Crow:The Wrong Believer

Crow: The Wrong Believer

He is a man that is filled only for love of his family. He is a man that would help all in need: another man in battle or a trapped animal. He was known to be as kind as a village priest; his reputation is of the highest ranking soldier of the Black Angel army. He was also very close to the young Queen Nephenee Chedon. Nephenee became Queen at a young age to the murder of her mother. Nephenee was only three.
But now, Crow and his family of three are running from the army of Black angel and raging villagers. A week prior, he let loose a secret to his trusting friend Nephenee, he told her he and his wife was practicing the arts of the Dalephians. Just before he told her, Nephenee said that he could tell her anything, although the Dalephians were a forbidden race to even speak. Nephenee acted out of rage and ordered him to be taken to the dungeons. Crow disobeyed her order and fled the castle and city, and ever since he was followed close by an army called the Seekers and bounty hunters.
Crow changed his perception after he read a book on the history of Nephenee’s mother Alicia Chedon. He received the book from a traveling merchant that was passing his village. The merchant said he was selling items only found on the land of Seles. Crow saw many items and weapons he would have did anything to have, although a book caught his eye. The merchant told Crow, after selling him the book that it was filled with the history of every Queen and king to range around the globe, he also said that it had info on the mother Queen of Black Angel and her defeat to the land of Seles. Crow was awestruck when he read of the Queen, he told his wife of the three Queens raid on the land of Seles and how they were beaten back by only two men. His wife could not believe such a book, from what she knew the Queens’ were all victorious in all their raids; she was told that the mother Queen was victorious on the raid of the Triumph’s. That was until she read the book; it told the exact date the King, Chip Triumph, was crowned fifty years before. It also spoke of how Chip was protecting the last of the Dalephian race and how he killed the immortal Colin Spade, the man that destroyed the armies the Queen Sisters sent, all four million soldiers.
Crow and his family were traveling for nearly four days in search of another village that had no word of their practices. In their travels Crow met with many mercenaries and bounty hunters, if it was not for his excellent training and knowledge of the land he and his family would have died.














Chapter 1

The day went by slow as Crow and his family traveled over the hilly terrain to reach a village. They would have made it there in less than a week if it were not for the hunters and Seekers. For the past four nights they camped in a hollow covered under brush. They were barely making it, surviving on barely ripe berries and chewing on edible insects. They were losing their energy fast and each day they would have to frequently rest.
As dusk came they made for the edge of a nearby forest, both his daughters and wife were grateful for rest. The forest was thick and the outer layer of jack pine was close together making a natural barricade, while they loosened as they walk further in.
Crow sat at the edge of the forest resting his back on a large trunk of a spruce. His wife and daughters made their way into the forest to set camp. He was happy to sit, for he has been battling fatigue since midday. He tried to muse on the distance to the nearest village, but his hunger beat his thoughts away. He looked like a battle hardened man, his face was hard with thick menacing eyebrows, some people that gazed at him would think him arrogant, yet that did not depict his personality. He wore an old black tunic ripped at the left shoulder and thin from extensive use, it was lined in a golden design on the left shoulder. He wore a large brown belt with a rusty silver belt buckle, dark brown plain trousers and silver lining knee length boots. He reached for the small light crossbow at his left side, the very crossbow he was given by the Queen for his loyal word. He could still not believe how such a good friend for years would turn on him for speaking one word. Was anyone who spoke of the Dalephians instantly reported to the Queen for her brief sentence? How was it that she was able to keep such a superior race in the darkness? The queries had his mind rolling into knots. He felt his right hip and felt his nearly empty quiver; he had less than twenty bolts left. He would hunt and actually feed his family a decent meal, but he could not leave them alone, they would have no chance against a hoard of Seekers. He alone could not defeat over fifty Seekers with only eighteen bolts. There were hundreds of Seekers under the order of Queen Nephenee after them and with the snap of her fingers, hundreds more. His thoughts halted to approaching steps from behind him, they were soft steps, barely readable, but not soft enough to catch Crow blinded. Unhooking his crossbow and loading a bolt, his finger waiting on the bronze trigger, ready for anything.
“Father?” called out the soft voice of a girl.
Elena. Crow eased, and his shoulders sagged in relief, he eased his finger away from the trigger. If she did not call out Crow would have pounced. “Over here, my daughter.” He answered his whereabouts.
The steps got closer to his direction. His eldest daughter stepped from the cover of the trees. She was a tall girl at sixteen nearly reaching Crows own six foot frame. She was a beautiful girl and well formed. Her hair was shoulder length and midnight black. Her face was soft and her innocent forest green eyes could bewitch a man with the merest of a wink. She wore men’s traveling clothes, although she could fool no one, the clothes were close fitting and pulled out her curves. She wore a dark brown hooded cloak held up with a golden brooch at her collar bone, a dark green plain sleeveless tunic and a broad belt that slumped down her left hip. She wore dark leather gauntlets, the knuckles reinforced with dark painted steel, close fitting dark leggings and thigh length rider boots. She made her way to Crow, her eyes scanning the open ground for any movement, she saw none and set down beside her father, hugging her knees. “Mother and Elanin want you to join us by the fire. Elanin caught a hare with a stone. A lucky shot it was.” Elena was a well mannered girl at her age, even in her youth she was well mannered, and she rarely got scolded for doing something wrong. She was also known as Crow’s deadly daughter, she was trained at a young age, she went through the hardships of warfare as her father, to be known as the most trust worthy body guard. But it was not Crow that wanted her to do it; it was by her own choice to learn. She begged her father to learn. At the age of five, when she and her father made their way into the city square, she saw five armed men charge Crow from a dark alley. She saw the way he took each man down, and disarmed them, his movements were fluid and balanced as a dancer. He did not take the lives of the men and told them to flee. At the time she was afraid to ask her father how he did so. After two years she brought up the night they were attacked and asked him if he could teach her how to fight. It would be another year before Crow decided to teach her all he knew.
Crow smiled at his daughter. “She is going to be just as you and I. For sure I thought she would be as her mother. But I guess not. I would have gone out to hunt but I would never leave you three alone.” He looked at his daughter. She looked up at her father. He could see very little of himself in her physically, but what he saw of him in her was bravery, courage, and smarts. She also possessed a skill of his that he was proud of; they both had adept skills to learn in moments. He gave a rueful smile. He hoped one day she would be powerful.
Elena looked away as she saw her father’s smile; she only saw the smile when he thought of the future of her and how he would not be there to see her to it. “Father,” she said after a moment of silence. “I…we should be living on the soil of Triumph’s, I heard awhile back when you told mother that they accept the ways of the Dalephian’s. If we lived there than it would never be a secret. I wish we lived there.”
Crow patted Elena on the shoulder. “Ever since you were a child I have thought of it. Not a day goes by without the thought of the soil.”
Elena sighed deeply. “So why don’t we live there?”
“Because,” said Crow, “I would have lost the heart of your mother. She did not want to break her bond with her family.”
Elena pushed closer to her father and put her head on his shoulder. “It has been a long while since grandfather and grandmother visited us. Why is it that they don’t?”
Crow looked up at the starry sky seeing constellations his father told to him before he went to battle for the mother Queen; like any other fierce warrior, Crow’s father died on the battle field. A blade pierced his back and another thrust through his throat. “The reason…” Crow broke off, recalling memories he nearly dumped. “I guess mother did not tell you…did she?”
Elena shook her head no. “I brought it up not too long ago. Mother said to ask you. She sounded angry, like it was your fault.”
“It is my fault.” Crow confessed. “And…by now you should know the reason. But if you don’t, I shall remind you: it is because of our practises in the Dalephian arts and ways.”
“No,” she said, her voice cracking. “Why would they do such a thing, I…I can’t believe it!” tears began to roll off her cheeks.
“But it is true. My good friend Nephenee turned on me also and for years we have been friends. If we were to go to your grandparent’s house in the city they would spit on our shoes and call us traitors to the human kind and Queen.”
Elena wiped away her tears with her palms. When she spoke again her voice abruptly became level. “Why? I—I can’t seem to understand why people do such things. Our friends, our family even, turned on us for believing in another religion. There are many religions that our Queen accepts. Why does she not accept Dalephian?”
Crow shook his head in agreement. “It is pure folly! She hates this religion because of one—no two—Dalephians of the Triumph Empire destroyed her mother and aunts armies. Two men destroyed millions in a heart beat; it seems insane to believe that it happened nearly half a century ago.”
Crow went on talking for the next two hours of the book. Of how Chip Triumph’s great adventure with his many friends comes to be known as the Eight Legends; of how Chip Triumph was nearly killed by his uncle Colin Spade, and when, only thirty years before, he married his childhood friend Farra Minal, a true Dalephian. Crow would have gone on longer if it were not for the calling of his wife to join her and the youngest.
Crow looked down at his daughter, her head was resting on his shoulder and she was breathing heavily, asleep. He eased his way to gently lay her on the ground. She tends to get sleepy when I tell my long stories, he thought, a smile set his face. Just like when she was a child. He stood and cradled Elena in his arms. He made his way to the camp.
As he entered the camp his eyes instantly shot to the sitting Elanin and made the quite noise she heard often.
Elanin was seated next to her mother, she wore a dirty ankle length dress of yellow with designs of forests and tulips, her dark golden hair was braided and ran down to her waist, and she wore a small pair of light colour leather shoes. Her small hands extended to the small flames where the hare hung; the smell of cooked food filled the camp. Her face brightened when Crow entered and she jumped to her feet about to exclaim how she missed her father’s company. That was until she heard him tell her to be quite. Elanin did just that and whispered loudly: “Hi, Dad!” she pointed at the hare. “I hit him all by myself, without the help of Elena.” She finished joyously. Elanin was Crow’s youngest and by far the smartest child Crow knew at age five. She was a sweet child and full of questions, some that seemed to be unexplainable and some Crow or Mara could not explain, for they had no knowledge of such a subject. She, as her sister, was also interested in the art of warfare, but unlike Elena, Elanin just liked to talk about it other than want to join. Elanin was a child that always had a smile on her face, her face was always bright. She also possessed an arcane ability to put a smile on any persons face.
Crow asked his wife, Mara, to get his cape off and set it on the ground. Mara was Crow’s true love, the only woman he could ever love. She was beautiful, strikingly, with a curvy body any man could desire. Her blue eyes were a shade of sky blue and radiated the same calmness. Her hair was waist long and golden. She wore a small tunic of blue and red hues. She wore leggings of a dark colour with a short skirt of white over. She did so, smiling. She came up from behind him wrapping her arms around his neck, pressing her body up to his. She unclipped his silver brooch and she spoke. “It’s true Crow, she did it all by herself. Elena clarified it.”
Crow felt her body push up against his, it roused him. “I believe her words, Mara; I would not deny any of her words. She is as honest as her sister.”
Mara pulled away, she spread the cape on the clear grass. “Both of the girls inherited my honesty and beauty, but what they have that I don’t is bravery.” She moved out of the way.
Crow went on his knees and set Elena on the cape gently. “You have bravery, my wife, a different kind of bravery. Mine is to charge out to battle with or without a weapon. Your bravery is to stand up for anything you think is right, from enemy, friend, even family. I would have never stood up to your father like you did.” Crow stood and as he did Mara grabbed him in a tight hug, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, resting her head on his chest.
“For you, I stood up to father. I told him how nice you were. He…he thought of you as not being man enough to be with me he would not change his word. He thought I was lying when I told him you were with the Black Angel army. His rage is great, Crow, and with his size he is deadly when enraged.”
Crow smiled at her, he ran his fingers through her waist long golden hair. “He wanted you to have a man that was like he, large and a man that looked physically able to protect you. He never wanted to see me.”
“He has fears Crow, like any other man. He does not like people in armies or even soldiers. He is afraid of being arrested. That is why he never wanted to see you. That was why mother liked it when I brought you home. It was the only time she would never be beaten.”
Crow sighed deeply, he knew her father was beating on them, he wanted to do something about it, and he could have done something about it. But he thought Mara would have given him a tongue lashing if he tried to. “Many families experience this, Mara. Only, your father was cruel. I saw the bruises on her face and the large grasp prints on her wrists and arms. That is something I would never do to you.” He kissed her on the forehead.
Mara smiled at Crow, she knew he would never do such a thing; to raise a fist to anyone was not in his nature. “I know, Crow. That is why I love you. I will follow you where ever you go.”
Crow hugged Mara back. “I thought you never wanted to leave from the bond of your family. You told me so many times.”
She lifted her hug and hugged his neck. “I wanted to stay for my mother’s sake. But just as much as I want to stay is just as much as I want to leave, I want to be as far as possible from father. I can’t do both.”
“We could have, Mara. We could have brought your mother with us to Triumph soil. But she won’t even look at us, not even her granddaughters.”
Mara was silent, she missed her mother greatly, and being in Crow’s grasp reminded her of her mother’s loving grasp. She remembers her last time in her mother’s grasp; it was only a few months before they moved from the city to a small village a mile east. Her mother’s last words to her before they departed were: “I support your every choice, my dear. No matter your choice I will support you.” Was her practicing in the Dalephian arts and ways to far to support? Crow told her how her mother reacted; he told her the exact words: “How could you bring my only daughter into such a demonic race! I trusted you and this is how you repay me!” Mara’s mother was weeping when she spoke those words. Mara began to weep. Crow was doing his best to comfort her. Mara could see her mother saying such words; she could even see her mother’s hurt face. She wept harder.
Elanin heard her mother’s cry from where she sat a few paces from the fire, she stood. She let go the small fist size rocks she was playing with and paced to where her mother and father stood before the sleeping Elena. “Daddy, why did you hurt mommy again?” she asked, her dark green eyes showed her curiosity.
Crow looked at her, his face shown puzzlement. “I would never hurt your mommy, Elanin.” He told her. “I could never hurt your mother.”
“But,” Elanin went on, “mommy woke me last night when she cried out. It was so dark. And then you, daddy, you cried out too. Did mommy hurt you too?” she waited patiently.
Mara’s tears abruptly halted and she looked up at Crow. His eyes were still fixed to Elanin, he was hard for words. “I—I wasn’t that loud…was I?” she asked urgently in a whisper.
Crow looked at Mara; he was still hard of words, after awhile he shrugged.
Mara did not want to speak of the act to her youngest just yet, she was only five and too young to know. Mara, after musing on a different subject, sniffed loudly. “Elanin,” she said cheerfully, releasing Crow and turning to Elanin, “I think dinner is ready.”
Elanin’s face brightened and she smiled in joy. “Hurray!” she exclaimed.
Her high voice woke Elena. Elena sat up rubbing at her sleepy eyes.
Crow gave Elanin an angry eye. “I told you to keep your voice down, Elanin,” he told his youngest. Elanin saw Elena sit up and gasped, she covered her mouth in both hands.
Elena turned to the fire, she was about to speak but her mother talked over.
“Ah, Elena, just in time,” she said, kneeling on the opposite side of the small fire, “dinner is ready.”
Crow moved by the fire and sat cross-legged. Elanin sat beside her mother, clapping her hands quietly in delight.
Elena moved alongside her father, she brought the cloak she lay on with her. She thanked Crow and he nodded in acceptance. “How long was I asleep?” she asked her father.
Crow smiled into as he gazed into the fire. “Not long. Two hours, I suppose. I was too caught up in telling of the book to keep track.”
An hour passed by quickly and they left the hare boneless, yet, a small hare could not fill a family of four. They were still hungry. Mara moved a few paces from the fire and lay with the sleepy Elanin, Mara hugged her close.
Crow and Elena sat before the dying fire, in a comfortable silence, both staring deeply into the fire at the colourful embers, their minds running.
Awhile went by when Crow spoke, his voice hung masked fatigue. “Elena,” he called, he turned to her and saw her eyes hung heavily. “You should go back to sleep. I can see the tire in your eyes.”
Elena looked into her father’s eyes and saw the fatigue; it hung off him as if he were burdened with a cow on his back. “I am okay,” she told him, hugging her knees. “You should sleep, father. You haven’t had any sleep for nearly two days. I’ll wake you when I get tired.”
“You sleep Elena,” he pressed on. “The young need more sleep than the old.”
“No,” she protested. “We need you at your best. If you stay awake another night…you might be overpowered if the Seekers attack.”
He looked at her and smiled merrily. “You protest like your mother. I shall sleep.” He got up and went a few paces behind Elena and lay on his side away from her. “I’ll protect you all, to death if I must. Wake me at dawn, if not, sooner.”
A few minutes passed and he was snoring.
Elena kept the fire going for the next two hours and put it out. She sat there in the darkness, silent. She was glad she did not fear the dark or the dangers that might lurk within. She wrapped her cape around herself after she felt a chill go down her back. The breeze felt as a cool hand passing across her face. She sat, her eyes scanning the darkness, awaiting her eyes to adjust. She could not understand how her father could do this, how he could stay awake in such darkness and wait patiently for one of them to awake. She, after the third hour of watch, was beginning to feel the emptiness of no company, she herself was quiet, but she needed to be in a place where there were people, or somewhere there was a quiet conversation, she liked quiet places but just as much she liked to be in the quiet company of another. It was different when she was around people, family even, when they were asleep, when they were awake she could help support a conversation, but asleep she only met silence. She stood after awhile of silence she found uncomfortable and made her way out of the camp. She nearly kicked her father before she remembered his whereabouts, she stepped over him. She broke through the cover of the trees and felt a sign on peace when she saw the moonless night and stars at the southern horizon, so bright they were without the moon. She shivered when she felt a cool breeze pass her face, a pleasurable shiver.
She found the spruce her father sat just before and sat, gazing at the horizon. Ever since she was young she would ease at the sight of the starry sky, there was something about the sky she liked. Was it the mystery of how the black sky is filled with them every night? Or of how they ever got up there in the first place? These queries could keep her awake, musing till nights end.
Her night went fast, her mind was racing, yet her senses were at the ready. Dawn broke and she was happy to see the bright golden light bathe the land and forests. She stood and stretched.
What a night, she told herself, and not a problem. She scanned the fields once again and happily saw no human movement. She made her way back into camp with a clear, calm soul.

Crow awoke in a start for his youngest leapt onto his chest telling him to wake. He sat up and Elanin clapped joyously.
“Daddy, where is Elena?” Elanin sat on her legs next to him.
“She should be here, Elanin,” he told her in a sleepy voice, he rubbed at his left eye, “unless she went for a stroll.”
“But daddy, you said that bad men are looking for us. It’s still dark.”
Crow gazed around the camp and saw that he could see nothing but darkness, he could barley see Elanin before him, he was surprised she even found him. “Where’s your mother?”
“Mommy is still sleeping, but I don’t want mommy, I want Elena.” She demanded.
“She’ll be coming back soon, Elanin.” Crow was starting to feel worry for his daughter, he never wanted her out of his sight. When she said she was going to keep watch he expected her to stay in the camp. He wanted to search for her but if he left in search Elanin would wake her mother and tell her Crow left, it would leave Mara in a constant worry. He decided not to go, his eldest daughter was trained by him, and his confidence was with her. Crow looked at his youngest and smiled. “There is none to worry, my Elanin, she will come back. Go back to sleep.”
Elanin gave a disappointed sigh and marched heavily to where her mother lay. She set down beside her mother and pulled her mother’s arm over her shoulders. She slept again within minutes.
Crow lay back down and slept.

Elena paced quietly into the camp and saw that her family was still peacefully asleep. She knelt before her father and saw how serene his face looked. It was still quite dark in the camp and surprisingly warm. She did not want to wake him, but she had to, he asked her to wake at dawn and she had to comply. Elena gripped at his shoulder, she was about to shake him awake. An iron grip clamped onto her wrist and she cried out in pain.
Crow’s eye instantly opened to the scream, what he did not know was that he was what made her scream in pain was he. He released her.
Both Mara and Elanin’s heads bobbed up, their eyes were instantly filled with fear. Mara sat up gripping Elanin close.
Elena pulled her wrist close and rubbed at it softly, trying to nurse the pain away. “I did not see that coming, Father!” she snapped angrily at him, her voice and face bore no pain she felt throbbing through her wrist.
Crow raised himself onto his left elbow and rubbed a palm to his sleepy left eye. “I—I am sorry, Elena.” He apologised. “I…It’s reaction, my instinct.”
“I am not angry with this pain you caused me, father. I am angry for you did not teach me how to be deadly in sleep.”
He pushed himself to sit up. “That, Elena, is nearly impossible to teach to another. It is only self-taught. Did you see the way your mother and Elanin woke and your mother gripped Elanin close. That is a mother’s instinct to protect her child.”
Elena fisted her left hand and opened it, the pain began to recede. “I understand. But I still wake drowsy and slow in mind.”
“Practice,” said Crow.
“It makes perfect,” added Elena’s mother. She looked at Elanin and saw her face red; she did not realize she was gripping Elanin so hard. She let Elanin go.
Elanin sighed deeply when the pressure loosened and she sat. She smiled at her older sister and waved. “Practice,” she said with enthusiasm. “I missed you last night. Where were you?” Elanin stood, crossing her arms in an irritated manner, her face expressing her irritation.
Elena smiled at her sister. Besides Elena’s mother and father, Elanin was the only person to give Elena a joyous smile. “I did not travel far, just the outer layer. I kept watch and saw nothing of a threat.”
“Good,” said Crow, standing and stretching. “We should be leaving soon; it was dangerous just staying the night.”
Mara stood and stretched also. “Yes,” she agreed, “we should start out early.”
“Are we walking again?” asked Elanin.
“We are,” answered Mara.
Elanin gave a pout to the answer.
“It won’t be much longer Elanin,” Elena told her sister; she stood and eyed her father, “right?”
“Not far now,” Crow told her, “we may make it to a village by midday.”
They stayed in the camp for another half hour. Crow explained to them that they were still to travel north east. Before they departed Crow did his best not to leave any clues behind. But when it came to concealing things he was very bad. He scattered the rocks round the pit and used the flattened brush to conceal the darkened pit. He knew that the pit would set the grass on flame; he did it to press the minds of the Seekers on a different course for them to get distance. He took chunks of the skeletal hare and hurled them in all directions. After he felt satisfied he and his family departed, staying close to the forest’s edge.