Chapter Sixteen: Seduction
"Death," Vincent repeated in a whisper, his voice barely audible. Slowly, the man gently crept to Arnia's side, much to her delight, and curiosity slowly began to gain on him. He was far from feeling fear, yet a strange, indecisive feeling loomed over him.Leaning toward the woman, he continued, inquiring, "Tell me, what else does it say?"
Licking her lower lip, the shrine keeper fueled the room's daunting silence as she failed to draw words. Her thin eyes scanned the scroll carefully, and her index finger guided each word that met her gaze.
"I'm not completely sure... It seems to be a riddle," she said, touching his shoulder. The two exchanged glances, and the woman's eyes offered a reassuring feel. "Don't worry, Vincent, I'll find some way to get more answers. But," she sighed, "this is all I have now."
Looking to the hand placed upon his shoulder, Vincent complied with a nod. "Thank you," he answered softly. "Maybe I should tell Miyo about this... It might concern her..." Meticulously, he began to walk away, turning his back to Arnia.
"Wait!" she retorted, pulling Vincent toward her. "I know that you want to tell her, but what do you think she could do? She doesn't know much about this, and I may be the only one that could help you. You want to protect her, don't you?"
Suddenly, a timid Miyo appeared as she walked into the building holding up some tea. "I saw a teapot in a small building just outside with a stove. I already had some herbs, so I made a beverage. It's honey mandarin flower tea," she explained tentatively, smiling and looking down at it. "I thought you two might like it."
Vincent looked down at the stone tiling and thought about Arnia's words. "If anything were to happen to her, I... I don't know what I would do," he thought, gazing up at the young woman. "I want to protect her. More than anything."
The man nodded and gently took the tea from the young woman. "Thank you, Miyo," he said to her softly. "I'm sure it tastes great." He was silent and then offered her a pleasant expression.
Softly smiling, the woman caught a sampling of Vincent's contagious presence, and with emotions heightening, her face blushed a light pink. "It does," she simply replied, failing to draw any other words. Supplying a cup to Arnia as well, Miyo's constant grin remained as she extended her gracious gesture. "Here, I'm sure that you'll like it, too."
Masking her hidden resentment, the shrine keeper allowed a feign smile on her face, and like a clever fox, she replied to Miyo, "I've had it before, didn't care for it. Sorry. Now, if you will excuse us, we haven't finished our discussion." The woman's shrill words were bitter to Miyo's ears.
The Turk glanced over his shoulder at Arnia, sensing a hint of the churlish nature within her. The malice she harbored was almost obvious, and Vincent questioned if dealing with her hatred for Miyo was truly worth it. He was torn at the heart, but the drive to return to Gaia was too prominent to ignore.
Turning his attention to the young woman, he gently placed a hand on her shoulder and nodded in reassurance; his eyes were genuine. "I guess she's right," he replied. "You go on, and I'll catch up later. Don't worry about me, alright?"
"Are you sure?" Miyo replied, moving closer to him; her presence was warm and vibrant. "I'm not sure I like the sound of all of this. It seems so secretive, what's going on?"
"There's nothing to really worry about, Miyo," Arnia replied, attempting to suppress her annoyance behind the depleting smile on her face. "I was just telling Vincent about what I read."
"I'll be fine," the Turk added in a soft tone, setting his cup of tea down on the desk. He placed his other hand on the young woman's opposite shoulder. "You know I can watch out for myself. Besides, I doubt anything could harm me. Arnia and I will figure all of this out."
Lowering her gaze to the ground, the young woman released a sigh. She was reluctant to leave the man with Arnia, and with her wicked tongue, she was certain to corrupt him. Averting her gaze from the shrine keeper, she stared deeply into the Turk's crimson eyes. "Vincent..." she murmured softly, her voice trailing off.
"Trust me, Miyo," he continued in a whisper. He placed a hand under her chin and he presented her with a meaningful smile.
The young woman's face blushed with radiant color, and with an innocent smile upon her face, she offered a quick nod, responding, "Alright Vincent, I'll be in the other building with Kohana. Just tell me what you need, and I'll bring it to you."
Gentleness was evident in Vincent's eyes as he smiled and offered an affirmative nod. His vision met with the blossom the woman had previously placed in her hair; its fragrance was pleasant to his sense of smell.
"Alright," the Turk finally complied, watching the young woman walk in the opposite direction toward the door. With his stomach fluttering with lingering emotions of blithe delight, he sighed while looking to Arnia. It had been ages since he had experienced such bliss, but his determination to return home was strong as well. Clearing his throat, his attention was brought back to the conversation.
"Arnia," the man shot, gaining her undivided attention, "we need to find something with some relevance to this scroll. Any ideas?"
The shrine keeper gave a warm smile to Vincent, and reigniting the content coy she played, she firmly replied, "I've yet to see a scroll related to this one, but I'm sure that there's something here."
Reading the rest of the same scroll aloud, she recited, "There's something about a dark energy that is consumed by light destined to warn the soldier of coming tides." Lips pursed, her gaze fell to Vincent, and almost timidly, she asked, "What do you think that means?"
Silence took Vincent, and with his eyes lowered to the ground, he remained speechless as his mind attempted to conjure even the faintest of ideas. He placed a gloved hand beneath his chin while his body pressed against the wall of the room. "It sounds familiar," he murmured, crossing his arms. For what seemed like hours, silence engulfed him before he spoke once more.
"Could it be?" the Turk continued, speaking his thoughts aloud. "Maybe it's a reference to the hooded figure that was telling me about the danger ahead, the one who asked you about me. I wonder how I could find him..."
Raveling the scroll, the woman shrugged and sighed. "If you're destined to, you're destined to. A scroll doesn't have to tell you that," she replied, bringing her body closer to Vincent's. "If this danger is real, I'm sure that you'll need someone to protect you."
He shook his head in disapproval. "No, I can protect myself," he assured, placing a hand on Cerberus. For a split second, his eyes exchanged glances with Arnia before he turned his head away in dismay. "Every time someone offers to help me, they wind up getting hurt or killed. I can't allow that to happen."
The man released a deep sigh, adding, "Besides, I used to be a Turk, and I've been trained to use this gun properly and offensively. And with Jenova energy inside of me, I can overcome anything."
With her intentions nearly emerging, Arnia lightly touched Vincent's chin in an attempt to turn his face to hers once more. "A Turk?" she asked softly, a seductive smile blossomed upon her face. "Jenova energy? Where do you come from?"
Chapter Seventeen: COMING SOON > >
