Twin Worlds

Chapter 02: Memories

Weeks had past and Aisha and Arthur had begun seeking each other's company more often. They had treated each other's company as a wonderful excuse to escape the stressful atmosphere of their jobs.  Being together somehow relieved unwanted mental tensions and relaxed their bodies.  The other day, they had decided to go visit an ancient relic of the past—a large open field, wherein buried under it's earth, the countless Gaian soldiers who fought heroically during decisive battles in history. Many graves could be dated back to three hundred years, while the earliest ones were around eight years.  It was Aisha who suggested they'd go here as she wanted to see the heroes of Branch.

Arthur, on the other hand, was completely opposed to this, as if there was something he didn't want to see. During their quiet stroll in this strangely serene graveyard, while Arthur browsed the names of famous generals, Aisha had separated from him and went on to look at graves of people with lesser names.

"This one' so young," Aisha morosely said, looking at a grave's tombstone. "Cast Shadow group? What could this be?"

"What are you doing?"

Aisha jerke, unwittingly stunned at Arthur who appeared out of nowhere.

"You left me alone," he said, approaching near, "and I find you here earnestly looking at a dead man's tomb, what a shame." Arthur chuckled amiably.

Aisha cutely pursed her lips in disagreement, "Correction," she said, averting her gaze, and crossing her arms to her chest, "it's a 'she', and please don't say it's a shame. To be honest I'm here for an important business, I'm looking for someone's grave."

"Someone's grave? You know a Gaian soldier?"

"Not exactly," Aisha said, looking down with her cheeks turning red in embarassment. "It was someone I met eight years ago, when I was still fifteen."

"Oh?" reacted Arthur. "How did it happen? Tell me, I'm curious."

"Well, remember the buzz about that dark organization eight years ago? I was actually kidnapped by them, and then this Gaian agent swooped in to save me, I never got his real name, all I know is that people call him, Wisp. I've got sources telling me he died long ago and I was hoping I could pay tribute to him, supposing his body would be buried here; however—"

"You haven't found him?" asked Arthur, reading the tomb stone bearing the name, Lily. "This girl right here, she's his ally for sure."

"What? How can you be so sure?"

"Cast Shadow," said Arthur, turning his back on Aisha and walking away. "Even a layman could deduce that their on the same team. You said the guy was a Cast Shadow right? It's not too difficult to put two and two together."

"But—" Aisha followed after Arthur in a daze. 'I did not tell you,' she thought, 'that he was a Cast Shadow'.

Aisha could see Arthur clenching his fist with force; she could feel something akin to frustration in Arthur's demeanor.

"He's dead," added Arthur. "I'm sure people buried him where no one else could find him, so don't go looking for his grave."

"How do you know he's buried somewhere else?" asked Aisha catching up to Arthur's side.

"I'm a police man, I should know."

***

After the graveyard, Arthur invited Aisha to a nearby river, he said that the air there was refreshing, Aisha agreed immediately and followed after him.
While at the river-side, the two happily talked about a bunch of interesting stuff, half-way through their conversation Arthur stopped talking and looked at Aisha intensely.