DEMON'S LANCE
Modern Era ; 1005 YV
"How did I end up with such a useless daughter?"
I don't remember how I got this bruise on my face... It must have been my fault somehow.
"You'd be better off fed to the wolves."
Why can I never do anything right?
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out of it."
What do I need to do to be a good girl? I don't want to exist anymore... Please, just let me disappear!
Kalena was a sweet, timid, and obedient child... except for when she wasn't.
The adults quickly grew frustrated with her "rebellious streak", suddenly having outbursts or neglecting chores... Kalena tried to tell them that she had no clue what they were talking about, she didn't do whatever it is she was being punished for. Irritated she would try to worm out of it, they became even more strict with her. Eventually she just accepted their demands without talking back.
She was picking up debris in the yard for yet another "outburst" when she met him... A boy that looked about her age, with tousled hair and a nasty glare.
"Why are you picking up trash for those jerks?"
"Someone might trip on it if no one cleans it up."
"Nuh-uh, you're just doing it because they said so."
"..."
"You should just ditch the sticks and go play across the street. They hate your guys anyway."
"That's not true! They work really hard to earn food and put a roof over our head..."
"You think housing their kid is love? Ha, you're so naïve..."
With such a sour first impression, Kalena wasn't too pleased to find out this boy was the culprit behind her "outbursts". He kept making more trouble for her, calling her a goody-two-shoes, ditching chores and acting out... What an absolute pest! That's what she thought at the time.
"I'm telling you, that's all we have!" Kalena's father stood at the doorway, his thick frame obscuring two emissaries from the church.
"All who live in the Holy City must pay their dues to the Church. It is more than fair for our protection."
"We don't even have enough to feed ourselves!"
"Surely you can spare several more pounds, yes?"
It was then that the meek, timid Kalena pushed her way forward...
"Haaah?! You heard the old man, we've got nothing left!"
"What did you just call me, you brat?" His bushy eyebrows furrowed, her father's voice was far less welcoming than she remembered. His piercing gaze would be enough to make her faint, but a voice that was a bit deeper than usual brushed it off like nothing.
"Oh come on, I'm on your side you moron!" Kalena rolled her eyes, before staring coldly at the sharks sent by the Church. "You take one-third of our crop. Bad harvest, less crop. Do the math."
The man looked at her with a face of pure contempt, and the thin woman at his side began whispering something. A thin smile pulled at his lips, but it held no trace of kindness.
"Ah yes... Of course. Do excuse us then."
...Three days later, the emissaries returned saying they were taking Kalena to purge her of a demon. Her parents sneered that they could just keep her; she had been nothing but trouble for them.
"...Tell me who that man was." Kalena hugged her knees to her chest, sitting upon the stone floor of a strange building. Only the faintest sliver of light crept through the windows, and aside from a slab that could only vaguely be called a "bed" and a bookshelf filled with scripture, there was no furniture to be found.
"That? THAT was our dear ol' dad."
"You're lying. Papa isn't like that."
"Not to you he wasn't. But he wasn't so kind to me."
"..."
The boy scratched his head, glancing about his surroundings. Kalena kept her gaze down, trying to ignore her growling stomach.
"...What are you looking for?"
"An escape route, obviously."
"Why? That woman will be back soon, she'll bring food..."
"And ice-cold holy water, and an hour of verbal abuse."
​
Kalena trembled and hung her head. Her legs shackled her like lead, as the freezing marble burned her skin. She couldn't escape her pain anymore.
"But where else can we go? Mama and papa don't want us anymore."
"I don't know. Away. The forest, maybe."
"To be killed by the thralls?"
"So we should wait here to die, instead? You know that tasteless scrap of bread isn't enough to live on."
"I don't know..."
"Tch." He braced his fist against the wall, a fire in his eyes seeming to light up the dormitory. "I'll get us out of this mess. I swear it."
Kalena clutched her knees as she toppled over, gasping for dear breath. Why did that boy seem totally unfazed? They shared a body, being in better shape than her made absolutely no sense!
"You think they're still behind us?"
"Pah, an adult could never follow us through that thicket. We lost 'em miles ago."
"Then why couldn't I have stopped to catch my breath first? Hey, are you even listening to me?!"
The boy clicked his tongue in satisfaction, a smug grin creeping across his cheeks. "See? I told you it'd be here."
The two stood before a spiraling tower. Lichen and vines sprawled across the cobblestone bricks, and even flowers spilled from the cracks.
Standing in a patch of dirt surrounded by the rotted remains of what was probably a fence, Kalena tried to free her foot from a twisted root. "And what is 'it', exactly?"
"Some kind of old defense tower, maybe? I found it with Phillip and Michael."
"Who...?"
"You don't even remember their-? Whatever, it's not important. Point is, this is our ticket to freedom! Everything we need is right here!"
Kalena furrowed her brow, looking around the grove. This overgrown patch of dirt she was standing in... Was this supposed to be a farm at some point? "I have my doubts..."
He huffed. "Okay, well maybe not EVERYTHING, but while you sit around complaining I'm gonna find some veggies to grow."
The boy had started to storm off with the body when Kalena grabbed his hand. What was this weird sensation? It felt like someone was actually pulling it...
"You... I want to know your name."
"...Lance. Call me Lance."
Absentmindedly chewing a potato, the teenaged girl flipped through the pages of a book. A black bow tied neatly around her golden hair, it matched the dark locks that inexplicably grew near her bangs.
"Still no answer on the weird black hair, but this has a helpful chapter on illusions."
"You're the one who cares about the hair, Raven, not me... What's for dinner?"
"Potato soup." As her brother groaned a protestful "AGAIN?", she rolled her eyes.
"Oh hush. If you're so upset then go hunt us a rabbit."
"Fine, give me the body then."
"Uh-uh. I'm busy."
"Figures."
She traced the diagram with her finger, murmuring the incantation under her breath. If she combined this with the duplication spell, swap that rune for a light-based one... Lance sometimes remarked that one look at these dusty old tomes put him to sleep.
Books were brought to the hideaway by a silver-haired boy named Phillip, and rare herbs were traded with Michael for city foods like bread. Most people dare not brave the forests, so plants with magical properties found within called for high prices... But it's not like they could go back to the capital to sell them themselves. Anything Raven didn't need for her spells was pretty much useless, as far as the two were concerned.
The two had set their sights on a distant fortress, Colony C. A sea-faring colony, it was the furthest human settlement from the Holy City. The journey there was treacherous, and the tiny scraps of news the two locations managed to exchange was month's old, at least. Absolutely perfect for the two of them.
Michael and Phillip were great, but really their only human contact outside of each other. How many years now, living in secrecy in some abandoned temple--Mere miles from the Church that despised them.
Gently closing the pages of her book, Raven slotted it back into its place on the shelf. She looked around at the worn red blanket fashioned into a hammock, the slashed-up training dummies and the rickety old broom... As much as she hated this room sometimes, she'd miss it.
"Hey... Is it really fine this way?"
Lance peered off a dauntless cliff, the inky seas crashing below him. This apocalyptic sky, the distorted world lit dimly by a blood-red moon... It had all become so natural by now.
"It's not worth dreaming of anything else." Raven gently sat by his side, cautious to keep her legs from dangling off the edge.
"...I guess so."
She reached for his hand, only to grab the empty ground underneath it. The illusion was powerful, indistinguishable from a real human being. Yes, she felt the same guilt... The pain of deceiving, the pain of loneliness, but they couldn't live any other way. Unable to sway the hearts of others, her heroic brother would always be called a "demon".
"We've come so far, but ultimately I'm just talking to myself, aren't I?"
There was no point in longing for a world where they could be accepted as they are, where they didn't have to hide from anyone. After all, this bitter reality was all everyone knew. It was far too painful now to believe in some kind of savior.
"What does the sun look like, I wonder?"
Crunch, crunch... The sound of boots crushing debris on the forest floor. With a watering can in hand, Lance carefully irrigated the twisting vines surrounding their haven.
Twice to three times a day, he would patrol the border. No matter how much time had passed, he had never been able to relax. He gently scratched the ear of one of his socialized wolves, with once again nothing to report. It was peaceful here... It was peaceful here, and yet?
"It's been years, Lance. Is this all really necessary?"
"You know they won't be satisfied with escape. If we're a threat, they'll keep searching until we're found dead one way or another."
"If you're so worried, we could just leave."
"To where? You know we won't be accepted no matter what."
A girl reborn as "Raven" pressed her lips into a thin line as she brushed the burrs off the wolf's fur. Had they reached a point where they could disguise it effectively? She had gained confidence, and he had gained control. Surely it wasn't as clashing as when they were young. But still... In this world of terror and blame-shifting, if they made one mistake, it could all be over.
"It would be nice if we could live as Raven and Lance without fear."
"It would be, but that doesn't really help us."
"I guess not..." Raven's eyes flitted downward, until something seemed to dawn on her. "Unless..."
"Unless?"