Cold Reunion
"You really have outdone yourself, dear friend." whispers Solitaire while looking at yet another house engulfed by flames of my vengeance. I perfectly hear him, however, unable to judge whether he is happy or furious. My eyes are locked on the high regarded property that now returns to dust, as all things through time. All I do is simply speed up this inevitable process, witness its beauty and solemn those that were wronged by those nobles in the past.
It has been the 5th house that I burned out to the ground over the past few days. I am moving swiftly across these lands with the help of my stallion. As it is drinking water in pieces and consumes the highest quality heil that I find within the ground of these mansions, I enjoy the view and this tingling feeling that intoxicates me ever since I drew first blood with my flimsy hands.
But recently I noticed that there is now a tail that follows the trails of my good deeds. Whenever I am mostly done with this vengeance of mine, I can hear a heavy clang far away that never fails to seek me even within the deepest parts of the forest. Every time I hear it, goosebumps spread across my skin and my instincts scream to flee, so far I never failed to escape my pursuers just in time and today will not be an exception.
After a few more minutes of breathing in the ash from the burning mansion, I mound my horse, which does not yet have a name, and ride it further away from the scene of crime. Although this time it's all different, after missing for quite a while, Solitaire re-enacts from the gemstone and continues to follow me even at greater speed of the horse.
"If you do not like my methods of waging battle, then you are free to lock yourself up in that stone."
Solitaire chuckles, he is not as angry as I expected him to be, but there is still a slight undertone of disappointment in his calm voice as he speaks, "Waging battles? And against whom, may I ask you?"
"The nobles who have riches despite this society having no money."
"Is this truly the reason you are doing it, dear friend? I only notice your grin growing wider whenever you pierce their flesh with that dagger of yours. Are you sure you would not act the same way, if those poor would be the one who wronged you?"
"Shut up! You do not understand anything!"
His comment is moronic, even worse than what I was told about politics back in the days of my life as Dusk the snatcher. The poor already have their chins lowered down to the ground, what would be the point of hating those who do not look down on me? If anything, I pity them for giving up on their own strength upon living in weakness. No one should dictate how you live, if you want to not just survive, but live the best possible life, then it is in your interest to be ruthless against those in your path. The world was not kind to me, so why should I be considerate of the world and its weak-minded inhabitants?
Despite this simple truth, Solitaire smiles yet again at my words and spurs even more nonsense that makes me want to throw that gemstone as far away as possible.
"Well, this is not surprising in the slightest how you act. But I would not say it was a blunder to reveal your potential. You are young and prone to commit mistakes, even if the world will hate you, I will always forgive you. So better make sure to survive until the point when you will start regretting everything."
"I will make sure to get rid of that gemstone with the first opportunity I get, I do not need philosophers whispering bullshit in my ear!" I exclaim, but then add in half whisper, "You, nobles, are all the same."
Solitaire sighs and shakes his head, but ultimately stays silent. After a short while of our adventure through the roads of the Schöltum region, I notice a few drops of water falling onto my horse. Solitaire also looks up at the sky and observes forming dark clouds with a soft smile.
"Rain, huh. Don't you think it would be dangerous to ride a horse in such weather?
"Whatever, the clang is still getting closer to us, I can't afford slowing down now."
Solitaire only shrugs at my explanation as I speed up my horse, now metal clang is getting further away from me. Soon enough, droplets of water here and there overgrow into heavy rain, making it impossible to hear or see further than the length of my extended hand. I do not slow down, due to the sense of uneasiness that I can't get rid of no matter how far I go.
Suddenly, my horse trips with an agonising neigh and I fall onto the cold and wet ground. All my belongings and clothes are now covered in mud, even my face, that is quickly washed by pouring rain. I try to get the horse back on its hooves, but upon further examination of the moaning animal, I notice one of its legs being bent unnaturally. I raise my gaze at Solitaire and swiftly narrow my brows upon seeing his smug expression.
A help from him would be a futile effort, thus I begin collecting my stuff from the ground. The shivers in my body and weight of soaked clothes makes it much harder of an effort than I expected. Despite the hardships, I succeed and as I am about to leave, the heavy clang once again hits my ears, but this time I can also see the source of this dreadful sound.
Several horses in chain mail and leather armour hop out of the shadows of the rain. They surround me and my horse in quick succession, all riders' gazes are directed at me. Although I can't see their faces, I know perfectly who they all are. The chain mail and colourful tunic with a white symbol of cryptic fish is exactly the same as I saw all the way back in Wülgenville. Their fists are clenched, making clear their displeasure to finally meet me in person. One of the riders dismounts his horse and comes closer to me. As he takes his helmet down, I recognize this face immediately. His once welcoming smile is hidden by the beard which grew overtime. Moreover, the brown eyes that were full of friendliness a while back, finally show the true nature of a stoic warrior.
"It has been a while, Heindrich." I say with a mocking smile, to which the man replies with a stone-cold expression, "Dusk, you are under arrest for a series of arsons and murders, please, surrender now."