Two darkened hearts were to become one, but they were separated by the threads of Fate.
Now they find themselves stranded in a cold, hostile world alongside only a handful of survivors, ruled over by a dark, omnipresent force.
Though they are not to...
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The sky, dotted with shining stars, beaming with moonlight, was above us when we spied the city of Clemence up ahead. It stood out from the hillside dramatically, its hewn stone walls, wrought of brick upon mortared brick of very good qualities, banners flapping in the breeze on either side of a large wooden drawbridge that extended over a moat of hastily carved wooden poles, cut in to crude, but effective points on the end facing upward. It seemed to me like said spikes were made quickly and without much time to do so, I guessed that they were one of the first fortifications to be made here. For a settlement that situated in a new, essentially untamed land, it was built surprisingly well.
Still, it was quite small; I guessed that it held a population of, at the most, three-thousand people if it was not jam-packed with ten or more people living in the same house. It was made to be defensible, not populous. Adding to this theory were the well-guarded walls, with archers with bows or crossbows slung across their backs lining it well. There had to be more than met the eye with this world. We had not come across even one "bumper" on our way here, save for the pack that had assaulted me. Was there something far more lethal out there, something more insidious, something more sinister than the faceless creatures I had seen thus far?
I sincerely hoped not.
"Whaddaya think of 'er, scrag?" Jolly asked me, pride filling his gruff voice. "That there's Clemence. A beauty, ain't she?"
"She is, indeed." I said in agreement. Then I asked the question that was on my mind. "Pray tell, why is it so heavily fortified? Are bumper attacks quite common?"
"Nay, but there's worse out there than them things, scrag." Jolly replied, his tone abruptly shifting to seriousness. "Far worse."
Jolly's name was, generally speaking, fitting for the person to which it was assigned. Even when he was telling the story of the wizard who had accidentally summoned the vile creatures through magic, not even then did his tone of voice go so low as it did in that moment, and it would be a very long time before it would go to that level again. It was enough to silence me with a sort of unspoken command to not ask any more questions on the subject, at least not right then.
We all walked slowly to the drawbridge, and then Thelma let out a loud shout that sounded like something not dissimilar to a bird call.
"Who goes there?" a voice shouted from the top of the walls.
"It is I, Thelma Dargas, and my men, returning from our quest in the Pasture!"
"Who's the other one?" the voice shouted.
"Me?" I yelled.
"Yes, you!" the voice shouted back at me. "Who are you?"
"I am Theris, the Bloodied, son of Thedian, Slayer of Evil." I yelled, forgetting momentarily that I wished to keep my nickname something of a secret. I internally scolded myself, and then the guard asked me another question.
"Do you have a last name?" the guard shouted to me.
"Is 'the Bloodied' not a last name?" I asked, seeing that the guard clearly wanted to have a bit of fun with me. Whether it was good natured ultimately remained to be seen, but I humored him.
"By the gods, it is not!" the guard bellowed. "It's an epitaph, not a legally binding surname! And if it was, who would willingly keep that as their name? Why not be named Smith, or Frederickson, or perhaps even Zargon?"
"Because Smith is boring, Frederickson is pretentious, and Zargon is silly!"
"Smith, Frederickson, come here and open the gate!" the guard cried. "Thelma, you brought us back a talker this time, thank the gods!"
"Just out 'ere doin' whatever 't is I can, if I can, Zargon." Thelma said as the drawbridge lowered slowly over the moat.
"Come on through, you all!" Zargon said.
We walked through the gate on to a dirt street lit sparsely with torches, buildings such as taverns, houses, inns and shops lining its sides. I smiled, it seemed that I would probably be well taken care of here. Still, I needed clothing, because once again the cold winds were picking up, and all I wore was a cloak.
We turned left on to another wide street, and then, right next to an inn and tavern combined, we took yet another left and found ourselves at some empty stables. Clearly, this was a place where my newfound compatriots had boarded before, and I was rather glad that I had Thelma, Jolly, and Hark as friends.
"It feels so great to be back in town." Hark said. "I can't wait to go eat some mutton."
"Calm yer arse, down, Hark." Thelma said. "Yer gonna get fat."
"You two know I can run faster than anyone in Clemence. All of that meat turns to muscle and nothing else."
"Then ye better get yerself some more afore winter comes, then." Thelma replied. "Could be lean times this year."
"But with Theris here, I'm sure that we can raid the greenhouse! They won't stand a chance against someone who can already wield a sword!"
"Enough, Hark, don't leave your lips flappin' too long." Jolly warned. "Theris, don't worry about a thing tonight, got it?"
"That is just fine." I said. "But what is this talk about mutton, anyhow?"
Jolly laughed and clapped me on the back. "Oh ho! You'll see, oh bloodied one. You'll see. But first, before we take ye out in public, I think pants are in order."
"Agreed." I said. "Where can I purchase some clothing?"
"Purchase? Not you. It's all on us. But as far as where, well, it's the same place everyone does." Jolly said, motioning for me to follow him.
We made a right turn out of the stables, then he turned to look at the large, well-maintained inn and tavern adjacent to it.
"This place's called the Everything Emporium." Jolly said. I looked through the windows on the front to see a packed restaurant with patrons of every stripe coming and going from the front bar. Around the room, patrons tore in to large hunks of well-done meat, and my mouth began to water. A whiff of the smells inside was enough to make my body remember food once more, and I smiled widely.
"Mail, mutton, mercenaries, this place is the center of Clemence's nightlife. On weekends there are exotic dancers, too!" Hark said, grinning wider than I.
"Hark, please." Thelma said sternly. "Not in good company."
"Sorry, new guy." Hark said, not seeming to mean it much. I remembered when I was his age, and I was happy I could filter my speech to more mature, appropriate levels now.
"Well," I began. "I believe some hot meals are in order."
Author's Note: Hey, thanks for stopping by and reading chapter 10! I really appreciate the feedback and the votes, thank you so much :D Please make sure to vote and leave your feedback in the comments below. Thanks again!
