A Man for Himself (Norton X Eli) [Identity V] *UNEDITED*

Chapter 12 - Warning

Eli returned to his room after venting out his frustrations to the embalmer. He hadn't talked that much in a very long time. Although he knew Aesop couldn't care less about his rambling, it was still refreshing. Ever since he arrived at the manor, he'd never had any meaningful conversation with anyone. Everything was superficial except when he's with Naib. The mercenary actually listened to him. However, as much he would like to tell him about Norton, he couldn't risk starting a fight between them. He knew how much Naib disliked the prospector.

The room he shared with Naib was the same as Eli had left it: quiet and empty. Or at least that's what the case until Brooke Rose entered from the balcony and landed on his desk, carrying a small wax-sealed envelope between its beak. Curious, the seer approached the owl and immediately took the envelope, opening it to reveal a letter.

"Lake," Eli mumbled under his breath.

It's the only word that was written on the letter. The message wasn't clear at first glance, but Eli knew which lake the letter was referring to. Definitely, it wasn't the one in Lakeside Village since he had no way of entering that area unless he's in a match; it's the one located near the manor.

The letter didn't bear any name on it. However, there was a mark on the right bottom corner of the paper, one he was very familiar with. It's a yellow triskelion. Knowing very well what the symbol meant, a smile began to form on the seer's lips, his eyes twinkling with hope and excitement.

His Lord wanted to see him.

It might be finally his chance to seek for answers to his questions, an enlightenment as to why his Lord pushed him and Fiona away. And finally, to seek comfort after the devastating events that had been happening to him in the past few days.

Without wasting any more time, the seer took off and sneaked his way out of the building. He figured it would be better if no one knew where he was headed to. After all, it's a private meeting with his god outside of the deadly matches. This had never happened before, so he wanted to savor every minute of it.

His heart pounded violently in his chest, and it seemed to become louder as he got closer to the lake. The last encounter with Hastur wasn't exactly the best. Not knowing what to expect made him feel restless and nervous; but at the same time, he was thrilled.

It didn't take long for the seer to arrive at his destination. He was hoping to see the god standing by the lake or maybe in the lake itself, but no one was there. In fact, the place was quiet, tranquil to be exact. It was an obvious sign that nobody was there except for him. Needless to say, he was quite disappointed. But then again, the letter did not state what exact time the god would show up.

Eli attempted to cheer himself up with that thought and decided to wait for the deity to arrive. He sat down on his favorite spot beneath an oak tree. Resting against the sturdy trunk, he closed his eyes and began to relax every inch of muscle in his body, clearing his mind of any thought that would hinder him from receiving the wisdom from his beloved god.

He shouldn't worry too much. It's still too early. Obviously, a god wouldn't reveal himself in the light of day. He should be more patient. After all, Hastur would certainly arrive. Eli had faith in him.

The seer took slow deep breaths. The tranquility of the lake combined with the calming sound of nature and cool air lulled him to sleep. He didn't know how long he'd taken a nap, but when he finally came to, the sun was no longer in the sky and the lake was bathed in soft light coming from the fireflies flying around the woods. It was beautiful, almost surreal.

Dusting himself off, the seer stood up and decided to look around. There was no sign of Hastur. He didn't want to think that he'd been deceived and played with; so he walked up to the dock and sat down on the edge of it, hoping that he would see the god emerge out of the water. But there was nothing. The moon shone brightly above him, its reflection undisturbed on the surface.