Between two flames

Who wields the past?

The girl decided to visit an old friend who once helped her by making a prosthesis to replace the shattered bones in her hand – Professor Christopher.

Finding the professor's hideout from memory, she knocked using a special code that, to her surprise, she remembered.

"Come in" came a rather low voice, muffled by the door separating him from the outside world. Rei entered.

"Oh! It's you, Rei," the professor noticeably perked up, tearing himself away from his work.

He was a middle-aged man, tall, dark-skinned, and quite muscular. His skin was covered in dark spots in some places, his eyes were black as beads, and his dark blonde, curly hair was messily styled. He wore brown trousers, a white shirt that wasn't closed at the top two buttons, and high boots with thick soles. His arms were adorned with numerous bracelets made from anything that came to hand, and one ear was pierced with a black stud earring.

"Hello, Christopher," Rei greeted.

"How's your hand?" he smiled, revealing a pair of pointed fangs.

"Sometimes the pinky gets stuck," Astrith said, looking Christopher up and down.

"Well, I can fix that" he answered, approaching her, then took her hand and started examining it.

"Hmm..." She pondered. "Alright" she agreed, thinking that it was uncertain when they would meet next time and when she would have the opportunity to repair her hand.

"Good" he sat her down in a chair, prepared all the necessary tools, and, applying local anesthesia, got to work.

"Listen, Chris," after a while, Rei started the conversation.

"M?" the man showed his willingness to listen, without taking his eyes off his work.

"Do you know about the organization in the north and their project?" Astrith asked quietly.

"Hmm, I've heard... but what are they promising?" Christopher responded with a question, still not looking up from his work.

"Food, shelter..." the girl answered casually, glancing around at various items surrounding her at that moment.

"I see" the man shook his head.

"So, I was thinking, is it worth joining?" her gaze settled on the man, and she carefully observed his reaction as she asked this.

"Depends on the situation. Are things really bad for you? I mean, I know you're always on the move, and judging by your appearance, you're struggling with food..." Chris mused, glancing over Astrith's figure.

"You're right," she nodded slightly, not taking her eyes off the professor. "Also, heroes don't even look closely at who they attack anymore," the girl added quietly, with the tone typical of voicing a sore problem.

"Yeah, it seems like history has completely faded from their minds..." Chris replied disappointedly, in such a way that it seemed like they were his children, not enemies.

Rei looked at the man with restrained surprise. The professor felt the unspoken question and hurried to justify himself:

"I heard from a chatty hero who attacked me how they are being taught history" Christopher said, hesitating.

"And how?" the girl asked cautiously, ready to absorb the information.

"A long time ago, there was a conflict between creatures and humans. Inequality of power, rights, and of course, a propensity for vices led to attacks. Hence the enmity." Christopher quickly and superficially explained, as if trying to brush off Rei's interest in this matter.

The girl noticed this behavior.

"And?" she asked skeptically, demanding more. "That doesn't really answer the question."

"That's all I know..." the man shrugged and awkwardly smiled.

"Aren't you interested in this?" Rei continued to press, trying to find out more information.

"Not really, and no more chatty heroes have come my way" the professor joked.

"That's a pity" the girl remarked a bit disappointedly.

"Perhaps" Chris responded, trying to remain indifferent.

"Alright, so what do you think about the northerners?" she decided to steer the conversation back to the previous question.

"I don't know. If I were you, I would take a chance, but you should consider all the risks."

"I understand, thanks" Rei said, receiving the answer.

"That's clearly not all. There must be a significant reason why he's a hermit" Rei thought to herself, trying to recall if the man had ever told her anything about his youth. "All I know about him is that he's been a hermit for a long time, a lone professor skilled in mechanics and medicine, which helps him assist others like him."

Soon, the prosthesis was fixed, and Rei, having said goodbye to the Professor, headed to the nearest forest where she could find shelter for the coming night.