The Star, The Demon, and The God - 6. Secrets to Share

Luno

As much as I did not want to, I had to interfere with that whole encounter. Tobias was just itching to pull the trigger on his pistol. For all I know, Vlad and his spies could be dead right now.

Tobias’ entire energy was on edge and ready to attack. Of course I had to do something! It is not like a put a whole bunch of calming magic into Tobias. It was only a little bit! I swear!

Now we are being followed by Vlad and the two women.

Those two look rather scary. Especially for people who have not said a word. Vlad has been doing all the talking for them.

He called them spies so I can guess they are not supposed to talk. Still, it is scary.

Vlad has asked if they could watch us bring back another village. He wants to be sure that it is truly us who are bringing everyone back.

I see no reason to lie, but he wants to see my gifts for it to be true.

Tobias walks behind me, making sure that I am always in front of them. He does not seem entirely happy with how things are playing out. I am not sure what I am more scared of. The three strangers, or the time when I am alone again with Tobias.

Possibly the second one.

“So where are you from?” Vlad asks behind me. Tobias only lets out a huff. “I know where you are from, Demon. I was asking the one with flowers in his hair.”

“He does not need to answer any of your questions, Human,” Tobias almost snarls.

Vlad chuckles.

“I do believe he can speak for himself. Unless he is a slave to you,” He says in disgust.

I feel Tobias’ rage ignite and I quickly turn and grab his arm, sending wave after wave of calming magics. Anything to keep him from ripping Vlad’s head off.

It almost was not enough.

Tobias tries to shove my hand off but the magic goes into effect. His grip on my wrist loosens and his glare turns into a frown.

Vlad and the two spies have their daggers out with worry in their eyes.

It appears humans have not changed much at all since I last saw them. That is quite a shame. Tobias did not even do anything wrong! He was only looking out for me. Raiyo told him to after all. They are pretty much poking a bear with a stick.

“Leave him alone,” I frown at them. “You are being a bully for no reason.”

Vlad raises an eyebrow at me and then puts his weapons away. The two spies follow his actions.

“So you are a mage,” Vlad nods to himself. “Though, I do not know of any mages who can do something like calming a Demon.”

I shake my head. “I am not a mage and you can leave it at that. Let us just go and bring back the other humans. I hope they are nicer company than you.”

Vlad purses his lips before giving me a small nod.

I grab Tobias’ arm and pull him with me. This time I will not be letting him go. I do not want any more trouble. I just want to bring everyone back. Why do we need to fight when we are doing something good together?

Letting out a small sigh, I have Tobias help lead with the map in his hands.

He knows how to read it better than me so what use would I have with bothering to even try. I am just the one who gets called on when others want the humans brought back. That is what Raiyo made it sound like. At least Tobias made my gift of life sound meaningful.

“This is not a good idea,” Tobias whispers to me. “For all we know, you could have led us into a trap.”

Glancing over my shoulder at the three humans, I turn back to Tobias.

“Something tells me that they will not do anything,” I say in earnest. “Their people are dying! Of course they would not try and stop us from doing that. Why would they try and stop the end of their species?”

Tobias snorts and shakes his head.

“Species?” He chuckles. “You make them sound like wild animals.”

A flash him a grin and shrug. “They sure seem to act like it. You as well, though you were human once, so I guess it shows.”

At that he rolls his eyes.

“Now you are starting to sound like all the other Gods,” he says.

At first his words do not really hit me. It is when we see the village in the horizon that I realize just how much I do not like what he said. I do not want to be like Raiyo or Morgoren. I do not wish to be like any of the Gods; even if they claim to be good.

Not even Mother.

When we first started this quest, a part of me actually thought that maybe Raiyo is one of the good ones. Maybe the Gods were not all bad. Not at all spiteful or careless with their power. I truly thought that I could trust him, but then something Tobias told me came back to my mind.

Most of the Gods only do things because they will gain something in return.

What could Raiyo be doing? Why has he placed this quest on us?

Obviously I will not stop doing it only because the quest giver is not entirely trustworthy. I am just feeling a bit cautious. Today more than most.

Due to recent events, I will blame the three strangers at the moment.

At least Tobias is being nicer. He is not glaring at me. Instead he is glaring at Vlad and the two spies. If anything, I would even say he is being gentle with me. He is gently nudging me forward so that I am further away from the strangers, but I know that he could definitely do more than that.

It is that little thing that makes me think that maybe I really can make him nicer! As I thought before, he just needed a friend!

“Are the Demons going to come out this time?” I whisper to Tobias. Surely with these humans present they would instead choose to hide.

All I get from him is a shrug.

Well that is not entirely comforting. What if they try to attack each other? I do not think I could handle being around that much violence. I just know Vlad and the spies would get absolutely ruined.

~~~

The village we arrive to is larger than the last one. Most likely should be called a city.

It sits in a pretty valley covered in a blanket of snow. It reminds of an ocean of snow; if that was at all possible.

When we reach the city gates, Vlad and the spies stop following us.

I frown at them.

“Do you not wish to see your people come back?” I ask. “It will only take a moment.”

Vlad chuckles and shakes his head. “It is not by choice, my friend. We are unable to enter.”

To prove his point, he sticks his hand out to pass the gate. A thump can be heard. His palm sits against the air as if he is pressing against glass.

“I guess this shows me that you are a Demon as well,” He gives me a small smile. “I am a bit surprised. I had never known a Demon to look so normal.”

Tobias huffs and pulls on my arm.

“Come on,” He says. “Let’s get this over with so that they can leave us alone.”

I glance over my shoulder at Vlad as Tobias pulls me away. I am not entirely sure how to take that. Vlad seemed...fine with the thought of me being a Demon.

Obviously I am not a Demon, but the fact he was fine with it should show that more Humans can be open to real ones like Tobias, right? Although, Vlad was very rude to him earlier.

“You should not tell them what you are,” Tobias says as we walk through the city streets. “If they were to figure it out, they might try to hurt you.”

Tilting my head, I look up at him in question.

“What else am I supposed to say?” I ask. “That I am an Angel?”

The look of disgust that comes up onto his face makes me laugh. That somehow earns me a small smirk from him.

“Please do not joke like that again,” He says. “Though, we could go with the lie of being a Demon. Your human friend seemed to believe that was true. We might as well just keep playing along with that.”

I nod and smile.

Compared to what he said earlier about acting like a God, I prefer being called a Demon. I like Tobias. If people were to mistake me as his kind, I would not even think twice about being mad about it.

“You are not as annoying with the humans as you are with me,” Tobias says with an eyebrow raised. “Why is that? You seem more...calm. I am not sure how I feel about it.”

Pursing my lips, I think back to when I was in the village of Varen. All those memories of how mean the humans were come back to life. How even their children would be mean and throw stones.

Of course, that brings memories of Viktor and Monie.

I have never really talked to anyone about my time there. Not even with Mother. She knows I was there and every now and then she would ask what happened, but I always dodged around the subject.

Some things you just do not want to share with someone you see as your Mother. Or Father I guess.

“I…” I start, biting my lip. Not entirely sure how to tell Tobias this memory. “The first time I ever left the Sanctuary, I came across a man.”

Tobias and I stop walking. We stand over a bridge. Underneath, the river that flows under has frozen solid.

Tobias leans against the bridge fencing as he listens.

“I had never met anyone else before. All I had were the animals. When I met the man, I was excited,” I smile at finding Viktor in the woods. “He was awfully sweet. So kind and caring, I automatically assumed that all humans were like that.”

Tobias nods and runs his fingers along the snow that sits on the fencing.

“He had offered to take me to his village. To bring his little sister blueberries. She was the cutest thing I had ever seen. A small human who was just full of so much joy,” I say. “Just another thing that added to my reasons to believe that all humans were kind and joyful.”

“Things...happened,” I say, “Things I did not understand. I wish I had known back then. Maybe it would have made me leave sooner.”

Tobias has a frown on his face now. His brown eyes are staring me down.

“Remember when I asked you about kisses?” I ask, my cheeks feeling like they are turning pink.

He nods.

“Yeah,” I say. “I never understood the meaning behind those. I just assumed they were a normal thing, you know? I saw the other humans kissing each other as well. It felt good, but just thought it was some kind of custom that they all did!”

Tobias chuckles and shakes his head. “You really are stupid.”

I grin and sit on the fencing next to him.

“Maybe you are right about that,” I say, “I still wish I left that village sooner.

“Why?” he asks. “What happened?”

Just the memories of everything crumbling one after the other is making my stomach feel queasy.

“Everything just started to become worse,” I say, my smile going away. “Mother had told me that the Humans do not like magic. Did you know that?”

Tobias nods. “Sadly that is true in most places, but recently, they have all become a bit more open to it.”

Well that is good to know. If only that had happened sooner.

“The man and little girl I met loved my magic,” I say. “They constantly wanted to see all the things I could do. I am still learning myself, but they had as much fun with it as I did.”

“Well, one day, somehow someone must has seen me. I had tried my hardest to keep it a secret. I even made Monie promise to keep herself from telling her friends. Perhaps I was just sloppy.”

“Word of my magic spread fast. With that came the insults,” I say with a sigh. “The rest of the humans in the village were not at all like the two I met. They were mean and hateful. They called me a Demon as if it were a bad thing!”

Tobias gives a small smirk at that.

Now comes the part where it all just went terribly wrong.

“One night, just before dinner, we had heard news that the little sister had been swept away by a angry river. As soon as that was learned, all fingers were pointed my way. It got too much to the point that I almost agreed with them.”

Tobias frowns and rests his hand on my shoulder.

“I stayed in the house with the man. Viktor,” I say his name. No use it hiding it really? It is not like Tobias could do anything to him. “He...he said he was going to go and chop some firewood. I just wanted to sleep. I was too sad to do anything.”

“As soon as he left, all the villagers came to the house. They were screaming at me, calling me names, blaming me for the death of Monie,” My voice shakes as I tell Tobias the next part.

“Somehow, possibly in my sleep? I lost control. My magic must have come to life from my sadness.”

I wipe my face with my arm.

“A fire had started. The house was burning down outside of our room. I-I didn’t know what to do! There was so much going on. I only curled up in the corner of the room and tried to ignore all the noises going on.”

“Somehow, Viktor had made it back. He had to use an axe to break into the house. The villagers had boarded up the door and windows to keep me inside.”

Tobias’ hand on my shoulder tightens.

“Viktor found me in the room and picked me up like I weighed nothing. He tried to run out of the burning house, but it had burned too much. The roof creaked as it was about to collapse in on itself. Viktor did not even think twice before throwing me out the front door. The last thing I saw was the roof collapsing right on top of him.”

I swallow on the bubble that has formed in my throat. I blink a few times to keep myself from crying.

“Just when you think it ends there, the villagers began to blame me for the death of Viktor. They blamed me for burning down the home. They called me an evil Demon. They hated me. All their hate had pushed me to my limits.”

Biting my lip, I glance up at Tobias. His face is filled with concern. Seeing that makes me feel a lot better honestly.

“I used my power,” I say. “I used my power in a way that I swore never to use it again. It almost killed them all. Mother had to be there to stop me. She reminded me that, that is not who I am. I am not someone who wishes to bring pain or death; even if the humans wish to spit their hate onto me.”

Tobias nods and glances back at where the gate’s direction last was.

“I guess I can see why you are calmer with them,” He says. “You are scared of them?”

Nodding my head, I sigh and stare down at the ground.

“You would probably think me as an even bigger fool because of that. I am a star who is afraid of humans.”

“No,” Tobias says, lifting my chin up to look into his face. “You are not foolish for that. If anything, you are smarter than most because of it. Most of the Gods, Demons, and Angels are foolish for thinking humans are beneath them. You are humble enough to realize that anyone and anything can be dangerous.”

I shrug. “That is not entirely a good thing. I should not have to be scared at all!”

Tobias laughs. “Yeah you are not wrong sadly. In an ideal world, you would not have to be scared of anything. Though I guess with the amount of power you have, I doubt you need to be scared anyways.”

Raising an eyebrow at him, I shake my head.

“I mean everyone else would be too scared of you,” He says. “Just wait till they see you up there shining in the sky. They will be scared soon enough.”

Now I am frowning. I would not want people to be scared of that.

Tobias nudges me with his arm. “Hey don’t be so sad about that. In the world we live in right now, being someone with power is something everyone would want.”

“But I don’t want power,” I say. “I just want to fix things and then go back to my sanctuary.”

Now Tobias is frowning.

“After everything you have seen and learned, you want to go back to the sanctuary?” He asks.

“Oh course I would,” I grin. “All those creatures are my family. I cannot just abandon them. They feel safer there and I am the one who keeps that place alive.”

Tobias shakes his head. “I guess after all this is over, it would be goodbye, huh?”

I guess that would be true? I would not really want to come back out. The humans are still mean and the Gods are super greedy. Not to mention it is a bit harder to hide from Morgoren when I am out here.

Wait a minute!

Tobias actually sounded sad about me going back after all this! Does that mean he will miss me? Does he already consider me his friend?

That makes me feel all giddy inside.

“You could always come over,” I beam. “Mother has already seen you before. I am sure you would be allowed in again!”

Tobias smirks and shakes his head. “I do not think you remember, but she kind of blasted me away from you the last time she saw us.”

Oh gods that’s right. She found Tobias kissing me for the first time. Just the thought of that is making my face burn.

He does it quickly, but I do notice Tobias’ eyes trail up to my flowers.

That makes me pull my hood on tight.

“What about you?” I ask.

Tobias stares at me for a moment before blinking.

“What?” He asks. “Was distracted for a moment.”

Pulling his arm, I try and bring us deeper into the city to find the bodies.

“I told you my secret,” I say. “Want to tell me one of yours? I bet you have millions!”

Tobias is silent for a moment, no doubt thinking things over. Instantly I realize he might feel pressured. A good friend would never do that!

“You do not have to share,” I say. “It is fine if you don’t.”

“No I want to,” He says. “I just...don’t remember. I don’t remember anything from my past life. Sorry to disappoint.”

Missing memories? A lot of the spirit creatures had that problem. I noticed it when they be happy with their friends one day, and then they would all of a sudden turn into the biggest loners. They forget where they are and think they are trying to survive in the wilds once again. Too scared to interact with the other animals.

Mother taught me how to bring back memories. I have to reach into their soul and find their greatest memory. Usually for the animals, it is when they are full on food. I always found that rather cute.

I am about to tell Tobias this information when he stops me from talking.

He covers my mouth with his hand and pulls me into a weird space between buildings.

Looking at him in fear, he brings a finger to his lips to tell me to keep quiet.

“Angels,” He says.

Oh gods. Are we really going to have to fight them off? I do not know if I am ready for that.