Chapter 54: A mother's care

Elias:

I help clean the waste from the river until the morning. After which, I go back home. Sorix gave me a lot to think on. Do I pass up the chance, to speak with my mother one last time? Will Sorix hurt her, by summoning her?

I sleep the day away. When night falls, I go about my routine, as if it is morning. I go to the living room, to see Sorix on the couch, with a book in his hands.

"Who let you in?" I ask, my hand going towards my dagger.

"You were so tired last night, that you didn't even lock your door. Norrix told me where you live, when you are not boarding at the inn. Nice house, by the way. It took me only fifteen minutes to climb up," I wonder why he didn't just turn himself into miasma, and came to my house that way.

"I mean you no harm," he says, as he places the book down on the coffee table. I still grip my dagger, though. Not that I think it will be of any use, but the cool metal is a reassuring presence for me.

"Did you think about my proposal?" He asks me. I nod. From the moment he made it, my mind was entertaining one possibility, after the other. "And what is your answer?"

"Will the summoning hurt my mother?" I ask. She died peacefully, in her sleep. I don't want for her to experience pain now, that she is dead.

"No. It might annoy her, considering it will be me who does it. Spirits don't take it well, when someone uses their husks. Still, for the good of the party, I will endure a couple of insults," he stares at me, and I go to the couch. As I sit opposite him, on a plush chair, he takes out a crystal, which hangs from a chain around his neck.

"Now, I'd rather if this stayed a secret," he says, as he places the crystal down. "If people learn that I can speak to the dead, I will be mobbed with requests."

A part of me wants to tell him that I don't care about his comfort, or lack of. Yet, I don't want for him to give up on summoning my mother.

"If it gets out, it won't be from me," I say. Sorix nods then, and pours mana into his crystal.

"Now, you need to hold it. Think about the spirit you wish to speak to," the Dread Lord hands me the crystal. It is warm, pleasantly so. I focus on the spirit of my mother. Soon, there is white smoke in her shape.

"Eli? What have you done now?" My mother, Arianne, asks. Yet, despite her scolding tone, I can't help but smile. Sorix stands up then, and pats his knees.

"Well, I will let you catch up. You'll find me in the kitchen," with this, he walks away. Mom looks after him. Then, she whips around, to glare at me.

"A Dread Lord? Really, Eli?" I figure out what she means by those words, and am quick to clarify.

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"We are not together. In fact, I am not together with anyone. Although..." I let my words trail off. We did hit it off quite well, Norrix and I. Yet, I have been snappy at him ever since Sorix became a part of the party.

"Although? Spill the beans, sonny, or I will pass through you, and give you the worst cold sensation you have ever felt!" Ah, this is the Arianne I know and love. My mom was always the no nonsense type.

"There is this vampire whom I like. But I think that he wants to stay friends," my mother groans.

"Really, Eli? You believe that a vampire is a good choice?" She asks me. I shrug.

"Better than the alternatives. Do you remember that one time when you tried to hook me up with the town's number one prankster? I had green hair for days after that!" At the reminder, my mother winces. "But this is not why I called you."

"And why did you use such a dark ritual, Eli?" Mom asks.

"How many people die to Ajax the Bold's flames? Do you know?" I ask her. If there is a gossip mill in the afterlife, then mom is its new ringleader.

"Too many to count. He flies from a country to a country. Just about anything can set him off. I hope someone does him in," she folds her arms over her chest.

"Do you think that it will be ok, if I turn a blind eye to the fact that your remains were unearthed? To bag Ajax?" I ask her. If I get a green light from her, I can maybe set aside my bitterness.

"Do you honestly think I care about that? So, what, if my body shambled around. It is not like my spirit was forced to return to it. Eli, you shouldn't hold grudges like that. Now, I don't have all that much time left, so I will tell you something. There is a safe hidden under the floorboards in my room. In it, you will find a holy sword. Now, I might have told you to forget and forgive, but you should still have a means to kill necromancers," she says, and then fades away.

I go into the kitchen, and look around. Sorix is rummaging in the cupboards. I clear my throat.

"Thank you," maybe my conversation with mom wasn't as emotional as I thought it will be, but I still got to see her. That is always a good thing.

"Hey, anytime. If you want to speak with other relatives, I can arrange it. Now, hand me over the crystal," Sorix holds up his hand. With great reluctance, I place the crystal in his hand. "Can I use your kitchen? I will pay you for the ingredients."

I nod, not really caring if he makes a mess. As I leave him in the kitchen, my mind goes back to the safe in mom's room. I must be able to protect myself. Even if this new and improved Sorix is calm and friendly. 

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