Those Who Cannot Die - Levi Bible (the rosie project .TXT) 📗

night." He muttered, amused that the Latin people still attempted to fight.

Phocas leapt downwards, landing on the fleeing soldier. The fear could be felt by the man's constant quivering, but he ended his suffering quickly by snapping his neck. Time to return to the main assault. Leaping to the bottom of the stairwell, Phocas exited the tower, now inside the city, and behind the gate. Fresh blood now scenting the air, but he kept going; the battle wasn't over yet…

June 11, 1250

Isaac sat up in bed, thinking back on his Soul dream. If Orpheus wasn't there, then where? They must have met. Isaac had only been in the service of Rome for thirty years before he met Cornelius and left. He looked at his Soulbind, sighing.

Phocas…how did anyone know… he thought silently. Isaac stood up, hearing knocking on his door. "Come in."

Cornelius walked in, a dreadful look on his face. "Isaac, what happened last night?" he asked, angrily.

"What do you mean?" Isaac asked, playing dumb.

"Well, if you can tell me anything about the 'Demon of Rimini' or your exact reason for burning down the Church of Death, that would be helpful."

"Demon of Rimini…can't say I know anything of it." Isaac said, looking at Cornelius. "As for burning down the church, well…" Cornelius gave him a spiteful look. "I was there when it burned, but I didn't burn it down."

"Who then, Isaac? Who?" Cornelius asked, recognizing Isaac's withholding of information. Isaac stood there for a moment, weighing his options. Cornelius would be extremely angry if he had told him about Death, however he probably already knew.

"I…fought Death." Isaac muttered, looking toward the floor.

"You…fought Death…" Cornelius muttered, exasperated. "…you…fought Death…and haven't been sealed…" he sat on a chair, his expression still blank. "…Isaac…you fool…"

"Look, Cornelius, I am still ali—"

"Exactly! If you are alive, it means Death wants more from you than your soul!" Cornelius jolted upward. "What the hell? Why did you fight Death? Why didn't you run!"

"I tried—"

"Apparently not hard enough! Why did you hesitate?"

"I didn't hesitate! I tried my best to run!"

Cornelius sat down. "Isaac…fool…" he muttered. "Now they know your current name…"

"So what?"

"Have you ever even wondered why I told you to abandon the name of Phocas?" Isaac looked up. "Ambrose! That's why."

"I thought Ambrose was a…"

"Good guy? Yeah, sure, he is a saint by all rights." Cornelius said, now pacing around the room. "Of course, you never bothered to ask what he did in his rule, or if he had any faults."

"You never hinted that he had any." Isaac retorted, walking towards Cornelius, who sighed.

"Fine, what were you doing just now?"

"Reliving February 3, 338 BC." Isaac said, sitting on the bed.

"February…what were you hoping to find then? Phocas certainly did nothing good that day." Cornelius said.

"He might have seen Orpheus." Isaac muttered, staring at his Soulbind, which, even now, carried that same darkness he felt the day of the invasion.

"Quit making excuses for constantly wanting to relive the past Isaac." Cornelius said, sitting beside him, a look of empathy now on his face. "What's done is done. You couldn't have saved him, anyway."

"You're right…" Isaac said, gripping his fist. "…I wasn't strong enough. And now, I'm not strong enough to save Rose…" Cornelius sighed.

"Crying about what you can't do does nothing for anyone else, not even you," he said. "Doing what you can, however, to save those you can, and never looking back, that will help a great deal more."

"Not quantity, Cornelius…quality." Isaac retorted silently.

"So…you have finally fallen for a Mortal female?" Cornelius asked, amused, deciding to leave the serious tone behind.

"Shut up, Cornelius." Isaac muttered.

"Well, I will say I had some success yesterday, Isaac." Cornelius said, now grinning and standing. "Let's stop moping, now."

"Some success?" Isaac asked, now curious.

"I managed to set up a connection to Orpheus, and through a very interesting source too," Cornelius said, pointing his index finger up as a teacher would point to a board. "The source I have been keeping taps on for Cyrus, managed to find Orpheus. Of course, you know what that means."

"In their investigation for finding Cyrus, he found—"

"Meaning we find Orpheus, we find Rose." Cornelius said. "Likewise, I have also set up a meeting with the Immortal in question."

"You're kidding! You already made contact?" Isaac asked, awestruck.

"Not direct, but I believe one of my sources who he trusts found him, and told him about us. He should be here this afternoon, so…" he looked at Isaac, "…go ahead and finish your memory, if you wish."

"Thanks." Isaac said, grabbing his Soulbind again. That day…the day that changed everything…

Isaac began muttering, his environment shifting once more, being sent backwards in his own memory.

February 3, 339 BC

Phocas stood with his squad, awaiting further orders after the demise of the front guard to the city gates. The body count was impressive—due to the Roman advanced tactics, only two died. Out of a count of fifteen to sixty, that was indeed, impressive. Isaac walked toward where Phocas stood. The commander walked toward him as well.

"Great job, Phocas!" the commander said, smiling rather largely. "The battle isn't over, but our morale is definitely up due to this victory."

"Thank you, commander." Phocas said, bowing. Isaac bowed as well.

"For your first battle, Isaac, that was pretty good." The commander said. "You two will accompany me to finish the war."

"Excuse me, commander?" Phocas asked, Isaac clearly unsure of what was going on. "All due respect, sir, but I don't do suicide missions." The commander sighed, looking at Phocas.

"Unfortunately, we really have no choice." He said, looking at Phocas. "For whatever reason, they added a rookie into the game-plan, so we have to roll with it."

"'They'?" Isaac asked, looking at the other armored men before him.

"The higher-ups. The people who got us into war in the first place." The commander explained. "They try to keep their presence in battle secret, however every veteran soldier is aware of their existence."

"Oh…" Isaac sighed, looking down.

"Then explain this," Phocas said, staring down the commander, establishing his superiority. Rank meant nothing to experience, and Phocas had more than any soldier here. "Why would they send their best soldiers and a rookie into the thick of combat, only to have them pulled for a suicide mission?"

"If I knew that, then I wouldn't be in this army!" The commander snapped back, asserting his authority by rank. Phocas wasn't intimidated, however, and merely shrugged it off.

"But you are, which means you are close to them." Phocas said, turning around. "Unless you give me a valid reason to go on this suicide mission, then I refuse."

"Phocas, they'll kill you!" the commander shouted, reaching his hand in the direction Phocas was in.

"So what? I'd rather die on the battlefield than in a phony suicide mission." Phocas shouted, slapping the commander's hand aside. Isaac stepped back, his eyes wide.

"I-I'll…do it…" he stammered, not sure.

"Fool." Phocas said, walking away. "You just signed your own death warrant."

"At least he is willing to fight and die for Rome!" the commander shouted.

"Yes, but, if the battle made no difference, then what good was his death?" Phocas taunted, now ignoring the commander. "I am not abandoning the army, nor am I abandoning Rome. Rather, I will help her in my own way."

"Very well." The commander said, boiling with rage. "We'll find someone else."

"Thank you." Phocas said, waving his hand goodbye, however not turning around or even stopping.

June 11, 1250

Isaac awoke again to Cornelius shaking him. "Isaac, our meeting is starting."

"It isn't formal, Cornelius." Isaac said, sitting up using Cornelius as a support. He sat there for a moment, absorbing his memory. The commander was the smarter one that day...

"Well, now it is." Cornelius said, smiling. "Besides, he doesn't seem like too bad of a chap."

"He tried to kill me." Isaac muttered, sitting up. "I'll try to forgive him, but it won't be easy."

"Don't I know it…" Cornelius said, standing off of the bed. "You are having trouble forgiving yourself, even for February third."

"I guess…" Isaac muttered in response, standing as well. "So, is he here already?"

"Ah! Why, yes he is. He is waiting in the lobby for us now." Cornelius said. Isaac grabbed for his dagger, forgetting his battle with Death. Letting the thought go, Isaac guessed he could settle for an Astral Sword if worse came to worse. "What's wrong?" Cornelius asked, now waiting by the door.

"Nothing. Let's go." Isaac said, trying not to mutter. They walked down the gloriously decorated steps, a red carpet running through the center of the stairwell. They eventually came into a hall, the portraits of Cornelius' latest wife's ancestors, people Cornelius probably knew personally, thinking back on it. Their footsteps sounded softly on the crimson carpet of which they walked, the lobby now before them. A young man with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a clear complexion stood there.

"Where is Orpheus?" Isaac asked, remembering the dark, grey skinned Immortal from two nights ago.

"That is him." Cornelius said, walking over to the kid.

"Hang on, that can't be Orpheus!" Isaac said, hurrying over to Cornelius. "Did I not describe what I saw that night? Dark skin, blackened eyes with bronze irises…?"

"Ah, you did." Cornelius said, gesturing to the young man. "However, it is completely possible he reincarnated after your battle."

"But he doesn't even…"

"Notice, he has no Soulbind." Cornelius said, pointing out something Isaac didn't notice, and enjoying the look on his face.

"All the more reason—"

"Also, his eyes seem to have almost bronzed over. He could be a fairly new Immortal."

"Cornelius, this isn't Orpheus. I am not denying that he could be Immortal, but he is not Orpheus. Keep in mind, he has the body of a sixteen year old, rather than a ten year old, the default body age of an Immortal."

"I see your logic in that…" Cornelius said, looking at the young man. "However, you are also in the body of an eighteen-year old by now, because of my…'effects'."

"Effects or no, he isn't Orpheus." Isaac said, now getting angry. "Death and Chaos would have found him and sealed him if he Reincarnated."

"Uh…" the young man said, stepping back. "I am unsure what you two are talking about…"

"See!"

"Soulbind." Cornelius retorted, Isaac sighing and folding his arms.

"Besides, there is no way that he is a Roman. They had honor, pride…"

"Betrayal." Cornelius stated, now focusing on the young man. "One word will test whether or not he is Immortal." The three stood in the lobby, tension now high in the air. Isaac eager to see his correctness, the young man wishing to leave before he was too involved, and Cornelius, still reveling in the tension in the atmosphere.

"Family."

Orpheus' eyes shot open, obviously trying to remember something. Something that, were he Immortal, he would have no memory of. Regardless of whether or not they had lost their memory due to Reincarnating without a Soulbind.

"I've never…" Orpheus stuttered, his eyes growing larger. "…never…" he fell to his knees, his skin growing dark. "No…no…not…now…!" he began repeating under his breath.

"What the—"