Chapter 13: Wings of fate

Nyxon and Lapis had a new goal in mind. While Nyxon was doing his last bit of cleaning inside the cave, he started to think about everything that led to him and Lapis. Lapis kept staring at her wrist, the restraints still visible from her brown cloak. They ventured out of the forest as they closed in on Esmus. The siblings had climbed onto the walls where they could see everyone. Nyxon looked at the crowd, anxious as he tried looking for Luna. “Hey, now that I think about it– going to that guy’s planet might not be so bad,”

Nyxon glanced at Lapis, snapping him out of trying to find Luna. “We can’t– we need to-”

“Find Luna,” Lapis said mockingly. “I get it, but Kogohime’s planet needs to be a top priority. Her planet holds the book of fate.”

“Huh?” said Nyxon. He was confused about what she was talking about. “Book of Fate?” Nyxon repeated.

“It’s an artifact created by the deities. They’re like– Gods of creation,” replied Lapis. Nyxon started to listen to Lapis. She sounded almost as crazy as Kogohime. “Legends say– that in the book of fate, every one hundred years, a user can write down one sentence and be granted any wish,”

“Any wish?” asked Nyxon. “How does something like that exist? It sounds– crazy,”

“It is,” replied Lapis. She started to tug at the chains on her wrist, making Nyxon focus on herself more. “But, to use it, you get the pen and book first. And the book just so happens to be–”

“On planet Berutis,” answered Nyxon. “So that’s how Kogohime knew about the future. Someone has future sight!”

“That’s right,” replied Lapis.

“I thought you said to be careful of what I believe?” said Nyxon smugly. His smile started to make Lapis’s stale face turn sour.

Nyxon and Lapis ventured into the town square. Everyone looked gloomy as Nyxon caught sight of their faces in-between exchanging glares. They looked like they were on the brink of tears. Their shoes tapped fiercely on the ground as Lapis tried to keep her chains steady on her hands. Nyxon looked over curiously, “Hey, what are those for anyway?” asked Nyxon.

Lapis kept her eyes on the chains. “They restrict my power. Magnus did it so that I wouldn’t try to escape. At most, I think the best I can use is only fifteen percent.”

Nyxon and Lapis kept venturing around the kingdom. They ensured that no one could see them as they continued down the path to the town of prophets. Lapis had gotten curious about the kingdom. She started to stare and poke at things scattered across the town square. She even had her first strawberry– it was her favorite thing now. Nyxon and Lapis even ran into a poster of the two of them. Lapis admired her popularity, but Nyxon didn’t look too happy about him being labeled a criminal. Nyxon checked the buildings around him; he knew he was getting close to Luna. “Alright, she’s just this way–” said Nyxon. He started to look around him, only to notice his sister had gone missing.

He scattered around the town as he avoided people that could expose him. He later found Lapis beside a silver cat. “There you are!” said Nyxon, relieved he discovered his sister safe and sound.

“What is this thing?” asked Lapis. The cat meowing made Lapis almost look happy.

“It's a cat,” Nyxon said confusingly. “Have you never seen a cat?”

“We don’t have these guys on our home planet. It’s cute, though,”

Nyxon went over to look around the cat. It made Lapis jealous because she wanted to keep playing with the animal. “It's a boy– and it looks like a stray, no collar,” said Nyxon. He handed the cat back to Lapis.

“I wanna keep this guy– he’s kinda cute,”

“Do you have a name for him?” asked Nyxon.

Lapis rolled her eyes. She was trying to think of a name for her cat now. “Hmm, I think– Milo,” said Lapis. Milo meowed at the word; she thought he liked it.

The cat soon climbed to Lapis’s head, almost like a bird on a tree branch. She liked Milo, and Nyxon seemed also to be a fan of the new ally. They finally arrived at the town of prophets. The land before them almost seemed vacant; they were probably praying at the altar now. Nyxon moved to the castle of Prophets (The home to Luna and her family.) He stared at the door, anxious to see Luna again. His hand was sweating, and he felt if he put it on the door, his hand would fall off from the suspense. Lapis placed her hand over Nyxon’s; it made Nyxon jump a little with fear. She reassured him that she would open the door with him. Nyxon swallowed down his fear and slowly pushed the door open.

Lapis felt different. She was happy to help Nyxon with his fears, but she couldn’t find a way to express them. She looked at the hand she used to place over Nyxon’s. She almost felt a smile run across her face. Being nice to people… felt weird to her. Lapis and Nyxon were soon met in the lobby of the castle. It was decorated with golden rugs and beautiful ceiling lamps. Lapis would have shown she was stunned if her face allowed it. “So, your girlfriend–”

“Wife,” said Nyxon.

“Wife,” repeated Lapis. She rolled her eyes in the other direction,” Where is she? I don’t see her–” said Lapis. She quickly looked at the stairwell and saw who she presumed to be Luna.

The sibling's eyes soon met the woman. Nyxon’s heart nearly jumped from his chest. It was Luna, and she looked very depressed. Her eyes looked like they had been crying for days on end. Her golden long hair looked very messy; she must have woken up. Nyxon continued to stare as Lapis shifted her eyes between the two; she was trying to figure out who looked the craziest.

Luna quickly started to run down the stairs. Her feet nearly echoed off each stair as she shouted Nyxon’s name. Nyxon couldn’t help but run and shout to Luna in response to seeing her. He tried telling her to slow down. He didn’t want her to slip and fall. Luna fell off the stairs anyway– luckily, Nyxon caught her before anything wrong could happen. She kept crying as her hair and dress flowed in the air. Nyxon couldn’t help but laugh at how he was back with Luna. Lapis stood in the corner, staring at the duo who had finally been reunited.

Luna and Nyxon quickly got comfortable on the couch. Lapis also joined in, with Milo accompanying her. Lapis watched as Luna poured her a cup of tea. Nyxon promptly explained everything that happened over the past month to Luna (She could have just read his mind, but Luna wanted to hear Nyxon talk.)

“Arcana warrior?” exclaimed Luna. She nearly spat out her tea from hearing the story. “She sounded more like an assassin in the woods– that sounds like something you would see in a book,”

“Well, it really happened,” stated Nyxon. “She attacked me for a month straight whenever I was hunting– It was like some kinda test,”

Luna took another sip of tea. She noticed Lapis glaring at her menacingly. “So, you’re Nyxon’s older sister?” asked Luna.

“Yep,” replied Lapis. She looked annoyed.

Luna glared at Lapis. She noticed the scarf she gave Nyxon for his birthday. “H-Hey, could I have that scarf?”

“Huh? Why?” asked Lapis.

“It was for Nyxon… on his birthday,” whispered Luna.

“Right– I gave that to her so she could stay warm. The cave wasn’t really the best.” Nyxon added on.

“Fine,” said Lapis. She tossed the scarf annoyingly to Luna. She looked annoyed. “I’m gonna go take a nap,”

Lapis walked upstairs quickly. Milo quickly accompanied her.

“You can sleep in the room on the right–” shouted Luna. Lapis had slammed the door upstairs, cutting her off. Luna looked upset, “What’s wrong with her?”

Nyxon snapped his eyes at Luna. “I think… she just has a hard time adjusting.” Nyxon stroked his hair, trying to think about Lapis. “She hasn’t had a regular meal or a real place to sleep in years.”

Luna and Nyxon continued to conversate. Luna needed to prepare dinner, so Nyxon followed her into the kitchen to help cook. Nyxon wasn’t the best at cooking. Luna, however, looked like she swallowed a book on cooking. It was almost too easy for her. The music, combined with the scent of meat, was very relaxing. Nyxon hasn’t smelled anything this good in a month. Luna grabbed the knife from Nyxon, cutting the onions at a perfect pace, “I saw the scar on her eye– she really does look just like you.” said Luna.

“She doesn’t like talking about it,” stated Nyxon. He sat by the dining table while Luna continued to cut away, “I feel awful for her– Magnus… Dad…”

“Don’t call him that– she might hear you,”

“Yeah…”

Luna placed the plates of food on the table. She kissed Nyxon on the forehead as she asked about Lapis again. “Is she–”

“Yeah, she’s probably still asleep.”

“Can I… wake her up?” asked Luna. “Maybe me giving her dinner would calm her down,”

“Thanks, Luna. That’s nice of you,” said Nyxon.

Luna left Nyxon downstairs to enjoy his meal. Luna had carried Lapis’s plate of food upstairs. She knocked on her door silently, hoping she would wake up and get it. No answer– Luna decided to make her next step by opening the door. The door had a nasty creak. It was loud enough to wake up Milo. Milo meowed and leaped off of the bed, rushing downstairs to where Nyxon was. Luna glared at the resting Lapis as she placed her food on the table. “Lapis?” whispered Luna. She tried saying her name to wake her up but wouldn’t respond. Luna tried reaching over her to shake her– but Lapis suddenly woke up. “Oh– I-I brought your dinner,” said Luna shakily. She was nervous about her sudden upbringing.

Lapis glared at the plate of food next to her. It smelled nice. “Yeah, thanks,” said Lapis. She sounded tired from her nap. She started gnawing at the food, practically devouring it before Luna. It was the greatest thing she’s ever eaten.

“I’m sorry about… before. With the scarf and your scars. I didn’t know about it before.” said Luna. She sounded sincere. She really wanted to have Lapis accept her apology.

“If you were curious, you could just ask.”

“Then… would it be ok if you told me about them?” asked Luna.

Luna pointed to her left eye, “This one I got from Magnus. He cut me once, and now I can’t see from this eye.” Luna looked shocked as Lapis pointed to her right eye, “This one I was born with. Nyxon also has it,” Lapis stopped pointing to her scars. She continued to eat as Luna pointed to her chest.

“And… what’s this one?” asked Luna. She pointed to Lapis’s chest, the time Magnus had attacked her again.

Lapis’s eyes widened. She couldn’t keep her hands steady on her fork or plate. Luna noticed her hair start to rise as lightning circled her body. “I don’t wanna talk about that,”

“I understand,” said Luna. She wished Lapis farewell as she left the room.

Luna and Nyxon continued to conversate on the couch. Nyxon was happy with how Lapis went with talking to Luna. He was glad she was starting to open up more. Luna had begun to open up about what happened after Nyxon left. “After you left the castle, I tried buying you enough time to escape,”

“Yeah– I heard the swords and shouts from below the castle. You did good, Luna,”

Luna smiled. She tried to continue talking but tripped over her words after the compliment. “I tried to escape– I’m not good at fighting, so I tried to leave. My Dad came and saved me– but not after I got scolded for fighting.”

“Whatever happened to him? I didn’t see him anywhere when I got here,” asked Nyxon.

Luna’s eyes started to rest. She took a deep breath, “He… got arrested-”

“What!?” shouted Nyxon. His eyes lit up from the sudden news.

“Yeah… He teleported me back home, but the next day, the guards came to our house with Brinks and exposed my Father as a criminal.”

Luna continued to describe the events that happened. With her Father gone, Queen Patrica had to take over the altar, while Luna was kept to taking care of the castle. Nyxon was furious but didn’t let his face or body show it. He stayed calm as he expressed his idea to bring back Luna’s father. Luna was skeptical of the idea and very nervous too. “I… wanna help– really! I do,”

Nyxon’s anger soon rested. He was wondering what Luna was thinking. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s just… this encounter was my own fault,” whispered Luna. “I didn’t know this would happen–”

“That’s why we’re gonna fix it,” responded Nyxon. “I’ll help you just like you helped me… ok?” Nyxon moved from his seat on the couch. He hugged Luna softly, wrapping his arms around her neck as she sighed deeply. Nyxon whispered, “I’ll be there every step of the way,”

Luna nearly cried again. She let a single tear drop from her eye as she hugged Nyxon, taking in the warm embrace of being near him again. She calmed down, regaining her composure as she discussed the plan with Nyxon again. “First, we need to find a way to get him out of the Aura prison,”

“Aura prisons?” said Nyxon confusingly.

“Yes. Their cells make it impossible for the user to use their powers. It’s annoying for my Father cause it means he can’t do anything.” replied Luna. Nyxon understood now, and it also gave him a terrifying idea…

Nyxon let a smile run across his face. Luna knew he wasn’t up to any good. “I think I know someone who could help…”

Luna sighed, “Please don’t–”

“It’s Rocks!” shouted Nyxon. He seemed proud of the idea of getting Rocks into their idea.

“Is he even going to consider helping you?” asked Luna.

“We’ll have to see tonight,” Nyxon sounded determined. He was ready to make up for the lost time. Lapis even walked downstairs to agree to the plan. “LAPIS!” shouted Nyxon. He ran over to hug Lapis.

The hug shook Lapis. She looked down at Nyxon’s long wavy hair, stunned by his gesture of kindness. She raised an eyebrow and brushed his hair; it made Nyxon happy.

Nyxon explained the plan to Lapis. The idea was to get Rocks to make a key to unlock the cells and free Luna’s Dad. Luna and Lapis would distract the guards in the throne room and escape altogether. Lapis agreed to the plan. She even smiled to show how excited she was about the fight. Her smile made Nyxon happy; even Luna smiled.

They exited the castle soon after. Luna and Nyxon conversated as Lapis distracted herself with Milo. Nyxon caught a glimpse of the kids running around and playing. It reminded him of Cormac and the others. Luna also noticed, “Cormac and the others are doing fine. They’re all in school now.”

Nyxon laughed. He’s never been to school, “Is Lev doing the best as usual?” asked Nyxon.

Luna sighed. “Of course she is. It’s Cormac and Neve I’m worried about,”

“What’s going on with them?” asked Nyxon.

“Cormac and Neve haven’t been in school for a while. They keep skipping and trying to look for you,”

Nyxon felt the guilt of leaving swell inside of him again. He was upset at his absence and wanted to make it up to everyone. Lapis was distracted by Milo. He kept hanging over her face and blinding her. It made Lapis bump into a child, who saw Lapis’s scars and scary look. The child screamed in fear and ran away, but Lapis was disappointed with the encounter. Luna and Nyxon comforted her, but Lapis showed no emotion like usual.

They finally arrived. The trio stood still in front of the door to Rocks. Nyxon was nervous, but Lapis and Luna pushed inside while Nyxon followed. The room was dark. Nyxon almost felt nostalgic seeing the room again. The weapons and books scattered around, and even the place where Rocks insulted Nyxon. The trio's ears perked up. They heard someone coming. It was a familiar face. It was Rocks. He had come out from behind the counter, still faced at seeing Nyxon and his companions.

Luna waved, “Rocks– we need to talk,”

Rocks looked behind Luna. He caught a glimpse of Nyxon’s nervous face as he saw a glimpse of Lapis and Milo. Rocks pointed to Nyxon, “Who’s that sissy?”

Nyxon’s heart jumped. He couldn’t contain his happiness from his face; it would probably explode if he did. He ran to Rocks, nearly catching him off guard as Nyxon threw him into the air. Rocks wouldn’t stop shouting at the top of his lungs, and Lapis and Milo couldn’t stop staring in confusion. Luna tried calling at Nyxon to put Rocks down, but he kept shouting ‘Charlie’ and refused to listen to Luna. After a few minutes to calm down and a couple of hits on the head from Rocks and Luna; Nyxon finally told Rocks his master plan.

“So, you want me to make you your key to a cell?” asked Rocks. Nyxon nodded furiously, happy that Rocks heard his plan out.

“Yes, yes, yes! You’re the first person I could think of!”

“I’m the only person you can think of,” Rocks corrected Nyxon's statement. “Things have gotten worse since you left Nyxon, especially that Manda woman. Your sister, right?”

Lapis’s eyes softened. “Sister?” whispered Lapis.

Nyxon’s eyes drew onto Lapis. “Well… before we met, I had a sister named Manda. She was sort of my caretaker,” said Nyxon. Luna and Rocks looked worried.

The worry soon left the room when a knock came at the door. “Open up! It’s Brinks-”

“It’s Brinks?” squealed Nyxon. Rocks quickly rushed the group underneath his main table. Luna started to panic while trying to run and hide with Lapis.

Rocks shouted that he was busy, but Brinks didn’t listen. He kicked the door open furiously. It swung off its hinges and slid to the back of the shop where the trio was hiding. Brinks walked inside, and so did Manda. Brinks smirked; it was nasty to look at. “We got reports of a ‘monster’ Have you seen it?” said Brinks. Manda glared at Brinks with disgust; she was disappointed in him.