Chapter 17:3 -Spring Island
On the old stove stood a saucepan filled to the brim with soup. The kitchen was filled with people, not only Soi’s family and friends but people who had somehow heard of the returned Spring Saviour. They all took his hands, kissed his palms and cheeks and blessed his return. No one was cross with him for leaving just happy that he had returned. Soi’s mother offered soup and bread to those who wanted and the festive mood rose when Sanoi retrieved some bottles of liquor the girls had hid from their mother as she didn’t like her daughters drinking. Sanoi filled the glasses generously although her mother watched her with stern eyes.
-What, mom, out little brother’s home! Can’t we celebrate? Sanoi raised the bottle for support from the guests and shouted. –The Spring Saviour has returned!
All of the gathered raised their glasses and voices in exultation. Sanoi drank from the bottle and put her arm around Soi’s shoulders.
-Damn good to see you, lil bro, has been boring without you, she smiled a tad tipsy and kissed her brother’s cheek with a smack. –Here!
She offered him the bottle but then their mother swiftly intervened.
-He’s not supposed to drink, Sanoi, she said firmly. –Can’t you see the state he’s in?
-A bit thin but that’s because he’s lived without your food for some time, Sanoi smiled cheekily.
Their mother hid a smile before she narrowed her eyes and confiscated the bottle.
-Oh, mom, Sanoi whined but pulled out another bottle as soon as her mother looked away.
She winked to Soi and started to refill the guests glasses.
It seemed like the night would never end. People drank, eat, danced and laughed. But as the sun slowly begun to rise over the mountain peek people went home. Left was Soi, his mother and sisters, Haz, Ard and Jagger. They sat around the kitchen table and suddenly the festive atmosphere was gone. A seriousness lowered over the kitchen.
-Mother…, Soi begun.
-We talk about it tomorrow, she said.
She rose from the table and walked out of the kitchen.
-But… we need to talk, Soi continued.
-Tomorrow, little brother. Tomorrow, Sanoi rose from her chair as well. –We need to sleep now.
Soi followed Haz and Ard up the stairs to his own room. When he stood on the last step on the top of the staircase he turned around and looked down to the kitchen. He could still remember how the steps had felt that day when he rushed down the stairs to quickly follow his father to the spring. How light his feet had been. How heavy they had felt later that same day. A single tear run down Soi’s cheek. Tonight it felt like his father had been there with them, celebrating.
Soi’s room hadn’t been big to begin with but now it was cramped with three persons.
-You know, I really like your mother, Soi. She’s been most welcoming, Ard said as he sat on Soi’s bed and waited while the other two prepared the room for sleep.
-She’s always like that, Soi said.
-But still, to accept three strangers claiming to know her son. And we don’t look anything like you do either. White and red hair, round eyes with weird colours. It must have been a shock.
-How did you end up here anyway? How did you even find Spring Island?
-Well… I saw the future, Ard put it.
-That’s it?
-Yes.
-And how did you afford a ship?
-Aren’t you thinking practical. What, do you want to compensate us? Ard teased Soi.
-I’m just curious.
-Stop that or you’ll lose your tongue some day, Haz said all of a sudden.
Soi was too surprised to answer.
When Soi walked down the stairs the same morning a few hours later his four sisters were all busy preparing for breakfast and setting the table. They rushed across the kitchen floor like they were dancing, full of energy. Soi suspected that they never went to bed. He felt tired only looking at them. His mother stood steadily in front of the stove where several pots and pan fought over the heat and simmered merrily. It smelled like home.
In the large kitchen sofa sat Jagger with her short red hair standing straight out on all sides. She rested her chin on the kitchen table and watched the sisters with envy. When she saw Soi she waved to him to sit down beside her.
-I haven’t seen a real kitchen for so long, she sighed longingly.
-I’m sure they let you help if you want to, Soi said encouraging. -You’re a good chef.
-I’ve tried already but you see that, Jagger pointed at the sisters’ hasty work. –It’s dangerous to even leave this sofa.
She sighed again and lay down her head to watch the sisters sideways.
-Is Ard up? She asked after awhile.
-Not yet.
-Maybe I should wake him? Jagger mumbled to herself. -Is Haz up?
-I suppose so, he’s not upstairs anyway.
-He’s probably in the garden then. Alright, it’s now or never!
Jagger rose from the sofa and rushed up the stairs before Soi could stop her and before anyone else saw her. After awhile she came down again smiling and with Ard following in a trail. He sat down in the sofa with a big yawn.
-Morning, Soi said.
-Morning, Ard’s voice was raspy and hoarse. –I’m the last one up?
-Yes. How are your eyes nowadays?
-Still the same, but I’m getting used to it.
Haz walked in from the garden and seated himself opposite Soi and the others.
-We’re all here? Soi’s mother asked from the stove before she brought a big saucepan of stew over to the table.
-How are we going to eat all that, mom? Sanoi complained.
-Oh, I’m sure you’ll find room somewhere in your stomach.
They were soon all gathered around the kitchen table. Small talk where held across the table while enjoying the breakfast. Soi tried to relax but a feeling of anxiety remained. He ate very little and waited impatiently for the rest to eat up. On his right Siri sat and bit on her fingernails.
-Are you also anxious? Soi asked.
-How can I not be? This involves the whole island, not just you and your friends, she hissed.
Sanoi, seated on Siri’s right, looked up at her little sister.
-There’s something else, isn’t it Siri? She asked.
-I know what it’s like, being his prisoner. If that were to happen to… I can’t just sit here and wait.
-You act as if you have someone you care about, Sanoi pointed out and Siri’s eyes widened.
-Ah, that man on the boat, he who helped us escape, Soi said.
Siri’s cheeks reddened and she looked down at the table.
-Who was it? Soi asked, he couldn’t remember the man too clearly.
But Siri didn’t answer, she kept staring at the table. The answer came elsewhere, from Soi’s left side where Ard sat.
-But that was Nibbles, didn’t you know? I saw him take the decision to save you, that’s how I knew where to pick you up with the boat.
Soi was lucky he wasn’t eating anything or it would have got caught in his throat.
-Nibbles?! Nebelius Silver? The man you care about is Nibbles?
Siri in her turn stared with red cheeks at Ard who didn’t notice it at all.
-Don’t you know how to be discreet? Jagger poked Ard with her elbow.
-What do you mean? He said confused.
-You’re turning into Nibbles, Jagger sighed.
To be continued...
By J.L.Frick
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Thursday, November 24, 2011
The Broken Ones
Chapter 17:2 -Spring Island
Soi was dying, but not the way he thought he would die.
He didn’t know how many days had gone by. He had tried to keep track but after a few days without food and water it wasn’t easy to tell the days apart. He was slowly starving to death.
It was as if he’d been forgotten. No one came to see if he was alive. Instead of killing him instantly as he had feared he was now dying slowly. The first day and night was the worst, his stomach begged for food and his throat begun to dry in an endless thirst he had never known before. Then the energy left his body and his mind went completely blank. He couldn’t put two thoughts together. It was the worst way to die and he had never seen it coming. If he had known it when Sam tried to kill him, Soi would have let him.
This was so typical broken. Soi, a non-broken, meant nothing to them. When he was no longer of any importance they forgot him. They never thought of him as a threat so they didn’t need to kill him but they didn’t need to keep him alive either.
On the third night the nightmares started. But they were not the work of a dreamer, only his own craving mind. He was back at the Academy, trapped in front of the council but this time they didn’t see him. They sat at their table, all dressed in white and looked almighty. White faces looking straight forward, seeing through him. High, white walls surrounded and towered over him. At the top there was a small round window, as big as a coin, and through it the sun pushed its light.
-Soi? Do you hear me?
It was a soft female voice talking to him. A pair of small hands rocked him to consciousness and he looked into a pair of dark eyes.
-Siri? Soi tried to say but his dry throat made it known and he could only cough.
-Water, give me the water, Siri demanded and reached behind her.
Cold water touched his cracked lips, it stung but he licked every drop of water.
-Brother, I can’t explain now but we have to go. We are passing the cliffs now, it’s our only chance. Can you stand?
Soi tried his best but his knees faltered.
-He needs help. We need to support him, Siri said to someone behind her and waved to the person to come and help.
The person left what must have been the doorway and moved forward with the lantern he was carrying. Soi couldn’t see his face but he knew it was a man. He and Siri pulled Soi up on his legs and while leaning on the man’s shoulders Soi was dragged out of the cupboard. Siri took the lantern and led the way. The first room was a storage containing ropes and barrels. The second room took Soi by surprise. On benches placed in rows people were sitting quiet and motionless, all of them facing forward. Even though all of them were obviously awake and alive none of them seemed to react when the group passed through. They remained seated and dead quiet as if they were sleeping with their eyes wide open.
-Prisoners? Soi whispered as they passed the benches.
The light of the lantern touched the motionless people faces but they didn’t even blink. Siri snorted.
-Sort of, she answered. –Monsters, controlled by him.
Soi looked at the persons again. Siri was right, they were all monsters, in all stages of the destruction. Their eyes were all glowing red in the poorly lit room.
The group left the room with the monsters and Soi let out a breath he didn’t know he had kept in. They walked up a floor and stopped to check the surroundings.
-Should I go further? Siri asked and looked back anxiously at the man supporting Soi.
The man waved for her to continue forward. There was too much movement for Soi’s exhausted body and at a point he fainted. When he regained consciousness the first he saw was the moon, brightly shining above the high cliffs of Spring Island. Then he heard the waves as the crashed into the cliffs. The ship was quite near.
-Do you think he can make it? A male voice asked.
-He has to, Siri answered decidedly.
Soi saw his sisters black hair flying freely in the wind. She looked better than when he saw her in Beroal. She turned to him.
-Soi, we’re gonna jump and then swim. You know how. We’ve done it since we were little ones, remember? That’s what we’re doing, it’s a child play, right?
Soi knew his sister, he knew she was nervous as she tugged her hair. She had all right to be, he hadn’t eaten for days and he could barely stand on his own. How was he going to swim? But he took his sister’s hand and held it tight in his.
Suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around his body and a mouth breathed into his ear.
-If you die or not, Jack doesn’t care because he doesn’t need you anymore. But I do, I need you. And so does Ana. We can’t win this without you, Spring Saviour, a gentle male voice whispered tenderly.
The arms released him as quickly as they had pulled him into the hug.
-Now go! The man waved the off.
Siri and Soi jumped while holding hands and hit the cold surface with a splash. Soi swallowed water in surprise as the cold water woke his starving body.
-Swim! Siri shouted to him.
Tumult erupted on the deck but no measures were taken to capture them. They were dead anyway in the eyes of the broken.
Soi took a few swimming strokes but started to sink.
-Come on, little brother! You can do better than this!
He tried again and this time it was easier, his arms and legs remembered what they should do and he stayed above the surface.
-Good! Siri shouted. –Follow me! She was swimming away from the ship and towards the cliffs. Soi thought she was crazy, she was swimming towards a certain death but he followed her because he had no option than to trust his sister. But as they came closer he hesitated. The waves clashed against the cliffs fiercely.
-Siri?! He called after his sister but his voice was still weak and hoarse.
Suddenly he couldn’t see her. Maybe she had disappeared behind a wave. He watched the waves anxiously but he couldn’t see her. He panicked and swallowed more saltwater as he turned around to see her. He kept paddling with his legs but they begun to cramp and wave rolled over him making him swallow more water. He had to kick up to the surface but his legs didn’t obey him. Somehow he reached the surface and he chipped for air.
All of a sudden something dark and big moved towards him. Was he crashing in a rock? This was it. Soi closed his eyes and prepared for the worst, to die. How many times hadn’t he done that since he met Ana. He saw her long blond hair and cold grey eyes, her sarcastic smile and how she stubbornly tried to walk straight.
-There he is! A female voice yelled thrilled.
As Soi opened his eyes in surprise two pair of hands lifted him out of the water and onto a small boat. A warm blanket was put around him and he was fed warm soup from a bowl. As he looked around him he saw nothing but familiar faces. Sitting opposite him was Siri also wrapped in a big blanket, holding a bowl of soup in her hands. To her right sat the eldest sister Sanoi and to Siri’s left sat a boy Soi didn’t think he would ever see again. Ard’s smile was wide as usual.
-I think I can predict the expression on your face right now, Ard joked.
To Ard’s left Jagger sat close to the white haired boy.
-It was me who found you! She said still thrilled.
-Not really, muttered Haz who sat on Soi’s right.
Haz glared at Ard and Jagger, seemingly unhappy about the two.
To Soi’s left sat a person Soi didn’t know how much he’d missed all these years. How long had it been since he last had looked at that slightly wrinkled face and dark blue eyes. Soi’s eyes begun to tear.
-Mother, I’m so sorry, he said.
-Son, welcome home, Soi’s mother said and draw him into her arms.
To be continued...
By J.L.Frick
Soi was dying, but not the way he thought he would die.
He didn’t know how many days had gone by. He had tried to keep track but after a few days without food and water it wasn’t easy to tell the days apart. He was slowly starving to death.
It was as if he’d been forgotten. No one came to see if he was alive. Instead of killing him instantly as he had feared he was now dying slowly. The first day and night was the worst, his stomach begged for food and his throat begun to dry in an endless thirst he had never known before. Then the energy left his body and his mind went completely blank. He couldn’t put two thoughts together. It was the worst way to die and he had never seen it coming. If he had known it when Sam tried to kill him, Soi would have let him.
This was so typical broken. Soi, a non-broken, meant nothing to them. When he was no longer of any importance they forgot him. They never thought of him as a threat so they didn’t need to kill him but they didn’t need to keep him alive either.
On the third night the nightmares started. But they were not the work of a dreamer, only his own craving mind. He was back at the Academy, trapped in front of the council but this time they didn’t see him. They sat at their table, all dressed in white and looked almighty. White faces looking straight forward, seeing through him. High, white walls surrounded and towered over him. At the top there was a small round window, as big as a coin, and through it the sun pushed its light.
-Soi? Do you hear me?
It was a soft female voice talking to him. A pair of small hands rocked him to consciousness and he looked into a pair of dark eyes.
-Siri? Soi tried to say but his dry throat made it known and he could only cough.
-Water, give me the water, Siri demanded and reached behind her.
Cold water touched his cracked lips, it stung but he licked every drop of water.
-Brother, I can’t explain now but we have to go. We are passing the cliffs now, it’s our only chance. Can you stand?
Soi tried his best but his knees faltered.
-He needs help. We need to support him, Siri said to someone behind her and waved to the person to come and help.
The person left what must have been the doorway and moved forward with the lantern he was carrying. Soi couldn’t see his face but he knew it was a man. He and Siri pulled Soi up on his legs and while leaning on the man’s shoulders Soi was dragged out of the cupboard. Siri took the lantern and led the way. The first room was a storage containing ropes and barrels. The second room took Soi by surprise. On benches placed in rows people were sitting quiet and motionless, all of them facing forward. Even though all of them were obviously awake and alive none of them seemed to react when the group passed through. They remained seated and dead quiet as if they were sleeping with their eyes wide open.
-Prisoners? Soi whispered as they passed the benches.
The light of the lantern touched the motionless people faces but they didn’t even blink. Siri snorted.
-Sort of, she answered. –Monsters, controlled by him.
Soi looked at the persons again. Siri was right, they were all monsters, in all stages of the destruction. Their eyes were all glowing red in the poorly lit room.
The group left the room with the monsters and Soi let out a breath he didn’t know he had kept in. They walked up a floor and stopped to check the surroundings.
-Should I go further? Siri asked and looked back anxiously at the man supporting Soi.
The man waved for her to continue forward. There was too much movement for Soi’s exhausted body and at a point he fainted. When he regained consciousness the first he saw was the moon, brightly shining above the high cliffs of Spring Island. Then he heard the waves as the crashed into the cliffs. The ship was quite near.
-Do you think he can make it? A male voice asked.
-He has to, Siri answered decidedly.
Soi saw his sisters black hair flying freely in the wind. She looked better than when he saw her in Beroal. She turned to him.
-Soi, we’re gonna jump and then swim. You know how. We’ve done it since we were little ones, remember? That’s what we’re doing, it’s a child play, right?
Soi knew his sister, he knew she was nervous as she tugged her hair. She had all right to be, he hadn’t eaten for days and he could barely stand on his own. How was he going to swim? But he took his sister’s hand and held it tight in his.
Suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around his body and a mouth breathed into his ear.
-If you die or not, Jack doesn’t care because he doesn’t need you anymore. But I do, I need you. And so does Ana. We can’t win this without you, Spring Saviour, a gentle male voice whispered tenderly.
The arms released him as quickly as they had pulled him into the hug.
-Now go! The man waved the off.
Siri and Soi jumped while holding hands and hit the cold surface with a splash. Soi swallowed water in surprise as the cold water woke his starving body.
-Swim! Siri shouted to him.
Tumult erupted on the deck but no measures were taken to capture them. They were dead anyway in the eyes of the broken.
Soi took a few swimming strokes but started to sink.
-Come on, little brother! You can do better than this!
He tried again and this time it was easier, his arms and legs remembered what they should do and he stayed above the surface.
-Good! Siri shouted. –Follow me! She was swimming away from the ship and towards the cliffs. Soi thought she was crazy, she was swimming towards a certain death but he followed her because he had no option than to trust his sister. But as they came closer he hesitated. The waves clashed against the cliffs fiercely.
-Siri?! He called after his sister but his voice was still weak and hoarse.
Suddenly he couldn’t see her. Maybe she had disappeared behind a wave. He watched the waves anxiously but he couldn’t see her. He panicked and swallowed more saltwater as he turned around to see her. He kept paddling with his legs but they begun to cramp and wave rolled over him making him swallow more water. He had to kick up to the surface but his legs didn’t obey him. Somehow he reached the surface and he chipped for air.
All of a sudden something dark and big moved towards him. Was he crashing in a rock? This was it. Soi closed his eyes and prepared for the worst, to die. How many times hadn’t he done that since he met Ana. He saw her long blond hair and cold grey eyes, her sarcastic smile and how she stubbornly tried to walk straight.
-There he is! A female voice yelled thrilled.
As Soi opened his eyes in surprise two pair of hands lifted him out of the water and onto a small boat. A warm blanket was put around him and he was fed warm soup from a bowl. As he looked around him he saw nothing but familiar faces. Sitting opposite him was Siri also wrapped in a big blanket, holding a bowl of soup in her hands. To her right sat the eldest sister Sanoi and to Siri’s left sat a boy Soi didn’t think he would ever see again. Ard’s smile was wide as usual.
-I think I can predict the expression on your face right now, Ard joked.
To Ard’s left Jagger sat close to the white haired boy.
-It was me who found you! She said still thrilled.
-Not really, muttered Haz who sat on Soi’s right.
Haz glared at Ard and Jagger, seemingly unhappy about the two.
To Soi’s left sat a person Soi didn’t know how much he’d missed all these years. How long had it been since he last had looked at that slightly wrinkled face and dark blue eyes. Soi’s eyes begun to tear.
-Mother, I’m so sorry, he said.
-Son, welcome home, Soi’s mother said and draw him into her arms.
To be continued...
By J.L.Frick
Sunday, November 20, 2011
The Broken Ones
Chapter 17:1 -Spring Island
-Your mother, or should I say our mother, was a whore. She never wanted any of us. She gave me this.
Jack stroke the scars crossing the right side of his face and smiled coldly.
-And when you were born she gave you to me and told me to get rid of you, to drown you in the river. But I didn’t. No, I kept you. You know why?
Ana’s hand was trembling and Soi could feel the cold blade of the dagger touch his skin.
-Do you know why, Ana? Because you are mine.
Jack bared his teeth in a smug grin and his cold grey eyes narrowed, they had same colour as Ana’s.
-Our mother gave you to me to do what I liked. It is because of me that you are what you are today. The greatest of all brokens.
Soi felt a chill down his spine, surely not…
-I… made you, Jack whispered excited like a child with a new toy.
Ana’s whole body quivered by Jack’s words.
-That limp leg of yours, I crushed it. You were my first creation, Ana.
An agonised moan slipped out of Ana but she was still standing.
-But you never showed any signs of magic so I let you go, left you in the streets to die. Someone must have picked you up, because you survived. I thought you were dead until Mack brought you to the Academy. I knew it was you with that long blond hair and grey eyes, you looked exactly like our mother and you were limping. I suppose I should thank Mack for bringing you to me. But I couldn’t reach you anymore, although you were mine so I had to create a way to get you back.
-Sam, Soi whispered.
-Precisely. Sam. He was so naïve that he actually cut off his own fingers just to see you again. I never got to fully explain what the brokens was, all I told him was that brokens are people with unrecoverable injuries. He wasn’t the first monster I’d met but he was the one that made me realise how easily manipulated they were. There he was, the best spy ever made and as a monster he was easily controlled although he never realised it because he was already in my debt for informing him of your whereabouts. Slowly you and him got under my control. But you were already too suspicious to let anyone come near you. You were already looking for me, your maker and I knew that if you would find out the truth I would lose you again so I had to direct your attention elsewhere before I could finally seize you. And that is why I made the monsters target you and also why I spread the myth of the flute. But Sam’s behaviour had already made you suspicious so I had to reveal him as a monster and then you met this man, Soi, Jack hissed the name out like a snake preparing for an attack and looked straight at Soi with his grey eyes.
-I don’t think you can imagine how this spring will change the world, not only for the brokens, he said with a low patronising voice, his head slightly tilted to the side. –Thank you.
Jack leaned back in his chair as it knocked on the cabin’s door.
-Yes?
The door opened and a sailor entered and bowed deeply.
-The ship took another route than us, sir, he reported while bowing.
-Really? Jack turned around in his chair and watched the ocean.
In the distance sails of another ship was barely visible.
He was thrown back into that small cupboard where he and Ana had been held prisoners together. He felt sick, his head was spinning and it wasn’t because of the swaying movements of the ship going up and down on the waves. He felt stuck in another nightmare but this time he couldn’t escape it by waking up. Jack was Ana’s brother… and maker. He was the person Ana had been looking for all her life and now she was trapped. He had crushed her leg when she was only a baby.
Soi felt like fainting and puking at the same time. He crawled up in a corner of the cupboard and puked until he felt empty inside. He crawled to the opposite side of the cupboard and lied down on the rough wooden floor with a heavy sigh.
What could he do? He was a prisoner, Siri was a prisoner and Ana as well, trapped in the chairman’s grip. Nibbles was a traitor. And he still didn’t know the whereabouts of his friends, did the chairman have them as well? On top of that, he had betrayed the location of Spring Island, his home. Soi felt useless, there was nothing he could do. Before he was swept away by sleep, white sails flickered through his mind. They gave him hope.
A pang of agony woke him up. He looked into a pair of crazy eyes shifting from green to red and Soi immediately tried to back away but Sam gripped the collar of his blue velvet jacket.
-Don’t think you can escape, this is a dream, Sam said smiling widely. His teeth were pointy and sharp.
-Do you want to know what is so good about dreams? They are not really true, Sam said and held up his silver dagger. –I can make you feel pain and not really hurt you.
-Why are you doing this? Soi asked, he tried to distract Sam and think of a way to escape.
-The chairman gave you to me, to do what I liked, as long as you don’t turn into a broken.
-But why? Why do you want to hurt me?
-I told you to stay away, didn’t I?
-You mean Ana? But I’m just her guard…
Sam growled.
-You came too close.
-I only protected her like I’m supposed to do.
-You are not supposed to be by her side at all! Sam roared. –That’s my side!
Soi tried to back away again, his plan wasn’t working and he still didn’t know how to escape. He couldn’t get killed, not just yet.
-But you weren’t by her side, so I had to be there instead. Why did you leave her? Soi asked recklessly.
-I had to, the chairman told me to, I was turning into a monster and Ana would leave me if she knew, so I had to leave before she found out. But I always stayed close to her, to protect her. And then you came, Sam snarled and held up the dagger.
-But… but, I don’t think Ana would have left you just because you are a monster. Ana isn’t that kind of person, is she? You should know, you know her the best of all of us.
Sam watched Soi with suspicion, his eyes kept shifting from red to green and back again.
-Wasn’t it the chairman who told you Ana would leave you? He told you to leave her, didn’t he? So it was his fault, right?
Soi didn’t think much of what poured out of his mouth and just kept asking question, it was what he was best of anyhow and if it could save his life he was willing to ask any question.
Sam sat down on the floor and looked at Soi with a dazed expression.
-I never thought of it, he said.
-Ana would never leave you, you are her best friend. Isn’t the silver daggers proof of it? She still carries it, and she never told me about it. It was always your secret, your bond. And she still has your ring, Soi kept rambling.
Sam lay down his head deeply in his hands and shook it slowly from side to side.
-She is still your friend, I haven’t taken her from you, I’m simply her guard, I mean nothing to her, I’m not even a broken.
-I hear you, Sam whispered with a low voice.
When Soi woke up again he was alone. He sat up slowly, his head still spinning around but less now. His encounter with Sam had made him more at ease but also more terrified. Jack didn’t need him anymore so there was no longer necessary to keep him alive. Soi could be dead before they reached the shores of Spring Island.
To be continued...
By J.L.Frick
-Your mother, or should I say our mother, was a whore. She never wanted any of us. She gave me this.
Jack stroke the scars crossing the right side of his face and smiled coldly.
-And when you were born she gave you to me and told me to get rid of you, to drown you in the river. But I didn’t. No, I kept you. You know why?
Ana’s hand was trembling and Soi could feel the cold blade of the dagger touch his skin.
-Do you know why, Ana? Because you are mine.
Jack bared his teeth in a smug grin and his cold grey eyes narrowed, they had same colour as Ana’s.
-Our mother gave you to me to do what I liked. It is because of me that you are what you are today. The greatest of all brokens.
Soi felt a chill down his spine, surely not…
-I… made you, Jack whispered excited like a child with a new toy.
Ana’s whole body quivered by Jack’s words.
-That limp leg of yours, I crushed it. You were my first creation, Ana.
An agonised moan slipped out of Ana but she was still standing.
-But you never showed any signs of magic so I let you go, left you in the streets to die. Someone must have picked you up, because you survived. I thought you were dead until Mack brought you to the Academy. I knew it was you with that long blond hair and grey eyes, you looked exactly like our mother and you were limping. I suppose I should thank Mack for bringing you to me. But I couldn’t reach you anymore, although you were mine so I had to create a way to get you back.
-Sam, Soi whispered.
-Precisely. Sam. He was so naïve that he actually cut off his own fingers just to see you again. I never got to fully explain what the brokens was, all I told him was that brokens are people with unrecoverable injuries. He wasn’t the first monster I’d met but he was the one that made me realise how easily manipulated they were. There he was, the best spy ever made and as a monster he was easily controlled although he never realised it because he was already in my debt for informing him of your whereabouts. Slowly you and him got under my control. But you were already too suspicious to let anyone come near you. You were already looking for me, your maker and I knew that if you would find out the truth I would lose you again so I had to direct your attention elsewhere before I could finally seize you. And that is why I made the monsters target you and also why I spread the myth of the flute. But Sam’s behaviour had already made you suspicious so I had to reveal him as a monster and then you met this man, Soi, Jack hissed the name out like a snake preparing for an attack and looked straight at Soi with his grey eyes.
-I don’t think you can imagine how this spring will change the world, not only for the brokens, he said with a low patronising voice, his head slightly tilted to the side. –Thank you.
Jack leaned back in his chair as it knocked on the cabin’s door.
-Yes?
The door opened and a sailor entered and bowed deeply.
-The ship took another route than us, sir, he reported while bowing.
-Really? Jack turned around in his chair and watched the ocean.
In the distance sails of another ship was barely visible.
He was thrown back into that small cupboard where he and Ana had been held prisoners together. He felt sick, his head was spinning and it wasn’t because of the swaying movements of the ship going up and down on the waves. He felt stuck in another nightmare but this time he couldn’t escape it by waking up. Jack was Ana’s brother… and maker. He was the person Ana had been looking for all her life and now she was trapped. He had crushed her leg when she was only a baby.
Soi felt like fainting and puking at the same time. He crawled up in a corner of the cupboard and puked until he felt empty inside. He crawled to the opposite side of the cupboard and lied down on the rough wooden floor with a heavy sigh.
What could he do? He was a prisoner, Siri was a prisoner and Ana as well, trapped in the chairman’s grip. Nibbles was a traitor. And he still didn’t know the whereabouts of his friends, did the chairman have them as well? On top of that, he had betrayed the location of Spring Island, his home. Soi felt useless, there was nothing he could do. Before he was swept away by sleep, white sails flickered through his mind. They gave him hope.
A pang of agony woke him up. He looked into a pair of crazy eyes shifting from green to red and Soi immediately tried to back away but Sam gripped the collar of his blue velvet jacket.
-Don’t think you can escape, this is a dream, Sam said smiling widely. His teeth were pointy and sharp.
-Do you want to know what is so good about dreams? They are not really true, Sam said and held up his silver dagger. –I can make you feel pain and not really hurt you.
-Why are you doing this? Soi asked, he tried to distract Sam and think of a way to escape.
-The chairman gave you to me, to do what I liked, as long as you don’t turn into a broken.
-But why? Why do you want to hurt me?
-I told you to stay away, didn’t I?
-You mean Ana? But I’m just her guard…
Sam growled.
-You came too close.
-I only protected her like I’m supposed to do.
-You are not supposed to be by her side at all! Sam roared. –That’s my side!
Soi tried to back away again, his plan wasn’t working and he still didn’t know how to escape. He couldn’t get killed, not just yet.
-But you weren’t by her side, so I had to be there instead. Why did you leave her? Soi asked recklessly.
-I had to, the chairman told me to, I was turning into a monster and Ana would leave me if she knew, so I had to leave before she found out. But I always stayed close to her, to protect her. And then you came, Sam snarled and held up the dagger.
-But… but, I don’t think Ana would have left you just because you are a monster. Ana isn’t that kind of person, is she? You should know, you know her the best of all of us.
Sam watched Soi with suspicion, his eyes kept shifting from red to green and back again.
-Wasn’t it the chairman who told you Ana would leave you? He told you to leave her, didn’t he? So it was his fault, right?
Soi didn’t think much of what poured out of his mouth and just kept asking question, it was what he was best of anyhow and if it could save his life he was willing to ask any question.
Sam sat down on the floor and looked at Soi with a dazed expression.
-I never thought of it, he said.
-Ana would never leave you, you are her best friend. Isn’t the silver daggers proof of it? She still carries it, and she never told me about it. It was always your secret, your bond. And she still has your ring, Soi kept rambling.
Sam lay down his head deeply in his hands and shook it slowly from side to side.
-She is still your friend, I haven’t taken her from you, I’m simply her guard, I mean nothing to her, I’m not even a broken.
-I hear you, Sam whispered with a low voice.
When Soi woke up again he was alone. He sat up slowly, his head still spinning around but less now. His encounter with Sam had made him more at ease but also more terrified. Jack didn’t need him anymore so there was no longer necessary to keep him alive. Soi could be dead before they reached the shores of Spring Island.
To be continued...
By J.L.Frick
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