by R. C. Rutter
No one dared move as they were engulfed by smoke. Then the smell hit followed by the sounds of retching as their stomachs turned. It was awful, burning flesh, lots of it. No one knew what was in the chariot but it was safe to assume that the RA soldiers would not be a threat anymore.
Seth said out loud “What should we do?” He was not expecting an answer, it was all that ringing. Surely no one was interested in moving.
The chariot rider was coming down the road toward the Freedom Fighters at a casual pace. It was like he had no concern, no fear, that 125 soldiers were a threat to him. It was too late to run, too late to hide. “What do we do?” Seth whispered. The ringing had subsided a little and they could hear Thorgon’s voice “We stand! We fight!”
Thorgon moved forward. Seth yelled at him to stop but it was too late. The chariot rider slowed, his tall and lanky frame moving with the rhythm of the ride and his black hair flowing behind. He focused directly on Thorgon. The intensity of his glare even caused Thorgon to feel fear. Then it raised a wand and pointed. Thorgon fell to his knees then forward on his face.
Jason ran past Seth towards the chariot. Seth yelled to no avail. Jason lifted his sword and was poised ready to strike. The sound was intense. Jason flew through the air, his body contorted, and his face in agony. He fell to the ground and was limp. It could not be. Jason was strong. He was a leader. Now to see him lying there lifeless.
Seth stood motionless. The rider looked around and its gaze fell on him. Two beams of green light were focused directly at him. The intensity was incredible. He could not move, could not think, he could only stand there. There was a screaming sound in his head, only it was coming out of his mouth. Seth could tell everyone was looking at him but no one was moving. He felt himself being lifted off the ground and the pain was so intense he could only think of dying. He lost all desire to live anymore and blacked out.
* * *
Chapter Two
Fresh cut flowers. Seth could smell fresh cut flowers. He thought he had finally made it, crossed over to the other side. How wonderful. Then he heard a voice. It was not what he expected to hear. It was not an angelic voice but was shrill in tone.
“Ah, so ye finally decided ya had enough a lazing round, did ya” said the voice.
“Wait a minute” Seth thought. “That can’t be the voice of the other side. Maybe I ended up in the Netherworld instead.” Seth strained to open his eyes but the pain was too much.
”Ere love, let me darken the room, now” the scratchy voice said. The room went dark and this time Seth was able to open his eyes. He could see shadows. Several shades of grey and black but that was it. The door quickly opened and shut. That was followed by voices whispering in the hallway. The voices got louder and louder and Seth could finally hear what they were saying.
“Yes”
“No, I said. Not now. We must take it slow. It is too much at one time”
“Yes, I say, it must be done and I say it is so.”
With that, the door opened and closed again. This time another figure entered the room. Seth could not tell who it was but the odor was tough to swallow.
“Sorry, Seth, but I have not had a bath in some time” said the voice.
Seth recognized it as Noag and his day brightened considerably. At last some semblance of reality. There were so many questions.
“What happened? Where am I?” Seth asked.
“You are in Tisdale. It was the nearest village. Are you sure you want to know the rest?” Noag paused. “You have had a rough time of it and we didn’t know if you would make it having been attacked by a demon.”
“Demon?” Seth yelled as he sat up. “Me? Now I know I really am dead.” Seth fell backwards until he was flat on the bed. “What happened?”
“We are still trying to figure it out but I will do my best. The demon was chasing soldiers. It caught up to them and killed them all. Just like that. Didn’t know they were feuding. Heck, didn’t even know any demons were around anymore, thought it was all fairytales or something.”
“What about Thorgon? What about Petril.” It was all coming back now.
“Thorgon is fine, just shaken up. Said he needed to eat more onions to get his strength back, just what we need, more belching.” Noag’s smile disappeared as he sat down. “Alas, Petril is dead. Cut in half he was by the demon. At least he died quickly and songs will be sung about him being a hero.”
“So, why am I alive?”
”Seth, my dear Seth, I don’t know. By all rights you and Thorgon should be dead. I figure Thorgon’s size saved him. We are still trying to figure out what happened to you. No ordinary man has ever survived an attack before that we know of. How do you feel?”
“My head hurts; I can’t see anything but shadows. Other than that I guess I am okay. How should I feel?” Seth wanted to know.
“Time for you to rest” Noag said and got up from the chair next to the bed. Seth started to object but Noag went quickly to the door. Seth was tired and closed his eyes. He needed and wanted to rest.
Noag walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Thorgon was waiting outside. “How did go? Wat ya tell ‘em? Did ‘e ask? Does ‘e ‘ave the power?”
“Look Thorgon, he just woke up and he’s tired, he can’t see straight, he needs rest. And no, I did not ask him about the power. Too much strain too soon. We shall try again tomorrow. Let us go. The others will be waiting for us at the pub.”
* * *
Chapter Three
Gweneviere was running and skipping through the alleys of Tisdale singing, blonde hair flowing behind. Her blue eyes projected the image of innocence. Confident and sweet were the words typically used to describe her. She had many errands to run and they always took a lot of time. She figured out a while ago that if she skipped and ran some, she could get done quicker leaving more play time. She had already been to the bakery for flour, blacksmith for some nails and wire, and the last stop was the butcher. As she turned the corner, she met up with her best friends, Edward and Arthur. Edward was tall, skinny with a mop of brown hair that matched his eyes, and a mischievous easy smile. Not quite as tall as Edward, it was easy to spot Arthur though with his red hair and freckles. The two of them were fun and usually smiling or laughing; you never knew what was going to happen. It was not like they were looking for trouble; it was more that trouble always found them. If there was a commotion in town, chances are they were right in the middle. They yelled for her to stop.
“Can’t now” she yelled back over her shoulder “too much to do.”
Edward yelled again “We have news!”
“News?” Gweneviere said startled. This time she did stop. “What news have you?”
Edward glanced over to Arthur then back to Gweneviere. “There was a fight with RA soldiers. Many were killed. Some say a demon was involved.”
“That is terrible. And?” Gweneviere demanded. Her eyes were wide and glaring. She shifted her gaze between the two of them wondering which one was going to talk. They just looked at each other, not willing to speak. Edward never saw the punch coming but he certainly felt it. Gweneviere was now standing over him and glaring at Arthur. “Well?” was all she needed to say.
Arthur starting backing up while he said “Some of our soldiers were killed and some were wounded. I don’t know for sure but…”
“But what?” Gweneviere demanded, her voice elevated.
“I am so sorry. I have heard that Jason was killed and Seth was hurt.”
With that news, Gweneviere was gone. One brother dead and the other hurt. It could not be worse. She forgot about the butcher shop and ran straight home with tears in her eyes. As she got closer to the house, she spotted a small crowd outside and her mom was standing at the door. The crowd fell silent as she approached. With her mom’s puffy eyes, it was obvious that she had been crying.
“Mom, is it true?”
Her mom looked at her with a pale face and red eyes. This was a lot to burden a 17 year old with. “T
here was a battle. Many Royal Army soldiers were involved and all of them were killed. In the battle we also lost some of our soldiers. They were all brave, each one of them. Malcolm is fine. I am so thankful for that. Seth was hurt, really bad, and we are hoping he will regain his strength.” Her mom hesitated, not wanting to share the rest. “Jason was killed protecting others.”
Massive tears were flowing from Gweneviere eye’s as she hugged her mom tightly. “It could not be true!” She would not accept it. “People are wrong. The news is wrong. My brothers are fine, I can feel it.”
Her mom looked at her with sad eyes. “I am afraid it is true. We knew this day might come. Now go inside, you have a surprise. Your uncle is here.”
Gweneviere brushed aside some of the tears and flashed a quick smile. It had been years since her uncle had visited. He was always traveling and she always wanted to hear about his ventures. Gweneviere ran inside and found him in the kitchen. Tall, handsome, elegant, and dressed in fine expensive clothes, he always attracted attention wherever he went. He projected an air of confidence and sophistication. She leapt into his arms and hugged him tightly.
“Whoa, it has been a while. You almost knocked me over. Here now, let me look at you.” Her uncle placed her on the floor and stood back. “Wow, you have certainly grown. How old are you now? 12? 13?”
Gweneviere glared at him. “17 and I am almost a grown woman” she said defiantly.
“Ay” her uncle said “And a very pretty one at that, even when you have been crying.” Her uncle took her arm, pulled up her sleeve, and kissed her birthmark. She was embarrassed by it and tried to hide it but her uncle always made it obvious. “Tell me, do you know about your brothers?”
Gweneviere looked down at the floor as tears ran down her cheeks.
“Ay, I can see that you have. What do you know?”
Gweneviere told him and he looked at her with sad eyes. “There is more, much more that you should know. Jason was killed attacking a demon.” Gweneviere gasped as did everyone around them. Her uncle continued. “Thorgon and Seth were both attacked by the demon and each survived. In our stories handed down from generation to generation, no one has ever survived such an attack. The council of elders is debating this as we speak. Everyone is trying to understand it. My heart saddens that we lost Jason. He fought bravely to the end and will be recognized as a hero.”
“Demon?” Gweneviere gasped. “I thought they were just stories.”
“So did we until now. Seth is recovering and should be fine as best as we can tell. Now child, I believe all these people must be fed. Quickly run to town and buy some food, enough for 30 people.”
Gweneviere agreed but quickly stopped and looked at him. “I need some money please.”
“No, it will be fine, just tell them it is for me. I will settle with them later.”
Gweneviere left quickly thinking it must be awesome to be able to use your name to buy things. She did not want anyone to see her crying so she wiped her tears and willed herself to focus on the task. There will be time later to hurt and grieve; right now she knew there were people to be fed. She will just tell them that she is buying these items for Theodore Wainwright III.
* * *
Gweneviere had just left the butcher shop. She asked how much her uncle owed but the butcher refused to discuss it. He even added extra meat to the package and said it was his pleasure to provide the meal for free. This happened at all of the merchants. After leaving the cheese shop, she bumped into Edward and Arthur. Edward stepped back holding his shoulder. Arthur just looked at her with his eyes wide open wondering what she was going to do.
Edward spoke first. “Are you okay?”
“No, you idiot, are you insane?” Gweneviere retorted. “Jason was killed, Seth is hurt, and Malcolm is chasing vegetables. What do you think?”
“Sorry!” was the mumbled reply from both boys. “Here, you can at least make yourself useful” and she thrust the packages into their arms. “Next is the bakery, follow me there” she quickly told them. They started walking down the street. Gweneviere ignored the looks and whispers. Her brother is a hero. No one could deny that. She was determined to hold her head high.
“I am curious though.” Gweneviere paused. “Why was everyone else spared? The demon should have killed them all.”
Edward rubbed his arm while he quickly answered “We don’t know. Were they not a threat? Following orders not to harm us? In that case, we can’t explain the attack on Thorgon and Seth and the others.” He was trying to avoid naming the casualties.
“Maybe he was too weak from the RA attack?” offered Arthur.
“Well, when we finished with these errands, I shall ask my uncle. He would know.”
The three of them were walking side by side when Gweneviere abruptly stopped. She grabbed the shoulders of Edward and Arthur and held them tight. Edward and Arthur both turned their heads towards her and waited to see what she would say. Gweneviere did not say a thing but was not letting go either. Edward was thinking she finally lost it. He was about to take a step forward when the wagon flew past them, not more than a foot in front. If they had been walking…..
Arthur was the first to speak “How did you know?” Gweneviere looked at him and said “I just did. Let’s go. We have more food to get.” With that, the three of them set about their errands and returned to the farmhouse.
* * *
Seth woke up. ‘Onions, why does it always have to be onions?’ he thought. He slowly opened his eyes. It took a few minutes. He began to make out shapes in the room. “Hi Thorgon” he said. “Can I have some water?” He felt his head being lifted and a glass was placed to his lips. “Thanks Thorgon” he said.
“You are certainly more than welcome and I am delighted you are feeling a little bit better.” Seth thought he must still be groggy. Thorgon was speaking in full sentences. Then he heard Thorgon belch followed by a waft of onions. Seth thought he must need more sleep.
He started to close his eyes again when another voice said “Ay, my lad, time for you to quit being lazy and get your armor back on. There is much yet to be done.”
Seth knew that voice but could not quite place it. “Who is it? Show yourself or I shall cut you down where you stand.”
The voice laughed and said “Ay, you can’t even see me let alone cause me harm.”
“Uncle Theo” Seth yelled and threw out his arms. He was greeted by a big hug and the smell of expensive cologne.
“When did you get here? Where are you staying? How long are you staying? Do you know about Jason? What are the plans? When do we attack?”
“My dear boy, so many questions, so little time. YOU are not doing anything anytime soon. We are still trying to figure out how you are alive. We don’t know what effect the demon has had on you. Best to spend some time recovering. Have you noticed anything unusual?”
“No” came the quick reply. “Nothing more than smelling onions, seeing only shapes, and being thirsty.”
“Oh yes, and it takes a few minutes to wake up. As long as the enemy doesn’t attack while I am asleep, we should be fine. I have my sword right here.” Seth reached down for his sword but instead placed his hand in a bowl full of cold water. His sword was not there. He always had his sword with him, always. He gave a puzzled look to his uncle.
“Now, now, there boy. Time to rest.” Uncle Theo quickly left the room and said nothing about the sword. Seth wiped his hand on his shirt, fell back into the bed and closed his eyes. So much had changed, so many questions. Seth tried to replay in his mind all that had transpired but too much was foggy. He finally drifted off to sleep.
* * *
Gweneviere awoke with a jolt. She lay there motionless listening. She could hear voices coming from downstairs but could not understand what they were saying. She sat up and it was dark outside. This was strange indeed. She crawled out of bed and slowly walked across the wooden floor carefully avoiding the squeaks. She grabbed the door handle and turned it slightly. As it
opened, she began to hear what they were saying.
“No! Absolutely not! I forbid it!” said the first voice.