Paths of Green and Gold

Bodyguard - decision

Seeing Selena's behavior, Thorn reached for his sword. He quickly looked around, but couldn't see or hear anything suspicious.

"Why do you poison yourself like this, cousin?" she asked a little hesitantly, as if afraid of his reaction.

He looked at her puzzled. What was she talking about?

"I learned enough about herbs to know that it's not tobacco you have in there. And that mixture of herbs is not just made to smell nice, either." Her voice was becoming more confident with every word.

The warrior glanced at the pipe in his hand. Why did he have to smoke it in front of his cousin this time? Indeed the herbs were not meant to smell nice, but to help him control the "blessings" he received from his Goddess. He didn't even want to think what he could do if he didn't silence his demons with the clouds of smoke...

+++

[An old ruined hut. A teenage boy was sitting on the dirty floor, his face and shirt stained with blood; his green eyes staring blankly at the wooden wall.

The creaking of a door startled him. He grabbed a long sword lying at his side, as he turned his head towards the noise and got up quickly. His stare burning with rage met a look of fear.

A girl standing in the doorway took a step back.

She was a little bit shorter and thinner than him, but other than that looked like his mirror reflection - the same sharp features, the same long brown hair pulled back in braids revealing the same pointy ears; even her beautifully decorated outfit, which was definitely not a work of human craftsmen, mirrored the boy's leather jacket and pants. The only difference was that she looked clean and neat - no blood stains or tears in her clothes.  

He took a deep breath, trying to control himself.

"What are you doing here?" his voice sounded tired. "I told you..." 

"No! I'm not going to leave you, brother!" she shouted, tears glistening in her eyes. She took a few steps towards him, but stopped suddenly, hesitating.

"Look at me!" he spat at her, spreading his arms, still holding a sword. "I can't protect you. What if..." He shook his head, not able to say anything more.    

"No!" the girl cried, tears streaming down her face. She came closer to him. "I have something that will help you... help us..."]

+++ 

He was just a boy then. He didn't know how to deal with the gifts of the Goddess who answered his prayers. His sister was terrified of him, not even knowing what caused her brother to turn into a monster. And he couldn't blame her.

"I know it's none of my business." Selena's voice reached him again. "But I think you should quit that. Nothing good comes out of it. If you only knew how much filth you are letting into your body..." She said sternly, shaking her head in disapproval. 

He knew it wasn't exactly healthy, and some of the herbs in the mixture, the recipe for which was carved deep in his memory, were indeed poisonous. But what choice did he have? The alternative still scared him, even though almost 15 years had passed since that day. At some point, he just accepted the reality he built for himself. He got used to smoking almost more regularly than eating, to keep the nightmares at bay. He kept numbing his mind to run away from the demons lurking there. It was an easy way - just avoiding the fight and the consequences of the misguided choices he made back then. Avoiding the fight... and he still called himself a warrior?  

Lost in thoughts he didn't even feel the taste of the food Selena gave him.

His cousin's worry opened up a completely new door - showed him a new perspective. He didn't remember the last time someone spoke to him in this manner. He wasn't that lost teenage boy anymore. Now he wasn't bound by his sister's wishes, either. Was it time to burn yet another bridge, sever another chain that bound him to his past? 

"Cousin..." Selena's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. She stood up and looked at him seriously. "Before we leave this place, there's something you need to see..." Her long black braid swayed when she shook her head again, as if unhappy with something.

He frowned and slowly got up, not sure how much his body was ready for. The pain was still there – accompanying his every movement – but he didn't think about it now, too concerned with his cousin's words.

She led him to where he fought with the blonde bandit.

The stench grew more and more unbearable as they got closer. Why did she want to show him the body? It couldn't look pretty after a few days of heat. 

When he finally saw the corpse, he understood. 

The sunny weather accelerated the decay and the suffocating odor of death attracted a swarm of insects. A cloud of transparent wings rose from the ground accompanied by a loud buzz when Thorn and Selena approached the scene.

Flies and maggots usually devoured skin and flesh, and juicy eyeballs were also their treat of choice. However, Thorn had never seen hair being eaten by worms. On the grass there was no trace of the bandit's long blonde mane. And his skin had a strange translucent bluish shade.

"He has four fingers. I have no idea what we were fighting, cousin, but I really do hope his kin don't live in Thoris..." Selena's nose scrunched in disgust.     Thorn covered his mouth. Still being weak from the injuries, his head spinning, he fought the urge to vomit. He forced himself to stay focused and looked at the remains more closely. He had never seen a creature like this before, although he spent most of his life travelling around the world. 

The four-fingered man - was he even a man? - was without a doubt a great swordsman. Thorn looked at his own hand as if to check if his fingers were still intact.

[I spilled his blood, so if there are more of them in Thoris...]

"We'll find out soon," he shrugged turning away. "For now, let's just go."  

He was trying to remember all the books he had read before his exile, but he couldn't recall any mention of a similar race - if it was a race. The strange appearance of the corpse could just as well be attributed to some filthy magic. Thorn never trusted wizards or their art - or rather their tricks. He never studied sorcery, of course, but he saw enough works of those madmen to know that changing the shape of a thing or creature was one of their specialties.

He returned to the campfire and started preparing for the road. Careful not to disturb the wounds, he put on a fresh shirt, and packed all his belongings. His eyes stopped on the forgotten pipe. What would happen if he had no herbs to rely on? It was a weakness he should overcome - he was sure of that. A weakness unworthy of a warrior. Maybe now was the time? Was he strong enough? At least with his body weakened by fresh wounds, he wouldn't do much damage if the worst happened...

How many breaths did a warrior need to make a decision?

He crushed the delicate pipe in his clenched fist and then threw the remains into the fire. Then he scattered the herbs on the grass. If there was no way back, the only possibility was to go forward.    

When he finished packing, he took out all three swords, one by one, and checked the blades. After meticulously cleaning and oiling all of them, he sat down on the grass waiting for Selena to be done with her own preparations. He wanted to help her, but he knew he had to save his energy if he was going to walk anywhere today. He needed to finish the journey and finally start traveling for his own goals. He wanted to finally find Her...   Selena disappeared in the blonde bandit's hut for a long while. When she came out, she was holding a bow and a quiver full of arrows was hanging from her hip.   

"He had so many of them there," she said seeing Thorn's gaze. She cast her eyes down blushing. "I'm sure that those robbed merchants were hoping to sell their goods in Thoris..."  

Without a word, the warrior stood up and walked towards his cousin.

The girl looked at him surprised, as until now he didn't show any interest in the treasures the bandits gathered in their camp. But she already got used to his silence, lack of emotions, and often impulsive decisions, so she just stepped aside letting him enter the hut.

The shelter was more spacious than it seemed from the outside. The outer skeleton built around three trees, the inside was enlarged by digging in the dark soil. A few people could live here comfortably and there was enough space left for the loot.

He looked around for any clues to the bandit's identity.

It was clear that the recent victims had a big transport of ranged weapons - bows, arrows, and quivers were piled high in one corner. Thorn looked through them. He didn't know much about archery, but he could recognize good craftsmanship. The limbs were well balanced and polished, with only discreet ornaments. For weapons created by humans, they were pretty decent. But he wasn't interested in them.

He noticed a large chest covered with a few luxurious coats - a cloth merchant must have fallen victim to the thugs as well. The chest was made of hardwood and reinforced with iron. The huge lock protected the contents.  

"Gold, some gems, jewelry..." Selena explained still standing at the entrance. "They have the blood of innocent people on them. People who were unlucky enough to be spotted and rich enough to provoke an attack...."  

Thorn turned to his cousin and studied her for a few seconds. She never ceased to surprise him – sometimes she was like a cute frivolous baby without a care in the world; sometimes she behaved like a wild animal – distrustful and capricious; and then sometimes – like now – she was mature beyond her age, serious and incredibly... kind.

He smiled to himself and left the hut.