Chapter 10

A Chapter by RedMistress

- Are you even listening? A voice cut through his foggy mind.

- What? Daze asked confused.

- Great! That's one hour of my life I can't get back, his best friend and second in command huffed.

- Calm down, Red.

- What's with you these past few days? You've been so out of it I feel embarrassed for you.

Daze frowned for a moment before letting out sigh as a smile crept on his face. It grew until it was a full blown grin then he leaned forward over the table.

- I found her, he whispered towards his friend.

Red scowled raising an eyebrow in question at the same time before his expression changed to that of delighted astonishment.

- You're kidding! Where? When? And how come she's not here right now? He asked looking around as if expecting her to pop out of nowhere and yell ‘surprise!'.

- In the fortress of the shifters, the other day when I went to finish the contract there and it's going to be a lot harder than that, he sighed again only this time in sadness.

- Why? Did she finally realize you're not worth the effort? His friend mocked earning a glare.

- No. The problem is that we are talking about the son of their leader, that's why.

- Hold on, Red raised his hand to stop the conversation. I thought you said you found “her” and now you’re telling me it’s a “him”, he asked confused and Daze nodded. Okay. I still don’t see what the problem is. It’s not like it's the first time, right?

- No, no it’s not, Daze’s eyes dropped to the table thoughtfully.

- Then what is the issue? Are you not attracted to him?

His head snapped up and he stared at Red for a whole minute before he spoke, but all the while he couldn’t see his friend. Instead, he remembered Shai’s delicate features, the touch of his soft lips pressed against his own, the way his arms wrapped tightly around his neck as he responded to Daze’s kiss and the sound of his sweet voice that even now had Daze wanting to hear it over and over again.

- No, I’m definitely attracted to him, he said with a soft smile before he sobered up. It's just that it's always harder with men. Not to mention that his father is rumored to be a psychopath.

- Oh yeah, there's that. So what are you gonna do?

- What I did before. Approach him with caution and patience and pray to all the deities that I don't end up dueling his dad.

- Did it ever work? The approach I mean, Red asked curious.

- No, but then again what other choice do I have? I can’t force him to love me back.

- Doesn’t that come along with the past her…him…life, or whatever you want to call it?

- The impression of the feelings is there, some of the stronger memories get passed on but that doesn’t mean he’s going to just accept them. He can always fight back and wipe them, I guess. It’s not a guarantee he will love me, Daze explained the idea leaving a bitter taste in his mouth as he spoke the words.

Red didn’t answer, just nodded his understanding and sympathy for his friend. Daze had known him since he had been just a kid lost on the streets of Renhara, where he used to get the beatings of his life. Gillired, had been the son of a Guard that passed away before he was born and a prostitute that felt she didn’t need a child to drag her further down then she already was. So, he ended up on the streets, a Lohel as all such children were called, fighting to survive from the earliest of ages. Red had admitted on some rare occasions that he’d done things he was not proud of to stay alive, and that he would always be grateful for the day he tried to pickpocket Daze in the market of the city he called home.

At the time Daze had been in Renhara on a contract that seemed simple enough to finish on his own. But then he caught a little boy trying to rob him, an assassin and thief in his own rights and his purpose in that city suddenly changed. When he grabbed that small hand rummaging through his bag he hadn’t expected to find a defiant little boy at the end of it. And yet, with all his defiant body language, his eyes had screamed his fear at getting caught. To this day he couldn’t exactly explain why he did it, but he had taken Red with him back to Kena, his fortress. Also, to this day he couldn’t find it in himself to regret his decision.

Both their heads snapped up and to the side as the door of the dining hall burst open and a young boy ran towards them. As he reached the duo he stopped abruptly and tried with very little success to catch his breath.

- Ma...mama...

- Sit down and breathe properly Nex, Red ordered though his voice was soft.

Nex obeyed gladly grabbing Red's glass and drinking to his heart content. Red smiled at the youth knowing he was just drinking pumpkin juice, a beverage both he and his nephew shared a liking for. Finally able to breathe relatively normal Nex graced them with an almost toothless smile that made both men chuckle against their will.

- Mama shaid to tell you dat dere iz a noosh in da fortresh.

Both men blinked in confusion before Daze couldn't help burst into laughter. Red had better success at hiding his amusement when he saw the boy pouting.

- Nex are you sure that's what Raia said?

The boy bit his lip for a few moments before he shook his head that he wasn't. Daze, even now trying with little success to hide his laughter, pushed a plate of food towards the kid knowing full well that the bottomless pit that was his stomach made him unable to refuse anything edible whenever it was offered. And indeed, the boy started devouring it almost instantly, all his bad mood forgotten.

Red tussled his hair smiling. He himself didn't have any family blood wise, at least not as far as he knew. His mother could still be alive but since he couldn't even remember what she looked like she might as well be dead. When Daze had brought him here as a child he was taken in by Raia's mother and raised as if he was her own flesh and blood.

On the streets of Renhara his life had seemed hopeless enough that he often found himself willing to give up and then Daze had caught him stealing from him and his life changed. To say he had been scared at that moment would be an understatement. He was sure he couldn't even begin to imagine the things the man would do to him and in spite of his crappy life he still wasn't willing to die. Alas, the man had stared him down and threatened him into leaving his hometown for Kena.

Once here he was accepted without many questions about his origins and this had felt like home ever since. Even with the gruesome training he had received it was still the best thing that ever happened to him, although, in all fairness he had made the training much harder on himself because at the time he had felt like he had something to prove. Now, he couldn't imagine his life without this place or the people that had become closer than any blood relative he could imagine.

Nex looked back at them and smiled once more, crumbs littering his face. He knew not what fear was because despite their general occupation no man under Daze’s command was neither cruel nor savage and some of them even had families that they loved very much. The overall number of people that lived in the fortress, even after all these years, remained relatively small given that every man or woman had the choice to stay with their family or take them and move away without any pressure or threats. No one ever spoke of the secrets that they had learned here and they never would. They knew the value of loyalty.

Still, there had been times when one or two members felt like the policies were too lenient on those that wished to leave, hell there had been years of plotting to take the fortress away from Daze, but this was his home and more importantly it had been her home so he would never let that happen. He liked to think of himself as a fair person so he gave everyone a choice. Whether they liked those choices or not was an entirely different matter. Sure, he had killed some of them but only because they refused to leave and or let everyone live on peace. He wasn't bothered by the thought of taking a life when said life form refused to let everyone live just because he/she felt like it. It wasn't his profession that made him think this way, it was actually the other way around. She used to argue with him all the time at first about how he view things until she finally saw what he meant. Gods he missed her. Looking back at Nex he realized that even his smile had died and he tried to force a new cheerful one but all he managed was a nostalgic twitch of the lips. He ruffled the boy's hair as well and stood.

- I'm gonna go see what she wants, he left behind with Red who looked at him like he knew where his mind had flown to.

He walked out of the dining hall and passed a few doors, then climbed down half a level and through a rather long bright corridor with large floor to ceiling windows on one side before he finally reached the gardens. Raia was as expected tending to one of the plants. She was a miracle worker with those damn things, but given her forest witch ancestry it wasn't such a great surprise. Her mother was the same and Nex was showing signs of being inclined towards nature as well. It was a nifty ability to have especially when the user loved nature. The plants here were some of the rarest in the world not to mention that they kept a few extinct species in a special section where not many were allowed. He went inside touching the soft texture of a large green and white leaf and he heard Raia sigh.

- You didn't get the message did you? She asked without turning around.

- Not unless you wanted me to know we have a noose in the fortress, he answered once again amused.

Raia pursed her lips to hide a smile that would have most definitely turned into laughter then, once over her fit, she sighed and spoke without turning to face Daze.

- There is news from the forest, she finally said.

Daze froze for a moment as his brain tried to process the new information. He wasn’t even gonna try and pretend his mind didn’t just automatically jump straight to Shai, but he needed to focus. Raia took his silence as an encouragement to carry on, so turning around she continued.

- There is word that an attack on the city of Renhara is imminent. No specifics as to who the aggressor is but I think we can take a wild, yet accurate guess as to whom we are talking about, she finished calmly plucking a wilted leaf from a perfectly trimmed plant.

- What was their reaction?

- They are gathering a party to send to Renhara.

His eyebrows shot to his forehead where they stood a moment before they furrowed in thought as he searched for an answer to his unasked question.

- Yeah, trust me, I know, Raia acknowledged his surprise. Maniket sending help is probably a sign that the world is ending.

- I don't think he is, not really. Not just help at least. There must be some strategy behind this that hasn't been revealed yet. Do you know who will be in this party? He asked his mind once again jumping to Shai.

- No, but I'm assuming his right hand, a few of his enforcers and I believe he's going as well. His son could be joining them, but I don’t think Maniket will allow it.

- How do you figure that one?

- I for one wouldn't want my son in the heat of the battle, especially since he only has one.

- I don't know, the boy seemed like a pretty independent soul to me, Daze observed thoughtfully.

- You met him? Raia asked in surprise.

- Yeah, shortly, he answers already regretting telling her when her sharp eyes gave him a scrutinizing look.

- Oh?

- Anyway, we have more pressing matters like sending our own little group to aid.

She looked like she wanted to press the matter, probably sensing his apprehension about the subject but seemed to think better of it. Instead, she turned back around and started pruning another pant.

- If you intend to go, yourself, take Red with you this time. He keeps complaining that you left him behind on your last mission and if I have to hear one more word about it, I’ll throw itching powder on him.