It started with something a little offsetting. Ayndi and Rosaline had been married for almost two years, and lived happily in their home. Ayndi began accepting rewards for what he did, in order to support what was to be his family. He had gotten Rosaline pregnant within the first year of their marriage. It was a surprise to both of them, but they were more than willing to commit to a child. And so things went. Ayndi worked most days, patrolled on others, and Rosaline stayed at home during her pregnancy, which Ayndi did his best to help out with. He was forced to stay at home all the time when Rosaline went a little into the third trimester of her pregnancy. This made it hard for him. He cared for Rosaline hand and foot, but he rarely had time to go out. If he did, he was forced to go quickly, and couldn't waste time. Their child could have come at any moment, and he wanted to be ready for that time. So he spent maybe eighty percent of his time awake at home with Rosaline. He ran into very few problems, at least, not until one day that ultimately decided his fate.
Ayndi had agreed with Rosaline on going out and getting food. It seemed simple enough at the time, a simple task of going to the store and coming back. Though he still had his weapon, and he was ready to stop anything he could. As much as he loved his wife, he still felt responsible for the well being of the people around him. But everything seemed quiet, far too quiet. It had been like that for several days at one home that he had become suspicious about. So with a mixed heart and curiosity, he decided to check on the inhabitants of this home. He knew them fairly well; they were the Rauls, a generally peaceful and quiet family as far as he could tell. He had heard that their child Richard had gone out to face the world on his own several times, and he made certain that they were well taken care of, for the boy's sake. But the house had fallen oddly quiet a few days before, and Ayndi had stopped seeing them altogether. It was only the neighborly thing to do, to check up on them. Though it was fairly late in the afternoon.
When he approached the house, he noticed that the door was already open. This made him suspicious, as it would to anyone. He ran silently to the house and stuck close to the wall, stepping quietly towards the door to see if he could hear anything. He heard several voices inside, talking to one another. Some were male, and some were female, and they all sounded fairly young. The Rauls seemed like people who would rarely have visitors, so this made Ayndi even more suspicious. When he looked inside, he saw many different people. They weren't as young as he guessed, not then anyways. There was one young man with blonde hair, and pointy ears, dressed as a Sage, a female Archer with blonde hair and brown highlights, a female Thief with red hair and misty blue eyes, a male Acolyte and a female Merchant with brown hair and gold eyes. It was a suspicious lot to see in the Raul's home, so Ayndi moved to the door to question them. He cast a shadow that loomed over them, and shaded the wall before them, and they turned to face him.
"You!" The Acolyte shouted at him. "You must be that messenger the letter spoke of."
"Wha…" Ayndi was about to speak when the Acolyte advanced on him.
"What did you do to my parents! Where are they!" He yelled at Ayndi, and Ayndi looked at him as if he was being disrespectful. The young Acolyte walked right up to Ayndi and grabbed his vest. "Tell me!" He shouted. Ayndi was unable to answer, and only spoke the truth when he said he had no idea what the young man was talking about. The Acolyte asked again, and the Sage tried to calm him down by suggesting that he may have been jumping to conclusions. The wise young elf couldn't have been more right! But the Acolyte, desperate for his parents, didn't listen. He was infuriated, and he swung at Ayndi, hitting him right in the side of the jaw, making him jerk to the side and hit the doorframe he hadn't even entered yet. Ayndi glared at the kid then.
"This guy knows where my parents are." The young man said. "But he's not telling us. C'mon William, we'll have to beat it out of him."
"Now that's more like it!" The Thief, probably a femme fatal, chimed in with approval.
"If you're certain, Raul…" The Sage said, taking up his staff.
Raul came at Ayndi again, throwing a heavy fist towards him. Ayndi stepped back outside, almost causing the Acolyte to fall of balance, but he kept right at him. Raul ran at him again, but this time, Ayndi grabbed his arm and wrenched it, twisting it around and stepping beside him, elbowing him in the spine, sending him to the ground. It was a minor victory, as the Sage was on him next. William swung his staff low to trip Ayndi, but the Rogue simply jumped over it. The staff came at Ayndi's head next, and he ducked to avoid that as well. The Sage was too slow to do much of anything. Ayndi reached out, grabbed the staff in both hands, and kicked William in the stomach to get him to let go. Once he did, Ayndi had a feeling, and he immediately swung around and tripped Raul with it, who was trying to sneak up at him from behind. Ayndi then stepped away to gain his bearings again, holding the staff tightly. Raul was getting up from the ground, and the Sage had backed off, seeing he could do little against Ayndi. But then he caught sight of the Archer a bit too late, as an arrow was sent flying at him. Ayndi quickly leaned back, using one hand to hold himself up as the arrow sailed right over him. He quickly got upright then, his heart racing. They were going to finish him if he didn't act quickly!
Ayndi dropped the staff and ran towards the Archer then, who immediately began back off to get away. The Thief intercepted him though, who dove at him with her Main Gauge out. Ayndi managed to stop and stumble back to avoid being his – not one of his most graceful maneuvers. But she was quick, and began to send various slashes at him, one after another after another. Ayndi was forced back, dodging each attack one by one, looking for an opening. It was hard to find one, with the agility of the Thief being so great, but at last, he found one, acting with his own agility. He quickly pulled his Stiletto out from inside his vest, and used it to stop the Thief's Main Gauge dead in its tracks. He then used his strength to force it out of her hand and send it clanging to the ground. Ayndi laughed a bit, running towards her and quickly moving around her, tripping her to the ground on the way.
"Practice a little more with that!" He called back to her as he ran for the Merchant there, who was seemingly unprepared.
He ran at her, and regrettably moved to grab her. He moved behind her, wrapping an arm around under her right arm, up to her left shoulder to hold her in place against him. He then took his dagger and held it to her throat with his right hand. It was a typical hostage situation. He glared at the lot of them his face somewhat shaded under his sakkat as he held the knife threateningly to the Merchant's throat. They all stopped in their tracks, letting down their offenses. Raul was the first to speak.
"Angel!" He cried.
"Don't hurt her!" The Sage pleaded.
"Back off." Ayndi growled. "Back away from me."
"Richard, help me!" Angel cried out, shaking a bit in fright.
"I won't hurt her." Ayndi said. "Just tell me what's going on."
"You don't know?" William said. "Maybe he's not the messenger…"
"Raul's parents were kidnapped." The feisty Thief spat. "They used to live here."
"Then… you're Richard." Ayndi said, letting Angel go. She ran to Richard then, who held her protectively.
"Your parents have told me a lot about you." Ayndi said, putting his stiletto away. "I mean you no harm. I live in this town, and I knew your parents."
"You knew my parents?" Raul asked. "Then, do you know who could have done this?"
"I haven't a clue." Ayndi said. "But, we're bound to find out if we wait here long enough. But I cannot stay; I have to get home quickly. I live five houses down though, when you receive word of your parents, come speak with me."
Ayndi then hurried to buy the food he promised, and get back home. Luckily for him, when he got home, Rosaline had not had any troubles. She was only a little worried about Ayndi's whereabouts. She would have been more worried if her brother, Artemis, had not been there. Have had just come into town that day to help Ayndi take care of Rosaline. He seemed like an okay guy, with black hair and green eyes like her sister. He just had this unnatural obsession towards dragons; he was simply fascinated by them. He was more than likely the dragon expert, the most knowledgeable in the subject than even the wisest of Sages. He had actually written a book that he intended to add to the library of Juno. Though regardless of his presence, Ayndi still had to explain himself to his wife. When he explained that the Rauls were kidnapped, Rosaline seemed totally sympathetic, being a good friend of Richard's mother. William's group arrived at the house an hour later.
Raul said that his parents were being held in the abandoned clock tower at the center of town. There were only two f them, as the note said, and they demanded that they bring William, for some unknown reasons. William knew why, but he refused to tell Ayndi anything about it. Ayndi knew that they couldn't wait until daybreak; they had to act swiftly in order to safely return Richard's parents. So with Rosaline's consent, they went straight to the Clock Tower. They ha all heard the rumors about it being haunted, and this gave some of William's group second thought about entering. Ayndi saw this hesitation as a waste of time, and silently advanced into the tower without them. Raul called out fro him to wait up and ran in moments later. Angel then ran in after Raul, and William was left outside with the Archer, Alexia, and the Thief, Mandis.
"I don't know…" Alexis said.
"Well, if you think about it, the place can't be haunted." William said.
"Yeah, if a couple of kidnappers can hide out in there, then they're the only creepy things in that place." Mandis said as she slapped Alexis on the back, running towards the tower. "C'mon!"
Ayndi's opinion was correct. Nothing was in the tower but mossy brick and darkness. Still, something seemed to send chills down Ayndi's spine, and he was generally fearless. Somehow he got the brooding feeling of impending fate. The six of them traveled through the dark corridors, having to constantly be reminded by Ayndi to hush. William, Raul and Angel were generally quiet, but Mandis kept talking to Alexis time and time again. It was really agitating to Ayndi. Plus, the corridors seemed like a giant maze, and the lot of them soon lost track of where they were going, or where they came from. They certainly chose a good place, as William said. They spent several minutes, possibly on hour or so, in that god-forsaken place until Ayndi, who was leading the group, heard something. He stopped, the other five bumping into him in a line, one bumping into the other, and they stopped. Ayndi peeked around the corner, the other five doing the same.
"Do you think they'll bring the advisor?" A young man in a block, hooded cloak said.
"They will. I doubt that kid wants to see his parents dead." The other said.
"They're going to kill my parents?" Raul whispered.
"They're not going to kill your parents." Ayndi said. "I promise."
Ayndi whipped around the corner and hurried to the men, stopping as he saw Raul's parents tied up between the two of them. The others followed Ayndi, and stopped just as he did, and there was an awkward tension in the air. One of the men had a sword to them, pointing the tip right at Raul's father's throat. The two elderly parents were tied, and their mouths taped shut, and the other man silently walked over to Ayndi and stood before him. Ayndi couldn't see his face, since the cloak hid it so well. They stood in an awkward silence for a few seconds before the man in the cloak spoke.
"You brought the advisor." His attentions turned to William. "Good…"
"Why do you need him?" Ayndi asked.
"He is very important to us." The man responded.
"He's looking for something we're looking for…" The other said. "If we get rid of him, then there will be nothing stopping us."
"Get rid of him?" Raul repeated.
"They want to kill me, obviously." William said.
"Man, what did you do?" Raul asked, turning to William.
"Just hand him over." The man said with a laugh. "Master's orders."
"There's that master guy again!" Mandis said. "Who the heck is this guy?"
"Master…" William said, looking to them. "How do we know you'll give Raul's parents back if I go with you?"
The men said nothing.
"Answer me!" William shouted.
"By the master's orders, they're not to live." The man laughed. "Kill them now!"
The man nearest Raul's parents had reared back a bit to plunge the sword into Raul's father's throat, and that's when all hell broke loose. Mandis quickly threw her Main Gauge, which flew through the air and hit the man in the forearm, causing him to cry out and drop his sword. Raul ran at him then with a cry of fury, tackling him to the ground and proceeded to try and pummel him, but the man grabbed his arms, and they were thrown into a test of strength. In the meantime, the other man had summoned an odd-looking kind of sphere that floated above him, and he sent it at Ayndi. Ayndi moved out of the way, and William grabbed Alexis who was behind him, and pulled her out of the way. The sphere crashed to the floor and disappeared. Ayndi ran at the man then, thrusting a knee into his gut and thrusting an elbow into his spine. Angel ran to Raul's parents and quickly began to untie them, taking the tape off their mouths. They tried to express their gratitude, but she quickly helped them up and hurried to get them to leave.
The man under Raul managed to get his legs under him and throw him off though, and he quickly got up. He pulled the dagger from his forearm, and reared back with it, preparing to throw it at Raul's mother. Just as he took it back though, it was snatched from his hand. He turned around quickly just in time to see Mandis bury the blade into his throat. He took in a weak gasp when it buried itself inside his throat, and blood began to flow from the wound. Mandis ripped the blade back out, and the man fell to the ground, his blood beginning to pool on the floor under his throat. This shocked Ayndi; He couldn't understand how such a young girl could mercilessly take someone's life like that. He froze during the time, allowing himself to be hit in the chest by another Spirit Sphere, and he fell back to the ground, holding his chest and attempting to regain the breath that had been knocked out of him. The remaining kidnapper laughed, stomping on Ayndi's throat, making an odd gurgle emit from him as his wind passage was completely cut off. But just then, a fireball hit the man, and he stumbled back, his cloak easily catching flame. He cried out in a panic as he began to flail, trying desperately to do something about the flame. But in his personal chaos, an arrow flew and hit him in the head, making him stop dead, and fall forwards onto the ground. Ayndi sat up and looked to Alexis in shock yet again, rubbing his throat. Alexis herself looked totally surprised.
They moved to leave, and Ayndi, being the last one to go, turned back to look at the damage. Two dead men, one drowning in a pool of his own blood, and another still on fire, laying there silently as the flames ate away at his flesh. The Rogue learned that he just had to accept what had happened. Not everyone had the same views as him, and it seemed the most apparent to that claim was Mandis. But he wouldn't say anything or do anything. He told himself just to leave it be and go home. When he turned to walk away though, he stopped, looking back. An odd laughter almost echoed through the halls, very quiet, almost a whisper. Ayndi thought about it for a moment, but dismissed it when he heard William tell him to hurry up and leave.
…
"Well, thanks again." Raul said the next day, having stopped by Ayndi's home with the others.
"No problem." Ayndi responded.
"My parents asked me to give you this." Raul said, holding out a bag of zeny. "They really hope you'll accept it."
"Gladly." Ayndi smiled, taking the bag and handing it to Artemis, who took it and went to stash it away.
"Well, I'm going home." Raul said. "Just for a while at least. I'll see you later I guess."
Ayndi stepped outside the door to see Raul meet with the others and start talking. They looked back at him and waved, and the Rogue waved back to them. As they walked away, he heard Alexis say something to William about taking someone's life. It sounded like she really regret it, and that she'd never done it before. Ayndi just let it go and went back inside to enjoy breakfast with Rosaline and Artemis. Artemis was making the breakfast while talking on and on about Ancient Payon Dragons, which was kind of boring for both Ayndi and Rosaline, but it was something Artemis knew a lot about. He knew interesting legends, what one looked like… He knew everything there was to know. But he did make some mean eggs for breakfast too, making him a pretty interesting guy. They sat down to a more balanced conversation about Ayndi and Rosaline's child, talking about things about its name, and the fact that it was almost guaranteed to have black hair.
Later that night, everything was sound. Artemis was sleeping on the couch, his thin, short from draped in a large blanket, and his head resting on a large pillow. Ayndi and Rosaline were in their room, sound asleep, all cuddled up. But Ayndi seemed a little restless. He was having a nightmare. In this nightmare, everything was black, he couldn't see a thing, not even himself. There was a lone light in the distance, and a mirror. He ran towards the light, and stood in it. He curiously looked in the mirror to see his own face, but it was horribly scarred across it, and one part of his ear was missing. This startled him a bit, and he reached up to run his finger over the wound. Just before he moved to touch it, it split open, and blood began to run down his face. He could feel the pain. He cried out, holding his face. He let the pain subside, and then looked at himself. The blood on his face and hand was black, and when it touched the floor, it sounded like acid. He then heard a noise behind him, and he turned around quickly to see a man.
The man laughed sickle, crossing his arms. He was dawned in a black tuxedo, and he had messy brown hair. Strangely though, he wore a mask. This mask was commonly worn by goblins, being that of a demented smiley face. The eye sockets seemed to glow red. Ayndi let his face go and stood defensively, his wound dripping the charcoal blood down his pale skin. The man suddenly appeared in front of him though, and grabbed his throat, lifting him off the ground. He held tightly to Ayndi's throat, choking him. Ayndi struggled against him, kicking his legs and trying to pry the man's hand from his neck, but it was no use. The man then spoke in a voice that chilled Ayndi to the bone.
"Go to the Clock Tower tomorrow." He said. "And kill every living soul within the place. I command you to do it… Or else."
"Wh-What?" Ayndi was confused.
"Do it… Or the ones you love will perish!" The man cried as the area around them was surrounded in flames, and Ayndi could hear the screams of his loving wife and her brother.
Ayndi shot up, his eyes opened wide, and cold sweat drenching his form. He was panting heavily, and he brought his hand up to run through his hair. He quickly looked beside him, seeing Rosaline there, and he was somewhat relieved. Rosaline stirred awake, and reached up to rest a hand on Ayndi's cheek. She looked very concerned, asking him what was wrong. Ayndi didn't know how to answer. Was his dream a vision? Or was it just an illusion created by his very own mind? He didn't want to think of it in either scenario. So he answered her by hiding what he had seen, and coming out with a question that caught Rosaline off guard.
"Rosaline, what will happen if I wake up one morning and find you dead?" Ayndi asked. The question alone made his heart sink in his chest.
"Ayndi…" Rosaline smiled. "I'm not old enough to die yet, and I'm going to have your baby. You don't need to worry."
"Well, what would happen?" He asked again.
"Ayndi, if I ever died, I need you to promise me something." Rosaline said. "If I died before you, for whatever crazy reason, you have to promise me that you'll keep living as long as you can."
"I don't think I'd want to." Ayndi said, taking Rosaline's hand into his own.
"For me?" She asked, her eyes shining.
"… Alright." Ayndi said after a moments pause. "I promise I'll live while you're gone, if that ever happens."
"Thank you dear." She said. "Now go back to sleep."
The next morning when Ayndi awoke, the house was empty… Both Rosaline and Artemis were gone.
A/N: Use of characters from "Prophetic Gate: The Adventures Of William" permitted by my cousin, "The Only Author Ever."
