Chapter 12

It’s been hours since Garen and Norzak escaped the clutches of battle. No longer in danger, the two hid themselves behind a curving hill, sheltering them from the raining smoldering ashes. Garen’s breath was heavy and fast as he shielded the now unconscious Lich from the searing heat of flowing lava in the distance.

Looking closely, Garen’s worries were increasingly hard to bear as the once flexible glossy sheen of Norzak’s body become dry and flaky. With a arm missing and a crippled leg, any common mortal would have moved on into after life.

Garen was no medical doctor but that didn’t stop him from acting like one. Ignoring his own fatigued body, he worked diligently to ease his friends suffering. Limited in options, he could only clear up the open wounds. Recalling his lessons, the first step was to remove the clothing covering the wounds but with a quick glance, Garen realized there were shrapnel’s of debris lodged onto every part of Norzak’s body.

“The battle was far too intense; I can’t even find a spot where a wound isn’t apparent. “ Garen muttered to himself.

Reacting to his words, the once unconscious Norzak made a choking cough as he tried to speak but his crumbling husk of a body wouldn’t allow him. Seeing the pain his friend was in, Garen gestured for him to stay quiet and rest but something still felt odd to him.

Using both his hands, Garen helped his patient into a sitting position with its back leaning against the cliff. “He is so frail,” were the first thought that came to his mind. The dependable and powerful Lich earlier today just seemed so helpless now.

Going through the wounds wasn’t all that difficult; in fact it was rather easy considering he didn’t need to worry about excess bleeding. All the while, Norzak watched on in silence, staring at him with a longing look. This made Garen a bit uncomfortable but seeing the weak pulses of light in Norzak’s eye sockets, he didn’t have the heart to question the ancient Lich.

That night, Garen didn’t get any rest as he sat against the cliff. He was tired, no question about that but something was urging him to stay awake, as if closing his eyes would blind him to something important.

Looking up, Garen could see the dark sky shining brilliantly with stars, a familiar sight that he had seen so often in his life, reminding him of better times in his youth. He kept up with the silent and calm state for hours into the night until he felt something against his side.

Glancing down, a locket was there on the ground, probably dropped by Norzak while he was moving. His first instinct was to pick it up and examine the content but before he could touch it, a bony hand reached out for the item. Garen was startled for a second. He thought Norzak was resting the entire time but now he knew it was his misunderstanding.

Paying close attention, Garen could see how much Norzak cherished the locket. Dangling it against his dry and crumbling fingers, Norzak held the locket against his now heaving chest.

“You must be wondering what’s inside the locket, right?” Norzak questioned in a low whisper as the glow in its eye sockets grew even dimmer.

Garen wanted to stop his friend from talking anymore but even he could see it was pointless. The magical life force keeping the ancient Lich animated was slowly fading away and he could only watch on from the side.

Garen didn’t say anything; all he could do was nod his head to answer the question. Then with a flick of a finger, Norzak opened the lid of the locket, letting Garen see the mysterious content. It was a family portrait, a boy and a women standing in front of a man. Looking closely, Garen’s eye widen in disbelief. The young lad in the picture was so similar to himself; the only difference he could really see was the age.

“Norzak… who?” Garen uttered these two words without realizing, too shocked by what he saw.

The ancient Lich let out a small but grunting laugh, unable to hide its pain from the simple action of speech. “What you see is my family. That child was my son, and… the woman is my wife. No matter how many years went by, I couldn’t let them go. This small trinket was the only reminder of my life and my humanity.”

Garen couldn’t hold back his tears anymore; he finally understood the reasoning behind Norzak’s unending aid. Until now, he always believed the answer he got before wasn’t the entire truth, but he did not expect something like this.

“Thank you… I’m sorry…”

“No,.. the time we spent was short but thanks to you, I was once again able to live. Spending unending amount of years in hiding was warping my very soul.” Norzak held out the locket towards Garen, dangling it in front of his hand. “Take this with you, all the knowledge I gathered through the centuries is sealed inside. Consider it a gift from an old man; you and my son… are too similar.”

Garen wanted to look away. This was painful, too painful. It was exactly like how his mother acted when she was at death’s door. Like time itself was finally catching up, Norzak’s remaining body was slowly crumbling away into dust.

Drawing his last breath, Norzak’s voice was getting weaker to the point of a whisper, “Don’t be afraid of the future, no matter how much pain, there is always hope and…”

That was it, the light inside his hollow eye sockets were gone. All that remained was the dark void of a lifeless head. Garen wrapped his arms around the dusty husk of his onetime friend, unwilling to let go of the powerful bond they formed in the short period they spent together.

“Rest well” were the only thing he said after being left alone.