Wielder's Awakening (22 page)

Time passed slowly as the day of the wedding drew near.  Blaize filled his days finishing something he had been making for Sherrial and preparing to leave the village.  He had started building a small chest for Sherrial several weeks before Cecil had stumbled upon her and ruined his life.  Blaize decided that he might as well finish it and give it to her as a wedding present so she would know that he was not upset with her.  He had also decided that as soon as he had delivered the chest, he would leave before the wedding to find adventure in the world.  He had always wanted to leave the village and make his way out into the world but had never had a good enough reason to leave his home until now.  He didn’t want to be anywhere near where his only love would be living with another man.  Blaize had heard that Cecil had visited the village several times to make sure that Sherrial was being taken care of and that the wedding was to go on as planned despite some bickering among the nobles about Cecil marrying a peasant.

Blaize finally finished the chest the day before the wedding.  He hadn’t seen her since she had made her decision.  He hoped she would accept his gift.  It wasn’t as fancy and expensive as the things Cecil would give her, but it was sturdy and well crafted.  Blaize had used strong wood for the chest and had spent hours carving vines and sunburst flowers all over it.  He spent the rest of the day packing his few belongings so he would be ready to leave with first light in the morning.  As night fell, he realized that he could stall no longer, and picking up the wooden chest, he slowly made his way over to the cottage that Sherrial shared with her father.  When he arrived, he realized that this was going to be harder than he had thought it would be.  He set the chest down and took a deep breath before knocking several times on the door.  After a minute, the door finally swung open, exposing Sherrial’s father.

“Sorry I took so long.  I was busy trying to, oh, it’s just you.”  The graying, short man frowned as he realized who was at the door.  “Now, Blaize, I thought that you had gotten the message already.  Sherrial is marrying Cecil tomorrow and doesn’t need you here trying to make her feel bad because she chose him over you.  I would suggest you get out of here before I grow upset.”

“I’m not here to make her feel bad,” Blaize said softly.  “I just wanted to bring her a wedding gift since I’m leaving in the morning.”  Blaize picked up the wooden chest.  “Is it all right if I bring it inside?”

“I guess so, but hurry up.”

Blaize stepped inside the house and gently laid the chest down.  He had hoped he would be able to say goodbye to Sherrial, but he figured it was probably better this way.

“All right, you’ve delivered your gift, so it’s time for you to go.  I’m glad you’re leaving in the morning so that I don’t have to see you moping around the village anymore. Good luck.”

Blaize thanked him for letting him leave the chest and started to walk out the door.

“Daddy, who are you . . .”

Blaize froze in mid step at the sound of Sherrial’s voice.  He turned around slowly to find her staring at him from the open door of her bedroom.

“Blaize was just leaving sweetie.  He brought over a wedding gift but needs to get home so he’ll be ready to leave in the morning.”

Blaize continued to stare at Sherrial as her father pushed him through the door.  Sherrial looked down at the elaborately carved chest and then back at Blaize.  She looked like she was trying to decide what to say as the door was slammed shut in front of his face.  He turned slowly and started to walk away as the door burst back open.

“Blaize, wait a minute.  Will you come inside and talk to me for a few moments.”

Blaize smiled as Sherrial took his hand and led him back inside the house.  Sherrial’s father mumbled something under his breath as he grabbed his pipe and went out on the porch to smoke it.  They stood in silence for a few moments before Sherrial finally spoke up.

“Did you make the chest yourself?”

“I started it a long time ago for you and decided to finish it up for your wedding.”  They stood quietly for a while longer until Blaize could not handle the silence.  “I guess I better be going.  I just wanted to bring this by and let you know that I will always love you.”

As soon as the words were out of Blaize’s mouth, he quickly turned to go, realizing what he had just said.  He was stopped short as Sherrial’s soft hand grabbed his arm.

“Did you just say you loved me?”  Blaize nodded his head as tears began to stream down Sherrial’s face.  “I didn’t know.  I thought the reason you left me was because you didn’t really love me.  That’s the only reason I went on with the wedding.”

Blaize stared at her dumbfounded.

“I left because I thought the wedding was what you wanted.  I’m so sorry.”  He stepped forward and enveloped Sherrial in his massive arms.  “I didn’t know.  I didn’t know.”  Blaize held tight to Sherrial as they stood in silence.

“It’s all right, Blaize,” Sherrial finally said.  “At least we found out before the wedding.  If you hadn’t come here tonight, I would have made the biggest mistake of my life.”

“What are you going to do, just tell Cecil tomorrow that you changed your mind?  He won’t let you get away with it.”

“That’s true.”  After a brief pause, Sherrial continued, “I could disappear with you tomorrow morning when you leave.”

Blaize chuckled as he glanced down into her enchanting eyes.

“I’m serious, Blaize.  I don’t know what else to do.  That’s the only thing I can think of.”

“If that’s what you want.”  Blaize could not believe it.  “I can leave as soon as you’re ready.”

Sherrial beamed her smile up at Blaize, and he felt her warmth.  He was happier than he had ever been.  In the morning they would be away from the village.  They would venture out into the world together.  Blaize’s cheerful thoughts were shattered as Sherrial’s father began yelling from the porch.

“You get off my property now!  I won’t put up with any more of your taunting.  The wedding is going on as planned.”

“What’s going on?” Blaize asked Sherrial as he made his way towards the door.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Sherrial replied as she shrugged her thin shoulders.  “A few troublemakers have been coming by the house the last few nights threatening us if I go through with the marriage.  They say that no peasant scum is going to become the new baroness.  They haven’t done anything but make noise.  They’re harmless.”

As Blaize reached the door and looked outside, he was not so sure how harmless they were.  Sherrial’s father stood in front of the porch glaring at nearly a dozen men armed with clubs and swords.  The men did not appear as harmless as Sherrial had made them sound.

“You get off my property right now or I’ll . . .”

“Or you’ll do what old man,” one of the men said, cutting off Sherrial’s father.  “You aren’t going to do anything to us, but we are definitely going to do something to you.  We warned you to call off the marriage.”  The man who had been doing all of the talking walked forward to stand toe to toe with Sherrial’s father.  “We warned your little jade to stay away from the baron’s son, but she didn’t listen,” he spat.  “Now you and the wench are going to pay!”

“I better go out there and help your father,” Blaize whispered to Sherrial.  “Have this many come before?”

“No, usually there are only a few of them, but don’t worry about it,” Sherrial whispered back.  “They’re all talk.  They aren’t going to do anything.  They’ve just been hired by some noble to try to scare me into not marrying Cecil.  I guess it really doesn’t matter now anyway.”

Blaize still felt uneasy about what was happening.  A dozen shady looking men with weapons coming in the night did not seem like nothing to him.  Seeing Sherrial’s father’s glare on the man in front of him, Blaize wondered if the old man might be able to back them off with his glare alone.  After a few more tense moments, the leader of the ruffians shrugged, took a step back, and turned to leave.  However, Sherrial’s sigh of relief was cut short as the man spun back around with his blade bared and drove it into her father’s stomach.  The old man gasped in surprise before slumping to the ground as Sherrial screamed from the doorway.

“Now for the wench.  Let’s be done with this,” the leader spat.

Blaize pushed the hysterical Sherrial back into the room as he slammed the door shut and bolted it in hopes of slowing the advancing mob.  Blaize looked around desperately for something to use as a weapon while Sherrial continued to weep for her father.  He found the poker next to the fire place and made his way back towards the door that was now being bombarded with hard thuds from the outside.  The old door shook with every thud, and Blaize knew it would not hold out much longer.  Sherrial made her way to Blaize’s side and put her arms around him.

“We’re as good as dead,” she said quietly from her tear stained face.  “At least I will die beside the man I love.”

Blaize gently pushed her away from him and towards the door at the back of the room.

“We’re not dead yet, Sherrial,” Blaize said with a voice of steeled determination.  “I won’t let them harm you.  I almost lost you once, and I’m not going to lose you now.”  A tremendous thud smashed into the door, sending splinters flying.  “Just stay back.  I won’t let them get near you.”

Blaize turned from Sherrial’s face.  She was beautiful beyond anything he had ever seen despite her puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks.  No one would harm his future wife. No one!  Blaize raised the iron poker into the air as another thud almost broke the door in.  He did not know how he was going to stop a dozen men with only a poker, but he knew that he had to.  He could bear death but not the death of his Sherrial.  The door suddenly exploded inward as a man came crashing through it.  Blaize swung the poker down as hard as he could on the disoriented man’s head.  As the man collapsed to the floor, another one came in through the empty door frame waving a sword above his head.  Blaize immediately lunged forward impaling the man with his poker.  As the man slumped to the ground in surprise, Blaize snatched the sword from his hand and brought it up in front of him just in time to block the downward stroke of another ruffian’s sword.  Blaize blocked another stroke before driving his blade into the heart of his opponent.

Blaize pulled the blade quickly out of the limp body, kicking it to the side to give him ground to fight on.  Another man came rushing through the doorway with a wooden club raised above his head and screaming with fury.  Blaize’s sword flashed across in front of him, ending the man’s screams.  He held his blade in front of him as this time two men slowly entered through the splintered door frame.  One of them lunged forward greedily but was stopped short as Blaize’s sword sliced into him.  Blaize leapt backwards too slowly as the second man swung his sword, leaving a shallow gash across Blaize’s stomach.  Blaize immediately leaped forward over one of the fallen bodies to bring his sword crashing down on the man.  As the man’s body crumpled to join the bodies already littering the floor, two men with large clubs rushed into the room through the door.  One leaped at Blaize instantly and found himself skewered on Blaize’s sword.

Before Blaize could pull his sword free, the second man’s club came crashing down on his outstretched forearm.  His arm went numb as stabbing pain cascaded away from the strike.  Blaize screamed in pain and rage as he swung his left fist into the man’s wicked grin.  As the man stumbled back, Blaize kicked him as hard as he could in the stomach.  The man doubled over, and Blaize brought his boot up crashing into the man’s chin.  Blaize leaped to retrieve the man’s club as he fell to the ground and three more men poured through the doorway.  He gripped the club in his left hand and spun around.  The club whistled through the air before cracking into the closest man’s skull and ricocheting from Blaize’s hand.  As the man collapsed, Blaize turned to face the other two.  One of them was already upon him.  Blaize dropped to his knee as the man’s sword whistled over his head.  Blaize then jumped up catching the man’s wrist with his left hand.  The man tried to break free of Blaize’s grip but could not.  Blaize held on tightly as the man swung around behind him and tried to choke him.  Blaize threw his head backwards, smashing the man’s face.  The man let go of his sword and stumbled backwards, bringing his hands up to his bloodied face.  Blaize snatched the sword as it fell and spun around quickly finishing the man off.

Blaize then turned to face the third man.  He had been standing back watching but now was ready to fight.  He drew his sword and eyed Blaize warily as he slowly moved towards him.  Blaize held tightly to the hilt of the blade and kept it between him and the third man.  The man suddenly sprang into action, slashing furiously at Blaize.  Blaize deflected the first stroke but the second glanced off his sword and nicked his right shoulder.  Grimacing with pain, Blaize took the offensive and slashed back at the ruffian.  Both swords clashed together in a rain of sparks.  Blaize kept slashing with the remainder of his strength and slowly had the man backed against the wall.  Rearing back, Blaize swung his sword as hard as he could against his opponent’s blade, shattering it.  Before Blaize could strike again, the man drove the jagged remains of his sword into Blaize’s thigh.  Blaize screamed in pain as his sword delivered a death blow to the man.