ACT II

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

STORIES OF PAST- ULRIC’S TALE

Here lies the green in abundance;

in the distance, a small yellow compares in redundance;

near a tree;

on the meadow free;

two live their life;

a husband and a dear wife;

with four of their young;

a tale of love is sung.

A field of verdure lies on an endless meadow. The first rays of sunlight herald the coming of a new day. Doors of a small wooden cottage open as four young children run outside; two adults with smiles on their faces see them off. Three boys and one girl. Two older boys run to the forest as the youngest of the brothers goes with his sister to the nearby field of sunflowers.

Prancing with the vigor of youth.

“Ulric, hurry,” the girl yells some distance ahead.

“Wait up, Evrose,” the young boy struggles to keep up. Smaller feet cover smaller distances.

The two arrive at the tall sunflowers; twice their height they cast a cool shade amid the sunny day.

“Come on now, we to harvest them,” Evrose says.

“How do we know which ones?” Ulric asks as he looks at his older sister.

“You are hopeless, Ulric. Check if the back of the head is brown and dry. This one,” Everose says as she points at a sunflower.

Ulric takes out his little knife as he cuts it; the sunflower falls.

“Three more and we can remove the seeds,” Everose says as she continues to check on the sunflowers and points at the ones she deems ready for harvest.

The two children sit as they pluck out the dark-white seeds. In the moment of tranquility. There is nothing else but a sister, her brother and the whispers of the wind.

“You know you won’t be able to do this forever?” Everose says as she shakes her head in her perception of how an adult would act.

“What do you mean?” Ulric asks as he looks up at her.

“You are growing up to be a man. You must join our brothers in hunting,” Everose says with her nose raised unnecessarily high.

“I don’t want to hunt. I don’t like it,” Ulric says as he focuses his attention on the seeds.

“Father says it is what boys should do. They need to grow up to become men,” Everose adds.

“What about you?” Ulric adds.

“What about me?” Everose asks unexpecting.

“Father says a girl should grow up to be a woman. You need to marry and have children,” Ulric adds.

“Gross. I don’t want to marry and have children,” Everose adds as making an expression of disgust.

“I don’t want to hunt,” Ulric adds as the two siblings look at each other; they laugh.

“Maybe father talks too much,” Everose concludes.

“Maybe,” Ulric adds.

“But don’t tell him..,” both say in unison as they stop mid-sentence.

They laugh as they continue their chores.

***

Gathered what needs to be gathered, they return home; the two older brothers meet them as they exit the forest. Each holding a dead rabbit in their hands and some berries.

“Everose,” the father yells.

“Yes, father,” Everose says as she obediently runs to him.

“Help your mother prepare the food,” the father orders.

“Yes, father,” Everose says as she runs to the house; Ulric follows her as he is stopped by the large hand of his father.

“Where do you think you are going?” the father says as he gives him a stern look.

“I will help,” Ulric whimperingly says.

“No, you will not. You will train with your brothers with the bow. Uri!” the father yells.

Uri rushes forward.

“Bring them,” the father commands as Uri runs inside.

The three boys and their father stand behind the cottage, each holding a bow. They shoot at make-shift targets of wood and cloth.

The eldest Hakon shoots as he hits his mark here and there.

“Not bad, Hakon,” the father says as he fixes the eldest son’s posture.

The second eldest Uri shoots as he hits his mark, almost as good as Hakon.

“You have ways to go, Uri,” the father says as he continues his stern inspection.

The youngest, Ulric, tries to shoot; he fails. No arrows find their way to the targets. Each miss causes the string of the bow to hit his hand as it draws blood.

“What are you doing?” the father asks as he looms over the boy.

“I’m practicing,” the boy whimperingly says.

“You call this practicing?” the father abruptly takes the bow from the boy. He arms it with an arrow, quickly aims, and releases; the arrow hits.

“This is shooting. How long will you continue to disgrace us?” the father says as he throws the bow to the ground in anger.

“I can’t pull it! It is too heavy and my hands...” Ulric speaks as the father cuts him off with a heavy slap to the face; knocking him to the ground.

“No excuses. Continue before I lose my patience,” the father yells.

Ulric's eyes tear up, but he holds the tears inside; he must hold them inside.

His hand is bleeding, but he endures the pain; he must endure. The practice goes on.

***

“Dinner is ready,” an adult woman yells exiting the hut.

“This will be enough for today,” the father says as he pats Uri and Hakon on the back; there is no pat or approval for Ulric. The boys head inside.

“Your hands!” the mother gasps as she looks at Ulric.

She goes to another room as she pillages through some drawers in haste; running to the boy with bandages; the father stops her.

“He will heal fine by himself. A man must take care of himself,” the father says as he continues to eat.

They eat their food in silence; there must be order.

Finished eating and cleaning the dishes, the sister approaches Ulric with something wrapped in layers of brown paper.

“What is this?” Ulric asks as he looks at her.

“Open it,” Evrose says as she warmly smiles.

He removes one layer at a time as, finally, it stands before him- a wooden crossbow! Simple yet effective in design. The mechanism atop allows for multiple bolts to be loaded at once.

“I know how you keep hurting your hands with the bow so I’ve bought this for you,” the sister says as she smiles and Ulric returns the smile.

They laugh as a shadow looms over them.

“What is this?” the father asks.

“Evrose got me a gift,” the smiling boy says.

“What is this abomination?” the father asks as he takes the crossbow and throws it to the ground.

“Father!” Evrose blurts out in anger as he slaps her across the face.

“I HATE YOU!” Ulric yells.

“You dare speak to me that way,” the father strongly slaps Ulric as he falls to the ground. Cowered in tears and shaking with anger, he gets up as he runs out of the house to the forest.

Ulric runs as far as his small legs can take him; the feeling of exhaustion covers him despite this he continues until falling on the ground panting.

Lying shaking on the ground in tears, he covers himself with his wounded hands.

“I hate him!” Ulric screams amongst the gaze of the trees.

Tears flow from his eyes as he falls asleep lost in rage surrounded by the calm of the forest.

Where am I?

Ulric wakes as his reality comes to him. He will have to return home and face his fears. The thought does not sit well with him.

Strolling through the forest, he takes his time as there is no reason to hurry; he does not want to hurry. The calm of nature gives him strength as a gentle wind caresses his hair.

The road is almost at an end as Ulric takes a big breath before he exits the forest. He is ready! With a deep breath to prepare himself, he proceeds. Though a deep breath such as this could never exist.

Dead men! Dead with arrows upon their bodies! He does not know these men, but he knows one. Stabbed multiple times covered in red lies his father. He rushes to him as the cold, dead eyes of his parent stare into the sky. Turning in dread, he rushes into the cottage. Death and red! Again. A few more unknowns amongst them the bodies of his family. Uri, Hakon, and his mother; all of them dead. Ulric feels something breaking inside as he lets a scream of pain. He notices something. Everose? She is not here!

He runs out as he looks all around; in the distance, smoke rises.

It must be where the bandits have taken her! IT MUST BE!

Returning inside, he looks for a bow as he takes it, he stops; the gift from his sister catches his eye. The crossbow! He takes it and a small dagger from one of the dead bandits as he rushes in the direction of the smoke.

Possessed by sheer will, he rushes with only the thought of Everose.

Somewhere in the forest.

“This was a fricking disaster,” a short bandit yells as he lies on the ground immobile from the wounds.

“We were told this would be easy,” a tall bandit adds.

“What’s done is done. We got a young pretty girl at least. She will fetch a pretty penny,” a one-eyed bandit says as he looks at the tied-up and terrified Everose.

“We should ask for more money because of this fiasco,” the short bandit adds as he swirls in pain.

“Aye,” the one-eyed bandit agrees.

“Should we have fun with her for a bit,” the tall bandit asks as he approaches Everose. The dread in her eyes speaks what her bound mouth cannot.

“She is not even ripe,” the one-eyed bandit adds.

“She looks ripe enough,” the short one adds as he laughs.

“Stop it. Do the job and we will have money for all of us to enjoy,” the one-eyed bandit commands.

“We will rest here until his wounds recover for a bit. You keep watch,” the one-eyed bandit commands as the tall one nods in compliance.

Time passes as night comes; the bandits fall asleep. The tall bandit struggles but falls asleep, eventually. It's easier to sleep than to keep watch all night. He struggles... but only for a bit.

Hidden in the darkness of the night, Ulric appears with a dagger in his hand, a crossbow hanging on his body, and eyes filled with murderous rage.

He approaches the sleeping tall bandit as he puts his hand on the bandit’s mouth and slashes his throat; the bandit gurgles for a spell as he dies. Quickly, he moves to the one-eyed bandit as he approaches him. The bandit opens his one eye; without hesitation, Ulric thrust the dagger at his throat and stabs the one-eyed bandit. His last word is a scream of agony. The loud scream wakes the wounded bandit and Evrose.

“What in the blazes,” the bandit yells as he grabs a crossbow near his person; he aims and shoots. Near miss! The bolt flies just past Ulric's face leaving a scar.

Ulric drops the dagger as he aims the crossbow; his hands shake, his vision is blurry as fear grips him. Fear closes his eyes as he fires all the bolts; a bolt hits the short bandit in the stomach.

Ulric turns around as he hastes to his sister. Coming to her he cuts her bindings. Evrose is panting, struggling to for each breath. Ulric looks as something draws his attention. There is a bolt stuck in her stomach. And there is- blood.

“Everose!” Ulric yells as he embraces her in his arms with tears in his eyes.

“Ulric, don’t cry. You are a man now,” Everose says as blood comes pouring out of her mouth.

“You will be fine, you will be fine,” Ulric repeats as enchanted.

“Ulric...” Everose says as she closes her eyes; she lies dead.

“No, no, no, no...” Ulric repeats as tears flow uncontrollably.

He feels something behind as he turns; he sees the wounded short bandit holding a sword with his one good arm as the bolt sticks out of his stomach. He swings it as Ulric closes his eyes. Opening his eyes, he sees a strange scene. The man appears to be paralyzed mid-swing.

“What is this sorcery?” the short bandit yells as he struggles to move.

“Tell me, boy. Do you want to live?” a mysterious voice asks.

Ulric looks around, but he cannot find the source of the voice.

“I do,” Ulric says.

“What is that voice?” the bandit yells in fear.

“Silence!” the voice commands as the bandit becomes unable to speak.

“Will you follow my orders?” the voice asks.

“Who are you?” Ulric looks around.

“I may be a ghost. I may be nature itself. I may be a god or a demon,” the voice says as it laughs. Its laugh echoes through the hollow woods.

Ulric looks at the paralyzed man as he stands below the Moon, illuminated by its light.

“Are you the Moon?” Ulric asks.

“The Moon?” the voice repeats as it laughs uncontrollably.

“Why not? I will allow you to kill this man if you swear to follow me,” the voice commands.

Ulric stands up as he looks at the fear-struck man. He takes the sword from his hand he plunges it into the man’s stomach; the man falls dead to the ground.

“I shall send someone to teach you so you may better serve... the Moon,” the voice says as it laughs at the last part.

The entire day passes as Ulric digs. He buries his family.

Ulric’s heartaches as with each one he buries he feels like he is burying a part of himself; he feels sadness even for his father, who was the way he was. Holding his tears until he buries Everose. He cries for the last time as something inside him breaks. All of his emotions suddenly vanish. There is nothing.

***

Time passes as a black-robed man wearing an amulet of a white rose approaches the cottage. He sees a young boy carving a word with a dagger on a wooden crossbow. Curious, he peaks at the word.

The word is Everose.