Arakim's Legacy(#Wattys2015)

Chapter 35

"You know where he is?' asked Ashago, joining him.

"Yes. His private chamber,'' answered Arakim, walking briskly past the Grand Hall, barely sparing it a glance before running up the grand staircase to the upper level. He climbed more stairs to the fifth level before taking a right turn to walk down the long corridor before stopping in front of the big door made from dark wood with the two lions carved on it. He hesitated a moment before grasping the gold ornate handle to push it open. He walked across the large sitting area with its easy chairs of the same rich wood as the door and the big unlit fireplace into grandfather's bed chamber, ignoring the cold and the stale smell in the room.

His grandfather was lying in the middle of the large foster bed, looking frail and tiny. His grey hair all tangled up and all over the place. His face gaunt and sunken in. The hands on his chest were gnarled and wrinkled. He looked like he'd been dead for weeks but his chest was still moving and Arakim could hear his faint heartbeats.

"Grandfather?' he called, stepping to the side of the bed to take his cold hands into his own. "Grandfather, it's me, Arakim,'' he said, gently rubbing his hands on his grandfather's to warm them up.

"Is he dead?' asked Ashago, sound sad and angry.

'No, not yet,' answered Arakim, glancing across the bed at his cousin before looking down again, 'but he's barely here.'

'Isn't there anything you can do? Magically?'' he asked seriously, tears pooling in his crystal blue eyes, making them glitter.

'I will try, cousin,' he whispered, swallowing the lump in his throat and sat down on the bed.

Arakim ran his hands over his grandfather's body, searching for injuries but found only signs of old torture that had healed but his grandfather seemed to be in the kind of sleep Mena was. Maybe I should search for his essence like I did with Mena.

Arakim became his essence and entered his grandfather's mind and found himself walking along the shores of a beautiful lake in the forest with the sun shining brightly. Birds were tweeting and insects chirping. It looked and felt peaceful but Arakim wondered what he was doing here till he saw the lone figure sitting along the side, fishing, his thick grey hair resting on his shoulders, gleaming in the sun. Could that be his ......?

"Ah, there you are,'' grandfather said, turning to grin at him, 'I was beginning to think, you would never make it.''

"Grandfather?'' asked Arakim, stumbling over his feet, and would have done a face plant on the ground if his reflexes hadn't come to his rescue, 'is that you?'' looking around to make sure no one was doing this.

"Of course, it's me,' said grandfather, snorting impatiently, 'please don't tell me those nasties in the palace had succeeded in damaging your eyes. I showed them, didn't I? Fools.''

Yes that's grandfather. Nobody could pull off insulting one like that like his grandfather, while gloating at the same time. Arakim smiled, glad that grandfather was still here.

"Yes, you did. But what are you doing here,' he asked moving to sit on a stool conveniently placed beside his grandfather, "when you should be up there. The nasties have been taken care of, grandfather.''

"I knew you could do it,'' said grandfather proudly, 'and as for what, fishing,' smirked grandfather, 'what does it look like, Arakim?'

Arakim shrugged. "But you never went fishing. You said it was a waste of time,' said Arakim, feeling ridiculously pleased at his grandfather's praise.

"I said and did a lot of stupid things,' snorted grandfather, reeling in a fish that was caught in his hook before throwing it back into the lake. "I should have been a better grandfather to you, Arakim but I was busy doing a lot of things that don't seem important now. And for that I apologise,' whispered grandfather, wistfully.