"Chosen 6b"

"hCosen 6b" 
by;fernand jiro

Pallan laughed.  “No, Raleigh.  Remember, I strive to learn.”  She looked down the path to where the men ran and thought for a moment.  “Though it sounded a little different from Polic.”  With a shrug, Pallan turned to see the young girl standing a short distance behind them.  “She is either waiting to thank us or preparing to run again.”

                The little brown hair, blue-eyed girl sniffed and began to cry.  “Mommy!”

                Both Pallan and Raleigh rushed to the girl who dropped down to her rear, weeping loudly.  Pallan did her best to comfort the child, singing softly and rubbing her back.  Eventually they were able to calm her down enough to be told what had happened.

                “My mommy told me to run when the bad men came.  I ran and ran until I came to the path and then I saw you.”

                “The bad men, you mean the three men that just ran away?” asked Pallan.

                The little girl nodded.  “Uh huh.”

                Pallan continued her questions.  “Do you know what they wanted?”

                “Our land,” whimpered the little girl.

                Raleigh stood up and looked back down the path.  His fists were clenched, baring white knuckles.  “We have to help them,” he muttered softly.

                Pallan stood slowly.  “There is nothing we can do, Raleigh, it is not our fight.  Even if I was up to it I could not handle more than two at a time.”

                “Daegan and Squill are could handle it,” Raleigh stated flatly.

                “We do not know where they are,” Pallan retorted.  “Nor do we know what we would be up against.  We cannot go running around in a strange land causing trouble and making a bad name for ourselves.”

                “You said that we were on the northwestern shore, did you not?”

                Raleigh held a strong resolve in his eyes that Pallan felt hard to fight against.  “I said that is where the dialect was from.  This looks nothing like the northwestern shores.”  Pallan looked up to the sky, observing the sun and clouds.  “In fact, I would say we were moving north from the beach we woke up on.”

                “Then we simply look for Daegan and Squill.”

                “Raleigh,” Pallan replied with aggravation in her voice.  She had to pause a moment to recollect herself down again.  “I appreciate your situation and understand your feelings but…”

                Raleigh turned to look Pallan deep in her eyes.  “Then what about her?” he asked, pointing to the girl.  “Do we leave her here or take her with us?”

                There was a moment of silence between the two of them before the little girl spoke.  “Are you really better than the other two?” she asked meekly.

                Both Raleigh and Pallan looked down.  “What other two?” Pallan asked.

                “The two men that he beat,” the girl replied while pointing to Raleigh.

                Raleigh knelt down next to the young girl.  “Do you know where they went?” he asked.  “Where the old mill is?”

                Fear covered the little girl’s face at the thought of Raleigh’s question.  “No one goes to the mill.  It’s haunted.”

                “Those two men are important,” Pallan replied softly.  “If you help us then we can help you.”

                “What do you mean?” the girl asked.

                “We can help you and your family,” Pallan answered.  The little girl smiled a little and nodded slowly.

                “What is your name?” Raleigh asked.

                “Sheya,” replied the girl with a small shine of hope in her eyes.

                Raleigh offered his hand to the little girl to help her up then retrieved Pallan’s sword to sheathe it again.  The three of them set out to the old mill in hopes of finding Daegan and Squill.  Sheya lead them down the path in the opposite direction from where she came from, making sure to stay  as close to Raleigh as she could.  Pallan limped on as best as she could, stopping every now and then to rest.  To Raleigh she seemed to be growing weaker and weaker, a shadow of her former self.  To Pallan, it was another challenge to overcome.

                Sheya swerved off of the path to take them up along a small stream.  She began to look around more and more as if expecting the worse.  Her fears began to become visible as they entered a wooded area where light and shadow danced about each other, playing tricks on the eyes.  Several times the young girl grabbed a hold of Raleigh’s tunic, trying to shield herself behind him.  A gentle word from either Pallan or Raleigh would often be enough to reassure her and convince her to continue, if only a little further.

                The ground began to slope upward and occasionally the shadow of the mill loomed through the trees.  Soon they came into a small clearing before a modest building in dire disrepair.  The vines and moss had covered most of the stones of the building as if the woods were trying to swallow it whole.  The roof was wide open and crumbling inward with the rest of the building.  With the setting sun darkness slowly covered the land, inviting the nightly creatures to emerge from their day time slumber to resume their nocturnal chorus.  The idea of the mill being haunted did not seem so foreign as thoughts of ghosts and monsters crept into both Raleigh and Pallan’s minds.

                “It is easy to see why people would imagine this place is haunted,” Pallan murmured.

                Raleigh nodded.  “It does not look like it has been used in years.”

                “The bad people came from here,” Sheya whispered.

                “The who?” asked Raleigh.

                “The bad people.  They were mean and hurt others a long time ago.”  Sheya shuddered lightly as she recalled the tales and warnings her parents told her about this place and clutched onto Raleigh’s tunic even tighter.

                Pallan looked around.  “No bad people here now,” she confirmed.

                “Who goes there?” shouted a voice from inside the mill.

                Raleigh pulled Sheya behind him and reached for the sword at his side instinctively, realizing only after taking hold of the handle that it would do him little good.  Still, he held onto it tightly.  Pallan eased forward, her head turned slightly to as if straining to listen.

                “The fight is the way of life,” she called out.

                Raleigh’s head jerked to face Pallan with a perplexed look on his face.  “Why did she say that,” he thought.  “It almost sounds like…a challenge?”  He did not like the idea of Pallan issuing a challenge.

                The door to the mill opened slowly and a figure eased his way out holding a large sword drawn and ready to strike if need be.  The light was dim and shadows clung to the figure like a cloak wrapped tightly to his body.  After a moment of silence and stillness the figure lowered the weapon and slowly came forward.

                “At least there are two familiar faces in this forsaken land,” murmured a familiar voice.

                “Daegan?” asked Raleigh, happy and relieved to hear his voice.

                Daegan nodded as he came closer then looked to Pallan.  “I didn’t realize you were a spectator of the Tournaments.”

                “A lady has to have some simple pleasures in life,” Pallan replied with an innocent.  “Is Squill with you?”

                “Yes.”  Daegan looked back to Squill and lifted his sword to the air before sheathing it on his back. 

                A moment later Squill exited the mill and hurried down to greet Pallan and Raleigh.   “It’s good to see you two.  We were beginning to wonder where we were and if we would ever see a familiar face again.”

                “You’re in Haber,” muttered Sheya.

                All four of them looked down to her.  “Where?” asked Pallan.

                “Haber,” the little girl repeated.

                “I have never heard of that town,” murmured Daegan.

                “It isn’t a town,” Sheya protested.

                “What is it then,” asked Raleigh.

                “My mommy said it’s the common land of the Combine.”

                “The what of the what?” asked Squill.

                Pallan lifted her hand.  “Lets go inside first.  I would rather not be out here if someone…or thing did come to find us.”  They went into the mill and fortified themselves in.  After settling in and starting a small fire Pallan began to probe Sheya about all she knew.

                “You will have to forgive us, Sheya.  We are from a far away land.  Can you tell us more?”

                “Like what?” Sheya asked.

                “What is the Combine?”

                Sheya thought for a moment.  “Daddy said it is a who we are.  We are part of the Combine.”

                Pallan nodded.  “So from smallest to largest there is your house, then this Vagaren Family, then Haber, then the Combine?”

                Again Sheya thought for a moment.  “I think so.”

                “Haber must be a statehood of some sort,” Raleigh commented.

                Daegan nodded.  “It seems we may have reached our destination after all.”

                “But how?” asked Squill.  “The last thing I remember we were fighting the on the Gallant.”

                “There was that flash of light,” Pallan replied.  “Someone brought us here.”

                Squill rubbed his temples.  “The Taige wants to stop us, something else wants us to keep going.  I’m getting confused.”

                “The…who?” asked Raleigh, feeling more lost than before.

                Daegan shook his head and sighed.  “Another time.  Right now we should rest.  I’ll take the first watch, Squill the second.”

                Sheya looked to Pallan and whispered, “Your promise?”

                Pallan nodded.  “How are you both feeling?  Well enough for a fight?” she asked Squill and Daegan.

                “Why do you ask?” Daegan replied, a wary look on his brow.

                “It seems there are some men who are mistreating people around here, including this girl’s family,” replied Pallan.  “We mean to put a stop to it.”

                Daegan arched his eyebrow.  “You mean Squill and I, right?”

                “You two and Raleigh.”

                “Raleigh?” scoffed Daegan.  “He’ll slow us down if it came to a fight.”

                Sheya chimed in.  “Pallan said that he beat you two up!”

                Pallan nodded.  “At least, that is what the Vagaren Family’s men will think.”

                “Why should we do this?” asked Daegan.  “We don’t know anything about the enemy.  For all we know the men we’ve seen were simpletons used for small errands.  What if they have a real army?”

                A mischievous smile curled Pallan’s lips.  “I heard you defeated ten highly skilled men alone a couple of years ago in one of the Tournaments.  Surely you could handle the vagabonds we’d face.”

                “We can always scout the area and see what we are against,” Squill suggested.

                Daegan sat in deep thought for a moment.  “All right…all right,” he finally murmured.  “Go to sleep.  We’ll scout tomorrow and make a plan.”

                Pallan smiled and lay back to settle in for the night.  Raleigh did as well, looking to Daegan for a moment as he stared out of one of the front windows.  His eyes never wavered from their duty, jolting from side to side occasionally to scan the area before him.  Raleigh knew they would be safe and gradually drifted into sleep.

                The next morning, just after the light of the sunrise pierced through the treetops, Daegan awoke everyone to prepare for the journey and began to ask Sheya about where the Varagen Family lived while Squill got breakfast.  After comparing what she knew with what Daegan and Squill had experienced yesterday Daegan was able to figure out the lay of the land and important structures.  Squill returned a short time later with some small fruit and berries for all to eat.

                Pallan was still not feeling well, her muscles even weaker than the day before.

                “I’ll be fine,” she protested through a grunt as she lifted herself up to her feet.  “Lets go.”

                “M’Lady D’Lude,” Raleigh started softly.

                “I will be fine,” Pallan stated flatly then started to walk out the door.

                “Fine, you’ll stay back with Raleigh,” Daegan said.  He then looked to Raleigh.  “I hope you know how to use that sword well enough to keep you and her alive.”

                Raleigh looked to the sword at his waist then to Daegan.  “I can manage,” he replied, trying to sound as confident as possible.

                “I’m sure,” Daegan replied in a slightly snide tone.

                They set off, traveling northeast from the mill, almost paralleling the direction Pallan, Raleigh, and Sheya used to find to the mill.  The sun had now cleared the horizon and the cool breeze of morning slowly began to make way for the warmth of day.  Within a short time they passed out of the small woods into the open plains again.  Sheya giggled softly as the dew from the tall grass began to cover her from head to toe.

                Daegan took the lead, keeping a sharp eye out for any dangers they may encounter, with Squill in the rear doing the same.  Quickly they made their way through the grasslands to a small valley where Daegan and Squill awoke two days prior.  Sheya believed that to be the place where the Varagen Family lived, hearing stories of a large house in a valley with many servants.

                By midmorning they had arrived and took cover along the crest of the valley.  The house below and surrounding structures took up a large part of it, filling the same area as a small village.  From their vantage point there seemed to be the main house, a guardhouse, stables, a granary even though there were no signs of any farmlands nearby, and a well in the center of it.  Several other buildings were spread throughout the valley, some of which seemed to be guard defense posts.  Daegan and Squill split up to scout the area.  Raleigh, Pallan, and Sheya sat quietly and waited for the two fighters to come back.  Time seemed to creep by; slowing the longer they were away, until finally Squill returned.

                “Where is Daegan?” Pallan asked.

                “He’s not back yet?” replied Squill in a concerned voice.

                Pallan shook her head.  “No.”

                “Could he have been captured?” asked Raleigh.

                “Doubtful,” Pallan stated calmly.  “He does not seem like the type to give up.”

                Squill nodded then looked to the valley, his eyes suddenly widening.  “High Father…”

                Everyone turned to look down into the valley to see a tall column of black smoke rise from one of the buildings.  In the middle of the valley, near the well, stood a figure surrounded by a small horde of men.  They did not appear to be trained guards yet they held weapons of various types.  The smaller defense structures appeared to be empty, their compliment surrounding the figure.

                “Daegan does not seem like the suicide frontal assault type either,” Pallan grumbled as she struggled to her feet.

                “That isn’t Daegan,” Squill contradicted as he pointed to the other crest of the valley.  “I can see him now over there.”

                “Then…who is that?” asked Raleigh.

                Pallan narrowed her eyes.  The figure in the middle removed his hood to reveal dark red hair.  He stood still in the middle as the circling mob slowly closed in on him.  The leader of the group seemed cautious when directing his men closer, quickly adjusting his orders to the movements of the figure in the middle.

                “Caslian,” murmured Pallan.

                “Who?” asked Raleigh.

                Squill jumped to his feet and lifted his sword.  On the other side of the valley Daegan did the same.  “He knows.  We’re going in to help.”

                “Think you three can handle those odds?” Pallan asked.

                Squill sighed, a hint of excitement in his breath and apparent in his eyes, and exclaimed, “We’ll know shortly!” before jumping forward and half running, half sliding down the slope of the valley.  Daegan did the same and both by passed the defense structures without any resistance.  Both burst through the circle around Caslian, injuring several of the guards they passed, and turned back to back against Caslian.

                “For an assassin you draw a lot of attention,” Daegan stated calmly.

                Caslian scoffed softly.  “This could have ended peacefully but they decided to try my patience.”

                “How?” asked Squill.

                “Enough talk,” barked Daegan.  “We have a fight on our hands.”

                “Is it just you two?” asked Caslian.

                “Pallan and Raleigh are on the southern crest with a girl from the area,” answered Daegan.

                “Raleigh…the priest’s companion?”

                “Yeah, him,” replied Daegan.

                “Good,” Caslian replied.  “Are you ready to make a big commotion?”

                “Always,” stated Daegan, a cocky smirk growing across his lips.  “How about you, Squill?”

                Squill took a deep breath.  “Of course.”

                “Now!” shouted Caslian, charging two men in the circle.  There were two flashes of light followed by the thud of two bodies hitting the ground.  Caslian slid to a halt as he turned with a grin only a bringer of death could make.  The men nearest to him hesitated, pressed on by those near by to engage the assassin.  Caslian slowly stood up right and stared at them, his face turning cold and emotionless.  A light breeze blew past them, rousing the dust on the ground into the air and causing Caslian’s dark red hair to sway gently.  “Choose wisely,” he stated calmly.  Several of the men turned to run leaving few left to fight.  Another grin spread across Caslian’s lips.  “The choice is made.”

                Daegan met a charge of several men at once, slicing four down almost instantly in two strokes.  He dodged attacks from two more men and parried three others.  One by one they begin to fall as the fighter cut through defenses and flawlessly avoiding and deflecting any attempt to touch him.  With in a matter of moments Daegan stood among a gathering of wounded attempting to crawl away or dead.

                With a swing from shield, Squill sent another opponent to the ground, blood spilling from his broken jaw.  As he looked around he saw many of the men turn to run.  They remembered the performance him and Daegan put on for them the first time when they found them in a barn to the south.  A sense of pride flowed through his veins when he saw most of the attackers unconscious, dead, or running away.

                As the battle raged on a small figure slipped away from the well and ran up to the top of the southern crest where Pallan, Raleigh, and Sheya watched.  Raleigh noticed it among the confusion below and watched carefully.  When the figure swerved to run to them he stood and drew the sword, hoping to fool who ever it was like they had been able to do before.

                “Raleigh!” the figure shouted in a high-pitched girl’s voice.  “It’s me!”  As she drew closer Raleigh could see curly locks of red hair slip from beneath her hood.

                “Bria?” he called.  She embraced Raleigh and pulled her hood back.  He smiled and looked her over as he asked, “Are you ok?”

                Bria held on tightly to Raleigh.  “Yes,” she sniffed.  “There was a mean man who wanted to sell me!”

                Raleigh looked to Pallan who scowled.  “Selling children,” she growled under her breath.

                “What of it?” asked a voice behind them.  They spun around to see a tall, well built man with long blond hair staring down at them with two guards by his side.  “She is on my property so she is my property.”

                Raleigh pulled Bria and Sheya behind him and lifted the sword up.  Pallan moved next to him and tried her best to act strong in front of the three men.  “Varagen, I presume?” she sneer.

                “Thanus Varagen,” he replied with a slight bow.  “Welcome to my lands,” he added with a sinister smile.  “Release the red head and I may let you live as my servants.”  He looked Pallan up and down with an anxious gleam in his eye.  “Some more intimate than others.”

                “Never,” said Raleigh as he stepped forward, holding Pallan’s sword ready to strike.

                Thanus laughed.  “Are you challenging me?” he asked.  “I am master of these lands.”  With a wave of his hand Thanus added, “Kill him.”

                “No!” shouted Bria as she clung tightly to Pallan.  The men approached Raleigh slowly, toying with him by feigning strikes.  Thanus kept laughing behind them as Raleigh’s lack of skill with the sword became painfully obvious.  Bria closed her eyes tightly, whimpering softly.

                The wind blew through the air lightly, twirling around the combatants and spectators on the southern crest of the valley.  Time seemed to stand still for Raleigh, as death seemed to approach closer and closer.  His opponents continued to toy with him, laughing as he swung in vain at fake attacks and decoys.  With one final swipe, one of the guards sent Pallan’s sword out of Raleigh’s hands and to the ground.  Raleigh fell back as two swords pointed at his neck.

                “What pathetic entertainment,” sighed Thanus.  “I was hoping for more of a show.”  He waved his hand in disgust.  “Kill him.”

                The two guards looked to each other with grins of glee then focused their attention on Raleigh to carefully choose their targets.  The tips of the two swords slowly swayed as they searched.  Raleigh could only sit there and await his fate.  His eyes never looked away from the swords nor did they close.  He was not afraid of the death that approached but of the fate that awaited Pallan, Sheya, and Bria.

                There was a sudden clash of metal against metal and the two guards fell back a few steps, surprised and angry that their fun had been ruined.  Raleigh slowly looked up to see Pallan standing tall and proud with sword in hand.  She was poised, ready to meet the two guards in battle, a cocky grin spread wide across her lips.

                “Raleigh, stay with Bria and Sheya,” she stated coolly.  “I’m back.”

                The two guards rushed forward, one greeted with a boot in his stomach, the other meeting Pallan blade to blade.  She alternated between the two with skill and grace, almost as if she were dancing between two partners.  Neither of them were able to touch her.  Thanus began to back away as he saw his two guards were now the ones being toyed with, but found Raleigh had snuck around to greet him, staff in hand.

                “You claim this land?” he asked Thanus.

                “It is my right!” Thanus exclaimed.  “By right of power!”

                Raleigh narrowed his eyes.  “No longer,” he murmured and motioned Thanus to look behind him.  Pallan had defeated his two guards, one on the ground in pain while the other lay against a tree unconscious.  She slowly strode over to Thanus and pointed her sword point at his throat.

                “This is not your land any more,” she replied coldly.

                Thanus took a deep breath and kneeled before Pallan.  “It is…your land now.”

                Pallan shook her head.  “It is the people’s land.  They will decide what to do with you.”

                Daegan, Squill, and Caslian made their way up the hill with several of the servants that had been working in the house.  Sheya let out a cheerful cry as she ran into the middle of the small gathering and embraced her mother.  The servants saw Thanus on his knees and began to cheer their liberators.  A few of them ran out into the countryside to spread the news that they were free.  “Free of the Varagens!” echoed throughout the countryside.

                   That night a festival was planned in honor of the day they were freed and the people insisted that their liberators be their guests of honor.  It turned out to be a modest gathering initially, only a few families from the surrounding farmlands, but as the evening wore on and the news of what happened spread more and more began to appear.  Pallan had agreed to attend the festival in order to use the time to mingle and gather information about the things Sheya had told them.

                During the evening meal Raleigh sat near Bria who in turn sat near Caslian.  “Where did you wake up at?” he asked her.

                “North of here,” replied Caslian.  “Two nights ago in a wheat field.”

                “Together?”

                Bria nodded.  “I was laying in his arms.”  The little girl smiled to Caslian and touched her hair.  He touched a lock of his own and returned a very subtle smile.

                Raleigh took a sip of his water.  “How did you end up here?” he asked.

                “The farmer took us in for the night,” answered the assassin.  “He fed us and allowed us to sleep in his barn.  A small band of Varagen’s men happened by the next morning and took us captive for stealing Varagen’s food.”

                “I see,” said Raleigh softly.

                Caslian continued.  “I was to be put to death in grand fashion as a reminder to the others.  Bria…was to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.”  He looked down to the little girl.  “I did not like that.”

                Bria smiled and looked to Raleigh.  “We are a special breed of human,” she said proudly and pointed to her hair.

                Raleigh laughed softly.  “I see,” he said.

                That night everyone in the countryside slept soundly knowing tomorrow was the start of a brand new life.  Everyone but Pallan, who sat up pondering the information she received throughout the evening.  It did not sit well with her and knew that the others may not take it too lightly either.  She was also concerned with her sudden recovery.  After two days of being feeble and dependant, Pallan was suddenly able to fight as well as she ever had.  In many respects better.  It worried her that few things in her new surroundings could be trusted as if they were home, even her own body.  She pushed those thoughts aside, however, to concentrate on the bigger picture.  “We cannot trust our own history,” she murmured quietly.