Chapter Seven
[Neo]
That night, Roland tossed and turned in his bed.
There were many things that occupied his mind.
"Is it right to attack the castle, or hold back?
How could Spyder have been so easily controlled? Too many questions,
and not enough answers…"
All of a sudden, he felt a certain presence by him,
and he immediately opened his eyes. Several feet from his bed, a
tall general, with a long cape, stood with his sword drawn. The figure
was merely a dark shadow, and Roland could not see who it was.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
"Oh, why must you be so loud?" the figure said calmly.
"I'm sorry, does my sword make you nervous? I can put it away if
you wish." He immediately put his sword in his sheath.
"What do you want?" asked Roland.
"Hmm, a classic question, and one that I'm afraid
I cannot answer. Well, I could, but then I'd have to kill you."
"No thanks," replied Roland.
The figure laughed. "You always had that sarcastic
side to you. And it's still there just as strong."
"You know me?" asked Roland. The figure stepped
slowly into the moonlight, which came through the door of Roland's tent.
He saw who it was. "General Neo?" asked Roland in shock. "What
are you doing in this kingdom?"
"What, you don't remember?" asked Neo. "We
trained for knighthood together, we were in our test battle together.
You must remember that. In fact, I led the division you were in.
Did you know that because you ignored my order, I was also banned from
knighthood in that kingdom too?"
"I had no idea," replied Roland.
"Oh yes, in fact, after you left the kingdom, everyone
in our division was expelled from the school, including me. I was
lucky enough to make it to this kingdom without anyone knowing of what
happened, and now I'm the King's finest general, like I should have been
in our homeland."
"And so what now?" asked Roland. "What the
hell are you doing here?"
Neo laughed again. "You know, I was spying
on your camp earlier, and I noticed another 'friend' of mine here.
His name is…Belisarius."
"Yes, he's here."
"He was with us in training too. Yet, he was
the leader of another division which actually followed orders. And
so, he's the big hero over there."
"Where are you going with all this?"
"You just couldn't understand what I've been through,"
said Neo. "I fought harder than Belisarius in that battle, I deserved
to be the hero. But because of you, I was denied that."
"So why don't you just run your sword through my
chest, and get it over with? I'm tired of all this small talk."
"If there is one thing that I obey as a knight,
it is always being honorable," said Neo. "But I warn you, if you
should lead an assault against the castle, be careful. I'll be fighting
against someone who took away my fame, and another person who took my rightful
place as hero. You tend to fight extra hard against people you hate."
Neo immediately left Roland's tent, and there was
a long silence. Roland put his head on his pillow, and fell asleep
after a long period of discontent. His dreams were not pleasant.
[Flea]
Flea sat quietly on a tree branch, watching the
stag grazing on the grass. He had not eaten in three days, and he
was deathly hungry.
"Shadow...what a disappointment I must be.
Here I am, Flea, feared assassin and bounty hunter, lowered to the point
that even the lowliest thief could dispatch me," he thought to himself.
The past few days had been terrible. He was run out of the village,
drunk, and left to feed the wolves. All because of that cursed General
Neo. He had blackmailed him into joining King Marley's forces.
He, who was trained to destroy all emotions, and forget the past.
Hah, assassin indeed. More like a lost little man with no soul.
Literally, and figuratively, now. Somehow, his skills had been slipping.
When he once was able to conquer five of the King's Elite guard at once,
he could barely take on a lowly town watchman.
"It's my loss of soul. That's all. I
have never had any compunction about taking life before. Why now?
It is simply separation from that which gives me life...that is all."
The stag wandered closer. It was still oblivious
to the hunter above him.
"Well, I still have that much skill, at least.
A little closer, my pretty...just a little closer..." he thought.
"Have you forgotten the face of your father?" a
voice suddenly called out. Flea nearly toppled out of the tree.
The stag startled and sped away into the forest.
"Hey! Who are you to scare off my dinner and
admonish me so?! Show yourself! I am the great Flea, feared
throughout the land!"
"Great Flea? The Great Flea? Since when has my student
gained such an inflated ego?" the voice cried again.
"Sha...Shadow? But...your dead! I saw
you die at the hands of that demon!"
"Hah. You are a fool, Flea. You remember nothing
I taught you. The art of ninja is to never allow looks to deceive
you," Shadow said. A figure came out from behind a tree, but it was
impossible to see its face. "I have seen thing that would chill the
bones of a demon master. I have lived through more than you could
imagine. Do not say what I could or could not live through."
"Yes, my master...but...then why did you disappear?
I was lost without you. I was barely old
enough to survive on my own," Flea said, jumping from the tree branch.
"You were old enough. You needed to learn
suffering, and to rely on no one but yourself. I say again.
You have forgotten the face of your father. You are weak from the
loss of your soul. Come. We have much to discuss tonight."
That night, they communed around a fire, speaking
of what had happened to Flea during his years on his own. At long
last, Shadow told him to be silent.
"I have heard enough. I cannot help you more
than to give you advice. You must choose your path. Which side
will you join? King Marley has strength in numbers, and controls
much of the land. The rebels have the spell book, and are seeking
something more," he told his disciple.
"Master...I cannot help anyone in this state.
I am weak. I am no match for any man now. I must have my soul,
which at the moment is in the hands of Spyder, a lady in the rebellion.
And they will just as soon cut me down than listen to what I have to say."
"It is up to you, Flea. Seek out your soul,
and fight for what you wish. Or live your life this pitiful, sniveling
shell of a man. Whatever path you choose, remember your training.
That will help you more than anything at this point. All I have to
say now, is that I'm glad I found you. It is nice to know that at
least one of my students managed to avoid having his throat slashed thus
far. We shall meet again. Only pray that we are not on opposing
sides."
Flea woke up with a start, the memory of that dream
fading in his mind. No...there had been no Shadow, no late night
talk around a fire. Just his mind trying to calm him. Curse
his reliance on human feelings! As he readied himself for the day's
journey, he realized his sack was full of supplies, when it had been empty
the day before. As he wondered over this, he stumbled over the scattered
remains of a fire.
"Flea. I know you are strong. Now prove
it to yourself. It is time you carve yourself a real destiny, above
that of an assassin. Destroy all who stand in your way!" This
final thought ran through his mind, along with the knowledge that when
this all ended, Flea would once again regain his lost honor. No matter
what.
Previous chapter
Next chapter
Back to cover
