Of Hearts and Gazing Eyes

by A bag of plums

Chapter 11 - The Man in the Painting

Lightning Strike wasted no time in getting back to the shop and hurrying inside. However, as he entered, he found that neither Merlina nor Sherry were present to greet him.

“Hello?” He called into the depths of the store. “I’m back!”

There came the sound of soft footfalls from the back of the premises. A few seconds later, the white head of Merlina came into view. She looked a bit pinched, but her face broke into a smile at the sight of Lightning Strike’s presence.

“Ah, you’ve returned. Good, good.” Merlina purred. “Right on time, too.”

“Right on time for what?” Lightning asked as he handed over his clipboard.

“Remember how I wanted to introduce you to my superior?” Merlina tore off the top paper and slipped it into the drawer under the counter. “Well, it just so happens he’s got a free slot in his schedule now, so I thought you would want to meet him.”

“Oh,” Lightning said, unsure of what to think. “I’m up for that, yeah. Where is he?”

“In the back. Follow me.”

Merlina led Lightning around to the rear of the shop, where the gallery was. She pushed open the door and led the young man down the hallway of paintings. Lightning couldn’t help but examine the portraits as they walked by, drinking in the details and memorizing them for possible future trips that he and Sherry might take.

At the end of the hallway was a door that Lightning did not remember noticing the last time he had been here.

“Through here,” Merlina opened the door and beckoned for Lightning to enter.

Inside was a rather curious sight. The interior was a medium sized room, about four meters in each direction. At the far end of the room was an enormous painting, depicting a ruined medieval looking city that was in flames. Like all the other paintings in the gallery outside, it was done with impeccable detail, each crumbling building and burning corpse done with unnerving accuracy. It was a great change from all the peaceful and beautiful pieces that were on display in the gallery. Lightning found himself drinking in the sight, even if it did give him the shivers. The middle of the painting had been done to resemble a balcony that was overlooking the destroyed city, as if the painter had been standing there to work their craft. There was a table, rather, half a table drawn in the foreground with a tall throne that was facing Merlina and Sherry.

On the outside of the painting was the other half of the table. Not made of paint, but rather made of solid wood, and fitted with four chairs. The entire setup was arranged in such a way that if one were to sit down at the table in the real world, it would look just like they were sitting at the same table in the painting.

“Please, take a seat,” Merlina told Lightning. “He’ll be along shortly.”

Both of them sat down, Lightning on the left side and Merlina on the right.

Merlina turned her head to look at the painting. As she did so, there was movement from the left side of the canvas. Walking into sight came a tall man dressed in a black suit with the tie undone and the top three buttons unclasped to show his muscular chest. He had long, unruly iron grey hair with black highlights, and as he walked in, Lightning saw with astonishment that he had a pair of onyx-black horns that speared upwards. His fiery orange eyes were sequestered behind a pair of smart rimless glasses.

The man sat down in the painted chair and brushed his hair aside. Up on his forehead was, unusually enough, what looked like a third eye, but this one was a familiar shade of blue instead of orange.

“Good afternoon, sir,” Merlina said once the man had settled down completely.

“Good afternoon, Merlina,” The man replied. His voice sounded as though he was right there in the room with them, rich and commanding. “How are things going in your plane of existence?”

“We have almost delivered all the packages,” Merlina replied. “There’s just the one left.”

“Yes,” the man said. “I’m glad we managed to arrange a way to deliver the goods without inciting an all out war with those who would stand against us.”

“Yes, sir,” Merlina nodded. “It’s all thanks to our hardworking courier here,” she waved a hand at Lightning Strike.

“Of course,” The man turned his head to look at Lightning, who did his best to look professional. “You must be the courier I’ve heard so much about. It’s good to finally meet in person. My name is Nidhogg, and I am the managing superior for this venture.”

“Nice to meet you too,” Lightning said, keeping a politely interested expression on his face.

“Merlina has had nothing but good things to say about you,” Nidhogg continued. “You’re smart, punctual, and good at following instructions. Most importantly, you get the job done. I like that in a person.”

“Thank you, sir,” Lightning said, feeling a little bit proud. “I mean, Merlina’s been great to work with, and Sherry Spritz is really helpful too. It’s not just me.”

“Humble as well,” Nidhogg smiled, revealing a set of shiny white teeth that looked just a little too pointy to be human. “Now, I believe you’ve some questions that Merlina couldn’t answer for you. I will be more than happy to answer them, should you so desire.”

“Er… sure,” Lightning said, thinking back to all the things he wanted to know. “Well, okay. Can you tell me about what’s inside the packages I’m delivering?”

Nidhogg leaned back in his chair. “Going right for the throat. Good. What is inside the packages are amulets that have been enchanted with a mild charm of fulfillment. It allows the wearer to literally live out their fantasies and dreams in an environment that is generated by their own minds. It’s quite realistic, I’ve been told. In fact, I was just about to make the last one on the order list…”

Nidhogg raised his hand, and Lightning watched in awe as a ball of purple flames manifested itself in Nidhogg’s palm. Inside the fireball, a chain and pendant appeared, and the flames were sucked into the amulet, which fell into Nidhogg’s open hand. The chain jingled softly as Nidhogg examined the jewelry. Seemingly satisfied, he clicked the fingers on his other hand and the pendant was suddenly encased in a box, which was then engulfed by brown paper and string, making it identical to the other packages Lightning had seen before.

“The amulets draw off the wearer’s own energy to fuel the spell, so magic detectors have a very hard time picking them up,” Merlina explained. “The main thing that they do pick up is the sealing charm placed on the parcels to keep them from being opened by the wrong person.”

“Right as always, Merlina,” Nidhogg pushed the package across the table, where it crossed the line from painting to reality, manifesting as a three-dimensional object in the real world. Lightning was very impressed.

“That’s so sick, all this magic,” The young man said, grinning. “What else can you do?”

“A better question would be, what can’t we do? Because we know how to do quite a lot, don’t we, Merlina?”

Merlina chuckled. “As you say, sir.”

Lightning Strike’s eyes were drawn to the blue eye in Nidhogg’s forehead. He didn’t mean to stare, but it did look familiar to him, and after a couple of heartbeats, he realized why.

“That’s the same color as Sherry’s,” Lightning blurted out, causing the other two people to look at him. “Sorry, sir. I just noticed your third eye is the same color as Sherry Spritz’s left eye.”

“Very perceptive of you,” Nidhogg relaxed in his throne like a jungle cat. “Miss Spritz and I did indeed exchange our eyes temporarily. That way, she will always be able to channel a small portion of my power if she should ever need it, and I will always be able to keep watch over her. Much like how Merlina’s gazing eye has been protecting you.”

Lightning nodded, reached up to feel the gazing eye under his shirt. “No kidding, Merlina’s gazing eye has been useful on more than one occasion. So, you’re the boss of this whole thing, Sir Nidhogg?”

Nidhogg let out a bark of laughter. “Hardly. I have my own superiors to answer to. We belong to a huge organization, Lightning Strike, spanning across far and wide. The department that I am in charge of is but a small subdivision of the greater whole. But I won’t bore you with details that you won’t likely comprehend.”

Lightning thought this over. He had not considered that Merlina’s outfit was only a small part of a larger whole, though it did make some kind of sense. He unconsciously reached up and touched the gazing eye around his neck.

“However,” Nidhogg continued, leaning closer to Lightning Strike with a glint in his eyes. “I was wondering if you had given any thought to your future.”

“My future?” Lightning scratched his head. “I’m not sure what you mean, sir. I did have a dream of becoming a professional motocross racer, but after the accident, I’m not so sure anymore.”

Nidhogg glanced at Merlina and smiled. “Have you perhaps considered a more permanent position with our organization? The pay is good, and there are many other benefits that we offer to our employees, as you have seen.”

Lightning raised his eyebrows, surprised. “You mean you’d keep me on as a courier?”

“Courier? Certainly, as a start,” Merlina explained. “But if you joined us permanently, we could provide many more opportunities than just as a courier. You would have access to all of our organization’s resources and tools, for one thing.”

“It’s not an offer we make to a great many people,” Nidhogg said. “But you’ve proven to be trustworthy and a hard worker even with a temporary position. So, why don’t you give it a think? I don’t require an immediate answer from you, that wouldn’t be fair. But I look at you and see a lot of potential, and I wouldn’t want that to go to waste.”

Lightning felt something inside him that he had not felt in a long time. Here was someone who clearly wielded great power and influence, telling him, an ordinary schoolboy, that he had potential. Nobody had ever said that to him before, at least not so plainly. In spite of himself, Lightning Strike was deeply flattered.

Merlina grinned. "What's the matter? Hasn't anyone ever given you a compliment before?"

"Not like that," Lightning mumbled. "Normally it's just trivial stuff."

Merlina’s smile grew wider. "Well, I agree with Nidhogg. Everything he said about you is true. You're a fine, respectful, and responsible young man, and I would be very happy if you chose to join us for the long run. You'd make an excellent member once you've been trained up a bit."

"Trained up?" Lightning repeated. "What does that mean?"

"With magic, of course," Nidhogg told Lightning. "Everyone in our outfit is proficient with at least one school of magic, of which there are more than I care to count."

Lightning Strike’s face shone with excitement. "You would teach me magic?" He asked, almost as if he couldn't believe his ears.

"Well, not me personally, but you would have some of the finest teachers of sorcery if you joined up with us. There are other perks, too, but there's no point telling you about them unless you're serious about working for us."

Lightning sast back in his chair, taking it all in. It wasn’t easy, as he felt like the sky had just fallen on his head.

“Wow…” Lightning said at last. “You’re actually serious about this? I mean, you really want me?”

“Why not? Your report is glowing, and Sherry tells me you’re near the top of the class in school. Why wouldn’t we want someone like you?” Nidhogg placed both of his hands on the table and steepled his fingers. “Like I said, why don’t you think about it for a while, and then answer me when you’ve decided. No pressure.”

“Yes, take your time,” Merlina seconded. “We won’t force you into anything. Besides, there’s still one more package to deliver. Not to mention that I’ve yet to pay you for today’s work.”

Nidhogg moved to stand up. “In that case, I will leave young Lightning Strike in your care, Merlina. Make sure you reward him well for his hard work.” The horned man nodded goodbye and walked out of the picture frame.

Merlina and Lightning left the room, walking back to the front of the shop through the gallery. Sherry was waiting for them at the front desk, tidying up the vase of flowers to keep herself busy.

“Ah, you’re back,” She said as Merlina and Lightning came into view. “How do you like the boss, Lightning?”

“He’s alright,” Lightning said with a smile. “He offered me a permanent position at your organization.”

"Oh!" Sherry exclaimed. "Are you going to take it?"

"I don't know," Lightning shrugged. "I would probably need to ask my parents about it. I also need to know more about the position before I confirm anything. But," he grinned. "If it’s anything like what I've been doing here, I'd love to accept the position."

"Not that it should affect your decision, but I think you would be a good fit here," Sherry said eagerly. "You've fit in so well in the past week."

"Just doing my best," Lightning shrugged humbly. "I'm glad I was able to help you and Merlina."

Merlina went back behind the counter and took out a black book, which she opened and scribbled a few lines in.

"We'll give you the final package on Monday. I won't ask you to work weekends, not when you're only part time. That's not to say you can't come here," Merlina told Lightning. "Our doors are always open to you, so come whenever you please, though I’m sure you’d much rather hang out with your other friends."

Lightning Strike put his hands in his pockets and scuffed his shoe against the carpet. “I haven’t got any.” He muttered. “Not at CHS, anyway. And it’s midterm season at Crystal Prep, so my friends from there are too busy studying to hang out anytime soon.”

Merlina gave Lightning a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry I touched on a sore spot. Here. Let me give you today’s pay and we’ll speak no more of it.”

Lightning accepted the stack of notes from Merlina and put them into his bag. “I’ll definitely come back tomorrow and Sunday,” He promised. “Oh, and I’ll give the job offer a think as well.”

“Of course,” Merlina smiled. “See you soon, and take care of yourself.”

---

Comments

[Fluffy-Boi]

A job offer! Ooooo! Take it Lightning!

[LupineSpirit]

I wonder how long it’s going to take until the Main 7 finally catch on; I got a bad feeling that Lightning’s soon to be full-time job won’t remain secret for long, especially if Sunset gets too suspicious