Chapter 275: When The Past Finds You
"ISADORA! Where is that forsaken girl? ISADORA!" A woman’s voice shook the entire household, demanding and urgent.
"Do you have to shout, mamma?" twelve-winter-old Riven groaned, trying to focus on his swordplay. He eagerly swung his wooden sword like a ten-foot beast was before him.
"Yes, I must, where is your sister?!"
He recoiled and turned towards his mamma with a scowl. "Please don’t call her that. And how should I know?"
"She has chores to do, now she has gone off to gods’ knows where. I’m already burdened by the fact she’s a lost cause." She paced, unsettled. Her mind grew apprehensive, and the wrinkles sprouting from her delicate features she’d hone to perfection. "The entire village already sees us as people out of touch with society. What if they see that good-for-nothing girl and discover why our life is in so much ruin?!"
Twelve-winter-old Rune watched the display, already feeling a silent irritation growing within him. They always spoke ill of Isadora, and he never liked it.
"I’ll find her," he offered, already pushing his plate of food aside.
"Of course, you would," Riven snorted.
Rune ignored his brother’s distaste.
Their mamma huffed and walked out mumbling a string of curses in her wake, blaming the gods for cursing her with such a life.
Rune dropped his napkin and rose to leave, but Riven’s words stopped him. "You really shouldn’t try so much, brother."
"Try so much for what?" Rune asked, acting dumbfounded, but he knew what his brother meant.
Riven sighed before looking over to his brother, who had the same hazel eyes as his and golden brown hair, too. The only thing that set them apart was Rune’s much calmer and softer features.
"You hate her; no need to deny it, you make it easier for her when you show affection."
"Shouldn’t a brother show affection towards his sister?"
"Sister?" Riven said in disgust. "A mannfae like her shouldn’t be called that. She has dirty blood."
Rune never quite understood why Isadora was never considered family. Their mamma gave birth to her, and yet she never treated Isadora like her own.
"Come play with me, brother. I’ll show you some skills, after all, I’m going to be a Riddari one day."
Rune said nothing to him as he scurried outside their house to find Isadora.
She always wandered, but not for long. He was worried something might have happened to her; the rest of the villagers would have gotten to her first if they saw her.
Nowhere’s been safe for Isadora ever since she was born. She only lived under this roof because Mamma couldn’t deal with the embarrassment of society and all the housework.
"ISA!" he called, the birds flying away from his loud voice.
Rune continued to search for Isadora, and the more he did, the greater his fears about her safety were. He wished she had listened to him and always stayed in the house. Merely stepping foot out of the house can give her away.
"IS—" he paused when he spotted a familiar golden blonde hair.
In relief, he hurried his steps towards her. "What are you doing here? I told you never to wander far. What if someone sees you?!"
Six-winter-old Isadora turned to her brother, her pale amber eyes met his hazel ones.
"Sorry," she mumbled.
Rune found her cuddling a cat. Squatting beside her, he noticed it shaking. "Is it okay?"
Isadora shook her head in a no, her melancholy expression showing how much it pained her to see it in pain.
"There’s nothing you can do," Rune said. He didn’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but it was the truth.
Isadora sniffled, feeling heartbroken, and the fading purrs were even more crushing to hear.
"Isa," Rune tried to ease her.
"I-I want to show you something. Will you keep it a secret?"
"What is it?"
"Promise me!"
"Okay, I promise."
Isadora took a deep breath, dropping the cat on the ground, and stretched out her hands. Threads formed on her fingertips and swirled.
"It’s —" Rune couldn’t finish because the most remarkable thing was happening. The cat was twitching, and after what seemed like a moment, it sat up and hustled away.
"You healed it?" Rune couldn’t believe his words. "That’s amazing, Isa!"
"You think so?" she blushed.
"Yes!"
She hugged him tightly, and Rune smiled. However, it faded when his eyes caught Riven lurking behind a tree.
~♧~
Ekko slowly opened his eyes. That wasn’t a dream but a memory that came back to haunt him. It was that very day that everything changed, and also the last time he saw Isadora.
Ekko sat up, swinging his legs off the bed, and walked to the broken mirror on the wooden wall. He stood there as hazel eyes stared right back at him, with golden brown hair, messy and drenched in sweat.
Ekko used the water from the bowl to wash his face and used a towel to wipe, then he grabbed his dark fabric and wrapped it around his face to conceal.
He dressed fully in his attire and stepped out of the cabin, climbing the stairs to the top deck. The sun rose, bringing color to everything, the dark clouds, spreading over it in an orange intensity.
A tall broad figure stood close to the bulwark, a strong smell of smoke carried by the wind.
"Lord Raven," he greeted.
Kraven casually took a drag from a wrapped roll. He took his head backwards and released a cloud of smoke.
"What’s the matter, Ekko, does sleep not find you?" he asked in a deep masculine voice.
Ekko gulped. They have been sailing for Skull Island for a month, and not once have he had a good sleep. The memories of the past haunted him like a shadow.
"It’s my turn to be on the lookout, so I came early."
"It’s Nyssa’s turn, not yours." He stretched his hand for Ekko to take the roll. "Try it, it’s good flavor."
Ekko grabbed the roll and took a small drag.
"Found it on some passed-out pirate."
He choked and coughed heavily.
"Good shit, isn’t it?" Kraven cackled.