Chapter 29

As soon as Vassillissa was out of sight, Ven let out a sigh of relief. The meeting hadn’t gone how he had expected, he looked at his hand and realized for the first time that he was shaking. This woman wasn’t Vas but at the same time she was Vas, just like how even though he wasn’t Ravendra, he still thought of himself as Ravendra. Could he trust her? Would she keep her word? Could he hurt her if she attacked him? 

He jumped in surprise as his phone beeped. Fumbling with his shaking hands he read the message he had received.

“I would be breaking our promise about you coming back safe if I had you killed, so please stop worrying about that. Anyway, I hope you don’t mind if I message you when I am bored. This peaceful world can be quite uneventful. – V”

She knew about the promise he always made to Vas, ofcourse she did. He thought back to her mannerisms and way of talking, she was just like his Vas in so many ways. As he stood there alone a thought popped in his head, if he killed Ravendra, he could have this woman all to himself. Shocked and repulsed by the idea he had thought of, he pushed it out of his mind. No, this woman wasn’t his Vas. She was a lookalike! Noone could replace his Vas! 

He didn’t want to go and meet Rendall, he didn’t know what he should tell him yet. He needed something else to do, thinking wasn’t helping him. He needed a distraction, badly. Desperate, he pulled out his phone and called the first name on his contact list.

“I am glad you called, I was just about to call you,” said Aaron.

“You’re done?” asked Ven.

“Yes! It wasn’t easy, but I managed to finally get the hang of it. When can you come over to try it on?” asked Aaron.

“I have to meet the Knight Captain later, so I’ll pick it up and leave,” said Ven.

“Sounds great, see you later,” said Aaron as he hung up.

“Want me to lead the way?” asked Vikram in Ven’s earpiece.

“Yes,” said Ven.

“Go straight and then turn left twice. You don’t want to talk about what just happened with Vassillissa?” asked Vikram.

“No, and aren’t there other things you should be prioritizing like telling Ravi about Zacharias’s plan?” asked Ven.

“Keep your voice down when you say those names! You never know if someone is around! I’ve already sent Ravi a copy of the conversation you two had,” said Vikram.

“Quite efficient aren’t you,” said Ven irritably.

 “I may have never been in the simulation, but I’ve watched dozens of different Ravendra’s on their journey. You have no idea how attached I am to Ravendra and Vassillissa! Those two deserved better! They deserved happiness! So, if I am affected by that woman, don’t tell me you aren’t!” said Vikram.

Ven eyes opened in shock, he didn’t realize Vikram felt so strongly about Ravendra and Vassillisa. He wasn’t sure what to say to Vikram. While Vikram knew everything about Ven he knew nothing about Vikram.

“Turn right and just keep walking straight. I am sorry I got emotional there,” said Vikram with a sigh, “You need to talk to someone, it doesn’t have to be me. You could talk to Natalie, you seem to trust her, but please talk to someone,” said Vikram.

“I know the way from here, I’ll talk to you later,” said Ven as he avoided answering Vikram. 

Standing in front of Aaron’s lab, Ven took a moment to get his mind in order, he hated everything in the world at this moment. Life used to be easier and less complicated. It was him, Vas and his friends against the world, he missed those days even though they weren’t real. There it was again, he was thinking. He needed to act, not think. Shaking his head, he knocked on the door and entered without waiting for an answer.

“There he is!” shouted Aaron as he pointed a finger at Ven, “Quickly now, get out of that garbage subpar armour. I want to see how you look in my masterpiece!”

“You’re in a good mood,” remarked Ven.

“You will be too! Now quickly, less talking and more doing!” said Aaron as he gestured towards the pieces of armour neatly hung next to him.

Smiling despite his horrible mood Ven started to take off his helmet and gauntlets. 

“As you can see, I haven’t coloured them yet. I thought I would ask you for your preference before I coloured it,” said Aaron as he waited impatiently.

“It doesn’t have to be azure?” asked Ven as he sat and took off his breastplate.

“While some Knights like the Knight Captain are traditional and continue to use azure, there are plenty of others which use other colours,” said Aaron enthusiastically, “Personally I would prefer if you didn’t pick the traditional colours. I want my baby to stand out for all to see!”

“I actually like this idea of not wearing azure, to be honest I am getting sick of the colour. It’s everywhere! Which colour would you recommend?” asked Ven.

“I would choose orange, it’s wonderfully bright!” exclaimed Aaron.

“Not happening, any other suggestions?” asked Ven as he sat down to take off his greaves.

“If not orange, then how’s about yellow?” asked Aaron.

“Try again,” said Ven.

“Red?” asked Aaron hopefully.

“It would make a nice contrast to azure. I am getting tired of people associating everything about me with His Majesty,” said Ven as he paused to consider.

“Done! You said yes, you’re not allowed to take it back!” shouted Aaron as he turned out and quickly pressed some buttons on the counter where the armour was hanging.

Ven stood confused with his arms folded as he saw an ecstatic Aaron jumping for joy. Before he could ask him anything, the ceiling above the armour opened and a glass cylinder came down and surrounded the armour. Moments later the whole cylinder was full of a bright red smoke.

“Continue what you’re doing, this process won’t take long,” said Aaron with a smile.

“Did you know I was going to pick red?” asked Ven suspiciously.

“I knew the chances of you accepting red would increase dramatically if I started by giving you horrible suggestions,” laughed Aaron, “Don’t be mad, I’ve made something extra for you as my way of apologizing for leading you on.”

“Whatever, with the kind of day I’ve been having. This is nothing,” said Ven, “While we’re waiting, I wanted to ask if you’ve prepared the things my team needs?”

“Yes of course, those were incredibly easy to prepare. They’ve been ready for days; I just didn’t want you to come all this way for just those,” said Aaron as he spoke louder to make up for the loud blowing noises coming from the cylinder.

“Great, I’ll call them over, they can try on their new gear here,” said Ven as he picked up his phone and sent a message to Brutus.

“The only way there can be a problem is if their measurements were wrong. I don’t care about their armour, come the process is complete, try it on!” said Aaron as he pressed some buttons on the counter causing the glass cylinder to back into the ceiling.

The first thing Ven noticed as the glass went up was the colour, it was red, but a very bright version of red. Aaron shrugged his shoulders as Ven looked at him accusingly. As Ven lifted the breastplate down he realized it was much lighter than what he was used to. 

“Didn’t expect it to weigh so little, did you?” asked Aaron smugly. 

“I didn’t, I just hope it’s as durable as you claim,” said Ven.

“It is!” exclaimed Aaron, “I’ve tested the material countless times, normal bullets and weapons won’t be able to cut through it!”

“Well then, let’s give it a try,” said Ven as he put on the breastplate.

Ven ignored Aaron’s impatient foot tapping as he systematically put on all the parts of the armour. He had to admit the lighter weight made it much easier to move around in. Aaron had also had some wool padding to the interior which made it much more comfortable to wear than what he was used to.

“I have to say, this is the most comfortable armour set I’ve ever worn. Besides the bright red colour, I have no complaints,” said Ven as he stretched his arms and legs.

“It’s crimson, not bright red,” corrected Aaron, “Are you ready for the next surprise?”

“Yeah, as ready as I’ll ever be,” shrugged Ven.

“Great, now close your eyes and keep them closed until I tell you to open them!” said Aaron.

“Sure,” said Ven as he decided to humour Aaron, “Just don’t try to trick me into agreeing to something again.”

“I assure you that was a one-time thing! Now keep them closed, I am almost ready,” said Aaron, “Ok, you can open them now!”

Ven stood staring at the blade Aaron held in both his hands. It was a sword, perhaps longer than the one he had right now, but other than that he couldn’t see anything special about it.

“I can see you’re confused, I considered telling you what I did before I showed it off. Oh well, nothing to do about it, I’ll explain now. This sword is the reason I wasn’t replying to your messages. It occurred to me while I was making your armor, why couldn’t I use the same material in a sword. Naturally, I have no idea how to make a sword so I spent days looking for a swordsmith who would agree to make it for me. Come try a couple of swings with it,” said Aaron.

“Why did you make it so long?” asked Ven as he checked the balance of the sword.

“It was the swordsmith’s doing, according to him if we were making the sword lighter it only made sense to make it bigger, it would give you a longer reach,” said Aaron, “With this sword and the armor you should have no issues closing the distance to your opponents.”

“If they don’t use their gift to kill me first,” said Ven.

“Well of course, you’re going to have to judge the best time to charge on your own. My expertise doesn’t lie there,” said Aaron, “You must admit it improves your chances of winning, you can cut through whatever they are wearing with that sword.”

“I’ll have to get used to this sword, that’s for sure. Anything else I should know?” asked Ven.

“Hmm... I don’t think so,” said Aaron.

“Guess I should go visit the Knight Captain then. Thanks for the armour and sword,” said Ven.

A relatively short chapter, so it should be an easy to read when compared to some of my longer chapters ;)

As always, take care of yourselves and stay safe out there

Anderoth