Past That Comes To Haunt
Serge/Asana
Requested by: Anon
Warning: Death and violence are depicted in this story. Read at your own discretion.
Summary: A person with a grudge comes to make Serge suffer but threatens Asana. For the first time in a very long time, Serge uses attacking magic.
Smoke filled the night time air and the orange glow of the fire ripping through the meadow stirred her consciousness. “Mm,” she groaned loudly but couldn’t feel the coolness of the grass below but could smell the familiar sugar-coated scent, and could feel the warmth, of her husband.
“Asana?” Serge’s voice filled her ears along with the sizzling and cracking sounds of the fire around her.
Her body felt weak but she could feel him and hear him and her mind started to process that he was next to her. Memories, though, were nothing but a blur, “…Serge?” she managed to call out to him and lift her arms to feel his touch to confirm he was there.
“I’m here,” he assured her and stroking his long fingers across her cheek as he cupped her face, “…I’m so sorry,” his voice quivered and she felt his face bury in her hair.
Not being able to remember anything, she didn’t know why he was apologising or could answer how she had made it from the city to some meadow which seemed a long away. Her eyelids fluttered between open and closed but the world around her was a blurry mess which was hard on her eyes.
“…What happened? Why is there a fire? Why are we out here?” she asked him.
In his arms, she could feel his body trembling along with his quivering voice. She wanted to see his face but her round pink eyes could barely make sense of the blurry world she tried to see before her.
“Serge, she needs to go to the hospital,” a familiar voice was nearby, she knew it.
“…Is that Klaus?” she asked.
“Randy’s here too,” Serge answered her question, “…I’ll explain everything later, I promise.”
Suddenly, she felt as though her body was floating in the air but his familiar warmth and comfort made her feel safe. She had no memories of the past few days but remembered the moment a man had intercepted her at Klaus’ house, that was the last of her memories before everything turned black and her mind was empty.
Her hands gripped the front of Serge’s shirt tighter as she tried hard to regain her memories. Serge hugged her closer to him, “Can I leave this to the two of you?” he asked to Randy and Klaus.
“Of course,” Randy replied, “I’m happy we got to her in time but I never thought I’d see the day you’d use attacking magic again.”
“...It reminds me of how powerful you are,” Klaus scratched his cheek, “We maybe at the same level after all.”
“With the right motivation, he turned you to ash Klaus,” Randy would bet Serge to win if a fight between them would ever exist.
“Are you saying he would beat me?” Klaus turned a sharp gaze at Randy, “Nonsense.”
Asana could hear them talking and wondered what had happened for him to resort to such magic, especially when he vowed to himself he would never use attacking magic ever again. Her eyelids fluttered opened and the blur wasn’t as bad as it was before but she could see the locks of his fluffy pink hair in a mess and dirt covered his face.
“…Serge,” her hand reached up to him but a sharp pain ripped through her arm.
Gently, her lowered down her hand and positioned it to rest, “I’m okay, I promise,” then his face came closer to hers and she felt his lips on her forehead, “I did it to protect you. It’s a vow worth breaking, don’t you think?”
“We better leave them alone,” Randy suggested to Klaus.
“Agreed,” Klaus opened the door of the cabin in the ambulance, “Notify us of her condition.”
“Get well soon, Asana!” Randy waved to them, “I’ll take care of Taffy until you get back.”
With that farewell, they were off to the hospital. Asana couldn’t keep her eyes open for long but each time she opened them, Serge would look away from her with a painful expression on his face.
“…This is all my fault,” he sadly whispered as though he was punishing himself with his own words.
“Don’t say that,” Asana whispered to him, “…I can’t remember what happened but it’s not your fault. Did…did I do something terrible?”
“No,” he assured her, “No, of course not,” he smiled at her but he knew the only reason why she was targeted was because of him. It bothered him and a sadness consumed him as he stared into her eyes wavering between staying awake and falling asleep.
Gently, he kissed her eyelids, “Get some rest,” he whispered, “I’ll be right here.”
Burying her face into the warmth of his chest, she felt safe and secure. Trying to keep awake felt like a heavy weight but with him right next to, watching over her, she felt her consciousness slip into a slumber and her body releasing its tension. She still couldn’t remember what had happened though, so she went to sleep with an anxious mind too.
Moving her fringe from her eyes, he looked at her with sadness on his face. “I’m sorry it got this far,” he said, “If I only I had been by your side, nothing would’ve happened to you. I’m pathetic.”
Four days earlier
As we slept, Asana continually tossed and turned beside me. Outside, the rain poured heavily, the raindrops pounding on the roof sheltering us and the thunder mimicking the roar of earthquakes as it shook the ground. I know she’s having a tough time sleeping and gently wake her up by shaking her shoulders.
“Asana?” I whispered her name, hoping my voice could reach her over the loud noise of rain and thunder, “Hey, Asana?” I shook her a little more, her skin feeling sweaty under my fingertips.
Each time the lightning flashed outside, my wedding ring shined in the light. It reminded me how lucky I was to have a cute and charming wife but it bothered me she couldn’t get a good night’s rest. “Asana, wake up,” I spoke a little louder this time and then her round pink eyes flew open and her body sat up.
“Serge!” she screamed my name through the darkness.
Reaching for my wand on the bedside table, I decided to turn on the lights. That warm orange glow revealed her messy hair and sweating body, “I’m right here,” immediately, I pull her close to my chest and wrap my arms around her until she has calmed down. Not realising tonight was a warning for the day I came seconds away from losing the most important person in my life, forever.
“Serge,” she’s crying as she calls my name again and then buries her face into my chest.
“Are you okay?” I gently ask her, my heart filled with worry, “…Did you have a nightmare?”
She doesn’t answer straight away as she empties her tears. Tears, which I can tell, are produced by whatever has her afraid. When I think about her behaviour lately, I wonder what’s bothering her so much and wish she’d tell me instead of trying to take on this burden alone. This time, I can’t let it go.
“…Asana,” gently, I pull away and cup her beautiful face in my hands and stare into her eyes, even my own are becoming moist because of my worry for her, “…What’s going on with you? You’re acting strange.”
Her pink eyes have turned red from her tears and her cheeks are red too. Taffy remains curled at the end of our bed as the rain continues to pour down outside. It rips my heart apart to see her having a rough time and she’s not telling me why. I’m her husband, all I want is to see her smile. In the last week, she’s been very paranoid, like someone’s watching her, and has been spacing out because of it. She can barely sleep and always seems distracted whenever I’ve tried to talk to her. It has even affected her work.
Currently, she has been relieved of her work at the magical creature hospital, funded and operated under the Ministry, because she incorrectly gave the wrong medicine to a magical creature. Luckily, her boss has known Asana since their academy days and Klaus’s father put in a good word for her that they defended her when she had been called in for a hearing with the board over her mistake. She would be sent home until she can prove she’s capable of working again. She’s an excellent doctor and luckily it was her first and only mistake, at least the Ministry knows this otherwise she would’ve got the sack rather than a leave of absence.
“…I can’t…,” she cries, “…He’ll hurt you…”
“He?” I immediately become confused, “…Are you saying someone is threatening you?”
“…,” she tries to escape my arms but I don’t let her go, “…Forget I said it!” she begs.
If someone is trying to hurt my Asana…! I once vowed I would never use attacking magic again but I’m not going to let anyone harm her. She’s precious to me and her presence in my life has become more important than my own existence.
“Are you being threatened?” I ask her and as I ask her I can see more tears fogging her beautiful eyes. However, slowly she nods her head and I pull her close to me again as she cries in fear.
I don’t know who would threaten her or if it’s related to her job but it’s hurts to see her become terrified. What I didn’t know was that it was someone close to her and they were after me but decided to hurt her to get to me. It would work. For now, my priority is to sooth her and let her rest. I don’t let her out of my arms all night and let her sleep over the top of me with her head on my heartbeat and our legs tangled together. My fingers play with the tresses of her long brown hair.
Next morning…
“Why didn’t you show these to me sooner?” I asked, a little mad at her for not coming to me as she shows me all the threatening letters she has been receiving each day for the past week, “I’ve never seen these in the mail though?”
“…They haven’t been arriving in the mail,” her voice is quiet and her fingers twitch together with anxiety, “Each day I have had some random stranger come up to me to give me those letters. The first one came with those flowers when I was working and that one you have in your hand came to me yesterday from a woman walking the street, she looked like she was forced to give it to me.”
As she stands up to walk over to the fridge and I sit on the chair, I’m in range to reach out to grab her hand. I bring her closer to me and bury my face into her waist, where my head reaches and beg her, kindly, to tell me why she kept this from me, “Asana…why didn’t you come to me with this?”
I can feel her fingers combing through my fluffy hair and her voice is soft and brittle as she speaks, “…I was scared…,” she admits and I know from the letters she had been warned not to say a word to anybody about these threats otherwise harm would come to me, “…I…,” she tries to explain and she gives me an apologetic expression, “…I’m sorry.”
A sigh escapes my lips but lean up and kiss her. When I part my lips from hers, I can’t stay mad at her, “We’ll figure this out, okay,” I promise to her and then promise to myself I will break my vow if I have to protect her, “I don’t want you leaving my side, okay.”
She nods, “…Apparently, he knows you.”
“Have you spoken to him?”
She nods, “…He called me once when I was working late.”
“Why didn’t you call me straight away?”
“Well…Randy was with me,” she explains, “It was that night he brought that drenched fire fox he rescued to me, remember?”
Randy March, the real Randy March has been freed from his stone prison and he has been picking up the pieces of his life. I can’t begin to imagine the emotions he has gone through but I’ve tried, along with Asana and Klaus, to be as supportive as possible in his quest. He went back to the academy to finish school and has joined me at the Ministry doing magical research. Now, I’m mad that he didn’t tell me.
I look away from her but she reads my mind, “…I begged him not to say anything to you.”
“Asana!” I cry out because I wish she hadn’t kept it a secret, “Seriously?”
The moment I do, she shrinks back from me and she’s about to cry again. “I’m so sorry…You were working hard and I…I didn’t want to bother you…and I was scared he’d hurt you…”
“Do you think I would chose my work over you?” I ask her bitterly, gently cupping her face within my hands, “I’m your husband, I vowed to protect you no matter what. Depend on me,” I try not to sound disappointed but I’m frustrated that she chose to hide the truth from me to the point she was becoming too afraid to close her eyes but I’m also angry that I let it go for so long.
Her cheeks are stained with tears, “…I’m sorry…I really am sorry…”
I sigh and hug her, “…Don’t worry, I’m mad at myself too. I’m sorry I didn’t see you were having a hard time,” for a while, we stand just hugging each other in the kitchen. It’s been a while since I felt this angry, not at her of course, but at whoever has made her frown. I love her smile, I love her, I hate seeing her cry because of me.
As I hold her in my arms, I noticed the flowers she had kept were different. This is why whoever is trying to harm her knows her every move. I noticed the flowers are enchanted. It’s a magic tool used for spying and listening in. Immediately, I reach for my wand and destroy it. She flinches in my arms and looks at the destroyed flowers then looks back at me, “…Was it…?” she understands.
“Surveillance, that’s why he was able to track you down so easily,” I explained and realise he knows where we live, “…Time to call in a favour, I think.”
“What…do you mean?” she asks me.
“We can’t stay here, he knows where we live.”
It’s not safe here and I can’t think of anywhere else safer than Klaus’s place. Surely, whoever it is who has sworn revenge on me wouldn’t be brazen enough to break into the Goldstein Estate. Also, I’m sure she knows Elias and Luca from their academy days too. He also has the day off too.
With that, we leave our home and arrive on Klaus’s doorstep. Before I can start investigating, I need to secure her safety. Taffy is with us and I give him explicit orders not to leave her side when I’m not there. As we travel by car, I try to think of who would go this far. All I know is they’ve made a mistake in going after my precious wife.
Klaus lets us in and Elias and Luca are home too and Asana and I explain the situation. “…See, she’s been watched so I figured with Elias and Luca here in the Goldstein Estate—.”
“She would be safe, I can’t guarantee she’s completely safe here,” Klaus interrupted.
“She’s safer here than at home,” I countered, “Please Klaus. I’m asking as a friend.”
“I never said we were friends,” Klaus always has rejected our relationship as a friendship but I know his words and actions are always opposite, but he turns his sharp gaze to her, “My question is, why you didn’t just tell someone?”
“…I told you,” she looked away, clearly upset with herself too, “…I didn’t want to cause Serge any trouble and I was afraid of what would happen to him or myself if I said anything to anyone…” she trails off with emotion stuck in her throat.
Klaus though, says, “Now you’ve ended up causing more trouble for everyone by keeping it a secret.”
“Isn’t that too harsh?” Randy, who had also been here, piped in, “She’s clearly scared and upset. Cut her a break.”
“You knew, how come you didn’t say anything?” Klaus questioned him now, his glare demanding an answer.
Randy frowned, “For your information, I’ve traced where that phone call came from.”
When I hear he’s been investigating the case already, I can’t help but feel jealous about it. At the same time, I’m grateful we have good friends to help us out. “What did you find?” I asked, thinking this is not the time to feel jealous but to get rid of this person so she can stop being afraid.
“Nothing, he’s covered his tracks pretty good.”
“What about the flower shop?” Klaus asked, “Should we pressure them into telling us who made the order?”
“Already did that,” Randy replied, “Like how he has been sending Asana threats, he has used another person to make the order and had it delivered to her workplace. He’s doing well to stay discreet.”
Klaus scratched his head, “She can stay here and you as well Serge.”
“Thank you, Klaus,” she bowed to him, “…I’m sorry for the trouble.”
I can’t stop thinking about who is after us though or why.
That night, I stayed awake trying to figure out the identity of the person threatening Asana. She’s asleep and the room Klaus let us sleep in is next to Elias and Luca’s bedroom, so if anything happens they’re nearby. Though, Taffy is with her too and I installed an emergency button on him so that an alert can be sent to me the moment she is in danger.
“You’re up,” Randy decided to stay as well since he had already begun investigating.
I’m no longer mad or jealous as I think deeply about the people I have come across in my past. His voice bringing me out of my thoughts, I turned my gaze up to him as he sits opposite me, “Yeah…just trying to think who would go this far,” I answer him.
“Randy should have told us sooner,” Klaus interjected as he entered the dimly lit library, “That said, Asana should have reported she was being threatened while on duty at the hospital.”
With documents in hand and a hot cup of tea in the other, I find myself ignoring his last comment as I try to refocus my mind on coming up with a mental list of suspects. Then, the folder of documents Klaus had in his hand came down upon my head, “Ouch, what’s that for?”
“I want you and Asana to leave as soon as possible so I will help you solve this issue,” he declared.
“Since I’m already involved, I’ll help to,” Randy smiled back at me.
I don’t want to get them involved though, but in another way, they already are involved, “Thanks,” I extend my gratitude and reach into my pocket where I have neatly folded all of the threat letters into my pocket and lay them across the table to show them, “From these letters, he’s targeting Asana to get to me. Only problem is I can’t think of anyone who would want to hurt her to get to me.”
As we spoke I didn’t realise how soon she was going to be taken from me. Rain, again, poured outside and the black clouds concealed the moon and the starry night sky. After talking to Randy and Klaus for some time, we heard a loud bang coming from our room. Followed by her screams. Immediately, I race off to our room with Elias and Luca emerging from their room and Klaus and Randy following closely behind.
“Let me go!” I can hear her demanding voice.
As I come to her door, it is locked using magic but Klaus quickly dispels the magic and I break it down. Just as I enter the room, I see a person dressed head to toe in black, his face covered with a mask with only his red eyes glaring back at me and his white blonde hair poking through the beanie covering his head. As I launch forward, he puts his wand to her throat, “Don’t!” he warned, “Don’t want to be responsible for your wife’s death now, do you?”
“Let her go!” I glare back at him, “If it’s me you’re after, then hurt me, not her.”
Everything about him has twisted and sinister written all over it. As I glare at him, he gives me a wicked grin and he has in his hand a vial filled with some kind of dark purple coloured mist. With a pop of the cork, the mist clouds her and all I see is her head lose strength and her body goes limp. Seeing this, I leap forward without thinking to protect her.
He chuckles and I walk into a barrier made of magic, “Relax, she’s not dead,” his voice is deep but smooth, “Don’t worry, I’m going to have fun with her too,” he declares and before I can take down the wall, he’s already vanished through a teleportation circle taking her with him.
“Asana!” I try to run after him before the spell disappears but he’s quick.
Taffy is crying in the corner and he looks at me as I stand by the open window, frozen with fear as my wife was abducted before my eyes and I was powerless. Frustration builds within me and as I stare at my own reflection in the glass window I realise I’m wearing an angry expression, one I haven’t worn in a long time.
“…M-Master…me beary, beary sorry,” Taffy quietly apologises.
“It’s okay Taffy, it’s not your fault,” I say quietly and agreeing to break my vow to use attacking magic if it means getting her back, “I’ll find her and if there is even a scratch on her, he’ll be sorry.”
Klaus immediately takes a sample of his magic residue which he has left behind and I go back to the library to look through the threat letters. Then, a light bulb goes off in my head a name comes to mind. Unfortunately, this relates to the incident with Randy. His younger cousin had fallen into darkness when Randy was petrified and had always blamed me for the accident. Trouble is, I think he’s too invested into dark magic now that it’ll be an extraordinary effort to save him.
“Serge?” Randy puts his hand on my shoulder as I stare straight at the threat letters.
To him, I must seem shocked and scared for Asana, which I am. If my assumptions are correct, and the person behind all of this is Randy’s cousin, then he’ll do anything to make sure I suffer. “…I don’t think you should get involved Randy,” I say instantly.
“You think it might by my cousin behind this, right?” he saw straight through me, “Mom told me how ridiculed we were after what happened to me. Arrius…as much as it pains me to say, I know he turned dark in his hatred for you.”
The way he words it makes me feel like all I ever do is hurt those close to me. It’s a reason why I tried to push Asana away from me when we had first met and she discovered the truth. However, she kept getting closer and closer to me and I kept getting closer and closer to her. “…All I ever do is hurt those around me,” I mutter.
“…Serge,” Randy spins me around by my shoulders, “Why do I have to keep telling you that what happened to me was not your fault? I’m just as guilty and I accepted the risks of experimenting with magic as you did to. Since my cousin might have her, I’m going to help you get your wife back.”
His brown eyes are sincere as he says this to me but I don’t think I can be very nice if he harms her. Before I can admit this, Randy reads my mind, “I understand,” he says, “Arrius is a wanted criminal and I’ve read about all the atrocities he has committed. To be honest, he’s always been a little bit like that but I guess what happened to me really triggered him. I know Klaus won’t go easy on him either.”
“I can't ask you to fight against your cousin,” I say to him.
“I can't let him hurt an innocent girl to make you suffer for an incident that's not even your fault,” he replies, and I realise he's not going to be persuaded to change his mind, “He's threatened you for a while. Mom told me how much hatred he has for you. All I can do is apologise for his behaviour. But in his pursuit to save me, he has made plenty other families suffer too. He needs to be stopped.”
All I can think about is Asana while Randy speaks. What will Arrius do to her? My mind races with horrible thoughts and I know there's no time to waste. Up until now, he did so well to conceal his identity, was he waiting for her to say something? Why did he just…reveal himself to us?
Klaus is gathering evidence now and Randy is looking worried. I need to get her back but I need to have a clear mind. Taffy trots into the room and he’s taking the blame on himself. Elias and Luca enter the room before I get the chance to reassure Taffy her kidnapping was not his fault.
“Luca and I are going to the Ministry,” Elias announces.
“Alright,” Randy nods, “Klaus is going with you?”
Luca shook his head, “Klaus is going to start investigating with the two of you.”
I nod, out of the three of us Klaus will be our impartial voice in case we get too emotional. I guess he already knew Arrius was the likely perpetrator who has taken my wife. All I can do is hope we find out where he has taken her before he does something to her. What I didn’t know is that I would nearly be too late.
Klaus has had no choice but to report her kidnapping to his superiors at the Ministry as the magical residue left behind at Klaus’ house belongs to Arrius. I see disappointment ignited in Randy’s eyes but deep within me all I feel is anxiety and guilt. She’s in danger…all because of me and one very stupid mistake.
I’m briefed by Klaus on all the leads the Ministry has in tracking down Arrius and I’m told this is the first time he has acted this violent. Apparently, Asana is his first hostage but known the atrocities he has committed I’m starting to wonder if I’m ever going to see her smile again. Klaus continues to speak as I trail off but soon I feel a hard whack on the top of my head.
“Ouch!” I look up, “Stop hitting me on the head!” I protest.
“Listen when someone is talking to you,” Klaus returns with a sharp glare in his icy violet eyes and then sighs.
I sigh too and after a moment I apologise, “I’m sorry. All I can think about is Asana.”
“What’s better than spacing out is helping us gather as much intelligence as we can,” Klaus retorts with that trademark brutal honesty, “Sitting around and worrying about her is not helping to get her back alive, is it?”
He’s right. I’m pathetic. I look down at the ground silently and with a sadness in my eyes produced by my own guilt. I sigh again…, “You’re right,” I agree with him, “Arrius,” I mutter his name.
“Clearly, he has a grudge against you,” Klaus acknowledges, “I’m guessing because of what happened to Randy?”
I begin to explain to Klaus what happened between Arrius and I.
“Arrius is Randy’s younger cousin from his mother’s side,” I explain and feel that familiar sense of guilt, “…After Randy’s accident, I went to his family and vowed to find a way to free him from his petrification. While his family never blamed me for the accident, Arrius felt differently. Randy’s mother had taken Arrius in since her sister was unable to care for him due to her failing health and his troubled behaviour, so I guess he looked to Randy as more of a big brother than a cousin.”
As I explain, I remember the pain in his red eyes, but I continue.
“…Arrius was angry and blamed me for taking Randy away. He hated me and vowed he would find a way to free Randy himself since he didn’t trust I would keep my promise or I would make a difficult situation even more painful by making another mistake. I tried several times to speak to him but each time I made him angrier, coupled with each passing day, eventually month and evidently years, Randy remained inside that stone.”
“So, he blamed you?” Klaus confirmed.
I nod, “…A lot of people did,” I say, “I even blamed me.”
“He fell into darkness consumed by grief and hatred?” Klaus asked.
I nod again, “Seems so,” with my head down, I look back to Klaus, “…Not too long after he had lost Randy, his mother passed away too. When I last saw Arrius, he had committed all sorts of crimes and had resorted to finding a solution to free Randy and bring back his mother by using forbidden magic. Of course, he failed. Now, he just wants to take out all his anger out on me. Last time I had seen him, Arrius promised he’d make me suffer in the way I had made him suffer.”
“Does he know Randy is free?” Klaus asked.
“Yeah,” I reply, “I told Randy about Arrius and he tracked him down. However, Arrius attacked him saying that Randy is made of my pathetic magic and he’s still petrified in stone. He even attacked Randy using magic because he didn’t believe he was alive.”
“I see,” Klaus understands, “Do you think he might petrify Asana?”
Hearing his suggestion, a fear wells up deep inside of me. He…wouldn’t do that? I question but in my heart, I think Klaus might be right. I feel sorry for him but taking Asana and ruining her life to make me suffer is cruel, as is the lives he has stolen along the way to cure his pain. I understand why Randy says he needs to be stopped.
“…He can’t,” there’s a sudden rush of anger which rises within me, “I won’t let him! Not to her.”
There’s a knock on Klaus’ door and I see Randy open the door along with Elias and Luca holding cups of coffee and a black tea for Klaus. We’ve all been up and have since moved from the Goldstein Estate to the Ministry to find her. We’re going to start with the florist again and talk to people Arrius had used to deliver her threat letters. Randy and I begin to find traces of Arrius’ movements using intelligence from his past crimes and talking to prisoners who had done work for him.
After a long and tireless night and day, we grab some food but I’m far from hungry. All I can think about is Asana and hoping I’m going to be able to hear her sweet voice again. I’m holding onto hope because I can feel her presence, I can feel her energy and spirit is still with me. We eat as we continue our investigations. What we’ve learnt so far is he has travelled extensively across the country using a potion to transform his appearance and the people who had delivered Asana these threatening letters was in fact Arrius disguised.
“He’s a good actor to have played several different personalities,” Luca comments.
“So, each time Asana was threatened it was him,” Randy must be finding this incredible to believe, “How did he find out about her movements and where she would be?”
Suddenly, I remember there was a research assistant at her lab who had suddenly stopped showing up to work. This was one month before she started to receive threatening letters. She would often comment on how he lived nearby and how she would run into him while grocery shopping or walking our dogs through the park. Sometimes he’d stay back and help her with rounds, showing enthusiasm as an upcoming magical creature research.
“…That makes sense,” I mutter, “One month before she started to receive threatening letters, there was a research assistant who would always hang around her both at work and outside of work. I found it odd but she kept telling me he was a nice young kid eager to learn. I should have followed my instincts,” I’m suddenly kicking myself for not realising this, “After he suddenly left, she started to receive threatening letters.”
“Did he have a name?” Klaus asked.
“Osric Walden,” I remember his name because every time she spoke highly of him I got a little jealous.
Elias got his brother’s glare and as he swallowed some food responded, “I’ll look into it right away,” he said and left the group to research whatever he could find on the name.
“Luca, I want you to roll through every surveillance camera in the city and find these people,” Klaus ordered and handed him a list of names, “As for us, we have a lot of addresses to investigate for clues.”
Elias found his temporary apartment that he had been using and Luca had followed found two of his identities with the cameras following back to his alias Osric’s hideout in an old hut down by the abandoned docks near the sea. We find a horde of black magic books and a wall of photos with Asana’s face and a bunch of random numbers and circles written into notebooks. One tilted, ‘How to summon a basilisk?’. I didn’t know it, but it was the breakthrough we needed to find her.
However, as our investigations enter a second day, I can’t help but to worry. I’m not eating or sleeping or showering as my waking moments are spent trolling through countless articles of evidence and trying to map out where he would go with Asana. Each night, we’re retreating to the Goldstein Estate but I have no time for rest, since my bed is empty without her beside me.
Looking down at my wedding ring, I’m overcome with a mix of emotions – guilt, fear, anger and sadness. I want her home but I wonder if being with me is harming her more than making her safe. I sigh, “…I’ll save you, just wait a little longer okay,” I whisper, my despair showing in my messy hair and the wrinkles of the dark circles under my eyes.
Awakened by the light coming from the library, Klaus watches as Serge combs through the mountain of notebooks they had collected as evidence from the hut by the docks. As he watches with worry, Randy emerges from his guest room too, “He’s still going, huh?” he whispers as he asks.
“Has he even slept?” Klaus tosses another question back at Randy.
Shaking his head, Randy shares his worry, “He’s always been…positive…but deep down he takes on his emotions alone. I think he blames himself for everything that happened to me but as much as I tell him we’re both to blame, he never accepts it. I lost time but he did too,” Randy sighs, “…Mom told me how ridiculed he was at school and how he just…vanished. Knowing he spent all these years trying to find a way to free me, sacrificing his own time in return makes me feel guilty.”
Klaus thought about how he was likely responsible for it and had apologised but he realised maybe his apology was nothing compared to the emotional damage he had caused Serge. As much as he annoyed Klaus, he knew Serge or Asana didn’t deserve what they’re facing now.
“…Well, if he doesn’t rest or eat I doubt he will have the energy he needs to fight Arrius,” Klaus said, “Look at him.”
Randy chuckled, “If it were my wife, I wouldn’t be resting either.”
“I get that but he’s just going to be more trouble if he doesn’t rest.”
“I get it,” Randy laughed, “You’re worried about him yet you’ve always said he’s not your friend. Sounds like friendship to me.”
Klaus glared at him, “Think what you want to but we are not friends.”
“That’s exactly what a good friend would say.”
“I want to find Asana so they can leave this estate and go back to their house.”
“Not because you want her to be safe and Serge to stop falling off the wheels as he is?”
“No!” Klaus’ violet glare became sharper.
Randy laughed at Klaus’ glare and escaped by stepping into the library and sitting opposite Serge.
As I read through these stacks of books, Randy decides to open one up too. I don’t mind, the more eyes I have to read through these, the quicker clues can be found. I don’t say a word and continue to read through numbers and words that make no sense to me. I open the notebook that was meant for taking down notes on how to summon a basilisk using a magic circle. It’s not the design Randy and I had used all those years ago but a rather complex one requiring some powerful magic.
I see a symbol used in ancient language to mean ‘control’ and I’m immediately confused but read the note Arrius had written down. His handwriting his cursive and messy that it is hard to comprehend in the dim light but I make out that this circle I’m looking at is a dark magic theory to perform a ritual to control the magical creature. I feel the blood drain from my face as it says it requires a sacrifice. Does he plan to perform such a complex spell using her as his sacrifice?
As I turn the page, using my thumb to bookmark the page I was reading, I notice on the other side some numbers. My eyes are red and sore but I immediately recognise them as coordinates. As I turn to the map and begin to trace the location, I can sense Randy’s eyes on me as he leans over my shoulder.
“Coordinates?” he guesses the same as I have.
“Uh-huh,” I nod and find a suitable location, “Check this out.”
I urge him over and can feel Klaus next to me too as he takes interest in this development. I’m not familiar with the destination but according to the map, it is an isolated and dense forest far away from the city.
“According to this, there’s nothing but forest for miles around,” Randy says, “Why here?”
“Because, he’s in a location out of the eyes of witnesses,” Klaus said.
At this point, I don’t care why he chose this place, though it’s obvious why he did. All I care about is bringing my wife home. Time may have run out but if she’s still flesh and bone or petrified stone, she’ll be with me, where she belongs.
I stand up to leave, with the strongest sense that these coordinates will lead me straight to her, “We’ve got to go,” I say but Klaus steps in my way, wearing his usual harsh expression with his arms folded across his chest.
“Are you stupid?” he rhetorically questions my desperation to leave, “We are not one hundred percent sure this is where he has taken her. In the scenario, our presumed location is wrong, we would travel half way across the country without any certainty we are going in the right direction.”
I know his words are wise but this place is pulling me there and I plead my case, “She’s there. I know it because I feel it,” I argue.
“Serge,” this time I hear Randy from behind me, with a gentler expression and tone than Klaus, “You’re emotional right now to think logically. I agree with Klaus,” he says and continues, “I know you are desperate to get her back, we all are, but jumping to a destination without nothing more than an emotional response is too uncertain. Why don’t we have some wizards in the area fly over the forest and see if they can spot suspicious activity?”
I rarely become angry but I can feel this is the place but being roadblocked by my friends leads me to erupt, “Then what, Randy! They fly over while we’re here and she’s being turned to stone! I can’t let that happen! She doesn’t deserve something this cruel because of me! I just can’t sit here and gamble her life when I know this is the spot!” Before I’ve even stopped, I’ve stormed out of the room.
In my blood, I can feel the anger boiling within me. I’m angry at myself for letting her become a victim because of my past. I change my clothes and look to Taffy and give him a smile, “Don’t worry Taffy. I will bring her home, no matter what,” it’s a promise I make in my heart to her.
I pack some magic supplies and then I leave. Never imaging I would ever again use attacking magic.
Klaus ordered Elias and Luca to stay at the estate and continue to comb through the notebooks for other clues or other locations. Randy kept urging me to turn back to the estate but I’m not in the mind to listen. Every emotion I’m feeling is rising up within me and I can’t waste any more time simply sitting at a desk trying to get into Arrius’ head.
Using a teleportation spell, we arrive at a small town outside the forest and waste no time in flying over the dense forest to find her. I pull out an invention of mine to find a person lost in the forest and it leads me straight to her and right on time.
“Serge,” while flying, I hear Arrius behind me and this time he left the mask off, “I was waiting for you. You’re just in time for the show,” with a wave of his wand, a powerful force knocks me to the ground.
I draw out my own and immediately demand him to let Asana go, “Let her go!”
He chuckles at me, “Or what? The great Serge Durandal is not quite as strong as he used to be. That’s the word on the street these days.”
“I made a vow a long time ago to never use attacking magic,” I explain, “However, today I’m willing to make an exception.”
“But you weren’t when Randy was turned to stone from a creature you summoned,” he retorts and taunts to me the past.
I observe my surroundings and realise there’s a clearing up ahead and I can smell the same smell the day the basilisk came. “Asana!” I yell to her, “Keep your eyes closed!”
However, Arrius laughs at me, “That won’t do,” he laughs, “It’s such a shame a beautiful woman as her ever became involved with you. She infuriated me when she defended you, saying you adopted Randy’s name and never gave up looking for a way to free him. In the end, you met your goal, but his family suffered too. So, I forced a potion down her throat to make sure she’s wide awake without a blink.”
I hear a loud roar and throw Arrius off guard by attacking with a spell, “Mirum!” In my mind, I’ve visualised razor sharp winds but use the Latin word for surprise to conceal my attack. As a result, Arrius is sent flying backwards with some cuts to his arms and legs and his clothes are torn.
With this distraction, I run towards Asana. On the way, other serpents slither towards me. They aren’t basilisks but another snake like creature born of dark magic. They suck the blood from a person’s body until they are drained but they are easily defeated with fire. As I run, I use my wand to set them on fire because time is of the essence as that basilisk nears.
Leaving the forest of trees behind me, I run out into a clearing with a perfect view of the cloudy sky above. In the centre of the magic circle is Asana, she’s wrapped up by a demon serpent, known as Lycernas. I realise she is not in a conscious state of mind as her body is wrapped up and laid in the centre of the circle.
Dark slime oozes from the magic circle and I can feel the rumbling of the earth. It’s getting closer and closer and if I don’t get to her soon, she will be another victim to its petrifying eyes or its deadly fangs. She’s unconscious as I approach her and carry her body out of the circle. With what little time I have left before that creature arrives, I use my magic to relieve her of the potion he had forced her to drink and close her eyes.
“I’m not going to let you become stone,” I declare and close my eyes as I feel the basilisk come to the surface.
Arrius stumbles into the clearing but with my eyes closed, I can’t see him. All I hear is his loud scream and then silence. I don’t know what’s happened to Arrius but all I can do is keep still to avoid my sounds being heard by its ears.
Carefully, I reach for my bag where I had prepacked Weasel Odour, a potion made from the animal’s stench that is fatal to the giant snake. First, I need to distract him and cast a spell in the other direction of the forest. As it investigates, Klaus and Randy appear and slowly hover down to my level and are careful not to make a noise to attract it’s attention.
Klaus and Randy protect Asana as I carefully uncap the bottle and wait for the creature to turn around. Randy and Klaus use their magic to engulf the basilisk’s line of sight with an abundance of light where I can direct throwing the bottle of Weasel Odour into its gaping mouth and lastly ignite it with flames.
With a loud screech, which echoes through the forest, fire rips through the serpent and the stench of the Odour fragrances the flames. Like fragments, the creature’s skin dissolves and burns from the inside out and continues to burn as its remains linger on the forest floor.
I turn my back on it and check Asana over, “She’s breathing, right?” I ask, placing my hand gently on top of her lungs and can feel the slight rise and fall of her chest. I breathe a sigh of relief, “Thank god, she’s alive,” I whisper.
Klaus stands up and I see him standing over the burning body of the basilisk while Randy turns to his cousin. His eyes are consumed with sadness because the basilisk had not petrified him but injected its deadly poison through its powerful bite.
“I’m sorry Randy,” I apologise, feeling like I again have caused him pain.
Randy stays silent for a moment and I can sense the sadness in his voice, “…It’s not your fault, Serge. How many times do I have to tell you?” he gives me a half-hearted smile, “…I’m sorry he had to feel so much pain and fell into the darkness. It’s the hardest truth of magic.”
Silence falls between us. There’s no celebration to have but the silver lining is Asana is alive. I hold her in my arms, as the fire of the basilisk continues to burn with Klaus and Randy making sure the flames don’t engulf the entire forest. As they do this, we wait for the Ministry to come to our assistance.
“Mm,” as we wait, I hear Asana groan as she wakes up.
At the hospital, she was diagnosed with dark magic contamination and treated for promptly, leaving her in hospital for another week. Each day, I tend to her every need until she is strong enough and in the best state of mind to be told what had happened during those few days she was unconscious and nearly turned into stone.
I blame myself but she quickly shakes her head and takes my hand in hers, “Look at me,” she demands, and I raise my sulking eyes to peer into her round and shining eyes as her health makes her look radiant once again, “This is not your fault and neither was what happened to Randy.”
“I made the mistake, Asana,” I say, “It’s my fault Randy and his family got hurt and it’s my fault you were hurt too.”
“But you saved Randy and you saved me,” she sits up and leans into me, “I’m always safe when I’m with you,” she nuzzles into me and her warmth rapidly makes me feel better but I think it’s going to take some time for my scars to heal. I just hope she doesn’t get anymore because of me.
Her hair smells like sweet strawberries and that familiarity prompts me to wrap my arms around her and embrace her closely, “If you ever receive threatening letters again, don’t ever hide it from me again,” I say and give a nibble on her ear.
“I promise I won’t,” she giggles and relaxes in my arms, “I love you.”
“I love you too,” those words I say from the deepest parts of heart and realise how close I came to say goodbye to her. I think she understands to because our lips come together and we share a gentle kiss.