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Chapter 1
Forest Frenzy
“Over there,” grumbled the low voice of an imperial guardsman, directing a mercenary to
do his dirty work. That mercenary didn’t take kindly at all to the torture of being out in the relentless elements
during the time when Hades cast his everlasting shadow over Gaia. The mercenary relentlessly slashed at a Terran hut
and splintered the fine oak door in a single swipe.
Screams came from inside, horrible, inconsivable
screams like that of a mourning mule. Terrible, the things they did, just awful! And they were looking for me.
I could sustain my rage and hatred no longer. I leaped from the canopy of my friendly druids and cast my staff to the
earth. After much practice, I had finally gotten a grasp of the power of Gaia in my spindly fingers, but I wanted to
perfect that power, growing it throughout my appendages, reaching the very core of my being.
I concentrated
on the earth with every cell in my body, and unleashed the powers of Gaia on those killers. Plant food. Worm food.
I’ve reduced them to an entrée for the maggots crawling mindlessly, motivated by hunger. What had I done…
??????????
“Yano. Yano, wake up. They’re here.”
That familiar
voice. That sweet familiar voice. My body ached so. After that mage casted his spell, enveloping me in that
damned dirt. How dare he disrespect me and that imperial guardsman like that.
I couldn’t
worry about that now though. My beau was trying to warn me of the inspector. Damn them. Damn Gaia itself.
“How long before they arrive, Hannasha,” I found myself mumbling.
“I don’t know
for sure, but it isn’t going to take very long before they see you in your evening garbs,” she replied,”
so get that lazy body out of that bed and put on a cloak at least, if not your tunic.”
I hurriedly
got out of chambers wearing a black tunic. How dubious. I was getting a good nights rest, and now these damn people
come to cause me more grief than I’ve already endured. Damn them all to hell.
“Get
on a cloak you piece of filth,” commanded that incompetent fool of an imperial guard,“we’re going after
that mage. The king wants him alive.”
“Find yourself another mercenary,” I shouted
blindly,“I’m not putting up another pathetic attempt just to cause more heartache.”
“I should have your head for your rebelliousness,” he shouted,“Get on your cloak, and get out here before
I decide to do so!”
Damn him! Damn his royal highness!! Damn that mage!!!
??????????
A cock crowed in the distance. The first beams of light shone over the eastern horizon.
I could smell the serene scent of breakfast boiling not to far from where I lay.
“Ah, yer awake,”
declared an unfamiliar voice. “Just in time for breakfast too. Took a nasty little bump to the head after
that wee branch got in yer way. Fell right unconscious too, no doubt.”
“Where am I,”
I drowsily asked.
“You should know,” the voice replied,“you were talkin’ up
a storm with those wee tree trolls. Nasty lil’ buggers them are, don’cha think?”
“Did I take care of those nuisances,” I wondered aloud.
“Darn tootin’.
And from the looks of them’s runnin’ away real quick-like, they won’t be comin’ back any time too
soon.”
“They aren’t dead!?”
“’Course not,
but sure darn close.”
“I’ve got to find them before they find me!”
“’Fore ya do anythin’, ya gonna have some good eatin’.”
So we ate, he
and I, and we discussed our differences and talked and ate and talked some more. At the time, I no longer had a care
in the world. But that wasn’t going to last much longer…
??????????
“You should not have come along, Hannasha,” I declared.
“But
I wanted an adventure,” she complained.
“Well now, you didn’t think of some of the
things those incompetent tree trolls and forest druids could do, did you.”
“Quit lecturing
and help me out,” she demanded.
“Ither get her or leave her, but whatever you decide, be
quick about it,” commanded the imperial guardsman. “I want to be on the move, and you’re coming with
me, or I’ll drag you back to the castle, have you beheaded or decapitate you myself, and then I’ll come back out
here with another mercenary who will end up getting more recognition in this one feat than you’ve ever gotten in your
entire life!!!”
From the tone of his voice I could tell he didn’t sound very happy, so I
dragged Hannasha out from the bottomless pit those things got her in, and we were on our way. We still weren’t
happy, but at least we were on our way.
As we traveled, we came along a very strange creek. It
didn’t flow east or west, it just… bubbled. Deep within the darkness of the water, I saw something glowing.
Powerful, yet not entirely whole.
"Magicians work," stated the imperial.
"Doubtful,"
I replied to no one inparticular. "A creature lives down there. A big one."
"How do you
figure?" my accomplices interrogated in unison.
"Well, look down there," I replied. "See those
glowing things? I think they're eyes."
"Is it just me," asked Hannasha,"or do those things seem
to be growing?"
Now that she mentioned it, they did seemed to be becoming much larger, and at quite
a rapid rate. We were starting to make out the figure.
"Oh no," the imperial whispered,"it can't
be."
Then we saw it. The ancient legend. The only thing that could haunt the bravest mens'
nightmares...
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Three miles in the forest and I haven't even reached the center. How far in must I go before I
can start going out. The wood nymphs warned me of this, as well as the tree trolls and forest druids. Even now,
as far in as I am, I still can't believe I didn't take the advice of my friends'. How ignorant can one be.
I couldn't turn back now though; Hell, I didn't even know if I was going forward; All I could do was hope I wouldn't
run into the Leviathan children. Nasty little things. No one would even dare take one step near them, if they
know what's best for them. If I stepped into their path, then that would be the last place my foot would lie.
My only hope was hope itself. And hope I did, for fear of my life. I hoped...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Run,' I screamed. I didn't dare look back. Looking back did two things; prove cowardice
and burden one with strain, slowing down. And I didn't have time to slow down.
"Argh," I heard
faintly. A womanly voice.
"Hannasha," I personally whispered in dread. Looking back may
have meant death. But so be it. I'd rather die with my true love than live without her. I drew my sword
from it's sheath. It shimmered in the fresh sunlight, little of which was reaching the forest floor, and too the Leviathan's
skin. In fact, it almost seemed as though the Leviathan was dodging the rays, dare I say, in fear.
This was my only chance, I knew that only too well. But a chance is not worth taking if you're not sure it will work.
I sound like my old man. This was life or death, and a chance may be worthless in a time struggle such as this, but
it was a chance nonetheless. And I went for it. I tilted my sword so that the light rays would ricochet, reflecting
it into the Leviathan's eyes.
"Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee," it screeched in agony.
"Draw your blades," I shouted desperately over the screeching, "reflect the light into it's eyes!"
Death
was not to become of us. We will kill the Leviathan. We will tear it apart...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I seem to have come across something very interesting. An injured Leviathan. How could anyone
have injured a Leviathan. Do these creatures truly have a weak point? Very intriguing.
Actually,
this is not the first time someone came upon an injured Leviathan. My great-grandfather's great-grandfather and some
odd generations before he had come across a Leviathan with half of a life left in it's carcass. He put the thing out
of it's misery, and then he found some use for the Leviathan's remains. If only I knew the weak point, then I would
be able to put this one out of it's misery as well.
But those eyes. Those big, round, yellow eyes.
They looked at me with what seemed to be a sign of desperation. I had to heal it, make it trust me.
"What are you thinking," I asked it, yet asking nothing in general.
<I know what you're thinking>.
I heard from nowhere, as if it had come straight from the depths of my thoughts.
"Who said that," I
asked, looking in utter insanity toward the canopy.
<Why are you looking up there, when I am down
here?> It asked.
I looked at the Leviathan, at it's eyes. They were filled with humor.
"You...you can talk, I mean...you're telepathic," I stated in amazement.
<Why do you want to
help me?> it asked.
"Because..."
<Wait> it interrupted <I already
know. I may be useful to you>.
"That was my reason earlier..."
<But
now you know I have existence, feelings>. it once again interrupted. <I'm not your enemy. And I never will
be. That is, if you heal my wounds.>
"I would like to be your friend. If that's okay
with you, of course," I added quickly.
<Certainly> it replied.
"I'm Cosho,"
I told him.
<You may call me ,Leviathan.> it said. I healed it's wounds, and we continued
our journey.
"Who did this to you anyway," I asked.
<The two you attacked the day before>
it replied.
"How did you..." I started to ask.
<Telepathy, my good friend>
it replied <telepathy>. We walked on in search of our rivals, not knowing what we may run into...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Almost to shore Captain!"
"Good. Very good, I complimented. I want to find
those two royals...now. No one makes a fool out of Captain Endow and gets away with it!!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Three more hours, you say. Three more minutes, you say. We're almost there, you say.
If I don't see that hut soon, I'll rip out your lungs, and feed you to the." That ignorant imperal's stunned silence
told me he saw it.
"And the door's still splintered," I stated obviously.
"Why
are we here, Yano," Hannasha asked.
"To kill that damn mage," I replied.
"I'll
tear his intestine from his body, and then I'll interrogate him,' the imperial stated viciously. "If he can't talk,
then he can't deny the charges. Wherever he is, he won't be there for long. Or at least not in one peace."
He slowly trotted toward the doorway, unsheathing his dual kitana. He strode in as if it were his own quarters.
Bastard. No respect at all, none whatsoever. I followed him to keep him from slitting anyones throat, but I guess
it would've been useless. Damn him!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<You think we should head backward> Leviathan stated, reading my mind again; literally.
"Well, I would think that if they're looking for me," I said,"they'd be going back to that Terran hut. But..."
<You don't even know if you're going forward> it replied<and I'm sorry that my telepathy bothers you, but even if
I didn't want to I'd have to. It is something that is out of my control. And, by the by, I'm not an it.
I'm a he.>
What fun. A telepath with attitude. Barricade your doors and fill the windows
with stone.
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