The Sword of Sabinus - Chapter 1

Book One: The Sword of Sabinus

Chapter One

A thin, winding driveway branched off from the side of the road, leading back to a small cottage. The windows were either shattered or covered with rotting boards. At first glance it looked deserted, but a faint light shone in one of the windows.

Sean thought that it looked different than he remembered, maybe it was just that he was seeing it at night. Years ago there had been a small flower patch near the doorway, but only a few reeds remained.

Weather had long since taken its toll on the house, cracking the walls and flinging shingles from the roof. He couldn't imagine a scene that would symbolize abandonment better than what he saw before him.

"This is it," his voice broke the silence.

Matt looked up from what he was doing and stared at the cabin, "It's changed a lot."

"But this is where she said."

"I know. The old hangout."

Sean stepped on the brake and pulled onto the grass alongside the driveway. There were cars already parked in front of the house, taking up most of the space. He turned off the ignition and sat quietly for a moment.

"I guess we should head inside."

Matt shook his head slightly, "I don't know. This doesn't feel right."

"No, but we drove all this way."

"That doesn't mean we have to go in."

"Don't you want to at least see her?"

"This isn't our type of party."

Matt was probably right. Just looking at the cottage gave Sean a strange feeling. But they'd driven a long way just to get there. He was looking forward to seeing Ashley, even if just for a little while.

"Think there's any chance we'll have fun?" Matt asked.

"Never know."

"Well, I hope."

Sean opened the door and stretched his legs. There was a slight breeze that made the air chilly, but other than that, there wasn't much that showed the signs of winter approaching.

He made sure to lock the doors once Matt got out. His car was like a box with wheels glued on, so normally he didn't worry too much about it being stolen. But, seeing the other cars parked throughout the yard, it was easy to tell his was in the best condition of any.

Some music floated through the air, coming from the cottage. He couldn't make out what it was, but it had some loud bass parts in it.

"Think she's expecting us?"

Sean shrugged, "I said we'd come."

"Do you think she'll care if we're there or not?"

"Don't know."

He started walking down the driveway, trying to drive away the awkward feeling in his mind. Matt followed close behind and as always, was carrying a sketchbook at his side.

Still, there was a strange atmosphere surrounding the cottage. The air felt slimy and disgusting on him. Matt hadn't said anything more, so maybe it was just his imagination.

The porch creaked as they both made their way to the door. He knocked several times, but there was no answer at first.

He glanced at Matt. Maybe it would be better if they left. Thin trails of smoke were drifting through cracks in the door.

Sean was about to suggest returning to the car when the door swung open. Clouds of smoke poured from the doorway and made it hard to see inside.

"Sean!" Ashley rushed out through the doorway and wrapped her arms around him before he could say anything.

Her long brown hair was hanging in tangled strands across her face. As she pressed up against him, he could smell alcohol and felt that her shirt was soaked.

Her eyes almost made him step back. They had been bright green when he last saw her, but now the emeralds were bloodshot and ringed with redness.

"How are you?" he finally managed to say.

"Great. How's your life?"

"Can't complain."

"I thought you two weren't coming at first."

"We got a little lost."

She finally seemed to notice Matt and stepped over to give him a hug too, "I missed you Matty."

Matt smiled a little, "Missed you too," then sunk back into silence.

"Let's go back inside."

Sean shrugged, "I'm not so sure this is our kind of fun."

"Oh come on. You have to try new things."

"I know, but-"

"Sean, you never would have come, and I wanted to see you again."

That was probably true, but he had hoped that some things would have changed, "I know...I'm glad to see you too Ashley."

She smiled and hugged him close again, then waved for both of them to go inside. The house was completely filled with smoke that burned Sean's lungs each time he took a breath.

He saw Matt wince and ask, "What's that smell?"

"Just something my friends brought."

"Smells like something died."

Ashley laughed and didn't answer.

The inside of the house didn't look much better than the outside. The walls and ceiling were stained from smoke and other things that weren't as easy to recognize.

"You come here a lot?" Sean asked.

"On the weekends. It’s a nice spot."

"Yea, it is nice here."

Ashley spun around and smiled at both of them, "Hey, let's go back to the field."

"Sure," Matt replied quickly. He was probably as anxious as Sean to get out of the house. It was nearly impossible to breathe.

"Let me go grab a jacket, guys, you can head back," Ashley scrambled around a corner.

Sean stepped out the door and took a deep breath of fresh air. He hopped off the side of the porch and walked alongside the cottage toward the back yard.

Behind the house was a large field covered with tall grass. Back when their parents had brought them to the cottage, it had been where they played most of the day. He vaguely remembered times when they'd had pretend fights. Ashley had always been the fair princess, while he had been the heroic knight.

A fallen tree cut across the center of the field. They'd used it for a bench years ago when they'd been younger. The wood was beginning to rot away and Sean couldn't help feeling a sense of helplessness.

Matt took a seat at the far end of the log and opened up his sketchbook. He began to scribble things down onto it with a pencil.

"How can you see what you're drawing?"

"I don't look."

"Doesn't that mess us the picture?"

Matt shrugged, "I just hope for luck."

"Maybe you'd make a good gambler."

He chuckled, "One problem. No money."

The night was quiet, except for the distant hum of speakers coming from the house. Sean stretched his arms out and shivered as a light breeze swept across the field. He stared up at the sky and began counting the stars. It had been something he'd done at least a dozen times before, but never got past thirty or so before drifting off. Even now the specks of light blurred together above him.

Sean walked farther out into the field away from Matt. It was dark, but starlight lit the ground enough for him to find his way through the tall grass.

Surrounded by the night he could just let everything slip from his mind. Nothing mattered for the moment.

Some time later two arms snaked around him from behind, shattering the peace. He didn't turn, but knew from the smell that it was Ashley.

"Isn't it a nice night?" she asked.

"Beautiful."

"Don't you miss all the times we had out here?"

"Yea. Sometimes."

Her arms squeezed lightly, but the touch was empty. Meaningless. Turning, he glanced into her eyes and saw...desolation. There was no spark inside them. No spirit.

"When we were kids," she spoke softly, "You used to protect me. Remember?"

"That was a long time ago."

"Feels like it was yesterday."

More like an eternity, he thought. Sean wished for her to go no further.

"I want to be yours," she whispered.

He stepped back and shook his head, "No you don't."

"Of course I do. I've missed you so much."

"Please, just...don't say this."

In an instant her expression went from being a smile to a glare. The palm of her hand smacked into the side of his face, but there wasn't any pain. Just a dull throb, more in his chest than his head.

"I see how it is," she turned on him and walked back to where Matt was sitting.

How long ago had she changed, Sean wondered. It seemed like it'd happened without any warning, but maybe he was at fault. He'd spent the past few years doing what he wanted, and had hardly paid attention to her.

Now the results were clear, and it was painful to think he was the cause. He'd always wondered why his dreams shattered when he needed them most.

Sean followed her path back to the center of the field. He was careful where he stepped since the field was littered with rocks and small holes. Just before reaching the small clearing, the bottom on his pants snagged on something.

He almost fell, but managed to steady himself at the last moment. Reaching down he felt for what he'd nearly tripped over. He grasped something wooden in his hand and raised it to see what was there.

A small wooden likeness of a sword dangled in his grip. Like the tree-bench, it was beginning to rot, but it was recognizable. Engraved on the hilt of the sword was a small triangle with a circle above. He'd carved it years ago.

It brought a lot of memories back to him. For as long as he could remember, he'd been interested in knights and swords. He'd been inspired to take fencing lessons for a few years, but eventually was made to quit by his parents. Still, now and then he practiced his forms, and felt mildly comfortable with a blade.

Matt didn't even glance up from his sketch, but Ashley stared in wonder at the lost treasure.

"Is that your old pretend sword?" she asked.

"I think so."

"Didn't expect to see that here."

Just then a strange whining noise echoed through the field. Sean looked around the field, but saw nothing.

"What is that?" Matt asked.

Ashley shook her head, "I don't know. There aren't any other houses around here."

The sound repeated itself, but was lower, and almost sounded like a voice. Or maybe moaning.

"You sure this isn't one of your friends?" Sean asked.

Ashley shook her head, "No one else is out here."

"I'll go take a look around, then."

Sean started walking back into the field, still carrying the wooden sword. At least if it was some kind of animal, he'd have a way of defending himself.

The moaning stopped completely, but Sean still felt a strange tension in the air. A presence of some kind.

He couldn't see anything, and began wondering if the wind had just been playing tricks with his imagination. But he knew the wind didn't sound like that.

Ashley shouted out to him, "Find anything?"

"No, there's-" a swirl of movement caught his eye and pure instinct took over. Sean dived backwards just as a flash of silver streaked through the air.

"Run!" he shouted, and rolled backwards onto his feet again.

Standing before him was a tall man dressed in dull gray armor, the perfect fairytale image of a knight. In his hand was a long jagged blade that gleamed in the starlight. It was too dark to see anything other than the outline of his face and eyes, but those eyes were filled with anger.

With amazing speed, even under so much armor plating, the strange knight leapt forward and slashed out at Sean again. As best he could, Sean parried the strike with the wooden sword, hoping it wouldn't break. The knights blade slid away, but a shock ran through Sean's arms. He'd never been in an actual dual before.

The knight advanced on him and thrust his blade at Sean several more times. He blocked the strikes clumsily, but fell backwards over a rock he hadn't seen.

White teeth flashed in a triumphant grin as the knights sword rose into the air. It fell in almost slow motion as Sean struggled to bring the wooden sword to block. But the realization of the mistake struck him too late. Even had he been using a metal blade, blocking from his position was an error.

The two weapons collided, sending a tremendous shock through Sean's body. He was amazed the stick had held, but the force of the strike sent it flying from his grasp.

With all his effort, Sean kicked at the back of the knight's leg and hoped it would be enough. The metal plating was cut there to allow movement, but it still hurt his leg greatly.

Above him, the knight lost balance and fell backwards onto the ground. Sean knew it would probably be the only miracle he'd receive and jumped up onto his feet, limping toward where the wooden sword had flown.

In the distance he saw more the strange knights, mounted on horseback. They had surrounded Matt and Ashley and his friends were now being pulled up onto the backs of the steeds.

He grabbed the wooden sword up off the ground and ran, as best as he could, back to the clearing at the center of the field. In front of him a blinding light erupted from nowhere, hiding his friends and the other knights.

Without thinking, he dashed into the clearing and ran into the light after his friends. The strange light surrounded him and forced him to shield his eyes. Then complete darkness fell. The world seemed to tear at its seams and Sean was ripped apart with it.