CHAPTER 9: FOR COUNTRY AND KING

We arrived at a town later that afternoon. The town was right by a marshy area where small rivers ran all around like a large spider web. I noticed we were getting some odd looks from the other town's people as we walked the streets.

"Why are people staring at us?" I asked.

Cormag gave me a dirty look. "It could probably be due to the fact you have my wrists tied behind my back and have a rope tied around my neck and you're dragging me through the town like this."

"Sorry, but I really don't trust you yet." I replied. "Think of it as being taken prisoner."

He mumbled something under his breath but I couldn't make out what he was saying.

"Cormag, is that you?" We heard a woman's voice say.

He turned to where the voice had come from and a look of horror washed over him. He turned away, looking ashamed about something.

"Cormag! It is you!" She said as she walked over to him. The woman who seemed to know Cormag looked like she must have been in her early twentys. She had long blond hair and green and black robes. She lead a stallion along side her by it's reigns. In her other hand, she held a golden stone. "What happened to you? Why are you tied up like that?"

"S...Selena..." Cormag muttered nervously. "It's...a long story."

"What is the meaning of this?" She demanded. "Do you know who man is?"

"His name's Cormag and he's a wyvern rider of Grado." I replied simply.

"He is the younger brother of Grado's general; Glen, the Sunstone." She said sternly.

"Glen?!" I cried out. "He's Glen's younger brother?!" I suddenly felt sad. "So that means...Glen's dead?"

"Why should you care?" Cormag asked. "You didn't know him."

I said nothing. They didn't need to know about me being from another world. Then they would know that I'm the Bringer of Chaos. They were both with Grado and if they knew about my destiny, then that could spell disaster for me.

"Darian, I need to speak with Selena in privacy." Cormag said.

"Why's that?" I asked.

"That's none of your business." He replied sternly.

I laughed a little. "Oh I get." I said as I nudged my elbow into his arm. "You two want your alone time."

He shot me an aggravated glare and I untied his wrists and neck. He and Selena walked off into the town to talk about stuff.

"Are you sure it's alright to let them go?" Zel asked. "What if they find out about you being the Bringer of Chaos?"

"I don't think they'll figure it out." I replied. "In the mean time, let's stock up on some food. We didn't grab much before we left." So we made our way to the nearest store and stocked up.

After buying more food than what we possibly needed, I decided it was best to head out again. We didn't bother to wait for Cormag. Chances were, he wasn't going to come back with us willingly. As we were about to depart from the port town, I saw Myrrh, walking about nervously.

"Myrrh? What are you doing here?" I asked as I ran over to her.

"Darian?" She said as she gazed around at our little group. "Why did you all leave? You all left so suddenly, and without telling anyone..."

"Didn't Ephraim explain everything to you?"

By this time, Selena and Cormag had begun to walk in our direction again. Myrrh's eye's widened as she glanced at the object Selena was holding.

"Return it." The little dragon girl said as she approached Selena. "The Stone...Please. Return it to me."

Selena stared at her suspiciously.

"Return the stone to me." Myrrh repeated in the most determined tone I had ever heard from her. "Please. I'll do anything."

"Why do you want the stone?" Selena asked. "Who are you? You're not from Grado, that's for sure."

"Without the stone, I..." She trailed off and shifted her gaze to the ground. "Please, give it back to me."

"Answer my questions!" The general demanded.

Myrrh sighed as she tried to gather her courage. "My name is Myrrh. I come from Darkling Woods. I was betrayed and my stone was taken from me. I was imprisoned, caged, and to be transported somewhere. Prince Ephraim came to my rescue. I've been traveling in his care ever since."

"You're with Ephraim? I can't let you leave. Maybe I can take you back to the capital with me."

Myrrh stepped back nervously, that's when I moved in front of her, my weapon drawn. "You're not taking Myrrh anywhere!" I shouted.

Myrrh stepped forward. "You're from Grado? Tell me, have you noticed any changes in the people around you recently?"

Selena looked puzzled. "Changes?" She asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"Anyone near you... Has anyone been transformed, either in spirit or demeanor? Does anyone act in such a way as to appear a different person altogether?"

Selena turned away but then said quietly, "How could you know..."

"The darkness is to blame. I've come here to stop it."

"You will tell me more. If I find you are lying, I will punish you. Do you understand?" she threatened.

Myrrh nodded. "Are you ready? I will tell you everything I know."

Now I was interesting in what was being said. We all gathered round to hear what Myrrh had to say but she never even had a chance to start. One of the Grado soldiers ran over to us.

"Dame Selena! Enemy troops are heading this way!" the soldier said.

"Tell the men we meet them head on." The general ordered. "Cormag, you and I will take the lead."

"Yes, Dame Selena!" Cormag said as he followed the soldier to the front lines.

Selena then turned to Myrrh. "I release you. Return to Prince Ephraim's side. I apologize, but I cannot return your dragon stone to you. I vowed never again to fail in my duty to His Majesty. If you want your dragonstone back, tell Ephraim he must defeat me."

Myrrh tried to argue, but Selena would not be persuaded.

"Go now!" Selena shouted. "This place will soon run red!" The general leaped on her horse and took to the battlefield.

"Wait! Selena!!" I cried out as I ran after her. I stopped and looked back at Myrrh. "I'll get your dragonstone back!" I vowed.

"Darian..." She murmured softly.

I then chased after Selena once more.

"Darian! What are you doing?!" Colm demanded as he and the rest of my companions ran behind me. "Don't tell me you intend on fighting Selena!"

"I don't want to fight her." I replied. "She's not an enemy."

We quickly found her outside the town. She was leading the forces with Cormag by her side.

"All troops to arms! For the glory of Grado!" Selena shouted to rally her troops. She then led her soldiers as they marched on to the battle.

I ran in front of her and held my arms out. "STOP!!" I screamed.

Selena's horse reared back on to its hind legs and let out a startled cry. The other soldiers ran past and around her and charged toward the enemy. "What are you doing?!" Selena demanded. "Step aside!"

"You shouldn't fight them!" I cried out. "There's no reason to fight!"

"This is war. Our king ordered me to prove my loyalty to him and I shall."

"I don't understand. Why is this so important to you? You're one of Grado's Generals! You should care about the safety of your people first!"

Flames sparked in her eyes. "I do care about my people!" She roared.

"Then which is more important?" I asked. "Following your king's orders and destroying the Sacred Stones or protecting the Sacred Stones and saving your people from the growing darkness?"

"My king ordered me to destroy them. If it is his majesty's wish then so be. I shall do everything in my power to fulfill it."

"So you'll sacrifice the lives of your countrymen?! You know that if the Sacred stones are destroyed then the darkness will spread and the monsters will continue to attack everyone."

Cormag and Genarog landed in front of us. "Enough, Darian." He said sternly. "Get out of here, before we have to kill you and your companions."

The others readied their weapons. They were prepared to fight if they had too, but I felt that I could end this without violence. At least, I prayed I could.

"Please tell me, Selena, which do you care about more; your king or your people?" I asked.

"My king knows what's best." She replied.

"Not necessarily. I'm sure there have been plenty of power-hungry kings who cared only for themselves and no one else. Did those kings know what was for the best?"

"There have been power-hungry kings in Grado, but Emperor Vigarde is not like them!"

"People can change. Myrrh said that people in Grado are changing, what if the Emperor is one of them?

"I am a soldier!" She roared. "I do as I'm told. I fight for my country and king!"

"But you don't want to fight! You oppose this war. I can sense it. Duessel opposed this war, too! And so did Glen! Surely you are as just as they are!"

"You don't know a damn thing about my brother!" Cormag roared as he jabbed his lance at me. I managed to block it off with my axe.

"I did know you're brother." I said. "He was the first person I met when I came to this world! He helped me by taking me to a village where I would be safe and he told me how he opposed the war!"

He pulled his lance back. "You...You're the Bringer of Chaos?!"

I nodded. "Did your brother tell you about me?"

"Yes." Cormag said as he lowered his lance to his side. "He said that he wouldn't tell Emperor Vigarde about you because he didn't believe that you were the Bringer of Chaos. He said that there was no way you were a threat."

Selena turned to Cormag. "Glen knew about this and he said nothing to Emperor Vigarde?!"

"That's right. He said that he was possibly a traitor because of this. But..."

"What are we waiting for?! We must take her to His Majesty! Just as he ordered."

Cormag walked over to me and stood beside me. He faced Selena and said, "I know now what I must do. I had been questioning what I should be doing for some time now. If my brother protected Darian from Emperor Vigarde then so shall I."

"Then I have no choice but to destroy you too." She said as she pulled out an Elfire tome and began chanting the ancient language from it. She then released an intense blast of fire at Cormag. I shoved him out of the way and felt the painful sting of the flame against my arm. I winced at the new burn.

"Would a Bringer of Chaos take the hit intended for someone else?" Neimi asked.

"Don't be fooled by her lies!" Selena said. "The Bringer of Chaos is linked to the Demon King! That's how she will end the world! She will be the Demon King's right hand in the apocalypse!"

"I will do no such thing!" I shouted. I held my arm from where the burn had been inflected. The repulsive smell of burnt flesh coursed through my nostrils.

"I will follow his Majesty's Orders." Selena said as she began to chant another Elfire spell.

I stood up and thrust my axe into the ground. I then stepped away from it. "I won't fight you. You are not an enemy." I said.

"I will take you to His Majesty!" She said. "I will not allow you to end the world!"

"The darkness is already spreading without my help. Besides, you say you want to fight for the good of Grado, when you know the Emperor's soul is now corrupt."

She stopped chanting now and was silent.

"You can kill me." I continued on. "Then when I'm dead, the world will not end. You're planet will be protected. But if you keep destroying the Sacred Stones; who will protect you and your people from the darkness? What will you do when monsters or even worse...the Demon King starts walking the lands? Destroying, killing, and ravaging everything in sight. So tell me, are you really protecting your people from harm by destroying the only thing that keeps this world safe from evil? You may not care about your life, but at least care about the lives of those you have sworn to protect. If you truly care about your country as much as you say you do, then stop following Vigarde. Protect the Sacred Stones. Only death will result in your oaths to the king."

I then approached her. I gazed into her eyes. "I can sense it in you. You don't want to fight either. You're not a bad guy, Selena. And neither are your soldiers. You're all just confused. But you don't have to be. You can just retreat. You can go against all this because you know it's the right thing."

"But I..."

"You made an oath that you feel cannot be broken? Am I correct?"

She nodded.

"Listen, we all have to make painful decisions in life. Most of mine from here on out probably will be very painful. Do you think I want to be the one to end the world? No! I have so many people I've come to love. I can't bear the thought of being the one to destroy them or their home."

"Our king has talked about you as if you're some monster but...I don't think you are..." She said. "No monster could ever love or speak the words you have today. But how do I know I can trust you? What if you're just lying?"

"Look into my eyes!" I shouted. "And tell me if I'm lying or not!"

She stared hard at me and finally said, "I believe you." She then turned to one of her soldiers, a ranger. "You there. You lead the troops."

"Why, Dame Selena?" He asked.

"I must tend to something." She said. I could feel the sorrow coming from her heart. It was disheartening and filled me with sadness.

"This fight can't be stopped." Cormag explained. "I'm sure Dame Selena has gone to contemplate. You must have persuaded her to not battle. But now, if we wish to not be dragged into the conflict, we must leave as well."

I nodded and our group retreated to get away from the battle.

Night fell across the land and news carried to us that Renais triumphed once again. We walked about the darkened path with the full moon as our only real source of light.

"I must say, Darian, that speech you gave back there surprised me." Joshua said.

"Yeah, who would have guessed you of all people would say stuff like that!" Colm said with a snicker.

"But, you kept saying things like "I can sense that you don't want to fight." What did you mean by that?" Neimi asked curiously.

I shrugged. "I can sense people's emotions." I said simply. "Why?"

"What do you mean 'why'?" Cormag asked with great surprise. "I've never heard of such an ability."

"Really? I thought it was normal." I said. "I've been able to do this as long as I can remember. But then again, my memories only stretch as far as the first day I got here."

The others stared at me with amazement.

"It must be a special power only you have." Zel concluded. "Do you think that it has to do with you being the Bringer of Chaos?"

"Who knows?" I said with a sigh. "I always thought it was some kind of defense mechanism."

I could tell by the clueless expressions of my friends that they didn't know what I was talking about. "You know how animals have heightened senses?" I asked. The others nodded. "Well, I can tell whose friend or foe by looking into their heart and reading their emotion. I can sense the kind nature of them or if they are hostile towards me."

"What did you sense from Selena?" Zel asked.

I smiled. "I sensed many things. A mix of confusion, sorrow, determination. She had no real hostility towards me until I said I was the Bringer of Chaos, but after that little speech of mine, her emotion changed to pure sorrow. But I knew she wasn't an enemy. That's why I wouldn't fight her."

"That seems like a really cool ability." Neimi said. "I wish I had that kind of ability."

"It has its drawbacks." I explained. "You see, the person's emotion I sense has a powerful impact on me. When I sense their emotion, I gain that same emotion as well. Let's say; if I were really happy when I look into your heart, Neimi, but you're crying because Colm made fun of you, I would feel saddened as well. Heck I may even start crying depending on how intense your sadness is."

"Have you ever looked into my heart, Darian?" She asked.

I shook my head. "I like to stay happy thank you."

"Wha-What's that suppose to mean?!" She yelled. Everyone else chuckled a little.

I glanced up the path before us. Someone was standing there, looking in our direction. The darkness of night prevented me from telling who it was, but they appeared to be on the back of a horse. We got closer and I quickly could tell who it was.

"Selena!" I shouted. "What are you doing here?"

She got off her horse and walked over to us. "I've done much thinking after what you had said to me." She said. "I want to do what's best for our people."

"That's great." I said.

"What will you do now?" She asked.

"I want to find out why I'm the Bringer of Chaos. I want to prevent my destiny."

She then reached a hand before me. "Do you have room for one more in your little team?" She asked. "I want to help you find the answers you seek. If you will let me join you of course."

"Let you?" I asked excitedly as I shook her hand. "We would be honored to have you in our group, General Selena!"

And that is how the Fluorspar General came to join our band of warriors.

Myrrh was standing outside the town we were just recently in. It was where the Renais army decided to stay that night. She stared blankly at the moon. I came up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped, startled by my presense. I then handed her the dragonstone.

"You got it back." She said happily.

"I promised you, didn't I?" I replied. I then turned to leave.

"Wait, Darian!" Myrrh shouted as she ran up to me. "Where are you going? Why did you leave in the first place?"

I gave her a kind smile. "I've just got some soul searching I need to do right now. The others are helping me out. We'll meet back up with you guys soon."

She watched me leave and I couldn't help but wonder where I could possibly go after this. Where could I go to find out more about my role in the world's end? I had no idea. There had to some place. Some where that would tell me the answers I need. But where?...