Chapter 5: Saviour

Aylwin opens his eyes after being unconscious for who knows how long and finds himself on a bed in a room. The room is large yet cluttered with herbs, books, and vials of liquid of all colors. He now realizes that he is in an alchemist's house. Aylwin looks to his left and sees Tharen sitting up in on a small bed with his left arm wrapped up.

“Tharen,” said Aylwin trying to sit up. Feeling weak and exhausted, he falls back down.

“Relax. The poison is still affecting you,” said an unfamiliar voice.

Aylwin turns his head to his right and sees a mysterious older bald man with a dark skin tone and a distinct thick scar that goes from the right nostril of his nose down to the right side of his jaw.

Beside the older man is a younger man, nineteen years old at most. He is 5’9’’ and 155 pounds by the looks of it. He has a medium brown skin tone, short black hair and a small mole left of his nose.

“Aylwin, you alright?” Asked Tharen.

“Stiff, but I'm alive,” replied Aylwin. “How long have I been out and where are we?”

“Couple days they say, I've only been awake ten minutes,” said Tharen. “I know as much as you.”

Aylwin looks around the room and sees the pretty girl laying face down in another bed across the room.

“How is she?” asked Aylwin.

“Not as good as you,” said the older man.

“Is she dead?” asked Aylwin.

“Not yet, but she's not far off,” said the olderman, while putting some herbs in a mortar and pestle.

“Why is she so much worse than us?” asked Tharen.

“Because the poison arrow nicked her heart. This is a poison made from the Deathbloom plant which spreads through the body in blood.. The faster the poison goes through your body, the faster it works,” said the younger guy. “That, and stopping a heart from bleeding isn't an easy thing.”

“Hey guys,” said Silverblade walking in the room in surprisingly good condition.

“You look good,” stated Tharen.

“I've accidentally eaten the Deathbloom plant a couple times in my life, my body is pretty used to it,” replied Silverblade.

“How did you accidentally eat a deathbloom?” asked the younger man.

“Agentus,” interrupted the older man. “Get the sparker.”

The younger guy grabs a sparker and goes over to the older guy who puts the mashed herbs in the girls wound and sprinkles some powder over it.

There are two jars of yellow liquid with metal rods sticking out of both. The older man hooks up thin metal lines to both and puts them in the girl's mouth.

“Will she make it?” asked a voice from the door.

Tharen and Aylwin look over to see who spoke and see Kyper leaning against the doorframe.

“What is this!” shouted Tharen alarmingly, trying to get to his feet.

“Dont move idiot!” shouted the younger guy.

“Okay! Someone explain to us what is going on,” demanded Tharen staring at Kypers large, evil eye.

“He is the reason you're alive. Now sit down before you hurt yourself,” said Agentus.

“He tried to kill us!” yelled Aylwin whose muscles tighten unnaturally.

“You both need to calm down. The medicine I gave you is very unstable. If you move to much your muscles might spasm beyond repair,” explained the older guy.

Tharen then noticed a tattoo on the older mans hand. The same tattoo that Alfred has on his hand.

“Who are you?” asked Tharen to the older man.

“X. The boy beside me is Agentus. We mean you no harm,” said X. “I am a friend and colleague of Alfred.”

“How did you know that we know alfred?” asked Tharen.

“Your Tharen and Aylwin, Allister’s boys,” said X.

“That didn't answer my question. How?” asked Tharen.

“Alfred warned me that you will someday seek knowledge about the weapons. He also sent a messenger bird to me just before he died, warning me about Vossler. I knew that Vossler had the weapon, and I knew where he would go to hide it,” explained X. “It took about a year after Brayssia fell before I came across a man that was capable of retrieving Peace for when you arrive.”

“You found a man who can retrieve peace?” asked Tharen not understanding what is meant.

“Peace is the translated name of the blade you lost,” said X.

“That sword has a name?” asked Aylwin.

“Your dagger does too, Mercy is its name,” said X.

“I see,” said Aylwin unsheathing Mercy to look at. “In my dreams, a man who i’ve never seen before told me that I have to seek Mercy. Also that Mercy seeks me. I didn't know what he meant by Mercy until now.”

“Didn't I say that you were meant to find that sword?” hinted Tharen.

“You were right as always,” smiled Aylwin still gazing at Mercy.

“You said you found a man who was capable of retrieving my sword. Is my sword here?” asked Tharen anxiously.

“I,” said Kyper, “didn't have the strength to bring it all the way here, so I hid it.”

“It was you?” asked Tharen.

“I stole the sword from Vosslers right hand man, that's all I did,” said Kyper in his evil voice.

Tharen sits down with ease, “tell me Kyper. What was really going on back before we passed out?”

“I was doing the same thing you were doing, saving the girl. I killed the men who ambushed us, and brought the girl here. I was going to leave you where you fell at first, but then I remembered what you did for the girl. So I came back and brought you all here,” explained Kyper.

“Those men were wearing the same armour as you,” said Aylwin. “They also bowed to you as if they were your men.”

“Those men stole that armour from my men. Bandits have been wearing the Red Eye and pillaging in my name for quite some time,” said Kyper.

“Why?” asked Tharen.

“Allow me to explain,” said Silverblade. “Kyper was lord of the Red Eye, a group that looked over these parts after the fall of Brayssia. About a year ago his men (so we thought) started pillaging villages, rather then watching over them. Now the Red Eye is not welcome and no one has seen Kyper for half a year.”

“Things got better after I left. Why would I return to my lands if they do not wish me to, besides. Look at me,” said Kyper referring to his evil appearance.

“It is hard to focus with you talking,” hinted X holding the sparker over the girl.

“Continue X,” said Kyper.

X sparks the powder on the girls open cut causing the powder to ignite and sear the wound shut. The girl's body jerks and she starts to cough.

“You did it!” cheered Tharen.

“I sealed her open heart wound as well as her flesh wound. But she lost too much blood and does not have enough to survive. She will die in a couple minutes.”

“Give her some of my blood then,” said Tharen urgently.

“How would you supposed we do that?” asked Agentus.

“Taking blood out of my body, and putting it in hers,” said Tharen.

You would need to have the same blood type,” said Agentus.

“How do I know if we do?” stressed Tharen.

X quickly grabs a vial with clear liquid in it and a dagger. He walks over to Tharen and cuts his wrist with the dagger and lets the blood drop into the vial. X then scrapes some of the girl's blood off her back with the dagger and uses it to stir the liquid in the vial. The clear liquid turns to a light red color.

“It's a match,” says X.

“Well how are we going to get his blood in her?” asked Agentus.

X grabs a long skinny needle attached to a glass tube with a cork top. He brings it over to Tharen. “There are risks with this, this is an untried method,”

“Do what you need to do, just save her,” said Tharen contently.

X sticks the needle in Tharens wrist and slowly pulls the cork top up, filling the glass tube with his blood. Once the tube is full, he goes over to the girl and puts the needle in her wrist. This time he pushes down on the cork, pushing Tharens blood into the girl.

“Agentus, do you see what i'm doing?” asked X.

“Yes,” replied Agentus.

X hands the now empty needle over to Agentus, “make sure you take from the large wrist vein, and do not get any air in her vein.”

Agentus nods and takes more blood from Tharen while X grabs another vial with clear liquid. X grabs a clean knife and walks over to Aylwin.

“We need to see if there are anymore matches. Tharen may not be enough,” said X.

Aylwin gives X his arm and X cuts him and puts his blood in the vial. X repeats the steps for Silverblade, and tries to for Kyper but his blood was very dark, almost black, so he skips Kyper. X mixes the girl's blood in both Silverblades and Aylwins vials and sturs them. The liquid in both turn black.

“No more matches,” said X.

“What about you two?” asked Silverblade referring to Agentus and X.

“We test many things on ourselves, it is best we don't share our blood,” said X.

After half an hour, Tharen loses all color in his face and is starting to shake.

“I think we should stop,” suggested Agentus.

“Is it enough?” asked Tharen.

“It's hard to say,” said X.

“Then keep going,” said Tharen.

“It could kill you,” said Agentus.

“It could save her, keep going,” repeated Tharen.

Agentus continues for another half an hour and decides the girl won't need anymore blood. Tharen is so weak from the blood loss that he can't stand on his own.

“Man, are you ok?” asked Aylwin.

“Kyper, where is my sword?” asked Tharen ignoring Aylwin.

“Few miles west,” replied Kyper.

Tharen pauses and looks at Kyper suspiciously.

“Is it safe?” asked Tharen.

“The blade or the road?” asked Kyper.

“The blade,” replied Tharen.

“Yes,” said Kyper

Tharen looks long and hard at Kyper, “Take me to it-”

“No,” interrupted the girl softly.

The mood in the room brightens as the first sign of good news comes with her first word.

“Your ok!” said Tharen excitedly.

“Don't go anywhere with that monster, he's evil,” said the girl.

“I want the same thing as everyone else, Zanova to be a better place,” said Kyper.

“Go to Hell,” she spat.

Kyper lowers his head and softly says, “already been.”

“Kyper saved us. If he wanted us dead, he would have left us back there,” said Tharen.

“I can feel the darkness in his heart, the hate in his eye. Don't go with him,” begged the girl.

Tharen looks at Kyper thoughtfully, “I too feel darkness in him, but I also feel good.”

Kypers large eye snaps to Tharen as a warm feeling deep inside settles in and he says in his head, “good? It's been so long since someone has said anything like that about me. What does he see in me that no one else does? I fear that the girl may be right, I am evil. I haven't always been, but after so long of being looked at like a monster, i became to look at myself as one. Is there any good in me left?”

The girl looks at Kyper then at Tharen, “I am Galwreen, who are you guys?”

Tharen, Silverblade and Aylwin say their names to the girl. The girl stares at Tharen with a gleam of hope shining in her baby blue eyes.

“I can't believe it,” said the girl.

“Can't believe what?” asked Tharen.

“My father went to the Oracle four months ago to ask them if Zanova will crumble. They told him, two young Brayssian’s, a merchant, and a monster will pass by in the months to come. One Brayssian, searching for a blade named Peace to which has chosen him to be its guardian. When Peace and its guardian are once again together and pointed towards the god's, Peace will reflect the sun’s light but blue. This Brayssian will be our saviour,” she said.

“You think it’s me?” asked Tharen.

“I am not as blind as most, I can see that you are from Brayssia. Here we are, two young Brayssians, a merchant, and a monster,” she said.

“What makes you think it's me, and not Aylwin that is the Guardian of Peace?” asked Tharen.

The girl face glows red and her facial expression blatantly shows she is embarrassed, “I just know.”

Tharen looks at the girl's pretty face and says, “I am not as blind as most.” he paused, “I can see that what you just said was a lie.”

“She obviously likes you Tharen,” smiled Aylwin.

Glawreen tries to hide her face behind her hair so Tharen wouldn't see it to be true.

Tharen suddenly gets a boost of strength in his legs and stands on his feet, “Kyper, bring me to the blade.”

“You shouldn't be traveling,” said Agentus.

“He won't be, the blade is just outside,” said Kyper.

“This time your not lieing,” said Tharen.

“Come,” said Kyper leading Tharen outside.

Tharen walks out the door, sitting a few feet infront, a cart with Peace resting on it. Surrounding the cart, all the people of Steel Horn Mountain gathered. They stand quietly and patiently for Tharen to approach the sword.

Tharen walks up to the sword and notices Henry’s familiar face standing at the front of the crowd waving. He clinches the handle of the blade and everyone around starting with Henry kneels to Tharen. He looks behind him and sees, Agentus, X, Silverblade, Aylwin, Kyper, and Galwreen kneeling too.

“We need a saviour Tharen,” repeated Galwreen.

Tharen looks to the brightly light skies before raising the sword and says to the gods of Zanova, “let me be your saviour.”

---------------------------END OF CHAPTER--------------------------------------------------------------------

Hey guys, this chapter is fairly bare and lacks detail. I do plan on improving this chapter once i finish mapping out my ideas. I keep running into this problem where i have so many ideas to chose and so many options, that i end up changing my mind over and over again. Im taking a break to get it mapped out. In the meantime, please check out my newly published story “The Underdogs” its a story i wrote along time ago but i never published it because i didn't really understand the rules of english enough to do so. My friends were really the only people who read it and they really enjoyed it. So i'll be touching up the story and post them as i go.

NOTE: the writing is very different between these two stories. The overseers is more of a dialogue/world creation type. Where as the underdogs uses a great amount of writing elements such as humour and darkness, similes and metaphors, irony, inner conflict, high character emotional development. Please check it out!

-Dylan