The Side Character's Apprentice

A WAKE-UP CALL

I stared in shock as the word Lanken escaped Sayla's lips. It took forever for them to get to where I was. I could see them travel slowly as I followed the path they followed. Neither Ara, Anak, nor I could move an inch as we tried to grasp the severity of the situation. Perhaps that was why Eric had so much time to shake Sayla violently as though the answers would pop right out of her.

"Lanken? What do you mean by that?" he said, as he grew even more aggressive. He had spent all his life hating them for the loss he suffered because of them. His only reprise in life was Master Lui, and even he was plagued with the hatred of the Lankens, strengthening his resolve even more so.

"Leave her be, Eric," Ara said as he pulled him away. He had finally had enough of Eric.

"What is this? You're defending her?" Eric snapped.

"She's just a kid. A kid we can't lay a finger on if she doesn't want us to. Do you really believe that violence is the answer to this problem?" Ara said.

"I'm starting to think you're all in on this. First, Jayden here refuses to admit that there are beasts in the mountain. Sayla takes us to God knows where. And now you're stopping me from getting information off her. Maybe this is why Master Lui sent me!"

"Get your head out of your ass! You're not anything special. You're just like every one of us. The only reason you're here is that you're a student of one of the sages. Just like the rest of us. You're no hero. You're no saviour. And if it wasn't for Ara here, I would drop you on the spot," Anak snapped.

"Right. Maybe you're right. Maybe you're not. But I can say one thing for sure. I am nothing like you and certainly nothing like the coward Jayden who's just sitting there enjoying the show!"

And there I was, sitting on the ground with my back against a tree watching as things unfolded. It did seem like it would drag on for much longer so I thought I'd get a better view of the whole thing.

"Well don't stop now," I said.

"Why you!!!" Eric yelled as he charged toward me. I scurried to my feet, but Ara put himself between the two of us.

"And what do you think you're doing?" he demanded. His eyes narrowed so much, that Eric understood the message without another word.

"Let's all calm down. You do know he is the next main character, right?" I said.

"What is with you and this main character thing?" Eric asked, for the first time, without a temper. He was still a bit shaken from Ara's intense gaze.

"Well, in life, there are main characters, villains, side characters and extra. Master Lui is what you would call a main character. So, by default, you'd be next. We're just side characters' apprentices," I said.

"That makes zero sense," Eric said.

"To me it does."

"You better get her to talk. We don't have all day." Eric bellowed. Ara remained between the two of us as he pulled Sayla to the side. Whether it was to protect me or Sayla, I had no idea, but I felt a lot safer with him between Eric and me. No way I wanted to go through what happened at Airen.

"Relax," I said, but the stares from Anak and Ara made me perplexed. "What?"

"Do you remember anything?" Ara asked.

"What? What does that even mean?" I asked. But before I could say anything further, a terrible headache struck me. Almost like when Eric hit me, but with a stronger intent to kill. A memory from a person I never met. It was too much to grasp, but they spoke in an ominous tone that made me shudder. That was one issue. The second issue was how the hell did Ara know I would remember something?

"Ara---" before I could say more, Anak tackled me, shoving me out of the path on an arrow that was certainly meant for me. Without wasting a second, she flinged a dagger that takes out the archer.

A beast-like creature came out of nowhere and before it had a chance to attack us, Eric pulled out a short sword from within his jacket, cut both its arms and slit its throat. He was the real deal alright.

"A Kodachi?" Anak asked.

"You know your swords," Eric replied with a smug face.

Eric turned to me with disgust as I remained petrified on the ground. "Yes, they exist. Get a hold of yourself," he said.

But something else terrified me. A truth I was not ready to face. A crumbling reality that everything I knew was a lie. But what was even worse was that I couldn't fathom how anyone wouldn't think I was insane if I told them.

"Snap out of it, Jayden. We need to move now!" Ara yelled as he grabbed a hold of Sayla.

Anak pulled me to my feet and we took to our heels avoiding the rain of arrows that followed moments later. The arrows did not stop until we were well out of the village. But even still, we did not stop.

"That was a distorted space. It happens whenever the Lankens are being resurrected!" I said as we ran through the mountains.

"And you know that how?" Eric asked. I could feel his scepticism grow, and rightfully so.

"I have no idea. I just do! I think I always knew, but the memory just came to me," I said.

"You all have a lot of explaining to do," Eric said.

"Of course," a strange voice said from amidst us. Before any of us could react, he seized Sayla from Ara's hands and jumped ahead of us, blocking our path. He reeked of an eerie, ominous aura. A reminder that death was real and that life after death was not as pleasant as we hoped. His wide smile almost split his face in half as he creepily stared at Sayla and Eric.

"What a stroke of fortune. The host and the key, all in the same place," he said.