Other Fan Fiction ❯ Black Roses ❯ Forever Winds ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

“I just wish...”
The girl sighed and hung her head. It was no use wishing when it would get nothing done.
“Sorry, Kuyo. Guess I’m not very cheerful at the moment.”
The animal raised it’s head and attempted to nudge her hand. She ignored the gesture.
The night was darker than usual, the moon had hidden it’s face behind a great barrier of clouds. The forest made all sorts of strange noises, things moved yet could not be seen. It was as if you were plunged into dark waters, feeling things going past you but not being able to open your eyes and see them.
A sharp gasping sound could be heard from the path nearby. The girl tried to ignore it, but her ‘pet’ did not. It ran towards the sound lazily.
“Kuyo!” The exclamation being whispered, “Come back!”
The girl was forced to run after him. Trying to be careful but still tripping several times and getting herself smacked by plant life.
When she got to the path, she hesitated before stepping out in the open.
It was just one man. Face down in the dirt. His clothes clung to him as if wet. He didn’t lift his head as the two companions came closer. He didn’t say anything. He just laid there and tried to breath.
“Um, sir?”
No response.
The girl dared to come just a bit closer, ready to run away if the man suddenly turned threatening.
“Sir?”
The girl turned towards Kuyo, shrugged and edged closer to the man.
“Are you dead?”
“...No...”
The girl jumped away from the man. Managing to trip backwards and nearly fall on top of Kuyo. The man stayed in his position except to lift his head slightly.
“Bandits up...the road, you...know?”
Silence greeted the man’s words.
“Damn lot. I...thought for sure...I’d be killed by...guards. Not...ban...dits.”
His speech died off to harsh rasping breaths.
“So, you’re dying?”
The girl would’ve liked to soften the question, but she didn’t know how.
“Yes. And without even...killing that damn...” His breathing became sporadic and he laid his head back down.
When he finally continued his voice was soft, hard to hear.
“Girl, will you do...something for me?”
“Um...What exactly do you want me to do?”
He ignored her question.
“My last wish...it is for you to kill the bastard. The one who...wanted to kill me...for being seduced by him.”
It took several minutes of pause, wherein the man gasped and his whole frame shook, to understand. First she blushed, but when she realized that the man was saying another man had seduced him, she was disgusted beyond all belief.
“Uh, maybe I shouldn’t...”
“Then Avo have pity on your soul. For you have the chance...to kill Skorm’s human body. And...and believe me, Albion will be saved if you kill him.”
The man shook and shook, great hacking coughs coming from him. The girl could vaguely see him spitting something out with each cough.
“I don’t even know his name.”
She wanted any excuse. She didn’t want to be involved in this business.
“Evange. Son of...Lady Grey and Gladiator...Skorm in a mortal body...”
The man died. No one but a pair of fugitives to watch him leave. No one to remember his name when he was gone.
“No! I have to do it now.” The girl put her hands to her head, “Stupid! I can’t believe I have to do this!”
If I don’t... This ‘Evange’ will keep ‘seducing’ people. He must be using some kind of spell. I have to stop him before he gets another victim... If I don’t go after him, guilt will stay on my mind forever.
Kuyo walked to the man, looking to his master in hopes of being rewarded with this human. The girl didn’t even notice.
She sighed and crumpled onto the ground. She was tired and miserable. No home, no food, no shelter, always running.
“I guess...We have to find him. I’m sure it’ll be easy to find him, he’s the son of two famous people. And, we’ll just go from there.”
Kuyo was too busy with the body to nod his agreement.
I won’t keep running away when things get too hard. Me and Kuyo are together and alive, there’s nothing else I need to do this... Other than a weapon...

~~~

Father and son were not especially joyful over the current situation. Father being nervous and wanting to leave as son glared at everything that moved.
“Gladiator, sir? I’ve brought you dinner.”
The hero was relieved at the interruption. He crossed the room quickly and flung the door open to the cold snow outside.
“Elisa, come in, will you?”
Elisa was barely more than a child. She lived with her uncles in a shabby home near the stores. There was no door or comfort. Yet, the family seemed to do alright.
Evange glared at the girl. His eyes seemed black in the shadows of the fire. His hair looked darker as well, as if his hatred was enough to darken not only his mind but his appearance as well.
“The barkeep is giving this week. She said she didn’t have very much, though. So I hope you don’t mind that I put in some soup from my home. It’s still warm.”
“How thoughtful, Elisa. Would you like to eat with us, since you are sharing your food?”
Evange smirked as he saw the girl blush and look away from his father. She obviously liked Gladiator, the reason unknown to Evange.
“Oh, sir, that would be wonderful. But, are you sure it would be alright? I don’t want to take food away from you.”
Gladiator waved his hand to shoo her misgivings. He smiled at her warmly and offered to take the basket.
“I don’t eat that much, Elisa. And I’m sure Evange wouldn’t mind sharing his dinner with such a lovely girl.”
Elisa, then, noticed that someone else was in the room. She looked to the dark figure, still seated and glaring.
Truth was, Gladiator had been forced to tie Evange down. He was glad his son wasn’t strong enough to just rip the ropes off yet. Evange, however, hadn’t been quite as thrilled.
“Oh...Hello.”
Her voice had turned quiet. She had been overcome by her own shy nature.
“This is...Evange.”
Gladiator looked away from Evange. He was shamed to call him his son and had revealed this to Evange.
“Very nice to meet you, sir.”
She did a little curtsy before Gladiator turned to introduce her.
“And this is the lovely Elisa, who was kind enough to bring us good food to eat.”
Again, the girl blushed and looked at her feet.
“I’m sure Mother will be glad to hear that you have a whore up here, as well.”
The other two looked up at Evange. Both were shocked and horrified by his opening sentence.
“I’m sure that she would love to hear how you continue to traumatize your own son by introducing him to your various whores. But, then again, you seem to forget that I’m your son at all. Are you ashamed, Father?”
Evange smiled. A smile of victory. He knew his father could say nothing that would gain the girl’s trust once more. And if he had gotten his father angry enough, Gladiator would release him. If only so as not to have the temptation of beating Evange.
“Elisa, if you would wait outside for a moment?”
“Oh, please sir. I’m intruding. I’ll leave,” She rushed to the door. Elisa rested her hand against it for a moment, “But, maybe we can have dinner later?”
Her voice was pleading. She feared that the hero would go back to his beautiful wife and her chance would be gone forever.
“Of course, Elisa. Good bye.”
Gladiator waited until the door had been shut gently before speaking.
“You are a fool.”
Evange’s smile dropped and he returned to his glare. How dare this man tell him what he was or wasn’t?
You have never known me. How dare you assume these things.
“I suppose growing in Bowerstone hasn’t taught you any manners. Though, I wish you had picked up something from being around your mother so much.”
“Are you saying Mother has any manners to speak of?”
Evange vividly remembered her making him bow to her.
“She has more than you.”
“Oh, Father. I have never heard you speak of Mother so highly. Perhaps you should be careful who you praise. You never know who’s listening on the other side of the door like a rat.”
Gladiator looked to the door as they both heard a hurried swishing of clothes. Then the fading sound of running feet on snow.
“Elisa...”
Evange would have grinned his second victory. But he felt the cold in his bones, it exhausted him. His pale skin was turning a light blue, veins showing in his small wrists.
“What is it that makes you act this way? Do you hate people so much?”
The younger man looked up from his seat. It was hard to focus when the cold stung him so.
“I only hate the two people who bothered to hate me. You had the choice of loving me. You and Mother. But you went out of your way to hate me.”
Gladiator looked taken back. He obviously didn’t think Evange had a reason for hating his parents. Other than the leftovers of teenage rebellion.
“Boy, I-.”
The boy heard nothing more. His head lolled to the side and his eyes rolled into his head. The cold was too much for him, even with the fire blazing healthily.
Gladiator stopped what he was saying. He untied the ropes and scooped his son into his massive arms.
“So much of your mother’s delicacy.” He laid Evange down into the bed upstairs, flinching away as Evange’s fingers trailed down his arm. “But you were born to kill. And how can I love the man who’ll destroy everything I’ve fought my entire life to restore?”
Evange slept peacefully under the heavy blankets and furs.

~~~

“Okay, Kuyo! Time to get going!”
The girl struck a pose while Kuyo looked on. After a brief pause she deflated.
“So I have no idea where to find him. And no weapon,” She looked to Kuyo, “Well, other than you, of course.”
It was morning and the sun did a glorious job of showing Kuyo in all his grandeur.
Kuyo was one of the few dragons still in Albion. He was little more than the size of a red Hobbe, though much easier on the eye.
Kuyo’s scales were shining with the warm light of the sun. The scales being a dark purple, the tall spikes on his back a lighter purple. He was keeping his wings folded for the moment, those being the same color as the spikes. While Kuyo could stand on his hind legs, it was harder to walk on them. They were built more like a dog’s, or perhaps a big cat’s, than a human’s legs. His feet heavily resembled a dog’s as well, other than the long, sharp, dark blue claws extending from them.
His tail was almost as long as he was. The spikes there were shorter than the ones on his back but wider. They were covered in poison.
Kuyo’s face was long, in the general structure of a lizard’s, if a bit more narrow. A blue tooth appeared from under his top lip. The dragon’s eyes were a dark purple on the outside, where a human had white. While near his slitted pupil, a pale pool of green lay.
“I guess...I should get a weapon first. I mean, I can’t just go face him without a weapon and get killed instead. But where to find a weapon...”
The girl sat on a stump, placing her hand to her chin. Kuyo disappeared into the woods, coming back after a few minutes with nothing to show for his trip.
“Weapons for free. Where do they give away weapons? Hmm...”
She finally snapped her fingers and jumped up, almost falling back down.
“The Hero’s Guild, of course! I’ll just say I want to become a hero and get my weapons and disappear.”
Kuyo walked to her, offering his back. She understood and climbed up between two of the spikes, careful not to touch his tail accidently.
Once finding a reasonably comfortable sitting position, the girl clicked her tongue saying she was ready.
Whenever they flew together, the girl was frightened that she’d be too heavy for the dragon to carry her. Or that she would fall asleep during the journey and fall off.
“So, you know where it is, Kuyo? Because, I don’t.”
She laughed nervously. She really didn’t want to have to kill someone.
The feeling of the wind rushing past her, blowing her air all over, Kuyo’s strong body beneath her and the excitement of being so high wiped away her thoughts. Leaving her with only the pure enjoyment of flight.
“Maybe, I won’t ever be able to find him...And we can just fly forever.”

~~~