you as well.”
“I can only imagine.”
She smirked at this point finishing their meager breakfast and turned toward Alistair. “Come along Alistair.”
He looked skeptical at her and then back at his sister’s sleeping form. He couldn’t hover around her all day, especially when sleep was all she was likely to do. He turned toward Vincent and he raised a hand before the twin spoke.
“I’ll keep watch over her. Make sure nothing happens and if her condition changes I’ll find you as soon as possible.”
Alistair nodded quickly. “Thank you.”
Before they left Alistair went to a mirror to stare at his face. The bronze piece of metal showed just enough of his face to get an idea of what to work with. He took a slow breath and did his best to manipulate his face. To change it the way his sister would. It wasn’t going well just trying to force it to work with his mind.
But he remembered how his sister would do it when they had time. He touched his cheek and jaw and drew his fingers against the skin and felt it move underneath his touch. As if his face was clay and he was an artist. He didn’t do this for long, just gently moving at his eyes, jaw and nose. And when he looked at his own face he almost didn’t recognize it. Almost. It was similar to his sister’s work and yet his own. And even better he remembered what that feeling felt like.
When Alistair turned to face the pair of them, they were both taken aback slightly. He made himself taller and a little bit more muscular and let out a breath. Giving one last look at his sister he turned to Morrigan.
The pair of them left for the world at large. The dirt road kicked up dust with every step they took. They looked strange together. Some form of royal noble and then this street urchin who more or less could have been her servant instead of companion.
The sun was out in full force beating down with its golden rays. For Alistair it was a manageable heat but it made Morrigan’s skin prickle. She scowled slightly at the sensation of warmth. Nothing like her castle home in the north.
The small town was really a giant square. As they walked, they passed a few animals roaming around. A cluster of hens following a woman with a basket. Dogs running from person to person seeking attention or someone willing to play. Some of the buildings were homes with their gardens behind fences. Others had their doors open and they had to guess if it were a friendly neighbor or a general store.
They split up asking people where they could get supplies. Explaining they were travelers passing through and needed to refill. The answers were mixed, many people directing them to their own farms while warning them off of some of their neighbors. It was a bit personal in the way that they were doing it.
When the pair of them met at the center of the town they shared what information they gathered. “Apparently the carrots are in season.” Alistair informed her.
“And the Jones don’t take care of their chickens as well as they should.”
“We can get a good rate on leather from the McHenry’s.”
“But they’ll over charge you on them in a heartbeat.”
“The Carters’s daughter just lost her first tooth.”
“And is a talented singer.”
The both of them stared at one another and slowly cracked smiles. Letting out breaths they turned together and pointed where each home was. Who lived where and what they could buy from each. “What all do we need to replace?”
“We lost two water skins. Some dried meats for at least three days. A flint, rope, a common map, a set of cleaning knives, and blankets.”
“You remembered all of that?”
He gave a sheepish smile but nodded. “Someone had to incase something went wrong when me and Alison traveled.”
Morrigan rubbed her jaw lightly and gave a short nod. “Well we can secure all of that here it seems. From all the gossip that these people are more than willing to give on one another.”
She started walking with that purpose that she always had and he followed in her shadow. A mule was led across their path, the animal snorting at them. Morrigan gave the creature a glare and it whimpered almost hopping forward and out of the way.
“What did you do to it?”
“Nothing. Animals respect power. I simply have it.”
“Are Sanguiknights still human?”
“Are you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re a mage. You’re trying to become adept at altering your appearance to match what fits you within your own mind. How is that any more human than I?”
He paused in thought for a second. Frowning at the idea he glanced at his hands. They grew slightly longer, a few centimeters here and there before reverting to their previous length. “When you put it that way, I guess that’s fair.”
“Do you know the stories of the Cerise Alistair?”
“Not really. There are stories yeah but me and my sister came from a poor village. Not a lot of education for people like us. Practical knowledge sure but nothing about the world. Just stories from the travelers that came through.”
“Hm. A shame.” They approached a general store. From the outside it didn’t look that much different from any other. However, as she approached, she noted a faded etching on the wall. A flower with a faded cylinder within it.
Alistair suddenly gasped and then the magic left him. Taking a sudden step forward he placed his hand against his face feeling a numb tingle. A sigh, not of defeat but of just sadness, left his lips. Morrigan watched him and frowned but didn’t say anything. Instead she waited for him to give her some kind of nod and then they walked into the McHenry’s store.
The interior smelled of musty wood. The windows were wide open and there was even an open hatch on the roof so plenty of light streamed through. Supplies hung on the wall behind the counter and a table in the corner with what looked like a fresh bowl of fruit.
An older man stood behind the counter. His face was getting older, gaining wrinkles and greying hair. His face brightened slightly when they walked through the door. Sitting up and rolling back his sleeves he smiled. His arms were big and hairy. He smiled at the pair of them showing his warm crooked smiled.
“Welcome. Word spread, about some travelers I’m Larry McHenry. Two lovely ladies on such a beautiful day.”
Morrigan glanced at Alistair for a moment but he didn’t react. Nodding she focused on the main. “We need supplies. My companion knows what we need by heart and he will answer.”
“He?” the man blinked at that looking for a third person but the two of them were all that was left. Alistair sheepishly stepped forward.
“This is my associate. His name is Alistair.”
Alistair glanced at her but she smiled at him in mild encouragement. “We need water skins, cleaning knives, flint, ropes and blankets. If you have anything tent related that would be good too.”
McHenry blinked again shaking his head slowly but turned to check if they indeed had the things that he asked for. Slowly the merchant set them on the table, a belt of knives, a length of rope already coiled, the water skins but not blankets or tent equipment. Alistair took the belt and inspected some of the blades slowly, holding them to the light and testing the edges.
“I assure you, we maintain our equipment quite well.”
“I’m sure.” He said softly as he continued to look at them. He moved to the rope, pulling it tight. He tied it in a simple knot making sure it would stay and nodded again.
“Well?” Morrigan asked from the side lines observing his work. He had checked the flint itself and gave the skins a pass over before nodding. “Good. We’ll take everything.” Finding her purse, she produced a few golden coins again and pressed them to the counter top.
The shop owner, seeing the quality of the coins gave a slight intake of breath and picked up the coin. He held it to the light and saw the symbol on the back. His eyes widened and stared at Morrigan like a man who’d seen a ghost.
She flashed him a smirk and lowered his gaze for a moment. “Y-yes. That’ll be fine. Thank you. And my regards to the queen.”
“Your loyalty is appreciated. Come Alistair.”
Confused the mage gathered their things in a satchel provided by McHenry. “Thanks again.” Alistair added. On the way out he grabbed a few apples from the bowl in the corner and then hurried out of the shop to catch up to his ally.
“You carry yourself well,” Morrigan said when he caught up finally. “Your parents raised you properly.”
“Grandmothers,” he amended. “Well not really our grandmothers but they felt like they were. Our mother and father died a little after we were born.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said softly.
“My grandmothers were friends of my father. And what little they’d tell us made him sound amazing. Alison thinks its where we get our magic from. But Alison never really cared about our parents. Too focused on the whole, she’s a mage thing”
“What about you?”
Alistair frowned for a moment, “I took his name. Not because I really knew him or had this great image of him in my head. But my grandmothers were proud of him. They always told me that he would have been proud of us. Proud of me. And at the very least, that’s someone I want to be like if I can.”
Morrigan watched him as he spoke and couldn’t help the smile on her face. He wasn’t talking about this. There was hesitation but it was the kind one had when searching for the right words. He knew what he wanted to say he just had to make sure he said it right.
“Hey Morrigan.” She glanced back at him for a second. “What was that back at the shop?”
“That was the power that my Queen’s blessing carries.” She said with a bit of pride and smugness to her tone. “Certain parts of the country still hold people that respect the old oaths and loyalties. Few and far between unfortunately.”
“Okay. Cerise. What exactly are you guys? Like some super secret organization behind the scenes?”
Morrigan let out a laugh, a lighter sound than her normal dark chuckles. “Nothing quite that extravagant.”
She looked at him and then down at her hand for a moment. Opening and closing her hand she shook her head. “Cerise were once a royal family well known across the country. Back then there were three kingdoms. The Norians, the guardians of the Sanctum and finally the Cerisan Queen. The legend says that the Cerisan Queen dabbled in dark magic. Blood magic to extend her own life far longer than she should have. That is partly true. The magic that fuels our people is indeed blood magic. However, her unnaturally long life is not linked to it. Rather the magic is a product of her royal bloodline.”
She frowned for a moment and shook her head. “She didn’t want anything but for her pacts to be honored and to be left alone. But the other lands feared her. And they conspired against her. There was a coup launched. Hunting down her loyal followers that didn’t go into hiding. Or launching constant battle against her people. After years of this her people were dwindled to almost nothing. She decided to take her and her people away. Far away to a place whose entry was hidden and safety guarded. So, we fell into mystery and legend. Though her knights still roam the country enforcing her will as they can we aren’t what we used to be.”
“And you’re one of those knights?” Alistair asked.
“I was a simple knight before. Now I am something else. A Sanguiknight.” Just saying that word sent a trill of power down her spine and brought a smile to her lips.
“And what’s that compared to any other.”
“Where a knight simple enforces my queen’s will, a Sanguiknight is her will. Anything I say and do is as if my queen herself said and did it.”
“Is that what you did in the shop just now?”
“Something like that. It was more akin to reminding them of their loyalty. Testing them to see if they would not only remember but acknowledge who they used to serve. And they did.”
“What if they didn’t?”
She paused in thought as they walked. “I might have to reinforce it. Force them to renounce my Queen and then I would deliver whatever punishment was just.”
“Would you have killed him?”
“Only if I thought it were just.”
“And would it have been.”
She turned to look at the twin and the same smile on her face. She chuckled softly. “You are very concerned with the answer to that question aren’t you Alistair.”
Alistair frowned at her. “I’m fine with killing when we don’t have a choice. I don’t like it but I’ll do it. But murder. I can’t get behind murder.”
She chuckled softly a smile breaking on her face. “Such an innocent way of thinking. I almost envy that type of thought. Remember this Alistair. Your actions count more than you station. They reflect who you are on the inside. And it’s what’s on the inside that matters”
They stayed in silence as they walked back t the inn they stayed at. Alistair wasn’t sure what to think about the company he now kept. A magical knight from a former royal family that was forgotten by most and feared by the other powers out there. A bandit with a heart, who saved random strangers on the road but also would rob those same people in a heartbeat. And then he and his sister were out searching for some sort of ancient mage to teach them to better use their magic. If only their grandmothers could see them now.
The Harlequin Library 