Eleven's Ghost

Chapter 14: The Jinn And The Blind

“No, I’m not joking.” Raven sat at the edge of the cliff. “If you fail, I will push you down this cliff. You will not fall, but you will enter space. You might not die, Yayis, but a human would. Even pre-confinement humans can’t live in space, not without learning the appropriate magic for that.”

Yayis swallowed hard. “I will never stop!”

Raven smiled again and nodded, gazing down at passing meteors. “Have fun. You can start.”

Shams collapsed within three hours, and Yayis joined him after a full day. They both slept on the grass. Raven laid down with closed eyes, waiting for them to wake up. They stayed in the same location swinging swords and punches for six months. Raven then opened his eyes. “So… Do you want some food?”

Their eyes flashed wide, realizing that they went six months without food. They exchanged confused glances.

“But we… don’t feel hungry…”

“Yeah.” Raven smiled. “I’m sure this will be useful at some point of your examinations in the academy.” He paused. “The truth is that compared to the old humans, this generation possesses more physical strength than the old humans. Being forced to live scattered across the desert for centuries made them develop interesting traits. Very few humans managed to unlock this potential though. Part of this potential is the ability to cast magic. Magic is, in a way, a science. If you understand the logic, you can even develop your own custom spells. Once you do that, you will become invincible.”

Shams jumped, excited. “Yes! I want to do that! Can… Can Ihdaachar do that?”

Raven nodded. “Most of his spells are custom.”

Shams smiled brightly. “I will do the same!”

“How about you take a break first?” Raven patted his and Yayis’s heads. They returned to the house.

“I will go look for Ihdaachar. You can take a look around, but don’t get lost.” Raven walked into the long white corridor. He climbed the stairs and entered Ihdaachar’s bedroom. He smiled faintly, seeing him sleeping. “So reckless…”

He stood next to his bed and took his hand before sitting down. “No shields, nothing, sleeping so carelessly.” He clenched his jaw. “Begging for death.”

He lowered his head and kissed Ihdaachar’s hand. He gritted his teeth as his blue eyes shined, their pupils turning into a slit and dilating. He stood up and backed away from Ihdaachar. He slapped his forehead and closed his eyes. “No… I must contain myself,” he whispered.

He leaned down and brushed the hair from Ihdaachar’s cheeks and lips. He stared at him, worried. “Sleeping your life away, this isn’t like you.” He curled his fingers into fists and looked away. “My weakness… For how long will you tolerate it?”

His eyes widened, hearing knocks on the door. He straightened and cleared his throat. “Come in.”

Shams and Yayis peeked into the room. “Ah! Sorry! You were here! Should we go?”

Raven smiled and shook his head. “Feel free to stay. I was going to wake him up anyway. He slept for six mouths. It should be enough.”

Their jaws dropped. “Six… months of sleep?!”

“Yes… He acquired this habit recently.” Raven shrugged. “Life got boring I guess,” he laughed jokingly.

Shams smiled and nodded. He held Yayis’s hands and ran to giant blue pillows on the floor. He jumped on them and giggled, enjoying their softness. Yayis pouted. “Blue doesn’t go well with me. I like red more!”

“Stop complaining!” Shams threw a pillow at him. “It’s fluffy and comfortable… and fluffy!”

“You said the same thing twice.”

“Now I know why Zultan used to bully you.”

“Wh-Wha! Oh, you little s**t…”

Raven turned to Ihdaachar and caressed his hair gently. “Hey, please wake up.” He kissed his forehead, and a black spell appeared and broke over Ihdaachar’s skin. He opened his eyes and smiled weakly. “Good morning…”

Raven shook his head and turned away from him. He sat down on the bed, his shoulders sinking. Ihdaachar gazed at him for a few minutes. He was about to talk but frowned as a pillow landed on his face.

He removed the pillow and sat up on the bed. He blinked a few times and tilted his head to the side. He gazed in the direction of Shams and Yayis blankly for a few seconds. Their faces went white, staring into his blank white eyes. His irises were a light grey with white pupils. He didn’t seem to pay attention to them and stood up. “I wished I slept for more,” he whispered.

He smiled at Raven, scratching his side as he was shirtless. Shams’s eyes widened, noticing how muscular he was. What was most shocking for him was the amount of scars Ihdaachar had. His pale snow white skin was filled with dents, stitch and needle marks. A large circular scar was on his back, slightly covered by Ihdaachar’s long black hair.

Raven noticed Shams and Yayis’s stares and instantly covered Ihdaachar’s torso with his white leather jacket. “Don’t be inappropriate. We have guests.”

“Oh, true.” Ihdaachar smiled again and turned to Shams. He rested the pillow in front of him and sat on it, wearing the jacket and zipping it. His hand reached for Shams’s hand, but he touched his cheek instead. His smiled weakened as he traced his way down to his hand. “I apologize. I lose my ability to see when my eyes are open.”

Shams blinked and instantly grabbed his hand with both of his hands. “N-No worries! I’m here! In front of you!”

Ihdaachar laughed. “What a reliable boy.” He squeezed Shams’s hand. “Thank you. I’ll rely on you a bit today.”

Shams smiled and nodded. They stood up. “Where do we go now?”

Ihdaachar patted his head. “Why do you trust me so much?”

He rolled his head to look at the window. He frowned slightly. “I smell something… unfamiliar.”

He lowered his head slightly, his gaze changing. “Perhaps… Sheitans?”

He instantly lifted his hand up, and a wall of shadows rose from the floor to block a flying mace. The impact was stronger and sent him crashing into the wall. He fell to his knees, panting. Yayis blinked several times. “His reflexes are… amazing. I barely had time to find the trajectory of the attack.”

Ihdaachar stood up and walked towards the window. “I don’t feel it anymore,” he whispered, “I don’t…”

He frowned slightly and stopped midway. He turned to Shams and gazed at him, his eyes widening slightly. He instantly took a step towards him and faded into black shadows. Shams looked around, impressed. “Woah! Where did he–”

He gasped as Ihdaachar appeared in front of him within fractions of a second and pushed him down barely in time for a white light spear to scorch his back. Ihdaachar gazed down at Shams, panting. His eyes were entirely black instead of white. Shams stared at him in fear. “Why are your eyes… like this?”

Ihdaachar glanced at Raven, ignoring Shams. “Protect them both. I will go patrol the area.”

Raven nodded. “But… Take someone with you. Don’t do it on your own. You’re unstable right now… Maybe I should go with you after all…”

“Do what I say.” Ihdaachar stood up, and most of the skin on his back was gone. Shams stared at his flesh with tears in his eyes. Ihdaachar poked the floor with his foot, and a black rose sprouted from the floor. He shut his eyelids and ran out of the room. Raven glanced around, expecting more spears to hit them. The first light spear disappeared within a few seconds.

“Is… Is the sun attacking us?” Shams asked, pulling his shirt. “Does the sun hate us?”

“It’s not the sun.” Raven glared at the floor. “I have a rough idea about who it might be.”

“But… I thought… Ihdaachar was the strongest man in the world?”

“Yes, he is.” Raven glanced at the rose as its petals started falling. “He is.”

The rose faded into a pool of shadows, and Ihdaachar appeared from it. He shook his head. “Nothing… I scouted the entire area up until the wall. Not a soul.”

Shams blinked. “In this short amount of time, you covered the entire area?”

“I’m blind, but I have eyes everywhere.” Ihdaachar opened his eyes slightly and sat down on the floor. “Why do I have an uneasy feeling?”

He lifted his head to Raven. “What about you?”

Raven sat behind him and rested a hand on his back. A green light escaped from his hand, and it healed the burns and restored the skin. “We just need to be careful.”

 “Do you think this the reason why the explorers didn’t want to go beyond the wall?” Ihdaachar gazed down thoughtfully, holding his hair on the side to let Raven heal him.

Raven caressed the bare skin and stared at it, his eyes shining. “Huh?” He glanced at Ihdaachar. “Did you say something?”

Ihdaachar turned to him with a frown. He stood up, and a black circle appeared under his feet. Crows flew out of it and surrounded Shams and Yayis.

“Those will guard you.” Ihdaachar smiled at them. “I need to have a word with my jinn.”

He left the room with Raven and walked down the stairs.

“What’s wrong?” Ihdaachar asked. “You look very absent-minded. I need you right now. It takes me a few hours to regain my full strength after a long coma, maybe days.”

“Why did you sleep then?”

“Out of… fear.” Ihdaachar rested his hands on the rails of the stairs. He lowered his head, squeezing his grip. “I wanted to shake off the fatherly feeling I was getting. I can’t function correctly with those feelings. I was able to get to where I am only because I discarded every distraction. I needed a break…”

Raven nodded and took a step closer to him. “And what about me?”

Ihdaachar turned to him, his hand reaching out. He frowned, not feeling Raven there. He closed his eyes and raised his eyebrows, seeing nothing but blackness.

“Raven…?”