Elijah
20th Day of Summer, 997th Year of Grace
She sat bent over the basin, the sun casting gold over her fair skin.
Sweat formed on her brow and trickled down her cheeks before dropping on the ground like ink dripping from a hesitant author's pen on a parchment.
Her hands caused gentle ripples on the surface of the soapwater in the washbasin with each movement and when she took them out to wipe away the sweat, I relished the sight of water dripping from her drenched sleeves.
She looked ordinary--plain and bland.
Those thick-rimmed glasses balanced on her nose seemed to erase the light from her face.
I found it an insult to the face that was hidden underneath.
Lord, what a sight she was when I first saw her!
Her face attracted any whose gaze fell upon her and it wasn't the kind of beauty spoken about by bards in songs.
No... It was an inevitable pull like the one that made a ripe fruit fall to the ground from a tree branch. Her beauty had the power to stir storms and cause wars.
One look at her would make anyone realise they'd be ruined if they stared any longer, yet they'd gladly welcome the ruin.
Is it some kind of sorcery? I bit my lips when she scowled at the sun. Or is it a curse? Does she know about it? Well, judging by the way she acted when her glasses slipped off her face, I suppose she does. Then that means those glasses are meant to supress whatever sorcery or curse makes her so mesmerizing...
She stood up with a basket full of washed laundry in her hands and began walking toward the clotheslines.
I followed her.
After the day we collided in the hallway, I wandered the castle like a ghost looking for her. And when I did, I followed her around and observed her doing her work while waiting for her to acknowledge my presence.
But she was stubborn in ignoring me--not even sparing a glance so I waited.
I studied the way she wrung the clothes and hung them over the clothesline. I studied the way her lashes fluttered when the wind brushed her eyes.
Lord, I want her. I sighed.
She looked up and her dark orbs met mine.
For the first time in forever, I felt something flicker inside the void that occupied where my heart was supposed to be.
"You seem to have lots of free time for a valet," she said with an arched eyebrow.
"My master doesn't really come out of his room except for meals," I said, grinning.
"Well, don't you have anything better to do than following around a maid?" She returned to wringing clothes and hanging them to dry in the sun.
"Not really," I answered. "And what possibly could be better than being here?"
She didn't respond.
After the last sheet hung like a pale ghost on the line, she turned back to me. "Why are you following me?"
"What other reason could I have?" I began approaching her. "I've been lovestruck since the very first moment I saw you."
"That's probably because of the curse." She walked past me, hissing. "Even if it wasn't, I'm not some toy you can play with however you want."
Adam
20th Day of Summer, 997th Year of Summer
I realised once more how I was still a newbie when I found myself outside the mansion--unlike what I had initially speculated--and saw a caravan of wagons exiting the back gate of Garrick Stone's property.
I sensed the unsettled feeling from the wagons.
Pa once told me that the unsettlling feeling I was experiencing only happened when Chaos began to wrestle out of control. It happened mostly because of strong emotional reactions or due to the birth of a Witch or when witchcraft was being used.
The first reason seemed more suitable in the situation since no one in their right mind would harbor a Witch--even as a slave--or co-operate with one.
I spied the wagons heading towards a mountain in the distance--one that was known to have a quarry which was abandoned due to logistical issues.
I returned to the group just before the meeting ended.
The plump merchant raised an eyebrow at me when I arrived. "Where was this ruffian?"
"Oh, well, I was taking a dump in a seculded corner. Then I was wandering the garden for any source of water to wash my hands which I found some moments ago." I raised my left hand, a sneer stretched across my face. "There was no soap though."
Garrick's face twisted and he pinched his nose. "Get this disgusting man off my property."
My companions ignored me as I was dragged away and thrown out the gates. With having nothing else to do, I decided to head back to the inn.
***
"You were taking a dump!" John exclaimed as he guffawed.
"Well..." I scratched my head. "I couldn't come up with a better reason."
"Still, you did good at avoiding unnecessary attention on yourself," Felton said. "So, what did you find out?"
I glanced at Lucy who refused to even look at me, and said, "I found a caravan exiting Garrick's property and heading towards the quarry in the mountain east of the city."
John stopped howling and asked, "Why do you think that caravan is suspicious?"
"It's just an unsettling feeling," I said, crossing my arms. "My father told me it was feeling of Chaos growing wild."
"Yes, I felt it too," Felton agreed. "Do you think they might be using the abandoned quarry for their illegal activities?"
I nodded.
"Shouldn't we go raid the place then?" John asked.
"All of us can't go there." Felton turned to me. "Adam and I will head to the abandoned quarry tonight to investigate and uncover any evidence. Once we have the evidence needed, I'll send a signal. John and Lucy are to take care of Garrick Stone upon seeing that signal. We shall report to the True Faithful by dawn and uproot this operation within a week."
"That's how we should proceed. Not like some newbie like Adam would get that--"
A smack on Lucy's head cut her short. "Don't trouble John too much and stay out of sight."
"Why do you keep hitting me?" she cried out again.
Felton ignored her. "Are my words clear?"
"Yes, sir!" John and I answered in unison.
***
We stood behind a tree, away from the sight of those who walked the dirt path through the woods.
Two men stood at the edge of the quarry--clad in leather with swords at their sides.
"Before we start, I want to ask..." I turned to my senior. "What is your relation with Lucy?"
He glanced at me once before saying, "We've known each other since we were children. She joined the Obsdian because of me."
"Did you tell her about it?"
"She found out before I could tell her," he said with a wry smile. He turned to the direction of Garrick's mansion. "I'm going to ask her to marry me once we get back home."
I tapped on his shoulder. "Let's get this over with so we can go back home as soon as possible."
He nodded and closed his eyes, chanting in whispers.
"I pray to the Lord in my time of need...
I confess my weakness before You...
Let me command the shadows of my enemies...
So I may save those who have faith in You."
There was a sudden silence in the woods and I realised two dark figures had appeared out of nowhere behind the two guards.
In sync, they both hit the guards at the back of their heads, knocking them out instantly.
"What are those?" I asked.
"Shadows." Felton snapped his fingers and the two figures vanished. "The Law materialized them for me. I'm able to command them but they don't last for more than an hour or two."
"Isn't that spell too powerful?"
"Not really. It doesn't work on enemies who have a stronger connection with the Law and the shadow minions usually have only a quarter of the actual person's strength," he explained. "They also can't use sorcery and are only useful for disposible minions."
"I see..." I stroked my stubbled face.
"We should make haste."
Catherine
20th Day of Summer, 997th Year of Grace
I curled my arms around him, his clothes soaked in sweat and his forehead burning with fever.
I didn't remember how long it had been since we were brought here.
Those bandits burned our village down. They killed my parents. Although they wanted to sell us off, they didn't even take good enough care of us.
I didn't remember how long it had been since I had proper food.
All we were given was a moldy bread each day with some water in a bowl every few hours.
It had left us both with nothing but bones underneath the skin--covered by clothes that hadn't been washed for a week or more and had numerous tears.
I leaned against the iron bars of the cage we now lived in and stroked the head of my younger brother.
Screaming for help only resulted in a day without food and so even the tears had stopped flowing after a few days in the cage.
All I could do was wait to be sold off to some slave merchant before I even attempted for an escape.
But I worried only for my brother. I didn't know if he would last that long.
So I began praying.
Adam
20th Day of Summer, 997th Year of Grace
We stood at the edge of the quarry, looking down at the camp full of armed bandits at the bottom.
"How do you want to do this?" I asked.
"We proceed with caution and try to get evidence first." He scanned the camp. "Once we do, let's purge all the evil here."
"Roger that!" I exclaimed.
We both rushed to the bottom of the quarry and infiltrated the camp without being noticed.
We moved from one tent to another, searching for records of transactions between Garrick and slave merchants or written reports metionioning the cooperation between Garrick and the bandits.
In one of the tents, I found huge cages covered with thick cloth.
A frail voice reached my ears from one of the cages and I approached it. Taking off the covering cloth, I discovered two young children inside--dirty and skinny.
"I pray to the Lord for strength..." The girl kept repeating with closed eyes.
The younger boy lay still on her lap, unnaturally still and covered in a layer of sweat.
My blood boiled at the sight.
"What happened?" Felton approached me.
"They have children here..." I couldn't move my eyes away.
"I know how you must feel but we're here on a mission." He patted my shoulder. "Let's first get the evidence we need before we try to rescue them."
I took a deep breath and turned away from the cage.
We both searched the crates in the tent and after a few moments, I heard Felton say: "I found something."
I walked to him and scanned the stack of pages in his hand.
It was indeed a record of transactions made between Garrick Stone and slave merchants. After a few more moments of searching, I found another stack of pages that had reports written to Garrick of the operations by the bandits.
"Is that all we need?" I asked.
"Yes." He turned to me. "You're free to do with them as you wish."
Catherine
20th Day of Summer, 997th Year of Grace
"You can come out now," a voice said and I opened my eyes.
A young man stood before me with face covered in a rough stubble and long dark messy hair that fell to his brows. He reached out his hand to me, the gate to my cage open.
I backed away, pressing against the cold iron bars, clutching my brother.
He had stopped breathing. He was peaceful.
"I'm here to save you," he said. "No one is going to hurt you two now."
"I-It doesn't matter anymore." I heard myself say. "H-He... He is a-already gone."
There was silence for some time.
"Then let's get revenge on those who did this to you," he said and I looked up at him. "Come."
I thought I had forgotten how to cry but at that moment, I felt tears trickling down my cheeks as I reached out my skeletal hand to grab his warm one.
***
"You should close your eyes," the young man said.
"No." I glanced at the tents around us. "I want to see."
"Very well," the man said and began chanting:
"I pray to the Lord in my time of need,
I ask for Your aid.
Let Your flames attend to me,
Let them consume whom I name."
Flames erupted across the camp, tents and men being englufed in fire.
The smell of charred flesh filled the air, laced with the screams of bandits running around like panicked ants while they burned.
A crowd had gathered behind me--others who had been taken away from their homes to be sold off as slaves.
Tears stained their faces too, just like mine.
After the flames had died down and silence returned to the quarry, one of the captured approached the young man and asked, "W-What do we do now?"
"For now, let's wait for my companion to come back--he's gone to send a signal for the others. " The man smiled. "Then we take you to the city and hand you over to my superiors in a few days. After that, you can do anything you want."
He turned to me and added, "You're all free now."