Children of mischief

Chapter 6: Ghosts of the past.

Luke P.O.V.
"Rouges."
My hand thightend on the sword's hilt as cloaked and masked figures surrounded us. Ok,this is bad.
Their leader aproached me,a shadow blade dagger pointed at my throat. "Y'know the drill,stand and deliver." The voice was somewhere between masculin and feminin. "How bout you go screw yourself?" I snarrled and drew my blade,but before I could react,the roug sliped passed me and got behind Willow,holding her against their back,their blade against her neck. I groweld and the grip on my blade's hilt thightened till my knuckles turned white. If I attacked,the bloody bastard would use Willow as a shield, but with one well-placed blow...
"Up up up, not so fast. Make one wrong move and your girlfriend's gone."
Both me and Willow's reaction was the same:"Ew!"
"Dude,no.'' Willow looked over her shoulder to her captour.
"Gah,no matter! My point stands:one wrong move and she's done for."
"We don't have anything of value on us.'
"Like we'd buy that."
"Search us,you'll see." I said, throwing eye-daggers at the roug who said that.
"I'd rather not have that,thank you." Willow scrunched her nose. Can't really blame her. I thought. I needed to come up with a plan, and quick. Truth be said, I do have something with value at me, but not the kind of value they want.
"Look," I said raising my hands over my head ,"we aren't lying. We've set off to go to Eldonium."
The roug raised an eyebrow. "Now, neither of you don't strike me as the type to go to an aincient library. Why don't you tell me the real reason?" The dagger pressed against Willo's throat.
I groweld and steped ahead, the other rougs holding me back. "It's none of your fucking buisness."
I spat at the roug's feet, causing them to laugh. "Tread lightly, or your friend will die."
"Why don't you take on someone your size? Hm!? One on one."
They laughed. "Please, that'd be suicide for you."
"You'd be surprized."
The roug smirked. Pulling off their hood and mask, they truned out to be...Akyra?
I look puzzled. She should be dead. I saw her die.
"Hello Luke." She smirked deviously.
"You just can't stay dead." I grip the hilt of my sword. Akyra tossed Willow to one of her fellow rougs and pulled two curved blades. "Let's see if you remember what Captain Jay taught us."
Willow looked panicked. "Luke... what's going on?"
"It's gonna be ok Will, don't worry."
I realized the shakoness of my voice after I spoke. I looked into Akyra's crule silver eyes, she hadn't changed a bit. Pray the Spirits her swordsmanship did though,and for the worst.
"C'mon Luke! Don't tell me you lost your gut!"
"No, but I might just spill yours."
She smirked and crossed her blades. "Let's dance then, shall we?"
She charged. Holy fuck was she quick! I bearly managed to deflect her first two blows. If she kept it up, I'm screwed. She twisted on her heel, knocking me off my feet. I took advantage of her wrongly placed moment of jubilation and threw up my legs,kicking her in the chest. Akyra yelped in surprise and stumbled backwards. "Bastard!"
I jumped to my feet and slashed quickly,but she countered it. Her blades cut along my arms,the cuts sizzling. Shit, it's...
Akyra gave a knowing smirk. "Siren blood, one of the most deadly poisons in the world. What's wrong Luke? Life's flashing before your eyes?"
My sword fell from my hand as I started feeling dizzy. Sweat trickled down the back of my neck.
"NO!" Willow cried, trying to break free from the two rougs' grasp. "Leave him alone you bitch!"
Akyra smirked coldy. "I'll get to you too, be patient." She then turned to me. My knees buckled and I fell on one of them. My vision was starting to blur. Akyra lifted my chin with the tip of one of her blades. "And now it is finaly time to say goodbye; today you die! After years and years of tracking you down! Never forget this,Luke, I am your darkest foe yet, the shadow that forever prawls near. Any last words?"
In her moment of arrogance, she didn't notice I managed to take my sword back. "If I'm going down.." I took a sharp breath, my conciousness slowly fading. "..you're coming with."
Everything happend in the fraction of a second:Akyra's gasp and surprise as my blade pierced her chest, the general chaos amongst the rougs ranks that my action caused, Willow calling my name, and the last image that flashed before my eyes before my film broke:Ibis's dumb yet charming smile from the time we first met.
I'm so sorry Ibis..
I lost my senses after that moment.

Willow P.O.V.

My breath caught in my throat. Whoever this...this slitha was, she and Luke had a past..and that past might've cost them  both their future. Luke's blade went through her chest, clean-cut. She stumbled back, blood trickling on the side of her mouth as she fell on her back. The rougs holding me let me go and rushed to her side,the others following suit. I quickly fumbled to Luke's side. No no no no no no no no...
I checked for a pulse and any sign of breathing. I had to do something, and quick.
I conjured a bunch of vines that wraped us in a bundle and transported us underground to another place, somewhere at the edge of the woods, with a stream running by. Water.
I quickly  started clensing his wounds. But the poision...
I knelt by the stream's side and gathered my hands. "Oh my sisters, river queens and bringers of life, please, please come to my aide. I beg of you,please.''
Some of the water rose, taking the form of a woman with paleish skin, navy-blue hair, a flowy white dress and saphire eyes. "What is it that you need, sister?" She sat on the  river bed.
I held back a sob, my knees shaking as I finally registered what happend and told her everything. The naiad looked at me and sighed, gently rubbing my back. "There there sweety, I can help your friend."
I threw my arms around her neck in a hug. "Thank you,thank you,thank you thank you thank you!"
She chuckled and pulled back. The naiad beckoned me to bring Luke closer. After I did so, she used her powers to clean his blood of the posion.
"Siren's blood. Whoever did this...she really did want to kill him. Let us pray to our lady so she saves his soul."
I nodded. She took my hands into hers and we went in a silent prayer.
I wouldn't be able to live with myself if he died like this. Not to mention, Ibis would be utterly dystoried.
Thrity long minutes pass. My naiad-sister looked at me with sad eyes. "Let time do it's work, sister. May the Spirits be with you."
She gave my hands a squeez, then melted within the streem. I curled up in a ball besides Luke's inert body,trying not to succumb to despair. What in the name of Palace Ether happend back there? Whoever was that?
My thoughts ran a mile per minute as I staied there. After what felt like forever, Luke's eyes oppened slowly.
"Oh my Spirits!" I quickly got up and hugged him. Luke grogglily hugged me back. "H..hey.." he managed.
I felt both relife and a sudden anger wash over me. I pulled him by the ear. "You absolute moron! You could've died! No, you almost did die! The bloody Fire-Pits happend?!"
Luke flinched. He looked so drained,I almost felt bad for being so hard on him. Almost.
"That was Akyra. Captain of the infamous Shadow, after she mutanied against our former captain."
My brow raised. "Our?"
"Before...," he took a deep breath ,"..before I met Ibis..I was part of a crew, a pirate crew. Akyra and I always had bad blood between us. Really bad blood. That only got worst after I left the crew. She deemed me a traitor and swore to kill me. Is she...?"
I nodded. "Even in your moments of fogged mind,you managed to deliver a deadly blow."
He chuckled. "I am tired."
"We'll rest for the night,then we're back on the road."
He nodded. "Hey Will?"
"Mh?"
"Thank you."
                          ★♥︎♠︎◆         
We reached the great Library of Eldonium, and Luke was back on his feet.
Sandstone walls raised high up to the sky,like the walls of a fortress. Messenger moths flew in and out, and so did various individuals with books and scrolls.
"Study, yaaaaayyy!" Luke's tone was dripping in sarcasm.
"Ibis's rubbing onto you." I remarked jokingly.
"Oh shush."
We entered the library. Let the search begin!