Zero the Winged Knight
The tale of an invisible knight and how he got freed of his misery...
Part One: Legends…
"Once upon a time, there was a peaceful village. In the village there was a gypsy who was putting on a puppet show. And
the gypsy said as the crowd of children gathered around, 'Come, one and all! I shall tell you a tale of a legendary knight who
fought for his life in a war. This knight was a young lad, and as he fought, a warrior ogre had sliced through his back with a
war axe, just barely missing his spine. This brave knight had survived the fatal attack and was running off the battle field
towards the nearby village to ask for a healer. In this poor, rugged nearby village there wasn't anyone around to help him
as he screamed with agony, crawling through the tattered streets that were drenched with his blood. Then, as he neared a
corner, an old and rugged beggar was wandering through the streets and stopped to help the bleeding knight. The man told
the knight that he will survive with only the aid of the man's healing stones. But the knight didn't believe in such magic. As
the knight spoke of his opinion to the old healer, the old man was outraged at such a remark. The man cursed him with the
power of his stones. Then the poor knight was turned invisible and nobody could see him and pity him so that they wouldn't
break the curse.' And so, the gypsy ended there with his story, and from that excerpt thus came the legend of Zero, the
Winged Knight."
As the silence resumed, a child yawned. There was a group of children, aging from 6 to 15 in front of the fire. It cast a
warm glow over the ragged and empty hut. There were about 12 kids in front of the elderly man in the tribal hut. He was the
tribes' storyteller. As the children all dispersed, one was left. She was a 14 year old girl, long raven black hair with light, fair
skin. "Titchubé that was the greatest story you've ever told." said the girl.
"That is the fifteenth time I've told you that legend, Kamico," said Titchubé.
"I know, but I just love that story!"
"Yes, knights in shining armor always seem to fascinate you, Kamico. Now, go and fetch your mother while I ready the
evening meal."
"Ok!" And with that, Kamico left.
Kamico had always been an obedient child. She and her mother are homeless, though Titchubé had always taken them
in. Her father was exiled from the village, and she had remained with the elderly man as though he was her grandfather.
She found her mother in the wheat fields, collecting wheat and cutting it with a scythe. Her work was a voluntary thing, but
she refused to stay in the streets begging. "Mother, Titchubé says that we are to go back to the hut for supper."
"Kamico, I am working right now. I shall be late, but we could spend the last hours of the night telling stories. Be off, back to
your sender." So Kamico left for the hut.
Kamico had always found that she had always looked up to Titchubé. But when she got to the hut that Titchubé was in,
there was a group of elders that were talking to him. As Kamico entered, a grave look that
he had had bestowed upon her and sent her away immediately. As if she were a mere slave, he threw a pot at her as she
was leaving. The clang of the metal was herd as she fled in the direction of the forest. In the forest she would be safe, for
Kamico has fled here before. As she came up to the forest, the sight of the river made her stop. In the valley in which her
people lived, there was a valley, some mountains, a forest, and in between the village and the forest was a broad but
shallow river. This river they called the Crescent, because of its crescent shape almost exactly like the moons. The sight of it
made her stop because she couldn't swim. But, Kamico had always had a special pathway of rocks through the river. Even
though the rocks weren't quite touching the surface of the water, when she stepped on one the water could only reach to
her ankles. After she crossed and made it to the other bank, Kamico was looking at a set of tracks. Oddly shaped, with five
clawed toes in the front and with only two feet. She'd never seen those sets before. Her father had taught her to identify
the types of animals by their tracks. These seemed to lead through the forest to the back of the…
"The village!!" She raced back to Titchubé's hut. 'I don't care if the council has a meeting with him,' she thought.
As Kamico raced into the hut, Titchubé stood at the same time, listening to some shouts in the distance. The rest of the
council members started murmuring, and then ran out of the hut. Kamico told the elderly man about the tracks, and he said
in a serious manner "So, they've returned." Then he ushered Kamico out of the hut and told her to go tell her mother to hide
right away. She rushed to the fields, but already there was a perimeter set around it with men of war. She could see the
workers running for their lives and she shouted for help from a nearby soldier. As he was about to respond a long spear
went clear through his heart. She turned to see who did it. There, standing only a few yards away from her and the soldiers
was an army of hundreds of vile, fierce monsters. They looked very much likes ogres, only were 9 feet tall, bulky with
muscles, and had long fangs that stuck out of their mouths. Each one had a war axe, a huge sword, long spears, shields
with blades on them, or knuckle-blades. Kamico watched in complete dread as the hideous creatures came forward, not only
killing people but devouring them as well. But as she ran, she saw the most horrendous and terrifying thing to happen to
her. Her mother, knocked down from the pandemonium of people scattering, being caught from the ghastly creatures and
torn apart alive. Still running she cried and cried. Kamico fled to Titchubé's hut, where she told him about the scene. "You
mustn't stay here. Go! Run!" was all he got to say before a group of beasts stormed through the hut. Kamico ran and ran,
not daring to look behind her to see if anyone was escaping from the monsters. She only ran to the river before being
confronted by five of the brutes. She called for help, even though it was inevitable that she would die. 'Like the way the
soldier Zero was about to…' she thought. They came at her, two with spears, one with an axe, and two with knuckle-blades.
She frantically tried to doge the oncoming blows, until one made it through her shoulder; a spear close to the neck. Kamico
cried with agony as the searing pain spread through to her head. Her sight was spinning, everything was going black… 'Now
they'll surely kill me…' Suddenly, the ogres one by one fell and each had a gruesome slash through their backs. She heard
the clash of swords, the thunder of hooves, the cries of pain, and then she fell unconscious…