The Blade of Kenai

Part 2: Chapter 6

Kenai exchanged a worried glance at Kazdyn. Don't say a THING. He hoped he got the message through but almost smacked his hand against his face when Kazdyn opened his mouth to say something surely stupid.
"Isle of the Goddess?" Kenai sighed with relief. That was definitely not the worst thing that could have come out of Kazdyn's mouth. Kenai waited for Nezzeru's reaction, curious where the conversation would take them.
"It's more of a legend than anything. A children's story to whisper around a campfire."
"And what do you believe?" Kenai leaned forward so that he could decipher Nezzeru's emotions better. He pursed his lips before answering.
"I believe that there is too much proof of the isle to simply dismiss it. I lived during the days she supposedly raised it into the sky, I did not witness it but there were many rumors."
Kenai was half surprised with his answer, having expected him to blow it off. He understood not wanting to sound crazy in front of a crowd.
"These swords," Nezzeru continued. "Tell great stories of the soldiers that carried them. However, three are missing from my collection." Kenai's heart dropped to his stomach when Nezzeru glanced at the swords Kazdyn and Kenai weilded.
"All of the swords in this room have separate stories of great legends. Separate, but with the same beginning." Kenai was invested, but also worried what Nezzeru either thought or knew about the ancient blades.
"When the Demon population began to grow, the elves dug deep into the ground, looking for a lightweight and very durable stone, an ore that could not be destroyed. We were not sure if the ore actually existed, but nevertheless, we put our hearts and souls into finding something that could give us hope. After vigorously searching for the material for many years an elf named Lukiel struck a small fortune." Nezzeru took in a breath before continuing.
"There was only enough to make twelve swords, so there was no room for failure of the construction of them. The most skilled blacksmith of our great city asked for a blessing from the Goddess to empower him to melt down the indestructible ore." Nezzeru attempted to discreetly look at Kazdyn's sword, but it did not go unnoticed by either of them.
"The legend continues to tell of two uniquely colored ores that were found inside of the block they had harvested. The rest of the material melted, but the two that were different refused to, no matter how intense the heat was. The blacksmith wrestled with the stubbornness of the ore, even consulting the Goddess trying to find a solution, but even though she is the most powerful of the Gods, she had no power over them." Kenai held his breath, deeply invested in the tale.
"Finally, one night, two unknown entities visited the blacksmith in his sleep. They claimed to be the one's whom were protecting the ore. They were worried that the elves would use them for evil. The two ores are the strongest of ore in all of the world, which was the two entities had such a strong desire to protect it from mere mortals. After swearing that the blades composed of the ore would only be used to slay evil, the two ghosts agreed to let him turn them into weapons of great power."
"The next day, instead of having to melt down the ore and form it himself, he found two beautifully crafted swords, both were the same, but also different. It is said that the names of the swords were given to the blacksmith in another dream, but he was unable to speak of them, resulting in the rest of the elvish population to simply call them 'The Twin Blades'." A shiver tan down Kenai's spine.
"They were used in many attacks on the Demons. As for the other swords, one of was allegedly used as a prison for the Demon Prince, Zolhorn." Kenai choked on his own saliva, and had to bend over and pound his chest to loosen it. Holy shit.
He looked at Kazdyn, who wore the same expression. Neither of them had any idea of how unique or powerful the blades were, and Kenai desperately wanted to know the names of them.
"So what happened to them?" Kazdyn leaned forward, waiting for them answer.
"No one knows." Nezzeru sighed again, leaving them in a deafening silence before leading them to a table hidden in the left side of the hut. The delicate wood was covered in an old parchment paper, it had big swirly handwriting, which Kenai could not decipher. It must be important. He concluded, before turned to face Nezzeru, ready for another story.
"This," Nezzeru continued as he gestured at the table. "Also holds information of great importance." Kenai's heart ached for the ability to read the handwriting. Kazdyn leaned over the table, blocking the view from Kenai, and Nezzery reached for Kazdyn shoulder, gently pulling him back.
"I'm sorry, but we cannot risk this being harmed, it is very old and becomes more fragile by the days." Kazdyn glanced down with shame before responding. "My bad." Kenai was grateful that Nezzeru had seemed to warm up to them.
"It is one of the last remnants of hope this world has." Nezzeru looked away, and Kenai was surprised to see that his eyes had glossed over.
"Before the Goddess lifted The Isle into the sky she left this parchment that describes yet another legend of The Twin Blades. That they would depart from us, but would someday return to end the Demon species completely and return this desolate land back to the lush and prosperous world it once was."
Kenai's heart stopped and his breathing ceased. Am I understanding this right? Nezzeru now had a pleading look across his face.
"Please, tell me," Nezzeru's voice cracked. "Where do you come from and why are you here?"
Kenai looked at Kazdyn as they both bit their bottom lips, which on its own may have given the secret away. Kazdyn nodded at Kenai, allowing him to be the one to tell Nezzeru.
"It's your story." He whispered softly. Kenai wasn't sure if Kazdyn was truly giving him the honor, or if he feared Nezzeru's reaction.
"We come from Elhein, The Isle of the Goddess." Kenai heard Wren suck in a deep breath, confirming that she, too, had her suspicions about the two strange travelers.
"The Demon Prince-Zolhorn," Kenai's words tumbled out quickly, and it seemed impossible to stop. "He escaped from the sword, I think the sword you were telling us about. He stole Daithe, and cursed my arm." Kenai's vision began to blur but he didn't allow himself to release them.
"We didn't know that the... the..."
"Surface World." Kazdyn cut in, but he paused once again so that Kenai could continue speaking the secret he promised he would keep.
"Yes. I guess it turns out only one person from Elhein still knew it existed. That dick." Kenai felt awful for letting that slip, which even earned a jaw drop from Kazdyn.
"I told Daith's father that I would come to The Surface World and save her, but I'm not sure I can." Kenai drooped his head, it seemed like he was finally out of words, but still felt shame in the pit of his stomach for revealing the one thing he wasn't supposed to.
"I don't know anything about this world. I feel useless." Kenai looked up again at Nezzeru, and turned his head to glance at Wren, who was still holding Pae, she also wore a somber face.
Nezzeru looked stunned, and it was easy to tell he was fighting his body's urge to collapse from pure shock.
"Let's find somewhere to sit." Nezzeru finally stuttered as he turned towards the doorway, holding his head in his hand and massaging his temples.
Kenai, Kazdyn, and Wren followed him across more of the wood planks and it wasn't hard to detect the shared feeling of confusion that Wren and her father were experiencing.
A few huts down Nezzeru slowed and turned to walk into a slightly larger room, which was home to two cozy makeshift couches. Wren and Nezzeru plopped themselves down on one of the couches, both moving their eyes to the floor as if they were afraid to look at either of them. After a few moments Nezzeru finally spoke.
"Please tell us more." He looked up to lock eyes with Kenai, who was unsure of what he wanted to know, or what he should say. There's no use of hiding anything now.
"Well..." Nezzeru must have heard the uncertainty in his voice and clarified.
"Of your journey, your people, how this happened in the first place," He hesitated before asking a final request."The blades you carry?"
      Kenai was still worried about the answers he could give, but tried his best, beginning with the question that seemd easiest to answer.
"I didn't really understand before, but the sword that held Zolhorn's spirit was on Elhein. I don't know how or why it got there, but it's shattered now." Confusion filled Kenai's thoughts and he furrowed his eyebrows together. I thought it was indestructible?
"Wait but how-?" Kazdyn began, but Kenai interrupted before he could finish.
"It doesn't make sense to me neither. It's all new to me too, I didn't think there was anything particularly special about any of the swords." Kenai admitted, watching Nezzeru's facial expressions switch between anger, fear, and uncertainty.
"The sword I carry," Kenai continued. "Was passed down in Kazdyn's family line for many years.
"Then why does Kazdyn not carry it?" The cousin's glanced at each other before Kazdyn cracked a grin.
"Silver isn't really my color." He shrugged, and the remark earned a grin from both Nezzeru and Wren.
"But where does the gold one come from?" Wren said, leaning forward. Oh no. They don't need to know Kazdyn is a thief. Kenai raised an eyebrow at Kazdyn, giving him the full responsibility of admitting to his crime.
"I sorta..." Kazdyn trailed, lifting his hand to the back of his head and began to scratch at it.
"Kinda took it." Kenai's predicted reactions from Wren and Nezzeru were fulfilled, and Kazdyn hurridly attempted to give a valid reason to pardon himself from the crime.
"Honestly, it felt like I should." Kenai was surprised, Kazdyn's tone sounded sincere and he turned to face him a little better.
"I was banned from coming with Kenai and I tried really hard to accept it, but when I saw this sword it was like..." Kazdyn looked up to the sky, searching for the right words. "It was begging me to take it and join him." Kenai was partially hurt with Kazdyn's true admittance, but tried not to show it.
Nezzeru's eyes filled with understanding, which was the last thing Kenai expected to come from him. It wasn't directly mentioned, but Kenai was certain that everyone that occupied the room had the same thought racing over and over in their minds.
Is the prophecy about us? Kenai leaned himself back, resting against the cushion of the couch. A sudden jolt of pain pierced through his body, causing him to quickly grasp his arm and clench his teeth together so that he would not cry out. Wren rushed to his side and Pae followed, squeaking with great concern for her closest fried.
Wren fell quickly to her knees and began to remove his glove and lift his sleeve. It was difficult to not pull back from Wren, within the two days he had been cursed Kenai had already developed the complusion of not allowing anyone to help with his condition.
"Dad, do we have anything to calm it? A salve? Herbs?" Kenai remembered the small container of goopy slime that Pella had instructed him to use morning and night, and he used his other hand to unbuckle the pouch on his hip.
"There's something in-" Kenai paused to throw his head back. "In here, to help." Kenai hadn't realized, but everyone else had also bent down, and Kazdyn quickly reached down to unbuckle the pouch that Kenai had failed to open.
Kenai watched as Kazdyn pulled the cork from the bottle and as he let his eyes linger on Wren as she began to apply the mixture to his forearm. Kenai immediately felt relief and he let out a sigh as his body relaxed. Wren scraped the sides of her fingers onto the sides of the container, where some of the salve was still coated across. There was still a decent amount, but there was no real countdown of how long he would need to keep applying it.
"There, is that better?" Kenai locked eyes with Wren's worried ones and he nodded before looking up at Kazdyn and Nezzeru, who shared looks of concern.
"This is a lot worse than I thought." Worry laced Nezzeru's words which caused Kenai and Kazdyn to exchange saddened expressions.
"So am I close?" Kenai asked.
"To the end. My end." He clarified when no one in the room spoke, which scared him more than if an actual estimate had been given.
"You must go to Astral's Realm. It is the only chance you have of saving yourself." Kenai's heart jumped at the mention of the sacred place.
"Astral's Realm?" Kenai rolled his eyes, Kazdyn had never been good at listening for long, but he had hoped he had at least paid more attention to the important information that Soren had given them.
"One of the last preserved locations a God still protects."
He must be sick of having to explain simple history that everyone probably knows.
"But there is only one Goddess, isn't there?" Wren looked at Kazdyn in disbelief, and then at Kenai, who was also completely taken by surprise.
"No," Nezzeru began with a chuckle. "The Goddess was the most powerful, but she created many other Beast-Gods to nurture the lands."
"Astral is the Wolf-God. She is the only Pureblooded God that remains." Wren jumped in, and Kenai's head spun with dizziness. This was close to too much knowledge taken in for one day. He wanted to ask what a Pureblood God was, where Astrals Realm was located, and most of all he needed to know how to save Daithe.
The room was again filled with an emptiness, except for the sound of Pae's soft snores. It was a bit strange that she had warmed up to Wren so quickly, but Kenai assumed it had something to do with how connected to nature she was.
"Well," Kazdyn leaned forward and clapped his hands together and began rubbing them together. "That's enough info for me today." Kenai was grateful for Kazdyn's blunt honesty, and nodded along. Wren glanced at her father and gave a look that suggested she felt the same way.
The sky had begun to darken and Kenai shivered. Would it be rude to ask if we could stay the night? Nezzeru must have read the question written across Kenai's face and gave an answer before Kenai could open his mouth to ask.
"You two are welcome to stay the night, you must be exhausted. I apologize we only have these couches, we aren't exactly accustomed to visitors." He chuckled softly out of nervousness.
"That's alright," Kenai sighed with relief. "Anything is better then the dirt." Kazdyn winced, surely reliving the previous long and cold night. Kenai's stomach began to growl, suddenly remembering the lack of food in his body, and he looked down hungrily at the long eared creature that still hung from Wren's hunting belt.
"Let's get a fire started, shall we?" Nezzeru stood up, quickly followed by the rest of the crew along with quick aggreances from the lot.