Chapter 24 - Slayers

The morning didn't come swiftly, as it seemed the sun had forgotten to rise that morning. Overcast blocked out the sunlight, and without even knowing, Orin, as well as the rest of his group, had all overslept. Regardless, though, they wouldn't be behind much considering what they'd run into when they awoke.

A loud bang and a crack of laughter from the tavern downstairs jolted Orin awake. He got from his bed, rubbing his one eye as he put on his belt and got ready to wake Vahn. He grabbed his mantle and buckled it before rubbing Vahn's shoulder heavily, jarring him out of a light sleep.

"Morning?" moaned Vahn, confused by the lack of sunlight in the dim room.

"Yeah, up and ready. I'm going to go see if I can't find us something to eat. You wake the others." said Orin as he opened the door and walked out into the hallway.

As he walked down the stairs, the sound of talking men and of glasses clattering met his ears. The bartender stood behind the bar, and, oddly enough, he was drinking a large glass of ale himself. As easy as it would have been to ask whether or not the bartender seconded as a cook, Orin was unsure of whether he'd even want food cooked by a man the looked as unkempt as he.

Although Orin expected he'd be forced to try and find other means of feeding himself and his group, he met someone unexpected outside. Sye stood only a few feet away, his cloths torn and his hair slicked back, and in his hand a brown sack.

"Going somewhere?" Sye asked, his face as stern as always.

"I…I didn't expect you back this morning." said Orin.

"Why wouldn't I come back? As much as I'd love to leave your company, I respect someone who will endanger himself to achieve a goal." said Sye.

"You don't seem the type to care about anyone but yourself…" Orin said, his face now just as hard and concentrated as Sye's.

"Maybe you judged too quickly. Regardless, your assumption may be hampered by this." said Sye, as he tossed the sack to Orin.

It landed with a heavy thud at Orin's feet, and as he opened it, a pile of fresh vegetables fell to the dirt path in front of him.

"And you found these were?" asked Orin.

"It matters not. Feed your comrades, and I'll be here when you're ready to go…" said Sye, as he turned and walked toward the entrance of town.

Orin said nothing, he simply grinned and walked back inside, the brown sack in his hand.

The group ate to their hearts content, that is, except for Jo, who seemed to detest anything that didn't bleed. And with food to spare, they packed up and made their way out, but as Orin walked through the door, he was passed by a young man his age. There was something strange about him, as if he was emitting an aura of some kind. Nevertheless, Orin ignored it and walked after his group.

They trudged ahead with newfound strength. After a good nights sleep, they were twice as energetic as they'd been the previous day. Duran and Keith jabbered on about who knows what, with Sye in between the both of them. Every now and then he'd throw an aggravated stare in either of their directions and tell them how childish they were acting. Regardless, they laughed even louder at how stern his expression was.

Tess and Ikara walked side by side, neither of them speaking. It was very strange though, as Ikara was known to be silent a majority of the time, and Tess was the opposite and easily irritable. Yet, still they both seemed to be thinking, almost somberly. Vahn walked slowly at the back of the group, his staff at his side and his robes rippling with the soft spring breeze as it passed him by.

Orin walked ahead of them, in their lead, the sound of his scabbard bouncing against his plated leg bracers kept his feet moving rhythmically. The early afternoon sun shown down on them brightly, and the whether was almost perfect. As they pressed on though, the breeze that had once been dissipated, and the heat increased. At this point, they had reach a small river that ran north a shot distance, then east, then back into the ocean again. In the center sat a small island. Without a word, Orin signaled them north and they continued onward.

Soon after they had reached the turning point of the river, Jo swooped in from above and landed at Orin's side, startling him only a little. He was still getting used to having someone as unique as she in his company.

"Someone is tailing us…" she said, her back arched and her fangs bared. "I'm not sure who or why…"

"What are you talking about…?" Orin asked, as he looked over his shoulder.

"Two figures, about a half a mile behind us, on horseback…I think." she said. "I couldn't really make out who they were."

"They're probably just travelers…" he said. "And if not, no two would take on a troop of seven."

"Those devils had no problem doing so yesterday…" she growled.

She did have a point, in this case.

"…okay, lets not let them know we are paying any attention to them. Come back and tell me if they do anything suspicious." said Orin, the rest of the group trying to find out what was happening.

Jo nodded and disappeared from sight within an instant, leaving them to continue on with their eyes fixated on what was in front of them. An hour past without much happening. The group had been walking along the river, and were now led out into a desert like area.

"This way is sure to make us feel weary…" called Vahn from the back.

"Right." said Orin, as he led them northeast, out of the desert and into the forest.

Now that they were off the open plains and into an enclosed area, Orin was starting to feel strange. If those who were behind him were still on his tail, and were indeed hostile, this area would be easy to be ambushed in, and it would be almost impossible for the group to defend themselves. Jo could no longer track anyone from above the thicket of trees, and was forced to swoop in through the canopy and walk amongst the group.

Vahn, being as he was someone of above average intelligence, was also someone with just as much curiosity. He found himself blurting out something strange, now that Jo was among them instead of in the air.

"So…how long have you lived on Grans?" he asked, somewhat reluctant at first.

He had, after all, shot Jo down with his spell just a few days before.

"Years, probably since I was born, but I don't remember." she said.

"And what of your family?" Vahn asked.

She gave him a strange look, and he could understand that, but he wasn't sure if she had looked at him with that expression because of his pestering with questions, or the question itself. She replied all the same.

"My mother was a human, raised in Roft. When she was around 20, she stumbled into a cavern in search of herbs, and ended up amongst devils." she said. "She was cornered, and by some twist of fate…my father found her there and rescued her."

"Why…would a devil do that for a human?" he asked.

"I don't know…I never knew who my father was or what he looked like, but he obviously pitied her enough to save her." she replied. "And after that they never left each others company until I was born a few years later."

"And then?" he continued.

"After I was born, my father vanished. My mother told me even devils have obligations." she said, her head to the ground. "I guess he found something drawing him away from us."

Vahn stopped there. He'd obviously stirred up memories she wasn't fond of recalling.

Some time had gone by as they exited the forest and came back out unto the plains, now only a few miles from the foot of the eastern cliffs. To the north, a break in the rocks could be seen, the entrance out onto the cape that held Nazca upon it. Orin found no sign of his pursuers at this point, and assumed he was right, and that they had been naught but simple travelers.

"We're almost there." said Orin. "Another few hours, and we'll be at the gates of Nazca."

"We should rest at sundown, though." said Sye.

Though he was walking, his wounds were not fully healed yet. He'd be too weak to move if they continued on too long into the night.

"Will you change tonight?" Orin asked, sounding somewhat strange.

"…no." Sye replied. "I've not smelt blood since last night."

"I see." said Orin, as he waved the others forward.

"What will we do when we get there?" asked Keith.

"We ask the king for a ship. We shouldn't have much trouble if he recognizes me." Orin replied.

"And if he doesn't?" asked Sye.

"Then I'll tell him who I am." said Orin.

"And if he doesn't believe you?" Sye asked again.

Orin shot him an angry look, something none of them had really ever seen from him.

"Then I'll convince him!" he yelled.

Sye said nothing, and they entire of the group stopped. Orin's fists were clenched, and his eyes were somewhat bloodshot.

"Now, enough." he said, regaining himself, and turning to continue on.

Even he was surprised at himself for getting so angry. He was starting to think his body was falling apart, his brain along with it. Conversation at that point basically became nothing but whispers here and there, or admiration of parts of the scenery they had scoped as they walked along.

The sun seemed to be going down earlier than usual, and as Orin noticed this, clouds began to roll over the horizon. And slowly, thick gray clouds littered the sky around them.

"I hate the rain…" mumbled Duran as they moved along.

"Crybaby." said Keith smoothly.

"Bastard." Duran snapped.

Tess giggled, which, oddly enough, caught Orin's attention. He couldn't shake a strange feeling that had been about him for the past few days, especially today though. He felt sick, sad, and frustrated all at once, but something else seemed to be sneaking up on him as well.

Lost in thought, he hadn't even noticed Ikara at his side, walking with her face toward the darkening sky.

"Orin." she said quietly.

He said nothing.

"What's bothering you…?" she asked.

"What's wrong with me?" he said in a low tone. "What do you think is wrong…?"

His voice was almost different. Serious and sarcastic, filled with anger. She felt threatened for a moment.

"You're not yourself lately…" she replied. "Just the other day you were standing up for Sye, despite the danger he might put us in."

:"And?" he said sternly.

"And that's not you, now. Since this morning you've been…different." she said.

"Got up on the wrong side of the bed." he replied.

She didn't say anything. She simply lowered her head and fell back into the group as he was left to ponder those questions she'd asked. He was feeling horrible, and it was drilling deeper into his head. He was starting to think it was simply a waste of time. Finding his father? His only lead being a devil regroup in Parmecia? There was no way he could do it. The odds were against him. As a matter of fact, there were no odds, there was no chance at all, he could never do it.

'I can't….' he thought. 'Bowie, Kazin, Gyan, Sarah, Jaha, Chester, Randolf, Slade…gone. And maybe Gerhalt, too. And what about those I've yet to meet? I'm sure there have been others captured besides those I've met…'

His head pounding, and the rain was starting to come down, getting harder by the minute. His party was slowly getting drenched as well.

'Why am I even here? I'm the prince. To hell with him, I should have just taken his place and I wouldn't have to be here.' he thought.

And then his eyes widened. What was wrong with him? Why would he say that? He would never say that, even now, his own mind was fighting with itself. The thought of his father never coming back was not something that had entered his mind, ever. The case was always that he'd find him, alive, eventually, and no matter what it took, he'd bring him back home, with everyone else, too. But now…now he wasn't even sure he was doing the right thing.

At long last, the mountains came to a rough end along the plains, and just around the corner, Grans Island itself came to an abrupt end at the ocean, with the kingdom of Nazca somewhere along the way. The rain had gone, but the wet and the cool stayed, the spring breeze creeping back in as the sky became a clear, dark, evening blue.

Orin stopped as he rounded into the short pass that led out onto the northern shores of Grans, and, in the distance, stood Nazca. He gasped as his eyes met a kingdom more magnificent even than the beautiful Granseal. Rough red towers jutted from the castle here and there, piercing the sky and clouds thousands of feet in the air. Upon the hillsides stood edifices of enormous proportions, surrounded by homes and small fortresses. It was as if the world itself had come together and used all its knowledge to construct such a sight in a mere 20 years. Smoke billowed from the center of the kingdom, rising separately from each home, but as one into the evening sky. Despite the distance, the kingdom shined in the twilight. Even the dim of simple flame, in such great mass within the cities many torches, candles, and fireplaces, radiated light as if the kingdom itself was aglow. And, upon the ground, lay the Nazca ship. It seemed it was not even a ship, but a simple outline of an enormous bird in the plains. Though grass had covered it, the outline was still visible.

"There it is…" said Keith with a sigh. "It's taken a lot just to get here…"

"Yeah…" said Duran simply.

Everyone stood, wide eyed, at the glowing kingdom before them, the huge towers almost intimidating.

"I didn't expect we'd make such time. The walk here should have taken us at least another three hours." said Vahn.

"We move swiftly; it's good we made it here so early." said Sye, who was the only one who didn't seem impressed by the kingdom before him.

"Let's go." Orin said simply, and he pushed forward.

Everyone continued on at his heels, one at a time taking their eyes off the kingdom and putting them to the ground as they moved forward. They hadn't gone far, though, as the whinny of horse, and the movement in the grass spun them around.

In front of them now was a young man on horseback, and Orin recognized him immediately. His dark hair looked almost like Orin's in length and shape, but his face was a bit older, he was taller, and he wore robe-like cloths and a ragged cape, buckled to a single steel shoulder pad. A blade hung from his hip.

"Who are you?" called Orin, who walked up the field past his group to meet this strange young man.

His only response was his dismount from his horse.

"Were you the one following us?" asked Orin, as he lowered his tone slightly.

"I spotted you in Roft." he said, his eyes shining brightly even in the darkness of the evening.

"I remember. What business do you have with us…?" Orin asked.

"Not with you, particularly." he replied. "Just with one in your midst."

"Oh?" Orin asked as he looked back over his shoulder. "Well business with my party is something we all will handle."

Orin felt his mind was returning to clarity again. What had clouded his thoughts in the past few hours was leaving, what it was was still a mystery to him.

"That so?" he said. "Then an introduction is proper."

"Orin." Orin said simply, as he outstretched his hand.

The young man shook it graciously.

"…Trevor." he said with a light grin. "And since it seems you will be reluctant to understand my goal…"

Trevor waved his hand, and from within the pass, another horse riding figure appeared. As this man came into view, Orin noticed he was not on horseback, but was in fact part of the horse. A centaur. His body upper body, his human half, was quite well toned, but was also clad in leather armor. His hair was short and black, his skin dark, and his eyes a bright green. Across his left cheek, he had two triangle shaped, blue tattoos running parallel to one another. A spear hung from his back as he rode out to meet them.

"Reluctant to understand…" repeated Orin.

"I doubt you'll give in to my demands." said Trevor. "And so I'll need my companion to be close by just in case you do not understand…"

Orin was utterly confused. Despite his time with Sye, who sometimes spoke cryptically, Trevor simply spoke without even a hint of clear explanation of what he was doing.

"This is Simon." said Trevor. "We are slayers."

"Slayers…?" asked Duran from behind.

"Hunters. Bounty hunters…" said Vahn.

"And which of us holds a bounty?" said Sye, his face tight and stern.

Orin was about to ask the same of them, but it was good to see Sye sounded protective of the group.

"The devil. We hunt only devils, no humans. We aren't murderers." said Trevor.

Simon stood next to Trevor, completely silent, his face seemed serious, but he looked even younger than Trevor was, making him somewhat less intimidating.

"Jo…" Vahn whispered, Jo right at his side. "Fly away."

"Not if it's me they're after. I'm no coward." she said, her fangs bared.

"The girl, there. Her kin slaughtered a group of Exiles in the valley a few days ago. We were told to bring her back, alive or dead." said Trevor. "We are sorry that we must part her from your company."

"You think we'd just let her go?" said Orin, his hand on the hilt of his blade.

"I didn't think so. I knew you'd not see it my way." said Trevor. "Despite my reluctance when it comes to slaying men, a large bounty is well worth a few moments of my own self loathing."

"Heartless." said Ikara.

"You're not taking anyone anywhere." said Orin.

"You'll find out how wrong you are in a moment." Trevor replied.

He didn't seem like the enemies Orin had faced in the past. Though he seemed intent on taking Jo back with him, he didn't seem to be a violent person behind his words. Orin felt strangely calm around him.

"Who put out the bounty for her…?" Orin asked.

"Well, the head of the Exiles, of course." Trevor replied, as he slowly drew his long sword.

"Niro…" hissed Keith. "What a little…"

"So, will you still defend her?" said Trevor as he moved forward.

"As long as we breathe." Orin replied.

Simon drew his spear.

"Don't make me kill you." Sye said, as he stepped forward and drew his curved blade. "I'm a bounty hunter as well, but unlike you, humans bleed just as well in my eyes as cattle."

Sye was indeed a violent man despite the intelligence he seemed to have, but as violent as he was, it was just the kind of man Orin needed if he wanted to eliminated his true enemies. The fact was, though, in this case, Orin didn't want to kill these two.

Trevor stopped when Sye spoke.

"Synorok…" said Simon.

"…Niro said Orin had killed you." Trevor said, slightly surprised.

"Niro is a fraud. Whatever he told you is a lie." said Sye. "Until I realized with whom exactly I was involved, I thought he was simply an average lord with a pest problem."

"It doesn't matter. If you stand in our way, you'll have to fall, too." said Simon, who had suddenly spoken up.

"This talking is taking too much time. Give her to us now, or die." said Trevor. "This is the last time I'll warn you."

No one said a word.

"It's just as well…a party such as this is best slain together." said Trevor, as he moved in Orin's direction slowly.

Sye moved forward toward Trevor as he came, stepping in front of Orin. Trevor, without pause, dashed at Sye with his blade behind him, an attack stance Orin had often taken in battle. Sye jumped to one side, his body swift even in human form, but Trevor was more than able to anticipate his move and spin back in his direction within a moment.

"Wait!" yelled Orin.

His blade was drawn, but he and the rest of the group stood silently as Sye and Trevor engaged each other. Though Sye was slightly bigger, they were both of equal speed. Trevor jumped to and fro, slashing at Sye in odd ways. He would hold the blade with both hands, his right over his left, but so that the bladed ended of the sword was directed behind him instead of at Sye. He flung it from side to side, oddly enough striking powerful blows that Sye could only barely avoid. After about a minute, Trevor having been the aggressor, he stopped his assault. Though Sye stood rigid, his eyes and face tight and stern, Orin could tell he was slightly fatigued. His face was shining with sweat.

"Are you done?" asked Sye sarcastically, but with the same solid look on his face.

"Damnit." said Trevor from under his breath.

"That's enough! Listen to me!" called Orin. "Even if you take Jo back to him, do you think he'll let you go?"

"What?" asked Trevor, his face red.

"He'll kill you once you've done what he wants. Anyone able to defeat us is more of a threat than we are." Orin explained.

Trevor said nothing, though it made sense to him. He was still reluctant to listen.

"I would slay him if that was the case." said Trevor.

"If the two of you go to him alone, he won't need to lift a finger. His soldiers will do the job." said Orin. "Two against hundreds are not odds in your favor."

Trevor's face tightened, as did Simon's.

"I'll find you in Nazca…" said Trevor. "You've brought to my attention that Niro could indeed turn on us if we complete our mission. I'll have to iron out the folds with him and make proper meeting arrangements before I kill you."

Orin said nothing.

"Don't leave Nazca. You'll only delay the inevitable if you do." said Trevor.

Trevor moved past Sye, who gazed in the direction of the ocean, but did not falter as Trevor walked by. Trevor mounted his horse, and spun around, Simon at his side.

"Until tomorrow." said Trevor, as he took his leave and headed for the pass ahead of him.

"I could have killed him easily. He was too fatigued to finish battle." said Sye.

"He's not our enemy. Niro has just blinded him, clouded his mind…" Orin said.

"We should get to Nazca before it gets late." said Vahn.

Ikara and Tess both nodded in agreement,

"Right. Off, then." said Orin, as the group turned toward Nazca, the lot of them sheathing their weapons as they moved.

Sye stood for a moment though, as the moon appeared from between the now parting clouds overhead. Along the sea, it was large and a dark orange. It reflected off his silvery eyes, giving off and eerie shine. He sheathed his blade, and walked slowly behind the rest of the group, toward the city they'd taken so long to reach; Nazca.

A/N: I don't think I've ever done any a/n for this story…but, anyway. I figured since we're getting toward one of the higher points in the story (Don't want to give anything away P ) I figured I'd explain some stuff. My brother brought up a good point yesterday. He usually reads the my story as I finish chapters and tells me what he likes about them, doesn't like, etc. (though this usually doesn't influence what I change or not P ) and he said one of the characters names. It made me laugh because he pronounced it completely differently then I'd intended. So, I figured it'd be a good idea, just for convenience, to clear up some of the harder names just in case people were having a hard time. This are only the most important characters that I think people would have a hard time pronouncing:

Ikara - (ic-are-ah)

Duran - (der-an)

Vahn - (van)

Niro - (near-o)

Kasha - (kah-shah)

Johavanon - (Jo-hah-vah-non)

Synorok - Sin-o-rock)

Those are the important ones anyway. As unnecessary as it may seem to some, I often have trouble pronouncing names properly if they are spelt strangely when reading a novel, so I figured this would help some people out, if only a little bit.

After chapter 25, the entire of chapter 26 will be a review and I will also answer any questions people may have, so post questions along with any reviews you give for this chapter. Ask as many questions as you'd like spanning from chapter 1 to 24. I will not answer questions about chapter 25 if you ask about it after the chapter is finished (you'll see why once you read it). Anyway, remember to R&R! P