"Mother! Mother! A young boy called out, short of breath, came rushing inside the cottage with a black cat trailing just behind him, " I caught a rabbit, mother." He was a twelve years old boy. And his hair was as dark as a moonless night and his eyes, brown. On his face, a claw scar ran down his right eyed side. He was slim with few muscles to boost around with. In his right hand,he held a rabbit a well fed rabbit, by it's long ears and a slingshot on the other.
"That's great Alekk!" exclaimed the boys mother,'how about today evening I prepare some rabbit stew and boiled potatoes. Doesn't that sound good?"
On hearing these,the boy couldn't help but let out a squeal, nodding in agreement, with his face glowing radiantly out of excitement. He was clearly eager for her great cooking by the looks of it.
" That's sound delicious just thinking of it. I can't wait for evening to come! " said Alekk with drools forming at the edges of his mouth .
"I hope you will enjoy it, Alekk, " said his mother as she stroked his fluffy hair, "You see today it's extra special."
"How so mother?" asked Alekk inquisitively.
"It's a special day for me,you see son, it's the day I got you, Alekk, " answered his mother,stroking his hair gently and affectionately.
"The day you got me?!" Alekk asked confused. He didn't understand anything,for you see, his mother, Lylyth, had not opened up about how he came to be his mother. She hated the thought of losing the son she could never love. Alekk , since from that fateful day, had become a blessing to her.
"The day that i gave birth to you, " replied Lylyth, as she slowly headed back to her small kitchen. Alekk stood there still holding the dead rabbit in his hands as the black cat boringly went to lie on the bed. It meowed as it watched a mother and son converse. She recalled the day their paths had crossed;a child in bloody garments and its friend.
The wolf was unfortunately already dead and a little being,who didn't know the peril it had been saved from,had her to thank for it's given life. It laughed and smiled holding onto the thin strings of hope that it's dark fate was not about to show its face again. Lylyth,dying out in her loneliness, too had been saved from her fate of hermitry. Twelve years had passed since then with the child she had found at her doorstep,now a young man of good character as her own son. Lylyth loved him to a fault. " The day I had you Alekk was the happiest in my life... till this day i always thank that i had you son?!"
Alekk stood there moved to tears. He knew she loved him and so did he,and she never got tired of letting him know so. Joyous tears rolled down his clawed face, so moved that it was a mammoth task for him to talk as of that moment. Shyly, he quickly wiped them dry with his patched up shirt so that his mother would not see him and think of him as a cry baby. Alekk was, after all, the man of the house. He needed to be brave. For her and himself.
It was almost noon and Lylyth, like always, had already prepared something to eat for his ever growing son:a pot of vegetable broth and some oat bread. Alekk, famished, gorged down his portion of food in merely few seconds,gulping it down with a goblet of water. Alekk so nearly full let out a burp-a short burp. Lylyth,on seeing and hearing her son let out a growing manly burp, couldn't help but let out a laugh of how her son's appetite was growing more and more bigger at each passing year. Heartedly,she was proud of the boy seated opposite of her.
"You must have been quite hungry, Alekk? " Lylyth asked,smiling. Alekk, a bit abashed ,laughed it off hating to trouble his mother with his hunger pangs.
"Aah....not really mother, " answered Alekk, trying to shrug it off. " I can hold on until supper, mother." Lylyth knew her son all to well to be naive that he was lying.
"Alekk, there are some leftover bread and broth in the kitchen. You can help yourself to some more, son! " Clearly happy about it, Alekk jumped off his stool and walked to the kitchen. Lylyth was the happiest of them both, with her broadening smile all too evident.
"Alekk!"she called him out. Alekk came out rushing with his mouth swollen full. "Yes mother?! " Alekk asked almost choking.
"Skin the rabbit after you are done eating."
"Alright mother, "Alekk replied walking back to the kitchen to finish what he'd already started. Lylyth returned to her own task at hand; finishing the food still on her plate. She was truly blessed. Alekk, having finished with his extra bowl of food , and skinning the fur off the rabbit, went out to fetch for water and cooking wood. Their pet, the black cat, never left his side as if it were guarding him from unknown dangers. Their cottage wasn't far from the forest and there, a waterfall roared. On a scorching high noon sun, and with lots of time to spare,he couldn't help but think of a nice way to cool himself off. Just a thought it was,a thought he liked very much and a thought it came to be.
Alekk took off in haste, carrying with him a wooden pail, to the waterfall that still sprayed down with a thud like he always remembered each time he felt an urge to cool himself in it.Still, it was no different this time around nor any other time. The water was as clear as ever and a school of fish that breed there were as magnificent as they had always been. Alekk always had a soft spot for this place as he undressed himself hastily in urgency.
Here he was free to be himself like a little boy that he was;for at home he needed to man up, splashing the water and playing himself silly. Here, he found his freedom. The cat took a quick nap under a tree,to cool itself off from the scorching sun.
Alekk never got bored with his child-like antics. With the sweetness of the cold water caressing his body,he had already fallen for it's bewitching magic yet again, that time passed by without him realizing the encroaching darkness.
It was a few hours to twilight and on noticing that night was approaching, Alekk speedily got out of the water,to go search for cooking wood. Luckily,there was no scarcity of it ,as for water, well, that wasn't quite a bigger deal.It was in plenty to worry about.
Shivering,he hastily wore in his raggedly clothes as he quickly rushed off to gather up the firewood, leaving behind the pail, which he intend to come back for it afterwards. The cat, awake now, followed him suit from behind like a lurking shadow.
In he went, to the forest of the damned and there,deep within the accursed place, his skin crawled in fear and the claw marks on his face burnt like a blacksmith furnace like it also did. He loathed to his gut coming to this place. Alekk never knew the reason behind his fears but something in him always ignited the scar on his face and every time,he felt the urge to burn it down to nothing but ashes. He had always thought of himself as a brave boy but this forest seemingly quelled him into a flea, something easy to be crushed.
"I need to get out of here as soon as I'm done collecting the firewood! "Alekk said to himself with his heart racing and his sweat dripping. His pet cat, now seemed unease about something. It purred and purred seemingly trying to catch Alekk's attention, wagging it's tail repeatedly.
It was getting pretty uncomfortable for Alekk with his prolonged stay in the forest,and thoughtfully sought to get out as soon as he had done gathering his firewood. As he was tying the logs of wood, he caught the uneasiness of his pet cat just by the edge of his eyes . It was restless, purring loudly;something very unusual of it.
The cat aggressively begun to mount against Alekk's worn out trousers,trying to grub onto him,to lead him somewhere or warn him of something that was about to happen. Alekk was too nervous to think straight. Noticing that the boy had yet to take a hint, it dashed off leaving Alekk rooted and dumbstruck, oblivious of his pet cat desertion.
Restlessly, Alekk tied the bundle of firewood at haste. On tying ,he hauled the bundle of firewood onto his shoulder, taking off back home. Alekk begun to notice that the cat was running towards the cottage, with his thoughts ramming againist each other fearful of the unknown. Yet he couldn't help but hope that the cat's unusual behavior was nothing more than a false alarm, although something inside of him feared the worst.
As he ran, faster as his legs could carry him, outside their cottage a party of fifteen strong Aldian's soldiers,hooded in black cloaks,stood there looking all the more menacingly. With nothing but gloomy faces donning on everyone's faces, a dark fate loomed around the entire surrounding.They were armed with all manners of weaponry; from shields, swords and Lance's. A soldier, probably a high ranking amongst the fifteen soldiers sat on the back of his horse.
He was Captain Hahn Bludd,of Squad Two,but his comrades came to call him as Hahn Bludd the demon. He was a ruthless soldier whose little remorse for his victims made him a target of rumours against him. And so the word passed from one person to the next and soon enough,he had come to earn himself an epithet,a name unrivaled by anyone since his induction as a witch hunter. An epithet mirroring him so well, one would've mistaken him for the devil himself.
A soldier, his lieutenant,came forward to inform him, about the person of interest whom they had been searching for the last seven years.
"Captain, this must be house of the traitorous hag whom we have been searching for! " the vice- captain informed him.
"I see! " captain Hahn Bludd replied back nodding. " Call her out"
"Right away captain! "responded lieutenant Dunn Stale. Lylyth peeked at them through a small opening on her window. There, outside her small shabby wooden cottage,bloodthirsty men waited for her with swords and lances.
"Lylyth the witch! Come out,you are surrounded. You have nowhere to run,"he called her out. She was hesitant to yield but she feared for Alekk,whom she was expecting to be returning any time soon,was going be caught up in the ugly mess that was unfolding. Their captain sat patiently on his saddle, with his right hand inches away from his sword strapped on a belt with a shiny silvered buckle, while his other hand held the horse's rein.
He had grey hair and an ear else. His face was full of scars,many to count or i dare say, to look at but a firm built body made him stand out from the rest of his soldiers. Wearing leathery boots and the famed squad's black leather vests,he was any witches nightmare.
Lylyth after contemplating her few given options, came to a conclusion that they were all void and dull. She was utterly and completely helpless. Walking at a sluggish pace, she let herself out, and Captain Hahn Bludd seeing little resistance out of her, dismounted from his horse but still cautious knowingly all to well what she was capable of. His hand was now more closer to his sword, ready to draw it out and strike her down at any slight glimpse of a surprise attack from her.
Cautiously, he walked towards her not even batting an eye for a second. Finally,he stood on his tracks, gazing at her face to face, at a safe distance. Suddenly, without warning,he struck her down with a thunderous slap enough to split the heavens into two. Lylyth,on her knees,spitting out blood , glared upon her oppressor with spite.
"Get up!" Hahn Bludd commanded. Weakly, she got up staggering and the blood that was spurting out of her mouth,before the captain could talk further,in rage,she spat out the blood onto his face. Lylyth seeing his disgust, broke into laughter,mockingly.
Captain Hahn Bludd,visibly agitated , ragefully struck her down again, as he carefully wiped her demonic blood off himself with a cloth. Lylyth now was kissing the ground, as she continued spurting out her own blood, groaning and cursing.
"You know that your demonic blood is hard to wash off!"the captain roared,grimacing, "It still stinks of your kind,no matter how many time I bath and scrub myself. Yours stink the most, witch! "Lylyth on her knees smirked spitefully, knowing all too well how reeking his stench from down below nauseated her more.
"Then you better scrub your balls harder, "Lylyth responded grinning,with her teeth all stained with blood, " cause they smell bloody awful down from here."
Now the captain was beyond enraged, he was livid, kicking her mercilessly right into her unguarded belly, with his men staring on dumbstruck.Their captain wasn't called a demon for nothing. He was the incarnate of devil himself, a zealot to his kings beliefs, in flesh and hate.
Lylyth shrieked in agony, spurting out more blood and as soon as he had grown tired, with his leg growing heavy and numb,Captain Hahn Bludd ordered for his men to tie her onto a tree and douse her body with oil .Lylyth, weak to defend herself anymore, was swooped off the ground to a nearby drying tree. Two soldiers carried her off, tying her tightly and pouring animal oil all over her body as captain Hahn Bludd stepped forward to light her up himself.
"You know Lylyth , your king has been aching for your blood for so long, "he said as he lit up a torch. " For years you've eluded us for so long that we always had to put up with the king constant breathing down on our necks for so long but you,of all people,it was rather expected. To hid in the one place that would never have raised suspicion. That was rather ingenious of you, Lylyth,to conceal your location and presence so well. So tell me, witch,why someone such as you would leave yourself so unusually vulnerable, that you couldn't even raise a finger against us? You, who was feared by everyone! Tell me, you frigging Witch!"
Right in the middle of his fiery interrogation,Alekk, panting and drenching in sweat, arrived together with his pet cat to a nightmare that they were not expecting to see or find. His mother tied up to a tree, bruised and bleeding.As he stood there, staring at the horror before him that he instantly hoped it was nothing more than a nightmarish dream or something of a distasteful jest being played on him but that wasn't the case. He was wide awake and this was no a jest of any sort.
Unable to come to terms with it,Alekk in fear, dropping the bundle of firewood off his shoulder as they fell in a loud heap, let out a deafening yell for what he was seeing; his mother tied and bleeding.The soldiers quickly on hearing the frightful yell, turned their heads behind their shoulders and there,Alekk stood before them. He was in tears, trembling and heaving out of breath,one of the soldiers,at the rear end,jumped onto him, grabbing him by his throat. As he tightened his grip on Alekks throat, to his near death,Lylyth, fearful for her son's life, let out a cry for mercy,begging them to spare him.
"You've got me, please let my son go!"she asked pleadingly. Tears continued to stream down her bruised face. Nothing as at that moment seemed dire, not even her life, other than her precious son's life. Those eyes screamed of despair and desperation in them. To be such helpless and hopeless was more heart shattering than facing death. Alekk was the only true treasure she had. His arrival had saved her from living a miserable life alone. Her love for him was the epitome of her regaining back her lost humane part. Which she had lost like most of hundred of thousands witches that she knew of.
"Son?! Your son, you say?"asked Captain Hahn Bludd surprised by it."Is he the reason why you let your guard down?! How pathetic,a demon spawn,of all things."
"Please i beg you, spare my sons life! " she pleaded as her tears drenched her body. "Spare my son! "
"Mother! " Alekk yelled after struggling to get loose from his grip. The cat grew more agitated , purring and snarling,with its tail raised as it readied to take down all of the enemies on sight.
The harsh purring and snarling caught the ears and eyes of Captain Hahn Bludd, who was all to well aware of the danger that it posed. And he knew better than confronting it head on.
"I will do spare his life, if you can tell your cat to stand down, "he proposed, with his hand laying on the hilt.
"Then release my son first, before anything else,"Lylyth added, breathing heavily. Her gaze hadn't for a single second left Alekk sight. Not a batting an eye,she fixed her eyes only on him. Her life would've been meaningless if her son were to lose his life in the process.
"Okay. You there,let go of the boy, "Captain Hahn Bludd ordered. And slowly, the soldier let his grip loose and Alekk, now free and in tears, sought to save his mother. As the soldier, standing naively at ease and too casually to keep an eye on the boy. Alekk, with one swift kick to his groin, had him crouching down on the ground in excruciating pain. Swiftly, Alekk drew out his sword from it's leather sheath, a heavy steel longsword.
"You will let my mother go! "Alekk demanded, trembling and in tears, "Or else i will kill you all. " He stood his ground, holding onto a four kilograms of steel in his frail arms.His hands were getting heavier and shaky. He couldn't raise it above his knees. Yet he was unwilling to cower in fright of them.
"So,you will kill us all, demon spawn? We are fourteen more other than that fool you stole the sword from, how willll you make it to all the way here, to your demon mother?! " Captain Hahn Bludd asked, mocking his little courage.
"I don't care how many of you are,but I'm going to rescue my mother even if it means costs me a life! " Alekk yelled,tears rolling slithering down his cheeks.
Lylyth looked at him, afraid for him,yet somehow proud of the brave boy that he had become. For her son was all that she had and loved as tears streamed down her bruised cheeks. She was breaking and hurting, way more than she was showing,deep down.
"Alekk! "Lylyth yelled out ." You must leave these place at once, son." Alekk just stared at her, whimpering like a frightened puppy as tears began to slither down on all four of the claw marks like streams. His mother was just right there, so close for him to save her yet so far, with a formidable army of soldiers blocking his way.
They stood there looking all menacingly, with their murderous grins scaring Alekk all the more. In midst of their chilling gazes and glares,Alekk was fighting an unseen battle before them. A battle of subduing his helplessness at being unable to do anything other than cry himself to tears. This wasn't how he had envisioned the day would end.
Like usual,he was to bring back a bundle of firewood for his mother to cook with but nothing, such as this had even slightly crossed his mind would happen. Instead of arriving to a warm felt smile of his mother, there was nothing but tears and anguish ravaging both son and mother.
It was the first time for him to see his mother's tears. Not once,in his blissful twelve years of living with her, had she ever cried before. And each tear she broke,it pained him more.
Alekk, despite mustering of the little courage that he could summon,was still weak in body and mind. But not even that could douse his conviction of saving the only person who mattered to him the most.
"I will save you mother,and then we shall escape together ,"Alekk replied soaked in his own tears. On pouring out his intentions,the soldiers hysterically broke into a scornful gale of laughter. This only wounded Alekk all the more. So was lylyth. She now more than before loathed them for laughing at her son's gallant courage. For the first time, since that day she felt like absconding her past self and maul them to nothing but shreds of flesh and bones. But she couldn't. Her oath, taken even before Alekk came into the picture,was sworn by invoking a blood binding magic.
Then Alekk came into her life and that oath, taken over five centuries ago, strengthened her with the twelve years of nursing, changing his dirty nappies and dressing up his wounds, whenever he came back home injured, bathing him, and cooking for someone else other than herself, were her reasons for holding back the beast within her. She couldn't let him see that ugly side of her. Lylyth feared what he would come to think of her late after. She feared for her only son, after seeing that part of herself that she sought to conceal the truth away from him, would quiver before after having set his eyes upon her ugly hidden side.
Those chances were not worth risking for. It was for the better if she only would die without wishing to see of such unpleasant fate come to be. Quietly, lylyth took a large deep breath, grateful for being given a choice between to die loved or live with a son scared of her. She was glad. That there was still such a fate within the many graspable fates Infront of her.
"Alekk! My son, my sweet wonderful Alekk, " Lylyth called out,weeping."You must save yourself son, you have been a blessing any mother could wish for, i'm begging you have to run away from these place."
It was growing burdensome for Alekk to subdue his pent up shame any more and the brave man that he had hoped to be was losing to fear while letting his mother see his cowardly tears,yet surprisingly she wasn't angry with him. No demeaning words were coming out of her mouth. Nor was her face written of disappoinment unlike his earlier fears.
Lylyth, mustering a crooked smile,loved him still despite of his fears and his pool of tears. Not even once had such thoughts crossed her mind even one bit.After all, Alekk was still her sweet young boy.
"Mother! I love you! " he yelled,as swelled tears rolled down his cheeks, dripping down to the now unbearable ground that he stood on.And with that he dashed off,leaving a flurry of dust behind him,to escape from the unsightly nightmare behind him.
As he fled deep into the forest of the damned, Captain Hahn Bludd trod nonchalantly towards her, smirking as he hurled a torch of fire, setting alight the oil that had been earlier doused on Lylyth's body,there and then. As she burnt to death,anguishing in unimaginable pain, Lylyth uncontrollably let out a terrifying scream,a thunderous scream,that echoed throughout the forest.
.
Sadly enough,Alekk heard every bit of it, the screams of his dying mother. On hearing her agonizing screams, unable to bear the pain anymore,Alekk broke into a sea of tears, as his heart kept shattering into pieces.
Out of breath and alone with his breaking ticker, Alekk stopped to catch a gasp of breath,deep inside the forest as the light got chased off by the impending darkness. All by himself, in the forest of the damned, he wept uncontrollably blaming himself for not being a good son ,for not having saved his weeping mother. He hated his very being. He blamed his weak heart and body. In his moment of anger, Alekk swore to hunt and kill each and everyone of them, for making his mother cry and taking her away from him.
Right behind him,rumbling footsteps closed nearer towards him. The soldiers had been trailing him, seeking to finish him off like his mother. They were closing in, and Alekk still in tears,hit the legs running,for behind him a pack of bloodthirsty hounds desired nothing more than to have his head. Tired fromnrunning more than he usual did,his legs were tiering,failing him in his hour of need.
Finally, he was at the waterfall,drench in sweat, panting vigorously that a gasp of breath was as precious to him as a bowl of his mother's cooking. He slowly walked towards the big river rock near the fall,as his heart raced and throbbing almost to nearly bursting out from his chest.Alekk now stood at the precipice of the fall, seeing better to end it all rather than be caught or worse be burnt to death.The soldiers soon caught up to him, reaching the waterfall, out of breath,and there he stood, cursing and hating them, with his scathing teary eyes.
"Don't you dare jump, runt! "said one of the soldiers, panting. But Alekk kept quiet, only glaring at them in anger.
"Let's talk it over, boy, "pleaded another soldier. Still Alekk kept quiet. No sign of him giving into their demands was evident in his eyes. They were full of resolve. Screaming, they spoke unheard to them "Better to die by my own choosing rather than to be chosen for." With Alekk's resolute resolve,he calmly let himself fall off the cliff, unafraid of his demise. Shocked, the soldiers mouths were left wide opened, believing not even with their eyes.Captain Hahn Bludd arrived at the fall anticipating to find a lifeless body riddled with sword wounds or at least a captured son of a demon but...
"Did you kill or capture him?! " he asked roaringly. They all kept quiet, not knowing what to tell him, exchanging quick glances at each other, wishing for someone to stand out and break the news for him of what really had just happened.
"Will anyone of you scoundrels answer me !" captain Hahn Bludd barked angrily. One of the soldiers stepped up.
"Captain, the boy killed himself, " he answered.
"What do you mean killed himself? Where is his body for me to see for myself?! " the captain inquired lividly.
"He jumped off the waterfall, captain, "lieutenant Dunn Stale informed. .
"Is that so?"asked captain Hahn Bludd.
"Yes captain, we saw with our very own eyes, "another soldier stressed. Captain Hahn Bludd slowly walked towards its edge,the fall was long and many huge river stones laid down below it,and down he looked on the thundering might of a waterfall . No man or a mere boy could survive such a fall,he thought. Satisfied, he saw no need to search for the boy's dead body.
"We head back to the capital, soldier's! "he barked.
"Yes, captain!" they all agreed back in unison. Captain Hahn Bludd and his squad began to head out,back to the capital,as darkness quietly approached the kingdom and royal palace,and at the same time,beasts of prey were now waking up from their slumber ready to start their reign over the moonless night.
As the river continued to flow, flowing far away from the jaws of the vicious men and beasts, and in the waters an almost lifeless body flowed along with it. The waterfall continued to roar, and the birds too continued to chirp and the beasts that roamed the forest soon begun to growl,for the night had come with darkness , creeping quietly, seeking to rein over it.