章節 53: Sacrifices for freedom
"Death has come to claim us all! The end is approaching!" a poorly dressed man exclaims from atop a wooden box to the witnessing crowd.
The moonless night carries with its heavy winds the promise of horror, as news of Dorfmeer's fate spread without restrain. At a distance, the form of impossibly high mountains can be seen, shooting upwards, like spears of rock reaching for the endless abyss of the black sky.
It's raining heavily in the secluded village by the woods, ancient and still adapting to the rule of the lion, wooden structures, and poorly lit streets. The watchers in front of the man are huddled together by the cold, and invading fear that slowly crawls through their minds.
"It happened once to Eversmile, they say it was the rebels, but then vengeful spirits set Dorfmeer ablaze! Hundreds dead, many more missing, the fury of the night is upon us!!" the man shouts passionately, causing his audience to shiver more and gasp.
Some push their way out of the crowd to escape the words of the terrified man, while others grab their amulets tightly, whispering prayers to the Lightbringer. But far from the crowd stands a mysterious figure, its body covered by rags that form a makeshift cloak and a long hood that hides its face.
"Gerados will drown in blood and corpses if we don't-" a punch from a nearby guard silences the man, and soon a dozen others join, causing the crowd to disperse like cockroaches.
"Take him away" the guard orders to his fellow companions and they reach for the now muddy man, grabbing him forcefully and carrying him away as they cover his rambling mouth.
As most of the guards walk away, the one who threw the punch feels someone, or something watching from behind. He turns around quickly and catches a glimpse of the hooded figure hiding behind a building. With a spear in hand, he points at it and a few of the remaining guards quickly catch on to what he wants them to do.
They ready their spears and jog towards the building, but when they reach it, there is no sign of the person, only an empty street.
Meanwhile, the figure watches them from the roof of the house, before hiding away further back. As it stands up, lighting falls and scares away the shadows, showing that beneath that hood there is no flesh, but a metallic blue-green, missing everything that would make a face human except two bright blue eyes that shine like small torches with unnatural strength.
"Ghosts? They can't possibly mean...is she back?" the voice is but an imitation of human speech, unnatural, raspy and like metal against metal "The others have to know" the thing then vanishes from view, like if it was never there.
The following days after Dorfmeer was attacked were a mess, the number of survivors made keeping the affair a secret impossible, and as the already anxious people of the kingdom heard about monsters that possessed humans and a man capable of erasing entire towns on his own, they grew restless and imprudent.
Many places already starved, or at the brink of it thanks to the King's endless war, fought against the few guards defending their homes, a few deads, and many arrests later things would go back to the uneasy calm they usually had.
The destiny of Ann and her existence would remain a secret of the court, all those who knew about her swore secrecy because if the commonfolk were to hear that someone like the Phantom was staying at the heart of the Kingdom, hell would break loose.
Deep within the dungeons of the palace, now heavily guarded by dozens of men and women clad in armor, ready to fight to the death if need be, Ann and Das spoke to each other in her new room.
"Now I miss being the crazy woman of the palace," Ann says pointing at the wooden bucket next to the wooden frame with hay on top supposed to be a bed "Thank the Lightbringer I don't actually need to take a shit"
"But, you eat sometimes don't you? Where does THAT go?" Drachen points out as she hovers around the room, to which Ann simply shrugs.
"What matters is that you managed to keep your head attached to the rest of your body, a poorly furnished bedroom is a low price to pay for that" Das says right before yawing.
"Bedroom? This could barely be considered a barn" defeated, Ann falls on her "bed", spreading her arms to her sides.
"Wait, if they cut off your head would you stay alive?" Drachen asks grabbing her own neck with both hands.
"Speaking of which, Ergeiz, the general. Did you speak with him before the trial?" Das sits on a stool nearby, looking at Ann who glances at him, sitting straight with a sly look on her face.
"Curious are we? Can't a lady keep a secret or two?"
"Considering you were open about letting me get inside your head a few days ago, I would be surprised if you did, and suspicious"
"I know" she replies, rolling her eyes "I would say it was the other way around" she looks at her bare feet, moving her toes playfully.
"How so?"
"He approached me before the trial and offered me a very delicious deal I couldn't say no to"
"What deal?"
"He spoke to me the day I was chained up, right before Edel's welcoming torture. I told him everything about the Phantom and this whole mess of necromancy, and in return, he would make the nobles want to NOT murder me"
"That's it?"
"Well that and I would let him pound me a few times against the wall"
"WHAT?!"
"Ha HA! Got you! No, no. Really, that was all he wanted, information" she gives Das a beaming smile while he blushes "Worried I may get taken by someone else?"
"Just surprised, not that I wouldn't believe you capable of striking a deal like that, you have been very...direct in that sort of thing with me before"
"Whore~" Drachen whispers in his mind.
"Your's is a special treatment, I don't go around offering myself to everyone I meet you know?" she says, looking offended.
"Right" Das raises his hands defensively "But, I don't trust him"
"Neither do I, that man is like a fox, but I didn't have many options" Ann stretches before suddenly standing up "Anyway, I suppose you are here with a reason other than chit-chat"
"Actually, I am" Das stands up as well "Now that your identity is known, the regent will allow you to continue the experiments on the scorched knight. While I'm out figuring out where the Phantom may strike next"
"Really? I didn't expect that paranoid statue-man to let me near it, especially alone"
"That's the thing, there is one condition to letting you out of this cell..." Das grimaces and pulls out a steel collar from beneath his cloak, it's very old and has runes on its surface"...you would have to accept enslavement"
"Oh, well things are just peachy aren't they?..who will hold the chain?"
"It was the agreement reached with the Prime Priest, to ensure you are not "tempted by the darkness", and since Ergeiz must return to his garrison, the Prime Priest will be in charge of watching over you"
"Great, another old man that I have to obey" she then walks up to Das "fine, put it on then. The faster we are done with this the better"
"I'm sorry," he says as he places the collar around her neck.
"Don't be, this is not your fault. It's not that big of a deal actually, it's better than boring myself to death in this cell"
She smiles at Das, and he gives her a tiny smile in return. When the collar closes, the runes light up with yellow mana, causing Ann to jerk back, gritting her teeth and collapsing near the bed.
Das kneels next to her, grabbing her.
"I forgot how painful it was to put this thing on" she mumbles.
"You were enslaved before?" Drachen asks flying closer to her.
"A long story, that I would prefer to share another moment" she coughs and takes a deep breath. Raising her body from the ground with Das's help "Speaking right now is hard enough"
"This means you will be moving to the sanctuary of the city, along with the scorched knight"
"Again in the church? heh" she struggles to speak, pain traveling down her neck with each word "What will, you do now?"
"I will go back to the Great Wisti of the Dominion, it's been weeks since I last went there and he had agreed to help me find an answer for the Phantom. With you here that is not really necessary anymore, but any and all information about necromancy that they may have will be useful. If any"
"I told you, I'm the only one who knows this art"
"I know, but I suspect there must be something more, somewhere. And they are my best opportunity" Das then turns around and walks up to the wooden door, knocking on it three times.
A guard opens it, showing the long corridor lit by torches, with many other doors guarded by other soldiers clad in steel armor.
"I can't wait for answers to come, if I don't find him first, there is no telling what he may do next, or how many will die because of it" Das then turns to see Ann "I will visit you when I can, and I will bring with me some books," he says smiling kindly to her before stepping out of the room.
"Wait!" she says extending her hand at him, once he stops she coughs "If you want information about my art, I suggest you visit the ruins of Magiberge. There is no better place"
"Magiberge?"
"The old home of all mages, they had many city-states on top and within the Spearhead mountains, so they called it Magiberge...while most of them, if not all, were completely destroyed once they lost the war of thunders, there are supposed to be many places still hidden, or protected by incantations," Drachen tells him, sitting on top of his head.
"Why didn't you tell me of it before?" he asks his fairy companion, who frowns, remembering painful memories.
"It's not a place I like to think about much...many bad things happened in Magiberge" she then shakes her head furiously, slapping her cheeks "but this is no time for hesitation after we go see Afzal, we should travel there"
"Thank you for telling me about it, I hope it brings some answers to the table" he is about to leave when he remembers something "I almost forgot!" he rushes to Ann's side and points his open palm at the bed.
Mana travels from his hand to the surface of the bed, and soon a gown, white and blue with a flower pattern on the superior part of it manifests out of thin air, along with the blue cloak Das had given her the last time they spoke.
"I don't want you to look like a criminal when you have done nothing to deserve it"
"Finally! and such a nice pattern" she winks at him, grabbing the clothes excitedly "See why I offer you a special treatment?" coughing, she lets a chuckle escape her mouth.
"You are welcome" bowing slightly, Das exits the room, the guard closing the door loudly as soon as he passes through it.
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