I hurried deeper into the Brume, knowing that Fray was at my heels. I felt the large sword at my back, a weight I was somewhat excited to carry. With that weight I felt power. Something I hadn’t felt since the damn banquet.
I ran over broken brick and stone, joined with weak and untreated wood. At the bottom of a set of stairs the voice cried out again and I my ears twitched. I sensed the voice to my left and ran down that path and then around another corner, careful not to twist my ankle on the war-scarred brick.
Fray and I came upon a few people, two men and an older lady. She was crouched on the ground—and at first, I wasn’t sure if the two men were attacking her. So I approached with caution, my right hand over my shoulder, my grip on the hilt of the sword.
The moment she became aware of us, she stood and ignored those at her side. “Please…I don’t know what to do! It’s…it’s my granddaughter… I didn’t see him standing there—and I know that’s no excuse, I should’ve been more careful.
“But my granddaughter, she started yelling at the Temple Knight—and I tried to stop her, I did! But then she said she had to come with him, and…and if I could just tell him how sorry I am, maybe…maybe he would…”
“He’d take you too is what he’d do,” said one of the men beside her. I assumed after hearing her story, these men were trying to help. “Even if you went and begged the blue bastard to intervene, it’d be too late by then. Ain’t the first time they’ve taken a girl her age. If she doesn’t fight back, they might let her go after…” The man let the sentence hang, insinuating a very nasty outcome for the granddaughter.
An outcome that did not befit a knight of any land!
The woman stepped back. “No, no! There has to be another way!”
Fray sighed. “Ahh…Ishgardian justice.”
Everyone turned and looked at Fray who said, “They might spare the girl, you know. Leave her with a few scars and a lifelong lesson. Or we could beat every last one of them to within an ilm of their lives and rescue the girl.” He looked at me. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
Who was I to deny how I felt? I nodded.
Fray stared at me with those golden eyes. “I know you would.” He looked at the woman. “Everything is going to be all right, madam. When I’m through with those knights, they will not dare trouble you ever again.”
The woman worried her hands together. “Oh, thank you, thank you!”
One of the men put his harm on the older woman’s shoulder and spoke gently to her. Fray motioned for me to come to him, and he placed a hand on my back. “Assuming they didn’t just drag her into an alley, they’ve taken her to either the Congregation or the Tribunal.”
I shook my head. “For what? I don’t get it. What did she do but yell at them. The old woman didn’t say she attacked them. Why…why not just calm the girl down and move on?”
“It’s a question of class structure, Asche. Low born vs high born. And then there is the rank of knight. Knights believe—or it is instilled in them by the church—that they are Halone’s chosen. They are above the law. That low born girl yelling at the night,” he shook his head. “That’s all it takes. It’s an insult that someone low born should speak to him like that.”
I made a face. “But that’s stupid.”
“Yes. Yes it is. The honorable Ser Aymeric wouldn’t suffer such reprehensible behavior under his roof. The Inquisition, on the other hand…well…so that leaves the Tribunal. If the girl is still alive, I imagine they’ll make all manner of threats. “Come any closer and she dies,” and so forth. If so, well need to make something perfectly clear to them… ‘We’re not here for her, we’re here for you.’
“Once they understand she means nothing to us, they’ll attack us or flee. I don’t know about you, but I’m eager to find out which.”
I pulled my hood over my head and half covered my face, tucking my ears down as I followed Fray to where he believed these Temple Knights had taken the woman’s granddaughter because I still wasn’t confident about where I was going in Ishgard. We went down, and then up, and then up again, until I saw several Temple Knights and a young woman being held in place by two of them.
I didn’t lose my nerve, but I began to wonder if this was a good idea.
As we approached, I could hear one of the knights talking. “Dammit, girl! You’re only making it worse for yourself!”
The young lady, whom I assumed was the granddaughter, fired back. “The hells with you! I’ve done nothing wrong!”
The Temple Knight who spoke sighed. “Why are all the pretty ones always so daft…”
Fray moved past me and stood closer to the group. “If I had a gil for every time I had to kill an unrepentant bastard like you…”
My eyes widened. Whoa, Fray. What’s with all the animosity?
EVERYONE turned and looked at us.
The Temple Knight scowled. “Wh-What the…? Are you threatening a Temple Knight?”
Fray tilted his helmet to the side. “Oh, you’re very clever. Yes, I am. Now let her go.”
Now the Knight looked really frustrated. “I…I…Enough of this!” He gestured to the granddaughter. “With me, girl—now! One more word of protest and I’ll toss your grandmother in a cell to rot!” He turned to the other Knights. “You three—seize this imbecile!”
The Temple Knight and girl moved away as the other three faced us and drew their lances. One had a shield and drew his sword.
I wasn’t sure about this—I mean—I was new in Ishgard, but these were four of the biggest asshats I’d seen since…well…Ul’dah. I’d learned the word asshat from one of the soldiers under Haurchefant. I liked it. Kinda worked as another way to say butthead, which I remember some kids using during my stay there as well.
Either way, when Fray pulled out his…cane?, I pulled mine sword from my back and held it at the ready. Oh wait…that’s right. I had Fray’s sword.
“Surrender or die!” the one with the shield shouted.
I…felt myself charge forward, and as I did, something cold and powerful welled up from my feet. A scraping noise filled the air as a whirlpool of darkness encircled me and talons or claws or teeth came up on the circle’s edges and attacked everyone inside of it.
The all turned to me and started attacking.
“Funny…I was about to say the same thing,” Fray quipped.
I swung the sword, picking one at a time to damage as Fray healed me. Wait…Fray was healing? No…don’t lose concentration. Just keep hacking away at these idiots.
And that’s what they were. Self aggrandizing idiots, who believed just because they wore knight’s armor they were entitled to whatever they wanted. Well, I wanted to tell them that…that privilege had been revoked.
By me.
“Show them no mercy, Asche!” Fray shouted.
Fray moved between throwing rocks at them and healing me, very much like a beginning White Mage would do. I knew this because I’d started my training as a conjurer in Gridania, before my duties with the Scions had increased.
Within minutes, they were all running and limping away. I stood in the middle of them, blood splattered on my hand, and on my coat. I felt…
Good.
“Bring…bring everyone! He’s gone mad!” one of them shouted.
Fray rubbed his helmet. “Reinforcements? Looks like we’ll have to even the odds. Asche…search your soul for the darkness…the one I warned you about, the one growing inside of you. We’ll only need a sliver…yes…”
I closed my eyes, gripping the claymore’s hilt and thought I knew what he meant. It was there…where it wasn’t before. I mean, I’d been angry before. I don’t think I’d stopped being angry after coming to in Dragonhead…and knowing what they’d done to me, how they’d treated the Scions…
But this was different. Sharper. Textual. Sustainable. And it was darker. It felt…powerful. And it eased that anger. That…hatred that I wanted to shove back down. I wanted to be the warrior I was…had been in the jungle.
No more…nice.
“Open your eyes.”
I did and stepped back. There were tall, seven-foot flames everywhere, bursting forth from the icy concrete. There was no heat, just anger. Pure, unfettered…anger.
“You see the flames, Asche?” Fray said in my ear. They beckon to you, don’t they? Immerse yourself in the flames and ignite the darkness within!”
Immerse myself? Did that mean I stand…in the flame?
I took in a deep breath as I saw the retreating back of the Knights. The cowards. I ran to the middle flame, and it instantly enveloped me. I stood there, drinking in the hatred…
Something struck me, and I was nearly knocked down. I opened my eyes to see if a Knight had snuck up on me, or if Fray had hit me. But there was nothing.
“Once you absorb it, Asche, don’t stay. I said there was a price…and this is part of it. Take what you need, no matter how good it feels, and leave it. You cannot burn in the flame for long—drink not too deep lest the flames consume you.”
Consume me was right. I felt weakened, so I ran to another flame and once I felt it grow, I ran out of it. That one didn’t explode on me, so I continued up the steps. There were more pillars of flame everywhere as I met the Knights as they tried to stop me.
Fray was behind me as I engaged them, healing me, hurting them. “Draw upon your darkside and drive your foes before you!”
I slashed, and jumped, and soared with this power. I grabbed every column I could and sometimes I wasn’t fast enough. But I didn’t care. With ever mob I aimed for their healer and took them out first before I finished them. And before I knew it, we were at the front doors of the Tribunal.
I ran in and saw the granddaughter bound in the corner as the original Knights I’d faced turned and saw me coming. More columns of hate burned inside the Tribunal entrance, and I used them. I took out another ten or so before they were all on the floor, bleeding, and moaning.
“The next Knight who bears steel, I’m not only going to kill him, but I’m going to kill his wife, his friends, and burn his godsdamn house down!” Fray warned.
I set the sword on my back and ran to the granddaughter to free her. Once the ropes were cut, she stood, bowed and said, “Th-Thank you.”
We both turned as Fray lorded over the dying and wounded. “Those of you who yet live, remember this horror! And know that should you speak of it, it shall be visited on you again a hundred-fold!”
The girl looked at me, her eyes wide, and hit-the-door running.
I wasn’t sure if I liked what Fray said. Either way, it was time to leave. My hood stayed in place, but my ears were sore. Fray and I ran out of the Tribunal and down several tiers away from it. Once there, I bent over with my hands on my knees and caught my breath.
I felt…both good and bad. Good because those soldiers had been bad, and bad because…I just kicked the ass of about 10 or so Knights. This was not going to go well for House Foretemps once the Count finds out.
I might get arrested.
I hear footsteps and turned to see the granddaughter again. “I don’t know what to say, sir! Thank you, thank you! I..I got a little carried away earlier. It’s just that when I saw how they were treating my grandmother, I had to say something…”
I straightened. “It’s okay. I heard you calling my name and I had to help.”
She looked confused. “What? No one screamed your name. I don’t even know your name. My grandmother called out, just the once, but that was it… Speaking of which, I should hurry back. I suppose I ought to say that I’m sorry for what I did…but I’m not. Those knights had it coming. Halone bless you for what you did.”
She bowed and walked away.
I was still a little out of breath. I was going to need to train, somehow. Build my strength back up…now that I had a proper weapon to dole out justice.
Fray waited with his back to me. When I approached, he turned to face me immediately. “Feels good, doesn’t it? Strange, maybe—but a good strange, I’ll wager. You tapped into something primal. A power nestled withing you, yearning to be free. As your understanding of this power grows, so too will your skill as a dark knight. You have done well—far better than I could have hoped, in fact. But there is still so much more to learn—so much further to go.
“I won’t lie to you Asche. The risks will only increase. So, if you want to keep going, you have to trust in me. Can you do that?”
I nodded.
“Good. That’s a promise. Circumstances being what they are, it might be best if we parted ways for a while. Think of it as an opportunity to hone your skills in my absence. But don’t worry—we will meet again. When the time is right, I’ll be waiting where we first met.”
I watched him go…and as soon as he was out of sight, I nearly passed out on a pair of frozen bushes to my right. I was dead tired. Exhausted. The sword was heavy on my back, and I realized I shouldn’t have the thing on and visible after just defeating several Temple Knights.
I reached back and removed the sword and holding it with both hands, I silently repeated the spell to dispel the sword in my bag. My infinite bag of stuff.
It was time to get back to House Foretemps and maybe take a bath. I was hungry but I didn’t want to eat. I just wanted to sleep. My joints ached and I felt just a bit dizzy.
I also felt… wrong. Dirty? Sandy? Gritty? Was it the approaching snow or just my imagination. I got lost again but eventually found my way to the Foretemps House, greeted the household staff and collapsed on my bed without a bath, or…taking off…my…
…coat.
NEXT: I might have caused a problem