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CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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The bartender nodded, scowled in Brexton’s direction, and then went back to his stall. A large bottle of ale sat on the countertop, and, with a firm grip, he lifted it into the air and began to drain it of its contents. The liquid swirled, and, in but a few moments, more of it had vanished from the container, like time itself.

-- End of Chapter Fourteen --

17-Jan-2009 00:45:09

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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~` Chapter Fifteen `~

Darkness fell from the sky as the sun was reborn anew, fulfilling the daily prophecy and reclaiming its rightful place among the forgotten gods. Rays of purity, strengthened by their rest during the night, struck past the shadows and delved into the guarded windows of the townspeople, awaking many from slumber with a rushing wave of adrenaline.

Clouds softly held their positions in the sky, silently gliding along with the sun as it rose past the horizon; the stars, too, vanished with the newfound light. It had gone slowly, with the howling winds and the arguing men of the previous day, but, as always, a new day had broken free of the unholy grasp of darkness, fighting past all the wickedness to shine brightly the next day.

Hours passed as the sun moved slowly in the sky - one hour, two, three, four - it did not stop; it was around ten o’clock when the final citizens, and travelers, opened their eyes to witness the rising day come upon them. Warmly held in their beds, they had been, for a time, protected from the wailing assault of the nightly gales; for a time, they been freed of the relentless agony that had come with their everyday lives.

Anthoni had rose with the dawn’s breaking, making his way down the steps of the inn they had slept in to fix himself a quick breakfast. It did not last long, though, and he went out into the streets to greet the new day, to pray, and to hope for a better morning than the last; he had not seen one since he left Atiolgo, which brought about a burning desire to witness the birth of another morn, another opportunity.

The streets were relatively quiet at the time he awoke: homeless dogs, with their tails between their legs, trotted across the dirt street without meaning, merchants began to open their shops and carts in the square, and even a few women had come to delve into their daily chores, lest they fall behind and become barraged by an unkempt number as the day progressed.

19-Jan-2009 19:33:11 - Last edited on 19-Jan-2009 19:45:16 by CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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Smiling, Anthoni crept to the town’s edge, near the river, and sat down on the bank; he watched the last few waves of darkness shimmer with a dying attempt, but then fall to the glory of the rising protector of the land, he wondered of the purpose of the daily event, and, for a time, he examined his own mind, his own soul, for what he thought he needed, what he thought he knew, and what he thought he loved.

Prying the horizon’s barrier with shining hands, the sun pushed forth and rose above the land in the distance, even towering above the trees Anthoni and Maxwell had passed through on their unending voyage towards Veskile; Anthoni had since forgotten their reason, his mind wandering to the revealing moment when Tiulo stood before tem clad in magical robes, and told him of what was thought to be his purpose, his destiny.

The general’s imagination overtook him as he looked on in a daze, thinking of the power he might one day hold in his very hands. Glancing down, the two products of his God rotated in wonder of what would become of him, and Anthoni could not help but think of how he would use the power: whether he would use for the good of all, or the good of himself; it burned through his mind, tainting his thoughts of the new day, and he tried to push it from his mind.

‘Why me?’ he thought, touching the water softly with the tip of his boot. Although cautious of what would become of him, Anthoni drove out the memories of the previous journey and merely watched the circling ripples form in the water below, moving out further and further as they grew in size, grew in meaning; he saw his reflection, disrupted by the original touch of his toe, slowly regain its composure and shine with the day’s light back at him. He saw his own face, undisturbed, looking back at him through the waters.

19-Jan-2009 19:33:36

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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Sounds of early birds broke the solemn thoughts; they chirped without care, without meaning, as though they were but the product of the godly event that had taken place in front of his eyes. Anthoni’s gaze moved upwards, and he saw a small flock, grouped together to appear more dominant in size, fly swiftly overhead, each helping the other carry the wind beneath their wings to glide freely in the sky.

Again, Anthoni’s thoughts were driven to his companions: Maxwell, one of the youngest but one of his most trusted men, Korinth, the scholar of the king that he loathed, Jacob, another young man whose allegiance rests with the man he has sworn himself against, Landon, an advisor of King Rezod, and then Brexton, the one he would have to watch; each of them were well trained in what they spoke of, but they all, also, lacked the experience of Anthoni, except for Brexton, who also held a foul grudge against Heldora’s ruler.

A scowl crossed the soldier’s face. ‘Brexton,’ he thought, looking back into the water. ‘His anger is obvious, and his temper could very well be the death of us all. Can we trust him? Does he trust us? Last night, his outburst was the result of some deepening hatred for the king, but how do we know that will not drive his actions?’ The plethora of ideas clouded his judgment, and Anthoni could do nothing but try to think of smaller things in life.

--

“Alright. That comes to a total of one hundred gold for your stay, then.”

Landon’s eyes drooped with the need for sleep as he opened his pouch on the counter, dumping a hefty amount of coins onto the table. Each of them was shining with an impeccable frame, symbolizing their wealth, and the image of Rezod was plastered onto every one of them; his fake smile drifted across the wooden countertop as the poor advisor counted out the cost for the group’s stay.

19-Jan-2009 19:34:05

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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A good three hours had passed since sunrise, but the majority of the travelers had not woken up until nine o’clock: Landon, Maxwell, Korinth, and Jacob were all included. Brexton, though, like Anthoni, awoke early in the morn, trying to escape the dreaded hellhole that was his psyche, and attempting to move away for a time to regain control of his emotions, the same ones that had plagued them all the previous night.

No one knew where Brexton or Anthoni had gone, but the four others realized it would be for the best: Anthoni was known for doing what had to be done, and, as they had all spoken of late in the night, none of them really had taken a liking to Brexton, especially after the brutal assault he had attempted upon Korinth. A lack of care for Brexton had grown, while a worried look for Anthoni was held steadfast in the eyes of all; they wanted him, whether it was for protection, or some deeper meaning.

“So you won’t be staying another night, then?” the bartended asked. His clothing did not differ from that of the night, but his expression seemed happier than what it was during Brexton’s tirade, and the subsequent revealing of the town’s secrets. The note had given a warning, a warning that neither Landon nor Anthoni nor anyone else could understand, but they respected it.

Landon took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes clean of any nightly deposits before replying. “No, my good man, we are going to venture into the mountains, I believe, and take a look at whatever might be causing the winds during the night. God knows what it may be, but I, for one, will not stand for a lack of knowledge, because we all know what it could be; it is necessary.” A yawn quickly escaped Landon’s mouth and he tried to cover it in a vain measure, but it let loose a foul breath that came with morning.

19-Jan-2009 19:35:00

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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“Best of luck, then,” the man said, grimacing slightly from the smell that had escaped directly into his face. He received a half-hearted look of apology from Landon, who then turned and looked upon the three others that crowded around a circular table, awaiting the orders of their elders; however, that was not all that showed forth from his playful meeting.

Jacob’s eyes had fallen to Korinth, who was tossing her hair in her hand mindlessly as she read the parchment from the night before over and over again. Attempting to make small talk, Jacob began to inch closer to Korinth and asked, “So, how long have you been working for the king, then?”

His question was not met with much response, as Korinth glanced at him and muttered, “Three years,” before drifting back off into her thoughts. Jacob turned his head away and took a deep breath, smiling awkwardly at Landon who watched the entire thing unfold before him. Shy and becoming fully embarrassed, Jacob let out a short cough and then looked over at Maxwell.

“So, anything new with you?” he asked, obviously upset at not talking more with Korinth, but accepting the fact that he would need a different approach be successful. Slowly, a plan hatched forth in his mind and he smiled playfully, continuing to look at the other soldier, but allowing subtle looks to befall his woman counterpart beside him.

Maxwell ran his hand through his hair and replied, “Anthoni being gone, along with Brexton, doesn’t ease my conscience. I think that, if we are to even be close to successful on this mission, we will need men with their expertise to lead us their.” He paused and looked down at the paper Korinth read from. “That note weighs heavily on all of our minds, an the warning it has given does not help.”

19-Jan-2009 19:35:18

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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Uninterested, Jacob saw his chance and leaned over to read the note, softly saying, “It’s pretty deep, I can say that.” His eyes glanced up at Korinth’s, who now had to look through his head in order to read the item, but she raised an eyebrow before merely shrugging him off. "Why are you reading that, anyway? I thought we all agreed it was just a warning and that we’d just go along anyway.”

“Please… just don’t talk,” she requested, her eyes remaining firmly on the paper. Adjusting her glasses slightly, a frown came upon her face and she looked up, past the two younger men, and began to look over Landon. “Ask him where he got this,” she commanded, pointing towards the innkeeper; he was serving a drink to another drunken man who had risen from his rest.

Nodding, Landon turned and began to question the man, but was interrupted as the door flew open and smashed into the wall that stood adjacent to it; it left a sharp mark etched into the frame. Silently, Brexton walked in and shot a glare at Landon before looking over to the table of three. “Where’s Anthoni?” he asked, his voice not changing in tone. “We need to leave soon.”

“I haven’t seen him,” Landon replied, moving away from the bartender. “A better question, though, is: where have you been? Both you and Anthoni left early in the morning and never revealed where you were going to anyone. If we had left, how would you know where to find us?” Landon paused and then moved to the seated Jacob’s side. “Were you not thinking?”

“Landon, do not scold me as though I am a child. Had you left, you all - all four of you - would not have lasted through the night up in those mountains; you need Anthoni and I, so don’t toy with me. As for where I was, I don’t think you need to know; it is my business and shall remain as such. Do you have a problem with that, oh, highest advisor to the king?”

19-Jan-2009 19:35:47 - Last edited on 19-Jan-2009 19:46:56 by CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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Landon flinched and his eyes fell to the ground, allowing his glasses to slide to the tip of his nose. “I don’t work for the king here, Brexton; we’re all in this together, so I think it’d be best if you cut it out with the whole ‘the damned king needs to die’ nonsense you’re spewing constantly.” Finally sticking up for himself, Landon stood proudly in front of the taller, younger Brexton an held a stern expression.

Although infuriated by Landon’s actions, Brexton did not have a chance to reply as Anthoni’s figure appeared in the doorway, calm and collected; his eyes were fixated on the group, and all the turmoil that had lived within his heart for so long seemed to have dissipated. Maxwell, immediately, stood and welcomed his general, breaking the stares between Landon and Brexton and saving them from another outburst.

“Anthoni,” Landon began, moving his attention away from Brexton, “where have you been? We’ve all been quite worried about you.” He smiled. “Even Brexton here wanted to know where you were! There is not much time left for us to leave and get moving up towards the mountains, as it will take at least a day.”

“Do not worry, Landon,” Anthoni replied. “All is well. As for where I have been, I left early to see the sunrise, and I seemed to have needed such a sight badly.” Anthoni then looked to Korinth, who continued to not heed his entrance and study the warning in front of her. “Is everyone ready to proceed?”

The door’s opened quickly, and fell just as quickly, while they left. None knew they had been there long, and none knew if they’d ever return again; it was a perplexing fate. In Korinth’s hand was the note, in Jacob’s and Maxwell’s were swords, in Landon’s was a bag, in Brexton’s was a staff, and in Anthoni’s was a small bottle, filled to the brim with water, and a small pebble lay in the bottom.

-- End of Chapter Fifteen --

19-Jan-2009 19:36:06

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