Red Hawk

Chapter Thirteen: The Stolen Eye

Kai returned to the guild without Ezna, having left her to recover. Despair filled his heart as he stumbled into the guild hall. Everyone could tell he was bothered, a wave of gloom eerily wafting from him. All the members of Red Hawk left him alone, all accept Sabrina.

"Did you manage to complete your mission?" she asked with a cheery voice. Even when others around her were in despair, she was always in a pure and bright mood.

It made Kai a bit better, "Yeah, Elryn was captured. Though I still haven't had a chance to ask him about Hibiki. His condition was too bad to have visitors."

"Your payment will be delivered to your room later today then," Sabrina smiled as she went into the other room. When she returned, she held a letter addressed to him. He took hold of it, flipping it to see where it had come from. It was from his mother. A spark of light appeared in his eyes as he undid the seal, sliding the folded paper from within. What little light he had faded as his eyes gazed down the writing.

Joy was asking Kai to return home immediately, some tragedy having befallen Leon. He couldn't believe it, something having happened to his father. Kai crumpled the paper in his palm, his hand trembling. But he wasn't angry about what he read, he was angry at himself. Part of him was happy to hear something happened to Leon. Odin came around the corner, now noticing that Kai had arrived.

"Are you ready to talk of Ragnarok?" Odin asked while sipping tea. Loki standing close behind him.

Kai shook his head, "No, no I can't. There's trouble at home. I have to go see my mom."

Odin was understanding, "Please, do not let me hold you up. But first, I must ask where Ezna is." Kai turned from him. He couldn't bare to think about what had happened to her. Images danced in his head, both of her being injured and the end results. "I presume she is still alive?" Odin added on.

"Yes," Kai managed to get out.

"Well, that is enough for me. Please do be careful on your trip home."

That's enough for you? Kai found himself thinking in anger. You don't even know how badly she has been injured. He wanted to call Odin out for this, but instead went to pack for his trip. Even though it was painful to hear, Odin was right to some degree. It was good news to hear she lived the encounter, but he couldn't recall how. It was as if all his memories of that fight had been wiped. Odin turned to head upstairs, Loki following close behind.

As he walked away, Loki shot a glance in Kai's direction. It wasn't one of anger, but it made Kai feel uneasy. He started to wonder if he did something to Loki that upset him.

"Is everything alright around here?" he asked Sabrina.

"Should be," she replied with a smile. Kai had no idea she was hiding anything from him. So, he took her words for what they were.

Kai eventually made it back to his hometown, the train having been delayed along the way. As soon as he walked through the front door, his mother lead him to her bedroom. There, Leon laid in bed with bandages around his face. But they only covered a portion around his left eye.

"What happened?" Kai asked with held breath.

Leon sat up, "Can't you tell?" His voice was stern as ever, unable to tell if there was any bit of a joke in there. Not that Kai thought this was a joking matter, but the words seemed sarcastic. Leon sighed, "Someone stole my eye. For what purpose, I don't know.

Stole his eye?! This news was unbelievable to Kai. Not only was it strange for someone to do that, but for them to attack the new leader of one of the strongest guilds.