The Price of Vengeance (I)

"... where am I? Why am I tied up?"

"So you finally woke up" I answered approaching him.

Lavos was next to a campfire which was the main source of light in this dark night, kneeling and tied with a rope that prevented him from moving, which was inside the backpack that Maria carried every time we went out exploring.

She said it was just in case, the truth is that I never thought the time would come to use it and even less in this way.

"You..."

"Thank Maria for healing your wounds, otherwise you would be dead. I regret to inform you that no matter how hard she tried she was unable to glue or regenerate your lost hand"

"..."

He remained silent for a few seconds, he doesn't seem to be in the mood to talk.

Too bad for him, now he is in no position to refuse my demands.

"It's time for you to answer some questions" I said without paying attention to his attempts to break free from his restraints. "Who are you? What are you doing here? What are your real intentions?"

"As if I was going to answer a tyrant like you"

"I'm telling you, you've got the wrong person. You're not even in the right city"

"Whatever you say I won't believe the words of a murderer"

"I only did that once and because I had no other choice! Do you think I enjoyed killing him!?"

"Once you enter the cycle of spilling a person's blood there is no turning back. Welcome to the killer's path"

"Lavos!"

"Surely your companion is an accomplice to all your exploits"

"Don't you dare bring her into this!"

Those words were the straw that broke the camel's back, the straw that broke my patience. Since he don't seem to be cooperating I'll have to resort to other measures...

"Asriel..."

She finally reacted after all this time without saying anything when she saw the anger overflowing from my being. I don't want her to see this side of me, nor what I'm about to do to get the answers we need to know.

"I'm sorry Maria, could you turn around and cover your ears?"

"..."

She didn't answer and just stared at me with a surprised look on her face. It looked like she tried to speak, but no sound came out of her mouth.

"Please. It will only take a few seconds"

"... okay"

Her eyes showed an expression of fear that I hadn't seen before. Despite that, she slowly turned around, taking a few steps back and putting her hands to her ears.

I really feel bad about that, however it's something I must do. I reaffirmed my determination by approaching him.

"You're going to answer my questions whether you want to or not. I'd rather you take the easy choice and cooperate with me"

"You're just an uneducated person who was lucky enough to steal my last beast. If I hadn't underestimated you, I would have-]

"Look, I really don't care what you want to do. I don't care who you are. It doesn't even affect me that you tried to kill me, I'd be willing to forgive what you've done if you'd cooperate to help the city... but"

At that moment I drew my katana and quickly unsheathed it burying the tip in Lavos' left shoulder.

"Augh"

He endured the pain, though he didn't manage to avoid letting out a small moan once I pulled it out and blood began to drip from his wound.

"You tried to hurt this girl, I can't forgive you for that"

"So you show me your true face"

"Like I told you, I don't care what you say anymore. I could start cutting you slowly and have Maria heal you to keep you from dying, what do you think?"

"You don't have the courage to do it"

"Oh no?" at that instant I placed my katana on the subject's neck. With a cold and expressionless gaze I stared him straight in the eyes. "Give me a reason not to kill you right now"

"..."

It seemed that Lavos was just realizing the situation he was in, putting aside the arrogance that characterizes him.

"Last chance. Answer me, what kind of Spiritist are you? What the hell is Kurogane?"

"... what's that weapon?"

He ignored my question and stared at the edge of my katana.

"My Object? Are you a Seeker?"

"Seeker? Object? Spiritist? What are those terms?"

"...huh? Do you have no idea? Stop lying, this isn't the time for jokes"

"Why should I know? I'm just a beast tamer"

"You mentioned that before, even though it's the first time I've heard that term"

"Not to be expected, only a select few understand such knowledge"

"... and what does that consist of? Summoning creatures at your command? Was it you who-"

"I know what you think, and you're wrong. It wasn't me who invited those invading beings to our world, I only make a call to nature and it reciprocates by making its inhabitants come to my aid. More than summoning them, it is an exchange between both parties, a sort of contract. From your point of view it would be a request to the supernatural to ask for assistance"

"... I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about"

"I don't expect you to. Anyway, since I have no alternative I will tell you my objective. I'm on a journey to find an elemental spirit"

"Elemental spirit? Stop adding new concepts all the time! You're just doing it to confuse me!"

"Hmph, that's why I don't like dealing with uneducated people. They just can't comprehend what's above them"

This guy seriously makes me lose my sanity.

"So... let me get this straight. You're telling me you're neither a Seeker nor a Spiritist? Didn't you gain your powers on the day of the Apocalypse? Aren't you collecting all the Objects?"

"What the hell are you talking about? I already told you, I just want to improve my skills and eventually get contracts with powerful beasts to defeat an elemental spirit and make it my own"

Everything he's saying is no different to me than if you were speaking to me in another language, I can't understand it and it makes my head spin.

Are his powers not related to ours at all?

"Elemental spirit? You mean the representations of the elements of nature?" said Maria who was looking in our direction without my noticing.

"Do you know what he's referring to Maria?"

"I have only heard what my parents told me. When I was little I lived in the village where my grandparents grew up, in that place there was a library with several fairy tales where they talked about supernatural creatures that protect all the beings in the world. One of them told that as mankind expanded its territories, these creatures became more and more distant, until the point where the current generations only call them legends"

"You surprise me kid, you seem to be more informed than this guy here. You may be more intelligent than you look"

"... I'm not a kid" she replied in a mixture of happiness and anger.

Are you telling me that Maria is more knowledgeable than I'm for reading a children's story? I question this man's knowledge, and his mental sanity for that matter.

"And that's all it says?"

"No, it also talked about spirits and how they inhabit all things in nature such as stones, trees and even animals. I guess that's what this mister is referring to"

It seems like the idea I have in my mind is completely different from what they are supposed to be talking about.

Aren't spirits the same as ghosts? Would they have some other kind of meaning?

"Not only that" interrupted Lavos. "Elemental spirits are just as the name implies, representations of the elements. Unlike small concrete things like a stone, you could say they are like the avatar of an element of nature. Water, wind, fire, you get the idea. In ancient manifestos they tell how people able to make contracts with them gained unimaginable powers. They are considered entities of immense knowledge and unparalleled strength"

"So you want to summon such a powerful being for your own benefit? What do you hope to get out of it?"

"I have my reasons... there is a certain person I must defeat, make him pay for what he did to us. And for that I'm capable of sacrificing anything, even my life"

"..."

Seeing that peculiar expression on his face, one replete with the suffering of a sad past, I began to doubt. I think that despite his lousy personality, deep down he's not as bad as I thought.

After a few seconds of meditation I took a deep breath, approached where he was and with my katana I cut his ties.

"Asriel, are you sure?"

"No, it's probably a terrible decision. But it's true that he only tried to kill me, in what was obviously a mistake on his part"

"... thank you for releasing me"

"It's too early to say thank you. Now, start talking"

"Before I do, would you mind telling me about yourselves? I'd like to know more about those strange powers you have"

After finishing speaking he fearlessly grabbed the edge of my weapon.

"Hey!"

"It's okay, I promise not to attack you. I want to make a detailed analysis of this thing. You also have a strange glove, don't you? What are you waiting for? Take it out"

"Since when are you the one telling us what to do!?"

"Now, calm down Asriel. You can tell he's harmless, he looks like a kid playing with new toys"

I don't know if she's the right one to say that.

"... fine. I should just show them to him, right?"

"Exactly. Your friend on the other hand demonstrated a shiny necklace, let her show it to me"

"Just the necklace! You'll see if you touch even a hair of her! Got it!?"