The Life/Death of Ray

Chapter 2: Stories

After about two days of walking Raymin and shade settle down for the night around a fire. Once the fire is set up and they sit down Shade says "Hey, Raymin, can you tell me more about yourself?" Raymin looks up from the fire with a slightly confused look on his face. "Well i just thought that becuase we'll be travelling with each other we should get to know each other. Plus, y'know it's kinda weird traveling with a dead guy, let alone a dead guy i don't know." She said with a smirk on her face. Raymin lets out a sigh. "I don't know, my story isn't all that great." "I mean being ressurected must be weird right?" Shade asks. Before answering Raymin looks at his own hands. "I guess it's kind of surreal, y'know. One second im lying in a grave, the next im back at it with a sword in my hand. It kind of makes me miss Aria." "Oh come on, enough with the contemplation. Tell me about your life already." She starts to poke Raymin with a stick. Raymin grabs the stick and breaks it. "Fine, if it'll get you to shut up, I'll tell you but i warned you." Raymin takes off his hood, so she could see his face better. "I guess i'll start it at birth. I was born in the worst scum hole in Tehnur, Blackwall." "Wait, you aren't from Hellen?" Shade exclaimed. "No I'm not." Raymin replied. "But you kept talking about Aria like you were from there." Shade continued her pestering. "Well if you would let me finish, i would tell you how i became so fond of it." Raymin said annoyed. "So as i was saying. I grew up in Blackwall, and it wasn't a nice childhood. I grew up with just my mother, learning simple swordmanship from watching the guards shoulder merchants for protection money. At the age of twelve I was thrown in prison for trying to protect my mom's shop from the guards. At fourteen I was jumped in the streets for refusing to join a gang. By the age of sixteen, I had been cut, stabbed, and beat up about a hundred times. It was bad, but I stayed and fought for my mother. A few months after i became nineteen, my mother and I decided to leave. So we did. We left and we ended up in Hellen, more specifically, Aria. We found a nice little house in the center of town where my mother set up her bakery once again. And on my twenty-first birthday i joined Aria's guard. Thats where i met my best friend Johnathan Wolfskin. And we wer-" Before Raymin could continue Shade leaps up in excitement. "You knew Jonathan Wolfskin?!?" Raymin laughs. "Knew him? We were basically brothers, John and I. We were the two best knights in Aria. Why are you so jumpy about John anyway?" "I'm a decendent of the Wolfskin house. My last name isn't Wolfskin because the Wolfskin house fell a long time ago, but it still counts I guess." Shade says in a slighly discerned voice. "What happened to the Wolfkin house?" Raymin asks. "Well the ruler of Aria was assasinated and all of the royal knights were stripped of there titles and land. The Wolfkin name was destroyed and i assume thats the reason I've never really heard of you. But please continue with your story." Shades says. "Of course. Well as I was saying, John and I met in training and we became best of friends. After about 10 years John and I became well known in Aria and the surronding areas. We were known as two of the greatest knights in the land. And as with everyone else, the Duke took notice of us and asked for us to be apart of his inner circle as his personal guards. After that, we were living like kings. Fancy parties, huge feasts, beautiful women, and battles the likes you had never seen. We were having the time of our lives." Raymin lets out a sigh. "I miss all that." Raymin looks down at the fire. "What happened?" Shade asks. "If you and Johnathan were so great, why did the duke and his court fall?" Raymin gets a confused look on his face. "I'm not sure. Around the time of my death the memories get all fuzzy. All i remember is the dukes last orders: 'take out a near by bandit camp' but bandits could never have killed me." Raymin begins to contemplate. He shakes his head. "Well that doesn't matter anymore, I'm back and have nothing, so that means I'm a free man. So whats your story kid?" "Oh, well, as you might have figured out I grew up in Aria with my big brother mainly since my parents passed. We do fairly well, im just a lowly thief and he works as a blacksmiths apprentence. And theres not much else to it. I live a simple life." Shade said with a slight smirk on her face. Raymin looked up at the night sky realising this is the first time he had looked up in awe at it since the time of his death. "Well we should get some rest, we've got a long journey ahead of us." Raymin said trying to soften the mood. "Alright then." Shade said starting to lay on the grass. "Good night." "Good night." Raymin said. Due to the undead curse upon Raymin he is unable to sleep. This caused him to be alone with his thoughts for the rest of the night. 'Why am I alive?' 'What happened to Aria and the Duke?' 'What if i hadn't died when i did?' 'Where should i go once I get to Aria?' But all of these questions and thoughts could not be answered at this time. Raymin would just have to wait and see what the gods throw at him. And in due time, he will meet his fate.