An Asnean Odyssey: Bastien

Six

- “I wonder if Randgris will be okay...”

“Duke?” Bastien whispered into the chill night air. He could see his breath reflect the moonlight.

“Are you ready?” Duke asked from behind Bastien. “It’d probably be a bad idea to have to come back here.”

“Yeah, I don’t really have much to lug around,” Bastien smiled and began to walk towards the gate. Duke stopped him.

“Nah, I’ve got a better idea. We’ve got to go this way anyways,” Duke told Bastien as he guided him to the far wall where the bath house was.

“Are we supposed to climb it?” Bastien asked, which caused a sly grin to cross Duke’s face.

“Climb onto my back and hold on tight,” Duke commanded. Once Bastien had mounted Duke, he did a few squats to get used to the extra weight, then sprung up into the air and over the wall. The two landed gently on the other side. There were no roads or trails and the trees were all leafless and dead.

“This reminds me of the slums.”

“Nothing grows here anymore. No one comes here anymore. That’s what happens when you fight for what you believe in.”

“So they built the city facing away to just...ignore it?”

“I’m sure that wasn’t the only reason,” Duke wondered. The pair began to walk out into the vast wasteland. “It could be, though.”

“What’s your last name?”

“That came out of nowhere.”

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but I never really had a chance to ask.”

“I don’t have one. What’s yours?”

“I don’t remember...”

“You don’t remember your own name?” Duke laughed briefly. “That’s a little strange.”

“I have amnesia.”

“How bad is it?”

“I don’t remember anything before meeting Randgris.”

“When did you meet her?”

“A few days ago. She thought I destroyed a small village.”

“Huh...” Duke lost himself in thought for a moment. “I’m sure you’ll remember eventually.”

“Is that your real name?”

“No. No, it’s not.”

“I knew it!” Bastien got excited. “What’s your real name? Why do you use a fake one?”

“Relax, boy,” Duke tried to calm him down. “It’s not that interesting. I’ve done some bad things in my life. Hell, I probably even created a few of those vampire stereotypes. But I grew tired of it. I got tired of killing, tired of living, tired of...everything. I had consigned myself to die.”

“So that’s when you stopped killing?”

“Yeah. It’s just so...pointless. Watching everyone and everything you care about disappear, knowing there’s nothing you can do about it. Then I met Cecilia and all of that changed.”

“Why?”

“When she looked at me, it felt like I was staring into the sun. My whole body felt warm,” Duke reached out and grabbed Bastien’s arm. His hand was ice cold. “And that’s something I hadn’t felt in a long time. I don’t know if you believe in love at first sight, but I do. She knew what I was and she loved me anyway. She made me want to live again, so I threw away my old name and gave myself a new one.”

“Do you mind if I ask you something?”

“Nah, go ahead.”

“What did she say to you?”

“What?”

“Before she died...” Bastien paused. “What did Cecilia say to you?”

A single tear formed in the corner of one of Duke’s eyes, which he quickly brushed away. “She told me that she would live on inside me. As long as I survived, that warmth would stay inside me.”

“Did it?” Bastien asked hesitantly. Duke stopped and took a deep breath, then continued walking.

“No.”

Neither of them said anything for a while. They had finally reached the edge of the wasteland and entered a thick forest of leafless trees that creaked gently in the breeze.

“I’m sorry for asking,” Bastien apologized quietly.

“It’s alright,” Duke consoled Bastien. “It’s not healthy to keep these things bottled up and I don’t really have anyone to talk to any more.”

“You can...turn people into vampires, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’m not going to become one, am I?”

“Not unless you drink my blood,” Duke managed to manipulate a sharp smile.

“Why didn’t you turn Cecilia...?”

“When I was human, I was involved in a great war. I always wondered what it would be like to die. What exactly I was inflicting on those pour souls. I thought about what Hell would be like,” Duke went silent for a few minutes. “This is it. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.”

“How did you become a vampire?”

“A dragon tricked me.”

“You’ve met a dragon?”

“I’ve met all of them except Zanthe,” Duke explained.

“What were they like?”

“They’re all different. Most of them appeared to me in dreams. Ignis is the only one I’ve met physically,” Duke’s eyes seemed glazed over, as though he were remembering something. “If you can even call it physical. He was like a ghost, translucent and iridescent. When he spoke, his voice boomed inside my head alone. I was an insect in his presence.”

“Is he the one that tricked you?”

“No, that was Ciel,” Duke let out a heavy sigh. “And I’m not being completely honest. She offered me limitless power and I foolishly accepted.”

“Why? What did she get out of it?”

“Dragons can’t die, so they use their powers to manipulate lesser beings for their own amusement. I was simply a pawn.”

Suddenly, the two heard a low growling noise behind them. They turned around to see three black wolves. They looked as though they were mostly blind and their fur had almost completely fallen off. Their exposed skin was blistered and yellow. A thick green fluid dripped from their mouths, sizzling as it splashed onto the ground. Bastien reached for his sword, but grabbed at the air.

“Shit!” Bastien reached to his other side and pulled out Sverker’s hilt. The jagged, broken blade was only a few inches long. “I forgot my sword.”

“Give me one of Sverker’s pieces,” Duke calmly stated. Bastien quickly took the sheath and tilted it upside down until the pieces fell to the dirt. The front most wolf lunged at Bastien. Duke responded with a swift kick that knocked the wolf out of the air, but it managed to land on its feet and had already started to circle around. Duke picked up Sverker’s end piece and gripped it tightly in his hands causing his blood to spill forth. Using Sverker’s blade, he sliced through the wolf’s skull as it made another lunge. The two remaining wolves both went for Bastien, recognizing him as the weakest. Duke rushed to protect Bastien, who was having no problems avoiding the wolves. With another swift thrust, he stabbed into one of the wolf’s sides piercing its heart. The other wolf, however, had circled around the jumped at Duke from the rear, pinning him down. It tore into his throat, spraying blood around him. Bastien quickly sliced into the wolf with Sverker’s hilt cutting it open lengthwise. The wolf whimpered and fell over as a viscous yellow fluid poured forth from the wound. The stench was unbearable and caused Bastien to vomit. By the time he had recovered, Duke’s neck was already healed and he was resting against a tree. “I’m going to need another drink, boy.”

Bastien approached Duke and presented his neck. Duke wasted no time in pulling him close and sinking his teeth into his exposed skin. Bastien barely even felt it this time and when Duke had finished, he felt none of the after effects he had felt the first time. He gathered up the pieces of Sverker and wiped them off on his pants before replacing them inside the sheath. “Thank you, Duke.”

“Don’t sweat it,” Duke smiled. “I didn’t think you were that nimble, to be honest. I let my guard down.”

“What can kill you?” Bastien asked abruptly.

Duke stopped smiling. “Only a dragon. It would need to peel me from reality. Then it would be as though I had never existed.”

“Wouldn’t that make things different?”

“No,” Duke responded immediately. The duo were coming to a small group of buildings scattered next to a large lake. “If I hadn’t done the things I had, someone else would have taken my place. My existence has nothing to do with it.”

“I see,” Bastien gazed off at the pristine lake. “I wish I could remember who I was.”

“Does it matter? Would it change who you are now?” Duke replied.

“I don’t know what’s worse, trying to remember, or trying to forget.”

Duke remained silent as they entered the group of houses. There were only a few people wandering around, but as soon as they saw Duke and Bastien, they whispered quietly among themselves and disappeared inside their homes.

“What’s up with them?” Bastien asked.

“You can change your name, but you can’t change your face. Not for long, at least.”

“Did you attack this place?” Bastien looked around at the few houses. There was no indication of any damage and the landscape, though dull, did not bear the scars of battle.

“Yeah. If you kill everyone, there’s no one left to fear you,” Duke looked at his feet. “We need to get to the waterfall on the other side of the lake. Steiner lives there.”

“That’s a strange place to live,” Bastien replied as they began to circle around the lake.

“She doesn’t like to be told what to do, so she hides away from the world and tinkers in private.”

“How do you know where she is then?”

“I’ve been around a while and I’ve met a lot of people. I’ve known her since she was a wee babe,” A smile spread across Duke’s otherwise stony face.

“Just how old are you?”

“Don’t you know it’s rude to ask someone their age?” Duke and Bastien laughed together. They had reached the waterfall now. It looked to be at least a few hundred feet tall. A thick mist covered the area from where the base crashed into the lake. Duke wasted no time approaching the waterfall and slipping into a small cavern behind it, being careful to avoid touching the wall of water and being pulled in. Bastien did the same. Inside of the cavern was surprisingly well kept. It was well furnished and had tiles carved directly into the stone floor. Artwork hung on the wall, mostly portraits of a young girl. She had flowing brown hair and a round face, which was partially obscured by something she was holding in every portrait.

“Is that her?”

“Yes.”

“She’s just a child,” Bastien remarked as he admired the portraits.

“I’ll have you know I’m actually twenty!” A shrill voice shouted from the end of the chamber. Bastien turned around to see the small woman from the portraits stand with one hand on her hip and the other pointing at him. She was wearing a cobalt dress that hung loosely from her shoulders and almost touched the floor. A crooked crown of forget-me-nots was woven into her locks. “That makes me an adult!”

“It’s good to see you too, Stein,” Duke greeted the small woman. Standing straight up, the top of her head only reached his chest.

“Uncle Bartz!” Steiner ran over and pounced on Duke, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He swung her around a few times then let her down. An enormous smile spread across her face. “Did you come just to see me?”

“No, my dear. My friend needs your help with something.”

Steiner glared indignantly at Bastien. “What do you want?”

Bastien removed Sverker from his waist and presented it to Steiner along with the dragonite. “I’d like you to fix this sword for me.”

Steiner’s eyes lit up and her face was beaming with joy. “Such craftsmanship! Such quality! Wow! This is beautiful, truly a work of art. I forgive you for stealing my Bartz from me!”

“Stealing him...?” Bastien replied, but it was too late. Steiner had already bolted deeper into the cave. Bastien and Duke followed her awkward giggles until they reached a large room littered with strange objects and materials.

Steiner was standing next to a table with Sverker splayed out naked. She had put on a pair of large goggles and was holding her hands separated in front of her with the dragonite floating between them. It began to glow bright orange, at which point Sverker’s pieces rose and hovered in a circle around Steiner. She began to wave her hands through the air causing the molten dragonite to swirl around her. She danced around the room with Sverker following in her footsteps, intertwining with the volcanic threads. The pieces of Sverker had linked together and the blade was glowing bright yellow. Steiner finished her waltz with a twirl, snatching up Sverker and holding him gently in front of her. She took a deep breath and exhaled down the length of the blade, cooling it whilst leaving a thin coat of frost. After placing him back on the table, she extended her right index finger and slashed at the air vigorously, like a painter strikes their canvas. Once she was finished, she carefully placed Sverker inside of his sheathe and handed him to Bastien. She pulled off her goggles, causing the strap that was holding it against her head to dissolve into the air, leaving small glowing particles in its wake.

“Done! I even replaced that shitty inscription. ‘Fit for a princess’,” Steiner chimed. She paused for a moment. “That was the blade of Valkyrie Randgris, right?”

“Yeah, how’d you know?”

“I sell her trinkets every now and then,” Steiner smiled.

“Thank you,” Bastien could barely control his happiness. “Could I ask you one more thing, though?”

“I guess it couldn’t hurt to listen. Don’t expect any favors, though.”

Bastien produced the Philosopher’s Stone from his pocket and handed it to Steiner. “Can you tell me what that is?”

“Why do you think I’d know?” Steiner gave him a sly look.

“If anyone would, I think it would be you.”

“Good thinking,” Duke chimed in.

“You can see through illusions with this stone,” Steiner explained. “You can also peer into someone’s heart to see their true intentions. It’s useless as it is, though.”

“Can you make it into something useful?”

“It’ll take a bit, but yeah.”

“I would be grateful if you could.”

Steiner’s eyes shifted from the stone to Duke, then her face lit up. “You’re lucky uncle Bartz is here. I can’t say no to him.”

“How long will it take?”

“A few hours, I’d say.”

“Should we return later, then?”

“I can make you some tea. The waterfall is actually quite tranquil,” Steiner offered.

“That would be lovely, actually,” Duke replied almost immediately. “I haven’t had a good cup in a while. I’ll have the usual stuff.”

“You can’t drink it without me!” Steiner stuck out her tongue. “You’ll get the crap that I don’t like.”

Duke sighed. “You wouldn’t be this cruel if I visited more often.”

“You’re damn right!”

Steiner placed the stone on the table and lead the duo out of the cave, then went back inside. After a few minutes she came out with a tray and some plain white cups of deep brown water. She handed one to each of them then left. After her final departure, the mist that hung around the waterfall dissipated. Bastien went to sit down on the grass, but as he bent down vines shot up from beneath him. They warped and wrapped themselves into the form of a chair. Duke stood in a half squat, waiting for the same, but it never happened.

“Y’know, I thought she was happy to see me, but now I can never tell,” Duke laughed as he sipped his tea and gazed out over the lake.

“So Bartz is your old name, huh?” Bastien asked. The water was calm even with the disturbance of the waterfall. He stood up, leaving his tea on the ground, and wandered to the edge of the lake, peering into it at his own reflection. It occurred to him that he hadn’t seen himself before. His hair was deep black and just barely touched his amethyst eyes. His face seemed ageless and unwavering. Bastien stared into his own reflection for a while longer before returning to his seat to sip his tea from the cup. It was bitter and caused his face to scrunch up, but he drank it anyways. It had a pleasant aroma and gave his lungs a strange coolness.

“Balthazar the Wicked, if we’re going to be specific.”

“How do you know her?”

“I raised her,” Duke met Bastien’s gaze and followed it out into the horizon.

“But you’re not her father?”

“No, I’m not. Her mother died during birth; her father was Ciel.”

“Her father was a dragon?”

“Yeah,” Duke smiled. “Seems strange, doesn’t it? That’s probably why she’s so gifted with magic. I guess they can experience love, too.”

“Why did you raise her?”

“I may not be proud of what I am now, but I still feel indebted to Ciel. She was the one that gave me my...” Duke stopped to think for a moment. “Gift.”

“How is that possible...isn’t Ciel female?”

“They can manifest themselves as whatever they want. Gender means nothing to them,” Duke explained as they finished their tea. The sun was setting, bathing the land in a blanket of dim phosphorescence. “Let’s see if Stein is finished.”

The pair wandered back into the cave, eventually finding Steiner at her workbench. Bastien was a little surprised that the cave was so small. He wondered how someone could live here alone. Steiner turned to face them with her hands closed in front of her.

“I’m done.”

“What did you do to it?” Bastien asked. Steiner opened her tiny hands to reveal a small locket attached to a necklace. She popped the face open to show the contents. Inside was the stone, cut, smoothed, and polished into a tiny mirror.

“Wear this, and you’ll experience the effects of the Philosopher’s Stone,” Steiner handed the locket to Bastien, who stared at it for a few seconds before tucking it into his pocket.

“You’re not going to try it on?” Duke asked.

“No,” Bastien put his hand on Duke’s shoulder and smiled. “I trust you. We’re friends now, right?”

“What are you going to do with it?”

“I’m going to give it to Randgris. That was my original intention.”

“You sure are stubborn, aren’t you?” Duke teased. Bastien’s smile widened.

“Before we go, Steiner, do you know any ways to restore someone’s memory?”

Steiner cackled uncontrollably. “You can’t remember something you never had.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you’re dumb,” Steiner put on a serious expression. “What’s gone is gone. Stop worrying about it.”

“She really is still just a kid,” Duke sighed.

“I’m not a kid!” Bastien and Duke laughed with each other while Steiner threw a fit.

“Thank you,” Bastien said before turning to leave.

“I’ll be back soon,” Duke promised before joining Bastien.

“You’d better!” Steiner shouted after him. It was dark when they made it back outside.

“I think we should rest here for a few hours before we head back,” Duke commented.

“I want to get back to Randgris as soon as possible.”

“Why?”

“Sir Hammond is going to be executed because of me. It’s probably already too late.”

“Don’t feel too bad, he deserves it. The things he did to get where he is, not a single coin was honest work. He’s evil.”

“That doesn’t mean he deserves to die.”

“It wouldn’t be a bad thing if he did, though,” Duke argued.

“I don’t want his blood on my hands,” Bastien stated. “Let’s go.

“You need to get some food, man.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, let’s go. If I get hungry, I’ll tell you,” Bastien argued as he set out back along the edge of the lake. He caressed Sverker’s hilt as the light of the moon cut through the darkness, guiding him home.

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived in Asnea. The pair entered the castle courtyard the same way they had left. Before heading back to Randgris’ tower, they bathed quickly in the bath house.

“I don’t think I should go back with you, boy. Lady Valk isn’t exactly fond of me. I might set her off more than you.”

“I see your point,” Bastien agreed. “You’ll be back though, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll be around. Shout if you need me.”

Bastien smiled as Duke leaped back over the wall. He returned to Randgris’ tower and pushed the door open. She was sitting at the table tearing into a steak. When she heard the door, she turned and looked at Bastien for a moment with a piece of meat dangling from her open mouth, then got up and stormed towards him.

“Where the hell have you been?!” Randgris shouted as she grabbed Bastien by the collar.

“I got you something,” Bastien struggled to speak. He reached down and detached Sverker from his hip, then lifted it between Randgris and himself. Randgris face cleared of all expression. “What is a woman without her blade?”

Randgris didn’t speak. She took Sverker from Bastien and removed him from his sheathe. She ran her fingers up the blade and gave it a few practice swings. When she saw the new inscription, her face turned bright red and she allowed herself to smile. Placing Sverker back in his sheathe, she handed him back to Bastien.

“You keep him,” Randgris voice was soft. She leaned in and pressed her lips gently against his. “You’re my blade now.”