Chapter 16: The Boon

Zack

12 years ago

Year: 860

Zack awoke slowly, the smell of smoke and ash waking him up in a displeasing way. He woke with better vision than when he had passed out but his body still felt weak. He found himself on a bed, back in the Blue Swords fort next to the training ground. He must have been kept in a temporary bed since they only stationed beds within the barracks. He looked around and surveyed the site in the hope he would see other men from the Blue Swords who survived the battle. He was met with only disappointment. He only found a large group of Atlus soldiers, as well as the King himself. He had an otherworldly presence that seemed to trump even Matthews. He wasn’t sure what they were doing. Perhaps they were also looking for survivors now that the forest fire had settled. Zack’s memories of searching for survivors flooded back to him, the images of his dead comrades were burned into his mind. The worst part was he had no one to take his revenge on this time. The bandits were certainly done for now that the king had intervened. He now had to live with the fact he failed and had no way to repent for his failure. Zack wanted to cry there and then, but he wouldn't. He wouldn't start feeling sorry for himself, this wasn't the time. He had to speak to Matthew, to see if he was okay and what was next for him and the Blue Swords. The king turned and noticed he had awoken, The King promptly approached Zack. His face was exposed as his helmet was being held by one of the soldiers who accompanied him. The man was older and slightly less handsome than he imagined he would be. His face showed a lot of battles he had been through, no, “wars” was the right word. His face showed it all in the many scars he had but his hair remained as royal and bright as ever. It was similar to Matthews in how he kept it pulled back and smart but was somehow, even more, blonder, perhaps even slightly gold, he couldn't be sure. Zack sat up and turned himself around on the stiff bed frame to face the King. His chest twinged in pain as he did so. As he looked down he noticed his chest had been completely bandaged up to close the wound inflicted by the large sword wielder. He took a second look and noticed his whole body was practically bandaged, His arms all the way to his legs. He must have suffered more wounds and burns than he thought he did.

“Young man, what is your name?” Asked the King in his regal tone

“Zack, your majesty,” said Zack, coughing and breathless as he said it.

“I see, perhaps you are still not well enough to speak yet. I will have to arrange this another time” he said beginning to turn from Zack.

“No…I need to thank you” Zack said quickly, forcing himself to speak. The king stopped and turned back to face Zack.

“There is no need for that young man. It is I and the country of Atlus that needs to thank you” The king turned and began to gesture with his hand, keeping his posture high and confident. “I and the city of Atlus never considered the bandit situation within The Weeping Crucible as a threat worth pursuing as we perhaps should have. That is evident from today's display. From what I have heard from your comrade Matthew. It seems that you both have been dealing with this threat. Am I correct?” said the king as he raised his eyebrows. Zack felt like the king was truly remorseful when he spoke. Was this the same man who forced the magicless to work like slaves?

“Yeah…you spoke with Matthew? is he okay?” Asked Zack desperately, almost as if he was pleading to know. The king placed a hand in front of Zack to calm his query.

“He is. I spoke with him not long ago. He is a strong man. He spoke to me about the Blue Swords and what you have accomplished. I must say I've known of your group and your endeavors for a while now but only now has it dawned on me the impact you have made.” Zack found it hard to celebrate the fact the bandits were practically removed from The Weeping Crucible. It was their main goal as an army, it was done. Yet he had never felt more sorrow than he did now over his lost comrades. The King continued “I…understand you have lost men, no, you have lost many friends. I am aware that no words I can offer will ever bring those men back. I am sure you feel great grief over their deaths. I am sorry young man, that is all I can say without being intrudent.” Zack didn't reply, he kept thinking back to what he could have done differently and whether this was his own fault or not. “I have, however, given you and Matthew a boon. A symbol of my gratitude. Though I feel as if your friend can explain it to you. The two of you seem to be due a reunion.” Zack still sat in silence. He heard what the king had said, he acknowledged it, but he found no point in replying. No, Matthew is still here, it's not all been taken from you Zack.

“Thank you, Your Highness” The king nodded and knelt down to place a hand on Zack’s shoulder.

“Do be sure to rest well first before you visit him, soldier,” He rose and walked off with his personal guard following closely. They climbed upon their noble white steeds and galloped off and out of the fort, with each minute that passed each soldier that was there followed in their lead until every Atlus soldier had left, either by foot or horse. Then, it was just Zack. He sat on his own, on the temporary bed among a pile of burnt supplies and equipment thrown everywhere during the panic. The fort was in shambles, but the walls still stood. Another thing Zack hadn’t lost. He used that thought to keep him sane. Zack stood up and hobbled his way to the fort entrance, disobeying the king’s orders. He had to make sure Matthew was okay, even if the King had said so, he had to quell his mind or he could never rest otherwise.

Zack entered Matthew's quarters. It took him far longer to get up the stairs than he thought it would. His life wasn't in danger but his wounds were serious. As he sloppily pushed the wooden door open, he collapsed into Matthew's abode. Thankfully, Matthew was there to greet him and help him up after falling.

“Goodness Zack, Don’t scare me like that,” He said with a genuine smile, “It is good to see you again my friend,”

“Same back at you, Matthew” Zack said weakly, trying to pick himself off the ground. Matthew quickly aided him and helped him onto his own bed to let him rest. Zack slumped onto the bed and tried to catch his breath. He gave Matthew a nod and a smile that told him “Thank you”

“You would be the perfect soldier if you just knew when you reached your limit”

“Maybe, but you would have died if I was a perfect soldier”

“Ha maybe you're right, funny that, isn't it?” Matthew said as he recalled Zack saving him from his steed being surrounded. The two of them always felt more comfortable and open around each other, The two of them found a way to laugh over the events despite the utter despair Zack was in. Zack was unsure if Matthew was taking the loss of the soldiers as hard as he was. Of course, he is! This was his army he brought me into! He practically built this army with his own hands.

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“I’m sorry I couldn't save them, Matthew. You entrusted me with rallying whoever lived…and I failed” He said lowering his head. He wasn't prepared to apologize just like he did, but he had to get it out of his system. Matthew embraced Zack quickly, wrapping his arms around Zack. Zack wasn't sure how to react and his arms froze as he was hugged, he was a bit surprised by the sudden show of affection. Matthew then retreated from the embrace and faced Zack.

“Zack, please do not torture yourself over the losses. This was a war we waged. This was going to happen. I didn't want it to happen either but there would be casualties along the way, but the Blue Swords is not dead, we are not dead. The goal of reforming Atlus is not dead… don't let their lives be in vain Zack.” His words made sense. It was difficult for him to process, but he understood them.

“You still intend to reform Atlus?” asked Zack. Matthew nodded to Zack with a determined look. “I spoke with the king…before I came here. I don't believe he is the type of man who would enslave magicless. He saved us, he saved you.”

“Maybe” Matthew stood up and began to pace through the room slowly “but it's not him that is the problem directly. The king doesn't oversee everything. His country is far too big and things go under the rug. His chancellors are mostly to blame for how magicless are treated since the duties with labor are generally given to them.”

“Still, we're indebted to him, we shouldn't attempt to overthrow him.”

“We are not indebted to him. We did the work his country should have done for the last three years. He only came in and finished the job. I won't hold it against him though…He did save us.” Matthew breathed in deeply and sighed as he paced around the room taking short steps “and were not overthrowing him. These things are complicated, the man isn't necessarily good or bad but the country needs to change.” Matthew seemed to be slightly conflicted about his feelings with the king. It felt like there was some disdain in his voice but it was kept at bay by his own reasoning. The two sat in silence for a moment before Zack recalled what the king had told him earlier.

“What about the boon? The king mentioned it earlier and said he spoke to you about it.”

“Well, that's the silver lining to this all.” Matthew said perking up and facing Zack once again “I tried to convince him to offer a boon to us individually, but he refused, he said he would only reward the blue swords as a collective force, so I've already decided what our reward is…sorry Zack” He apologized slightly embarrassed by the premature decision.

“It's okay, go on,” Zack said calmly. Matthew paused for a moment before revealing what he asked.

“I requested we receive the highest position possible within the Atlus army” Silence filled the room. Only the candlelight flickering within the corner of the room could be heard. To go from never being employed within Atlus to going to a captain was practically impossible, unheard of. Zack had to repeat in his head what he heard to let it sink in.

“What?

“Yeah, sorry, I really should have consulted you before requesting this, but I was afraid he would rescind the offer if I didn't take it.” It was strange to hear Matthew worry over something. I suppose how much this opportunity means to him. Zack thought

“Did he accept the offer?” Zack asked curiously as he leaned forward

“Yeah, he did, in a way. He gave us the position of captains within the Atlus army however it will take some time before those positions are ready for us to fill. Until then, he wanted us to act as regular castle guards before the position is ready.” Matthew told Zack filled with enthusiasm

“Well, that’s good Matthew, you should be pleased you got what you wanted,” Zack told him trying to sound convincing.

“Well…I haven't got what I want yet” He said approaching Zack

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean Zack, I know you aren't keen on joining me but I need you too”

“I told you Matthew I'm not keen on this because I have no passion for it. I purpose ended with finishing the bandits” It pained Zack to tell him that but it was the truth about how he felt.

“And what will you do now that they have been eliminated?” the words slapped Zack in the face. He had nothing to pursue. He thought that once the bandits were gone and his vengeance had been filled he would feel good and be happy over what he achieved, even feel some sort of fulfillment but, he didn't. Now that he had no purpose, would he just feel this empty guilty feeling for the rest of his life? “Remember when I asked you what purpose you would seek after the bandits were defeated?”

“Yeah, I was never able to find an answer for that…sorry,” Zack said admitting fault, It felt like another promise he had made to Matthew.

“Then let me give you that answer. All the men that died today…that happens every day but with the magicless, but Atlus will turn a blind eye and not even acknowledge it. No-one does. It's not just us that suffer the grief of losing members of our army. Families deal with the loss of relatives simply because of the way they were born. Do you want people to experience that, to experience what you had to feel today?”

“No…no, I don’t” He still didn't feel strongly about the idea but that was the obvious answer to give.

“This can all be avoided, all these deaths of magicless can be avoided. It's not like the deaths today. We can make that change, but we can only do it together…Can I still rely on you Zack?” Matthew held out a hand to him for confirmation. Confirmation to accept his proposal. Zack wasn't sure how to answer. Maybe he could follow through and finish this with Matthew like he did with the bandits, but would he fail like he did today? No, it didn't matter. His purpose wouldn't be to reform Atlus…but to follow Matthew into whatever battle he entered, whatever purpose he had. This man gave Zack something when he had nothing and was going to give Zack something to aspire to now when he was at his lowest. It didn't matter if he believed in the cause or not, saving innocent lives from death would just be a bonus. His new purpose would be to continue following Matthew wherever he fought. Follow him into any battle or war he began.

“You can…You always will Matthew” He took his hand and they shook. They both smiled at one another. Matthew didn't need to know the reason why Zack agreed. If Zack would follow Matthews every purpose then it didn't matter. So long as he knew he had Zack’s support. Matthew grabbed ahold of his hand with both his hands and shook eagerly. He smiled from ear to ear.

“Thank you, Zack, I don’t deserve a man as loyal as you.”

“You do Matthew, You've always been there to give me hope…give me a purpose when I had none. Maybe it’s unfair of me to rely on you like that, but the least I can do is follow the same goal you strive for” Matthew stood and paced around as if he had too much energy and had to expend it somehow.

“Ah this is great,” He said with joy in his voice. As if the events of today were now placed in his past. A few moments passed before Zack stood up. His body still hastened to remind him of the pain as he placed weight back onto his legs but he could still stand.

“So when do we start?

“We set off once were packed up.” Matthew replied, “We begin as guardsmen once we arrive and soon we will be captains, from there, we work our way through the inner politics within the castle. Find out who’s aligned with who, and what their goals are. Who we can trust and befriend for our own goal.” Matthew really had put a lot of thought into this.

“You sure you know what you’re doing Matthew?” Zack asked almost with a hint of amusement in his voice. Matthew replied

“Very sure, Been waiting for this day my whole life”