Ch 16: Ghost Stories
Roy wiped away what blood was left on his scythe. There were a total of four bodies, much less then he had thought. Still, even if it were twice that number, a fight with bandits showed little excitement in Roy's mind. He wanted a real challenge. Someone that he could spar with on a daily basis. Someone who could match the strength of his odd weapon. Because, not many knew about a scythe. It was still a new blade, under development in the Desert Kingdom. A handful of soldiers had gotten their greedy little hands on it, but they had no skill compared to the Prince. He had loved the weapon since he first saw it, hanging in his father's personal armory. The blacksmith caught sight of Roy's interest, and divulged the details of the rare craftsmanship. "Four months to make, that thing did." The forger had said. "Almost gave up once 'er twice. But, she's a fine blade. Nothing can match it, not yet anyways. Go on, have a feel of her."
The handle with which one gripped the weapon felt hard and rigged. It still needed to be smoothed out. But, Roy didn't want the soft feeling of smooth stone. He liked the rugged grip of cobble beneath his fingers as he hacked away at his enemies. The blade, which was much larger then any other he'd seen, was incredibly sharp. The blacksmith had mentioned something about finding the right type of metal, but the Prince hardly listened. He was more focused on the sheer design of it. Sure, it looked bulky and hard to handle, but in reality it was quite the opposite. The heavy wait near the top, where the blade was positioned, gave way to easier movement. One could strife and parry, although it would require more upper arm strength to control the heavy thing. Years of practice and perfection. That's what the Prince spent much of his lifetime on.
And now, he stood here, in the middle of the old shack, wiping off the crimson that had stained the white steel of his scythe. "I was hoping for more of a fight.. But, it looks like a request as simple as that is hard to come by these days." Roy shot a look of disgust at one of the corpses. To kidnap someone, probably for enjoyment, was revolting. The prince not only frowned on such activity, but he would be glad to stop it in it's place. It was something he had bragged about countless times before. "Thieves and kidnappers had better watch out! I'm aiming my blade straight for their necks!" A faint chuckle escaped him as he reminisced on his childhood. "I was pretty gullible back then, wasn't I?" No, not gullible, just feeble minded. After all, he was just a young boy. How could he knew about the bad things in the world? Seth would be taking the crown anyways, so it wasn't Roy's job to deal with the matters of the known universe.
"Hey! Are you gonna stand there, are are you gonna untie me already!" As quick as his daydreams had come, they were gone, soon dropping him back into reality. Roy turned around, only to be met by a rather angry girl with an angrier mouth. "Did you have to take your sweet time in killing those guys? I mean, I could have taken them out faster then you! You men are all the same!" Kyrie glared at this new face with more annoyance then anger. She couldn't help but notice how attractive he looked. It was a little weird for someone around her age to have white hair, but she liked it. It made him seem smarter then he probably was. As for his taste in clothes, that she would have to change. He looked like a farmer's boy with a thirst for a fight. But the way he looked at her, his posture, and the way he walked. Kyrie thought over that for a moment, before coming to the conclusion that he couldn't be a farmer. He had too much self control. And he didn't look like a soldier or anything along those lines. He wasn't as rash or baring as some of the warriors she had seen. Could he be from Earth?
No, he didn't have that feeling. He wasn't loudmouthed like Tye and Alex. But he is cute. Soon, the girl found herself quiet. Her face had turned a light pink, and although she did her best to shake the thoughts of him shirtless, they began to stampede through her mind. "Are you alright?" Kyrie froze where she was sitting. She couldn't really do anything else. Her heart began to beat like a drum as he approached her. "Uh..Yeah. Of course I'm fine.." Her voice had lowered a bit, almost to a whisper. She didn't know why her body had given up on her. Maybe she wanted him to save her? Well, he sort of already had. As he untied her, she could feel his hands trace along her body, which sent a quick chill down her spine. The roped had left behind bruises and a few markings across her wrists. Roy looked at the bruising for a silent minute or so. Soon after, he grabbed her hands and examined them more closely. This caught Kyrie by surprise, and she quickly pulled them back. "What are you doing?" He glanced up to look at her, their eyes meeting for a split second before she turned away. "I was making sure you aren't injured in any way. I'm sorry if my gesture seemed a little inappropriate." Kyrie bit her lower lip, turning to look at him once more. Her heart hadn't slowed, in fact, it's pace had only quickened.
"It's...Alright. I should be apologizing, not the other way around. I mean, I did kind of snap at you.." Roy looked at the girl, a confused expression coming onto his face. It quickly turned to a more cheerful mood, and he laughed slightly. "There's no need to apologize. I would have been mad as well if I were kidnapped." There was a hint of tease in his tone as he spoke, and the smirk that slid across his face made Kyrie blush even more. "I wasn't kidnapped.. Just..captured." He looked at her, his head tilting to the side a bit. "Isn't that the same thing?" "No!" She barked, standing up and nearly bumping into him. But her legs were still weak from having been unused for a short period, and she lost her balance. Before Kyrie could hit the floor, Roy caught her and pulled her up, his arms wrapping around her frame. "You're a bit of a klutz, aren't you?" He laughed again, seeing the annoyed look that settled on Kyrie's face. "I am not! My legs are just numb. Geez.." He released her from his grip, although she wished he had held her for a little while longer. Once she had found her balance, Kyrie looked around the house she had been taken to.
"Where exactly are we?" For the first time since he saw her, Roy took a look at their surroundings. His eyes had been glued to this girl the entire time, yet he couldn't figure out why. Why he was so fixated on her. She was so different from the girls he's used to. So..unique. He liked it. "The exact location, I'm not too sure about.. But, we're not too far from the Kingdom. It's about a half day's travel from here." Kyrie stared at the Prince, looking a little depressed. "Half a day? That's too long! I need to kill Alex now!" Roy stared back, the same confused look as before returning to his face, but more so this time. "Kill who?"
XxXxXx
Tye had just ran his blade through one bandit, while a second dropped to the ground, an arrow sticking out of his chest. The third and final thug had been lashed with a whip, and that same weapon held him in a tight grip. "Now, since your friends didn't want to talk, we'll ask you. Where's the mage girl?" Out of the three boys, Tye was usually the one to do any kind of interrogating. He had that evil presence around him that could usually scare away anyone who looks at him. Of course, it was more of an act, just so he could scare people. He enjoyed it very much. Sometimes, Alex and Shawn wondered if Tye was really on the right side. "Listen buddy, I don't know nothin' about no mage girl!" Tye gritted his teeth, taking a few steps closer to his next victim. "Strike one." "What? But I swear! I don't know anything!" Watching from a distance, Alex snickered. "Just tell us, and you won't have to die a slow and painful death. Is it really that difficult to cooperate?" Shawn nodded in agreement, tightening the whip's hold. "All these guys are the same. They think they're tough and can withstand our torturous ways." He had a more playful tone then anger, because Shawn found all this quite fun. He wasn't too thrilled about the killing part, but having people running away in fear always put a smile on his face. On more then one occasion, the girls had claimed those boys had been hit one too many times. And it showed.
Their captive shook with more then fear though. It was apparent he looked to be more scared of someone else, not them. "Look, you're starting to get on my nerves. All you need to do is tell me where they took the girl. I'll let you go." The crumbling man, who looked past the breaking point, glanced around at the three before him. "You.. Won't hurt me?" Tye shook his head, a smirk coming to his face. "Wouldn't think of it." While the man hesitated, Alex and Shawn took a quick look at one another. "Ten bucks says he'll still kill him." Alex hushed, leaning in to Shawn just a tad so his friend could better hear him. "Make it twenty." They smiled to one another and shook hands, now even more into the interrogation then before. "Come on, I'll give you ten more seconds." The man looked around again, more nervous this time around. "Ten.." "Alright! Alright! They went to the old farmhouse out by Hangman's Creek.."
XxXxXx
"Hangman's Creek?" Roy nodded, answering the question Kyrie had just asked. She looked at him, still confused. "But I've never heard of it." Roy laughed a little, extending his hand to the only chair in the room. She sat down, expecting a story to come out of this. "It's not surprising, since no one really talks about it." Kyrie glanced around. They were in this, creek place? But, there wasn't any creek. In fact, there was no water at all. She could see clearly out one of the windows right behind Roy. The ground was covered in nothing but grass, as far as the eye could see. Grass, and the occasional patch of dirt. "That makes no sense though. If this is a creek, where's the water?" Now Roy had the confused look. "What water?" Kyrie returned the look with her one, as if she presumed he was teasing her again. "You know. A creek has water. It's a little stream." "Interesting..But I've never heard of such a thing." The girl was about to explain further, but suddenly remembered they weren't at home. This place, although it resembled much of Earth, was completely different.
"What I'm talking about.." Roy began, "is a fissure in the ground. A creek. Like, a big gaping hole." Oh, so then he's talking about a canyon. She thought, letting her mouth get a break. Roy waited for another interruption, but when it never came, he continued. "Around one hundred or so years ago, there was supposedly a creek that ran through here. All that grass you see outside has only been there a short while. Anyways, the people say there once was a man by the mane of.. Damn it what was it again?"
XxXxXx
"Spencer Greeves." Stated Shawn, as the trio walked along a dirt path towards Hangman's Creek. "Ed had told me the story of the guy before he went looney. They say he had struck gold in the creek. Spencer was a really greedy man, and of course, when he found the gold, he didn't want to tell anyone. So, he hid it. But he was also a really stupid man. Because the creek was so big, he had forgotten where he put the gold. He spent the rest of his life down there, and his body was found with a pickaxe and half a bag of gold leaflets." Tye laughed a little, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "So then why's it called Hangman's Creek?" Shawn glanced over his shoulder. He was leading them, since the other two had no idea of where to go. Alex and Tye hadn't ecplored much of the world. They were usually back in the castle, trying to stop the hoards of soldiers from knocking the place down.
"Hangman's Creek got it's name from Spencer's brother. Garth. Garth was a lot smarter then Spencer, and he found the gold pretty easily. So of course, since his brother was dead, Garth spent the gold and became insanely rich. But, he used up all the gold over his lifetime. He found the gold when he was really young, like sixteen I think it was. He had blown it all by the time he hit sixty. So, after all those years, he thought he'd go looking for more. But the creek was a lot smaller. There had been some earthquakes during Garth's life, and people were saying the quakes had pushed the earth together, closing up canyons and caverns. The creek Garth went to was closing up to, in fact, it had grown too small for him to climb down. Now he was out of money, and he had some debts that still needed paying. Over the years, he had borrowed money from noblemen, promising to play them back with pure gold. But, he took too much money, and didn't have enough gold to give. So when those men came to collect, they found Garth had left his home. There was a big search for him, 'cause he was so high up there on the social ladder. When they finally found the guy, he had hung himself on a tree that swayed over the small creek. They tried to cut him down, but they dropped him and he got stuck in teh creek. Nobody wanted to try and move him, so they just left him there. After a while, the earthquakes closed up the creek, and no one ever saw Garth Greeves' body again."
XxXxXx
"That's a horrible story!" Kyrie shouted. Roy had just finished explaining, and couldn't help but smile a bit. "It's not a story. It's a myth. Something the town elders made up to scare kids and show them what happens when people become too greedy." Kyrie stared at Roy, like she had been doing since they met. "I still don't like it.." He chuckled to himself. The prince suddenly realized this girl he had saved was definitely leaving an impression on him. Throughout the short amount of time they've been together, he couldn't help the laughter that seemed to radiate out of him. "You're an odd one. Ms...?" "Oh!" Kyrie had forgotten the two had yet to introduce, and instead had picked up on the various conversations they held. "Kyrie." Roy smiled as she spoke her name. It had a beautiful ring to it, something he would love saying. "Nice to meet you Kyrie. My name is Ryhoei." Be bowed a little, as proper when introducing oneself to a lady. Kyrie giggled a little. "Ryo- what?" "Hm?" He glanced up from his bow. "Ah.. Yes, I suppose you aren't familiar with the name.. Roy, then. Please, call me Roy."
XxXxXx
"So, why exactly would a couple thugs take Kyrie to this creek place?" Tye had now taken the lead, having picked up a faint smell of perfume their friend had been wearing. Shawn, walking behind him alongside Alex, merely shrugged. "Probably because of the name. A lot of the folks here don't go near Hangman's Creek. They say it's haunted by the Greeves' brothers." At the sound of haunted Alex slowed his pace. "Haunted?" He repeated, taking a few steps back. "Yeah, you both know how I do with ghosts.. So, I'll let you find Kyrie, while I...Stand guard?" The other two had stopped as well, and Tye laughed a little. "You're not really scared of some stupid place that could be haunted?" Alex nodded, a little frantic. "Hell yeah I am!" Shaking his head, the swordsman walked over to his friend and grabbed his wrist. "Ow! Hey, Tye what the hell are you doing?" His friend was silent, dragging Alex along the dirt path with Shawn right behind them. "Listen you idiot, there's no such things as ghosts, alright?" Shawn nodded behind them, adding in, "besides, the only thing scary around here is Tye." The thought of that relaxed Alex, and he began walking on his own once more. But, he was still unsure. "Alright, alright. But if we get abducted or possessed I'm killing you both."
The three laughed as they approached the bottom of a steep hill. "Beyond this is Hangman's Creek." Tye examined the last obstacle on their little journey. "Wow, kind of a stupid place to put a mountain, huh?" They all nodded, beginning the climb that would take an average person a good half hour or so to make. The sun had begun to set, painting the world around the trio in a light pink and orange. The sun itself was nearly gone, dropping behind the far mountains off in the distance. Of course, with the setting sun, a harsh wind picked up. It was going to be a cold night, so the boys planned to just grab Kyrie and run. None of them were up for a fight, and they all agreed that a break from bloodshed was needed.
Minutes ticked by rather quickly, and soon they had reached the half way point. "I'm getting bored.." Complained Alex, who was at the rear of the group. "You're always bored." Tye glanced back over his shoulder, giving the bowman a teasing smirk. "Am not." "Are too." Alex glared at the back of Tye's head, wanting to punch it. "We're not five you know. We could settle this like men." A quick laugh came from Tye before he turned, now walking backwards up the hill. "You mean argue irrationally and cuss one another out?" "We already do that." "Then we're men." What was the point? Tye always had a way of talking people out of fight. But, it felt like they had had a fight, verbally, and Alex had lost somehow. That seems to happen a lot with him.. Pushing the thought away, he returned his attention to the climb, but stopped in his tracks when something had dashed behind him.
He quickly spun around, bow drawn, and aimed down the hill. "What's wrong?" Tye turned as well, gripping the handle of his sword. "I could've sworn I heard something.." Shawn, who had unhooked his whip, shook his head. "It's just you freaking out again. Relax already." Alex looked at both of them, an annoyed expression clearly visible on his face. "Yeah, whatever. Easy for you to say, you're in the middle." Shawn laughed, holstering the silver whip onto his belt. However, it was pulled off once more when the three of them caught sight of a black cloaked figure rushing towards them. Alex had already pulled an arrow out, readying it, while Tye's sword gleamed in the dwindling sunlight. The three waited for the hooded stranger to make it's first move, watching as it inched closer to them. "I told you I heard something!"