Skip to content Avenge Thy Fallen Brother – Chapter One
I sat myself up against an old oak tree and stared out across the field, the cool afternoon summer breeze blowing gently through my fur. I scanned the field before I finally rested my gaze on a small wooden cross that was placed in front of a large boulder, surrounded by lilies. I sighed deeply before closing my eyes, putting my head down and whispering to myself “I’m so sorry my friend.” Calling him a friend was an understatement, he was more than that, he was also my rival through training, my teacher and I his, but most of all he was the brother I never had. It had been two years since his death, but it felt like it had only been days.
Forgiveness had always been something I have had trouble with letting myself have. I always saw being forgiving to those who wronged you as a sign of weakness. I felt undeserving of it for his death, at least not until I killed the man who murdered my brother. Finding him was not going to be easy; the land was vast with many tribes covering the span, most of which are enemies of ours. Suddenly I could hear yelling in the distance
“Faux! Faux!” Shouted a young grey wolf, running up the hillside, clad in black leather armor with a white trim, indicating his rank among the warriors, a longbow strapped firmly to his back.
My attention quickly turned to the out of breath warrior. It was one of my scouts named Renn “What news do you have?” I finally asked.
“Faux, he has been spotted down by the valley. I do not know how long he will remain, this could be your chance, and you must leave now if you wish to catch him.”
Without hesitation I leapt up and ran at full speed toward my home. The valley was a day’s journey at most if I took the shortcut through the territory of thieves. It was a cesspool of lowlife criminals, they had run the original settlers out, but no one really cared enough to go in and rid the area of the vermin. Or I could take the safer path and go around, but that would put me at least another day behind and even Renn said it himself, there was no guarantee that this murderous thug would still be there, then where would I be?
I finally reached my stone cottage; I practically kicked down the front door and made my way to the bedroom. I threw on my leather armor, pulling it tight, it was much like the armor Renn was wearing, black but mine with a blood red trim, two tribal paw prints decorated each shoulder and the sign of our tribe on the chest. I pulled my rapier off of the wall, the beautifully crafted hilt glimmering in the fresh moonlight. I grabbed a small pack from a shelf and went to the kitchen, shoving a loaf of bread into the pack as well as a small pouch of gold coin before tying off the end and throwing it over my shoulder as I headed out the door towards the stables.
I quickly moved through the night toward the horse stable at the center of town. Being as quiet as possible, I could not let anyone hear me, as it was against the tribe’s rules to go out alone. I slowly entered the stable, being careful not to spook any of the horses. I made my way down to the last stall at the end, where my horse await, a beautiful black stallion with a mane that glistened like silver in the night. I hoisted a saddle up over her back as she let out a long snort of disapproval.
“Shhh girl, I know it’s late, but we have to go.” I said as I stroked the side of her neck to calm her down. I opened the gate and threw one of my feet into a stirrup and then hoisted myself up onto the back of the horse, giving a small nudge to get her going. “One last stop to make.” I said to myself as I pointed the horse into the direction of the field, the horse now in full gallop out of my village.
I finally reached the meadow; I dismounted my horse and tied her off on the tree I had sat under earlier. I made my way toward the cross. I knelt down slowly beside it, not saying anything, the moonlight bathed over me, I could not fail this time, it was too important, and too much was at stake. Failure meant more than just death, it also meant dishonor and possibly war. I sat there remembering what had happened, all these thoughts raced through my mind and rage began to fill my body. My paw gripped the ground tightly, pulling up the grass, gritting my teeth I let out a low growl.
Slowly I stood up and made my way back to my horse, it was time for me to move. I set off, pushing the horse as hard as it could go. The cool nights air whipping at my face, the sweet scent of the flowery meadow. The only sounds were coming from the horse, hooves hitting the dirt each time with a loud thud, the heavy breathing from the horse. I could tell I was riding her to hard, time was of the essence, but there would be no point in continuing if I were to kill her by exhaustion this early in the journey. I knew of a small lake just ahead, I decided to stop and let my horse rest.
I came upon the lake; the moon was now just past the highest point in the sky. I dismounted and lead my horse to the edge of the water, as she drank I gazed out across the lake, my eyes finally stopping on my own reflection in the water, my own eyes staring back at me, the right as blue as the water, the left orange like the setting sun. It was something that always made me stand out in my tribe. As a child, I was made fun of for it. Making friends as a child was always difficult; being the only husky in my village was especially tough. I attribute most of my strength today of being able to overcome my differences as a child.
Time was finally catching up with me as I yawned, rubbed my eyes. I looked around for a suitable place to rest for the remainder of the evening. I grabbed a small blanket off the back of my horse and rolled it up making a crude pillow. I laid it by a small rock and laid down resting my head. I stared up at the nights sky, the stars shining down as I drifted off to sleep.
“Ready to go?” asked a tall but muscular looking german shepherd, his all black fur making him almost invisible to the background of the night. He was wearing the same set of leather armor I wore and carried a double broad sword, which he kept strapped to his back. His name was Irvine, he was my brother in arms. There was a moment of silence before I finally spoke as we sat on the edge of enemy territory known as Blackwater. It was a large town built upon a lake that had been so polluted by waste that it could no long sustain life. The water had lost its bluish hue and was now literally black.
“As ready as I’ll ever be” I replied nervously, my voice shaking slightly. I was unsure about this whole thing, nothing felt right. We had done this plenty of times in the past, why was I so nervous now?
“Poor pup” He chuckled “If you’re not up to this let me know, we can turn back, it’s not too late.” He said while looking me up and down.
“I uhh…..” I stammered before he cut me off
“Look, just remember what this guy took from you, from us. He stole from us, made us look like fools and he needs to pay.”
“You’re right, he needs to learn not to mess with the likes of us!” I said confidently, gripping the hilt of my rapier tightly. Irvine put his paw on my shoulder, his dark yellow eyes staring deeply into mine, he smiled.
“I’ve got your back.” He whispered into my ear.
“And I yours.”
We both turned and set off toward the dimly lit town. As we drew nearer, we slowed our pace as to not make as much noise to avoid detection.
“Alright, follow me from here.” Said Irvine quietly, I gave a nod of approval as
I followed him through the dark alley ways. I tried my best to remember every twist and turn; it felt more like a maze than a town. Luck was on our side, not a single soul was roaming the streets. At last we reached a large manor on the other end of town, it was covered in moss, two oil lamps burned on either side of a large wooden door decorated with iron rivets, a brass ring handle on the right side. No other light emitted from the manor, it looked as if no one was even there. Cautiously we approached the door each drawing our swords from their scabbards.
Irvine stepped up to the door and pushed on it as it slowly moved forward with a loud creak. Slowly he put one foot inside, sword at the ready. Out of nowhere I was grabbed from behind and drug back, a large paw covered my muzzle. I watched helplessly as Irvine disappeared into the large building, the door closing behind him with a thud and the sound of tumblers from a lock being turned. I looked at the manor which was now fully lit up on the inside.
I struggled free of the paw covering my muzzle and bit down as hard as I could “IRVINE!” I shouted as I felt a sharp sting in my back as my attacker shoved a dagger into my skin.
“ARRRGHHH!!!” I shouted as I shot straight up in a cold sweat. Panting deeply I looked around, it was dawn, I was by the lake still, my horse now awake staring at me with a puzzled look. ‘It was only a dream’ I thought to myself.
The End of Avenge Thy Fallen Brother – Chapter One.
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