Chapter 13

The sweet scent of flowers mingled with the heady scent of herbs when Merthisan found Lyra in the healer's home. She was alive, but frightened. The wound was minor, and nearly recovered with the healer's attention. The haunted memory of encountering Feryl's master however left her forlorn and trembling.

The story she unraveled only added more questions instead of answers. Merthisan sat in stunned silence, uncertain what to think of the boy's method in saving her. The girl went through as best she could the accounts of her ordeal. In rushed words, Lyra told the swordmaster of Feryl and the identity of his new master.

Nekros, all this time, his master had been that deadly assassin! The elfling's fear and refusal to dare speak of his prior life made sense now. He could not, however, rectify what he knew of the boy and what he'd heard of the assassin.

"But he saved me!" The girl cried piteously. "Surely Nekros will kill him now! You must find Feryl! Please Master Kendari!"

Merthisan nodded, having already thought the same. He had to find Feryl, before it was too late. He encouraged her to describe the place she'd been taken. Within hours, the swordsman located the ramshackle building. This part of the city was like a land forgotten. Only the dispossessed and criminals took up residence here. To his dismay, what he found was darkness within the building and silent as a tomb.

Master Kendari wasn't sure what he wanted to find. Certainly there was the goal of finding Nekros, to kill him and end his reign of terror, but saving the boy was paramount. Nothing prepared him as he stared at the congealed blood pooled in the center of the room he discovered. All he could think was the amount was too much for anyone to survive.

I'm too late….

A quick inspection of the place revealed the place had been quickly abandoned; anything of value had been taken. Merthisan discovered what could only be the closet where Feryl had lived most of his life. A pile of rags and torn blanket formed a makeshift pallet, with nothing of value, no toys, or even books. There was nothing to indicate anything but an animal had been kept within. The thought of how horrible life had been for Feryl was oppressive.

Some hero I am. I couldn't save the boy.

He sagged against a wall, drawing in a ragged breath. Thoughts grew as dark and dingy as his surroundings. Another haunting look at the blood made his chest clench painfully. At least now his suffering is over…

Merthisan returned with a heavy heart, trying delicately to explain to Lyra what he found without giving details. Lyra sobbed, and had to be given a draught to let her finally sleep.

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Days later, Renis' body was found. He'd been murdered, and then marked upon his forehead with the symbol of Nekros. Merthisan wasn't certain how that came to be. Renis had hated the boy, but felt guilty over losing Lyra. He must have gone to save her. Nevertheless, the sword master couldn't understand how Renis knew where to look. Why hadn't he summoned the city guard? Why had the assassin targeted him, other than he must have faced off Nekros alone? Why go and face him unaccompanied when he should've brought the guards, or at the very least, told me? Deep down, the swordmaster felt he had poorly judged Renis, that the man was somehow tied up in this mess.

The aged Imperial felt lost, paranoid, constantly looking at shadows as if expecting that Nekros would come for him. Surely if he was marked for death, the man would make his presence known soon? He would even come after Lyra. He grew protective, more so than before.

During a stormy night, Merthisan had gone through the school locking doors and windows. Lyra was putting on her cloak, readying to leave. She was better now, but lost so much of her smiling nature. She looked pale, and so terribly sad. He wondered if ever she'd smile again.

The girl returned to her daily chores as soon as she was able. Work, she said, kept her from thinking too much. Even as Lyra finished in half the time with her fury of effort, Merthisan too often found her teary-eyed or outright sobbing. He had not guessed how much she cared for the dark elf boy.

The night was drawing to a close, with the storm causing night to fall early. When a hard knock to the front doors of the school echoed through the emptiness, the swordsman felt a pang of apprehension. Who calls on such a night as this?

A city guardsman stood at the stoop, drenched and expectant. His armor glistened in the rain, with a captain's insignia on his shoulder. The face was square, amplified with a mustache dropping at the corners and bushy eyebrows. Not a large man, he was stout and typical of an Imperial. "Master Kendari? A word with you sir?" The face was grim.

Merthisan recognized this was the man who had taken the report of Lyra's disappearance, and reports of all that had transpired not a week prior. Well, not everything. For some reason, he found himself not speaking much of Feryl. Perhaps he wanted to preserve the memory, or that he didn't want the boy's life to be subject of ridicule or judgment of those who never knew him.

Pushing aside the thoughts, he focused on the here and now. "Yes?" He could make out two more guards keeping a pair of horses settled as they pulled a cart. A form lay beneath a blanket soaked from the rain. Merthisan tensed, wondering if the might be Feryl's.

No…please no…

"We understand the girl has made a claim of seeing Nekros?" The guard asked, tipping his head politely in Lyra's direction. She paled upon hearing the name, inching closer to Merthisan.

He tensed, instinctively wanting a sword in his hand. "What of it?"

"We think we have his body, sir. Found it in the river naught but an hour ago." He shifted nervously on his feet. "If she could tell us…if he's the man…well sir, people will be able to sleep at night."

Lyra looked as though she might faint but to her credit, she nodded. "Show me"

Stepping into the street, the guard led her to the cart where a body lay.

"Have you…found any other …bodies?" Merthisan forced himself to ask.

"Just this one sir." The guard drew back the cloth, and the swordmaster watched Lyra stumbled back. He caught her, feeling her shaking terribly.

"That's him…that's the man." Her voice was strained, trying not to cry.

The body was slightly bloated with water, with eyes thankfully shut, and skin gone blue-white. Lips had no color save for the brackish blood and muck from the river. Hair was a tangled mass of a soaked mop. Merthisan gasped, recognizing the man who had been Feryl's master. The last time he'd seen him was the fateful night of the boy's beating. Why hadn't he suspected?

"Are you certain this man was Nekros?" Merthisan asked.

The guard lifted the dead man's hand, showing the distinct tattoo on his palm. The insignia marked him as the assassin. "We think so."

"We've no idea what exactly killed him-" The one guard started to say.

"Poison by the look of his mouth." Another spoke up.

The other guard scowled as if the man was daft, "Or the throat that is gaping open."

"Dammit Mecius, show some consideration for the girl!" His superior barked at him, followed by a half-hearted slap to the man's shoulder.

The man shut up, blushing red as he looked apologetically to Lyra. She covered her mouth as if she was going to be sick.

"Go on Lyra…" Merthisan told her, pushing gently so the girl would go back into the school. He turned back to the guards.

The captain sighed sadly. "I also need to ask sir…well…there's been rumors. The rumors say Nekros had an apprentice. Word also had it you housed a young dark elf boy here only days ago. Perhaps you've heard him say something, or perhaps the girl mentioned seeing him?"

"An apprentice?" The swordsman felt his heart would seize. "You think…he might be alive?"

"We figure only his apprentice could do this, being no one else could get close." The guard explained. "Its speculation though, and rumor. Someone said they thought they saw a dark elf boy the other night by the wharfs. We have to follow leads."

"Of course."

"Well have you heard anything?"

Merthisan hesitated, thinking of Feryl somewhere out on the streets someplace, alone. Alive….? No, how can a young boy take on a monster such as Nekros? He wasn't sure why, and wouldn't know for years to come but his reply was simple, and not altogether a lie. "The boy left days ago. I haven't seen him since."

"Ah, well thank you Master Kendari, for your time. Thank the girl for us. She's put many people to rest by her courage."

"Thank you."

As the guards left with their grisly find, Merthisan retreated into the school. He found Lyra looking as though she were ready to faint.

"Do…do you think he's still alive?" She dared to ask.

I don't see how its possible, he kept to himself. The memory of the blood on the floor was vivid in his mind. Now he considered if the boy had killed his master, that would explain the blood. He couldn't imagine the boy trying to fend off a man of that size alone.

"I suppose there is hope." He told her, feeling as though no feeling came with his words. Someone killed Nekros….how could a boy be the one to do it? Is there another player in this sordid event? He tried to knit together a scenario, but found too many pieces were unknown to him.

"But he'd come here, wouldn't he?" The girl persisted, "He would have any where else to go, no one else…" Her voice caught, as she wiped away the sudden wetness upon her cheeks.

Merthisan rubbed at his face, scratching fingers along a chin that needed a shave badly. Her questions bothered him. She was right. If Feryl was alive, why hadn't he returned? "I'm sure he's a survivor." He said, reaching for his sword to walk her home. "He would've found someplace to hide."

"You think he murdered Nekros."

Startled by her words and accusing tone, he saw her no longer crying but standing with arms folded and a tight expression, demanding answers. Murder….the boy murdered someone, but not just anyone, he killed a master assassin. Merthisan struggled with the sense of law and justice. Everyone deserved a trial, otherwise there would be chaos. "Someone killed him-"

"It wasn't murder." Lyra said firmly, her blue eyes though red-rimmed and full of sorrow were also unwavering in her belief.

Unable to sort through his feeling on the matter, he jerked his head to the door. "It's getting late. I need to walk you home."

Relenting, the girl moved to get her basket and gave a soft gasp. Her hand lifted to cover her mouth as eyes widened, staring through the open doorway leading into the practice room.

Merthisan frowned, not understanding what she was looking at. "What is it?"

"Look!" She pointed to the wall.

He looked, still not understanding.

"Look! …The Manos Blade!"

His breathing stopped. The curved blade rested in the very spot that had remained vacant for almost a month. What the-?

Rushing into the practice room, he immediately noticed water had dripped on the mats where someone had entered through from a high window to replace the sword. The rafters above, however, were thick with shadows. Anything could be hiding there. "Feryl…" He breathed, wondering if the boy was still above.

As if in answer, a flutter of movement shifted from the right moving towards the window that remained open. Nimble as a cat, the small form raced over the narrow beams to escape.

"Don't!" Merthisan called out, knowing he'd never be able to stop him from where he stood. "Feryl…please!"

"Feryl Don't go!" Lyra cried out.

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Feryl perched on the window's ledge as he hesitated on his getaway. He had only wanted to return the sword, to its rightful owner, but seeing the city guard, and hearing them verifying Nekros' death had caught him in a web of morbid curiosity. He also felt compelled to see Lyra alive and well, and…what? Now Master Kendari and Lyra were calling him, but not with the anger he believed they would have for him. He'd only assumed they would hate him for what he'd done.

I should run, he thought, feeling clothes paste to his body from the drenching rain, I should not look back. I don't belong here. The guards were looking for him, in the death of Nekros, and he knew they were looking for a murderer. What would happen should they find me? Would they also see nothing but a dark elf, an assassin's apprentice? Something bound him to glance back at the swordmaster and Lyra standing in the practice room…

Lyra… She was alive. He'd told himself that was all that really mattered, that it was enough to know she was going to live a long and healthy life, but now seeing her face, those gloriously blue eyes looking up at him was almost too much. He knew it wasn't enough, he missed her.

"I…only wanted to return what is yours." He told them, feeling the words sounding flat in explanation to why he'd returned. Feryl knew he could've picked a time Kendari walked Lyra home. He could have returned the sword then, even waited until they had left.

"We thought you were dead." Merthisan spoke with a frown on his face. Feryl felt the frown was for him, of disappointment and seeing his arrival. The swordmaster continued, his tone softening. "You're free, lad. Why didn't you come back home?"

The elfling bowed his head, feeling the cold wind of the storm blowing through the window to whip his wet hair across his face. The boy felt his throat constrict. They still want me? The realization hit him hard. "But…after what I've done..." He began.

The girl wiped tears off her cheeks. "You saved my life Feryl. You did what you had to do. I know that."

Feryl couldn't believe what he was hearing. "But…its my fault he wanted you in the first place!"

"You can't take the blame for what that man did!" Merthisan spoke forcibly, hoping his words would get through.

"You don't know what I've done!" Feryl found his voice thick with self-loathing, anger, and guilt. Perhaps master Kendari could only hear anger, but the young elf only felt the same ache as he had for days. haunted by Nekros' death he barely slept, barely ate. Every time he tried to sleep, Nekros' face sinking into the murky depths would fill his mind.

The elfling almost bolted then and there, too afraid to accept what he considered impossible! How could they still want me around? He truly felt he was undeserving of their friendship. The very thought they were offering him forgiveness left him stunned.

"Feryl," Merthisan continued in a soft tone. So alluring, so welcoming…and was there also forgiveness? "My offer to let you stay here stands."

For so many reasons, Feryl wanted to stay. This place was gave him the happiest days of his short life. But with the good memories, came the bad. The city guards are looking for me… For the simple cause of trouble he'd no doubt give to the aging swordmaster was what decided his reply. "I…can't."

"But why?" Lyra called up to him.

Feryl eased down from the window to balance on the wooden ledge. He knew he was lost in the shadows now, neither of them could see his face. "I don't belong here." He told them, hoping they could understand his reasoning. "And the guards are looking for Nekros' murderer."

"I'm certain they just want to ask some questions-" Merthisan started to say.

"Your school will suffer, Master Kendari." The boy stated flatly. He knew the guards would be seeing only the law. Murderers were punished, even ones who kill assassins. "What will people think if they found out who I was?"

He could see the swordsman want to deny it, but they both knew how folks saw only the obvious.

"So where will go then?" The Imperial asked of him. "How will you survive?"

Feryl had survived for days on his own, though barely. The reason was more of the terrible dead feeling inside. He supposed he wasn't ready to face them while he carried the pain so close to the surface. Not yet…

"I'm a survivor." The boy replied. Wasn't that the very words he'd heard uttered from the swordsman? "There's so much in the world for me to see-"

"But we miss you!" Lyra blurted out. He hadn't expected the same loneliness in the girl's eyes as he'd felt in his own. Somehow, he refused to think he could be her only friend, but the girl had never spoke of anyone else. Her life had been the school.

"I'll visit. I just can't live here." He saw Kendari lay a gentle hand on her shoulders, silently urging her to accept his decision. For that, Feryl was grateful for he truly didn't know how much of their insistence he could take. "I want to be free…."

He saw acceptance then, in those blue eyes. A smile touched her mouth. "You must promise." Lyra told him, pointing a formidable finger at him. "You will visit. And to come often! And to tell me of your life-"

"Alright! Alright!" Feryl said, feeling a rush of giddiness threaten to spill out in laughter or tears, as if the tension and darkness that had clouded his past few days were released. "I promise…" He stood up then, looking back at them as he made an effort to leave once more.

"Feryl?" Merthisan's voice called up to him.

The boy hesitated.

"Next time, use the door."

The elfling gave a light laugh, slipping out into the night without another sound.

I'm free…I'm finally free…

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NOTE: I have yet to write an epilogue for this story, then the end. I plan on focusing on the next story that comes after Challenges. Those of you who enjoyed Challenges might also want to look up A Guar Adventure. That has Eiryn and Saber in a short story that takes place after he becomes Nerevarine. )