� Why do you want to go?� a familiar voice asked the sapphire headed boy. He stopped in his tracks. Looking behind himself he saw the downcast face of his very close childhood friend, hands clinging to his arm. Her tear-swollen eyes hid behind her light chestnut hair. He scrutinized every aspect of the young fourteen-year-old girl. She pleaded for a second time, still receiving no answer but instead an irritated sough. � You already know,� he finally replied, recollecting his right arm. � But still why?� she managed to inquire between her stifling of tears. � Why? Why?! Why the hell not to!? You of all people already know that I lost my parents traveling to this damned village! As I told you before I�d rather die trying to find out where in hell those Goddamned creatures came from than rot to death knowing I didn�t even bother!� his tone had fragments of ire, soreness, and grief. The young female took some time to let his uncouth words sink into her mind. � Why do you persist on asking me �why� if you already know the answer?� he inquired, arching his left eyebrow, tone of voice remaining unchanged. She made no endeavor to even respond. She was too apprehensive to. � If you do not have a reason then let me be on my way.� The boy slung his armor over his left arm and gathered his sword in his right hand. � I was trying� I wanted you to stay here where it�s safe.� She squeaked hoarsely. His glare was filled with hatred. It drilled continuously into the girl�s face until he roared. � Safe?! You think staying in this village is going to keep me safe from the monsters? That�s shit! The only thing that that will ever accomplish is to give the monsters a chance at killing us all! It�s like handing a bucket of fish to an experienced fisherman! Dumping a rat into a cardboard one way maze to find a hoard of cheese! Staying here is going to keep me safe? I certainly think not!� he stormed towards the door of the small mahogany wooden cottage. The girl lunged between him and the door; arms flung out like a barrier, separating the door from the boy. Her head was lowered to the point where she appeared to be staring at the dirt floor. � No I can�t let you!� she shrieked. The boy shot her another cruel glance. It faded as soon as he saw her red complexioned face filled with tears, which contained all the worries in the world. She really cares about my safety� still, I am not going to stay here and wait for my destruction. He mused. � Get out of the way!� he barked. She shook her head, standing as a solid statue. � No. I want you to stay here with me�� she was interrupted by the boy�s raging retort. � No, you listen here! All you care about is me staying here so I would be �supposedly� safe. I already told you this place is a death trap. Like those mice traps. The tempting smell of cheese lures the unsuspecting sucker into the dark interior of the trap then� WHAM! The next thing you know he�s dead. The same concept applies here. You believe it is safe just �cause it has a couple of lousy guards. Then when the monsters attack the guards are either killed or flee to some other side of the country. The result: the monsters destroy the village killing countless people and�� it was now her turn to act obnoxious in giving lectures. � Fine. Whatever. I�ll let you go only under one condition.� She said, no longer stifling her tears. � What ever could it be?� he sarcastically queried. She paid no attention to his sarcasm. � Let me go with you.� � WHAT! THAT IS OUT OF THE QUESTION!� � Oh you would prefer me to stay in this unsafe village with untrustworthy guards and be killed just like the mouse as easily as an experienced fisherman could snag a fish in a bucket?� she asked with much disdain. The fifteen-year old boy stared at her with an abundant amount of regret. Damn she was just pretending to cry so she could get enough information from me to use it all for her own benefit! Damn is she good! � Fine you win. This time. I won�t let you get away with it next time.� He sighed with disgust. � So that means�� her facial expression brightened greatly. He solemnly nodded. � Yes, you can come.� The delighted female teenager paced swiftly to her room. Whilst she collected her possessions the other teenager settled himself at the dining table. The whole house was more of a storage room than a home. The dining table was incompetent. Its sparse top barely supported any meal set upon it. The internals of the house was occupied with shelves and closets. Chalky dust attached to them, untouched by any life form. It was not much but it did suffice for the weary travelers. The two teenagers had been together ever since their parents met on the planet Earth. Which was approximately eight years ago. They lived a pleasant life, the two families. He remembered the days he spent frolicking in the sun. Him and her, her and him. Of course they both had their differences and friends. He usually was the person who wouldn�t settle for anything but what he wanted. Up until today. She on the other hand was always willing to please other persons. She constantly received ridicule for her timid ways. But she never bothered with the state of confrontation. Up until today. As the years passed they grew older and so did their personalities. As when he was younger the boy continually grew into the leader he was destined to be. But her personality slowly crept out of the shyness within herself. She began contemplating ways to win an argument. She didn�t care about pleasing others as much as she used to. Obviously her tactic worked on her friend. All of their happy years were replaced by the agonizing death of his parents. His family and she traveled from Earth to a Galaxy Federation Protected planet. When they reached the planet the party of four headed to the village know as Ailra. The boy soughed and went into a mesmerized state. In his flashback he witnessed the tragedy which befell his parents. In the night. In the dark night. In the dark cruel night. In the dark cruel gloomy night it all happened. [Flashback] � Go now!� � No, I want to help you!� � Listen to your father and go. We�ll catch up with you two later.� � But�� � C�mon! Both of your parents told us to leave.� ��� �������������������������� [Cries wail in agony] � Noooooo!!!!!!!!!� ��� � I�m going back.� � No, I can�t let you. Your parents said�� � To Hell with what they said! They need our help!� � If you go back you'll be meeting those words.� � Let go of my arm now.� � We�re going to Ailra!� [Flashback ends] � Hello? Are you there?� � Huh?� The boy was coming out of his trance. His eyes lay upon her squatting form.� What do you want?� � I was checking to see if you were here.� � I'm here aren't I?� � Physically, yes, mentally, I'm not sure.� � Very funny.� She giggled briefly. � What were you thinking about?� The boy remained silent. She pressed her query further. � What were you thinking about?� � I�I can�t� I don�t want to talk about it.� He rose from his seat. � You ready?� Rising with him she replied, � Yes, but you still haven't answered my question.� The boy was growing quite aggravated. � I told you I don�t want to talk about it,� he raged. � I'm just curious.� � Yeah, but you used to be shy until my pareh�� he noticed that certain twinkle in her gazing eyes that told you, you spoke one too many syllables. A smile creased the tip of her lips. � Your pareh?� She waved her hand in a radial fashion, motioning him to continue. He bit his lip. Making some quick glances around the room his eyes gazed at her jewelry. She, excitement growing, queried, � Well?� � I mean not mine but your �pair�a� earrings. Yeah, you know. You were really shy until you got your earrings.� �Oh. But do you remember where I got them?� � Uh, no.� he lied. � From your �pareh�nts. Is that what you were thinking about?� � Shut up! Just shut up! Ok?! You still have your parents so be thankful.� He looked at her. To his bewilderment her facial expression had the most horrified look he had ever seen. She�s probably faking it. � Is� is that what you think?� � No that�s what I know. They�re still back on earth. Safe.� � What do you know about my family? How do you know they're safe or alive for that matter!� � What?� � You�re right. They are on earth�Dead. They're dead. How can you think so selfishly about yourself? You're not the only one who has been orphaned.� He stared at her briefly. He didn�t know why he was staring at her. He had lost all ire, grief, envy, every emotion he had left in him. He stood there. Stood there in nonexistence. Just for that brief moment Time seemed to have stopped. The silence was broken and time resumed when she left. � Wait. I didn�t mean�� the rest of his sentence was left unheard. She was too far away to hear. The boy slumped back down in his chair. He ran his fingers through his coarse sapphire hair. � What am I going to do with her?� He said aloud to no one in particular. He scanned the room for anyone else other than himself. No one. Cautiously, he grasped a tiny locket from within his milky vest. It was a golden heart shaped locket. Using his thumbnail he gently unlocked the case which held one of his cherished treasures. His family picture. The girl silently strolled around the village. Many peddlers offered her their goods. � Miss, hey miss! How about some jewelry. Rings, necklaces, earrings. I�ll even give you a discount!� � No, thanks.� � Maybe madam would prefer jewels. Anything you ask of. I may have.� � No.� � Fresh fruits. Fresh fruits for sale. Care for an apple? Only 300 Fol.� Is he out of his mind? That�s way too expensive! � Would you like a purse or hand bag?� � No.� � M� lady, how �bout a fish?� � No thanks.� She was beyond the point of tipping off the ledge. She had already met the ground. So she quickened her pace. A few minutes later she discovered a stone bridge. Its moss indicated it hadn't been touched for some time. None of the peddlers had set up their stalls there so she hypothesized it had been the best place to get away from all humanity. From the slightly large village, the bridge led to an amazingly large forest. It was more of a jungle than a deciduous forest. Its over populated vegetation seemed to form a thicket barrier, preventing other life forms from entering or leaving. The girl set herself on the railing of the bridge. Through her entire life she had never known the beauty and majesty of a forest. Earth is so different from this planet. Earth is populated with so many structures and this is still an area of nothingness. She contemplated. She sat on the stones, for what seemed to her hours. Basking in the forest�s iridescent green vegetation. She went into a trance. For some strange reason she couldn�t figure out what she was thinking of. It was just a faint white light she could see. When she regained control of her eyes she saw a mysterious figure in front of her. The figure was cloaked in odd garments. An indigo robe with a matching indigo hood. Her indigo hood covered her eyes. The peach complexioned figure had silvery long hair that draped to her waist. She was carrying a rather large staff and a book of some sort. � Here.� The individual offered the staff and book to the girl. � I can�t buy those.� � I'm not selling them. I'm giving them to you,� her soft voice chimed in the girl�s head. She nudged the items to the girl once more. The girl glanced at the book and noticed something odd about it. � I'm sorry I can�t read it. It�s not in English.� When she gazed up the woman that was standing before her was there no more. She looked around. She found nothing but herself and the forest. Glancing down at the book again, she soughed. The book she held within her hands was very dainty. It had a gold bind and black covering. The staff, which lay beside her, was wooden. The head gradually became larger as it curled inward. In the center of the spiral head there was a crimson orb. She fingered through the lightweight book. All of the pages, which she scanned, were filled with gibberish to her. She found two pages that seemed glued together. Placing her index nail in between the pages she broke the seal that bound the pages. The instant she opened the two pages a blinding light enveloped her. Moments later the light subsided. Some how the book had reached the surface of the bridge. Must have dropped it� I hope. She picked up the book and cautiously reopened it. To her bewilderment she could now comprehend the words inside of it, as if it were written in English. She glanced at the cover of the book. It read �Heraldry�. What in the world is Heraldry? She read the first four pages of the book: Place Heraldic Tattoos on specified body sections or weapon. Listed below are specific Heraldic Spells. Ice [Picture] Lightning [Picture] Fire [Picture] Water [Picture] Void [Picture] Light [Picture] Vacuum [Picture] Darkness [Picture] The listed below are the Basic Forms of Heraldic Spells. As you make progress you can link the Heraldic Spells together, creating a more powerful Spell than the Basic Form. Unless you are very skilled, DO NOT link the following: ice/fire; water/ fire; light/ darkness; light/ void. I certainly don�t want any tattoos on my body. �Place Heraldic Tattoos on specified body parts or weapons.� Ok. She mused. She retrieved the staff from the railing that it was set upon. As if by magic, more specifically Heraldy, all of the Heraldic Tattoos were carved instantaneously into the staff�s wooden body. They possessed a brief dim cyan glow. With that minor problem out of the way, she continued to read. �Flame of the fire which burns in all Thy power in thee Answer my call That makes foes flee Fireball� Mere seconds later a tingling warmth struck her right hand. A tiny conflagration licked her fingertips as it kindled into a sphere. The young female stared at the fire. She was utterly amazed to have accomplished such a feat, not to mention how her hands were holding orb without being charred to ashes. The one thing she hadn't contemplated about was where she was to put the continuously growing flame. She looked at her surroundings. Of course! A stream, what in the world was I thinking? She dipped her hand into the soft rolling water. Steam arose then subsided. She grasped her right hand within her left, scrutinizing every square millimeter of flesh. Not a single burn. She continued her fireball spells. When she had reached the fifth spell, she was extremely exhausted; her whole body was weak. She barely managed to reach the bridge�s railing. I better get home and rest. I guess casting these spells saps every ounce of you energy. She mused. She recollected her Heraldic staff and Heraldy book.
