176 Identity (1/2)

It was the weapon that Luca used to stab Edo in his lower back that caught my interest other than the act itself.

The part of it I could see sticking out of Edo was a shadowblade with a distinctly wavy edge. I'd seen something similar before. It was a kris dagger, a weapon commonly used in arcane rituals.

I'd never seen Luca use a dagger before much less use one preferred by fairy magicians. That was my first clue.

Luca pulled out the kris from Edo's back and jumped away just as Edo launched a sweeping swipe of his glaive at my brother.

I noticed then that Edo hadn't used his usual deadly power in that last attack. Whether it was because he was worried about hurting Luca or because his movements had gone sluggish, I wasn't sure. It might have been the latter.

Aurana rushed to Edo's side but he waved her away with a hand while his other hand gripped tightly onto the glaive which was helping to keep him upright.

At the same time, Ashley positioned herself right in front of Aurana. Her shield faced forward and aimed at my little brother.

The only one who hadn't moved a muscle was me.

Even Luca had made preparations. He'd thrown his broadsword to the floor and pulled out a second kris from the bag of holding I had him carry all the time. Not a dagger like the one in his left hand, but a three-foot-long wavy shadowblade that might as well have been a sword.

\”Luca! What the hell are you doing!\” Ashley screamed.

My little brother remained silent. But that smile which distorted his features unnerved me. Luca would never show off that sort of malice. This was my second clue.

\”He's not Luca,\” I said in a voice that was barely a whisper.

But everyone heard me because they all turned my way.

Even Edo who was struggling to stand looked over his shoulder so he could see me and ask, \”How do you know?\”

I didn't. Not for sure. I tried with Fool's Insight, but no insight came to me. Whatever and whoever it was who'd taken Luca's place had done it perfectly. By all accounts, my brother had just betrayed us to our unseen enemy, and this more than anything else was something I couldn't believe.

Why did I have so much faith in Luca, you ask? Couldn't it be possible that all the time spent in the Fayne, all the darkness he'd witness, all the death he'd cause had finally made him snap and sent him plunging down to the dark side? Sure, that would have been possible—for me, but not for Luca.

I may exude confidence and optimism like a toddler, but Luca was moody to begin with. The kid suffered from anxiety issues, after all. And that's how I knew he'd never go darker. Luca was constantly second-guessing himself and at war with the dark thoughts in his mind, and every time this happened, he came out winning.

\”It's not Luca,\” I insisted while pointing my falchion forward in a decisive manner.

\”Are you sure about that, Dean?\” Luca asked.

It was his voice but distorted somehow. Like something creepy was speaking from within the skin of Luca.

\”I am going to hurt you very badly for this emotional cluster f**k you're putting me through,\” I growled. I tightened my sword hand's grip on my falchion. \”What did you do with the real Luca?\”

\”B-but I am Luca, Dean!\” he said in a voice filled with regret and worry. But that sudden change was temporary as he reverted back to the twisted version of Luca. \”he-he-he-he…\”

By Idunn's light, that bastard was laughing like that damn clown from that creepy movie with all the kids fighting against it. It was also the movie that gave Luca nightmares back when we first saw it.

\”How do you have my brother's memories?\” I asked it.

\”Um, maybe because he is Luca?\” Ashley suggested.

\”He's not,\” I reiterated.

\”How are you so sure, Dean?\” Ashley countered.

\”Same way I'd know if someone was impersonating you, Ash… My gut,\” I reasoned.

Ashley visibly went red in the cheeks. Why? I didn't know. But she did come with a counter of, \”Your gut? I would have believed you more if you said your eyes were sure, idiot!\”

\”Well my sight isn't being really helpful right now,\” I reasoned right before I took a step forward.

I noticed fake Luca stepping forward toward Ashley who was still shielding Aura behind her.

It was at this moment when Edo dropped to his knees. His glaive fell off his limp hand as the rest of him threatened to topple over.

\”Edo!\” Aurana screamed.

\”Poison!\” Ashley yelled.

\”Do your shieldmaiden thing then!\” I ordered. \”Heal him!\”

\”I didn't bring my healing tools, Dean!\” she countered.

\”You didn't bring your most important tool during a stakeout?\” I asked incredulously.

\”My most important tools are my sword and my shield… I'm a shieldmaiden, not Florence freaking Nightingale,\” she shot back.

Ashley was referring to the celebrated British nurse from the old, old days. It was a pretty good comparison considering that shieldmaiden acted as healers and protectors of the less fortunate here in the Fayne.

\”Dean… my body will work through the poison on its own… you better deal with this imposter by… the time I wake up,\” Edo said right before he collapsed face-first on the floor.

\”Edo!\” Aurana yelled again.

She tried brushing past Ashley but the other girl held her back.

\”Cool your jets, princess!\” she ordered. \”Your bodyguard is made of sturdier stuff to fall prey to some pathetic poison.\”

True that. Being half-ogre, Edo actually had a pretty strong resistance to poison. It was one of his many innate talents he didn't like to boast about. Dude hated being bastard. But that's a story for another time.

\”Aura… I'll deal with fake Luca over there… you can use Healing Flame on Edo then,\” I instructed.

Healing Flame, one of the three new spells in Aura's repertoire, and it was a pretty impressive one too.

\”Dean… are you sure about this… about him?\” she asked.