"Is something wrong Sun?" Tatiana asked as she swirled her spoon in the cup.
"No, nothing is...wrong." Sunshen replied, his gaze fixed on the untouched strawberry cake before him.
"You seem out of sorts and you have bags under your eyes." She continued. "Is it still that night, is it haunting you?" She leaned closer, putting her hand over his.
Sunshen quickly jerked away, flexing his fingers. His sudden motion waking him up from the dark thoughts in his mind. He saw the hurt in Tatiana's eyes as he moved away from her and quickly reached for her hand back.
"I am sorry dear. There has been way too much going on in so little time. It makes me jumpy." He tried to laugh. She eyed him suspiciously for a bit, but then she leaned closer again.
"I know what else can make you...jumpy." she said, a sly smile across her face.
"Do you now?" Sunshen tried to answer as he usually would, though he wasn't in it. He used to love these afternoons, the talking, the flirting and of course, the sex. But even now, when she was in front of him, he couldn't focus.
"Oh yes. Imagine, you and me, alone in a locked room, close enough so we feel each other's breath. Embraced. On the bed a whip-" she stopped talking when she noticed that Sunshen's gaze got lost somewhere in the crowd.
"Oh you are so dry today." she replied, pulling back from the hold.
"Sorry, I am focused now." Sunshen replied.
"Have you finally spoken with your father?" Tatiana asked, unknowingly picking at a hornets nest.
"No, not since I came back." Sunshen's mind darkened with the mention of his father.
"How will you tell him?"
"Tell him what?" Sunshen asked surprised.
"About the watch?"
Relief washed over him, easing the tension in his shoulders. Of course she doesn’t know, he thought. But how did she even know about the watch? He brushed the thought aside; Tatiana was at the heart of every rumor in town. He shouldn’t have been surprised.
"I don't know, Maggie told me I should try to focus on the survival aspect of the whole thing."
"Oh Maggie this and Maggie that. You always throw that woman in my face!"
"Sorry, she was worried, so I talked it through with her."
"I know you have been through a traumatic experience, but do you think I wasn't worried?"
Sunshen did not even realize. She probably was worried, he would be. How worried she'd be, if she knew what is tasked of me.
"You haven't visited me once." Sunshen pointed out.
"Because I could not bear to look upon my Sunny in that condition! My fragile heart would chip and shatter!" She defended herself loudly. "And you didn't contact me once since you left the hospital!"
"I know, I know. I wasn't trying to say you did not care. I was just lonely, that is all. Sorry that I didn't let you know."
"You are not alone now and yet you do not focus." she pouted.
"Please," Sunshen said, his tone pleading. "I’ve got a lot on my plate right now."
"Like what?"
Sunshen obviously couldn't say. He was specifically told not to talk to anyone about the whole ordeal. Tatiana wasn't just anyone, but she was a blabbermouth, she was worse. "I told you dear, I can't speak of my work. It is highly discreet."
"Who is more discreet than me?"
Sunshen sipped from his cup, as he jokingly arched his right eyebrow at her.
"I am not that bad at keeping secrets. Am I?" When Sunshen's eyes rolled to the roof, she raised her voice angrily. " Anyway, you have been carrying this look for the last month! How can I not pry? How can you be so cruel as to not tell me anything?"
"I...can't." he said with difficulty. The orders he gotten swimming around his head. Haunting him with their impossibility.
"Have it your way." Tatiana abruptly stood up. "You have plenty of time to change your mind, as my aunt from my mother's side arrived and is leaving this evening. You better think of what you will say to me then. For now, bye Sunshen." she almost spat as she turned around angrily and walked out of the saloon.
Sunshen felt ashamed at himself as he watched the two mostly full cups before him. The stress of the situation had been weighting on him heavily and he had no idea how to resolve it.
Still, waiting here and hoping that the situation would pass by was wishful impossible thinking he knew very well. Sunshen paid for the drinks and gone on a walk. They met at a park quite a bit away from his home, so he had enough time to think.
He had wanted to talk to his father anyway, he was getting frustrated with the way things were working between them. If his mother was still here, it would pain her to see it. But he did not manage to gather enough strength for it.
Now there was also the case of his mission...
...the room was dark and eerie, only the small Niatra on the table illuminating the walls. The floor had been in a familiar spherical shape, very similar to the hall where his first test took place. Herner was waiting at the table his signature smile carefree on his face. Just a week ago, that smile would evoke feelings of wonder and yearning in Sunshen. Few days ago, it would give him hope and prideful joy. Now, Sunshen was only afraid of what's to come...
Maybe he waited too long. Maybe if he put his foot down earlier, his father would give way, or at least understand him. But how could he show his face now? He was a disgrace by birth, a black ugly spot on the pristine lineage of the house of Gureth.
He walked past a house on the side street, the same one he saw a dead family get escorted from. Now, different people lived inside, probably also a family. Aware of the danger and instable condition of the niatra, yet unable to do anything about it.
He was born into a "good" family. He had money, he had safety, he had power. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and he knew it well. Most people would sacrifice a hand willingly, maybe both if they knew they would be in his position. But for him it still wasn't enough.
He walked on and on, making sure to notice his surroundings, as if he was seeing them for his last time. He appreciated the doves on the lamps, the uneven cobbles of the side streets and the festive decorations of the shops on the main avenue. It was hollow and full of life. It was dark and it was bright. But he knew he was getting closer and closer to his home.
"I am so proud of you Sun." Herner spoke. I knew it since then. You were underappreciated, belittled. Your talents forgotten for your shortcomings." Herner said as he grabbed Sunshens lame arm. "But those days will be over Sun. Sun...like the object of myth, you will shine on our journey. Ah! I love when things come together." He finished as he pressed a golden machine to his limp. The machine buzzed and moved, untill it created an elbow.
"Coming together and making a whole." He said as he pressed a different golden cube against the elbow. It sprawled and moved, it screwed and it complained with steam. "Whole." Sunshen repeated as he watched his human-like golden hand. He moved it. It moved. He picked up a pen and he felt its little weight.
He held his hands together, he played with his blackened fingers. He was so happy.
He has never thought that he might...that it could...
"How?"
"The Dok is a master engineer and I helped a little."
Herner was still smiling, a sparkle of something new in his eyes.
He arrived before the family gates.
"Gureth" written over the iron gates with golden letters. These gates never seemed inviting to him, always trying to keep him out with their lock. It was hard to open with one hand.
He grabbed the lock mechanism with his left hand. Its movement was precise and quick, almost as if it knew what he wanted before he acted. He eyed the lock, the unforgiving barrier that he failed to overcome alone many times.
His hand suddenly pressed onto the lock, breaking it in two. Sunshen was surprised by the sudden force, but he understood. He did want that lock destroyed for a long time.
He walked inside, the great halls surprisingly empty of servants. He watched the paintings on the stairs. "Teodor Gureth", his great grandfather, "Jilem Gureth", his grandfather,
"Magnus Gureth ", his father. And an empty frame, seemingly made to someday fit him.
Sunshen moved through the hall, his steps echoing through the silence of the house.
He walked into the common room, where Magnus sat and drank. Watching the cozy fire before him.
"There is work that needs doing Sun. The family needs you. You have proven yourself capable. Now, you need to bear your weight." The light of the niatra flickered. Sunshen listened, but his focus was still on his new arm. On the greatest gift he had ever gotten.
"Yes." He said, allured. "Consider it done"
Herner made a surprised face, then nodded his head and stretched out his arms.
Sunshen accepted the gesture, embracing him with both hands, lonely tears sliding across his face.
"That's it son. Oh, did I say that out loud? Well, it's in the open now."
Sunshen heard none of Herner's words, taken aback by the gentle movements of his new arm, the situation a blur.
"I am so proud of what you have accomplished, my son. So lucky to have met you. So thankful that I could be your close one. I won't ever forget about you. Even when I sit on the throne of the wicked, when I punch a hole in the purple skies. Never. But now..."
"Now I need you to do something Sunshen. Something about Magnus Gureth.
"Hello father" Sunshen said, his voice quivering.
"Finally came to talk I see." Magnus turned to him.
"Yes. To talk." Sunshen said as he walked over to one of the empty armchairs. "I am sorry for the delay, I had been preoccupied."
"Glad to see you healthy." Magnus said, eyeing the new prosthetic on Sunshens arm. Sunshen was very careful not to move it.
"How have you been father? Anything new?" Sunshen asked, as he gently pulled the covers over his golden hand.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
"Abstain of the chittering young man. We are both well aware of why you are here."
"Are we?" Sunshen asked, nervous.
"It was nigh time that you would accept the responsibility." Magnus said as he stood up. "I am glad you came, but I do not need you to say it yourself. I know of your deed."
Sunshen's mind raced and his heart beat faster than ever. Had his father known about the rebellion? Would he scold him? Would he complain about his inadequacy or his stubborn foolishness? Would he...would he help him get out?
"You managed to kill a fog beast. That is to your merit. I would expect nothing less of my son."
"How do you know?"
"It was my patrol that found you and my patrol that did a sweep of the area. They had found out treasured clock in pieces, stuck in a decaying body of a hound. Don't misunderstand me, your taking the clock and destroying it is still a dire betrayal of my trust. But the means of which it was destroyed somewhat mitigate its loss."
"Oh, yes...that is it."
"Of course. You must have known I would find out about it's destruction someday. From the day of my great grandfather..." Magnus continued, explaining the great history of their family and the passed down clock.
Meanwhile Sunshen could not help but feel disappointment. This man, the bane of his existence for all of his life. The man that held his fate in his hands. The man whose approval Sunshen desired. This man knew so little. How could he even pose a threat?
"What about my father?" Sunshen took a step back. The joy from the occasion disappearing instantly.
"Oh do not worry. Nothing gruesome. He is only being mislead is all. He is an avid supporter of the tyrant. A powerful one too. As long as he stays that way, he will become a hinderance sooner or later. Especially now, when he caught you outside of the city. Now he knows something is going on, that you are a part of us."
Sunshen thought about what he said. It made sense, Gureths were known for their export and import of goods. They were the leading force, at least here in Kitva.
"So do you need something smuggled in?"
"Not just something and not just once. That is why we need full support of the head of the Gureth family, not just a favor."
"I understand, but you see, my father, he is not easily convinced."
"The family needs it Sunshen."
"I came here for a different reason today." Sunshen interrupted Magnus in the middle of his speech. "I have a proposition for you."
Magnus's brow deepened and his eyes focused. His stature and demeanor changed. From the all-knowing father, to the interested yet endangered merchant. He took out a silver box and opened it to reveal four cigars. He took one out of them, then closed the case shut.
"I am listening." said the man before Sunshen. Suddenly it wasn't the man Sunshen knew. The Magnus Gureth, disappointed father was gone, the Magnus Gureth, the merchant with an opportunity took his place.
"A simple moving job really. There are certain packages in different cities that have to find their way here."
"And how do you propose you would pay for such a transaction?"
"We would-"
"We? Are you here today in the name of an organization? Or is this some idea of yours?"
"...An organization."
"That changes things then." Magnus lit his cigar. "What can they offer me?"
They huh? Can take me seriously only when I am representing someone else? His golden arm instinctively clawed at his armchair in frustration, leaving narrow grooves.
"For every trip a chest of value metal, a piece of steam machinery or new fresh niatras."
"You offer a lot Sunshen," Magnus started his forehead sharpening in suspicion. "What is the organization you are a part of?"
"We both know I would have already told you, had I wanted to. Can we move back to business?" Sunshen shook off the pressure of his fathers gaze. Magnus nodded at the response, puffing from his cigar. Seemingly not noticing how Sunshens hand shook.
"The offer seems almost suspiciously beneficial to my side. Coupled with the fact that our mayor had prohibited movement of any merchandise, I am unfortunately forced to reject it."
"Prohibition has never stopped you before father. Especially since complications only mean greater pay."
"That was before. The situation has changed in the last couple of months. You would have known if you had decided to listen to me." Magnus replied. "A different topic. Your sudden involvement with an 'organization' deeply disturbs me. If it was anything accepted and registered, I would have heard of it by now. What have you gotten yourself into?"
"No concern of yours." Sunshen replied, his anger rising.
"I disagree. It is of great concern to me what sort of folk you associate yourself with. You are supposed to be my successor after all. That is the whole reason I had you."
"But that's not the only reason. He binds you Sunshen"
"Binds me?"
"Can you not see it boy? All he wants is to train himself a successor. He cares not for you."
"You need to free yourself Sunshen. You need to free yourself."
"What...what do you mean?" Sunshen asked, his knees getting weak.
"You know full well Sunshen. You saw my methods first hand. I won't force you to do that. As long as you accomplish your mission, your ways are for you to choose."
"Are you saying that you want me to kill my father?" Sunshen took a few steps back.
"I am not. All I am saying that we need the head of house Gureth to cooperate with us. No matter who the head might be."
"I am applying myself, father." Sunshen said standing up. "I am finally learning of the world around me. Doing something about my life. Something else than your bidding."
"Calm your voice." replied Magnus sternly. "I had been too lenient, I can see that now. You are to leave this organization. It does not have a positive influence over you. If you feel so inclined as to work, I will find suitable work for you. For now, leave me be."
"No, I need to finish this right now. I had been tasked with-"
"Not anymore. You are to leave tomorrow. " Magnus had decided. Sunshen was not to continue his exploits.
"Leave? I can't just leave!" Sunshen stood up. "I have come here to talk business to the house of Gureth, not to be berated by my father! You are always in my way, always think you are so right. You never supported me, never once acted like a father."
"I am giving you a last chance father. You can cooperate with me on this." Sunshen waited for his father to answer.
"I have already said my mind. Your tantrum changes none of it."
Under pressure and unheard, Sunshen was at his wits end. He saw what had happened, when Herner had not gotten his way. Saw what happened when he killed someone for failure. He could not help but imagine the needle enter his throat, the words of disappointed cruelty whispered to his ear.
He knew what his father was like, there was no convincing him of anything. The man so stoic as to become stone. The man that could have prevented Sunshen to fall into the hands he was in now, if only he would ever accept him as he was. Sunshen knew that he was at the end of their discussion and nothing would sway his father's view to his favor.
He grew angry at his father's hubris. He could never see his qualities, never appreciate all that he could do and only focusing on what he cannot. If anyone is to blame for Sunshen's misfortune, it is him. His self-righteous father, his stuck up jailor that wears blinds.
Suddenly his new hand moved. As if controlled by an urge that Sunshen had not noticed, it dragged him behind it. It wanted to kill, wanted to feel his father's blood in it's cogs. He could not stop it, could not prevent it as the hand connected with Magnus's stomach, as he felt it tear his skin and crush his insides. As it gone through the whole body and appeared from his father's back.
Sunshen watched in terror, as the crimson drops fell from it's fingers. As the golden hand clutched around the mass of insides it gathered in it's palm. His breath was still, the moment unending.
"What are you..." painfully muttered Magnus, as he slid from the hand.
As the body of Magnus dropped to the floor, along with the yelps of a dying man, Sunshen felt his world fall apart. The man he had wanted to impress, laid in a bloody pile.
Sunshen did not believe it. It all happened so sudden, it all happened without his say so.
But he could not leave it like this, lest he would become a murderer. Out of desperation Sunshen made his way to the fireplace, using his golden hand, he picked up the burning coal and wood and threw it around the room, setting it ablaze.
He ran to the hall and gazed back one last time. As he burned away all that mattered to him before.
Sunshen stood outside the burning mansion, watching the flames climb higher, the roaring heat consuming the walls that had once confined him. His mind was blank, the weight of what he'd just done settling deep in his bones. His golden hand, still slick with his father's blood, twitched by his side. The fire crackled and popped behind him, the once grand house now a smoldering grave for Magnus Gureth.
What have I done?
The question echoed in his mind, his chest tightening with each passing second. He had always dreamed of breaking free from his father’s iron grip, but not like this. Not with his blood on his hands.
Whether he wanted to or not, Sunshen had made a decision that day. There was no turning back from the reality he had fallen into. No one to brunt the weight of this heinous act.
His new arm twitched and spasmed in the light of the fire until a sharp pain shot through it, making the golden hand clenching uncontrollably. Sunshen gasped, stumbling against the cold stone wall. He watched in horror as the hand spasmed, the gears within twisting and grinding as if fighting against him.
He ran into the night, ashamed and in pain, running to the one place that may welcome him still. A doer of patricide.
Aimlessly, he ran to the center of the city. Hoping the open light of the square would give him solace. But it was empty. Maybe the emptiest it ever was.
Even here, Sunshen was alone. Even here there was no sound, no noise, no distraction from what he did.
A drop of blood fell from his golden arm, as he turned to the town hall. The hands on the great clock of the tower seemed to have dragged on. Announcing each second slowly and deliberately. In that moment, Sunshen was sure. The clock counted down his time. It counted down to his very end.
He watched the giant marvel of time, the messenger of his dawn, and a thought manifested in his crazed state.
He could inform the mayor. He could tell him of Herner, of Percy, of Nataniel. He could tell him of their goal, to dethrone him. To cause chaos.
He almost took a step, but the sound of the clock stopped him. It was menacing. In the empty clearing, alone on a platform of rock and stone. He alone heard the tick surround him.
He was weak, he was rotten, he was human only partly.
He turned tail and ran to the only place where a murderer might be accepted.
The hand swished around and spasmed stronger and stronger, sending Sunshen tumbling more than once. The gears squeezed at Sunshen's arm, crushing and twisting it even more.
But he could not focus on the pain. Sunshen was running from what he had done, he ran faster and faster, hoping to outrun the reality.
The one thing he had gained, he was slowly losing. What if the blood clogged it's gears? What if it was irreparable? He had only just got this hand. He did not want to lose it again.
He had ran into the mansion, running through the high wide halls. He had knocked the door to Herner's study, where the man was enjoying a cigar.
Herner was sitting there, looking at Sunshen as he barged inside of the study. A face of content on his face.
"It is an honour to meet the new head of house Gureth." he said, contently.
"The hand!" was all that Sunshen managed to get out, before the hand spasmed again.
"Oh, what a fuss." Herner said as he stood up and slowly walked over to the pained Sunshen.
"Whatever could be the problem?" Herner said, as he pressed a metal ball on the hand's surface.
Suddenly it calmed, returning to it's original position.
"Probably a malfunction. Don't worry, you just have to find me whenever that starts happening." Herner said.
Sunshen looked at his hand...
Not mine. It was never mine to begin with. He thought. Herner had given him the arm, not as a gift, but as a leash. Made to help him break the old chains, to make room for newer ones.
Herner lifted Sunshen's head by the chin, connecting their gaze.
"Great job Sunshen. I am so very proud of you." he said. "I have prepared a lodging for you, I figured you might be...out of your house. Upper floor, second on the right. You should clean yourself up. You look like a butcher's boy." Herner stood up and opened the doors wide for him.
Sunshen nodded his head and walked.
The room he was given was spacious, with it's own fireplace, dining area and a water heating system. The giant metal boiler buzzed slightly as Sunshen took off his clothes and got into the shower.
The water mercifully washed away the blood. Though the metal still seemed darker where it made contact. Not the clear golden it was before.
I killed him. I killed my father. Sunshen dropped to his knees in the shower, sobbing.
He still saw the look on his father's face. The surprise and pain. He felt the warmness of his insides over his hand. He smelt the cigar and the smoke...
Starting with the watch, Sunshen had single-handily destroyed a family legacy.