The Bounty Hunter's Trilogy: Chosen By Fate

Chapter 21. This is a Lot of New Information

"Okay, go to the next page and tell me what it says." Audrey poured me another glass of water as we sat in the Hall of the Fallen with Paisley's version of the guide in front of us. The sleek laptop was a Lucas exclusive design and could hold twice as much information as was stored on there currently, making it great for holding world saving tips from all around the globe. The bigger hard drive was made possible by the solar powered battery taking up less space than a normal one.

I was currently reading through the translated version of the Scottish guide which had been recovered about thirty years ago. I scrolled down to the next page. "Daggers: the marriage tradition."

Audrey nodded. "Okay, read it out loud."

I took a sip of water before starting the page long explanation. "Each sword and dagger is unique for each specific person. Rings are used, yes, but a dagger says it all. When a soldier offers his weapon to someone else, it's to acknowledge that they are above them in their eyes. It's a way of saying 'All you've done for me and those around us proves that you're the best fit for this. For us.'

"By proposing with a dagger, the proposer says the same thing, just romantically. By giving her a dagger, you are showing her that she's the person you see fit to take you through your life and always be by your side. You're trusting that she'll defend you when you yourself can't. You're giving her the tools, power, and choice to literally end your life, and trusting that she won't. If the dagger has been used to win battles before it's given, it's considered an even bigger gesture. It says 'I think you could use this better than I could.'

"If she says yes, then good for you, soldier. You now have a fiancée. And as your new fiancée, she will keep both yours and her own dagger on her person at all times. On the day of your wedding, she will then give you her dagger, sealing the marriage. Holding the hilt of each others daggers in your right hand, the hands will be tied together and the rings placed on the left hands. If she says no, make sure you have fast reflexes. Congratulations." I rubbed my eyes, feeling the burn in them from reading for so long.

"Audrey, it's almost midnight. We need sleep. Please, can we stop reading all of these pointless traditions from random guides?"

Her head snapped up to glare at me. "Pointless... You think traditions of an entire people are pointless? You think that the way we do things in our already dying  culture should be forgotten?" I shrugged.

"It just seems so silly. There's a perfectly good way to do all of this without these new-."

"Perfectly good isn't how we run things around here. We aren't like other people in the world, Daniel. We never will be. So we won't behave like we are. Our differences of who we are and how we function compared to the rest of humanity is how we know that."

"But what if we acted like it? What if we didn't act so different and we just blended in with everyone else? Wouldn't being among them and adapting be easier? We wouldn't have to do all of..." I gestured to the table in front of me and to the room around us, "this."

Audrey looked ready to slam my face into the table but instead she nodded. "Okay. You want to know what would happen if we acted normal?" She picked up a remote from the table and pointed it to the map on the end wall. A live feed popped up over a few different countries. North Korea, Brazil, and France were all playing footage from the streets. "This is what happens when we act normal. When there's nobody like us to defend them. Bounties running amuck, affecting malleable human minds to do their bidding. Killing defenseless and innocent men, women, and children for sport!" A bomb went off in France in a stadium completely full of people. A couple out for a walk in Brazil was being attacked by a gang. In North Korea, an army was being formed, given weapons, and even teams creating bombs of unknown power. And in the background or on the side of the videos, you could see them. Bounties whispering in the ears of those doing horrible things to other people and going unseen by the blind eyes of shawdlings. They'd stand back and watch as their bidding was carried out.