Chapter 08
Run Away
"Woke up to reality
And found the future not so bright
I dreamt the impossible|
That maybe things could work out right"
"Shattered Dreams" - Johnny Hates Jazz
02 September 1999
Atlanta, Georgia
Ashton Residence
Fairbanks closed his book, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom, and set it aside. The book had been recommended to him a few years ago by a friend and he was finding it incredibly refreshing but he couldn't concentrate on it right now. A giddy feeling from a few days past had struck him and would not abate. He had managed to convince Tanner's parents to bring the boy to Ashton's house last weekend and the visit had gone better than he had hoped. Not only had his new friend been blown away by the luxury of the house, but the two of them had been able to coax Ashton out of his typical weekend relaxation and participate in some of their activities.
That was really where things started to go right. Tanner had been instantly stricken by the older man's openness to the two boys and the easy manner by which he made even the most humdrum of activities fresh and new. Fairbanks had watched Tanner soak up tidbits of information - and even new skills - just through the games they played with Ashton.
When Tanner had mentioned having to climb a rope in his physical education class, for example, and having difficulty with it, Ashton had insisted on being shown how he made his way up the rope. He not only walked outside with the boys, he climbed a tree with them and then showed Tanner how to tie the right knot around a branch to secure the heavy rope for the upcoming demonstration. Tanner got it right on the second try. He then had to repeat it with a second rope. Now he and Fairbanks could race…once Tanner knew the right technique for the climb. Fairbanks could see the excitement growing in the teen's eyes the whole time.
When Tanner wrapped his body around the rope and showed Ashton how he had climbed at school days before, Ashton then took his place on the neighboring rope and talked the boy through adjusting his feet and his grip in order to improve his ascent. After two more minutes, a task which Tanner admitted had worn him out completely at school - and with little progress to show for it - it had become an exercise in simplicity. He saw that he had been trying to use his arms the entire time when his feet were actually a critical part to the equation.
With the improved method, Tanner climbed all the way to the top of the rope and touched the branch with little effort. He was aglow with his new accomplishment. Fairbanks just watched and smiled, remembering when Ashton had done the same with him back in Germany all those centuries ago. After that, came the races between Tanner and Fairbanks. Before long, even with Fairbanks' superior physical conditioning and practice, he found his friend putting up some stiff competition in the race. Ashton watched the whole thing, a simple grin on his lips.
The entire weekend had been similar. Whenever Ashton became involved in the boys' play, Tanner learned something new or improved an existing skill. And he had fun doing it. That, Fairbanks knew, was the man's real strength when it came to training. He could always make something that seemed like work become play. Tanner, like countless children before him, learned without realizing he was doing it. He quickly became hungry for more. Fairbanks could already see the boy started to break free of the shell of personal ignorance his parents had inadvertently instilled.
Fairbanks wondered how much of his plan for Tanner he should tell to Ashton. Or if the man had already sensed it from him and silently agreed to participate. Either way, since Ashton was not at the house that evening, he'd have to wait until he got back. With a glance at his watch, he knew it wouldn't be too much longer. Ashton only had to go up north to Marietta for a quick meeting, probably some socializing with business associates, and then he would return. He saw headlights out the front window.
That must be him now, Fairbanks thought to himself.
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Myfanwy Llewelyn drove the Explorer up the winding road, encountering no other traffic. She couldn't believe it had been so easy. Given his many years of life, she would have expected Ashton to hide himself better. Well, if he wanted to make himself an easy target, who was she to complain?
Cautiously she drove by the house, noting its elegant exterior and beautifully manicured gardens. He had exquisite taste; she'd say that much for him. Perhaps after taking his head, she'd keep the house.
She pulled onto the shoulder a few yards beyond the driveway, pausing a few moments before getting out of the vehicle, taking her saber with her.
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Fairbanks saw the vehicle stop short of the front gate, parking on the shoulder of the road. He tensed. It wasn't David, that much was sure. He wouldn't be circling around the yard to the back door. Running off to get his wakizashi, he headed for the back himself, the tingle of the Immortal's presence already traveling along his spine.
Llewelyn met him at the step, calmly surveying him before speaking. "I assume you are not David Ashton?"
"David who?" Fairbanks asked quietly. "Never heard of him." This was becoming a chore. This woman was the third Immortal in four months. Word of Ashton's whereabouts was spreading quickly and the headhunters were coming out of the woodwork.
Llewelyn smiled warily. "I'd heard he had a child Immortal with him. You must be Jonathan Fairbanks. I might have to try you one day. I've heard you're rather good."
Fairbanks shrugged noncommittally. He shut the door firmly behind him.
Llewelyn sighed and glanced around. "I was looking for Ashton. When will he be back?"
Fairbanks shed the scabbard from his wakizashi and readied himself. After all David Ashton had done for him, the least he could do was help keep the wolves from his back. "Not for a while. Why not try me now?" He didn't wait for her response, swiping his wakizashi at mid level.
He took her by surprise and she tried to evade but his sword came away bloodied on his first strike. Llewelyn grunted, but showed no other signs that the injury would slow her down. She lunged forward, her saber slashing in a blur. Fairbanks deflected it to one side, spinning with lethal grace, narrowly escaping a second deadly thrust. The woman launched another vicious attack, her strength driving the boy back against the doorframe. The steel of their blades clashed sharply again and again.
Her sword took advantage of a momentary lapse in Fairbanks' concentration as the back of his head hit the doorframe and she etched a ribbon of scarlet across his chest. Before she could delight in the strike, Llewelyn felt the sharp sting of rebuttal across her left cheek. She stepped back quickly before Fairbanks' blade could do more than break the skin. He's doing nothing more than playing with me. He's not even trying to take me as a serious threat.
Llewelyn screamed in outrage and arced her saber in a deceptively simple motion at Fairbanks' throat. Fairbanks saw it coming and raised his arm to block the stroke against the flat of the blade.
"I didn't come here for you," she screamed between moves. "I came here for David Ashton." She twisted suddenly, ducking low and attacking under Fairbanks' arm, the tip of her blade connecting with his body. The edge gouged a deep furrow into skin and muscle that ran from his arm to his hip.
"But you found me," Fairbanks snarled back, oblivious to the pain. He retaliated with a kick, catching Llewelyn on the side of her leg, a glancing blow that dropped her to her knees - a decidedly dangerous position for any Immortal. Fairbanks was prepared to take full advantage of Llewelyn's weakened predicament. Grabbing her by her hair, he smacked her wrist with the back of his blade. The saber fell from numb fingers. Fairbanks yanked her head back, preparing the swing that would sever it from her body.
"Jonny, no."
The call caught him off guard, and he paused, looking up.
The backdoor open again, David Ashton stood nearby, sword in one hand. His other clutched an assortment of envelopes from the mailbox outside. He dropped them on the kitchen table and continued to glare at the two Immortals. He had heard Myfanwy Llewelyn's intentions, her statement that she had not come looking for Fairbanks but for him. This should have been his fight, not the boy's.
"Let her go, Jonny. She did not come looking for you."
"David, she came for you. Does it matter whether it be you or I that takes her head?" Fairbanks looked in wonderment at his friend.
"Yes. Her quarrel is with me, not with you. Let her go."
Fairbanks looked down into the wide eyes of Myfanwy Llewelyn, his sword still held above his head. He took a deep breath.
"Jonathan."
With a disgusted snort and a sharp pull of her hair, Jonathan Fairbanks let the woman go. She fell flat on her back, gasping for breath.
Jonny Fairbanks turned and, without a word, walked off into the house.
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David Ashton stared out the window at a starless Georgia night, a wordless position he had occupied for the past several minutes. Myfanwy Llewelyn had left hours ago, happy to escape with her life.
On the couch, Fairbanks shuffled at the uncomfortable silence. Ashton's reticence gave new meaning to the phrase pregnant pause. Something was coming; Fairbanks knew it as sure as he knew that the sun would rise again tomorrow. And whatever it was, it wouldn't be good.
"I think it's time to leave," Ashton announced finally.
Fairbanks breathed a sigh of relief. Moving was something to which he had become accustomed in his eight hundred years. He had done it before; he would do it again. "Where to this time?" he asked cheerfully.
Ashton pursed his lips and continued to stare out the window. "Not just Atlanta. Each other. Just for a while."
Fairbanks stilled. The first thing that hit him was disbelief, then shock, then fear. While he could more than hold his own against the Immortals that came for his head, surviving in the mortal world was most assuredly difficult for him. No one was willing to rent a house or an apartment to a fourteen-year old, much less sell one to him. The requirements of everyday life were a challenge. He needed the pretence of a guardian so he could deal with the more mundane chores of living. Without that guardian, life was miserable. He knew. He'd lived it; no stable home; no established life; constantly running, first from Immortals, then from the authorities bent on finding out just why a fourteen-year-old appeared to be without parents. It was a nightmare.
"Why?" he asked, his voice hollow.
"Because it is unsafe for you to remain here. With me. I must leave, too." Ashton turned, blue eyes calmly regarding the boy on the couch. "Myfanwy Llewelyn was the third Immortal in as many months to come looking for me. She will not be the last. My whereabouts have been noted. I have become the hunted."
Fairbanks snorted. "David, I can more than hold my own. I…"
"No." The word was quietly said, the force implied rather than sounded. "There might come a day when you can't hold your own. I will not have your blood on my hands, Jonny." He noted the Immortal's look of concern. "I will find you a new guardian, have no fear. You can stay here for a few weeks until I do. I will not abandon you." Ashton smiled. "I never have."
"Where will you go?" Fairbanks asked sadly.
Ashton considered a moment before answering. "I believe it would be safer for you if I didn't tell you. Don't worry, Jonny. We shall see each other again soon. You are strong. You will survive; I trained you well enough over the years. And I am too old and too hard headed to die now. We will get back together, at the latest, early next year when it is time for you to start attending Eton."
Both men smiled for a moment, savoring the bittersweet knowledge that their life as uncle and nephew - though it was often more like father and son - was now over, at least for a time. Were they to meet again, it might likely be on different terms. Not adversarial ones, but not quite the same as now. Fairbanks swallowed and nodded mutely. He knew his protestations would be to no avail. Ashton's mind was decided.
They sat up late, drinking Napoleonic brandy and reminiscing, remembering their times together. Finally, Fairbanks fell asleep on the couch. As he was sure it would, the sun rose the next morning. It was that same sureness that told him, even before he opened his eyes, that David Ashton was already gone.
