Hellborne

New Dawn

My horse raced across the desert plains. His breath billowing in great breaths of air and then exhaling in a massive cloud of oxygen. My team and I came out of the sandstorm with dust and sand clinging to us like dew sticking to grass in the morning. We continued to race for several more kilometres before we spotted the first town we had seen since going out on our own. I believe the towns' name was Gildeeran, a place to rest and restock supplies after facing the harshness of the desert. As I came up to the enormous stone wall that surrounded the town, guards dressed in a navy blue and black uniform motion for us to stop.

"State your purpose of entry into Gildeeran." The tallest guard grumbled as if he was annoyed that we were here to enter the town.

"My team and I have been out in the desert for three weeks and we need new supplies and a place to rest our weary horses" I stated calmly while observing all four guards. One was leaning subtly on his left leg, likely an injury from being a guardsman of Gildeeran. The other two looked downright murderous as I surveyed them.

The guard that had spoken turned back to his fellow guardsmen and they seemed to have some sort of silent conversation judging by the expression showing on their faces. It occurred to me that they were using a mind-link, a way for non-magi people to communicate.

Magi people were beings born with the ability to perform spells and control the elements or have telepathic ways with animals, the list of abilities was endless.

The guards seemed to conclude their long mind conversation and stated that we were not a threat to Gildeeran and cleared our entry into the sweeping sprawl of the town.

As Hellborne, my stallion trotted from the sandy plains to the cobblestone road of the rich town, I kept an eye out for any threats in the immediate area. I had been trained to do this since birth as an assassin for one of the Lords of Heru, a neighbouring territory to the sandy world of Jion. My Lords' name was Ruji and was a cold-hearted bastard for making go to another continent for a job.

With my satchel a firm presence at my side, I jumped off Hellborne as I spotted an inn tucked away down a dingy road. I turned to my right-hand-man Nox and swung my head to the side to show him where I deemed a safe place to stay.

Nox opened his mouth to argue but saw the malice in my eyes that promised a slow and torturous death to anyone if they dared try to defy me. He wisely shut his mouth with a glare in my direction. I ignored him as I usually did and continued my way to the inn. Nox was a fellow assassin who I had grown up with but Ruji had pitted us against each other from a young age and since then he was my rival. I was a far superior assassin to him so he was always second best to, as for how it will always remain.

An older lady was behind the counter as the door rang a bell indicating people had entered the inn, she looked up from her needlework, took one look at me and my crew and said, "There are stables for your horses around the back, I will tell someone to retrieve them for you." I thanked the lady kindly and let Nox take over the bartering of a price for the rooms we would be occupying for the night.

In my crew there were two more men and other women besides myself and Nox, I didn't bother to learn their names as we would be departing ways after today. Nox and the others began to make their way up the stairs to the rooms but I lingered in the doorway, keeping an eye out on Hellborne. I didn't trust anyone with my horse as he was my one and only friend and from the moment I had received him as a foal had promised to protect until the day either one of us died. That wasn't going to happen though because I was the best killer around and the predator that stalked men, women and children's dreams.

A scrawny stable boy made his way out to the front of the inn. I pushed off from where I was perched on the door frame and made my silent and stealthy way over to Hellborne. I took the reins from the stable boy and in the process scared him out of his socks. He jumped to a height that couldn't be normal for anyone and whirled around to the sight of a short figure cloaked in a shawl with a hood drawn so deep over my eyes that he couldn't have possibly seen what colour they were. I laughed silently at his reaction, I honestly couldn't help but give him a scare, he was so unprepared.

Without a word to the stable boy, I tugged at Hellborne's rein and he followed obediently clicking and clacking down the stone pavement. Together we arrived at the stables and I undid his saddle, pried off the reins from around his gorgeous black and grey head. I washed him down with a bucket of water that was lying around and dried off the soggy horse with a rag hanging from a post.

The stable boy came in a moment later, stopped and gapped at me for a minute then went about his job of tending to the horses. I circled back to the inn and found a wall that was directly in line with the room me and Nox were sharing. I began to scale the wall, finding grooves and niches along the wall by feeling them out. I hauled myself up at a steady face finally coming to the window where I could see Nox.

I tapped on the glass and steadied myself on the wall as not to slip off. Nox gave me a sideways glance then did a double take when he saw me crouched out beside the window. As he opened it he growled out "Couldn't you have used the door like a normal person, Dingy?" I cringed at the name and tone he chose to use. I shifted into the room and spotted a bed on either side of the cramped room. I full-on jumped onto the creaky bed and made the whole thing wobble and shake. "Firstly Nox, you know I like dramatic entrances, secondly never use that name again" I whispered with lethal promise lacing everyone word. Nox flinched when he realised what he'd done and opened his mouth again but instead turned around and laid down on his own bed. "Night Din, see you in the morning" He mumbled quietly. I was only then I realised how dark it had become. The first stars were beginning to come out, twinkling and shining with a promise to stay around the entire night.

I hated the name Dingy, it meant something or someone was broken or defective. An object that can't be used. My bastard of a mother it to me when I was a wee little thing before she left me on Lord Ruji's doorstep. Don't know where the bloody hell my father went, most likely to a pub when he found out he was having a child with a low born commoner. See, my father was apparently a 'prince' or something like that was a faraway continent who had fled from his homeland when a war was being ravaged upon the land. At least that was what Lord Ruji could find out from my mother before she buggered off. I don't miss my parents because in my opinion I never had any.

Nox began to snore like he was trying to raise the dead and interrupted my train of thought. It was beginning to become quite late, I loosened a yawn from my mouth and stood up to change into comfy night clothes. I folded and packed my travel-worn tunic and pants away into my satchel when I heard the whinny of a nervous horse. I looked out the window as I pulled a loose tunic over my head. A bright wall of flame was currently engulfing the stables, golden yellows and furious reds and oranges whirled up into the starry sky with a twirl.