Cloud [chapter11]

Alcea was pacing around the fountain. “How could you not know where she is?”

He had been raging on about the girl the entire day, while I’d been sitting at the foot of the fountain and listening to him yammering on and on about how angry he was.

My answer remained the same, “I don’t know.”

Alcea stomped his feet, causing crack to appear around me. “Why did you let her escape?”

I rested my chin on my hands. “I don’t know.”

He ran his hand through his hair and started pacing again. “She could not have fully developed her powers yet… none of the records show that the chrysalis can control people, so why would Jones-that headless bastard- help her? Unless… no… it’s not possible….” Alcea mumbled to himself.

I muttered under my breath, “What is it ye would see? If aught of woe or wonder, cease your search.”

“What did you say?”

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t think you’ll get anywhere by pacing around all day.”

“Well, what do you think I should do?” He hissed, “But do not forget to give me a reason why I should trust a traitor in advance.”

I closed my eyes.

Count to five… one… two… three-

“Are you going to nap or give me ideas?”

…Four…five.

I took a deep breath, “Well, we should first list everything we know so far, right?” I looked at Alcea for confirmation.

He crossed his arms. “One, you are a traitor. Two, Light has been taken to an unknown location. Three, you assisted my enemies to kidnap my bride-to-be.”

How can anyone be this irritating?

“Four,” I added, “The cocoons and chrysalises are attracted to each other. Five, I know where one of the cocoon’s family is.”

Alcea gave me a blank stare.

…Don’t tell me that he doesn’t know what a cocoon is….

“The cocoon is the chrysalis’s opposite. While the chrysalis feeds off of happiness and brings misery, the cocoon feeds off of misery so it brings joy.”

Alcea grumbled, “Do not talk to me as if I’m an idiot.”

We stared at one another.

“Do not dare say what you are thinking right now,” He threatened.

I held my breath to keep from bursting into laughter but, by the way Alcea looked ready to burn my face to a crisp, I wasn’t doing a very good job of it.

He let out a frustrated sigh, “So do you know who the cocoon is?”

“Give me a second.”

I closed my eyes again, that time it wasn’t to keep myself from giving Alcea to my hellhounds for a snack.

I was using a technique called ‘seeker’s third eye’ but seeing as how it was a really boring and stupid name it was more commonly called ‘seeing’. It required me to extend my magic to my target, then to connect their mind with mine like a cable. By doing this I could easily gather data by ‘reading’ the target’s thoughts, controlling its movement, and ‘seeing’ through its eyes. All of this could be done without alerting the target, which was commonly one’s own familiar, or a human.

My target was a human; the cocoon’s younger sister to be exact.

**************

“Mary!” A voice was calling the girl.

“Mary, where are you?” Lsil.

The lady put her finger on her red-painted lips. “Shhh.”

“But.…” The girl protested.

The woman smiled at her.

Her teeth….

“It’s alright, come with me. It’ll only take a second.” The woman crooned.

Her voice is so pretty….

Vampire; what was she doing outside in the day?

“Mary!” Lsil. The cocoon.

Brother sounds worried….

The vampire looked into the girl’s eyes. “It’s going to be fine. It’ll only take a second, alright?”

Her eyes are so pretty…. “Okay.”

The vampire started-singing a pretty- spell to evoke the- black fire!

A figure- Lsil- stood at the edge of the park.

“Mary!” The cocoon boy had brown hair and blue eyes, he- brother, why are you angry?

The vampire had completed her spell just as the cocoon reached them.

“Brother?” The girl stared at the- Lsil, don’t cry.

The vampire and the girl were carried away from Earth to Amaran, home. I let my spell end and returned to my body.

**************

I slowly opened one eye at a time, aware of the pounding in my head.

Alcea tapped his foot impatiently, “Well?”

I winced at the sound. I’d always hated the feeling I got after ‘seeing,’ it was like having a really bad hangover.

But….

I smiled, “I found the cocoon.”

Alcea turned his back to me, “Good. Now bring it here.” He waved his hand in dismissal.

Ungrateful little....

“Yes.”

**************

The cocoon was still at the park when I appeared. He had his head in his hands as well as tears running down his face.

I kicked a pebble at him. “That’s really pitiful you know.”

The boy looked up at me and hastily wiped the tears from his face.

He blushed, “I didn’t hear you coming.”

I grinned and gathered energy in my hands. I lifted them as the energy turned into fire.

The cocoon gasped. He was frozen in place, whether or not it was from fear or astonishment wasn’t clear. “You’re a demon.”

I threw a ball of fire. It missed his head by a hair.

“Good to know.”

The boy shrieked but remained trembling in the same spot.

It’s not working?

I half growled and half laughed madly, “C’mon, boy. Let me see the murderous expression of yours again!”

 “P-please don’t k-k-kill m-me.” He pleaded. The kid looked ready to pee in his pants and he’d started to cry again.

I let the magic from the fire in my other hand dissipate. I walked over to the child until we were only a few steps away from each other.

 I looked down at the kid, seeing as how he was a full head shorter than me and taking a great interest in his shoes, it would’ve been hard not to.

Time to try a different approach.

I smiled brightly, “Do you want your sister back?”

The change was immediate; the kid’s eyes brightened and his quivering stopped.

“You have my sister?” He asked.

Interesting.

I tilted my head. “Perhaps….”

The kid’s form was perfect; wide stance, strong guard… and the blade was perfectly aligned with his forearm, aiming at the most vital part of my throat.

I let myself get slightly carried away; after all, it’d been a while since I met a human that tried to kill me without a trembling gun. I grabbed the kid’s arm and flipped him over my head. I spun around, and then snapped the arm that held the knife with my foot. The boy let out a wounded howl as he released the knife so he could cradle his arm.

I crouched down by the kid’s head, and picked up his knife. “Your name is Lsil, right?”

His eyes followed the blade being tossed back and forth, no doubt waiting for a chance to steal it back. “Yes,” he croaked.

“That’s good. I don’t want to get the wrong one after all.” I smiled at the child. “Who taught you how to fight? Your form was excellent!”

Lsil’s face was stony.

I sighed, “Alright then, I’ll get on to the business. My master wants me to bring you to him so he can use you to track down a person. If his plans go smoothly without me dying during it, I’ll tell you where you can find your sister,” I scratched my neck with the handle of the knife, “And if you’re nice enough I might even help you rescue her.”

Lsil frowned, “Who does you master want to find?”

I blew a strand of hair from my face. “His girlfriend.”

***************

Do you know how lazy I am? Very.

Did you know that this week I have my exams? Now you do.

So why am I writing this instead of studying? I have no idea.

I'm so proud of myself.

 *cries myself to sleep in my corner*