Capítulo 176: Blood Soaked Offer
Lia awoke to the startling cry of fire and the smell of smoke, screams that filled the air felt like thundering waves of lightning bolts that blasted through the sky. She only remembered having passed out, yet now her eyes were fluttering open like the flapping of a bird's wings as she came to realize the world around her.
Fire burned from buildings and allies that surrounded her, streets made of iron and stone were crawling with corpses and death, fire and gore. For a moment she thought this was Kokono, some haunted memory of the place that she had long since left, a scar on her life that she would not soon forget.
But it was the lamps that lined the streets with their crude iron poles, the stars that sat like fireflies in the dark sea of the night, and the distant palace that burned like a flower against the shadows of the city. It was then that she knew where she was, and it was then that she knew this wasn't real.
It was an illusion, some false dream testament to her fears that burned inside her and swelled within her emotions, her heart filling with the taste of terror. It was the sounds of the people that screamed in pain that brought Lia back to reality, their voices blurring together as one as she covered her ears desperately.
But even as she crouched down, hands to her ears, as she shut her eyes tight, hiding in the shadows, she saw the fire still burning, the people still screaming. And the blood soaking the ground.
The world was aflame, and as she raised her eyes to see the world before her one last time, she caught sight of a glare that set her heart on fire.
Two red eyes like that of a monster hid in the darkness past the fire that cast dancing shadows against the buildings and the streets. He was watching her with a predatory gaze, a gaze that set her heart pounding against her chest.
Then the fire fumed around her, enveloping her like a blanket, but the touch of the heart didn't burn her skin, nor did it set her aflame like it did the others whose screams filled her ears. And from the fire rose those two red eyes until they towered over her like the dark and looming figure they inhabited.
Its scales were black and gray like the night, its tongue was a dark maroon color that spit out smoke and ash from deep within its chest and throat. The Beast's eyes are like embers, and Lia was lost within them silently watching as the monster reared back its head, and then the world was consumed in blaze of fire and smoke.
It was blinding.
But the last thing Lia saw before the fire took her away, was the crimson eyes of one man walking through the flames.
***
The room was crisp and silent, the sun was just peeking from its high place above the sky and clouds, spilling into the room as it warmed the carpet with its delicate golden touch. Nothing could chase away this light, so the Master of the house had kept the blinds open, drawn back the curtains and let the day spill into his home.
He hoped it would calm the atmosphere that lingered through the halls and the rooms, the dorms and the grounds. It was like a fog of smoke that made it hard to breath as he walked past butlers and maids, all their whispers and rumors spreading through the walls so fast they were like rats.
He knew this would reach his daughter sooner or later, but he was praying to the gods that it would be later rather than sooner. He didn't need to replace the door again after she busted down the last one in rage.
His two knights stood by the door clad in their white suits that set them apart from the world, ready to hold back the mistress if she did show herself. But the man's mind was focused on something else, his head aflutter with wonder and curiosity. He felt like a kid all over again.
Suddenly there was a stir in the room as the Master of the House turned to face his guest who lay sprawled on the warm carpet like a cat, soaking up the sunlight that spilled out behind him.
"You're up I see. That's good. I was worried I would have to call the House Doctor to come and heal you."
He approached his desk slowly to peer over the side where Lia was just in the midst of waking up, her eyes slowly adjusting to the blinding light that poured in atop her face. Her black hair spilled over her shoulders, her eyes regained their crimson color with a steady glow, and subtly - very subtly - the man could hear her heart begin to beat on the regular.
"It's a pity we had to bring you here like this. But I doubt you would have listened to me if I asked it of you."
Like a rising flower, Lia slowly stood, her complexion calm and dull, void of any emotion that would have clouded her mind. That would have made her seem more human. Without any signs of anger or hate, like a well-trained assassin she watched the room with observant eyes, as calm and poised as ever as she waited.
Like a weapon ready to be drawn.
"You don't seem surprised that I brought you here?"
"...no. No, I'm not."
She rubbed the back of her head where she could still feel the hilt of the blade against her skull, how the impact made her see stars fluttering before her eyes like dandelions in the wind.
"What happened to Denny and Chris?"
The man frowned, confused as to why Lia was more concerned with her friends than with her own life. After all, she had suffered quite a few injuries from his Knight Mente so her fear should still be lingering inside her, but even during the battle when blood was spilled from her skin, she didn't seem to show much pain.
In fact, she didn't seem to show much of anything.
"They're fine. I left them at their Diner as you probably would have wanted. You have good friends; they were certainly worried about you."
"I'm more worried about how I'm going to explain all this to them. It's not every day some strange man kidnaps you and hauls you off to his house."
The man raised a hand to his chest, something of a gesture as he slowly rubbed the area above his heat, his eyes lingering on the ground before him as he turned to face the window and the blue sky dotted with white puffy clouds.
"...it happens more than you think."
"What does that mean?"
The man gestured her over towards the window, the arrogance and suspicion that had once been plastered across his face like spilled pain was no longer there. Instead in his eyes Lia saw a calming sort of warmth. Like a father would see his child.
"Look out that window. Tell me what you see."
Lia did as he asked, she had no reason not to. The more she could learn about who this man was and what he wanted from her, the more she could peel back his defense and expose his weakness.
But as she turned her eyes past the shimmering glass that stood between ehr and the open world, she laid eyes on the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Across the wide lawn that seemed to stretch on for miles, a line of dark trees covering the horizon, the world of lush green filled her vision with the golden rays of sunlight.
Hedges neatly trimmed, ponds filled with crisp and clear blue water that shone like the greatest of diamonds from the darkest of mines. Stone walkways made of the smoothest gray stone, lush green grass neatly trimmed and cut blowing in the wind as it brushed against the tall trees that stood like dark green pillars in the yard.
The sight would have been painted in history as the greatest of sights to see, the greatest of worlds to believe would exist throughout the land. A false dream everyone dreamed.
But it was not this sight of the wonderful land before her that took her by surprise, that she saw as beautiful. It was the two figures playing in the yard, one man - a pheasant by the looks of his simple clothing - and a young girl who must have been his daughter. They wore bright smiles on their faces and laughed as the little girl ran through the yard as the father watched her with all the love and compassion a father had in his life.
"Beautiful…"
It was all Lia could say as she watched the two enjoy their life as it whisked away in the wind. The man watched her eyes and saw the same sight she saw, smiling.
"Most people who come to visit my home tell me my garden is the greatest they've ever seen. But what they all ignore is that man there and all the hard work he spent working on this little world of paradise."
He grew quiet for a moment, and though Lia couldn't see him for her eyes were still drawn to the sight of the pair in the yard, she could hear the lingering sadness in his voice as he spoke.
"...family truly is the most beautiful thing in this world. No garden or wonders of the word could change that."
To this lingering sadness in his voice, Lia tore her eyes from the happy family and turned to the man who continued to look out the window, the sun highlighting his dark and lush brown beard and clean, well-groomed hair.
"Why am I here?"
The man acted as though he didn't hear her for several moments, his eyes enjoying the happiness that seemed to flow from the family and into his heart for just a little longer. Then he nodded towards the family, just as Lia was about to ask again.
"That little girl you see out there was taken three days ago, stolen from her home while she was in bed. Another kidnapping in a city of thugs and thieves."
He turned to his desk and opened a drawer, pulling a small stack of papers from inside as he set them on his desk. Lia could see several names written in clear and black ink, the handwriting superb and distinctly similar to one she had seen before.
"I tracked the men down and discovered their hideout. But with my current position, I couldn't just go in there and kill them all. Nobles in this world have a cruel way of twisting the good into the vile and cruel. So, all I could do was hope and pray."
He turned to her as his eyes caught the light of the evening sun, and Lia suddenly understood where she had seen his handwriting before. Plastered in black ink written neatly on a Notice of Bounty. Her bounty.
"That was until you came along. A C-ran without any name or identity, the demon in the night as the rescued civilians called you. Some Shadow Fire."
"...I hardly think I'm worthy of such praise. I did a job and that was all."
The man held her gaze for several moments, his eyes getting lost in the sea of ehr crimson red, desperately trying to wonder what world this woman had come from. What shadows she had crawled out from to be so heartless. The dead don't speak, but their bodies tell more stories than words can describe.
Especially when they hang from the rafters of a burning building.
"Well, I do. There aren't many in this world who know what it means to spill blood. And there aren't many who are willing to take part in it."
"And what does that mean? I did the job you asked me to do, I was paid accordingly, and now you want something more?"
"What I want is to give you an offer."
He said it so suddenly that Lia almost did a double take, her mind racing as this man's face slowly became burned in her mind. He was a Gentleman, yes, but he was as smart as a library full of books and as cunning as a snake on the prowl.
But he was also as reckless as a gambler.
"An offer? And what would I want from your offer?"
"A chance. Every house has a guarded legion of knights, White Knights that symbolize the noblest of protectors. But every house has something hidden in the shadows of the dark deeds that they do."
Lia already knew what he was about to ask, so she shook her head and walked away from the window heading for the door as she spoke.
"If you want me to be your assassin, then keep dreaming. I burned a building to the ground, and I can do it again."
But as she made her way to the door, the two White knights that Lia had almost forgotten about stepped in her way, becoming the door and her escape.
"Not many people have threatened me and walked away alive before. You're quite bold for a waitress."
If there was such a thing as a look of death, the look Lia gave the man as she peered over her shoulder like a demon, her eyes glowing with a fire inside her that burned through her bones, this would be the look that sent chills down the man's spine. Like the Reaper was waiting for him at his own door.
"Do you want this to escalate, or would you prefer to let me go?"
The man raised his hands as if she had won, but in many ways, Lia saw it as some mocking gesture as the smile on his face showed nothing of regret or fear.
"Calm down. All I'm asking is that you hear my request. What you do with it is up to you."
"...fine. What is it?"
The man opened the palm of his hand and placed a small pin on the edge of his desk, a pin whose dark ember and rose color stood out against its golden edges that glinted in the sunlight. The pin was decorated with the carvings of a rose, its petals dancing along the golden edges like a flame.
"Become my Red Knight, one whose duty is soaked in blood and dances with death. The job is one coveted by many in the legions, and many more in the streets fear their suits of steel and blood. You would make a fine rose in the garden of my Knights."
There was something about the way he said it, either from the smile on his face that proved small and fragile compared to the happy looks of the family outside, or the quiet tone in his voice that echoed in her heart. Here is something about her that reminded Lia of the Master back in Kokono, and how that lingering sadness that filled her heart echoed past the bounds of her memories.
The man could see her hesitating and thus he turned to the window, his mind now elsewhere, farther from this room than the mountains he had dreamed of seeing as a boy.
"All I ask is that you think about this. I don't need an answer now."
He snapped his fingers as the sound bounced off the walls and filled the room with its presence. The two Knights slid to the side revealing the large painted door etched with black designs that crawled up its sides like vines.
He was letting her go, for now.
And Lia didn't want to know what he had in store for her later, or if he would even take a rejection. But she didn't bother having an argument with him, he knew it would only delay her escape. So, taking a deep breath and stealing a final glance at the pin resting on the edge of the desk, Lia left with a final goodbye to the man she hoped she would never see again.
"Goodbye, Duke Heindsburrow."
Then the door was shut, and the sounds of her fleeing footsteps echoed through the room and filled the man's ears. He showed no emotion as he looked out the window, covered in the golden light of the sun as his two Knights approached quietly, kneeling to the ground.
"She's quite a strange person. She seems so alone yet so open at the same time, almost like she's wearing a mask."
One of the knights spoke up, quick to the point as he always was when he was speaking to his master. It came after years of determination and discipline.
"Would you like us to follow her sir?"
"...no. No, I think we've done enough of that already."
He took one last look at the father and daughter playing outside, and he was reminded of how much he missed the days when his own daughter was that age, her young smile and her innocent wonder at the world.
It was a light to the shadow that she was in now.
"Don't you think it's odd?"
He asked his Knights, who shared a glance between one another, wondering what he meant.
"What's that sir?"
The man knew Lia would refuse him, because there was just something about her that screamed of a 'warrior.' She held herself like a veteran; she enjoyed the small soundless moments of peace like they were her last.
It was the same look he had seen on many faces before. But it was his first time seeing someone so…
"I never told her my name."
Broken.
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