The Legend of Layth the Hunter, Guardian of Birchwood Plains. A Friend To All! (Well, I didnt hear about this until today, so I wrote this in about two hours tonight. Hope you enjoy it!) “At some point in our lives we come to some type of crossroad, a life changing moment. A moment when we have to decide what kind of person we must become. A moment that sets our life in a whole different direction. The human instinct is a curious thing, and often I find that our instincts change based off of which roads we take. Where one being’s instinct may be to run to aid a person in need, another’s might be to run away. Furthermore, the choices that we make are not just those that affect us, but others as well. Be brave. It is the Guardian’s way” -as stated by Layth, A fallen Guardian. Always remembered. (as read on his tombstone…) Dreams are so curious to me. While you experience them, the real world doesn't exist. You enter what seems like a whole different universe for a night, a whole new realm of possibilities. In this particular dream, I saw a woman. She was human, beautiful. Wait, no. Beyond that, she was almost celestial. Her pale skin almost glowed in the autumn sun. Copper colored eyes beamed at me. Yes, she was celestial indeed. At first we seemed to be strangers, but then we were more. As the seconds passed (more likely minutes in the real world) I realized that I loved her. She did in fact exist. Or she did at one time. She slowly began to wonder into the wood, near where we lived, I had realized. She laughed and begged me to chase her as a young girl popped out from behind a tree. Elisa was the little girls name. My daughter. My heart leaped and I ran towards them. But the closer I got the more sullen their faces became. The darker the skies. The thicker the wood became. Shadows overcast me, taking whatever light I once had. “Laila!” I screamed, but only silence came forth. My wife and daughter sank into the darkness, but not before our eyes met one final moment. Despair was what I saw. As they faded away into nothingness, a glimpse of green, bright but hidden, swallowed them whole. And there he was, darkness incarnate! The ghostless man. The thorn that drained the hearts of New Highland in a pool of blood red and bright green. It is at this point in dreams, that they become somewhat of reality. And it was at this point that I awake. ------- ----- ---------- -------- ---------- --------- - - - - -------------------- - - - - - --------- - -- - - ------------ Layth sat up, drenched in sweat. Smoke billowed behind him in the dark, though he could not see, he could smell. A Fallen Ketch lay waste somewhere, miles away. Ghost materialized in front of him, “did you dream again?” it asked. “Do you understand how annoying that is?” Layth sat up and rubbed his eyes and blinked wildly. “So..” Ghost paused, “yes?” Layth sighed and stood up, “We should keep moving” “Im not so sure about that..” “Why?” “Im picking up movement a few clicks out” “Well thats was expected” Layth said, putting his helmet on. The sun had begun to rise through the trees and outlined the smoke stack coming from the Fallen wreckage. “No.” Ghost said, “Its human” Layth stopped and looked at Ghost, “Well, better now than never” he said as he pulled his hood over his head, and began to make his hike down the hill. “Oh boy” Ghost stated, unenthused. There was a certain stench to Darkness. It wasn't like a rotted corpse, it was worse. It was a feeling. A feeling of sullen, depression, and destain. It seemed to have been following Layth for a long time now. The darkness affected most humans just the same, but not Guardians. It takes much more than the Darkness to turn a Guardian away from the Travelers power. It takes choice, something much more controllable. For the last nine months, Layth had been tracking someone, or something. A being, overtaken by the Darkness. A creature that had the training of a Guardian, yet had no Ghost. Who bore a weapon not like any other. A weapon that slowly drained the life out of its victims. Merchants and mercenaries told Layth it was called, Thorn. But that it was only legend. This man, or shadow of a man, had massacred New Highland close to twelve months prior. Came in the night and disappeared by morning. Layth was assigned to protect New Highland, but had been gone, tracking Fallen that were sighted in the mountains nearby. Not one man, woman, or child was spared. Not one house burned, or table overturned. Just people, lifeless people. It wasn't the first time, Layth had found through his journeys. Layth’s wife and daughter among those killed. . “Dont you think were getting just a little close?” Ghost asked as they reached the break in the trees, revealing part of the crashed Ketch. “Would you shut up? We need these supplies.” “We?” Layth stopped and crouched down, behind a tree. “It doesnt appear that the Fallen are around” Ghost concluded. “They must have…” “Must have headed off late afternoon day prior yesterday, right after they crashed.” Layth finished. “Woulda thought they'd stuck around, but look” Layth pointed. The sun now out, revealing several people gathering up parts and pieces of the ship, including some left over supplies left by the Fallen. A branch cracked behind him. In one fluid movement, Layth turned around, hand cannon drawn aiming it at a young girl who had unknowingly snuck up behind him. She stood, holding wreckage, dirt covered her clothes. Her mouth dropped, along with everything she was holding. “Are you?” She began Layth dropped his gun and turned around. Several of the scavengers had congregated near him. “We must take you to Master Chen’le!” the girl said, pulling his arm. He hadn't seen this many people at once, not since New Highland. He thought the Fallen or Hive had wiped most settlements out. The girl walked Layth a few meters into the wood to a transport, “I’ll be back in an hours time, I promise!” the girl yelled back to the rest of the group who were still staring. “Who are you?” Ghost asked, materializing “Whoa! are you a real Ghost?” the girl exclaimed, smile bursting, “ We are people of the Plain..does he not talk?” She side nodded at Layth beside her. “Sorry”Layth said, “Where are you taking us?” “ I just told you! The Plain!” she happily announced as they transport hovered out of the forest into a field. A large town inhabited the farthest side. “Whats your name?” Layth asked “I’m Hermia! And this is Birchwood Plains!” she explained as they pulled up to what seemed to Layth as a front gate, “Ive found a Guardian! Please get Master Chen’le! Please as fast as you can!” The gate opened, and a moment later a middle aged man came trotting over. He stopped a good distance away from the transport, as Layth got out, he moved closer. “What a pleasure this is!” Chen’le welcomed, “A Guardian in our courts again, what an honour it is. An honour indeed!” Layth didn't know what to do. He had been on the road for so long. Nights alone, missed meals, no bed. Haunted by the ghostless man, he was perplexed. Chen’le stood there grinning, awkwardly. Layth lifted his helmet off this head and Ghost stored it for him, “My name is Layth” “Well, Layth, welcome to the Plains” Chen’le motioned for him, “Let me show you your room” That night Layth told his many stories of his travels. Battles with the Fallen, skirmishes with Hive. Yet he kept the tale of the ghostless man to himself. It was not something you should tell at first meeting, or ever. Truth be told, though Layth be broken and torn regarding the loss of his family, to see his kind care for such a stranger, brought hope and peace back into his heart. But, the tale of the ghostless man never left his mind. It wasn't that Layth had given up hope in avenging his family, It was that he decided the closer he got to revenge, darkness, and evil, the harder it would be for him to come back. Maybe it was a selfish choice, but it was his choice all the same. Birchwood Plains needed a Guardian, and it wasn't just 5 years after Layth was brought, that the Hive invaded. Layth led a small force in defense of the town. The Hive were pushed back and defeated! Birchwood lost its greatest hero that day, a sacrifice Layth was willing to make. A choice he wasn't able to make for New Highland. But a choice he would never change, even if given the opportunity. ------------------------ ----- - - - - - ----------------------- - - - - - ------------------------------- - - ----------------- “At some point in our lives we come to some type of crossroad, a life changing moment. A moment when we have to decide what kind of person we must become. A moment that sets our life in a whole different direction. The human instinct is a curious thing, and often I find that our instincts change based off of which roads we take. Where one being’s instinct may be to run to aid a person in need, another’s might be to run away. Furthermore, the choices that we make are not just those that affect us, but others as well. Be brave. It is the Guardian’s way” -as stated by Layth, A fallen Guardian. Always remembered. (as read on his tombstone in Birchwood Plains)