Legacy of Dreams: Freedom

by Thomas J. L. Green

  “What the hell happened here?” Salazar asked as he was going through the carnage.

  “Demons attacked them; they were overwhelmed. Something came, killed everyone,” Katherine summarized.

  “I will make sure to pay out your share to your children, Zacharias,” Salazar stated sadly as he stood above the body pieces messed up in the red robes.

  “I knew you were wiser than me, I wish I could have listened to you more,” Katherine remarked as she stood above the remains of Ludwig.

  “I am sorry I dragged you into this,” Salazar whispered as he stood over the beheaded body of Mark.

  “Farewell, Linda, you were so nice… you really didn’t deserve this,” Katherine couldn’t hold back her tears.

  “You were my best swordsman; I will have your family well compensated. I promise… Tobyn,” Salazar stood above the oldest serving member of the royal guard.

  “HERE!” Katherine shouted. Salazar dashed to her.

  “She is still breathing!” Katherine revealed as she held Yvonne’s body. Salazar quickly threw up a seed and made it grow. It wrapped around her body softly, filled the wounds and started pouring it’s substance into them.

  “This will keep her stabilized and help recovery,” he announced softly, “I am sorry… this is all my fault.”

  “It’s alright Sal, you couldn’t have known,” Katherine hugged him tightly.

  “I should have listened to you. I should have known. I made you all drunk with my power, but I wasn’t there when it was actually needed. I have failed you all,” Salazar’s eyes got watery.

  “They went into this willingly, you can’t save everyone,” Katherine comforted him.

  “I saved no one… thought I could do better. I believed it… I couldn’t,” Salazar whispered.

  “We are still here,” Katherine remarked gently as she held him. They stood like that for a long while.

  “Please tell me what killed them… I need to know,” Salazar broke the silence.

  “The half of the wounds doesn’t match the demons at all. The demons are beetle-like. Some wounds are clearly from claws, others from a prolonged mouth much larger than the largest beetle demon. The wounds on the demons tell the same thing. I don’t see a single one being killed by a human weapon or a spell that someone from our team would use,” Katherine evaluated.

  “Magic… powerful residual magic… whatever it was it released a ton of magical power at some point,” Salazar observed.

  “Like during a swift complete shapeshifting?” Katherine asked.

  “Yea… but it has to something really powerful,” Salazar revealed.

  “How about a human shifting into an at least fourteen feet tall werewolf?” Katherine inquired.

  “What points you to that?” Salazar asked cautiously.

  “Silver… werewolves hate silver. Mark has silvered swords, Ludwig necklace, Linda earrings and Zacharias bracelet. It was a werewolf, really big, really strong and totally out of control,” Katherine described.

  “Well… we both know who the werewolf in town is,” Salazar sneered.

  “Yea... but how come Yvonne is alive? She had matching earrings with Linda,” Katherine asked.

  “I will avenge them,” Salazar whispered.

  Katherine came back to him silently.

  “Not going to tell me that it’s a really stupid, borderline suicidal idea?”

  “I know I should…” Katherine conceded, “I just can’t”. Salazar held Katherine tightly and clenched his fists.

  “I WILL KILL HER!”

  91

  Luna

  “I’m so sowwwyyy,” Luna still kept crying, while holding onto Miranda.

  “It’s alright,” Miranda whispered softly.

  “It’s noooot…. I twied to save them… I didn’t…. I killed them.”

  “What exactly happened?” Miranda pried.

  “They wewe suwwounded… wouldn’t have died… I told them to thwow away all silvew… they didn’t… I couldn’t save them… I twieeeeed.”

  “One day most of my friends wanted to make a prank on me. They masked themselves and faked a kidnapping of my closest friend. I believed it... I killed eight of my own sisters before I found out it’s a prank… stupid prank,” Miranda admitted.

  “That’s howwible,” Luna started weeping weaker.

  “It’s just one of the many. Another of my friends had a secret lover in a village beyond the mountain range. She faked herself being taken away and had a fake execution arranged to escape to live with him. I tried to save her… there is no village beyond the mountain range anymore,” Miranda revealed.

  “I am sowwy...” Luna whispered, still softly weeping.

  “Don’t be. I don’t deserve it,” Miranda protested.

  “I still am,” Luna kissed her.

  “Why do you trust me so blindly?” Miranda asked.

  “Because you need it.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “It’s… complex. You are lonely, depressed, but still fighting. I don’t know why or for what, but you somehow manage to be a really great person amidst all of this. You knew you don’t have to jump among the monsters in Xona. You did it anyway. You knew you didn’t have to stay there to protect me. Yet you did. I don’t know why, but I admire it. I… would like to be able to do something like this one day,” Luna explained.

  “I miss my sisters,” Miranda breathed, “I grew up among the Faye. For decades I lived among them without a shade of worry. But I knew something isn’t right. I knew I don’t fit in. I was… different. I felt like I should do more with my life than sleep, fuck, fight and mess around in the Dream World. I couldn’t bear it after a point and just left.”

  “Huuuuh?” Luna asked awkwardly.

  “Right… you have no way to know. In Zaraguza highlands live the Faye, or Daughters of Dreams if you like that name. They are all said to be children of the Faceless Goddess, so we are all sisters. All women, all strong, all more or less eternally young and beautiful. Among the Faye, it is like time doesn’t exist. It has no real meaning. We don’t need to eat or drink for as long as we are close to a breach… so they don’t really do anything. It’s as if time doesn’t have any meaning among them,” Miranda explained.

  “I am sorry,” Luna breathed.

  “It’s alright. I haven’t talked about them in years, it is painful to remember them, but also it makes me feel glad that I do,” Miranda revealed.

  “Why is it so painful?” Luna pried.

  “Because I loved them. I still do. But I couldn’t stay there; I just couldn’t. I… I broke more than a few hearts and lives as I left. I knew them for decades; I loved them… but I couldn’t… I can’t come back,” Miranda stated as tears shot into her eyes.

  “I am sorry, I have no right to ask you about any of this, I am sorry,” Luna blurted.

  “You do... no, I want to talk about it. I have never talked about it with anyone and I feel like it’s slowly killing me from the inside. You threw your story at me, now suck it up and listen to mine,” Miranda replied coldly.

  “I would love to,” Luna smiled and kissed her strongly.

  “I have locked away these memories, these emotions. I joined the special forces of the Holy Order of Palai as an assassin. Miranda, the Cobra. That’s how I lived for past few decades. I am the most accomplished and proficient assassin in the history of the Order. I was happy with that; I lived through missions and fake identities. I have lived through hundreds of different fake identities in this time. I… forgot to live on my own. It all went fine, for years. I slowly advanced through the ranks, refusing every promotion I could have. Over the years, I was dragged up to the top of the Order anyway. The head of the special forces died and they were looking for a replacement. I was trying to avoid it, but there was only so long I could resist given the fact that I had been the most veteran, accomplished and generally acknowledged member of the special forces for the past decade. I gave in and accepted,” Miranda st
arted her story.

  “Why did you refuse it so much?” Luna inquired.

  “Because I felt like it would change something. I didn’t know what, but I felt the moment I do that something will happen that will change everything. It’s these strange feelings when you just know something will happen despite having no reason why,” Miranda revealed.

  “And did it happen?” Luna pried.

  “It did. The day of my promotion came up and I was called to the army headquarters in Heaven’s Rest. I went there, but they took me to a small side room. Inside were the great general of the Holy Order, Merewen, Elias and Nashimaeal, all wildly arguing over some maps. They were making plans for this tournament. I stood there awkwardly as they didn’t even notice me. But then the great general flicker his wrist and one of the markers on the map disappeared and reappeared elsewhere. Without any real gestures or effort, it just teleported. Most of the Faye can do something related to teleportation. Out of all the thousands of them, not a single one can teleport an object she isn’t touching,” Miranda raised her hand close to Luna’s face. Out of nowhere a bottle of mead appeared in it.

  “Not a single one… but me,” whispered.

  “Do you think you are related?” Luna whispered.

  “I know we are. I just don’t know how… and it’s hard to figure out since I have no idea how old he is. I have tried to pry it from him, but he isn’t too telling. I just know it and I know he knows it too. The thing is, as a pureblood Faye, I have neither a mother nor a father. That would make any relation between Lucas and me impossible. But what if I’m not? What if I’m just half-blooded and had a mother who died at birth? I would have no way to find out, but it would mean my mother was a normal human. She may have had siblings or even other children who could have had more children, one of who might well be Lucas. A few days ago, he told me he is proud of me for the whole Xona thing. It hit me so hard I cried for two days. I don’t remember ever crying in my life… now it’s my second time this week. I don’t know what happened, but somehow what I felt from him pierced my heart and shattered it into thousand little pieces,” Miranda admitted as she tried to pry the bottle of mead open. Luna softly took it from her shaking hands and opened it. She filled her mouth with it and pushed it into Miranda’s mouth through a kiss.

  “My life has been a lie, hasn’t it? For one hundred and twenty-four years I believed I was born of the Faceless Goddess, true pureblooded Faye. I was happy with that. It’s not true. The Goddess never spawns a man… yet I am somehow related to a man. That means I had a mother. Real mother… who I never knew even existed,” Miranda explained after swallowing all of the mead Luna gave her.

  This is too sad. I need to pivot the topic… now!

  “One hundred and twenty-six years old… you are still a kiddo next to James,” Luna snickered.

  “You shitty little runt!”

  “Do you think he bought our fight and didn’t figure out we have something?” Luna asked.

  “Ehhh… well… I threw it into his face the second I met him,” Miranda admitted.

  “You did WHAT?!”

  “I figured he might go berserk and make the fight easier,” Miranda smiled awkwardly.

  “I am so dead,” Luna buried her face into Miranda’s chest.

  “It will be fine… how vengeful can he be about it?” Miranda asked softly.

  “You really, really don’t want to know. I am really sorry about tonight; this isn’t how I had it planned,” Luna added.

  “Me neither… but we can do the other thing tomorrow,” Miranda offered.

  “Yea… now I just hope the sun comes up soon because I am fucking freezing. This is the worst backlash I have had in years… plus I have the match later today,” Luna admitted.

  “You are not going to the match like this.”

  “Relax, I just need to go there to talk. How’s your backlash?”

  “I don’t even feel my pussy from how cold I am,” Miranda smirked.

  “Oh, you will feel it tomorrow, don’t worry about it.”

  “I hope so.”

  92

  Lucas

  “Spying on young girls? That is unlike you, Zakuma,” Lucas opened up as he approached the large man in brown robes.

  “I am trying to not spy on them. I just need to talk to one of them and have no way to contact her, so I just wait here, awkwardly,” he greeted Lucas.

  Lucas sat down next to Zakuma.

  “Did you perhaps come here to spy?” Zakuma asked Lucas suspiciously.

  “I have come to make sure there are no more werewolf incidents tonight. What are you here to ask her? I might save you a long wait given how intensely she is crying,” Lucas added.

  “They are both crying,” Zakuma corrected him, “and I feel that we both have more than our little share in it.”

  “You are one hell of an annoying priest; I will give you that,” Lucas smirked.

  “Anyway. I wanted to ask her how did the werewolf who’s spirit she has inherited die,” Zakuma stated.

  “By what I remember from my reports, there was a big black werewolf going rampage around the northern woods for years. One day it was found dead amidst a slaughtered merchant convoy. I am not saying it is not a coincidence though,” Lucas revealed.

  “You sure have done your homework,” Zakuma smiled sadly.

  “Just being cautious,” Lucas smirked.

  “Do you know who killed him?” Zakuma inquired.

  “Not directly, but I do know James raised the girl. The James we both know,” Lucas offered.

  “Thank you,” Zakuma whispered and rose.

  “I haven’t really done anything,” Lucas rose as well.

  “You have given her a fair chance. That is just and honorable, to the point that it surprises me,” Zakuma smiled warmly as he went on to go back to the city. Lucas walked with him.

  “It’s been working out fine so far,” Lucas evaluated.

  “I am glad… glad that the spirit I gave to my son has found its place in this world,” Zakuma revealed.

  “I am sorry about your son,” Lucas apologized.

  “Don’t be. You didn’t kill him and were you to, it was a blow of mercy since he had gone feral,” Zakuma explained.

  “It is nice of you to not tell her,” Lucas smirked.

  “Her life is more than enough complicated and confusing already. Adding me to the list would not make things any better,” Zakuma smiled sadly.

  “I know that feeling,” Lucas remarked sadly, “I really do.”

  93

  Collward

  “Sorry to crash the party,” Collward tossed up as he entered the headquarters. James and his officers were drinking wildly.

  “Report,” Collward added sharply.

  “We saved two-thirds of the bigger demons and almost all of the military officers,” James evaluated.

  “And… it that a good result or a really bad one? I find myself torn between having you executed and giving you an extra reward,” Collward proposed.

  “Well, in comparison, Redwall lost all wyverns, almost all of its great wolves and a quarter of it burned down,” James revealed.

  “Extra reward it is,” Collward smirked.

  “Let’s go pick it up. Come with me James, we are going to visit lord Alkambra,” Collward smiled poisonously.

  “And people call US bandits,” Ivan laughed.

  “Without any offense, you are enthusiasts, at best. I am a professional,” Collward grinned while the whole room laughed.

  “YOU WHAT?” lord Alkambra shouted in disbelief.

  “We have come to arrange the pickup of our compensation for both physical and living assets we have lost during the protection of your city last night. Our men can be here within minutes, so please provide access to your treasury and we can get it done,” Edward announced coldly.

  “That’s outrageous! I will have you hanged for this! GUARDS, SEIZE THEM!” lord Alkambra commanded.

  James' axe sung the son
g of death for a few seconds, all men who approached them died.

  “Look, pal,” James started, “you lost all wyverns and most of the wolves, your army is in tatters with your men being busy burying their beloved mounts or family members from the burned down city part. Your walls are trashed too, while on the other hand, we have a well-paid, highly motivated army ready to have a party in your town. Plus, our monsters could use a snack to get over the hangover.”

  “We are, however, willing to overlook it and this little incident. Just hand over the treasury key and have your men show us the way. We will take our compensations justly and accordingly,” Edward Collward offered.

  “You monsters,” lord Alkambra breathed and put a large key on the table.

  “Meh, I was looking forward to some good old-fashioned looting and pillaging,” James smiled sadly as he picked up the key.

  “Thank you for your cooperation, my lord,” Collward bowed politely before they left.

  94

  Lucas

  “That’s a looooot of booze for one man,” Merewen interrupted Lucas drinking a top a mountain in the desert.

  “I suck at this,” Lucas confirmed.

  “What happened?”

  “I’m trying… I really am. But it’s not easy when Neh is shouting at me to forget about her and not come back. I can live with that. It’s bad for a few months, but I recover. This time around, I try to be nice to Miranda for a bit. Just a bit, not much. Two sentences. I tell her I am happy who she has become. She cried for two days. TWO FUCKING DAYS. I never saw her cry before… and now she is all tearing up while exchanging life stories with the werewolf girl.”

  “Don’t approve of werewolves?”

  “That’s not the point! She killed her sisters and was fine. Her best friend miscarried and she was fine. In Cinderwell, she lost five of her top men and was fine. She knew them for over a decade; one was her boyfriend for years. I come in, say two sentences and she falls apart like a house of cards. Two days of crying. TWO FUCKING DAYS!” Lucas exclaimed.