Half an hour had passed, yet no one had even disturbed Kronos in his room. The child was playing with the bloodstained knife as there was a lot on his mind. Their prayers should have finished a while ago, and they should have found the body. Are they scared? Well probably but that doesn’t mean they’ll leave me alone.
Heavy footsteps made the floor outside of his room tremble and soft whispers of men could be perceived. “Come in, the door isn’t barricaded, no need to destroy it”, the child said. If his speculations were correct the nuns had called some knights over to either end or restrain him. This was no winnable fight, no point in resisting, unless only death was the option.
Three men covered in chain mail who each held a one handed sword and a shield entered and surrounded the bed. “We know about your sins devil!”, the youngest amongst the three shouted. He was barely an adult, his eyes burned so bright in rage and slight fear. “Calm down Derek, he’s still a child.” the oldest spoke. “A child that committed vile acts”, the third added. “There will be no unnecessary killing as long as I’m the captain of you two!”, the oldest proclaimed, leaving no room for objection.
Kronos nodded his head. “What your colleague proclaimed is nothing but a truth. I did commit a sin. This may sound selfish, ridiculous even, but I had my reasons. If you’re willing to hear me out I’m sure you’ll understand it better than you do at this moment.” Those words were aimed at the oldest, the one who had a spark of sympathy in his eyes, as if he didn’t want to harm a child.
The man nodded. “Of course I’m willing to hear you out child. After all, a soul that is judged on accusations is only half worthy of the blame it receives” A sentence used by the order of knights, I read it in a book once. They have a weird sense of justice which is pretty cruel and rather fair. I might be able to get away with this.
“I had a bird, a one of a kind, just like me”, he put in a sigh as if actually reminiscing about the memories he had with Oliver. “As your friend calls us, we were both devils, apart from the rest. You can ask all of the children that live here, they might hate me but they’ll answer honestly. I was made fun out of, beaten, left out, the list goes on. The only thing I found peace in was Oliver, that very bird which was slaughtered. I saved him as a hatchling and fed him from the little food I received. Then, mother Gena, who had called me a demon hundreds of times, took him away and executed him. They carved words in his little corpse and snapped his wings to insult me.”
The child shook his head and sighed. “What I did was a sin, I know that. At least I feel like it was a sin committed with a proper reason, instead of slaughtering what is dear to someone. Imagine your wife or child which you treasure was killed by someone and they carved wounds in their body to taunt you, would you leave them alone? If you would then you must be a very good-natured creature.” The oldest man looked at Kronos, who’s eyes were watering, and sat down on the bed. “I see. I think I can understand your vision on justice child. Losing someone feels like the end of the world, especially if it is done by someone on purpose. I’ll promise you that death will not get its grasp on you, but you will still be punished.” He stuck out his pinkie to sign their promise.
Kronos was smiling inside, yet also grieving for Oliver. He accepted the offer and stood up. “Follow,” the youngest said, “you will be given your sentence soon. Until then you will be under our supervision.” He was the only one in the trio who lacked the compassion Kronos had tried to create. They got up and left for the dining room. His sister was sitting at the table, those ice-blue eyes not wanting to meet his. He was requested to sit down while his new guards surrounded him.
“That is my sister”, Kronos spoke to the oldest knight. “She’s a smart girl with a lot of potential. If I have to leave this place, her potential will be wasted, so please give her a chance if that were to happen. Maybe as an assistant, a scholar, a mage. Just please do not let her future be as tainted as mine. After all I don’t wish my only remaining blood in this world to be held accounted for my wrongdoings.”
The words grabbed Rina’s attention, a state of shock took over. “I see, a chance should always be given. If she truly fits the description you gave her it would be a profitable investment for me”, the captain spoke. Kronos sighed in relief, another burden removed from his shoulders.
A man dressed as a scholar ran inside of the orphanage with a scroll in his hands. “I am here on behalf of the mayor. The sentence has been signed.” The roll of paper was opened and the punishment echoed throughout every corner of the city. “The cursed boy who was banished to Karvos, the land of demons”, it would later become a famous tale told to scare children. A mere child who was corrupted by demons was sent to a place where even the demonkings refrained from entering.
The old man’s eyes widened. “That is ridiculous! I object! That is a sentence worse than death which only the worst and most wicked criminals get. The child will be eaten alive by those monster! It is a cursed land where even gods die.” Kronos’ eyes widened. Karvos… The land which no race has ever conquered, filled by creatures filled with wicked intentions. What the actual fuck am I supposed to do there?! Those things will use me as a toy. Who knows, maybe even breathing in the air in that land will be my end.
“It is stated the boy will depart as soon as possible… So let him depart now. Guard Derek has been assigned the roll of guiding the boy there”, the scholar said. Even Kronos’ sister seemed to want to object the punishment. It was no place for survival, yet a graveyard for threats. “I accept the mayor’s command”, Derek said. The young man was trying to suppress a smile, and Kronos knew it all to well. “Come on kid, time to depart. Wait here until I return with some supplies.”
Kronos felt fear, his mind starting to clear up after everything that had happened this very morning. He stood up and grabbed his pair of unused sandals which laid at the front door. His sister and the two remaining guards stared at him in disbelieve of what was going on.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
A gentle yet hard hand tapped the boy’s shoulder as he was putting on the sandals. It was the voice of the old man, “I am terribly sorry, I cannot help you with this. As a man of my word I feel ashamed to have to go back on my word. I promise to take care of your sister like she was my own granddaughter, and will spend my remaining years in building a bright future for her as a way to repent.” Kronos forced a soft smile, “thank you”, he whispered.
The young man returned with a backpack and some travel clothes, destined to be used in cold winters like these. “Let’s go”, he said from the door opening, his voice was stern, as he was talking to a criminal. Kronos nodded and followed him, stealing a final glance at his sister. Her eyes were watering and Kronos could see himself in her beautiful eyes. There was no devil in that reflection, just a mere brother. At least she stays safe. Although she has done many things wrong, I do not blame her for her acts. Please take good care of my family old man.
The chapel’s double doors were closed, leaving both the child and his escort. Walking was comfortable unlike the silence between the pair as they began their journey. Maybe I should have worn these sandals earlier instead of letting my feet bleed under sharp rocks. Time ticked by rather slowly as the white haired boy knew the paths they were taking.
“Can we walk down the pathway on the right? The blizzard has already stopped and that route is faster. There’s also a grave I want to pay my final respect to.” The young man scanned Kronos’ body with a disgusted look, but still allowed it. A new layer of snow the blizzard had brought had washed away the trail from Brutus and the boy himself, yet the obsidian stone was still clearly visible.
The boy knelt down, his hair and skin tone causing him to become almost invisible. Derek was waiting a few steps ahead, unable to make sense of the criminal’s silent whispers. “Your revenge has been taken Oliver, please rest well until I join you… Maybe I won’t, as the heavens would reject me.” A snicker interrupted his speech, the water in his eyes almost freezing the same second it was released, “A pure soul like yours should have never been touched by those vile people who claim themselves to be good. Farewell my dearest friend.” A tear fell down on the obsidian plate, one of genuine remorse. He got up and signed for the escort to go forward.
Only the wind singing its melody while playing on the trees leaves could be heard. There was a tension between the two, leaving no room for a dialogue. Kronos, who had never wandered this far off from the orphanage was amazed by the views. The endless freezing mountains in front of them and the bald forests on the sides took his breath away.
Memories of places like these crept into his mind, memories which were lost. He saw himself standing with his little sister, who was no older than four years back then. They were standing in a lush green forest, both smiling brightly at each other. “Rina’s birthday”, he whispered. It was before Kronos had managed to get the both of them in the orphanage, back when they were nothing more than street rats. His head was buzzing, as if recalling the memories wasn’t allowed.
A bird flying up from a dead tree brought him back to reality, how much time had snapped by or them to be in a forest all of a sudden. Derek, the escort, looked back as he noticed Kronos’ footsteps had lost their rhythm. “Keep moving, don’t even think about sneaking away little bastard.” Those blue eyes with their snake like pupils made him shiver. This child was truly a devil, the man was completely convinced of it.
The sleeping forest they were in was more lively than those mountains. Birds were chirping on the leafless branches and a rabbits could be spotted once in a while. “What’s in that backpack?”, the child inquired out of boredom. His escort didn’t answer. “Hello? Are you gonna answer or not?”, he pushed. There was still no reaction. “Ugly bastard doesn’t even speak, how boring”, Kronos taunted. He could see how the man clenched his jaw, not wanting to give any reaction.
A few hours had flown by without them taking any breaks. They had been pretty hard on the little one’s mental state as reality began to develop in his mind. Oliver was actually gone, forever at that. If that wasn’t bad enough, he was sent off to his death, god knew how long he had left to live. A low growling sound came from Kronos’ stomach. “I haven’t had breakfast today, can you give me some food? Can’t let your prisoner die of starvation, can you?”
Derek quit moving and handed him a round bread, big enough to be a meal on its own. “Eat it while we continue, there’s no point in slowing us down. How old are you anyway child?” Without hesitating the boy munched away on the food, not leaving even a single crumb behind. “13 or 14, I think… I haven’t really been counting and today should be somewhere around my birthday so I can’t give an exact number”. The man nodded and continued his monk-like silence. Boredom grasped Kronos again, leaving him to scan their surroundings for anything fun. “There’s smoke over there”, Kronos noticed, as he pointed his finger towards his discovery.
The man squinted his eyes to see where the child was pointing at. He simply shrugged his shoulders and spoke with a voice of annoyance. “Probably some travelers, nothing that concerns us.” Kronos sighed and continued forward, there really was no way to get rid of his boredom. The child’s eyes were locked on the smoke plume which kept on growing.
If he’s not bothered by it, it must be normal. Kronos kicked a pebble, making it roll in front of him. When the boy reached where it had halted another kick made it roll forward. This little game continued for a minute or two before his escort noticed and threw the stone away. “You’re such a party-killer, maybe that’s why they chose you to leave the city and escort me.”
Kronos’ eyes sparkled with a challenging flare, knowing all too well what he was provoking. Almost an entire day had they been in one another’s company yet Kronos was already sick of the stiff man. “One more word and I’ll make you arrive in Karvos with a handicap”, his voice was threatening. Kronos laughed it off, knowing that he wouldn’t go that far. “Sure sure, big man. You’re all that strong until you face a bit of hardship. I saw how you were shaking when you had to detain me, scared of a mere kid? What a brave warrior you are.”
He snapped his neck around and glared right into the white haired criminal’s eyes. The small criminal had made his short temper reach its boiling point.“Wretched evil! You are no mere child, but a devil created to haunt our village. I had known it since I first saw you walking around a few years ago, that such a thing was no human, yet no one believed me.”
Again it was the child’s laughter which filled the dead forest. What a joy it was to piss off the man. “Of course no one believed you. Such a pathetic bastard, I bet you even demotivated some kids from becoming a soldier because of how you act.” The veins on Derek’s neck poppet up as he murmured some words. “I will pray for you to perish in hell devil’s child.”
Satisfied with that much Kronos let his eyes wander on the environment again. His blue eyes widened and his voice betrayed a slight insecurity.“Uhm Derek… Is it normal for there to be people with drawn swords chasing after us? Like uhm,” he gulped, “Some kind of training before we arrive in Karvos or something?”. The man looked back and made the same shocked expression as the young criminal he was escorting. “What in all that’s holy?!”
As they were going upwards on a hill the persecutors could be seen from a proper distance, leaving them with a few seconds to prepare for the battle.