Bloodline

First steps - part 2

As the last soldier walked out of the inn that day, Damian gathered all that remained, them being his friends.

-Zircon, an unusual person for an assassin. He cares a lot of the people, and went through many life threatening situations to help others when all odds were lost, didn't matter if he was outnumbered, he only needed a dagger and he would cut down a whole army if he wanted just to protect a little girl.

-Maralyne, an archer who can shoot, but not as far as most can, as Zircon said earlier. Though there have been some moments where out of nowhere, it looked almost like her eyes glowed as she shot volleys of arrows at any range, hitting targets with deadly accuracy.

-Osred, a knight that has seen more than anyone else, has the experience in almost any weapon, though only uses a broadsword, and has knowledge of many things and places that not many have of other territories near the castle borders.

-A double sided battle axe-weilding psychopath of a man named Lutol who has definitely used the axe in many more battles than Damian would ever imagine. His deadly swings cut through the toughest of armor, and with his large muscles and aggressive nature, almost nothing can stop him in a fight.

And lastly,

-A generally friendly and outgoing Tesath who can help heal almost any wound with her magic powers, her spear has been seen as a gift from the heavens as its strange abilities seem to strengthen any affected by it, which was the first gleam of hope during the defense against the invasion not long ago.

"We have a long journey and not much time, and it seems like all the odds are against us, but that didnt stop us all those other times against those other empires and kingdoms did it?" Damian gets up from his seat, a bright smile on his face. "You really like giving speeches dont you Damian?" Maralyne says while grabbing her bow from a table nearby. "It gives me courage and confidence before we get into a battle out of nowhere, and plus, the army needs words of confidence so they know we can do it." Tesath tries to hide her blushing, "I think they sound amazing, it gets rid of any bit of fear that I might have had thinking about this war. You really have learned lots from your tutor, it makes you fit to be king one day." Osred laughs, "Quite a king he will be one day, I'm sure he will lead the kingdom just as well as he will lead us to the eastern kingdoms defeat." "Just make sure I get to be a part of it" Lutol says while putting the giant axe on his shoulders.

Damian takes a look at the group of friends in front of him, still with his confident smile. "There is no way I would let defeat come to us in the battles to come, in the meantime, I would suggest resting the rest of today, we will move out when the sun comes over the castle walls. Make sure you all have told your parents your goodbyes before we leave, and make sure you have everything you need packed because I am not sharing my tent with a six foot tall bear like Lutol again." "Come on, I said I was sorry for that! Where else am I supposed to put my axe?" Everyone, except Lutol of course, starts laughing, Zircon getting up when taking one last sip from his cup. "Then I guess I better get everything ready now, and maybe even get a bow of my own, I certainly know that whatever I'm aiming at will be dead faster than Maralyne and her skills." "You really want to fight right now!?" Maralyne shouts as Zircon leaves, letting out a sigh as he walks to the destroyed parts of the village, some of which fall into piles of stone and rubble as Zircon passes.

He stops at one of the broken houses, it would've been just as normal as any other house had it not been destroyed, but he walks closer to the wreckage, and steps into it, moving through the stone and wood. He goes to a ripped carpet, moving it up and revealing a trapdoor, which he opens and goes inside while lighting a torch. He moves through a few narrow halls, and reaches a door, knocking on it. "Who's there?? Has the catapults stopped??" A strange voice says through the door. "Dont worry, it's me, Zircon." He slowly opens the door as he peeks his head through the crack.

Inside the tight room, there is a man and a woman, along with a small child of sorts, all looking pretty shooken from the sounds and rumbles of destruction just a day ago. "They've all stopped, so it's okay to go back up whenever, but theres some important things I want to tell you all." He sets the torch in a stand and sits down as he let's out a sigh. "You should know by now that me and my friends are going to the eastern kingdom to fight them, and we're going to be gone for a long time. I'm not sure I may be able to come back, but I'm sure Damian and the others will, I'm going to pack whatever I can, and leave with them tomorrow morning, so please stay safe while I'm gone." The woman slowly stands up, "But what will happen to you out there, we cant just let you leave just like that and have your little brother all by himself." "I appreciate your trying to get me to stay, but I've known for a long time now that you aren't my real parents." Zircon sheds a tear saying this, and the child walks up to him, shakily asking, "Where are you going to go big bro?" "I'm going to leave and fight bad people, and save the kingdom with my friends. Dont worry, I'll be back as soon as its finished."

Zircon exits the basement, and grabs his essentials, a rolled up blanket, a pack with a dagger and other weapons, some rations, some materials, flint and steel, and a small box hidden behind a broken mirror in a room. He then leaves just as the sun sets.

"Alright guys, everything packed and ready to go?" Damian, in a golden colored steel armor says amount a horse in similar steel armor. Everyone smiles as they get atop their own horses brought to them by the king, everyone but Zircon as he waves atop a tree. The king and Damian exchange a hug with the queen following behind with a long kiss on the check. "You have a long journey ahead of you, so come back as soon as possible, your mother will be mad if she heard anything happened to you." The king said as Damian quickly checked his pack. "Dont worry father, I've done things like this before, and I'm sorry to tell you that I havent told all of our adventures to you because I know mom would've heard somewhere out of view." The queen laughs a bit in the background as the king and her watch Damain and the others leave, Zircon following surprisingly fast in the trees above.