Chapter Twenty-Eight: Artemis' Story

With a heavy heart, Yue walked into the Vanguard grounds. Her conversation with Zade was already taking a toll on her.

As much as she hated the thought, she understood what Zade was going through. She even related to it. Astil had been her friend too, and his death reminded her of Diamond’s.

Astil was just another name to add to the quickly-growing list of people the Cult had killed. It made Yue angry just thinking about it. Astil was the fourth person she knew who died by their hands. Not to mention how many times they had wounded her friends.

It was another somber day, exactly the opposite of the day before.

Why can’t I just be happy for just a little while? She thought. She had thought life had been turning around when she and Xander professed their love for each other.

And then Astil died.

And now Yue was feeling the weight of it. Especially because she would have to tell her friends about this. She was already dreading it, for one reason:

Artemis. Zade had told her what happened between him and Astil, and all she could feel now was a white-hot rage towards him, although she was trying to control it. Artemis had betrayed Astil’s family.

All she knew was that Artemis had a lot of explaining to do.

So she set off to find her friends.

And give them the bad news.

— — —

“Are we all here?” Yue asked rhetorically. She knew they were, but it just seemed right to ask.

“Yup,” Neena responded from her bed. She still wasn’t allowed to leave the hospital, much to her chagrin, so they had decided to have their meeting here.

Artemis was walking with a crutch now, and the nurse still wasn’t sure if he would get infected. Thankfully, his wound was looking better. He was looking happier too. Clearly, he couldn’t wait to be able to walk normally again.

Xander was holding her hand, squeezing softly. He could tell something was wrong, but he clearly didn’t want to pressure her. She looked at him, and he smiled reassuringly, nodding.

“Go ahead,” He whispered. “We’re here for you.”

“Okay,” Yue breathed. She steeled herself for what was to come. “I have really bad news. Yesterday, Astil was killed.”

Silence. No one spoke. Yue could see her friends processing the information.

Then, like a wave hitting the shoreline, the information hit them.

Xander just gave her a hug. Yue knew he had only met Astil once or twice, mostly having heard of him from her, but she appreciated the comfort.

Neena was stunned into silence. To Yue’s knowledge, of all her friends, Neena was the one closest to Astil. Still not very close, but much closer than her.

Alyx and Aster had a less noticeable reaction. Their faces showed a lot of sadness, but Alyx tried to mask it with a more steely facade. Aster didn’t cry, but neither did she hide her sorrow.

Poli reacted impassively, almost apathetically. She didn’t like any of Yue’s Zenyth friends, so obviously, this wouldn’t hit her as hard as it would the others.

Artemis, though, was a different story. He looked like he’d seen a ghost. His face was pale, his mouth open in horror. His eyes were welling up, and he was gripping Neena’s bed aggressively. Yue thought he was shaking too, but she couldn’t be sure.

“What… happened?” Artemis asked through gritted teeth, struggling to speak. It looked like he could faint at any moment.

Yue told them what she knew. How it started with Zade’s rivalry with Raakhshas, which caused Raakhshas to kidnap Astil. How Zade had gone to rescue him.

How Raakhshas had killed Astil in a cowardly way.

Finally, she told them of Zade’s skill, and him killing Raakhshas and the other mages.

By the end, Artemis was leaning against the wall. Now, Yue was sure he was shaking.

“No, no, no, no, no,” He whimpered, breaths coming in ragged gasps. “No, no, NO!”

Yue fought her fury. She had both anger and sympathy warring in her mind right now. Eventually, her curiosity got the best of her, and she let her anger out.

“Why do you care?” She asked Artemis. He looked up sharply, and Yue could see his eyes. He looked betrayed. Yue flinched but kept speaking. “Zade told me what happened with your family. You lied about them, ruined their reputation. Why do you care now that Astil died? You hated him!”

“I didn’t hate him,” Artemis whispered. “I swear, I loved him. I loved Hardin.”

“Don’t call him that,” Yue growled.

“Will you please let me explain myself?” Artemis asked.

Yue nodded tiredly. “Fine. Go ahead.”

“I made a lot of mistakes,” Artemis commenced. “But you don’t know the whole story. It started a long time ago…”

— — —

Me and Astil were best friends for a long time. I took care of him as a kid. He wouldn't go anywhere without me. I loved him like I loved no one else.

When I was twelve, everything changed,

I remember everything that day.

I was walking down the gardens of a particularly nice house of the Antiquated Section. One of the public ones. I had gotten into an argument with one of my friends. I don't even remember what the argument was about. Probably something stupid.

Anyway, I was just walking, angry as all hell, when I saw someone out of the corner out of my eyes. I get closer, and I find a girl resting on a bench, book in hand. She was beautiful, and clearly rich. She was wearing a stunning silk dress.

I immediately knew who she was. Arabella Cowles. The gardens belonged to her family. I felt like I was trespassing, even though realistically, I hadn’t done anything wrong. I was turning to leave when I heard her speaking.

“Excuse me,” She said. “Who are you?”

I grew nervous around her. I was only thirteen. I didn’t talk to women, especially rich ones.

“My name is Artemis, Miss Arabella,” I said.

Her eyebrows rose up. “How do you know who I am?” Her voice oozed outrage, and I started to sputter until she laughed. “I’m just kidding. I assume you’re the Reddin’s kid?” I nodded, and she smiled. “My parents buy from yours all the time.” She patted the bench. “Here, sit.” I reluctantly sat there, self-conscious of my basic clothes.

That day, I fell in love with Arabella. And clearly, the same happened with her. We talked for hours. I remember when the day ended, her father came to bring her inside, and I could see he approved of us talking. It was strange, you know? A rich man approving of his daughter’s relationship with a not so wealthy boy. Not that I was poor.

Still.

Anyway, after that first day, our relationship blossomed. We started dating after just a week, and for years that’s how it stayed.

Astil started to become a little more independent as I grew up. He still relied on me a lot, but at least he was beginning to learn to do things on his own.

I kept my relationship with Arabella a secret. It could’ve been a scandal in Magefell. I couldn’t let that happen to either of our families.

As the years went by, though, something started happening with Arabella. I was blind to it at the time, but now I can see it clearly.

“Demi tried to slander me today,” She told me one day, scowling. “I had to fix it. A right bummer, it was.”

“What did you do?” I asked.

“Let’s just say she won’t be leaving the hospital anytime soon,” She said. I would’ve protested it, but she kissed me, and that erased all doubts.

And that was only one of the many things she did. She started to be very controlling of me, narcissistic even. She assumed that she could do anything because she had the money to.

Love blinded me to all the problems.

I remember Astil asked me one day if I had a girlfriend.

“Well, Hardin,” I told him. “Can you keep a secret?”

He was about nine at the time, and I knew him well enough. He wouldn’t tell anyone. He nodded eagerly.

“I’m secretly dating Arabella Cowles.” I whispered conspiratorially to him. His eyes widened.

“Really? That’s amazing. I have to meet her sometime.” As immature as I was, I agreed to it immediately.

So a few days after that, I brought him to her.

“Is this Hardin?” Arabella asked. I nodded. “He’s so cute!”

That day was the beginning of the end. Even though Arabella had a positive reaction to meeting him, she clearly didn’t like him very much. Often, she would tell me I shouldn’t talk to him as much as I did. That I should push him away.

And, even though Astil never noticed it, I did.

Then, three years ago, the dam broke.

My parents refused to sell something to the Cowles. Apparently, the Cowles tried to blackmail them. I don't know the details.

Arabella was furious with my family.

“We have to get them back,” She told me. “And I have the perfect idea. You’re going to tell everyone all the horrible things they’ve been doing!”

“But they haven’t done anything wrong.” I protested.

“It’ll be their word against yours,” Arabella said. “And rumors fly quickly. I’m sure it’ll work.”

“But why?”

“They deserve it,” Arabella whispered. “They refused to sell to us. Now I’m going to end their career. It’s the only fair thing to do. Are you with me, Arty?”

“I…I don’t know if..:”

She looked at me pleadingly. “Please. Do this one thing for me.”

I should’ve ended it there. But I didn’t. I agreed.

Yes, it was stupid of me. I messed up.

But the story isn’t done.

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We agreed that I would meet with her parents where I would tell them everything.

The next day, I saw Astil and my heart broke. I started crying in front of him and he saw it.

“Are you okay, Artemis?”

“I’m fine, Hardin,” I said. “I was going to do a bad thing.”

“But you didn't, right?” He asked. “You still have time to fix it then.”

“You’re right. I need to leave now. I love you, Hardin.” I rushed off to Arabella’s house to break off the deal.

But I was a little late. Arabella must have realized I would get cold feet, because she started without me. When I got there, her parents were listening to her with shock on their faces.

“Is this true?” They asked me. “Are your parents really corrupt like this?” I didn’t understand some of what they said, but now it was my choice to deny everything.

I looked at Arabella and she smiled encouragingly at me. I bit my lip.

“Yes, they did,” I said frailly. Then my voice rose. “They did. And it’s about time someone exposed them.”

You don’t understand how much I hate myself for what I did. As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted them, but I couldn’t take them back. It was the worst thing I ever did.

“You’ll be hailed a hero!” Arabella’s dad grabbed my shoulders.

And hailed a hero I was. I quickly became the talk of the town. I had exposed one of the most popular merchants in Magefell! I had the courage to do that! Everyone loved me.

Except for me. The more I looked back, the more I started to hate myself. I saw my parents lose their jobs. I saw Hardin change his name to Astil. I watched as all this happened with a quickly breaking facade.

The final straw for me was my final confrontation with Astil.

He saw me walking with Arabella one day and rushed me.

“YOU!” He screamed. “You ruined my life! You ruined my family’s life! And all for what? A whore?” His words shocked me, and Arabella was fazed too.

“What did he call me?” She shrieked. “He called me a whore! Arty, get him!” I was stuck between my emotions. I didn’t know what to do. Astil decided it for me.

He punched me.

Twice.

I was forced to defend myself. But I swung back.

And then I took the advantage.

I shouldn’t have. But I started to beat him up.

I broke his nose that day. And I dislocated his shoulder.

Arabella was proud of me.

But I was done.

I finally took back everything I said and did. But it was too late. My relationship with my family was ruined permanently.

But I finally broke free.

“I can’t do this anymore,” I told Arabella.

“You’re ending this? Why?” Arabella seemed more angry than sad.

“You’re making me hate myself. You’re making me do things I don’t want to do!”

“You’re the one making those choices.” Arabella said. “You want this. You know you do.” She grabbed me, but I pushed her away.

“No,” I responded. “I’m sorry, but you’re not a good person. You’ve been making the worst decisions and you ruined my family.”

Arabella glared at me. “Do you know what I could do to you?”

“I don’t care anymore. Whatever you do to me will be better than staying with you.” I left and didn’t look back.

After that, I was homeless for a while with no job. Arabella found a way to influence people into rejecting me.

I thought about going to reunite with my family. But I couldn’t do it. They wouldn’t take my apology. They wouldn’t understand.

And, to be honest, I didn’t feel like I deserved them anymore.

I stayed in the shadows, supporting them when I could. I never got the courage to find them again.

Then I joined the Vanguard and my life changed.

I found Poli, and she saved me from the hole. She didn’t care that I had done the wrong thing. She still appreciated me.

And then I found the rest of you guys. Since then, my life has gotten much better.

I’ve heard that the Cowles have lost a lot of their position in society. I think it’s well deserved.

My parents found another job, albeit a much less profitable one. I still give them money when I can, but I haven’t seen them in forever.

I made the worst mistakes. I know that. I know that nothing I did can be fixed.

But I regret it.

And one day I hope to pay it all back.

— — —

Artemis finished his story and turned to Yue.

“I just want you to know,” He said, “If I could go back, I wouldn’t do any of what I did. It’s my biggest regret. You can hate me for it, but I’m just glad I was able to get my story out.” He hung his head, crying. “And I don’t know what I’ll do now that Astil’s dead.”

“Artemis, I…” Yue paused, unsure of what to say. “Artemis, what you did was unthinkable. But I think I speak for all of us when I say that we don’t hate you for it. I know I’m not the right person to do this, but I forgive you.”

Artemis looked up at her gratefully. “Thank you.” Poli helped him up and kissed him softly.

“It's okay, Artemis, the past is the past.”

“I just hate that Astil died thinking I hated him. That he died hating me.”

Yue grimaced. “You can’t change that, Artemis.”

“And it’s tearing me apart already,” Artemis said. “If only I’d admitted the truth to him and apologized.”

“You should’ve,” Yue nodded, “But you didn’t, okay? And now it’s too late. And it’s not a good thing to ruminate on what could’ve been.”

“For what it’s worth, Artemis,” Neena said, “I’m sure Astil forgave you for what you did.”

Artemis smiled softly. “I hope so. Gods, I hope so.”

“What happens now?” Aster asked. “With Zade, I mean. How’s he taking this?”

“Not well,” Yue winced. “He almost killed himself yesterday, but I don’t think he’ll try it again.”

“Is he going to be well enough to watch the tournament?”

Yue nodded. “Definitely. He wouldn’t miss it.”

“Good,” Alyx said. “We’re going to need everybody. Knowing how dangerous the Cult is, unless all of us are there, we’re doomed.”

— — —

“Walk with me,” The Wolf told Yue. She followed him past the green and towards Magefell.

“Where are we going?” Yue asked.

“Just for a walk. I need to talk to you,” The Wolf’s voice was firm but kind, reassuring Yue that she wasn’t in trouble.

“What do we need to talk about?” They crossed Vanguard grounds and into the path leading towards the center of Magefell.

“The tournament is coming, Yue. I’m sure you’re already feeling nervous about it, just as much as I am. But maybe what you don’t know yet is how important it really is.”

Yue shook her head. “I do. It’s the way to keep the peace. Although I’m not sure exactly how it’ll work. It could backfire in so many ways.”

The Wolf nodded. “It could. I admit that. But just remember, you don’t know as much as the Parliament. If anyone knows anything about politics, it’s the leaders who’ve studied it their entire life. All of them went through the Cartenium.”

“That’s true,” Yue admitted. “But I would still like to understand.”

The Wolf sighed. “You’re right. You deserve to know. As you know, I went on a diplomatic mission throughout the world. I convinced the leaders there to join this tournament. But I also made deals with them. The leaders of most countries will be there. You’ll find the Arcadian Royal Family there, the Magefell Parliament, the Aleumdaun Seom Khan there. Going to Magefell first-hand will show them everything. You may not understand it yet. But I’m sure you will eventually.”

Yue’s skin tingled at that.

To her, this tournament had just become five times as dangerous. Whatever the Cult was planning, the monarchs of the world would be involved, whether they liked it or not. This wasn’t good.

“Captain?”

“Aye?” The Wolf heard her urgent tone, and turned towards her. “Is everything okay?”

“You shouldn’t have involved the royals.” She told him what she’d just thought and he shrugged.

“I know about that. That’s why the Vanguard Warriors will be protecting them. Whatever happens, protecting Magefell will be our first priority, as it always is. But you will also have to protect the royals in the process.

“I know how scary this sounds. But you must realize we have no other choice. We have no idea what they are planning. Without that knowledge, we can’t stop them. All we can do is hope and fight back.”

Yue nodded, and from the corner of her eye, she saw someone, dressed completely in black.

Must be one of the spies.

“I appreciate you giving me spies to protect me, Captain,” She began, preparing to plead with the Wolf to remove them. She didn’t have a chance to finish the sentence, though. She heard a whizz, and reacted instinctively, tackling the Wolf to the ground.

The arrow flew, landing in the ground a few feet away, passing where the Wolf had been a millisecond ago.

The spy was already running away.

Yue stood up quickly and ran after him, the Wolf on her heels. The Wolf passed her and sprinted at the spy. As fast as the black-garbed assassin was, the Wolf was faster, Yue just a second behind.

The spy half-turned as he ran, throwing a dagger which the Wolf deftly avoided, shifting to the right. As they started to catch up, the assassin grew desperate, pumping his legs faster.

It wasn’t enough. The Wolf tackled him from behind, flinging him to the ground. Pinning him with his knees, the Wolf unsheathed his sword. Yue caught up to him quickly.

“What do we do with him?” Yue asked.

“Who sent you?” The Wolf growled. The assassin squirmed but didn’t answer. “TELL ME!” The assassin groaned.

“I don’t know!” The assassin said. “It was a couple, a young one. I heard the boy annoyedly call the girl Polynesia or something.”

“He’s lying!” Yue shrieked. Poli was short for Polynesia, and Poli hadn’t done it! They’d gone through this before.

“I’m not. I swear. Can I go now?” The assassin pleaded desperately.

“Of course not,” The Wolf answered. He swung his sword, expertly cleaving the assassin’s head from his body.

“You can’t believe him, right?” Yue asked. “It wasn’t them.”

“You do remember that she was one of my primary suspects?” The Wolf asked, grimacing, wiping the blood from his blade.

“I know,” Yue said.

“It doesn’t matter,” The Wolf told her. “I don’t believe the spy. Clearly whoever sent him told him to say this.”

Yue shivered. “The assassin was aiming for you, not me. Why?”

“I don’t know,” The Wolf replied. “I guess attacking the commander was the best option for them. But why?”

“You have to call off the spies you put on me,” Yue said.

The Wolf nodded. “I’ll do that in the evening. I still have something to do first. This does not bode well. They’re getting desperate. We need to be very careful in what we do. You, my advice is to avoid any sort of confrontation with the Cult until the tournament. Don’t do anything to anger them. Chances are they’re more desperate because the tournament’s on its way. We’ll deal with the tournament when it comes, alright?”

Yue didn’t know if she agreed, but she nodded anyway.

She definitely agreed with part of what the Wolf said. The Cult very much was getting desperate. But to Yue, that just meant they could be getting close. And if they were close, there was no way in hell Yue was stopping.

She would be more careful now, though.

— — —

“I got you something,” Xander told her, smiling widely.

Yue returned the smile. “What is it?”

They were sitting on the bench they had professed their love for each other near the ground. Yue wouldn’t consider this a date, but Xander promised he’d take her on one soon.

Xander opened his hand, revealing his gift.

It was a pendant. A beautiful, shining piece of jewelry. Yue stared at it. It was encrusted with diamonds in a heart shape, and the words I love you were engraved on them. As Yue looked, the pendant opened up, showing the inside. One one side was a mirror. The other showed a picture of Yue.

Not a painting. A picture. Somehow, Xander had gotten a mage to get a picture of her.

“Xander, how? That must cost...” He stopped her with a kiss.

“Just accept it, Yue. I got it for you. So you can know how much I love you. Remember how much I care if I die.”

“Thank you,” Yue breathed, grasping it. She put the pendant around her neck. It felt light but comforting, and she smiled. “Thank you so much, Xander.” She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him again, brushing her lips with his. He leaned in.

“You’re very welcome, darling.” Yue felt a shiver down her spine at the words. They broke apart and Xander smiled. “Wanna walk around the Vanguard grounds?”

Yue entwined her hands with his. “Of course.”

They stood up and their conversation was light and sweet. They talked for hours, Yue just enjoying his presence.

Xander’s gift shocked her. In a good way, of course. She loved it. It was a very sweet, thoughtful gift. Clearly, Xander had been planning this for a while. She hadn’t been expecting this.

Fingers interlocked, they walked around the grounds, passing the barracks, the green, the cafeteria. It was already widespread news that they were dating. As they passed, Alyx and Aster gave them a knowing glance as they passed, causing Yue to roll her eyes. Xander didn’t even notice, enamored with Yue as he was.

Too soon, the sun began to dip below the horizon. It was getting late, and as much as Yue wanted to stay up with Xander, she really needed to rest. The more rest she got, the more prepared she would be when the tournament started.

The tournament was in just two days’ time. Inching ever closer and closer, the day of the tournament already haunted Yue a bit. She knew she had the skill to do good, but winning wasn’t her only goal.

Once again, she wondered what the Cult would do for the tournament. She was nervous about what would happen. Xander didn’t know, and the only reason they’d sent him to the Cult was to figure out.

And the murderer was still out there! Would he try anything during the tournament? Yue assumed he would. He’d tried to kill her several times, but she would catch the murderer!

“Well, I’ve got to rest,” Yue told Xander. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Xander kissed her. “See you.” He turned to leave, walking in front of her. Yue heard a whooshing noise. Then…

Xander buckled down, screaming.

“Come on! I just got healed. Dammit!” He yelled in pain, clutching his leg. Yue bent down.

“What’s wrong? She asked, looking down. She gasped as she saw it. There was an arrow sticking out of Xander’s thigh, blood already pooling down. Thankfully, it wasn’t deep, and clearly not critical.

Still, Yue felt anger. Two assassination attempts in one day! She was sure this one was aimed for her, and she was just lucky Xander was struck.

She looked around. The assassin was gone. He had probably been another of the spies.

“Are you okay, Xander?”

“Well, I’ve got an arrow sticking out of my gods-cursed leg, but otherwise, I’m fine.” He gritted his teeth. “They really want to keep me in the hospital, don’t they?” He chuckled.

“I guess they do,” Yue said. “We have to get you there.”

“That’s what I was dreading.” Xander told her. “I was just released from there! Now I have to go back in.”

“Don’t argue, Xander,” Yue said, picking him up and letting his arm drape around her. He started to limp, wincing with every step he took with his injured leg.

Eventually, they found Alyx and Aster on the way, and Alyx helped Yue, making sure Xander didn’t have to use his bad leg.

“What happened?” Aster asked.

“Assassin. Twice in a day,” Yue replied.

“Damn!” Aster breathed. “They desperately don’t want us in the tournament.”

“That won’t stop us,” Alyx said determinedly. “If they think attacking one of our own will do the trick, they’re wrong. We’ll only have to try harder.”

Yue agreed. Attacking Xander had been the worst idea for the Cult.

Yue would have to go after them now.

She couldn’t let them keep attacking her friends.

She saw someone from the corner of her eye. Someone familiar. When she turned, he was gone. She narrowed her eyes.

“Let’s get you to the hospital,” Yue said. “Then we can talk about our next move.”