“Why were you sent? What do you want from us?” demanded Erin, pointing her blade at the man’s throat.
He started laughing hysterically. David and Erin looked at each other, both realizing the irony of humor at the moment, given the soldier’s dire circumstances.
“You might as well just kill me!” he said, looking up at the two travelers. “If you don’t, they will!” He spat blood to the ground and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
“Who will? Who will kill you?” demanded Erin.
“The Wolf Guard, you fool! They’re working with the Gen…. the King…the new King. Something about a prophecy, and” he looked directly at Erin before continuing, “he said something about you being the only threat to his rule. That’s why he needed you captured. He couldn’t risk you coming out and exposing the truth!”
“The new king? What truth?” asked Erin, “What do you mean?” she asked, confused.
With that, the man erupted in even more hysterical laughter. “What, you don’t know? They say the King went mad and was plotting to unleash the Defiant One! The General, weighing his options, found it best to arrest him before he could find a way to carry out his plans and has imprisoned him deep beneath the palace.
“He has now declared himself King of the Northern Kingdom and he has brought in the Wolf Guard to assist him in his search for this fabled warrior of prophecy.
“Apparently, he’s been working with them for some time, hiring them in secret for special assignments, right under the nose of the King! Now, they are acting as his personal bodyguards, carrying out his will with the promise that they will no longer have to remain hidden from society.” The soldier grimaced in pain before gathering his composure.
“They’ve unleashed hell on the citizens of Eldergate, murdering and devouring them at will, but the King won’t let us do anything about it. He says it is a small price to pay for the means to save humanity from the brink of destruction.” The soldier finished with a grim look on his face, and abruptly broke out in tears.
“I had no choice…none of us did. He has all our families in the dungeons. He won’t let them go unless we do exactly as we’re told! And if we don’t, he says he will feed them to the wolves!”
David and Erin were horrified. They couldn’t believe what they were being told. The King was imprisoned for trying to unleash the Defiant One? Why would he do that…it didn’t make any sense. He was always a benevolent ruler who cared deeply about his people.
And what does Erin have anything to do with General Krauss, how was she a threat to his rule? So many questions were bouncing around in her head, each without any real answer.
Erin kicked the soldier’s weapon far from his reach and pulled David aside to discuss what option to take next.
“I think he’s telling the truth, David.” she said, a concerned look in her eyes. “I don’t want to believe it, but it suddenly makes sense why you had seen the Wolf Guard when you came here. General Krauss is looking for you, David. He knows something about this prophecy and for some reason, doesn’t want you to fulfil it.”
“I know…it also explains why we heard all those cries in the city when we were leaving last night. Some of the soldiers must have been trying to fight back the Wolf Guard and protect the citizens” replied David. “And…it explains why they came to your house. They were looking for you…” he said cautiously, not wanting to reopen the already deep wound Erin now carried from losing her mother the night before.
“Yeah…I know.” she said, trying to avoid the subject. “So…what do you think we should do about him?” asked Erin, pointing towards the now crippled soldier.
“I don’t think we should just leave him here…he could be useful. He may know things that could help us.” David said, unconvincingly.
“Yeah, or he could try to slit our throats in the night so he can save his family” replied Erin, playing Devil’s advocate.
After a moment of careful consideration, they thought it best to help the soldier dress his wounds, give him some supplies so he could survive a few days on his own, and send him off in the opposite direction that they were traveling. Eventually he would find the main road far to the South and could follow the road to a nearby village to take refuge while he healed. That was the best they could offer him.
After seeing the soldier off, the pair sat and reflected on the hectic start of the day and rested their aching muscles. The morning was quickly giving way to noon and they had made no progress toward reaching West Point due to the chance encounter with the soldiers. When they rested as long as they dared, they gathered up their things and headed off in the direction of the hidden path, now more visible with the light of day to guide them.
They trekked for the remainder of the day mostly in silence until the light began to fade in the sky, casting the canopy in a dark greenish black and leaving the forest floor buzzing with the endless song of insects and other nocturnal creatures.
They decided to make camp and lite a small fire so they could have some light and warmth for the night. After disappearing into the woods, Erin returned a few minutes later with a small hare hanging limp in her hands.
David sat for a long while in silence while Erin cooked the hare over the fire, taking in what had happened earlier that day with the soldiers. He killed a man and could barely even remember doing it, let alone how he had done it. It seemed he had a lot to learn about the orb and the abilities that it gave him.
He looked up at Erin and she
