Chaser of Faith

I opened my eyes slowly, groggily.

“Where am I?” I slurred. I sat up slowly, my head lolling backwards as my body woke up again. “What happened?” I asked quickly as my vision finally came back. I tried to remember the last thing that happened to me. I remembered a bed in a cottage; a man with wings; a sword; blood. I couldn’t piece everything together. There was a man sitting in front of me, holding onto my forearms as my torso struggled to stay upright.

“Claire,” he said, his voice muffled and far-away. A name came to mind as I took in his facial features.

“Rimmy… Remy,” I said slowly. “Remy,” I repeated. His blue eyes felt familiar and comfortable, and then everything came back to me. Aksan, the angels, Remy, the king, Cal…

“Hey, Claire, you hit your head pretty hard, are you okay? You remember what happened?” I looked around the room where we were finally. I nodded, taking in my surroundings, putting a hand to my aching head and taking in a deep breath.

“I’m okay. I’m okay. I remember. I’m sorry.” We were in Cal’s shop still. Remy pushed my hair back, out of my face. “Is he still there?” I asked, sick to my stomach once again. He nodded carefully, looking back towards the room.

“We need to get out of here. You don’t want to be involved in murder in this country. Can you stand?” He held onto my hands, standing up. I nodded, standing up with him. I felt dizzy for a moment, but it passed quickly. I felt rested now. I took in another deep breath and let it out slowly.

“He was murdered,” I muttered, trying to make sense of what was happening. “Why?” I whispered. My emotions started to take over the adrenaline, but I tried to shake it off. I couldn’t cry now. I turned around, walking slowly towards the back room again.

“Hey, Claire, are you sure you wanna do that?” I shook my head.

“There has to be something, some kind of clue. What if Gage did this?” I said, my voice getting louder and more emotional.

What if we’re next?

I opened the door slowly, covering my nose and mouth with the fabric of my cloak. The horrific scene was still shocking. My stomach churned again. I scanned the floor, not moving from my spot in the doorway. As I shifted my gaze across Cal’s stiff body I noticed something in his hand- he gripped it tightly in a fist.

“Hey, Remy,” I said, turning to look at him. He stood behind me, staring solemnly at the scene. “He’s holding something,” I informed him, gesturing with my head in Cal’s direction. I took off my cloak, and handed it to Remy along with my sword. I lifted up the bottom of my dress and slipped off my shoes. I tip-toed carefully through the holes in the puddles of blood around Cal. I crouched down next to his body, still on my toes. The cold radiated from him and sent a chill through me. I stared at his hand for a moment before prying it open just enough to take a cufflink and a piece of black fabric from his tight grip.

“It’s fabric,” I told Remy, taking my cloak away from my face to speak. I glanced back at his body, inspecting his clothes. The fabric didn’t match his clothes. “He must have torn it from his attacker.” I examined the cufflink. It was silver metal with a white-streaked blue stone set in it, like a star. I felt butterflies in my stomach when I looked at it- it looked valuable and fragile.

“That’s a star stone,” Remy said with subtle surprise, breaking me from my focus. I looked at him, standing up.

“Is it common around here?” He shook his head slowly, furrowing his eyebrows.

“It’s not from here.” I frowned with him. “It’s from Earth.” I felt my stomach drop.

“Gage?” I asked, horrified. Remy paused, not saying anything for a moment, just thinking.

“I… I don’t know.” He swallowed hard. “This doesn’t seem like something he could do.”

“Who else could it have been?” I asked, feeling my heart pick up speed again. “There aren’t that many people from Earth around here. What are the odds, Remy?”

“Hey, don’t panic,” he said calmly. I looked back down at the stone.

“Have you ever seen your brother wearing these before?” Remy shook his head, holding out his hand and gesturing for me to come back. I started tip-toeing again through the clean spots in the puddles of blood.

“Never,” he said as I grabbed his hand. He pulled me through the door and back into the main shop room. I let go of his hand and let down my dress. “I haven’t seen him in a while, though, Claire. They look new.” I put the cufflink and fabric in my dress pocket and slipped my shoes back on. I took my sword and cloak back from Remy and put it all back on.

“Could it have been… not a human?” I asked thoughtfully. He considered it for a moment.

“Perhaps. There are certain species that can blend in on Earth, especially if they had help with charms… or illusions. I can’t imagine a human doing that against a well-armed artificer. They have all sorts of tricks up their sleeves. They know how to protect themselves. They’re in a tough line of work, especially in this country. It’s almost all on the black market. He might have just gotten mixed up with the wrong people, Claire. This could have nothing to do with us.” I looked around the room, glancing from the closed door to the bookshelves that lined the wall.

“Is that door locked?” I stuck my thumb towards the entrance. He nodded.

“I locked it once you passed out. And I’ve got an illusion up so that no one can see us when they look in through the window.” I let out a breath.

“Thank you,” I said as I walked towards the bookcases. I took the first book on the top left in the row and cracked it open gently. The leather binding was fragile. The book was very old. “What language is this?” I asked Remy, scanning the pages quickly. “Is this Nythen?” He looked over my shoulder.

“I think so. I don’t know a single word of Nythen.” I bit my lip, closing the book and putting it back on the shelf. I picked up the next one and leafed through the pages. “That is Sanen,” Remy said pointedly. I nodded, handing him the book.

“Okay. We’ve got some reading to do.”

-*-

Remy and I were sat on the ground. Seven old Sanen books were stacked in front of us- five books in one pile and two in the other. Remy was leafing through the eighth book, trying to find charms or artifacts that might aid our defences against Gage. I sat next to him with a few sheets of paper and a pen, taking notes.

We had found a few leads, but there was nothing sure-fire. We took note of a few things, just in case. There was a whistle that could supposedly break illusion charms if you blew it, though Remy wasn’t sure if it could work on Gage’s illusions, since they weren’t technically charms. There was also a diadem that one could wear to keep their mind from being altered due to charms, though it could only work on one person at a time, and it would be rather inconspicuous to walk around Beythas in a tiara. I had scoured the shop, searching for a whistle and a crown, but I found neither.

As the sun set, the room grew darker, so in my search I had found a candle and some matches to give us a small sphere of light. I set the candle down in front of us and tucked the matches in my pocket. I was caught up in the book he was reading, starting with bleary eyes at the pictures in his book.

“Well…” Remy began. I looked at him, tearing my eyes away from a gory picture illustrated in the book he was looking at. It was a depiction of a severed head- its eyes were removed, his nose was sliced off, and his lips were sewn shut. Words in Sanen that I did not understand were written around the diagram. “I may have found… something,” he said slowly. He winced, and brought the book closer to me. “It’s darker magic, though.” I bit my lip, flicking my gaze back to the drawing.

“How dark?” He sighed, taking a moment to gather his thoughts before he spoke.

“Well some of the spell is in Nythen but… From what I understand it requires sacrifice.” I remembered when Cal gave Adriel the blade to break Rahmiel’s charm; his glee as he told us, ‘reversing Nythen charms can be messy.’

“What do we have to do?” I asked, trying to muster up some fleeting courage.

“Essentially it says ‘In a trick, sacrifice yourself. With your offering, draw a red ring around your collar.’ And say…” He shook his head, squinting his eyes. “The last piece is in Nythen,” he said frustratedly. I stared at him with my jaw slack.

“Sacrifice?” I repeated in horror. He nodded, sighing again.

“I think the sacrifice means blood.”

“The red ring... The collar is your neck?” He nodded again.

“You need to draw your own blood and make a ring around your neck with the blood. And there’s something you have to say with it, but we need someone to translate. I don’t know anyone besides the angels who can speak Nythen. Perhaps your light angel friend can help.” I wrote it all down on the paper with the other two ideas as he put the book down onto the two books in front of himself. I looked back to the room where Cal’s cold body lay.

“Remy, what do we do?” He shook his head.

“We’re leaving. There’s nothing we can do. I can’t be involved in this, and you don’t want to be either. What we’re going to do right now is put these books back, leave through the back door, and get home before the sun sets-”

The door suddenly shook as someone pounded on it, making me jump and squeal in surprise. I slapped a hand to my mouth and sprang up off the floor. Remy and I hastily picked up the books and put them back on the shelves. The pounding stopped for a moment and was soon replaced by the sound of a key turning the tumblers of a lock. I snapped my head to Remy, who held up his hand and waved it in front of him.

I stood frozen with my hand clutching the handle of my sword as the door opened slowly.

“Cal!” A familiar voice called out. I gaped in shock as Adriel stepped into the shop, looking around with a confused look on his face. He took a few steps into the shop, but took no notice of us. I realized that Remy probably created the illusion that we weren’t here, so that he would not see us. “Li nan zet jehne.” He called out again, making fists with his empty hands. I held my breath, afraid to be found. All I could think of was the illusion that I had seen. His hollow eyes; the pain I felt; the terrible fear. He furrowed his eyebrows, and took two more steps in our direction. He was about a meter away now. I couldn’t move.

He suddenly took in a slow, deep breath as he closed his eyes. He let the breath out slowly and snapped his eyes open.

“Claire?” My breath hitched as I accidentally gasped. I twisted my face with exhausted confusion. He smelled me? “Show yourself,” Adriel ordered darkly. Remy took my arm gently, bringing me closer to him.

“You know this dark angel?” Remy asked me quietly. I nodded quickly, still not saying anything. Remy waved his hand again quickly. Suddenly Adriel’s eyes lit up with anger, looking between Remy and I.

“Xe? What are you doing here?” He seemed to be somewhere between concerned and angry. “Who is he?” He asked with a snarl. I grit my teeth, glaring.

“This is Remy, he’s my friend. We didn’t know who was coming in and we got scared so we hid.” The realisation suddenly dawned on me that his friend was lying dead in the next room. I let go of my glare and relaxed my jaw, frowning at Adriel. My heart pounded as I struggled how to tell him. “Adriel,” I started. I swallowed as a lump formed in my throat. All I could see now was Cal’s face… the blood…. “Adriel, something awful happened.” He narrowed his gaze at us.

“Why are you here alone and why were you scared of who was coming in? Did you break in here?” I gulped again.

“Adriel, listen, we came here to talk to Cal.”

“He’s dead,” Remy said bluntly. I stared wide-eyed at him. I looked back at Adriel quickly, who stared blankly at Remy.

“What?” He asked sharply.

“Adriel, I’m so sorry, we don’t know what happened.” As I spoke Adriel slowly turned his head to the back room, narrowing his gaze again. “Adriel, you don’t want-” He started to move towards the back room and I instinctively put a hand on his arm, attempting to pull him back. “You don’t want to see, Adriel,” I asserted, my voice starting to waver with fear and nausea.

“Have to,” he said with force. I had a brief fight with myself, between moving with him or staying back. I felt myself freeze and I couldn’t take another step. I watched him move towards the back room, Remy going with him. I watched solemnly as Adriel tore the door open and stood still for a long time. It was dead silent. Remy stood behind him, looking down and away.

“He was holding a piece of torn fabric in his hand,” Remy said, breaking the terrible silence. I snapped myself out of my trance, fishing the fabric and stone out from my dress pocket with shaky hands. I took a few steps towards them, holding the fabric with both hands in front of my chest. Adriel slowly turned to me and started moving back towards me, staring at me blankly. He looked down at my hands as I held the fabric out to him. He didn’t take it, he just looked at it. “Does it look familiar to you?” Adriel shook his head to answer Remy’s question. I carefully placed it back in my pocket. I put my hand on Adriel’s upper arm.

“Adriel, are you okay?” I asked, searching his eyes, which did not meet my own. He nodded gravely. I put both of my hands gently on his and squeezed. “Is there anything I can do?” He finally made eye contact with me.

“Who is he?” I was surprised by his question. I let go of his warm hands, frowning.

“Remy is my friend. He’s staying with us for a couple days. He’s- helping Nicholas with his investigation.” He squinted at me.

“What is he?” I flicked my gaze back to Remy, who started walking towards us. He stood next to me, facing the both of us.

“I’m an illusionist,” Remy answered hotly. Adriel scoffed. I remembered Remy told me he was used to this kind of discrimination.

“An illusionist?” Adriel spat. “Where did the bloodsucker find you? In the back alleys of Merk?”

“Adriel.” I growled. Remy rolled his eyes.

“Geer rith kos, moet fair kolet uia toth weyath.” Remy looked at him disgusted, scoffing.

“Shut your mouth, greiya Nythiat.”

“My God, stop!” I shouted. “What is happening? This is not the time for a pissing contest, Adriel.” I shook my head, sighing harshly. “We should get out of here,” I suggested calmly. “Front door or back?” Adriel looked down at me, softening his hard expression.

“There’s a door in the back room,” He said solemnly. I winced. He started towards the back room again and I looked at Remy solidly as I followed him. He pursed his lips, sucking his teeth, and followed behind me. “This is one of the worst sides of the city. Cal probably got himself wrapped up in dangerous shit. He never could keep his nose out of places it didn't belong.” I could hear the sorrow underneath his contempt. He lost his friend.

When Adriel held the door open for me, I took it from him, letting him move into the room.. The smell was overwhelming once more. I couldn't look at Cal’s body. I chose to look down at my feet. Adriel left Remy and I standing there and swiftly bounded to the other side of the room, touching the floor only once. I sighed, eyeing up the distance between both sides of the room.

I took off my shoes again, taking them in one hand and picking my dress and cape up high in my other hand so that they would not touch the floor. I was careful though, to keep my sword hidden behind my cloak. My heart pounded with fear that Adriel might see it. I tiptoed carefully, jumping between the puddles of blood. I was stuck about six feet away from Adriel. Suddenly Adriel held out his hand for me, staring at me quietly, trying to convince me. I sighed, tossing my shoes behind him, and took his hand. He helped pull me over when I made my leap. I crashed into him unceremoniously and he held onto me with his free hand on my back. I felt my face heat up and I stepped away from him, taking my hand from his.

Remy had started his trek as well. He stood just where I had been. I went to give him my hand, but Adriel beat me to it. Remy stared at it cautiously before finally clapping their hands together and gripping it tightly. He jumped and started to bring himself over to the other side, but suddenly twisted his face in surprise, letting go of Adriel’s hand. I watched in horror as Remy’s feet made contact with the blood and he slipped and fell backwards to the ground.