Uploaded 21/11/2018

Revised 26/10/2022

Revision Notes - Moderate revisions throughout, minor changes near end, moved review responses to bottom of page.

Ike_/ Welcome back, browsers of the internet.

Fred_/ Another chapter is here for your enjoyment.

Ike_/ So it is. By the way, a big thank you to all our readers here. This got a way bigger response than we expected.

Fred_/ We did?

Ike_/ Yes. Followers and favourites within the first day are a first for us. Or even followers and favourites at all.

Ryan_/ Obviously the fans of the original don't know about this yet, or there would be more reviews too. Lovely people, they are.

Ike_/ Perhaps. In any case, let's get on with the chapter!

'thought'

"speech"

*sound/action*

Prologue: Brothers Through Battle

By sundown, the camp of The Order of Rose was still alive with activity. Squires and Knights hurried to get ready for battle, clerics and apothecaries rushed back and forth between the supply tents and the medical tents, and refugees wandered the camp looking for family and friends. Whether they found them among the dead or living varied greatly. But most of all, the dining tent which had been converted into a communal bedding tent for the townsfolk turned refugees was active. Many were still mourning the loss of loved ones or property, and none could stay calm with what had just transpired that day. One woman in particular couldn't stay still, pacing around her cot and muttering to herself.

"Shay said he would be here with John an hour ago..." She muttered, running a hand through her silken hair. Shay was never one to idle or lag behind, so for him to be taking so long to bring John back meant something had gone wrong. Making up her mind, the concerned mother collected her shawl from the cot, draped it over her shoulders, and stormed out of the tent. She made haste for the medical tent at the far side of camp, and so single-minded in her objective was she that she nearly collided with a man when she turned a corner.

"Oof!" The man cried as he backpedaled sharply to avoid her.

"Sorry!" She cried over her shoulder, already on the move again.

"Hey, wait up! What's the hurry?" The man called after her, scrambling to catch up.

Despite his request, the woman didn't slow down at all. She did, however, meet his gaze when he caught up and matched her pace. He was an odd-looking man; his attire was unusual for the region and his skin had a darker complexion than most. Not as dark as the people of the Southern countries, but enough to be uncommon in the Eastern plains. He wore a rawhide leather overcoat with all manner of steel armour plates, pouches, sacks, and belts attached. A simple-looking sword hung at his right hip, and he wore a shirt and trousers with shades of blue that only nobles could usually afford. His face was marked with small scars and patches of stubble that starkly contrasted his neatly swept hair and deep blue eyes. In all, a very strange man indeed.

"Who are you?" The woman questioned, never slowing her pace.

"Just an adventurer that was passing through town when... anyway, my name is Steve. What's the hurry? Something I can help with?" Steve asked. The woman narrowed her eyes at him distrustfully but shared regardless.

"I'm looking for my boys in the medical tent. Do you know the way?" She asked. Steve gave her a disarming smile, and motioned in another direction with his hand.

"Right this way madame,"

"This is a decent plan," Shay spoke quietly, his voice betraying no emotion. The two brothers marched in formation with a handful of other Squires, all together forming a wall of oak and iron with their tower shields. Each squire held an iron pike that rested on top of the shields. The Squiremaster followed behind with four rangers, each brandishing a longbow and a full quiver of arrows.

"Are you ill, brother? Just earlier you were complaining about our chances of survival," John asked sarcastically. Shay seemed to ignore him.

"I've gone over it a hundred times, and this is the only plan where we have even the slightest chance of victory. And the odds are still heavily against us. I fully expect that most of these men will not survive, including us," Shay whispered this time, trying not to let the other Squires hear.

"As opposed to all of us, that's pretty good I'd wager," John countered. Shay didn't respond. John spared his brother a glance, noticing the dead serious look on his face. The nerves were definitely getting to him. John nudged Shay roughly with his elbow.

"Speaking of wagers, what'll you bet that I can't kill more Outrealmers than you?" John said slyly. A ghost of a smile graced Shay's face.

"Not a chance in hell you can," Shay responded.

The sun was just about to touch the walls of the village as they approached the skeleton archer's estimated range. A hundred yards. The most elite of The Order had already split into two groups and stealthily positioned themselves on either side of the main gate, obviously unseen since there was no ongoing melee. All that was left was to spring the trap. The undead had shown a severe lack of strategic prowess beyond throwing overwhelming numbers, so it was expected that the plan would go off without a hitch. Eighty yards now. John wasn't religious, but he silently thanked Notch and Jeb that there was enough plate armour for Shay and he to wear. Sixty yards away. Then every eye snapped to the front gate as a loud snapping noise was heard. Moments later, arrows lit aflame flew from the village like rain from a cloud, filling the sky and putting on a strange and terrifying light show. The Squiremaster shouted a command, and all of the Squires lifted their shields to give protection from the arrows. The creaking and crunching of bones against dirt and stone entered John and Shay's ears, as an undead army charged down the streets of their hometown and out the gate, a dull purple glow trailing from their empty sockets.

"THE ARROWS WILL NOT PIERCE OUR SHIELDS! THE ENEMY WILL NOT REACH US BEFORE THE ARROWS! HOLD FAST!" The Squiremaster shouted, and hold fast they did.

They all listened as arrows bounced off their steel like metallic rain, while others planted themselves in the ground around them with soft thunks. As soon as the arrows stopped the shields lowered to a frontal position again, and the Rangers began nocking arrows and firing overhead at the approaching army. The Rangers, skilled as they were with their bows, killed two undead for every yard they gained. But as the fallen skeletons were crushed to dust underfoot, and the grass and bushes were trampled by bone, it became clear that a melee would break out long before the Knights could close in from behind. The Outrealm army closed twenty yards, and the Rangers dropped their bows in favor of their shortswords.

"HOLD FAST SQUIRES OF THE ROSE! LET THEIR BONES BE SPLINTERED BY YOUR PIKES!" The Squiremaster cried. John, Shay, and all the Squires dug their heels in and leaned into the skeletons as they crashed into the shield wall with a sickening crunch. They held the wave of undead back with their shields, meanwhile their pikes worked at picking off enemies one by one. Still, it was like cutting single blades of grass in an overgrown field. The enemies overflowed around to the flanks of the wall and engaged the Rangers, and the endless skeletons at their front hacked slowly away at their shields.

"BREAK!" Squiremaster Jacque commanded. The squires broke apart in the middle, creating an opening for the undead to charge through. As shocked as John was at the seemingly foolish order, what came next nearly made him drop his pike in surprise. Sir Jacque drew his longsword in a low stance, the blade trailing a white glow as it sliced through the air in a sweeping motion. An arc of magical energy came bursting forth from the blade, past the opening in the shield wall, and crashed explosively into the Outrealm skeletons. Bones shattered and stone cracked, throwing shrapnel that only stopped thanks to the armour that the Rose soldiers wore. John had heard stories from Shay about spellknights; warriors that could use the power of their soul to cast enchantments or spells. He never thought he would meet such an esteemed individual, much less fight alongside him.

"DRAW STEEL, BROTHERS! FOR THE ROSE!" Squiremaster Jacque cried.

Using the small reprieve that Sir Jacque created with his Sweeping Wave magic, the Squires abandoned their pikes and drew their swords. Sir Jacque rushed ahead of the Squires with his blade glowing purple, but there was no time for John to see him in action. John parried a stone axe and riposted with a slash that took the cap of the skeleton's skull off, then immediately had to evade a sword. The next strike from the undead found John's shield, and his blade pierced his opponent's eyes socket. More skeletons replaced the fallen, and John bashed one away while he traded sword blows with the other. An arrow from somewhere behind John relieved him of one skeleton to worry about, and the second fell to his blade shortly after. John took his brother's advice from back in the village, backing up a step to avoid being flanked, but found that it made no difference as a stone spear narrowly missed his face. John tried to spin around and face this new opponent, only to stumble on something and fall. John caught himself on his shield, flinching as the spear deflected off his right pauldron. John regained his footing and looked up to look for openings in his opponent, but only found an axe beelining for his chest. Thankfully, the blow only dented his chest plate.

'Thank The Holy Brothers for this plate armour,' John thought, finding a new respect for blacksmiths.

John's sword quickly met the next spear strike, chopping off the spearhead, while his shield rose to meet the axe. As his sword maneuvered towards the disarmed spearman, a stone sword appeared from nowhere to parry his strike away. The axe struck John in his hip, hitting the chainmail in a gap between the steel plates. The mail held, but John grunted in pain and knew a bruise would form there. The axe wielding skeleton rose its weapon for an overhead blow, and John made the Outrealmer pay for it by chopping his leg off at the knee. The skeleton continued its swing as it fell and John ducked away, coincidentally evading the charging spearman, and the axe planted itself firmly in the unarmed skeletons skull.

'Well, that was lucky,' John noted.

John finished off the disabled skeleton and turned to face the swordsman, deftly evading a strike, and severing the Outrealmers sword arm with a well-placed thrust. The other arm quickly reached to grab at him, and John severed it at the elbow. Not to be dissuaded, the armless created lurched at John with its jaw open to bite at his neck. John backpedaled in surprise, bludgeoning the skeleton with his shield. When it fell to the ground, he bludgeoned it again. Then one more time for good measure. John let out a sigh, then turned to observe the battlefield when there was a suspicious lack of undead trying to kill him. The two main groups of The Order had made their advance and easily surrounded the Outrealm army, taking most of the pressure off of the advance party. Even through the chaos of battle, John could see colorful flashes which he assumed to be magic arts speckle past bone and steel. More importantly though, John could see Shay not far away, keeping two skeletons at bay with his greatsword. John rushed to come to his brothers' aid, dropping his half-destroyed shield as he went, letting out a war cry as his longsword relieved a skeleton of its head. With only a single opponent to contend with, Shay easily outmaneuvered the other skeleton and killed it. The brothers shared a meaningful look, then turned to face the enemy once more.

Brilliant blue pierced the air as Darien's diamond sword tore a skeleton asunder, and wove fluidly into a thrust that disarmed a different enemy. Darien grunted with effort as he finished off the enemy while also evading a great axe, trusting his enchanted armour to deflect a normally devastating blow from a skeleton behind him. His cape fluttered as Darien pirouetted and decapitated two undead in a single blow, and his blade glimmered in the sunlight as he flicked his wrist to parry a stone sword.

"Ignesco," Darien muttered under his breath. The utterance of Galactic language activated the magic runes in his sword, sheathing it in blue flames.

"Scopa Acies," Darien muttered, activating the Sweeping Edge spell. An arc of flaming blue energy burst from his blade as he swung, bathing his enemies in fire. Darien stopped channeling his Soulka into the blade, and the flames sputtered out.

"Their ranks are thinning!" Siegfreid observed as he decimated a skeleton with his left longsword, while also beheaded a skeleton with his right longsword.

"Aye. But we have yet to see a necromancer or commander of any kind," Darien responded, splitting a skeleton in half from shoulder to hip.

"It is only a matter of time," Siegfreid resigned, casually batting away an axe meant for his face. Darien only grunted in response. The battle had gone remarkably well so far, but Darien didn't want to celebrate just yet. He had no clue of how the advance party had fared, nor how the inevitable appearance of a more competent undead commander might sway the course of battle. All he could do was continue to cut down enemies and pray. As it happened however, Darien didn't have to wait long.

"Guuuahahhaha!" A scratchy cackle boomed from behind the village gates.

Moments later, a fully armoured skeleton came barreling into the fray atop a skeletal horse, stone greataxe poised to strike. Darien and Siegfreid darted in opposite directions to evade the charging behemoth, feeling the ground shake beneath their boots as hooves pounded the dirt. The iron armour it wore was grimy and misshapen, and far too large for any normal sized man. Glowing red sockets glared balefully at the Knight Commander from behind a cracked helmet, creaking loudly as the mounted undead passed and turned its head to keep him in sight. Despite himself, Darien gulped.

"Damn these Outrealm fiends! Is there no end to them?" Shay growled as his greatsword carved through a ribcage.

John's only response was to behead a skeleton and keep himself back-to-back with Shay. His shoulders heaved with every ragged breath, despite the steel pauldrons that weighed upon him. Even in his most intense spars with Shay, not even during his most rigorous work on the farm, John had never experienced exhaustion like this. Not even the adrenaline constantly pumping through his veins could fool his tired muscles. But he fought as ferociously as ever, trading blow after blow with Outrealm skeletons that never tired. Shay didn't show it, but he wasn't much better off. Even his training with his Pagemaster, Sir Quell, could have prepared him for this. But there was no time to think on better days, only time to slay the next opponent. Even that was becoming difficult for the brothers to focus on, however. The appearance of grotesque skeletal undead were beginning to grate on their sanity, to say nothing of the smell of blood filling the air. Only their own had blood to be spilt, but John and Shay tried their best not to think about it. An arrow whizzed by and John jerked back to avoid a second arrow, bumping into Shay in the process. The two of them tumbled to the ground near a boulder in a mess of limbs, and the skeletons swarmed them. Stone blades poked and prodded as the undead tried to find the gaps in their armour and cut them to ribbons. John panicked, scrambling back against the boulder and covering his face with his gauntlets to protect his exposed eyes.

Just when John was sure he and his brother would die here, something massive flew overhead and destroyed every skeleton in its path. It landed with a crash that shook the ground, and only once John and Shay had stumbled to their feet did they realize what it was. A massive skeletal horse and rider had charged and jumped over the boulder without any care for what was in the way. moments later the Knight Commander, Knight General, and Ranger General dashed by the dazed brothers in chase. Sir Cilyan nocked and fired arrows with such grace and speed, he appeared unnatural. But his arrows couldn't quite seem to strike their mark, with the enemy as quick as it was. Darien unleashed a powerful Sweeping Wave in the Outrealm General's path, forcing it to change course towards them. Siegfreid charged the horse and rider fearlessly, feigning right and darting left to strike at the horse as it passed. His attacks merely annoyed the skeletal beast, but it slowed just enough for Cilyan's arrows to finally meet their mark. Two arrows struck the horse in the skull and it crumpled immediately, sending the massive skeleton barreling towards the ground. It's greataxe moved as it fell, nearly striking Darien, but he managed to dodge the blow in an impressive display of dexterity.

Clumps of dirt and rock flew into the air as the hulking skeleton collided with the ground, and Darien's blade cut through the debris to rend a deep gash in the Outrealmer's armour. Not deep enough, unfortunately, to keep it down. Before Siegfreid could join Darien in assaulting the fallen rider, the greataxe was moving again. It curved a deadly arc through the air and narrowly missed Darien as he broke left, diamond blade already glowing with another spell. Siegfreid broke left, waiting for a good opening to strike. Cilyan nocked an arrow, waiting for the dust to clear so he could make an accurate shot. The dust was so thick in front of Cilyan, that he didn't see the Outrealm General spring to its feet and charge at him. Darien and Siegfreid changed course to intercept, but they wouldn't make it in time. But John and Shay were close, and they saw the General from their position. John was sprinting before he realized what he was doing, and he was upon Cilyan before he had really figured out what it was he was going to do. Ciylan saw John in his peripherals at the same time that the greataxe broke through the dust.

*SHINK*

John crashed into the extending arms of the General, sinking his blade into the gap between arm plate and gauntlet. The sword locked into place, along with the Outrealmers arms, preventing it from following through with its strike properly. The axe barely missed Cilyan, and John received a strong kick in the chest for his troubles. While John skidded across the field behind him, Cilyan harrassed the skeleton with arrows aimed at its faceplate while it tried to pry the blade from its forearms. Its efforts were in vain, however, as Darien and Siegfreid fell upon the undead mercilessly. Siegfreid's blades sunk into the gaps behind its knees, sending it to the ground once more, and Darien's diamond blade rended two wide gaps into the back of the deformed steel helmet it wore. As the creature fell dead and began to evaporate, cries of victory began to ring out around the battlefield. The skeletons that remained were few in number, and those that remained retreated towards the South. John, more than a little bit disoriented, was only vaguely aware of his brother cursing his name as he helped him to his feet. As he stumbled forward with Shay's help, the Knights of Rose approached.

"The Outrealm fiends are retreating, Sir Rose. It would appear that even these creatures of hell can feel fear," Cilyan called to his superior.

"Indeed. The day is ours, thanks to this young Squire. Tell me boy, what is your name?" Darien asked. John made a clumsy salute and answered.

"John Diamond, Knight Commander Sir," John belted out breathlessly. Darien gave him a nod.

"Well done today, Sir Diamond. Should you remain with The Order, I see a bright future ahead for you despite your low class," Darien offered. Without missing another beat, he turned and began discussing something in hushed tones with the Ranger General. Siegfreid had no respectful nod to offer, but did have 'encouraging' words

"You are undisciplined and reckless, boy. But you risked your life in battle alongside us, and your strength helped win us the day. For that, you have my gratitude. Do not confuse it with respect," Sigfried said to John, before turning to join Darien and Cilyan.

"You're right. I have no real training, and to be honest I almost died a couple of times. Some actual training would be nice..." John said sheepishly, flustered from being complemented by a knight and not realizing Seigfried wasn't listening anymore.

"Brothers, what am I going to do with you?" Shay said angrily, grabbing John by the pauldron. John blinked.

"What's the big deal?" John asked in surprise.

"The big deal is that you nearly got yourself killed pulling that stunt! You must be more careful, brother," Shay warned. John rolled his eyes.

"Spare me, Shay, I was-"

"THE CAMP!" The group heard someone shout. All five present turned and saw Sir Jacque running towards them in a panic. And their hearts sank as they looked past him to the plume of smoke coming from the camp.

Cheers of victory rang through the air, resounding in the minds of every refugee who heard them from the camp. For the first time since the invasion of the undead, the people in the camp of soldiers and refugees had hope. This was the first victory humanity had gained against the Outrealm armies. But as quickly as their hope had come, it was replaced with terror as an explosion rocked the campground and three charcoal-coloured skeleton drew stone swords. Flame licked at the sky and black smoke began to rise from anything flammable near the center of the camp where gunpowder had been stored moments before. The few people who survived the explosion were easily dispatched by the skeletal soldiers, until a crossbow bolt struck one in the face and grabbed the attention of the others. Steve came charging into the flame and smoke with longsword drawn, parrying a strike from one and beheading the other. The skeleton parried his next strike and riposted, but the stone blade missed its mark. Steve's next attack separated the spine just above the hips. Steve turned to look for the woman he had been escorting a moment earlier, not noticing a fourth skeleton emerge from the flames. Its ribcage rattled as it attacked, giving Steve time to react. Not enough. The strike missed Steve but knocked his sword out of his hands and into the blaze.

Steve cursed and ducked away from another strike while his mind raced to make a plan. Fortunately, it wouldn't be necessary. A wooden chair smashed into the skeleton, snapping its bones like brittle twigs. The skeleton fell on its back and the woman from before dropped the chair and rushed over to Steve. She grabbed his hand and dragged him away from the fire, mumbling something about 'boys' and 'recklessness'. Steve followed her lead and they started to run, only stopping when they had reached the East side of camp. They fell to their knees outside of the refugee tents and gasped for breath. Steve took a moment to observe his saviour more closely and realized she wasn't the young woman he had assumed her to be before. In her thirties maybe, but still beautiful. Her hair was golden and shined brightly in the sunlight, and she wore a simple blue dress that exposed her collarbone and shoulders. Around her waist was a white apron, though darkened by spots of grease. Though it was a nice attire, it was now dirtied by soot and slightly torn in some places. Not that she seemed to mind. Her features were sharp and her figure slim, and her skin had a light complexion. She turned to look at him, and Steve finally found his voice.

"Thanks for the rescue, madame. I'm sure I could have handled it, but I appreciate your help all the same," His voice rang out, a bit louder than he had meant.

"You're just lucky I found a chair so quickly when that thing attacked, young man," She chastised in a motherly tone. Then just as suddenly as she had appeared to save him, the woman stood and walked briskly back towards the other side of camp again.

"H-hold on!" Steve shouted, jumping to his feet and rushing after her, "I know you want to find your boys, but you can't be wandering about if we're under attack!"

"I know the risks, I'm finding my boys all the same," She spoke confidently. Her tone left no room for argument, and Steve found that he had none.

"Right then... I may as well accompany you, even though I lost my weapons," Steve reasons with a grimace. It was such a nice sword, and his new crossbow had broken after a single shot...

"As you wish," The woman conceded.

As they rounded a corner, they saw a girl lying on the ground in a small puddle of blood in between two tents. She moved her head to look at them and weakly cried for help. The woman made to help, but Steve grabbed her arm and firmly held her back. She swung her head around, her brown eyes boring into him with anger and confusion. Steve put a finger to his mouth before explaining.

"I have raided plenty of temples in my time and hunted my food for most of my life. I know a trap when I see one," Steve whispered to her. Her look became pleading, and she looked back to the girl, barely able to call for help anymore.

"But..." The woman spoke quietly before Steve cut in.

"I've seen enough wounds in my time too. She wouldn't even survive if we had potions. There's nothing we can do," Steve whispered sadly.

There was a rattle behind them, and Steve's instincts took over. He tackled the woman to the ground, narrowly avoiding a sword cutting through a tent and swiping at them. The skeletal soldier burst through the tear in the tent fabric and thrust its sword toward the two. Steve pushed the woman away and rolled in the opposite direction, once again narrowly avoiding the sword. Steve kicked at the leg of the skeleton and it fell to one knee. It turned its head, and somehow Steve knew that he had made it angry. Steve almost froze at the hatred he saw in those glowing sockets, but kept his senses and got to his feet. The Outrealm skeleton swung its sword at Steve and he leaned to the side, dodging the blade. Before Steve was ready to react again, the creature kicked at the ground and sand flew into Steve's eyes. Effectively blinded, Steve felt the skeleton's foot make contact with his chest and he cried out in pain. The undead raised its sword to finish him and swung it down, but a rock hit its shoulder and knocked the sword away from Steve's chest. The jagged stone grazed Steve's arm, and another rock bounced off the skeleton's head. It turned to face the woman, and as soon as it did Steve kicked out with both legs, bringing the creature to the ground. The woman rushed over, pulling a kitchen knife from her dress and plunging it into the back of the skull of the creature. It crumpled to the ground, nothing more than a pile of rotting bones.

They both relaxed for a moment, breathing heavily as they caught they recovered. The woman crawled over to Steve, silently ripping a part of her dress off to wrap around the gash on his forearm. He grunted and wiped the sand from his eyes, wishing that he had kept his canteen on him as it would have made the process less uncomfortable. Steve looked back to the girl, who had stopped moving completely. He felt a pang of regret for not helping, despite knowing there was nothing he could do. He looked back at the woman as she tightened the fabric around his arm and tied it.

"That isn't necessary, it's just a small wound," He said, slowly sitting up.

"Hush, you. It'll get infected if you don't mend it," She said quietly, finishing her handiwork. The woman sat up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The two of them got up and Steve fell in behind the woman as she started for the center of the camp again.

"...So, you're married then?" Steve asked awkwardly after a moment of silence.

"I was. His name was Connor, and he was the best thing that ever happened to me. He used to be an adventurer like you, but he settled down as farmer to raise a family with me," The woman spoke fondly, then sighed and continued with a longing look in her eye. Steve cringed at his lack of tact, of course the husband must have died in the attack if he wasn't here with her.

"Apologies, that was tactless of me. I'm sorry for your loss," Steve said softly.

"No apology necessary, it happened six years ago. Conner disappeared on a hunting trip. No one could find any trace of him, myself included. I've raised John and Shay myself since then." She explained.

"That must have been hard. But if you don't mind me asking, how did you end up getting separated from your boys?" Steve asked curiously. The woman's look of longing turned to one of concern.

"They have been studying the blade and the battlefield for years now. When the portal opened, they held off the Outrealm fiends long enough for most of the other villagers to get out. But John got hurt. He was lucky; most of those foul creatures had poison-laced weapons, and he was hit with one. He got treated with the medical tents last regeneration potion. Those two are all I have left, and I love them more than anything. I would've taken that blade for him if I could've," She told him.

"That's very brave of them. Reckless too. But I'm sure that they're both fine if they're anything like you," Steve said, smiling at her and doing his best to comfort her. His attempts made no headway in comforting her though, and her worry only increased as they drew nearer to the medical tent. And as Steve began to think, his worry increased as well.

"It's awfully quiet over here..." Steve thought out loud. But before either of them could think any further, the thunder of dozens upon dozens of war boots filled the camp. Soldiers rushed through the camp checking tents and searching for threats while trying to put out the fires. Most of the soldiers paid the two no mind, but Steve noticed two soldiers deviate from the others and rush towards them.

"MOTHER!" John shouted as he ran towards them. Shay followed closely behind him, having discarded his sword and helmet. Steve hardly noticed the woman leave his side until he saw her embracing the two men.

"I was so worried! Don't ever do something that stupid again!" She hugged the boys so tightly her arms hurt, but she was afraid that they would leave again if she let go. John and Shay hugged back just as tightly, having been equally worried about their mother.

"These are your boys I take it?" Steve asked, approaching them. The group ended their embrace as Steve spoke and turned towards him. Shay kept his eyes locked on Steve and John gave his mother a questioning look.

'Who is this?' John thought to himself, looking at a man wearing a blue shirt, blue pants and a ragged brown coat.

"Boys, this man was helping me look for you. And he saved me from an Outrealm fiend, so be nice to him for goodness sake!" Their mother fussed. Shay approached Steve and offered his hand to shake. Steve took it without a moment's hesitation.

"My name is Shay. You have my deepest gratitude for saving my mother. How can we repay you?" Shay asked. His face looked strong, but John could still see the look his brother had on his face when they saw the camp on fire in his mind's eye. Shay hadn't looked so worried since the day that their father had missed dinner.

"Are you okay? Have you eaten? Where have you... What is this you're wearing?" John heard his mother ask him. John's mind blanked. Had they forgotten to tell her about the battle?

"For the love of Notch, tell me you didn't go straight from that tent back into battle!?" She seemed a tad frantic as she spoke.

'Oops,' thought John, 'I guess we didn't.'

"Um...I was cosplaying?" John said with little confidence, his last-ditch effort to get out of trouble.

"Don't start with me, young man! I just stabbed an undead soldier to death. Don't think I'll hesitate to confine you to your room for a month!" She spoke harshly, but kindly. John could never figure out how she managed to convey anger and love at the same time through her tone. Maybe it was magic?

"Sorry mother, but I had to do something! I couldn't stand by while those things destroyed everything we love," John stated honestly, knowing he couldn't lie to his mother.

"And at what cost? If I lose you and Shay I lose everything! The village was already gone, certainly not worth your lives!" She argued back. Shay and Steve were a few feet away watching the exchange awkwardly, and there was shouting in the distance.

"What about father? He went into those woods to hunt because our neighbours couldn't do it for themselves! He was always ready to help anyone who needed it. What kind of man would I be if I had the strength to fight but sat back while people died on my behalf?" John regretted bringing his father into the argument the moment he saw his mother's eyes start to water.

And then he saw it. Right there in the corner of his eye, he saw a black skeletal figure come crashing through some burning debris and charge them. It happened so fast that he could only turn to look before it was upon him. The cold empty sockets stared into his soul, jagged stone sword already in motion to run him through. It all seemed to happen in slow motion, and John thought about his last words. He didn't regret any of his actions, but his final words to his mother would be ones of frustration. Words that made her cry. That he regretted. And then time caught up. John's chestplate was splattered with crimson liquid, but he felt no pain. When John saw what the sword had pierced, his stomach dropped and his heart skipped a beat. For the first time in his life, John screamed.

"MOTHER!"

Fred_/ Well, that concludes the second chapter of the Infected Rose rewrite.

Ike_/ So it does. Lots of action in this chapter. It was supposed to be longer, and have a bunch of plot/storytelling in it but we cut it short for the sake of getting you wonderful people a chapter before Christmas. Before we take our leave, we would like to thank everyone who favourited, followed and reviewed. We love seeing feedback, and it really does encourage us to write.

Fred_/ As I always say, this writing machine runs on feedback. And a large amount of coffee.

Ryan_/ Well that sounds familiar...

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