Chapter Four

In the main Manor, King Secundo was in his office, poring over the recent reports of bodies found in a warehouse. 

"It seems the slavery problem has resolved itself." He told the Head Butler. "And the head of the Berghauls company has been indicted." The photos showed a grim pile of pot-bellied men, with dark veins mapping their features, which were contorted into a mask of pain.

A separate photo of Lord Berhauls showed him wide-eyed with confusion and fear, bound in shackles.

The Butler nodded, regarding the images before him.

"It seems we have a secret crime-fighter working from the shadows."

Secundo stood and looked out the window toward the circular platform in the courtyard, with its iron grate. An expression of disapproval was painted across his face.

"A secret crime-fighter who paradoxically draws attention to themselves. Thereby undermining the point of keeping a low profile." 

***

(Let's briefly flashback to Eitr dressed in a hooded cloak, full-face mask and leather gloves, walking the moonlit streets and staring up at a warehouse. He scales a drainpipe and enters through an open window. He remembers that night:)

I am not strong, nor am I fast, but I know how to work in the shadows and use stealth to my benefit. Raised in the demon wildlands of Miasma, it was not a good idea to be human. Without or without demon blood; there is no distinction. If you look human, you are a target. So you learn to sneak and hide, maybe even strike from the darkness. 

(He crouches on the high rafters overlooking several cages containing scared people) 

I don't like the idea of being a one-man army. It gives a person too much power and makes them too arrogant, leading them to think they are above all laws. In some cases, the law itself is bent by money and secret deals with corrupt lawmakers, dissolving any authority or safeguards.  So a deterrent must be given, a message to others who think they are beyond the King's reach.

***

The Butler straightened up.

"Regarding the slaves." He said. "Those with families have been returned, those without have found a place in an orphanage and workhouses, under the royal protection, of course."

The King nodded gratefully.

"We can only hope this will teach others that we have eyes everywhere. A snake in the Eagles' shadow."

***

Retreating to the underground thatched cottage, spot-lit by a bank of moonlight, Eitr slumped down at the desk next to his bed, the faces of those recent experiments, swimming in his mind in a haunted collage.  

Still dizzy with the act of taking out so many people at once, he was forced to throw up in a nearby wastepaper bin.

"Sir?" Gore said, in full protective gear. "Everything alright?"

"I'm emptying my dinner into a bin, take a wild guess."

The stern-looking woman shook her head.

"It was never this bad, " She said,  stepping out of the doorway. "I guess it all builds up; the faces, the lives, their history. It is not easy to separate the person from the crime."

"Either way, they were still people," Eitr said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Not the best people, but it's still taking a life." 

Gore patted the mop of bright red hair.

"Whatever paths they chose led them to damnation. There was always a choice."

"I don't doubt their guilt and everything they deserved. It doesn't make it easier to carry."

"Right," Gore said, backing away. "Even so, justice was done. Better you than some lame-duck Judge who releases the worst of the worst back into the world." She sighed. "When a system of law is this weak, why not do it yourself?"

"You're talking about vigilantism," Eitr said. "It's a slippery slope, Gore. Being a vigilante is just a selfish act. We have seen it all through the ages,: lynching, burning witches, it's never about what is right, but what makes a person comfortable. 'Someone else must be crushed, so my life can live in peace.' Where does it end? What if many join, sharing the same mindset?  A hive mind is one without thought."

"Isn't that what you did the other day? Crush others so you could live in peace?"

Eitr smiled knowingly.

"Yeah, I'm kind of a hypocrite in that respect." He said. "But the difference is I didn't do it to make myself feel better, but to help out others."

The redhead picked up a bottle of wine on the bedside table, his hand shaking to the point where Gore had to step in and pour the rest into a glass.

"Look on the bright side," She said. "These experiments, the training, it's all to help you adapt to society, to lessen the danger, to control the power. Think of it as a kind of benefit."

Eitr looked at the servant.

"And all I had to achieve it was to climb a hill of skulls." He shook his head. "I have no illusions, I know my role in this family, as the monster in the pit, acting as a disposal service...but a monster all the same."

"That's a little pessimistic."

Eitr smiled. "A pessimist is an optimist in full possession of the facts."

"Another gem from that other-world book."

"Can't say I don't agree," Eitr said. "The things I do, I don't have a choice in. It's just nice to know I have a role in the family and will do anything to preserve it."

"Even at the expense of your own sanity or a moral compass?"

"I am nobility, it comes as standard." Eitr said and took a book out of the bedside cabinet. Its title, 'Justice served', is embossed on a leather-bound front. He opened it up to a blank page and placed a photo of a little girl, smiling and hugging a cat. "In order to avenge the innocent, it takes a monster to deliver other monsters who are much worse."

***

On her way to the highest tower in Aegis, Queen Ambersyde passed through the breezeway that bridged the tower to the Manor. Once at the top window, she took in the relative peace of Aegis, laid out in a maze of streets, with its sprinkling of street lamps looking like fireflies, under a wash of moonlight.

Wrapped in a fur-lined cloak, she smiled and continued to stare out, ruing the lack of a decent view.

"You miss it too, don't you?"  She said. "Looking out to the skyline."

"The town is built into a mountain," Eitr said, leaning, arms folded in the shadow. "So a mountain is all you get."

"You were always so easy to please." 

"You brought me in knowing the risk to yourself and everyone around. If anyone knew my background, the family would be cast out or worse. What more could I ask for?"

"You have been beneficial to this family, whether you think so or not."

Queen Ambersyde recalled an event one summer, when bandits surrounded her carriage. The guards were taken out by arrows, leaving the Queen and her handmaidens alone to fend for themselves. Once the women and coachman were lined up against the carriage, one of the bandits noticed that the Vehicle was unusually spacious at the back. He gestured to the leader, who nodded to proceed. Inspecting the back panel with a knock, he found it to be hollow. 

"There's a secret in here!" He cried. "Might where they keep the treasures!" 

The others roared in celebration. Smiling, the Bandit tore away the rear seat and pulled the wooden panel away to reveal another secret seating area where a figure sat in shadow. The Bandit instinctively reached out toward the figure.

Sitting on his horse, the leader waited for the other guy to exit the carriage holding treasures. A  few seconds passed, and still no answer, only silence. It wasn't until the other guy's body dropped away from the carriage that the leader realised something was wrong. A new person slowly emerged, swaddled head to toe in bandages and wearing a long black leather coat. 

The figure dusted off his Bowler hat and placed it on his head.

"Mother, honourable ladies. Mister Coachman." He said. "Please return to the carriage...the forecast is said.... to be foggy."

Eitr smiled in the present. 

"Either way I am grateful." He said, and approached the woman with a small sack. "I believe this will make up for any shortcomings."

Ambersyde lifted the object out of the bag and found it to be something that resembled a purple quartz crown.

"I hope it's not cursed." She said.

"Would I be here if it wasn't?"

"I hope none of the Demons will miss it. God forbid they come looking for their prizes."

"The one I took it off is currently enjoying a sleep they will never awaken from."

"So many risks, I do worry greatly about your recklessness."

"With every visit, I'm improving my skills. It's hard to find such willing opponents."

Ambersyde looked down sadly.

"That's not why you go there though, is it?" She said. "You're still looking for your real Mother. I find myself wondering: Am I not good enough to fit the role?"

Eitr was overcome with compassion, placing gloved hands on her shoulders.

"You more than fit the role, Mother." He said, sincerely. "Nothing can replace that. It's just... knowing I was abandoned leaves so many unanswered questions. With so many holes, it lets in the cold and the inescapable emptiness. I just want to see her again, so I close it off once and for all."

Queen Ambersyde smiled with relief and understanding, hugging Eitr, who was fully bandaged.

"I won't stop you." She said. "All  you need to know is we're here for you always, and nothing will change, no matter the circumstances."

Eitr smiled and returned the hug. 

"I love you all so very much."