Tales of a Lost Sword 40

Episode 40 Intermission III: Attachment
With a thundering crash, the door into the mayor’s house in Henesys bursts open. Fayvard blasts his way into the home, his sword glinting in the light of the house.

“What on earth is going on here?!” a bespectacled man shouts, standing up to confront Fayvard. He and a number of other official-looking men are gathered around a living room, some seated in sofas, others standing.

“Sorry ’bout this!” Fayvard barks back, placing a finger up to his mouth. He blows, and a cloud of green smog escapes from his lips, causing all those gathered in the room to suddenly sway and collapse to the ground unconscious.

“Not that you’ll remember it anyway…” Fayvard mumbles under his breath. He allows himself into the mayor’s house, treading over the outstretched bodies of the officials. Fayvard peers around the room. “Damn it, Kimura’s not in here… Well, at least I got my part done.”

Lord Kimura lowers a glass of wine, as he sits alone in a darkened room by himself. A faint smirk crosses his face as someone appears behind him. The figure slowly crawls up to Kimura from behind.

Kimura turns his head suddenly, looking at this new arrival in the eye. “How pleasant to see you…Edwin.”

The blue-haired Ranger steps into view of Kimura’s eyesight. He carries a Dark Arund in his hands as he bows low to Kimura.

“My lord,” he rasps, “it seems there indeed is going to be an attack on your person tonight. I have just received word from the mayor’s house that there’s been an attack.”

“Yes,” Lord Kimura replies, “I can hear the commotion going on from here. That is why I took the extra precaution of moving to another place and using a dummy.”

Ayame slithers into the darkened room, where a single figure is sitting by himself, still as can be in the darkness. She narrows her eyes, her Geta clutched in her sweating hands. Ever so slowly, Ayame creeps up on her target from behind.

‘As the most nimble in our platoon, this job is best suited for me…killing Kimura!’

With a shout, Ayame bounds forward, sinking her Geta deep into the body of the man sitting in the chair. The dummy falls to the ground silently, its straw-stuffed head decapitated from its body.

Eyes widening, Ayame stares about in confusion. “What the–?!”

Suddenly, a set of four arrows flies just past Ayame’s shoulder in quick succession. They pierce the wall of the building behind her, remaining in place.

Ayame jerks back, turning to face her new assailant. The Ranger with dark blue hair emerges from the darkness, his Arund pointed straight at Ayame. The Ranger’s eyes are cold and distant, without a trace of kindness in them.

“I see…” mutters Ayame, holding her Geta in front of her as a precautionary measure. “You knew there was going to be an attack tonight, didn’t you?”

Readying herself to strike, Ayame points her Geta at the Ranger Edwin. “I’ll just have to take care of you then.”

In response, Edwin raises his Arund, loading it with a pair of arrows. “My bow is in position to attack, and I shall strike faster.”

“Ha, you think I’m afraid of a few arrows?” Ayame laughs. “I’m a Bandit. Dodging a few arrows here and there are nothing to me.”

“No, I think you will find that attacking me will not be in your best interest,” Edwin smirks.

Perplexed, Ayame follows the direction of Edwin’s bow. She turns to her left, and lets out a gasp as she spots both Ryuu and Yttrius, bound and tied together by rope.

“Do not move,” Edwin orders Ayame in a commanding voice. “As soon as you try anything, I will kill your comrades.”

Ayame bites her lip, staring at the Ranger before her. She glances desperately at Ryuu and Yttrius, who are shaking, their eyes widened, pleading with Ayame to do something. “Damn it…” she curses.

However, Ayame’s eyes suddenly light up with realization as she gazes at Ryuu and Yttrius. ‘Arai…it seems as though he escaped capture, at least…’

Lord Kimura sighs, gazing out the only window in the tiny room he is trapped in. He stares silently at the moon for some time, a frown on his face. A shuffling from the doorway draws his attention.

A flash of blue light sings through the dark air as Lord Kimura draws his Blue Screamer. However, the sword meets contact against a dagger of lightning. The light from the sword and the bolt of lightning brighten the room momentarily, as Lord Kimura gazes into the face of Arai.

“Your reactions are fast,” Lord Kimura mutters, “as expected of a Fatalist.”

Arai flashes Kimura a wry smile. “Lord Kimura, it has been a while. How are you faring? Would you like to join me for tea, a cookie, perhaps?”

Kimura frowns in response, as he looks into Arai’s clear blue eyes. “Are you going to kill me?”

“No.”

Arai releases his bolt of lightning, freeing Lord Kimura’s Screamer. Kimura stumbles forward for a second, before recollecting himself. Still frowning, he sheathes his sword as Arai walks around him, taking a seat on the back of the armchair Kimura had been sitting in.

The boyish face of Arai is now cloaked with a distinct sense of malice as he leans against the chair, his legs crossed casually. Kimura stares into those now-darkened blue eyes, the two of them standing in near total darkness.

“Although you abandoned us long ago, you are a Fatalist,” Arai ends the silence. Lord Kimura remains still, staring at Arai, who continues. “As such, you have a duty to obey my orders, for I am now King of the Fatalists.”

“I see,” Kimura heaves, “you are here as a Fatalist, not as a member of the Joukai. It seems my life will indeed be spared tonight. But, then again, you were the one who warned me of this attempt on my life in the first place.”

“Yes,” Arai agrees briskly, “my grandfather wishes to kill you, but by my own grace I have decided to spare you. Because I have saved your life, you now are in my debt. Not only as a member of the Fatalists, but for having your life saved by me.”

Sighing impatiently, Kimura looks sternly at Arai. “Enough of this babbling. What is it that you want from me?”

“Do you know about the Three Phonemes?”

Kimura’s eyes widen. “The Three Phonemes…?” he blurts out. “I see. Your plan is to retrieve the Sword of Nexon? You truly are serious about killing your grandfather with it then.”

“Of course,” quips Arai. He rises again, circling the tiny room. “The magic of the Fatalists cannot contain Grandfather forever. Therefore, while we still have time, we must plan accordingly to prepare for his return. We will retrieve the Sword of Nexon from the souls of the Three Phonemes hidden throughout this dimension. The Myougun will be used as the vehicle to accomplish this.”

“The Myougun?” Kimura whispers.

“I am certainly in no position to acquire the Phonemes myself.”

Lord Kimura smirks. “I see. So I will play the role of the open villain, while you shall pull the strings of this show from the darkness. A devious plot.”

“Do you accept this mission?” Arai asks, stopping so he is standing directly next to Kimura.

“I would imagine I have no choice on the subject,” Kimura muses. “Very well. I shall agree to your little game. The Myougun shall be used to capture the Three Phonemes.”

“Do not spare any effort in ravaging this dimension to capture the Phonemes if you must,” adds Arai, “this world is useless, and was created by my grandfather only to hold the Three Phonemes. This world has no purpose other than that. Everything else is dispensable, or so I’ve been told…”

“Understood.”

Arai takes several steps towards the door of the chamber. He places a hand on the handle, but stops just before leaving. Still facing the door, he speaks once more to Kimura.

“Oh yes, it would seem I have been unable to kill you. Unfortunately, you have escaped, and the Myougun shall rise to become a devastating power in this world. This is the failure of Arai Mage.”

Without another word, Arai presses the handle of the door and departs from the room, not even bothering to glance at the frowning Lord Kimura.

Sunlight streams in through the tops of the massive trees growing in the forest of Ellinia. Four teenagers are gathered on a wooden terrace at the top of Grendel’s tower, which overlooks the rest of the town far below.

“So in the end, our assassination attempt failed…” Ryuu growls, as he leans against the railing of the terrace, looking down at the town of Ellinia below. A light breeze teases his bright red hair.

Ayame joins Ryuu at the railing. Her long purple hair glimmers in the sunlight filtering in through the uppermost boughs of leaves. “It really was a mission too tough for newcomers after all…” she laments.

Behind Ryuu and Ayame, Arai and Yttrius sit at a table, playing omok. As he sits still contemplating his next move, Arai speaks up. “I’m sorry I couldn’t finish our mission…I let Kimura escape. It was all my fault.”

“No, don’t apologize!” Ayame cries, turning around to face Arai. “You did well, Arai. It was a collective failure on our part. We just couldn’t get the job done.”

“We let a precious chance slip away, though…” Yttrius mutters, watching as Arai makes his move.

“Yes,” agrees Arai, “Lord Kimura is going to become a dangerous threat to us all now. He knows it was the Joukai who attempted to assassinate him. The Myougun is a rising power as well. The Joukai will be tested. We are about to enter some dangerous times.”

Ryuu sighs, the sun reflected in his bright green eyes, where two pupils are present in his right eye. “There’s no choice, then, huh… We’re up against a tough fight from here on out.”

“No need to get so down, though,” Arai says brightly, as Yttrius counters with another move. He clasps his hands, staring at the board pensively. “We still have each other. As long as these times don’t end, where we’re all together, we can face anything.”

“Yes, the Four said we were the strongest platoon to ever graduate the Academy. As long as we’re all here for each other, we can accomplish anything!” Yttrius agrees, as Arai finishes his counter-move. “Aww, jeez! I guess I lost…”

Ryuu turns to look at Arai and Yttrius as well. “You really think so?” he growls.

“Of course,” Arai answers Ryuu cheerfully, as Yttrius slumps over in defeat. The two exchange a glance. “We’re friends, aren’t we? There’s no stronger bond.”

Ryuu returns the grin. “Yeah. You’re right.”

Arai enters his darkened room with a tired look on his face. He sighs, removing his jacket before spotting the single individual standing in his room. Standing before Arai is the blue-haired Ranger, Edwin, his Dark Arund strapped to his side.

“You?” Arai mutters, with a slightest hint of impatience in his voice. “What do you want with me?”

“Was it really all right to order me to let them go?” Edwin asks.

“What right do you have to question my decisions?” snaps Arai in a surly tone. He places his jacket on a wooden chair in front of a desk. Arai proceeds to stride over to his bed and sit down on it, staring up at his guest. “Do you truly expect me to kill my own friends?”

“Friends, huh…” Edwin repeats. “It may not be my place to question you, bu–“

“It isn’t,” Arai interrupts icily. He grabs an object from the top of a drawer, and hurls it at Edwin. Reacting quickly, the Ranger catches the object clumsily. “Take care not to reveal my identity to anyone. If you do, I will kill you and your family without hesitance. Your son Arayu will never live to even remember his father. When you leave, use this teleport rock. I don’t want anyone to see you leaving my room.”

“Very well,”Edwin hisses, bowing low to Arai. Without another word, he disappears in a burst of smoke.

Arai sits still in his bed, staring at the space Edwin had occupied, a deep frown on his face. He continues staring into empty air for some time, lost in thought.

In the vast space of his palace overlooking Henesys, Arai remains sitting still, staring into the ends of his hall, where the throne room opens up into the expansive blue sky outside.

‘Which am I first, friend or Fatalist?’
—END FORTY—
Next time, look forward to the beginning of the Fatalist war. It took 40 chapters, but we’re finally getting into the real story of ToaLS.