“She’s not here!” The soldier’s words broke the painful silence, making Aerin’s heart jump into her throat.
A relief the likes of which she had never experienced washed over her as the footfalls grew ever distant. Finally, she could hear the clopping again and it faded away into the distance. She waited a while before leaving the safety of her hiding place. Having shaken her pursuers, she began the long trek back home.
It was pitch black by the time she reached the edge of the farm. Not even halfway up the southern field, she could already see the bright glow. Aerin ran as fast as her tired frame would carry her. Occasionally she stumbled over rows of uneven ground that she had helped her father till a season ago. Once she crested the rise, she saw something she had only seen in her worst nightmares. Her home was burning. Her eyes grew wide as tears began to spill down her cheeks. She collapsed and fell to her knees on the cold wet ground and cried; only stopping once something had caught her attention. She wiped her eyes and forced herself to her feet and carefully made her way over toward the stone wall that ran around her home.
“Where is it?!”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
There were voices, Aerin could hear them. She hid herself behind the stone wall and listened as best as she could. One of them had sounded familiar, but the other had been her father. She was sure of it. She rose up and peered over the wall as best as she could without showing herself. Her mother and father were held by a few crusaders as another screamed into her father’s face.
“You’re hiding it!” The Crusader shouted.
“They don’t know!” It was Isaiah Aerin had heard this time. She looked around for him and finally spotted him over beside the barn. He was held by two crusaders on both sides, pinning him to the wall despite how he thrashed about. “They don’t know!”
“You’re going to tell me where you’re hiding the book, or I’m going to kill your wife where she stands!”
“No!” Isaiah shouted out.
“You wouldn’t dare!” Aerin’s father snapped at the man before him.
“You’re both damned in the eyes of the Church, I can do as I wish!” The Crusader fired back. “But I have a better idea.” He said with a smile. “Your daughter, where is she?”
Aerin felt a terrible sinking feeling in her stomach at the man’s words. In response her father shouted and thrashed violently in his captors’ grip.
“You touch her and I swear!” He bellowed.
“I’ll make sure to take care of her before I kill her.” The Crusader said with a smile.
Suddenly Aerin’s father broke loose. He had managed to knock the man beside him back with his elbow. In an instant he lunged at the man before him, but the crusader didn’t flinch. Aerin heard the sound of a crossbow firing its bolt and she watched as her father fell lifeless before the crusader. She wanted to scream out, but doing so would mean certain death. She ducked her head down behind the stone wall and covered her mouth with both hands. On the other side she could hear her mother’s screams. There was a sound of a struggle, and then suddenly she was silent too.
Aerin slammed her fists into the soft dirt as Isaiah shouted at the top of his lungs. He screamed curses at the men around him, all the curses Aerin was unable to say. He shouted until his throat bled. All the while, Aerin cried her eyes out on the other side of the stone wall, unable to do anything.
“See what you did, Isaiah?” The crusader spoke. “You didn’t have to involve these people.”
“You’re going to get what’s coming to you, you son of a bitch!” Isaiah shouted at the man.
“Tell me where it is!” The man suddenly rushed Isaiah. He grabbed him around the throat and thrust him against the wall of the barn. “Where is it?!”
“You…” Isaiah struggled to speak. He gripped his assailant’s wrist as tight as he could in an attempt to free himself. “You won’t… get anything… from me.”
“You will tell me where it is!” The man tightened his grip as he screamed, spit flying from his mouth as his temper came to a head. “So help me I will cut you down where you stand!”
“You… you need… me…” Isaiah replied with the faintest hint of a smile.
“If I have to return empty handed, so be it.” The man stated, his voice calmer this time. “You’re wanted dead or alive.”
“Fine…” Isaiah coughed. “Come… come closer…”
The crusader lessened his grip on Isaiah’s neck and leaned in closer. Isaiah whispered something into the man’s ear and a smile suddenly crept up on his face. The Crusader didn’t share Isaiah’s sense of humor though. In an instant he released his grip on Isaiah’s throat, drew his sword, and plunged it deep into his stomach.
Aerin bit her tongue and covered her mouth to keep from screaming out. She fell against the stone wall, her body unable to move as she felt herself grow cold. She cried silently as best she could, and through her muffled sobs she could hear the soldiers disperse behind her. She lay there for what felt like hours, but was most likely only a few minutes, her arms and legs unresponsive to her commands. Finally, when all was still, she summoned every ounce of strength she had left and picked herself up off the ground before rushing to Isaiah’s side.
“Oh… God…” She muttered as she dropped to her knees beside him. She scooped him up into her arms and looked him over. Even in the dim light of the fire, she could see how bad he was. His tunic was stained dark red from the blood he had lost. His hair was drenched in sweat and his face was as white as a ghost. Gently, she shook him as she brushed the hair from his face. “Please. Please wake up.” She begged.
“A-Aerin…” Isaiah managed to speak. His glossy eyes opened slowly as he looked up at her. “I’m… I’m so… sorry.”
“Don’t talk!” Aerin hushed him. She began to rock back and forth uncontrollably as she held onto him tighter.
“N-no… I… I need… a f-favor…” His voice was shaky.
“Anything!”
“In the… barn… under my… under my bedroll… under the… dirt.”
“What’s under the dirt?” Aerin asked.
“B-Book…” Isaiah coughed suddenly. Blood filled his mouth and leaked out onto his lips. It trailed down his chin and dripped down onto his chest. “Go… east… Take… back.”
“Take the book east?” Aerin’s words were getting more and more frantic as she felt him slipping before her.
“To… desert… Please.” He looked up at her with eyes full of regret and reached up, his bloody right hand touching her swollen cheek. “I… I’m… so… sorry.”
Suddenly Isaiah’s eyes seemed to glaze over and he became still.
“Isaiah.” Aerin said as she gently shook him. “Isaiah?” Realization began to set in. “Oh God no.” She was suddenly overcome with a wave of emotion she couldn’t contain. There, on the ground, lit only by the fire of what was once her home, she cried. She cried with every fiber of her being. She held Isaiah’s body close, and her own body shook as tears she didn’t know she still had poured down. She cried for her home, for her mother and for her father, and for a warrior that lay before her, slain in cold blood.
After what seemed like ages, Aerin could cry no more. She laid Isaiah down gently and pulled herself to her feet. The short walk into the barn drained her. Moving the bedroll to the side consumed what little strength she had left. Though, somehow, she found the energy to dig. The ground was soft and her fingers dug into it with ease. She dug until she felt something. It was hard. She dug a little more and managed to pull it out. It was a book, just as Isaiah had said. It seemed to be a simple, leather-bound tome. Aerin undid the clasp that held the cover in place and thumbed through the pages. It was filled with incomprehensible symbols and words that she couldn’t understand. However, the book was warm to the touch, and seemed to hum with her heartbeat, though she could’ve been hallucinating from the trauma.
It was well into the night when she was finally finished. Three grave
s had taken longer to dig than normal, even though the ground was soft from the rain. She moved slowly, methodically, without thinking. Her eyes were glazed over and to anyone she would have appeared to be standing while asleep. Her hands had blisters from the shovel, and she left it stuck in the ground beside the last grave. When all was said and done, Aerin was the only living thing standing atop that small hill. Her body was exhausted, but still it moved. Fueled only by her desire to see Isaiah’s final wish come true, she gathered what little supplies she could. She fastened a belt around the book and slung it over her shoulder. She gathered all she could carry and made her way toward the path leading to the eastern field. As she approached the edge of the forest, she took one last look back at her home. The fires had died down and only embers remained. In time, they too would go out, but there was one that would remain for years to come.
Chapter Eighteen
Thunder clapped loudly as lightning lit up the billowing black clouds that filled the sky. The sun had been on its way towards the horizon before the clouds had formed. Aerin had been watching them gather for a while, but chose not to stop. Instead she pressed on down the path, and now she was paying for it as rain poured down hard. It came down in thick sheets that made running down the barely visible road a near impossibility. She ran as hard as she could. Her footing was bad, and time and time again she stumbled on the uneven wagon tracks that quickly filled with mud. Finally, after she was soaked all the way to the core, she found a large outcropping of rocks that she immediately took shelter underneath. The space she found was small, with only enough room for one person and a few effects, but it would do.
Seeing as how the rain was there to stay, Aerin decided to stop for the night. She pulled the heavy satchel from her shoulders and laid it down on one of the rocks beside her. No one would be coming down the path in a storm like this, so she was safe to remove her clothes. She laid them out over another rock to dry but left on what little she could to retain the slightest shred of decency. It didn’t matter though, but as she sat down and gazed down at her exposed self her face still turned light red. She shivered as the skin on her back touched the cold rock wall behind her. She pulled her legs up close and wrapped her arms around them to keep her warm from the cold wind that whipped into the alcove.
After finally warming up, Aerin retrieved her most prized possession. Various bits of fabric covered it, an attempt she had made some weeks ago to better conceal it as she traveled. She unwrapped it slowly as the warmness of the cover filled her with a sense of familiarity. Three weeks ago she wouldn't even look at the thing. She despised it. Why so much blood would be spilled over something as trivial as a book made no sense to her. But as time went by, curiosity had gotten the better of her. The first time she flipped through its pages the symbols and words seemed so foreign, and she had closed the book in two parts frustration at her lack of understanding and anger at herself for having opened the book in the first place. However, fifteen or so sessions later she began to understand some of the text within. Symbols and phrases seemed to jump right off of the pages in a way that Aerin could understand. She had finally come to grasp why so many sought the book. She felt its knowledge running through her mind, its power at her fingertips, though she didn't quite understand it all. As she opened the book once more, she wondered how it had ever been so hard to read. The droning of the rain seemed to fade into the distance as she focused on the pages before her.
"Arcane circuitry and the human body." She read aloud as she skimmed through what she assumed was the next chapter. Symbols and intricate depictions of the human body lined the pages that followed. Her gaze centered on one such picture. It showed two hands pressed together. "An arcane circuit can be completed by bridging the hands together... allows a spell to be cast after consuming mana from the caster's surroundings..." In the next picture, she noticed a symbol she had learned early on. It was a circle, with many smaller ones inside of it. Between each one, strange text ran their length. A Cypher, that's what it was called.
Thunder suddenly boomed nearby. It was loud and seemed to rattle Aerin's very core. She ignored it and continued to read. When it happened a second time, even louder and more powerful than before, she realized it wasn't thunder at all, but the ravenous groans of her stomach. She blushed at the revelation and put the book down on the rock beside her. Digging through her satchel, she disappointingly retrieved the last scrap of bread she had. It was cold and stale, a far cry from the meals she once enjoyed. While it had seemed like a curse before, she was grateful her father had sent her into town when he did. The coin purse she had left home with had gotten her this far, sustaining her with cheap breads and cheeses along the way, though as of late it was beginning to feel lighter and lighter. As she devoured the last of the small meal she realized just how dark it was outside. In fact, it was almost pitch black. She chastised herself for having lost track of time as she moved the book over to use as a pillow on the hard rock. Its warmth spread throughout her body and helped the thin fabric that she had spread over her as a makeshift blanket to keep her warm. Her eyes closed gently and within minutes she was asleep.
The next morning Aerin walked down the path at a brisk pace. With dry clothes she was able to travel much faster and she nimbly dodged the large mud puddles that were leftover from the previous night's rain. Having long since left the hilly terrain of her homeland and entering the flat plains of the east, she could see for miles. And for the past hour, she had been eyeing the outline of a city on the horizon. It stood in the distance taunting her like a mirage. The sun was well above her head when she finally passed beneath the large stone archway of the front gate. Her stomach groaned, and she headed straight for the center of town.
The market was similar to the one she frequented back home. Though, this one was full of foods and people she had never seen before. Olive skinned folk wearing robes of various assortments lined the stalls of the market place. Aerin made her way in and around groups of people as she browsed the foreign wares the stalls were covered in. Finally, she found what she was after. A stall littered with fruits, vegetables, and loaves of bread came in to view. Aerin rushed over and had to keep herself from drooling as her gaze fixed itself upon a rather lumpy loaf.
"You want that?" A raspy voice asked from across the stall.
It had caught Aerin off guard, oblivious to the fact that she had been staring at the same loaf of bread for the better part of five minutes. Coupled with the fact that her clothes were in rough shape; she gave off the air of a vagrant, which in truth she had become.
"Uh, yes. Can I get this? Please?" She asked while holding the loaf of bread.
"Five copper pieces." The merchant stated.
Aerin fished through the coin purse, only to retrieve one last copper coin. Seeing that she didn't have the means to pay, the man snatched the bread from her and sat it on the counter before crossing his arms.
"No coin, no bread." He said firmly.
Aerin's face flushed bright red as a mix of embarrassment and shame filled her. Quickly, her gaze dropped to the cobbled street below. She felt small, and was brought almost to the edge of tears as she realized the state she was in. Suddenly, the sound of coins hitting the counter snapped her out of her daze.
"The bread, please." Aerin turned to see another man beside her. He was an older man, with short white hair and a well-kept beard. His confident green eyes remained locked with the merchant's until the latter gave up the loaf of bread. "Here you go, dear." He said as he offered the food to her.
"I... uh..." She wasn't used to such generosity anymore, but the growling in her stomach urged her to consider her options. "Thank you." She said as she took hold of the bread.
"Would you mind joining me for a meal over by the fountain?" The man asked with an eyebrow raised in question. "It's a good place to rest." He added.
Aerin nodded and followed the man as he turned and lead them toward the center of the marketplace. The groaning of her stomach inevitably became to
o much, and Aerin had begun to eat the bread well before they reached their destination. Seeing this, the man gave a small laugh as he sat down. The fountain was a large stone circle, big enough to sit on, with a well of water in the center. Aerin sat down next to the man and continued to destroy the loaf of bread.
"Don't eat too fast." The man said jokingly while taking out his own slice of bread from a pouch he carried on his side. He sat in silence, taking small bites as he watched Aerin tear hers apart until there was nothing left. "My, you must have been very hungry." He noted.
"I… oh gosh." Aerin patted her stomach with a very satisfied look. "That was... I needed that. Thank you so much."
"Well, you looked hungry. And I couldn't let you starve, now could I?" He smiled. "My name's Ambriel. And yours?"
"Aerin." She replied.
"Aerin? That's a good name." Ambriel declared. "It's hard to find good company in this part of the world." He said with a sigh. "So what brings you out here today, Aerin?" He asked.
"I'm... traveling. East." Aerin felt a bit awkward conversing with someone for the first time in a while.
"Ah, I see. You do have the look of a traveler about you." Ambriel stated as he looked her over. Aerin's face flushed with a tinge of embarrassment at the state of her clothing. "Where are you headed?" He asked.
"The desert." Aerin replied. "I'm... returning something."
"I see." Ambriel paused for a moment as he scratched at his short beard. "Why so far?"
"I made a promise..." Aerin paused briefly. "To a friend."
"I see." Ambriel said again as his questions came to a halt. "This friend must mean a good deal for you to make such a journey."
Slayer: A Demon Hunter's Tale Page 36
