Between The Lines (1)
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A Few Minutes Ago........
The forest surrounding Zale was a rather tame environment when it came to the supposed dangers it posed, or at least that was how it ought to have been. The ever-present low level mob varieties would pop up now and then, but they never amounted to anything more than the town’s own forces could manage. That was how it had always been up until a few years ago.
Still, in spite of the supposed danger lurking inside these woods, the forest was relatively close to the town itself, but because this particular forest went on for miles, it was somewhat hard to navigate.
That didn’t seem to pose a problem for the two men now treading through its overgrown paths, however, the brilliance of the evening’s hue was now starting to dissipate and was now being replaced by a much darker color scheme.
Even with the veil of darkness now having an almost complete grasp on the sky, neither of them seemed to mind it, they simply stood amidst a large oval clearing that was seemingly being bordered by the well-aged barks of the surrounding trees. They towering structures hummed like haunting cries in the wake of nature’s nightly gales, however, not once was it ever overbearing, the ambient sounds were all being kept under a certain threshold, almost as if nature itself wanted to observe how this particular interaction would unfold.
“You want to talk out here of all places?” Owen asked the man standing a few feet away from him, a pristine white light flickered across the pair of glasses now resting on his nasal bridge.
“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask you this in private for a while now, but we usually search this place separately, so the opportunity never really came up.”
“I see.... Were you heading back into the city after sensing all that mana?” Owen raised an eyebrow in confusion.
Oliver nodded in response, adjusting the glasses that had been disturbed ever so slightly by his gesture. “That surge of mana felt a little familiar, I can’t be certain from all the way out here, but I think it’s Liam. The source didn’t feel potent enough for a rune and if it was, then the Basilisk would have already reacted to it.”
“I see...I did hear something about him awakening as a mage. Congratulations......” The passing winds could barely carry his dry remark.
Oliver narrowed his eyes before speaking, sensing the tension now building up across from him, Owen took a step back out of instinct.
“Owen....what exactly are you up to?” Oliver asked, his tone devoid of any sarcasm.
“W-what am I up to? What do you-”
“Five years ago, you came here from the capital after giving up on being a raider. Then shortly after, the Basilisk attacked this place for the second time and you along with Lennon and the rest of Brunhild went to subdue it, but only Lennon, someone who was already at level two, died....”
Owen stared blankly at Oliver, before slowly shaking his head in disbelief. “Oi,Oi, Oliver....what exactly are you suggesting?” The knight’s tone stiffened in sync with his now piercing gaze.
“I’m just saying...these circumstances are a little convenient....I mean, after only five years you’ve already usurped the rank of knight commander and had Lennon not hidden the rune before his death...it would be in your possession right now.” Oliver’s demeanor seemed to be shifting by the second, before Owen could even respond, he continued his verbal assault like a relentless storm.
“Not to mention....you and those Brunhild guys...you’re all from the capital, aren’t you? And you’re all level one to boot. If you look at the bigger picture here, then something obviously isn’t right. The information about the Basilisk hiding in a cave up north was definitely a ruse, one meant to lure me away, and the second I wasn’t here the entirety of Zale’s forces were crippled by that monster, leaving us with no choice but to request aid from your former allies.”
“That still doesn’t prove anything....” Owen dryly spat, his brows now converging in anger.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
“Perhaps not....” Oliver heaved a sigh, tilting his head back to gaze upon the celestial body now drifting across the sky. “.......But you can never be too sure. If I wasn’t here then Vreena would be the only one who could confront any of you, her level isn’t any higher than yours so I doubt she could put up much of a fight against you all.” The pressure in Oliver’s voice was one so potent it cast a sentinel trance on their surroundings.
“You’re overthinking this......” Owen said in a somewhat begrudging tone.
“Well, whatever the case is, we’ll know for sure in a few days.”
“What...do you mean by that?” His stuttery words trailed off in the wake of Oliver’s bold declaration.
“I wasn’t just wasting time these past few weeks you know. It’s a little earlier than planned, but we’ll be leaving this town as soon as I’ve finished that thing off, and since this is taking far too long, I’ve sent a letter out to some old friends of mine. With their help I should be able to wrap this up quickly and then I’ll have an escort party for me and my family ready and waiting. Depending on the circumstances, the journey from the capital to here can take anywhere from two weeks to over a month, but they were closer than I thought so they should be here in a few days.” A bit of vigor had returned to Oliver’s voice, his lips were now slowly curling up to form a bearded smile.
“I see...then I wish you all the best.”
“Well, that’s not exactly what I was trying to say. You see, one of my old friends just so happens to be a Faerie, and as I’m sure you know....Faeries can see through lies.” That last sentence was one so menacing it sent shivers through the air.
Owen’s widening eyes trembled in their sockets, and he exhaled a deep breath before covering his face with his right hand.
“Damn it....” He muttered bitterly “Gifted people like you and Lennon always act like you’re a step ahead of everyone else...heh.....well I guess Lennon isn’t so gifted anymore.”
Oliver’s fist burled in the wake of his cold remark, Owen slowly released the menacing grip on his own face, his bloodshot eyes stared down Oliver with a gaze that oozed bloodlust so potent it could poison the air.
“So it’s true.....Owen, why did you kill Lennon?” Oliver asked through gritted teeth.
The man formed a crude smile before responding - “He was in the way; though now that I think back on it, killing him then and there was a pretty bad move.”
Sensing the sudden shift in Oliver’s aura, Owen turned to face him with a cynical grimace.
“Oliver....you seem to be under some kind of misunderstanding....” Owen took a few steps closer after adjusting the cynical look on his face. “I’m not trying to take over this place, I’m only here for the rune. And another thing....as for Brunhilde, while we are technically working together, it’s every man for himself, so first come, first served.” There was no longer any sort of pleasantry in his tone, it now sounded crude and unforgiving.
“So you’ve just been biding your time here huh? Why wait five whole years?” Oliver calmly asked, his fists were now clenched so tight the bones in his own hand had started creaking.
“Why?” Owen asked with a raised eyebrow, before completely overhauling his entire expression. “Because you showed up, that’s why! If you and your wife hadn’t shown up here, I wouldn’t need to waste years waiting for that monster to recover! I wouldn’t need Amaris to tame it to use as a distraction! I wouldn’t need to suffer the humiliation of wasting five whole years out here, all for one single rune! I could have just killed Vreena and then take my time combing through this place...but you-!”
“I get it.” Oliver cut off the panting knight, rage now seeped from every pore in his body.
“You want to use the rune and boost your level, is that it? Are you still trying to get some kind of approval from those raiders back in the capital?” Oliver questioned, but immediately decided to dismiss that train of thought. “No, it doesn’t matter. Nothing justifies what you’ve done.”
“Someone like you would never understand.” Owen cursed “I’m apart of something much bigger than that, Gehenna’s goals are far beyond the scope of what you could ever imagine.”
“Gehenna?” Oliver mused, toning down the intensity of his rage.
“Forget it Oliver, it’s too late now. We both know there’s only one way this plays out.”
“You can’t beat me; you should know that by now.” Oliver remarked, casually adjusting his glasses as if to cement the fact.
“Heh-Heh-Heh....I know, but I don’t need to beat you, I just need to buy time. And besides, I haven’t exactly been completely honest about my own strength either.”
Owen’s body began emitting a faint blue glow that soon overpowered the dim illumination of the moonlit forest with its own brilliance. In response, Oliver simply opened his left palm, and with barely any effort, he gathered a swirl of resplendent flames that danced lazily in the space above his hand.
In the wake of his adversary’s charge, Oliver’s eyes widened from behind the thick frame of his well-adorned glasses. “So that’s your true power huh....”