Tales of magic: grimoire of transmogrification

  Chapter 44

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  Arc 2 – “The hunter and the beast”

  Chapter 28- “Family”

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  They came together. Not as enemies or friends or allies or rivals, but as a family.

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  2nd May, 1886.

  Weidson, Pridon.

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  10:09

  Jordan stared at his reflection with a frown. The blood and filth still wasn’t completely gone.

  ‘Damn.’

  He turned his head to the pail of water, seeing his dishevelled reflection yet again. He took a moment to stare at it.

  For the first time in days, his cyan blue eyes didn’t have bags underneath. The boy’s braids were still the same. His face was still somewhat dirty, but otherwise he was as handsome as he had always been.

  ‘Who am I kidding? I have the looks of a monkey.’

  He was stark naked, so he could see his chest as well. The skin was raw in some areas, torn up and bruised in others, but he could still recognise it somehow. He tried not to stare at the gaping hole in the left part of his chest, by taking a glance below. He was so thin that most of his ribs were clearly visible under his skin—though that wasn’t new.

  He sighed. Then he began to scrub himself. The pain wasn’t new, but he still flinched when the soap got to the wounded areas. He grit his teeth and bore the pain.

  “Jordan, get the hell out of there!” A voice screamed from outside the room.

  “Shut up!”

  “You’ve been there for nearly a hour. It makes me wonder what you’re doing in there. Thinking about Veronica?”

  “Shut. Up.”

  “You don’t have to be shy around me. By the way, the meeting is in ten minutes, you better be there.”

  Jordan didn’t reply.

  ‘Lancaster, you doofus. I’m scrubbing myself, what else could I be doing?’

  The wound still didn’t hurt. He couldn’t tell whether it was a good thing, or a bad thing.

  ‘What did Valkyrie do to me? Lancaster has a lot of explaining to do.’

  Jordan sat down in the bathtub. The warm water would have been soothing and relaxing, if he wasn’t in as much pain as he was in currently. He stared at the ceiling, trying to distract himself from it.

  ‘William. He would’ve killed us. He could’ve killed us. Killed me... Why didn’t he? I mean, it would have been so easy.’

  Journal, somehow it seems my Inscribe can still reach you even when I’m without a quill or a source of ink. But it’s taking me a lot more Power to talk to you, so I’ll make it as short as I can.

  Theory one: William might just be a good person. I mean, he saved my life by risking his own life to save me. I know, he might be immortal so that doesn’t count. But still, he didn’t look like he had any ulterior motives for doing what he did. But what about Lisa?

  I’m not sure how to feel about this. I hate him, but what right do I have to blame him for her death? I mean, according to his story, The Crown’s men killed her... So it’s not really..

  Theory two: He is way too proud, and he can’t stoop so low as to fight a worthless piece of crap like me. In simple terms, he wants to kill me but only when I’m at my best. Honestly, it doesn’t make sense to me either, Journal. I mean, it’s just too stupid. But he sounded like he really was advising me. William wants me to make up my mind. He kept on saying it over and over as though he was scolding a child. He thinks I’m not worthy to fight him. And he’s either right or an arrogant idiot who thinks too highly of himself because he just so happens to be immortal.

  Theory three...

  “Jordan! You’re late.”

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  He sighed, again. The water was already getting cold- and he didn’t even realise it. He got up from the bathtub and took another glance at his reflection in the mirror. He wasn’t surprised to see his face. It was much cleaner than before.

  He reached for his towel, and then wrapped it around his waist. He reached for the door, grabbing the handle. Jordan heard footsteps from behind the door.

  ‘Lancaster.’

  He opened the door in a single motion and then nearly collapsed in surprise. It was Veronica.

  “W-what are you doing here?”

  “Well, we do have business to discuss.”

  “H-here?”

  Veronica smiled and took a step backwards, gesturing for Jordan to go.

  “No, I’m here to take a bath.”

  Jordan suddenly noticed the change of clothes she was carrying, as well as the towel she had around her neck.

  ‘Yeah. Of course.’

  The Middlesworth boy grabbed his clothes and made himself scarce. Rather than changing, he went straight to the living room.

  “Lancaster, why is Veronica in our bathroom?”

  Lancaster was sitting on a chair, facing a piano. His fingers were hovering over the keys. He was dressed in a formal white suit that looked expensive, and there was a crow on his back.

  “Jordan, I do not recall a moment in time whereby the ownership of this humble apartment was passed over to you.”

  “Why are you talking like that?”

  Lancaster didn’t respond for a while. His eyes glued to the keys of the piano.

  “She’s like my sister, y’know. I mean, the three of us have always been close.”

  “We didn’t speak to each other for two years.”

  “Yeah...”Lancaster smiled, pressing down the D-key.

  Jordan sighed, walking over to him.

  ‘What’s going on in his head right now?’

  “...Why don’t we settle that problem?” He released the key and pressed down the G.

  “Where the heck is that coming from?”

  “I know. It’s not my style to be doing these kinds of things, but... I think it’s about time we talked about the elephant in the room.”

  “There is no elephant.”

  “Jordan, you’re smarter than me. You know what I’m talking about.”

  There was yet another brief silence. Lancaster had removed his finger from that key, and had turned around to look at Jordan. He had the same blank look on his face. No expressions.

  Jordan walked a bit closer, until he was about a meter away from him. It suddenly struck him; his face wasn’t shriveled up and ugly anymore. He had colour in his cheeks, and he actually looked healthy.

  “You’re right. I’m sorry.” Jordan apologized.

  “For what?”

  “I tried to avoid this.. awkward conversation.”

  “So did I.” Lancaster smiled.

  “So what changed?”

  “Magic. The shit that went down yesterday. Veronica. Need I say more?” His words sounded calm and collected, but Jordan knew that wasn’t the case. As far as he knew, for Lancaster to be talking like that, he’s either furious or downcast.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Your pal knows where we are. We need a strategy. But firstly, I need to know that I can trust you. Completely. Look, I don’t do teamwork. But you know what happened yesterday. My plan went to shit. We would’ve died- and ultimately I had to give up on killing William, in order to protect myself. As it stands, I believe Hunter has so much raw power that no matter how hard I try, I can’t beat him. Not alone.”

  “You...the spell diagram?”

  “Yes. Reactivating it saved my life, and would have doomed yours if William wasn’t a mad man.”

  Quill’s cheeks were suddenly moist. He touched them, feeling the liquid.

  ‘I’m crying?’

  “You’re still a crybaby, huh. I don’t fault you for it. I deceived you with the fake contract and manipulated you so I could get what I needed from you.”

  “Needed?” His voice was heavy. He didn’t understand why. He wiped his tears off, frantically and tried to maintain his composure.

  “Yes, Jordan. You can see my face, right?” He pointed to it. “I already have a somewhat stable source of Power now. So there really isn’t much need for our alliance to continue.”

  ‘What does he mean by that?’

  “You’re... How? What’s...” Jordan collapses on the sofa, facing away from Lancaster.

  ‘I’m usually not this emotional... We’ve been partners for barely three days. Why does it feel so...’

  “Jordan. It’s not over. Look, you’ve got all day to cry about whatever you’re crying about but fucking make up your mind already. Would you agree to work alongside someone who has repeatedly put his own interests over your wellbeing, time and time again.”

  There was yet another brief moment of silence. Only the sound of the ticking clock could be heard.

  “What’s my alternative?”

  “Certain death.”

  “I thought as much.” Jordan shook his head.

  “You’re an asshole, but you’re not as bad as you make yourself out to be. I mean you’re helping me without any ulterior motives now, right?”

  “Well... actually,”

  “What!!!” Jordan yelled at him.

  “You really aren’t afraid of me anymore, are you? I wanted to say that I loved that.”

  “What?”

  “What we did. Together. I get why people like forming teams; there’s so much more security in a group.”

  “Lancaster.”

  “Stressing over the two of you would keep me busy, all day and all night too. The war of the mages has to be taken care of as well. I’ve realized that doing it alone just won’t work.”

  “Lancaster!”

  “By the way, I gave it a try a while back...and flying solo isn’t nearly as fun.”

  “Lancaster, you... You’re family. You always will be. I don’t care about whatever happened in the past. It doesn’t matter anymore. I mean you’re not directly trying to kill me anymore, right? And even if you are... That doesn’t change who we are. We’re a team.”

  “I almost thought you were confessing your undying love for me for a moment.” Lancaster smiled. Jordan walked towards him, his arms spread wide, but Lancaster stretched out his hand for a handshake at the same time.

  They settled for a handshake.

  “What about Veronica?” Jordan asked, as they broke the handshake.

  “I think she likes you. You’ve got a shot. Don’t mess it up, alright.”

  “Thanks, but no..”

  “Your infatuation with her has faded away?”

  “No.. I mean...I wasn’t talking about that. I was talking about the parasite inside her. What do we do about it?”

  “It’s been more than twenty four hours. It’s a problem. I know.”

  “And?”

  “I have the perfect solution.” Lancaster grinned.

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  Meanwhile, the train station in Weidson was quiet for a moment. However, the arrival of the train changed that. In moments, the place was bustling with activity, as passengers made their way out.

  One passenger in particular had an expressionless face. His unkempt black hair flowed in the wind, and the decorated scabbard on his waist turned a few heads. He wore a plain white dress shirt and black trousers underneath a black cloak that obscured most of his facial features. His brown eyes stood out a bit but the small bushy beard on his chin was the first thing anyone saw when they glanced at him.

  He stared at the town ahead and his lips curled up in a slight smile.

  “William. I know you can hear me.”

  “Ein.”

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