What Memory Remains

“Krane, dear. Won’t you join me?”

Vera’s voice echoed from the bathroom into the bedroom, where Krane sat on the bed.

“Just a moment.”

He had been staring at the wall, his mind drifting to the events previous of that day as well as the forthcoming events. It always helped when his mind was troubled to simply sit and not think. Letting his mind sift through the information of the day’s troubles. Soon, this led to him gazing at his engagement ring. As much as the ring reminded him of how dark life could get, it also soothed him. There was a connection to it.

“I think it’s the scorch marks,” he mumbled to himself. The burnt metal seemed to mirror his own inner turmoil. What was once a bright shining soul inside him was now a scorched, dull object. Vera’s voice called to him again.

“Robert, please come here. Tell me how you killed that stupid agent of Minerva. I’m dying to hear all about it.”

“Coming.” His reply sounded casual, hiding his disdain for her. She had been so clingy lately, making her all the more disgusting to look at. Begrudgingly, he stood up and entered the bathroom.

Amidst his dislike of her, he had to admit the sight of her in the tub was easy on the eyes. Her raven hair was slicked back with water, emphasizing her elven facial features even more. She looked very feline, casting an edgy and elegant look all at once. Even with the light being distorted from the water, he could still see the curviness of her beautiful form in the tub.

“Well, I’ve seen that look before.” She teased.

“It’s hard not to when you look so lovely.”

“Sit near me and tell me how you disposed of this….Erich?”

“Yes, that was his name. Erich Stromm.”

“How did you do it? Stabbing? Strangling?”

“Even better. I did as a good boy should and showed him the Rune-Tech Armor. We demonstrated with some powerful spells. After he saw the potency of it’s protection, he called it in to have us approved for use.”

“And then?”

“I showed him the cannon.”

“And….?”

“Personally.”

“Oh, Robert that’s wonderful. Very much so….I wish I was there to see the look on his face.”

“It was wondrous.”

“And what of his crew?”

“Oh, I had my men dispose of them. In fact, they’re all still down at the morgue, before they’re burned anyway. What’s left, anyway.That magic cannon practically tore him in half.”

“Splendid. Will you join me now?”

“Yes, a good hot bath would do me so good.”

“I’ll make sure it’s perfect for you.”

Robert smiled and walked back into the bedroom and disrobed. As he did so, the burnt ring slipped from his pants pocket. Leaning down to pick it up, he already began to feel a presence from it. Once it was in his hand, he felt it even stronger and heard a small voice inside his head.

“It’s time. Do it now.”

Robert carefully placed the ring into his pants’ pocket, now filled with a sense of duty and dread. He made his way to the tub, and Vera must have noticed his expression as he climbed in.

“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing it’s just…thinking about Rose again.”

“Oh….I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright…happens out of the blue like that.”

“You just can’t seem to let go of her, can you?”

“How can I, Vera? I loved her so much. She’s still a part of me.”

“I understand, love.”

“I wish you could have met her.”

“She seems lovely. Listen, I know she’s a part of you, but that was long ago, and things have changed. You have me now.”

She embraced him, and for a moment he felt some peace. This didn’t last long after she released him and he sat back to gaze into her face one last time.

All Krane could focus on was her stupid elven features, how the air felt different close to her from all the magical energy, and the ugly reminder she was to his own tragedy. Faking a smile, Robert gazed into her eyes and brushed his fingertips across her neck. Just as she began to sigh from his touch, he tightly wrapped both of his hands about her neck and squeezed.

Vera’s eyes bulged as he suddenly stood up and held her under the water , her thrashing spilling water onto the floor.

“You had this coming!” Robert shouted.

Vera choked out a “why?!” above the raucous of her struggle to catch her breath.

“I’m making this a better place! I can’t do it if you’re still here!”

A dark elation filled him as her attempts to reclaim oxygen got weaker and weaker. The veins stood out on Krane’s neck as he was finally able to release Vera from his grip. She had now gone completely limp and floated just under the remaining waters of the tub. Heaving from the effort, he thought about his next plan of action. Compared to his other killings, the timing of this was more spontaneous.

“Vera, you hit your head on the tub! What a slippery floor…” He practiced in his head, and he grinned at the sound of it. There was no reason for his cohorts to know the truth if it wasn’t necessary.

Spilling more water out, he exited the tub and dried himself off as he hummed a tune to himself. Within a week, he would be setting off the last chain of events that would send the two major continents into an all-out war. Just needed to tie up some loose ends first…

Before leaving his room to inform his officers of Vera’s “mishap,” he realized that there wasn’t any evidence that she had hit her head. It was a simple fix, he would just bash her head on the side of the tub before he brought anyone in to take her away. At that, he turned on his heels and went back into the bathroom.

His feet splashed from the mini puddles solemnly as he looked down at his dead assistant-turned-wife. Her features looked so angelic and peaceful, wisps of hair floating out to the side. Before he reached in and grabbed her, the memory of meeting her came flooding back.

In a small office, Krane sat behind a large oak desk writing notes on a paper. He finished his notations, then pulled a charred ring from under his shirt that was held by a metal chain. Eyes glossing over in memory of his dear Rose, he felt more motivated to keep going for the day with his interviews. It had been a long day, full of many candidates but no such luck yet.

A knock on the door startled him.

“Y-yes?!”

“Your next candidate is ready sir.”

“Send them in.”

Krane responded automatically, still feeling disconnected. This is all changed the moment the door to his office opened. Immediately upon seeing her, he was captivated. A younger girl stepped in, her eyes alight with intensity. She didn’t just walk toward him, instead she seemed to glide. There was something about her he couldn’t quite place, but she seemed familiar.

As she approached, Krane felt a lump in his throat.

“Hi..uh hello.” An awkward silence followed.

“You are Krane, right?”

“Yes, yes of course. You’re in the right place. Cat got my tongue is all. Please, have a seat miss….?”

“Vera…Vera Morrow.”

“Ah, yes. Ms. Morrow. I understand you’re interested in our program because you have some abilities that need some training?”

“Yes.”

Unbeknownst to Vera, Krane’s objective at these meetings was to ascertain how powerful candidates were, then get them into the NOSRAD facility for surveillance. This was to ensure they were taken away from society, studied to understand magic better, and eliminate them if found to be a threat. What all subjects were told was that they would be taught how to control their powers.

“What brought you to us for help?”

“Well….to be honest Dr. Krane, I don’t know where else to go.”

“Why is that?”

“I’m on the run. My powers have caused some unfortunate incidents where I lived and the people in my village haven’t taken kindly to it. There were some threats and harassment, so I decided to leave. In fact, I was planning on moving to Latheria where my magic wouldn’t be so looked down upon, but when I found out about your program I thought that maybe I could stay. I know because of my Mark that others may look at me strangely for being a Magi, but if I could control it that would make things easier.”

“Indeed.”

At first, Krane began asking the usual introductory questions which probed further about her abilities, when they were most active, and other related questions. Yet after twenty minutes of talking, something in Krane began to change. He felt his guard dropping a bit as he spoke, starting to ask more personal questions. There was something so intriguing about her, and he soon realized how much she reminded him of his dearly departed Rose.

When she spoke, he hung on every word. Her lips seemed to move in slow motion, and he encapsulated every detail of her. It didn’t hurt that she was strikingly pretty, but it felt deeper than just that. Somehow, Krane soon felt as if he could fall in love with this woman if he chose to take her with him to the NOSRAD facility.

...And it scared the living hell out of him.

Even as they talked and he felt so compelled to learn more about her, he planned on how he would kill her. Ways to cover up her death so as not to attract attention. Where to hide her body. But each time he would plan a detail, another part of him fought against himself. And so he compromised.

“So, Ms. Morrow, I think I’ve gotten enough information to take the next step. I want to take you to the facility and do some preliminary tests. See your magical abilities in action. From there, I can see if we can take you on.”

“Really?! Oh, thank you so much! When can we start?”

“Immediately. If you have your things we can leave in a matter of hours.”

“Yes, yes I can! I won’t let you down.”

“Good to hear! I can await your return here in an hour then?”

“Yes! Thank you so much for this, Dr. Krane!”

“It’s my pleasure, Vera. And please….call me Robert.”

He let the last words linger, and Vera must have caught on to the insinuation as she smiled devilishly back at him.

“Was she….flirting with me?” He thought to himself, seeming to feel like a teenager again. Feeling light, he dismissed Vera with a bashful wave and sat back down to think over his plans with his new candidate.

Krane soon brought her to the facility, taking care to treat her quite differently than the usual test subjects. After seeing her raw power, he felt even more attracted to her. When he saw her melt through a wall of pure steel, he remembered how much his heart hammered in his chest. She caught his eye, and caught an even stronger version of her devilish grin.

It had never occurred to Krane before to have a Magi on his side, but the idea seemed to make more and more sense as he realized the potential advantage it gave him. The only tricky part was to convince her to be on his side when she realized what he was really doing with his test subjects. It was a gradual reveal as he carefully told her of his painful past with his brother. Yet in time, she seemed so supportive of his goals it was shocking to him. Many plans of her death were cast aside as he fell in love with her.

He could never understand if it was how she reminded him of his Rose or how her usefulness coincided with his lust for power, but he was infatuated with her. Within two years, she was married to him and his right-hand man…or “woman” as she liked to correct him with a wry smile.

A sigh escaped Krane’s lips as he lifted Vera out of the tub, the fog of his past now lifted. It was only so recently as he came closer to his goal that he suddenly felt his revulsion for her. Every time he looked at her, his feelings of love waned and he couldn’t stop fantasizing about killing her. And so he stood now, cradling her in his arms when his unemotional state suddenly lifted and an unexpected grief seized him. Tears streamed down his face as he looked down upon hers.

“I killed the only person I felt anything for,” he thought inwardly. His tears disappeared onto her wet skin, reminding him of how he hid his true intentions for her for years. “What is wrong with me…?”

His shoulders heaved as he felt a shocking sob rippled through him. A wave of miserableness shook himm something he never imagined was possible. As he looked upon her face one more time, he saw her eyes snap open.

Momentarily freaked out, he reminded himself how people’s eyes can naturally open even in death. Regardless, it still unnerved him.

“Vera…I’m so sorry….I’m going to put you away now.”

He turned to lift her away when a laugh issued from Vera’s lips.

It shocked Krane so much he let go. Vera’s body slipped from his grip, but before it hit the floor something impossible happened. As quick as a reflex, Vera caught herself in a kneeling stance and looked up at him with cold, dead eyes.

“Thought it would be that easy, did you? Well you’re wrong. It is I who will be putting YOU away.”

The wizardess grabbed Krane by the throat and lifted him against the wall. The director’s eyes bulged wide and he feebly wrestled against the elf’s grip, completely helpless at her amazing strength.

“How could you? I opened myself up to you…trusted you all this time. And you were to use me like some pawn? Never again.”

The wizardess let go, and Krane crumpled to the floor. A look of maleficent delight danced in her eyes.

“I have plans of my own now, Krane. Everything you’ve worked for, everything you’ve done for your own selfish vendetta has been for nothing. Knowing more and more people like you have only reinforced what I already knew about humans, but seeing the depths that you’ve gone has made me realized that your kind are the ones who should not exist.

“All the planning, seething, and manipulation is now being completely turned against you. But also know this…I truly did love you once. And that’s what makes my heart hurt so much to do what I have chosen to do. I have the power of technology and magic at my disposal, and I’ve seen it at work. And it is quite splendid. All the more satisfying to know you’ve made me what I am, and what you’ve created will now destroy you. So sad…a man of your stature dying by slipping on the bathroom floor.”

Vera grabbed Krane by the scruff of the neck, delighted in the hopelessness in his eyes, and slammed his head onto the side of the tub. The impact was so hard, she actually cracked the tub and water trickled through. Krane’s limp body slid to the wet floor as he began to slipp into eternal slumber.

He felt no more anger, no more hatred.

For the first time since Rose’s death, Robert Krane felt peace…