"I’m sorry, what did you say?"
Raith paused and turned his to the side—where Reeves stood. With a nonchalant tone he responded:
"Hell... oh, sorry, I an Felfhiem but since it’s popular known as hell, I figured I’d just use...
"Are you insane?!!" Reeves cut viciously.
A frown creased on Raith’s brow. The atmosphere drowned in grave silence.
Reeves was looking at him, fuming with rage, brows furrowed and hands tightly clenched.
He moved forward powerfully, grabbing Raith by his shirt and gritting his teeth.
"Felfhiem?! You want us to go to Hell?!"
Raith’s expression was indifferent despite the disrespect showed to him by the arrogant soulless.
Reeves seed like the gentlest of the bounty hunting cohort but who knew he’d be the most cranky.
What was more amazing however was Raith’s temperant even thought Reeves was clutching the edge of his clothe and hissing to his face:
"Do you even know the consequences of what you are trying to do? I’ve you even been to hell?!!"
Raith looked down at him, a dark shadow falling on his expression as the sky moved over to its darker side.
He exhaled and grabbed the cranky soulless’ hand, slowly turned his hand.
Reeves face paled as he struggled to keep his hand in place and Raith easily removed it from his clothes.
He jacked his hand away from Raith’s grip, grimacing as he caressed his wrist.
"I have been to Felfhiem before... and I am sorry that I will be endangering your lives. I’m not asking everyone to follow . In fact it’d be stupid if they do. But whatever decisions you guys make I’m taking Hans with , since he seems to know the way."
He beca silent... and scratched his head.
He wasn’t too good with words but he was feeling like he had to say sothing more. The atmosphere still hung with an almost touchable tension.
He lowered his head and heaved a tired sigh.
"The sky lord will return... and I am sure the next ti he does, it would be war. Theta can make arrangent with her father to accommodate the people... I don’t know you can stay and be with them too if you are too scared of hell.
"But really until when will all of you continue to hide? You are immortals... of so sort I guess? The world or should I say worlds are rapidly changing while you’ve been at the sa place for hundreds of years. I’m not the one to talk since I’m no better myself. However, right now, I’m just trying to do all I can to be more powerful and get back ho. Every other thing cos after."
Reeves hissed:
"And you are going to use us for your selfish purpose?"
Raith cocked his head with a death glare:
"And so what?"
In that mont, Reeves jumped backward, stangnat pearls of sweat quickly forming upon his head. He either was imagining it or there was an extre bloodlust aid at him.
’Mad! He’s just mad!’
He already knew it before but every second, it sank deeper than before. Raith is just a person he could not understand, a violation to humanity he never thought could exist.
’How can he be so crazy?’
For a rational person like him, it was hard to understand.
Hans stepped in and touched Reeves on his shoulder.
"I have decided to help Lord Raith based on my own desire alone. No one has to follow my decision." He said calmly.
Othorman smiled and voiced:
"I too, will be following the Master"
Reeves frowned, lines of pain forming on his head.
"You too?"
Othorman nodded, and retorted with a serious tone:
"The Master is right Reeves. We have to start acting... I believe this could be our first step towards change."
Reeves frowned deepened, he observed the look on Othorman’s face for a while. His eyes may have been blindfolded but other facial features of his still betrayed the slight glee in his expression.
"I see you have made your decision."
He turned his head to the person standing next to him and called softly:
"Nata."
She looked away from him, hesitating a second or two before she spoke:
"I- I’m going too..."
His brows went up and a sigh escaped his lips. He looked at the last person on the line.
"I guess there’s no need asking you."
Jackal’s expression pretty much said all that needed to be heard.
He face pald himself and turned away.
"I’m disappointed in all of you." He walked out.
The atmosphere persisted for a few more seconds in an awkward silence.
Then Othorman shattered it with his brute tone:
"Forgive my brother. He’s just too emotional at tis."
Raith shook his head and returned:
"I understand. I didn’t expect that there wouldn’t be any problem. I predicted and expected it."
Looking at all of them he added, "Instead, you guys should prepare and do all that is needed to be done. I’d love to leave qs soon as I can. Theta, can you co with for a minute."
The fairy nodded her head with a determined expression and followed Raith as he walked out of the main parlor.
Hans, Nata, Jackal and Othorman were left staring at each other.
"What do we do?" Nata asked "...about Reeves."
Othorman folded his arms and said with a sly-ish smile:
"How about you talk to him Nata?"
The soulless young lady was taken aback, she raised a brow and pointed to herself:
"?! Why does it have to be ?! Can’t it be you? Or Hans. He respects both of you more, doesn’t he?"
All of them began to leave without responding to her, Hans first. Othorman followed with an annoying smile, then Jackal ca close to her and tapped her shoulders, saying:
"Don’t worry, he won’t bite. He doesn’t bite!"
"If don’t take that filthy hands off , I swear I will break..."
"Don’t sweat it! don’t sweat it at all!!" He walked away, grinning, "oh man! I sure do look forward to our journey to hell. Heeeiik" he folded with excitent and jumped out the door.
"I hate it! They dump all the hard things on !" Nata puffed her face and followed after him.
—
Raith and Theta strolled down the path to the gate. Silence hanging between them for a few seconds.
As Raith was about to talk, Theta interrupted:
"Wait! Wait! I know what you are going to say. Yes! I will follow you and yes we can coabilitate with the soulless."
Raith’s expression was blank for a while then creased into a slight frown.
"Uhhmm... I’m not too sure about the following part. But are you really sure you guys can coabilitate with the people of the soulless. I want to guess there’s a reason why they are nestled in the forest far from your village."
Theta closed her eyes and groped her chin, then she opened:
"I think there might have been a discord at the ti of my great grand mother or was it my great great?" Her eyes rolled up as she thought aloud.
They returned to Raith with determination.
"Don’t worry, it will work out!"
Raith looked at her dejectedly.
’Sohow, I am now worried because you said don’t worry’
He exhaled and folded his arm.
"It’s not like I have a choice anyway. I want to protect them from the sky lord, so the fact that they are leaving with you people should be kept a secret. And I’m guessing because of the presence of a god’s attention over your village area due to that uhm... broken throne. No player would want to go there...right?"
Theta nodded vigorously.
"Yes, as expected the great warrior is wise."
Raith at that mont felt dubious, he tilted his head with a fake smile.
"Sure sure..."
As they reached the gate both of them ca to a stop, Raith’s expression growing serious as he instructed her:
"I want you to tell your father, the village chief about this and co back with his honest opinion." He went silent and stared at her intensely. "Theta, I want his honest opinion."
She smiled, her face all tomatoe-red.
"Yes warrior, I will get nothing but his honest opinion."
Both of them stood facing each other, Theta’s face flushing and Raith staring deadpan. Seconds grew on them into minutes before finally said... in an awkward tone:
"Shouldn’t... you be going?"
"Ah! Right, of course! I will be right back!" She uttered.
Raith watched as the tattoo on her shoulder and back ca alive, glimring with an ethereal glow as they fluttered into existence and lifted her into the air.
She threw a wave at him and shot away like an arrow.
With that one part of the preparation was done. Now all that was left was to wait for the soulless’ decision and embark on this journey as fast as he could.
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