Chapter 15
1134 Words
Lucien didn't slow down his step as he left Aric's manor
His mind was heavy, always heavy
The wound on his arm throbbed under his cloth
The streets were busy, but they cleared quickly when people saw him coming
No one dared to speak and none met his eyes.
He walked until the buildings thinned and the scent of herbs filled the air
Elira's shop stood at the corner, very quiet and very small
Dried plants hung by the window and the wooden sign above creaked in the breeze
He stepped up and stood there in silence
A moment passed before the door creaked open, Elira stood in the doorway surprised but calm.
“ You again?” she asked, narrowing her eyes, and her voice flat
Lucien lifted his arm, pulling back the sleeve slowly to show her the wound beneath.
“ It needs care so I need your help with it”
She looked at it, then stepped aside “ Come in”
Inside, the shop was warm, filled with the scent of herbs , smoke and something sweet .
Lucien sat on the small bench without being told .
He watched Elira moved around the room in silence, gathering what she needed.
After some minutes , she came back, knelt beside him and began working on the wound
“ This looks better than before” She said softly as she dabbed the wound gently with a damp cloth
“ Well, it all you” He said, boy flinching
“ You are lucky, it didn't get affected ” She muttered z cleaning the dried blood away
He watched her hands work, it was steady and careful
He could tell she have done this so many times.
Her face stayed calm
“ You are good at this” He said, nodding towards the wound
Elira paused, glancing up at him.
For a second, their eyes met before she looked down at the ground.
“ Thank you” She said simply
Silence fell as she wrapped the wound in a fresh cloth
“ That should hold ” She said , patting the cloth gently
Lucien looked at the bandage then back at her
“ It is better”
Elira nodded and stood up, wiping her hands on a clean cloth
“ You should rest to keep it clean and to hold it firm”
Lucien leaned back slightly back on the bench, watching her as she tidied the counter , wiping the table and putting away some herbs
“ Elira” he called out quietly
“ Hmmm?” she asked, looking up
He searched her face, searching for any flicker of recognition before he asked “ Have you heard the name, Eryndor?”
She paused, dropped the cloth on the table , her brows pulling slightly
“ Eryndor?” she asked “ No I don't think so, is he someone I should know?”
Lucien's jaw tensed slightly “ He was a knight , he fought in the last war and was killed there ”
She blinked slowly , her expression calm but confused
“ I'm sorry, i have never heard that name and i don't really follow war stories ”
Lucien frowned “ Not even once?” no tales, no passing memories?”
She shook her head “ No, should I have?”
He didn't answer right away
Instead, he looked past her to the shelf lined with jars
Something about her confusion unsettled him
She had known Eryndor once and deeply
And now, nothing?
“ No” Lucien said at last, his voice very low “ it is nothing ”
Elira gave him a soft, confused look
“ Was he someone important to you?”
Lucien met her eyes but didn't answer
After some moment, he stood
“ Thank you for helping me treat my wound again”
She nodded, still watching him with a faint crease in her brows “ Any time"
Lucien left the shop slowly , the door creaking closed behind him.
The streets were quicker now
The sun had dipped lower, casting long shadows across the stone paths as Lucien walked back.
Elira didn't remember Eryndor, not even the name
She had looked him in the eyes and spoken the truth.
There wasn't even a flicker of hesitation in her voice.
It unsettled him more than he cared to admit.
Lucien , no , Eryndor, he had prepared his mind for enemies with swords, lies , poison and anything but this?
Being forgotten by the only person who he believed have once seen beyond the blade.
It hit differently
By the time he reached his manor, night had fallen
The guards bowed immediately he passed them
He made his way to hus chamber, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The familiar weight of silence wrapping around him.
Lucien shut the door behind him, he leaned against it and exhaled.
And somewhere in the middle of it all, he was losing himself
Not just vengeance , but to this borrowed life
He moved towards the window, unfastening the collar of his tunic
He clenched his jaw.
A low hum began to pulse through the room.
Lucien turned, his hand already on the dagger at his belt but there was no one there.
Just a growing shadow in the corner of the room. It swirled slowly, like smoke but darker.
Heavy. Cold.
A voice echoed from it, it was low and layered.
“You're wasting time, Lucien.”
The dark shape floated closer, forming no body, just a sphere of blackness, alive with flickers of deep red.
It was Nyxir.
“You let them breathe while they plot against you,” she said. “You play human while your enemies sharpen blades behind your back.”
Lucien’s eyes narrowed. “You messed with my memory.”
A soft laugh, like whispers on cold stone.
“You asked for this life. You gave up Eryndor. That name is nothing now but ashes. What’s left of him is only a tool. Use it.”
Lucien stepped forward. “Why are pieces of it still there? Why do I remember even at all?”
“Because you need it for vengeance. But don’t mistake memory for identity. You are not him anymore. You belong to this.” Nyxir said, her voice grew sharper.
She rose higher, the shadows around her stretching toward the walls, creeping along the floor.
“If I come again” she said, her voice turning cold, “I won’t ask. I’ll take.”
Then the dark shape vanished, leaving the chamber colder than before.
Lucien stood still, his heart pounding not from fear, but fury.
His grip tightened on the edge of the table.
He had no intention of being anyone’s puppet.
Not Nyxir’s.
And certainly not fate’s.
- Writer
