FARHAYVEN: VENGEANCE

by S. K. Ng

  The soldiers had cordoned off the area. Until the experts from Timberstock arrived, the area in question was not to be disturbed in any form or way. From what the man could see, it appeared as though the unfortunate man had killed himself after getting into a fight. But it did not make sense. Why would the unfortunate man kill himself if he had won the fight? Why would anyone want to murder a street-sweeper, or force him to commit suicide? This was the question that got all the townsfolk curious.

  Senior Dencon decided that the street-sweeper’s death was not Elementhar business, so he, Ray and the others moved on. They went about town gathering their supplies, and then checked themselves into a local inn to spend the night. Slide and Thunder got Senior Dencon’s permission to go visit one of Thunder’s family friends, who lived in town. But as the two adult novices set out into the night, it was not to a family friend’s house where they were going.

  Slide and Thunder went to the local bar. But they were not there for the taste of alcoholic beverages. They were there to eavesdrop on the conversation of its patrons. This had been their routine for the past year. Every time there was a need to come to town to buy supplies, they would volunteer. During the night they would then create an excuse and sneak away to the local bar. They were seeking news of a centipede demon. They were seeking news of the centipede demon that had killed both their families.

  And it would seem that this was their lucky night. They could clearly hear a travelling merchant telling his friends of a horrible demon attack that happened just a week before at a village on the outskirts of Clearcatch Town. The demon responsible looked like a giant centipede with a long black line down its back. Slide and Thunder could not contain their excitement. This was the centipede demon that they were looking for. Casually, they got up from their seats, went back to the inn, got on their horses and rode off into the night.

  The next morning, Senior Dencon was furious. Two of his novices were missing, and he did not know why. Finally, Ray found a note in one of his saddle pockets. It was left there by Slide the night before, explaining why they were gone, but not where to. Senior Dencon became even more furious, for he knew that Slide and Thunder were not knowledgeable and experienced enough to hunt down a demon by themselves. But what was he to do? He had no choice but to return to Monune Ruby with Ray and their supplies; and to report the matter to Master Santlyn.

  Master Santlyn called for an emergency meeting with all the Master Fire Elementhars. Funnel Polt, who was already a master of the Earth Element, attended as well. During this meeting, the masters discussed the issue of Slide and Thunder’s disappearance. But tried as they might, they had no idea where the two missing novices had gone to. None of the masters had heard of any centipede demon attacks lately. Finally, it was decided that Senior Dencon and several others would return to Eastpeak to see if they could find any clues.

  Senior Dencon and the others returned to the monune a few days later. Their search led to a dead end. Nobody in Eastpeak knew of any centipede demon attacks. They vaguely remembered a merchant talking about some sort of attack, but it could have been about a Serpentian attack. And the merchant in question had already left town for an unknown destination.

  A month later, Slide and Thunder rode their way past the gate of Monune Ruby, but just barely. Master Santlyn came charging down from his office when he heard the news. Everyone was gathered around the two novices, who were badly injured. Their clothes were in shreds and clumps of congealed blood were all over their bodies.

  “Dare _ how of this of you two to have gone without permission, and even more so to return here afterwards?” yelled Master Santlyn, full of rage.

  “Apologise _ we do of this of our actions, Master Santlyn; but our actions cannot be helped; for we had to seek revenge, for that is why we came here in the first place,” said Thunder.

  “Revenge _ must you seek of this in such an irresponsible manner!?” questioned Master Santlyn.

  “Revenge _ perhaps we should not have sought of this in such a manner, for we admit it was irresponsible; and for this we beg for your forgiveness, Master Santlyn,” pleaded Slide.

  “Return _ why have you bother of this, for I assume you have managed to exact you revenge?” asked Master Santlyn.

  “Return _ we did of this even though we have managed to exact our revenge, for we wish to help prevent our tragedy from befalling unto others,” answered Slide.

  Thunder nodded his head in agreement.

  Master Santlyn was silent. But the look on his face was one of pure anger. After several long moments, he recomposed himself. He cleared his throat, and then spoke out loud.

  “Punished _ Novice Elementhars Thunder Humbold and Slide Moltox, you are both to be of this by whipping, ten lashes each; and if you endure them fully, you shall be accepted back; otherwise you may leave and do not bother to return,” he said.

  “Punishment _ we accept ours of this, master!” said Slide and Thunder together.

  The two novices turned around, got on their knees and removed their tattered shirts. Master Santlyn gave a nod to Senior Dencon who then left and returned shortly with a whip.

  “Ready _ are you both of this?” he asked.

  The two novices nodded their heads. Senior Dencon proceeded to whip them alternately. Every single crack of the whip brought immense pain to the novices, but they kept their composure and withstood the pain. There was not a single moan or grunt or scream. They kept silent throughout the punishment. When Senior Dencon was done, the two novices stood up and turned around.

  Master Santlyn facial expression was cold. He was no longer angry, but he was not happy either. Finally, he spoke.

  “Forgiven _ you both are of this, but remember, you shall not be so the next time,” he said.

  The two novices nodded in silence. Master Santlyn turned around and went back into the main building. The two novices began to wobble and then collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Senior Dencon instructed the other novices to carry them to the infirmary. Ray volunteered to help Master Matten treat their wounds. It was two weeks before Slide and Thunder left the infirmary. It was two months before either of them slept on their backs. But they had no regrets! They did what they had to do. They had to get their revenge! Ten lashes of the whip was a fair price to pay for vengeance. And vengeance, they did get! And with this act of vengeance, they had closure…

  A month after Slide’s return, Ray went to the giant boulder as per his routine. He was surprised to see Slide already sitting on top of it. He climbed up and joined his classmate.

  “Feeling _ how are you of this, Slide?” asked Ray.

  “Feeling _ of this, my back hurts like hell, but my heart is at peace, Ray,” answered Slide.

  “Feel _ how does it of this for you to have finally gotten your revenge?” asked Ray.

  “Feel _ I do of this of a sense of closure, but more importantly, there is also a sense of fulfilment, for I know that that centipede demon can no longer hurt anybody; and both Thunder and I had wanted to make sure of it ever since we first knew each other,” answered Slide.

  Ray nodded his head. He understood what Slide had said. But he wanted to know a little more.

  “Feel _ how does it of this to battle a demon?” he asked.

  “Felt _ of this, it was scary; and there were a few times that both Thunder and I thought that we were going to die; but the thought of that centipede demon being on the loose and killing more people gave us the motivation we needed to overcome our fear,” Slide answered.

  “Kill _ how did you finally do of this to the demon?” asked Ray.

  “Kill _ of this, we both managed to execute a Heat Burst to its head at the same time after battling it and weakening it for an hour; and it was only with the combined effect of both our Heat Bursts that we had managed to kill it,” answered Slide.

  “Closure _ well, you finally have yours of this, but mine is still far away,” lamented Ray.

  Slide afforded a slight smile. He knew what Ray was lamenti
ng about.

  “Past _ you are lamenting about yours of this, are you not?” he asked.

  “Yes,” answered Ray.

  “Worry _ do not do of this about it, for I am sure that you will find out one day; and if you need my help to do so, all you have to do is just to ask,” stated Slide.

  Ray gave a silent nod. Slide gave him a little smile. Then both novices looked out to the forest below and enjoyed the view of the gentle swaying of trees. And the Dellix twins joined them shortly afterwards.

  It was nine months since the death of Scorpion Tannex. Life was tranquil for the novices, seeing that both bullies were gone. Some of the novices had wondered how Stick Dugs was getting on. But not Ray. He figured that if he ever bumped into Stick again, it would only be far too soon!

  A month later, Monune Ruby had a guest. It was Master Elementhar Dulcet Calnen of the Order of Earth Elementhars. He was there to check up on Funnel Polt’s progress. He was also there for a business proposition.

  It seemed that there was a merchant from a distant land who was visiting some relatives in Timberstock. This merchant owned a large jewel mine in his country. Master Calnen had hoped to have a meeting with him and strike a good deal to buy jewels for the entire Grand Order. The problem was that to get the jewels to Free Falls, the Grand Order would have to charter a ship to sail along the coast of the Arid Plains to the merchant’s country and back. This was dangerous as they would be subjected to pirate attacks. But travelling on land would be far worse as they would then be subjected to Aridyte attacks.

  Master Calnen proposed, and Master Santlyn agreed, that Senior Dencon should lead a large team of Elementhars to function as security escort for the ship. This made sense because Senior Dencon had great experience with sea travel and anti-piracy methods. Besides, they planned to charter the ship from Senior Dencon’s family.

  Two weeks later, Masters Santlyn, Calnen and Dencon; and all of the novices left Monune Ruby for Timberstock. Master Santlyn had decided to bring the novices along for a holiday. It was just reward seeing that the novices had just finished a hard term of study. The Elementhars left in a convoy of ten horse-drawn carts. Much to Ray’s pleasure, he was designated as a driver of one of the carts. Amongst those seated on his cart were the Twins Dellix. Cutter was also designated as a cart driver, but his cart did not carry people, instead it carried only supplies. Slide and Thunder were each put in charge of a supply cart as well, and they acted as the rear guard.

  A week later, the convoy arrived at Timberstock. The masters had arranged to meet the merchant at a famous restaurant at noon for lunch. Master Rapier Shay, High Elementhar of the Order of Wind Elementhars and Master Whisper Nurten, High Elementhar of the Water Elementhars, were also there at Timberstock for the meeting.

  As the masters discussed business with the merchant, Ray and the Dellix twins brought their classmates to the town fair. They dragged Slide and Thunder with them, who were at first reluctant as they thought that town fairs were just for children. But after a few rides on the pendulum ship, the two adult novices changed their minds. They realised that the town fair could be entertaining for adults as well. Or perhaps the town fair was entertaining because it brought them back to their childhood. It brought them back to a time in their lives when things were simpler and their days were more carefree. Either way, they really began to enjoy themselves.

  Ray and the Dellix twins were on the Ferris wheel. They shared a gondola and they enjoyed the bird’s eye-view of Timberstock as their gondola went higher and higher.

  “Leave _ will you be doing of this of us when you graduate, Ray?” asked Radiance.

  “Leave _ will you do of this and cross the ocean to find your parents, Ray?” added Bloom.

  “Leave _ I do hope to do of this for those reasons, but I also plan to come back afterwards. Understand _ Senior Dencon has made me of this long ago that my life is here; for what lies across the ocean is my past, and of that I am curious; but what is here is my present and future, and to these I shall commit myself,” answered Ray.

  “Good _ it is of this for we cannot imagine not having you around,” said Radiance.

  “Brother _ you are like an older of him to us, Ray; so if you are gone permanently, we shall miss you a lot,” explained Bloom.

  “Worry _ do not be of this, little sisters; for if I were to go, I shall soon return afterwards,” assured Ray.

  The novices all met up at the refreshment stalls. Ray noticed that Slide and Thunder were smiling and laughing a lot, something that they had not done a lot of since their punishment by Master Santlyn. Ray felt happy that everything was back to normal.

  Suddenly the novices heard a lot of yelling coming from outside the town fair. They rushed out to investigate. It was not long before they discovered the source. There was a group of soldiers, about 12 Provincial Guards, surrounding a man. Some had their swords drawn out while others had arrows strung to their bows and were aiming them at the man. The man, meanwhile, had his left arm wrapped around a woman’s neck in a choke-hold. He also had a dagger pointed at her neck with his right hand. On his belt were tied several pouches which the novices could only guess were full of coins.

  “Let the woman go, and you shall not be harmed!” instructed one of the soldiers.

  “No! You let me go now, or I’ll kill her!” replied the man.

  “You are a criminal! You have just robbed a bank and you expect for us to let you go? No way is that possible! Your arms will tire, and your hold on her will slip; and we shall kill you!” insisted the soldier.

  Ray walks slowly past the soldiers. He does not know what he is doing, only that he feels he needs to do this. He gets closer and closer to the man. The soldiers, too preoccupied by the situation that they are in, fail to notice Ray. Ray gets to within an arm’s length of the man.

  “Here!” he shouts.

  The man turns his attention towards Ray. Suddenly, Ray points his fingers at the man and unleashes a giant fireball from his fingertips. The heat and light generated by the fireball is so intense that it temporarily blinds the man. He screams out in pain, instinctively releases the woman and tries to shield his eyes. One of the soldiers shouts the words ‘get down!’ Ray instinctively grabs the woman and dives to the ground. The soldiers let their arrows loose. Six arrows embed themselves deep into the man’s torso. He falls to his knees and then collapses to the ground.

  Ray felt that the collar of his robes was being pulled from the back. He turned around, and to his utter horror, saw that it was Senior Dencon. Senior Dencon’s facial expression was a mix of anger and disappointment. This look was mirrored by Master Santlyn as well as the other masters. The next thought that came to Ray’s mind was that he was going to be whipped just like how Slide and Thunder were. The colour disappeared from his face at this thought. What has he done!?

  Master Santlyn was silent. So were the other masters. Anger was clearly shown on their faces. Master Shay pulled out a red peanut from a pouch which he was holding and accidentally crushed its shell completely as he was trying to crack it. Such was his anger over the incident. Master Calnen shook his head and gave Ray the look of disappointment. The other novices had fear shown on their faces instead. The Elementhars marched back to the inn at which they were staying. The novices were told to return to their rooms and stay there. The masters brought Ray into Master Santlyn’s room. The following verbal ‘whipping’ reverberated throughout the entire inn.

  “Crazy _ are you of this Ray!? Doing _ what do you think you are of this!? Novice _for you are only one of him and you are not qualified to engage in battle of any kind without our supervision!” shouted Master Santlyn.

  “Killed _ you could have been of this, Ray, either by the soldiers or by the criminal!” added Senior Dencon.

  “Irresponsible _ you are of this, and hot tempered too; and ultimately you are in need of strict disciplining!” added Master Calnen.

  “Patience _ of this, it is a virtue that you must develop, Ray; or one day
you will be killed by the demons that you will be hunting later on. Learn _ do you not do of this of anything all these years at Monune Ruby!?” added Master Shay, High Elementhar of the Order of Wind Elementhars.

  “Dangerous _ what you did was of this, boy! Care _ you must take more of this of the decisions that you make, do you understand!?” said Master Nurten, High Elementhar of the Order of Water Elementhars.

  Ray was speechless. He saw no reason to even try to explain what he did and why he did it. Clearly, he was already condemned! Besides, he did not really understand why he did what he did in the first place. It was not strategic. It was not tactical. It was instinctive. And being instinctive was a bad habit for an Elementhar, for it threw away years of training, knowledge and experience. The only possible advantage to being instinctive was that it made one unpredictable, but not necessary in an advantageous way. Clearly, this case of instinctive behaviour was very disadvantageous to Ray right now!

  Ray held his tongue. He let his ears bear the brunt. For half an hour, all the masters gave him the lecture of a lifetime. He nodded his head and tried to look remorseful. But the fury of the masters would not abate. Finally, after an hour’s worth of lecturing and yelling, the masters were silent. Ray got the message. ‘No hero rubbish, please! You are just a boy!’