Oceanum Collis

•Chapter 42• The Man without a Face

There he was, on the ground, lifeless. Orlando had a horrified expression on his face. He couldn't tear his eyes off the lifeless man in front of him. It was a horrible sight. His face was gone. Not faded or damaged. No. Antonio's face had been cut off. And with brute force. The prints of fingers were still in the skin that was still on his head. Although there wasn't much left. The back of his head was partly split open. Dried blood covered the street he was sitting on. "He was thrown off the balcony after being tortured for days. It was supposed to be some kind of statement. Erix was threatening all of us. He said that if we didn't sell you out, this would be our fate." The man explained. Orlando's eyes were watery. A man, who cared for all, was now dead. A man who gave people hope, and something to live for, was gone. And for what? Orlando felt a hand being placed on his shoulder. "I know how much he meant to you," Serena whispered to him. She meant well. But something inside him snapped. He pushed her hand off his shoulder harshly. "You don't know anything." He said quietly. He turned to the man standing next to him. "Where is he?" He asked. The man shrugged. "Probably up there. Knights come and they go every day. Some never return. But he always stays." He answered. Orlando gave him a slight nod and walked past him. "Get everyone inside. Lock your doors. Stay there until we come back to get you." He ordered. Serena rushed after him. "What are you going to do?" She asked him. "I'm going to kill him," Orlando replied. His voice had no emotions. He was cold. He had seemed so sweet and gentle, not to mention kind, but this wasn't anything like that. "You're kidding, right?" Serena asked him. He didn't respond. "You can't just go off there all by yourself! We had a plan, we have to stick to it!" Serena complained. Orlando turned around. He pointed at Antonio's dead body and the burned houses behind them. "Well, this wasn't part of the plan!" He said. "So you're going to do something stupid to 'get your revenge'?" She asked him. 

Orlando was about to walk away from her when she grabbed his wrist. "Hey!" She said. She turned him around to look at her again. "You're not going up there. Not now. Not alone." She tells him sternly. "He killed them. Burned them alive! He cut off someone's face off and tossed them off a balcony because they protected me! This all happened because of me!" Orlando exclaimed. Serena rolled her eyes. "So you're gonna do something stupid to get your point across? How heroic of you." She replied. Orlando's eyes darkened. "This isn't a fairy tale, Orlando. There are no magic fairies to fly up and save you when you're almost defeated. He's waiting for you. He will kill you with the first steps you take inside." She added. Orlando didn't respond. He just looked up at the sky. It seemed much grayer here than outside the walls. "I know this is a lot for you to process right now. But you shouldn't make hasty decisions. Especially if it's going to get you killed." She tells him calmly. Orlando looked into her eyes. "Don't do something you will regret for the rest of your life." She said. He pushed a strain of hair behind her ear. Her little pointy ear. "Well, there is something special about you. You're a princess, aren't you?" He asked her. "Worrier and princess." Serena corrected him. Orlando pulls one of his legs up to his chest and wraps his arms around it. He rests his head on his knee. "Well, that explains the weapons." He said. Serena giggled quietly. "But, don't elves have these pointy ears and all that?" He asked her. Serena puts her hand by her ear. She gently pulled the hair that was covering her pointy ears away. "We do have them. I just cover them up." She tells him. Orlando's eyes were glued to her special ears. He had, of course, never seen anything like it. He had heard the stories but never had he seen them in reality. "Why would you cover them up? They're kind of cute." He tells her. He just looked into her green eyes. "You can't stop me, Serena," he tells her. "I will if I must." She replied. Orlando remembered she was much stronger than him. She was a very skilled fighter. She could wield any weapon. "Don't try to be a hero." She spoke sternly. "I want justice for my people." Orlando snapped at her. The green-eyed elf narrowed her eyes. "You sound like him." She said.

Him. Basil Adelio. Orlando balded his hands into fists. He had a hard time keeping calm. Before he lost it, Misty appeared next to them. "Can I borrow him for a moment?" She asked. Serena nodded as she looked at the young werewolf. "He's all yours." She said. Misty pulled the young man away from the she-elf. Serena let out a sigh. What was she going to do? His heart and head were overflowing with emotions. Grief, sorrow, anger. "Humans are strange creatures, aren't they?" A voice spoke behind her. "You're partly human." She replied. The person behind her chuckled. "He wants to kill him." She continued. "He's gonna die one day. Let the boy have his fun." Asher tells her. She turned around and folded her arms over each other. "He's blinded by sorrow." She replied. "Aren't we all?" Asher questioned. He stepped closer to the green-eyed elf. "Isn't that why you're here?" He asked her. Serena furrowed her eyebrows. "Easy, princess. I'm not angry or anything." He chuckled. The she-elf continued to glare at him. "Your mother," Asher added. "She was killed by your kind," Serena said. Her eyes started to get darker. "And your father send you here to get her back. With the mirror. The stone. That's why you're really here." Asher pointed out. Serena felt bad. Restoring the peace wasn't her priority. Reviving her mother was. But when she looked at the werewolf, with her dark eyes, she saw a sweet smile. He wasn't going to send her over the edge? He carefully rested his hands on her arms. He looked down at her, tilting his head. "And I'm here to stop you from doing that. So that's exactly what I'm gonna do." He tells her sweetly. Of course, his father had ordered him to stop the elves, and Orlando, from getting that mirror. But this wasn't Remus speaking. This was Asher. "I don't want you to get killed doing something dangerous. And stupid." He tells her. Serena looked at him with her big green eyes. "Reviving the dead is dangerous. It could kill your father." Asher reminded her. "How do you even know all that?" She asked him. Asher shrugged. "I might have overheard a couple of conversations you've had with your brother. Werewolf ears." He shrugged. Serena giggled and smiled a little. "Please, Serena," Asher started, "Do what's right. Don't let the dead be your priority." He added. Serena nodded. "I promise." She whispered. Asher smiled in response. "You know, when, and if, the peace has been restored-" She started. "We have to talk about our territories." Asher chuckled, cutting her off. Serena laughed and nodded. "We do." She said, "Because you were in our territory." She said. "You were in ours!" Asher complained, earning a giggle from Serena.

In the distance, they could see some small kids playing with each other. They were running around and smiling. Even in the darkest of times, children somehow found a way to smile. Asher looked at Serena, only to see that her eyes were glued onto the small children. That look. She was so in love. He could see it in her eyes. He opened his mouth, about to say something, when suddenly, Hayes came up to them. Asher swallowed his words and turned to the elven prince. "Uh, I don't want to interrupt anything. But we have a problem." He said. Serena glared at her brother. "What is it? Did one of the kids pull on your hair?" She asked him. Hayes let out a sarcastic laugh. "Ha ha, no." he said, "Valeria isn't here." He tells. Serena furrowed her eyebrows. "I thought she was with you," Asher said as he stood next to Serena. Hayes pointed next to him. "Do you see her standing beside me, fleabag? She's not here!" He said.