Chapter 387: Children of Noir Part 2 (Patreon)

Elzri stared in mute shock at his sister standing in the doorway. She had changed, her face was thinner and her high cheekbones were more prominent. She looked like their mother.

This couldn’t be real, she couldn’t be real. But there she was, standing with a white cloak with the black flame sigil of House Noir.

“You’re alive,” he whispered in disbelief.

“I am,” Una said softly.

Elzri slowly walked towards her but stopped a few paces away, worried that if he touched her she might just disappear like a dream.

He swallowed hard, “Where have you been? I had my men scour the entire realm for you for years. After a while, I realized you didn’t want to be found, but I never gave up hope that you were out there somewhere.”

Una nodded and began walking around the study room, glancing at the books on the shelves and the sparse decor hanging on the walls. “I’ve been to many places, none for very long. I traveled to different realms and saw things you wouldn’t believe.”

“It’s already hard enough to believe you’ve been to another realm but I suppose it explains why my men never found you. Una… why did you never come back?”

She turned to him with the same cold blue eyes of their mother. “Why did you kill Aiden and Esletha?”

Elzri grimaced, he had expected the question but it still felt like a dagger sinking into his chest. “I… I never meant to kill them. When Aiden stepped into the arena after I had defeated Esletha I thought he was there to simply put an end to our duel before things got too far.” Elzri sighed deeply, “That’s when he told me his plans. He had killed our father and was going to kill Elsetha and me, before finding and murdering you. I was so angry… I lost control of my magic. I wanted to hurt Aiden, I wanted to kill him for what he had done but I never thought Esletha would… I understand if you hate me.”

Una stared at him for a moment then resumed perusing the bookshelf. “I don’t hate you. And I had pretty much figured out what happened that day in the arena. I just wanted to make sure.”

“You knew?” Elzri’s eyes widened.

“Aiden wasn’t himself at that point. He would never have killed our father if he had been. But Aiden was too desperate to become the next family leader that he secretly made a deal with the Monster in the Dark.”

“Monster…? Like the ones in the stories our father told us?”

Una nodded, “The Monster poisoned our brother’s mind and twisted his heart. Holo was worried the Monster would do the same to you or would in the future. That’s why she helped me escape the city, to protect me.”

“You met Holo?” Elzri furrowed his brow.

The stories of the Monster he thought plausible. His own granddaughter had encountered a dangerous creature that had claimed to be one and the same. But Holo was a mage from over 7 centuries ago.

“Are you sure it was Holo?” he asked.

Una showed him her open palm. A blue flame flickered to life and danced on her fingertips.

“The azure flames!? How!?” Elzri remarked in wonder.

Una smiled light-heartedly, “These flames are a set of secret Orange spells passed on only through the leaders of House Noir. Luckily, I had the original creator teach me instead.”

“So you really did meet Holo…” Elzri muttered.

He had so many questions. How Holo was still alive after seven hundred years was an enigma in and of itself. The fact that his sister was capable of producing the azure flame meant that she had achieved a level of magical skill that few Noir archmages had ever grasped.

“Why are you here?” Elzri asked suspiciously.

Surprise flickered across Una’s face, then she shook her head incredulously. “Wow, you think I’m here to kill you? To challenge your place as lord of the House? After all these years?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“And yet I can see the mistrust in your eyes. You were never hard to read, not to me.” Una scoffed, “Gods, you were always distrustful, weren’t you? That’s why you never told me the truth about your magic. You pretended to be a subpar mage who barely graduated from the academy.”

“It wasn’t my plan. It was Father’s. He didn’t want others to know what I was capable of.”

“Including me, huh? Blame Dad if you wish, but you’re the one who played everyone like a fool.”

“I’m sorry, is that what you want to hear?”

Una glared at him, “You know, I defended you when Holo accused you of being under the Monster’s control. You had lied to me, but I still believed in you anyway. Had you told me the truth back then I would have been able to convince Holo too. I would never have had to leave. Instead, neither Holo nor I knew the real reason why you killed Aiden and Esletha. I had to abandon my home in case you tried to kill me too.”

Elzri’s expression softened. “You could have just come to me. We could have talked things out. Why didn’t you come and find me?” he said remorsefully.

Una smiled bitterly, “Why didn’t I come…? I came to visit, when Mom died.”

“What?”

“I ignored all my duties and responsibilities, I threw everything aside knowing there would be consequences, but I didn’t care, I came here to be with you. I came to support you because I knew you were in terrible pain. At least, I thought you were.”

Elzri’s expression darkened with shame. “Una…”

“Do you know what I found when I arrived at the funeral? Your grandchildren. They were beautiful, you have no idea the regret I felt for not being there when they were born…” Una rubbed her eyes and tried her best to keep her voice from breaking. “Elohnoir and Aizel were still so small, they didn’t really understand why their great-grandmother was gone. All they knew was that they missed her terribly. They were in so much pain. Aizel held Elohnoir in his tiny arms as they both cried and cried, hoping that someone could tell them everything was going to be okay.”

Una looked at her brother sadly, “But their parents weren’t there, not really. Their father was too focused on consoling their mother, Dolores, your daughter. She was a wreck after losing her grandmother. And you, you just stood there. You didn’t shed a tear. You didn’t console your daughter or grandchildren.”

Una glared at Elzri, “Our father would have never left his family to suffer like that, he taught us better than that! But you! What did you do!? You chastised your own daughter for mourning her grandmother! I saw the moment Dolores turned to you for comfort and the hope in her eyes died. There was no love in your eyes for your own child, nor for the woman who gave birth to you and raised you. At that moment I knew, I knew, my brother was gone. What was standing in front of me was just a shell of a man.”

“And what about you, huh!?” Elzri snapped at her. “Where were you? Where were you when I needed you!? You thought I was strong enough to lead this family on my own but I wasn’t! Dad was dead! Mom hated me until the day she died because she thought I had you killed! Ismene left soon after you because she thought I was a monster! Everyone I cared about was gone! I was alone! I needed you!”

Una frowned worriedly, “Elzri, I—”

“Stop.” His shoulders shook and his eyes grew cold with tears and anger, “After Dad died our enemies came for us, they thought House Noir weakened, and they were right. I couldn’t keep our House alive on my own, so I changed, I became the leader this family needed. I did things Dad would never have approved of but I managed to protect our mother and the mothers of Esletha and Aiden, even if they all hated me, because they were still part of this family. I saved House Noir from ruin, I saved what was left of this broken family, even if it meant giving up on my dreams. So don’t walk into my home to judge me on the things I have done. I know what I have done. I am the one who stayed.”

“...I’m sorry I left you, Riri,” Una whispered. “I’m sorry you had to carry the burdens of this House alone. I’m sorry you lost yourself along the way. I should have been there for you and I’ll never forgive myself for that.”

She slowly walked towards him and placed her hands gently on his heaving shoulders, “I know you did what you had to, but please look at the damage that’s been left behind in your wake. Your daughter believes she is worthless to you because she wasn’t born a talented mageborn like us, she drowns herself in drink trying to forget the pain of her lost son and her father couldn’t be bothered. Your son-in-law may be an archmage, but he cares nothing for this family; he spends his days hosting parties and carousing with other self-centered aristocrats. And Loh, poor Elohnoir has more problems than I reckon you or I realize.”

“Do not speak of things you don’t know of,” he muttered. “You weren’t here.”

“I’m here now,” Una embraced him.

Elzri stiffened, then slowly relaxed and wrapped his arms around her. “Why did you come back?” he whispered.

“Because we are running out of time, brother. We must unite our family and this city if we are to save them.”

“What are you saying?”

“The Monster in the Dark is coming to Holo’s Shade. Caligo is coming.”

~~~

Loh walked through the courtyard gardens, glancing at the flowers without much thought. She wondered how Louise was doing.

Perhaps she would pick a flower and bring it to her. It had been close to two months since they had seen each other, though it somehow felt much longer.

“Lady Noir,” a familiar voice called out.

Loh’s expression brightened as a centaur almost twice as large as the others trotted into the courtyard.

“Maximus!” Loh ran up to him and hugged him tight, though her arms didn’t quite manage to reach around his waist.

The centaur looked down at her with mild surprise, he hadn’t expected such a reaction. “My lady, are you alright?”

Loh stepped away and smiled sheepishly, “Yeah, it’s just, you have no idea how good it is to see you. I could have really used your help these last few weeks.”

“Well, I’m glad Lily called me here then.”

“Lily, my grandfather’s secretary?”

“She seemed worried about you, said you might need some company after your trip.”

“What I really need is a good drink and a soft bed,” Loh sighed reminiscently.

“Shall we go then? Visit our usual taverns?”

“That sounds great but first I need to know,” Loh took a deep breath, “How is Louise?”

Maximus winced, “That’s um… a bit complicated.”

“What?”