Memories Of Another

Chapter 11

Rokurou grit his teeth, as he and his partner in crime Velvet were running down the docks. He wasn't an idiot. He knew that he and his fellow daemon stood no chance against the mass of exorcists they were running away from. Nevertheless, he couldn't help but feel a bitter taste in his mouth. He was a warrior, first and foremost. Following a code of honor, as much honor as a daemon can have has been beaten into him even before he could start walking. Running away wasn't really an honorable way to do.
B

ut as was stated, he wasn't an idiot. He knew his limits, most of the time anyway. Besides, killing all of the exorcists had never been part of the plan, to begin with.
"Right, so, which ship is ours?" he asked Velvet.
"The one that is not on fire, I presume," she replied.
"Hard to tell which is which."
"Are you telling me you didn't even decide where to meet up? What kind of rescue party is this?" Magilou complained though she was being ignored.
Indeed, the fire generated a lot of smoke. It made it hard to tell what ship had been taken into possession by the trio's cohorts. And it wasn't like they could stop and survey the area, not with the entourage of enemies that was following them. They were shouting among themselves incoherently. Snippets and tidbits that Rokurou's ears caught up were "daemon," "ships," "fire," and "vile." Well, if the exorcists weren't angry before by the sheer presence of the daemons, they indeed were now.
"Over there!" Velvet ran ahead, having spotted the others on a ship that was partially engulfed in smoke but had no flames coming out of it. Rokurou and Magilou followed the black-haired woman, as did pretty much the entire town's garrison. Granted, a good chunk of them were already dead, having died during the distraction operation, but that still left a good amount of people armed with sharp pointy-sticks.
"Move it!" Dyle shouted from the top of the ship. "We're ready to set sail!"
"Look out!" Minato shouted. Just in time, he had spotted a fireball that flew in Dyle's direction. Having summoned Pyro Jack earlier, in order to keep the flames in check, the boy ordered the pumpkin in a witch outfit to protect the lizard. Just in time, Minato's persona flew in front of the daemon and absorbed the fire like it was nothing.
"Holy! I owe you one, kid!" Dyle shouted as he frantically climbed to the main deck, hoping to avoid any more stray shots.
"They have a lot of pursuers," Seres stated, watching the spectacle below. "We won't be able to leave if this keeps up." Gathering her magic for a couple of seconds, Seres conjured a fireball of her own and shot. The ball hit the plank right next to which their ship was docked, blowing it up partially. The wooden plank was now no longer connected to the land. Only a small island of wood remained.
Magilou, Rokurou, and Velvet had to shield their eyes from the fragments. Teresa and her two Malakhim had it worse. They had just gotten past the spot of where the explosion occurred when it happened. As a result, all three of them got caught in the shockwave and were sent flying towards the escapees. Seeing an opportunity, both Rokurou and Velvet pointed their blades at the downed woman. When she finally recovered, she gasped and almost pierced her own throat in her shock.
"Looks like the tables have turned," Velvet commented casually.
"Why you...! Deceitful, snake!"
Velvet almost rolled her eyes at the weak insult. "I'm a daemon. What did you expect?"
Rokurou carefully glanced away from Teresa, to get a hold of the situation on the docks. It looked like the humans were stuck on the other side. None of them had the jumping capabilities of a daemon. Plus, their heavy armor made it impossible to swim even the relatively short distance. For some reason, none of them had gotten the idea to use their bows and arrows, though he certainly wasn't complaining.
"Well, it has been fun. But I'm afraid I must leave you all now. Until next time. Toodaloo!" Magilou gave the exorcist on the ground a cheery wave, before climbing onto the ship.
"Do you think I will let you escape?!" Teresa spat.
"Sorry to state the obvious, but you're not really in a position for negotiations," the daemon swordsman replied. "A shame we didn't get to fight, though. A praetor like you would have been an excellent opportunity to test my skills."
"Spare me your falls pity, daemon! Number Two! Eradicate them!"
Having been largely ignored by the others, Teresa's Malakhim had gotten up from the ground, but not done much else for some reason. Yet, now that he had received an order, the blonde Malakhim started gathering magic inside his hands and ran towards Velvet. At the same time, Teresa decided to pull a fast one and rolled into the ocean, escaping the daemon's blade.
"The kid is going to blow himself up!" Magilou shouted from the ship, recognizing the art immediately. Thinking quickly, Velvet gave the Malakhim a good kick to the head, canceling the art altogether.
"Velvet! Get on board!" Seres shouted. The ship began to move, as Dyle had unfurled the sails and gotten the anchor on board. The two daemons quickly jumped on board the vessel with their inhuman strength, finishing their escape from Hellawes.
"It's too bad. I was actually looking forward to fighting that praetor," Rokurou commented.
"Be glad you didn't have to," Seres replied. "Praetors are not to be underestimated. They are some of the highest-ranking members of the exorcists."
"Speaking of exorcists... why did you take him with you?" Minato pointed down Velvet's right arm. Everyone looked where he was pointing, and it was only then that they noticed someone standing there. Holding her hand was none other than the blonde Malakhim that tried to pull a kamikaze attack just a minute earlier. Velvet was as surprised as everybody else about this turn of events. However, there was no time for contemplation or explanation, as the sounds of explosions came from the mainland. This was followed by the sounds of cannonballs hitting the water.
"Blast!" the sailor daemon shouted. "Looks like those landlubbers still have some spunk in them! Stop chatting and help me get us away from here, or you're going to talk to the fishes real soon!"
For the following hour, the crew consisting of daemons, Malakhim, a wannabe witch, and a high-school student followed the orders of their lizard captain and got away from the island in the cold north as quickly as possible. Which was to say, it was not quick at all. Aside from Dyle, none of them had any experience sailing with a ship, not counting their previous misadventure. It was good that the group had had the foresight to sabotage the other vessels, else the Abbey would be hot on their trail right now.
As for the blonde Malak, he was surprisingly docile during all of this. They had locked him up in the brig, just to be sure, but he hadn't made any fuzz, like trying to break out using his arts. Or worse, following through with the final order he had received from Teresa.
After an hour of sailing, Dyle told the others that he got things covered from this point forward and told them to decide on a course to take. So, while the lizard was standing at the steering wheel, the others gathered on deck to discuss their current situation.
"Well, that turned out better than I expected," Rokurou was the first one to speak up. "Though we wound up with a little extra." He and Magilou shot a grin at Velvet, who huffed and crossed her arms.
"Perhaps our friend felt a little peckish and decided to grab a snack for the ride," Magilou teased.
Seres frowned a little. "There is no helping it. We have him on board now. As such, we must decide what we do with him."
"Is there any way to undo the brainwashing?" Minato threw into the ring before anyone else could make suggestions.
"What do you mean?" Seres asked.
"You're a Malakhim. And you have a will of your own. I still do not fully understand how all of this works. But from what I could gather so far, the Abbey is somehow suppressing the wills of Malakhim to use their abilities. Yet, you're the one who broke us out of the prison island. I doubt someone from the Abbey ordered you to do this."
"So, you're saying we should free him so that he could work for us?" Velvet asked. "Not a bad idea."
"I wasn't saying we should let him fight alongside us," Minato clarified. "Just to restore his will."
"Easier said than done. It was by pure chance that I managed to break free from the restrictions put on my mind. Not to mention, this isn't as simple as dispelling an art." Seres put a hand under her chin.
"If I may be so bold to point out, remember how we first met the little guy?" Magilou asked into the round. "He was wandering around the island without any supervision. I doubt the exorcist lady sent him on a mission or something to the icy wastes. He's already showing a lot of independence. For a Malak, anyway."
"Okay, let's say we do take the kid along. Is it really okay for us to do so? I mean, he's just a child," the daemon swordsman pointed out. Seres chuckled at this.
"Look at the daemon showing care for a child. The world is truly going mad."
"Hey, I may be a daemon, but that doesn't mean I lack some common decency," Rokurou chuckled.
"It could be worth a shot, I guess," Velvet shrugged, looking away. "Worst case scenario, we just get rid of him."
Minato breathed out a silent sigh of relief, glad that the kid's life was saved for the time being.
"Now then, onto another topic: our course." Seres took out a map and held it open in the middle of the circle of people. Everyone looked down, their eyes focused on the island they had just left. "We have a problem. The way to Loegres goes through this narrow path here. However, the kingdom has built a massive fortress there with a gigantic gate. It's called the Gate of Vortigern. All shipping from and to the kingdom is heavily regulated through the said gate."
"Wait. A gate big enough to block ships? How did they build something like that?" Rokurou asked.
"With the help of Malakhim, how else?" Seres asked rhetorically.
"Right, my bad."
"We can't take on an entire fortress," Minato argued. "I know it is a longer way, but can't we sail around the land?" The high-schooler trailed with his finger over the map, pointing out the course he meant they could take.
"Depends on how much food and water we have in storage. That is not to mention dodging pirates, as well as patrolling Abbey ships," Seres informed the others.
"So what? We take the land way?" Magilou groaned, slumping over. "That'll take forever! Even if we hop from town to town."
"So, no matter how we slice it, we're screwed?" Rokurou asked with a wry grin.
"Going a long way on land sounds better than crashing our ship against a fortress," Minato shrugged.
Velvet turned around and looked to their ship-expert. "Dyle, how long will it take until we hit land?" she asked.
"Depends on the wind. Between one and three days in my experience. A couple of hours if we're fortunate. Why are ya asking?" the lizard shouted down.
"We're trying to find a way to Loegres without getting killed," Rokurou was the one who replied.
"Loegres?! The only way there is through the Gate of Vortigern! No way we're gonna make it through that!"
"We noticed! That's why we're looking for an alternative!" Magilou shouted.
"Alternative? There ain't no alternative. Not with a crew like you, at least. If I had some real sailors helping me out, hah, maybe! But no way I can sail this thing with a bunch of landlubbers that barely know the difference between starboard and port!"
The circle of escapees faced each other with varying degrees of worry.
"You know what they say: when it rains, it pours. Looks like things will never get boring for us!" Magilou grinned.
Velvet grunted. "So it's either the fortress or the going on foot."
"Neither option looks promising," the swordsman frowned.
"But on land, we at least have a chance of surviving and making it to another town," the blue-haired boy argued.
"But, it will take forever to get to Loegres."
After some time, it became apparent that they were getting nowhere. So it was mutually decided the group would think about their situation some more and make a decision when they came close to land.
Seres went under deck to retrieve the captured Malak, while the rest wandered to different corners of the ship, doing their own thing. For Minato, that meant walking to the front of the vessel and watching the ocean pass by. He was tired. Not physically tired. An entire year fighting in Tartarus had done wonders for his stamina. No, he was mentally drained.
It was unnerving to work together with people who had seemingly no trouble at all, killing an innocent or worse, multiple innocent people to achieve their goals. He was glad he could ditch those people soon enough. Sure, they had been working together so far, but it was more due to necessity than anything else that he was working with them. As soon as they reached a town, he planned to get some supplies, money and leave those people behind. From there? Well, to be honest, he had no idea what to do then. His overall goal was to find a way back to his world and maybe figure out how he got to this world in the first place. Help would be much appreciated, but he wasn't desperate enough to work together with murderers to achieve this goal. If anything, he could easily see himself going at odds with them sometime in the future. Maybe when they felt like they needed to burn down another town.
Footsteps brought him out of his musings. Turning around, he saw it was Velvet who had approached him for some reason.
"Where did you put the bag with all of our supplies?" she asked. The boy silently answered by pointing to the door that led inside the ship. Velvet walked away immediately afterward, not even giving a simple thank you. And people said he was anti-social.
Hours passed. Occasionally Dyle would bark some orders to one person or another, but most of the time, he did the manual labor himself. This was due to the incompetence the others had shown when it came to handling the ship. Dinner consisted of dried meat that Velvet had cooked and served with some potatoes she had found in the storage room.
Speaking of the storage room, it turned out they had made a poor decision when it came to taking a ship. There were barely any supplies on this ship. Enough to get them all through a week, but only if they rationed everything. Luckily neither Seres nor the young Malak needed food, so that was two less mouths to feed.
Speaking of the blonde boy, as it turned out, he had quite the fascination with the ocean. Ever since Seres had brought him up from below deck, he had spent ninety percent of the time staring out into the vast, blue unknown. The rest of the time was being used, walking to another spot to stare out.
Velvet and Seres were eyeing the blonde from afar, making sure he didn't cause any trouble.
"You shouldn't have taken him with you," Seres plainly said to Velvet.
"Why do you care?" the black-haired woman asked. "I thought you'd be happy to have the chance to free one of your fellow Malakhim."
Seres narrowed her eyes behind her mask. She took a couple of seconds composing herself before speaking up again. "Velvet, we both know why you took him with you, even if it was an accident."
Velvet didn't answer and stared out into the ocean.
"I will only say this once. He isn't your brother. It would be best for you not to get attached to him." Seres turned around. "Unless you wish to twist the knife that has stabbed your heart even further." With those words, the Malak left the daemon to her own devices. The daemon woman kept staring out into the ocean.
Minato, in the meantime, had taken a position in the crow's nest. Dyle had been insistent that someone should go up there and keep an eye on the ocean. Having nothing better to do and coincidentally avoiding doing any more chores on deck, Minato had volunteered for the position and was now keeping a semi-vigilant eye on the ocean. He found himself reminded of the playground of the first orphanage he had ever been too. There had been a fake ship set-up, and the children would play pirate a lot on that old thing. He had never participated.
Blocking the old memories away, the teenager wondered if now was a good time to charge up his mp3 with some weak zio spells. He couldn't see anything on the horizon, and he severely doubted anything would come up since it had been so quiet these past hours.
Once again, fate proved itself to have a dry sense of humor, as just as Minato was about to take out his music device, he happened to look to the back of the ship and saw something in the distance. He couldn't make out exactly what it was with his eyes alone, as it was too far away. Luckily Dyle had the foresight to give him a spyglass, which he took out.
Huh, would you look at that? There was another ship on the horizon. And it looked pretty awesome. It was made of some red wood, and it had red and white sails. It was a lot bigger than the one Minato, and the others looted from Hellawes. There were a lot of people on the ship running around the deck. The boy decided to check out the flag of the other vessel. Sure he probably wouldn't recognize any country, but he could describe it to Dyle, who might have an idea. The flag turned out to be black with a white skull on it.
"Oh, brother..." Minato mumbled. Magilou was right. When it rains, it does pour.
"We might have a problem!" he shouted down to the deck, getting everyone's attention.
"What do you mean we might?" Velvet asked.
"Well, I just spotted a pirate ship, coming from our rear!" He looked through the spyglass again. "And it looks like they're heading towards us!"