The Knights of Aragon

Chapter 4

"You're joking, right?" I hysterically laugh, "Arathmus is dead! She died centuries ago." I pace back and forth in front of her with my sword swinging left to right. "That is incorrect," she laughs, "I am sitting right in front of you." I laugh nervously alongside her. I don't know exactly what I was expecting but it wasn't a semi-blind woman with all seeing powers dressed in white like a ghost.

I pinch my nose in distress. This is not going as planned. "Interesting choice of weapon," she points at my sword, "Why the Inferno Blade, I wonder." She closes her eyes and tilts her head for a few seconds. "Ah, yes. The Inferno Blade is one of the Cursebreakers. Seems fitting for a time such as this." Inferno Blade. I stare at it in awe.

There's so much I want to ask but I don't have a clue where to begin. I gather my wits and sit on the floor across from her. "To be completely frank, Arathmus, I'm not sure what to ask or where to begin." She moves to the floor and sits much closer to me. "Ask about the night you got the Cursebreaker," she whispers. Her face holds so much excitement, it makes her feature glow much brighter. "Ok," I clear my throat, "Why did the Mist come to life? How did I get this sword? And where is the Mist now?"

Arathmus closes her eyes again but this time when she opens them, the clouds in them starts to move erratically. "The Questing beast was awoken by another force. A force that I cannot see. 225 years ago, this beast turned against mankind after a promise was broken and allied with their enemies. After the battle with the Knights of Aragon, Questing, or Quikas, experienced a drain in their power cause by the knights," she pauses and grimaces, "I cannot see what happened to the Knights, but I know that they did not cower and fought to their very last man."

The legends are all wrong. Every single story now is a mystery. I wonder how many were just lies spewed at our faces. "For over 200 years, Quikas has lured children and took their dreams as a means of gaining strength to become the powerful being that ravaged the land nearly three centuries back. And now Quikas has that power." Oh, this is not good.

"And the rest?" I ask quietly.

She smiles at my anxiousness. "Quikas is a very intelligent being. Once they felt the fire of the blade, they retreated to the place that all monsters originate: the North Mountains." Great. That is a 13-day trip on a horse for a person like me. I would also like to point out that our village has no horses. We depend on the domesticated animals that we breed. Horses aren't on the list.

"As for how you got the Inferno," she leans in to touch it but flinches back before making contact, "I do not know. Even I cannot see the works of much more ancient beings, unlike myself. The only thing I do know is that it can only be summoned by its master. And you..." she takes a good look at me, "are not that person." My shoulders sag in disappointment. Or relief? I cannot tell. She sighs in discontent and stands up. "Wait, that's it?" I grab the sword and stand with her. "If I'm not its master, then what am I?" Arathmus tilts her head in deliberation. "You are a messenger of sorts? Or a supporting role in a much larger story? Your fate has not been decided yet." Fate? Fate was utter bullshit. "My fate?" I ask, fuming in anger, "Was it your fate to visit Lady Lake and cause a war? Was it your fate to watch the love of your life die? Fate be damned!"

She halts and slowly turns around. Her face is unreadable, and I can now see how frightening Arathmus can truly be. "One day soon, you'll realize that not everyone gets a fair story. Mine was perfect until it wasn't, but my price for this gift was not going blind. It was not being able to step in and change the outcome of my loved ones. My price was not knowing anything behind the choices that was ever made throughout my existence."

She takes a step in my direction again. "I locked myself away to keep those consumed by greed to approach me. I only meet people that I am supposed to help. Like you, Valencia," she says calmly. "So, hear my words carefully. The answers you will seek are ones I cannot give you. You must take the Inferno Blade and place it above a fire. There, your journey will begin." Golden light starts to circle around her. It pulses, brighter and brighter, as it circles its way to the top. "A word to the wise, not every Otherworldly being is the monster they write them to be. The Lady of the Lake did what was asked. I simply did not listen."