The Burning Flowers

Chapter IV

Rage, hatred, and disgust all boiled within the mind of Nigreos Noctis as he regarded the Omaruan doctor chained against the wall on the opposite side of the bars. Perhaps his fury was not directed at Uma specifically, but since he was in league with the people who killed his mother and kidnapped his sister, Nigreos decided that Uma might as well be responsible even if he was safely locked within this very dungeon during the attack. He was a vile and wretched excuse for a human being, and was the one responsible for studying The Angel, as well as for nearly killing Nakoma Taurus. It was surreal to be gazing upon him even if he appeared as a shell of a person, for they had been seeking this man ever since Aeyir Malloway told Ryokumo about Mallicent’s secret projects alongside a researcher from Stellareid. So much time had passed, and there had been so many encounters with the Kosah-Rei, but finally, Uma Miyon was right before him, barely a few yards away. The charmed bars would not stop magic from reaching the doctor, so if any of them desired it, his life could be ended right there.

But we have to remain composed… He might know something about the attack in Noctalus and he’s our only effective means of luring out Vesh. Whether I like it or not, I need him. So keep your hatred in check, Nigreos, for if all goes well, we’ll finally eliminate Rotana Vesh while this piece of human shit can rot in the erased realm where he belongs.

“Uma Miyon,” Ilirianna began softly, regarding him with unrestrained revulsion. “I can’t say the feeling is mutual given that your reputation far precedes you.”

The magicless laughed, though it was more of a hoarse rasp than anything humorous. “Yes, yes, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Did Master Taurus tell you all about me? And for that matter, is he here? I’ve much desired to bear witness to his power ever since that day. He was a magnificent mage…as I suspect you are, too.”

“Unfortunately, Master Taurus had other matters to attend to,” the princess replied calmly. “I’ve been informed that you’re failing to cooperate with Lord Cartigan’s interrogators. It’s been around a month now and you appear on the cusp of death, so why do you insist on remaining silent? You have no chance of being rescued down here, so I can’t help wondering what you’re holding out for.”

“Well, Princess, I don’t suppose I’m holding out for anything in particular,” he muttered. “I know your laws, and given that you and Nigreos Noctis are standing here before me, I can only deduce that Miss Album Luz is somewhere in this castle as well. My erasure is imminent, and my cooperation will only expedite that process. My life will be extended should I keep my mouth shut, so keep it shut, I shall.” Yet another raspy laugh escaped his chapped lips, once again revealing his missing teeth. “Torture me all you like. Rip off every one of my limbs, claw out my eyes, tear out my tongue… I will never betray the Kosah-Rei to the likes of you.”

“Then perhaps we should take you up on that offer,” Viiro growled threateningly. As he did so, the shadows around Uma began to tremble as the Master’s magic took control of them. “I would be more than happy to drag your death out as painfully as possible, you filthy little magicless.”

The doctor didn’t so much as flinch as Viiro’s shadows closed in on him, encircling his neck like a noose. “Judging by your appearance, I would guess you’re the Master of Darkness? Viiro Noctis himself…” His eyes then shifted to scan the other individuals that were present in the cell, as if only now realizing Ilirianna and Nigreos weren’t the only ones confronting him. “Ah, and Acostav Luz, too! Well, how loved am I that two Masters of Ijiria and the Ijirian Princess have come to pay little ol’ me a visit! I am truly blessed by the Goddess!” Uma licked his lips and slumped his shoulders, as if already running out of energy. “And behind you…I take it the older fellow is Eko Luz, but I regret to say I have no idea who you are, Silver-hair. Are introductions not in order?”

“You are not the one asking questions,” Acostav hissed, taking a threatening step forward as he, too, pulled magic to his hands in what Nigreos knew was an empty threat. His mustached features twisted in rage, his next words being spat venomously. “Is Rotana Vesh in this god damned city or not? Are you in contact with Rickori Keskivaara? And—”

“Tell me, Master, how’s your wife these days?”

Acostav was silenced with that one simple question, his black eyes going wide with a stunned shock while Uma fixed him with a shit-eating grin. Even Nigreos couldn’t help but let some of his surprise leak out as he traded uncertain glances with Ilirianna, Eko, and Rennigan.

“Excuse me?” Acostav breathed.

“Your wife… Clara Luz, was it? How is she? Is she healthy? Is she happy? Or has some awful tragedy befallen the Ladies of the NightLight?” Uma smirked. “Judging by all your beautiful faces, it would seem the operation in Noctalus was a success. Thank you for the information, friends.”

He knew about Noctalus?! Then they really were planning this even before Miyon was captured! Did they know the royal team was going to be there? Were we supposed to be there? Sartella cornered us as if it were a part of her plan, but…how could they have known we were all coming for the holidays?!

“You listen here, you little son of a bitch!” Acostav snarled, losing his temper as he reached forward and furiously stuck his hand between the bars. “What the hell are you plotting?! How did you kill Clara?! Tell us how the combustions work right this fucking instant!”

“No.” Uma raised his eyebrows challengingly, taking very obvious pleasure in how worked up Acostav was. As if to add fuel to fire and continue making Acostav Luz his plaything, the doctor’s voice took on a mocking tone. “Make me. You have no power over me. I do not bend to the Masters of Ijiria. I have what you want, but you don’t have what I want. In fact, you’ve already told me what I sought to know! The operation in Noctalus succeeded! The plan is going accordingly, so I am a very happy boy!”

“Devare.”

Viiro uttered the incantation softly, and the second he did, the shadows around Uma reacted, forcing themselves into his mouth and nose to enter his body, cutting off his airflow as they slipped themselves down his throat, into his lungs and stomach. Saliva splattered from his lips as he gagged and convulsed, his eyes wide and bulging with what Nigreos knew to be horrific pain. The shadows then began to slide through the small gap between his eyes and the bone, emerging just enough that if Viiro flicked his wrist, they would cut the optic nerve and pull it out. To Nigreos’s right, Rennigan and Eko turned away with sickened expressions, and even Nigreos himself was disgusted by how brutal the affinity was. Everybody in the cell was uncomfortable with the sole exception of Viiro Noctis, who had one of his rare smiles turning the corners of his lips.

“Does that hurt, Doctor?” he inquired in a whisper. “You say we have no power over you, but with enough healing magic, I can break every part of you, have it put back together, and break it again. I can put you through the most miserable agony you will ever experience. Erasing you can wait. We want information and you are going to give it. Luckily for me, you have two eyes.”

A sharp flick caused Uma’s left eye to explode with blood as the small orb dropped from its socket and fell onto the ground beside him. The doctor may have shrieked out with pain had his mouth not been filled with darkness, and as if wanting to hear that sound, Viiro removed the shadows. As expected, Uma screamed, but with his hands chained to the wall, he could not reach up and stop the bleeding, his breaths quick, ragged, and trembling.

“Do not worry,” Viiro went on, raising his voice so as to be heard over the noise. “So long as that eyeball of yours remains in one piece, it can be put back…and removed, and put back, and removed, and so on until I am satisfied. Your allies murdered my wife and kidnapped my daughter. Why? What do you have to gain from taking Neah prisoner? Did you think I would be foolish enough to trade my dying daughter for something you want? She’ll be dead soon anyway, so I have nothing to benefit from trying to get her back. Shows how little you Kosah-Rei understand us…”

Nigreos had been trying not to listen to Uma’s cries, so it took him a second to realize what his father was saying. However, when he did, he felt his body tense, his head snapping towards Viiro with confusion before he quickly shook his head.

He’s just saying that to bait Miyon. Ignore it. He doesn’t mean it…

“No, no, Master Viiro,” Uma finally choked out, a smile somehow returning to his face despite what the horrors he had just experienced. “I understand you perfectly. I know Neah Noctis isn’t worth anything to you. In fact, I’m certain we could have kidnapped Lunara or even Nigreos over there and you still wouldn’t consider bartering with us to get them back. I know who you are, so perhaps you should consider the possibility that you aren’t the one we wish to barter with. Your son, on the other hand…” Uma weakly turned his head towards Nigreos and raised his eyebrows. “You want your sister back, Boy? You can have her for the right price…”

Viiro narrowed his eyes, sparing a look back at the stunned Nigreos before scoffing. “My son has no authority here. What he wants is irrelevant, so if Nigreos is what you are after then you have made a mistake.”

“Have I really? We’ll see about that…”

“Answer Acostav’s questions,” Viiro snapped, ignoring Uma’s comment as he dragged the conversation back on track. “How do the combustions work? How did you kill our wives? And for that matter, tell me everything there is to know about the Kosah-Rei. Who are the other leaders, where is your hideout, and what are you plotting here in Stellareid? I want a full answer to each and every question, or I will carve you up again.”

“Hmm…?” Clicking his tongue, Uma glanced past Viiro and, with his one remaining eye, stared directly at Nigreos. “He’s missing a question, isn’t he? Why did your father not ask for Neah’s location? That’s what you want to know, isn’t it, Nigreos? Go ahead, ask me.”

“Son, be silent,” Viiro ordered immediately. “Speak a word to this man and you will be punished for it. Hold your tongue, and leave this to me.”

Nigreos frowned, having believed before that his father was lying, but if he was lying, then he would still want to know where Neah was, but he wasn’t demanding that Uma tell them anything about Neah.

“Master Viiro,” Ilirianna intervened. “I understand that trying to save Neah is risky, but don’t tell me you actually intend to forgo any attempt to rescue your daughter from these maniacs? Obviously bartering for her is dangerous, but if we can get her location out of him, we could work something out! We could set up an attempt to free her and—”

“And waste valuable manpower? Put the lives of the mages we have at risk just to save somebody who might drop dead tomorrow?” Viiro snorted, turning a ridiculously disrespectful glare towards the young woman who was supposed to be his princess. “Perhaps I appear heartless to you, Ilirianna, but unlike you, I do not think with my heart. I think with my brain, and wasting time trying to save a dead girl is not worth it.”

Ilirianna seemed as if she had no idea what to say, and before she could snap out of her shock, Rennigan took a step forward and said, “Master Noctis, with all due respect—”

“Respect would be knowing your place, Glaus,” the Master of Darkness interrupted. “You are an observer only here because your wretched father holds more power than he has any right to. Stay silent.”

“Glaus? Ah, that answers it! Rennigan Glaus!” Uma's weak exclamation drew everybody’s attention back to the prisoner, who still seemed quite pleased with himself. “The son of the obnoxious council elder, Kloras… I did not think you’d be present…but no matter… It seems like you’re not all as close as I thought you were. Please, keep bickering like schoolchildren! I haven’t been this entertained in weeks!”

Ilirianna and Rennigan looked furious, Eko was fidgeting nervously, Acostav was staring at the ground, and Viiro was already spinning on his heel to address Uma once more. Nigreos, however, was reminded of The Angel’s words back in the hotspring—words he constantly had to convince himself were untrue. He had never been able to accept them. He had shoved them aside, made excuses, and turned his head away from an inconvenient reality.

“Viiro Noctis is a monster… What you want to do is save your sister because Viiro Noctis has no interest in doing it himself. Your father has already abandoned Neah to her fate like the cruel bastard he is, and if not for Neah, you would not seek to be the Master of Darkness either.”

He then recalled how little Viiro seemed to care about the death of his wife. Nothing had changed about him in the days that followed the attack, for he was going about his job as if everything was as it should be. Acostav Luz was still, at this very moment, quieter than normal because he was mourning the woman he loved while Viiro Noctis was abandoning his own daughter. Nigreos insisted that it was only because people mourn differently, but what if it wasn’t? What if his father really didn’t care, and he was the monster that Nigreos didn’t want him to be? If this interrogation was left to the Master of Darkness, then they wouldn’t get anything about Neah, so it suddenly seemed as if the only choice was for Nigreos to swipe the reins from his father and take what he wanted himself.

Grabbing Viiro’s shoulder and shoving him to the side, Nigreos moved forward and glared through the bars at Uma Miyon. “Where’s my sister?! Where did Sartella take her?!”

“Nigreos, stand back!” his father snarled, but the young dark mage ignored him, taking control of the cell’s shadows to grab Miyon by the scruff of his prisoner’s uniform and yank him as far into the air as the chains would allow.

“Answer the fucking question, Miyon!” Nigreos demanded. “Where. Is. Neah? What the hell do you want with her?!”

“There we go, Nigreos! Asking the important questions—the ones your father seeks to ignore! What do we want with Neah Noctis?! We wish to heal her! We wish to extend an olive branch to the next generation of Noctis mages and do our best to ensure your sister lives to see her eighteenth birthday! Who said anything about a ransom?! Who said anything about a barter?! All we said was we’d see you in Stellareid, yes?! We will save your sister!”

Shadows that weren’t Nigreos’s suddenly grabbed him by his shoulders and yanked him so fiercely that he flew backwards into the door before collapsing to the ground in agony. Ilirianna and Eko were swiftly at his side, Uma cackled with psychotic glee, and Viiro shouted furiously at his son.

“I told you to stand down! He’s trying to get in your head! Save Neah? Please! The Kosah-Rei have no interest in helping us, so why would they start now?! Use your brain, Nigreos!”

Ilirianna and Eko were saying something to him, but Nigreos hardly processed it as he glared up at his father. It felt as if the dams keeping the truth away from him were all shattered at once, forcing him to face the fact that his father did not care about Neah. It was so blatantly obvious, yet he didn’t realize until right that moment. He did not know whether Uma Miyon was telling the truth or not, and if he was, it wouldn’t come without a cost. Leiolai Sartella had said as much back in Soladnay Park, but at that moment, it didn’t matter. All he could think about was how, if he wanted Neah saved, he would not receive help from his father.

He would have no choice but to do it himself.

***

At Princess Ilirianna’s request, everybody was to gather in a large sitting room on the first floor meant for hosting guests right after the interrogation of Uma Miyon. The plan was for those who didn’t attend the interrogation to then be filled in on what took place so that they could better decide on the next course of action. Album wasn’t really sure what to expect since her mind hadn’t been running at full capacity due the death of her mother, and a part of her hoped that they would return to instantly give the order to erase Miyon. As much as she would have loved to kill Vesh as well, it almost seemed better to guarantee the elimination of a Kosah-Rei leader than to risk losing him. She didn’t voice these opinions though. It wasn’t her place. She was there as a simple countermeasure and she would play that role obediently.

After all, with Mother dead, I’m officially the Luz eraser. I’m not even close to ready for such a responsibility, but it’s too late now. I have no choice. If somebody needs to be erased then they will turn to me so I need to bite my tongue and do it. That’s what Mother would have wanted me to do.

Currently, she was sitting on the couch between Ryokumo and Abigail, both of which were gently leaning against her for comfort—something she was grateful for. Faye, Jessi and Hiro were sitting across the large coffee table from them with Iris while Lord Eganno Cartigan took the giant rocking chair to Album’s left, his daughter standing beside him. They had been waiting silently like this for around fifteen minutes before the door of the room was pulled open and the other six entered.

Instantly, Album could tell something was wrong, for she had never seen Nigreos look so obviously livid. Ilirianna, too, appeared ready to punch something while Eko and her father merely seemed as if they wished to be anywhere other than where they were. Rennigan and Viiro weren’t much different from usual but Album never found herself terribly good at reading them to begin with.

Why is Nigreos so upset? Could Neah be dead? No, Miyon couldn’t know that, right? Besides, they wouldn’t kidnap her just to kill her. There has to be a reason, so Nigreos is mad about something else…but what?

Nobody broke the silence as Eko moved to sit down on Ryokumo’s left while Rennigan plopped himself in the last seat beside Faye. The princess, the Masters, and Nigreos all remained standing, and given how blatantly clear the tension between them was, almost nobody was willing to be the one to speak first. Even Lord Cartigan seemed uncertain of what to do. After an awkwardly long period of them sitting around awkwardly, Viiro finally grunted a brief and blunt report.

“Miyon told us nothing.”

Appearing relieved that somebody had finally broken the ice, Cartigan let out an unsurprised huff. “Well, that’s to be expected. At this point, interrogating isn’t worth the time or resources. Take the cultist back to Erika to lure out Vesh or erase him where he sits. Honestly, I don’t think I care at this point. I just want him out of my hair.”

“Agreed,” the Master of Darkness said. “However, having spoken to him myself, I have decided a minor change of plans is in order.”

True to her typical behavior, Ilirianna reacted to that statement almost instantly. “A change in plans? Meaning what? It was my father’s orders to—”

“I will not be defying the king,” Viiro snapped, surprising Album with how disrespectfully he was addressing the princess. “After what happened in Noctalus, I truly do believe that the Kosah-Rei intend to do something in this city, and I’ve begun to wonder what might happen if Vesh doesn’t try to rescue Miyon. He may very well let us have the doctor should he deem his operation here to be more important. If that happens, I don’t want to leave Stellareid alone. Having even one Master remain in the city could make a massive difference.”

Cartigan was already nodding his understanding. “Yes, I see what you mean. While there’s no doubt my men could hold the Kosah-Rei off, I certainly wouldn’t decline a bit of extra support from Erika. Would it just be you or Master Luz remaining?”

“No, I see no reason for that,” Viiro replied. “Thanks to Kloras Glaus, we have more combatants than we initially expected, which means we can afford for a few of the students to remain as well.” The Master of Darkness paused, scanning the room and each person sitting within it, his lips twitching slightly in thought. “Given the need for Album to accompany Miyon, I think it best for the royal team to return to Erika alongside Acostav and Eko while your team, Glaus, shall remain here with me. I want you as well, Mackia, for the extra healing.”

The room fell silent yet again, everybody gazing at Viiro with a mixture of different expressions—some of surprise, some of confusion, some of nervousness, and one of pure rage. Album didn’t have time to come to her own opinion on the matter, for she noticed Nigreos’s fury the second his features contorted in the most horrifying expression she had ever seen on her typically calm friend. She could see in his eyes that he was debating whether to speak, and since Album knew what would happen if he did, she sent him a wordless plea to refrain. Nigreos noticed, but promptly ignored her.

“Excuse me, Father?” he hissed.

As if prepared for his son to protest, Viiro turned around and directed a warning stare towards Nigreos. “Not another word out of you. You are very clearly out of control and thus, I cannot trust you to conduct yourself reasonably here in Stellareid. It is best for you to leave the City of Starlight, so that is what you will do. There will be no arguing.”

“Fuck that!” Nigreos roared, refusing to buckle in the face of his father. “As if I would walk away before getting Neah back! I will not be going anywhere until my little sister is safe and there’s not a single thing you can do to stop me!”

“Nigreos, please,” Eko began hesitantly from the couch, but Nigreos instantly spat, “Shut the fuck up, Eko!” before turning back to face Viiro. “It’s blatantly obvious to me now that I’ve given you too much credit, Father. I thought you were lying when you told Miyon you didn’t intend to find Neah, but I realize now I was just kidding myself! You don’t care about her at all! If I leave Stellareid, then there won’t be anybody left behind to save her!”

“That is because there is nothing left to save!” Viiro shouted back before anybody could intervene. “We will not be having this conversation here! You are embarrassing yourself and you are embarrassing our family!”

“Good! Let Lord Cartigan, Princess Ilirianna, and everybody else see what a piece of shit you are! Let them know that you’ve never done anything to try and cure her while I desperately work my ass off for her sake! Let them know that you would turn your back on your own blood when she needs her father to save her! If you’re embarrassed then it’s no fault of mine! I will save Neah, and you cannot stop me! I’m not going anywhere!”

“Then you would jeopardize everything for your own selfish desires?! You would allow Miyon to escape or Vesh to slip from our grasp to save a girl that will be dead in a few months?! You would sacrifice the safety of this empire for someone who will not be around to live in it?!”

Throughout the entire argument between Viiro and Nigreos, Album couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She had always suspected that Viiro didn’t care to try and cure Neah, but a part of her still thought he at least loved his daughter. The fact that he wouldn’t attempt to save her was revolting, and knowing how much Nigreos loved his sisters, she couldn’t blame him for behaving the way he was, especially after losing his mother. She wished she had the strength to jump to his aid, but she knew her father would be disappointed in her if she did. She held her tongue, but the young man beside her did not.

“I think the fact that you wouldn’t says more about you than him, Master Viiro!” Rising to his feet, Ryokumo Caeli jumped to Nigreos’s defense, clenching his fists at his side as he fixed the Master of Darkness with a challenging grin. “You would call Nigreos’s desire to save somebody selfish? Is not the definition of selfishness doing something for oneself? If he is risking everything for Neah, then I see it as the opposite. If Nigreos says he’s going to find her, then I shall do the same. I will not leave this city either until Neah Noctis is located.”

Nigreos’s rage momentarily cracked as he gave Ryokumo a grateful smile, but Viiro was already turning his eyes towards the wind mage. “My son defying me is one thing, Caeli, but a man like you does not have that right. When a Master orders you to do something, you do it. That is the law, and if you break the law, then you will have a cozy little cell right next to Miyon’s.”

A spasm of horror shot through Album, and before she even knew it, she, too, was on her feet. “No! You are not in charge here, Master Viiro! Princess Ilirianna outranks you, so you do not get to make that call! I’m…er, also in support of saving Neah.”

Ah, what have I done? I’m sorry Father, but I can’t keep sitting there. I held my tongue for long enough, but I can’t leave Nigreos and Kumo out to dry.

She refused to look at her father’s face, and she was grateful that Eko was on the couch behind her, as she backed Ryokumo up and faced down Viiro. As she did so, Abigail rose up to join them as well, and though she didn’t speak like they did, her presence was more than enough to give Album more confidence. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a pleased and prideful expression on Ilirianna, who gave them a subtle nod of approval, before the princess spoke in their favor as well.

“Album’s right, Viiro. I’m in charge, and I have decided that we will not be going anywhere,” she declared, folding her arms over her chest and cocking an eyebrow. “Miyon is in one of the most protected prisons in this empire, and he has already been there a whole month. He’s safe enough for us to find your daughter. Feel free not to help, but as the leader of the royal team, I order the four of them to find her at all costs.”

This time, Viiro slowly turned back and met Ilirianna’s confident tone with a look that was more unreadable than any other expression of his that night. “You shouldn’t forget that you are not yet the queen.”

“You’re correct,” she retorted. “But in my father’s absence, my orders take precedence over yours. You so graciously reminded me this morning that I cannot defy my father’s orders, and as it so happens, he does not know of Neah’s kidnapping. Who knows what he would say in these new circumstances, so as his successor, it is my job to decide. Is that not how it works?”

Viiro’s lips tightened, his anger poking back out as he suddenly turned to address the Master of Light. “Damn it, Acostav, stop sitting there in silence! Back me up here!”

Acostav grimaced as the conversation was unwillingly turned towards him, and knowing her father like she did, Album fully expected him to stand in support of Viiro. That was why his words were stunning to almost all who heard them.

“Give it up, Viiro. Princess Ilirianna has made her decision. Besides, if I were in your position, I would want my children saved, no matter how much time they had left. We can split up like you want once Neah’s found, but until then, we are, in fact, outranked.”

Father…

His failure to get even Acostav to support him seemed to be the last straw as Viiro glanced around the room, not a single person coming to his defense the way the royal team did for Nigreos. After all, Nigreos’s tone may have been wrong, but his words were not. Album was sure even Lord Cartigan must have held some disgust for Viiro, but perhaps the Lord didn’t care one way or the other. With a sharp huff, Viiro Noctis turned and departed the room without another word, and as they watched them go, Nigreos slumped his shoulders with relief and turned a weak smile towards them.

“Thank you, guys. Thank you so much…”