Lifeline
An original fiction by Travis J. DeSantis
Part Two
Ryae sat, half-cowering, on a small couch while this strnage man interogated Lord Dukus on the other side of the room. Dukus was tied up in a chair while the man was speaking sharply, but not loud enough for Ryae to hear. If the man didn't hear what he wanted to, Dukus would receive a quick punchto the stomach. That appeared quite painful, for Dukus' eyes glazed over with each punch. It seemed very effective though.
Ryae was usually very good at determining a person's personality and intentions from just their appearance, but this man was hard to figure out. He was of moderate height and was slender, but muscular. His face was fairly handsome with fierce, pale blue eyes and slightly unkempt, sandy blonde hair. He wore black bucke;d boots, baggy white pants bunched at the ankles, and a white jacket of peculiar cut over a grey shirt with a low neckline. Ryae got the hint that he was normally kind because she could see a highlight of benevolence in his eyes when he looked at her. Also, he had soft features despite his rugged face. But he had the body and manner of a warrior, completely contradicting the personality she got from him. What really scared her was that between this contradiction and the unheard conversation, she couldn't figure out his intentions and thus couldn't prepare herself for what might be coming next.
"You sonova bitch! You don't really deserve to live, you know that! If you don't spill it right now, I won't even consider sparing you!" bellowed the man. At this moment, Ryae was dreadfully frightened of him.
~~~~~
Kinjo was getting very impatient, which was obvious thanks to to his outburst. He made a mentla note to control his temper next time.
"Are you serious? Are you really going to kill me?" Dukus' voice was meek and barely audible.
"Yes, I'm quite serious," Kinjo growled. Dukus swallowed audibly. He wa sweating prfusely and gasped in short, shallow breaths. "What is the name of the slave trader in this town?
"K-komo," he stuttered.
"Where can I find him?"
"I...I don't.....I don't know." Dukus was looking around anxiously, obviously trying to find an expect route.
"Don't even think about it," replied Kinjo, his voice deathly quite. "Where?"
"I-I...."
"Tell me!"
Dukus heaved a great sigh. "Darsalias," he said reluctantly. "Komo's base of operations is there...but that's all I know! Please, you must believe me!" quailed the fat man.
"I believe you."
"Then....can I live?"
"Ummmmmm........no."
The room seemed to darken as an etherela light emanated from Kinjo's right hand. The light did not flicker, but pulsed regularly like a beating heart. Kinjo clasped his hand around the light, causing it to reach out in a single shaft. Abruptly, it stopped expanding and seemed to take shape. Its outline began to define, taking the form of a sword. This continued until what Kinjo held was an intricately detailed long sword forged of light, glowing gently but with a ferocity no seen in Hell itself.
Kinjo heard a startled gasp behind him. It was Ryae. He didn't want to expose her to this, but it was probably necessary for her to understand who he was.
"A....a spirit weapon...?" Dukus's words were barely a whisper
The blade of pure light whistled through the now silent air. The almost negligent slash lopped off the fat man's head. The cut was clean and there was no blood as Lord Dukus' head rolled across the floor. Kinjo turned around to face Ryae. The irl was curled up on the couch and was weeping into her hands. Kinjo felt sorry for her, but steeled himself to finish the job. As he turned to face Dukus' corpse, energy was visibly gathering around his spirit weapon. Kinjo pointed it at the body and there was a burst of hot, blinding light. When the light faded, all that was left of the noble was a scattering of chared ash.
Ryae raised her eyes to Kinjo, as if asking for an explanation. But the hard look in his eyes firghtened her. With a startled wail and a thick sob, she renewed her crying. Ever so gently, Kinjo eased himself onto the couch next to her, laying a hand on the weeping girl's back in an attempt to console her.
~~~~~
Ryae awoke with a start. She was sure it was a nightmare, nothing more. But then, where was she and what was she doing in this bed? There were never such furnishings in the slave dwellings.
"Good morning."
Ryae looked for the source of the voice. It was the young man from the day before. He was sitting in a chair with his back to the window. The sun was shining and dust motes swept listlessly through the air.
"You," she said accusingly. "You're the man from last night. You murdered Lord Dukus."
"Murder is such an ugly word. Besides, who's going to notice one less perverted scum bag? Would you rather he as still alive? You didn't seem to care for his advances."
Ryae was startled by his abrupt answer. "Well...no. But, I...um, thank you."
"You shouldn't thank me. I was going to kill him anyway."
~~~~~
Kinjo didn't want to be so rough on her, but she had to get used to the fact that he is a rather casual killer.
"Who are you? I mean really, who are you? No lies. I saw what you did last night. No ordinary man could cast a spell so strong."
"My name is Kinjo. That spell was actually....call it 'inner strength'. It's not quite like magic. Look, I'm not going to hurt you.... That's really all you need to know," he said matter-of-factly.
"What was that sword of light? The one that came out of your hand?"
Kinjo hesitated at this. The sword was represented a concept and power that couldn't be expressed properly with just words. He shouldn't even try to tell her. About him, his past, and especially not about his spirit weapon. But the look she gave him, that pleadingly disarming look weakened his resolve. "It's a spirit weapon. Mine's called the...Radiant Long Sword."
"You named your weapon?"
"It already had a name when--nevermind. There's a lot about me you don't want to know, but you'll learn along the way..."
"'Along the way'? What do you mean?" she asked quizzically.
"Let me explain." Kinjo looked thoughtful. "Sometimes, I get these feelings, like a premonition. It happened just after I'd toppled Dukus. I got one...about you. I'm not sure what it means. It feels sorta like you're important. You're going to be involved in something down the road that will affect my quest. Something that's going to affect me..."
Ryae was silent.
"I know! It sounds weird, but...you have to trust me on this. I'm not sure how to handle it, so I was kinda hoping you'd come with me."
Kinjo had such a look of innocence about his face that Ryae just couldn't ignore. "Okay...I'll go with you."
Kinjo smiled. "That's great." She had effectively lifted his spirits, making her somewhat happier as well. "Tell you what: you settle in and I'll go pay for the room. Then we can rest up tonight. I'll even spring for dinner; how's that?"
"Sounds fantastic. Thank you, Kinjo, for everything..."
Smiling all the while, Kinjo made his way out of the room. Closing the door behind himself, Kinjo thought about how he would be sharing the room with her tonight. Sharing, he thought with a laugh. The room yes, the bed no. He laughed again at the thought of that. He was getting kind of attached to the girl, but not that attached. He was only 19, so she wasn't much younger, but he couldn't quite bring himself to think of her like that.
Almost, but not quite.
Kinjo made his way down the stairs into the bar area. In the time they spent upstairs, the bar had filled out and was now packed with drunkards, criminals, and worse. Despite the crowd, the owner of the tavern wasn't helping out. He was at a corner table nursing a cigar stump. Thick smoke hung listlessly in the air around him as Kinjo approached. The owner was heavy set and had strong, muscular arms. His face was completely covered with coarse hair, but his head was bald and shiny.
"You're the owner, right?" Kinjo asked.
"Yup," he grunted. Obviously not a conversationalist.
"How much for a room for the night?"
"One silver crown."
"Don't you think that's a bit much?"
"No."
It took a few minutes of intense haggling. The price dropped and rose, dropped and rose. Eventually, they settled on a fair and just price that properly covered the value of the room. One silver crown.
"Not that that's settled," Kinjo said, sifting through his money pouch, "who do I talk to about dinner?"
"Pierre."
"Ah...thanks. And he would be where?"
"The kitchen."
Oh. Duh.
Kinjo walked past the bar into a back room he guessed was the kitchen, stopping only to punch out the occasional pestering drunk. Withing the small, cramped kitchen sat a thin, pale man on a stool. He was wearing the strict white of a serious chef. His mushroom-like hat lay on a table. His hair was graying and thinning and he had a pencil-thin, handlebar moustache. He was humming and waving his hands to some unheard music.
"Pierre?" Kinjo asked.
"Wha!? What are you doing in here? Get out!" He was on the verge of hysteria. Apparently he didn't like being interrupted.
"Whoa, whoa. Calm down, friend," said Kinjo.
"What do you want?" he demanded. He had a strange, delicate accent.
"I'd like to order dinner for two--"
"No."
"Beg pardon?"
"No. I am off duty. If you want food, go outside to the party."
Kinjo flipped the man a gold crown. "I'm sure you can find a place in your heart to help me out. Here's a list, I'll be back in thirty minutes to pick it up." Kinjo handed Pierre the list and made his way out. He left the tavern and headed towards the town square. Dinner and rest was nice, but he wanted to give Ryae a real surprise.
