The slow steady ride on the back of Goliath with Percival was sending me in and out of consciousness, the cuts ran deep inside of my body and I urgently needed a healer. I could heal myself with some herbs but there was none around for miles. I was sure I was going to die at the hands of the Trinity Guards in the Paladin camp but yet I somehow managed to fight my way through and escape with Percival

The journey had been long on horseback and we didn't have the faintest of idea in which direction to travel too, It would be a tough ask to find his Fey clan but I didn't doubt my tracking abilities; it would just take days to find them again

Young Percival was telling me all about his Fey clan; the Sky Folk. When I looked at the boy I only saw a lot of similarities between the two of us, both of us raised as orphans from a young age and relying on our clan for support. The only difference what that Percival was accepted into his and well looked after, I was cast asunder by the Ash Folk for being different to them with the cursed abilities I was given at a young age

'I can't wait to see everyone again' the boy replied happily. 'It feels like ages that I've been away from them when it's only been days'

'I'm sure they'll be glad to know that you're safe'

'I bet Nimue has been worried sick about me she always does when I leave the clan for a while'

'Who'

'The Fey Queen'

'The Wolf Blood Witch' I exclaimed, remembering hearing that name before from Father Carden

'Nimue isn't a witch okay' Percival huffed loudly

I nodded my head and listened to young Percival as he rattled off a mental checklist to me on how amazing she was, the fey queen was a leader, warrior and a symbol of the resistance. The young boy only talked lovingly about the young woman and I was glad he had a good role model to look up too, I could never be that to somebody

'She's everything to me' he smiled

'How can someone be everything?' I questioned, not fully understanding him

'Surely you must have looked at someone back home with only just love in your eyes at how amazing they are and you just want to be just like them'

Dropping my head I couldn't bring myself to answer the boy as I kept my gaze on the stone path we rode down on. Percival picked up on my apprehension to reveal much about my past, that was something I kept to myself to never to reveal to anyone ever, the only sleep I could get at night was when I thought about my family as I wepted myself to sleep missing them

'You don't really say much do you Lancelot'

'Has anyone ever told you Percival you talk to much'

'I like talking I could talk all day and I wouldn't get tired of it'

'That much I can guess'

I loved my silence and being on my own in the world, with all the hardship I had to endure the peace of the open world was the only thing keeping me sane. Knowing the boy was just scared and wanted to talk to keep his mind busy I shouldn't treat him like I did to the rest of the world and silence him out

'Is there a reason why you're like this Lancelot'

'You're just a child Percival, I shouldn't be bothering you with my troubles'

'But we're friends'

'Are we though I'm just taking you back to your clan'

'You saved me from those paladins scum and I helped you from the trinity guards'

'So we're even now but I still wouldn't say we're friends'

'Do you have any friends? I don't see you with anyone other than those paladin scum'

'I did have friends a long time ago but they are all gone, my friends, my family, everyone that I ever cared about. They are all gone now'

I never really reminisced about my previous life and how everything was so different back then in the mountains. Each passing day I would forget less and less about my people and the traditions of the Ash folk. I would never forget the day Father Carden and his red paladins brothers invaded my village…..

Busting back through the flaps of my family's hut with my little brother Hector right behind me after a day of playing in the mountainside. Stepping over the toes of our mother and father in the living counters of the hut, my parents had managed to calm us down and sit us both down at the table

'Best behaviour today boys when I make my announcement to the village' my father King Ban told us

'Why do we have to move dad' Hector asked again for the hundredth time

'Because it's not safe to stay here my son'

'We've had word from our scouts that a threat is imminent and we need to get our people to safety' my mother interjected

'How much time do we have till they arrive, mother?' I asked

'We have a week to be gone from here Lancelot' she informed me

My father kneeled down in front of me and placed both of his hands on the side of my arms, looking into his eyes I've never seen him this worried before in my whole life and this imminent threat must be serious

'Promise me boy you'll protect your brother and your mother if anything happens to me'

'I will father'

'Promise me'

'I promise till my last breath'

My father embraced me into a deep hug before my mother Elaine and Hector joined us as well, they seemed to think we were doom and our days were up. When this threat arrives I will give everything in me to protect my family and the villagers of the Ash folk

'What are these people called that are coming for our village father?' Hector questioned, terrified out of his wits

'They are religious zealots known as the Red Paladins, they are hunting our kind and loath the fey. Rumour has it they attacked a fey village up north before accessing down the land for more to kill, we're next on their map so we need to leave right now'

'Lancelot we may need you to use your abilities'

'But it's a curse father, you said so yourself'

'If it's a matter of life or death then use your gift my boy' he encouraged proudly

From a young age I knew I was different from all the other boys and people is our little Ash village. I was given a little extra abilities in being able to sniff out different types of feys and being able to camouflage my body to whatever earthy surface I touched. I never really used my cursed abilities unless I was provoked to attack a fellow fey

Seconds later the flaps to our tent burst open and my father's right hand man Rowan came through, he was out of breath from running from god knows where. Before Rowan could tell us what was wrong my family had soon found out when an arrow shot into his heart, killing him instantly as he collapsed to the floor

My mother and father grabbed both mine and my little brother's hand quickly and dashed out of our tent, everywhere we looked it was total destruction as our small village was ransacked, Ash men and women running for their lives to be only axed or shot down by the Paladins. The screams of my people were etched into my brain as we ran for any cover to hide under in the open mountain

Through the clouds of smoke a young man on horseback came through as the smog evaporated, he surveyed the surroundings as my fellow ash brothers and sisters laid dead on the floor, from what I could tell he looked like the leader of the Red Paladins. My father retrieved his sword from his belt and striked at the men in red, killing a few paladins to clear a path for us to follow him and run

'Quickly Hector, follow father' I spoke hurriedly

'I'm trying' he worriedly replied

Grabbing my little brother's hand and pulling him along with me I saw my father getting ambushed by the Paladins, they had disarmed him and dragged him away to the others they had captured for torture

'Mother we have to go after them and save father' I pleaded

'No it's too dangerous Lancelot, use your powers and camouflage us'

Taking a hold of my mother's hand I called out to The Hidden and asked for their help to control my curse, I had no response from it and tried with all my might to camouflage us so we were not seen by the Paladins anymore. In the distant another Paladin came riding in on horseback and dragged by mother away by her hair, Hector jumped after them and was also taken by the Paladins somewhere

Feeling a new found rage that my family had been taken apart I finally managed to camouflage myself to an earthy green, I had to find the warriors and knights of our clan to form some sort of resistance against the Paladins. Moving to where they were keeping the Ash folk prisoners I cut the rope ties around some of the warriors

I saw where they had placed my family as they had their arms and legs tied up together so they couldn't run, still camouflaged I walked past Paladins and was ready to set my family free when a man grabbed me from behind, startling me as I became uncamouflaged and was at the mercy of the leader of the Red Paladins

'Well what do we have here' the young man proclaimed

'Get your hands off of me' I yelled at the top of my lungs

'A fey scout trying to release my prisoners from a certain death' he stated. 'Perhaps you should be the first one offered to our lord'

'No please leave him alone, he's just a little boy' my father pleaded

The man saw the crown on top of my father's head and smiled wickedly before turning back to me. 'You're a fey prince, your head will do nicely. God is smiling on us today''

'Take my life instead just spare my boy' he begged

'Better yet your son will take your life instead, vermin getting rid of vermin'

The man in red brought me in front of my father and thrusted a sword in my small hands, instructing to swing at my father's head or bury the sword deep into his heart. An overwhelming sense of tears strolled down my face, I simply couldn't do it to my father with my people watching on. The man stood behind me and I felt the sharp tip of his sword against my neck

'Choose wisely' he instructed

'It's alright Lancelot you could never hurt me my son'

My father leaned his chest against the sharp point of my sword and pierced his heart, through the sword I could the blade going deep into flesh and tissue as blood started pouring out of his open wound. Withdrawing the sword from my father I threw it to the floor and held him tightly against me

Uproar amongst the Ash folk descended as their king was killed, a few of the Ash men retaliated against the Paladins and a mass brawl started between the groups of people. The sounds of grunts and screams bellowed on the side of the mountain…..

My whole village was ransacked clean and a few of the women were burnt to death on a cross, bodies of men, women and children scattered amongst the ground. My mother and little brother Hector were caught up in the raid and were deeply injured when I found them, putting them out of the misery I ended their lives so they couldn't be tortured any more by the Paladins

The man in red wiped the blood off his sword clean with some water and came up to me alone, he lifted my chin up with the tip of his weapon as tears spilled down my face

'And then there was one left'

My time in this world was up and I was about to meet my fate just like the rest of the Ash clan; to pass in the twilight. At least I would be reunited with my family soon instead of being stuck with him

'I'll spare your life boy, you may be able to help me cleanse this world of your abomination'

He proclaimed. 'Hail god and all those who believe in him'

I was led away by the man in red to his fellow brothers whilst they cleaned themselves and their weapons up, god knows how long we stayed on the side of the mountain before Father Carden announced they would be riding to the south of England, on the hunt for another fey clan to massacre…..

Holding Percival in place on Goliath the boy was stunned silent by my tale, almost untrue to believe even to myself sometimes. Percival took the reins of Goliath and lead the noble steed onwards

'Are you ok Percival?'

'Can you tell me more about your past'

'The journey to the beach will take at least a couple of days so I think we've got time for it'

'I want to know everything about my new best friend'

'You'll get the chance too'

The sun had started to set and the sky was filled with orange and yellow hues, it wouldn't be long before nightfall came and we had to set up camp for the night in the open forest…...