Chapter Three.
Lucius's furrowed brows aimlessly wandered the little village of Oij. She was supposed to wait for him at the river bank. She shouldn't even had left his sight. Shadrack's men were animals hungry for the blood of stubborn villagers like Moon.
She had even only disclosed her name, which he guessed immediately that it wasn't her true identity.
"Beats me well you're a goddess sent from the High Realm to save us all." He'd pestered and commented repeatedly, but she only turned a deaf ear.
He barely slept well. That night, an oddly feeling tingled his gut, like a terrible incident was about to occur. With men like Shadrack's armies, danger was destined not to be too far from Moon. Which was why he'd clearly specified that she met him just on the other end of the village that would open up it's scenery to a normal sized water surface. How complicated was that hard to locate?
Then he heard people's voices abruptly increase just at his opposite side along the market entry, and dashed in their midst. There she was, brown skinned bewitching rogue with more than half the chance of her being a goddess. He was mesmerized. She was the type of woman whom a mere peasant would fall in love with, but instantly begin to patch his wounds and heartbreak scars because he'd already know it would be abominable for the romance to even begin in the first place. She hadn't even given him a chance to bond well and maybe watered the branch of a new friendship. This was his moment now.
Chantara did not like the sight of men, much less, mortal men, but she couldn't deny the awkward feeling of alliance that coated her whilst she was with the Lucius man. She smiled to herself as soon as he crossed her mind. Where in the Orb's name was he?
"Moon!" He yelled from behind her, hoping to summon the surprise attack on her, but frowned as she casually turned with no form of emotion on her austere face.
"The Lucius man is late." She commented petulantly, arms on her hips.
"Delucious?" He scratched his head in confusion. "Delu, de-lu-cious..." He recited repeatedly, as if calling the name a hundred times would make it's meaning clearer.
"What are you saying — watch it you morose dimwit! — what are you saying now, boy?" She asked, eyes shifting glances as she questioned Lucius, then barked at a passerby who accidentally bumped into her as he walked.
"You're the dimwit!" Yelled back the passerby. Anger flustered across her face, though she calmed her nerve and revoked bad things from happening to him. Humans were daft creatures. Never worth wasting time on.
"You called me de- something boy. What does that means in the old tongue?" Asked the confused Lucius man.
"Well, you said your name was — bump into me again, and I'll slit down your throat! — Lucius, right?" She asked, yelling at another passerby. The woman scurried off not wanting her throat slit. "Run you moron." Muttered Chantara.
"Yes?" Replied Lucius, ignoring her grumpiness towards the innocent people. Though a bit worried for them.
"Then I only called you by your name." She said. More people protested in annoyance as they tried to make their way forward, seeing Chantara blocking their path. She laid out more dangerous threats like; "I'll reap you off of your soul and make it miserable in the after life!" And; "Death is only a few seconds away from you. Touch me again and I'll see that he gets to you now!"
"But my name is Lucius." He mentioned.
"Of course, yes. And you are a man, are you not?"
"Get out of the way you wretch!" Barked another man. Chantara froze in though, processing some menacing curse to lay on him, but shrugs it off.
"Ohhh, The Lucius-" he quickly tilted Chantara's protruding shoulders, helping her out of the way.
"You let go of those hands on me at once." She yanked his hands off of her.
"You're, uh, on the way." He alerted.
"So? Have they no other path in the entire village?"
"No. At least not for people coming through this route."
She reluctantly observed her environment, quickly realizing the path had been blocked by her all balanced posture. The road — if you could call it that — was so narrow that more than two people passing through would had to squeeze with elbows touching, to pass through the path. Some sellers already had their items arranged on tables at opposite sides, so they faced each other, leaving only a thin lane for people to pass through.
"We should leave here." Advised Lucius and Chantara agreed at an instant.
****
Adelaide never wanted to be a killer. Never in her wildest dream had she thought about ending another man's life. Maybe her abusive uncle's, but never another man, much less her only son. What had she done? Fear overwhelmed her as she cowered in shame, all alone in the heavy rain that poured only on the inside her house.
Her husband would be home soon. What would she say happened to poor Castor when he asks? She stared in terror at the body of her lifeless son, drenched under the cold water. More water poured heavily as she cried out her eyes. She was doomed. She knew what she was capable of, yet she did it. Adelaide had requested of a silly favor from her son, and he refused. She did not mean to, but now, there he was in a state of eternal slumber.
Just as she wallowed in bitterness with already swollen eyes, her husband opened the door and without her awareness, was already standing behind her. The heavy rain still flooding down, soaked her husband almost immediately. Not that he was surprised that it rained inside but not out. It wasn't the first time it happened.
"What happened?" He asked, startling heartbroken Adelaide.
"Mathew? I - I...I," she tried to speak, but her lungs seemed to be tangled and forbade words from composing.
"You killed him." Mathew paused, stared down at his dead son, then back at his wife. "You finally gave the devil a soul, you wretched woman."
"No, no... Please-"
"YOU KILLED OUR SON!!!" Mathew screamed out, unable to conceal his anger.
"No... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." Adelaide begged, not able to control her weeping any longer. She fell to her knees in grief, too sick at heart to make any other words other than more series of pleading. "I'm sorry, please forgive me." She cried more and more that she feared her eyeballs would bulge out from that much tear. What else could she do? She didn't mean to kill him.
"You killed my poor Castor." He began to cry in despair. He knew his wife would never kill him intentionally. But he blamed her for the misfortune. "I knew you would end up feeding the demon inside of you. I curse the day I married you."
"Please, I'm sorry. I didn't... I didn't," she failed at her attempt of speaking. Her voice trailed off and her breathing became unstable. Maybe it would be fair if she just died too. Maybe then her husband would understand that she never meant for any of it to happen.
"Leave."
"Please, Mathew. I- I have nowhere to go to. I beg of you-"
"Leave at once! Before I end you myself." His expression was as stern as a wild Lion ready to pace on it's prey. And Adelaide knew her husband so well. His temper always got the best of him, and anyone could tell with the scars of pain he'd designed all over her pale skin with merciless beatings. "Adelaide, leave my sight!"
"Please, Mathew, I beg of you." More tears rolled down her eyes as she opted for his forgiveness.
"LEAVE!!!"
"I'm so sorry-" before Adelaide could finish her sentence, her husband rushed out of the room. And in just a few seconds, he was back with an army of angry villagers.
"...yes, my wife is a witch and she has killed my only son." He explained to the people. Without any patient, the people — a lot of them being useless drunkards and housewives who had detested Adelaide for no reason — hurried up to pick dangerous weapons and began to attack. Stones, bricks, and other objects landed on Adelaide as she wallowed in pain. They didn't even cared if it got to dead Castor on the floor. They casted all sorts of repulsive names on her, throwing more weapons. She cried in pain, questioning the heaven for allowing such catastrophe upon her. Mathew just stared at his wife with a tinge of remorse, but he did nothing to stop the ferocious villagers.
Just in that moment of awe, a stranger dashed in, deflecting himself of all the stones and bricks, then carried Adelaide gently, and raced towards the entrance. The people followed, cursing and yelling more loudly, not stopping with their terrorism attack. The night was dark with only glimpse of light from the stars. It was almost hard to see his path as he was running.
Adelaide was half alive because she uttered no words at all. She didn't even cared what happened to her next. If that man was a killer, abducting her to end her life, she would thank him for the great favour.
This man was strong and fast because he lifted Adelaide like it was nothing, and still managed to cover up a large distance from the villagers. They scampered behind him, but he was faster. He plodded into a nearby forest, and vanished before anyone could get to him.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone