son and
of his dreams for him. In my entire life I had never been so captivated
by another man. It was clear that Turk spoke well of me to him, otherwise
I couldn't see him taking this time with me. Looking back today, thinking
of him and how he treated me, makes me hate my own father even more. Where
Arturo treated me like a man of honor, my father approached me as just another
tool to be used as he saw fit.
By the third day I had started to worry. There
was still no sign of my friends. Yet I did not dare venture out on my own. They
knew where I was and that is where they would find me. Yet I knew something had
happened but I dared not act blindly. I needed something to guide me. Had
I know that something was on the floor of my room right under the bed I would
have done something right away. On that third night when I returned to my room
I opened my windows to let in the breeze. The rush of wind filled the room and
helped the parchment that Hetaron had left for me drift out from under the bed.
Even still it was a small miracle that I even read it. I assumed it
was old, maybe something from the last person to use the room. I very
nearly tossed it in the fire place without even reading a single line. They
had returned to the ruins without me.
It had been three days since they had left, with no
sign of anything from anyone. I began to put on my armor, sure I was
going only to recover their dead bodies. I could not think of a single
reason why they would go on without me. Today I know they were driven there by
Hetaron and his greed. He talked Pare into it and then Hans who only went so he
could protect them. As soon as I had my armor on, I grabbed my weapons
and headed for the door. The look Stephan gave me as I walked out the
door could have burned a hole in my helm but I did not have time to think of
such things. Once I was out of the inn I yelled at the stable hand to
bring my horse. As I was waiting I saw Jasmin and her mother walking
towards the inn. She was wearing a sky blue dress of silk and lace, she was
stunning. This was the first time I had ever seen her outside of the inn.
The only thing brighter than her eyes was the moon in the night sky. I stepped
aside as they made their way in the door, giving them a slight bow as they
passed in front of me. My gaze held firm on her, as was hers on me. It was all
I could do not to reach out and take her into my arms right there. Had
the stable hand not arrived right then with my mount I may have done just that.
I rode hard for the ruins. I was afraid of what I
would find, that fear was the only thing that kept me from thinking of Jasmin.
I wanted to follow her back into the inn but I could not leave my friends
to whatever fate they made for their selves. Once I was outside of the
city my mind drifted back to my talks with Arturo and his stories. They were
the stuff of legend, something I could never live up to. Each line on his
weathered face held a tale, each line told of pain and victory. I doubt I
will ever live to see the age that Arturo did. I could only hope to make
a tenth of the impact he did on this world. When I found my friends
horses the true fear had started to set in. The two of them had eaten anything
they could from around them. They had been up here, alone for days. I
untied them and lead them to a new spot so they could eat fresh grass and not
stand in their own filth. They were good animals, if my friends were
dead, I could sell them for a good profit. Provided I don't die I
thought as I once again returned to the stairs that lead me down into the ruins
below.
I tightened all the straps on my armor to quiet any
noise possible, drew my blade and made my way in. I knew my way around as
I had the only map of the place. Not that I needed a map to know where
they were headed, the wizards study. Long before I could see inside I
could see that the door to the study was open.
of his dreams for him. In my entire life I had never been so captivated
by another man. It was clear that Turk spoke well of me to him, otherwise
I couldn't see him taking this time with me. Looking back today, thinking
of him and how he treated me, makes me hate my own father even more. Where
Arturo treated me like a man of honor, my father approached me as just another
tool to be used as he saw fit.
By the third day I had started to worry. There
was still no sign of my friends. Yet I did not dare venture out on my own. They
knew where I was and that is where they would find me. Yet I knew something had
happened but I dared not act blindly. I needed something to guide me. Had
I know that something was on the floor of my room right under the bed I would
have done something right away. On that third night when I returned to my room
I opened my windows to let in the breeze. The rush of wind filled the room and
helped the parchment that Hetaron had left for me drift out from under the bed.
Even still it was a small miracle that I even read it. I assumed it
was old, maybe something from the last person to use the room. I very
nearly tossed it in the fire place without even reading a single line. They
had returned to the ruins without me.
It had been three days since they had left, with no
sign of anything from anyone. I began to put on my armor, sure I was
going only to recover their dead bodies. I could not think of a single
reason why they would go on without me. Today I know they were driven there by
Hetaron and his greed. He talked Pare into it and then Hans who only went so he
could protect them. As soon as I had my armor on, I grabbed my weapons
and headed for the door. The look Stephan gave me as I walked out the
door could have burned a hole in my helm but I did not have time to think of
such things. Once I was out of the inn I yelled at the stable hand to
bring my horse. As I was waiting I saw Jasmin and her mother walking
towards the inn. She was wearing a sky blue dress of silk and lace, she was
stunning. This was the first time I had ever seen her outside of the inn.
The only thing brighter than her eyes was the moon in the night sky. I stepped
aside as they made their way in the door, giving them a slight bow as they
passed in front of me. My gaze held firm on her, as was hers on me. It was all
I could do not to reach out and take her into my arms right there. Had
the stable hand not arrived right then with my mount I may have done just that.
I rode hard for the ruins. I was afraid of what I
would find, that fear was the only thing that kept me from thinking of Jasmin.
I wanted to follow her back into the inn but I could not leave my friends
to whatever fate they made for their selves. Once I was outside of the
city my mind drifted back to my talks with Arturo and his stories. They were
the stuff of legend, something I could never live up to. Each line on his
weathered face held a tale, each line told of pain and victory. I doubt I
will ever live to see the age that Arturo did. I could only hope to make
a tenth of the impact he did on this world. When I found my friends
horses the true fear had started to set in. The two of them had eaten anything
they could from around them. They had been up here, alone for days. I
untied them and lead them to a new spot so they could eat fresh grass and not
stand in their own filth. They were good animals, if my friends were
dead, I could sell them for a good profit. Provided I don't die I
thought as I once again returned to the stairs that lead me down into the ruins
below.
I tightened all the straps on my armor to quiet any
noise possible, drew my blade and made my way in. I knew my way around as
I had the only map of the place. Not that I needed a map to know where
they were headed, the wizards study. Long before I could see inside I
could see that the door to the study was open.
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