Saviour (part 3)

"Not a sound," whispered Asheroth suddenly, cutting me off before I could say another word.

Seth and Asheroth grunted and hummed and exchanged annoying, unintelligible noises.

All of a sudden a bright flash of lightning struck a nearby tree, setting it on fire.

"Now?" asked Seth as he nimbly dodged the collapsing, burning tree.

"Wait," came the reply.

"Mother?" Seth called out with a slight hint of concern.

"I'll be fine," I reassured him.

"Where's he?" said Asheroth.

Another lightning came and this one nearly hit me. I teleported away to a relatively safer place, just in time.

"The south!" I cried out.

"Now?" asked Seth again.

"Wait," answered Asheroth.

What? I thought to myself. Fine, I'll do it.

Immediately, I collected energy and...
Asheroth stopped me. Something different in his eyes. I let my energy dissipate.

"Watch out!"

We leapt aside to dodge another lightning.

"East now, nearer too," I said.

"Now?" asked Seth.

Asheroth merely nodded.

To my utmost surpirse, Seth started to glow, and wings began to sprout from behind him. In a blink of an eye, he spread his wings and flew.

"Husband, why does my son have wings?" I asked Asheroth as I looked at him darkly.

He cleared his throat. "Well... We better get going and leave those boys to settle their business."

"How in the name of the Twelve Skies did he become a Northerner?"

"Uh-huh.. Let's go," he said, his face becoming unreadable.

"That's not really Seth, is it?"

"No."

"Then who was that young man?" I demanded, tears forming in my eyes.

"A Hybrid look-alike."

"A Hybrid?" The emergence of a Hybrid... The Northern Empire must be in great turmoil!

"Shall we leave now? We can talk on the way. Besides, King Gerald would probably want to see you."

I stood motionless. There were sounds of trees and rocks crashing in the distance.

"Those boys have grown up, haven't they? Hmm... Shall we leave now?"

I took Asheroth's hand.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Taking us to King Gerald. We need to get to him, fast. Are you gonna help me?"

"You're nuts. Have you any idea how far away his castle is from here?" he said.

"Yes, to both questions. Now, will you please focus?"

"They'd better listen to us when we get there," mumbled Asheroth. "I can get really scary when I'm tired."

Arcane energy swirled around us as the sounds of explosions and crashing continued ringing through the night air.

Saviour (part 2)

“Where are we going?”

“We’re meeting someone,” the reply came. His movements were silent; his entire self exudes strength, agility, grace and finesse.

“Is it far?”

He spun abruptly and I stood toe to toe with him. I blushed as his green eyes met mine.

I slowly tiptoed – my whole body was tingling, longing to kiss him.

“Seth,” a voice suddenly called out, instantly ending my attempt to lay my lips on his.

The man in front of me, or Seth, cleared his throat and stepped away to greet the stranger with a firm handshake and brisk embrace.

“That’s your name?” I spoke out. “Seth?”

My savior nodded slightly.

“What is yours?” asked the stranger.

I hesitated. Seth reassured me by giving me a quick smile.

Then I answered, “Ara.”

The man nodded. “Well done, son.”

“I would never fail – failure is not an option in our campaign,” replied Seth grimly.

The man sighed. “Too true,” he said. He sighed again. I’m getting too old for this.

“What’s going on?” I asked. Suddenly I was scared. Beads of sweat began forming on my forehead.

“My name is Asheroth,” said the man. “Seth is my son.”

My heart raced. Asheroth? Why does it sound so familiar?

“Your real name is Es-Qara. Mother of Seth the Eternal, Wife of Asheroth the Magician.”

Silence gripped me. My saviour, who has so smitten me, is my son. My heart sank with bittersweetness.

“Of course, you wouldn’t believe me. But we need to do something very important now.”

“Yes. Mother, where is your necklace?” said Seth.

I touched my neck – the necklace wasn’t there. “The pimp, he’s taken it,” I said.

Asheroth threw a dark look at Seth.

Seth reached into his pocket and took out a gold necklace. “Failure is not an option,” he said.

Asheroth smiled apologetically as he took the necklace. “Sorry.”

“What are you going to do with it?” I asked.

“This,” said Asheroth casually. His face turned serious and he mumbled a string of unintelligible words. Suddenly the night air was still, then it was full of energy.

Next thing I remembered was a bright flash and I passed out.

While I was unconscious, I had dreams. Pictures, documents, people, voices, pain, joy, victory, loss, darkness, evil, children, huts, fields, plains, mountains, drychnaths, sailing, flying, screams of terror, clanging of steel against steel, Snow People… A multitude of familiar images and sounds all scrambled together. Giddying... cacophonous myriad of memories…

And suddenly I woke up.

“Did Seal follow you all the way here?” I asked Seth.

“That’s fast,” commented Asheroth. "Somehow she's always business, your mother."

“Hush husband.”

“Welcome back, Lady Es-Qara,” said Seth, bowing slightly.

I rolled my eyes. “Just answer me please.”

“Here we go. Again,” said Asheroth, throwing his arms into the air with mock exasperation.

He flinched as I pinched him.

Saviour (part 1)

He stepped into the tent.
And from that moment onwards...
I fell in love.


I had never believed in love at first sight.
But that night, I knew that he was the one.
Never had I ever felt so convicted.

I must have this man, I thought fervently.
But...


He just stood there - dashing, calm, elegant, full of confidence and poise. His jet black clothing, jet black hair and jet black eyes.
And there was something about him that seemed to govern the attention and reverence from people around him.


His eyes searched the tent.
And met mine.


I knew in my heart, his heart skipped a beat.
He's mine. He's mine for sure.


Please, please... Pick me...



"How much for her?" he asked the pimp as he pointed his finger at me.

"Whoa, fine sir... You certainly are not a simple man. That girl right there?" replied the crusty pimp. "Ah... One of our newer ones. Plus, I've heard she's quite the devil. Definitely will cost you a little extra."

"How much?"

The pimp cleared his throat. "Since you look like a well to do person..."

"How much?"

"200 gold pieces for tonight," came the answer.

"What about I buy her?"

I could tell that the pimp was beginning to sweat. He was probably thinking of how much gold he would be able to squeeze from the man in black.
My heart was racing as well.

He's buying me...
Why? How come?
Oh, whoever that's up there in Heaven.. Whoever that's in charge of my fate...
I swear I'll devote myself to serving you.

Just don't let this dream shatter.




"Done."

The heavy bag of gold exchanged hands.
The pimp, filled with glee, was shaking so hard that he dropped the bag.
It burst apart and gold coins scattered. An uproar promptly ensued.


And in the midst of the minor chaos, he took me out from the tent.
I couldn't believe it.



Just a few weeks ago, I decided to sell sex to survive. But now, I was free. My freedom bought by a man.

A handsome one, too!


His strides were long, and I had to walk briskly to keep up.
As we walked out of the city, I gathered my courage myself to speak.

"Excuse me sir..." I said softly.

He stopped walking, and turned to face me.
Seeing no reaction from him, I boldened myself.

"Thank you."
As I said that, I felt my cheeks becoming hot.


His impassive expression did not falter a single bit. He merely nodded, and resumed walking.


"Wait..." I voiced out.

"What is it?"

I became scared suddenly.

"What's your name?" I asked cautiously.

No answer.

"I'm Ara," I said.

"Ara.... I like your name."

I smiled and blushed. "I would still like to know your name."

Again, no answer.





"Let's go."

"Okay."



Something's weird. Why am I following him? Why did he choose me back at the brothel?
Where are we going? Why won't he tell me his name?

Yet... I feel safe. I feel that I can trust him, despite all the questions and absurdity of it all.
I'm actually going head on into something. Something big. Something that would change my life. Something that would change this place.

Something so big, that it might even change... history.


"Are you coming, Ara?"

"Oh... Sorry... I'm coming," I replied.

This is absurd. Who are you? My handsome saviour...


****






j@Ve comments:
Argh crap! I'm actually in the middle of my study week! Exams are 3 days from now! But anyway, I'll finish this Saviour series by middle of December. Actually, it's a dream that I had.

I was that dashing, handsome guy, of course. XD

Just thinking maybe I should try writing stories from a girl's point of view. But I don't know the female psyche. So please forgive me if it's corny. This is my first time - I can do only do as much. Excuses! tut tut... heheh, but i'm having exams soon, so can't spend too long on this marrr...

Anyway... Like Jia Wern said (a few months ago):
"Everything's getting tangled up."

Hope to start something concrete soon. Bleh...

Go to sleep

Let that wall crumble!

The massive barrier of mortar and stone that stood before Asheroth shattered and crumbled to the floor, causing a storm of dust to temporarily enshroud his surroundings.

"Taste this."

A bolt of white lightning struck Asheroth in the chest. The magician was pushed back.

"Not bad," said Asheroth. "Why don't you try it too?"

He sent back the lightning bolt and his target managed to dodge it at the last minute.
Asheroth cursed under his breath.

"How did you survive that? I'm sure I hit you!" asked Callar, bewildered.

"Now, how did you survive that?" replied Asheroth. "I was sure I wasn't going to miss."

Another bolt of lightning zoomed at Asheroth. The magician was again thrown backwards by the impact of the lightning strike.

"Got you," said Callar.

"Cut the crap boy," said Asheroth. "I wonder where you get all that confidence from..."

Callar's eyes bulged in disbelief - he would not have believed it if he had not seen it for himself. His opponent had caught the lightning bolt with his bare hand. It looked harmless presently - it looked like an orb floating in his hand.

"Hey, snap out of it," said Asheroth. "Now catch."

Asheroth hurled the ball of energy in his hand at Callar. The young magic-user deflected the bolt and it hit a nearby tree, setting it on fire. Energy crackled through the cool night air as smoke billowed.

Lightning Tower!

A gigantic column of blue lightning descended from the sky and struck Asheroth.

Damn, this kid is strong! thought Asheroth as his knees buckled from the attack. He managed to erect a shield in time, and he was struggling to hold it up. After a few moments, the attack subsided.

"Impressive," complimented Asheroth. "What's your name?"

"Callar, son of James."

"James of the White Cane?" asked Asheroth in surprise.

"Yes," said Callar.

Lightning Tower! Second Strike!

This time, two columns came down upon Asheroth. Each column was thicker and heavier. The attack slowly dissolved Asheroth's shield and finally, the lightning bolts broke through.

Then it was quiet.

"Pity I didn't get your name, sir," regretted Callar.
He was about to leave when he heard Asheroth's voice.

"It's Asheroth."

Callar looked to his left and was terribly shocked to see Asheroth leaning on a tree with a relaxed expression.

"It took me a few years to perfect that clone of mine," muttered Asheroth with a small hint of irritation in his voice. "He was my favourite... Oh well..."

Callar began collecting energy again to prepare for an attack.

"It was pretty rude of you, Callar, to attack me before I introduced myself," said Asheroth as his face turned grim.

Asheroth's hand went into his cloak and he extracted a round object.

Lightning Coil!

Callar generated a large coil of lightning around Asheroth and began to tighten it. Asheroth threw the object in his hand to the floor. It cracked and glowed. Immediately, the lightning coil disappeared.

Without a moment's hesitation, Callar began collecting energy for another attack. However, he could not grasp any energy strands - it was as if the place had become totally devoid of arcane energy.

Then he realised that the object Asheroth threw to the floor was the cause of it. It seemed to absorb arcane energy very quickly. He was rendered powerless. And the only option left was to run...

Or....

"Wait, this means you can't use magic either," said Callar as he drew his sword and advanced cautiously towards Asheroth.

"Wrong," said Asheroth. "Now, be a good boy and go to sleep."

Air Blast!

A ball of compressed air flew at Callar and hit him in the head, knocking him out cold.

Asheroth grunted. "I expected more."

"Yes, so did I."

"Oh, you were here after all, Lady Es-Qara."

"This boy, so young," she commented. "And he doesn't even know about the Power Within yet. But he's here on a mission."

"True," agreed Asheroth. "Something serious is going on. And, we must get to the bottom of this soon. Not knowing what's going on - it's starting to irritate me."

Es-Qara sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Shall I get the guards?" offered Es-Qara. "I don't think you want to carry him all by yourself."

"Oh, that's not necessary. We can teleport, can't we?"

Es-Qara smiled slightly. "I don't think King Crydan can take anymore of your popping out of thin air."

"I'll be careful," retorted Asheroth with a smug expression.

"I wonder what the King is going to say about the wall you brought down."

Asheroth's smug expression disappeared. "I had a good reason to do it."

Then the three people vanished.