CHAPTER 9
**************************
CLAUDIA
**************************
“You failed in your duty and one of the few reasons why
I haven’t thrown that spy away from this place is
because of you. I still don’t know how you allowed
another woman take your place as the only one he
trusts, I can’t still get my head around it.” Anna said.
“She fvcked him the first time they met. I didn’t give
it…….”
“She fvcked him?.....dear spirits, how could you have
allowed that to happen? Aren’t you aware that he has
the same attributes as her master and once he opens
himself to her filthy hold, he will form sort of bond as
he will feel safer with her. That explains why he doesn’t
trust anyone here and your failure to help in his time
of need only pushed him to her lure. This was your first
field work and you failed miserably. You have to find a
way to get him to trust you again, do not sleep with
him, you must use other methods.”
“I could just tell him that she killed his wife and
daughter, which will surely make him hate her.”
Anna looked at with a look of disappointment and I
wondered what I said to have warranted such;
“How can you even think of uttering such to him, you
will only increase the distance between the both of you.
He will discover that himself and whatever he does
after is his choice. You have been with him more than
anyone here, you must know a little about him even if
he doesn’t reveal much. You are young and only Ellen
rivals you in being the perfect woman. Use everything
you have to appeal to his person. From what I have
seen, we don’t have much time to do what we want with
him. Sooner or later, he will be forced to leave her. I
want you to be his guardian and if possible, make him
fall in love. He is hated by many here but I know a few
who want him for various reasons, Ellen is one of such.”
“Ellen….? Why would she be attracted to someone like
Kieran, better good-looking men have tried and failed
to get her, why the wild man?”
“That is what I do not know myself, she is really into
him and since this is the first time I have seen her
moved by a man, I am unable to tell if she is after him
or his gift. I am sure you know not everyone here is
just about working for mankind; some do have their own
agendas. I know you are a very busy person and you
love your books more but I will need you make Kieran
your focus from now on. You will be one of his teachers
since he has the lost gift of writing prophecies.”
I dropped the book in my hands when I heard what she
just said, Kieran can write prophecies.
“I know it’s hard to believe but he can, you will teach
how to use that side of his gift as we need that part of
him more than anything else. There are so many ends in
the prophecy that I can’t seem to interpret. This side
of him is what you mustn’t tell anyone, whatever you
find, you will report to me. Now go and be more
useful.”
I stood and left, even if I didn’t like the manner which
she spoke to me, I knew I brought this on myself.
Kieran can actually write prophecies, it’s no wonder why
many dangerous people want him at all cost and some
unusually attracted to him. Ellen, the woman that
smiles more at her kind than any being is now suddenly
interested in a wild man, I thought I had my hands full
with that gordond ,now I have even more work to do.
Ellen is one of the most experienced guardians around
even though she is still on the young side. She has gone
into the world and brought more gifted ones than any
other. Strangely, she goes for just the females which
has made many of us believe she might actually be
attracted to her own kind but we know that if that was
the case, she would have been thrown out long ago as it
is nearly impossible to hide such things from mother. I
concluded that she might have had some horrible
moments with men or she is just different from
everyone else. She keeps to herself most of the time
and only comes alive when she is sent to bring in
another gifted one. She would have been the preferred
choice to bring in Kieran if he was female. She is very
efficient and gets everything done exactly as ordered.
She is a witch, which was quite rare among us here,
most are sorceresses. What is in Kieran that suddenly
wakes up something we thought never existed in her?
He is just like any other man, only that he carries
within him what I think should never have been his as he
seems incapable of ever utilizing such abilities to their
full potentials. He is stubborn, silly and doesn’t think
before doing anything. Well, I will only watch from afar,
for now, I need to do what I have never done before –
taming a man.
*****************************************
I heard laughter as I got closer to his room; he was
forced to move to another room as mother didn’t want
him in the same space with that spy. The laugh was
genuine and it seemed strange for someone like him to
be this happy, what could be making him laugh and who
is with him?
I knocked and then opened the door after some few
moments, I saw the one person I didn’t want o see
beside him. Ellen was teaching him how to do a simple
subtraction spell of removing something. She seemed
quite happy and it makes me wonder how it is so easy
to get to this man.
“Claudia, you are well already. I am happy to see you
walk again.” He said, pulling me into a warm embrace
and whispering to my ears for me to get Ellen out of
the room. I nearly chuckled but held myself.
“Can I have the room, please?” I asked, looking
straight at Ellen as I did.
“We are in the middle of something, can’t whatever you
want with me wait?” Kieran asked, winking at me.
“No, it’s fine Kieran. We will continue some other time.”
Ellen said, she gave me a cold look before leaving.
As soon as she left, Kieran stopped with his smiles and
put on his normal look. He walked up to me after
staring at me for a while and led me to his bed. He
gently took hold of my hair and started tossing it here
and there. He arranged the hair properly again and sat
beside me in bed.
“What is the grimoire of the chosen?” he asked. The
question shook me to my bones and all I could do was
open my mouth. How did he know of a secret so
guided?
**************************
CLAUDIA
**************************
“You failed in your duty and one of the few reasons why
I haven’t thrown that spy away from this place is
because of you. I still don’t know how you allowed
another woman take your place as the only one he
trusts, I can’t still get my head around it.” Anna said.
“She fvcked him the first time they met. I didn’t give
it…….”
“She fvcked him?.....dear spirits, how could you have
allowed that to happen? Aren’t you aware that he has
the same attributes as her master and once he opens
himself to her filthy hold, he will form sort of bond as
he will feel safer with her. That explains why he doesn’t
trust anyone here and your failure to help in his time
of need only pushed him to her lure. This was your first
field work and you failed miserably. You have to find a
way to get him to trust you again, do not sleep with
him, you must use other methods.”
“I could just tell him that she killed his wife and
daughter, which will surely make him hate her.”
Anna looked at with a look of disappointment and I
wondered what I said to have warranted such;
“How can you even think of uttering such to him, you
will only increase the distance between the both of you.
He will discover that himself and whatever he does
after is his choice. You have been with him more than
anyone here, you must know a little about him even if
he doesn’t reveal much. You are young and only Ellen
rivals you in being the perfect woman. Use everything
you have to appeal to his person. From what I have
seen, we don’t have much time to do what we want with
him. Sooner or later, he will be forced to leave her. I
want you to be his guardian and if possible, make him
fall in love. He is hated by many here but I know a few
who want him for various reasons, Ellen is one of such.”
“Ellen….? Why would she be attracted to someone like
Kieran, better good-looking men have tried and failed
to get her, why the wild man?”
“That is what I do not know myself, she is really into
him and since this is the first time I have seen her
moved by a man, I am unable to tell if she is after him
or his gift. I am sure you know not everyone here is
just about working for mankind; some do have their own
agendas. I know you are a very busy person and you
love your books more but I will need you make Kieran
your focus from now on. You will be one of his teachers
since he has the lost gift of writing prophecies.”
I dropped the book in my hands when I heard what she
just said, Kieran can write prophecies.
“I know it’s hard to believe but he can, you will teach
how to use that side of his gift as we need that part of
him more than anything else. There are so many ends in
the prophecy that I can’t seem to interpret. This side
of him is what you mustn’t tell anyone, whatever you
find, you will report to me. Now go and be more
useful.”
I stood and left, even if I didn’t like the manner which
she spoke to me, I knew I brought this on myself.
Kieran can actually write prophecies, it’s no wonder why
many dangerous people want him at all cost and some
unusually attracted to him. Ellen, the woman that
smiles more at her kind than any being is now suddenly
interested in a wild man, I thought I had my hands full
with that gordond ,now I have even more work to do.
Ellen is one of the most experienced guardians around
even though she is still on the young side. She has gone
into the world and brought more gifted ones than any
other. Strangely, she goes for just the females which
has made many of us believe she might actually be
attracted to her own kind but we know that if that was
the case, she would have been thrown out long ago as it
is nearly impossible to hide such things from mother. I
concluded that she might have had some horrible
moments with men or she is just different from
everyone else. She keeps to herself most of the time
and only comes alive when she is sent to bring in
another gifted one. She would have been the preferred
choice to bring in Kieran if he was female. She is very
efficient and gets everything done exactly as ordered.
She is a witch, which was quite rare among us here,
most are sorceresses. What is in Kieran that suddenly
wakes up something we thought never existed in her?
He is just like any other man, only that he carries
within him what I think should never have been his as he
seems incapable of ever utilizing such abilities to their
full potentials. He is stubborn, silly and doesn’t think
before doing anything. Well, I will only watch from afar,
for now, I need to do what I have never done before –
taming a man.
*****************************************
I heard laughter as I got closer to his room; he was
forced to move to another room as mother didn’t want
him in the same space with that spy. The laugh was
genuine and it seemed strange for someone like him to
be this happy, what could be making him laugh and who
is with him?
I knocked and then opened the door after some few
moments, I saw the one person I didn’t want o see
beside him. Ellen was teaching him how to do a simple
subtraction spell of removing something. She seemed
quite happy and it makes me wonder how it is so easy
to get to this man.
“Claudia, you are well already. I am happy to see you
walk again.” He said, pulling me into a warm embrace
and whispering to my ears for me to get Ellen out of
the room. I nearly chuckled but held myself.
“Can I have the room, please?” I asked, looking
straight at Ellen as I did.
“We are in the middle of something, can’t whatever you
want with me wait?” Kieran asked, winking at me.
“No, it’s fine Kieran. We will continue some other time.”
Ellen said, she gave me a cold look before leaving.
As soon as she left, Kieran stopped with his smiles and
put on his normal look. He walked up to me after
staring at me for a while and led me to his bed. He
gently took hold of my hair and started tossing it here
and there. He arranged the hair properly again and sat
beside me in bed.
“What is the grimoire of the chosen?” he asked. The
question shook me to my bones and all I could do was
open my mouth. How did he know of a secret so
guided?
CONTINUED
*************************
KIERAN
**************************
It baffles me sometimes just how stupid they think I
am; I do not need a sorceress to tell me I should be
careful around Vanessa. I hate it when I am told the
same thing over and over again. Anna warning me to be
careful of her enticements made me angry; I left for
what used to be my room and took along my things with
me. I didn’t even recognize if someone was present in
the same space with me, I completely ignored Vanessa
and moved my things to the room Anna ordered me
into. It wasn’t long before I discovered that the room
opposite mine was Claudia’s, she has been ordered to
move too. My goodness, I am a full grown man and I can
think for myself. I shouldn’t be tossed around like I am
a child who doesn’t know that a fire is beautiful just as
well as dangerous. I was still acting angry like the child,
Anna sees me to be when the beautiful witch came in
without even knocking. She just walked in like she owned
the room and walked straight to my bed. She sat down
on it and decided to just stare at me. I breathe in deep
and just looked away from her, my anger was slowly
turning to rage and as I know little about my powers, I
tried really hard to keep the rage checked.
I looked away from her and focused on the task at
hand as she decided to look at me rather than help.
After I was done with putting my things where they
should be based on the arrangements in the room, I
went into the wash room to wash my face and hands. I
returned to the bedroom to find her still seated but
engrossed with playing with her fingers.
“Are you finished?” she asked. I simply nodded and
pulled a chair and sat opposite her. She smiled,
“Good, we shall begin then.” She said.
“Begin what?” I asked, confused.
“Your teachings will begin today as Mother decided that
you have rested enough. I have been told you have
accepted your gift which isn’t too hard to see. Well, I
will be teaching you how to balance things by removing
or adding. It’s your first step to knowing how the
balance of nature works. First, I will teach you how to
increase the ferocity of that fire over there and how
to reduce it too. Now, bring me your hands and call out
your gift as you know how to.” She replied me.
I did as she asked and stretched forth my hands; she
took them in her palms. The moment she did, she
suddenly breathed in deep and closed her eyes. She was
like that for quite some time and then she started
shaking suddenly. I became terrified by her sudden
change and tried to pull my hands from her grip but I
couldn’t as some force held them firm to hers. I tried
harder but failed to achieve my aim. I decided to watch
and soon she stopped shaking. She calmed down and
opened her beautiful green eyes. She gave me a hard
look before saying,
“You don’t know the glorious gift you carry. I was
inside you and have been digging deep but your gift
doesn’t seem to have any end. I dug and dug but it is
just endless. You are indeed special; I have never felt
anything like what I just did. The experience is
breathtaking.” I just continued to stare at her without
uttering a word. She asked me to stretch my hands to
teach me some nonsense only for her to turn around to
look inside of me and she didn’t deem it fit to
apologize. I must add her to the persons I should be
careful of.
“Alright, call your gift and fix your gaze at the fire.
Let the flames and your gift become one and then
what happens next will be natural. You will be able to do
whatever you want with it. I did as she said and it
wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. I called out
my gift as I have learnt how to while looking at the
fire. As I did, it was as if my consciousness moved
towards the fire and hovered above it. I moved my
eyebrows up instinctively and the ferocity of the fire
went up too, I smiled and repeated the same thing
again but this time ,the reaction was unexpected. The
burning went up too and that startled me which made
me pull my hands from Ellen. She was startled too and
stood up just as the wood did and as she did, a book fell
from her thighs. A book I didn’t see earlier, she
laughed and picked up the book and kept in back in her
trousers. I laughed too and I apologized for what I did.
She just laughed it off too and asked me to repeat
what I just learned without her help.
It was a bit difficult to accomplish this time as I found
it hard to merge my gift with the fire, it then
occurred to me that she was actually helping me focus
when she held my hands. After I tried the third time, I
succeeded. I smiled and turned to see her staring at
me again. What is it with this woman, why does she keep
looking at me like that?
Thank the spirits, I was saved by a knock on the door
and it opened to reveal the fleshy Claudia at the other
side. I pulled her into me quickly and begged her to get
the strange witch out of my room. She did and Ellen
left. I was glad she was gone because I couldn’t tell
what she wanted from me. As soon as she left, I lead
Claudia to the bed where I checked her hair for any
scar or injuries. There weren’t, I was glad. I stood up
and faced her, I asked her about the title of the book
that fell from Ellen’s thighs – the grimoire of the
chosen. She looked quite surprised from the look on her
face and I wondered why. She later regained herself
and said,
“I am sorry, Ethan, I can’t tell you anything about that
book. Until mother deems it fit, I can’t speak on it.” I
nodded and looked away in fury. Mother always has to
say yes.
“How did come to know about such a book?” she asked.
I didn’t answer but I decided to make her comfortable
and maybe she might just say something about it. I
have noticed Claudia talks a lot when she leads the
conversation. I put away my anger and walked back to
her. I sat beside her on the bed and gently held her
right arm. I caressed it; she tried to pull away from me
thinking that it might lead somewhere. I held on and
looked straight into her eyes before saying,
“Tell me about the man you are bestowed to.” She
blinked and once again opened her mouth. She quickly
closed it and smiled,
“You don’t forget, do you?” I smiled, she licked her
fine lips and her eyes slowly started getting wet. I
continued caressing her arm and put my other free
arm around her shoulders. I pulled her to me and
whispered,
“Tell me everything.”
*************************
KIERAN
**************************
It baffles me sometimes just how stupid they think I
am; I do not need a sorceress to tell me I should be
careful around Vanessa. I hate it when I am told the
same thing over and over again. Anna warning me to be
careful of her enticements made me angry; I left for
what used to be my room and took along my things with
me. I didn’t even recognize if someone was present in
the same space with me, I completely ignored Vanessa
and moved my things to the room Anna ordered me
into. It wasn’t long before I discovered that the room
opposite mine was Claudia’s, she has been ordered to
move too. My goodness, I am a full grown man and I can
think for myself. I shouldn’t be tossed around like I am
a child who doesn’t know that a fire is beautiful just as
well as dangerous. I was still acting angry like the child,
Anna sees me to be when the beautiful witch came in
without even knocking. She just walked in like she owned
the room and walked straight to my bed. She sat down
on it and decided to just stare at me. I breathe in deep
and just looked away from her, my anger was slowly
turning to rage and as I know little about my powers, I
tried really hard to keep the rage checked.
I looked away from her and focused on the task at
hand as she decided to look at me rather than help.
After I was done with putting my things where they
should be based on the arrangements in the room, I
went into the wash room to wash my face and hands. I
returned to the bedroom to find her still seated but
engrossed with playing with her fingers.
“Are you finished?” she asked. I simply nodded and
pulled a chair and sat opposite her. She smiled,
“Good, we shall begin then.” She said.
“Begin what?” I asked, confused.
“Your teachings will begin today as Mother decided that
you have rested enough. I have been told you have
accepted your gift which isn’t too hard to see. Well, I
will be teaching you how to balance things by removing
or adding. It’s your first step to knowing how the
balance of nature works. First, I will teach you how to
increase the ferocity of that fire over there and how
to reduce it too. Now, bring me your hands and call out
your gift as you know how to.” She replied me.
I did as she asked and stretched forth my hands; she
took them in her palms. The moment she did, she
suddenly breathed in deep and closed her eyes. She was
like that for quite some time and then she started
shaking suddenly. I became terrified by her sudden
change and tried to pull my hands from her grip but I
couldn’t as some force held them firm to hers. I tried
harder but failed to achieve my aim. I decided to watch
and soon she stopped shaking. She calmed down and
opened her beautiful green eyes. She gave me a hard
look before saying,
“You don’t know the glorious gift you carry. I was
inside you and have been digging deep but your gift
doesn’t seem to have any end. I dug and dug but it is
just endless. You are indeed special; I have never felt
anything like what I just did. The experience is
breathtaking.” I just continued to stare at her without
uttering a word. She asked me to stretch my hands to
teach me some nonsense only for her to turn around to
look inside of me and she didn’t deem it fit to
apologize. I must add her to the persons I should be
careful of.
“Alright, call your gift and fix your gaze at the fire.
Let the flames and your gift become one and then
what happens next will be natural. You will be able to do
whatever you want with it. I did as she said and it
wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. I called out
my gift as I have learnt how to while looking at the
fire. As I did, it was as if my consciousness moved
towards the fire and hovered above it. I moved my
eyebrows up instinctively and the ferocity of the fire
went up too, I smiled and repeated the same thing
again but this time ,the reaction was unexpected. The
burning went up too and that startled me which made
me pull my hands from Ellen. She was startled too and
stood up just as the wood did and as she did, a book fell
from her thighs. A book I didn’t see earlier, she
laughed and picked up the book and kept in back in her
trousers. I laughed too and I apologized for what I did.
She just laughed it off too and asked me to repeat
what I just learned without her help.
It was a bit difficult to accomplish this time as I found
it hard to merge my gift with the fire, it then
occurred to me that she was actually helping me focus
when she held my hands. After I tried the third time, I
succeeded. I smiled and turned to see her staring at
me again. What is it with this woman, why does she keep
looking at me like that?
Thank the spirits, I was saved by a knock on the door
and it opened to reveal the fleshy Claudia at the other
side. I pulled her into me quickly and begged her to get
the strange witch out of my room. She did and Ellen
left. I was glad she was gone because I couldn’t tell
what she wanted from me. As soon as she left, I lead
Claudia to the bed where I checked her hair for any
scar or injuries. There weren’t, I was glad. I stood up
and faced her, I asked her about the title of the book
that fell from Ellen’s thighs – the grimoire of the
chosen. She looked quite surprised from the look on her
face and I wondered why. She later regained herself
and said,
“I am sorry, Ethan, I can’t tell you anything about that
book. Until mother deems it fit, I can’t speak on it.” I
nodded and looked away in fury. Mother always has to
say yes.
“How did come to know about such a book?” she asked.
I didn’t answer but I decided to make her comfortable
and maybe she might just say something about it. I
have noticed Claudia talks a lot when she leads the
conversation. I put away my anger and walked back to
her. I sat beside her on the bed and gently held her
right arm. I caressed it; she tried to pull away from me
thinking that it might lead somewhere. I held on and
looked straight into her eyes before saying,
“Tell me about the man you are bestowed to.” She
blinked and once again opened her mouth. She quickly
closed it and smiled,
“You don’t forget, do you?” I smiled, she licked her
fine lips and her eyes slowly started getting wet. I
continued caressing her arm and put my other free
arm around her shoulders. I pulled her to me and
whispered,
“Tell me everything.”
*************************
KIERAN
**************************
“I was fifteen when I felt my heart truly ache for
another being. He was aged twenty when we met and I
was sure he felt the same way. I had just escape from
home some days then and I stole food here and there
to eat. I couldn’t get anything for myself; I couldn’t
give my body away just to survive. I tried using my gift
to earn some gold but no one actually looked my way as
there were so many others just like I was, hence there
was nothing special about what I could do. I met Eric
when I tried stealing from the apples he sells at the
roadside with his mother. He saw me steal the apples,
about three of them and ran after me. I ran and
jumped through various things as I was smaller then but
he didn’t stop coming. I wondered why he would leave
the rest of his merchandise and come after just three
apples, what’s in the sense in that? When I saw he
wasn’t ready to stop, I started eating the apples as I
ran. When he finally caught up with me, I was on the
last one. He was angry when he saw me eating the
apples and when he knew it was the last one, his anger
grew into rage and he struck out his right arm.
I felt an instant discomfort in my stomach and I
suddenly felt like emptying my belly through my mouth.
I tried to stop it but I couldn’t and I poured everything
out. He smiled at what he just did and left me in my
own vomit. I didn’t know why I didn’t use my gift
against him; probably I felt he was right in his actions
after having chased me for so long. I stayed close to
my stinking vomit and cried as what I have been
reduced to just to eat. I thought of returning home
but I knew deep down, I was right in my decision. I
stayed there all day as I didn’t have the strength to
get myself up. People saw me and just turned their
face, most held their nose as they walked past. Not one
sought to know what was wrong with me. Just as the
dark clouds were about to reveal the beautiful, round
moon. I saw a shadow and then, someone moving towards
me. The person stopped in front of me and held out his
arm. I simply looked at the arm and fixed my gaze on
something, I didn’t need an arm. I needed something I
could eat. The fellow walked around my vomit and pulled
away from the stinking place. I didn’t even care to
struggle against whoever was pulling me, I just didn’t
care. He stopped dragging after I was a safe distance
from my previous position and he gave me water to
drink from his bag. I took the water from his arm this
time as there was something in them I needed. I drank
and emptied the case; he brought out some red berries
and gave me to eat. I ate and he apologized for what
he did earlier. It was then I realized that it was the
same fellow that nearly killed me in the morning now
here to help me. I smiled and we started talking. He
took me home and I slept with the horse at its stable. I
was glad as it was far better than the filthy, dirty
place I have been sleeping.
We became best of friends from then, I helped with
selling as I was very attractive while he focused on the
farming. His mother stayed at home after a younger
person took her place. Eric was a good man, he taught
me how to use my gifts and many other things. His
kindness made me change the way I felt then towards
humans. He always gives children his fruits and rarely
ever complained. I fell in love with him because despite
the fact he had seen my nak.edness so many times; he
never forced himself on me. He had so much grit and
self control which was something I haven’t seen
before.”
She seem to lay emphasis on the self control, I smiled
as I knew she was actually taunting me.
“We made plans to get marry as soon as I turned
twenty but that never happened. As while I was away in
the square selling the fruits and he was farming, some
men broke into his cabin to steal some of his produce.
His mother tried to stop them and got herself killed.
They took every fruit they could find and left an old
woman behind. I came back home to find him in tears as
he held his still mother on his thighs. I cried along with
him as he told me what happened. I tried my best to
cuddle him but he never truly healed, especially when he
later learnt that the men who killed his mother were
soldiers from the south. I still don’t know what they
wanted when they could have easily raided the nearby
farms but instead decided to raid a little cabin. He
swore vengeance and despite my attempts to make him
stop whatever madness he was planning. He didn’t, one
day, I returned home to find a letter on the table; he
had gone in search of the men that killed his mother.
I felt hurt and thought it was the same thing
happening again. I thought I had find happiness but it
seems I was destined never to be truly happy. The man
I loved left me in search of the dead. I cried for two
days and on the third day, I decided to leave the cabin.
I heard of the forgotten lands and I travelled there. I
found peace helping others that needed my aid, and I
have never looked back ever since.”
She finished with her long story and sniffed. She cried
all through her tale and all I could do was rub her
shoulders. I wiped the tears off her face when I was
sure she wasn’t interested in talking anymore.
“You don’t know if he yet breathes?”
She shook her head. I nodded and said,
“We all have our memories and losses, but I don’t think
we should let them define who we are or let them lead
us into making regrettable decisions. I was a simple
man, a hunter actually. I had a small and happy family
but every day that passes saw this fear that I might
lose my family just as I lost my father and mother,
grow. The fear became a reality and I should be out
there like Eric, going after the monsters that killed
them, but I know better. I realize now that I have a
bigger calling that going after men that were only
following orders. I need to know why I carry what is
inside of me and only then will I carry out justice. One
of the ways by which I can better understand what I
carry is to know the prophecy that concerns me. Anna
won’t tell me and a few moments ago, I saw a book
that’s titled grimoire of the chosen with Ellen.”
She looked surprised after I made mentioned of where I
saw the book. I walked back towards her and knelt in
front of her and held her hands,
“I can’t keep walking in the dark, waiting for whoever
passes in order to use their light to see. I want to have
my own light, so please, tell me about the book.” I
slowly kissed her hands after what I said and looked
straight into her eyes while doing do.
She stared at me for a while and then smiled,
“You are a very cunny man, Kieran.” I chuckled and she
asked me to sit beside her. I smiled as I got up, my
plan actually worked.
KIERAN
**************************
“I was fifteen when I felt my heart truly ache for
another being. He was aged twenty when we met and I
was sure he felt the same way. I had just escape from
home some days then and I stole food here and there
to eat. I couldn’t get anything for myself; I couldn’t
give my body away just to survive. I tried using my gift
to earn some gold but no one actually looked my way as
there were so many others just like I was, hence there
was nothing special about what I could do. I met Eric
when I tried stealing from the apples he sells at the
roadside with his mother. He saw me steal the apples,
about three of them and ran after me. I ran and
jumped through various things as I was smaller then but
he didn’t stop coming. I wondered why he would leave
the rest of his merchandise and come after just three
apples, what’s in the sense in that? When I saw he
wasn’t ready to stop, I started eating the apples as I
ran. When he finally caught up with me, I was on the
last one. He was angry when he saw me eating the
apples and when he knew it was the last one, his anger
grew into rage and he struck out his right arm.
I felt an instant discomfort in my stomach and I
suddenly felt like emptying my belly through my mouth.
I tried to stop it but I couldn’t and I poured everything
out. He smiled at what he just did and left me in my
own vomit. I didn’t know why I didn’t use my gift
against him; probably I felt he was right in his actions
after having chased me for so long. I stayed close to
my stinking vomit and cried as what I have been
reduced to just to eat. I thought of returning home
but I knew deep down, I was right in my decision. I
stayed there all day as I didn’t have the strength to
get myself up. People saw me and just turned their
face, most held their nose as they walked past. Not one
sought to know what was wrong with me. Just as the
dark clouds were about to reveal the beautiful, round
moon. I saw a shadow and then, someone moving towards
me. The person stopped in front of me and held out his
arm. I simply looked at the arm and fixed my gaze on
something, I didn’t need an arm. I needed something I
could eat. The fellow walked around my vomit and pulled
away from the stinking place. I didn’t even care to
struggle against whoever was pulling me, I just didn’t
care. He stopped dragging after I was a safe distance
from my previous position and he gave me water to
drink from his bag. I took the water from his arm this
time as there was something in them I needed. I drank
and emptied the case; he brought out some red berries
and gave me to eat. I ate and he apologized for what
he did earlier. It was then I realized that it was the
same fellow that nearly killed me in the morning now
here to help me. I smiled and we started talking. He
took me home and I slept with the horse at its stable. I
was glad as it was far better than the filthy, dirty
place I have been sleeping.
We became best of friends from then, I helped with
selling as I was very attractive while he focused on the
farming. His mother stayed at home after a younger
person took her place. Eric was a good man, he taught
me how to use my gifts and many other things. His
kindness made me change the way I felt then towards
humans. He always gives children his fruits and rarely
ever complained. I fell in love with him because despite
the fact he had seen my nak.edness so many times; he
never forced himself on me. He had so much grit and
self control which was something I haven’t seen
before.”
She seem to lay emphasis on the self control, I smiled
as I knew she was actually taunting me.
“We made plans to get marry as soon as I turned
twenty but that never happened. As while I was away in
the square selling the fruits and he was farming, some
men broke into his cabin to steal some of his produce.
His mother tried to stop them and got herself killed.
They took every fruit they could find and left an old
woman behind. I came back home to find him in tears as
he held his still mother on his thighs. I cried along with
him as he told me what happened. I tried my best to
cuddle him but he never truly healed, especially when he
later learnt that the men who killed his mother were
soldiers from the south. I still don’t know what they
wanted when they could have easily raided the nearby
farms but instead decided to raid a little cabin. He
swore vengeance and despite my attempts to make him
stop whatever madness he was planning. He didn’t, one
day, I returned home to find a letter on the table; he
had gone in search of the men that killed his mother.
I felt hurt and thought it was the same thing
happening again. I thought I had find happiness but it
seems I was destined never to be truly happy. The man
I loved left me in search of the dead. I cried for two
days and on the third day, I decided to leave the cabin.
I heard of the forgotten lands and I travelled there. I
found peace helping others that needed my aid, and I
have never looked back ever since.”
She finished with her long story and sniffed. She cried
all through her tale and all I could do was rub her
shoulders. I wiped the tears off her face when I was
sure she wasn’t interested in talking anymore.
“You don’t know if he yet breathes?”
She shook her head. I nodded and said,
“We all have our memories and losses, but I don’t think
we should let them define who we are or let them lead
us into making regrettable decisions. I was a simple
man, a hunter actually. I had a small and happy family
but every day that passes saw this fear that I might
lose my family just as I lost my father and mother,
grow. The fear became a reality and I should be out
there like Eric, going after the monsters that killed
them, but I know better. I realize now that I have a
bigger calling that going after men that were only
following orders. I need to know why I carry what is
inside of me and only then will I carry out justice. One
of the ways by which I can better understand what I
carry is to know the prophecy that concerns me. Anna
won’t tell me and a few moments ago, I saw a book
that’s titled grimoire of the chosen with Ellen.”
She looked surprised after I made mentioned of where I
saw the book. I walked back towards her and knelt in
front of her and held her hands,
“I can’t keep walking in the dark, waiting for whoever
passes in order to use their light to see. I want to have
my own light, so please, tell me about the book.” I
slowly kissed her hands after what I said and looked
straight into her eyes while doing do.
She stared at me for a while and then smiled,
“You are a very cunny man, Kieran.” I chuckled and she
asked me to sit beside her. I smiled as I got up, my
plan actually worked.
**************************
ANNA
**************************
He doesn’t know about the subtle message passed to
him by his daughter before her death. The riddle is one
called the three forks, which means three lines of short
words. It’s ancient and has been forgotten which is why
no one should be able to create something of such with
so much ease. It’s also mean no one should be able to
solve the riddle with relative ease, especially an
unlearned man. Whoever created the riddle wasn’t
expecting Kieran to solve it but what does that fellow
aims to achieve with such forgotten methods. Who is
this fellow that seeks to test the will or should I use
the potency of the gift in Kieran? Could it be the king
of the north, the strangely quiet Lucien or someone
else entirely?
I slumped to my bed as I was getting tired of this, why
is it my reign such things come to reality. The prophecy
clearly pointed to Kieran when he was born. He was the
one born on the day the deer he killed was birth, the
two creatures both share a unique bond. The deer was
the guardian safely keeping his gift from those that
seek for it and the only way to release what he carried
was to kill the beautiful beast. The spirits created an
anomaly in Kieran and created a way to keep him safe.
We were chosen to be his light, to be his guide and
teacher until he can walk without our aid. I thought he
was created to check the cruelty and evil of Nero and
his son – Lucien but that doesn’t seem to be the case
after all. Someone is clearly trying to take our place as
his chosen guide, I must find out who this person is.
**************************
NYASA
**************************
Kieran had a scowl on his face when he walked into the
room, someone must have caused this foul mood of his.
He completely ignored me and went about packing his
things. It seems he was ordered to leave the room and
move somewhere and he didn’t like that. He is never
been the man that likes to be ordered around and in
truth, no one likes it. Two of the women later entered
the room, they ignored me too and helped in carrying
Kieran’s things, but the things were quite small and
shouldn’t be a problem for him. They were most likely
here to watch him, or rather me. The head of this place
must probably know who I am and where my loyalty lies
but why have I not been kicked out of this place if she
is aware. She is holding back for some reason, whatever
it is matters not so long as I remain here. I looked
towards where my travel book was kept and wondered
how I supposed to write to my master. I needed to find
a way out of this place to even have a chance of
getting messages from him but how am I going to
achieve that with the way and manner I am watched.
The moment I leave the room, someone follows me,
there is hardly any place I walk to that I am not
followed save for when I am in my room. I heard the
huge gate I later got to see can only be opened by one
with the gift and no one leaves without the approval of
one of the seniors here. It seems I have been found out
and I won’t be of any use to my master in the trap I
am.
I decided to play with my knives when I got tired of
waiting for Kieran to pay a visit. Soon, I got tired of
that and moved over to the window and watched how
people moved to and fro the huge compound we were in.
The people here were mostly women; I saw a handful of
men. The men were usually alone and kept some
distance from the woman whenever they meet which
looks funny. What sort of laws they do they follow
here? I know they were only following traditions, they
will most likely be fvcking each other out somewhere
when the bright light won’t be there to expose them. I
left the window and went back to the bed where I sat.
I looked towards my travel book and the urge to write
to my master overcame me. I took it and found a place
to cut my blood into. I wrote everything that took place
from the time I last wrote to him till now. When I was
done, I stared at it, hoping to see my master’s writings
but nothing of such happened. I later slept off after
removing every trace of my blood and the book under
my pillow just in case those women decided to visit me. I
woke up when the moon was out and for some odd
reason, I decided to check the book and surprisingly, I
saw a message from my master.
“You have done well, keep him safe and hate me.”
I had hoped to see more than that, but that was all he
wrote. He usually doesn’t write something so short
except if he is trying to warn me of something or he is
isn’t happy of what I might have done. If he wasn’t
happy about what I did then he wouldn’t have
commended me. He is trying to tell me something from
the last two words –hate me. Why should I hate him
when in truth I don’t have the choice to do that? He is
my master and I can’t hate or love him because that’s
irrelevant to him. I live to serve him; my life is
meaningless without him. If he is suddenly giving me a
choice, it means he has no choice too in whatever what
made me him to write such. I shouldn’t be receiving
messages from him in the first place while inside here,
he must know this which is why he is telling him to hate
him. When you hate someone, you don’t care about such
a person. He is telling me to leave him be and watch
Kieran, he is warning me of my host – the guardians.
He is trying to tell me of what I already know – I am
being watched.
*********************************
ANNA
**************************
He doesn’t know about the subtle message passed to
him by his daughter before her death. The riddle is one
called the three forks, which means three lines of short
words. It’s ancient and has been forgotten which is why
no one should be able to create something of such with
so much ease. It’s also mean no one should be able to
solve the riddle with relative ease, especially an
unlearned man. Whoever created the riddle wasn’t
expecting Kieran to solve it but what does that fellow
aims to achieve with such forgotten methods. Who is
this fellow that seeks to test the will or should I use
the potency of the gift in Kieran? Could it be the king
of the north, the strangely quiet Lucien or someone
else entirely?
I slumped to my bed as I was getting tired of this, why
is it my reign such things come to reality. The prophecy
clearly pointed to Kieran when he was born. He was the
one born on the day the deer he killed was birth, the
two creatures both share a unique bond. The deer was
the guardian safely keeping his gift from those that
seek for it and the only way to release what he carried
was to kill the beautiful beast. The spirits created an
anomaly in Kieran and created a way to keep him safe.
We were chosen to be his light, to be his guide and
teacher until he can walk without our aid. I thought he
was created to check the cruelty and evil of Nero and
his son – Lucien but that doesn’t seem to be the case
after all. Someone is clearly trying to take our place as
his chosen guide, I must find out who this person is.
**************************
NYASA
**************************
Kieran had a scowl on his face when he walked into the
room, someone must have caused this foul mood of his.
He completely ignored me and went about packing his
things. It seems he was ordered to leave the room and
move somewhere and he didn’t like that. He is never
been the man that likes to be ordered around and in
truth, no one likes it. Two of the women later entered
the room, they ignored me too and helped in carrying
Kieran’s things, but the things were quite small and
shouldn’t be a problem for him. They were most likely
here to watch him, or rather me. The head of this place
must probably know who I am and where my loyalty lies
but why have I not been kicked out of this place if she
is aware. She is holding back for some reason, whatever
it is matters not so long as I remain here. I looked
towards where my travel book was kept and wondered
how I supposed to write to my master. I needed to find
a way out of this place to even have a chance of
getting messages from him but how am I going to
achieve that with the way and manner I am watched.
The moment I leave the room, someone follows me,
there is hardly any place I walk to that I am not
followed save for when I am in my room. I heard the
huge gate I later got to see can only be opened by one
with the gift and no one leaves without the approval of
one of the seniors here. It seems I have been found out
and I won’t be of any use to my master in the trap I
am.
I decided to play with my knives when I got tired of
waiting for Kieran to pay a visit. Soon, I got tired of
that and moved over to the window and watched how
people moved to and fro the huge compound we were in.
The people here were mostly women; I saw a handful of
men. The men were usually alone and kept some
distance from the woman whenever they meet which
looks funny. What sort of laws they do they follow
here? I know they were only following traditions, they
will most likely be fvcking each other out somewhere
when the bright light won’t be there to expose them. I
left the window and went back to the bed where I sat.
I looked towards my travel book and the urge to write
to my master overcame me. I took it and found a place
to cut my blood into. I wrote everything that took place
from the time I last wrote to him till now. When I was
done, I stared at it, hoping to see my master’s writings
but nothing of such happened. I later slept off after
removing every trace of my blood and the book under
my pillow just in case those women decided to visit me. I
woke up when the moon was out and for some odd
reason, I decided to check the book and surprisingly, I
saw a message from my master.
“You have done well, keep him safe and hate me.”
I had hoped to see more than that, but that was all he
wrote. He usually doesn’t write something so short
except if he is trying to warn me of something or he is
isn’t happy of what I might have done. If he wasn’t
happy about what I did then he wouldn’t have
commended me. He is trying to tell me something from
the last two words –hate me. Why should I hate him
when in truth I don’t have the choice to do that? He is
my master and I can’t hate or love him because that’s
irrelevant to him. I live to serve him; my life is
meaningless without him. If he is suddenly giving me a
choice, it means he has no choice too in whatever what
made me him to write such. I shouldn’t be receiving
messages from him in the first place while inside here,
he must know this which is why he is telling him to hate
him. When you hate someone, you don’t care about such
a person. He is telling me to leave him be and watch
Kieran, he is warning me of my host – the guardians.
He is trying to tell me of what I already know – I am
being watched.
*********************************
**************************
ELLEN
**************************
“We tried our very best but we couldn’t heal them, the
sickness had eaten too deep for us to do anything. The
entire family was affected save for her, the reason
for that is still unclear.”
“The head of the healers said but at my little age I
knew it was my uncle that gave them gold in exchange
for the death of my parents and brothers. My uncle
had always wanted my father’s big tomato farm and
has tried several times to entice my father into selling
but my father wouldn’t. This has caused them to fight
several times but somehow, they will return to speaking
terms. What I didn’t understand is why my uncle
couldn’t just build his own or pay for his own land, why
does he want to make his brother beneath him just
because he is richer. The question kept coming over the
years until my uncle couldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer
anymore and decided to take the subtle path. He
poisoned a certain part of the farm where the biggest
harvests were usually taken from for celebrations and
all. He knew this because my father never hides
anything from his ambitious brother - the trait that
killed him. The poison didn’t affect everyone but some,
my entire family especially.
He bought off the healers who actually did more harm
than good to those they were tasked to heal. I watched
my family wither like a branch cut off from its stem,
and in two days they were all gone. It didn’t take long
for him to preside over the farms and houses of his
dead brother as he was next in line to do. Women were
never given anything of their father’s inheritance as
sooner or later, they will be married over. Why was I
not affected by the poison? I kept on asking myself
the question but I couldn’t seem to find an answer to it
then. I later got to know that my uncle made sure I
was exempted from the poison because he had plans for
me, plans of evil. He had always liked my mother more
than normal and because she never gave him any
chance, he turned to me as I took after her in
everything especially the big buttocks I later learnt he
cherished most more than anything. He kept me alive
for his games. He kept me alive to fulfill the dreams
he was never able to achieve on the flesh of my mother.
He took me in as the sweet uncle he pretended to be
and introduced me to his three sons.
I was seventeen then but looked like a full grown
woman. I was still in mourning when he first showed the
madness in him. He hit my buttocks very hard one
morning after our first meal of the day as I walked
back to my room. He laughed really hard together with
sons, and didn’t apologize that morning. I thought that
was a mistake on his part but the slaps continued, until
one night, I saw four of them walk into my room. That
wasn’t what actually surprised me, rather it was the
strange fact that they were all without their clothes
on. I sat and asked what this all about but they didn’t
answer me, instead, two of them jumped on the bed and
held both my arms and legs. I screamed for them to
set me free that I was their cousins, I was family but
all fell on deaf ears. They turned me around and pulled
my head down and made sure my buttocks were staring
into the stars. I didn’t know what they were up to at
first but when they tore my gown around my buttocks
and then I felt something hard and long entering where
I pissed, I knew I was being raped.
I was a virgin but my uncle didn’t know or he didn’t
care. He just continued to put his long c.ock into me
until he broke the barrier stopping him from enjoying
the full pleasure. I felt my blood dripping from my hole
but that didn’t deter him, he continued with his
defilement. I screamed in pain but no one came to my
aid. My uncle hit my buttocks as he raped me despite
my pains and when he was about to spill his seed, he
pulled out and poured the nonsense on where he has
been hitting. When he was done, he asked his first son
to take his place, he was adamant at first but after a
hard slap from his father, he slid into me without
another word. Each of them fvcked and left me sore
and broken. My uncle sent the healers to heal me and
after I had gotten enough rest, they would return. I
got so used to the treatment that whenever it was time
for them to visit me, I would be waiting for them
already in position. I tried running away but I was
always watched and after I was caught once, I never
saw the outside of my room for a long time.
I was decimated and abused every three days and after
praying to the good spirits for countless times to get
me away from these animals without getting an answer.
I stopped praying and started seeking for other ways
to leave there. I discovered my gift during my time of
grief and pain, which was a little late for someone who
was born with abilities. I practiced whenever no one was
around my room, I got better as the days rolled by,
days became months and months became years. I could
control some elements now, especially fire. One night
they came again to continue with their act but this
time I told them I had gotten tired of being fvcked in
the same place. I wanted somewhere else, they were
surprised at my utterance and my uncle asked where I
wanted to do it this time. I told them the stable, they
chuckled and asked why, I told them I had missed the
smell of hay. My uncle nodded and led the way to the
stables. I picked the one of my choice, the one housing
his most expensive horse. The wood protecting it was far
stronger than the ones used in the others, they got in
and locked the door. I resumed my position and off
they went going in and out till they were satisfied.
After they were done, they were leaving but I seduced
them into going in again. They smiled thinking I was
beginning to enjoy what they do to me. Each of them
fvcked me again which made them collapse to the floor
this time as they were tired. I smiled and waited, they
fell asleep after the hard activity they just did. As
soon as they fell asleep, I controlled a rope nearby by
manipulating the air around it tie their hands and legs.
I was very careful and made sure I caressed their skin
as I did to prevent them from waking up. When they
were tied and bounded, I called forth fire and once it
touched the hay, it ignited. They soon woke up to the
fire but couldn’t do anything as I stood there to make
sure the rope held its place on their limbs. They
screamed and screamed but no one came to their aid
because I made sure the fire didn’t spread beyond
where they were. I watched them burn into hideous
beings and when I was certain they were dead, I
mounted his beautiful horse and rode out of the place I
had come to hate, killing whoever who tried to stop
me.”
“That’s the end of my story, Eric.”
He smiled and caressed my arm, before he struggled to
say something as he was nearly at the door of the
underworld.
“I am glad you told me what has been eating you up, I
want you to be strong and do away with that bitterness
inside you. There are still good men out there and I am
certain some day you will find one of such. Do not let
these memories steal your happiness; find something to
do that will bring you joy. I am happy you stood by me
during my time as I sought to kill the man that
destroyed my life but I have now learnt the hard way
that I can’t and no can but the chosen one. I don’t
know this chosen one but I am certain that he will arrive
at the forgotten lands soon. I am dying and won’t be
able to meet him but you can. Promise me you will get
justice for my family, promise me you will find this man
and get him to kill the mad king, promise me you will
look after Claudia, promise me.”
With tears falling down my eyes,
“I promise.” He smiled and breathed his last. I closed
his eyes and covered him with a thick cloth. I paid men
to bury him beside his cabin while I packed my things
and mounted the horse I stole from my uncle. I wiped
my tears and headed for the forgotten lands.
ELLEN
**************************
“We tried our very best but we couldn’t heal them, the
sickness had eaten too deep for us to do anything. The
entire family was affected save for her, the reason
for that is still unclear.”
“The head of the healers said but at my little age I
knew it was my uncle that gave them gold in exchange
for the death of my parents and brothers. My uncle
had always wanted my father’s big tomato farm and
has tried several times to entice my father into selling
but my father wouldn’t. This has caused them to fight
several times but somehow, they will return to speaking
terms. What I didn’t understand is why my uncle
couldn’t just build his own or pay for his own land, why
does he want to make his brother beneath him just
because he is richer. The question kept coming over the
years until my uncle couldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer
anymore and decided to take the subtle path. He
poisoned a certain part of the farm where the biggest
harvests were usually taken from for celebrations and
all. He knew this because my father never hides
anything from his ambitious brother - the trait that
killed him. The poison didn’t affect everyone but some,
my entire family especially.
He bought off the healers who actually did more harm
than good to those they were tasked to heal. I watched
my family wither like a branch cut off from its stem,
and in two days they were all gone. It didn’t take long
for him to preside over the farms and houses of his
dead brother as he was next in line to do. Women were
never given anything of their father’s inheritance as
sooner or later, they will be married over. Why was I
not affected by the poison? I kept on asking myself
the question but I couldn’t seem to find an answer to it
then. I later got to know that my uncle made sure I
was exempted from the poison because he had plans for
me, plans of evil. He had always liked my mother more
than normal and because she never gave him any
chance, he turned to me as I took after her in
everything especially the big buttocks I later learnt he
cherished most more than anything. He kept me alive
for his games. He kept me alive to fulfill the dreams
he was never able to achieve on the flesh of my mother.
He took me in as the sweet uncle he pretended to be
and introduced me to his three sons.
I was seventeen then but looked like a full grown
woman. I was still in mourning when he first showed the
madness in him. He hit my buttocks very hard one
morning after our first meal of the day as I walked
back to my room. He laughed really hard together with
sons, and didn’t apologize that morning. I thought that
was a mistake on his part but the slaps continued, until
one night, I saw four of them walk into my room. That
wasn’t what actually surprised me, rather it was the
strange fact that they were all without their clothes
on. I sat and asked what this all about but they didn’t
answer me, instead, two of them jumped on the bed and
held both my arms and legs. I screamed for them to
set me free that I was their cousins, I was family but
all fell on deaf ears. They turned me around and pulled
my head down and made sure my buttocks were staring
into the stars. I didn’t know what they were up to at
first but when they tore my gown around my buttocks
and then I felt something hard and long entering where
I pissed, I knew I was being raped.
I was a virgin but my uncle didn’t know or he didn’t
care. He just continued to put his long c.ock into me
until he broke the barrier stopping him from enjoying
the full pleasure. I felt my blood dripping from my hole
but that didn’t deter him, he continued with his
defilement. I screamed in pain but no one came to my
aid. My uncle hit my buttocks as he raped me despite
my pains and when he was about to spill his seed, he
pulled out and poured the nonsense on where he has
been hitting. When he was done, he asked his first son
to take his place, he was adamant at first but after a
hard slap from his father, he slid into me without
another word. Each of them fvcked and left me sore
and broken. My uncle sent the healers to heal me and
after I had gotten enough rest, they would return. I
got so used to the treatment that whenever it was time
for them to visit me, I would be waiting for them
already in position. I tried running away but I was
always watched and after I was caught once, I never
saw the outside of my room for a long time.
I was decimated and abused every three days and after
praying to the good spirits for countless times to get
me away from these animals without getting an answer.
I stopped praying and started seeking for other ways
to leave there. I discovered my gift during my time of
grief and pain, which was a little late for someone who
was born with abilities. I practiced whenever no one was
around my room, I got better as the days rolled by,
days became months and months became years. I could
control some elements now, especially fire. One night
they came again to continue with their act but this
time I told them I had gotten tired of being fvcked in
the same place. I wanted somewhere else, they were
surprised at my utterance and my uncle asked where I
wanted to do it this time. I told them the stable, they
chuckled and asked why, I told them I had missed the
smell of hay. My uncle nodded and led the way to the
stables. I picked the one of my choice, the one housing
his most expensive horse. The wood protecting it was far
stronger than the ones used in the others, they got in
and locked the door. I resumed my position and off
they went going in and out till they were satisfied.
After they were done, they were leaving but I seduced
them into going in again. They smiled thinking I was
beginning to enjoy what they do to me. Each of them
fvcked me again which made them collapse to the floor
this time as they were tired. I smiled and waited, they
fell asleep after the hard activity they just did. As
soon as they fell asleep, I controlled a rope nearby by
manipulating the air around it tie their hands and legs.
I was very careful and made sure I caressed their skin
as I did to prevent them from waking up. When they
were tied and bounded, I called forth fire and once it
touched the hay, it ignited. They soon woke up to the
fire but couldn’t do anything as I stood there to make
sure the rope held its place on their limbs. They
screamed and screamed but no one came to their aid
because I made sure the fire didn’t spread beyond
where they were. I watched them burn into hideous
beings and when I was certain they were dead, I
mounted his beautiful horse and rode out of the place I
had come to hate, killing whoever who tried to stop
me.”
“That’s the end of my story, Eric.”
He smiled and caressed my arm, before he struggled to
say something as he was nearly at the door of the
underworld.
“I am glad you told me what has been eating you up, I
want you to be strong and do away with that bitterness
inside you. There are still good men out there and I am
certain some day you will find one of such. Do not let
these memories steal your happiness; find something to
do that will bring you joy. I am happy you stood by me
during my time as I sought to kill the man that
destroyed my life but I have now learnt the hard way
that I can’t and no can but the chosen one. I don’t
know this chosen one but I am certain that he will arrive
at the forgotten lands soon. I am dying and won’t be
able to meet him but you can. Promise me you will get
justice for my family, promise me you will find this man
and get him to kill the mad king, promise me you will
look after Claudia, promise me.”
With tears falling down my eyes,
“I promise.” He smiled and breathed his last. I closed
his eyes and covered him with a thick cloth. I paid men
to bury him beside his cabin while I packed my things
and mounted the horse I stole from my uncle. I wiped
my tears and headed for the forgotten lands.
**************************
ELLEN
**************************
I arrived at the forgotten lands with so much pain and
loss. I wasn’t bitter anymore, I just felt unlucky but I
can’t wear such gloomy looks around here, no one must
know what I have been through. I told Eric my story
because I felt I owned him that after what he has done
for me.
I met Eric in a pub where he was drinking away; he
looked calm and was taking his drink slowly. That caught
my attention as most there take the gale in one gulp
and order for another in their own way of showing the
w.hores they were the man. He was still on one cup and
was just staring into the night, thinking. He had long,
strong arms and a very hard face. He looked like he
just washed himself, he was clean but not for the
women as he ignored their antics to get him. He must
be waiting for someone else, for some reason, I wanted
to know who. I was there myself to drink away and try
to avoid sleeping that night as my time of rest was
another moment of torture. Every night I close my eyes
reminds me of what befell me every three days in the
three years I was held captive in my uncle’s place. It’s
been four years since but I still haven’t been able to
forget as those years of my life had become to define
me. I was never aroused anymore when my eyes saw a
man, most times I only want to kill the man, especially
those who will leave their wives at home and waste what
they have earned for the day on wh.ores instead of
their family. I hated men and that feeling had
continued to grow over the years. I was interested in
this man not because of his hard body but of how he
carried himself. When it was deep into the night and no
one seemed to be coming over to his table, I took my
cup and chair and moved to his table. I didn’t ask for
permission, I just did what I wanted to do. He snapped
out of his world and faced me, his deep aqua eyes ran
over me in very quickly and then they returned to
looking at the sky.
“I have stared at the same dark blanket too and to be
sincere, there is nothing to occupy one’s thoughts
there, save for the full moon.” I said, he didn’t say
anything but instead, took another drink from his cup.
I didn’t take that as being rude and continued to sit
opposite him. When it was close to midnight and he saw I
wasn’t ready to leave but I had rather taken up his
style of a little drink at a time. He faced me with a
scowl on his face and asked,
“He sent you, didn’t he?” I was lost and didn’t even
know how to answer the question. He had been sitting
all this while waiting for someone to kill him or am I
just the one misinterpreting his question and demeanor.
I decided to reduce the tension as I noticed he quietly
let his eyes linger on my hands than on anything else,
my refusal to answer the question must have made him
believe I was whoever he thought I was. I laughed
suddenly which surprised him and said,
“I only came over because you were lonely and were not
taking part in the fun. People are happy and dancing
to the beautiful music but you are here all alone,
staring into nothing. You only aroused my interest, I
must have been wrong in mu assertions then; my
apologies.” I said, and stood up to leave. He didn’t say
anything but just watched me return to my table. Soon,
he left the pub; I didn’t see him till about three days
later in the same place and on the same table. He was
there before me and when he saw me, he smiled at me.
He had a lovely smile; I was charmed by that single act
and moved over to his end.
“I am sorry of my behavior the last time we met. It’s
just that I am now weary of very beautiful faces such
as the one on you.” he said before kissing my hand. I
smiled and asked,
“What made you careful of such faces?”
“Well, I have been attacked in various forms by beings
with beautiful faces. I don’t particularly learn from my
own mistakes but I think I have in this situation.”
I nodded and from that night, we became close friends.
Eric knew I was bitter about something and after he
knew I wasn’t one of those beautiful faces sent by
Lucien to end him. He tried to get me to open up by
telling me everything about him, but my hatred for
men won’t let me. He was a good man I could see from
his actions and he taught me some tricks on using my
unique gift of witchcraft. He was a wizard and he was
proud of one thing; learning how to use his gift by his
lonesome. I didn’t know he was after Lucien, if I did, I
would have spoken to him to stop the madness he was
planning to do. Lucien knew of Eric plans to kill him and
on several occasions sent both men and women to kill
him. Women I later knew were his body guards, the
beautiful faces Eric spoke about. Once, when one of
them came, I tried to use magic against her and nearly
got myself killed. Eric drove the woman away through
physical means and quickly healed me before I passed
on.
From then on, I owned him my life and his fight became
my fight. He didn’t see me more than a friend and I
saw him as a brother, so we were alright with pulling
our clothes in front of each other and sometimes, sleep
Unclad. Whenever he couldn’t control his urges, he visits
the brothel where he screws some whores. One day, we
got wind of the fact that Lucien will be visiting one of
the towns in his kingdom where he intended to open one
of many projects. The plan was to attack him on the
route back to his palace; it was a brilliant plan as
Lucien rarely ever leaves his palace. Our plan worked
but for reasons best known to Eric, he decided to
attack the king alone while I took care of his soldiers
and women. It wasn’t easy for me because I couldn’t
use magic against the women who were three in number.
I had to use several tricks Eric taught me such as
appearing and disappearing which I later knew were
gifts peculiar to only to witches and wizards. By doing
so, I was able to distract the coordinated attacks of
the women and took them out by hitting their heads. I
ran to where I left Eric but found him on the floor,
barely breathing. I tried to heal him but only made his
injuries worse. Eric couldn’t be healed because Lucien
used the spell of the inverse proportions on him which
prevents healing on someone. I cried when I learnt this
and took him back home. He died in his cabin days
after, I had lost someone I cared for again but in doing
so, I found one thing I lacked for so long – purpose.
****************************************
I soon became a household name among the guardians
when each time I went in search of gifted females, I
always returned with the girls no matter how difficult
the location was. I went even to the dreaded north and
my targets never eluded me. The bitter one was later
the name accorded to me by some jealous guardians
and some even whispered that I preferred sleeping with
my kind than doing men. I didn’t care about their
allegations and gossips but rather kept my eyes on the
beautiful Claudia. Eric had good taste and that
included his wife, whom was just as quiet as I was,
perhaps, she had a story to tell too. After three years
in the forgotten lands, I started hearing whispers of
someone with Lucien powers. The whispers became true
when one night; mother summoned some of us and
ordered Claudia to get a man named Kieran. What was
so special about the man, I wondered. I later got to
know he was the body of the whispers that was
everywhere; he was the one Eric spoke about. I became
excited and started spending most of my time looking
at the gates. I was staring at my blank sky; I smiled as
I remembered Eric. I was a bit disappointed with
mother on choosing Claudia who had never been to the
fields before for such an important task. I became
scared when the time she was meant to return passed
and still she was nowhere to be seen. I kept on praying
and the good spirits heard me this time.
I heard footsteps one early morning and I found my
way outside from my viewing post where I watched the
chosen man summoned a powerful blast of lightening to
scare off Maureen. That single act of his made him
enemies in his new home but I was glad because that
would mean less advances from the women for the time
being. I couldn’t wait to be with him and I got my wish
when mother asked me to get the stubborn man to her
chambers by any means possible. I walked in to find him
beside one of those demons who nearly killed Eric, I
wanted to kill her there but I held myself because she
was going to die anyway as she couldn’t be healed. But
the handsome Kieran would have none of that and kept
on trying to heal her until he did. I was astonished by
such display of love but I was angry with him for not
staying with Claudia, rather he seemed to prefer this
woman. I did as I was told and took Kieran into the
room by using his lustful desires as a means to get into
him as normal magic doesn’t work on him. He woke up to
see me and instantly had a scowl on his face, he didn’t
like me and soon Mother dismissed me but I was able to
find one thing about him – he is not the control master
like Eric. I could easily win his heart by sleeping with
him.
I left his presence that day and kept my eyes on that
demon, as I knew she was here to watch Kieran. I was
appointed as a teacher to teach him how to use the
wizardry side of his gift. The little time I was with him
before Claudia interrupted us, I observed his sudden
change of behavior towards me. He was putting on a
mask of a polite man, something I knew he wasn’t.
Every teacher loves an obedient child, but I wasn’t just
interested in teaching him, I was after something else.
I must find a way for him to open up to me and I must
do it quickly before someone else wins his trust. The one
thing he couldn’t mask though was his lustful desires
for me. I could see at the back of his eyes, he wanted
me and I will give what he wants soon. I began the first
phase of my plans by carelessly allowing the prophecy
concerning him fall to the ground. He stared at the
book like a scholar would stare at his books. That
knowing look unmasked him and I was able to see the
intelligent and highly observant Kieran. His moment of
distraction enabled me wave my hands around the
mirror in his room as I wanted to watch him at all
times. He gave me back the book, albeit reluctantly as
the book was him and he was the book. Claudia arrived
soon and as I watched him trick her into telling him
what she shouldn’t when I got to my room. I smiled as I
saw the brilliance hidden in that arrogant tongue of his,
the man knows why he is here and one of them included
vengeance for his family. A task I will gladly help him
achieve. He might trust Claudia but I will have him to
my bosoms soon enough. Kieran will be our sword of
vengeance if Claudia becomes interested. I smiled and
return to my bed to stare at the ceiling till day break
as I have been doing for the last few years.
*****************************************
ELLEN
**************************
I arrived at the forgotten lands with so much pain and
loss. I wasn’t bitter anymore, I just felt unlucky but I
can’t wear such gloomy looks around here, no one must
know what I have been through. I told Eric my story
because I felt I owned him that after what he has done
for me.
I met Eric in a pub where he was drinking away; he
looked calm and was taking his drink slowly. That caught
my attention as most there take the gale in one gulp
and order for another in their own way of showing the
w.hores they were the man. He was still on one cup and
was just staring into the night, thinking. He had long,
strong arms and a very hard face. He looked like he
just washed himself, he was clean but not for the
women as he ignored their antics to get him. He must
be waiting for someone else, for some reason, I wanted
to know who. I was there myself to drink away and try
to avoid sleeping that night as my time of rest was
another moment of torture. Every night I close my eyes
reminds me of what befell me every three days in the
three years I was held captive in my uncle’s place. It’s
been four years since but I still haven’t been able to
forget as those years of my life had become to define
me. I was never aroused anymore when my eyes saw a
man, most times I only want to kill the man, especially
those who will leave their wives at home and waste what
they have earned for the day on wh.ores instead of
their family. I hated men and that feeling had
continued to grow over the years. I was interested in
this man not because of his hard body but of how he
carried himself. When it was deep into the night and no
one seemed to be coming over to his table, I took my
cup and chair and moved to his table. I didn’t ask for
permission, I just did what I wanted to do. He snapped
out of his world and faced me, his deep aqua eyes ran
over me in very quickly and then they returned to
looking at the sky.
“I have stared at the same dark blanket too and to be
sincere, there is nothing to occupy one’s thoughts
there, save for the full moon.” I said, he didn’t say
anything but instead, took another drink from his cup.
I didn’t take that as being rude and continued to sit
opposite him. When it was close to midnight and he saw I
wasn’t ready to leave but I had rather taken up his
style of a little drink at a time. He faced me with a
scowl on his face and asked,
“He sent you, didn’t he?” I was lost and didn’t even
know how to answer the question. He had been sitting
all this while waiting for someone to kill him or am I
just the one misinterpreting his question and demeanor.
I decided to reduce the tension as I noticed he quietly
let his eyes linger on my hands than on anything else,
my refusal to answer the question must have made him
believe I was whoever he thought I was. I laughed
suddenly which surprised him and said,
“I only came over because you were lonely and were not
taking part in the fun. People are happy and dancing
to the beautiful music but you are here all alone,
staring into nothing. You only aroused my interest, I
must have been wrong in mu assertions then; my
apologies.” I said, and stood up to leave. He didn’t say
anything but just watched me return to my table. Soon,
he left the pub; I didn’t see him till about three days
later in the same place and on the same table. He was
there before me and when he saw me, he smiled at me.
He had a lovely smile; I was charmed by that single act
and moved over to his end.
“I am sorry of my behavior the last time we met. It’s
just that I am now weary of very beautiful faces such
as the one on you.” he said before kissing my hand. I
smiled and asked,
“What made you careful of such faces?”
“Well, I have been attacked in various forms by beings
with beautiful faces. I don’t particularly learn from my
own mistakes but I think I have in this situation.”
I nodded and from that night, we became close friends.
Eric knew I was bitter about something and after he
knew I wasn’t one of those beautiful faces sent by
Lucien to end him. He tried to get me to open up by
telling me everything about him, but my hatred for
men won’t let me. He was a good man I could see from
his actions and he taught me some tricks on using my
unique gift of witchcraft. He was a wizard and he was
proud of one thing; learning how to use his gift by his
lonesome. I didn’t know he was after Lucien, if I did, I
would have spoken to him to stop the madness he was
planning to do. Lucien knew of Eric plans to kill him and
on several occasions sent both men and women to kill
him. Women I later knew were his body guards, the
beautiful faces Eric spoke about. Once, when one of
them came, I tried to use magic against her and nearly
got myself killed. Eric drove the woman away through
physical means and quickly healed me before I passed
on.
From then on, I owned him my life and his fight became
my fight. He didn’t see me more than a friend and I
saw him as a brother, so we were alright with pulling
our clothes in front of each other and sometimes, sleep
Unclad. Whenever he couldn’t control his urges, he visits
the brothel where he screws some whores. One day, we
got wind of the fact that Lucien will be visiting one of
the towns in his kingdom where he intended to open one
of many projects. The plan was to attack him on the
route back to his palace; it was a brilliant plan as
Lucien rarely ever leaves his palace. Our plan worked
but for reasons best known to Eric, he decided to
attack the king alone while I took care of his soldiers
and women. It wasn’t easy for me because I couldn’t
use magic against the women who were three in number.
I had to use several tricks Eric taught me such as
appearing and disappearing which I later knew were
gifts peculiar to only to witches and wizards. By doing
so, I was able to distract the coordinated attacks of
the women and took them out by hitting their heads. I
ran to where I left Eric but found him on the floor,
barely breathing. I tried to heal him but only made his
injuries worse. Eric couldn’t be healed because Lucien
used the spell of the inverse proportions on him which
prevents healing on someone. I cried when I learnt this
and took him back home. He died in his cabin days
after, I had lost someone I cared for again but in doing
so, I found one thing I lacked for so long – purpose.
****************************************
I soon became a household name among the guardians
when each time I went in search of gifted females, I
always returned with the girls no matter how difficult
the location was. I went even to the dreaded north and
my targets never eluded me. The bitter one was later
the name accorded to me by some jealous guardians
and some even whispered that I preferred sleeping with
my kind than doing men. I didn’t care about their
allegations and gossips but rather kept my eyes on the
beautiful Claudia. Eric had good taste and that
included his wife, whom was just as quiet as I was,
perhaps, she had a story to tell too. After three years
in the forgotten lands, I started hearing whispers of
someone with Lucien powers. The whispers became true
when one night; mother summoned some of us and
ordered Claudia to get a man named Kieran. What was
so special about the man, I wondered. I later got to
know he was the body of the whispers that was
everywhere; he was the one Eric spoke about. I became
excited and started spending most of my time looking
at the gates. I was staring at my blank sky; I smiled as
I remembered Eric. I was a bit disappointed with
mother on choosing Claudia who had never been to the
fields before for such an important task. I became
scared when the time she was meant to return passed
and still she was nowhere to be seen. I kept on praying
and the good spirits heard me this time.
I heard footsteps one early morning and I found my
way outside from my viewing post where I watched the
chosen man summoned a powerful blast of lightening to
scare off Maureen. That single act of his made him
enemies in his new home but I was glad because that
would mean less advances from the women for the time
being. I couldn’t wait to be with him and I got my wish
when mother asked me to get the stubborn man to her
chambers by any means possible. I walked in to find him
beside one of those demons who nearly killed Eric, I
wanted to kill her there but I held myself because she
was going to die anyway as she couldn’t be healed. But
the handsome Kieran would have none of that and kept
on trying to heal her until he did. I was astonished by
such display of love but I was angry with him for not
staying with Claudia, rather he seemed to prefer this
woman. I did as I was told and took Kieran into the
room by using his lustful desires as a means to get into
him as normal magic doesn’t work on him. He woke up to
see me and instantly had a scowl on his face, he didn’t
like me and soon Mother dismissed me but I was able to
find one thing about him – he is not the control master
like Eric. I could easily win his heart by sleeping with
him.
I left his presence that day and kept my eyes on that
demon, as I knew she was here to watch Kieran. I was
appointed as a teacher to teach him how to use the
wizardry side of his gift. The little time I was with him
before Claudia interrupted us, I observed his sudden
change of behavior towards me. He was putting on a
mask of a polite man, something I knew he wasn’t.
Every teacher loves an obedient child, but I wasn’t just
interested in teaching him, I was after something else.
I must find a way for him to open up to me and I must
do it quickly before someone else wins his trust. The one
thing he couldn’t mask though was his lustful desires
for me. I could see at the back of his eyes, he wanted
me and I will give what he wants soon. I began the first
phase of my plans by carelessly allowing the prophecy
concerning him fall to the ground. He stared at the
book like a scholar would stare at his books. That
knowing look unmasked him and I was able to see the
intelligent and highly observant Kieran. His moment of
distraction enabled me wave my hands around the
mirror in his room as I wanted to watch him at all
times. He gave me back the book, albeit reluctantly as
the book was him and he was the book. Claudia arrived
soon and as I watched him trick her into telling him
what she shouldn’t when I got to my room. I smiled as I
saw the brilliance hidden in that arrogant tongue of his,
the man knows why he is here and one of them included
vengeance for his family. A task I will gladly help him
achieve. He might trust Claudia but I will have him to
my bosoms soon enough. Kieran will be our sword of
vengeance if Claudia becomes interested. I smiled and
return to my bed to stare at the ceiling till day break
as I have been doing for the last few years.
*****************************************
