OathBlade (Wattys2015)

32. Soul Eater*

Elery soon came to realize that Suthri was far larger than Lyewryn. The scattering of residences and shops went on in each direction as far as she could see, even when the castle was left far behind her. Sweet, cooked meat scents drifted from the nearby delicatessen and she paused at the door. It was propped open with a thick wooden peg, allowing the smell of the delicious prepared foods to spill out into the street.

Even after eating her fill at the castle she found herself craving the braised gerlin plated in the display case. It simmered atop the warming stone, practically singing her name. Elery bit her lip and walked in to greet the man at the counter with a smile.

"Well met, M'lady. What can I get you?"

She lowered her hand to her hip and realized the obstacle standing between her and the delicious, golden meat in front of her was not a full stomach. She had no money. "I'm afraid I'm just looking today it seems."

"Very well then. If I can help you with anything please let me know."

"I believe you can, as a matter of fact. Do you know how to get to the runic institute from here?"

"Take the main street several hundred paces until you reach the weavers, then turn left. That road will take you there."

She nodded in gratitude and left the delicatessen with one last, longing gaze at the braised meat. It beckoned to her from under the smudge-free glass, urging her to return and strike some deal that neither her lack of funds nor stomach space would allow. Instead she turned stalwartly ahead and walked out, shifting her thoughts to anything but the delicious food left behind.

The pub only a few buildings down the lane was alive with raucous laughter and music. Stringed instruments played within and drifted out through the door, which was held open with a large wooden peg jammed firmly into the dirt. As Elery walked by she glanced inside. Her pace slowed, then she stopped.

Isandel sat inside with a group of men and women gathered around him. One of the women pressed herself against his side, her slender arms curling around him. The whole group laughed and drank with nary a care.

Elery clenched her fists. "So this is how you check the town for danger, is it? The only danger I see is the risk of you falling into her undergarments." She pointed at the woman at her side.

Isandel looked at Elery and raised his mug of ale. "Even I am not above a bit of fun while I've still the time to have it, Princess. You should delve into it yourself. You'd not be nearly as tense."

She pointed to her side. "Come, dragon. Disentangle yourself from the bar wench, we have work to do."

"I beg your pardon!" the woman scoffed.

"Beg for whatever you wish, I imagine you're good at it," Elery said.

Isandel stood, drank the rest of his ale, and handed the mug off to one of the men gathered at his side. "My compliments to the owner of the establishment," he purred, trailing the tip of his tail along his jaw briefly as he walked toward the door.

Elery turned away and started to walk, satisfied when she heard the sounds of his footsteps behind hers and the soft scuffle of his tail occasionally scraping the ground. "'Search the town for danger'. Indeed," she spat, looking back at him. "I imagine there was a great deal of danger to be found at the bottom of that mug."

"Oh Princess, calm down." He walked close and putting an arm around her shoulders. "There was nary a corpse or suspicious caster throughout the city. I checked every street and dark alley. The only dead here are a few neldreds and pithyrits."

As if hearing itself mentioned, a pithyrit scurried from a hole in the side of the nearby tannery and ran across their path. The little vermin turned its sharp head and peered through beady green eyes at them, fluffed its soiled black fur, and ran away with its furry tail held high and straight.

Isandel smiled. "We have a moment to relax so why not take it?"

Elery glared at him and shrugged off his arm. "Because we face enemies unlike anything I have ever seen, and I cannot be convinced the others will be safe just because I've strayed from them! How can I possibly relax when my mind is filled with worries? Would you have me callously disregard any thoughts that they are in danger simply because it would make me feel better?"

"Yes," he replied. "I would, merely for the fact you do not know what their condition is. You will not know until you can meet with them again or, at best, when they send word here. Why should you plague your mind with thoughts of things that may not be real? Do you wander into battle with the fear of loss and death at the forefront of your mind?"

"Of course I don't."

"Then do not let this be any different. Cylphi is a capable fighter in her own right, the two caster men pair well in battle, and Dakkan is built for combat. Whatever meets with them will wish it hadn't."

Is he...

She slowed and watched him gain a few paces ahead of her.

Is he trying to comfort me?

The very notion was beyond comprehension.

"So, what are we to do in the meantime?" he asked.

"I wish to go to the runics academy," she replied. "King Gaidel seems to believe the creature we saw in Andethayn was something he called a 'runic beast'. I wish to learn all I can about them, lest we should meet with one again."

"The runics are tamperers at best," Isandel said. "Calling up beasts from depths that needn't be reached into. That shadow world is not meant to be opened."

"How much do you know of them?" she asked as they walked. They passed a cluster of people who turned to marvel at Isandel. A few others peeked out of their houses or from store windows.

"Enough to know they are fools. Long ago a few curious whelps learned to open gates into a dimension beyond their understanding and sought to control the beasts they found within. Some succeed, though only because the creatures inside have motives of their own. None help their liberators out of kindness. They are all self-serving."

"How would you know?"

"Where do you think I came from?"

She paused mid-step and watched as he walked ahead of her.

"Ah, I see you finally have a little shred of understanding. Yes, when I said I traveled here, I meant I traveled through that undefinable space from which the runics draw their powers. Only I did not need some fresh-faced little seryn to open the portal for me." He looked over his shoulder with a coy smile. "I wonder, are you pondering what my motives are now?"

"I've wondered since the moment I contracted you into my service. No, far before that. I've wondered about you since I was a tike on my father's knee, listening to his stories of the fierce dragon god of the Dark Woods." She hurried to catch up to him again and kept pace at his side.

He sighed. "That title has done me more harm than good. I've no idea who thought up such a ridiculous lie but it would take a lifetime to recall and count all of the fools who sought me out. I suppose it worked well for me in the end."

"Plenty of souls for you," she replied dryly.

He threw his head back and laughed. "Oh child, you are as prejudiced as your empatha friend!" He stepped before her and turned to face her with his arms wide. "What use have I with souls? What possible evidence have you that I am the one who had need of them?"

She bumped into his chest and stumbled back immediately. "Y-you told me—"

"Ah words, words!" He laughed again before pressing his finger to his lips. "I speak many of them, but not all are true. I thought you would understand such things by now, my lovely princess." He took a step back, thumping his tail against the cobblestone underfoot. "If I had told you the truth you would never have called out to the spirit inside the crystal."

Words failed her. As Isandel turned around, walking again down the path leading to the runic academy, Elery raised her hand to the esperite gem affixed to her chest plate. The thrum of Misani's energy pulsed against her fingertips and she shivered.

If he was telling the truth, she'd feared the wrong creature all along.