The Last Favor

Chapter 19

Despite his struggle with words, Tristan loathed the silence that ruled this quest as they walked together into the forest. Bryce was getting tired. The sun was down, everything was dark and it was a really long day for him; he had no energy whatsoever to fight any sort of monster. But most importantly, he was in denial. He wouldn’t admit to himself that what was revealed to him earlier today was actually true. He wanted to forget the favor Tristan asked of him; he wanted to pretend it never happened and everything was completely normal. He wanted to still think that red eyes meant a hero, not a monster, that people were wrong to be afraid of him. But a lie can only last so long.

When they reached a prairie, Tristan drew a sort of weird cercle and uttered words Bryce couldn’t understand to cast a spell. All three of them then sat next to the circle waiting, the kid not really knowing what for.

After a few hours, Bryce who had dozed off, woke up to the sound of branches moving. He shot up and stared ahead only to find a quiet night. When Bryce was about to fall back asleep, he saw a dark silhouette moving at an incredible speed in the distance and immediately attempted to poke Tristan awake only to find he wasn’t asleep in the first place and was already eyeing the creature. The hunter stood up and stepped closer to the cercle and that was when the beast jumped out of the dark and bolted towards the three, ready to bite their neck off. A few inches away from Tristan’s neck, the Azerp screeched uncontrollably while being trapped by the spell.

Bryce got closer to inspect the being that once was a person. He couldn’t get his eyes off of the silhouette darker than the night with a hood covering his face. Or at least something that looked an awful lot like a hood but it was somehow part of the skin. Claws dangling from his fingers with gooey droplets falling off. The kid was paralyzed from fear.

“Remember this,” Tristan demanded, “this is what I will look like.”

Adelaide kneeled and hugged Bryce as he cried hysterically while Tristan put a sword into the Azerp while unseeing his very own future as he did so.

When the blade went back to its place, Bryce broke off the hug and run to Tristan hugging his leg, something the Lezterp has grown accustomed to.

“One favor, kid, that’s all I ask for.”

The boy nodded while still crying.

“Under one condition,” he said while trying to take a breath, “take me to Noria. That’s my price.”

“I think that’s a reasonable fare to pay,” chimed Ada while Tristan stood silent.

He never faced the fact that after what had happen on that fateful day he committed the taboo, he could never set foot in that cursed town again. The memories would be too haunting. He did run to the other end of the kingdom just to be as far as possible from that town. But his clock was ticking, and if the gods and devils enjoy the irony of his mistakes’ consequences then so be it.

“It’ll be at least a week until we reached Noria.”

“Look, Tristan, I know you’re not a man of words,” Adelaide intervened, “but before heading to Noria, don’t you think you owe us an explanation of some sort?”

As he racked a hand through his hair, he let out a deep breath and walked away leaving Bryce confused and wondering whose side should he take. Does it matter why Tristan committed the taboo? Do they even have the right to know? Does Bryce want to know? He already had this perfect image of his idol destroyed, was he ready to face more facts he might not handle? Maybe, some questions are better off left unanswered. Besides, this night was already exhausting as it is and he was in no state to hear another bombshell crashing his reality.

“No, Tristan,” Yelled the Neroc, “you will not walk away from this. You owe us the whole truth and that was less than half of it.”

The boy wanted to make a choice. He wanted to tell Ada to just let it go. But at the same time, he couldn’t. He hated siding against Tristan when he for once agreed with him.

“I don’t owe you anything.” Tristan stated.

“We saved your life!” claimed the girl.

“You shouldn’t have.”

It was all too loud, too fast, too much for Bryce. He couldn’t even hear his own thoughts anymore. He missed the days where Tristan was quiet and rarely open for conversation. But now, it feels like he and Ada are always fighting. And Bryce was left to wonder right from wrong.

Ada strongly believed that the line separating the two is as clear as one’s conscious but Tristan on the other hand knew that the line is inexistent. To him, there is no such thing as right or wrong, those are subjective opinions that most people can’t even agree with. But to Bryce, he felt that there was a little bit of both, a common ground in their opposite thinking. To the kid, right and wrong were subjective points based on a person’s conscious. Any wrong decision is one that he would regret, he would feel guilty about or ashamed and a right decision is any decision that doesn’t hurt.

Maybe that’s why many decisions feel right at first then turn out to be wrong. Maybe to make this decision Bryce needed to rationalize and choose whatever he would regret least.

“I’m tired of this,” Bryce interfered, “when mo… when my parents left me all alone, they didn’t explain to me why or tell me any sort of story. I want the truth, Tristan. I don’t want any more unanswered questions and we do have a right to know, not because we saved your life but for the same reason we did; we are companions. So, tomorrow morning, you will tell us why you committed the taboo because I’m tired and I don’t want to hear it now.”

Bryce walked away from both of them after his speech and laid on a tree to sleep.

All in good time should be revealed.