Zwei The Soldier
Believer of the heirarchy, Betrayer of the path.
It was a cold winter morning, light glistened off the snow as the sun rose over the eastern mountains. "Yo Cedric! Wake up! It's almost time for lineup"! Cedric jumped out of bed and threw on his armor. He bolted through the empty corridors of Legion Horn. "The captain is gonna kill me if I miss lineup again..." Cedric thought as he burst through the door to the courtyard. He made it just in time to slip into the ranks unnoticed.
Captain Drake stood at the head of the assembly, his white hair blowing in the wind, sunshine covering the vibrant coutryard. "Alright soldiers, today we will be selecting one of you to test the new weapon prototype. All those who wish to voulenteer, please step forward". Cedric and two others stepped forward. "There will be a series of battles to determine who shall wield the prototype weapon. I want the three of you to meet me in the training grounds." Drake finished. With that the assembly was dismissed.
Cedric went along with the other voulenteers. One of the voulenteers traveling with him was one of his closest friends, Leon. They had joined the Imperial Legion at around the same time. They quickly became friends and started up a friendly competition to see who could climb up the military ranks the fastest. The other individual was a mysterious woman known as Zeal. She usually kept to herself so no one knew much about her. Her true identity remained hidden.
The three of them entered the training grounds and exchanged their weapons for the blunt ones used for combat training. The training grounds were in a wide open field, and were full of wooden body targets and round bullseye targets for practicing archery. Drake was waiting for them when they arrived. "OK, Cedric and Leon are up first". Cedric and Leon walked to the center of the field. Cedric drew his greatsword while Leon drew his rapier. "May the best man win." Leon said. "Thanks for the compliment!" Cedric said as he rushed in toward Leon. He took a swing at Leon with his greatsword. Leon nimbly dodged and countered with a thrust, but Cedric blocked with his massive sword. Leon quickly threw out a flurry of vertical swings. The first few deflected off of Cedric's sword, but Leon quickly broke through Cedric's guard. Cedric regained his balance and countered with a wide swing. Leon took the full blow and fell to the ground. Before Leon was able to rise to his feet, Cedric slammed his sword into Leon. Unable to continue, Leon dropped out of the fight.
Lord Kane had been watching the fight completely unnoticed. "Bravo...bravo, what a fight. Where did you learn to fight like that Cedric, you took me by surprise there. I wonder how you'll fare in the next fight" Lord Kane said. Zeal stepped forward and unraveled her whip. She stared blankly into Cedric's eyes, showing no emotion. "Good luck" Cedric called over to her. She showed no signs of response, just continued that blank stare. Cedric rushed in with a horizontal swing. Zeal quickly jumped back and awaited Cedric's next move. Cedric then let loose with a series of strikes. Zeal jumped back and forth dodging every single attack flawlessly. Hoping to catch her off guard, Cedric went all out with an endless assault. As she dodged his strikes she asked "Would you like me to let you in on a little secret"? She dove over Cedric's sword getting close enough to whisper in his ear "I can see into your mind". Cedric was stunned. It all made sense now, why she was so distant from the world, and more importantly why he couldn't land a single hit on her. Cedric knew he was fighting a losing battle. "You do know I've just been toying with you, right?" Zeal said. She spoke the truth, she hadn't attacked Cedric once the entire time. "I'm getting bored of this little game, its time to finish this". Zeal went on the offensive. She hit hard with rapid strikes of he whip. Cedric couldn't keep up and was soon being pummeled. He quickly fell to the ground, dropping his sword on the way down. He quickly grabbed his sword and swung it out of the sand. Zeal jumped back to dodge the strike, but sand flew from the sword into her eyes, blinding her. Cedric went on the offensive once more knocking Zeal to the ground. He kept on the offensive and Zeal eventually passed out from exhaustion.
Cedric slung her over his shoulder, grabbed his great sword, and ran her to the medical tower. Two clerics took her to a room to treat her wounds. As Cedric left the tower he was stopped by a messenger and informed him that Lord Kane wished to meet with him in the throne room. He hurried to the throne room. Upon entering, he noticed Lord Kane was not there, but one of the curtains had been pulled back revealing a hallway. Cedric walked down the hallway into a room. There he saw teams of enchanters working on weapons and armor. Lord Kane motioned to him from the back of the room. "Cedric, you finally got here". Lord Kane opened the large metal box in front of him. "This is the Zweihander." he said as he lifted the massive sword from the box. The sword was covered in arcanic runes that were glowing silver as Lord Kane handed the sword to Cedric. "Go get some practice. See how it works." Kane said.
Cedric walked back to the training grounds to test out the Zweihander. He swung at the head of one of the wooden targets and cleaved through it in a single strike. Cedric was surprised at the sword's strength. He continued mutilating wooden targets and became more and more excited about the sword's power. The runes began glowing yellow and let out a surge of electricity as he struck one of the targets. After a few hours of practicing, Cedric decided to take a rest. On his way to the bed chambers, he saw Zeal. Before he could even comment on the battle Zeal said "I appreciate what you did for me, but you just got lucky, that is all". Cedric opened his mouth to say something but Zeal quickly interrupted him again "I've gotten enough rest, but thanks for your concern". Zeal continued walking past Cedric towards the training grounds. Cedric entered the bed chambers, removed his armor, and took a nap.
He was jarred from his slumber by one of the soldiers running through the halls yelling "We're under attack"! Cedric threw on his armor, grabbed the Zweihander, and bolted for the throne room. As he opened the door he saw Leon and Zeal fighting a small army of orcs. Zeal locked eyes with Cedric. He heard a voice in his head saying "I thought you would never make it here. What are you waiting for, tonight it shall rain blood". He realized it was Zeal communicating with him telepathically. Cedric sliced one of the orcs in half. Three others looked over and began rushing towards him. The runes on the Zweihander began glowing silver. Cedric cleaved through the three orcs in a single blow, the sword turning their bodies to stone as it connected. Just then Cedric heard a loud scream. He looked up to see Leon impaled upon a pike. The Zweihander began to glow red as Cedric went into a rage. He sliced through orcs left and right, their bodies bursting into flame upon contact with the Zweihander. Cedric ran through the secret passage to check on Lord Kane. He was amazed at what he saw there. Lord Kane stood among dozens of orc corpses holding a severely bloodstained short sword. "I can fend for myself Cedric, no need to worry". The two of them left the passage. "Oh dear.....Leon is......." Lord Kane began, "Cedric, I am truly sorry this had to happen. I will let you mourn Leon's death. Take all the time you need. I will give him a proper burial tomorrow morning". Cedric walked off toward the door. As he left he heard Zeal's voice in his head. "If you need anything at all, feel free to ask".
Cedric continued onward to the training grounds. Tears streaming down his face, Cedric began swinging at targets. The Zweihander began to glow blue. As Cedric hit the targets, they became frozen solid. Cedric slashed away for a few hours as his feelings of sadness slowly turned to those of hate. He began thinking back to the moment Leon died. "I could have saved him, I should have been more cautious. I'm a damned fool, embracing the glories of battle like that, just trying to show off." he thought to himself. "There was nothing you could have done, the sneaky bastard came out of nowhere. I didn't even notice him until it was all over." Zeal said to him, her soothing voice penetrating the depths of his mind. "Leave me alone." Cedric thought. He then made his way back to the bed chambers and cried himself to sleep. He awoke the next morning to the sound of funeral bells. He walked out to the courtyard and sat down in the corner in the pouring rain, suffering in his state of gloom and dispair. Lord Kane stepped up in front of Leon's casket. "Leon was a great and valiant warrior, and fought well to defend me. Throughout his service we have all grown close to Leon, and his death has greatly moved us all. I know many off you have been greatly hurt by this loss. That is why I am relieving all non key personnel from their duties today. That is all". With that the casket was lowered into the ground. Zeal looked over to where Cedric had been sitting and noticed he had left.
Cedric was practicing his sword skills. "I know this must be really hard on you. You don't have to go through this alone, I'm here for you, remember? I you need anything, just ask". Cedric thought for a minute. "I feel for you, but that would just be pity". She started to laugh as she left. "I've got to watch what I think around her." Cedric thought to himself. Zeal's voice popped into his head "I think you're finally catching on". They both laughed for a bit. "I was wondering" she began, "do you want to take a walk in the courtyard later, we can talk. And I won't use my telepathy, how does that sound"? "You already know what I'm going to say, so why bother." Cedric replied. "Trust me, I'm not reading your mind". "Fine then, lets head over to the courtyard." Cedric said. "So Zeal, about your telepathy....." Cedric began. "I'd rather not talk about it." Zeal said.
Zeal did not want to remember the horrors of her past. She was used as a spy in the war against the enchanters in the Tower of Abyss. She would sneak into the tower completely unnoticed, gather information to use against the enemy and then make her escape. All went according to plan until the day the enchanters finished their most powerful weapon. It was a machine run by magic that followed its creator's every command. One day as Zeal was sneaking through the halls, she hid behind what she thought was a statue. It burst to life and dragged her down to the dungeon. The enchanters began performing experiments on her mind. Two years after the continuous agonizing torture, she awoke to the sound of thousands of voices. She was alone in the cell, yet the voices continued. It was then that she realized the voices were in her head. She struggled on the brink of insanity to control her newfound powers. Months later, she was finally successful. She used her powers to read the minds of the guards, and used the knowledge she obtained to escape through a secret passage in the cell. From there she made her way out of the tower and back to Legion Horn, but told no one of her new found powers.
Cedric and Zeal entered the courtyard. Zeal unraveled her whip saying "Its time for a rematch. now we will truly see who is stronger". "Fine." Cedric replied. Zeal instantly went on the offensive lashing out with her whip. The whip wrapped around the Zweihander. Cedric pulled back and grabbed Zeal, pulling her close to him. They stared into each other's eyes. Zeal began reading Cedric's mind, seeing the pain he felt from Leon's death, but surprisingly she also saw the immense joy he felt when around her. She realized Cedric was different from everyone else because he actually recognized her as a person, not just another soldier. Most of the other soldiers thought of her as a freak, and would have nothing to do with her. She continued to dig deeper revealing his past. Then she saw something that surprised her. She saw a separate entity within Cedric's mind. Before she could dig deeper, the telepathic link was broken. The two of them walked back inside. A soldier informed them that Lord Kane wanted to see them in the trone room. Cedric and Zeal walked to the throne room. Lord Kane approached them. "I need you to find a test subject for this." he said as he pulled back a curtain revealling a massive machine. It was a round barrel shaped contraption with pistons protruding from it in all directions. In front was a chair hooked up to the crystal core of the machine. " I have the perfect person in mind already, all I need you to do is find him. His name is Koetsu. He was last seen in the northern desert, more specifically, Hell's Basin. Bring him back in one piece". Cedric and Zeal walked out of the fortress and north towards the desert.
After a few days of travel they finally reached a large canyon in the desert. "This must be Hell's Basin." Cedric said. "Let the hunt begin". As they searched the canyon they saw a sand lizard scurry away as they passed. They soon reached an open area in the canyon. There they saw a young man in what seemed to be his twenties. His body was covered in scars and poorly healed wounds. The bright sun shone off his white hair as he stood up and faced them. "My friend here has told me of your arrival." he said as he looked at the sand lizard that had scurried by them just moments before. "I am Koetsu, and i assume Kane sent you to bring me back, am i correct?" he asked. "Yes, will you come along willingly or do we have to do things the hard way?" Cedric replied. "I have trained in these deserts for years trying to become one with the wilderness, and I have finally succeeded. I am not about to throw this all away to become a test subject for Kane's wild machines! Bow down to your true lord and master imperial dogs! Feel the wrath of the Goddess of Nature"! With that, he snapped his fingers. A sandstorm formed around them. Koetsu drew his katars and faded into the sandstorm. Cedric and Zeal drew their weapons and stood back to back. Koetsu suddenly appeared from the sandstorm and lunged at Cedric. Cedric blocked and countered. Koetsu jumped over Cedric's swing and faded back into the sandstorm. Koetsu continued his hit and run strikes for a few minutes, and then dissapeared. The ground began to shake as the sound of shifting sand filled the air. Koetsu began to laugh. "Looks like I wont be needing this sandstorm for cover anymore". The sandstorm faded to reveal Koetsu riding a massive Bulette. The creature walked on four massive legs the size of the trunks of oaks. It's head and upper back was protected by a smooth armored shell coming to a point at the tip of its long head. The reptilian beast let out a roar as Koetsu laughed fanatically. "I'll handle this one." Zeal said as she ran forward. The Bulette lunged forward to bite her in half, but she dodged out of the way and countered with her whip. The attack bounced off the creatures protective hide. "It is pointless to fight back, your fate is sealed." Koestsu said. The Bulette charged forward again. Cedric jumped out of the way and grabbed on to its hide. He climbed up it while Zeal distracted Koetsu. Just as the beast was about to lunge at Zeal again, Cedric hit Koetsu over the back of the head with the hilt of his sword. Koetsu was knocked out cold. The Bulette burrowed back onto the ground as Cedric and Zeal made their way back to Legion Horn.
They dragged Koetsu back to the weapons lab where Lord Kane was expecting them. "It's about time you showed up. Better late than never I suppose." Lord Kane said as they hooked Koetsu up to the machine. "Lets get this started, shall we..." Lord Kane said as one of the enchanters started up the machine. The machine began to move, pistons pounding into the machine and the sides unfolding to reveal the core. The machine fired a beam of blinding light into the air. The light fell upon the room filling it with a calming sensation. The Zweihander suddenly began glowing black. The black aura began to dissipate into the light, where it was then sucked into the core. Koetsu awoke in flaring pain as the dark energy from the sword was channeled through his body into the core. After the horrid process was complete, Koetsu fell limp. "It looks like the machine works." Cedric said trembling after witnessing the horrid process. Two enchanters carried Koetsu off. "Thank you for your help in completing this. You are both dissmissed". As Kane said that, the core shattered and the dark energy in the core was released into the air. "Damn! Looks like it still needs some work".
A panicked enchanter ran out of the room that Koetsu had been taken into. "The newest weapon is complete, but it's out of control"! The enchanter ran off fearing for his life. Cedric turned towards the open door to the blood-soaked room as he heard a horrific gurgling noise. Cedric, Zeal, and Kane rushed into the room to face the beast. It was a monsterous humanoid creature made up of bits and pieces of corpses. Zeal began staring into its horribly disfigured eyes. "Don't bother Zeal" Kane shouted to her, "Its just a pile of flesh. It has no brain". The creature charged forward as it let out another gurgling noise, spewing blood from its mouth as it spoke. Cedric and Zeal leaped out of the way. Kane readied himself, placing his hands on the hilts of his short swords. The beast barreled towards him, yet he remained perfectly calm. Just as the creature entered striking range, Kane swung with his short swords, slicing the monstrosity in half. Even after such a devestating blow, the creature continued its assault. Kane nimbly dodged as he hacked and slashed at the beast until it was once again the pile of flesh used to create it. "You are now dismissed." Kane said again.
Cedric and Zeal left the throne room. As they walked through the halls, Cedric saw a shadow dart through the hall across the way. As Zeal continued walking unaware of the shadow's presance, Cedric followed it through the hallway. The shadow bolted around a corner. As Cedric turned around the corner he saw a beautiful woman standing in front of him. She had long, jet-black hair. She wore long black robes with a skintight leather suit underneath. She approached Cedric, eyes beggining to glow red. "Hey there.... can you help me with something...." she said as she licked her lips. Unable to control himself, Cedric walked toward her. She took him in her arms. She began licking his neck, and then started growing fangs. Just as she went to bite, the Zweihander let out a brilliant white light. She hissed and melted back into shadow. Cedric ran back to the throne room to inform Lord Kane of the intruder. After describing the woman, Lord Kane thought for a bit. "You will find out what is going on when necessary. I will take care of this". Cedric walked back to the bed chambers still wanting answers. He removed his armor and went to sleep. He awoke in the middle of the night with the mysterious woman from before sitting next to him. "Cedric.... join us." she said. Cedric jumped out of bed and grabbed the Zweihander. "We have sensed a great force within you. Join us and you can release that force to its full potential". Cedric swung the Zweihander at the woman, but she faded back into shadow. "I am not going to hurt you, just think about my proposition". With that, she left. Cedric put away his sword and went back to sleep. The next morning Cedric was awoken by a soldier telling him that Lord Kane was expecting him. Cedric made his way to the throne room. "Good morning Cedric, I have a mission for you". "First I want answers." Cedric replied. "Fine....your mission pertains to the answers you are seeking. Your mission is to go to Alevergon to destroy the vampires' Citadel of the Damned. The woman who appeared last night is a vampire. I must warn you, vampires are very different from most undead. Not only are they extreamely intelegent, they also rule over lesser undead. Do not underestimate them. Just because they prefer to solve their problems diplomatically doesn't mean they can't fight. You will find their fortress in the middle of the Swamp of Suffering. You are dismissed". "What about Zeal?" Cedric replied. "She will not be joining you, she has her own assignment". Cedric gathered his gear and left the fortress.
After a few hours travel, Cedric reached the town of Alevergon. The town served as an entrance to the swamp. It looked like it had been deserted for years. The houses were in shambles with holes in the rooves and walls. Weeds choked out all life in the ground below Cedric's feet. Death and decay seemed to be in great abundance here. As Cedric entered the town the people stared at him with eyes full of fear. The people ran in terror as three shadows emerged from behind the trees. "Have you given any thought to my proposal"? It was the same girl from the night before. Cedric drew his sword. "Hmm... humans have always been such barbaric creatures. Might as well have some fun with you while you're here". She whistled as if calling a pet, and then faded back into the shadow along with the other vampires.
As Cedric looked forward into the fog, he saw something rapidly approaching. The mist began to clear and Cedric saw a massive werewolf charging towards him. The werewolf knocked Cedric to the ground with a flying tackle. The beast had him pinned, with the Zweihander being the only thing between him and the beast's massive jaws. Cedric rolled the werewolf off of him and sliced its throat. Cedric continued forward into the mist.
As Cedric moved further and further into the mist, it eventually began to clear. He had finally reached the Citadel. It was a massive tower floating over a pit of boiling acid. The Citadel was decorated with thousands of grotesque statuary and an ominous fanged skull at its peak. It was built from pale grey marble, and it was built ina similar fashion as a pagoda. Cedric began making his way towards the bridge that connected the tower to land. As he reached the bridge, the eyes of the skull began glowing red. The statues burst to life as took flight. They swarmed together and flew towards Cedric like a horde of angry wasps. Cedric ran across the bridge as the gargoyles began diving down at him. Lightning flashed as five gargoyles hovered around Cedric. They suddenly attacked. Cedric ducked their strikes and sliced through them with the Zweihander. Cedric continued running across the bridge as the gargoyles swarmed around him. The Zweihander began glowing yellow as he blocked the continuous assault. The sword let out a massive electric storm, blasting gargoyles out of the air left and right. Cedric made it to the door. As he ran through, he slammed it behind him.
As Cedric viewed his surroundings, he realized he was in the main hall of the tower. In front of him was a staircase leading up to a balcony that overlooked the room with a large ornamented door at its rear, the walls between covered in what once must have been beuatiful tapestries and what was once an ornate carpeting lay under his feet, shredded and frayed. A shadow flowed out from under the door and a vampire materialized from it. "Persistent fool. It seems you greet death with open arms. I shall grant you your wish"! He snapped his fingers and faded back into shadow. Three ghost soldiers wielding great swords slowly faded into existance. The soldiers rushed Cedric. He blocked their swings and countered, but his sword just passed right through them. "Don't bother trying to kill us. You cant kill what is already dead"! Cedric ran towards the door on the balcony parrying the strikes of the undead soldiers as he went.
Cedric plowed through the door into a room filled with people in cages. It looked as though it was a feeding chamber of some sort considering the ammount of empty cages mixed among the full. Another vampire appeared from the shadows "You can't discern heroism from stupidity can you? It seems you need to be taught some common sense"! The vampire's eyes began to glow red as he rushed forward. The vampire slashed at Cedric with his short sword. Cedric blocked and countered, but the vampire faded back into shadow just before the blade connected. He reappeared and took another swing. Cedric blocked and countered again, and just like before, the vampire faded back into shadow before the blade could connect. The battle went on for a few minutes. The vampire finally stopped as the moonlight shone through the skylight. "You are a valiant fighter, but I am afraid I must leave this to my minions now. I bid you adieu". The vampire faded back into the shadows and left the room. The people in the cages began screaming in pain as their bones began to rearange themselves. Their hair began to thick and their teeth began to sharpen. With a bloodcurdling howl, the process was complete. All twelve of the caged prisoners had become ravenous werewolves. They all burst from their cages and moved towards Cedric. One of the werewolves leaped at Cedric. He dodged and sliced off its head. The other werewolves surrounded him and began moving in. The werewolves began leaping at Cedric one by one. He parried the first, sliced the next in half, and impaled the third. The rest of the werewolves came at him in unison. The Zweihander began glowing red. Cedric swung, releasing a blazing arc of flames at the werewolves, incinerating them.
Cedric walked through the door on the other end of the room. The room was a large circular room with a railed pit at its center. The vampire from the night before was waiting for him. "Have you given my proposal any more thought, or do you wish to continue a quest doomed to failure? As I said earlier, I will not harm you". Cedric drew his sword. "My mission is to destroy you all." Cedric said. The vampire began to laugh. "Fine, good luck trying to destroy my pet. Rise and take care of this for me"! As she faded into shadow, Ceric heard a powerful roar come from below. A massive dragon flew up from the pit in the center of the room. The stench of rotting flesh filled the air as it landed in front of Cedric. He charged the zombie dragon. It reached out and snatched Cedric up in its mighty talon before he could even swing his sword. The dragon prepared to take flight. The vampire re-appeared from the shadows laughing as Cedric was carried off. It was then she noticed the runes on the Zwehander. "Isn't that Artimus' sword..." she thought to herself as the dragon carried Cedric off. Within a few hours, Cedric saw Legion Horn off in the distance. The soldiers of the fortress began firing arrows at the dragon. Ignoring the countless arrows piercing its decaying hide, the dragon continued onward towards the fortress. The dragon opened its mouth and let loose a ball of fire at the soldiers. The dragon then landed on the now burning roof of the fortress and released Cedric. The dragon then once again took flight and headed back in the direction of the swamp. Cedric got to his feet and walked down the stairs of the tower.
He made his way towards the throne room. As he entered the throne room, he overheard Lord Kane talking. "Yes master, I am in the process of rebuilding Project Redemption. The enchanters have discovered the flaw in the original prototype. It should be finished in a matter of weeks". There was a pause as though Kane was listening to someone. "Fine, I shall rush production so that it is completed within this week. The only trouble might be finding a soul more pure than Koetsu's". It was then that Lord Kane noticed Cedric's presance. "Cedric, did you complete your mission already"? "No, there were to many to take alone. Strangely enough, it didn't seem like they planned on killing me, and they even went through the trouble of bringing me back her." Cedric replied. Kane turned around and began walking down the secret corridor, motioning for Cedric to follow. "In your absence I have begun the reconstruction of Project Redemption, I need you to find another test subject for it. I have someone in mind....". "I do not want any part of this Kane, just leave me out of it!" Cedric interrupted. Just then, Zeal's voice popped into his head. "Please go along with this. If all goes according to plan then everything will turn out for the best. I get my revenge, and Kane will no longer be able to make these death machines. We both win". "No," Cedric thought, "I can not allow another innocent person to die just so Kane can test his machine, no matter what you have up your sleeve. If anything, I will destroy this monstrosity myself"! Cedric walked out of the throne room and walked to the bed chambers.
In the middle of the nite, Cedric grabbed his sword and put on his armor. He stealthily made his way to the throne room. He peered in the door. Lord Kane was nowhere in sight. He continued on through the hidden corridor. In front of him now was Project Redemption. "If this is left standing, all it will cause is more hatred and pain, and more innocent people will have to die a horrible death to test this monstrosity. I must make sure that will never come to pass." Cedric thought to himself. Cedric drew his sword, which was now glowing black. He struck the machine with his sword over and over again. The dark energy from the sword began swirling around the machine. The core began to shine as it absorbed the dark energy, but without a host, the core could not contain it. The core shattered, releasing the dark energy and igniting the machine in jet black flame that corroded through it, eating away at its very existance. His task completed, Cedric fled Legion Horn looking to put his past behind him.
He rode off into the forest and found a secluded cave. "I guess this is it. The last thing i must do to lay my past to rest. This sword will only bring destruction, just like the rest of Kane's projects." Cedric said. As he laid the Zweihander to rest there, he could have sworn he heard an enraged scream within his head, but the voice was not Zeal's. It was masculine, and deep, almost menacing. Cedric left the cave to check out the surroundings and make sure there was nothing going on outside. He left the cave to find no one. "I guess I must be hearing things." he thought to himself. With that, Cedric left to find a new life. He came across the Town of Rogenthall. It was a small town. It consisted of a few old farms and homes, as well as a fairly antiquated town hall. He made his way to the town hall in the middle of town. He met with the town elder. "Sir, I come looking for work, are there any jobs that need to be done here?" Cedric asked. The elder answered him "You look like a soldier from the military. Our prayers have been answered! This town is nearly defenseless. We have been asking the military to provide our town with a few soldiers for years and they have continually ignored our pleas". Cedric cut him off, "I am no longer with the military sir, I have come of my own acord". "No matter," the old man responded, "Would you like to defend this town for us? You will be paid of course". "I will take whatever you can give me. I will protect this place with my life." Cedric said. "I thank you, there is a small cabin on the outskirts of town, you may move in there to live." the elder said. Before moving in, Cedric walked around town to get to know the locals. One person stood out to him, her name was Celia. From the way she acted around him, suddenly getting shy, blushing and the like, Cedric figured for her it was love at first sight. "Welcome to your new life, Cedric." he thought to himself as he walked off to his cabin at the edge of town.