The twins danced around the dark room together as Alexia the mother watched. The younger of the twins, Elle, dragged her brother, Eli, along as they climbed under, around and over the furniture playing a game visible to only them.

“Brother! This way, This way!”

“Roger that,” He saluted and then both of them hid under the table.

“Shhh…..” Elle whispered, “Don’t let the soldiers find us.”

“Understood.”

“If they find us…” the little sister was about to say.

“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.” Eli cut her off, but his voice was still a whisper. He rubbed the top of his sisters head. Alexia smiled at that. Eli always loved the hero stories Alexia would tell. Especially the ones with a damsel in distress.

“But brother…”

“But?” he asked.

“I don’t want you to get hurt…”

He got out from under the table and stuck his chest out, “Ha, you think those guys can hurt me. I’ll protect you, no problem.”

The house they lived in was dark. The furniture was old and rotted. They rarely had food on the table, but even so this home was a very warm place. A place filled with enough love for them to drown in.

Elle hugged her brother, he gave a slight smile as he patted her head. They were around the same height so he had to reach up to pat her.

“Brother?” Elle looked up at her sibling with a worried expression, “What’s that sound?”

The brother looked off to the side, “What sound?”

“It’s a dry creaky sou-”

“Elle, I’m going to... uh...take a nap .” He interrupted her, “For some reason I’m tired from all that playing.” He gently pushed her away and walked slowly towards the only other room in the house.

Elle looked saddened by her brother leaving, but she didn’t chase after him. She just stood there silently not doing anything. Elle always went quiet for a moment whenever her brother wasn’t in the room. She was almost always with him, so even this tiny parting must have felt weird to her.

Elle looked up at Alexia, “Momma I’m hungry.”

“Be patient dear.” Alexia smiled soothingly, “It’s hasn’t been long since our last meal.”

In truth it had already been a few months. An adult ghoul could go at least 3 months without a meal, but for a child it was pushing it to go one.

“But Momma,” the small girl held out her hand, “I’m starting to peel again.”

Alexia sucked in a sharp breath and narrowed her eyes. The dark house made it difficult to see the details of her two children so Alexia had not noticed Elle’s peeling skin before this.

Alexia took special care not to let Elle see her face. She did not want her child to see her current expression. “I understand, I will go get something for us to eat.”

“Really?” the girl asked.

“Really.”

“Really Really?”

Alexis nodded.

Elle revealed a large and pure smile. The little girl danced around the empty table that hadn’t seen food in a month. She spun in large circles, twisting around on the strands of sunlight shining through to the floor. She hadn’t seemed that joyous in weeks.

“I’ll see you later sweetie. I’ll come back later tonight.”

“Yes ma’m.” The girl cutely saluted before running off towards the back room. Small white pieces flowed off her like snow. In a sense it was beautiful. Although to Alexia it was abhorrent and monstrous.

Alexia stepped out of the house and closed the door gently behind her. She locked it behind her with a small smile. She was only acting calm for her childrens sake. They didn’t know the true meaning behind what was happening to their bodies.

The sun shone directly above her head. The excess heat caused her to sweat quickly as she ran through the forest. The trees seemed to absorb the heat of the sunlight, and that alongside with the recent rain, made it humid beyond compare.

Her clothes stuck to her skin and her breathing became harsh. Every movement was pushing her body a little further beyond the limits of what it should handle. It took her 3 hours to reach her destination, and by then the sun was already setting.

The town closest to her had a recent death. It had been 5 days since the corpse had been buried. It was definitely too soon to acquire it. A ghoul never hunted for a recent corpse, it was an iron rule taught to them by their ancestors. It was how they managed to live to this day.

It was common knowledge that digging up a fresh corpse would only cause every descendant and close friend of the man that died to hunt you down. But if you waited, within a few months those visiting the grave would all but cease and you wouldn’t have to worry about acts of revenge.

Alexia had no choice, she couldn’t wait a day, let alone a month. She took a quick glance around the cemetery, thanking in her heart that people did not like to live around the dead.

The sound of a snapping twig caused her to freeze, causing her to glance around the area nervously. She didn’t move an inch as she waited for something to move.

...nothing.

She waited for ten minutes, acting the part of a mourner. Only when she was sure that no one was nearby or noticed her did she set to work. Alexia didn’t bother grabbing a shovel to start digging with, instead she casted the spell ‘Earthen wall’ above where the coffin was buried.

The spell was normally used to prevent attacks from archers and block warriors. But in reality the large wall of dirt was created by raising the soil temporarily off the ground. And along with it the coffin would also rise.

The large wall of dirt rose up slowly in order to prevent as much noise as possible. After it fully rose, Alexia walked over to where the head of the coffin would have rested. She started to dig with her hands. This was the trickiest part, she had to pull the coffin out without causing the dirt to collapse. If it fell everyone would know she had tried to steal the corpse.

She dug enough that the wider end of the coffin was visible in the hole she made, Alexia reached inside to get a grip on it. She pulled at the coffin as gently as the tomb of earth would allow. A ghouls strength was several times that of a human, at times like this she was happy that she had the strength of a monster.

The coffin slid out of the earthen wall and landed on the ground with a light thump. Alexia slowly released her earthen wall and the ground returned to how it was a second ago. If anyone walked on the spot where the coffin originally laid, it would sink. Hopefully those that visited would only think the person who made the coffin to be at fault.

Alexia lifted the coffin over her shoulder, and start to run back the way she came. It would be several hours till she reached her house. But the fear of not making it in time provided her with the stamina she needed to run the whole way.

The branches of the forest tore at her, and the coffin caused her arms and legs to burn from the weight. But she ignored the pain and continued.

Ghouls are a cursed race with bodies unsuitable for living. They may have possessed strength greater than ten men and recovery ability bordering along immortal, but they couldn’t maintain their bodies. A ghouls death was vanishing in a torrent of white as their bodies tore themselves apart.

It was an abrupt thing. First their skin would start to flake and a white ash would fall behind them as they moved around. Next their body would start to creak as it struggled to maintain itself, when that happened the ghoul was already on its deathbed. Normally within the day if they reached that point, they would simply scatter into a puff of white at any large shock. A ghoul’s death for a human looked stunningly beautiful, and the same can be said in reverse.

She needed to hurry before her child fell apart. Elle had already shown the initial signs, it would only be a few more hours till the break happened. She was almost home with the meal, she could deal with the repercussions if the humans noticed the missing corpse later.

The smell of smoke reached her first.

The flames could be seen through the trees. The red light caused the shadows to flicker in front of her. They danced like demons around her, laughing at what layed just beyond the trees.

She could no longer feel the weight of the casket on her back. Instead the weight of the world was what caused her to fall forward. Her feet barely led beneath her, and she could feel her strength giving away in fear.

Alexia’s home was burning…

•••

“And then the screaming started.” Alexia’s voice began to falter, and her shoulders started to tremble slightly, “If I had been just a little faster… or If I hadn’t left to get that meal for us, they would still be in my arms.”

I didn’t know what to do. My arms felt heavy. The desire to comfort her with a hug was outweighed by the fact that I was a stranger. A stranger had no right to meddle in her family affairs. A stranger had no right to comfort her. Someone like me would only make her feel worse.

“It wasn’t your fault.” I said to her as lightly as I could. I knew my words would have no weight to them, I still didn’t know the entire story. But as far as I could tell, she wasn’t the type of person that would wish harm on her children. There was no way she could have been at fault.

“I wasn’t thinking,” she said, “I just rushed in.”

•••

The scream echoed through the nearly silent forest. The animals went silent and just listened to the lone sound. It was as if the forest itself didn’t want to face the noise. It was a noise built on the fear of parting with loved ones.

. It was not coming from her kids. The sound was coming from her own throat as her mind neared its breaking point. She screamed to express her grief, her worry, her anger. The burden of the flames was too much for her to bear with a sane mind. She could not bear the thought that her children might be hurt or worse…

The entrance of the house had already started to fall apart. The door hung limply to the side like a limb with a small piece of flesh holding it to the main body.

“Elle!” She screamed, “Eli!”

The burning house was completely silent if not for the crackles and groaning of the old wood.. She ran through the small house looking for her children. The usually dark house was sheathed in a red light, the floor wreathed in blood red flowers called fire.

“Where are you two!?” She screamed again, “Please answer me!”

The flames reached out towards her as if to pull her in. Alexia slammed the back room door open, but inside the flames were even worse. The large bed the three of them used to share was now the center of a giant vermillion tower of serpentine tendrils. The flames soaked across the ceiling and in moments sealed her path. No matter which way she looked the flames blocked her.

She continued to yell, seeking for an answer in the burning room. Alexia felt a sharp sting across the back of her neck and her legs gave out beneath her. She tried to push herself back up, but she found herself pinned to the floor. The burning support resting on top of her.

Her body started to creak under the stress of being overworked, and the flames might have be the final straw for it to collapse.

“M’am,” a voice yelled, “Are you okay M’am? What the hell are you doing rushing into a burning house like this? Give me a second, and I’ll get you right out. Thank god we have priests outside to treat the burns.”

She wasn’t sure who the voice was, but she was too tired to care. “My children, where are my children!?” She shamelessly yelled at the voice. The weight on her back forced the air out of her lungs.

“You’re the only one inside here M’am, we checked earlier when we first noticed the fire. Although we hadn’t expected someone to rush inside after we checked it.” the voice sighed, “Damn, I didn’t think I would have to run into the same burning building twice today.” She felt the weight on her back lessen slightly. “M’am, can you crawl out? This thing is heavier than I thought.”

She struggled to pull herself free. The pillar of fire coming off the bed was a few feet from her face, the heat alone made her skin feel like it would catch ablaze. Her body had already reached its breaking point, it was not meant to run long distance with that exceedingly large weight. She hadn’t thought about the effects on her body, her children and her could be repaired once they ate..

“M’am can you move?” The voice asked again, slightly unnerved.

“...”

“M’am!?” The weight on her back shifted some more, and air slowly crept its way into her lungs. “Are you okay M’am? Talk to me?”

“Sorry.” She choked out.

The voice went silent. The only thing she could hear was the crackling of her home falling apart. Alexia felt the weight increase a bit. After a moment the voice returned, “M’am try to keep your eyes closed.”

Alexia tried to turn to see the voice, but the wood kept her pinned down to the ground. “Why?” she barely managed to say. Alexia blinked for an instant.

And then everything above her was torn away.

The weight.

The flames.

The heat.

The pain.

Everything was ripped away from her.

And it had taken less time than it took to blink.

The voice finally appeared in front of her. He was a young man in appearance, the thin light of embers illuminating his face. His features were sharp, and had a kind gaze. He held his hand out to Alexia. She grasped it as firmly as she could, which was now far below even an average humans strength. He gently brought her to her feet.

“M’am, you alright? The priest will be over here in a second.” The man waved someone over from outside the rubble.

The house was cleaved in half, the roof and the upper half of the walls were completely gone. There was a single flat line going through the house. Above the line laid clear skies, below the remnants of her burning house.

A fear silently blossomed into her heart. Alexia forced herself to maintain a facade, most of those with power would not stand at the side of a ghoul. If they found out, she would not continue to live.

True to the mans word, a warm light spread around her. The priest that had showed up was strangely young, maybe no older than her own children. The spells healed her minor wounds and burns, but she knew at the core her body would still be about to fall apart.

As soon as he finished he bowed, and stepped back. It was almost as if he wanted to leave the speaking to the older man.

The older man nodded to the priest, and turned to face her, “Do you feel better now?”

Alexia gave a brief confirmation. She nervously glanced towards the coffin she had abandoned before she ran into the house. The coffin had luckily fallen amidst some bushes and could not be seen that easily. The man followed her gaze, and if he noticed he didn’t say anything.

He suddenly clapped his hands, “Ah! I forgot to introduce myself, I am the knight Gravus, I work under the Marquess of Ardent.” he took a brief glance at her eyes, and a flash of realization spread across his face. “Men!” Gravus yelled.

“Yessir!?” more than 10 men replied, even the priest had stood at attention.

“Fan out and search for this lady’s children, they must have panicked when her house caught fire and ran.” Each of the men in turn started to turn around and head into the forest.

Gravus watched his men leave, and started to talk almost to himself, “I have a daughter, I know how irrational parents get when their children are in danger.”

“Why are you here?”

He went paused for a second, looking at the large bonfire of the house, “I was sent here to find and kill the ghoul that resides in this house.”

…

…

Alexia felt a chill go down her spine. She became acutely aware of the sword on his waist.

Gravus sat down and layed on the grass with his arms behind his head. He didn’t look even remotely worried with her next to him. It either meant that he didn’t know she was a ghoul, or that he had enough power not to care.

“Well this quest was a waste.” Gravus sighed, “Not only did I have charge into a burning building twice. I’m going to have to give up hunting the ghoul too.”

“...Why?”

“Finding your children is more important M’am. I’m not going to kill something for existing, even more so when I have children to save instead. Having a quest isn’t that big of a deal, saving a life is far more important.”

The wind lifted some of the dryer leaves off the ground and tossed them into the flames. They curled up slowly, turning brittle. When another breeze blew past the leaves scattered into dust.

“Thank you…” Alexia said slowly. She wasn’t sure if the man would kill her if she did something inhuman like. So whenever she dealt with people she tried to keep the talking to a minimum. The day she spoke too much, would be the day she planned on dying anyway.

“Hahaha,” He lightly tapped her shoulder, “Not a problem. When It comes to children I know that a parent would worry about them. If my daughter was in the same situation I would risk going to war against the world.”

“Sir!”

Gravus sat up and looked towards one of his men that had returned from within the forest. The man in question had a rather serious expression. “The Marques has sent his honor guard near here our men are at a confrontation.”

“What?”

“Honor guard?” Alexia asked.

Gravus, got to his feet quickly. He must have felt it wasn’t the time to be lying down, “The honor guard is the Marques’ dishonorable work force. They are known for pillaging, killing, and burning whatever they see fit. If me and my knights are people who fight with honor, those are the men that fight for greed.”

Alexia tried to look towards her burning house. Gravus reached over and covered her eyes, “That feeling you have right now, abandon it. Revenge is only suitable for those that don’t have something to protect.” He smiled lightly, it didn’t reach his eyes, “Its the same reason I haven’t hunted down my wife’s killer myself. I have a daughter to protect. When we find your children, you’ll need to protect them too.”

“What if I-”

“Don’t!” Gravus interrupted, “You will, have no doubt about that at least.”

“What makes you so sure!?” Alexia screamed, “I come back home only to find my house burning and my children nowhere in sight. And you think I can calmly act like they are okay? To make it worse you just said that dishonor guard kills and burns whatever they want. How can I act like… How can I act like my children are safe!?” Her fists were clenched so tightly they had started to bleed.

He looked her as calmly in the eyes as he could, “Because as a knight I swear to you I will bring them back.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.” A new male voice broke in. Alexia had never heard this man before but something in his tone made her want to vomit.

Alexia and Gravus turned to face the man. He stood behind Gravus’ ally with a rat-like and seedy expression.

The Ally that had warned them of the honor guard was currently made into a makeshift scarecrow. His eyes were bulging open, and his mouth flopped open and closed. If it weren’t for the sword in his chest, that soldier would have already fallen down.

“Ranthus.”

The man smiled, but it appeared to be more like a sneer. “Gravus, I am so happy you remember my name. But seriously? Isn’t it against the knights code to lie to a lady? Is that anyway for a Knight to act?”

“What do you mean?” Gravus replied, his voice felt restrained.

“That lady’s children of course! Don’t you realize that she is the ghoul our boss told you to hunt down? You were supposed to kill her while we captured her children. I’ve already completed my end of the mission, so you have no chance at fulfilling that promise of yours.”

Alexia’s eyes widened, and she bit her lip. If she had taken the time to eat, she still would have had the power to defend herself and get her children back. She would not allow her children to be with anyone else.

Gravus reached for his sword, “My men will save both this lady and her children.”

“Puhahaha, and how are you going to do that? As we speak my men are hunting down those traitor’s one by one.”

“Wha…”

Ranthus shrugged his shoulders, “We ended up having to hunt down your heretical soldiers when they tried to protect our targets. Well you can thank that lady’s children for at least that much, if those kids hadn’t been running away before we got to the house your men wouldn’t have had the opportunity to get in the way. Chasing them down was a real pain you know that?”

Gravus set his stance and held his sword between himself and Ranthus. “M’am, I’m sorry... I promised you I would save your children and I will keep it no matter what, but for right now I need you to run” The knight sighed, “Not only did I have to run into a burning building twice today and my men were killed, I also have to betray the marques, my luck today is absolutely crap.”

She stared at the knight.

He smiled sparing her a short glance, “I told you to run.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler : Welcome back,

This chapter was a slight change in perspective from what the initial chapter had. But make no mistakes the main character will not change. I will continue to use the MC of the first chapter for the entirety of this story.

I hope that you all enjoy this little adventure. Comments, rants are all accepted. Or if you just want to say Hi, thats fine too.

Thank you as always,

Tui.

End Chapter 2

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