The night was dark as ever. The darkness brightened the twin moons' pale light, a reminder that the shadows cannot put out the light; they can only make it burn brighter.
As six tall, strong figures travelled under the bleak black sky, all else was motionless, and silent. It was an atmosphere far worse than any spooky place imaginable.
The situation was just as grim. Each of the six people knew of the fate at hand; should they fail, all of Britannia may be doomed. The future of the entire realm was on their shoulders, a weight that they could hardly bear.
All of a sudden, their leader motioned to them to stop. He thrust his sword into the ground. "We will leave the blessed weapons and armour that served us so well right here. You all know of our coming fate. Should we not return, may these remain to serve Britannia."
Though they all wanted to protest, they all hesitated, and said nothing. The five followers recognised the look on the leader's face to be a grieved one, although they could not see it properly. They could feel his same emotions and his same feelings inside them.
It grieved all six of them that they wanted to succeed and remain to serve Britannia, but it might not happen. After a moment of consideration after the hesitation, they shared his same opinion that their unique weapons and armour that had saved them once before should not be lost with them, in case they would perish.
One after another, the travellers planted their swords in the earth beneath their feet, and removed their armour, putting it around their swords. The leader proceeded to remove his, and put it in front of his sword, rather than on it. He then donned some heavy armour, as his companions put on theirs. Before resuming their journey, one of the companions took some magic axes from his backpack and distributed them among his friends. It grieved them more than ever to leave their weapons and armour behind, but they had to think of Britannia's own good, not just their own happiness.
The expression on the leader's face quickly transformed from a grieved one to a serious and determined look. "I can see the river. Shame must be at its root." one of them said as they started moving. The leader raised his axe, and signalled to his followers. Together, they travelled south, to their destiny.
© by Daniel D'Agostino 2002-2025