Hi there! ^^

Here's the next chapter. It's some kind of special chapter because it will deal with a part of Ashton's past. I know it's mean because the last chapter ended with a cliffhanger ... Well, you will have to deal with it. xD

I hope you can still enjoy the chapter. ^^

Chapter 25: Protector of the bracelet

The little boy hid himself in a shelf and peeked through a little opening in the room.

"Where is it?" a man asked.

The boy couldn't really see him because of the pale light.

"I don't know what you're talking about," the mother of the boy answered.

"The bracelet! Where is it?"

"I don't have a bracelet," the woman claimed.

"Heh. I see. Our Lord said that you won't give us the bracelet just like that. That's why we give you one day to think it over. If you don't give it to us until tomorrow … we will take it violently and nobody wants that, right?"

The boy heard how the door was closed.

"Ashton, you can come out now," the woman said.

Ashton came out of the shelf and looked questioningly at his mother. "Who was that? Why did I have to hide myself? What did this man want?"

"So many questions, Ashton … But I'm afraid I don't have the time to explain everything to you. We have to flee …" Sheila answered.

"Flee? Why? Where?"

"It would take too much time to explain this, Ashton. Pack everything you need. As soon as it's dark we will go."

Ashton didn't move. "But where?"

"We will see … To a place where it's safe …" Sheila left the room and packed some things.

Frowning, Ashton walked in his room and packed his bag as well. When he was finished he stopped and looked musingly around in his room. He had the feeling that he probably wouldn't see it again.

Soon it was evening and he and his mother who had the little Lilly on her back left the house.

"We have to be very careful … They're probably watching us … I should call Zadora …" Sheila stopped and threw a coin in the air while saying: "Holy beast, awaken!"

The next moment a blue-silver tiger was standing in front of them.

"Zad!" Ashton exclaimed happily while petting the tiger.

"Come on, we have to go," Sheila said.

They travelled the whole night. When Ashton got tired his mother told him to ride on Zadora so that he could sleep.

The next day they made a stop in a forest.

"They don't seem to follow us … I hope for it," Sheila murmured.

"Mommy, do we have to flee for a long time?" Ashtons asked.

Sheila looked sadly at him before she said: "No … I will bring you two to Meltokio."

"And what about you?" the little boy asked immediately.

"I … will lure them away from you …"

"Why?" Ashton wanted to know.

"Ashton … Come here for a second."

The little boy obeyed and walked towards his mother. She got something out of her bag and gave it to him.

"Listen well, Ashton. You have to hide this bracelet very well. That's very, very important."

Ashton gazed musingly at the bracelet. It was silvery and decorated with strange runes. Besides, there were four stones in the colors red, green, yellow and blue embedded.

"What's so special about this bracelet?" Ashton asked.

"The Earth Healer can free the Nature Spirits with it," Sheila answered.

"Earth Healer? Nature Spirits?"

"It would take too long to explain you everything and I don't know everything myself anyway … But the Nature Spirits are very important for the balance of the world. That's why they have to be freed. But if the bracelet falls into the wrong hands it can do mischief as well."

"In the hands of the men who chase us?" Ashton asked.

"Correct. They want to have the bracelet to awaken evil creatures with it. That's why it's so important that you hide the bracelet very well. And someday you have to give it to the Earth Healer," Sheila explained.

"But who is this Earth Healer? How should I recognize him or her?"

Sheila sighed. "The Earth Healer is my sister …"

"But I thought you didn't have any siblings!" Ashton protested.

"She is …" Sheila had troubles speaking further. "My mother … Our mother … she … had to abandon her … I've searched later everywhere for my sister but I have never found her … But I'm sure she's still alive … She has to live … She is the Earth Healer … If she doesn't live anymore the world is already doomed …"

Ashton looked pretty confused. When his mother noticed this she smiled and hugged him.

"Don't worry about this, Ashton. Someday you will understand everything. But now we have to go on."

After a while Ashton asked: "Why are you bringing us to Meltokio? What are we supposed to do there?"

"I'll bring you to my cousin Zelos … He is pretty much of a Casanova who hasn't anything to do with children and he is a real good-for-nothing but he is the only one whom I can still trust. Besides, I'm sure that one can count on him when the chips are down," Sheila said.

"Hmm … I think I won't like him …" Ashton remarked musing.

Sheila laughed. "You don't even know him yet. Besides, you will have to live with him for a while so you should befriend him."

"How long will you be away?"

Sheila stopped. "Ashton …"

The boy looked at her. He didn't like what he saw in her face. "Y … You will come back, right?"

She smiled but Ashton could see that she had troubles doing so. "Of course. Go on, we should lose no time."

Ashton was pretty sure that she hadn't been honest to him but he pretended that he believed her.

"What will we do when you're back again? Will we go home then?"

Sheila ran her hand through his hair. "Yes, certainly."

Suddenly men in grey cloaks were standing in front of them. Sheila immediately saw the red light so she gave Lilly to Ashton and shouted: "Ashton, run!"

The boy hesitated for a moment but his mother looked pleadingly at him and so he ran away. One of the men wanted to follow him but Zadora thwarted him and hissed.

Ashton ran as fast as he could. He didn't know where so he just ran to the end of the forest. His clothes were torn by many branches and he got several scratches. Sometime Lilly began to cry. He tried to calm her down but he was too troubled himself. Tears were running down his cheeks. What if these men killed his mother? What was he supposed to do then?

When he was out of the forest he stopped by a rock. He sat down and looked to the forest hoping for his mother to come out of it any moment.

"Shh, don't cry, Lilly … Mommy will be with us any second …" he whispered to his sister with a tear-choked voice.

Many minutes passed by without anything changing und finally Ashton fell asleep.

"Ashton, wake up," a soft voice demanded.

The boy opened his eyes and recognized his mother who was standing a little bit exhausted in front of him.

"Mommy!" He jumped up and hugged her happily. "How did you escape from them?"

"I got help."

Ashton thought she meant Zadora who was standing beside her and was licking some little wounds.

"We should hurry to Meltokio … The sun is already setting."

They reached Meltokio not until the next day. Sheila let Zadora become a coin again. She wanted to put it away in her pocket but she stopped. "No … Here." She handed the coin to her son. "You know how to call Zadora, right? He will protect you if you're in danger."

"But what about you? You're defenseless then!" Ashton replied.

"Don't worry about me. I'll manage without Zadora. It's more important that nothing happens to you."

Ashton was worried but he knew that his mother wouldn't change her mind. "Are we going to this Zelos now?"

"Not yet. The way we look right now nobody will let us to the aristocratic neighborhood let alone in Zelos' mansion," Sheila said.

"Then he is a rich snooty-nosed little upstart?" Ashton asked not very enthusiastic.

"He is the Chosen, my dear," Sheila answered when they entered a clothes shop.

"The Chosen?"

"Yes. Well, the former Chosen … It doesn't really matter."

After they had bought new clothes they went to the inn. But on the way Sheila saw a shop which sold baby buggies.

"Hmm … That's maybe better …" she murmured. She bought a buggy and put Lilly in it.

"Why did you do that?" Ashton wanted to know.

"Only rural woman carry their babies on their backs so that they can work better on the field but can still look after their babies. It's more for our camouflage to have a buggy; the men are searching for a pretty exhausted woman without a buggy after all."

Ashton nodded. They entered the inn and booked a room so that they could wash themselves before they went to Zelos.

After that they walked towards Zelos' mansion. The butler opened them and informed them about the Chosen being outside of the mansion. He offered them to wait in the dining room.

Finally being there Sheila sat down on a sofa. "Ashton … Zelos will be definitely faster convinced to look after you and Lilly if you look innocent. So maybe you should play with this." She gave him some building bricks.

Ashton looked at his mother unbelievingly.

"Don't look at me like that. I know that you don't play with it anymore. But please pretend you would."

"Don't you want to tell him why we're here? That we had to flee?" Ashton wanted to know from his mother.

"No … I think it's more safe if he doesn't know anything about this. That way he can't accidently tell anybody something he shouldn't tell."

"Hmm," Ashton said while starting to build half-heartedly a tower of building bricks. "I still don't quite understand why you can't stay here as well …"

"Oh, Ashton … I've already said that I want to lure these men away from here. They think I have the bracelet so they will follow me. That way you are safe here."

"I still don't like it …" Ashton murmured.

Sheila hugged him and once again ran her hand through his hair. "I love you, Ashton."

"I love you, too, Mommy."

The next moment they heard a voice say: "She? Is it again some constantly giggling groupie who only talks rubbish?"

Sheila sighed, took a deep breath and then tried to behave pretty normal as she left the room to talk with Zelos.

So now you know that the object that Ashton has and which the Chorior want to have is a bracelet. And Ashton has to give it to the Earth Healer which is Sheila's sister ... Any ideas who this could be? xD

The men who chased Sheila, Ashton and Lilly were of course the Chorior.

Zadora appeared again, yay ^-^

So ... Yeah, that's what happened before Sheila, Ashton and Lilly came to Zelos ... I think there's nothing more I can say. xD

To be continued ...