Kingdom of Hallos, The Fractured Sea, Present day.
The night was still young as the ship swayed slowly. The waves crashed against the sides, occasional droplets ricocheting and landing on Xeto's cheek as he sat looking off the edge and into the vast dark waters. He had failed. Despite everything, his efforts were for naught. In the end he failed as a member of the Demon-Hunt, running from a city that needed him. But more than that, not only did he fail the innocent he swore to protect, but he failed his best friend. Roy was gone, taken by Zuland. Adulfus had informed of everything he witnessed when they met back on the shore. In the middle of all the chaos, Roy had tried saving Sara from Roxas who had killed King Ered. But in doing so he was teleported away to gods-know-where alongside that murderer. Was she never in league with the Shadowcreed? He then remembered how she has spoken of how they had tried to kill her once before. Then why or how did she have him? His focused remained on Lionslayer that sat motionless near the bow of the ship. "What are you?" he mouthed. Roxas had said that it—he…was an undead. Could that have been true?
The dark-skinned man, Erik took a seat beside him. "Why the look of dread? You escaped death today."
Xeto leaned into his palm as he looked back into the sea. "What does it matter if I failed my friend."
The burly man scratched his stubble. "Failed? Hmmm, I wouldn't say that."
Despite the cold winds, Xeto's mind ignited with thoughts of disdain. "No? He's with the enemy, an enemy that would kill him first chance they're given."
"What makes you so sure?"
"Zuland is made up of nothing but cowards and monsters that relish the idea of hurting others. You can't sway me; I've seen the deaths they've caused firsthand."
"In my years I've also seen death, so much so to know that monsters lie in wait everywhere. To appoint the title of monster on a single nation and assume they're all unworthy of kindness is childish."
Xeto felt his annoyance grow. "Then let it be childish, I don't care."
"Do you really think you can pin all of the world's struggles on a single event or person? If it were that simple, we would have been rid of conflict long ago."
Xeto sighed as he pictured Boltrick in his mind. A second later an image of Sara. Both needed to die.
"I know the look, the one you bear now. Hatred and anger, it was the same emotions your brother had when he came to me all those years ago."
Xeto lips parted before voicing his thoughts. "What do you about my brother?"
Erik stood and looked down at him chastely. "Just that I owed him a debt. One that has now been repaid."
"You know more than that," snapped Xeto.
Erik inhaled slowly. "I do, but that'll be a story for another time. It's been a chaos-filled day and you need to rest. Not only for tomorrow, but for what's coming. I suspect you have a lot to prepare for…as do your companions." He walked off across the moonlit ship before vanishing into the darkness of the lower deck.
Xeto sighed. Erik was right, an unbearable truth. When he and Rebecca started this campaign, he thought he would find answers at the end of this road of hardships. Instead, he was left with more questions. What was the Shadowcreed and how did they fit into this enigma? What would happen now that Ered was dead? He paused as that answer came to him. The conflict between Loradel and Zuland would grow, that much was inevitable. A war was coming, one fought with the living and the dead. But neither would stop him from seeing his friend again. Roy. Keep your promise. I won't let it end like this…of that I can promise you.
End of Book 1 of The Forbidden Aura Saga: Direwolf