Chapter 2 - Her Story

Melodi hurried as she left the cave. She felt a little strange leading a naked boy around, so she took out a spare change of clothes and gave them to him. He didn’t react when she did, so she had to dress him herself. She gave the guard Cail a few words of thanks as she passed him. He raised his eyebrows as he saw the boy behind her, but he didn’t say anything about it.

Melodi decided to take the stone steps down instead of sneaking through the forest again. This frail, young boy didn’t look like he could handle the trek. Besides, there shouldn’t be any other guards coming up the stairs any time soon. So she quickly hurried down the steps, holding the boy’s hand as she did so.

Her stomach growled as she made her way back to the city of Quiroso. Despite the sickly odor, the smell of burnt flesh and fat in the cave had made her a little hungry. She licked her lips as she thought about the delicious festival foods that were awaiting her.

Her teacher could wait. Food came first.

* * *

Melos was perusing the food stands where they sold delicious treats and snacks. Meat skewers and candied fruits. Baked pies and fried goods. He was chewing on a meat skewer as he held an umbrella to shield himself from the light rain. He wore light clothing, made for travel and moving around. A long sword hung at his hip. He was wearing a hood that hid most of his facial features. If one peeked underneath that hood, one would see a grizzled face that looked around 40 or so.

As Melos walked around with skewer in hand, he scanned the crowd. He had a look of indifference as he looked around. Not a single person in the crowd managed to gather a scrap of interest in him. He returned to munching on his skewer. He wandered the stands a little more, trying to waste some time.

And then he spotted something finally interesting. A girl around 16 was by one of the food stands selling candied fruits. She was stuffing those tasty treats into her mouth, chewing so fast that it looked like she was starving. A young boy stood right next to her, wearing clothes that were much too big for him. He stared at the girl with a blank look on his face. The girl would turn around and look at the boy as if she was making sure he hadn’t run off.

To most people, these two kids weren’t very special at all. One might think that they were brother and sister enjoying the Quirosan festival. The only thing that stood out was the sword that the girl wore on her belt. It was a little strange to see such a girl armed on a festival day, but otherwise they were quite normal. But Melos didn’t really care about all those pointless details.

His eyes had been instantly drawn to the girl. Her name was Melodi, and she was his disciple. With glossy black hair and a cute youthful face, she seemed like a normal teen. But Melos knew there was more to her. The bruises around her neck, wrists, and ankles were almost faded away, but they were still slightly visible. Her fingernails were not clean and pretty as one might expect of a young girl. Rather, they were dirty and she was even missing a few nails. Her hands were calloused and there were small scars on them.

Melos knew about her tragic past. She had been abandoned as a child by her parents who couldn’t afford to raise her. She had been picked up by an orphanage that was working with an illegal slave ring. She had suffered years of abuse as a slave. So when Melos first met her, he expected to see the dead eyes of a slave looking back at him. But what he saw was something else. When he made eye contact with her, her blue eyes stared back at him with an inexplicable fire. He was instantly drawn to that unknown something burning inside her.

Melos was a swordmaster. But he had never taken on a student. And he felt Melodi was the one. He offered her an opportunity that she wouldn’t reject.

The opportunity to become his student. The opportunity to become learn the sword. The opportunity to take revenge against the slave traders that chained her up for most of her life. The opportunity to face the orphanage that sold her away. The opportunity to find the parents that had abandoned her.

* * *

Melodi couldn’t stop eating. The candies in front of her were just too delicious.

“Hey there, little miss. Slow down and breathe a little.” The shopkeeper chuckled.

Melodi opened her mouth to reply, but then she started to choke on her food.

It took a minute before she could finally swallow down her food and take a deep breath. She looked up at the man in front of her with tears in her eyes. He broke eye contact, a little taken aback.

“You okay miss?”

Melodi wiped away her tears with a free hand. She tried to speak but had to cough a few times.

“Sorry, I’ve never had anything so good before.” She smiled, bits of food stuck in her teeth. “I think it’s the first time I’ve ever eaten anything so sweet before.”

The shopkeeper smiled back. “Well eat as much as you like.” His eyes flickered towards the boy standing next to Melodi. He was staring blankly at her with dull eyes. Before the shopkeeper could say anything to him, a cloaked man emerged from the crowd.

“Hey what do you think you’re doing, Melodi?”

Melodi looked up, her mouth full and her eyes wide open with shock.

Melos looked down on her angrily. "Is that him? Is that the boy?"

Melodi struggled to swallow and then quickly nodded. Melos scowled. "I thought I told you to immediately find me after getting him. And yet here I find you pigging out."

Melos grabbed Melodi's arm and then walked away from the food stand. He walked a few steps before realizing he had forgot something. He walked back and grabbed the boy's arm too. And he quickly walked back into the crowd, with Melodi and the boy in hand.

As the three disappeared, a large figure emerged from a nearby alley. The shopkeeper's eyes widened as he saw the massive size of the man.

He wore a giant sword on his back. And he wore a serious expression on his face. Both made it clear that he was not here to enjoy the festival. There was a long scar on his face along his right eye.

He glanced coldly at the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper felt cold sweat dripping down his back. He didn’t know why, but the shopkeeper felt as if he was in a extremely dangerous situation. He stared wordlessly as the man with the scar bent down and picked up a handful of candied fruit. He dropped a pile of copper coins as he did so. The man didn't say a single word to shopkeeper as he popped a candy into his mouth and left. The shopkeeper gasped with relief as he watched the man disappear into the crowd.

For some reason, he felt like closing down the stand a little early today.