A week has passed since Reagan arrived here, but we haven’t gotten a chance to really talk after he told me what had happened. Or maybe I’ve been too afraid to speak to him again, afraid to ask more. It had been a shock to learn that Max was gone, but the real shock had been that it had been by his hands. Of course I’ve helped him out in his research, but it feels like there is a rift between us, even if it is small.
I look in a mirror and I see my rather bland face, blond hair and blue piercing eyes looking back. Today. Today I’ll talk to him. I can’t let this feeling fester and destroy our relationship because I’m too afraid to talk. The thought feels ridiculous as I have faced down formidable monsters, how am I nervous about a talk? But Reagan does feel different nowadays. More intense? On edge also, but that is expected. But most of all? There is a quality to him that wasn’t there before that scares me a bit.
I put it out of mind as I haul a few books under my arm and make my way to the library. I walk down the central stairs and overhear some mages talking about Reagan, excited about the discoveries to come. Speculating. I sigh and walk a bit faster. I’m soon in the library. I take a look around at the formidable amount of books lining the shelves that go up and up. Small sliding ladders are here and there for us to reach every nook and cranny of this place. I look down and check the name of the first book I have to put back. ‘Ancient Magic And Rituals’. It was a total bust filled with rumors and theories, nothing useful.
I look up the correct section and make my way there. I stop on the way as I spot Reagan sitting at a table, reading a book. He hasn’t noticed me and I’m tempted to sneak by. No, I’m not going to avoid my friend, that’s just weird. I shake my head in hopes it will clear it from strange ideas and go towards Reagan.
“Morning.” I say and to my surprise his sword is already on my throat. I freeze and rethink the choice of walking up to him from behind. His eyes go wide as he sees me.
“Shit, sorry Bianca. I’ve been on edge lately.” He tells me as he quickly sheaths his sword. I raise an eyebrow at that, no shit. I refrain from saying anything however and let him recover his social footing.
“Total bust.” I say, trying to change the subject.
“What?” He looks at me, confused.
“These books, nothing in them.” I point to the pile under my arm.
“Oh. That’s alright, I’ve had a hard time finding anything relevant myself.” He says and I notice the amount of books open on the table. It is distinctly more books than what I saw yesterday evening.
“Did you stay up here all night?” I ask him, some disbelief leaking through my voice. He hesitates for a moment before speaking.
“Yeah. Couldn’t sleep anyway so I came back down here.” He looks around at the mess of open books.
“Mind if we have a talk?” I ask and feel my heartbeat accelerate, nervous.
“Aren’t we talking already?” He grins at me. So he still does have some humor after all. I don’t even respond to the bait and wait for a beat.
“Fine, let's go to your room, I think mine is not very private.” He yields before me.
We walk back up and the few mages we do see all turn to look at him and whisper or point. Like they are kids in a school. It frustrates me to no end. I thought we were better than that, but alas I have been proven wrong.
We are soon in front of my room and I open the door. Before I or he can walk in, I quickly shut the door again and turn to him.
“Would you give me a minute?” I ask and I can already see his teasing smile form.
“Still messy? You know it’s nothing I haven’t seen before.” He tells me, clearly amused. I frown at him, but half heartedly. It’s not the first time we do this old dance, and it brings back memories of better times, for the both of us.
“I’m better at magic now, so it’ll be quick.” I tell him and he is clearly amused. He exaggerates a bow while pretending I’m a princess or something and he is a lowly servant, beholden to my whims. It puts a smile on my face and I open the door slightly and squeeze through without letting him see inside.
I should definitely have cleaned before I went down. It’s far from the first time anyways, and how I’ve always been. Cleaning is so boring I try to avoid it any way I can. Concentrating, I pull on my mana while starting to chant in a low voice, words of power unknown to normal people. But I’m not a normal person. I’m a mage, and so I can draw on the magic of this world to do my bidding. My hair swirls around me unnaturally as I draw mana for my spell. I might be one of the only mages in this tower to have learned this old spell. It might be because it is actually rather hard, and I concentrate for a minute until everything feels right and ready. I chant the final words and the mana leaves me.
Papers slowly float into piles, my clothes slowly fold themselves in neat piles while a small dust tornado manifests in the middle of the room, pulling in all the dust and trapping it inside. The bed tries to make itself but struggles. I must have missed something, but it’s not the first time and I don’t have time to see what I did wrong. Soon, the room looks clean, and only the dust pile looks out of place. I cast a cantrip and it floats over to the bin where it disappears from sight. Done!
I open the door and see that Reagan is missing. I didn’t make him wait for that long, did I? I close my door behind me and go to his room. I can’t hear anything from inside, but that’s normal. The doors are sound proof, obviously, so I knock. Hard. I wait for a while then knock again. Not in his room then? But where did he go?
I take the central stairs down to look around. No one just goes missing in the tower. The cleaning ritual only takes about a minute at most. Fine, maybe a bit more, but I’ve never known Reagan to be impatient. Well a bit, but not enough to just leave. I feel a bit worried that something might have happened as I walk around the different floors trying to find him. I first go to the library where his books are still open, but he’s clearly not here. I check the canteen and the training rooms. There aren’t that many spaces that are accessible to everyone. I even check that god damned magic tree as I walk around the other common areas. No trace of him.
A thought comes back again that I don’t like. But who would dare to try anything on him while he is staying here? Even if he is more like a guest than a mage. No, I shake my head and decide to check the library again. Maybe I simply missed him and he went back there. I enter the library and turn to where his table is at the far end and see that it is empty. Shit, maybe I should tell someone? A familiar voice takes me out of my spiraling fear while someone else shushes them.
I walk forward a bit and see Reagan with Ilyz, whispering loudly. He spots me and beckons me over. He clearly has no idea how worried he got me. Who the fuck just disappears like that without saying anything. I approach the two of them with a clear frown on my face. Before he can even open his mouth, I poke him and yell as loudly as I can in a library. Meaning it’s a harsh whisper.
“I was looking all over for you! You just left me hanging there.” I accuse him. He looks surprised. Weird.
“What are you talking about? I knocked on your door several times and you didn’t respond. Of course I left. You left me hanging for almost ten minutes.” He shoots back. Ten minutes? Damn I should practice that damn spell more. That is not efficient.
“Oh.” I respond, mollified.
“Sorry, I was casting that cleaning spell.” Idiot couldn’t even wait ten minutes. I scowl a bit at him.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“You still using that useless spell?” Ilyz turns to me, unimpressed.
“It’s more efficient than cleaning.” I defend myself.
“Hmm.” He stops to think for a second. Oh no, here it comes. A classical Ilyz rant.
“Let's assume you only took three month to learn it, where you spent six hours a day trying to learn it. That means you spent 32 400 minutes learning this spell.” He starts, and the worst is that it took me longer. It learned it over the course of a year and less hours per day… but still.
“Now let us assume you always take about ten minutes to clean using this spell, and that it takes you twenty minutes to clean your room normally, then it would be fair to say you gain ten minutes every time you cast it. Correct?” He pauses to look at me. I nod in resignation.
“Then one would assume that it is only worth learning this spell if you have used it at least 3 240 times. So I ask you, how many times have you cast this spell?” His annoying look of triumph irritates me, because I know he is right. I have probably used it a hundred times at most. My pride is hurt and I do feel the need to defend my actions.
“You are failing to take into account the usefulness of learning a wide variety of spells. The expertise gained at learning such a complex spell is sure to increase my general understanding of magic.” I say and I do see him stop and think about it for a moment.
“While that is true, I still believe it is a colossal waste of time, and would argue that had you spent the time actually studying useful or modern magic, you would be even further ahead than you actually are.” His argument sadly makes sense, but I refuse to grant him the satisfaction. This is not about facts anymore, but my trampled pride.
“Let’s agree to disagree then.” I tell him with my fakest smile.
“You two seem to get along…” Reagan whispers from the side and we both glare at him.
“Anyways, look Bianca, Ilyz found a book that mentions something that could help me.” He shows me the book he has been holding since I came here. He seems rather excited about it. I take the offered book and read the title. ‘Legendary Artifacts Of Old.’ I raise a brow at it before I look at the opened page. ‘The Divine Tear’ it says at the top with a small image of a tear shaped rock, that is apparently shining. I see Reagan fidgeting at the edge of my vision, impatient that I read the rest.
The Divine Tear is an item that is believed to have been created three thousand years ago by the elves. Stories involving it always describe the tear as having immense healing properties. Its location is currently unknown, the last known location being the Harpian Kingdom that occupied the current Beastkin territories. There are unconfirmed rumors that the tear can mend and heal the soul, but as soul magic is currently very rare and misunderstood, we cannot confirm these rumors from the records found. Another rumor hints that there might actually exist two different tears, but has never been proven by any records…
I look back up at Reagan and see his excited expression. Did we read the same text? Yes, it mentions that it might help mending the soul, but it wasn’t even guaranteed. Not only that, but the location is unknown. The Harpian Kingdom fell four hundred years ago, so it might as well be anywhere.
“What?” He asks me as he looks at my expression. I hesitate and think about what I’m going to say. I don’t want to crush his hopes.
“I-I guess I’m happy you got a lead?” I finally say.
“You think it won’t work.” He accuses me.
“I never said that.” I immediately defend myself verbally.
“You didn’t need to.” He shuts the book angrily and turns to leave.
“Wait, Reagan.” I say as I walk after him. I hear a shush from somewhere in the library as I hurry after him.
“Leave me alone Bianca.” He says without turning around as I finally catch up.
“Come on Reagan, it’s a lost god damn artifact.” I can’t help but say.
“And? You don’t think I can find it?” He stops in his tracks and faces me. He is angrier than I thought.
“I never said that either! I just don’t think it’s good to place your hopes on an artifact no one even knows where it is…” I say weakly.
“So what, I should just give up?” He shoots back.
“No! Look. Even if you do find it, you have no guarantee it will even work. They don’t even know what it really does.” I say, pointing at the book. He pauses, looks at the book and I see an emotion on his face for a second that I don’t think I’ve ever seen on him before. Terror. It disappears so fast I’m not sure if I saw it right.
“Look. It’s my only clue right now. I originally thought some of you mages would be useful, but I guess not.” His words feel like a stabbing wound in my heart. The way he said mages with such disdain, lumping me together with the others. I know what he thinks of them. His gaze softens as he sees my expression and I see shame, clear on his face.
“I’m sorry Bianca, I… I didn’t mean that.” He sighs.
“It’s just that if not this, then what? You remember what I told you, right? I’m… afraid of what will happen to me. And this? This is my only hope right now.” He points towards the book.
“I know Reagan. I’m just afraid you’ll go chasing after something that might not even exist anymore. Shouldn’t we at least try to find something else in the library?” I ask him, hopeful.
“I guess.” He sighs tiredly.
“Let me just take a shower to wake up a bit, alright? I’ll let you start and join you in fifteen.” He says with a timid smile. I nod at him, feeling happy that it didn’t escalate too badly.
I start walking back to the library and think back to the small fight we had. His emotions were so raw and volatile . It felt like he was about to snap at any moment. And that moment of terror on his face, is that how he truly feels right now? Does he truly feel so hopeless? Maybe I just imagined it. I shake my head and try a new section of the library. Botany. Maybe there is a plant that can heal the soul? Who knows.
—
I look up from my current book and take out my pocket-watch to look at the time, again. What’s taking him so long? It’s been over an hour and he still isn’t here. I close the book. It was useless, like all the others. I start putting back the books before I amass a mess like he did while trying to figure out what the hell he is doing. Did he fall asleep? It is possible, he looked exhausted.
Maybe I should go and wake him up. I can’t have him making me wait for this long. I let the mess be as I’ll be right back and head back to the living quarters. I open my room to check myself in the mirror just in case and fix my hair. I know he’s seen me in way worse states, but still, I like to look good I guess.
I walk over to his room and knock. The door opens as it was actually ajar already. Weird. I take out a wand and hold it ready.
“Reagan?” I call out as I open the door further. No response. The room is a bit messy, some clothes on his bed, a few books are also here and there, but no trace of Reagan. As I enter the room proper, I hear the rush of water in the shower. It’s in the small room to the right.
“Reagan?” I try again, louder this time. Still no response. I knock on the door leading into the bathroom. Still nothing. My heart is beating out of my chest right now. My gut is clenched and I can feel something is wrong. I grab the door handle and open it suddenly.
The door opens effortlessly and I can see the toilet, a small basin to clean your face as well as an empty shower. No Reagan. I turn off the water crystals that rain down water and stand perfectly still, trying to hear something, anything. Only the last drops of water can be heard in the deafening silence.
I am tempted to call him out again, but I know it is not a wise thing to do. Someone might still be close by and I don’t want to reveal my exact location by speaking. I know I’m being paranoid, and maybe it’s nothing, but in my gut I know it’s not nothing. I slowly creep back to the room in question. Now that I look at the mess, it’s strangely out of the way, like someone shuffled everything to one side.
It’s possible Reagan did that to make space and that I am reading too much into the situation. Maybe he just forgot to turn off the water. Maybe he was just so tired and distracted that he didn’t notice. But I’ve been an adventurer. I don’t believe in maybes. I have no concrete evidence but it’s just too strange.
I move extremely slowly, trying to hear if anyone is breathing. I even cast a spell to hear better. Nothing but my own heart pounding. Maybe there is no one left here. But I doubt Reagan would get taken without a fuss, so where is my clue? Reagan you idiot, you left a clue didn’t you? I know you’re smart like that, please tell me you had time to leave something so I can find you.
I start looking in the closet, under the bed, in the bathroom again. Everywhere for something out of place. A clue, something. After a few minutes I start to doubt myself. Maybe he really just left the water running. There is nothing especially strange going on here except that. And he was really tired as he pulled an all-nighter. Am I reading too much into it?
I look at all the clothes and supplies for his travels forming a small pile on the ground. One of his trousers is not on the pile and I pick it up and throw it with the rest. If you do a quick dirty ‘cleaning’, at least do it right, idiot. I sigh and relax a bit as I sit down on the bed. Did he really just forget me in the library and let the water run? Maybe someone found something and he left in excitement?
I cast a last look around the room, preparing myself to leave when I notice something weird on the ground I missed. Is that? I crouch to the ground and touch it with my finger. Oh shit. Oh shit oh shit oh shit. It’s right where the trousers were covering the floor earlier. They must have missed it. I bring it closer to my face to really make sure.
Yepp. That’s blood.