"I've never heard of blood magic before," Ace stared at the strange box.
It was only the size of his hand. It was made of a wrought dark metal that Ace had never seen before. It was reinforced with iron bands all around with a baroque hinged cover. The inside was completely dark. It was a strange phenomena. Ace was certain that the box couldn't be as deep as it seemed.
"The box only responds to you," Bird surmised, "There's only one type of magic which has such capabilities. No one else will be able to open it but you. I think it must be blood magic but I can't be certain. The study of blood magic is forbidden. It is the darkest kind of magic. I can't imagine how this spell managed to conjure such a thing,"
"Well, in truth, i'm not sure that i was the one who conjured it," Ace said thoughtfully, "Something strange happened when I was casting the magic. I thought maybe it was just my imagination, but I saw someone,"
"Ah," Bird blushed, "That often happens when you take someone else's magic. You see things about them...memories and such,"
Ace gave a consoling smile, "I did..well yes I did see something like that, but this was different. It didn't feel like a memory. It felt real. A woman handed me this rose. When I opened my eyes, the box was in my hand,"
Bird's eyes widened, "Someone interfered with the spell...no more likely, they sensed the spell and they used your own magic to communicate with you,"
"You think it was another mage?"
"Have you ever met that person before?"
"Never," Ace shook his head, "but they seemed to know me,"
"To be able to make contact with something using their own magic against them...such high level magic...we're not talking about an ordinary person. The only person with magic close to this is..."
"Who Bird?"
"Clover, I suppose," Bird answered reluctantly, "but I only know mages in the Empire. It is rare but there are other magic users outside of the Empire. However, for them to reach us in the demon world, I think it's impossible. The only other possibility, if it's not Clover and it isn't some rogue mage from the human world is... a demon here,"
"It would have to be a demon lord," Ace exhaled uneasily, "to use such high-level magic,"
Bird picked the book back up and inspected it once more.
"What do you know about this book?" he asked.
"It's called the book of stars. It's a testament about the fall of the demon god," Ace recalled, "Though I don't really understand much of it. I only recently realised there were spells written in here,"
"The demon god...you mean the god of the moon?" Bird went pale.
Ace nodded. Bird shoved the book into Ace's hand with unexpected vehemence.
"What's wrong, Bird?"
"You didn't tell me that!" Bird appeared lost in thought for a moment, "I wouldn't have...oh it's too late now."
He turned back to the box apprehensively.
"I think you should get rid of it," Bird declared.
"We don't even know what it does," Ace frowned, "If it only responds to me, maybe I can use this to hide the necklace?"
"No! No, we should get rid of it." Bird gave a paranoid glance outside, "Maybe we should bury it out there,"
"What's the matter? You were excited about it a moment ago," Ace said flatly. "This thing could help me. Why would I get rid of it?"
"Anything related to the god of the moon is cursed," Bird breathed uneasily. " The box might seem useful at first but soon you'll want more. They'll give it to you and it will seem like they don't want anything in return. It will be great at first, to have such power. But one day they'll come asking for their payment...the price won't be worth it. Trust me,"
"Bird?" Ace surveyed him, "You sound like you know a lot about this. What aren't you telling me?"
"I..."Bird hesitated, "I know some things...about the god of the moon that other people don't know."
"What do you know?" Ace questioned. "I thought people in the Empire didn't really believe in such gods,"
"I'm not originally from the Empire, "Bird fidgeted with a tense half-smile, "The country I was born in is a continent to the south called Ascar. They have very different beliefs to the Empire, at least my people did,"
"Like what?" Ace followed up.
"I don't know if I can explain it well," Bird faltered.
"Please try, Bird," Ace encouraged, "It might be important,"
"I was a child when I left so I might not tell it right," Bird still hesitated, "In the Empire, they say there is life magic - mana. My people called this the Li but the meaning is different there. The meaning is most similar to spirit, I suppose. Everything has its own li, but the li is not bound to a material body. Sometimes it can go wandering. You cannot know its true form. It can appear as a desert snake. It might be a friend or it might be an enemy. You won't know until it's too late."
Ace nodded along.
"Well, my people lived in the desert like the wind. We wandered from many places, never settling anywhere. But there came a time when the queen of our country became envious of our freedom. She and the others tried to restrict us. My people felt trapped but what could they do? We had no power or money. We had no way to fight them...then one day, a spirit came to us in the wind. It called out in the night with grand promises..it told the elders it knew a way to save us from our bondage.
But the elders of our village knew better than to trust it. They told everyone to ignore it and everyone did. With the exception of one girl. She was an orphan like me, only she had no family at all. The spirit told her all sorts of things in the dead of the night and she believed it.
The girl followed the spirit and went to the demon world. I don't know what happened to her but when she returned she was much changed. She had strange powers and wicked magic. The first thing she did was murdered the village elders.
When the others saw her power they were afraid at first but she had learned the words of the spirit. With her powers, the others came to believe the spirit had been speaking the truth. Many joined the girl and they went to the queen who had tried to corner us. Then that girl...she killed every single person in the queen's castle and she sat on throne herself,"
"I can't believe such a thing happened," Ace said after listening intently, " I wonder why I've never heard this story before,"
"You have," Bird said gravely.
"What are you talking about?" Ace's brow furrowed.
"That girl... was the demon king," Bird said soberly. "She came from my tribe. She conquered not only the demon world but half the human world before the Empress of Rotan killed her. Do you understand now?"
"Michael once told me the demon king was possessed by an evil god," Ace considered, "Then the spirit you spoke of, the one that spoke to the girl..."
"She said it was the god of the moon," Bird interceded. "He gave her unimaginable power, but in exchange...he took her soul,"
"I understand, Bird," Ace answered at length, "I'll get rid of this box. We'll think of something else,"
"Okay. Good," Bird let out a sigh of relief.
They continued to talk for a while. Eventually, Bird took off on his own to his room. Ace looked at the box once more. It certainly housed a malevolent energy but was it all really that bad? The woman didn't ask for anything in return. She said it was a gift. As long as he didn't take anything else from her, wouldn't it be okay?
Ace gave way to temptation. This would be the best way to keep the necklace safe. He placed the necklace inside the box. Then he hid it back in the small crevice at the back of the wardrobe. The moment he did, he felt a wash of relief. He finally had some semblance of control back.
Ace sat down on his bed and exhaled. That was one problem dealt with. Maybe the dreams would stop now he felt calmer. Still, there was this feeling that he couldn't shake. It was this feeling that kept him awake at night: The thought that he had forgotten something important.
There were times when Ace felt content without the memories of the past. Wouldn't they just be a cruel reminder of times that could never come again? All the things Sena spoke of only served to haunt him. Even more so now he was back in the demon world.
It was as if the past was coming back with a vengeance. Not just with recollections of Sena but everything muddied together in a chaotic whirlwind around his head. Then there was Clover who was both a comfort and a source of torment.
One moment they were warm and another was as though he couldn't reach them at all. Was this game really the solution? Ace felt like he could barely keep his emotions in check. He needed to know more about them, but how? They weren't exactly forthcoming. Even when they answered his questions, Ace felt like it was smoke and mirrors. It was like staring into a serene lake, only being able to faintly make out the tumultuous ripples underneath.
Could he really reach Clover when he couldn't even steady the veracity of his own mind? It was at that moment, without trying that Ace's eyes came up to the wardrobe. If what Bird said was true, and Ace didn't doubt it, then the book of stars was something to fear. It was enough that it held the memories of a dead woman.
Yet, both in the echoes of the empress and the dark secrets of the book of stars, Ace felt his curiosity only grow. One more look wouldn't hurt...
Ace removed the book from the cavity and began to pour over its pages. Once more in between the margins of the pages, Ace spotted a passage that drew his interest:
'I wonder why Clover bends to this girl. I used to feel pity for her. It's obvious their loyalty is just another trick. Yet, I can't discern what the nature of it is. Clover gave the girl everything she asked. They put her upon the throne without argument. Why? It doesn't make sense. Surely, Clover could sit there themselves if they had any sense of ambition, but I don't sense that in them at all. I think I've underestimated this girl. She must have something on Clover. I will discover what it is.
Then I will use it to tear them apart...'
Ace inhaled sharply. The girl that Clover 'put on the throne'...could it be the demon king? Ace scanned the page for anything else. There was only the Empress' words scrawled in her refined hand. Ace's focus came back to the page itself. It was a story about the 'bone priestesses'.
Ace knew the story already. They were women who served the demon god. Ace wouldn't have believed they were even real if not for everything that he had learned since. He recalled they had been given the gift of divinity. Perhaps, they might be able to help him remember...
He had only been sitting for a few moments when Ace heard a knock at the door. It was a light, almost timid knock. Ace wondered if it might be Bird having forgotten something.
Ace opened the door and looked out. There was no one there. He stepped out into the hallway. He glanced down at the stairwell. Just then he heard a child's laugh. This time, he didn't wait. He ran straight towards the sound. The curvature of the spiral steps made it impossible to see who was there. Everything Ace got closer, the laugh seemed to get further away.
Ace burst out into the courtyard. He searched for any sign of the source. Beginning in a low hum then growing louder Ace heard a voice. It was that song again:
"The green grass is singing. The mountains are watching. When will you come home? The river is calling.
When will you come home? The river is calling. She says you ought to come home. I'll wait by her banks, so come to her depths. One more. One more step,"
It came from every direction. The sound became unbearably loud. Ace couldn't even make out the words anymore. He felt dizzy as if the vibrations were battering him from all sides. He threw up his hands to block the sound.
It was like the ground was shaking.
"ACE! ACE?!"
Ace stared up in surprise. Clover was regarding him with quiet concern.
"What's wrong?" they questioned.
Ace dropped his hand slowly. The sound was gone, but his head hurt. His ears were still rattling from the sound.
"Did you hear that?" Ace exhaled trembling.
"Hear what?" Clover looked around.
"Nevermind," Ace said slowly. It was his mind playing tricks again.
"Do you want a drink?" Clover gave a small smile.
Ace nodded and followed Clover wordlessly. Just when he thought things might be gotten under control, he was blindsided by these strange hallucinations. It felt like he was on the cusp of something. Like a nostalgic smell or the beginning of a dream. It was so close yet impossible to remember.
Ace followed Clover into their room. He had been so caught up in his own thoughts, he didn't realise what he had accepted until Clover was handing him the glass. A sudden apprehension crept up. What if they were expecting something else?
Ace glanced up at Clover but they seemed to apprehend him. Clover smiled:
"Don't worry, it's just a drink."
Ace took a sip gratefully. He needed something to calm his nerves. He stared down into his cup.
"Clover?" Ace said slowly, "You said drinking clears your mind?"
"Mmm," Clover assented.
"What do you do when it doesn't?" Ace glanced up at them then back down quickly.
"Sometimes I paint. Other times I meditate," Clover paused, "And when none of that works, I find someone to entertain me," they smiled.
"And that makes the noise go away?" Ace questioned
"Sometimes it does," Clover answered reticently."Sometimes it doesn't."
"But is there a way to forget it all? How do you do that?"
"It depends. What are you trying to forget?"
"It's hard to explain..." Ace trailed, "It feels sometimes like I've forgotten something important. I know it sounds strange, but the thought of what I've forgotten is almost as strong as if I knew what the thing was. I told you that my memories of the past are not so clear but sometimes I dream things or feel like I'm about to remember them and it makes me...afraid. I wish I knew what happened before then it wouldn't bother me so much."
Ace glanced up at Clover apprehensively to see if they understood his meaning. He hadn't intended to blurt so much out.
"You want to remember in order to forget?" Clover smiled.
"I know it sounds stupid," Ace sighed.
"It's not stupid," Clover answered, "but what if you forgot for a reason?"
"I can't say that's not possible," Ace contemplated, "Perhaps it was something I couldn't deal with then. But I don't want to run from it anymore. I want to face it and move on,"
"In my experience, such things are rarely that simple," Clover replied. "If there's no way to remember it might be best left forgotten,"
"What if I knew of a way?" Ace asked seriously, "Would you help me?"
Clover was quiet for a while. They titled their head to the side.
"What can I do?" they said at last.
"We can go see one of the bone priestesses," Ace enthused.
"A bone priestess?" Clover said gravely, "What would you want with one of them?"
"I read that they are seers," Ace stated.
"Where did you read that?" Clover interrogated.
"I...I read it a long time ago. I can't remember," Ace smiled sheepishly. "Have you ever met one?" he asked trying to change the subject.
"A long time ago."Clover sipped their wine, "then again more recently..."
"So, are their powers real then?"
"They claim they can see into the past, present and future," Clover frowned, "But you should be careful about believing what they say. They often speak in riddles and give only half-truths,"
"But didn't one of the bone priestesses predict the rise of the demon king? And her prediction came true, didn't it?"
"For the most part." Clover conceded.
"So they can tell me what happened before?"
"Possibly," Clover answered quietly.
"This might be the only way I can remember," Ace returned resolutely. "You don't have to bring me there. If you just tell me where I can find one, I'll go myself,"
"I can bring you," Clover said flatly, "If that's what you want.."
"It is!" Ace said excitedly. "I just want this to be over."
"Then we'll go," Clover said softly.
"Thank you, Clover!" Ace gave a wide smile. He ran to Clover and threw his arms around their neck.
"Don't thank me yet."