I'm just a finger on a trigger on a finger
Doing everything I'm told to do.
Always my intention, my intention, your intention,
Just doing everything you tell me to.
So much uncertainty,
I don't like this feeling.
I'm sinking like a stone.
Each time I try to speak,
There's a voice I'm hearing...
My captain on a snowy horse,
Is coming back to take me home,
He'll find me fighting back a terrible force,
'Cause I'm not afraid to die alone.
If to borrow is to take and not return,
I have borrowed all my lonesome life.
And I can't, no I can't get through.
The borrower's debt is the only regret of my youth.
Wayne’s mind leaked out as it had eased, and it brought to light some of the lyrical words that he had engraved into his brain, each verse more assuring than the last in some strange subliminal way. Slipping out into his thoughts, and wanting to to be mouthed with his lips, but nothing could be moved.
The animals had successfully inserted himself, and there was a sudden shift in everything. The sound emanating from the trees grew, and the earth shook like the rocking of tectonic plates. Just like the cracks within As’ old cell walls, the stone of the monument began to break, crumbing into large fragments, falling every which way. That is, except for one wall. The wall that the obscure and pure one had been stuck into.
A short circular pedestal was now free of its tomb, holding up nothing.
Every witness had begun to shout, plead, and reconcile in disbelief as their temperatures reached a boiling point. It was only a partial victory, and all of the steps leading to this moment, all of the years and time wasted looking for the prize, yet the prize wasn’t tangible. And for Wayne, it was over in an instant.
Opening his eyes, only Wayne saw something, a glow unlike anything he’d ever seen before coming from behind the remaining wall, cascading out from the three edges, as if the wall itself were emitting light. The pale teal clashed with the grey stones, but also overpowered his sense of brightness, causing him to squint while he adjusted. Surprising even himself, his body coursed with a fuel, a desire to get up, an imbuement of some sort of empowering feeling to find out what it was that he had unleashed. On his hands and knees he crawled, focusing on the light, turning around the obstacle that obscured his curiosity. A great orb hovered in midair, like that of a star in space, shafts of light twisting around it, leaving mini auroras. He was deafened as he was attracted to the center with now wide eyes, unable to hear the scornful cries around him. Everything around Wayne disappeared, inching closer to the thing he had created; nothing else mattered to him now. Like a magnet, he came to the base, pausing for a moment to catch himself, still weak from the poison. To an outsider, he bowed to his master with his head lowered to the ground.
The gesture didn’t last long as he stood, now overseeing his adversary and peering deep within the light, finally understanding what the intent of the monster was.
He saw Allysa taking her first steps across the living room, hearing Shayna cheer and laugh, and seeing her large smile flashing, and Allysa’s face was that of the same. Smiling. And he remembered himself smiling, the largest grin he had ever made. And his daughter giggled making her way to him. He picked her up and coddled her, and the three were all happy in that moment.
It was not a monster at all. The monster had turned into an object, and the object to a desire. Wayne’s eyes welled. They filled with tears once again, but they were tears of purpose, responsibility, and joy, and it was then he realized that he wouldn’t change anything had been been with Shayna at this very moment.
As flew down from the branches upon the chaos, landing with silence and looking at the unfortunate results of the combined Exporine and Cusel kingdoms’ short-come plan. Across the diminished grassy area he spotted Wayne staring purposefully at nothing, though attention was the last thing he needed to be drawn to himself. Just like a comedy, others around him made wild physical gestures in disapproval, still flailing their bodies about in frustration. Silently, As flew straight, towards his own desire.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
As came to Wayne from behind, grabbing his arm, “Wayne!” he called to him, tugging. When he made contact, the light showed for the owl as well, stunning him for a few seconds before getting back to the task at hand. Wayne was in a trance. “Wayne!!” As shouted and tugged again, making Wayne’s body break away, turning to the side, and he looked at As to his left with water down his face. As stopped and tilted his body to the side, looking into the sudden point of light for himself, and seeing the Owarr kingdom and his mother and father in a faint illusion. And he soon realized the same that they had; he saw his actual deepest desires. Yet very subtly, he saw the ghostly image of Wayne, plastered behind the bricks and mortar of the kingdom itself, standing with a grin on his face. As looked into Wayne’s eyes deeply, empathy burning within him.
“Hey, you!!” The two didn’t need to look to know it was the Warden, many meters away from them, “What’re you doin’ here?!” He shouted at As. “And what did you do?!?” He pierced a finger at Wayne, “Where is it?!”
“You don’t see it?” Wayne objected.
As quickly blurted out his realization, “You need to grab hold of Wayne! Then you’ll see it!”
“Don’t play games with me!!” The Warden finally drew his whip from his side, unfurling it, “If you won’t tell me where it is, you’re not gettin’ away from me!” He huffed, “Don’t make me use this, boy!!”
“’Ey!” A weasel appeared from the trees. It was Evic. “Leave ‘em alone you sack of shit!”
The Warden turned around in dismay, a disgusted expression on his face, “What did you just say to me?”
“You ‘eard me! No good piece of shit!”
There was an egotistical chuckle, “Looks like we got a one-weasel mutiny!” The Warden made a joke of the situation in an attempt to combat his deep hatred of it.
“Ya should be laughin’! Ya got nothin’ now!” Evic had a confident smirk, “Everyone’s gone!”
“What?!” A simultaneous yell from the Warden as well as the three porcupines came.
“Yeah, was pretty easy for ‘em to all leave without you around! They ran off!” Evic scrunched his face up while staring down his boss, “I showed ‘em how to get out.”
“MOTHERFUCKER!!” The Warden trudged towards Evic, “I SHOULD’A KILLED YA WHEN I HAD THE CHANCE!!!” He threw back and forth his arm, the tail swishing loudly at the weasel. The attack hit a tree trunk to the side of Evic acting like a shield, stopping it from connecting. Quick to action, Evic grabbed the end of the whip from the ground, yanking it hard, ripping it from the Warden’s hand and tossing it behind them in a hard motion. Evic began to run for them fast, and drawing a knife, and the Warden knew who it belonged to. It was his.
“Where did you get that?” He hissed.
“Like I’m tellin’ you.”
The Warden’s voice abruptly started to sound sympathetic, “You- You wouldn’t hurt me? I’m your friend, right??” He stifled.
“Do friends manipulate others? Do friends not show any decency? Do friends put scars on peoples’ backs?!”
Evic looked at Wayne, breaking concentration, “Kevin! You were right! I’m sorry!”
“Agghh!” The Warden leapt towards Evic, jumping on him; he began to punch at his eyes and mouth, pushing down onto his neck with his free hand, and he gripped with all of his might. Trying to help, Devonik and his cohorts rushed in to help, but they were unarmed, and were all too cowardly to pick up the whip and risk hitting the weasel who they relied on, not that they knew how to use a weapon like that.
With each painful hit, Evic lost more of his morality. He pushed onto the Warden with his arms and paws, but it was no use. He had done the greater good, and he was punished for it. His mind raced with all of the times he had been chained to that giant tree with his back facing outwards, being mauled by that tail which he so hated. Words couldn’t describe how much he detested the pain, and his attacker was right next to him once again, closer this time. Tears filled what was left of his own sight as he made the decision. With a scream, he plunged the knife into the back of the Warden, and the air sucked itself from their lungs in a gasp. Over and over he used force, and heard their cries become more raspy and unstable. Evic stopped, toppling the Warden’s body off of him, and he watched as their chest slowly rose and fell. Induced by rage, Evic further went for the chest, putting and end to their misery.
Breathing heavily and lifting his head, Evic saw the porcupine guards had all but run away, and he looked to the two, who were not interested in the slaughter, shutting their eyes, with Wayne covering his ears. Evic cast the weapon away, tossing it into the bushes.
Without hesitation, Evic shouted, “Go!!”
As and Wayne ran from the site, following one another for what felt like a mile through thick plant life, until finally they slowed to a stop. They stopped to talk of the past, the present, and the future: The series of unfortunate events that had unfolded, what was spinning through their heads, and what As had planned for the future.