This Chapter will be told from Kavella's Point of View.
Franco pulls out a poorly sketched map of the surrounding area and lays it on the table for Kael and me to see. I look at it casually, but I don't try to commit it too memory. There's no need. If Kael will be with me, he'll have this whole thing memorized front to back in a matter of seconds.
I brush a long bit of hair out of my face, because when I leaned down to look at the map it all fell around me. As I tuck a long strand of hair behind my ear, I find my eyes wandering over to Sigmund. He doesn't notice, of course. He hardly ever does. Right now he's staring at Franco, and he's probably got some humorous and rude thoughts running through his mind. He can be so judgmental at times…
"There is a temple here, deep in the valley," Franco informs us. "That is the source of the Spirits, usually. I think it would be best if you two could check around there first."
"Of course," I say. I stand up, ready to leave whenever Kael is. "Do you mind if I leave my bag here?" I take the bag from off my back and hold it up.
"By all means! Make yourselves comfortable. But don't go leaving just yet, at least let me give my new friends a proper meal!"
I set my bag down on the couch next to Kael. I'm glad to accept Franco's offer, because I am honestly a little bit hungry. I haven't eaten since last night, and even then my meal was limited. I was a little too emotional at the time.
I ate like a bird because I was worried our encounter with Merava would end in betrayal or death. I was also a little bit revolted at the way Portia was consuming her pasta. Franco goes off to make us a breakfast lunch hybrid, and to my surprise Portia jumps up to follow him.
"I love cooking, sir, do you mind if I help out?" she bats her eyelashes innocently.
"I could always use a little help," he says with a grin. The two of them go off into the kitchen to whip something up, and I couldn't be happier. When Portia isn't around, I tend to be in a better mood, it seems.
Kael, Natalia, and Sigmund step outside to admire the fresh air and the beauty of the wilderness around us. I think it is beautiful here, too, though my heart won't allow me to appreciate it. The plains near Ramstadt are also beautiful…when I see such splendor, I am tormented with horrible memories. When I was running through those grassy fields three years ago, as I trampled past the daisies and all the other flowers, I was forced to watch friend after friend be slaughtered by Spirits. As such, the flowers and the scent of pollen in the air does little more than invoke those haunting moments.
I sit back down on the couch in the living room, joined only by Cabel the weapon collector. I look around the small room and get a feel for the architecture of the house.
From the front door, there is a small walkway with a splintered wooden floor and a shoe rack. If you walk forward just a little more, you'd see there is a small living room just to the left. This living room is carpeted, and there is a couch that runs along all three walls. Behind the middle piece of the couch, there is a large window that lets you see all along the horizon. There is a wooden stand on either side of the couch, and the middle of the living room is dominated by an antique coffee table.
Straight ahead from the entrance is a small hallway, which I assume leads to the two bedrooms and the bathroom. Off to the right is a kitchen and dining room area, with glass doors leading outside to a patio. It is a quaint little home, but it is also very charming.
Cabel seems to take notice to my small observations. "Pretty little house, isn't it?" His voice is deep and churning. It startles me at first, but I quickly calm myself.
"I'd like to live in a place like this one day," I reply. I don't say that because of the home itself, I say that because of the isolation. A person like me has to live far away and isolated from anyone else. That is because if I do not stay in hiding for the rest of my life, terrible things may occur. I am the only daughter of the House of Madera. My father is the last of his line. Since my mother is dead, he cannot have any more children. They will not be of pure blood. If the Madera family ends with my father and myself, then the Spirit Queen Andromeda will never hurt anyone again.
"If I may ask," Cabel looks into my eyes, "What exactly started your adventure? I've heard you and the others speak of some things, but I have never gotten the full explanation."
"Natalia, Kael, Sigmund, and myself are all recently graduated Spiritguards," I say. "We went to the training program for our own reasons, and became friends there. Shortly after we graduated, that Spirit you saw in the Vitarine basement, Merava, manifested during the Day of Darkness. She killed three of our fellow Spiritguards, and now she is on a mission to revive the Spirit Lords in an attempt to throw our world into chaos, just like it was during the Spirit War. We knew Vitarine was involved, and they have absolute control over our village. As such, only those who directly knew and saw what happened were able to go on this mission. That would be the four of us."
Cabel nods and I continue. "We're just trying to keep the world from falling apart," I laugh slightly. "Even the entirety of the Spiritguard organization is no match for Vitarine. We have to operate carefully, and we can't have any more incidents like what happened in the Vitarine basement. We might be able to get past that screw-up, but any more will cost us dearly."
Cabel agrees with me. "It didn't go as planned, no."
I think of a way to change the subject to something more interesting - or at least devise a situation where I don't have to do the talking. "What about you, Cabel?" I ask. "What's your story?"
"My story? Hmm…well, to spare you the boring parts, I'll start it simple. My brother and I served in the military, and we fought on the eastern border for five years together. My brother was always a fan of antique weaponry, such as swords, and he was an excellent fighter. During battles with the people in the east, he was a rifleman, but at all other times he used his sword. We never had an actual battle with swords and shields, but he loved the culture. He should have become a Spiritguard, honestly.
"One of his biggest hobbies was collecting weapons that had some sort of story behind them, or some sort of hidden power. He had a collection of twenty to thirty swords back home, and he brought two with him to the battlefront. One day, though, he was separated from the rest of his legion and he was gunned down in the snow. He died that day, and the people from the east stole all of his gear, including his two swords.
"After I was released from the military, I decided I would let his dream live on and go on collecting weapons. Nowadays, I think I'm doing it more for myself than anything. I love it. The Alchemist that lives here, Franco…he was a medic in the military. That's how we met. After we left the military, he decided to pursue Alchemy and he started a life for himself here."
I take some time to absorb all of the information Cabel entrusted to me. "So you're living on your dream, as well as your brother's?" I smile. "Noble of you."
"Yes. I still receive yearly payments for my time in the military, but those are not enough to live by. I make the rest of my living buying and collecting swords, and then selling them at auctions. People pay an awful lot for some of these, and I can only keep so many."
So now I know a bit of Cabel's history, his background, and his motivations. But where does that fit into our little group? What are his motivations for being with us?
"If you don't mind me asking, how come you decided to help us out, Cabel?"
He lets out a low grunt and strokes his chin. "I can't say for sure," he admits. "Other than a desire to help those in need. I'd like to think that the gods led me to all of you, because they knew of your plight. This is how I spend most of my time, though. Helping adventurers like yourself. I've seen a lot of horrors from back when I was in the military, so it's the least I can do to help bring happiness to those who need it."
I take time to soak in Cabel's words. I appreciate what he has to say, and I'm glad that I have come to understand his character better. For a man that doesn't do much speaking, there is much thought and motivation behind his actions.
"If you'll excuse me, Kavella," he rises up from the couch, "I'd like to go speak to my old friend Franco."
"That's fine," I smile back. Cabel exits the room, and I decide to wander outside to see what the others are up to.
I spot Kael and Natalia off pretty far in the distance, having a chat with each other. Sigmund is standing right by the house. He's looking off into the distance. I'm not sure what he's staring at so intently, but I join him at his side and look off in the same direction.
"Are you catching up on your bird-watching, Sigmund?" I chuckle. It feels nice to be able to talk to Sigmund without anyone else around. It's only when I'm with him, and just him, that I feel I can finally let loose and be myself.
"You know it, Kavella. I can't miss a day of bird-watching." His sarcasm is overwhelming, but I don't laugh. I'm a little bit bothered by the fact that he calls me Kavella. He thinks I'm Kavella Montale. My name is Kealie Madera, but he has no idea. If I ever told him the truth, would he feel betrayed? I hate hiding who I really am from him, but…
"You really like the flowers, don't you?" Those are the only words I can think of to distract me. I don't think now is a good time to tell Sigmund my real name. Maybe when all of this is over, I can confide in him my secret. I can trust that he won't tell anyone else.
"More than anything, I like the colors," Sigmund responds. I wasn't quite expecting him to say something like that. "What I notice about people, before anything else, is the color of their hair, their eyes, their skin tone…and then I look at what they're wearing. Is it red? Crimson? Or is it the color of cherries? I think about all of that, all the time. It's not that there are flowers out there. It's the yellow flowers bright like sunshine, and the pale pink ones, and the vibrant violet that bursts with life…"
It's an interesting way to think, and I wonder if that has any sort of validity in my own life. I don't believe it does. I notice colors, yes, but I don't quite obsess over them like Sigmund seems to be doing. I'm getting the feeling that when he describes a person, he doesn't say a whole lot more than talk about what color their hair and eyes are.
"How would you describe me, then?" I turn to him and ask. He turns to me as well and looks me up and down.
"Uh…you have yellow hair, like a bumblebee," he starts. I figured as much. "Your eyes are light gray, but they have the slightest tint of purple to them."
I can't help but giggle when he says that. It's definitely true. He focuses on all of the colors, and not a damned bit about what I actually look like.
"What?" he asks. "How would you describe me?"
I look at Sigmund and I automatically know what I'd say about him. "Sigmund Felice," I start off slow. "You always keep your eyes a little closed, when you're outside. I think the light bothers you a bit, but not enough for you to realize it. When you're indoors, your eyes are a little bit more open. They're a bit smaller than average, and a bit more narrow, but they're bright and full of curiosity. Right now, they're almost undetectable, but there are vague circles under your eyes that adds a tiny bit of weariness to your face.
"Your eyebrows aren't too thick or bushy, and they hang right above your eyes. They make you look serious all the time, even if that's not the mood you're trying to convey. Then there's your nose. It's very smooth and straight, and your nostrils are on the small side.
"Your lips are thin and light, and they always appear a little bit chapped. Your jawline isn't tough and rigid, but rather it's smooth and boyish. Your cheekbones are high on your face, which gives you a youthful look. Something like a prince. Your ears are a bit pointy, and the canine on the left side of your mouth is a little bit crooked.
"Then there's your hair. It's longer than most would wear it, and wavy, like you've just been through a tornado. It's probably long enough to hang over your eyes, but because everything is swept to the left, they don't get in your way too much. The hair around the back of your head falls down in layers, and it is shorter in the back than the front. And you know what, Sigmund? I just described you, all of that, without mentioning anything to do with color."
He laughs and thinks back to everything I said. It's true, I didn't mention a thing about color.
I notice Kael and Natalia are on the way back when Portia pokes her head out of the front door. "Brunch is ready!" she giggles. She then retreats inside, perhaps to set the plates. Sigmund and I walk in together and get our food. I'm the first one done eating, and that's because I don't say anything during the meal. It's just a lot of Portia talking about how she cooked everything, while Cabel is locked in a deep conversation with Franco.
When the meal is over, I grab up my staff and head out alongside Kael. We're going to the other side of the road, where we will find the Alchemist's son. I'm hoping we find him in good health. I don't exactly want to explain how I found the body of Franco's son. That would devastate the poor old man.
Kael leads us along. He seems to know exactly where we are going. Before long, we reach some ruins in the woods on the other side of the road. I can sense some Spirit activity, but I can't see anything yet.
"We should check inside the ruins," Kael advises. "Franco said that's where most of the problems were."
The two of us head over in the direction of the ruins, but before we get there, we discover what the Spiritual presence is. We stop when we see a horde of about twenty Spirits surrounding a tree, clawing up at it. I wonder why they'd be so focused on the tree, and then I look up. I see a young man up in the tree, and he's looking down at the Spirits with a certain level of disdain in his eyes. That must be the Alchemist's son.
"Antelope Spirits, but they're not normally this vicious," Kael states. I look over to the Spirits surrounding the trees. They're antelopes alright, but their horns are much larger and spiked than any antelope I've ever heard of. The horns resemble metal, and their fur shines with an otherworldly light.
"Can we take all of these at once?" Kael asks. "There are…" he pauses to count, "sixteen of them."
I nod. "We can. Let's go, Kael. Antelope Spirits are weak to what, again?"
"The Animus technique Electrode will work best," Kael advises. If you send a spark of lightning toward an Antelope Spirit, their horns act as conductors and send the shock right through their bodies."
"Got it," I say. I rush forward and start to channel my thoughts into the Animus technique I need to use. Kael and I prepare it at the same time. His is a bit weaker, and strikes down one of the Antelope Spirits quickly. Mine is much more powerful and manages to blast three of them to the ground instantaneously. I smile at my good luck.
The smile is short lived. With four of the sixteen Antelope Spirits down, they have definitely taken notice of us and they no longer care about the man stuck in the tree. The twelve remaining Antelope Spirits charge at Kael and I.
We both get off one more Electrode before the Antelopes reach us. Because we timed it well with each other, an additional five Antelope Spirits have went down. We'll have to deal with the rest of the swarm in combat, because there is no way we'll be able to channel another Animus technique while those things are swinging their horns at us.
I deflect the first attack with my staff, and I notice the man up in the tree is beginning to shimmy down the tree. I'm thinking he's eager to come and help us, considering we may have just saved his life.
Kael is struggling, though. To my right, he's got three of the Antelopes charging at him at once. They knock him to the ground and he takes a hard fall. This is not good, not good at all. We can't handle seven of these things at once.
I'm swinging around my staff wildly as I move myself right in front of Kael. I manage to mash the side of one of the Antelope Spirits, and it goes down. This staff is a lot more powerful than I thought! The Antelope Spirits are backing off from the flailing staff, as none of them are too eager to be smashed in the head with it.
They start to ram at me in unison, and I stumble a bit. Unfortunately, Kael was just getting up behind me, and my stumble causes me to trip over him and fall face-up against the ground.
Kael drives his sword up and kills the closest Antelope Spirit, but there's still five left. No, there's three left. How did that happen?
I see that the man that was on top of the tree has finally reached us, and he's swinging around two black metal swords wildly in an attempt to save us. He's already dropped two of the Antelope Spirits, and he takes out two more once I see him. Kael finishes off the last one, and this short, frenetic battle is concluded.
The man walks over to where I can see him better, and I get my first look at the Alchemist's son. He has short, chocolate colored hair and bangs that part naturally toward the middle. It's much shorter than Sigmund's hair, but it's still got a bit of length to it. Certainly not short like Kael's.
He's got a scowl on his face, and I wonder if he's always like that or if he's just stressed. Needless to say, he's got a bit of a standoffish air to him. His face has a bit of a feminine curve, so I deduce he's either my age or a little bit younger, because he still has a young, immature look to him.
His eyes are the same brilliant, bright green color as his father's. They glimmer, as if tiny traces of a golden sunflower lie embedded within them.
If he didn't have such a malicious look to him, I'd appreciate his natural beauty more, especially his dazzling eyes, yet right now they hold a certain level of 'I'm pissed off right now' that is off-putting. I notice I'm still lying on the ground, and I make a move to stand up.
He's a bit taller than me, I note. He's not a shorty like Kael is. He seems well-dressed as well. For someone living in the wilderness I expected someone more…rugged? Dyed leather pants in the same style of the Spiritguards, though in a lush green that calls to mind a deep woodland. Sleek thighboots that are surprisingly clean, and a laced up hunting vest with a long-sleeved green shirt underneath. What surprises me most about his gear is how clean it is, as if it were fresh from the tailor.
"Who're you?" he shoots. "Why are you here?"
"Are you the Alchemist's son?" I ask. "We were sent here to find you. Franco is worried about you!"
The fierce green eyes look from me to Kael, and then back to me. He's objectively handsome, and I find it hard not to blush from his intense gaze. "I have a name," he scoffs. Then he starts walking toward the ruins.
"We don't know your name!" I call back. "And where are you going!?"
"I have more Spirits to kill!" he shouts back.
"Wait!" I rush up after him. He stops and turns his head toward me.
"Can I help you?" His voice isn't very deep, but it carries a bitter coldness to it. The anger abound in his words does not suit him.
"If you have to kill more Spirits, let us come with you," I offer. "You don't want to get trapped like you just were, do you? And we can't go back to Franco without you."
"How do you know my father?" he snaps.
"We're friends of Cabel."
"Hmph. If you two are going to help me, get walking. Some Spirit came through here last night while I was hunting and unsealed the Spirit that was in these ruins. I gotta find him before he starts any more problems."
"My name's Kavella," I say, agitated. "And this is Kael."
"Good," he says. "Now come on. I don't have time to waste."