Case 3: Girls

I have mentioned this man to you before. He was the one who brought the four children to General Lucifre. He had also helped the young people, Alison and Cason, find their new homes within the military.

This friend…he was a strange man…if he was human at all. It had become more evident in the passing years that the man simply was not aging, but remained to look in his twenties. At a passing glance, he looked perfectly normal with black hair... his clothes were designed for comfort, but suitable still for hard roads. So he was an adventurer type. Physical appearances…handsome I suppose…if you like that type…I never found myself looking twice at him. But if you do look closely, he does have some interesting features. His eyes were of two separate colors, one red and the other green. That alone suggested a non human quality.

Wait…what? Oh right…his name was Freyr.

***

This man, Freyr, was now walking toward the military camp, journeying through the woods instead of using the main road. There was more of a chance getting lost in the woods…but I guess he did not like the easy way getting to places.

The man stopped in his tracks, noting the night’s heavy darkness was starting to bother his sight. The fog was layering on pretty thick. He sighed and took another step before tripping over something on the ground.

“What in the world…” he looked down to see a man’s body strewn across the floor.

Squinting, he could see the man was heavily wounded. His face was too bruised and scratched for quick identification and his clothes were torn beyond repair.

Freyr frowned and knelt down to inspect the man. “A villager…no.” He glanced at what remained of the man’s clothes. “A soldier.” He tilted his head to make out the badge on the man’s chest. “…and one of Lucifre’s men…”

***

“Third case this month,” Alison said, inspecting the fallen soldier’s wounds. “Self-inflicted injuries too.” She motioned at the man’s most obvious marks.

“Now you know why I don’t want those children in the woods. Are you sure no one else inflicted these injuries upon him?” Lucifre inquired, leaning over the man. “Like a prankster?”

“Pretty sure…I searched his memories…he…” she stopped and drew herself into a salute. “Sirs!”

Lucifre nodded to the three generals, who had just entered the tent. To be honest, I do not think Lucifre liked them very much, but they were the higher ups of the military.

“Another injured soldier?” This was asked by the youngest of the three newcomers.

“Yes General Gregory,” Alison responded automatically.

“He was on duty, on the east side of the town,” Cason said, walking into the tent. He briefly saluted the generals before walking toward Lucifre. “The other men didn’t know when he vanished from his post. Like the other incidents…he was somehow lured away.”

“What lures men into the woods and injures them to the point of near death?” Lucifre asked.

“A nymph?” another of the generals suggested. This man was the oldest in the group. He was starting to bald so he usually wore a military cap to cover his head. Lucifre admitted that this General Paulson was more good natured than the other highers.

“I made sure every soldier in camp had an emblem that repelled the artificial desires with the natural immortal spirits,” Alison said, searching the patient’s clothes. “See, his is right here in…what was his shirt pocket…”

“I hope he wasn’t trying to commit suicide,” General Gregory said.

“Why would he come back?” Lucifre looked down at the soldier. “I can’t have more of these cases. I request an inspection of the woods. Paulson…”

“I admit my men are amazing trackers,” General Paulson said. “But to go off to find something that they don’t even know what they’re looking for…I can’t say they would be so obliged. I will ask…but I can’t ensure any…”

“I’ll go,” Cason volunteered.

“W…what! No, absolutely not!” Alison protested instantaneously.

Lucifre coughed loudly into his fist to cover up the outburst. “Corporal…”

“That thing is attacking soldiers, male soldiers at that…and I consider myself quite the specimen. So please do me the honor in giving me this mission.”

Alison was trying to maintain her cool temper while the generals debated this suggestion quietly.

“You are…an excellent insignia mage…” Lucifre affirmed. “The town and camp is always protected by Corporal Cason’s wards during the night.”

“Perhaps this character of problem can be found by a mage then,” Paulson said with assurance. “He would be able to protect himself from it.”

Cason grinned despite feeling that he was being overconfident. He turned to smile at Healer Alison, but the woman had a dark shadow that cloaked her usual bright face.

Miss Glenda North’s bakery shop was a favorite weekend destination for the children. They would usually race to the shop before dawn since it was relatively safe for them to be running around in the town before Cason’s protection wards wore off at the first light.

Today, only Elana came to visit the humble little shop. She went to the back of the bakery to first find Miss North’s son, Quinn. The boy was different from the other three companions Elana usually was with. Quinn was extremely kind and understanding and was perhaps even a little too mature for his age. He always held others in high respects and even spoke so.

Elana peered into the small yard behind the shop to see Quinn kneeling next to three bushes. As the girl crept toward him, she noticed his hands were raised in front of him and making strange symbols in the air. One of the bushes began to glow and suddenly plump berries began to appear along the plant’s branches. Elana clapped her hands once, her cyan eyes bright with excitement. She turned to praise the boy when she noticed his face was wet.

“Quinn?”

The boy opened his eyes to reveal two very blue orbs. He had dark ebony hair that was cut to his shoulders. He was around the twins’ ages, only a few months older. Seeing his friend’s worried expression, Quinn smiled, rubbing his face briefly.

“Hey Elana…”

“You were crying,” the girl murmured, leaning again his shoulder.

“Oh…that happens sometimes. The bush was lecturing me again...” Quinn lowered his head sheepishly. “The earth is that bad, there’s not a lot of nutrients and at this rate, no plants can be grown around here. I had to force them to produce fruits, using…using my magic and such…”

Elana blinked, not quite understanding his explanation. Then she felt her friend’s shoulder. She looked down to see that he wore long sleeves to cover his arms. She pulled back his right sleeve to see that his arm was thin and almost nothing but bone.

“Q…Quinn…does Aunt Glenda...”

He covered her mouth with his hand. “Don’t tell Mama, alright. She’ll be worrying about this weird power of mine again.”

“B…but”

“I like this power Elana and I intend to keep it,” Quinn said stubbornly.

Elana frowned. Freyr had told Miss Glenda that this magic was earth and plant related, and considered one of the more rare powers that mages could have. Such a gift was to be preserved. But…she looked at him sadly. He was hurting himself to help the plants.

“Hey you two!”

Elana and Quinn looked up to see a young man at the door of the bakery. This was Quinn’s older brother, Tomas, and he was many years more senior than the young earth mage.

“Aww…your little girlfriend’s here…” Tomas said teasingly.

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Quinn responded picking up the potted bush. “Here’s the plant.”

Tomas relieved his younger brother’s trembling hands of the plant. “You know little bro, you might want to eat a bit more in the future. I don’t want my brother growing up to be a skinny little man.”

Quinn shrugged. “I don’t mind being skinny.”

“Girls like muscles on their men, right Elana?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Elana replied honestly. “All the big brothers in the military have muscles, but I don’t like them because they’re strong. I like them because they take care of me when Arashi, Cross, and Kurei are busy.”

Tomas sighed, slightly exasperated. “Oh what would you two know? You’re just kids.” He turned away to give them plant to their mother.

Quinn shook his head at his brother.

“I think…Tomas is being weird… he’s got that girl, Melynda, in his head…so…”

Elana giggled. “It’s ok. Most of the big brothers are like that too.” She reached for Quinn’s arm and pulled back his sleeve again.

“Please don’t hurt yourself anymore.”

“Then where would Mama get the berries for the bread from? We need the money Ela…”

The two were quiet with Elana fighting the urge to slap Quinn for being silly, but she did know the condition of the earth right now. For some reason, all the nutrients in the earth were slowly being depleted.

“Quinn? Where are you?”

The boy jerked his arm back just in time as his mother appeared at the door.

“Why hello Elana, visiting us again?”

Elana shyly stepped back. “I’m sorry for bothering you…”

“No no, Quinn likes you a lot. I wish you’ll visit us more often. The military is really no place for a girl…” She smiled at the girl, patting her cheek lovingly. “Such a cute face…why don’t you two help me crack some eggs. Your brother’s busy daydreaming about that Melynda girl.”

Quinn led Elana to the kitchen and grabbed two wooden stools for them to stand on. Seven bowls of eggs were on top of the counter.

“You should come visit me in the camp…so I don’t have to bother your mum so often,” Elana suggested.

Quinn’s face paled. “I don’t think your friends like me.”

“That’s silly. Kurei told me he liked you.”

“I don’t mean Kurei,” the boy responded.

“Uh…Arashi? He’s just like that. He doesn’t talk and looks half angry all the time,” Elana insisted. “And Cross has a quick personality. That’s all.”

“I don’t think that’s it.”

“No…it’s true! That’s how they are.”

Quinn shrugged, showing that he still disagreed with Elana’s view.

“Miss Glenda, are you opened yet?” a tenor voice inquired at the front of the shop.

“Why it’s you! Long time no see! Have you come to visit our rural little town again?”

“I came to visit you Miss Glenda.”

Elana’s ears perked at the voice. She carefully set an egg back into a bowl and went to wash her hands. Quinn hopped off the stool to peer into the front room.

“It’s…”

“I’ll see you later Quinn,” Elana whispered to her friend.

“You’re running away again?”

Elana looked up imploringly at Quinn. The boy sighed and followed her out the back door.

“Why do you keep running away from him?”

“He…reminds me of someone. So…I have to go. I’ll feel better when I see Lucifre…ok? I really have to go back.”

Quinn nodded. “Of course.”

Elana smiled and made a motion that meant he should eat more before running off. The boy smiled and went back into the kitchen.

***

Lucifre was seated in his tent, looking over Alison’s written reports about the victims of this month’s attacks. Really…what could attack these men? And self inflicted injuries? Why? How was that possible?

“Lu Lu?”

Lucifre looked up to glance at the entrance. Little Elana stood there, her hand still clinging to the tent’s flap. The man flipped the reports over and allowed the girl to run into his arms.

“So you saw Freyr huh…”Lucifre murmured.

“Yeah… Freyr looks like him. He looks a lot like him…” Without meaning to, the girl felt hot tears run down her face.

“You must learn to stop crying when you think of him Elana. Even Freyr’s trying to avoid you because you always start crying when you see him.”

“I didn’t cry when he helped me and Kai!”

“Because Freyr didn’t look like him then?”

Elana nodded. Lucifre sighed, gently stroking her dark hair.

“Try not to cry when you see him later, alright?”

The girl murmured something that sounded like agreeing then she ran off to find Alison. Lucifre stood up and stretched his back. That girl was seriously too short…but then again, she was seven.

“So…who is this man I look like?” Freyr’s voice inquired from the outside.

Lucifre chuckled. “How long have you been there?”

Freyr drew back the tent’s flap. “I followed her back from Miss Glenda’s. Did you know she literally ran away from me when she heard my voice at the bakery?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.” Lucifre held out the reports to Freyr.

“Who do I look like that makes her all weepy?”

“Her father,” the general replied.

“Her father?” Freyr took the reports, frowning. “I’m pretty sure she’s not my kid Lucifre, I can assure you.”

“Late father and she doesn’t mean physical appearances look alike.”

“Then she means…” Freyr paused. “Oh.”

Freyr looked at the papers in his hand, shifting them absently, before meeting Lucifre’s dark eyes.

“I can’t change my personality.”

“And she knows that. It’s been only half a year…give her some time. Her father was the only one who loved her unconditionally. She’ll grow out of it.”

The man who brought the girl to the military in hope that she would find a better family here was troubled. He had expected her to grow attached to her father figure, Lucifre, not to him. Yet…even her attachment with Freyr was at an awkward distance…so he simply could not understand why she would associate him with her father. He sighed. Perhaps he should go visit the boys instead. They seem easier to talk to…and thank the gods…they do not cry when they see him.