Azra's Thoughts

Ian nodded and looked at Azra " You should help Dakran. I will wake up Iris and the others." He said, handing the reins to the horse to Azra.

Azra nodded " Yes, fa...Ian," he stammered a little, and Ian smiled and nodded.

Dakran frowned at the little exchange and, for a moment, wondered why Ian had put aside all their differences. He felt a little uneasy as if something was wrong.

" You can let go of the reins. The horses won't go anywhere as long as the gates remain closed." Dakran said, and Azra let go of the reins " Come. Follow me." He waved Azra, and he followed like an obedient little dog.

Walking inside the castle through the corridors leading to the armoury, " I see that Ian has had a change of heart," Dakran casually commented, looking ahead, giving Azra sideways glances here and there as they walked.

Azra took a deep breath " Yes, it appears that way. I don't know what to think of it. On one hand, I'm happy that he is willing to work things out. On the other hand, I wonder if he has ulterior motives." Arza confessed and followed Dakran into the armoury.

" I don't think he has other motives. He had had his fair share of hardship to deal with, and now that the sword is gone. He speaks and behaves nothing like the man I met when I walked through those gates." Dakran picked up a few bags and the swords. He handed the swords to Azra, who stumbled backwards under the heavy load. Dakran chuckled " We should have trained you. You won't fare very well on the journey." Dakran said and reached to Azra to take the swords.

Azra stiffened " Don't touch me," He warned, and Dakran pulled his hand away. He'd forgotten about the warning.

" I'm sorry. It slipped my mind," Dakran gingerly took a step back.

Azra's gaze went downcast, and he hugged the swords to his chest. "It's all right. I wish I could forget, but then again, people would die innocent people," he grew wistful and looked like he could use a pat on the back or a hug. Dak looked around the armoury, and his eyes fell on some reddish gloves. He dropped the bags, picked up the gloves, sliding them over his hands returned to Azra, and patted the young man on the back. He knew it was risky, but he guessed that only skin-to-skin contact would trigger Azra, and if he were wrong, he would be short of a good chunk of his soul or none left.

Azra flinched and turned fearful, making Dakran chuckle. Honestly, he thought. He could kill someone with one single touch, and he was the one afraid. By all the unholy things living in the shadows, these people were strange.

Azra gave Dakran a questioning look " Gloves", he waved his hands at Azra " I guessed that you could suck my soul only if you touch bare skin. And look at that " He raised his hands, palms facing up " I was right," He exclaimed with a satisfied smile on his face.

" Are there more?" Azra curiously asked, his blue eyes piercing into his soul. " Yes, just a few more. I'm guessing that you want to hold your mother," He hazarded a guess. Azra hadn't spoken much, and he kept to himself. He rarely came out of his room, and it was understandable given what he could do.

Azra nodded, and Dakran picked up the rest of the gloves and shoved them in his pocket " There is a lot more to take, and the sun will rise soon," He picked up the bags and walked out of the armoury with Arza closely following, struggling to keep up, trying to balance the heap of swords in arms.

" So, what are you going to do about Ian?" Dakran asked over his shoulder.

Azra shrugged " Many things have been said and done. I know I have been created to serve a purpose. I still don't know what that is, but if I have to guess, nothing good. Seth had his plans." Dakran suddenly halted his steps, and Azra crashed into him, dropping the swords with a loud clatter.

" Plans? What plans?" Dakran grew worried; this didn't come up in the conversations that they'd had, or he never told anyone.

Azra froze and stared at Dakran with a look that said 'Oops' " I-I-I..." Azra stammered and fell silent, and Dakran rolled his eyes.

" I see flashes of images. I think they are memories. I don't know who they belong to. It could be Bastos, or it could be Seth. Mother said that she doesn't recognise any of it. I'm guessing that it was before she was born, or maybe they were his plans. And I don't know who....who else to ask," He looked lost, afraid.

" It's alright." Dakran backtracked and took a deep breath " You don't need to be afraid. We will figure things out. Maybe Pelham can help. You can come with me to the North, and I'm sure we will eventually figure things out," He was calm, his voice toned down, almost pitying the boy.

" Now, let's go. I will have plenty of time to talk on the journey. There is a long way to go to reach the northern border, and we will have plenty of time to talk." Dakran said and picked the last bag off the floor. Getting ready was taking longer than he predicted. Daylight was breaking, and they were nowhere near being ready to leave.