A Slayer's Tales

The Missing Son

Nicholas found himself riding back to the Slayers' Stronghold, a magnificent stone fortress that the Slayers lived within, alone that morning. His mind was full of thoughts. None of them were pleasant. Some were cursing Brom and his lies and deception that caused Robert's death; others were thoughts of sadness and grief for his friend, and man who raised him.

    As Nicholas approached the large wooden gates, they rose and two men stood on the other side: Ulric, the eldest Slayer who sported a snow-white beard that ended just before his abdomen, and Cassius, Robert's younger brother and spitting image of him. Nicholas couldn't look Cassius in the eyes as he rode in. He silently passed them both and brought his and Robert's horses to the stables.

    "Nicholas..." Ulric spoke, getting to him before Cassius, "What happened? Where is Robert?" Nicholas ignored his fellow Slayer and he had his back to him. Ulric couldn't see the pain on Nicholas' face.

    "Nick, where's my brother?" Cassius caught up to the others in the stables. He'd watched for Robert for a moment but decided it would be best to just ask Nicholas. "He..." Nicholas trailed off. He choked up and his lip began to shake as he fought back tears. He couldn't bring himself to say. Instead, Nicholas headed inside to the dining hall to get himself a drink, or ten, to drown the pain away.

    "Nicholas, where is he?" Cassius followed, determined to get an answer. "Cassius..." Nicholas started but he could never finish. He couldn't bring himself to it. "What? Why aren't you telling us?" Cassius' voice got more emotional, it was clear that he had an idea of what happened.

    Nicholas picked up a cup and poured himself some wine. He watched the red liquid flow into his cup and all he could think of was Robert's blood as he coughed it up. He closed his eyes and relived the events in a split-second, only Robert wasn't a daemon this time. Nicholas' memory was tainted. He blocked out the fact that Robert was going to kill the King and blamed himself solely for what happened. He opened his eyes as he heard the cup hit the stone floor. He took several sharp breaths before falling back onto the bench at the table. "Nick!" Ulric rushed to his side and knelt before him. "Is he...?" Ulric didn't need to finish the sentence, Nicholas' expression told him all he needed to know. Ulric hung his head in sorrow as a single tear rolled down his leather-like skin and fell from his cheek to the floor.

    Cassius, knowing what had happened thanks to Ulric's hung head, threw a cup against the wall before swiping everything from the side table. Nicholas looked up at Cassius, who was more angry than upset. "I'm sorry." Cassius looked at Nicholas. He was full of rage to begin with and hated him. Nicholas was the man who failed to protect his brother. Nicholas was the man who let his kin die. Then he rage slowly faded and became sadness. He began to cry and Nicholas joined him. It occurred to Cassius only in that moment that Robert probably gave his life in order to save Nicholas, a younger Slayer with his whole future ahead of him. "I'm sorry too, Nicholas. I really am."

    He appreciated Cassius' words, and his understanding, but Nicholas still felt guilty. He needed to escape, even for a little bit.

Winterria was the Kingdom that the Slayers' Stronghold resided in. There was a deep historic connection between the Kingdom and the Slayers. The Stronghold was established by the Kingdom's capital by Bor Huldrich in order to make it easier to reach. This was as necessary for Slayers now as Winterria wasn't the only Kingdom they served, but it did provide a place for the Slayers to go when then needed food, ale and other necessities.

    Nicholas gently trotted, on horseback, down the lower city streets of the Winterrian capital. The roads were less road and more pigsty. However, he didn't care. The people here smiled and spoke well of him as he passed. Whilst he'd preferred to have been ignored, he was much more welcoming of praise than hate. He smiled back at the people as he rode to the nearest inn and Tavern, The Stag's Head.