The White Exile Chapter One

Chapter One
         Only three days had passed since he left the monastery, yet already Tian was plagued by symptoms of fatigue. His eyes felt heavy, his lips were dry, and blisters graced the bottoms of his feet. His green robe, once bright, now was pale and travel worn.
         His two companions, however, seemed to be not affected at all; as if they were in the process of a midday stroll.
         The man on his right walked with much grace, each step seeming to be made with precision and conciseness and he was armed with enough weapons to support a small army, it seemed. His blonde haired face appeared to be carved from stone, the cheekbones, forehead, and jaw all cut in perfect proportion.
         To Tian’s left was a giant of a man. Lootra was much taller than himself already, yet this man dwarfed even him. His strides were long and heavy and he wore a tight leather jerkin cut-off at the shoulders, revealing his massive arms. Strapped to his back were two crisscrossing axes.
         The Great Northern Plains stretched out in every direction as far as Tian’s eyes could see; the three were enveloped in an ocean of green.
         “We’ll be upon the city in a bit,” announced Lootra as the party made their way onward, the sun shining brightly in a cloudless sky.
         “I’m not too fond of this ‘in a bit’ business, scoffed Agustin, “You’ve been saying that rubbish the whole damn day.”
         “Patience my friend,” spoke Lootra sarcastically.
         “Blah.”
         The city they were referring to was Avington. Tian had never been there, but he had read about the cities of Malia in many texts at the monastery. Avington was the site of a major battle in the Twenty Year War, some two-thousand years prior. The site proved to be the last stand for the giants against the conquering humans. Soon after the final battle the last known giant perished and the humans began their colonization of Caldria.
         The party carried on until it was only an hour before nightfall, at which time the lights from Avington could be clearly seen. Agustin located a small band of trees , a rarely occurring element in the Northern Plains, and plopped himself down after laying down his heavy pack.
         “I know you’re not tired, and the city is right there,” declared Lootra as he smiled and pointed to the flickering in the distance.
         “Bugger the city and bugger you; I’m entitled to a damn break. And the kid looks like he could use one by the looks of him.”
         “Is that true?” said Lootra as he turned his head to Tian.
         Tian became startled as the blue eyed man’s question caught him off guard.
         “Uh.. I guess I could rest a bit, I’m pretty tired.”
         Lootra held his head back and let out a laugh. “Suit yourselves, but this does seem silly.”
         “Well I hope you’re not laughing too hard from all this silliness… I’m starving,” shouted Agustin as he scratched his bald scalp.
         “We brought food you lout,” replied Lootra.
         “Aye, but you still owe me, remember? I’m thinking rabbit.”
         Lootra scowled at Agustin. “You were drunk and nearly beat the man to death. It could have been handled in a much more civilized manner.”
         “Pff, and I’m sure that’s why he drew his knife, eh. To be civilized.”
         Tian found himself lost, but stood there nonetheless as the two argued.
         “You’ve proved your point,” said the smiling Lootra, “but I’m quite sure this debt has been paid.”
         `”And what’s the value of ones life?” inquired Agustin mockingly.
         “Sometimes I think you are a spawn from hell.”
         Lootra placed his belongings down and drew his yew bow, setting off into the night. “At least have a fire lit when I get back.”
         “Aye, now go fetch me some rabbits, kitty.”
         Lootra gave a disapproving glance and turned.
         Tian watched Lootra until he disappeared into the night. He looked back at Agustin and met his hard gaze.
         “Well don’t just stand there and stare boy,” Agustin shouted to Tian, “help me with this fire.”
         Agustin recovered flint and steel from his pack and rose.
         “Wood boy, I need wood.”
         Tian searched his surroundings scavenging a twig or stick when he could. He never had collected firewood before, but he knew enough about it to not come off as a complete imbecile. He risked a glance back at Agustin, who was preparing a spit above a circle of stones he had brought with him.
         Tian felt strange whenever he thought of Agustin. It was most like fear, but not quite; like respect, but not as prominent. He’d heard many tales of Agustin’s prowess in combat; of unparalleled strength and impregnable courage. When Tian first heard that Agustin was to be one of his bodyguards accompanying him on his pilgrimage to the Monastery of the Moon he became ecstatic. A hero from Heart’s Peak, Agustin was granted instant lordship and became a high ranking officer in the Skrenan military. After a few campaigns in Tentura he retired from the military, or so the writings said, and settled down with a wife.
         Tian collected firewood for a bit longer, until it reached his chin, and went back to the campsite. The cool night air had done wonders for his weariness; something about the tranquility of the starry sky elevated his spirit.
         Tian watched as Agustin struck at the flint yet again, the attempt proving to be as fruitless as the last.
         “Damn this,” roared Agustin as he threw the flint into the darkness.
         “I could ..eh.. help you with that, sir.”
         “Well for one, don’t call me sir. There’s nothing that pisses me off more than someone kissing my ass, and secondly, how in the bloody hell do you plan on doing that?”
         “They ..erm… taught me a few things at the monastery. I never tried it out for real before, but I could…”
         “Ha, is this magic you speak of, psh, I don’t believe in anything I can’t kill with my axes.”
         “Could I at least try, sir.. I mean..”
         “Be my guest!”
         Tian approached the site for the campfire and knelt down. He placed his hands above it and closed his eyes. He concentrated deeply, as he was taught, and thought of a lone candle encased in a huge block of ice. He focused on the flame, feeding it his energy. The larger the flame became the deeper he focused, until at last an explosion of bright light overtook all of his thoughts. Moments later he opened his eyes and was greeted by a lone flame burning beneath his hands.
         “By the Great Divine,” exclaimed Agustin as he made the sign of the protective circle on his chest, “what is this devilry?!”
         “I believe it is called magic,” mused Lootra as he arrived to the camp, a large hare in each of his hands.
         “Bullshit!”
         “Is something wrong?” inquired Tian, meekly.
         “Agustin has rough experiences when it comes to… magic..”
         “Shut your bloody trap,” stormed Agustin, “and never mind that, let’s eat.”
         “Aww, is someone angered from a little kitty.”
         “Forget about it! Let’s cook these damn rabbits for shit’s sake.”
         Lootra tossed one of the hares to Agustin, who caught it brusquely. Lootra pulled a hunting dagger from his doeskin boot, as Agustin did the same, and approached the fire.
         Tian turned away as their daggers sunk into the dead animals’ flesh and began to skin it.
         “What’s the matter boy, you’ve got a staff haven’t ye?” mocked Agustin as continued his work on the fresh carcass.
         Tian found himself queasy and tried his best to ignore what his bodyguard’s were doing..
         After placing the meat on the spit Lootra and Agustin sat themselves down and watched their meal cook.
         “Tian,” shouted Lootra, “come here.”
         Tian did as he was bid, the cooking meat much more lenient to his weak stomach.
         “That one,” Lootra said as he pointed to one of the hares, “was being a little frisky with a friend when I took him in the eye, he never saw me. The other noticed me while she was eating. She got a good three steps in before she died a slow, painful death from a punctured lung.”
         Tian cringed and turned his head after a quick glance at Lootra, who was grinning, all the while Agustin laughed raucously.
         “Was that necessary?” he asked boldly.
         “Tian, the reason I told you that was not to be cruel an apathetic, but to prove a point.”
         “And what is that?” Tian choked out.
         “It will become clear later, but now bring the plates.”
         Tian rummaged through his belongings and produced two small clay plates and brought them to Lootra. The meat sizzled and the aroma became mouthwatering.
         “Uh, Tian,” called Lootra as Tian began to walk away.
         Tian turned. “Yes?”
         “There’s two bowls here, but there’s three of us.”
         “I’m not very hungry.”
         “Nonsense, you haven’t eaten all day,” replied Lootra.
         “I brought my own food, I’m fine.”
         “More for me!” shouted Agustin.
         After the rabbits were cooked Lootra and Agustin sat at the fire and ate, Agustin’s appetite making the portions hardly fair. All the while Tian sat at a tree, gnawing on a few pieces of dry bread.
         He had not been permitted to eat meat at the monastery. His teachers had said that the human did not need meat to survive and to kill a creature for it was cruel and unjust. Never had he argued or questioned, for it seemed sensible, but now he was watching his bodyguards feast on a fresh kill and he could see no ill that had befallen them. Nor could he see either of the two being cursed to the Land of the Dammed upon their death, despite their twisted sense of humor.
         “We’ll sleep here tonight,” Agustin stated in between bites as grease dribbled down his unruly beard.
         “As you wish,” sighed Lootra.
         After the meal Lootra cleaned the bowls with the aid of a waterskin and gave them back to Tian. There was little conversation, yet Tian felt more uncomfortable than he did than when there was. The men were both over twice his age and has experienced more that he could dare to dream.
         Agustin soon rolled himself up in a bedroll and came to sleep.
         Tian retrieved his bedroll and laid it out, before lying himself down. He stared up into the stars and connected the dots in his mind, a recipe that usually put him to sleep, but tonight was different; he had too much to think about. After a restless hour he got to his feet and walked towards the fire. His fire, he thought to himself as he smiled.
         He sat cross-legged, solemnly staring into the flames, trying his best to ignore Agustin’s loud snoring in the background. He looked over his shoulder to find Lootra still awake, sharpening his blade with a whetstone.
         Tian always knew he would have to make the pilgrimage, he even looked forward to it, but he never pictured his journey to begin like this. Glorious tales were written of past pilgrims, like Essray Therin and Issell Polris. Men who never balked under pressure and had bodyguards who would gladly give their life to aid them. The tales were also riddled with the vanquishing of mighty beasts, but Tian was smart enough to dismiss them as false. He wished so much to be one of them, to have his name passed on amongst the sagas, but he knew that hope was farfetched.
         What had he ever done to earn such regard? He was a nobody, laughed at those at the monastery for his physical failures. He was slow and weak. They also laughed at him when he failed tests. He was not dumb in any sense of the word, but he had a hard time grasping the finer points of science and life. His instructors always told him that he questioned too much and answered too little.
          He sobbed, and decided to stop thinking of his many shortcomings before he cried. He definitely didn’t want Lootra or Agustin, especially Agustin, to seem him cry; he knew the embarrassment would be overwhelming.
         He cradled his knees with his interlocked hands and looked off into the darkness. The mystery of it was almost tangible. Many, many miles still awaited him on his journey and he knew this to be just one night of many more to come.
         “I’m sorry, Tian.” a voice gently said, startling him.
         He turned his head to see Lootra looking up at him from his sword.
         “Sorry for what?” he asked.
         Lootra smiled and went back to sharpening his blade; it gleamed in the firelight.
         “For what I said to you earlier. I had no right, it was cruel.”
         “It’s ok, I know you didn’t mean any harm in it.
         Lootra nodded to him, sheathed his sword, and stood up to stretch.
         “Well, I’ll take first watch; you go get some sleep, ok?”
         Tian nodded back at him, feeling much better after settling the matter with the rabbits.
         “Will my watch be second or third, sir?” Tian asked.
         Lootra smiled his smile, the same smile he always gave Tian; a smile of confidence.
         “There will only be two watches tonight, and all nights to come. Myself, then Agustin.”
         “But…”
         “Trust me. Agustin and I have done these sorts of things for countless years, it is like second nature to us.”
         “OK.”
         Tian stood and went back to his bedroll, finding it much easier to relax now that he had had time to think. He left the stars unconnected and was swept into sleep by the wave of blackness almost immediately.
_________________________
         Tian awoke to the smell of food as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and adjusted to the bright sunshine. Lootra was standing over a big pot, stirring its contents with a wooden spoon. He looked around for Agustin, but couldn’t find him.
         “Where’s…”
         Lootra replied before he could even ask the question. “He’s training. Down by the lake a mile or two down hill.”
         “Oh, that makes sense.”
         Tian sat a while, cross-legged, thinking to himself about n
othing in particular, finding the silence to be a bit unsettling.
         “That smells good,” he stated as he rose.
         Lootra smiled at him. “It’s my specialty; rabbit stew.”
         Tian looked away, off into the distance; making an excuse to himself that he was looking for a sign of Agustin.
         “I’m kidding,” Lootra said as he chuckled, “it’s a vegetable stew. I made it especially for you.”
         “Thanks,” said Tian as he smiled at the thought of Lootra doing something nice for him.
         “Though Agustin will hate it something fierce. He’s basically you… but the opposite. He is as repulsed by plants as you are of meat.”
         Neither one of them could control their laughter.
         Tian decided to go for a walk and so left Lootra to his cooking.
         He felt energetic for some reason, as if he hadn’t been traveling for the past three days. He scanned the horizon, noting the blue and green meeting at a single point. The chirping of birds added to the beautiful scenery.
         Tian walked in no particular direction, but just wanted to clear his mind. He found that he could hardly do anything without first emptying his head. At the monastery he practiced meditating to achieve the desired state, but he didn’t want Agustin and Lootra to think any lower of him.
         Tian strained his eyes as he fought the sun, getting a look an Avingston. It was much farther than it had appeared during the night and he was glad that the decision was made to wait until the morning to go there.
         Tian pranced about for another hour before he decided it was time to return to the camp.
         When he returned he noticed Agustin had still not returned and Lootra was not at the pot. He looked around and saw him in the distance away from the campsite. He went to get a better look at what his bodyguard was doing.
         When he had a clear view he saw Lootra shirtless and slashing at the air with his sword as he leapt and twirled. His movements were very graceful, Tian noted.
         He crouched down so not to be seen.
         Lootra stuck at the invisible enemies faster now and seemed to be everywhere from his lightning speed.
         His training continued for a while longer before he sheathed his sword and put his hands on his hips; his tight muscles covered in sweat.
         Tian went back to the campsite before Lootra could see him.
         The stew was simmering and Tian guessed that it was about done. He stirred it with a large wooden spoon and had a taste; it was delicious.
         “Good isn’t it?” asked Lootra as he approached, still shirtless.
         “It’s exquisite.”
         Lootra smiled and gave a nod. “I think it’s ready. Go get the bowls.”
         Tian started for his pack, but remembered that Agustin wasn’t present and turned around/ “Shouldn’t we wait for Agustin?”
         “Ha, he’ll be here soon enough and besides I’m hungry from training… as you know.”
         Tian gave him a hesitant look. “Oh, sorry.”
         “It makes no matter, but you didn’t need to hide.”
         “I know…. I’m sorry.”
         Lootra smiled and went back to tending to the stew.
         Tian rummaged through his pack for the plates and brought them to Lootra. As Tian gave Lootra the bowls Agustin arrived.
         “Just in time!” he roared.
         Tian glanced at him- his bald scalp shone brightly from its sweat and the large muscles of his chest, arms, and back seemed to be pulsating.
         “It’s your favorite,” Lootra told Agustin, smiling.
         “Rabbit stew?!”
         Lootra looked over to Tian and both of them smirked.
         “No even better,” mocked Lootra.
         “Hrmm,” replied Agustin, “what could be better than rabbit stew?”
         “Why vegetable stew.”
         Agustin’s jaw dropped and he stared at the pot. “This better be some sick joke.”
         “Nope.”
         “FUCK!” Agustin yelled at the top of his lungs as he stormed off.
         Tian watched as he left and he and Lootra were both left in uncomfortable silence.
         “Did you know he would react like that?” asked Tian.
         “No,” Lootra frowned, “no I did not.”
         With nothing else to do the two ate the stew. Tian enjoyed it quite a bit; it was the first real meal he had since he left the monastery.
         “Are the stories true?” Tian asked, looking up from his near empty bowl.
         Lootra refilled his bowl. “What stories?”
         “You know… the stories. The ones about Heart’s Peak. Did you and Agustin really kill an entire regiment by yourselves?”
         Lootra chuckled to himself. “Is that what they’re saying now? I hate stories. They grow and grow until the legend himself thinks he’s reading about a god he’s never heard of.”
         Tian felt somewhat disappointed, but didn’t want to drop the issue. “Well, Lootra.. please, can you tell me how it was? At Heart’s Peak.”
         Lootra ran a hand through his short-cropped blond hair and didn’t speak several moments. “Why not.”
         Tian became ecstatic. He’d read many tales of Heart’s Peak, but never had he heard it from the mouth of one who was there. Maybe the tales were farfetched.
         “About twenty years ago,” Lootra began, “the Tenturians sent a huge army, the largest the world had ever seen, to Caldria. They planned on conquering our nation. At the time all three nations of Caldria; Skrenan, Malia, and Bivia were at war. All three nations knew they were doomed unless they united, and so they did. The alliance marched their mighty army to Heart’s Peak, the place where the Grand Council prophesized they would attack.
         “Agustin and I were separated into different regiments, he Skrenan and I Malia. We all gathered at Heart’s Peak. It was mid-winter and the mountains froze the skin off of your bones. I know many who died from the cold. Their feet and ears turning black before an excruciating death.”
         Tians eyes widened. “I never read about that.”
         “Hrph, that doesn’t surprise me. There are many things about war that most people don’t hear about. Anyway, the cold was bad enough, but what was far worse was the waiting. We sat there, nearly 500,000 of us; spread out across the valley for miles and miles. And when the waiting threatened to consume us all… they came. Ships everywhere! As far as the eye could see into the ocean. They swarmed to the beach and gathered. There were so many of them. We held our ground and let them attack. Volleys and volleys were fired at them, but it was useless. It was like trying to stop a forest fire with your piss. The fighting lasted for days and days and then months. Each day brought waves after waves.
         “Eventually, we began to wear down. Or morale was low and they had us. Agustin was the only thing we had, well he and Ulfgar. But not even they could hold they enemy at bay and we were backed up for miles. I remember one man in particular whom was fighting us. A demon, with blue eyes and nothing but killing on his mind. He cleaved through our ranks as if we were dogs. To this day I have no idea as to what became of him, but he was one of the best swordsman I’ve ever seen.”
         Tian had read enough books to know what came next in Lootra’s telling. Even if all the tales were different, they all had the same ending.
         “Then one day they sent everything they had at us; they knew we were as good as dead. We began a full scale retreat, our heads held low. Out of nowhere Zanzibar and the Grand Army burst into the enemy’s flank. He fought with so much ferocity, I couldn’t believe it. He was unstoppable; he looked like a god. The battle immediately shifted into our favor and we forced them into retreat. We took on pursuit and slaughtered them like fodder. I remember the pride I felt as I watched the survivors sail away in their ships across the Yinring Sea.”
         Tian stayed silent for a bit, trying to put the words Lootra had spoken into his imagination.
         “Was Zanzibar really that good?” he found himself asking.
         Lootra chuckled to himself. “Yes, yes he was.”
         Everything he had read about Zanzibar at the monastery spoke ill of him. The writings said that he was arrogant, very dangerous, and only cared about himself. Still, he never had read anything that spoke low of his swordsmanship.
         Lootra got to his feet and donned his leather tunic. ‘I’ll guess I’ll go find that lout.”
         “Do you want me to come with you?”
         “No, I think it would be best for me to go by myself.”
         “OK.”
         Lootra headed off into the direction Agustin had stormed off into. For a while, Tian watched him go, as he gradually became smaller and smaller.