Philo's donkey's snored horribly but not as bad as Philo. Cynddylan had learned this the first night they'd traveled together. It was alright the noise didn't keep him awake, his dreams did. During the time he'd spent with his new friend they hadn't bothered him as much but suddenly the strange mix of memories and images he did not know flushed through his thoughts. He'd been attempting to suppress this stream of consciousness when suddenly he realized he was asleep. He immediately awoke. He did not sit up, he only opened his eyes very abruptly like he'd put effort into it. Immediately he noticed a change in his surroundings. The donkey's and Philo seemed un bothered but he could tell danger was close. His instinct was to stand and run but considering he enjoyed Philo's company, he decided against abandoning him to his death.
Cynddylan rose silently. The danger was to the north of his camp and he could feel it approaching from what he felt, he suspected it was human and some sort of bandit or thief, maybe a murderer. He could not yet hear or see his opponent coming. He calmly walked into the black underbrush to wait.
Five men wearing the remnants of armor sat on the other side of the bend in the road that separated them from Philo's camp. The men were well equipped and professional. The biggest of them was close to 250 lbs, a goliath in that area. They were of mixed origin and by there ramshackle appearance, they were not well off. Philo grunted in his sleep and turned onto his stomach. A loud burble erupted in his mid section and he woke. He sat up and rubbed his eyes noticing that Cynddylan was not sleeping by the fire where he had been. Philo sctratched his head wondering if he had left.
"Cynddylan ! Were did you get off to!" He hollered at the woods. Three men emerged from the bend holding knives they rushed up and grabbed Philo by the arms as he yelped. "Cynddylan run thieves!" The three men held him then looked over the stuff he had. One of the smaller ones looked in the cart.
"Dammit it's just big piece of rock, who the fuck is fatty over here anyway, hulling a rock around out here. Hey does he got any food?" Another one, the large one squinted in the darkness at the bend.
"Luc, Paquel get out here, we need help…. Hey what the fuck are you doing back there holding your dicks?" The shorter one stopped riffling through the stuff and glanced where his partner looked.
"Stop fucking around I'm hungry!" The third member looked more concerned than the other two.
"Guys?" Two bloody severed heads rolled out from the bend and landed at the feet of the men who held Philo. The two who held him sputtered unintelligibly while the smaller one screamed. Cynddylan walked out from behind the bend carrying a sharpened brank that he had used like a saw after he had smothered them at the same time. The boy stood no more than fourteen and 14 years old clutching the penises of the two men he'd just sleign, he eyes undoughted and a golden honey yellow in the moonlight. His light blond hair appeared white and his smile stretched to grotesque proportions. He spoke in a whimsical eladed voice,
"I don't think they're going to be clutching these anymore." He threw them at the thieves. The three men ran for their lives as fast as the could back from whence they came. The small one tripped over one of the bodies, he vomited then continued to run. Philo lay on the ground leaning on his hands, his mouth was a gape and his face pale.
"Cynddylan what have you done?" The boy took on a less menacing grimace.
"I saved ya, tey wat here to kill us, not rob us. I had to do it, or you'd be dead."
" You killed those men like it was a chore, where did you come from?"
"I'm not ta product of meh home, I'm ta product of meh parents death and a very bad dream I had once." He extended a blood soaked hand to Philo to help him up. Philo looked at it trying to decide his opinion of the blood.
"If you'd of let them kill me there would be one dead man tonight instead of two, I'm not sure if that makes what you did right." Cynddylan still extended his hand.
"Tat may be true, but you were ta better man ta save. You are kind tey were scum."
"On one has the right to decide who lives or dies except the gods, you must not take lives or you will insult them."
" How do ya know I'm nota god Philo?" Philo opened his mouth and looked into the boys face seeing it for the first time that spark of magic he'd missed for the past few days, and then he releaized what he must do. He took Cynddylan's hand and got up.
"When we get to Athens, I will find my friend and show you to him. I think you may be destined for a world with more magic in it than this one." Cynddylan nodded.
"I would like tat, meh friend." Philo smiled deeply.
"And my savior you've saved my life." He trailed off as the two got the cart ready to leave. "that earns you some of the whine!"
Morganna had woke up earlier than usual, the sun had hit her eye lids at about six in the morning, she was aggravated at first but then she remembered the wonderful fountain from the day before. If she got up early she could go there and cool of then brag to her sisters later. It was a challenge to unweave herself from her sisters' arms but she managed to do so with waking anyone, she smiled at what she thought was magic in her. She crept to the door and carefully peeled back a seal. Once the door was released the magic was broken. She looked back at her mother with worry in her eyes. The sorceress would be awake soon she thought, then they wouldn't need the seals anyway. She managed to convince herself she'd done something convenient for her mother before she crept down the coble stone steps. The steps were cool on her bare feet. She soon reached the bottom. Soft pale sand baked in morning sun stood before her, she suddenly regretted not wearing sandals. Still, she'd come that far, she took a deep breath and a running stance. She paused determined to make it to the shady tree on the other side of the road. She hunkered down and jumped landing up to her ankles in sand. She blinked as he felt the hot sand burn her feet. She screamed abruptly and ran as fast as she had originally planned to run. To the locals watching this was quite bizarre. She darted under the tree and discovered that the sand was still broiling even in the shade, she jumped up and down on her tip toes then continued to run in panic towards an ornate building with an awning. She ducked into the area in front of the door where a welcome rug lay. She sighed as she found cool ground. She paused a moment then tried to figure out where she was.
She looked up and saw illustrations in a strange one dimensional profile. The drawings showed a woman familiarly performing a spell. Morganna recognized iron ore and snakes blood but could not decipher the rest. She quickly forgot her mission and wandered into the shop.
The walls were not decorated like her mothers nor were there any signs of magic in the room it was plain and the only special thing about it was a woman sitting in the back of the room holding stones in her hand.
" Come here child and I will tell you what the future has to hold for you?" She beckoned to Morganna. Morganna looked around and realized she was being addressed she was not afraid of the old woman she approached her only to find she smelled like death. Morganna sat in front of her on the floor. Before her was a block of stone the old woman had drawn strange symbols on. The old woman's hands shook and her eyes watered leaving trails of gunk down from the corners. She was dirty and crippled Morganna could see she was missing at least four fingers and appeared to not be able to sit properly. She could have been a witch. But Morganna had never seen an old witch before, what magical creature would ever let themselves age she thought to herself, and though she was tiny even she knew the spells to fix the little scars around her hands. She frowned realizing this woman was either a very bad witch or a fake. The old woman let the stones fall from her hands. Morganna looked up at her the woman looked into the rocks with sincerity though Morgy could tell the old woman was blind. "I see, a life of struggle ahead of you, you'll often be left wanting, and you will fight for what you do get. You will never marry, but you will love more deeply than most." She squinted, Morganna could not tell why if she could not see. "I see tragedy, and I see flames." The old woman looked up at Morganna though see looked to high as if she was looking at someone five inches taller than her in the eyes. "I'm sorry my child, your life is not as easy as the majority that I have seen, you will however, really live as most do not." Morganna finally asked what was on her mind.
"Are you a witch or not?" the old woman smiled.
"No one has ever asked me that question expecting the answer to be yes before!' She chuckled and wheezed a bit. "But yes I am a witch and I can tell you are too."
"Then why have you let yourself become so damaged?" Morganna looked at the woman with pity and confusion.
"Because, I have had your life little one, and I lived enough of it to be glad to see it end as it was. I wait now for a god of death to claim me, so that I may experience something new, and maybe better." Morganna frowned and leaned forward.
"But they will burn you why do you wish to burn!" The old woman reached a hand out the hand moved fluidly to Morganna's cheek as though she could see suddenly.
"Don't fear fire love, we are like phoenix's you and I, we live our lives picking up the pieces so that one day we can rise again, when you are ready it will be welcome. Your so young," she stroked Morganna's cheek, "it's only natural you could not fathom it…" She smiled and stood up wordlessly. She showed Morganna to the door and opened it for her, Morganna's eyes never left her sightless face. When Morganna looked around her she saw that the morning sun was like fire on the ground and it the clear even skies. The waves of heat from the dessert blew her hair about her and as her tiny mouth hung a gape she realized the significance of her blood red locks.