[b]Chapter 8: Edgar's story[/b]

A young man in a form of a black cat dashed through the wide main street of Skygold Town. It was paved with clean, smooth white stones, and it was leading straight to a small castle, the crown jewel of this settlement. The whole town looked glorious, but oddly, there weren't much people in sight. One would think that such a wealthy place would be bustling with people, both residents of the town and travelers from many locations, especially since this town had a port. There was clearly something strange going on, the young man thought to himself as he slowed his pace, eventually stopping entirely in front of a building that seemed to be an inn. 

In his head, he tried to piece together what was happening. Judging by the fact that there hadn't been any travelers coming from this direction and that the beastmen had been guarding the gates, it seemed like that the Nightfolks had conquered Skygold Town. Before setting a foot in this town he had sensed that something was wrong, but how exactly, he didn't know. He should have listened to his instincts. And that man, that thief… He was somehow involved in all of this. The young man shook his head. Why hadn't the voices of the dead warned him that the thief would bring trouble? There was certainly something very wrong with that man. The young man felt a little guilty for leaving the young wizard alone with such person.

“What are you pondering, my little feline friend?”

The man in a cat's form almost jumped into the air because he got startled by a sudden voice. He hadn't noticed anyone to come near him, and he looked at the direction of the individual who had just spoken. It was a bit of an older man and judging by his clothes and the fact that he was plucking leisurely strings of an instrument that resembled lute, he was a bard. The man was leaning against the door of the inn and he had a gentle smile decorating his face.

Although he appeared to be friendly, the young man was wary. He stared at the face of the stranger with his deep blue eyes, but not uttering even a single word.

The bard chuckled a little. “Seems like you just came into Skygold Town. It's quite beautiful, but not currently the best place to be in. Nightfolks have taken over. People are allowed to get in, but not out. Maybe you're the one to resolve this crisis.”

What a strange thing to say. The young man looked at him suspiciously. It really felt like that somehow this stranger had some kind of understanding who he was. But how? However, his train of thoughts got crashed by the sound of many steps coming his way. Instinctively he hid himself into the very narrow alley that was between the inn and some other building. It was too tight for a human, but for his cat form it was a perfect spot to hide. His black fur merged together with the shadows and he stood still, waiting for the group to pass by.

Soon he could distinguish a pack of Nightfolks stomping along the main street. And inside their tight formation were the young wizard and the thief. The wizard looked scared and anxious, and this sight made the young man's heart ache a bit. Meanwhile the older man tried to beg that his captor's would set him free. But the Nightfolks didn't listen. None of the group noticed the cat that lurked in the shadows, watching them to pass by. He left his little hideout only after they had proceeded further into the town. He peeked around the corner to watch how the Nightfolks were taking the duo to the castle. As he stared intently at their receding figures, he decided that he had to help them. After all, he needed the wizard's aid.

“Are those your friends?” the bard asked, still plucking the strings of his instrument like he had no worries at all. “Seems like they got into trouble. Do you want to lend them a helping hand?”

The young man shifted the gaze of his deep blue eyes at the stranger's face and just stared at him for a moment, trying to figure out what kind of person he was. There definitely was something odd about him, but he didn't seem malicious.

Then he decided to answer to the older man's question: “Yes. I do want to help them.”

Meanwhile, the Nightfolks were taking Nicolas and Edgar towards the castle. Under normal circumstances, the young wizard would have been excited to see the many wonders of Skygold Town, but unfortunately, his situation wouldn't allow it at the moment. Now he could only go where the Nightfolks were leading him along with Edgar. Every now and then the beastmen would poke him with their weapons at his back if they felt like that he was walking too slowly. Not even a single word left the mouths of the Nightfolks, even though Edgar kept pleading and complaining the whole time. Their cold yet calm presence felt oppressive and threatening. Nicolas didn't understand this situation at all and that was probably the main reason he was scared. He was walking into the unknown, guided by the bloodthirsty weapons of beastmen.

Eventually the convoy reached the gates of the small castle. They were open, and probably usually would appear welcoming, but now the gates were guarded by another pack of Nightfolks. They were eyeing the group, but didn't really seem to care much about them, and so their encounter was short and uneventful. Nicolas, Edgar and the Nightfolks surrounding them disappeared into the mouth of the great building, heading to its belly. A grand hall greeted them and it seemed that it was leading right to the deepest parts of the castle. The great hall was split by a red carpet that was just as long as the hall itself. Numerous paintings decorated the walls and the place got illumination from many candles that were set on beautiful candleholders. The place looked pleasant, but this wasn't where the Nightfolks were taking them. The beastmen guided Nicolas and Edgar to a smaller corridor that was accessible on their left, and took them to a much less grand part of the castle.

Nightfolks were leading them through duller and darker corridors that were zigzagging around the building in such a manner that Nicolas completely lost his sense of direction. And as they kept wandering inside the castle, few humans passed by, most likely servants. To see fellow humans was a welcomed sight in the young wizard's mind, even though there were no interactions. There hadn't been many humans on their way, so it felt sort of relieving to know that they still existed in this town. None of the servants paid attention to the convoy, it was like they had got used to seeing Nightfolks bring prisoners in. Nicolas had stopped for a brief moment to watch what the servants were doing, but got soon a light sting of a sharp weapon in his back as a sign to keep moving, so he did.

At some point they began to descend a set of stairs. The surroundings became more dark and dreary, and the young wizard wondered why was that. Then they came to a big metal door that was guarded by few Nightfolks. One of these guards inserted a key into the lock and the door opened horribly screeching; the sound was so piercing that if felt like something was grating the walls inside the young wizard's head. The group walked through the now open doorway and found out even more stairs that led down. They were descending into a world of darkness, only few torches that were hanging on the walls offered some light for the group. The stairs swirled around deeper and deeper until they finally led the convoy to a long corridor. There lingered a foul musty smell in the air, along with a horrid scent of feces. Nicolas realized that this place was a prison. As they walked further in, the young wizard's curious stare wandered around the cells, just to see what kind of people had got locked up in here. There weren't many people held in captivity, and those few Nicolas saw didn't really pay any attention to the group. They sat in their cells in apathetic manner.

The Nightfolks took Nicolas and Edgar to one of the cells that were farthest away. The door was slightly ajar. The beastmen opened it wide and pushed the men roughly inside, then closed the door forcefully, basically smacking it, and it got locked. Edgar took a grasp of one of the bars with his only hand, trying still to plead that the Nightfolks would let him go as the beastmen stomped away. Meanwhile Nicolas let his eyes wander around the cell where he had got abandoned. It wasn't particularly large, but not so little, either. The cell was rather empty, there was only a stack of dry hay, probably meant to be a spot to sleep in. Then there was a rusty bucket, and he didn't have to guess twice what its purpose was. The young wizard slowly sat down, his back against the brick wall, and he looked so lost and defeated. He tried to process what was happening.

He could have never expected the possibility that he would get arrested just after arriving in Skygold Town. And for what? What had he done? What did the Nightfolks want from him? The young wizard's gaze shifted at Edgar who had just given up with his pleads and had sat down as well, his back resting against the opposite wall. Nicolas could feel his anxiety and fright subsiding and turning into anger as he stared at his older traveling companion, who clearly was somehow involved in this mess. But at the same time, Nicolas was very curious about the story behind all this.

And so he spoke: “Edgar, what is happening?” 

The older man let out a heavy sight. All of a sudden, he seemed really exhausted and in the dim light coming from a torch in the corridor, he looked like he had aged a couple of years.

“I suppose I owe you an explanation”, he said while scratching his beard.

The young wizard stared intently at him, ready to hear the older man's tale. His amber eyes were shining in the light of a captured fire.

“So… A couple of months ago I was traveling around here, in Skygold Town”, Edgar began explaining. “It was also when the Nightfolks were about to conquer the town. I ran into a group of these guys, and one of them was Paleface.”

“Who is Paleface?” Nicolas asked, briefly interrupting the story. He remembered that his traveling companion had mentioned that name before.

“She is the leader of these beastmen that are now in this town”, Edgar answered. “Unlike other Nightfolks, her fur is pure white, hence the name. But anyway, they weren't really happy that I was sneaking around these parts, it angered them somehow. They wanted to kill me and as I had no means to escape the situation, I begged for my life. I promised them that I would do anything they wanted. This is when Paleface gave me a mission. They would let me go if I did this task for them.”

The man paused his story for a brief moment. It was like he was searching for the right words in order to continue. 

But as the seconds passed by and he remained silent, Nicolas asked: “What kind of mission Paleface gave you?”

The young wizard wasn't able to read the emotions behind the eyes Edgar then had.

“I was supposed to find them a mage and bring him to Skygold Town.”

“You mean… me?” Nicolas whispered in disbelief. “But… why? How…?”

He temporarily lost his ability to form sentences that made sense. He just stared at the older man, hoping that he would get the hint to continue his story. 

Instead, Edgar began to unbutton his vest surprisingly neatly. The young wizard didn't understand why, until the older man was done with this simple task. As his bare chest was revealed, amazement took hold of Nicolas. Right there, inserted to Edgar's chest, was a crescent moon-shaped jewel. Being very dark purple in color, it was glimmering ominously in the dim light coming from the torches. Pieces of flesh and veins were holding firmly the edges of the jewel, which looked kind of disgusting.

“What… is that thing?” Nicolas asked, his gaze completely captured by the odd gem.

“This is how I found you”, Edgar said. “Nightfolks inserted it to my chest. It can't be removed, at least not by force. It has two functions: it can detect someone with magical abilities, like you, and it can… well, kill me.”

“Why?” It was all Nicolas could say.

The older man started to button up his vest and a heavy sigh left his mouth.

“It wasn't exactly you I was looking for”, Edgar said. “Any mage could have sufficed. But I guess I was lucky I bumped into you, since you're so young and inexperienced, both with your powers and with the world.”

His tale got interrupted again as he chuckled a little. The young wizard could feel his cheeks becoming red, and he was glad that it couldn't be seen in this scarce illumination.

Edgar's light laughter faded away.

“The Nightfolks have a control over me”, he continued. “They can easily kill me anytime they want. I had no other choice but to do as they say. I had to bring you to them or I'd be a dead man.”

“What do they want from me?” Nicolas asked.

“Honestly, I don't know”, Edgar replied. “I thought it was best to not ask too many questions. I'm terribly sorry, Nicolas…”

The young wizard could feel his previous anger returning. Edgar's head was hanging as if from great exhaustion and defeat, and perhaps he truly was going through remorse. But Nicolas could only feel rage at that moment. This man had pretended to be his friend, and had tangled him up into some mess with a barbaric race, and who knows what they would do to him, only because this cowardly thief wanted to save his own skin. However, the young wizard felt the same defeat. He leaned his head against the stone wall and looked up at the ceiling, not really focusing in anything particular.

What would happen to him now? He felt so alone and trapped, even though he still had the older man rotting in the cell with him. But perhaps Edgar was going through same kind of emotions.

Nicolas glanced at the older man. A question then came to his mind and he decided to say it aloud: “Does your wife and daughters know about this?”

Edgar was silent for a good while as if a great mayhem was taking place inside his head.

“They don't exist.”

The young wizard blinked few times, being once more surprised by the man's words. “What… do you mean?”

“I made them up”, Edgar confessed in a huff, seemingly being more angry at himself rather than the curious young man. “Many of the things I have told you have been lies. I just… I just wanted to be part of a story that's better than my life. I wish I had family. I wish that my lies would be true. But no, I'm nothing but a lowly thief.”

Nicolas didn't know what to say. The older man's words were like poison, inflicting more pain the more he spoke. He didn't want to hear anything from him anymore. By the moment he had stepped into this town, his trust for this man had shattered, but now it was in even more pieces. But perhaps Edgar had already said all the words he had, as his head was hanging and he didn't want to meet the young wizard's gaze. Nicolas wrapped his cloak around him as if seeking even tiniest bit of comfort from it and looked at the opposite empty cell. A turmoil of emotions was raging inside of him.

He felt betrayed. Angry. Lonely. Frightened. Anxious. Uncertain. The fear of unknown was gnawing his heart. Having no idea what was going to happen next made him tremble. He could only wait and hope for the best, even if it was hard to do.

Then his thoughts got directed towards the black cat. Nicolas didn't blame him for fleeing. They weren't great friends or anything like that, so he didn't expect that he would want to stick around and get arrested as well. But, Nicolas did feel slightly betrayed by him, too. Still, he maintained a tiny bit of hope that the black cat would come and rescue him. He was still free. In the young wizard's head, that was the only way to get out of this situation.

But there were no guarantees. Only childish hope. For now, he could only sit in his cell, waiting, fighting against his fears and anxieties.