5I must admit that I am terrified to be uploading this story on here. It's an idea of mine that has actually stuck with me and filled me with a passion that I haven't felt in a story for a long time. I'm here because a friend of mine told me I should post it, though I feel that my writing style probably still needs some defining.
That said I'm open to any and all constructive criticism and advice that anyone would be willing to offer to help me move forward with this.
Please Enjoy.
Chapter 1
He scanned the faces of the crowd filling the area with a look of disgust. It was hard to believe that so many people would gather for an event like this. The hanging of even one person apparently brought pleasure or joy to these sick people… His brows pushed together in a frown as the executioner tightened the noose that was around his neck.
"Thief, you are hereby charged with death for the crimes that you have committed against this town," a man stated above the roar of the crowd, "Do you have any last words?"
His gaze once again scanned over the faces in the crowd. Where was she?
"The only thing I regret is being tied to this rope," he replied tonelessly, his fists tightening behind his back.
"Then take your regrets to your grave."
The crowd cheered as the executioner went to the lever and placed his gloved hand on it. He prepared himself; the muscles in his back tensing. If he was unlucky in this moment, his neck would break from the drop and he couldn't afford to die here.
The wood beneath his feet gave away, dropping him until the rope tightened and choked around his throat. He let out a gasp of air before trying to breathe in through his nose. He wasn't dead, so now all he had to do was wait… Of all people, he knew that she would never betray him.
Soon his breath was coming in gasps. Then he started to lose his sight; everything becoming far away so all he could make out was blurry shapes. That was when he heard a noise above him on the gallows. The rope around his neck almost seemed to snap before he was lying on his back on the hard ground. Coughing violently, he heard someone land beside him and felt as they cut both his neck and his hands free.
"…Tári?" he questioned, his brows furrowed, in response there was light grunt of acknowledgment, "Took your time didn't you?"
"Shut up Caesar," she hissed, helping him to his feet, "Lecture me after we escape."
For as long as I can remember there had been a legend in our world… a legend about the four sacred beasts. Each of the sacred beasts inhabited one of the four realms; the dragon guarded Alatariel, the tiger Failariël, the fenrir Elemmírë, and the eagle Lessien.
The four creatures had lived peacefully watching over and ruling the First elves; elves that had been created from the sacred beasts' own souls. Each of these creatures was connected to their realms, and through this connection they regulated the mana – the magic – that flowed through the worlds. That mana was the life and the very breath of each world. It allowed everything in the realms to live. With the elves' connection to the sacred beasts, they learned how to harness the power of the mana. This gave them the ability to transform into animals; an ability that thrived through the different clans.
But one day a dark presence began to grow between each of these realms. In order to keep the darkness from spreading, the four creatures had no choice but to sacrifice their lives to give their worshippers protection. Through this sacrifice four sacred weapons were created. These weapons would use the power the beasts entrusted to them to keep a barrier around each realm. If those weapons were to be removed from their holding place by someone unworthy, the flow of mana would be disrupted and it would fade to nothing; the realm dying with it.
This had been a story told by the elders to the children in my realm Alatariel. I remembered sitting as a child, listening to my grandfather tell stories about him listening to his father and how he could imagine the dragon in all its glory. He always said that if he could only see the dragon's dagger once before his time ended, he would part with more happiness than he needed. He called it futile though, since setting foot in the dagger's shrine was forbidden because three of the four realms had already perished; their treasured weapons having been stolen many centuries beforehand.
Once after hearing my grandfather's wish, that had been when I made my decision… a decision that – at the time – seemed like the greatest thing. I had decided that I would bring the dagger to my grandfather so he could pass on in peace.
My childhood companion Caesar had followed me, trying to insist that I see reason and not go through with this. But I had made up my mind and Caesar would never have stopped me by force, this I knew. Looking back, I should have listened. He had been many years older than me, being taken into my family centuries beforehand he had a pretty good sense of what would happen. He was able to see the danger that lay ahead on this path, but I ignored him. His words had only been words then, and knowing he would never force me to stop made it easier to throw his words aside. So I continued with my foolish thinking.
The shrine was half a day's walk into the mountains; a few hours if one decided to transform into their panther form and run. In Caesar's case a wolf, having found his way to us from his now extinct clan. Pushing past the vines and rocks that concealed the way into the shrine we arrived and I stood before the hidden dagger. I hadn't hesitated… I took hold of the hilt and had instantly felt as though I had been cut over my left eye. I never thought that I could know such pain; the burning sensation having spread over my eyelid and down my cheek. I collapsed.
Caesar had come to my aid then and the dagger had been returned to its resting place. He brought me back to the village, carrying me on his back in his wolf form. Once we had returned I had regained consciousness and the use of my left eye… and found I had been condemned. The people of my clan gathered and the elders demanded that I be banished. Neither Caesar nor I had to say a word for them to know what I had done. It was visible to everyone by the mark that the dagger had forever placed over my left eye.
Banishing myself alone would have been more than enough of a punishment; condemned to a world that was still in the process of dying. They said it was so I would learn what I had almost done to my people. Having been in a body no more than that of a mortal child I probably wouldn't have lasted long and I had been fine with that. But they seemed to have felt the need to banish Caesar along with me, for he had watched and done nothing to stop my foolish actions; making his a crime equal to that moment I had decided that if my own clan could turn its back on me… then I could turn my back on them.
It had been ten years since that day. It was how I got my self here with my back pressed against a shaded stone wall, trying to keep myself hidden from the guards that chased after us for stealing; for trying to survive in this dying world.
Caesar told me to go another way and that the guards would be weaker separated for trying to follow us both in different directions. He said that it was all they could do if they wanted to follow us both, but it hadn't worked. Very few had split off from the main group. It wasn't as if the guards were strong on their own. It was when they were in large groups like they were now that caused them to be trouble. My jaw tightened when I heard their voices shouting and I turned to continue to run.
Turning around the next corner, I ran up the wall of an old villa before grabbing the roof's edge and pulling myself to the top. The guards' footsteps ran by below me, making me smirk slightly to myself. I had temporarily gotten away, but how long would I be able to stay hidden before being found? I could only hope that it would be long enough. Running forward, my smirk no longer lingered and I realized that it was time that we travel away from this village.
This world was barren and filled with nothing but mass amounts of sand and flat, empty, cracked plains. It was dying just as the elders had stated. It had been a change from my realm which was lush with rainforests and large trees. The people here lived in small stone houses whose doorways were covered in nothing but ragged cloths. It was the same no matter which village we traveled to; searching to see if any of them were in better condition than the last. In many cases a family's form of income was to take from someone else. It was a sad sight to see the mortals forced to do such things. Not that Caesar and I were any better.
If there were a rich family in a village – one that was proud and valued nothing but their own gold – we would steal whatever we could from them. If they had enough to revel in their glory, then they had enough to share.
I looked around cautiously. There were no longer the voices of the guards nearby and there were only few dreary people walking streets. I had waited long enough. Jumping down from the rooftops, I walked into a small alley and sat against a stone wall. The sun would be setting soon and after I met back up with Caesar we would leave this village behind us.
With the thought of Caesar, my brows furrowed and I leaned my head back against the wall. It had been a job gone wrong. He causes the distraction for everyone and I sneak into the rich man's villa and steal what I can. Normally it would have been the other way around and I cause the distraction… but I felt the need to prove to him that I was capable in doing the same as he was.
Scowling, I pulled my knees to my chest and rested my head on my arms.
'I know he's mad but won't say anything…' I thought, closing my bright green eyes.
"Idiot," I hissed at myself lowly.
'He had gotten caught trying to make sure I got away…'
Caesar was all I had left now. If I lost him I knew that I wouldn't last for very long in this wretched place. He did almost everything to ensure our safety. It was almost as if he could sense danger before it came to him.
'Next time just break in and run away as fast as you can… even if idiot guards are chasing after you…' I let out a humourless laugh with that thought. '…If there is even a next time.'
In the distance I could hear the screams of people and a sound that I was very familiar with. A loud snarl had laced over their voices and I rose to my feet.
He snarled fiercely; his fangs bared as he stared down the guards of the village. The mortals faltered as they stared at his wolf form, for he was as tall as they were on all fours. One man went to take a step toward him. Caesar turned and snapped his jaws in their direction.
"Where did this thing come from?" he heard one of them question lowly.
"Do you think it belongs to the thieves?"
'It still amazes me how these mortals have no concept of mana anymore…'
"The longer we wait, the farther they get away," said another guard, "Just shoot the damn thing!"
He turned his head in the guard's direction and snapped at him before turning his head toward the archer that had raised his bow to shoot. It took less than a moment before he lunged forward and sunk his fangs into the archer's leg and threw him to the side where he landed in a crumpled heap. His ears perked up as he could hear Tári's footsteps coming quickly toward him over the rooftops.
"Don't just stand there!" hissed the captain angrily as his men stood frozen, none wanting to get closer to the huge beast.
Almost as if the captain's yell had snapped them out of their fear all the guards seemed to have found their legs again and came at Caesar with their swords. Growling, he swiped his paw to knock a couple of them away before taking a man by his arm and tossing him into the air. A blade cut at his shoulder, causing him to snarl loudly before knocking the man away as well.
The men that had been knocked over got back to their feet, ready for another round. He readied himself to lunge before a feline roar filled the air and some of the men turned to see what had made the sound. He watched as one of the men advancing on him crouched with a cry of pain. More cries followed as dark claws dug into unsuspecting guards' chest and fangs bit into their shoulders as another beast fought through the crowd of guards to stand beside him.
"Why didn't you call me sooner?"
"You should have been farther away than that," he growled back lowly.
"I was going to wait for night fall!" she continued with an angry hiss.
His jaw tightened before Tári turned and pounced on another guard, throwing the sword from his hand and digging her claws into his torso. The guards now turned their attention away from Caesar and onto her; their swords ready for attack.
He stared astounded before gathering his senses and jumping forward at the back of the men who were stupid enough to turn away from him. He knocked the closest men away from Tári; but a blade managed to cut across the edge of his calf. Howling loudly he rounded on the one who cut him. Watching each of the guards intently, he dared them to come at him again. If they did… he was sure that he would rip their throats out. Leaning down, he lightly bit down on the scruff at the back of Tári's neck before lifting her off the ground and taking off as fast as he could.
"Caesar what are you-"
He cut her off with a deep growl from his throat.
Why did he feel angry at what had just happened? He had been the one that had called her to him… Had he just been expecting her to have not heard his call and not come back for him?
'That would be a foolish thought,' he told himself, his brows pushing together, 'What do you think would happen to her if you weren't here?'
It was a simple answer, one that he had known even before they had been banished. Tári would die. It wasn't because she was weak or simple minded, but because she wouldn't know what to do out here if she were alone. Perhaps that had been his fault; only having the physical form of a ten year old mortal the day they had been banished. He didn't have any other option than to pay attention to every detail and take care of her. He had always sworn to protect her, but out here the desire to keep both of them alive was even greater than his pride. Death would never be an option.
Feeling as though he had put enough distance between the village and themselves, he stopped under the shade of a small cliff. Placing Tári's panther form back on the ground, he sat before reverting back to his normal flesh. For a moment the air felt cooler without his fur coat before the hot breeze quickly made him forget it. He winced at the pain in his shoulder and leg; blood starting to dry at the gashed edges.
"Damn it," he muttered lowly, trying to brush the dirt out of the wounds.
Only seeming to succeed in spreading the sand deeper into it, he shook his head before giving up. It would be almost a day before they would be able to find water.
He felt something push against his right hand before Tári's head was underneath his palm. Letting out a small sigh, he turned his blood red eyes in her direction and they locked with her bright green ones. She let out a small whine before bouncing his hand on her head.
"Tári you know I can't understand you when we're in separate forms," he stated tiredly, watching her intently.
He knew that she was pouting; that she had known he had been upset with her. Staying in her panther form was what she did when she could feel the frustration within a person she knew.
She walked to the other side of him and started to sniff the wound that was still bleeding at his calf.
"Tári don't," he told her, "It's fine the way it is."
She seemed to snort at his words before she started to lick the wound clean. He winced at the feeling of her coarse tongue moving over his raw skin. He turned his head away as she continued.
'When did she start not listening?' he asked himself, his jaw tight.
She moved to the wound on his shoulder and the pain that burned through him had been greater than the last. These wounds were minor though compared to some he had to endure years before. What had the elders been thinking banishing two children for such a small crime? He had understood their reasons… but it was the method used that made their reasoning questionable.
His brows furrowed when he felt cloth being wrapped around his shoulder. Turning his gaze toward her, he could see her red hair hanging over her tanned skin; hiding her green eyes as they focused on her hands while she wrapped the wound. The fabric looked like it had been a piece of the cloak that she was wearing.
"It's fine my ass," she muttered, tying the fabric in a knot.
He watched as she reached back and ripped another long piece of fabric from her cloak and started to wrap the wound on his leg. Her brows were pushed together and her mouth a hard line. He could tell that she was blaming herself for everything that had happened. This girl… why did she care about his wellbeing so much?
The thought brought a small smile to his face as he reached his hand up and touched her left cheek; pulling enough to turn her head. She looked up at him and he could see the frustration in her eyes before he brushed her hair out of the way of the left side of her face. There it was… the mark that had been left behind by the dagger. It looked as if someone had gone over her left eye and cheek with a knife and carved the vine like design into her face. He went over it lightly with his thumb, feeling the bump it had left under her skin. If only by the smallest measure, he was sure that it was spreading.
"Caesar what are you doing?" Tári asked with a raised brow.
"Come here," he told her lowly, taking hold of the back of her neck and grabbing her waist.
He pulled her against him and held to her tightly.
He had never before panicked in his lifetime. Not even when he had been a small child and his mother had forced him away at the physical form of a four year old mortal. It had been over a month before he had been able to find another living being. At that time he was sure that he had felt nothing; that there had been a hole carved into him where emotions should have been. The village he had found shunned him and treated him as if he were no more than the dirt beneath their feet.
That had been where he believed he had given up. He had reached the point of breaking. There were no emotions left in him to care. There was nothing left to live for… that was until an elderly hand had reached out to him. He flinched at the advance; thinking another had come to strike him, but the man merely patted his head.
A sad smile touched a wrinkled face as the old man spoke to him with words that – at the time – he didn't quite understand. Then without even a hint of suspicion, the old man had taken his hand and led him back to his home. He was lifted up to sit on a chair next to a small bedside. The next words he heard, he did understand. The man wanted him to meet his new born granddaughter.
When she opened her eyes and looked at him, the first thing she did was reach in his direction. The old man bent down and picked up his granddaughter before handing her to him. Astounded, he didn't know what to do. She had been so small and fragile… she felt as if she might break if moved too fast. So he sat frozen; bewildered by what the man had just would this old man hand this child to him, a complete stranger from another clan, a young boy he just found in the street? The man just smiled at him in response to his questioning look. His mind raced; he didn't understand what was happening.
This was all interrupted when the small child's hand found his ear and pulled, hard. Surprised, he let out an undignified squawk. Laughter filled the room as both the small child and old man laughed. That had been when he realized he had felt panic for the first time in his life and it followed each time he felt that Tári was in danger.
To this day he could still remember the smile that had been on her face as she laughed and the aching burn that had been in his heart in that moment. It may have been Tári's grandfather that had brought him to his new home, but it had been Tári that had brought him back to life. If she hadn't smiled at him… he didn't think that he would be where he was now. If not for that smile, he probably would have let himself pass long ago.
"Thank you," he murmured, resting his head on her shoulder.
She was probably unaware that just as she relied so much on him, he relied just as much - if not more - on her.
Resting my chin on top of his head, I looked at the area around us. Aside from the village that we had just left there really wasn't anything that could be seen in the hazy distance. For the time being resting where we were was probably in our best interest. The shade from the small cliff would keep us cool enough until nightfall. I let out a small sigh before wrapping my arms loosely around Caesar's shoulders.
It wasn't uncommon for us to end up in this situation; one of us wounded and waiting to travel. In most cases it ended up being Caesar. Over the years I had seen firsthand the scars that had accumulated over his body. I on the other hand had very few that had been more than minor. Turning my right hand, I gazed down at the faint slits that were on the bottom of my wrists. It had been a wound that had almost cost me my life at a young age. The only thing I could remember about it was what Caesar had told me; that I had been bitten by a poisonous snake.
"Hey Caesar," I started lowly.
He turned his head toward the curve of my neck, "Yeah?"
"Remember when I was really young, and I got bitten by that snake?" I questioned, my brows pushing together thoughtfully.
There were a few moments of silence before he nodded his head, "Yeah I remember."
"What did you call it?"
"It was a náriël séregon," he nearly murmured.
Lifting my head, I looked down at him and I could see that his blood red orbs were looking up at me. His expression looked almost frustrated and his eyes held an emotion that I didn't quite understand. It made me feel uneasy to see such an expression on his face.
"Sorry," I apologized, bringing a hand up to brush against his dark hair.
Stroking his hair for a few moments, I rested my head back on top of his. I felt his arms pull me closer to him and it caused me to let out a small laugh. That expression always seemed to find its way to his face whenever I asked about that incident. It was as if he blamed himself for not being able to stop the snake from being there.
"Even if you get too hot, I'm not going to let go," Caesar stated bluntly.
Again I laughed, "Yes sir."
It was rare for Caesar to become like this. As far as I understood it usually meant that he had been worried about what could have happened. It also probably meant that he was just tired and worn.
"I wish I could turn into a camel," I said aloud, making a face to the thought.
I felt Caesar chuckle under me.
"Why would you want to be something like that?"
"Then I could hold onto a lot of water and cross the desert a lot easier," I continued, closing my eyes as if to picture it, "I could carry you too when you got hurt like this."
"Tári if you drank that much water it would just make you have to pee every ten minutes," he mused, shaking his head.
"Not if I was a camel!" I argued, my brows narrowing.
"How about next time we just steal a camel?" he questioned, "That way neither of us will be so tired."
I sighed before frowning and nodding my head, "Fine…"
Opening my green orbs, I continued to gaze out over the desert. I felt Caesar's weight shift and his breathing slowed to a steady pace. This caused me to smile gently; he had fallen asleep.
'You deserve the rest,' I thought to myself, lightly rubbing his back.
There were some days where I didn't think that he would even sleep; like he was constantly trying to watch out for any kind of danger. The thought of that made my heart sink in the slightest way. It was almost as if he were thinking of me as still a small child unable to do anything more than walk. I wanted him to see that I wasn't… that I could protect both myself and him if I had to. I didn't want to be seen as a child anymore.
I had aged both mentally and physically. If we had never been banished from Alatariel we would have still been considered as children. As elves we aged slowly and could live for thousands of years, but that only seemed to apply in realms where mana flourished in the earth. Normally ten years wouldn't place a day on our physical forms.
Here there was no mana. Here there was nothing for our bodies to be connected to. We aged just as a mortal would. Instead of being at the early stages of puberty as I should have been, I now looked to be in my late teens and someone that would normally be many centuries older than myself. Caesar looked as if he were someone in their early twenties and had grown quite tall. I frowned a little at his height, it making me feel all the more like a child compared to him.
My thoughts were cut short as I heard the light footsteps of an animal and I glanced in its direction. At first I just saw a black nose sniffing at the ground before a desert fox came around the length of the cliff's side. It looked up at me, making its way closer before sitting only a few feet away from both Caesar and I. I had seen a couple of its kind wandering through the endless desert, but never had I seen one so close.
Unmoving, I sat and watched the creature as it sniffed in our direction. It then turned its head and stared straight out into the darkening horizon. Glancing toward me, it walked forward away from the cliff and continued to walk the direction it had been staring. It turned to look back at me once again before sitting. My brows pushed together at its action. As I stared in confusion, the creature repeated the action; looking, walking a bit, and then staring back at me.
'Is it telling me to follow it?' I wondered, not taking my eyes off the creature.
Without getting an answer to my question, the desert fox then once again rose to its feet and continued on its way forward; disappearing into the distance.
I felt Caesar's weight shift as his arms loosened and he sat up to look behind him. He sighed before brushing his dark bangs to the side and getting to his feet.
"Well," he started, holding a hand down to me, "We should follow it."
I shook my head as I took hold of his hand. It didn't surprise me that he had heard the fox. He probably heard it coming before I had.
"Somehow I knew you would say that," I mused, giving him a small smile.
The sun was close to set and traveling would be faster throughout the night; the cool night air more refreshing than the heat of the hot sun. If we were lucky we would be able to find another town before dawn.
Bursting into a run, I leapt forward with my hands toward the ground and I could feel the change throughout my body. Black fur covered my body as my front paws caught me on the loose sand. The transformation was like a burst of adrenaline; the dormant mana within the body suddenly flowing to put it through the transformation. It was exhilarating.
Running quickly across the sand, I could hear Caesar's large paws trampling the dirt behind me. He would catch up quickly and would soon be running the lead. Despite his wounds he would push himself until we would reach our new destination.
"Think you're going to make it?" I questioned, looking back at him.
As I turned my head I caught him run pass and heard him bark back at me. Laughing inwardly, I pushed myself to catch up to him. I could only hope that this new town would have an inn for us to rest in. I knew we would need it.
End of Chapter