The Legend of Slayer

As Sufoh and the Macari Lords enjoy Lord Jayis's banquet, the young warrior's mind begins to wander. The world's only truly fearless being meets his greatest enemy: Fear.

The legend of slayer

 

Nine people were seated at a long table in the banquet hall of Lord Jayis's palace, filling the air with the noise of their conversation, mostly of the men that they killed during the gathering season. Each one wore the finest of clothing, as they always did, and ate the fattest of their stolen livestock. At the very end of the table sat Lord Jayis. To his left was Sufoh, and next to him, Kidja.

The other six men at the table were the other Macari Lords: Lord Jeridot of the Blue Fire tribe, Lord Hortar of the Silver Moon tribe, Lord Crean of the Crystal Water tribe, Lord Sain of the Yellow Sun tribe, Lord Thessis of the Golden Sand tribe, and Lord Irrvan of the Crimson Blood tribe.

"There are a lot of lords," Kidja leaned over and whispered to Sufoh.

"There are only seven," Sufoh whispered back.

"I know, but if we are all Macaris, why do we need seven lords? Why can't Lord Jayis be everybody's lord?"

"Everything the Macaris do is for the protection of our race," explained Sufoh. "We are divided into seven tribes because, if we were to all live in one place, under one rule, that ruler could become corrupt. If he then decided he wants to join forces with our enemies for his own personal gain…"

"Trouble?"

"Big trouble. Also, if our enemies were to somehow find us, their chances of finding all seven tribes are slim, so if one tribe is attacked, there will be six more to defend it. And with our diverse abilities, our race is undefeatable as a hole. This is, when we are getting long, which only seems to be during and shortly after Gathering."

"I guess that makes sense," Kidja muttered. She didn't seem to agree with the concept, but Sufoh understood that despite her intellect, she was probably too young to completely understand politics.

After deciding not to go into further detail about the lords and tribes, Sufoh continued enjoying the feast along with everyone else until Kidja's hand accidentally nudged the sword of Lord Jeridot.

"You owe me an apology," the Blue Fire Lord said quickly.

"Why is that?" Kidja politely asked.

"You touched my blade. You are a female and a child. You haven't the right to touch my weapon. Now, ask my forgiveness."

Although this was a truth, Kidja had never actually spent any time around any of the Macari rulers, short of Lord Jayis. Therefore, Sufoh had neglected to teach her how to behave among Macari Lords who viewed her as nothing but a girl, as oppose to Lord Jayis who saw her as the darling sister of his most loyal soldier and guardian. For that reason, Kidja's answer was as simple as it was innocent.

"No."

          Jeridot's eyes grew wide as a thick vein appeared on his forehead. "How dare you disrespect me? Do you think that, just because you are a child, I will not have you put to death?"

          Sufoh's hand moved to the hilt of his sword, but he felt the hard knuckles of his lord covering his weapon. His eyes moved up and met Lord Jayis's in a steely gaze.

          "What do you think you are doing?"

          "This is not the time, Sufoh," Lord Jayis whispered. "Let me handle this. We don't need any more enemies, especially ones that can seek us out."

          Sufoh continued to hold his position, unfazed, squeezing his sheath as his scarlet gaze pierced the soul of his leader. Lord Jayis knew what the look in Sufoh's eyes meant—for Jeridot, himself, or anyone else that dared offend or harm the child dearest to him. He slowly removed his hand from Sufoh's sword and quickly stood up with a glass of wine in his hand.

"May I have your attention, everyone?" Lord Jayis announced, distracting Lord Jeridot and hopefully giving Sufoh an opportunity to calm down and rethink his next move. "Macari leaders, let us take a brief moment to honor the young man who has made such a successful gathering season possible. At only sixty and one seasons, he has slain more men than all of we lords combined, and has added a new legend to the already fascinating stories surrounding our great race, the Legend of Slayer.

"Thanks to him, the Macaris will prosper until the next season of Awakening, and the Golden Age, once thought to be at its end, will continue for many seasons to come. And when the time comes to come out of hiding, we will strike our victims with the deadly force of the one called Slayer! Lords…" He raised his glass. "To Sufoh!"

          The lords all raised their glasses and cried, "To Sufoh!"

          Sufoh courteously bowed to them all.

Kidja shouldered Lord Jeridot. "He's my brother," she warned.

          "Lord Jayis." Lord Irrvan raised his voice to be heard over the other lords. "This warrior, this 'Slayer,' if you will," he said as if Sufoh weren't sitting right in front of him, "I don't blame you for keeping him by your side if he's such an effective thief and guardian, but I've heard that he has no master, just a thirst for blood. How do you control such a person?"

          Lord Jayis turned his attention to Lord Irrvan and said, "I am not this boy's master, just his leader. Contrary to rumor, Sufoh is perfectly normal. He has a lovely home and takes good care of his sister. He is perfectly capable of 'controlling', as you say, himself."

          "But don't you fear that he may turn on you?" Lord Sain asked. "Just look at his face, always fixed in that somber expression and he rarely speaks to anyone, even you! For all we know, that boy could be plotting against us as we speak."

          Lord Jayis laughed. "You act as if Sufoh is some kind of villain. As long as he has been at my side, Sufoh has not once disobeyed me. Never once has he questioned me, or my judgment, no matter how dangerous the mission I give him. Do you know why? Because he trusts me as his leader, and I chose him as my guardian because I trust him with my life the same way he trusts me with his."

Despite Lord Jayis's convincing arguments, most of the lords still found it hard to believe that Sufoh was harmless. After all, Lord Jayis said himself that that boy had killed more men than all seven lords combined and most of them were more than twice his age. Outside of the forest, he was feared as the legendary Slayer, secret weapon of the White Wolf tribe and the most deadly of the Macaris. Because of the inhuman abilities granted to them to by curse over the Forbidden Forest—such as the doglike senses of the White Wolf Tribe—and what they did every four seasons, Macaris as a whole were feared throughout the Land, but before Sufoh, no individual had ever been so distinguished.

Perhaps that was the reason the other lords were so afraid of Sufoh betraying Lord Jayis. Macaris were trained from birth that they were all pieces of one whole. In order to survive, everyone played a role. The more important your role, the more reward you get when the time for Distribution comes. Sufoh, however, didn't act as part of a whole. He was his own man. He was his own army. He disregarded the lives of his fellow Macaris just as he disregarded the lives of his victims. At the same time, no one could deny the fact that he had never once even attempted to betray his tribe or his lord.

"Lord Jayis," Sufoh said as the lord sat down. "If you do not mind, I would like to speak with you after banquet. It is important."

"Certainly, Sufoh."

Sufoh said nothing else to his lord or any of the others for the rest of the night. His words were limited to answering Kidja's endless string of questions. When everyone finally left the banquet hall in the early hours of the morning, Sufoh sent the half-sleeping Kidja home with Jorah while he stayed to talk with Lord Jayis in his bedchamber.

"Jayis," Sufoh began, shutting the door behind him, "do you remember the incident two seasons ago?"

Lord Jayis's face went suddenly serious with a touch of fear. "I do."

"I cannot help feeling that something is terribly wrong and that what happened that night is the center of it. Kidja's prophetic visions are becoming clearer, realer. They are scaring her. I do not know how much longer we will be able to keep this hidden. We must seek assistance."

"No!" Lord Jayis's skin turned ashen with terror. "We cannot tell anyone, Sufoh! Do you understand? Nothing is going to happen. It's all over, so let's just try and forget about it."

Under my direction, we will infect him like we've infected no one before. Sufoh shook away the wicked voice in his head.

"Jayis," he raised his voice, something the soft-spoken warrior didn't do often, "Kidja's visions are of our deaths. They always end with me sacrificing myself to save her, and you are always the first to die, always consumed. It is the demons, Jayis. I know it is. We must stop them before—"

"Enough!" Lord Jayis silenced him. "I will tell you what we must do…"

Strife.

"…we must never speak of this again. Nothing is going to happen to me, and if it does, let it. I sealed my fate the moment I opened that gate."

Karma.

With those words, Lord Jayis ordered Sufoh out his room and his palace. The changes were happening after all, and they were happening faster than he thought they would. Soon, it would be too late to save him, but saving Lord Jayis wasn't Sufoh's concern. Not anymore. Kidja was in danger, and no matter what happened, he would protect her, and he would vanquish anyone or anything that dared to imperil her.

Sufoh left the palace angry and frustrated. As he walked through the village, he thought of that night once more

 

They had ridden in the dark, all the way up the hill, just as Lord Jayis had been told. The storm had attacked even more viciously as they drew closer to the top, but they pressed on, riding relentlessly until they finally reached the top. Then, it was time. The two warriors dismounted, and the second they did, their wolves ran away. Sufoh hadn't blamed them. He almost wanted to follow them.

"Give me the key!" Lord Jayis shouted over a clap of thunder.

Sufoh handed Lord Jayis the stone tablet. It released a red mist into the air that rose despite the pounding rain. Lord Jayis slowly laid the tablet on the mud-soaked ground and waited with uncanny patience. Not long after, the earth rumbled, causing both him and Sufoh to stumble. The rain fell faster and harder as the thunder boomed with deafening power. The wind blew with bone-breaking force, and lighting struck the ground every second. It was as if nature itself struggled futilely to prevent what would soon occur. Nothing could stop this lord, not at this point.

Out of the earth rose another tablet. This one was black with silver markings identical to those on the key. The new tablet stood a hundred times the size of the first, and its pictures stood out more clearly than those on the key. The tablet depicted the six beasts with more lifelike fury. Sufoh knew these beasts as the legendary Zorbrians, six evil beasts that were said to have crawled out of the darkness before light was brought upon the Earth. Legend had it that those demons brought the first evil to humankind.

"Jayis," Sufoh spoke for the first time since they had set out. "As your guardian, I must advise against this for your own safety. It is not too late to destroy the key and turn back."

"What's the matter, Sufoh?" Lord Jayis antagonized him. "Are you afraid of the Supernatural?"

"Ridiculous," answered Sufoh. "I fear nothing."

Jayis drew his sword as the gate began to open. His hand trembled. Sufoh stood with his hand near his blade as well, but he stood as still as a rock beneath a lake. The two watched as an intense blue light split the gate open. The rain ceased and the thunder hushed. The world stood still. Only darkness surrounded Sufoh and Lord Jayis. The deeper-than-night pitch of it seemed to move on the ground and stretch into the sky until all they could see was blackness and each other.

"What's going on?" asked Lord Jayis, his voice quivering.

Sufoh looked at him with surprise but more so with anger. "What do you mean, 'What is going on'? Why do you not know?"

Lord Jayis probably wouldn't have answered Sufoh's question, even if given the chance, but without warning, the six beasts depicted on the stone tablet crawled out of the darkness. They were even more grotesque up close. The one with the chain in its arms, in particular, bled incessantly from its hands. They snarled and gnashed their teeth, stepping forward toward the two Macaris.

Sufoh and Lord Jayis prepared to fight. The eyes of the beast with the silhouette of a man grew brighter, and Jayis stood still, frozen in place. It reached out to take him. When Sufoh realized that Lord Jayis was unable to move, he ran toward the beast, unsheathing is sword, but before he could cut into the arm, the monster and the lord had disappeared with all of the other demons following.

Sufoh was left alone. He stood still, ready for whatever these demons had prepared for him. He would let nothing catch him with his guard down. He stared off into the endless blackness and wondered if he would ever get out. It didn't matter right then, though. At that moment, he just wanted to kill the first demon he saw. He did not, however, for the first demon he saw took the form of a human.

He was a dark-haired man with light brown eyes. His skin was a pale brown and he was about the same height as Lord Jayis. A mark was carved into his face, beside his right eye and running all the way down his cheek. Strangely enough, this scar was bright blue, in stark contrast to his dark nature.

"Hello, Sufoh," he said. A peculiar vibration rang in his voice. Sufoh could feel millennia of human anguish radiating from it.

Sufoh wrapped his fingers around his sheath, placing his thumb on the sword's hilt. "Do I know you?" he asked.

"You did," the demon answered, turning his eyebrows down, "once. That, of course, was a long time ago."

Sufoh thumbed his blade out of its sheath and glared at the demon.

"Don't give me that look," the demon said, "it doesn't faze me. I must admit, however," he grinned, "you're far more amusing now than you were as a child. Who ever thought that a sad little child like you could possess the will to become a Slayer? Speaking of which, how's Jorah?"

Sufoh let his sword fall back into its sheath. "Who are you?"

The demon placed a hand on his own chest, as if somehow hurt that Sufoh did not easily remember him and said, "My name is Fear. The other demons you saw were my children."

"The Zorbrians," Sufoh muttered.

"Correct," said Fear. "The Zorbrians, also called the Sin Demons; the essence of all evil, the legendary beasts, sealed away in Gobriana, never to emerge. No one ever would have guessed that we could spread our influence to this world without actually being here. I personally pride myself on being the only evil to exist in all beings."

"Nothing exists in all beings." 

"That's where you're wrong, at least half wrong," said Fear, with a touch of anger in his voice. "I and I alone have managed to reach everyone and everything. Even from our world, my influence was never forgotten. Even the strongest of men cannot escape me. I, Fear, have managed to strike every single soul in this world…," he paused and stared at Sufoh with pure hatred burning in his eyes, "…except for you, young Sufoh. There are many that claim it, but I know that you are the only being in your world or any other, that is truly fearless.

"No matter, though. You see, Sufoh," Fear began circling him, like a predator preparing to pounce. Sufoh stood still, not even following the demon with his eyes.

"Before," he continued, "I was only spreading my influence; my spirit from another world. But now, oh, but now that is no longer true. I can enter man like walking through an open door. I will sweep this world with a gale of terror that will make simple existence a nightmare for everyone you love. You may have no fear now, but by the time I'm finished, your greatest fear will be Fear itself. Your fear will make you weak, and I'll take pleasure in slowly killing you."

"You are a fool." Sufoh drew his sword. "Demon or not, you could never hope to kill me. If you believe otherwise, I will be more than happy to change your mind. Prepare yourself."

Sufoh jumped at the demon in a blur of motion and sliced into his chest. Without a sound, Fear fell to one knee, holding his wound. His blood ran red, but not like a human's. It was darker, much darker. Gradually, Fear rose up, laughing in amusement as blood poured from his body. The demon's laugh was even worse than his voice, a soul wrenching sound lingered even after he had stopped.

"Pathetic little human," he said. "You really might be as good as they say you are. I will fight you, Sufoh, but in due time. If I kill you now, there will be no one to free us."

"Free you?" Sufoh lowered his weapon to his side. "Were you not just freed?"

"Not yet, but soon. You see, your greedy lord wanted our power, and we will grant his wish. We will control his every will. Under my direction, we will infect him as we've infected no one before.

"He will even come to hate you, and then he will betray you for fear that you will betray him. As his fear grows, so will the strife that comes along with it. Then, finally, he will be killed and we will be free."

"Your plan is impressive," Sufoh admitted, "but it has a single flaw: Anyone who tries to kill Jayis has to go through me, and in case you do not know, they never get through alive. Jayis will not die if I have anything to do with it."

A wicked grin formed on Fear's face. "You'll have something to do with it, alright."

Sufoh dropped his head, hair falling over his darkening eyes, "What do you mean?"

Without responding, Fear stepped back and began to fade into the blackness. Just before he disappeared, he looked up at Sufoh with an impish smirk and asked him, "How much do you love your sister?"

Sufoh felt what he could only imagine was his own heart falling silent as Fear faded away. Within moments, the blackness faded out to the real world, the demon was gone, the downpour had subsided to a gentle shower, and Lord Jayis lay on the ground, unconscious. In his hand, he held the key to the Supernatural Gate.

 

By the time dawn came, Sufoh realized that he was home and stood at the door. A breeze pressed its frigid hand against his back as he contemplated telling Kidja what was happening. Why her once pleasant visions are becoming deadly, and why, if this continued, he might be responsible for the tribe's destruction.

"So, what are you going to do?" A low voice crept up behind Sufoh. He turned around to see Jorah.

The wolf lay down beside Sufoh, putting his big head slightly above eye level with him. "So, what are you going to do?" he repeated. "Are you going to kill Lord Jayis and free the Zorbrians, or are you going to try and find a way to exorcise them on your own. If you do try to do it alone, you know that will prove extremely difficult. Kidja may just be a girl but you and I both know she is wise far beyond her years and a lot more knowledgeable about the Supernatural than you are."

Sufoh stared at Jorah. "How did you—"

"I spent the first four hundred seasons of my life in the demon world," said the wolf. "I know a demon when I smell one, and I've never felt a demon presence as strong as the one in Lord Jayis. Anyway, are you going to tell Kidja? You need to."

Sufoh sat down on the ground, his mind racked with confusion. "I know that, but if I get Kidja involved, it will endanger her life."

Jorah stood up. "Well if you don't get her involved, she will still be in grave danger, as will the rest of us. Consider it, Sufoh."

Jorah walked away and Sufoh opened the door. Kidja stood before him, her usual merriment consumed by sorrow. She had heard every word spoken between them.

"What has happened, Sufoh?" she asked, tears already running down her cheeks.

Sufoh knelt down in front of Kidja and placed his hands on her shoulders. 

"Kidja," he said, "I need you to listen carefully to what I am about to tell you. You cannot be afraid, because I will need your help.