24: Shadows of Doubt

Night was at its strongest by the time everyone had escaped to a safe haven.

Zen sat in a quiet corner of the dry cove, picking at his thoughts. He couldn't stop mulling over the Lodshens' words to him. "Lakshima, you'll face a crisis to determine your loyalties."

"Right. If this whole Rogue business hasn't been enough of a crisis. Tsk!"

Not to mention he had been traveling alone for a few years as Akari's supposed Lakshima. Although, he hadn't been one for long, as they only found saving grace within the Order of Mirtheria in the later years. A connection shared with the Lodshen. It was by chance and a favor that they were given an entry ticket.

"So what else is to prove?" His heart raced with a mixture of annoyance, frustration and feeling his self pride being stepped on. It was like he still hadn't done enough to impress these women. He still had something to prove to show loyalty?

"Pathetic."

He glanced at Vo talking kindly to one of the elderly survivors, in an expressionless way. The man was so devoted to be with Akari, he gave him his life of luxury and being a crown prince for her. He could have been on a throne with millions bowing at his feet and to his name. But he chose obscurity and the roshi life all for Akari.

"I can't blame him. She is something special." He sighed.

Akari is the Nightingale. Her destiny is grand for glory parades, but me... He couldn't hide his cynicism to his lack of importance. The acolyte champion. Another term for dogsbody. Some champion I am when I can't even deliver a message to lover boy without something going boom.

He wondered how long Vo knew Akari. They were likely childhood sweethearts. He felt smug that he had likely known her longer as a woman, being her traveling companion for nearly ten years. Although, the last two were being a distraction for her enemies. To think the Lodshen sent Vo on a long, ten year, round tour just to reach this point. The man's reward for his efforts wasn't Akari but himself.

"But those fairies don't do anything without strategy. Perhaps having him honed was their intention." He frowned.

Then the woman ends up back with the scary family again. Sucks to be him. If it was me, I'd demand for a refund and compensation. He shook his head.

Yet, Vo was different: very few were so steadfast. Even his guardian had moments of doubt. Perhaps this was what separated princes from commoners. Even being an ex-prince he was the real deal. But, was he really that altogether?

What keeps him so devoted? The man is the package: good looks and awesome fighting skills even with his djinn powers sealed. He could get any girl he wants, yet he fights tooth and nail just to be one step closer to Akari. I don't get it yet I do.

Zen ruffled his hair, feeling further insignificant.

As a Lakshima, he was meant to be bestowed the abilities of spiritual prosperity, balancing order and abundance. The slight hand of compassion was his whacked gift during his baptism in the Temple of Luo. All strange things, because none was his style or even in his thought process.

The only hand of abundance he excelled at was lifting coin purses from dumbasses. Maybe that's what they meant by a slight hand?

He looked at the pitiful non magic people holed up in a dry lake cave and sighed. "I'm a badass loki only out for myself." He groaned, saying it aloud sounded cheesy.

He saw Lyndal glance his way and flashed her a cutesy smile before getting up and leaving the cave to seek further solitude.

Outside, feeling the hit of salty chill in the air aided his thoughts to move faster and in clear string lines of logic.

"This is all stupid. I go to Rogue to tell Vo where to find Akari only to find out she's back at the stronghold." He bitterly scoffed: his heart racing with uneasy feelings. "What a waste of time."

My shakir (divine powers) still hasn't come into being like those priestess had promised. He was told he would obtain them when he fulfilled his task to Vo.

"But was the task to give Vo Akari's location or to help him with Rogue?" He was confused now. Considering there was no change to his powers, it was likely the later option.

He groaned, annoyed by all this cryptic running about. If anything, the mystical beings' riddled orders and vague meanings were nothing short of shitty.

"To be a Lakshima, Akari's champion acolyte for the Goddess Mirtheria. I thought I understood, but now..."

He thought over Vo and how devoted he was to her, even being so far apart for many years. It's not that he felt jealousy for Vo's love for Akari, for he never felt anything for Akari but brotherly affection. Yet, this devotion...

What make him someone so loyal, so devoted to her? He continued to find pebbles to kick across the dried salt lake area, as he repeated the question in his mind.

Lyra had seen Zen step outside, brooding over something and felt curious. Those two syn were unlike others she had come across, which were bandits and lowlives.

"Yet both men risk their lives to save strangers and destroy a dangerous mine. Why?" Her mind wandered over Teal and her use of her powers to protect others. None of this matched up to her experiences and opinions of synfolk and mages.

If anything, those nox mortre were her one-for-one match to what she pictured as a magic user. So why were these three so much an exception to the rule of mage equals evil?

After Vo had led everyone out of the underground, he had made sure they could pick their way back to the other survivors at the dry lake cave without detection and straining his body to help the weak and vulnerable make the journey.

"We're strangers to him." She sighed and told Lyndal she was stepping outside to clear her head.

She came upon Zen mumbling to himself in the dark and alone.

"I wouldn't be surprised if the man has her name painted on his heart." Zen grumbled as he kicked rocks to the salt flats near the entrance.

"Who has a name painted on his heart?" Lyra intruded on his time as she stepped up next him.

"Eavesdropping is rude, didn't your superiors tell you that?"

She chuckled. "Actually, my superior tells us to eavesdrop for something good."

"What do you want guard? Shouldn't you be comforting the helpless masses or whatever you guards do?"

"I was wondering what weapon to cut you with." She joked with sober tones, which had Zen take steps away from her and look worried. "Joking, syn freak."

"Syn-freak? Ungrateful. This syn just saved your ass back there. But if you're that forgetful, let me escort you back to the caverns for a recap."

"Sheeze. No need to get tetchy." She faced him with a cocky attitude. "Besides, all this pouting and grumbling might make your hair go frizzy."

"Hair frizzy. Lady, I'm a loki, my hair is naturally at perfection every time." He loftily flicked off his fine fringe from his forehead for emphasis.

Lyra blinked, non-plus then after a thought burst with laughter. "I'm a loki my hair is perfect." She kept laughing, so hard tears were squeezed out of eyes.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Of course a wild woman will have zero finesse to understand."

"Are you alright?" Vo entered, wincing at the light jabbing pain he felt near his ribs.

"Tsk, forget me, you look like crap." Zen stepped up to check on Vo's condition.

"I'm fine, Lyndal's healing potions are still working their effects on me."

"By potions, you mean old spirits brewed at the tavern. Fortunately, she always kept a flash strapped to her thigh." Lyra casually informed him.

"Really? No wonder it tasted good." Vo lightly brushed off, stirring a chuckle from her.

"You survived being a fuel source for the necromancer's array. Somehow destroy said array, only to fight your way to the production chamber, save the people before blowing up a shit load of underground chambers filled with lagnea. And your response to it all is taking a swig of Lyndal's hooch and saying it tastes good." Lyra grinned, standing before him with profound respect. She fist thumped his chest. "You're alright, Vo."

Zen coughed to draw their attention to him. "Um, you're forgetting the major player here. I was that badass in the array also? Hello?"

Vo smiled. "Yes, you were the main hero."

Zen smugly nodded. "Don't you forget it."

"Anyway, we should all rest for the night. Who knows what's happening with Rogue. It's best that we all recover." Vo suggested.

"Back at ya, so go find a rock to sleep against and heal up bad boy." Lyra patted Vo's back. "You too man with the perfect hair."

"Good you didn't forget that important detail." Zen wryly commented.