The Legend Of Black Eyes 234 Stranded In Time 4

One thing about the desert: it's scorching hot during the day, but it can get freezing at night. It was the cold that woke me up. My nose stung as I got up and looked around me. For a while, I was expecting to wake up in that vast, endless labyrinth. Instead, I found myself lying next to the soft rock in the middle of Yanoku's slums. 

It was so cold the blood on my nose had frozen. I felt a cold chill down run down my spine as something breathed against my neck. I slowly turned to see the ghastly face of a wraith staring back at me. Its dark, hollow eyes gave no indication of what it was thinking. Its gray skin was so stretched and ugly to look at it made my stomach churn. 

It also growled, reminding me that I was starving. Two more wraiths appeared around me, popped up out of thin air actually. They growled with low voices as they floated in the air. Their hollow eyes were fixating me. 

"Why would anyone choose to torture themselves like you did?" a voice boomed inside my head. It sounded cheerful, somehow mocking. 

"Who's there?" I screamed. My voice came out as a high pitched squeal. I felt my cheeks burning. 

The wraiths hadn't made a move. They only floated. They had sharp blades instead of fingers. They were ready to attack at any moment. 

"When Minsec told me somebody stole my Fragment," the voice echoed inside my head once more. "I thought he had his timing mixed once again. He's an old fool you know, older than any of us can imagine. Imagine my surprise when he summons me to give me the d.a.m.n Fragment..." 

A handsome man, draped in a black velvet cape appeared before me then. He had an intimidating presence about him. He looked down on me with bright, fiery eyes. It felt as though he was reading through my mind just from staring. He looked like the charming prince every girl dreamed of. Only he had this invisible, oppressive aura around him. 

"Minsec hadn't summoned me in three thousand years," the man said. "I was really curious to see the one who'd make the old man snap out of his eternal dreams. Lo and behold, I'm staring at a child!" He said his last words with utter disgust. 

He crouched beside me and inspected me with his eyes. I felt naked before him, ashamed for no apparent reason. "You've been through a lot," he said after a while. "Are you hungry?" 

"Who are you?" I asked with a weak, faint voice. 

"The name's Omega," the handsome man said. "On normal circ.u.mstances, I'd kill you, no questions asked. Then I took a quick look at this place, at the man you carried inside that apothecary's..." His lips parted into a devilish smirk. "You're a Stalwart, aren't you?" 

My heart skipped a beat and my eye widened. Omega chuckled then got to his feet. With a casual wave of his hand, the wraiths dissipated. He extended the other hand toward me. "Let's get you something to eat. You have a lot to answer for."

We walked toward the Boar Gate, the checkpoint that led from the slums to the Commercial District. Omega was calm. He walked the empty streets with his hands behind his back. He seemed to enjoy the glacial night wind. He'd glance at me every now and then, but he didn't speak until we were at the Boar Gate. 

Two guards stepped in when we walked through the stone archway. They looked groggy, annoyed that somebody disturbed their peaceful, unearned sleep. 

"Who goes there?" one of them called out in a gruff, croaky voice while the second hurriedly fetched a lamp. It was a new moon, thus very dark at night. 

Omega rested his hand on my shoulder and pressed a finger against his lips. He squeezed my shoulder and led me through the archway as the guards squinted and searched in the dark. We went by them, but they didn't seem to notice us. Omega must have done something to make us invisible. 

When were out of earshot, Omega finally spoke. "I don't have time to deal with inquisitive guards," he said. "Besides, I despise killing for no reason." 

He led me to a small brick house in the Commercial District. It was warm inside. Two women hurried toward us as soon as we entered. They wore simple brown gowns with ap.r.o.ns on top. They bowed to Omega, who ordered them to get something for me to eat. 

He led me through a narrow hall and into an old study. A wooden round table stood in the middle. Old books and parchments were stacked on top. Omega waved his hand and everything on the table floated then flew in different directions. 

Books flew toward their respective spots in the library by the wall. Parchment, quill and ink flew toward the desk near the window. The desk's drawers opened as though they had their own will. All the parchments disappeared inside, while the ink and quill found their place atop the desk. 

Omega pulled a chair and sat. "Sit," he invited me to take the seat beside him. I obeyed without uttering a word. My stomach growled, and my nose started running again. 

"Why did you try to kill the boy?" Omega asked. "Better yet, why did you stop chasing him?" 

It seemed like this strange man would easily detect a lie if I ever told him one. Besides, he knew everything about me, what was the point in hiding? 

"I think I've been here before," I said in a hoa.r.s.e voice. "I remember the day my father got injured. I was a child back then, but I remember the man who brought him to Agatha, all b.l.o.o.d.y and beat up." 

"And only now you realize it was you all along," Omega said. "That's what happens to those who mess with time. You should have listened to the witch." 

"What am I doing here?" I asked. "Since you already know everything about me, why didn't you kill me?" 

"Still considering it," Omega replied. There was no hatred in his eyes. In fact, his face was blank, devoid of all emotions. His skin still found a way to radiate in the semi darkness of the room. Only a few candles were lit, scattered in every corner. He still looked as though the sun shone against his face. 

He leaned in on the table and his red eyes fixated the large mahogany desk. A serving girl came into the room. She put a plate of beef stew and two loaves of dry bread before me. Then she put a bottle with a golden liquid in front of Omega. 

"How did you come upon the time fragment?" he asked me. "I've gifted one to an aspiring smuggler in the east. I never remember giving you one." 

"I found it under my bed," I said, only now realizing how weird that sounded. "I was in Raiya's Tree Vessel –"

"MY vessel," Omega was quick to correct me. "Your grandfather's a sly one. He'd banned me from getting into Hera for as long as he lived. He'd also stolen a bunch of things from me. I guess thievery runs in the family after all. What do you think?"