My sword lay where it had fallen from my grasp, my voice choked in my throat and I stumbled towards her still unmoving body. The tears seemed motionless as they took lifetimes to fall from my scarred cheeks; I dropped to my knees beside her body and lay down next to her crying with hollow lungs to be slayed so that I could be with her not just for this moment but for eternity. As I reached for my trusty clockwork pistol that stayed by my side, as voice entered my sorrow and awoke a bitter anger that grew in the depths of my soul.

"Why Hero, your tears of regret and sorrow seem so fake and insignificant against the tears of blood and pain she spilt when I rammed her through with my blade" he said with an laugh that sliced through my pain. I jumped to my feet and the angry bloodthirsty roar that breathed in my throat erupted out echoing through the empty blood stained chamber.

"You ***, you will die today by my sword alone, so that your rein of and torture may never touch the lives of another innocent ever again" I screamed at him, with anger and vengeance burning bright within my eyes. He stepped back stumbling slightly before righting himself with a sneer, "foolish mortal, you think you alone, a simple farmboy can kill ME! The overlord" his words echoed through the chamber.

"Your oath of revenge will kill you someday, I predict that, Hero" he said spitting the last word from his mouth as if it were vulgar. As the words finally faded away, I bent down and took my sword rising it above my head I again let out another roar, this one shook the chamber walls and he failed to mask the sign of fear I detected in his red eyes.

"Your death will not be swift" he mocked as he swept his cloak back and reached within for his katana, he bowed to me as if this was nothing more then a duel between adversaries but both he and I knew this was much more then that. This was a fight to the death, winner takes all of Albion and that was a fight I wasn’t willing to lose. For it would surely mean the damnation of all the souls who lived within the land.

My whole live had been leading up to this moment and every movement I made, every syllable that I uttered past my lips would either damn me for a eternity or free me from this life of vengeance. With all those possibilities and the freedom of everyone in the kingdom riding on my back, I lowered my sword and raced towards what could possibly my untimely death and demise.

As our swords struck and the sparks flew, I stared deep within his eyes, deep within his soul. The sights that I occurred upon as I dwelled there shocked me right down to my very essence and the relevance that I came upon was that. His reason for all this wanton destruction of lives was not for vengeance, power, love or greed, that it wasn’t for any of the usual reasons that fuel human desire.

It was all for nothing, he did it because he wanted too, simply because he could, it sickened me. That she had died for no reason but to fuel his desire of death and destruction, I could not let such a corrupt, being exist in this world for any longer, the decision was made. He had to die.

As the Katana sliced through the air near my head and I stepped back narrowly missing it cleaving my head from my shoulders. A conceited laugh crept up my throat and I smiled knowing the fact I was going to win. It had been predict by the Gypsy, herself and she had never been wrong before, so how could I lose?

I felt the smile drain from my face as did the color, as the sword imbedded in my chest was removed in one painful move. I let out a gasp as my blood dripped from my body, "poor foolish Hero, did you honestly think you could defeat me?" he said with a smug smile, I stopped crawling towards my dropped sword as he raised his blade and stabbed me in the back a second time.

"I can’t believe how utterly depend he was on you, he even believed the utter nonsense and dribble you fed him about being the One" He said turning to face the Gypsy as she entered the chamber. "You" I gasped pulling my self up with one arm, "you betrayed me? Why?" I asked shaking from exhaustion and pain.

"I was trying to teach you, to trust no one," she said shaking her head sadly as she moved out of my view as the darkness began to descend. "He obviously failed that lesson" he laughed as my eyes began to flutter and I realised then and there, he had been right my oath of vengeance would be the death of me.

As they’re echoing laughs slowly faded away and I stopped crawling in the darkness towards my blade, my head dropped from my hand and I let myself succumb to the ever-incoming death. A voice entered my pain-induced hallucinations, "Who do ya think he is? Graeve? Graeve? Bloody hell stop wandering off!" the owner of the irritating voice stepping into my view, I blinked at the bright glare from his torch as he pushed it into my face so as to get a better look at my identity.

"Well whatta we got ere?" smirked the second grave robber, staring at me strangely, he stepped forward and pulled the first grave robber’s torch away from my face and grabbed my pack rummaging through it with a furious intensity. My words of hesitation on his part were quickly brushed aside as the grave robber found what he had been searching for within my pack.

He pulled out a small medallion, and shoved it in my face, "is this yours? Is this yours?" he yelled in my face with a breath smelling strongly of whisky. "Yes, yes" I muttered weakly shifting away from his form of crude interrogation, my interrogator stood up and turned away from me, "what is it Graeve? Why does it matter if its ‘is?" said the first grave robber. "Why does it matter? WHY DOES IT MATTER? I tell you why it matters, it matters cause you idiot, Calve, you fool, its HIM!" Graeve screamed, "who?" said Calve confused.

"The bloody hero, the one that saved my town from Balverines" said Graeve whispering, he sat down next me wearily, "oh" said Calve.

I sat up from the old broken bed I had previously been sleeping on, I turned and heaved my sore, battered and bruised body off the bed, the bed moaned in relief at having been relieved of my load. I turned confused, searching the room for clues as to of my whereabouts, the door to the room creaked open on old rusted hinges and I twirled around to face my unknown savior.

"As you can obviously tell I am at a loss here, because you evidently know whom I am but I do not know who you are" I said, sitting down on a near by chair feeling the pain from my back wound appear on and off. "I’m Graeve," said my savior abruptly, I wanted for him to go on but this seemed all he would say, I stood up from the chair and strided over to shake his hand, and winced when my battle sores were pulled.

"My mind’s a little foggy at the moment, so I’m not exactly sure how you came to find me slowly dying alone" I said curious, "oh well bout that" started Graeve with a wince at the choice of topic, "we were robbing graves" said Calve entering the room behind Graeve. "You were what!" I shouted jumping up from my seat, both Graeve and Calve clamped their hands over their ears at my raised voice.

"We were robbing graves" repeated Calve, "yes I heard that but why, what would ever persist you in disturbing the peace of the dead?" I asked angrily, "the what of the what?" said Graeve turning to face Calve, "you never said he liked to use big words," Calve said annoyed turning to face me.

As I wandered through the forest, my mind wandered even further then my feet would ever take me. The thoughts were of her and her unnecessary death, how had our future and happiness ended so abruptly? My mind just couldn’t comprehend the fact I was living and breathing, existing in a world without her and that I would never ever see her, feel her, smell her or wake up next to her ever again.

She had been my world, my rock, my soul mate and now because of some foolish vendetta she was dead. I fell to my knees in sorrow and lifting my head to the sky I screamed in pain, birds resting in nearby trees took to the sky at the sound of my torment filled scream.

I stood up from the ground and shouldered my fallen pack, it heavy load forgotten I lifted one foot onto the road and turned to stare at my old home for the last time. The house was of no use to me any longer with her deep down in the earth; it only service was of that to remind me of what I had lost.

The road seem to stretch far back into the horizon but this was of no matter to me, for the only thought on my mind was that of cold hard revenge, the kind of which had caused me to claim a oath of vengeance over her dead body.

A trio of Highwaymen stood directly in front of me hindering me from my path of vengeance; I stepped towards them with a look of pure steel in my eye. It spoke resonating the silence that stood between me and them, it said move out of my way or prepare to be destroyed for nothing will stand in my way.

The Highwaymen stepped towards me with a hint of menace floating in the air, I felt the laugh of contempt tickle my throat and I let it loose, watching the Highwaymen squirm in distaste at my obvious disbelief at the threat they presented.

"You, why do you laugh?" said one of the Highwaymen stepping out of the formation, "do you find us funny?" asked another one also stepping towards me. "We are not a bunch of jesters here purely for you entertainment" snapped the third one raising his sword so it rested on my chest. I growled annoyed with this time wasting, my hand reached for my sword, unsheathing it I turned to the Highwayman closest to me and snarled at him, forcing him to trip over his feet into the other one behind him.

"If you wanted to fight, why didn’t you just say so" snarled the only Highwayman left standing, he pulled his sword from his belt and raced towards me with it pointed to embedded in my chest. I was not going to be caught unaware again I thought, intercepting the strike at the last moment causing the swords to strike and spark. The technique brought forth the memories of the last battle I had fought using the same technique, but this fight will not end with my death I thought, no it would not end the same.

I stepped away from the piled bodies of the recently slayed Highwaymen, no longer would they terrorize the nearby travelers and towns. I had not completed the task in mind for justice or for , my actions had been fueled by a more intent. I turned my back on the still warm bodies, they were not of my concern any longer, I continued on my way down the windy road towards the lowering sun.

As the night crept around me silently, with cold whispers I stopped exhausted at empty abandoned camp, I lit the fire with cold numbed fingers that shook almost lighting my hands with the match. As the fire cackled merrily, I sat back staring into the flames mesmerized by their glow and intensity. I failed to notice the intruders that had entered my current abode, they stood at the corners of the fires warmth, as I felt the tickle of sensors at the back of my neck begin to tingle I twirled around to face the stranger.

The shrouded strangers bowed to me before situating themselves opposite me in front of the fire. I watched them warily incase of any hidden attack, but their calm almost statue like frozen state shocked me more then any attack they could have thrown at me. I was surprised when they reached within their cloaks, pulling out a blade of pure blue Obsidian steel the kind of which had never grace the lights of the modern day and age.

The Katana shone with a strong intensity, with a spark and flash that blinded me momentarily they were gone taking away the fire with them. Left alone in the cold and dark unsure of what had just occurred I reach over the dead fire towards the dropped weapon that still shone in the dark.

Picking up the odd blade, I examined it for any marks or amulets that would reveal its true nature to me but the blade remained as much a enigma as the identities of the strangers. Sheathing the sword in my pack, I stood up from the campsite, as it was no longer secure from enemy attacks I could stay no longer and would have to continue on my way.

As the sun rose slowly in the sky, I wandered through the empty haunted village I had came upon while stalking through the woodland that smothered the road. The crisp burnt shells of buildings sat emptily on the edge of the excavated woodland, their sad soulless presence pressed down heavily on my conscience. They were not of much importance to me but they’re pain and suffering still pained me and was too much for my still hurt soul to bear.

I walked away from the empty dead village into the surrounding woodland, the path I took was long and hard, the big sharp rocks that decorated it were vast quantities. As I cleared through the woodland back to the road I had been previously traversing on, I stopped at the small mound I came upon that sat situated in front of my path. I stepped back away from the obvious newly dug grave and tripped on a small tree root, falling off the jutting out cliff face. I tried with no avail to grasp a tree branch or root to halt my descent but this day seem to not be mine as I continued to fall faster and faster towards the jagged rock that lay below, was this to be my end? Was this to become my untimely demise? With my oath of vengeance unfulfilled?

As I fell into the swelling river, descending deep within its depths, my thoughts turned to the hated Gypsy, who had betrayed me, her punishment would be far worse then my enemy’s. Her fate from now until either she or I died would be forever linked because of a simple action, her betrayal.

Lol, I do actually write my stories in Word, although it doesn't catch all my errors its still . I’m just happy I don't have any problems with that code thing that effects some people. Thanks for the advice; thought the grammar problem that is probably me, I never was that with grammar. I'll try and keep the spelling errors to a minimum.

The man situated directly in front of me extended his hand so as that the usual common curtsies would be exchanged. I ignored the hand hovering in front of me and instead chose to glare at him with a raw anger that burned within my throat burning it with it acid filled bile.

"You act as if you did not want to be saved" he says with a curious look in my direction, I turn away from his stare and look out the window, staring into the dark, murky woods. "Would it shock you to know that I in fact did not want to saved?" I said with clenched teeth, I turning to face him so as my anger could be directed. As I turned I tore my old wound open causing me to cry out and fall from the bed, from the pain that burned through my side as if hot pokers were being merciless inserted at the one time.

His assistant leapt to my aid, helping me back to the bed, I struggled against his grip, swearing and cursing. I pulled out of his grip and threw myself back onto the bed, gasping for air as I struggled and wheezed like a fish throwing itself upstream.

I sat up on the bed and turned back to face him, "I did not ask to be saved, how did you not know I didn’t plan to die there, alone" I snarled spitting at him. He wiped the spittle from his cheek and turned to stare at me with his intense blue eyes, "but it was not of your destiny to die alone, friend" he said with an old smile. "What would you know of destiny, you live alone in this dirty old shack at the edge of a merciless world, so don’t you talk about destiny!" I screamed at him.

"I know enough about it to tell when one has been burned by its hand and you my friend most certainly have been touched by destiny, its blazes like fire in your eyes and whispers like the wind in your future, I can see that much but the rest is unknown" he said touching his eyes. He bowed to me, then turned and exited the room leaving me alone with his assistant, who turned to me and sat on the chair opposite the bed, I had the unmistakable feeling I was being guarded, from who or what exactly I didn’t know.

My descent down the jungle-choked path was strangely empty of further interruptions and distractions it seemed surreal, almost a façade, as if I was staring at the world through a pane of glass.

I strode down it with my pack banging repetitively against my back, a sound muffled by the bushes suffocating the path, reached my ears and I stopped watching the bush, certain it proved no threat to me. I continued and halted midstep at the breathtaking sight of the raven-haired beauty that graced the road ahead of me.

Her confused almost bewildered expression tugged at my heart, she provoked memories of her and how she had died, I shook my head and willed away the tears that stood to fall from my eyes, this was not her, she was dead and still, deep in the earth, this girl was nothing but a distraction and I did not need that.

I stepped towards the girl and continued on down that path, as I reached her I sidestepped around her and kept on walking, I had reached the bottom of the slowly downward sloping hill, I stopped at the sound of the roar and the scream that accompanied it. I turned and was greeted with the sight of the girl now fight a group of Balverines, they had surrounded the girl and were now taking in turns to slowly push her towards the nearby trees.

No doubt she would be their next meal if I didn’t stop and assist her, but my journey had already suffered far too many setback and could not be halt much more. Decisions whirled in my mind, stop and help her or let her die and face the guilt. I sighed as I strode back up the hill I had but recently been traversing down, as I pulled my sword from it sheath I felt my anger and hatred burn through the blade and I channeled the rage as I raced towards the girl and the Balverines.

She leapt aside as I ran into the thick of the group, swinging and chopping I slayed the Balverines in a manner of moments, she turned to me and let out a howl rather then the cry of thanks and gratitude I had been expecting. As she transformed into a large battled scarred white Balverine I cursed my nature, damn it and miss leading me. I raised my blade and charged the beast, it roared straight into my face and swiped with a large claw at my head, trying to cleave it from my head, how had this become the norm for me, I wondered.

I lowered my blade and slammed the foul beast to the ground, raising my blade above its head I moved so as to strike it through it hard and thick skull, as my blade descended towards its target and the creature doom, I stopped and stared into the girl’s eyes, the Balverine had transformed back into its human disguise, never had such a thing happened before. The girl stared at me with icy blue eyes that mirrored that anger and pain of the beast I had been fighting moments before.

"Why do you fight me hero?" asked the girl, "you were trying to kill me" I cried shocked that she even had to asked, "would I not have a reason to, you slayed my family for no reason" she said getting off the ground and out from under my blade, the tip followed her heart and I cautiously watched her for any provoked attack.

‘You will not break my spirit, hero" she hissed spitting at me, I took a cautious step back and pulled my handkerchief from my pocket, ignoring her I proceeded to wipe the spittle from my shirt. I sighed, she continued to ignore my claims and accuse me of slaughter, murder and kidnapping, how had I followed down this path of anger and hatred, the answer seemed to escape me.

I sighed again before stepping towards her as the left side of her face twitched I froze and tried to step away from her while still keeping both eyes on her, I turned and started to run as she bent down in agony as she began to change back into a Balverine. This just was my day, my year my life I thought as I raced through the jungle while being chased by a very angry white Balverine. I wasn’t a coward I knew that but when one is in a weakened state and a fully refreshed murderous Balverine is coming after you, my only advice is RUN! Run fast and away, very far away.

I thought as I took my own advice and picked up speed as I tore through the jungle, I heard the crashes and thumps as the Balverine behind me tossed trees like they were matchsticks out of its path. I felt my heart begin to beat against my chest as if it seeked to escape, at this moment I wouldn’t hold it against it, if I was in its position I would too.

I stopped running and turned around to face the Balverine as it charged full speed towards me. I bent down and pulled up a fallen tree branch that extended longer then my arm, pulling back I flung the branch in the arm towards the Balverine. It flew through the arm swifter then any arrow, straighter than any spear, it seemed to pick up speed as it reached the halfway mark between me and the Balverine.

The Balverine’s face turned white, if that was possible I thought, realising how funny that would have been if this wasn’t a moment that could end with my bloody and horribly painful death. The branch struck the Balverine’s chest, it slid clean through embedding itself all the way through to the other side of the beast, I pulled my hand up to let out a victory cry but stopped as it began to change back into the girl.

I stepped towards her and stopped as she turned to face me, she had tears cascading down her face and it was all I could do to stop mine from falling. She let out a racketing sob and leaned towards me, I bent down to let her whisper in my ear, failing to perceive that at any moment she could kill me. She let out another sob and said with a wavering scared voice, ‘Is it scary?" she asked, I leaned away from her confused, "is what scary?" I said.

"Death" she said as another tear rolled down her cheek and I realised for all that the fact she had an beast breathing in her chest, she was still human and still scared as hell. What could I do, lie to her and say no it not scary, or just take a chance and tell her the truth that it was horrible all fire and brimstone where she was going.

"Yes, its scary, it was the most terrifying thing I ever experienced, as I lay there alone in the dark all I could think was how scared I was" I said taking her hand, I leaned towards her and stroked her head, it mattered not that a moment ago she had been going to kill me and scatter my remains all over the jungle. She leaned towards me and whispered before leaning away and closing her eyes.

As I walked away from her cold corpse, the words she had spoken before she died continued to come back to my mind, running themselves over and over again as if she was following me on my journey and whispering them in my ear. I couldn’t forget the last thing she had said, "thank you.

It shocked me that the only words of kindness or words of thanks had been taken from the lips of a white Balverine whose family I had innocently slaughter under the impression that I had been rescuing the girl, the Balverine had inside. I couldn’t for the sake of me, figure whether the disease or curse, was that the girl could transform into a Balverine or that the Balverine could transform into a girl. Thinking about it only proved to further confuse my mind, it was better if I just put it far out of my thoughts.

I stepped over the road’s edge and onto a rough carved path that curled and cut through the empty field, as I stepped towards the roughly constructed hut that was situated in front of me. I felt my head start to ache and throb, what is this sensation, I thought as the pain and intensity of the headache increase, as my head began to feel as if it was going to explode. I dropped to my knees in submission to the pain, as I raised my head everything blacked out and darkness surrounded me.

A figure swathed in shadows and cloaked in sadness stood perfectly still in front of me, I raised my head to stare in wonder at this figure of mystery and perfection. The image wavered and disappeared into nothingness as I raised a tentative hand to touch its surface, My hand wavered too as I reached with a drug induced mind to stroke the cold grey walls. Where was I, I wondered with a very confused but bemused mind, I heard a mutter and loud shuffling sound outside the door of the room I was currently in, I began to sing in a low voice as the door began to slowly open on well oiled hinges.

I threw my self away from the Wraith as it entered the room, it rose and began to step closer and closer to me, NO it would not take my soul I thought frantically searching the room for a weapon against the beast of burden that had taken the face of my dearly departed wife. It was not her, I thought, it lies, it lies "IT LIES!" I screamed, twirling round to face the spawn of hell, "Darling, it me, can’t you see that" she pleaded stepping towards me with outstretched arms as if to smother me with its vile body. "She DEAD! Don’t you get that, dead! D E A D, DEAD, YOUR DEAD! Oh god you’re dead" I sobbed collapsing on the stone cold floor.

As I slept I dreamt of times long pasted, ones such as when I was younger and less foolish. "Roll it, roll it, just roll the BLOODLY DICE!" roared Charley, banging his fist on the table causing the dice to roll off and under the table. "Well look, what you’ve gone and done" I said shaking my head in disbelief, "I was about to roll it, when you went and started to rant about rolling" I said as I bent down to retrieve the dice from under the crooked table. "I’m sorry, but you take forever to roll" Charley said sitting back on his seat, it groaned under his weight but failed to collapse which I considered a sign.

"Be that as it may, but you still have to control that temper of yours, one of these days your going to get us thrown out" I said grumbling as I shook the dice in one hand and sipped my ale in the other. "You’re a friend, Charley but a horrible game player" I said ducking the swipe Charley took at my head, "hey, don’t shoot the messenger, I was only speaking the truth" I said ducking another swipe, I got up from my seat and weaved my way through the filled tavern.

"Can I have another Golden Ale for my friend and I" I called out to the Barkeep over the loud hum of the noisy tavern, " another WHAT?" roared the Barkeep over the noise. "Another GOLDEN ALE" I yelled as the noise abruptly disappeared, "no need to yell, friend, now what can I help you with" said the Barkeep leaning over the bar. "Uh, I would like another Golden Ale for my friend and I" I said pointing at the golden label drink, "sure, two Golden Ales coming right up" said the Barkeep walking away.