Back to square one

By the time I reached home, my head felt as heavy as lead. My eyes burned and even moving my eyeballs felt painful. I wanted to retch my stomach, today's breakfast rapidly rising in my throat threatening to come out. I pressed my eyeballs, the source of my migraine.

'Eligor ?" Lucrezia called out to me from the dining groom.

"Ah…Lucrezia ?... I will not be eating lunch. I have a terrible headache." I said.

"Where to? let us go to the room and I will massage your head," she said. Lucrezia had thin lips and small grey eyes. Her face was smooth and soft, just like the day we were married. She did not smile very often or even go to noble's favorite balls and parties. Her sober appearance matched with her calm and gentle personality.

"No, I am fine…I shall be in the study."

'Why Eligor ?"

"Because I have been allowed to find the killer of the five travelers."

"I know this is a great opportunity but please take care of yourself." She said her hands on my shoulders.

I gently touched her hands and whispered.

"I shall be gone from the duchy for some time to find the bastard. Thus I shall be leaving the duchy in your capable hands Lucfrrezia ."

"No…where are you going?'

"I have found the leads. It is in the Dreamless Town in the city of Reverie ."

"The Dreamless Town?" Dreamless Town in the City of Reverie was known for inducing hallucinations. The walls of the town, its sky which had eternal night were parasitic. One could hear the sweet eerie sound of lyre however none could understand the origin of the sound of its name. The town was shrouded in mystery and darkness. Please Eligor…do not go there ." her eyes turned moist.

"I need to because Reverie is the only place where I can find the answers ."

"But…"

"I am strong Lucrezia…afterall I was blessed with the Element of Fire. I can burn through everything." I kissed her.

**

"Master…the preparations for your travel is finished ."

Lamia came inside the study. Ebony hair and red eyes that peered deep into your soul. Her pale skin and small stature like a child made an impression that she was a doll. She always wore a small black frock with big white frills with a black hood. Lamia had been my slave from the time I arrived here. My oldest companion and confidant however we never shared any secrets. Our relation has continued to remain like a doll and a puppeteer

"Lamia bring me some tea…"

She nodded and bent to pick the empty cup, her nape had a small tattoo…a symbol of spider lilies that bound us together.

Sklaven was the ceremony that makes a common person slave of Ichors. The slaves are forced to be loyal to their masters or else their souls will disintegrate. Crumbled into nothing but dirt. The people who are in the service of an Ichor will have a symbol of some kind depending upon the state of their soul. Bearing their souls meant that the master of their soul is the Ichor now. The color of the symbols on the body of the slaves depends on the status of their masters. Lilac or gold is related to royalty, red to dukes and so on, the color scheme depends from nation to nation.

In this process, a jade dagger is used for ceremonial purposes where the slave cut off their hair. The sklaven ceremony demands hair of your slave, signifying absolute loyalty. I remember as soon as I took her ebony hair it disintegrated into ashes. Grey ash flew in the room and landed on her nape forming a spider lily. The flower meant death. And Lamia had no will to live.

The color of her nape was…

Grey …Status unknown.

"Take care of Lucrezia while I will be away," I said to her.

At once her cheeks became flushed red and she nodded profusely.

As expected…she loved Lucrezia.

"Ah…I will also be needing them in my travels." I sighed as I saw Lamia dash out of the study in fear she guessed what I was going to do.

Licht and Schatten, my two snakes of opposing color and nature. One was white like snow and the other pitch black like night. I summoned them through a chant, they both were rattlesnakes with unusually thick and large bodies.

Rattle…Rattle

Both of them arrived simultaneously. Licht was aggressive with a taste for human flesh. His rattling was impatient and fast. Schatten on the other hand was calm and peaceful so unlike his brother. However, he was a cannibalistic who cannot ingest anything except other snakes. Everyone was afraid of them that is why I kept them hidden with my magic. I caressed their rough bodies, their scales gleaming in the light of the lantern.

"Tomorrow it will be going back to square one huh…" I swallowed the rising bile as I fell asleep sick to my stomach.